Democracy for Virginia

Show Me the Money! Kenton Does His HW

I'm going start with a digression for a minute here to heap some lavish praise on Kenton Ngo of 750 Volts.  Whenever I see he's got a new post through my Bloglines feeds, I want to read it immediately.  His posts are funny, opinionated, and packed with great research and information, just what a good political blog should be.  He's now a regular contributor over at Raising Kaine.

The thing is, Kenton's not even in high school yet.  As a former public school English teacher (middle and high school), I feel wistful when I think of a classroom with just one or two Kenton-like kids in it.   On top of his enthusiasm, intellectual curiosity, and interest in politics, he's just a genuinely decent young man who makes me feel hopeful about the future.

Today Kenton earns an A+ plus tons of extra credit (which I bet he doesn't need) for all the time he spent poking around VBE campaign finance returns today creating Follow the Money: Dave Albo’s Carpetbagging and Corporate Cash, a remarkable piece on money in the Albo-Werkheiser race.

Short story: Albo raised over $140,000 in a single quarter, a staggering sum of money for a delegate race.  But according to Kenton's research, not a SINGLE contribution over $100 came from an individual in the 42nd district.   The only significant money donated from in-district comes from beer wholesalers, a curious fact considering Albo is a defense attorney for people accused of drunk driving.

Is there anything wrong with raising money out of state or out of district?  Of course not.  Virginia law allows it and plenty of people are interested in investing in races outside of their own districts.  But if a longtime incumbent isn't raising money from his own constituents - especially when we're talking about such a huge sum of money raised overall - that's gotta raise a red flag, doesn't it?

But read Kenton's whole piece.  It's great.

Is Being "From Here" Enough?

There are some electioneering phrases signaling snake oil. Where I live, you hear one nearly every presidential year. To be qualified, "electable" or just plain acceptable a candidate must be "from here," some say. Northerners need not apply. Westerners either. In the 2004 presidential primary, the John Edwards campaign played that card. In an upended, Southern strategy, his field director said we needed "a southerner with a southern accent" to win." Now regional bias has reared its ugly head with respect to the Virginia Democratic LG primary.

In his speeches and those of his supporters, one Democratic candidate presents few real reasons why we should elect him. Instead we hear a laundry list of vagaries. He’s a "man of faith" and "believes in hard work." He’s also a family man. And he’s "from here." Pass the snake oil. Person of faith? Believes in hard work? Who isn’t and who doesn’t? Is this candidate suggesting that his faith is better than the others? Family man? Sounds like code language to me. But you know his campaign is accomplishment and idea bankrupt when you hear the "from here" justification. And you suspect the candidate has no respect for us.

If the 9^th (Congressional) District Caucus a couple weeks ago was any indication, all but three of about 100 people present bought this nonsense. Are we so provincial as to claim that, in contested primaries, no residents of NOVA need apply for downstate votes? How, in the 21st Century, has it come to this? Have we learned anything of tolerance and acceptance? Ironically, even as voters shut out other candidates from their consideration, they complain that the other candidates ignore the 9^th! It’s not true, but if it were, would it be any wonder?

"From here" is the wrong reason to choose any candidate. In the LG race, cast our net too narrowly and we’ll lose the most qualified candidate for the job. Whatever reasons Democrats choose to support one candidate or another, let it be the issues, experience, legislative record, and platform. Our state’s future is too important to sell us short.

We are one America and one Virginia. But just as many of us are working to unify Virginia, biases undermine us. If Democrats can’t or won’t role model openness, then we are not real Democrats. Finally, the contorted logic of regional bias will be exposed this Nov. By 9^th District Dems' own criteria, Democrats here "should" vote for Jerry Kilgore for governor. He is, unfortunately, "from here."

Why Don't You Speak For Yourself, Jerry?

The following guest post was written by the Honorable Clifton A. "Chip" Woodrum of Roanoke, who served in the Virginia House of Delegates from 1990 until his retirement in 2004.  Chip Woodrum wrote a previous post reflecting on Gov. Gilmore's interference in the tragic Hugh Finn case in Virginia.

My, my, the governor’s race seems to be heating up quite nicely—and quite early, too.

The latest incident was an ad taken out by Republican Jerry Kilgore’s campaign which accused Democrat Timothy Kaine of mocking Kilgore’s Southwest Virginia accent.  The ad contains a headline addressed to Kaine that literally shouts “SHAME ON YOU!”  It  doesn’t feature Kilgore’s own words but utilizes “quotes” from others. 

Now what is this all about?  A little context might clarify for those of us who have not been paying close attention.  It seems to have started a few weeks ago when the Kilgore Campaign began to run a radio ad that belittled Tim Kaine’s Catholic faith and implied that he was using his religion for political purposes.  The ad was slickly produced and featured the customary golden-throated oily voice trying to sound sincere but dramatic.  Kilgore himself did not use his own voice to make the allegations.

Kaine responded with an ad criticizing Kilgore and saying that Kilgore should “speak for himself” when attacking and not rely on “slick radio announcers to do his dirty work.”  Kaine’s ad made no mention of Kilgore’s accent or his rather high-pitched voice.

This obviously set the Kilgore campaign all atwitter.  After U. Va. professor Larry Sabato opined that Kaine might be trying to gain some advantage with the state’s suburban voters by emphasizing Kilgore’s accent, they began to accuse Kaine of demeaning all of southwest Virginia.

Seriously folks, I think they might want to be taken…um-- seriously.

Well—as FDR used to say—let’s take a look at the record.

First, this theory ignores the fact that Kilgore was elected Attorney General in 2001 and has been running for governor ever since.  I mean the guy has been everywhere—Accomac, Fairfax, Norfolk, Newport News—you name it.  As a matter of fact there are some who claim that Kilgore has spent more time running for governor in the last four years than he has in doing the job he was elected to do.  There is hardly a nook or cranny of the state that hasn’t heard his dulcet tones.

The Kilgore claims also ignore the fact that Kaine has married into (married up-we say) a prominent southwest Virginia family.  Yes, he married the daughter of former Governor A. Linwood Holton.  Holton was born and raised in Big Stone Gap and practiced law in Roanoke before he became governor.  They still have scads of in laws hereabouts.  I don’t believe we will find him making fun of his wife or father in law’s accent or anything near to it!

No what Kaine obviously meant was that Kilgore was being what we used to call a “sissy” but now call a “wimp” for letting others do his dirty work for him in demeaning Kaine’s religious beliefs. Kaine was doing what we all used to do in the school yard and told Kilgore, in effect, “Say that to my face.”

And even in his response, Kilgore wouldn’t say it to his face.  No, he got others to do his work—Wimp!

Editor's Note:  An editorial in today's Staunton News-Leader concurs with Chip Woodrum's assessment, saying of this kerfuffle, "[A]ll that Kilgore is accomplishing is to make himself look like a thin-skinned crybaby."

Put the Democracy back in the Democrats

I've been a Democratic County Chair, delegate to the state convention and member of the Central Committee (in my role as County Chair) so I find it appalling as a Democrat to read in the Richmond Times-Dispatch that the state Democratic Party is refusing to provide voter lists to Democrats who want to run for office in the State.

From the article..

The Democratic Party of Virginia is denying its voter file to challengers to its incumbents running for re-election to the House of Delegates in a June 14 primary.

Kevin Griffis, a state party spokesman, said the House Democratic Caucus asked that the voter file not be sold to challengers.

The file includes information such as past voting patterns and interest exhibited through volunteer efforts and phone bank calls. A list of potential Democratic voters in a Democratic primary could be useful to candidates.

...

Del. Brian J. Moran, D-Alexandria, the House caucus chairman, said the caucus decided during the General Assembly session to protect its incumbents.

"They pay dues to the caucus; it makes no sense to assist someone in trying to unseat them," he said.

The caucus regards McEachin, a former member, as a friend, he said, but the caucus adopted a policy to be applied uniformly to all challengers, Moran said.

The state party is providing the voter file to all candidates running for open seats, Griffis said. There are five open seats.

Griffis noted that Gov. Mark R. Warner is backing Miles. It would be self-defeating for the party to try to help someone whom Warner opposes, he said.

I thought this was the Virginia Democratic Party, not the Mark Warner party and incumbent fan club.

Write your Delegate and the state party and ask them to change this decision.

Run for the Central Committee so we can vote to change this decision.

Put the Democracy back in the Democrats.

Safe from the Safeway

It's nearly midnight, and I just got home from a trip to my local Safeway.  I have these really horrible allergies that act up on bursting spring days like today, and despite taking 50-100 mg of Benadryl every three hours since this morning (um, yeah, that's like double the usual dosage - quite remarkable that I can craft something approximating a sentence, isn't it?), I still went through all six large boxes of Kleenex at my place tonight.  So just after the Daily Show ended, I headed out to my local Safeway, just around the corner, to replenish allergy attack supplies.

I am pleased and proud to report that I just returned home with six fresh new boxes of Kleenex and five other items (one too many for the 10 or less checkout, drat) and not once did I go down an aisle in which I encountered either condoms or "jelly for diaphragms". 

Now, I don't know what kinda sexed-up Safeways they've got out there in the 13th District, but seriously, is there anywhere that Delegate Bob Marshall does not see sexual temptation lurking? 

Young adult health fair organizers discussed the possibility of distributing chocolate, oysters, and strawberries as a possible way to entice their peers to attend a health fair at George Mason University, and Marshall and his cronies get all hot and bothered, complaining to GMU officials about giving the group "permission to distribute Aphrodisacs". 

Iis Marshall going to mandate strawberry permits on public college campuses now?   The RT-D story says, "In a phone interview yesterday, Marshall said he failed to find the humor in the aphrodisiac "come-on," as he called it."  That's what he considers a come-on???

(Uh oh.  Now that I think about it, there was a pitiful banged-up looking half-pound basket of warm strawberries discarded on the "return" shelf above the cashier's register at the Safeway ...I have to confess they didn't turn me on in the slightest, but perhaps that's the Benadryl talking.  I didn't run into any condoms or "jelly for diaphragms" in those Safeway aisles, but if I've gotta worry about sexual temptations from produce, maybe the Safeway is not as safe as I think.)

The ironies abound in this kerfuffle about this "Sextravaganza" health fair at GMU.   While Marshall decries it as "a cover for propaganda", the Pro-Choice Patriots student group that organized the event welcomed the participation of anti-abortion and pro-abstinence groups including Campus Catholic Ministries and GMU Students for Life distributing their propaganda.  (Kudos to the Pro-Choice Patriots view for welcoming divergent viewpoints and interest groups.)

In a video clip from WUSA-9 TV, one of the anti-choice student participants says that she was able to spread her message to many students who might not otherwise have been exposed to it.  Over on NBC-4 TV, the teaser image for the video clip (which I can't view because NBC-4 won't make video compatible for Macs) clearly shows anti-abortion table props.  And yet the NBC story features another nutty quote, this one from Senator Ken Cuccinelli:

"They are selling abortions."

So Del. Marshall sees diaphragm jelly in every aisle at the grocery store, and Sen. Cuccinelli thinks that a health fair that provides information on how to prevent unwanted pregnancy is "selling abortions". 

Despite their paranoid histrionics, though, the event was apparently a smashing success, in no small part thanks to high turnout attributable to the attention created by the protesting lawmakers.  Thanks to the great organizers from GMU Pro-Choice Patriots, it sounds like some actual education went on at this GMU sexual health education event, as it should be.

Note: I plead Benadryl Brain for my not posting about the 45th district candidates forum as promised yet.  I'll get to that when some of my IQ is back in place.

Roemmelt Highlight's Marshall's Lack of Effectiveness in the 13th

A great article in today's Gainesville Times highlighted the candidacy of Bruce Roemmelt of Haymarket, who is running a strong grassroots campaign against Delegate Robert Marshall in the 13th.

In the article, Roemmelt highlights one of the most important reasons to replace Marshall -- he is so focused on divisive social and fringe pet issues, he is ineffective at promoting legislation that serves his constituents:

"I think the transportation issues need to be dealt with," he said. "We need to stop trying to divert people's attention with all of these divisive social issues."

Marshall, a conservative Republican, is best known for introducing bills to fight abortion, homosexuality and stem cell research. He did not return calls for comment.

Roemmelt pointed to Marshall's lack of success in getting his bills passed. This year, only seven of Marshall's 36 bills -- about 19 percent -- were approved by the legislature. In contrast, Manassas Del. Harry Parrish (R) won approval on almost 48 percent of his bills.

"It's about putting out the fire -- it's not just about spraying water," Roemmelt said of Marshall.

Roemmelt also does a great job of illustrating why focusing on issues such as transportation demonstrates the Democrats are the party that truly cares about family values:

"I'm a Democrat. I kind of bristle when people say we don't have family values. Family values are things that are important to families and kids," he said, adding that if residents spend less time stuck in traffic, they'll have more time to spend with their families.

"Most of the issues that we talk about -- crime and how kids do in school and how we raise our kids -- most of these have to do with time," he said, adding that quality time together is the most important family value.

It's so great to finally hear Democrats like Bruce talking about the importance of time with families being the foundation of standing up for "family values".  The rise of the 50-70 hour workweek, the decline of unions, the loss of weekends -- all of these have contributed to the erosion of community and the end of many marriages. 

Fighting for sound transportation policies that allow people to spend more time with their spouses and their children are ways that elected leaders can protect marriage, not by writing discrimination into the Virginia constitution, as Marshall spends his time trying to do.  Roemmelt continues to impress voters with his common-sense focus on the needs of ordinary Virginia families.

Choosing Well in the 45th: VA Partisans Candidates Forum TONIGHT!

Serving an area widely considered to be "safely Democratic", the 45th district in the House of Delegates is a hot open seat this year with the upcoming retirement of Delegate Marian Van Landringham, who has held this seat for Democrats since 1982.  The 45th district consists of 13 precincts in Alexandria City, 6 precincts in Fairfax County, and 3 precincts in Arlington. 

With six Democratic candidates currently in contention for the nomination, which will be decided in a June 14 primary, voters in the 45th have an opportunity to choose a courageous leader who will not only reliably vote the "right way", but who will stand up and serve as a champion of progressive Democratic values.  Following the retirement of Delegate Mitch Van Yahres, the "conscience of the House", it's all the more important that progressive Democrats around Virginia help to elect a courageous and outspoken socially progressive, fiscally responsible leader in the 45th.

Current declared candidates include:

David Englin - a 12-year military veteran and Air Force Academy graduate, Englin was on duty in the Pentagon when it was attacked on September 11, 2001.  David and his wife Shayna, an active volunteer with the Dean for America campaign, are Democratic precinct captains in Alexandria.  They are both active members of the Arlington for Democracy DFA/DFV Meetup.
Libby Garvey - the current Chair of the Arlington County School Board (and Board member since 1996), Garvey served as a Democratic National Convention delegate for Edwards in 2004 and is a longtime party and community leader who has been endorsed by numerous Arlington County elected officials and members of school boards around the state.
Richard (Dick) Hobson (I could find no candidate Web site for Hobson) - a former member of the House of Delegates who served two terms in the late 1970's, Dick Hobson is a longtime party activist from Arlington.
Jim Lay - a self-described "bleeding-heart moderate" with "centrist, Democratic values", Lay is an Alexandria attorney and former prosecutor who has been endorsed by the Arlington Coalition of Police (AFL/CIO local 48), for whom he serves as General Counsel.
Laura Mandala - a small business owner in Alexandria and Chair of the Alexandria Commission on Women, Mandala says, ""I will use my business skills to work in creating greater benefits for Northern Virginia. We need to build coalitions, communicate the values of the Democratic Party, and bring more State legislators to our side."  Mandala recently attended the Arlington for Democracy DFA/DFV Meetup.
Elsie Mosqueda - legislative aide to Delegate Brian Moran (D-46) for nine years, Mosqueda has been endorsed by a number of current and former members of the House of Delegates

As Republicans in Virginia well know, it's in the "safe seats" where party policy can move forward with conviction.  Members in safe seats can serve as a policy and leadership beacon for colleagues in the party throughout the state.  A Democrat in the 45th should be eager to stand up to the extreme right-wing radicals in Richmond (those we don't defeat in November, that is), to support building a stronger party infrastructure statewide, and to help to build the "farm team" of new Democratic leaders throughout the state.

A review of the candidates' Web site reveals much about their relative interests in progressive policies and party building, but nothing beats meeting the candidates in person.

Tonight, the Virginia Partisans host a candidate forum for all Democratic candidates in the 45th House District.  This is a great opportunity to meet all of the candidates in person and decide for yourself who would be the best choice for the 45th and for the whole state.  If you attend the tonight's forum, please share your impressions in comments below!  I'd be happy to feature first-hand accounts as a guest post as well.

Warner Signs Anti-Immigrant HB 1798

Democratic Virginia Governor Mark Warner dealt a significant blow to Latino and poverty activists in Virginia yesterday when he signed HB 1798, patroned by Fairfax County Republican Dave Albo, which requires proof of legal presence from those seeking government assistance. "It's very disappointing," the Washington Post quotes Arlington County Board member Walter Tejada (D) chairman of the Virginia Latino Advisory Commission, "It serves no other purpose but to fan the flames of anti-immigrant sentiment . . . and that is simply wrong."

Social service workers have been concerned that the anti-immigrant sentiment the bill embodies will effect many more people than the adult illegal immigrants who are the new law's targets. Many immigrants are already afraid that if they seek services like the FAMIS child health coverage assistance programs (for which all children are eligible regardless of immigration status) they will be turned in to federal officials and deported.

Social service workers have also expressed their dismay at the additional burden this will place on their already imposing workload. State employees whose job it is to ensure that services reach those in need will now have to do the work that federal immigration officials have failed to do, policing federal immigration law.

In addition to the mean-spirited public policy this legislation enacts, it is a political mistake for Virginia's Democratic party. Virginia is estimated to have as many as 250,000 illegal immigrants, most of whom are hard-working, tax-paying residents who do the dirtiest jobs. Over the next decades, many of these people may settle here, becoming citizens themselves or giving birth to children who are American citizens. Gaining the support of this growing portion of the electorate is essential to the long-term health of the Democratic party. Governor Warner should be taken to task for not only signing this "brochure bill" created by right-wing Republicans looking for an election year advantage, but for helping to alienate this growing constituency.

Political Football: Schiavo, Finn, and Gilmore Revisited

The following guest post was written by the Honorable Clifton A. "Chip" Woodrum of Roanoke, who served in the Virginia House of Delegates from 1990 until his retirement in 2004.  Former Delegate Woodrum contacted DFV in response to our recent piece mentioning the Washington Post article about the similarities between the current Terri Schiavo controversy and Hugh Finn case here in Virginia. 

Woodrum was Chairman of the House of Delegates Claims Committee in 1999, which considered a bill to compensate Michele Finn and others in the Finn family for legal fees neccessitated by former Governor Gilmore's intervention in the matter.  The bill passed the Virginia Senate (in substitute form, which also called for a health care decision education program) but was passed by indefinitely in a close 8-7 vote by the Claims committee in the House.

Former Governor Jim Gilmore was quoted in the Washington Post on March 23^rd as saying he would have followed the same course today in the matter of Hugh Finn.  He described his actions as “trying to take a timeout. He added “…that became lost, because it became a political football."

Really? And who made it a “political football?"

The tragic case of Terri Schiavo does bring to mind the equally tragic situation surrounding the death of Hugh Finn and the egregious acts of former governor Jim Gilmore. Hugh Finn, a TV news reporter, was catastrophically injured in an automobile accident in March 1995 which ruptured his aorta and deprived his brain of oxygen. As a result, he was unable to eat or care for himself, he was diagnosed by numerous doctors as being in a persistent vegetative state with no hope of improvement and no chance of recovery.

HB1798: Send Gov. Warner Your Opinions

A source close to Governor Warner says that he still has not decided whether to sign House Bill 1798, which would require people seeking public benefits to prove legal presence in the United States. This bill, patroned by Fairfax Republican Dave Albo, would place already overburdened social service workers in the position of acting as immigration police, hindering them from achieving their mandate to help folks in need. Additionally, because this bill requires applicants provide documentation before receiving benefits, those known as "technically undocumented"—who do not have the papers proving their legal presence or who are in a legal limbo pending the resolution of the immigration process—could be barred from services they are entitled to. Many of these people are children who have lived all their lives in the US, but were brought to this country illegally by their parents.

In addition to cutting off needy people from social services, this bill will also further intimidate immigrants from seeking government services. Misinformation that social workers are working with the INS can keep parents from seeking medical care for their children, and neighbors may be unwilling to report child abuse if they fear Social Services will help deport illegals. The enactment of this legislation will lead to the propagation of such a misimpression.

This bill will fundamentally compromise the ability of Social Service workers to ensure the health and safety of the Commonwealth's most vulnerable. Call Governor Warner at (804) 786-2211, or send him an email him through his website to urge him to veto this bill.