9th District candidate decries racist incident, DHS funding standoff threatens federal paychecks, and $17M secured for I-81 widening — WFIR News Express 2/13/26

On this Friday, February 13, 2026 edition of WFIR News Express, 9th District Democratic congressional candidate Adam Murphy is speaking out after a reported racist incident targeting Virginia Tech Sociology Professor Biko Agozino in Christiansburg. Murphy says a group of eight white men parked outside Agozino’s home, yelled racial slurs, threw ice bricks into the driveway and blared music in what he called a calculated act of intimidation. The incident has been reported to Christiansburg Police.We also cover the ongoing debate in Washington over Department of Homeland Security funding, as Democrats in the U.S. Senate block a House-passed bill, raising the possibility that roughly 260,000 federal employees could miss paychecks if lawmakers fail to reach an agreement. Sixth District Congressman Ben Cline weighs in, while Democrats push for changes to immigration enforcement policies.Plus, Cline announces $17 million in new federal funding for Interstate 81 widening projects from Bristol to Winchester, with VDOT set to determine which sections receive the money. In Virginia’s 6th Congressional District, Henrico County attorney and Army veteran Hugh Murray joins the Democratic primary field alongside Beth Macy and Tom Perriello, as redrawn district lines lean Democratic.We also report on the arrest of a Newport News man in connection with a robbery at Member One Federal Credit Union in Roanoke County, a barn fire on Catawba Valley Drive that did not impact the Homeplace Restaurant, a three-hour rescue that saved a dog named Winnie from a 50-foot well in Lynchburg, updates on Vinton’s War Memorial renovations and new hotel development, a major donation tied to Virginia’s redistricting referendum, and a busy weekend bird count across the Roanoke Valley.That’s the latest from WFIR News Express.