West Virginia daily

By Chris Graham/AFP Warrenton mayor George Fitch is intent on getting across the notion that he is running all out for the Republican Party gubernatorial nomination. His opponent for the nomination might be able to outspend him by a 70-1 margin between now and the June 14 primary, but hey, what's a lack of walking-around money when you're trying to reach the hearts and minds of the voters? How about an asset.

By Chris Graham/AFP The race for the job of Virginia governor just got a bit more expensive. "If you have the money, it's never too early for TV," University of Virginia Center for Politics chief of staff Ken Stroupe said on Monday, reacting to the news that presumptive Democratic Party gubernatorial nominee Tim Kaine had launched the first television ad spots of the 2005 campaign.

By Chris Graham/AFP The announcement late Monday of Frank Lucente as the new appointee to Waynesboro City Council had been predicted for weeks by, you know, people on the street. It was such the unkept secret that mayor Tom Reynolds felt the need to defend the move to appoint Lucente to the open at-large seat on the governing body even before it had been made official.

By Chris Graham/AFP Sean Connaughton was touting his move to go to the air. Bill Bolling was talking up his appearance at a pair of late-week debates. "By all accounts, Sen. Bolling won both debates by talking about his experience in state government and his commitment to important conservative principles," a Bolling campaign news release reported on Monday, referring to two debates ...

By Chris Graham/AFP The word in Virginia political circles on Monday was that there had been a major shakeup in the Chap Petersen for lieutenant governor campaign over the weekend. It appears that the stories that were circulating around the Commonwealth were at least partly true. Opel Simmons will continue to serve in a consulting role to the Fairfax delegate's campaign, but will no longer serve as campaign manager ...

By Chris Graham/AFP Bridgewater College political-science professor and political analyst David McQuilkin was among the Shenandoah Valley residents who were push-polled last week by Focus on the Family Action. He didn't get too far into the group's survey, though. "I didn't give the right answers, I suppose," said McQuilkin of the survey, which posed questions to participants on the process set by the United States Constitution for appointing judges ...

By Chris Graham/AFP If it seems like it has been quiet on the Interstate 81 widening front in recent months, it's because it has been. "It's hard to keep people's attention to this because there are so many lulls in this process," said Dale Bennett, the executive vice president of the Richmond-based Virginia Trucking Association, who will be taking part in a community forum on I-81 issues being held this evening ...

By Chris Graham/AFP The Frontier Culture Museum in Staunton has hit a bit of a snag in its plans to disassemble and move an 18th-century mill from Shenandoah County to the Queen City. A single bid was profferred by a firm in Orange to take care of the disassembly and move of the historic Zirkle Mill - and it came in significantly over what museum officials had projected the cost for the work would be.

By Chris Graham/AFP Lexington City Council is meeting tonight at 7 p.m. at City Hall on 300 E. Washington St. The public is invited and encouraged to attend. The agenda for tonight's meeting includes ...

By Chris Graham/AFP Harrisonburg City Council is meeting tonight at 7:30 p.m. in the city-council chambers in the City Municipal Building. The public is invited and encouraged to attend.

The Augusta Free Press is an independent publication serving Staunton, Waynesboro and Augusta County, Virginia.

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