4th Circus Clown Judges Badmouth MVP Southgate in Oral Arguments
Quick, send in the clowns. Don’t bother, they’re here. We’re referring to three extremely liberal Democrat judges who sit on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit (4th Circuit). These three judges, for years, blocked the construction of the 303-mile Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) until an Act of Congress forced them to back off and allow it to get built (see 4th Circuit Sees the Light, Dismisses Remaining Two MVP Lawsuits). These three are now considering a request from their donors (Sierra Club, Appalachian Voices, et. al.) to block the construction of an extension of MVP from Virginia into North Carolina, called Southgate. The early signals are that the clowns will do just that. Read More “4th Circus Clown Judges Badmouth MVP Southgate in Oral Arguments”
Earlier this year, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approved the Williams Transco Southeast Supply Enhancement Project (see 
The Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP), which began operations in 2024 through West Virginia and Virginia, is now slated for an extension, the MVP Southgate, into North Carolina. This expansion faces opposition from some residents and environmental groups who raise concerns about safety, environmental impact, eminent domain issues, and the need for increased natural gas infrastructure (they believe cataclysmic global warming comes from burning natural gas). Despite court challenges and past environmental violations, the project has received government approvals and is forging ahead. On March 23, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued a notice to proceed with construction in Virginia. 
Virginia is officially rejoining the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) carbon tax scheme this July after a liberal court deemed its previous withdrawal under former Governor Glenn Youngkin unlawful. This reentry forces utilities like Dominion Energy to resume purchasing carbon credits—modern-day indulgences for the “sin” of emitting carbon dioxide, the same thing mammals exhale with every breath. The cost will be passed on to ratepayers through monthly bill increases. Virginians have no one to blame but themselves when their electric bills soar due to this idiotic carbon tax that does nothing more than allow politicians to pass out money to their favorite constituent groups as a reward for voting them into office. Welcome to the USSR of Virginia. 
Last year, MDN warned readers that the newly elected, incoming governor of Virginia, Abigail Spanberger, is a radical left Democrat (see 
Last week, MDN told you about one landowner in Luzerne County, PA, who became an overnight millionaire after selling his small farm to a company planning to build a data center on the land (see 
Despite a “public outcry” (of 13 people), the Chesapeake City (Virginia) Council voted 6-3 last July to approve a compressor station for Virginia Natural Gas (see 
Several Big Green groups, including the Sierra Club, Wild Virginia, Appalachian Voices, and the Center for Biological Diversity, have filed a legal challenge against a permit issued by Virginia for the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) Southgate extension. The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) approved a water permit for the project in January 2026. Big Green radicals argue that the pipeline “threatens” 138 streams, wetlands, and regional drinking water supplies. It’s the typical lawfare tactic used by the left to stall work on projects, hoping to delay them long enough that the builder (EQT in this case) gives up. Or if the builder won’t give up, they have to pay double or triple the price to construct it. That’s the game the radicals are playing. 
In June 2023, Dominion Energy announced plans to build four small “peaker” electric generating plants in Chesterfield County near Richmond (see 
Virginia Senate Bill 253, introduced by State Senator Louise Lucas (D-Portsmouth), aims to shift energy infrastructure costs from residents to data centers, potentially saving households a whopping $65 annually. The legislation requires data centers—which account for 20% of Dominion Energy’s sales—to fund their own electrical substations and cover specific “capacity costs.” If the bill becomes law and the proposals in it receive approval from the State Corporation Commission (SCC), the typical monthly energy bill for data centers would rise by about 16%, while the typical bill for residential and other customers would decrease by 3% to 3.5%. Looks like Virginia, with more data centers than any other state in the union, is now closed for data center business. Too bad. 
Last November, Accomack County, Virginia, secured a $6.5 million state grant to expand piped natural gas to the Eastern Shore, a move aimed at stabilizing the local economy (see 