McDonnell Won't Back Down From Thesis

Comments

[HisRoc]

This is the kind of negative mudslinging that is hurting Deeds among Independents. Last weekend a huge display of signs appeared in the median of Chain Bridge Road saying, "McDonnell will cut our schools." I heard several comments from people of various political viewpoints along the lines of "Is that all Deeds has got?"

At the Chamber of Commerce debate last week, Deeds came off really weak. He repeated his talking point about "a thesis he wrote when he was 34 years old" so many times that he sounded borderline hysterical. At the same time, he couldn't bring himself to utter the T-word in explaining how he plans to fix our transportation problems.

Most Independents, if not all, favor increased taxes to fix our crumbling infrastructure. They know that the Republicans will never vote for it and that they will continue to send 83 cents of every northern Virginia tax dollar to southside and southwest Virginia. If Deeds won't come right out and tell the voters that it is going to take a tax increase, either gas or general revenue or both, then why would Independents swing his way?

All this negative crap is great for stirring up the Democratic faithful, but it leaves us Independents cold. I'll say this for Taliban Bob: at least he has the courage of his convictions. So far, Deeds is coming across as someone who will say anything and stoop to any level just to get elected. That's not exactly a Profile in Courage.

[not anyone in particular]

This may be all Deeds needs

[Gretchen Laskas]

"If Deeds won't come right out and tell the voters that it is going to take a tax increase, either gas or general revenue or both, then why would Independents swing his way?"

HisRoc:
Actually, Deeds did come out and say that he will be working with a biparitsan committee on transportation, which likely includes raising taxes in some form in today's Wash Post. You might want to check it out.

(Meanwhile, we faithful enjoy the ads! Let us have a little fun!)

[HisRoc]

Gretchen,

I did read Deeds' op-ed in the Post. Too bad that he couldn't have said the same thing at the debate. My take on his op-ed is that it was the campaign's reaction to the body-slamming that Amy Gardner gave him on his debate performance. (Not that I'm a fan at all of Amy Gardner; she seems to be in the tank for developers and big business.)

[Bubby Hussein, Hillbilly Sheikh]

HisRoc;
Put it together. The reason that 83 cent of every NOVA/HR transportation dollar goes to Southside and Southwest is because the HOD is owned by anti-tax Republicans and controlled by unchallenged senior Republicans in safe districts who like the current welfare system for their mostly rural districts. They get their cake (anti-tax pose), and get to feed at the cake trough.

Deeds has advocated a gas tax as an equitable solution but it never went anywhere precisely because his other pet cause - nonpartisan redistricting has been thwarted by these same comfortable Repubs.

Only one candidate in this race advocates for changing the status quo and that is Creigh Deeds. If you like what you have now, or want worse then Bob is the man.

[HisRoc]

Bubby,

Thanks for the explanation that the HOD is dominated by downstate, anti-tax Republicans. Who da thought?

Your last paragraph is the crux of the problem. You seem to mistakenly believe that Independent voters must choose the lesser of two evils. That is not is not the case. Most Independents are not politically active. When they don't find a motivation to vote for one candidate or another, then they vote "None of the above" and stay home. Since Republican-preference voters far outnumber Democratic-preference voters statewide in Virginia, when the Independents stay home the Republican wins.

Mark Warner is a case in point. He did not win by focusing on Gilmore's "no car tax" gimmick or running negative ads about Mark Earley's social conservatism. He ran positive ads about his vision for Virginia and a balanced budget. We Independents liked it and came out in droves to vote for him.

[I.Publius]

Hey Bubby, all that money flowing from NOVA to ROVA must be why the Fairfax Chamber of Commerce endorsed McDonnell. Good call, there, chump.

[Congratulations to Governor-Elect McDonnell!!]

McDonnell will win and win big.

Election night is going to go like this:

The results from Southwest VA are going to come in, and first Buchanan County will go big for McDonnell. You won't think it's any big deal, but then Dickenson and Russell will go red, too. Then Chesterfield will come in, and it will be 60%+ for McDonnell. Then Hampton Roads, and McDonnell will sweep Virginia Beach, Chesapeake, and Suffolk. They'll be painted a dark, dark red.

Then you'll wait for Nova, but it won't help you, either. McDonnell will win Prince William and Loudoun by huge margins, and Fairfax will go 51-49% FOR McDonnell. And then you'll freak.

It's gonna be a FUN night!

[change]

HisRoc’s points are well founded, most people are tired of the negative mudslinging and ineffective governance. Exacerbated by the current administration.

Many seem to forget that our current (albeit invisible) governor is a democrat and could not get anything passed that would benefit the commonwealth, much less NOVA. Is that good leadership??

It is not only independents who would support some sort of tax increase, but conservatives also (if all the fat was first eliminated). We are not opposed to paying for necessities we are opposed to using our hard earned money for niceties.
In our own homes, if we do not have the money to put food on the table we do not use the credit card to go to mortons.

Bubby, do some investigation on the transportation funding laws and you might be surprised who developed the formulas. You might even find that some NOVA republicans and democrats have often tried to change the formula. You also may be surprised at who voted against it.

[change]

Cong.,

Will that mean McD has a “mandate”?...lol

[Rtwng Extrmst]

Gee, nice splicing job by that videographer... So we know that Bob McDonnell STILL feels healthy families are important! Sounds pretty uncontrovertial to me.

[just asking]

Rtwng Extrmst, what exactly IS a healthy family? That is, in Bob McDonnell's point of view?

[Congratulations to Governor-Elect McDonnell!!]

We already won, "just asking"

WE. WON. Bookmark it.

[Gretchen Laskas]

HisRoc,

Glad you saw the Op-Ed. And I think you are right that at least part of the calculation of presenting it as an op-ed came about because of the debate performance.

I guess what I don't understand is that even having seen it, you mention in your first post that you are not happy that Deeds won't come out and say so, when he had, and you knew it.

I'm not saying this to be snarky or as some sort of challenge. It's only that I value listening to the voices of thoughtful independent voters like yourself and am just trying to make sure I understand you as a person, and not just some handle on a blog.

[kelley in virginia]

as a southern/southside virginian, i want to tell you NOVA people that if you are indeed sending 83% of every transportation dollar down here to us, you've made 1: a piss poor investment as our roads are not in good shape. many are just dirt (un paved!) or 2: someone is lying to you about where your money is going.

come down here & look. i'll take you to mildred's for lunch. my treat.

[HisRoc]

Gretchen,

Thank you and I do not take your comment as snarky in the least. It is a valid question.

My problem with Deeds is that, as much as I believe that he is the better choice for Virginia, he is blowing his campaign with the Independents. Yes, he attempted damage control with his op-ed. But, would he have written it (or, more correctly, had it written for him) if Amy Gardner and the Post, as well as other media outlets, hadn't beaten him up so badly after the CoC debate? His campaign appears to be reactive rather than proactive. He will fess up if cattle-prodded into a corner, but tries to be all things to all people otherwise.

I consider myself to be unusually politically active for an Independent. And yet, I'm having a hard time getting excited about this guy. IMHO, Tim Kaine has been a huge disappointment to those of us who thought he was the next Mark Warner. He appears to be just another political hack. Creigh Deeds is looking more like Tim Kaine than Mark Warner.

Does that make sense?

[Gretchen Laskas]

HisRoc,

Yes, that makes sense, and thank you for taking the time to post. And as someoen who has been begging (on blogs like this one) for the Deeds campaign to issue more than attack advertising (not saying not to attack, but people also have to vote FOR something) you make some real points, and the polling data I've seen thus far demonstrates that also regarding independents.

One other question, since I have your ear. I agree with you that preference-Republicans have historically been stronger than preference Democrats in state elections. But given the decline of the Republican party identification throughtout the US, what are we considering an "independent" and has there been any change in self-identification? In other words, are many independents actually Republicans? And if so, if they remain political inactive this election, does that necessarily mean (as it did in the past) that the Republicans get the edge given their diminished size? Sorry if this is off-topic -- but I ask because many conservatives I know use the label as their identifier, just as in the late 1980's and 90's many liberals used the term as opposed to Democrat. Just wondered how much of what I was seeing was anecdotal and how much might have some larger signficance throughout the state.

[Congratulations to Governor-Elect McDonnell!!]

Deeds is going down, down down down to defeat, baby! You can suck on it, libs! McDonnell is already the Governor-Elect, you just don't know it yet!

[HisRoc]

Gretchen,

That is a great question. In truth, there are Independents who tend to vote Republican and Independents who tend to vote Democratic. I'm one of the middle-roaders since I have voted for as many Democrats as Republicans, and vice versa. While I suspect that some Independents reject the party label because of the current "branding" it carries, I think that most of us are those who are definitely and resolutely disaffected from both parties. We tend to see both political parties as being selfish and centered on self-aggrandizement and self-protection. That is why most Independents favor term limits. The professional political class seems to place preservation of power above the best interest of the country. That is why you find corruption and favoritism on both sides of the aisle in Congress. For every Democrat John Murtha, there is a Republican Ted Stevens. For every Duke Cunningham, there is a William Jefferson. And it goes on forever.

My own political leaning is for a new Third Party: one that will adopt term limits for all elected offices, enact meaningful ethics reform, eliminate earmarks and reform campaign finance, and in doing all this will return political power to We The People.

Yeah, I know. Not likely in my lifetime.

[HisRoc]

kelley in virginia,

I do know what your roads look like in the southside and in the southwest. I have relatives in Mathews County on the Chesapeake and over in Franklin County southwest of Lynchburg. Come on up to Fairfax County. Whether you are coming from the south on I-95 or coming from the west on I-66, plan on arriving any time between 7 and 10 AM. We'll wait for you.

[truthnjustice]

To those calling the election over 45 days out, the polls strongly suggest that this race is close and closing and no mater how many times you declare McDonnell the winner, the only poll that actually counts is election day and Taliban Bob, No Show Bill and Crazy Cooch will go down this November!

[Gretchen Laskas]

HisRoc,

Thanks again for taking the time to answer my questions. You've really helped me understand a few things better.

It's so easy to get lost in the partisan bubble (no matter which side you're on.) And I love snarky posts and funny youtube videos as much as anyone.

Still, I'm grateful for the thoughtful Republicans, Independents and yes, you too, Dems (Even Ben!) who take the time to use these blogs to talk as people talk. I really think that helps all of us.

[Bubby Hussein, Hillbilly Sheikh]

Let me put a finer point on it for you since you seem to need some motivation. AG Bob McDonnell is already on record willing to rubber stamp independent taxation authorities, even illegal ones. So he is going to let downstate Republicans create any kind of crazy ass urban taxation scheme with the goal of doing two things; 1) keep their "no tax" dogma alive downstate, 2)further shrink the financial base of state government.

And before you say "good!", don't think for a minute that these guys won't be standing with their hand out looking for state revenue, and they'll get it (your tax money)in the back room committees. Welcome to Bob McDonnell's Virginia.

[kelley in virginia]

HisRoc: i used to live in Arlington, Alex, DC & Silver Spring.

no question that you have a tremendous mess.

i don't have the answers.

but NOVA has all the political clout--why are we still talking about this? why don't you have the best roads? 'cause we sure as sh*t don't have'em here.

where is money going? this is my point. someone with bigger brains/access than I needs to follow the money.

oh yeah, we might need to plant wildflowers in the medians.

[Bubby Hussein, Hillbilly Sheikh]

There isn't enough money for transportation. Roads cost lots of money. Revenues are flat, the gas tax hasn't changed since 1986, and the law budgets maintenance over new construction. There have been 5 audits of VDOT - that stone has no blood. And sorry dear, "NOVA does not have the political clout" Google Bill Howell, and Morgan Griffith for clout.

[Gretchen Laskas]

First, as someone who grew up in Pennsylvania, I find it amusing that Virginia thinks they have poor roads. And I've driven on all sorts in all parts of the Commonwealth.

The problem, ironically, is that we have seen explosive growth in Virginia over the past ten years or so, with extensive new buildings and exurbs, all of which need roads to get to the main arteries, and the new arties need strategies to accomodate the more people who live here. And as Bubby mentions, money tied to transportation has remained mostly flat.

And this isn't only a Northern VA problem. Most truckers, for instance, know to avoid 95 and so take 81. Raise your hand if you've driven down 81 with a massive truck in front of you, behind you, and beside you, completely boxing you in?

Now, there is nothing wrong with the truckers on 81, but the highway was never built to accomodate the traffic (both in scale and size) that is has now. Accidents have skyrocketed. But people must drive it to get to the thriving colleges (JMU, VT) often no matter where they are in the state.

So while I get that transportation is often called a NoVa problem (and it is) it isn't ONLY a NoVa problem. It affects every Virginian in some way, which is why I'm pleased about the task force Deeds would put together. It would not only be bi-partisan, but all-commonwealth.

[Cheryl Johnson]

For those of you in the 36th (a district highly impacted by growth and traffic) I recommend you go voice your ideas and concerns on this site. He has his transportation plan outlined on the site and would LOVE to hear from you all.

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=137822858068