In the Pilot Online, Margaret Edds has another excellent column, this one entitled, "Kaine's high-stakes partisan gamble." Edds' main point is that Governor Kaine "has jettisoned any doubt that he intends to actively invest his clout and his coins in electing Democrats," deciding to make "a high-stakes gamble that could give [him] a more friendly legislature and, if four Senate seats change hands, Democratic control of the upper chamber."Edds then reviews the history of other Virginia governors -- Allen, Gilmore, Warner -- with mixed results. Edds focuses on three State Senate races in the Hampton Roads area as possible Democratic pickups: "the 1st District race between Democrat John Miller and Republican Tricia Stall as their surest bet, followed in order by Democrat Ralph Northam's challenge of Sen. Nick Rerras and Portsmouth Councilman Steve Heretick's longer-shot bid against incumbent Sen. Fred Quayle." The question is, what kind of resources will Democrats invest in those races. That could make the difference between a Democratically controlled State Senate next year...or not.
As Clayton Roberts, executive director of the pro-business group Virginia F.R.E.E., says about the Democrats, "They can taste the Senate." The question is, will that "taste" turn into reality? And how sweet will that "taste" be? Let's find out!