John McCarthy
By: CLARENCE PAYNE / Former Senator & President of the Virgin Islands Progressive Movement
ST. THOMAS — Around July 22, 2026, hospital leaders rocked the entire Virgin Islands with devastating news confirming a two-phase workforce reduction plan aimed at cutting personnel expenses by 10 percent at Juan F. Luis Hospital (JFL) and Schneider Regional Medical Center (SRMC). The plan begins with position consolidation, job sharing, and vacant-post reviews before any employee separations are considered.
Just one day later, on July 23, the Virgin Islands took another seismic economic blow as federal housing officials halted funding for the Virgin Islands Housing Finance Authority over recovery fund management.
Then, on July 24, during a hearing on horse racing for St. Croix, the power went out completely across the island. That blackout should have served as a warning sign: this is not the time to be having a drawn-out debate on horse racing.
Look around you. Pick a social justice or civic issue, and the Virgin Islands is currently mired in it.
Misplaced Legislative Energy
In what world should our Legislature spend one second debating horse racing during times like this?
Even if the bill came at the Governor’s request, the Legislature should have kindly shuffled it directly to the committee of jurisdiction and stopped trying to bypass the normal legislative process.
Those of us in the public who watched clips of the horse racing hearing circulating on social media saw a display that was embarrassing, to say the least. The session devolved into public insults and lawmakers questioning each other’s competence and attendance during precious debate time. The hearing turned into such a fiasco that legislators themselves ultimately voted to push the matter down the road to late August.
A Community Under Strain
Adding to the weight of these systemic problems is the rash of crime that has surfaced once again throughout our islands. When was the last time someone opened a newspaper or checked the news on a Monday morning in the Virgin Islands without reading about criminal activity? Just this past Sunday, while at church, news spread that an officer on St. Croix was killed.
Why aren’t leaders coming directly to the people to ask what priorities we want addressed? Over the next ninety days, many politicians will be asking for your vote. I hope they take the time to listen to the public with earnestness and compassion.
How much funding was included within the administration’s budget to address juvenile delinquency, crime prevention, and job training programs?
Enough with the horse racing fiasco. Send it to the committee of jurisdiction where it belonged in the first place. As Mr. Robert Schuster asked at the end of his recent commentary: “Wha we doing and weh deh hell we are going?”
