Statement from Senator Mark Obenshain on the Removal of John Rocovich from the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors
HARRISONBURG, VA — Senator Mark Obenshain (R-Rockingham) issued the following statement today regarding Governor Abigail Spanberger's removal of John Rocovich as Rector of the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors:
"John Rocovich has devoted decades of his life to Virginia Tech and the Commonwealth of Virginia. His record of service, leadership, and philanthropy is extraordinary. Few individuals have done more to strengthen Virginia Tech, and few have earned the respect of the university community to the degree that he has. I am proud to stand with John Rocovich.
That is why this action raises serious concerns. Virginia law permits the removal of a board member only for malfeasance, misfeasance, incompetence, or gross neglect of duty. Those standards exist to protect public institutions from political interference and to ensure that board members can exercise independent judgment without fear of retaliation.
Governor Spanberger has publicly identified no conduct that appears to satisfy that legal standard. If grounds for removal exist, Virginians deserve to know what they are. Transparency is not optional when the law itself requires specific reasons for such an extraordinary action.
What makes this decision especially disappointing is that Governor Spanberger campaigned on a promise to depoliticize higher education governance and to reduce executive involvement in the affairs of Virginia's universities. Removing the sitting rector of Virginia Tech without publicly stating a lawful basis appears inconsistent with those commitments.
This issue is bigger than any one individual. The precedent established today will apply to future governors and future boards at every public university in Virginia. Virginia Tech belongs to the people of the Commonwealth, not to any political administration. John Rocovich deserves fairness, and Virginians deserve an explanation. I call on the Governor to publicly state the specific reasons for this action and allow the public to judge whether they satisfy the requirements of Virginia law."
Senator Obenshain represents the Second District in the Senate of Virginia. The district includes the city of Harrisonburg and the counties of Bath, Highland, Page, Rockingham, and Augusta (part.) He is a member of the Senate Committees on Courts of Justice; Commerce & Labor; Agriculture, Conservation, and Natural Resources; and Finance and Appropriations.
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If you grew up Gen X, you didn’t just play outside, you LIVED outside.
You knew the exact metallic sweet taste of garden hose water on a July afternoon.
You ran the streets like wild packs with zero adult supervision, no phones, no trackers, just the sun on your neck and dirt between your toes.
Nobody strapped you into a seatbelt. You vanished into the woods or the empty lots for hours, and the only GPS you needed was your internal clock and the streetlights.
You knew your neighborhood like a soldier knows his battlefield, every alley shortcut, every rooftop you weren’t supposed to be on, every neighbor who’d rat you out.
You navigated the whole world with nothing but your own two eyes and whatever change was in your pocket.
And the golden rule? If you stepped foot inside the house before dark, you were volunteering for chores.
That was our childhood.
No safety nets.
No screen time.
Just pure, reckless, beautiful independence.
Raise your hand if you survived it… and wouldn’t trade it for anything. ✋
🚨 BREAKING 🚨
Coveted 4-star TE Jordan Karhoff has committed to the #Hokies!
The 6'4.5", 215-pounder from Ohio caught 31 passes for 548 yard and 5 touchdowns last season.
With more than 3 dozen offers, he chose VT over finalists Miami & Texas A&M.
🔗: https://t.co/WcQjarZvVy
🚨WOW!!!
Tim Sparks has confirmed he purchased 80 PIZZA HUTS and brought back EVERYTHING that made them iconic!
Pac-Man is back.
Salad bar is back.
Red cups are back.
Booths for families.
"I want to rebuild places for families to connect and put their phones down..."
2nd Major Giveaway 🔔
It's a Philly Special! We're giving away one of these limited-edition Callaway staff bags - here's how to enter:
- Repost & Like this
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That's it!
🚨 BREAKING: The Virginia Supreme Court has overturned the Democrat gerrymandering referendum, ruling that the process to put in on the ballot was unconstitutional.
Virginia will keep their 5 Republican districts.
🚨 REP. WESLEY HUNT (R-TX) just gave the PERFECT response:
Q: There won't be any black Republicans left in the House?
HUNT: "It's not relevant."
"I'm not here because I'm black."
"I am here because I am a qualified representative for Congressional District 38."
"The American people choose who they want to choose."
"I don't want to get into this game of RACE BAIT all day, every day."
"If there's 4? If there's 10? If there's NONE."
"I represent a white majority district that President Trump would have won by over 20 points, and I won by over 25 points."
"I'm being judged not by the color of my skin, but the content of my character."
🇺🇸🇺🇸
📽️ @PabloReports@WesleyHuntTX
“Delta Dental called itself a nonprofit — while paying its CEO $48 million in 4 years.”
Her compensation reportedly rose from $4.5 million a year to $15 million.
Meanwhile, provider pay was cut and reimbursements barely moved.
Nonprofit for taxes.
For-profit at the top.
My goodness. I know it’s hard to ask people to watch anything for 40 minutes these days, but please do watch this. Thought-provoking for the first 2/3 and deeply moving for the final bit, especially the very end. Wow.