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You would think that Virginia, the home of George Washington who is held up as the paragon of the ethical statesman, would rank as one of the most ethical, the most transparent, the most open states in the country. You would be wrong. It’s not like Virginians haven’t been warned that the state’s ethics enforcement structure simply isn’t up to snuff. Even in late 2012 as what would come to be known as Giftgate began emerging in the news media, few elected leaders saw any problem that required their attention. So when details of the scandal swirling around then-Gov. Bob McDonnell emerged in early 2013, you would have thought it would have been a wake-up call. It wasn’t. Today, in 2019, six years after the McDonnells’ conviction in federal court, the ethics landscape in the Old Dominion is slowly sliding back to what passes for normal. Trips for legislators paid for by lobbyists and business interests. Gifts and donations on the rise, as memories of Giftgate recede. But just you wait … we’ll fix it. After the next ethics scandal explodes in Richmond. And believe us, there will be another one. It’s just a matter of time.
The News & Advance
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