Critics blast McDonnell administration over weekend arrests
The ACLU of Virginia is offering to assist reproductive rights protestors who were arrested Saturday at the state Capitol, if their constitutional right to free speech was violated.
Approximately 1,000 demonstrators converged on the Capitol grounds to protest the passage of a bill to require pregnant women to undergo an ultrasound procedure prior to being allowed to have an abortion. Although organizers of the event had obtained a permit to use the areas near the Bell Tower in one corner of the Capitol grounds, some protestors proceeded to sit on the steps of the Capitol Building. Read more
Dems urge McDonnell to come back to reality on economic recovery
The Democratic Party of Virginia today urged Bob McDonnell to focus on his job as governor and less on making tortured and patently absurd efforts to explain the nationwide economic recovery as anything other than a reflection on President Barack Obama’s strong leadership.
On Sunday Bob McDonnell went on CNN’s State of the Union and said: “Look, I’m glad the economy is starting to recover, but I think it’s because of what Republican governors are doing in their states, not because of the president.”
In making that argument, McDonnell failed to acknowledge the reality of a nationwide recovery in which states with governors of both parties are emerging from the national recession, including states like Maryland, which created eight times more private-sector jobs than Virginia did last year under the leadership of Democratic Gov. Martin O’Malley. Read more
Dem leader jumps on Cuccinelli gubernatorial run
The prospect that Ken Cuccinelli will be making official his plans to run for the 2013 Republican nomination for governor has Democrats salivating.
“Ken Cuccinelli’s impending gubernatorial announcement is further proof that his political career is about one thing and one thing only: Ken Cuccinelli. Instead of fighting everyday for Virginia families, he has used his taxpayer-funded office to prove to the Tea Party that no one is more radically out of touch with middle class Virginians than he is,” Democratic Party of Virginia Chairman Brian Moran said today.
Published reports have Cuccinelli, the sitting state attorney general, planning an announcement regarding his plans to run for governor for next week. The move would set off a contested nomination battle between Cuccinelli and Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling, who sidestepped a similar possible tete-a-tete with then-Attorney General Bob McDonnell in advance of the 2009 state elections.
The gentlemen’s agreement between McDonnell and Bolling helped the GOP roll to landslide wins in all three statewide races in 2009. The last time there was a gubernatorial-nomination battle between two sitting state officeholders was in 2001, when then-Attorney General Mark Earley defeated then-Lt. Gov. John Hager for the GOP nomination before losing in the general election to Democrat Mark Warner.
Cuccinelli has made a name for himself in the Republican base for his controversial attacks on climate-change science and the 2010 federal health-care reform. As popular as he has proven to be among GOP voters, Cuccinelli has been just as unpopular with Democrats, who are eager to use his controversial stands against him.
“Should he break his promise to run for re-election and beat Bill Bolling in a primary, Ken Cuccinelli will offer Virginia Democrats a real opportunity to expose the Republican Party for what it is, and to offer a clear alternative. While Cuccinelli and the Republicans would rather pick fights with Washington and curry favor with the Tea Party than fight for middle class families, Democrats are focused on creating jobs and opportunity by improving education, fixing transportation and investing in clean energy,” Moran said.
Supreme Court refuses to expedite health-care reform review
The U.S. Supreme Court has denied the request of Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli to expedite the appellate review of the state’s constitutional challenge of the 2010 federal health-care reform law.
The move had not been unexpected – as the Supreme Court rarely bypasses appellate courts in reviews of constitutional questions. Cuccinelli had asked for an expedited review citing what his office had characterized as a potential negative impact on Virginia and other states due to the pending implementation of the reform law.
“Expediting our case would have been the exception and so, although disappointing, this is not surprising,” Cuccinelli said in a statement today. “We look forward to making our arguments in the U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals on the morning of May 10th here in Richmond. This case’s logical end point is the Supreme Court. It will simply have to make its way through the Fourth Circuit first.”
The move by the Supreme Court likely delays any action by the highest court in the land on the review of the law until 2012.
A federal judge in Richmond ruled in December that a key provision in the law requiring consumers to purchase health insurance is unconstitutional. The ruling contradicts other rulings in other federal courts that have found the purchase requirement to be within congressional authority.
“The court’s refusal to hear this case now will force states and businesses to incur increased costs and expend significant effort to begin preparations necessary to ensure compliance with this law, which ultimately may be ruled unconstitutional,” Gov. Bob McDonnell, a Republican who has been critical of the health-care law, said in a statement. “Supporters and opponents of this law should agree on one thing, we need a definitive answer to its constitutionality so that we can move forward in the appropriate manner.”
Democratic Party of Virginia chairman Brian Moran said the Supreme Court “did the right thing” in allowing the normal process for review to play out and urged Cuccinelli to devote more of his office’s resources to fighting for Virginians who are struggling in this economy.
“Instead of using his taxpayer-funded office to challenge a law that has already helped more than 100,000 young Virginians keep their access to health insurance, the attorney general should devote more of his time and our resources to fighting for middle class families that are struggling to find work and stay in their homes in this difficult economy. Virginians should not have to foot the bill for his personal political agenda,” Moran said.
Kaine announces Senate candidacy: ‘We’ve got to be unified’
Former Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine is in the running for the soon-to-be-open U.S. Senate seat currently held by Democrat Jim Webb.
“I’m running for the United States Senate because America has big challenges, and I’m convinced that Virginia has answers to help strengthen our nation,” Kaine said in a video released today that announced his candidacy for the Democratic Party nomination.
The entry of Kaine into the race sets up a possible heavyweight clash with another former governor, Republican George Allen, who was upset in 2006 in his first re-election run by Webb.
Webb announced earlier this year that he will not seek a second term in the Senate in the 2012 election.
“As governor, I helped lead Virginia through the toughest economy in seventy years,” Kaine said in the video announcement. “We cut billions from the state budget, tightened our belt, and made government more efficient. We also invested in key priorities like education, Rail to Dulles, cleaning the Bay, and saving open space. We recruited companies like Ikea, Volkswagen, Hilton, Mead-Westvaco, and Rolls Royce to Virginia and were named America’s Best Managed State, Best State for Business, and the Best State to Raise a Child.”
The Allen campaign didn’t waste time getting out the first attack of what promises to be a long and brutal campaign between the two. Allen campaign spokesperson Katie Wright, referring to Kaine as “Chairman Kaine,” an allusion to his current job as chairman of the Democratic National Committee, said Kaine’s tenure as governor was marked by “proposals calling for staggering tax increases and by substantial job losses for Virginians” and that his tenure in the DNC has lined him up with “liberal Washington allies like Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi as they imposed their harmful agenda on Virginia and America, making trillion dollar deficits the norm and loading our children with the burden of an unprecedented national debt.”
“Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid may be friends of Chairman Kaine, but they are no friends of Virginia families and job-creating business owners. While we know he will look to his Washington allies for help and guidance in his campaign, George Allen will continue to listen to the families of Virginia and work hard to earn the right to represent their voices, views and values in the U.S. Senate,” Wright said.
The Kaine campaign shot back across the bow. Senior Kaine campaign advisor Mo Elleithee called it “unfortunate” that Allen “resorted to name calling so early in this campaign.”
“Virginians deserve a Senator who will focus on our nation’s economic challenges and will bring more civility to Washington,” Elleithee said. “We agree that Virginians will have a clear choice in this race. As governor, Tim Kaine cut $7 billion from the state budget, and Virginia was named the Best Managed State in the Nation, Best State for Business four years in a row, and Best State in Which to Raise a Child – all during the worst recession in decades. On the other side will be a candidate who supported the policies that led to record unemployment and took America’s largest budget surplus and turned it into America’s largest federal deficit –helping to create the worst recession in decades. There will be plenty of time in the coming months to have this debate, once we know who our opponent will be. We look forward to it, and in the meantime, wish all of our potential opponents well.”
The Kaine-Allen race looks to be neck-and-neck more than a year and half out from November 2012. A survey done by Public Policy Polling released in March had Kaine and Allen at 47 percent each, with the tie representing a bit of improvement for Allen, who trailed Kaine in a November 2010 PPP poll by six points.
One advantage for Kaine is that unlike Allen, who faces a potentially nasty battle for his party’s nomination, Kaine enters the 2012 cycle with the unified support of Virginia Democratic Party leaders.
“Tim Kaine is a rarity in modern politics: He listens more than he talks, and he builds bridges where others seek to divide us,” said U.S. Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., Kaine’s predecessor as governor. “I have known and admired Tim since we first met in law school more than 30 years ago. Tim was a great working partner when he served as Virginia’s lieutenant governor and governor. He is a great friend and a proven leader, and I would welcome his partnership in the U.S. Senate on behalf of all Virginians.”
“I am pleased that my friend Tim Kaine has decided to bring his strong record of results-oriented leadership to a campaign for the U.S. Senate,” Democratic Party of Virginia chair Brian Moran said. “As governor he made Virginia the best state for business, the best-managed state and the best state in the country to raise a child for lifetime success, and he will make a fantastic candidate to replace Sen. Jim Webb.
“This campaign will provide offer a real contrast between Democratic leadership that puts working families first, and a slate of Republican candidates that are running on a Tea Party platform that has more to do with proving who has the most radical ideas than it does with making people’s lives better,” Moran said. “No matter which candidate wins the Tea Party nomination, I am looking forward to having a real conversation with Virginians about who offers them the best shot at a Commonwealth that is more equal, more just and more prosperous for all.”
Kaine let fellow partisans do the dirty work today.
“When we attack common obstacles instead of each other, we solve problems and get things done. We’ve got to be unified and creative in this tough and competitive world to expand jobs and educational opportunities in a fiscally responsible way. That’s what I did as governor, and that’s what I’ll do as your senator,” Kaine said.
Story by Chris Graham. Chris can be reached at freepress2@ntelos.net.
McDonnell names redistricting panel
Gov. Bob McDonnell on Monday signed an executive order creating the Independent Bipartisan Advisory Commission on Redistricting, though its powers are limited to a review and recommendation capacity.
“As Virginia redraws its legislative districts later this year, the process should take place in a manner that is fair and open,” McDonnell said in naming the bipartisan body today. “Legislative districts should be drawn in a way that reflects commonsense geographic boundaries and communities of interests as required by law. This Bipartisan Redistricting Commission will contribute to public involvement, openness, and fairness in the redistricting process.”
The 11-member commission features an equal number of Democrats and Republicans and also includes two former judges.
- Chairman: Bob Holsworth, managing partner of DecideSmart and founder of the nonpartisan website, VirginiaTomorrow.com
- Gary Baise, principal, Olsson Frank Weeda
- The Honorable Viola Baskerville, former member, Virginia House of Delegates, former Virginia Secretary of Administration
- The Honorable Barry DuVal, president, Virginia Chamber of Commerce, former mayor of Newport News, former Secretary of Commerce and Trade
- The Honorable Jim Dyke, partner, McGuireWoods, former Secretary of Education, former chair, Greater Washington Board of Trade
- Jean Jensen, former Secretary of the State Board of Elections, former executive director, Democratic Party of Virginia
- The Honorable Sam Johnston, former judge, 24th Judicial Circuit
- The Honorable Walt Kelley, former judge, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Virginia
- Sean O’Brien, executive director, Center for the Constitution at James Madison’s Montpelier
- Cameron Quinn, former Secretary of the State Board of Elections
- Ashley Taylor, partner, Troutman Sanders, former commissioner, U.S. Commission on Civil Rights
The commission’s work will also be supported by advisors Judy Ford Wason and Dr. Quentin Kidd of Christopher Newport University and Dr. Charles Dunn of Regent University.
“The Commission announced today is a great step towards ensuring a fair and open redistricting process,” former Virginia governor and former Richmond mayor Doug Wilder said. “The governor has appointed a diverse and distinguished group that I am certain will provide good advice and recommendations to our policymakers in the General Assembly. As a legislator and as governor, I saw the good and bad parts of the redistricting process. Efforts to open up that process and allow for public input are a move in the right direction, and the Bipartisan Commission created by the governor will improve the process to the benefit of the Commonwealth.”
Democratic Party of Virginia chairman Brian Moran said McDonnell “deserves credit” for appointing a truly bipartisan redistricting commission, but also said that it is “unfortunate” that the governor did not give the body more influence over the outcome of the redistricting process.
“Without that authority there does not seem to be much hope that Republican legislators will adopt the commission’s recommendations no matter how good they are,” Moran said.
“I appreciate the Governor’s interest in fulfilling a campaign promise, and I congratulate him on the quality of the commission’s membership. In the absence of a more powerful role for the commiss ion I hope he will do what it takes to ensure that their recommendations are reflected in the final outcome of the redistricting process,” Moran said.
Story by Chris Graham. Chris can be reached at freepress2@ntelos.net.
Brian Moran: A view of Virginia’s future
Posted by afp on April 11, 2011 · 1 Comment
Democrats believe that making our nation more equal, fair and just for every person isn’t just the morally right thing to do, it’s also sound public policy. We base our values on the idea that, in appropriate circumstances, governme nt is a force for good when it helps ensure that every person in our society has the same access to the American dream of building a better life. We strive for a country in which race, gender, creed, economic status, and sexual orientation are irrelevant to a person’s ability to get a job, earn enough to make a living and build a better life for his or her family.
These values translate into Democratic support for investments in people that empower them to succeed. Public education, civil rights protections and preserving a clean environment generate and protect real equality of opportunity for middle-class families, and they also give people the tools and security to contribute to maximize their potential in today’seconomy.
Those values are what guide Virginia Democrats at all levels of government as they stand up to a Republican Party that understands the c ost of everything but the value of nothing. Since taking power in Richmond, the Virginia GOP has sought to cut or eliminate smart investments that they regard as “too much government,” seemingly without regard for the essential role that many of them play in giving every Virginian the opportunity to build a better life for their families.
The shortsighted “cut government at all costs” philosophy of the Virginia Republican Party was on display during this year’s session of the General Assembly. The governor and Republican legislators offered several proposals to cut millions of dollars out of our children’s schools in order to accomplish a political objective that has no ostensible connection to preparing our kids for the future.
Fortunately for Virginians, Democrats recognize that investing in schools not only prepares the next generation to compete and build the economy of the future, it also encourages businesses to locate and create jobs here in the present. Democrats fought off the Republican education cuts and actually succeeded in restoring some funding from past cuts to schools.
These are just some of the many differences that Virginia voters will consider this November. Here in Virginia and across the country, Democrats are fighting to move the people of this commonwealth and this country forward by making investments in people that create jobs and promote the common benefit. Republicans are obsessed with shrinking or eliminating those investments in order to score political points, even if it means leaving middle class families behind.
As a lifelong Democrat, I am proud of my friends and former colleagues in the General Assembly who are fighting so valiantly for our shared values. If we do ou r job and explain those values in every corner of this commonwealth, I am confident that 2011 will be a great year, not just for Democrats but for the Virginia families we serve.
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