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First Lady Michelle Obama received a warm welcome from the students and teachers at an elementary school Wednesday where she promoted new tougher nutrition standards for school meals. The students clapped and cheered as Mrs. Obama entered the cafeteria at Parklawn Elementary School in Alexandria, Va. The first lady, who was was joined by celebrity chef Rachael Ray and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, picked up food from the lunch line before sitting with the kids and teachers. Obama and Vilsack unveiled the updated nutrition standards for school meals required by the 2010 school nutrition bill.

How many children can say they have had lunch with the First Lady? Parklawn Elementary School students were joined Wednesday by First Lady Michelle Obama, who visited the school during lunchtime to unveil new national health standards for school cafeteria meals. “When we send our kids to school, we expect that they won’t be eating the kind of fatty, salty, sugary foods that we try to keep them from eating at home,” Obama said during a meeting with parents and press in Parklawn’s library before having a turkey-taco lunch with second- and fourth-grade students in the cafeteria. The school’s menu...

Girl Scouts will no longer be able to meet at a local church because of a connection with Planned Parenthood. Several Girl Scout troops in Chantilly, Virginia have been banned from meeting at a local Catholic church and a neighboring school.St. Timothy Catholic Church says that scouts won’t be allowed to meet or wear their uniforms on church property. The edict also applies to the adjacent St. Timothy School, which enrolls students from preschool to eighth grade.The decision stems from what the church calls an affiliation with Planned Parenthood by the Girl Scouts parent organization, The World Association of...

Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell (R) plans to join Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney at an event in Virginia next week, according to the governor's office. Virginia's Lieutenant Governor Bill Bolling will also attend what the governor's weekly schedule called a "grassroots event" at the Fairfax County Republican Committee Headquarters in Northern Virginia. Romney's campaign will swing through Virginia next week, starting with a fundraising event in McLean on Tuesday evening. Virginia is a likely swing state in 2012. Bolling has already indicated his support of Romney, but McDonnell said earlier this week that he won't endorse a Republican candidate until...

A zoning board in Fairfax County, Va., is standing firm in its decision to order a war veteran to destroy a tree house he built for his two young sons. County officials determined Mark Grapin, an Army aviation specialist, violated zoning regulations when he built a tree house in his backyard. “The boys wanted a tree house,” Grapin told Fox News Radio, explaining it was a promise he made to his 8-year-old and 10-year-old sons before he left for Iraq. “It was a commitment I made to the boys and, frankly, we should do our best to keep our commitments...

<p>The first phase of the Dulles rail project — extending Metrorail service to Dulles Airport and Loudoun County — is scheduled for completion in December 2013. An important part of the project is underway in the Tysons Corner area.</p> <p>The Metrorail extension through Tysons Corner has burned through more than 70 percent of its contingency fund. With two years of construction remaining, the jurisdictions paying for the line — and Dulles Toll Road drivers — could be on the hook for millions in possible cost overruns, transportation experts say.</p>

Fairfax County Police are investigating after a 34-year-old man with a gun was shot and killed in front of his Centreville, Va., home. The incident happened shortly after 1:30 a.m. in the 6100 block of Kendra Way. Fairfax County Police were called to the home for a disturbance Once at the scene, Fairfax County Police said the suspect approached them from his ground level garage armed with a gun. They say they told him to drop the weapon, but he refused and shots were fired.

FAIRFAX, Va. -- Resort-style swimming pools with fountains and heated spas, billiards rooms, granite counter tops, ceramic tile, indoor basketball courts, stainless steel appliances -- many Fairfax County taxpayers cannot afford such luxuries. But they are paying for these amenities for use by low-income residents who live in subsidized housing in affluent neighborhoods. "They're a part of our rental program where we subsidize the rents for the individuals in the units, and we end up having to pick up the condo fees," supervisor Pat Herrity told 630 WMAL News. Herrity does not advocate putting low-income residents in "ghetto-style" housing but...

<p>Fox News has just reported that a suspect connected with the suspicious parked car at the Pentagon is a Marine Lance Corporal Reservist. The police have described him as "a derranged man," but do not think he is part of a terrorist group. The guy is 22/23 years old, an African American, and a muslim.</p>

The use of BB guns and other air-powered weapons will soon be legal on private property throughout Virginia, angering Northern Virginia officials whose constituents live in heavily populated areas. "For our area, it is insane," said state Sen. Dave Marsden, D-Fairfax. "It's one thing to do this in any rural area, but to allow it in a suburban or urban area like much of Northern Virginia?" "Pneumatic weapons" - from paintball guns to pellet guns that shoot at 1,000 feet per second -- have long been treated as regular firearms under Fairfax County's code. Their use is generally prohibited in...

Not long ago, honors courses were considered a hallmark of student achievement, a designation that impressed colleges and made parents beam. Now, those courses are vanishing from public schools nationwide as administrators move toward a more inclusive curriculum designed to encourage underrepresented minority students to join their high-achieving peers in college-level Advanced Placement classes. Fairfax County’s public schools are at the forefront of the movement, nudging would-be honors students toward more-rigorous AP courses, despite criticism from some parents that eliminating honors will have the reverse effect and lead some students to choose less-demanding “standard education” classes instead of AP. Honors...

A PE teacher falsely accused of molesting a 12-year-old schoolgirl has spoken of his pain at telling his children he was going to be arrested. Sean Lanigan was pulled out of a class in Fairfax, Virginia, and told he was going to be arrested for allegedly carrying out the offences. In reality his 'crimes' had been invented and the schoolgirl bore a grudge against him. Despite being cleared of all the offences, the teacher’s $125,000 legal fees still haven’t been repaid by the state and he is struggling to get his life back. The young girl claimed that the teacher...

Northern Virginia Community College, Annandale, Virginia - THE PRESIDENT: Hello, everybody! Thank you! Thank you so much. Everybody have a seat, have a seat. It’s good to be back. Good to be back in Annandale. Good to be back at NOVA. How is everybody doing? (Applause.) I want to make a couple of acknowledgments. First of all, Congressman Gerry Connolly is here. (Applause.) Dr. George Gabriel, the provost of Northern Virginia Community College, is here. (Applause.) And the president, Bob Templin, is here. (Applause.) It is great to be back. I keep on coming back because Jill Biden tells me...

FAIRFAX, Va. - To bear or not to bear arms? That is the question of the week at George Mason University. A group calling itself Students for Concealed Carry on Campus say this is "Gun Week" at George Mason. They are trying to call attention to their plight for the right to carry concealed weapons on the university property. Leading the charge is a former marine and current criminal justice major, Karolyn Galarza. "I have a concealed handgun permit for Virginia and I believe that I should be able to carry on campus because I have a concealed handgun permit,"...

Montgomery County's top administrator banks a higher salary than the vice president of the United States. Ditto for Fairfax County's executive. And the District's police chief is paid more than the chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court and speaker of the House. Dozens of local officials earn better wages than the nation's marquee power players under compensation packages that soar past those for comparable positions statewide, showing that smaller-scale, public-sector jobs don't always come with a pay cut. The benchmark for managers' salaries has jumped well beyond the six-figure plateau, as some command wages around a quarter-million dollars each...

TYSONS CORNER, Va. - The 50-year-old grandmother accused with throwing her granddaughter to her death off a parking garage walkway has been charged with murder. Carmela Dela Rosa allegedly threw two-and-a-half-year-old Angelyn Ogdoc off a sixth floor outdoor walkway at Tysons Corner Center around 7:15 p.m. Monday, Fairfax County Police spokesperson Tawny Wright tells WTOP. She is currently being held without bond at the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center. Dela Rosa, of Fairfax, was walking with other family members Monday evening when in a matter of seconds she picked up and threw the girl off the walkway, Wright says. Emergency...

A Fairfax woman has been arrested and charged with throwing a toddler over the railing of a fourth-floor outdoor walkway at Tysons Corner Center Monday night, police said.

(CNSNews.com) – A Fairfax County high school last month told teachers to let cheating students retake tests so they wouldn’t receive zeros, the Washington Post reported. In a Nov. 5 e-mail to teachers, West Potomac High School Principal Cliff Hardison said cheating should "result in a disciplinary consequence separate from an academic consequence." This is the same Fairfax County high school that asked teachers to mostly banish F's from report cards, the newspaper said. According to the Washington Post, Hardison – responding to complaints from parents and teachers – later reverted to the old policy of giving zeroes to cheaters,...

WASHINGTON - The D.C. area makes plenty of Top 10 lists, and this one shows its residents make the big bucks. According to a new report from Newsweek, seven of the nation's 10 richest counties are in this region.

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approved an extension for the Islamic Saudi Academy (ISA), an Islamic high school in Alexandria, Virginia. The school operates under the authority of the Saudi Arabian government. In 2008, ISA was cited for using textbooks calling for violence against non-Muslims. Fairfax County, a federal agency on religious freedom and the US Senate all urged the State Department to take action regarding ISA's textbooks, but State did not act.[i]ISA claimed to have updated their texts, however, those who reviewed the textbooks were paid by the school.[ii]Numerous ISA graduates have gone on to pursue jihadist activities...

With Republicans expected to make gains in congressional races across the country Tuesday, four vulnerable Virginia Democrats are fighting to avoid being swept away by a GOP wave.... In the Fairfax-based 11th District, Rep. Gerald E. Connolly (D) is trying to fend off Oakton businessman Keith Fimian (R). In the 5th District, Rep. Tom Perriello (D) welcomed President Obama to Charlottesville Friday for his uphill race against state Sen. Robert Hurt (R). In the Hampton Roads region, Rep. Glenn Nye (D) is struggling to hold on to the 2nd District seat against auto dealer Scott Rigell (R). And in Southwest...

The second part of Metrorail's extension from Falls Church to Dulles International Airport and Loudoun County could cost as much as $1.3 billion more than original estimates, which may mean higher rates for people who use the Dulles Toll Road. The new estimate was provided Wednesday to members of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, which is overseeing construction. The first phase is costing $2.75 billion, the authority said. Early estimates had placed costs of the second phase in the same range. The new price range increases the cost by at least $690 million and potentially twice as much. The plan...

A man facing the death penalty in Fairfax County for two murders, and who was convicted of a third in California, is now a suspect in two more California homicides committed in the same fashion, his attorneys revealed in court Monday. If Alfredo R. Prieto is charged with the two slayings in Riverside County, Calif., he then will have been charged with six homicides and four rapes -- allegedly all of them committed at the time of the killings -- in slightly more than two years between 1988 and 1990. He has not been charged with the most recently revealed...

Medea Benjamin “call(s) for help” before she is arrested for trespassing at the McLean, Va., home of Erik Prince, August 20, 2010. Photo by Code Pink. Terrorist supporter and Code Pink co-founder Susan “Medea” Benjamin was arrested Friday evening at the McLean, Virginia home of Xe Services founder (formerly Blackwater) Erik Prince, according to a press release posted by Code Pink. Prince was not home, having left the United States for Abu Dhabi in the face of mounting legal problems. Inexplicably, Benjamin was let into the house, according to the press release. However, when Benjamin revealed the true nature of...

Two fire-breathing bartenders face up to 45 years in prison each for performing flaming bar tricks. Jimmy's Old Town Tavern owner Jimmy Cirrito said his bartenders have been entertaining his customers -- by juggling bottles of alcohol and spitting out streams of flames using matchbooks and lighters -- for more than a decade and no one's complained. But shortly after midnight on July 24, two of his longtime employees were hauled out of the Herndon bar in handcuffs and charged with three felonies each plus other misdemeanors "They were being treated as if they were terrorists, charged as if they...

NOTE The following text is a quote: Virginia Man Accused of Providing Material Support to Terrorists ALEXANDRIA, VA—Zachary Adam Chesser, 20, of Fairfax County, Va., was arrested today on charges that he provided material support to al Shabaab, a designated foreign terrorist organization. Neil H. MacBride, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Shawn Henry, Assistant Director in Charge (ADIC) of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, made the announcement after Chesser was arrested and the charging documents were made public. “This case exposes the disturbing reality that extreme radicalization can happen anywhere, including Northern Virginia,” said U.S. Attorney...

Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell says quality of life and a business friendly government ultimately wooed Northrop Grumman Corp. to choose Northern Virginia for its corporate headquarters. He also says the commonwealth is giving the company $12 million to $14 million in various incentives. Speaking on WTOP's "Ask the Governor" program Tuesday morning, McDonnell stressed life issues over cash in what won Northrop. "The biggest thing they get is a great place to do business and honestly, at the end of the day, that's really what they cared about," McDonnell told WTOP's Mark Seagraves. "They wanted a great place for their...

Spoken from the Heart Book Tour Events Tuesday, May 4, 2010 McLean, VA Books-a-Million Book Signing @ 12:00 pm 1451 Chain Bridge Road McLean, VA Thursday, May 6, 2010 Arlington, VA Costco Pentagon City Book Signing @ 12:00 pm 1200 South Fern Street Arlington, VA Washington, DC Smithsonian GW University Lisner Hall Remarks and Book Signing @ 7:30 pm 2121 1 Street, NW Washington, DC Friday, May 7, 2010 Dallas, TX Dallas Museum of Art - Arts and Letters Live @ 7:30 pm Southern Methodist University 6414 Hilltop Lane Dallas, TX Saturday, May 8, 2010 Dallas, TX Borders Bookstore Book...

Petula Dvorark, Washington Post's designated church-basher, commemorated the closure of a Virginian "pro-life" pharmacy with snide glee in her April 13 column. "The Divine Mercy Care Pharmacy in Chantilly proudly and purposefully limited what it would stock on its shelves. But it turns out that no birth control pills, no condoms, no porn, no tobacco and even no makeup added up to one thing: No customers," Dvorak wrote. "John T. Bruchalski, president of Divine Mercy Care and the doctor who opened the pharmacy, then had to close it, said he wanted a place where pharmacists ‘could bring their conscience into...

Sixty years. That’s how long Antonio Neftali Urrutia-Barrera, 20, of Reston, will spend in federal prison after being sentenced March 19 for two of the many crimes he either committed or is accused of committing in late summer and early fall 2008. One of those crimes was a triple shooting in Sterling Park that left a Loudoun resident paralyzed from the waist down. During a period of a little more than two months, Urrutia-Barrera—who is in the country illegally from Central America—spent time in three Virginia counties and one Maryland county. His crimes left at least four innocent bystanders injured....

VAST The Virginia Anti-Shariah Task Force Contact: James Lafferty (703) 931-2324 jameslafferty@usa.net Virginians Protest 9/11 Mosque Fundraiser Featuring Connolly, Moran and Kaine Praise Senator Jim Webb and Delegate Kaye Kory for Withdrawing Fairfax, VA -- A coalition of Virginia and national organizations charged today three prominent Virginians – Congressman Gerry Connolly, Congressman Jim Moran and for Governor Tim Kaine have “trashed their oath to protect and defend the U.S. and Virginia Constitutions” by appearing as special guests at a fundraising dinner for the 9/11 mosque Dar Al Hijrah in Falls Church, Virginia. The groups also praised Senator Jim Webb and...

Obama will be signing the Reconciliation Bill on Wednesday at Northern Virginia Community College. I am sure that there will be a protest/rally however, I don't have any confirmation. If you or your organization would like to organize a gathering, please post the information here.

Barack Obama will speak “on the urgent need for Health reform” at an event on Friday morning at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia in the Patriot Center, a basketball arena seating about 10,000. The event is apparently open to all, ensuring that opponents of the plan will be there. But the White House announcement on Facebook reads: Just as a heads up, no signs or banners are permitted, and those who come are encouraged to limit personal items and not bring bags or purses. What a courteous “heads up.” Not satisfied to push a bill the public opposes, and...

As the Democrats' push for health care reform enters the home stretch, President Barack Obama will speak Friday morning at George Mason University's Patriot Center in Fairfax, Virginia. Doors open at 9 a.m. ET. The event kicks off at 11:30 a.m. ET. The speech will be open to the public, with no tickets required. The Patriot Center is a big arena. This is a rally. More info HERE (WH website).

WASHINGTON—Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's wife and daughter were hospitalized Thursday—the wife with a broken back and neck—after their minivan was rear-ended by a tractor-trailer truck on an interstate highway in suburban Virginia, authorities said. Reid's wife, Landra, 69, and the couple's daughter, Lana Barringer, 48, were taken by ambulance to Inova Fairfax Hospital in Falls Church, Va. Neither woman's injuries appeared to be life-threatening, and the daughter was expected to be released from the hospital Thursday night, Reid aides said. Mrs. Reid was listed in serious condition. "Mrs. Reid has a broken nose, broken back and broken neck,'' Reid...

Loudoun ranks as the richest county in the United States, immediately followed by Fairfax and Howard counties, while Montgomery, traditionally one of the wealthiest, is now 10th. Forbes magazine ranked eight other Washington-area counties in its list of the nation's 25 wealthiest counties, far more than any other area in the country. The rankings are based on 2008 median household income data from the U.S. Census Bureau. Loudoun's median household income was $110,643, while Fairfax's was $106,785 and Howard's came in at $101,710. "This is obviously very good news," said David Robertson, executive director of the Metropolitan Washington Council of...

The country's fattest paychecks are brought home to these high-end suburbs. The country may have started its long haul back to economic recovery -- if recent news that consumer spending increased slightly in January is any indication. But even so, most Americans still aren't ready to brag about their paychecks. Except, perhaps, in Loudoun County, Va., where median household incomes are higher than anywhere else in the country. This affluent suburb of Washington, D.C., where families take home a median $110,643 annually, tops our list of America's 25 richest counties. Wealth Radiates From the Capital Like Loudoun, a number of...

On Tuesday, March 2d, voters in Fairfax County Virginia's 41st House District will vote in a special election and choose a Delegate to fill the seat vacated by Democrat David Marsden. Prior to Marsden, the 41st District's Delegate seat had traditionally been held by Republicans. See the map of this District here. So far the only controversy to arise in this campaign is Republican Kerry Bolognese's charge that his opponent, Democrat Eileen Filler-Corn, has been conducting unfair "push-poll" operations against him. "I'm outraged that that these false claims would be made at all, much less in a sleazy push poll,"...

2009 might be remembered as the year the Fairfax County Republican Party got its groove back. The Grand Old Party won special elections for Braddock District supervisor and Providence District school board member, two seats that had been held by Democrats for several years. They also managed to knock off two incumbent Democrats in the House of Delegates after losing ground on that front in the last two campaign cycles. And local Republicans were produced a 4,500-vote win in Fairfax County for Gov. Bob McDonnell (R) this past November. Though McDonnell was heavily favored to win the gubernatorial race statewide,...

Wolf Faces Republican Primary Challenger By Julia O'Donoghue Thursday, February 18, 2010 Sterling resident Jim Trautz has decided to take on 30-year incumbent U.S. Rep. Frank Wolf (R-10) for the Republican Party's nomination in Virginia 10th congressional district, which includes all or parts of McLean, Great Falls, Herndon, Oak Hill, Vienna, Chantilly and Centreville. According to the candidate's Web site, Trautz is a retired Naval officer and ordained minister who also managed a "multi-million dollar program" as a private defense contractor. A father of six children, he has lived in Virginia for 25 years. Trautz is critical of Wolf's 2009...

The heavy snow has taken a toll on some local buildings, and with more on the way the weight of winter is now its own danger. "When something collapses you never know when its going to happen," said Captain Dan Schmidt, Fairfax County (web | news) Fire and Rescue. The roof of Fairfax Fire Station 10 in Baily's Crossroads came crashing down early Monday morning. The 24 to 28 inches of snow and ice proved too much for the 12-year-old flat roof to handle

A respected domestic violence and anger management counselor in Fairfax County was arraigned in federal court Thursday after he allegedly pulled a gun on two men who he believed were blocking his car on an Annandale street last week. The two men were federal marshals. Jose L. Avila, 57, was ordered held without bond pending a detention hearing Friday in U.S. District Court in Alexandria. He has been held in the Fairfax jail since Jan. 25, when he apparently picked the wrong place and time to complain about thoughtless parking. Avila's attorney said Avila had worked for many years at...

In Northern Virginia, a private school needed the local county's approval to expand to serve more students. This would have hardly raised an eyebrow had it not been for one particular detail: The school is Islamic, funded by the government of Saudi Arabia. The Islamic Saudi Academy, located in Fairfax County, has long been under the microscope of its opponents. But for residents along the two-lane country road where the school sits, the debate was transformed from a local land-use issue into a heated discussion about the school, its teachings and the relationships between Muslims and non-Muslims in the United...

SOMERSET, N.J. (AP) - Authorities in New Jersey say they seized a cache of weapons and ammunition including rifles, a grenade launcher and a night vision scope from the motel room of a Virginia man arrested by officers responding to a report of a suspicious person. Somerset County Prosecutor Wayne Forrest said Lloyd R. Woodson, 43, of Reston, Va., also had maps of a U.S. military facility and a town in another state. He is set for arraignment Tuesday on charges including unlawful possession of weapons, possession of prohibited weapons, obstruction of justice and resisting arrest.

He Needs a Teleprompter to Talk to 11yr Olds?! - San Diego, California Talk Radio Station - 760 KFMB AM - 760kfmb

BRANCHBURG -- Somerset County investigators seized a cache of weapons including a grenade launcher and hundreds of rounds of ammunition today from the Branchburg motel room of a Virginia man, who also had maps of a U.S. military facility and an out-of-state civilian community. Lloyd Woodson, 43, whose last known address was Reston, Va., today faces multiple offenses, including second-degree unlawful weapons possession and fourth-degree possession of prohibited weapons, Somerset County Prosecutor Wayne Forrest said. At the time of his arrest, Woodson was wearing a military-style ballistic vest with a reinforced steel plate and carrying a .223-caliber assault rifle that...

President Obama uses two teleprompters while speaking to students at a school in Falls Church, Virginia.

Obama spoke to 6th Graders in Falls Church, Virginia on Tuesday January 19, 2010.

Photos at the link. SubZero really earns his new nickname for this one. I hope the kids pelted him with spit balls. You just can’t make crap like this up!

Fairfax County Supervisor Pat S. Herrity (R-Springfield) said Wednesday that he will seek the Republican nomination against first-term U.S. Rep. Gerald E. Connolly (D-Va.), as both parties in Northern Virginia begin to ramp up for the contest. Herrity, 49, an accountant whose father was chairman of the Fairfax Board of Supervisors in the 1970s and '80s, had contemplated entering the race for weeks. Word leaked about his potential candidacy, and on Wednesday, he called his announcement "probably the worst-kept secret" in Fairfax. "Things have changed dramatically in the last four years," Herrity said at a news conference at the West...