Virginia Republicans have taken over the General Assembly and passed a state budget that does not include Medicaid expansion. But the battle over the budget is about to get even more intense.

One provision in the new Republican budget makes it more difficult for Democratic Governor Terry McAuliffe to expand health insurance coverage for 400,000 Virginians who live in poverty or with disabilities. The new language requires legislative approval for Medicaid expansion to move forward, essentially allowing Republicans to stop it.

University of Mary Washington professor Stephen Farnsworth says McAuliffe will probably use his line-item veto to remove that provision: “The governor has made it pretty clear over the last six months that this was non-negotiable. This would be a significant adjustment in his key priority if he were to walk away from Medicaid expansion.”

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Stephen Farnsworth, a political analyst with the University of Mary Washington, said: “Medicaid expansion is not dead, but it was rushed to the emergency room today.”

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“Eyes around the country will certainly be on the Cantor race as the next key measure of the Tea Party movement going forward,” said Stephen Farnsworth, a political analyst at the University of Mary Washington.

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“This congressional district is one of the most intensely focused on military issues and federal employees in the entire country,” said Stephen Farnsworth, professor of political science at the University of Mary Washington.

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In Virginia, Republicans from across the commonwealth are preparing to gather this weekend in a convention to select their candidate for U.S. Senate.

“The establishment Republicans are going to do everything they possibly can to make sure that there is no repeat of last year’s general election debacle,” says University of Mary Washington professor Stephen Farnsworth.

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