Democracy dies in darkness in Fairfax County
-- by FCTA's Jeffrey A. Leach to the Washington Times, May 18, 2025
Because the consent of the governed is the cornerstone of democracy and knowledge is essential to consent, the active suppression of knowledge creates a poisoned atmosphere inimical to the growth of strong, healthy, democratic societies.
In light of this, put on your gas masks and headlamps for a short tour of just a few ways in which Fairfax County, Virginia, once the home of the general and first president who led the revolution for American freedoms, has become a miasma of poisoned darkness in which democracy is gasping for breath.
The number of information blackouts involving leaders connected with Fairfax County Public Schools are legion. Consider first the scandal surrounding Kyle McDaniel, chair of the school board's budget committee, which handles a budget of $4 billion. Well, he was chair -- until he "stepped away" to tend to the $2.725 million embezzlement lawsuit that his former business partner has filed against him.
Under such circumstances, prudent government officials would, in accordance with their fiduciary duties to protect the assets of taxpayers, immediately launch an internal investigation to ascertain whether Mr. McDaniel might be guilty of embezzling public funds before pertinent information could be altered or destroyed, and before funds could be moved beyond reach. They would also communicate openly and honestly with the residents to whom they are accountable.
Not in Fairfax County. I contacted all 12 members of the school board (including Chairman Karl Frisch, who incidentally was the second-highest contributor to Mr. McDaniel's election campaign) and Fairfax County Public Schools Office of Auditor General, as well as Superintendent Michelle Reid, Supervisor Dalia Palchik and Supervisor (and Chair) Jeffrey McKay, most of them multiple times. Not one of them has, to date, provided responsive answers to my questions. Not one elected official in the county has, to my knowledge, called for any investigation or shown the least concern that taxpayer money may have been embezzled.
In addition, county and school leaders actively and deliberately suppress information about the number of illegal aliens in the county in general and about the number being schooled (but rarely educated) at taxpayer expense. I asked for numbers from Ms. Reid, Mr. Frisch and Ms. Palchik. They all refused to answer the question.
You would think educators would be happy to share with parents what they are teaching their children. Not at Fairfax County Public Schools, where procedural obstacles lie thickly about. In one case, the school initially denied access to lesson materials on "White privilege" and released them only after the parent paid a fee of $280 (in the electronic age, mind you). In another case, a parent requested records related to a "drag queen lunch", only to be stymied by a lengthy discussion in which she was told that obtaining them would cost at least $200 (but probably several thousand dollars). Fairfax County Public Schools then surreptitiously dissolved its Family Life Education Curriculum Advisory Committee to avoid public scrutiny of its highly controversial decisions.
The schools aren't the only offenders. Richard Kenneth Cox, a 58-year-old registered child sex felon who claims to be a woman even though he is clearly a man, has reportedly exposed his very male genitals to little girls and mothers in a county locker room after swim practice, as permitted by the county's anti-scientific and morally defective policy. Every supervisor but lone Republican Pat Herrity considered the outrage a topic not worth addressing at a recent board meeting. Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares met with the victims. "[The Fairfax County government] failed you," he said. Indeed.
When Nick Minock of ABC News7 questioned the board about the matter, supervisors James Walkinshaw, Rodney Lusk, Dan Storck and Dalia Palchik reportedly walked away quickly and refused to answer. Not to be outdone by his colleagues, Mr. McKay actually fled for privacy (oh, the irony) into a public bathroom. So much for Democrats protecting women and girls.
Finally, there is Fairfax County Commonwealth's Attorney Steve Descano. He makes a mockery of his position by discriminating in favor of criminals who are in the country illegally, denying justice to the victims of crime by refusing to prosecute criminals such as sex felon Richard Kenneth Cox and regularly releasing criminals onto the general public, which pays taxes to be kept safe. How many crimes are committed by illegal aliens, and how much money is spent prosecuting them? I wrote to Mr. Descano to ask. He wouldn't say. He is defending Fairfax County Public Schools in its unconstitutional violation of students' rights in imposing its Orwellian transgender policies. How much is that costing taxpayers? I again wrote to Mr. Descano to inquire; he again refused to answer the question.
Stonewall ain't just a bar in New York City, folks.
So when the "Democrats" cry, "Our democracy is under attack," they're right. What they fail to mention is that they're leading the charge.
Jeffrey A. Leach has worked in business and law for over 30 years. A principal of Nomos Legal Consulting, PLLC, he may be reached at jeffreyleach50@gmail.com.