Editorial
In her commencement address last week to members of Virginia Military Institute’s graduating class of 2026, Gov. Abigail Spanberger noted a connection she has with VMI’s first women cadets who matriculated 29 years ago. She pointed out that she too graduated from high school in 1997, beginning her journey in higher education that put her on a trailblazing path that would lead to her becoming Virginia’s first female governor.
Spanberger made history of another sort last week when she vetoed the most legislation of any Virginia governor in contemporary history who is a member of the majority party that controls the General Assembly. Most of the 31 vetoes she issued came after legislators rejected amendments she offered that would have made the bills more to her liking.
Among the most surprising vetoes she issued were of legislation that she and fellow Democrats had championed. Two bills, in particular, stand out – one that would have created a prescription drug pricing system to lower costs for consumers and one that would have established a retail market for the sale of cannabis products.
Of the prescription drug legislation, Spanberger noted that she had offered amendments “that would have directed the Prescription Drug Affordability Advisory Panel to study a reference-based pricing system before the state spends millions of dollars on implementation. My amendments also would have required greater drug pricing transparency for consumers and policymakers, providing new data to give insight into drivers of out-of-pocket costs in Virginia. Lastly, my amendments would have expanded the Attorney General’s investigatory and enforcement authority to crack down on anticompetitive behavior between pharmaceutical manufacturers and insurance carriers.”
As for the legislation to establish a cannabis retail market, the governor said, “I share the General Assembly’s goal of establishing a safe, legal and well-regulated cannabis retail marketplace in the Commonwealth. Virginians deserve a system that replaces the illicit cannabis market with one that prioritizes our children’s health and safety, public safety, product integrity and accountability. As Virginia pursues a legal retail market, it is critical that we incorporate lessons learned by other states and ensure that our regulatory framework is fully prepared to provide strong oversight from day one. That includes clear enforcement authority and sufficient resources for compliance, testing and inspections, and robust tools to crack down on bad actors who continue to profit from the illicit market. I greatly appreciate the patrons’ time crafting this important piece of legislation as well as our continued dialogue and collaboration to strengthen this framework ahead of the next legislative session. I remain committed to working with members of the General Assembly, stakeholders and law enforcement to get this right.”
With her vetoes of legislation that would have advanced policies she obviously favors, Spanberger appears to be conveying a message to members of her own party that the governor’s office is indeed a coequal branch of government that deserves to have a say in formulating the state’s laws. In the future, Democratic members of the General Assembly would be well advised to not reject, out of hand, the governor’s input into the legislative process. The governor and legislature should work together in a cooperative manner to achieve their shared goals.
The governor’s office was, in fact, very involved in amending legislation affecting how VMI is governed and how it addresses issues of racism and inclusiveness that prompted a 2021 state report that looked into the institute’s practices. Spanberger played a significant role in formulating the legislation in such a way that it was supported by VMI and achieves its purpose.
We believe Spanberger is showing that she aims to be a governor of consequence, much like her peers from the 1997 high school graduating classes who chose to be pioneers at VMI and are now distinguishing themselves as leaders in public service and private enterprise.
