New Gubernatorial Poll Has Brian Moran in the Lead

PPP has released the results of a new poll which continues to show the gubernatorial race as being very tight. However, a new development is that Brian Moran has taken a four point lead over Terry McAuliffe.

Public Policy Polling’s latest survey finds that Virginia’s Democratic primary race for governor is still tight, with Brian Moran receiving 22%, Terry McAuliffe getting 18%, and Creigh Deeds polling third at 15%. 45% of respondents are still undecided.

Respondents have roughly equal opinions about the favorability of each candidate. Moran is polling at 34/15 favorability, Deeds has 31/12 favorability, and McAuliffe is polling at a 32/29 split.

“Brian Moran has taken the lead this month after Terry McAuliffe had it last month,” said Dean Debnam, President of Public Policy Polling. “But all the movement is within the margin of error, and this remains a very close three-way race.”

Debnam is correct in pointing out that this is going to be a very close race, but these poll results are noteworthy because they clearly contradict the argument that Terry McAuliffe is simply running away with the race. In fact, they tend to suggest that Terry had an initial surge of support after he entered the race but that has now leveled off while Brian's support has slightly grown.

While the gubernatorial race remains neck and neck, one could make the argument that the Lt. Governor race now has a frontrunner since Jody Wagner has taken a big lead. Here are the poll results for that race.

Jody Wagner: 21%
Jon Bowerbank: 4%
Pat Edmonson: 4%
Mike Signer: 4%
Undecided: 67%

Wagner clearly has an advantage in this poll, but the important thing here is that 67% of the likely voters are still undecided. Quite frankly, there are many political insiders who are undecided because they don't know any of the LG candidates well so it's a safe assumption that the general public doesn't know much about the candidates either. This is significant because it means that voter education in the next few months can really play a big role in deciding who wins this primary. The financial reports that will be coming out in mid April will therefore be very important as they will be an indicator of who has the resources to get their message out to the voters. The amount of grassroots support that we see emerge will also be crucial because it is the volunteers who will have to get out and knock on doors, make phone calls, and help spread their candidate's message.

Video: Jon Bowerbank on Giving Back to the Community

Jon Bowerbank has had several events in Northern Virginia over the last few days, including one in Oakton last night that I attended. In addition to talking a lot about his campaign and what he hopes to do as Lt. Governor, we also got a bit of Jon's personal story which gave us a glimpse into why he wants to serve the Commonwealth of Virginia.

One of the topics of conversation, for instance, was how some of the local high schools in Southwest Virginia didn't have very good athletic facilities. Jon therefore worked with the local coaches and community leaders to develop a plan for a new football field for two of the high schools. After it became apparent that the process was also going to be very expensive, Jon pitched in and donated a large sum of money to building the fields. Those fields have also helped to build community spirit around the local high school teams and serve as just one small example of how Bowerbank has given back to his community.

Jon also spoke about how his family came over to the United States when he was 11 years old. He said America, and especially Virginia, has provided his family with a very good life and he feels the need to give back to the community. Here's a brief clip of him talking about that last night.

Edythe Kelleher Withdraws From Primary in House of Delegates Race

As Kenton pointed out over at the New Dominion Project, Edythe Kelleher has decided to drop out of the Democratic primary to replace Steve Shannon. There are four Democratic candidates still hoping to represent the 35th District but this is truly a day to step back and look at the broader picture because Edythe announced that she would be withdrawing from the race due to health concerns. I was very pleased to see that the other candidates in the race seemed to realize this and treated the situation with the utmost respect. Mark Keam, for instance, had the following to say after hearing the news.

“I am saddened to learn about Council Member Kelleher’s health condition, and my thoughts and prayers are with Edythe and her family. I have truly enjoyed getting to know Edythe over the past few months of this campaign, and I wish her a full and speedy recovery.”

I have also had the opportunity to speak with Edythe on several occasions during the last several months and strongly believe she brings a lot to the table. I sincerely hope that she's able to continue her productive work on the Vienna Town Council but, more importantly, wish her the absolute best during what I imagine could be a very difficult time.

UPDATE: John Carroll, who is also running in the Democratic primary in the 35th, released the following statement on Edythe withdrawing from the race.

“Councilwoman Kelleher’s decision to discontinue her campaign due to health complications saddens me deeply. For years, Edythe has been a model public servant in our community and it has been a pleasure getting to know her throughout the campaign season. My prayers are with her and I wish her and her family all the best in the future.”

Del. David Bulova Kicked Off Reelection Campaign (With Video)

Del. David Bulova represents the 37th District in the House of Delegates which covers the City of Fairfax and parts of Fairfax County. For those of you who followed Sen. Chap Petersen’s race in 2007, you might recall that Petersen and Bulova represent many of the same precincts (obviously, Chap is their Senator and Bulova is their Delegate). I bring this up because one of the big things that Chap’s race helped to illustrate is that although the district has been trending Democratic in recent years, it has a history of splitting tickets and electing officials who promote commonsense ideas. Since the voters in this district truly do vote for the individual candidate instead of the party, having good constituent services and running a grassroots campaign is therefore an extremely important part of winning reelection.

With all that in mind, Bulova had his campaign kickoff over the weekend right across the street from my alma mater – George Mason University. Indicative of how David has built up a lot of support from both local and state officials, there were a large number of elected officials in attendance include Sen. Chap Petersen, Del. David Marsden, Del. Mark Sickles, Del. Bob Hull, City Councilman Dan Drummond, Chairman of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Sharon Bulova (who also happens to be his mother), former state Sen. Emily Miller, and several grassroots and party leaders who have been extremely active in Fairfax County.

After thanking everyone for coming out, David gave the following speech which touched on reaching out to members of the community, looking out for the best interests of consumers, protecting our environment and moving in the right direction on energy policy, our transportation issues, and health care – including the specific topic of children with disabilities. He also spoke about how he indeed does have some competition in the race this year, so any help that community can provide would be greatly appreciated.

Newspaper Revitalization Act Would Allow Newspapers to Become Non Profits

One of the main topics of discussion when Kenton Ngo and I made an appearance on The Inside Scoop was the fate of the newspaper industry. I argued that the newspaper industry is important and that an effort should be made to keep newsrooms thriving because it spurs investigative reporting that can help to educate the public about complicated policy subjects and what is currently taking place in our public institutions. With the advancement of the internet and the poor economy impacting advertising proceeds, however, it appears as though keeping newspapers alive is becoming a difficult task.

It appears as though at least one Senator sees a way to help the newspaper industry as Maryland's Sen. Ben Cardin has introduced S.673, the Newspaper Revitalization Act, which would allow local and community newspapers to become non profit organizations. This move would allow tax deductible donations to be made to the papers as well as having some cost savings as a result of the papers not having to pay taxes on advertising and circulation revenue. As a result of becoming a non profit organization, however, the newspapers wouldn't be allowed to make political endorsements.

I believe the most important thing to note about this legislation is that it would only apply to local and community newspapers, which means that it wouldn't necessarily be used to bailout large corporate media chains. When you consider that it is many local and community papers that do the coverage of local government and keep the public informed about local events, I think it can become clear that they are providing a public service that is greatly beneficial to communities. If the non profit status allows a few extra reporters to stay on to research local issues or investigate potential corruption in city halls, then the move would most definitely be worthwhile.

On the other hand, there are a few negatives that could potentially be brought up with this proposal. First off, if an elected official or community leader didn't like something the newspaper published then I could see the leader potentially trying to take away the paper's non profit status. I don't think this would be widespread, but there is some potential for abuse there. Depending on who is making large donations to the newspaper, there might be some public debate about the objectivity of the paper -- although there are already a lot of people on all sides of the aisle who are already taking part in this debate surrounding the media.

With all that being said, what do people think? Is this a good idea? Is it something that we should be looking at right now? Should it be expanded to include all newspapers? Would it actually make any difference?

Jon Bowerbank Releases New Ad

After recent polls have suggested that all of the Lt. Governor candidates need to work on getting their message out to the voters, Jon Bowerbank has come out with a new ad. It cast him in the mold of Mark Warner -- a business leader who has also been committed to serving his community. Taking the stance of being a business leader during a time when there is some anger at business executives could be rather dangerous for a candidate, but they also focus on how Bowerbank has given back (both financially and with his time and energy) to his community through volunteer projects and his time on the Russell County Board of Supervisors.

In the end, I think this move could be productive if he continues to develop this message and provides potential voters with more of a concrete idea of how he'll use his business experience to create more jobs if he's elected our next Lt. Governor. He's been starting to get at this lately as I have heard him speak several times about how his business has created 300 jobs that average about $50,000 a year in compensation, but some concrete proposals for what he'll do once elected is what I'd like to hear more about in the remaining months before the primary. With all that being said, here's the ad.

Miles Grant on the Employee Free Choice Act

As I have said during several previous posts, I believe the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) is an extremely important piece of legislation because it helps to ensure that workers can stand up for their rights in the workplace. Considering that our country is facing a severe economic crisis, now is the time that we need to make sure workers have the right to negotiate for reasonable wages and health insurance in return for the hard work that they provide their employers.

Big business has a lot of money to spend on lobbying members of Congress and spreading misleading statements about EFCA so it is extremely important for grassroots supporters to help educate the public and elected officials about why this legislation is so important. That is why I'm very glad to see that Miles Grant, who is running for the House of Delegates and writes for The Green Miles, is addressing this concern.

It’s a sad statement about how little we value workers’ ability to organize for a better deal that even minor process changes in union organization are met with such fierce, over-the-top resistance from big business and its allies on Capitol Hill.

A local organizer from the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) has asked for our campaign’s help to let our leaders know that we support the Employee Free Choice Act. We're hosting an event on Saturday at 1pm to write Senators Warner and Webb to urge them to support it. Hope you can join us!

In my opinion, this comes down to the simple fact that we need to stand up for workers' rights. It appears as though Miles understands this and is doing his part to educate the public on the issue. This is just one of the many reasons that I personally believe Miles would make an excellent member of the House of Delegates and I look forward to another strong progressive joining Virginia's General Assembly.

Brian Moran Uses Grassroots Support to Gather the Petition Signatures Submitted Today

After making sure they had all their paperwork in order, Brian Moran's campaign submitted his signatures to be on the ballot for the Democratic gubernatorial primary on June 9. The big thing about signature gathering is that is supposed to give a sense of the organization surrounding a campaign. In the case of Brian Moran, it's important to note how so much of the work here was done by volunteers because it goes to reinforce what Brian has been saying all along -- that he is building his support community by community from the ground up.

RICHMOND, Va. – At the State Board of Elections headquarters in Richmond, the Moran campaign submitted 16,928 petition signatures, more than the necessary 10,000 petitions to be placed on the ballot for Governor in the June 9th Democratic primary.

“Today we’ve taken the next step in a campaign built from the bottom up, not the top down,” Brian Moran said. “We have leaders all across Virginia who’ve stepped forward in support of my campaign because we know Virginia needs a governor with a proven record of fighting for people. I’m proud to submit these petitions and put my name on the ballot to continue the work started by Mark Warner and Tim Kaine.”

In recent weeks, Moran has rolled out the boldest energy plan to create thousands of jobs and to oppose offshore drilling and a new coal plan in Surry. He has proposed a health-care plan that insures every Virginia child, a Homeowners’ Bill of Rights to fight foreclosures and a government efficiency plan that makes sure Virginia remains the best-managed state in the nation. He is currently on his “Economic Recovery Tour” outlining his plans to stimulate and restart the economy.

John Grisham, Terry McAuliffe, and Fundraising for the Gubernatorial Race

I'm a big fan of John Grisham's writing and while there always seems to be some chatter about him potentially running for statewide office here in Virginia, I don't think the general public really understands just how active he's been in the political arena. They probably don't know, for instance, that he spent 7 years in the Mississippi House of Representatives or has contributed hundreds of thousands of dollars to various causes and candidates. Perhaps more importantly, however, it appears as though he has also played a role in talking about politics to college students like he did during a recent appearance at UVA.

According to the local NBC affiliate's website, Grisham told the class that he is supporting Terry McAuliffe for governor and has even donated $50,000 to his campaign. This is where I believe Grisham's appearance relates to a lot of the recent discussion in Virginia's blogosphere. Terry's ability to bring in some of the big names like Grisham as well as large donations certainly could be beneficial during the general election. I have to admit that even though I don't support Terry I was impressed that Grisham appears to be actively supporting his campaign. If nothing else, Grisham's name recognition will help draw attention to the fact that Terry is running.

While I most definitely view Terry's fundraising ability as something that could be beneficial during the campaign, it's completely ridiculous to think that nominating Terry is the only way the Democratic candidate will have the necessary resources during the general election. Grisham, for instance, has donated to every single Democratic gubernatorial nominee in Virginia since 1997 and has done events for other statewide elected officials including Jim Webb. Especially when you also take into consideration that he donated $5,000 to Creigh Deeds' campaign in 2005, it's rather easy to assume that Grisham would make an effort to help whichever candidate came out of the primary. Since the race is considered to be the biggest one in the country this year, that would likely also be the case for other national figures and organizations.

So since Virginia has become a battleground state and the Democratic nominee will have the necessary resources no matter who wins, it is therefore important for voters to base their judgments on which candidate has the best stance on the issues and not which one can simply rake in the dollars.

Tim Kaine Announces the Democratic Change Commission

Although it might seem like an eternity ago in the world of politics, there were a lot of complaints about the primary process that is used to select the presidential nominees of the two political parties. It appears as though the chairman of the Democratic National Committee, Virginia’s own Tim Kaine, realizes the importance of setting up a process that establishes public trust in the system as well as selects the best possible candidate. In a statement that was released earlier today, Kaine announced that he has established a 37 member “Democratic Change Commission” which will be co-chaired by Rep. James Clyburn of South Carolina and Sen. Claire McCaskill of Missouri.

“This Commission will focus on reform that improves the presidential nominating process to put voters first and ensure that as many people as possible can participate,” said Kaine. “I want to thank all the members of the Commission who have agreed to serve, including Congressman Clyburn and Senator McCaskill who have graciously agreed to serve as co-chairs.”

The Democratic Change Commission will address three issues: 1) changing the window of time during which primaries and caucuses may be held 2) reducing the number of superdelegates and 3) improving the caucus system. A copy of the convention resolution establishing the Commission is below. The Commission must issue its report and recommendations to the DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee no later than January 1, 2010.

After quickly looking through the list of commission members and the goals of the group, this appears to be a step in the right direction. At the same time, I think we must make sure that the resulting process truly does represent the best interests of Democratic primary voters. One of the best ways this could be done is for the commission to be very transparent in its work and continuously provide updates to the general public. Perhaps it could even have a website set up to allow people to weigh in on what’s being discussed. In the end this will not only create a more democratic (small d) nominating process but will also likely strengthen the Democratic Party’s position in the general elections.

Is the Fairfax County School Board Moving in the Right Direction?

Just a few weeks ago, the School Board wanted to move forward on purchasing a building (Gatehouse II) that would have cost over $100 million in order to bring administrative personnel into a central building. There was a lot of public opposition to the move since people believed that money would be better spent on classrooms and the savings proposed from the move wouldn’t be seen for quite some time and would be minimal. Considering that the financial crisis that we’re facing is resulting in cuts having to be made, it simply wasn’t going to be wise to spend that amount of money on an unnecessary building. Nonetheless, the school board wanted to move forward and it took action by the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors to finally stop consideration of the project.

Fast forward to last Thursday and the School Board was considering a proposal that had similar reasoning behind it, even though the expenditure would have been much less. In the 3rd quarter budget review there was a recommendation to purchase 500 GPS systems for school buses. The argument in favor of buying the GPS systems was that it would allow staff members to study the routes busses took each day, which could potentially lead to some savings if there were changes that could be put in place.

Unlike during the debate surrounding Gatehouse II, the majority of the school board members spoke up to say that while this might be nice to have, the expenditure wasn’t absolutely necessary and it wasn’t clear how much savings (if any) would actually result from the purchase. With that reasoning backing up their vote, the school board made the commonsense move to unanimously vote in favor of not making the purchase at this time.

During a time when we are facing a financial crisis and the School Board will have to vote on making some major budget adjustments, I am very pleased to see that they took a step towards avoiding some highly questionable purchases. The money that would have been spent on the GPS systems, after all, would be much better utilized if it was directed at funding programs in our classrooms that are at risk of being cut due to the financial crisis. As the Board moves forward with consideration of the budget, I sincerely hope they continue this process of thinking and make wise decisions on some important votes in the near future.

My Appearance on the Inside Scoop to Discuss Blogging

Kenton Ngo and I were on the political talk show "The Inside Scoop Virginia" yesterday evening to talk about blogging. I've been on the show a couple of times before to talk about various topics, but this panel had a unique perspective because the host -- George Burke -- is a former print journalist and much of the discussion focused on the relationship between newspapers and blogs.

We also had some interesting exchanges surrounding anonymous commenters, how people can know what blogs are credible, whether or not bloggers should get paid by campaigns, etc. I'll be expanding upon what I had to say on some of these topics in upcoming posts, but in the meantime you can follow this link to see a video of the show.

Bloggers To Moderate Gubernatorial Debate In April

There has been a big development in the Democratic primary for Governor of Virginia as I’m hearing that all three candidates are going to be taking part in a debate to be held at Virginia Tech on April 29 at 7:30pm. A source involved in the preparations at Virginia Tech said the debate will be hosted by several national blogs including the Huffington Post and Fire Dog Lake, as well as Virginia’s Not Larry Sabato. Not only will these blogs have representatives selecting the questions, but the debate will be moderated by Ben Tribbett of Not Larry Sabato and Arianna Huffington (see update at bottom of post).

The debate will have a fairly standard format as it is scheduled to last 90 minutes with each candidate giving two minute long opening statements, followed by a question/answer section, and finally an opportunity for the candidates to give a closing statement. What makes this debate slightly different then the typical fair that we get, especially in a gubernatorial primary, is that all of the questions will be coming in from new media sources (twitter, youtube, and other similar programs) and the panel selecting the questions to be asked at the debate will also be made up of bloggers. Furthermore, I’m hearing that it will be webcast on the Huffington Post which means that people who cannot make it out to Virginia Tech will also be given an opportunity to watch the debate.

I’m looking forward to this event because it will give Virginians an opportunity to hear from the candidates about the important issues facing our Commonwealth. While that is obviously the most important aspect of the debate, I also think this event helps to illustrate that bloggers are actually playing an active role in the democratic process and truly value the opportunity to open up our political discussion. The plain and simple fact that the candidates agreed to the debate also shows that they realize the importance of the netroots community and the role that it plays in our political process.

UPDATE: I just received word that there will likely be someone from the Huffington Post helping to moderate the debate, but it won't necessarily be Arianna.

Video on Why Employee Free Choice Act Is Necessary

This is an incredibly important issue and we need to make sure that our members of Congress stand up for workers rights by supporting the Employee Free Choice Act. This is especially the case with Sen. Mark Warner who is wavering on the issue. As I have several times before, I therefore strongly encourage people to get in touch with his office by calling 202-224-2023 or using the contact form on his website.

Video: Gerry Connolly Debates Republicans on the Merits of Legislation Regarding AIG Bonuses

Rep. Gerry Connolly was on Fox Business earlier to discuss the bill that was passed by the House of Representatives that would return 90% of the enormous bonuses AIG employees received after receiving a government bailout to the taxpayers. Gerry was essentially taking on the host of the show who was using pro big-business talking points as well as Republican Congressman Chris Lee from New York. I think Gerry held his ground well and rightfully interjected when the host and Congressman Lee were attempting to bash the legislation and stand up for the Wall Street types instead of directing their attention to how this would protect those on Main Street.

What makes this even more interesting that Congressman Lee voted for the legislation and is on the show arguing against it. I think that little bit of information makes it even clearer that Gerry was on the correct side of the argument here.

Rep. Gerry Connolly On Congress's Action Regarding AIG Bonuses

I received the following statement from Rep. Gerry Connolly's office regarding his vote on a bill overwhelmingly passed by the House of Representatives that would impose a 90% tax on people who received enormous bonuses despite the fact that the company they worked for received federal bailout money. I think that action was definitely needed because it is simply unjustifiable for millions upon millions of taxpayers dollars to be as bonuses for executives who caused companies to almost completely collapse at the same time that we are asking the general public to make some sacrifices during this financial crisis.

Congressman Gerry Connolly joined with a bipartisan majority in the U.S. House of Representatives to pass legislation to impose a 90 percent tax on executive bonuses that were paid to highly paid AIG executives with federal bailout money.

“Greed at the expense of our nation’s taxpayers cannot and must not be rewarded in these trying economic times,” Connolly said. “The decision by AIG to pay its executives $165 million in so-called ‘retention’ bonuses using federal dollars is outrageous. Our overwhelming vote to tax those bonuses sends a clear signal that the Democratic Congress and the taxpayers will not tolerate such self-centered squandering of taxpayer dollars.”

By a vote of 328-93, the House passed H.R. 1586 which would tax the bonuses of highly paid individuals at a rate of 90 percent if their employer received more than $5 billion in federal assistance under the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP). The legislation only applies to individuals whose total family adjusted gross income exceeds $250,000 per year. It affects bonuses received after January 1, 2009 and would cover companies receiving more than three-fourths of financial rescue funds already distributed.

“I was proud to cast my vote to tax these bonuses to the hilt,” Connolly said. “The actions of AIG were emblematic of everything that went wrong on Wall Street. It is this kind of utter fixation with money and reckless behavior that got our nation into the economic mess we face.”

Connolly praised the House Democratic leadership for bringing legislation to the House floor so quickly to deal with the matter.

Local Officials and Statewide Candidates Receive Threats

Our country is obviously facing some tough times as it is currently fighting two wars and facing an economic crisis so it shouldn't be too surprising that tension is rather high. However, it appears there are some people who are handling that tension extremely inappropriately. As Vivian Paige pointed out in a recent post, there have been several people who have threatened Lt. Governor candidate Pat Edmundson. Here is part of the email which prompted Vivian's post.

Last week, Pat began receiving hate emails containing racist, sexist, and homophobic rhetoric. These emails were also sent to members of the Hampton Roads community. They were followed with threats against the candidate. Now, blogs have been used to perpetuate attacks against Pat.

Pat knows that women in politics face real challenges, but there is no place in Virginia political discourse for these sort of attacks. Pat has been called names like “slut” and “dyke”, and her husband (who is African American) has been referenced by racial epithets.

Now this is obviously sad news and I certainly hope that the authorities find out who is responsible. What I found to be extremely interesting, however, is that I was at a public meeting here in Fairfax County earlier this week where some high ranking officials were presenting -- one of whom is a elected official.

As I came into the meeting I was talking with some of my friends who were also in attendance and I noticed that there was a police officer planted right outside the door, which was something that I hadn't seen at any of the previous meetings in this series. What made me believe the cop had a very good reason for being there was the fact that there were a few looks and glances exchanged between the cop and others in attendance that suggested there had been previous communication between the cop and the people supporting the presenters. I was about ready to just brush it off when during the meeting we were informed that the presenters had received EXTREMELY negative emails that suggested that the speakers might be tracked down if certain actions were taken.

Out of respect for the presenters, I'm not going to be posting their names and I'm only telling the story because they mentioned them at a public meeting. When this situation is combined with the one that Vivian posted regarding Pat Edmondson, I believe it is extremely important that we thank our elected officials for putting themselves forward for service. Even if we don't agree with their policies, the vast majority of officials are trying to improve our communities and deserve recognition -- not threats -- for that service.

Mike Signer's Latest Coffee Break: Momentum

Mike Signer's "Coffee Break" videos have really been catching on. As I told mentioned to him when I briefly spoke to him the other night, I think it's because we get to see a glimpse into his personality, he usually goes into some details on an issue (well, as much as you can in a quick youtube video), and he often talks about what he will do if elected Lt. Governor. In a race where a large portion of the public is still undecided, he has hit the ground running and has gotten a lot of people excited about his campaign.

In this week's coffee break video, Mike talks about how he had a strong showing in the straw poll at Gerry Connolly's St. Patrick's Day Party, gives a brief tour of his office, and calls for people to help collect petition signatures to help make sure he gets on the ballot.

Video: Tom Perriello on AIG Bonuses

I've written a few posts about how Members of Congress are beginning to speak out against AIG paying out millions upon millions of dollars in bonuses while the government was forced to give the company billions of dollars in order to prevent it from failing. During a press conference Rep. Tom Perriello from Virginia's 5th District spoke about he also believes that there needs to be more accountability and that there needs to be action taken to protect the best interests of the taxpayers.

More Reaction on Gerry Connolly's St. Patrick's Day Party

There has been a lot of discussion about the straw poll results from Gerry Connolly's straw poll last night, the results of which I posted as soon as I got home from the event. As I mentioned last night, I tend to think the big news of the night was the fact that Mike Signer had a very strong showing in the Lt. Governor straw poll. His showing was the result of a growing grassroots campaign that focuses on the issues and has gotten a lot of people excited about his campaign -- including his staff who I spoke to and appear to be very passionate about getting Mike elected. Although he didn't come out on top like Webb did in 2006, I think these results were similar to that year's straw poll because they illustrate how a well qualified grassroots candidate has the potential to compete with the establishment's candidate.

Another big winner was Rep. Gerry Connolly because this once again proved to be a big event and attracted over 1,000 people to Fairfax, VA from all over the Commonwealth. As I was chatting with some of his staff members towards the end of the event, there was a steady stream of people who were coming up to shake hands and have their photos taken with Gerry. These weren't just photo ops, however, as I saw many people from various groups and walks of life talking with Gerry about the various issues people believed were important. In other words, he was taking the time to listen to everyone who had something to say and not just the top dollar donors.

While I believe Mike Signer and Gerry Connolly were the big winners of the night, most of the conversation has been focused on the straw poll results in the gubernatorial race. In actuality, most of the discussion in the blogosphere (from people who support all three of the candidates and those who are neutral) has been about how it turns out that Terry McAuliffe had his donors buy 400 tickets so that he could give them away for free to people so that he'd have a strong showing in the straw poll. The Washington Post's Amy Gardner even weighed in on the subject by writing the following:

If nothing else, the vote sprinkled a healthy pinch of fish food into Virginia's political aquarium. McAuliffe outshined his rivals in both organization and spirit at the event, arranging for donors to purchase 400 tickets for his guests, staffing the party with 60 paid campaign workers and prompting the loudest cheers when he spoke to the crowd.

Guests supporting the other candidates grumbled that McAuliffe's campaign had bought the straw poll; they also noted the number of Maryland and District license plates in the banquet hall's overflowing parking lot.

Whether or not Terry having his big time donors buy up the tickets violates the spirit behind a straw poll, I think the sad thing is that it offended enough people that the discussion has turned from the actual issues that attendees of the event and the candidates were talking about last night -- something that would be much more valuable to the candidates, the Democratic Party, and Virginians in general. I heard others express the same thing after Terry when people complained about Terry's campaign busing people into the JJ Dinner and putting over the top decorations on the streets in Richmond.

What I'd like to see come from all of the candidates is detailed plans for what they're going to do if they're elected governor. As I have covered the events on this site before, I've seen it first hand how Brian Moran has been doing that and talking about how he's going to address issues such as home foreclosures, health care in Virginia, energy, etc (I hear a detailed plan on education is on the way). I'd like to see the discussion in the blogosphere focus on these issues as this will help to strengthen our party and make sure that the candidate with the best ideas gets through the primary. With that in mind, what do you check out the speeches of the candidates from last night so that you can get a flavor of what they were discussing instead of just paying attention the results of a straw poll (Here's Creigh Deeds, here's Terry McAuliffe, and here's Brian Moran).

Video: Brian Moran At Gerry Connolly's St. Patrick's Day Party

Video: Terry McAuliffe At Gerry Connolly's St. Patrick's Day Party

Video: Creigh Deeds At Gerry Connolly's St. Patrick's Day Party

Straw Poll Results And Analysis from Gerry Connolly's St. Patrick's Day Party

There was a record crowd at Gerry Connolly's St. Patrick's Day event at the Kena Temple in Fairfax. I'll be posting video of speeches and more analysis later, but here are the results for the straw poll that was taken.

Governor

Terry McAuliffe: 544 votes (58%)
Brian Moran: 276 votes (30%)
Creigh Deeds: 114 votes (12%)

Lt. Governor

Jody Wagner: 48%
Mike Signer: 28%
Jon Bowerbank: 12%
Pat Edmondson: 12%

I think there's a few things to look at in these results. The first is that the gubernatorial straw poll turned out basically as expected. After backing out of the Mt. Vernon event a few weeks at the last moment and coming in a distant third, Terry McAuliffe was rumored to be working hard to get his people to the event. So now both Terry and Brian have won straw polls in Northern Virginia, which seems to coincide with the fact that most polling have them in a statistical dead heat.

In the Lt. Governor race Jody Wagner was expected to come out on top. She has been in the race for awhile now and has the support of many elected officials from Northern Virginia. What was a surprise to many people, however, was the fact that Mike Signer performed so well in the poll. He was the last candidate to join the race, but has been putting together a strong grassroots organization in recent weeks. His "Coffee Break" youtube videos have also been a great way to get the discussion going on the important issues and I think he's the candidate to watch in this race right now.

More to come, so keep checking back.

Republican Party of Virginia Needs A Change In Direction, Not Just Leadership

At a time when there's be a significant amount of discussion on the national level about who is the true leader of the national Republican Party and whether or not Michael Steele actually is doing a good job as chairman of the Republican National Committee, there appears to be a miniature version of that debate taking place right here in Virginia. As Bearing Drift is reporting with the documentation to back it up, Jeff Frederick has entered into a battle to keep his position to remain in his position as Chairman of the RPV.

By combining these struggles with the poor showing that the Republicans have had on both the local and national level over the last few years, it's safe to say that the Republican Party is now faced with a tough decision about what direction it should take. What's most interesting to me is that many of the insiders that are taking part in the debate don't seem to recognize that the Republican Party needs to change it's philosophy if it wants to regain majorities in any level of government.

While I've been organizing in Virginia the last few years I have heard time and time again from moderate Republicans how they feel alienated from the party as its leaders continue to insist on being the party of no and only promoting extreme stances on social issues. The fact that moderates are being alienated by the Republican Party has benefited Democratic candidates as many voters see that they are the ones who are promoting commonsense ideas that will move our country in the right direction. Perhaps more importantly in the minds of the general public, while some Republican leaders are hoping for President Obama to fail, the Democrats are listening to what the public has to say and promoting the productive ideas that they are asking for -- investing in our schools, making health care affordable, dealing with housing foreclosures, etc.

So while there has been a lot of coverage on the leadership struggles that the Republican Party has been having, I don't think there's been a lot of discussion about the party's true problem -- the fact that it's been alienating voters at a time when the Democrats are promoting good solutions. No matter who is in charge, the Republicans won't be able to turn around their party until the begin reaching out to the general public and actually listening to what is being said.

Sen. Jeff Merkley Speaks Out About AIG Situation

Yesterday I wrote a post about how Sen. Jim Webb had stepped up to the plate to call for more accountability in regards to AIG giving it's employees millions upon millions of dollars in bonuses even though the company took billions upon billions (with a b) of dollars in taxpayer money to be bailed out instead of going into bankruptcy.

It appears as though Sen. Webb was correct in stating that there was "nearly universal agreement in the Senate that AIG, the recipient of nearly $200 billion in U.S. taxpayer dollars, is out of line by offering excessive bonuses" as a group of senators, including Sen. Jeff Merkley from Oregon, sent a letter to the CEO of AIG demanding that he renegotiate the contracts or be forced to immediately pay back the taxpayers an amount equivalent to the bonuses that were delivered.

Dear Mr. Liddy,

We write today to express our outrage at American International Group’s recently revealed multi-million dollar bonus payments. In these perilous economic times, it is unconscionable for the American taxpayer to find out that the very employees responsible for running the company into the ground have now received “performance-based” awards that are hundreds of times as large as the average American’s yearly salary. If these contracts are not renegotiated immediately, we will take action to make American taxpayers whole by recouping all of the bonuses that AIG has paid out to its financial products unit, which, by all accounts, is primarily responsible for the near-failure of the company and the devastating impact on the global financial markets.

For a company that would not exist anymore but for a $170 billion taxpayer funded rescue, it is simply morally unacceptable to spend $165 million on bonus payments, and especially offensive to spend $450 million over the next two years rewarding the employees that helped fuel the nation’s financial crisis. Given the fact that it was the employees in this unit that brought your firm to the brink of bankruptcy and caused such havoc in the world, rewarding them is not only morally reprehensible, but entirely indefensible on any business grounds. It is the grossest perversion of the idea of a “performance bonus” imaginable. In America, we believe in rewarding success. AIG is attempting to reward the most extreme failure.

We insist that you immediately renegotiate these contracts in order to recoup these payments and make the American taxpayer whole. We stand ready to take the difficult, but necessary step of working to enact legislation that would allow the government to recoup these bonus payments, perhaps by imposing a steep tax-- as high as 91 percent--that will have the effect of recovering nearly all of the bonuses that have been paid out since AIG turned to taxpayers for help.

At a time when families across the country are struggling to make ends meet, and hundreds of thousands of Americans are losing their jobs each month, the hubris of this company, and these employees, to demand taxpayer assistance for these bonus payments is simply and plainly unacceptable. We urge you to bring your employees to the table to renegotiate these contracts immediately. We expect that you will report back to Congress on your efforts to recoup these payments in short order. Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter.

At a Senate hearing, Sen. Jeff Merkley also delivered a speech that spoke about the public outrage surrounding the business practices at AIG.

Video: Brian Moran On Grassroots Politics and Building Campaign From the Ground Up

Not only has Brian Moran always displayed a passion for standing up for those who don't always have their voice heard in government, but he's illustrated that he believes in running a grassroots oriented campaign that promotes public discussion. Why? Because that is one of the best way to make sure that an elected official is truly representing the best interests of the public.

At this morning's event in Fairfax, Brian briefly spoke about how the campaign is building the campaign from the ground up, community by community. I've seen this in person while watching Brian interact with community leaders and residents in various communities while addressing issues such as home foreclosures, health care, and energy. What stands out most is that when I've talked to Brian about these issues in one on one situations, it becomes plainly obvious that he cares deeply about public service and that he truly believes his grassroots style of leadership will help him make a difference as governor.

Here's a clip from this morning's speech:

Video: Sup. Jeff McKay Endorsed Brian Moran for Governor

Supervisor Jeff McKay is a rising star in local politics as a member of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors. He was at the event this morning at the Old Town Hall in Fairfax to endorse Brian Moran's candidacy for governor.

It's also worth noting that Jeff mentioned the majority of Democratic members of the Board of Supervisors have endorsed Brian's candidacy. This is interesting because Fairfax is not only one of the bluer counties in the Commonwealth, it also the largest jurisdiction in Virginia. In other words, the elected officials endorsing Brian today represent a large portion of the people who will be voting in the primary in June as well as the general election in November.

Video: Del. Vivian Watts Endorsed Brian Moran

Del. Vivian Watts also endorsed Brian Moran's campaign this morning at the Old Town Hall in Fairfax. Here's what she had to say:

Brian Moran Receives Endorsements In Fairfax (with video)

This morning Brian Moran received a large number of endorsements from local elected officials and community leaders at the Old Town Hall in the City of Fairfax. I was impressed with the gathering of people at the event because so many of them have devoted their time to public service. More importantly, they do so not out of a need for power but out of a desire to improve the communities in which they live. Many of them, such as Councilman Dan Drummond who served as the MC of the event, have implemented grassroots campaigns while running for office and truly engaged the public in a productive dialogue after being elected. This is the type of public service that Brian Moran has illustrated and it appears as though it’s a large reason behind why these officials are supporting his campaign.

Throughout the day I will be posting videos of some of the speakers, including Brian himself. The first one that I’m posting is of a representative from the City of Fairfax Professional Fire Fighters and Paramedics Local 2702 and former School Board Member Bob Frye (who is also currently a member of the Board of Visitors for Longwood University). In announcing these endorsements, the speakers focused on how Brian has a history of fighting for Virginia and how he will continue to do so if elected governor. It’s also noteworthy that these endorsements represent two important groups in our community – those who protect our communities and those who help to educate the public.

Sen. Webb on the Need to Hold AIG Accountable

There has been a lot of talk lately about how people are claiming that AIG must be allowed to pay out millions upon millions of dollars in bonuses because of contracts, but that the auto workers are expected to renegotiate their contracts. In other words, the wall street bankers get a pass while blue collar workers have to suffer a loss. Recognizing the need for accountability on this issue, Sen. Jim Webb issued the following statement.

“There is nearly universal agreement in the Senate that AIG, the recipient of nearly $200 billion in U.S. taxpayer dollars, is out of line by offering excessive bonuses to some of the very executives that helped to feed the financial crisis by investing in toxic assets. The American people deserve accountability on how their money is spent.

“It is important to put into context that, while the U.S. auto industry was ultimately provided $24 billion in repayable loans to help ensure the viability of millions of American jobs, AIG received $197 billion in federal dollars with little apparent oversight. Of that amount, AIG has distributed tens of billions of dollars to foreign banks—more than the entire amount loaned to the auto industry. Furthermore, one of the requirements for the auto industry to receive federal assistance was to renegotiate existing workforce contracts, yet we are told that Wall Street contracts are sacrosanct.

“Most agree that government action was necessary to stabilize the financial system, but lavish bonuses and payouts to foreign banks were not Congress’s intent and do not represent a proper usage of taxpayer money. I will continue to push the administration and this Congress to strengthen oversight, especially in light of AIG’s recent actions.”

Rachel Maddow on the Employee Free Choice Act

I think Rachel Maddow does a good job here of pointing out how the Employee Free Choice Act is designed to empower workers to stand up for their rights, even though some of the Republicans are trying to make this out as some evil bill that's out to destroy the county. After watching this, also remember to call or email Senators Webb and Warner and let them know that you support the passage of the EFCA and encourage them to vote in favor of the legislation.

Gerry Connolly's St. Patrick's Day Promotes Grassroots Activity

Gerry Connolly has been hosting his St. Patrick's Day event ever since he first ran for Providence District Supervisor in 1995. It has gone from just a gathering of his supporters in his home to now being held in the Kena Temple because hundreds of people are expected to attend. While this event obviously is a good fundraiser, I look at it more as a great way to support the local Democratic community and get excited about upcoming elections -- especially when you consider that there's a straw poll at the event.

Now there has always been a lot of speculation about how credible straw polls are and what they actually mean in the race. I think that depends a lot on the reputation of the event the straw poll is held at AND how the actual candidates approach the poll. The straw poll at Gerry's St. Patrick Day event has a history of producing accurate results and people tend to realize this so candidates pay attention to the race. In past years, candidates have encouraged their supporters to attend the event -- often through sending out emails or making some phone calls -- so that they could receive their vote. This has largely resulted in seeing which campaign did a better job of rallying it's supporters to the specific event. Based upon the accuracy of the results, many of the victorious candidates have been able to then use those organizing skills to win in the primaries.

Where the skepticism of straw polls comes in is sometimes candidates try to buy up a large number of tickets in order to make it look like they have a lot of grassroots support. In the past this has happened at other events, but most people respect the tradition of trying to have this event truly be a test of grassroots organizing. I truly hope that remains to be the case this year, but we shall see tomorrow evening. Hope to see you there.

Brian Moran On Health Care Costs

Another video from last night's blogger dinner with Brian Moran. Here he talks about health care costs and how addressing these high costs can also help our economy.

Brian Moran on Remote Area Medical (RAM) Care

During the bloggers dinner in Arlington last night, Brian Moran was asked about Remote Area Medical (RAM) care by one of the bloggers in attendance. I think this is an important concept because it gets to the core of providing necessary services to those who cannot afford basic health care and live in rural areas. Addressing this issue is both a moral and economic obligation that the Commonwealth must meet and part of the reason that Moran would make an excellent governor is his understanding of the importance of looking out for those in need.

Here's a clip of what Brian Moran had to say about the topic last night.

Brian Moran on Important Issues In Campaign

So far in the gubernatorial campaign Brian Moran has laid out detailed plans addressing several issues including energy, a "healthy Virginia plan," a plan addressing home foreclosures, and will be rolling out a detailed plan about education. Here's a clip from his speech last night to bloggers where he addresses those issues.

Brian Moran On How His Background Influenced Him

During his speech to the bloggers who gathered in his campaign office, Brian spoke about how he can understand what people are going through during this tough economic time because he grew up in a working class family. There were times, for instance, when all they had powdered milk because the family couldn't afford whole milk (the task of which he apparently still gets in his mouth sometimes when he talks with those who are struggling) and he started working at the age of 14 to help out the family and worked his way through college and law school.

Everyone time I hear him speak about the need to stand up for the working class, I can just feel how passionate he really is about making a difference. When you combine that passion with the action plans that he has put together to address the concerns of working families, I'm confident that Brian Moran is the type of leader who will help move Virginia forward. Although it's not quite the same as hearing him speak in person, here's a clip of Brian speaking about his background and how it's influenced him.

Brian Moran on How "We are stronger when we work together"

I was fortunate enough to attend a blogger dinner tonight with Brian Moran and several of his key advisers tonight at his new office in Arlington. I'll be posting a series of videos with analysis throughout the weekend, so keep checking back here for information on what was discussed.

I've seen Brian in action for years as he's helped Democratic candidates all across the Commonwealth and it's always been clear to me that he's very passionate about public service and helping make sure that the best candidates are elected to office. During his time as chair of the Democratic Caucus in the House of Delegates, the Democrats have gone from only having 33 seats to now having a shot at gaining a majority during the elections this November. He's done this by working hard and realizing that we must support candidates throughout the Commonwealth and work to strengthen our organization in areas where we haven't performed well in the past -- a concept that Obama definitely utilized in last year's election.

With that being said, Brian spoke about how his campaign is going from community to community to build his campaign from the ground up and not from the top down. He also passionately spoke about how we are a Commonwealth and need a leader who recognizes the fact that we must work together in order to address the important issues Virginians are facing. Here's the video of those comments:

Grassroots Action Needed Right Here in Virginia On Employee Free Choice Act

UPDATE: I want to make it clear that Rep. Jim Moran and Rep. Gerry Connolly are original co-sponsors of the legislation and have been on board since it was introduced. If calls are made to their office, it should be to thank them for standing up for workers' rights.

In a post earlier today, I wrote about how Dan Duncan was correct in hinting that there needs to be some grassroots action to make sure that Virginia's Congressional delegation realizes the important role that the Employee Free Choice Act will play in protecting workers' rights if it's passed. With that in mind, here are my thoughts on our two senators and the 11th District's member of the House of Representatives.

As Dan pointed out in his video, Rep. Gerry Connolly has said that he would support the Employee Free Choice Act but there have been many folks in the business community who have put pressure on his to vote against the legislation. Sending him a friendly reminder that the Employee Free Choice Act is a good thing for his district would therefore be an excellent way to stand up for working families. While we definitely want Gerry to vote the right way, but it looks like the EFCA has the support necessary to see it passed in the House of Representatives.

As we've seen a lot recently, the House generally seems able to pass productive legislation only to see it weakened (if passed at all) by the Senate. It is therefore in the US Senate where I believe most of the grassroots activists must focus their attention. By most of the counts that I have seen, there are 59 votes in favor of the Employee Free Choice Act in the Senate and they need 60 votes to move forward. It's important to note, however, that count assumes that Al Franken will be seated by the time the vote takes place and some of the more moderate Democrats will vote "aye." Unfortunately there's no guarantee that this course of action will happen. Right here in Virginia, for instance, some people who are active in the labor community have raised questions raised about whether Senators Webb and Warner will vote for the EFCA.

Although Webb comes from a working class background and has spoken about this with pride, there has been some speculation about whether or not he'd vote for the Employee Free Choice Act. Based upon what I've heard and the vote counts that I've seen, he probably will but he is still one of the Democrats that definitely needs that friendly reminder about why the legislation is so important. I therefore highly recommend getting in touch with his office to let him know that the EFCA would be good for Virginia. You can either call his office at 202-224-4024 or use the contact form on his website to send him an email (his postal address is also on the form if you prefer snail mail).

As I have spoken to people in the labor community, Sen. Mark Warner is also one of the senators who they are a little unsure about where he sits on the Employee Free Choice Act. While most vote counts that I have seen have him in favor of this legislation, nobody is speaking with absolute confidence about his stance. Anti-labor advocates are hoping to take advantage of the fact that he's a freshman Senator who has a history of being a centrist Democrat and made a significant amount of money as a businessman. Since, more importantly, Warner is an official who is interested in truly serving the best interests of his constituents I believe he will support legislation that protects workers' rights. An assertive effort must be made, however, to make sure that Warner knows the importance of the EFCA. I therefore strongly encourage people to get in touch with his office by calling 202-224-2023 or using the contact form on his website.

Dan Duncan On Employee Free Choice Act

Dan Duncan is the president of the Northern Virginia Central Labor Council and I've gotten to know him over the last few years as we constantly run into each other while we're out working to improve our community. I have always been impressed with how hard Dan works and the knowledge that he has about how legislation will impact the working class right here in Virginia.

I've also gotten to know his wife, Karen, as she runs the blog Anonymous is a Woman. Although they both bring different things to the table, both of the Duncans are extremely dedicated to improving the quality of life for working families. In fact, I once heard Karen say that "economic populism is one of my biggest passions." This is good news, because it looks like we are going to be facing an interesting battle in order to get the Employee Free Choice Act passed in Congress and it looks like they will be stepping up to the plate to help.

Karen recently posted a video of Dan speaking about the need for a strong grassroots effort to educate both the public and elected officials about why the Employee Free Choice Act should be passed. You can watch it below and I highly recommend then deciding to take some of his advice and let your representatives know why the EFCA is something good for our community. If you're looking for ways to get involved, I have already been doing a lot of offline organizing around this topic so feel free to get in touch with me and we can work out a way for you to get involved in activities supporting working families.

Steve Shannon Picks Up Even More Endorsements

Even though there are portions of the Commonwealth that definitely lean Republican, recent elections have illustrated that Democrats have an ability to compete throughout all of Virginia. Steve Shannon is a candidate for Attorney General who wants to represent ALL of Virginia and has been traveling around the state in order to talk with the general public about what he hopes to accomplish if elected. Members of the General Assembly are able to see his ability to reach out beyond his home base in Northern Virginia and Steve's campaign announced earlier today that he had received the endorsement of two Delegates from Southeast Virginia -- Delegate Lynwood Lewis (D-Accomac) and Delegate Bill Barlow (D-Smithfield).

“I’m proud to have the support of these terrific legislators,” Delegate Steve Shannon said. “The communities Delegates Lewis and Barlow represent face unique challenges, and I look forward to working with them as Virginia’s next Attorney General,” Shannon continued.

“Steve has worked closely with me on public safety issues of great importance to my community,” Delegate Bill Barlow said. “After working with him for six years as a colleague, I know where he stands and I’ll be glad to call him Attorney General,” Barlow concluded.

“From the first day that we served together, I have known Steve to fight for what he believes in,” said Delegate Lynwood Lewis. “During our time in the House of Delegates, I have seen Steve fight to protect our communities from drug abuse, and I’ve seen him fight to protect the Chesapeake Bay,” Lewis continued. “I’m proud to support Steve’s campaign for Attorney General, because I know he’ll do what’s right not only for the Eastern Shore, but for all of Virginia,” Lewis concluded.

What is very interesting about this race is that Steve Shannon appears to be building up a base of people supporting his campaign from all across the Commonwealth. I've consistently heard people speak about Steve's history of standing up to keep our communities safe and how he realizes that the Attorney General's office must also work hard to combat financial crimes and identity theft. The Republican candidates, on the other hand, seem to be seeing who can go to the extreme right the fastest in hopes that this will help them win their primary. While that might indeed help them in a GOP primary, it has essentially resulted in them putting partisanship ahead of holding a productive discussion about serving the community.

Rally Against Don't Ask Don't Tell At US Capitol Tomorrow

I strongly encourage anyone who can make it to attend the rally tomorrow (Friday, March 13) on the Capitol grounds at noon to show support for the repeal of Don't Ask Don't Tell.

Mike Signer's Latest Coffee Break: Voter Disenfranchisement

In a race where almost 75% of voters are undecided, Mike Signer is really showing that he's stepping forward with ideas and he's done a good job at working at getting that message out to voters. Here's his latest "Coffee Break" video where he talks about how 25% of African American men in Virginia are disenfranchised.

Herrity Pulls Political Stunt In Attempt to Trap Fellow Supervisors Regarding Employee Free Choice Act

The Employee Free Choice Act, which would help to protect workers' rights in the workplace, was introduced in Congress yesterday. Although this is legislation that is being considered by the Federal Government, the battle over big business vs. the worker made it's way to the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors meeting on Monday. During the "Board Matters" portion of the meeting, Supervisor Pat Herrity tried to slipped a motion in at the last minute that would have called for the board to write a letter to our Congressional Delegation expressing support for Virginia's status as a "Right to Work" state (which hampers workers' ability to form unions) and calling for them to vote against the Employee Free Choice Act.

While putting forward the motion which went down to defeat by a vote of 7 to 2, Herrity made several false claims and put in forward in the wrong forum in a stunt that was intended to make the other supervisors vote on the issue of the Employee Free Choice Act while in front of television cameras. Fortunately, most of the other supervisors were quickly able to see right through Herrity's motives. Several supervisors, for instance, mentioned that one of the primary reasons they were opposing the motion was that they had been dealing with extremely localized issues -- such as where to put street lights -- for most of the morning and Herrity brought the motion up at the wrong time. It should have been dealt with at the legislative committee which had been held the previous workday. In other words, even if they did support the motion Herrity was clearly out of place by making the motion in a secretative manner and in the wrong forum. I tend to believe that if Herrity truly felt strongly enough about the issue, he would have brought it up in the proper forum so that it could have been discussed and the other supervisors could have been more prepared. Instead he decided to pull a political stunt, perhaps in hopes that his fellow supervisors would stumble in front of the camera.

Another reason that the other Supervisors said they opposed the motion at the time was that Herrity's motion claimed that the Board of Supervisors had previously expressed support of Virginia's "Right to Work" status as something that helped it be named best managed state. Many supervisors expressed that they personally disagree with that statement and they most definitely had never supported that as a board. In other words, Sup. Herrity was incorrectly portraying the sentiments of the board when trying to pull off his political stunt.

What this really comes down to is the fact that Pat Herrity appears to be putting partisanship ahead of actual productive use of our local government's time. As I said earlier, it's one thing for a Supervisor to bring up something he/she feels passionate about but might not have much support from other members, but do it in the proper forum and don't use falsehoods in order to promote the cause. If it's something that's actually good for the community, the facts will help move it through the proper process. Since most opponents of the Employee Free Choice Act have been relying upon utter falsehoods to halt the legislation, however, it looks like Herrity is simply embracing partisanship more and more during his time on the County Board. That's a shame because the voters elected him in hopes that he would add another moderate voice to our local government.

Moran Campaign Raises Questions About McAuliffe's Enviromental Policy

There's been a fair amount of discussion recently about the differences between Brian Moran and Terry McAuliffe regarding environmental issues. The discussion has primarily focused on how Terry recently released a plan that supports "clean coal" -- a concept that most environmental activists realize simply doesn't exist even though many statewide candidates in Virginia claim to support it in order to get votes from people who work in the coal industry.

In a statement released early today, Brian Moran's communications director (Jesse Ferguson) made it clear that Brian is going to stand up for progressive values and our environment during this campaign.

“For six weeks, Brian Moran has been rolling out bold, progressive policy solutions, and we are glad to see Mr. McAuliffe finally join the debate. Brian Moran has been promoting an agenda that creates new green jobs, protects our environment, provides health care for every child and keeps families in their homes. Democratic leaders across the Commonwealth are supporting this bold agenda because it is backed up by the 20 years Brian Moran has been fighting for people, traveling the state, and working side-by-side with Mark Warner and Tim Kaine.

Unfortunately, Mr. McAuliffe has announced an energy plan which dodges the toughest energy issues facing Virginia. You can develop slick-looking, well-packaged policy plans, but if they don’t fight for the things that matter to people or address the tough issues, then they don’t move Virginia forward. You can’t say you’re for a clean environment and continue to support new coal mega-plants and offshore drilling.”

• New Surry Coal Mega-Plant Support. McAuliffe continues to support a new coal-fired mega-plant in Surry County, siding against Virginia’s environment and the health of its residents. The Surry plant is one of the greatest threats to Virginia’s environment and the Chesapeake Bay. Within 50 miles of Richmond and Hampton Roads, it will dump toxic chemicals into the Chesapeake Bay. Brian Moran opposes the proposed plant. (Hersay with Cathy Lewis, WHRO, 2/19/2009)
• Offshore Drilling Support. McAuliffe continues to support drilling off Virginia’s coast. Mr. McAuliffe seems to think we can solve 21st century energy challenges with more 19th century fossil fuels. Moran has opposed offshore drilling.
  

After months of supporting a 12% renewable energy production requirement, Mr. McAuliffe has joined Brian Moran and Barack Obama in calling for a full 25% of our energy to come from renewable sources by 2025. We are glad to see McAuliffe following our lead. (Gubernatorial hopeful touts renewable energy sources, “Danville Register and Bee,” 1/9/2009)

What is very interesting about this statement is that it's obviously directed at the McAuliffe campaign, but it does so in a way that highlights actual policy differences between Moran and McAuliffe. Since some supporters of both candidates (not the actual campaigns) have taken rhetorical swipes at one another in public forums, it's good to see that the Moran campaign is making sure that it is promoting discussion of the actual issues. Virginians have an important decision to make when they head to the polls this year and I think it's important for the campaigns realize the discussion should focus on the issues that are important to the public and who has the best policy.

Del Hogan's Retirement Raises Questions About Salaries for General Assembly Members

According to the Gazette Virginian, Delegate Clarke Hogan will not be running for reelection this year. Although there has been some discussion as to the real reason for his retirement, Hogan claims that he is leaving office because he needs to focus more on his personal business and told the Gazette Virginian that being a member of the General Assembly is like "balancing two full-time jobs."

I have heard other members of the General Assembly make similar statements because even though being a member of the legislator is technically a part time job, it does take up a significant amount of time. The fact that legislators are required to be in Richmond for session -- and sometimes special sessions and other commitments they have -- can create a unique situation for someone who is also trying to hold down a full time job so that they can support their family. Furthermore, the fact that legislators earn under $20,000 a year for their official duties also means that they most likely cannot afford to have this income be their only source of revenue.

This raises the question of whether members of the General Assembly should be paid more so they can afford to focus full time on their duties as an elected official. If they could spend more time in session or at their district offices, there is the potential for increasing the opportunities for constituents to meet with their representatives and for officials to truly pass meaningful legislation instead of trying to get everything done in the few weeks that the GA's currently in session.

While the vast majority of General Assembly members are honest public servants, having them be full time legislators and paying them accordingly would also help to ensure that their official duties are separate from their own personal business ventures. As it stands now, for instance, there was a fair amount of discussion about how Del. Dave Albo was a key figure in passing legislation that introduced extreme costs for traffic violations -- something people believed he potentially stood to benefit from since he's a name partner at a law firm that deals with traffic law. Then there's also the fact that lobbyists know legislators don't get paid much and use that to their advantage by paying for expensive meals in order to get some face time and potential influence.

Now I don't see action on this issue taken anytime soon, especially during this economic crisis, because even though it might be something that's needed to increase the productivity of our General Assembly, members of the legislator wouldn't want to cast a vote that would significantly raise their own salary due to potential backlash during the next election. I've also heard some legislators talk about how they wouldn't want to increase their own salary until there are laws on the books that ensuring Virginia's workers a living wage. In other words Hogan's reasoning for retirement brings up a primarily academic question at the moment; Should members of our General Assembly be paid enough to make holding office their full time job?

Brian Moran On Tim Kaine Signing Smoking Ban Legislation

In between various board meetings that I've been attending today and will have some reports on tomorrow, I received the following statement from Brian Moran's campaign about Tim Kaine signing the smoking ban legislation earlier today.

Brian Moran made the following statement after Governor Tim Kaine signed the Virginia smoking ban legislation passed by the 2009 General Assembly. Moran voted for smoking ban legislation in the House and authored the ban on smoking in nursing homes and emergency rooms over a decade ago. Twenty-eight other states have banned smoking in public places.

“The Virginia Department of Health tells us that second-hand smoke kills 1,700 Virginians every year. Governor Kaine has led Virginia to this responsible action that protects public health by reducing exposure to second-hand smoke. Parents shouldn’t have to worry about smoke-filled restaurants when they go out for a family dinner. This is a tremendous step forward, and Governor Kaine deserves the appreciation of every Virginia family.”

John Amato's Leave Limbaugh Alone Video

John Amato from Crooks and Liars made this video calling for everyone to "leave Limbaugh alone." Obviously it's a clear spin on Chris Cocker's leave Britney alone video that was a youtube sensation and has received over 24 million views. Since John's video has only received a little over 1,000 viewers as of 9:30 on Friday night I'd say he has a long ways to go before catching up to Chris's video, but it's still rather entertaining.

Steve Shannon Endorsed by Ironworkers and United Transportation Unions

I just received word from Steve Shannon's campaign that the Ironworkers and the United Transportation unions are supporting his candidacy for Attorney General.

“These unions represent thousands of working people all across Virginia and I’m proud to have their support,” Delegate Steve Shannon said.

“Steve has a long record of fighting to protect working families,” said Ironworkers Local 5 Business Manager Kendall Martin. “Steve has fought to protect Virginia’s families his entire adult life, whether it was as a prosecutor going after criminals who target children, or a legislator working to protect our families, Virginians could always count on Steve to do what’s right,” Martin concluded.

“Steve has stood with Virginia families from day one and I’ll be proud to call him Attorney General,” United Transportation Union Virginia Legislative Director Walter Yeatts said. “As a private citizen Steve was instrumental in founding Virginia’s first AMBER Alert system to recover abducted kids, as a prosecutor he went after criminals who attacked children, and as a legislator Steve has been instrumental in fighting to create more jobs and a higher standard of living for Virginia families,” Yeatts concluded.

The theme of keeping families safe and helping to improve our community has been something that I've heard Steve talk about long before there were even rumors that he was running for Attorney General. That is why I'm confident that he truly would use his office to improve our communities and keep our families safe if he was elected Virginia's next AG. The Ironworkers and the United Transportation unions are among many diverse groups who also recognize this, which is a big reason behind why they have endorsed his candidacy.

Rich Savage Drops Out of Race for Lt. Governor

Rich Savage has announced that he will no longer be seeking the Democratic nomination for Lt. Governor. Seeing as the field is rather crowded and none of the candidates are polling above 9%, I'm not surprised that Savage has dropped out and I imagine we'll see one or more of the other candidates follow his path before the primary on June 9th.

Perhaps the most important part of this announcement is that Savage will continue to work with his foundation, The Savage Foundation, which helps middle school and high school students. I have been doing a fair amount of work surrounding the school system up here in Fairfax County and I'm very pleased to see that we have people in other parts of the Commonwealth who are doing their part to improve our education system. In my opinion, this is one of the most important investments we can make (both in terms of financial resources and our time) because education is what will prepare students for the 21st job market and make our communities better places to live.

So while Rich and his supporters might be sad to see him leave the campaign trail, I believe his efforts with the Savage Foundation will provide an excellent platform to give back to the Commonwealth.

Even if Frederick Steps Down, Virginia's GOP Leadership Would Still Push Party to the Extreme Right

According to Bearing Drift, there have been several key players who have asked Jeff Frederick to resign as Chairman of the Republican Party of Virginia.

State central members say that asking Frederick to resign is not due to any political disagreements, but that poor fundraising, the loss of three congressional seats and the US Senate last November, and his preference to use a technology firm which he has a personal interest in have caused the loss of confidence.

Because of the above, and combined with Frederick’s propensity to create controversy with his comments, nearly all of the State Senate Republicans and many of his former colleagues in the House Republican Caucus are also eager to see the chairman out.

During his time as Chairman, Frederick has served as a prime example of how the Republican Party's leadership has been steering the party further and further to the right. Between costing the Republicans control of the Virginia Senate by prematurely tweeting about a power-sharing deal and then rising on the floor of the House of Delegates to claim that Darwin was just "used by atheists to explain away the belief of god," it would probably benefit the Democrats strategically to have Frederick remain at the head of the Republican Party.

What is perhaps most interesting about this whole situation is that while talking to the folks at Bearing Drift, key party officials have picked up on this concept and made it clear that they wanted Frederick to step down for strategic reasons and "not due to any political disagreements." In other words, they like the fact that he has continued to push the Republican Party further to the right. This suggests the Republican leadership simply does not understand that Virginia's do not support their extreme views. So if Frederick steps down the Republican Party might be safe from more of his blunders, but the party's leadership would still continue to push their party away from the values of Virginia voters.

Video: Sup. Jay Fisette Speaks At ACDC Meeting

Jay Fisette spoke at last night's Arlington County Democratic Committee meeting and touched not only some general issues and declared his candidacy for reelection to the County Board, but also spoke about how he had just written an article about the movie Milk. He mentioned how he was asked to do so because Milk was the first openly gay person elected to a major office in the country and Fisette was the first openly gay elected official in Virginia.



I posted a video of Jody Wagner's speech earlier and Lowell over at Blue Virginia has video of Steve Shannon and Creigh Deeds speaking to the Committee.

Video: Jody Wagner at Arlington County Democratic Committee Meeting

Gerry Connolly Elected President of Freshman Class in the US House of Representatives

I just got this statement from Gerry Connolly's office regarding Gerry being elected the President of the Freshman Class in the U.S. House of Representatives.

WASHINGTON –Congressman Gerry Connolly will be the new President of the Freshman Class in the U.S. House of Representatives.

The 33 Democratic freshmen elected Connolly by acclamation at a meeting Wednesday morning in the Capitol. Connolly will assume office in July.

Commenting on Connolly’s election, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said, “I congratulate Gerry Connolly on his election as class president. Gerry has truly hit the ground running and is well-respected by his colleagues in the House. I’m confident he’ll make a great Freshman Class President.”

Connolly said he will use his new leadership position “to protect the interests of the class, insure they have a voice in the legislative process, and help channel their concerns to the appropriate committees and House leadership.”

Residents of Northern Virginia have always known that Gerry Connolly has a lot of experience and wouldn't be a typical freshman Member of Congress. Not only would he take with him his experience as a local elected official but he also served as a Senate staffer for many years which allowed him to gain first hand knowledge of how things work on the Hill. I am pleased to see that his fellow freshmen Democrats in the House of Representatives recognize this and decided to elect him their class president.