Staton Ducks out of Women Voters' Forum

By: Lowell
Published On: 1/18/2006 2:00:00 AM

In the latest from the annals of "Republicans Gone Stupid" comes news that Mick Staton, son-in-law of Dick "Baby Pesticides" Black and a hard-right-winger himself, is planning to skip a January 23 League of Women Voters forum.  As we have discussed here several times in recent days, Staton is the Republican nominee for Virginia State Senate in the 33rd District, which comprises part of Leesburg, all of eastern Loudoun County and part of Fairfax County.  His Democratic opponent, pictured above with Mark Warner, is Mark Herring, stepson of longtime state Senator Charlie Waddell.

Herring's comment about Staton's decision to skip the League of Women Voters' forum was that he would be there regardless, and that Staton was backing out because he was "afraid to debate me because he knows I will expose his poor record on managing growth and the untrue statements he has made about my record." 

Sounds like this is going to be a fun couple weeks leading up to the January 31 election. 


Comments



At several fund-rais (Teddy - 4/4/2006 11:28:21 PM)
At several fund-raisers for the TLC ticket and for Delegate races I have run into other quiet attendees who, like me, are "former Republicans" and they generally are relieved to find some one, like me, who will come right out in public and announce I left the Party. Or, as I say, "the party left me, disappearing over the horizon to the right, and left me still standing in the middle," a position that an increasing polarized GOP now denigrates as "leftist" or liberal. Interesting the way the right wingnuts have so distorted perfectly good English words.


More Good News: N (Brave Hart - 4/4/2006 11:28:21 PM)
More Good News:

NRA endorses Deeds

http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2005/092005/09302005/133853



My dad walked by whe (Neal2028 - 4/4/2006 11:28:23 PM)
My dad walked by when I was looking at this and said "He already thinks just like him...maybe that's what he'll look like in 30 years."


Conaway: Good quest (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:27 PM)
Conaway:  Good question.  Does anyone know?  - Lowell


I've just got to com (Waldo Jaquith - 4/4/2006 11:28:27 PM)
I've just got to comment about the Gazette Virginian endorsement.

The Gazette Virginian has been in a 100-year battle for supremacy with the News & Record.  Both are in the delightful hamlet of South Boston.  (SoBo is like a little Charlottesville.  Great art museum, great theater, fine dining -- it's definitely going places.)  Both newspapers run intensely local stories, both serve the same tiny audience, and run a type of column unseen in most papers in the 40s: social news.

Mrs. John Smith's mother, Mrs. Michael Jones, visited from Hurt for the day last Thursday.  They were joined by Mrs. Dean Lane, of Halifax, and enjoyed iced tea and scones.

The front page of the News & Record currently features a group photo of the The Banister River Garden Club.  Why?  The 23 of them pooled their money to buy two $19 crape myrtles for The Prizery.

I've only visited the office of one of the papers, but I did enjoy it.  It's owned by a local family, located downtown, and it's a single room with a handful of computers and typewriters.  The editor is also the writer and the publisher.

I'm not insulting these papers -- I think this kind of thing is wonderful.  Frankly, it's just what's lacking in town newspapers today.  This type of news and operation is the fabric of our community.  What are blogs, after all, but tiny operations where the editor is the writer and the publisher, where the minutiae of our lives are celebrated and small communities are examined in great detail?

I describe this to provide some frame of reference for the Gazette Virginian's endorsement of Jerry Kilgore.  It's a delightful newspaper.  The whole of South Boston knows the entire staff, knows their politics, and knows their mothers.  But it ain't the Washington Post or the Richmond Times Dispatch.



Alex: Now that you (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:27 PM)
Alex:  Now that you mention it, the Arlington Sun Gazette is one of the worst written pieces of garbage I've ever read.  And I'm not even talking about their politics, which are all over the place.  Check out their movie "reviews," for example - what a joke!  My 12-year-old nephew can write MUCH better than that!

Also, the letters to the editor seem to bring out the wackos of all political persuasions.  In general, the Sun-Gazette is simply an atrocious paper and an embarrassment to Arlington.



Don't forget the Arl (Alex - 4/4/2006 11:28:27 PM)
Don't forget the Arlington Sun Gazette, with their Kilgore/Bolling/Deeds endorsement that looks like it was written by a 10 year old child!!!


Lowell, I shot yo (Conaway - 4/4/2006 11:28:27 PM)
Lowell,

I shot you an email. If you get a moment, I'd love to hear your reply.

-- Conaway



Yeah, it's amazing h (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:27 PM)
Yeah, it's amazing how it only works in one direction for the Walt Balls of the world.


Lowell, Don't for (Conaway - 4/4/2006 11:28:27 PM)
Lowell,

Don't forget the "communist" teachers union that endorsed Terry for re-election. I guess that Terry Kilgore and those 13 other VEA-endorsed Repubs are raging liberals too!

-- Conaway



Right, Walt, all tho (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:27 PM)
Right, Walt, all those papers are "liberal."  Including one (the Bristol Herald Courier) that endorsed Terry Kilgore one day before it endorsed Tim Kaine.  What. Ever.


So the media is libe (John Sloan - 4/4/2006 11:28:27 PM)
So the media is liberal? MAN! I never woulda figured! 30 newsrags to 4? AHH What are we gonna do?! Oh, wait, that's right, the Richmond Times Dispatch (Virginia's paper) is one of those four. I'll take RTD anyday over your liberal rags.


The News & Recor (Tom McLaughlin - 4/4/2006 11:28:27 PM)
The News & Record of South Boston endorsed Tim Kaine, as did our sister newspaper in Mecklenburg County, The Mecklenburg Sun.

I know, I wrote the editorials.

Thanks to Waldo for his kind comments about our newspaper. The editor/publisher he refers to in his post is my mother; she runs the South Boston paper, I edit our Mecklenburg paper.

The story of the competition between the Gazette-Virginian and the News & Record is long and involved, but there are two things you can say without provoking too much disagreement: one, there probably aren't but a handful of communities in the country like South Boston that have two newspapers going up against each other head-to-head, and two, between our center-left orientation and the Gazette's conservative, pro-GOP outlook, the citizens of South Boston can always count on getting different perspectives on the news, which is a good thing.



Aside from South Bos (Conaway - 4/4/2006 11:28:27 PM)
Aside from South Boston, how are you guys doing with the other Southside weekly paper endorsements? I'm thinking the ones in central Southside (Blackstone, Lunenburg, South Hill, Farmville, etc).

-- Conaway



The cancellations ha (The Rev - 4/4/2006 11:28:27 PM)
The cancellations have been many for the Kingsport Times News, any agency or newspaper that aligns its business with corruption and stymies the truth should have to pay through the nose, I am glad to say mine was one of those cancelled today. Thank god for the Bristol Herald and the Roanoke Times you can count on them to  print the truth.


How does Dick Black (Doug in Mount Vernon - 4/4/2006 11:28:27 PM)
How does Dick Black keep getting elected?

This is absolutely mind-numbing. Black is desperate folks. I really think he may actually be going down this time.

http://getblackout.blogspot.com/2005/11/hes-like-so-third-grade.html#comments



The Richmond Times D (Teddy - 4/4/2006 11:28:27 PM)
The Richmond Times Dispatch, however, has influence beyond its circulation numbers, being the capital's rag and reflective of much of the Main Street Boys' inner little club.


Yes, but Kilgore doe (PM - 4/4/2006 11:28:27 PM)
Yes, but Kilgore does very well among people who can't read.  Hah!  Or think!

Kaine has the big mo - - -



Kingsport Times is ( (Rob - 4/4/2006 11:28:27 PM)
Kingsport Times is (according to Kilgore's website) his hometown paper (Gate City) - no wonder that one endorsed the town's fortunate son.


As a fan of the form (Chris from ASL - 4/4/2006 11:28:27 PM)
As a fan of the former Expos (probably the only one on the board, or in the Virginia blogsosphere), I was proud of what they did this year. Hopefully, we can beat the Braves, like we did in 1994 (@#$% strikes!)


I look for next year (Neal2028 - 4/4/2006 11:28:27 PM)
I look for next year to be the year of the Nationals in their league and the Indians in theirs (or maybe I just want my 2 favorites to have big seasons).  That would be a great World Series.


Walt, Eventually, (Conaway - 4/4/2006 11:28:27 PM)
Walt,

Eventually, the Right is going to have to come up with another line than just throwing "liberal" at everyone who's up against you. The bait-and-switch doesn't work and you've beaten that horse (or donkey) into the ground so much so that it doesn't matter to the voters (look at the polls).

Some of your attacks would make true ideological conservatives like Goldwater, Buckley and Russell Kirk shudder. A bloated federal budget, legislating sexual behavior, and taking away local government and neighborhood decisionmaking power seems rather Lefty, almost socialistic, to me. You guys need to stop with the insults and play smarter. Otherwise, you sound like a bunch of whiny liberals.

-- Conaway



Ahhh...the mentality (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:28 PM)
Ahhh...the mentality of the McDonnell campaign (assuming you really ARE from the "Taliban Bob" campaign) on display for all to see.  You guys are truly a class act!


man, you a dumbass y (Ta'Quwon Jenkins - 4/4/2006 11:28:28 PM)
man, you a dumbass yo. you a dumb shit.


More evidence to sup (Brave Hart - 4/4/2006 11:28:28 PM)
More evidence to support this one:

http://vaconservative.com/archives/2005/10/02/barbecue-and-politics/#comments

read my last response/comment to "I'm Not Emeril"

http://imnotemeril.blogspot.com/2005/10/swva-accent.html



Imagine if Jerry WAS (Alex - 4/4/2006 11:28:28 PM)
Imagine if Jerry WAS the dog catcher of Gate City!

"I am against the useage of the dog pound.  This encourages dog vagrancy, because some of the dogs there are strays with no owners.  We should instead kill all runaway dogs on spot."



I REALLY wanted to p (blueinthecommonwealth_VA - 4/4/2006 11:28:29 PM)
I REALLY wanted to post this earlier, because its freaking amazing, but Blogger was down.

You beat me to the punch. Nice job.



The problem is this: (Paul - 4/4/2006 11:28:29 PM)
The problem is this:

The Democrats don't offer a credible alternative. We've got our own set of wackos in our party, and they aren't inspiring anyone...

I think if the Republican Party collapses, you'll see these people become independents. I guess that's something...



The Democrats DO off (Teddy - 4/4/2006 11:28:29 PM)
The Democrats DO offer alternatives, but seemingly conflicting alternatives they cannot agree upon as a party, because, I am told by old timers, they do not have a sitting President who could still the conflict and express a single coherent program. It appears to me that this is an open door for progressives, and Progressives beter hurry up and lay out their coherent philosophy before the old time pols do no more than come up with Republican Lite and impose it on the Party of the People. Get moving, folks!


I actually prefer Re (Paul - 4/4/2006 11:28:29 PM)
I actually prefer Republican-Lite to liberal policy...ha ha, see, we can never agree!

The main problem with the Democratic party is that (across our political spectrum) we don't have many REFORM ideas. The best ones come from the center (but they are few and far between).

We mainly stand for more funding for the status quo. And I suppose that's fine - the status quo has made America the strongest country in the world. But we can always improve. A strong REFORM democrat is the only thing that will bring us closer to that 50+1 that we need to win national elections.



I will be the first (GOPHokie - 4/4/2006 11:28:30 PM)
I will be the first to admit that the Republican party has its problems, but what do people have as an alternative.  The democratic party has no plan for anything.  Not to mention the fact you dems are only a party b/c of your demographics.  The dems get 80-90% of the black vote and a huge margin in the FDR era folks as well.
When those FDR era people die off, and if the black vote drops a few points, you guys are sunk.
The new generation is much more conservative than the previous young people.
I think you guys are the ones doomed for destruction, not us.


Didn't Dave Albo try (42nd watcher - 4/4/2006 11:28:30 PM)
Didn't Dave Albo try really hard to lower the penalty for child molestation, lie to a judge about a law that he wrote, and kill a bill that would require religious officials to report molestation in their churches?

This guy shouldn't even be running for reelection!



GOPHokie: No, luckil (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:30 PM)
GOPHokie: No, luckily "angry white males" do NOT outnumber everyone else - women, NON-angry white males, and non-whites.  As far as the Democrats are concerned, I'll compare the Clinton/Gore Administration's economic record with the Bush/Cheney record any day of the week.  Same thing with Warner/Kaine vs. Gilmore/Hager.  I'll also take the party of Harry Truman and JFK over that of Richard Nixon and George W. Bush any day. 

Oh, and as far as "letting people not work...", did you ever hear of something called CORPORATE WELFARE, throwing millions at ExxonMobil while it rakes in record profits.  Now that's the REPUBLICAN Party.  The last Democratic President, if I recall correctly, was last seen enacting historic welfare reform.  You sure you don't have your parties mixed up?



GOPHokie: As long a (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:30 PM)
GOPHokie:  As long as there are working men and women in this country, and as long as more than 0.1% aren't gazillionaires, there will be a need for a truly PROGRESSIVE party in America.  Now, whether that party is called "Teddy Roosevelt Bull Moose," "Progressive," or "Democratic," it really doesn't matter in my book.  The point is, this country only needs one party to represent the interests of the super rich, the ExxonMobil megacorporations, and all the "angry white males" out there.  And that party already exists -- it's called the Republican Party. 


I used to agree with (Steve Nelson - 4/4/2006 11:28:30 PM)
I used to agree with conservative fiscal theory. Smaller government means more money in the hands of people that work hard. That's pretty catchy. Except Republicans can never seem to get it to work right. They just end up spending more money than they have and never make a plan for paying it back. The neo-conservatives for some reason believe that the government should be run like an 18 year old that gets his first credit card.

The more i learn about progressive ideas, the more i like them. Spending $1 billion dollars on the New Orleans levies would have saved us $200 billion. Or Kaine's push for preschool, not enough of us talk much about that one. There is a whitepaper on the headstart program, they have historical data to show that for every $1 they spend on preschoolers saves approximately $17 on reduced crime 20 years later. To compare that, put $1 in a 4%/year CD fund and after 20 years you'll have a whopping $2.10.

I think we'll start seeing progressives offer ideas like these. We should reduce government because there is less of a need for government, not for artificial reasons. It's like government run with the scientific method.



Another problem is t (Conaway - 4/4/2006 11:28:30 PM)
Another problem is that progressives and liberals have based their policy platforms on being the antithesis of conservatives/republicans. There is no proactive agenda, just a bill of grievances against the GOP majority. In VA, the Dem party hasn't had a set of universal policy issues in ages, hence the GOP took over based on intellectually-suspect, but consistent messages. Also, liberals don't relate culturally to "the people" now, and the caricature of pinky-raised, organic food-eating, merlot drinkers is more true than false. You can't draw votes from people whom you look down upon. Also, you can't win by telling people who feel like life is okay that life sucks and they're one step from the poorhouse. No one votes for pessimism, and the liberal/progressive messages comes off as "just wait and see, the economy's going to tank, more soldiers will die, and then you'll have to drop the GOP and run back to us."

Progressives need to learn how to fight dirty again - it may not be pretty, but it is effective. Just ask James Carville and the Kennedys. Recall the theme of the movie "Primary Colors" - sometimes the ends have to justify the means (politically) if The People are to truly be served best. I'm not advocating breaking the law, but precinct captains, central committee members, senators, pundits and consultants have to fight GOP fire with fire (or fight Hitler w/ Hitler) and use the same dirty tricks if you want to win. In the end, the moral highground is a lonely place, you're still the minority party, and people are left with the conservative hate machine.

And just because it's Republican-lite, doesn't make it evil. A lot of independents are GOP-leaning centrists/moderates, and you need those folks to win. Just ask Chuck Robb, Mark Warner, and John Lewis.

-- Conaway



Another problem is t (Conaway - 4/4/2006 11:28:30 PM)
Another problem is that progressives and liberals have based their policy platforms on being the antithesis of conservatives/republicans. There is no proactive agenda, just a bill of grievances against the GOP majority. In VA, the Dem party hasn't had a set of universal policy issues in ages, hence the GOP took over based on intellectually-suspect, but consistent messages. Also, liberals don't relate culturally to "the people" now, and the caricature of pinky-raised, organic food-eating, merlot drinkers is more true than false. You can't draw votes from people whom you look down upon. Also, you can't win by telling people who feel like life is okay that life sucks and they're one step from the poorhouse. No one votes for pessimism, and the liberal/progressive messages comes off as "just wait and see, the economy's going to tank, more soldiers will die, and then you'll have to drop the GOP and run back to us."

Progressives need to learn how to fight dirty again - it may not be pretty, but it is effective. Just ask James Carville and the Kennedys. Recall the theme of the movie "Primary Colors" - sometimes the ends have to justify the means (politically) if The People are to truly be served best. I'm not advocating breaking the law, but precinct captains, central committee members, senators, pundits and consultants have to fight GOP fire with fire (or fight Hitler w/ Hitler) and use the same dirty tricks if you want to win. In the end, the moral highground is a lonely place, you're still the minority party, and people are left with the conservative hate machine.

And just because it's Republican-lite, doesn't make it evil. A lot of independents are GOP-leaning centrists/moderates, and you need those folks to win. Just ask Chuck Robb, Mark Warner, and John Lewis.

-- Conaway



Well I guess us angr (GOPHokie - 4/4/2006 11:28:30 PM)
Well I guess us angry white males must outnumber everyone else.
By the way, what does the democratic party have to offer the working person.  You guys like letting people not work, and make those who do pay for those who don't.


"Pro-business group (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:31 PM)
"Pro-business group endorses Kaine."  That would have been true as well, because this group is both pro-business AND pro-tax increase.  The only problem is, they want US to pay for new roads to help customers get to THEIR businesses.  Pretty clever of them, huh?


Teddy, just to corr (Duke - 4/4/2006 11:28:32 PM)
Teddy,  just to correct any misinterpretation, although the statement quoted appeared on Waldo's website, the comments weren't his. They were made by "ATA", a poster.


Yeah, I’ve been a PB (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:32 PM)
Yeah, I’ve been a PBS fan for years and have given them hundreds of dollars. Forget about that now. And I swear to god I’m telling all my friends too!


I am sorry I did not (Alice Marshall - 4/4/2006 11:28:32 PM)
I am sorry I did not know about this sooner, or I would have suggested we contact Mhz Networks. They are much more community minded and might have done it. Dunno how to contact anyone there during the weekend.


It's time to vote wi (KathyinBlacksburg - 4/4/2006 11:28:32 PM)
It's time to vote with our TV watching and our donations.  If that's the best public television can do, it may be time to stop donation.  As for 2 AM-- Are these people for real?  The suppression of news couldn't be more obvious.

There is no business interest in withholding this information, unless teh are colluding with the Kilgoe campaign.  If they won't run it themselves, they should release the footage.  The public has a right to know how incompetent, dissembling, and superficial the GOP candidate is.



I do, at times, feel (Waldo Jaquith - 4/4/2006 11:28:32 PM)
I do, at times, feel as "ATA" does, but I go back and forth.  Sometimes I think that we need to be the party of high standards, ethical campaigning, and generally doing the right thing.  At other times I figure "screw the bastards" and advocate the campaign equivalent of carpet-bombing. :)


Yeah, well...tell "D (The Jolly Roger - 4/4/2006 11:28:32 PM)
Yeah, well...tell "DEEP deep deep deep throat to suck on my..."poll"


Waldo has the right (Teddy - 4/4/2006 11:28:32 PM)
Waldo has the right idea, sorry to say (no, I'm not sorry, but one reason I'm no longer a Republican is I couldn't stand the lies and slime, along with the deficit, Iraq, Abu Ghraib, environment, hatred of women, nutty foreign policy etc etc).  Anyway, I do agree with Waldo, and on my own I've already whispered to a couple of candidates: "Forget the jugular. Go for the gonads!"


What about the 56th? (Scott Foreman - 4/4/2006 11:28:32 PM)
What about the 56th?  Peter deFure needs GOTV too!


Looks like a complet (Ben - 4/4/2006 11:28:32 PM)
Looks like a complete list to me.  Good job Lowell.  :)


This was not meant a (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:32 PM)
This was not meant as a complete list, just some examples of where to help.  For a complete list of Democratic candidates, including Dave, please click here.


Why not add Dave Mar (Not Bill Tuck - 4/4/2006 11:28:32 PM)
Why not add Dave Marsden, Democratic candidate in the 41st district, to your list?


Yes, the exact numbe (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:32 PM)
Yes, the exact numbers are different, but each race has approximately the same lead -- 2 points -- for Kaine, Byrne and Deeds.


ATTORNEY GENERAL K (Brave Hart - 4/4/2006 11:28:34 PM)

ATTORNEY GENERAL KILGORE “MAPS OUT 2003 LEGISLATIVE AGENDA” BUT IT DOESN’T DEAL WITH ALL THE SS#S OR CHILDREN’S NAMES ON THE INTERNET…

http://www.opcva.com/watchdog/011003.html

VA Attorney General Jerry KILGORE makes three endorsements he should have thought about first…he endorsed a man found guilty of violating the conflict of interest laws, a man who served time in jail for failing to pay taxes, and a man who, according to court records, has a history of domestic violence…

http://www.opcva.com/watchdog/102303b.html

Brave Heart:
You make a compelling case for Kaine to follow his convictions and refuse to execute any prisoners while he is Governor.
Except that Tim Kaine has promised the Virginia Voters that he will execute every prisoner on Death Row, even though he personally thinks signing those orders is an immoral act. Because while he has those beliefs, he’d rather be governor than stick to his principles.
What is worse? A candidate who believes capital punishment is moral and will carry out executions, or a candidate who believes capital punishment is immoral but promises to carry out executions?
In my opinion you can only like the 2nd better if you believe he is lying and will in fact stop executions as governor.
Comment by Charles R. — 10/9/2005 @ 11:43 pm

http://www.truthinjustice.org/anderson.htm

This is how just our justice system is working for the death row inmates. Until you figure out how to get Human frailties, corruption out of the system how can you trust it?
So any logical, clear thinking, informed, American should have doubts about the death penalty and our justice system.
This is from someone with first hand knowledge about abuse of power in Law Enforcement and the Judicial System..

Ask yourself. Is it a conflict of interest to have:

Daddy Frank Hargrove Sr., Delegate for Hanover;
Son Hargrove Jr, Hanover Circuit Court Clerk;
Son-in-law/ convicted druck driver in possession of a gun, Hanover Circuit Judge;
Bill Bolling, Insurance Fraud VP, Senator Hanover.

Hanover strongest Republican county.

Please!



Your faithful Califo (Ellen Dana Nagler - 4/4/2006 11:28:34 PM)
Your faithful California blogger/activist continues to follow this race with great interest. I watched the entire debate this very early morning on C-SPAN. The untoward hour of the day only proves my commitment.

I was particularly pleased to hear Tim, rebutting the tax increase referendum issue, invoke California's broken system — which I've written about twice in these pages.

As an outsider (not up to speed on your micro policy issues — though we have our own highway-widening debate going on locally) I observed two politicians being politicians, one of them very smarmy indeed, the other — Tim, of course — at least making an effort to be honest while still hedging enough to win or placate "swing" voters.

All in all, I have to say that any politician trying to win votes by telling people mostly what he (in this case) thinks they want to hear is never a pretty sight. I think Tim should come right out and say that he continues to oppose the death penalty and will continue to work to try to change the law. That's his belief and he should stick to it. I'm as pro-choice as they come, but if he's "pro-life" because of his Catholic upbringing, I think he should be honest about what he'd do about VA law if Roe is overturned. His stance on each of these issues would cancel each other out for me, and he'd still get my vote.



Hey Ellen, thanks fo (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:34 PM)
Hey Ellen, thanks for the outside perspective.  People here in Virginia need to realize that other states, like California, have made the same mistakes that Jerry Kilgore is now cluelessly (or maliciously?) proposing to implement.  Why would he do that?  Good question.

As far as Tim Kaine is concerned, I think he's made his position on the abortion issue very clear - he is personally opposed to it but also doesn't believe in criminalizing doctors and women.  On the death penalty, he reflects his Church's teachings but also would uphold his oath of office.  Let's face it, though; these are difficult issues that defy black-and-white answers, as much as right-wing Republicans would like it to be that way. 



Noting that someone (Soccer Mom - 4/4/2006 11:28:36 PM)
Noting that someone is "ignorant" allows for the hope that with proper education and information, that individual will no longer be ignorant.

Your posts reveal, however, that you are just plain stupid and close-minded, in which case there really is no hope for you.

And, were TJ, JM, TP aware of the religious rightwingnuttery running rabid in this country and the fiscal insolvency, they would destroy us all for so soiling and betraying their dream.  I have no more time to waste on your dribble and drivel. Grow up, Sir.  Or be still. Preferably both.



I am sure they are a (Not Bill Tuck - 4/4/2006 11:28:36 PM)
I am sure they are angry...they either have Jerry Kilgore-who did not sign their pledge and who might raise taxes, or Tim Kaine-who has already worked to raise taxes and trumpets his support of those taxes as a reason he should be elected governor.

The VCG likely is not happy with either candidate.

That being said, I think the real question is whether they are angry enough at Kilgore to sit on their hands come election day. Better the devil who has raised your taxes or the devil who might?  I think they will choose the latter.



Did you actually hav (Josh - 4/4/2006 11:28:36 PM)
Did you actually have a position, James, or were you just throwing accusations and attacks around.

I think there may be some puppies around here that haven't been beaten lately.  In case you get tired of throwing your ignorance and ego around.

Would it help you if we all tell you that we think you're a good person?  Would you feel better if somebody said, "that's right, James, you're good.  There there..."

I hate to say it, but you've really got the "poor me" disease bad.  You imagine communist plots and elitists everywhere.  Did the head of the High School dems steal your girlfriend or pants you in public?

Dude, I'm sorry for all the pain your adolescence caused you but you pull this kind of namecalling stuff around here again and I'll ban you myself.

Keep the arguments to the topics, dude.  Next personal attack and you go buh-bye.

We'll all really miss you.

now.  In your sickening attack on my friend Soccer, the only issue that you actually addressed was debts and government spending. 

As a representative of the right wing establishment, James, you have no ground to stand on.  The budget masters are Democrats (Clinton, Kaine, Warner).  The budget busters are radicals like you who have gotten elected as Republicans but honestly have no claim to the honest title (Bush, Kilgore).

Is it so hard to realize that your movement is defunct, james?  Sure your kind still hold power, but it'll be painful as the chickens come home to roost to watch it all slip away and to watch the potential for a great American legacy to be swept by corruption, weakness and failure into the junkheap of history where it so richly belongs.

Keep it clean.  Participation here is a priviledge, not a right.



rofl... Keep it u (Josh - 4/4/2006 11:28:36 PM)
rofl...

Keep it up James.  You're winning friends and influencing people wherever you go.

Pretty soon you'll convince every American of the emptiness, spinelessness, and heartlessness of your conservative agenda.



Gee, Mr. Young, just (Soccer Mom - 4/4/2006 11:28:36 PM)
Gee, Mr. Young, just when I was starting to have some hope that with information and patience, I might be able to help you see that there is nothing "far-Left" about the positions that Tim Kaine has on a variety of issues. 

If you were to do your homework and read the Founding Fathers as opposed to Ann Coulter, you would see that Kaine's politics derive directly from Thomas Jefferson, James Madison and Thomas Paine. 

Are you now claiming that the Founding Fathers were "far-Left"?  Most likely George III and other Royalists thought so.  I recall that George III thought he didn't have to explain or justify any action he thought worthy.  It was those pesky Revolutionaries who dared to think that some accountability was in order. 

Kaine is actually a very old-fashioned fellow if you were to take the time to really analyze what he has to say rather than spew knee-jerk Right-wingnut falsehoods. 

Try learning something, Mr. Young, it might just do you a world of good. 



James Young is among (Soccer Mom - 4/4/2006 11:28:36 PM)
James Young is among the most uninformed and ignorant I have encountered in a very long time.  To be labeled the most cynical would require a higher level of education and sophistication than I have witnessed from Mr. Young. There is still hope for him. He sounds very young.


Wow, I've finally me (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:36 PM)
Wow, I've finally met the world's most cynical person: James Young!


Can't argue with any (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:36 PM)
Can't argue with any of these, except I don't know much about Ward Armstrong or Onzlee Ware.  Also, assuming Greg Werkheiser wins this year, watch out for him in 2009. 


Let me throw this ou (Neal2028 - 4/4/2006 11:28:36 PM)
Let me throw this out there and see what everyone thinks...

2009 Ticket
Governor-Creigh Deeds/Leslie Byrne
Lt. Governor-Chap Petersen/Phillip Puckett
Attorney General-Ward Armstrong/Onzlee Ware

Any combination sounds like a winning group to me!



James Young sounds . (Soccer Mom - 4/4/2006 11:28:36 PM)
James Young sounds .... young.  To be appropriately described as cynical would require a higher level education and pseudo-sophistication that I have detected in Mr. Young's commentary.  I think he was trying to be funny as opposed to cynical.  I look forward to his future commentary.


Jerry Kilgore has al (cut the crap - 4/4/2006 11:28:36 PM)
Jerry Kilgore has already proposed a tax increase - a regional tax increase for transportation.

Kilgore is clearly one of the pro-tax Republicans, ala John Chichester.



Tim Kaine says he'll (William Jackson - 4/4/2006 11:28:38 PM)
Tim Kaine says he'll uphold his oath as Governor.  He can uphold his oath and still commute every death sentence that crosses his desk.  He is not bound by law to uphold a death sentence, instead he is given special privelege to commute one.  Saying "I'll carry out a death sentence because that's the law"  doesn't make sense.  It's not the law. 

So if it's not legally required, why would he carry out a death sentence?  Because it's political suicide to openly admit to commuting them.



Perhaps the anger sh (Hanover - 4/4/2006 11:28:38 PM)
Perhaps the anger should be directed at Jeff Schapiro, or at Tim Kaine, who refused to say that Hitler was worthy of the death penalty.

Seems like fair game to me, since that account is just days old, when Kaine has used ones from Kilgore from 1997.

Lowell, admit it, those ads hurt.  Badly.



Now Now Josh. Go ea (Jambon - 4/4/2006 11:28:38 PM)
Now Now Josh.  Go easy on our friend James!  He doesn't want to be a dictator.  Rather, his life work is geared towards preventing workers from advancing their own interests (aka: having union representation).  So his dream job would be more along the lines of being Wal-Mart CEO.

 



"when all Kilgore’s (Jambon - 4/4/2006 11:28:38 PM)
"when all Kilgore’s advertisement does is accurately reflect Tim Kaine’s reference to him."

Accurately my ass...

Tim Kaines words:

"God grants life and God should take it away," he said -- except possibly in cases of self-defense. But when pressed, he added that Hitler, among others, might have deserved to be executed: "Of course they may for doing something heinous, they don't deserve to live in civilized society, they may deserve the death penalty."

Tim Kaine IS a crucial part of the "due process" you mention James, by being a publc defender.  Of course, it's not like we need them since there have never been ANY people innocent on death row right?

So who would Jesus execute?



Hanover: What hurts (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:38 PM)
Hanover:  What hurts is to see Jerry Kilgore and Scott Howell stoop to the level of character assassination, references to Adolph Hitler(!), etc.  On the other hands, why would any of us be surprised here?  This is, after all, the same Scott Howell who trashed a triple-amputee war hero (Max Cleland), attacked the wife of Tom Daschle, and ran a racist ad ("Black Hand") in last year's US Senate contest in Oklahoma.  Now, Scott Howell brings his "unique" brand of political advertising to Virginia on behalf of Jerry Kilgore.  Does that make you proud to be a Republican, the party of Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, Dwight Eisenhower, Barry Goldwater, and Gerald Ford?  Right, I didn't think so.  Sorry, but this is NOT the "Virginia way," or at least not the way Virginia should be.


Keep Our Streets Saf (Josh - 4/4/2006 11:28:38 PM)
Keep Our Streets Safe for
Cocaine Dealers
Vote Kilgore


I didn't expect you (Hanover - 4/4/2006 11:28:38 PM)
I didn't expect you to see it any other way. 

Not when Tim Kaine is currently running ads that smear the single-most philanthropic indivudual in Southwest Virginia history - John Gregory.

Here you have a man who has given millions of dollars to charity, and man who formerly ran a drug company that self-reported its own billing mistakes and put money in fund to repay the states it may have overcharged.

Never mind that no other state has charged him with a crime, Kaine paints him as the devil.

But Kilgore is the negative one, right?

Kaine deserves the death penalty ads.  It is his own stance that is on the line.

The Kaine ads about John Gregory are all about character assassination of an innocent man who has helped people who need help.

I thought Democrats appreciated that kind of "help your fellow man" behavior.

I guess not.

So much for the 51-percent positive pledge.

Get used to saying it:

"Governor Jerry Kilgore."



Comment deleted beca (Abitmorered - 4/4/2006 11:28:38 PM)
Comment deleted because it is simply an ad hominem attack.  Try again.


I just disagree guys (Ben - 4/4/2006 11:28:38 PM)
I just disagree guys.  Kaine brought up Hitler as an example, not Kilgore.  It was his dumbest quote of the campaign, and we need to be attacking something other than which Kaine quote Kilgore chooses to site.


Can anyone else hear (Brave Hart - 4/4/2006 11:28:38 PM)
Can anyone else hear the WHINE?


Saying that Kaine br (Waldo Jaquith - 4/4/2006 11:28:38 PM)
Saying that Kaine brought up Hitler doesn't make it so.  See the RTD's transcript.


Yikes. Why is Kaine (Heath - 4/4/2006 11:28:38 PM)
Yikes.  Why is Kaine letting Kilgore set the agenda?  Kilgore attacks, Kaine responds.  Kilgore attacks again, Kaine responds. 

Stay focused:  Better schools, better roads, better health care.  I've contributed to the Kaine campaign, and I hate seeing my money wasted on playing catch-up with Jerry Swiftboat.



Wow, James, maybe yo (Josh - 4/4/2006 11:28:38 PM)
Wow, James, maybe you should run for Governor, or better yet, I'm sure there are some third world countries in need of a dictator.

I'll make inquiries.



In the 2005 Virginia (I.Publius - 4/4/2006 11:28:38 PM)
In the 2005 Virginia gubernatorial campaign, who first mentioned Adolph Hitler in terms of deserving capital punishment? 

A. Raising Kaine

B. Jerry Kilgore

C. Timothy Kaine

(Hint... when in doubt, pick C.)

You're shooting blanks again, Lowell.  :-)



Jerry Kilgore says: (Josh - 4/4/2006 11:28:38 PM)
Jerry Kilgore says:  slathering, murderous, bigots love red meat.


Yep, put Kilgore on (cut the crap - 4/4/2006 11:28:38 PM)
Yep, put Kilgore on the air. They'll laugh him out of the state.


This is not good. Th (JennyinVA - 4/4/2006 11:28:38 PM)
This is not good. This ad is powerful. Kaine campaign should respond QUICKLY and DECISIVELY.

Please don't take the Kerry route, because this will surely do Tim Kaine's campaign in.

My husband and mother saw it online and they had the same sentiment. Pull off the gloves now.



James: You consider (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:38 PM)
James:  You consider a clarion call to battle to be a "whine?"  WTF?  Please remind me: how much do they pay you to spew shit like this?  Are you and Scott Howell working together?  So what next, you're going to tell us all how bringing up Adolph Hitler in a Virginia gubernatorial race is perfectly acceptable?  Boy, I can't wait!


Tim Kaine has no neg (William Jackson - 4/4/2006 11:28:38 PM)
Tim Kaine has no negative ads because he doesn't post all of his. 


James Young - You (Janis Jaquith - 4/4/2006 11:28:38 PM)
James Young -

You have confused "outrage" with "whining."



Ultimately the death (Josh - 4/4/2006 11:28:38 PM)
Ultimately the death penalty is a failure. 

It costs millions for all the appeals, much more than it costs to keep a prisoner locked up for life.

it's ultimately political and completely arbitratry.

It's never been proven to be a deterrent.

so... why do we have it?  simple:  revenge.

Is this the America that Washington and Jefferson envisioned?



Can we apply Godwin' (Annie - 4/4/2006 11:28:38 PM)
Can we apply Godwin's law to elections? Kilgore sickens me, he brings to mind the darkest days of massive resistence. We absolutely cannot go back, we cannot let the darkness win!

Isn't it funny that states with the most executions have the highest crime stats?



This is the single m (Neal2028 - 4/4/2006 11:28:38 PM)
This is the single most disgusting ad (along with a similar one with a lady talking) that Ive seen.  It defies reality.  When in doubt, bring back Hitler.  Is that the mottto?  "Gee, Tim Kaine might beat us.  Let's connect him to Hitler.  That'll fix him!"

It's just completely mind boggling.

Tim Kaine has said he'll carry out the law as he is required to do.  Nobody comes into office and immediatley decides to break all the laws they dont agree with.

Will people really, really buy this?



Look folks. Calm dow (cut the crap - 4/4/2006 11:28:38 PM)
Look folks. Calm down. All we have to do is play Virginians Jerry Kilgore's voice. I played it to a swing voter the other day and they said the following:

"I don't care about that guy's political views. Just please don't make me hear that voice again."



crap: Tim really ne (Josh - 4/4/2006 11:28:38 PM)
crap:  Tim really needs to get with the program and start buying some airtime to put kilgore on the air.



Here's another take (Josh - 4/4/2006 11:28:38 PM)
Here's another take on all this:

Kaine is in good shape. It's Kilgore who's shitting his pants right now. Kilgore is now, and has been for months, making a complete fucking ass out of himself; and the electorate, at least the ones watching, know it.

The ONLY thing Kilgore is hoping for is that his Republican base is oblivious to the campaign and they will vote for him just because he has an 'R' next to his name. Since he's been too afraid to even let his electorate hear him talk, he hasn't been able to reach out them (I would say, at all) like a normal person running for governor would be.

In any other year I would say relying on an 'R' next to your name would be an workable winning strategy for a Virginia Republican. But not this year. Not here. Not with Bush. Not with where gas prices are. Not with the 77% popularity of Warner. Not with all the scandal. And not with Iraq.

No, Kilgore lost all the undecideds a long time ago, and has probably lost a good portion of the republican-lite's who arent that politically minded as well. I guarantee you, most of those non-political types of Virginians are upset with everything Republicans have wrought on our nation, and are self-re-classifying themselves as "independants" right now. The only sure thing Kilgore's got left are the kool-aid gang of hard core Republicans. And too bad for Kilgore, he's going to lose about 10% of those assholes to the other wingnut, Potts.

Kaine will be fine. We'll see another poll or two in this last month showing him ahead. He will fight back in the ads, while still managing to look positive. Kaine will finish strong, and he will win.



Exactly: "Don't take (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:38 PM)
Exactly: "Don't take the Kerry route!"  Tim Kaine is a good Christian man, probably too good for politics, but now is certainly NOT the time to "turn the other cheek" as Jesus preached.  Instead, now's the time to go for the gonads -- assuming Jerry "SpongeBob SquarePants" Kilgore has any, that is.


This is sad. They m (Maria Wells - 4/4/2006 11:28:39 PM)
This is sad.  They must be desparate.  There's really no response to these attacks as they're just completely off base.  Interesting that they managed to find one of Clark's supervisors that didn't like him.  How about hearing from some who did:

"In March of 1999 as Slobodan Milosevic unleashed his army and police on the people of Kosovo, Gen. Wesley Clark, NATO's supreme commander, was given the first military mission of its kind, directing the forces of a 19 nation alliance to end a brutal campaign of ethnic cleansing. The stakes were monumental.

"Almost a million people had been driven from their homes solely because of their ethnic and religious background. Success would save lives, strengthen NATO, advance the cause of freedom, democracy and unity in Europe. Failure would leave much of the continent awash in a sea of refugees and end the 20th century on a note of helpless indignation in the face of evil.

"Wes Clark well understood the perils of the Balkans for he had already played a vital role in ending the war in Bosnia and beginning the long process of building a stable, multi-ethnic democracy in that country. He summoned every ounce of his experience and expertise as a strategist, soldier and a statesman to wage our campaign in Kosovo. He prevailed miraculously without the loss of a single combat casualty.

"At the apex of a long and distinguished military career that goes back to his outstanding performance as a cadet at West Point over 30 years ago, he was assigned a challenge many experts thought was mission impossible. Instead, thanks to Gen. Clark, we now can declare it mission accomplished."

-President Bill Clinton, August 9, 2000

"As the friendly force maneuvered through the treacherous region, it was suddenly subjected to an intense small arms fire from a well-concealed insurgent element. Although painfully wounded in the initial volley, Captain Clark immediately directed his men on a counter-assault of the enemy positions. With complete disregard for his personal safety, Captain Clark remained with his unit until the reactionary force arrived and the situation was well-in-hand. His courageous initiative and exemplary professionalism significantly contributed to the successful outcome of the engagement. Captain Clark's unquestionable valor in close combat against a hostile force is in keeping with the finest traditions of the military service and reflects great credit upon himself, the 1st Infantry Division, and the United States Army."

-From the Award of the Silver Star, as presented to Capt. Clark after he was wounded in battle in Vietnam, February 26, 1970

"Major Clark is one of the most outstanding officers of his grade in the U.S. Army...an officer of impeccable character with a rare blend of personal qualities and professional attributes which uniquely qualify him as a soldier-scholar. While he has the intellectual grasp of world affairs attained only by the top scholars in the field, he projects soldierly qualities of strength, character, leadership, and above all an unyielding sense of personal responsibility. It is this sense of responsibility which clearly sets him apart from his contemporaries. [He] has the intellectual, moral and physical stamina, coupled with an unrelenting quest for excellence, which insures the completion of every task to near perfection. Major Clark's earnestness, sincerity of purpose and absolute dedication convey a moral force in his work which gives him a significant voice in this headquarters..."

-General Alexander M. Haig, Jr., July 19, 1978

"Wes Clark has the character and depth to be another Marshall or Eisenhower in time of war."

-Brigadier General William W. Crouch, March 16, 1988

"Professional and moral attributes are impeccable. Strong in all areas. Best leader-thinker in the Army....a great leader who takes care of soldiers and families.... He has it all and has done it better than anyone else."

-General Edwin Burba, Jr., March 20, 1992

"Clark exhibits the best balance of professional ethics of any officer I know. Particularly noteworthy is his demonstrated selfless dedication to his men, his unit, and the Army. He exhibits absolute integrity of word, deed... he establishes and observes scrupulous ethical and moral standards."

-Colonel Lester E. Bennett, June 2, 1980

"Major Clark is the most able White House Fellow I have known during my seven years in Washington...He brought to his work a brilliant mind and rare common sense. He has initiative, style, imagination, moral courage, and integrity-each in extraordinary degree...He has a rare sensitivity to others and a remarkable ability to motivate and lead them....He is totally dedicated to public service as a military officer."

-James T. Lynn, Director, Office of Management and Budget, July 8, 1976

"He is unquestionably one in a million. A professional whose perceptions are correct, whose plans are thorough and complete, whose executions are artistic, and whose success is inevitable....I have never been more impressed with an officer's talent and dedication. He should rank with men like Douglas MacArthur, Maxwell Taylor, Creighton Abrams..."

-Colonel Charles G. Prather IV, June 23, 1977

"Major Clark is the most outstanding Major I have ever seen. Brilliant, innovative, hardworking, and extremely enthusiastic, professional in every respect - I can not praise him too highly....The fact that General Haig selected him for his personal staff is indicative of his caliber. Further, his gracious wife is a distinct asset to him and to the Army."

-Brigadier General Clyde W. Spence Jr., March 7, 1978



"When running for li (Cathy Lee B - 4/4/2006 11:28:39 PM)
"When running for lieutenant governor, his campaign literature heralded him as pro-choice. Now Kaine says he is anti abortion — but would not interfere with abortion rights."

I'm anti-abortion AND pro-choice; it's the only sensible stance on the issue. It's NOT a contradiction or a "waffle"!
You really gotta watch these right-wing word-twisters...



Personally I do not (serena1313 - 4/4/2006 11:28:39 PM)
Personally I do not believe in the death penalty. Who are we to play judge, juror, and executioner. If someone committed crimes then that will be between the individual and his/her Maker.

If we are to bring death to those who committed crimes are we not equally as guilty.

Two wrongs a right does not make.

No one person muchless a politician can fill the needs of all. Making a big issue of the death penalty is a waste of time IMHO. Credentials, experience, fairness, honesty, integrity and a willingness to serve the people are by far more important. The death penalty is only one issue in a range of many.

By setting one's priorities straight will help clear any misgivings on the death penalty. The death penalty ought not have a place in the 21 Century. Retribution does not ease grief from loss.

For it is in death we learn to live.



I heard General Clar (Alex - 4/4/2006 11:28:39 PM)
I heard General Clark speak last night in Fredericksburg, and had the honor to meet him afterwords.  Not only was he a pleasure to meet, and had the firmest, most genuine handshake I've ever received, but he was exactly on point and knew exactly where he was going, in his speech, the forum and when talking with people afterwords.

To bash a man with that much integrity, who is more a man than ANY of them could ever dream to be is just downright pathetic.



Gen. Wes Clark has b (Mitch Dworkin - 4/4/2006 11:28:39 PM)
Gen. Wes Clark has been quoted out of context regarding his position on the death penalty when it is said "Clark Opposed Death Penalty For Osama Bin Laden." 

Gen. Clark nowhere denies the application of the death penalty in that transcript, he just identifies it as "a separate issue" from where the trial of Osama Bin Laden should take place!

Here are some direct quotes which are credibly documented from Gen. Clark regarding the application of the death penalty for Osama Bin Laden and Saddam Hussein that clearly contradict the false and dishonest assertions of Jerry Kilgore's campaign:

http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/12/17/elec04.prez.clark.bush/

Clark: Bush lacks will to find bin Laden

Democrat says he would have had the al Qaeda chief by now

Wednesday, December 17, 2003 Posted: 7:00 PM EST

"If I'd been president, I would have had Osama bin Laden by this time," Clark said at a news conference in Concord, New Hampshire, where he was campaigning for votes in the nation's first primary, January 27.

"I would have followed through on the original sentiment that the president gave us -- Osama bin Laden, dead or alive..."

Clark, who returned this week after testifying at the war crimes trial of former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic in The Hague, Netherlands, weighed in on the case of deposed Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein.

Clark said Saddam should be tried in Iraq, by Iraqis, under standards drawn up by international experts -- with the death penalty as a potential punishment.

"I think that you cannot take the death penalty off the table. ... It has to be there, to be applied to war criminals who've used chemical weapons, to those responsible for genocide," Clark said...

http://www.clark04.com/speeches/021/

Wes Clark's Plan to Bring Saddam Hussein to Justice

Concord, New Hampshire
December 17, 2003

Given the heinous nature of Saddam Hussein's crimes, I firmly believe that the death penalty should be on the table as a possible punishment. I believe that the death penalty should be applied to war criminals, those who've used chemical weapons, and those responsible for genocide. And as I believe the proceedings will show, Saddam is responsible for every single one of these heinous crimes and deserves the ultimate punishment. The question of Saddam Hussein's punishment need not be answered by the international panel of experts. Their job is to determine whether the trial was conducted according to international standards of justice. Having said that, I strongly urge that we seek to make the death penalty available.

This proposal is unprecedented. But the situation we face is unprecedented. I believe this approach will best serve the interests of the Iraqi people, the needs of the region, and the cause of justice...

If Jerry Kilgore cannot be truthful and honest about Gen. Wes Clark in his negative attack ads and if that was his best shot, then how can Jerry Kilgore be trusted as being truthful and honest by the people of Virginia?

Mitch Dworkin



It's amazing to me t (Texas Kat - 4/4/2006 11:28:39 PM)
It's amazing to me the depths these guys have sunk to, to insult one of the most decorated soldiers in the past 50 years with such obvious lies and falsehoods.  Looks to me like Kilgore's media attack dog, Scott Howel, is barking up the wrong tree.  Howell (and now his boy, Kilgore) have been outed as the poster boys of dirty campaigns.  I can smell them all the way to Texas.

I think they've gotten soft though.  Apparently Howell and his boy Kilgore want to give Osama Bin Laden a nice comfortable execution.  Lethal injection?  A nice quiet peaceful martyr's death?

I for one agree with General Wes Clark.  Short of stuffing OBL into a barrel and feeding him through a bung hole for the next 40 years, a dank, dark, Dutch dungeon, sharing bad food with cockroaches and rats seems just the ticket to me.  Clark has just the right idea.

Just in case you missed the unabridged Clark quote on Hardball, here it is:

MATTHEWS: But doesn’t life in Holland beat life in a cave?
CLARK: Not in a Dutch prison. Chris, they’re under water, they’re damp, they’re cold, they’re really miserable.

(MSNBC’S ‘Hardball,’ 12/8/03)

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/3660578/



Yep. Those Virginia (KathyinBlacksburg - 4/4/2006 11:28:39 PM)
Yep.  Those Virginia Republicans really do "support the troops."  They have no problem with pols sending troops to war based on lies, send them unprepared and without body armor.  And we who call for proper support, "don't support the troops."  I can question the Swift Boat Veterans for Lies's veracity and am told I "don't support the troops."  Never mind that their case was dismantled by investigative journalists from several news agencies, and even government documents.  But, the Howell-lovin' crowd in this state can relentlessly massacre people who really did serve with honor and heroism.  MAX Cleland, John McCaine, John Kerry and now Wesley Clark.  Must make all the guys really proud to be Virginia Republicans.  Have they no shame?  Where is the decency.  Anybody on the GOP side have any decency?  Anybody?


I agree with Heath, (KathyinBlacksburg - 4/4/2006 11:28:39 PM)
I agree with Heath, to a point.  A swift, firm and demolishing response is necessary.  Leave no doubt about what a lying piece of XXXX the Duck is.  Leave No Pond Scum Behind.  Then move on.


I guess if they can' (Stan Davis - 4/4/2006 11:28:39 PM)
I guess if they can't find anything on which to attack Kaine, they attack those who endorse him.

Wes Clark is NOT against the death penalty. In the campaign, he did say that death row cases should be reviewed in light of new technology, such as DNA analysis.

Nine percent?  Clark hardly campaigned in Virginia in the week between the Super Seven on February 3 and the Tennessee-Virginia primaries on February 10.  By then, even though Clark had won Oklahoma outright and finished ahead of John Edwards five out of eight times after Iowa, the Kerry momentum was unstoppable and the media had made Edwards the darling.

I'm looking forward to Gov. Kaine's endorsement of Clark in 2008.

Stan Davis
Lakewood, CO



er your, dang homoph (alva - 4/4/2006 11:28:39 PM)
er your, dang homophones


you're argument has (alva - 4/4/2006 11:28:39 PM)
you're argument has so many logical fallacies that its hard for me to pick a place to start, so i wont


The response should (KathyinBlacksburg - 4/4/2006 11:28:39 PM)
The response should be: Kilgore hates and demeans the voters of Virginia.  Otherwise he wouldn't play fast and loose with the truth.  And he wouldn't ruthlessly divide this commonwealth.


The response should (Mimi Schaeffer - 4/4/2006 11:28:39 PM)
The response should be:  "Why does Kilgore hate devout Catholics...?


Here's a quick way t (Mimi Schaeffer - 4/4/2006 11:28:39 PM)
Here's a quick way to stop Kilgore's smear campaign dead on its track (pun intended).

Order Roger Coleman's DNA in California to be tested and prove, irrevocably, that the Commonwealth executed an innocent man.

Let's see how hang-them-first-ask-no-questions-later, Smiley-face Kilgore has to say afterwards.



I had the great hono (Carol Shea-Porter - 4/4/2006 11:28:39 PM)
I had the great honor of working for Wes Clark in the NH primary. I couldn't believe the nation's great fortune, having a candidate who combined intelligence, compassion, sophistication, simplicity, experience, and wisdom, with a big dash of optimism. He is a true American patriot. If I were a political hack, I would be terrified that others would also see what makes this man great, and I would have to attack him. Wes Clark can more than defend himself; he doesn't need my support. I just wanted to share what I learned about him during the primary.


James: Oooh, got ya (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
James:  Oooh, got ya on the "Hitler ad" thing, huh?  Anyway, I'm glad to see you find all this "hilarious."  We'll see who will be laughing last on November 8th.


Its looks like the a (The Rev - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
Its looks like the area and method of attack for Kilgore ads is a total flop, we will have to see what else he can conjure up,Maybe Carl Rove and an indictment will bring the numbers up, the numbers would really make a turn if Rove was handcuffed at the Kilgore fundraiser.


death penalty opp (Steve Nelson - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
death penalty opponents love to show statistics that it doesn’t reduce crime. We don’t care.

You just showed a data about who supports DP. Yet you're  brushing off data that states the DP is ineffective. Did you skip class the day they taught cause and effect in school?

This is something i can't grasp. If something is shown to be ineffective, why would anyone be supportive of it?



Three Strikes and Yo (Josh - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
Three Strikes and You’re Out

Jerry Kilgore’s Three Bald Faced Lies:
1. Kilgore: There’s a standing relationship between Al-qaeda and Hispanic Street Gangs like MS-13. LIE: Refuted by many, including the FBI
2. Kilgore: Governor Gilmore left no Deficit. LIE: In fact the Deficit was over $6BN.
3. Kilgore: Tim Kaine wouldn’t execute Hitler, Pol Pot, etc… LIE: Kaine actually said:  “They don’t deserve to live in civilized society. They deserve the death penalty. ”

Now the media can officially begin to refer to Jerry Kilgore as a LIAR.



Steve: Obviously, it (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
Steve: Obviously, it's pure vindictiveness, that's all.  All the stats show that the death penalty does NOT reduce crime. It's also HIGHLY discriminatory: 1) the more money you have, the less likely you are to be executed FOR THE SAME CRIME; and 2) the more white you are, the less likely you are to be executed FOR THE SAME CRIME.  Also, it costs more to execute someone than to keep them in prison for life, so it's not even cost effective.  But these are just facts, like global warming or the phony Saddam-9/11 link, and facts DO NOT MATTER to right-wingers like I.Publius.  They simply don't care.


This is something (I.Publius - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
This is something i can’t grasp. If something is shown to be ineffective, why would anyone be supportive of it?

Then allow me to clear it up for you (even though I explained quite thoroughly above).

It's quite effective in stopping the person executed from committing any more crimes against society.  That's what we care deeply about... and that which Tim Kaine obviously doesn't care about at all.  He did say that Virginia doesn't need CP to be safe, didn't he?



Jerry Kilgore is so (Soccer Mom - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
Jerry Kilgore is so wild-eyed and eager to deal the "Death Penalty" card, I'm sure he would be willing to crucify Christ if he thought it might get him elected.


Wow. Now you guys ar (Gary - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
Wow. Now you guys are attacking the victims of these heinous crimes (with this drug stuff). That's truly low.

I don't care which candidate you support, you should be ashamed of attacking the victims. Implicit in your post is that these folks deserved to die. You are sick.



The sad thing about (Justin - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
The sad thing about these ads is the people involved care about their loved ones who were killed, but they disingenuously use their deaths to promote a political candidate. How is any logical person supposed to truly respect that? They make their loss into a political agenda aimed at Tim Kaine, and it just makes them look bitter instead of sad. Also, why should anyone on this site feel bad about talking about the victims? They were using cocaine and that's not made up--it was a part of the case, and it is something that should be mentioned. It is funny how people will try to manipulate anything they don't like and don't want to expose everything. Of course these people did not deserve to be killed, but how come people are crying when someone mentions they were engaging in illegal activities (i.e. drug use)! If these were two poorer young black men from Richmond, would the Kilgore campaign have made this an issue? Probably not, because they wouldn't have cared. This is all about what is highly salient politically, and Kilgore (desperate in every way) has to make up for a lack of understanding on real issues facing Virginians. The piano playing in the background just makes it seem fake and scripted--and it removes the sympathy most people would have on the victims because it cheapens and exploits the deaths of their own family members. Shame on Jerry Kilgore for doing this...but Kaine must get back hard at this now before the Kilgore spinners saturate the media with more of these lowblow tactics. At the end of the day, Kaine will look better, but that doesn't mean more people will vote for him. The Kaine Campaign needs to do another response ad that is more effective pronto.


Gary: You're telling (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
Gary: You're telling me that there's no difference between crimes?  Like, for instance, genocide vs. a drug deal gone bad?  Now THAT is "sick."


I think you may be m (Drew - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
I think you may be mis-reading the polls on that link.  They said around 60% or so favor the death penalty. 


Gary, If these ki (Josh - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
Gary,

If these kids were black and using crack, radical right wingers wouldn't give a damn who killed them. 

Nobody's saying they deserved to die, but who does it serve to let some death penalty activist gloss over the facts of the case. 

This is a tragedy, but there are much greater tragedies here, including:

1.  The death of rational public discourse in favor of the kind of sleezemongering lies represented by this despicable "Hitler" ad.
2.  A former Attorney General attacking a lawyer for doing his duty by facilitating due process under the orders of a Judge.
3.  A candidate for Governor attacking his opponent as "untrustworty" because of his Christian faith.

Again, Welcome to the Weimar Republic and Jerry W. Kilgore, the W stands for Weimar Republican.



Its looking even b (The Rev - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
  Its looking even better for Tim Kaine.
Survey Results

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  How likely are the candidates' death penalty ads to sway your vote?
  665 responses so far:
  Very Likely  (15.3%), 102 votes 
  Somewhat Likely  (7.8%), 52 votes 
  Not Likely  (75.5%), 502 votes 
  Unsure  (1.4%), 9 votes 

Note: This is an unscientific survey of washingtonpost.com readers.



What about the woman (Chris from ASL - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
What about the woman in the other ad? What's the story behind the scenes with her?


I. is ready to just (Josh - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
I. is ready to just go ahead and P freely all over Constitutional due process by attacking our individual rights to an attorney and appeals.  aaaaaahhh... nice and warm and steamy.

Welcome to the Wiemar Republic.  IP do you consider yourself a Wiemar Republican?



His position is perf (Steve Nelson - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
His position is perfectly fine with me. He has a personal objection to the death penalty but he'll uphold the ruling of a jury. He has a personal objection to abortion, but he'll uphold the laws of the country.


Conway - don't think (Josh - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
Conway - don't think that Kaine's done yet.

Watch out for more rebuttals.

The rebuttal ad that's running now was in the can 6 months ago.  The Kaine campaign is working on a response to this precise attack right now.  Watch out Kilgore, Reap the whirlwind.



What makes the Ki (I.Publius - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
What makes the Kilgore campaign’s “Hitler” ad even more heinous is that it wildly oversimplifies the views of murder victims’ families on the death penalty issue.

Those ads do nothing of the sort.  I've watched all of them several times, and never do any of them claim to present a monolithic view of murder victims' families.  To the contrary, they simply present the personal views of the people in the ads, supported by nothing but factual accounts.  You're simply upset because those factual accounts are proving to be extremely damaging to Tim Kaine's chances of becoming governor.

Kaine could have avoided all of this if, when asked whether Hitler deserved the death penalty, he had given an unequivocal answer, instead of dodging the issue and trying to play both sides of it. 

Neither Jerry Kilgore nor Scott Howell introduced Hitler into this campaign.  Kaine's failure to answer honestly brought the Hitler/death penalty issue into the race.  All the spinning in the world won't change that fact.



Survey Results (The Rev - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)

Survey Results

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  How likely are the candidates' death penalty ads to sway your vote?
  358 responses so far:
  Very Likely  (17.0%), 61 votes 
  Somewhat Likely  (7.0%), 25 votes 
  Not Likely  (74.6%), 267 votes 
  Unsure  (1.4%), 5 votes 

Note: This is an unscientific survey of washingtonpost.com readers.

Close Window



I need to look at th (KathyinBlacksburg - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
I need to look at the data, but I do recall that when assured of true "life without parole," the support for the death penalty drops significantly.  But I'll have to look it up.


From the poll you li (I.Publius - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
From the poll you linked (http://www.pollingreport.com/crime.htm):

ABC News/Washington Post Poll. April 21-24, 2005.

"Do you favor or oppose the death penalty for persons convicted of murder?"

Favor - 65%
Oppose - 29%
Unsure - 6%



I.Publius; The whole (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
I.Publius; The whole point, which of course you chose to ignore, that when people are given an OPTION of different punishments, only 39% choose death. But of course that's not the mindless cartoon-like black and white, right or wrong world you right-wingers would like it to be.  Sorry that reality keeps intruding on your totalitarian fantasies.

By the way, you can tell us your real name at any time, or are you ashamed of what you stand for and what you have to say?  If so, I don't blame you, because your ideology is a truly nasty one. No wonder Jerry Kilgore and Scott Howell hide in shadows as much as possible...



I think that number (Steve Nelson - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
I think that number is skewed. I favor the death penalty assuming it effectively reduces crime. Freakonomics shows data that states the death penalty doesn't actually reduce crime.

So if it doesn't actually reduce crime, costs a ton of money in appeals, why bother?

My guess is that Kilgore is a big proponent of the death penalty because it means fewer people that can escape from prison.



Hey, if you really b (I.Publius - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
Hey, if you really believe that such a small percentage of Virginians support the death penalty, then you should be thrilled that it's become such a big issue, since Kaine opposes it and Kilgore supports it.  So what's your beef?

Steve -- death penalty opponents love to show statistics that it doesn't reduce crime.  BFD.  We don't care.  Supporters of the CP statute care about the recidivism rate of those who are executed.  That's all. 

Certain people, by their actions, forfeit the right to live in a law-abiding society.  We, as a commonwealth, have decided that is the law.  As a CP supporter, I couldn't care less about what CP specifically does to reduce overall crime -- just so long as it prevents THAT PERSON from committing any more. 

Life w/o parole doesn't do it.  The guards and other inmates shouldn't have to be exposed to people who are otherwise deserving of CP.  You're free, of course, to disagree with this.  But when you use meaningless statistics to make your case, it rings hollow.



CBS News Poll. April (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
CBS News Poll. April 13-16, 2005. N=1,149 adults nationwide. MoE ± 3.
4/13-16/05

"What do you think should be the penalty for persons convicted of murder: the death penalty, life in prison with no chance of parole, or a long prison sentence with a chance of parole?"

Death Penalty:  39%
Life in Prison: 39%
Long Sentence: 6%
Depends (vol.): 13%
Unsure: 3%



IP, you are freely s (Josh - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
IP, you are freely supporting Jerry Kilgore's Lies:

Most voters trust Kaine to keep his word. A recent Washington Posts poll found that 63 percent of Virginians said they trusted Kaine to uphold the law on the death penalty.

Kilgore would like to erode that trust. He launched a series of ads that, among other things, falsely accuse Kaine of saying he believed that not even Adolph Hitler deserved the death penalty.

Kilgore based that accusation on an opinion essay in the Richmond Times-Dispatch. But the Kaine campaign refuted that by releasing a transcript of the interview that prompted the column. Kaine was asked if even people like Hitler or Josef Stalin, who were responsible for the deaths of millions of human beings, deserved to be executed.

Kaine said, "They may deserve it. Of course they may, for doing something heinous. They don't deserve to live in civilized society. They deserve the death penalty." http://www.roanoke.com/editorials/wb/36011

Now tell me again where Kaine doesn't support the death penalty for Hitler...



Man, some of these R (Craig - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
Man, some of these Republican ads are so vicious and over-the-top that I'm not sure whether they help Kilgore or hurt him.  Here in the 41st legislative district, GOP candidate Michael Golden actually seems to have hurt himself with his negative ads; they're so over-the-top that even a good number of Republicans have endorsed his Democrat opponent, Dave Marsden.

But ads like this confirm what I've thought for a while now; that the GOP is infested with moral cretisn who will stoop to any low to get their way.



We don’t care (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
We don’t care

That pretty much sums it up for I.Publius and others of his ilk, doesn't it now?



What I fail to under (Conaway - 4/4/2006 11:28:40 PM)
What I fail to understand is why Kaine did not and will not come out harder in defense of his actions. His debate position was stronger, but the follow up is weak. Also, he used the "life is sacred" argument in his ad reply, but this only made the problem worse because that is pro-life lingo. Also, it's little late for Dems to be running on the "my God is just as powerful as yours'" ticket when they're run away from church for years. Voters shouldn't look to either party for Bible lessons or salvation. Come on folks, let's get real here. The only sound position that Dem can take and win is either the anti-abortion/anti-DP one or the pro-choice/pro-DP position of the Mark Warners of the world. Otherwise, it's duplicitous.


Congrats Brian!! (Justin - 4/4/2006 11:28:41 PM)


Since a lot of peopl (Passing Through - 4/4/2006 11:28:41 PM)
Since a lot of people seem to want to bring up that murder of the Rosenbluths was drug-related, I want to point out the circumstances of another killing in which Mark Sheppard was involved that was equally vicious and involved a random victim without drugs involved in any manner.  This occurred several weeks _before_ the Rosenbluth killings.

Sheppard, eager to show how vicious he was to his fellow drug dealer Andre Graham, decided to pick a car at random and carjack it as they drove along US 60 in west Richmond in October 1993. 

As they passed the Chippenham Parkway, Sheppard decided to pull into the parking lot of the Steak N' Ale restaurant, where 20 year old Sheryl Stack (college student and waitress at the restaurant) and her boyfriend, Edward Martin were talking at 3:30 am after coming back to their cars from a date. 

Graham and Sheppard pulled up beside them, got out and rapped guns against the windows of Stack's car.  The two thugs ordered Stack and Martin out of the car, told them it was a robbery and forced them to lay face down on the parking lot asphalt.  They were promised if they remained there and counted to 100, the two men would drive off in their car, no one would get hurt.

Instead, the two victims soon were shot at point blank range in the head.  Stack was fatally wounded, Martin suffered grave bullet wounds that required part of his skull to be removed, blinded him in one eye and permanently damaged his overall functionality.  He held Stack's hand and pleaded for her to stay alive as she bled to death before her eyes.

Neither of these kids were on drugs, they were randomly selected for attack by Sheppard and Graham - who destroyed both of their lives with little thought.

Graham was executed for this crime 10 months after Sheppard in 1999, who was put to death for the Rosenbluth murders.  Both Sheppard and Graham were dangerous, violent and murderous men and Virginia is better off without them.



No doubt, Sheppard a (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:41 PM)
No doubt, Sheppard and Graham were utter scum and I have not the least bit of sympathy for them, may they rot in Hell.  Personally, I would have liked to tear them limb from limb for what they did if the victims were my friends or family members.  But that doesn't change the fact that we live in a society governed by law, where even the scummiest of scumbags has the right to an attorney and his day in court.  It also doesn't change the fact that Jerry Kilgore is cynically attempting to exploit horrible crimes for his own political benefit, lying about Tim Kaine and dragging Adolph Hitler (!!) into the Virginia governor's race.  No doubt, the crimes that Sheppard and Howell were horrible.  And no doubt, the use of these crimes in the way that Kilgore and Howell are doing is an absolute disgrace.


Well, it would have (Passing Through - 4/4/2006 11:28:41 PM)
Well, it would have been even more powerful if Edward Martin had wanted to speak about *his* case, but from what I've been told, he and his family wanted to just retreat into seclusion to get their lives back together following the trial.

Often crime victim survivors aren't prepared or willing to speak out about their ordeal.  You never hear the relatives of the sniper victims talking out, for instance.  So Stan Rosenbluth, whom I know peripherally, is a different kind of guy, opinionated, but factually based.  He's done a lot to help crime victims in this state and was a good choice for this ad.

Stan Rosenbluth is open about the drug aspect of his son and daughter in law's murders.  In fact, the drug use was so secretive, he didn't learn about it til the trial.  The downfall for Richard and Becky was so fast -- they had only gotten into cocaine (with Graham as their supplier) two or three weeks prior to their deaths.  In any event, the manner in which they died qualified under Virginia law as capital murder (as objects were stolen from the home and a second murder was committed).

Jerry Kilgore has served as Attorney General and been involved actively in the prosecution of post-conviction capital appeals.  His staff in the capital litigation unit is tough, but they do play by the rules ... to the letter (strict).  So it's not as if Jerry is winging it on this issue, though the Hitler reference is a bit much ... Kaine did say something to that effect in front of the Times-Dispatch last month, wholly unaware of how it might be reinterpreted by his opponents.
 



Note on Sister Helen (Passing Through - 4/4/2006 11:28:41 PM)
Note on Sister Helen Prejean quoted above at the top of this page.  On December 16, 2000 - the New Orleans Times-Picayune reported that Prejean had been called in for voir dire in jury duty.

The case to be tried involved a drug dealer with the possibility of life imprisonment on conviction.  When asked by the prosecutor whether she could impose such a punishment, Prejean remarked:

"I oppose life without parole, anyone can change."

--
That's the problem ... she is well known for opposing the death penalty and offers "life" as an alternative with the implication that the individuals will *never* get out, yet in an obscure courtroom proceeding, she lets slip out that she doesn't really believe in that absolute alternative either.

Same thing with Kaine - he opposes the death penalty, fine, but he says he roots it in his deeply held faith and personal convictions.  It is hard to believe that he would _disregard_ these seemingly sincere feelings and allow for executions to occur under his watch as Governor.  The crux of the problems he is having now is that he justified his opposition to the death penalty on his inner most beliefs and then tried to say he could act oppositely.

Now he's trying to recover by telling Paul Ebert, Comm. Attorney of Prince William County and prosecutor of John Allen Muhammad that he wouldn't block Muhammad's execution should it come up during a Kaine term.  Hold on a second, didn't Kaine say that he would use clemency fairly if elected Governor? 

Here he is writing off a clemency without being first presented with a petition for review from defense counsel.  Upon what other issues might Kaine try to teeter on both sides of the fence rather than sticking to his guns?



Tim Kaine is a very (The Rev - 4/4/2006 11:28:41 PM)
Tim Kaine is a very passionate and truthful man, no doubt he has made statements over the course of the campaign period that can be spun into half-truths and lies, but if you take the pluses and the minuses of the two candidates and tally them all up, no contest Tim Kaine by a mile. This is not even an issue, not by a long shot. The simple facts are do the people of the great state of Virginia want the same thing that we have seen from the national level, lies being misled, corruption ,indictments pork barreling bills ,one group of people prospering from everyone’s expense, and a notional dept that our grandchildren can’t pay down, health insurance that no one but the rich can afford, killing thousands of young Americans in Iraq giving billons to no bid contracts to Bush and Dick Chaney buddies in a war that should have never had been, being scorned and called un-American if you have a question. Hell No we want our country back, and the great state of Virginia is the place to start, Elect Tim Kaine


Rev: AMEN! (Josh - 4/4/2006 11:28:41 PM)


Good show, Brian! (Mary - 4/4/2006 11:28:41 PM)


Well done! (Steve Nelson - 4/4/2006 11:28:41 PM)


Thanks everybody. I (Brian - 4/4/2006 11:28:41 PM)
Thanks everybody.  I am feeling pretty darn good. 


Congrats! (KathyinBlacksburg - 4/4/2006 11:28:41 PM)


Good job! Congrats. (Sam - 4/4/2006 11:28:42 PM)
Good job!  Congrats.

--Sam



Brian Rocks! Go Bri (Josh - 4/4/2006 11:28:42 PM)
Brian Rocks!  Go Brian!  woot!


Great - another liar (That's a good thing? - 4/4/2006 11:28:42 PM)
Great - another liar in the house!


QUOTE OF THE WEEK: (Josh - 4/4/2006 11:28:42 PM)
QUOTE OF THE WEEK:

If Bruce Roemmelt was your delegate, you'd be home right now!

Bruce is such a badass!



Bruce is such a tool (va commuter - 4/4/2006 11:28:42 PM)
Bruce is such a tool.

How about coming up with something more innovative than BRT and commuter lots?

How about creating jobs near our homes.

Bruce is a bore and he's going to get slaughtered in November.



I guess I have to pi (dave s - 4/4/2006 11:28:43 PM)
I guess I have to pick "b" - my plan in the election is to vote for Kaine and Deeds, and to leave LG unvoted.  I see Byrne as utterly un-electable as governor in four years, and if she gets elected as LG she, and a lot of the left of the party, will see her as the heir apparent.  So I hope she polls well behind the other two, and I will do my part for that.


What's wrong guys, h (Vicki Campbell - 4/4/2006 11:28:43 PM)
What's wrong guys, having a woman Lt. Governor a little too progressive and threatening for you?


And in addition to t (cut the crap - 4/4/2006 11:28:43 PM)
And in addition to that, I'm fairly upset that NOVA Daily Kos liberals think they can take over the Virginia Democratic Party. That's basically what happened in the whipsaw primary. What's next...they nominate John Kerry to run for statewide office?


It's only meaning is (cut the crap - 4/4/2006 11:28:43 PM)
It's only meaning is that it's heir apparent...

And having Byrne on the '09 ticket will guarentee a loss in '09. Having Bolling as LG will guarentee that he'll run for Gov. in '09. Which would be amazing for us.



Guys, if you can't v (Josh - 4/4/2006 11:28:43 PM)
Guys, if you can't vote for education, transporation, and civil rights by supporting Leslie Byrne, at least you can vote against corruption by voting AGAINST Bolling.


I'm with you, Dave S (cut the crap - 4/4/2006 11:28:43 PM)
I'm with you, Dave S. I see Leslie as the NOVA liberals attempt to take over the Democratic Party. It's better for us if she loses and Bill Bolling takes the meaningless LG job (sorry TK!).


I thought the ad was (summercat - 4/4/2006 11:28:43 PM)
I thought the ad was good, although long.  I don't know if Leslie can win. I do like her a lot.  Will Mark Warner run for Gov. again in 4 years?  Could he have run for LG this time? (I'm new to VA politics, obviously.)
Or maybe, if TK wins, he'll be able to deal a 2nd gubernatorial term with the legislature. I'm sure that Kilgore will try for that, if he wins.  Scary thought.


Sorry Lowell, I wa (vatars - 4/4/2006 11:28:44 PM)
  Sorry Lowell, I was at the debate too, and Craddock's the one with the steam roller.

  Chris out performed Chuck at the debate. There was also always a knowledge that Gary was going to endorse. He is a sore loser.

  Chris also has the Home School endorsement, and the NRA endorsement. Out of all the endorsements flying around that mean nothing, only NRA has people that really get out there on the ground.

  Chuck has stated he wants our funds to go to Southside Virginia, these is a travesty as were from NOVA. I am no "extremist" I supported Connaughton in the primary, and am an avid Tom Davis support, but Chris is going to win this. Chuck has no good ground game, and is having to pay his door to door operations.



Actually it's nonsen (nowanindependent - 4/4/2006 11:28:44 PM)
Actually it's nonsense to say that Chuck is paying for his ground game.  I've been working quite effectively for Chuck for free and I ain't no Liberal.  I'm a former Republican County member, a delegate to the 2000 State Republican Convention in Richmond, and a ground supporter of Bush-Cheney 2000 in 5 precincts.  Craddock is going to lose because he only represents extremist views and positions.  Caputo will win this hands down.


Quack, Quack! My (Jen Little - 4/4/2006 11:28:44 PM)
Quack, Quack!

My Birthday was this week, and Raising Kaine is making it the best ever!

I had thought this may happen.  For days I have had the vision of the picture on this very site in my mind.  The one of Rove rushing from the courthouse rushing to go see Jerry.  If Rove was going then now is the time...  Lord knows when he will have to trade his Armani suits for a Government Issued Orange Jumpsuit.

In my opinion, Rove could not hurt Jerry Kilgore more than Jerry Kilgore hurts himself, but that’s just me!



I hope you are right (Craddock's Neighbor - 4/4/2006 11:28:44 PM)
I hope you are right nowanindependent.  I am a Republican voter who will be casting a vote for Caputo.  Craddock's quoted comments made at Westfield HS are disturbing to say the least. 


John K: I agree wit (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:44 PM)
John K:  I agree with you. Comparing Bush to Hitler is unacceptable and I would never do so.  Having said that, I DO think that Bush is one of the worst, if not THE worst, Presidents in our history.  Utterly incompetent, incurious, inflexible, and irresponsible.  A petty authoritarian type, perhaps.  That's bad enough without calling him "Hitler" as some on the far far FAR left do.  Now, how about YOU condemn the Hitler ad by the Kilgore campaign and stop tossing red herrings around?


Wow! A Demoncrat go (well duh - 4/4/2006 11:28:44 PM)
Wow!  A Demoncrat got endorsed by 5 unions and a demoncrat activist group of environmental whackos.

Stop the presses!  This the most breaking news ever in a campaign in Virginia.

When are the demons going to learn you don't win elections on endorsements?



I suppose the argume (John K. - 4/4/2006 11:28:44 PM)
I suppose the argument would be stronger if the same analysis applied to opponents of President Bush that invoke the name of Hitler too.


Well Duh: I think, s (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:44 PM)
Well Duh: I think, sadly, your name sums up the level of intellectual discourse contained within your "response."  If you think the League of Conservation Voters - a mainstream environmental group if there ever was one - are "whackos," you simply don't have a clue what you're talking about.  As far as the "unions" are concerned, even if you don't like unions - which you obviously don't, for whatever reason -- I'm not sure how you figure that dissing police and sheriffs is a net positive for your man, Chris Craddock.  Duh! (PS "Demons" be gone, as Pastor John would say)


This was a resoundin (Will Evans - 4/4/2006 11:28:44 PM)
This was a resounding victory against Craddock, who lost by over 15% of the vote.  The dude is a homophobic, racist, and paranoid nutjob.

Quite typical of the religious right these days.



Nice find, Lowell. (PM - 4/4/2006 11:28:48 PM)
Nice find, Lowell.  Hmmm.  Right wing-nut Eugene Delgaudio, Sterling Supervisor, has a brother (who was a GOP fundraiser if I recall correctly) who had a unique hobby which the police frowned upon -- taking videos of underage girls in motel rooms.  There's a website of GOP sodomites up somewhere -- I saw it during the last Prez election.  BTW, you're now my fifth favorite blog (and the other four are national blogs so you're my fav VA blog)).  In the overall list you're right behind Wonkette.


http://www.opcva.c (Brave Hart - 4/4/2006 11:28:48 PM)

http://www.opcva.com/watchdog/102703a.html

http://www.opcva.com/watchdog/102303b.html

The Virginia Watchdog has just learned that in addition to Attorney General Jerry Kilgore endorsing all the Republican candidates running for the Hanover Board of Supervisors (see Mechanicsville Local - 10/15/03 edition, page 3) which included Beaverdam?s Bucky Stanley, Cold Harbor?s Elton Wade, and Henry?s Otis Hall, some other big names have now also made endorsements of Hanover?s resident ?jailbird?.

Do they not know of Stanley?s past incarceration and problems with paying his Federal taxes just a mere 12 years ago? Do they think it?s okay to be charged with 9 felony counts for tax evasion, cop a plea and serve time in jail like apparently the Attorney General of this state thinks is okay?

What does this say about the character of the following people - including Hanover?s Sheriff Cook (who by the way has a write in candidate opposing him - Tom Chorinos)???

Apparently no one told them of his past!

Here?s the list of people who have just endorsed Bucky Stanley (read previous story on this site about his past problems):

U.S. Senator John Warner
U.S. Senator George Allen
Congressman Eric Cantor
State Senator Bill Bolling (and he wants to be Lt. Governor in 2005!!!!)
Delegate Frank Hargrove
Delegate Ryan McDougle (former Assist. Commonwealth?s Attorney in Hanover)
Sheriff V. Stuart Cook (guess keeping your nose clean means nothing to him?)
Clerk of Circuit Court Frank Hargrove, Jr. (same one who wants our records/lives on the internet)
Commissioner of the Revenue, Scott Harris (Would he be writing letters about how bad people are if Stanley were a Democrat or Independent? Is this endorsement only because Satnley is running as a Republican?)
The Hanover Conservation Network (whoever this group is?which is amazing because what has Stanley done to ?conserve? anything in this county?he has voted for almost every subdivision put in here!)

I would suggest to all readers not to vote for any of these people again - even if they have no opponent. Don?t give any one of them a vote of confidence? Their values just went down the tubes with this endorsement.

Let?s see if this Wednesday?s Mech Local (Oct. 27th) has any endorsements of other candidates by the same guys?. Stay tuned to The Virginia Watchdog? Tell your friends!

BUT even more baffling is why Attorney General Jerry Kilgore endorsed Otis Hall (R) for Hanover?s Henry District Supervisor - an alleged wife beater?

A check of the files in the Hanover County courthouse records room will reveal details of Hall?s three divorces, but even more concerning is TWO of his ex-wives? allegations of physical abuse by him to the point of needing attention (for one wife), the papers filed at Hanover Clerk?s office say.

In one set of her filings, his now first ex-wife in her pleadings stated that the defendant (Hall) ?beat and severely mistreated? her and that ?on several occasions she had to procure attention by reason of injuries and wounds inflicted by defendant (Hall).? She also stated that she was forced to leave him due to ?mistreatment of her.? She also stated in her filings that Hall ?neglected her and the children, stayed out late at night and on numerous occasions did not come home at all for one or two days? ? and that the defendant (Hall) ?made visits to and kept company with women friends and generally neglected? his wife.

His first mother-in-law testified under oath in depositions that her daughter ? had come home to us with bruises on her where he hit her? she?s just afraid to stay with him?? and ?she had been beaten several times before.? She also testified under oath that Hall ?was supposed to make support payments, but he didn?t take care of his children.?
The wife was granted the divorce in the final decree - and she got custody of the children. Mr. Hall filed a cross bill of complaint that was dismissed.

And why didn?t the Hanover Republican Party know this about their candidate? Didn?t anyone ask him about his past - especially one this colorful with allegations of domestic violence in his past marriages? Personally I don?t think anyone in this county wants an alleged wife beater on the Board! The Judge believed the wife?s allegations and granted her that divorce. He said the wife?s case ?has been fully proven by the evidence?? and that?s just one of his divorces?

And the fact that Hall was not making child support payments until he was threatened with contempt charges is a concern also. He did bring his payments up to date right before he gave up his little girls for adoption to his first wife?s second husband. But maybe in this case his girls were better off in a home without domestic violence. Does the AG condone not paying child support? Apparently - he endorsed this man.

All the papers are public record regarding Hall and they are sickening to read. He denied it in his filings but who wouldn?t deny that kind of behavior! Who could possibly defend his past actions? You can tell a lot about a man in how he treats his wife and kids? and this man didn?t treat his wives very well according to his past wives? filings - and then he gave his own daughters up for adoption! He did file an affidavit about the adoptions but those papers are sealed so we don?t know what he was thinking about when he gave them up.

So does the Attorney General, Jerry Kilgore, condone domestic violence? He has now endorsed a man accused of it by his ex-wives. And since October is Domestic Violence Awareness month, all women in this county and state deserve the answer as to why he - the highest ranking law enforcement official in Virginia - would endorse this man with this past.

Contributions to Hall?s campaign include: Senator Bill Bolling - $250? and the Hanover Republican Party - $200? and Delegate Frank Hargrove - $200 also! What does this say about them? Maybe they should ask for the money back to show they don?t really support a guy with a background/past like his. (Source for contributions: Hanover Registrar -www.hanovervoter.com)

Every woman in this state should be furious for this endorsement by Jerry KIlgore. The citizens of this state should also demand a retraction of his endorsements for Otis L. Hall, Aubrey Stanley, and Tim Ernst?AND every woman in Hanover County?s Henry District should be told of Hall?s past. Maybe Kilgore should have done a background check on Mr. Hall before endorsing him. It doesn?t make any difference when it happened?it just makes a difference that it happened!

And AG Kilgore has not seen fit to respond to my inquiries/questions via his personal secretary, Carol Nixon, and his campaign manager, Ken Hutchinson. (I have an email I wrote to Mr. Hutchinson that I know he read but won?t respond to because I got a ?receipt? that he read it?.and I have the tape of my conversaton with Mrs. Nixon?)

People have a right to know all this before they cast their vote on November 4th. If you don?t believe me, go up to the courthouse and read them yourself. To make an informed decision on who you will vote for as your next Board member, make sure to read all divorce papers (four files) involving Hall?s three ex-wives?

And remember these endorsements by our Attorney General for these three candidates (Stanley, Ernst, and Hall) when you vote for your next Governor of Virginia?

LASTLY, IS VIRGINIA?S ATTORNEY GENERAL MERELY GIVING ?LIP SERVICE? TO THE DOMESTIC VIOLENCE ISSUE??? APPARENTLY?

Ladies, tell your friends about this?.



Wow! I cannot believ (Jen Little - 4/4/2006 11:28:48 PM)
Wow! I cannot believe someone would run for office when associated with people like this.

If Virginians know what is in their best interests this year they will all vote down the line with the Democrats.  The republicans have failed their own party miserably with the presentation of these three candidates, and if I were a republican I would be pissed.

I was talking to someone, who is a republican yesterday, who called his own ticket a joke, and will be voting democratic this year. 

It is a no brainer - Tim Kaine, Leslie Byrne, and Creigh Deeds have what it takes to keep Virginia moving forward. 

The republican ticket offers Virginians nothing but corruption, reduced investments  in critical services, and rewards for those like, Robin Vandewall, who helped these three get where they are.  No thank you!

Really, the choices are easy regardless of party affiliation.  Tim Kaine, Leslie Byrne, and Creigh Deeds all the way!



Republican anti-abor (Josh - 4/4/2006 11:28:48 PM)
Republican anti-abortion activist Howard Scott Heldreth is a convicted child rapist in Florida.

Republican County Commissioner David Swartz pleaded guilty to molesting two girls under the age of 11 and was sentenced to 8 years in prison.

Republican judge Mark Pazuhanich pleaded no contest to fondling a 10-year old girl and was sentenced to 10 years probation. Of course it's no contest! How could he even get a fair fight against those activist judges!

Republican anti-abortion activist Nicholas Morency pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography on his computer and offering a bounty to anybody who murders an abortion doctor. - That's the culture of life we all know and love!

Republican legislator Edison Misla Aldarondo sentenced to 10 years in prison for raping his 9 yr old daughter.

Republican Mayor Philip Giordano serving a 37-year sentence  for sexually abusing 8- and 10-year old girls.

Republican campaign consultant Tom Shortridge sentenced to 3 years probation for taking nude photographs of a 15-year old girl.  I'm sure he had a good explanation.

Republican racist pedophile and esteemed US Senator Strom Thurmond fathered a chiled with a 15-year old black girl.

Republican pastor Mike Hintz, whom George W. Bush commended during the 2004 presidential campaign, surrendered to police after admitting to sexual relations with a juvenile.  Praise George!

Republican legislator Peter Dibble pleaded no contest to having inappropriate relations with a 13-year-old girl.

Republican activist Lawrence E. King, Jr. organized child sex parties at the White House during the 1980s.

..............
there's much much more to this list.  send email to poldir@raisingkaine.com for the rest.



You say that McDonne (I.Publius - 4/4/2006 11:28:48 PM)
You say that McDonnell "once employed a pedophile," then you immediately change the subject.  What are the specifics on the supposed McDonnell-Vanderwall connection?  When did McDonnell employ him?

his gay-baiting of a woman (Newport News Circuit Judge Verbena Askew) he suspected of being a lesbian

Do you even know the facts of this situation?  Askew lied on a questionnaire when she applied for another term as a judge.  What kind of "gay-baiting" took place?



Yes, I saw that... a (I.Publius - 4/4/2006 11:28:49 PM)
Yes, I saw that... and wonder if anyone else notices the logical flaw in the above claim that McDonnell "once employed a pedophile as his campaign manager!"

Let's see... the guy was McDonnell's campaign manager in 1999.  He was convicted of a sex crime five years later.  So you're telling me that it's ok to condemn someone due to an associate's FUTURE actions? 

Are you kidding me?

Man, if this is all you have to criticize, you're really grasping at straws.



The handsome young m (The Hornet - 4/4/2006 11:28:49 PM)
The handsome young man sports a military uniform standing in front of a military helicopter.  Next, with the stern look of a former prosecutor we see him standing in a jail surrounded by police officers.  The overlying voice of the campaign ad says he is tough on crime and that he is a good family man who will protect us from vicious criminals.

The ad invites you to believe Bob McDonnell is the type of model citizen we would want as Virginia?s next Attorney General.  Yet, like the candidate himself, the ad is a slick well-produced showpiece. 

In 1996, McDonnell sponsored legislation to make it a serious crime for candidates to make false charges during a campaign.  Three years later his campaign manager admitted that McDonnell?s campaign had made false charges against an opponent.  That ?Do what I say, not what I do? standard is nothing short of hypocrisy.  It is not a character trait worthy of any statewide candidate.

Yet, the most damning part of this sad episode is the subsequent downfall of McDonnell?s campaign manager.  Was he fired because he told the truth about making false charges during the campaign?  Surprisingly the answer is no.  The campaign manager, Robin W. Vanderwall, was later caught-up in a Virginia Beach Police Internet sting.  He was arrested and subsequently convicted of attempted indecent liberties with children.

My father taught me that men are judged by the company they keep.  Does this make Bob McDonnell a child molester?  No it doesn?t, however, it does call into question his ability to protect our children from sexual predators when he can?t even keep such people out of the hierarchy of one of his campaigns.

Now then, it would appear that the candidate is not so hansome when you look below the very thin veneer of a cleverly produced campaign ad. 



I'm not sure what th (Uad2dog - 4/4/2006 11:28:49 PM)
I'm not sure what the point is here.  I am a member of the 6th District Democratic Committee and doing all I can to help elect Kaine-Byrne-Deeds.  If McDonnell fired him after he was convicted, what else could he do?  Let's not start acting like judgmental Republicans over something like this, please.


Yes, but apparently (I.Publius - 4/4/2006 11:28:49 PM)
Yes, but apparently no one else sees the inherent flaw in the claim that McDonnell employed a pedophile.  It's a lie. 

According to the info above, Mr. Vanderwall was convicted in 2004.  He ran McDonnell's campaign five years before.

Are you seriously suggesting that everyone be judged based on what their acquaintances do years in the future?  Are you kidding?!?!

If this is what y'all have to rip McDonnell, you're obviously desperate.

Regarding Judge Askew, there was no scrutiny over hers or anyone else's sexual orientation, and it had nothing to do with why she lost her job. 



I know the reality i (Brave Hart - 4/4/2006 11:28:49 PM)
I know the reality is a big shock!

But take a hot soak in the tub and a sedative and get back to us in the morning we'll go from their.

Too much at once can be dangerous to your mental health.



I.Publius: Only in b (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:49 PM)
I.Publius: Only in bizarro far-right-wing/Pat Robertson World could someone see an "inherent flaw" with the above discussion, yet NOT see an inherent flaw with "Taliban Bob's" sodomy- and gay-obsessed hypocritical moralizing.  Again, as I said with the bigoted, xenophobic, nativist Bolling ad, "if you don't get it, you don't get it."


The problem with thi (Sean - 4/4/2006 11:28:50 PM)
The problem with this isn't that people can gossip about it and talk all the crap they want about Bob McDonnell.  What I have a problem with is if the Democratic Party decides to act in a way in which we've critized for years. 

This is the issue that not many people are seeming to grasp.  One of the reasons I am a proud Democrat is because WE act better than THEY do.  We're supposed to be better, dammit!  We shouldn't act like them!

Sigh.  Doesn't anyone remember what integrity feels like?



Paul: I sure hope yo (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:50 PM)
Paul: I sure hope you're right on that, but I'd rather not take any chances myself. - Lowell


Lowell: Kennedy i (Paul - 4/4/2006 11:28:50 PM)
Lowell:

Kennedy is no longer willing to overturn Roe.



Bob McDonnell could (Loyal Republican - 4/4/2006 11:28:50 PM)
Bob McDonnell could not remember if he committed sodomy. Maybe Bob is a conservative Republican like gay guy Ed Schrock. Just another one.


Drew: Ummm..YES, Ro (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:50 PM)
Drew:  Ummm..YES, Roe v. Wade is in jeopardy with Miers on the court. The last Supreme Court ruling on abortion (Alexander v. Sandoval, 2001) was a razor-thin 5-4 decision declaring unconstitutional an abortion procedures ban. Here's the lineup:

Pro-choice: Stevens, Ginsburg, Breyer, Souter
Anti-abortion: Scalia, Thomas, Kennedy, Roberts

That's 4-4.  Now add Miers to the anti-abortion group, and I count 5-4 against Roe v. Wade.  Please tell me where my reasoning is flawed. Thank you.



Immorality is much l (Josh - 4/4/2006 11:28:50 PM)
Immorality is much less a concern for me than incompetence.  This woman is simply not qualified for this job.  This is the best example of pure, uncompromising, nepotistic cronyism since Michael Corleone put Freddo in charge of Cuba.

If Harriet Miers hadn't been serving lemonade at various Bush Mansions for the last 30 years, she'd never have been picked for this job.



http://www.tbns.net/888i/' rel="nofollow">888


Here?s another White (Heil Mary - 4/4/2006 11:28:50 PM)
Here?s another White House coddled Repug ped: Neil Bush! My ex boyfriend ran into him in 1993 in Bangkok?s White House ?disco? CHILD BROTHEL! When I read about Neil?s divorce I contacted Sharon?s divorce lawyer, Kitty Kelly, and Brian Ross who aired Neil?s divorce deposition. No wonder the Bushes oppose abortion and contraception--Neil needs fresh Thai child hookers!



You know what? You' (Sean - 4/4/2006 11:28:50 PM)
You know what?  You're just like they are.  You're lowering the bar pal.  You can revel in it if you choose to.


Sean: Thanks for sh (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:50 PM)
Sean:  Thanks for sharing.  I really appreciate it, considering that I've been working my ass off the for the past 10 months to elect Democrats and defeat the "Taliban Bobs" of the world.  Sorry you find what I do to be so "shameful," which is of course your right in a free country.  I'd just point out that just about every Democrat (and some non-Democrats) I've talked to LOVES what we do. I'd also point out that we always try to be factually accurate, and that in the case of Vanderwall we (our blog, Waldo's, and the Washington Post) all were.  But to each their own.  You're certaily entitled to your opinion, however much I disagree with it.


Yeah, that was a goo (Sean - 4/4/2006 11:28:50 PM)
Yeah, that was a good response.  You're ashamed of me cause I'm a guy that works on campaigns and votes solidly Democrat, yet "turns a blind eye to corruption?"  Who the hell do you think you are?  Batman?

There are plenty of other things to attack McDonnell on.  What is reprehensible is the fact that the Democratic Party could stoop to the usual low level of the Republican Party.  Was McDonnell there with Vanderwall chatting it up with little boys online?  Did McDonnell know that Vanderwall was a disgusting pedophile?  Probably not.  So where the hell do you people get off politicizing something like this?

What this web site is trying to do is make some sort of weak connection that just isn't there.  The idea that McDonnell isn't allowed to mention being tough on child molestors because of Vanderwall's conviction is laughable.  That may be the case had McDonnell defended Vanderwall in court.  But he didn't.

This whole thing makes you people sound like Rush Limbaugh's ilk.  Ready and willing to jump to any conclusion no matter how disgusting it makes you look.  You want to know what makes me ashamed Lowell?  You.  I don't want people like you helping the Democratic cause at all.  Because if you release this crap to the public and make that connection, you'll lose points.  Big time.  I guess you guys are in your own little bubble willing to sacrifice realism for zeal.  And thats fine.  Just keep it to your damn self.



Sean: How can the T (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:50 PM)
Sean:  How can the TRUTH constitute a "terrible attack?"  McDonnell's corruption and ties to Vanderwall, etc. have been extensively detailed by the Washington Post and Waldo Jaquith.  I suggest you read these stories and then let us all know what you think. 

By the way, the only thing I'm "ashamed" of is that we have supposed "Democrats" like you who turn a blind eye to Republican corruption.



What is wrong with y (Sean - 4/4/2006 11:28:50 PM)
What is wrong with you people?  This is a terrible attack and wrong course to take.  I am a Democrat, thru and thru. I live in Hampton Roads and will be voting the Democratic ticket all the way down.  However, that does not mean that I have to sit here and read this bull without getting offended.  This is the kind of crap that Republicans pull.  Democrats should be better than this, they shouldn't sink to a party-line Republican's level.

You guys are proud of this?  You should be ashamed for this nonsense.  You cannot feasibly connect McDonnell with Vanderwall, I don't care if he is his step-brother.

This is the kind of thing that could turn undecides against the attacker.  The kind of thing that could turn weak Democrats into Republican supporters.

I hope to god they don't decide to turn this into a mailing like I've heard about. 



Bob McDonnell is bra (Dick C. - 4/4/2006 11:28:50 PM)
Bob McDonnell is bragging about how much he will do to prosecute child molesters with new laws.  That shows that Kilgore has been deficient in protecting Virginia's children from child molesters like Bob's fellow Regent alumnus.


Dick: I thought the (Jen Little - 4/4/2006 11:28:50 PM)
Dick:  I thought the same thing when I heard him on NPR yesterday morning. 

Additionally, I was a little surprised that McDonnell decided to take a stand on this as Creigh Deeds introduced and the General Assmebly passed both Virginia's Megan's Law and Amber Alert.  It is like McDonnell knows Creigh is on target, and is trying to further Creigh's positions.  I is all about DEEDS NOT WORDS, and Creigh got the job done, and it appears that McDonnell is buddy's with the sort of people that commit these horrific crimes. 

Will McDonnell turn his head to these crimes if committed by his friends as Jerry Kilgore did in the eavedropping case (it was only a few days, but he was not swift to prosecute- some AG)? 



I hate to sound like (seo olson - 4/4/2006 11:28:50 PM)
I hate to sound like a wishy-washy Democratic waffler, but here goes: Yeah, Sean is probably right when he says that a crime committed by an employee (Vanderwall) five years after he left the boss (McDonnell) shouldn't necessarily slop over onto the boss. As far as we know he wasn't engaged in pedophilia back then.

But on the other hand, McDonnell has made an issue of his strong stand against pedophiles, even while he "can't remember" engaging (or not) in sodomy.

They both need spanking and bondage discipline. It appears that there are a number of members of the Assembly willing to wield their best chops in the cause of justice. At least while they're between divorces.

Freedom from guilt by association is an important principal of the law. Politics isn't the law, is it?
seo



Thanks for the rally (Jenny - 4/4/2006 11:28:53 PM)
Thanks for the rally feedback. Good to hear the Dems getting fired up. Now, lets get out the message and the vote. I hope Mark Warner does more last minute campaigning for Kaine. We need him.


Yes, it's hard to fi (KathyinBlacksburg - 4/4/2006 11:28:53 PM)
Yes, it's hard to figure why so many Virginians and Americans vote against their own interests.  Jerry's got a "plan" to move more money out of our hands and into the pockets of the rich.  Bush has such a plan as well.  They do this as if the middle class hasnt' been hurt enough already!  And one of the individuals giving Jerry (and Bush) a free pass to do whatever they want destroyed my Kaine sign last night.  They have nothing to offer, so they're up to the usual dirty tricks, raiding the government treasury, and moral relativism.  So, my question to these bone-heads is: "Kilgore and Bush, when it comes to Americans, are you with us or against us?  They probably won't fess up, but every day in every way both of them show they have no useful ideas, can only try to create fear,  and don't give a (well, you know) about Americans, or anyone else.  They ought to hang a shingle on their doors saying Fear-Mongers-R-Us.  That's all they are good for.  They sure can't govern.


I don't think those (Jen Little - 4/4/2006 11:28:53 PM)
I don't think those who think are thinking it, Dan. 

I think you are talking of those who are too lazy to think.

That is why democrats can be so diverse with our ideas and positions.  We are a thinking bunch.  We analyze.  We form our own opinions.  We base our arguments on factual information. In the democratic party we think it is ok to have differing ideas as we respect the opinions of others.

The republican party has indoctrinated people into thinking you are either with us (them) or against us (them again), and people cannot think of anything other than the crap they are feeding them.  It is really sad.



Also in today's Wash (Corey - 4/4/2006 11:28:53 PM)
Also in today's Washington Post.  The death penalty wrap isn't sticking so maybe we'll try to divide with immigration.  I suppose he's only living up to his word of "talk[ing] about the issues that divide us".

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/21/AR2005102101972.html?nav=rss_politics



According to the RTD (Friend - 4/4/2006 11:28:55 PM)
According to the RTD, the poll is of "registered voters likely to cast ballots."



Kaine has to pull of (Jenny - 4/4/2006 11:28:55 PM)
Kaine has to pull off a mighty win in Richmond and NOVA to ensure his victory.

Get involved. Make those calls. From here on out, it should be all major ground work focus. Ditch the polls.



I could not agree mo (Jen Little - 4/4/2006 11:28:55 PM)
I could not agree more, and personally have been participaiting hard in GOTV activities.

I urge all who can to help GOTV, and if you are pressed for time and have cash send all you can to the campaigns to combate the lies hitting our airwaves. 

We can and will win this election, but only if all of us are truly dedicated to the win.  There are few things that frighten me more than the ticket the republicans have presented winning this election.  They are a bad bunch, and are bad for Virginia.

Let's do our part to keep Virginia Moving Forward!  Let's elect Tim Kaine, Leslie Byrne, and Creigh Deeds! 

Going back to work now!



Wow, talk about a gr (CR UVa - 4/4/2006 11:28:56 PM)
Wow, talk about a gross misinterpretation.  This map suggest how America feels about Bush; to say that America has turned Blue is quite mistaken.  I suspect we would still see a map more dominated by red if the polls were looking at the issues, rather than a president rapidly losing support.


How is it a misinter (Steve Nelson - 4/4/2006 11:28:56 PM)
How is it a misinterpretation? If there was an election today, this is where people stand. The President is screwing up royally even among his own people.

But the good news for right wingers is that there isn't an election today. Hooray for you!



Texas? That just bo (Mary - 4/4/2006 11:28:56 PM)
Texas?  That just bowls me over.


No matter how blue y (John Sloan - 4/4/2006 11:28:56 PM)
No matter how blue you want to color that map of yours; he got reelected, and he's not going anywhere until January 21, 2009. Kerry Lost! Kerry Lost! Ha Ha! Cry all you want. You guys nominated a moron.


Brilliant analysis, (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:56 PM)
Brilliant analysis, Walt. You're right, Kerry was a "moron" and Bush was a "genius."  That explains it all.  Very helpful.


I've got 5 bucks, sa (Josh - 4/4/2006 11:28:56 PM)
I've got 5 bucks, says it'll go down this way:
:

What Howell will do is try to connect knee-jerk pro-Death Penalty hysteria to the borderline racist immigration stuff they've already done by making a big deal about death penalties for illegal immmigrant gang members convicted of murder.

My prediction is that brownshirted borderline psychopatic ads will hit the airwaves within 48 hours of Fitzgerald's indictments of Rove, Libby et.al. in an attempt to reduce the obvious damage that an Indicted Bush Administration will almost certainly have on the Bush-Cheny Virginia campaign director:  Jerry Dubya Kilgore.

any takers?



Lowell, your interpr (David C. - 4/4/2006 11:28:56 PM)
Lowell, your interpretation of the article could be wrong.

The ads are necessarily bad.  We don't have enough info to know that. 

What we need to know is who the people are who are less likely to vote for Kilgore.  Are they Kaine voters already? Are they undecided?

The more likely to vote for Kilgore people also need to be looked at.  Are they already Kilgore people or are the undecided?  If they are undecided here and the less likely are already Kaine voters, then the ads are extremely effective.

Toplines results don't  tell you the entire story.



David C.: My interp (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:56 PM)
David C.:  My interpretation of what article exactly?  Do you mean the Falls Church News-Press piece?


Just your insinuatio (David C. - 4/4/2006 11:28:56 PM)
Just your insinuation I guess that the ads have backfired.  I'm not saying they have or have not backfired.  I'm saying we don't know enough to say whether they have or have not.


David C.: I think t (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:28:56 PM)
David C.:  I think the defnitive answer will come only after election day.  For now, my guess is that the Hitler ads have backfired in a small but significant way, pissing off more Democrats against Kilgore than inspiring Republicans against Kaine.  But I could be wrong, of course.  We'll see...


Most of the candidat (Teddy - 4/4/2006 11:28:56 PM)
Most of the candidates I've talked with recently believe the death penalty ads have backfired; the usual 10% were more likely, thanks to the ads, to vote for Kilgore, but 25% were definitely less likely. I tend to think the Howell attack will be based on a slimely big lie. Dave Albo is using a lie against Werkeiser, and other outright lies are showing up against other Dem delegate candidates. It's the Repub style, and it is certain to intensify when Fitzgerald's report/indictments come out. That is when we must show how linked state Rrepublicans are to the national slimebags. This is not apples and oranges, Drew, not this time, anyway


Free samples at the (Teddy - 4/4/2006 11:28:56 PM)
Free samples at the liquor store.  Darn! I've missed out. Where? When?


Scary to think that (Corey - 4/4/2006 11:28:56 PM)
Scary to think that Kilgore is running to "undo the damage of the last four years".


I keep hearing that (Chris from ASL - 4/4/2006 11:29:00 PM)
I keep hearing that Senator Dorgan from North Dakota is proposing a windfall profits tax on the oil companies and to give that money back to consumers. Has anything official come out on that?


Chris: Yeah, somethi (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:29:00 PM)
Chris: Yeah, something official's come of it - the REPUBLICAN CONGRESS is protecting its buddies in Big Oil, but not the vast majority of AMERICANS! This is today's Republican Party, totally in the pocket of their large campaign contributors.

Hmmmmm...now who are Jerry Kilgore's contributors again? (hint: Pat Robertson, Halliburton subsidiary and illegal immigrant employer KBR, Medicaid-defrauding and meth-ingredient-making King Pharamceuticals, etc.)



At my age I well rem (Teddy - 4/4/2006 11:29:01 PM)
At my age I well remember we fought World War II with a "war profits tax" to control the (so-called) excess profits of our patriotic industrial base that produced armaments so outstandingly that Hitler (who disliked hearing bad news as much as some one else I could mention) finally refused to listen to his Intelligence officers' estimates of American production. But my point is, this is the first major war we have ever fought that did NOT have some sort of excess profits tax. It worked before, why not now?


well Jonathan, you C (Craig - 4/4/2006 11:29:07 PM)
well Jonathan, you COULD do that, but that would be, ahem, wasting your vote.  Just about anyone would be an improvement over the moral cretin of Bob McDonnell, and there's no way I'm going to contribute to a McDonnell win by refusing to vote for Deeds over some petty gun issue that probably won't actually change anyhow.

Of course, I'd vote for a fire hydrant if it ran on the Democrat ticket, so maybe you shouldn't go by me, but still...



Looks like a slammad (Soccer Mom - 4/4/2006 11:29:07 PM)
Looks like a slammadamndunk! to me. Excellent...Ex-cell-ent.


Deeds is far enough (Jonathan Mark - 4/4/2006 11:29:07 PM)
Deeds is far enough behind that his chances of winning are nil. It's a wasted vote for him.

A write in vote makes a point that we support whatever the point of the write-in candidate is.

All the AG does is manage the state of Virginia's attorneys. I am tired of the claptrap about all the things that both candidates say they will do.

If elected both Deeds and McDonnell will:

(1) contest unemployment insurance claims
(2) Sue on behalf of the uninsured employers fund
(3) Shut down day care centers not in conformance with the state code
(4) argue about whether someone should or should not be on the state's list of sex offenders.

and other routine activities.

When McDonnell says that he is going to use GPS to monitor released sex offenders, I ask him under what law are you going to be doing this?

Most of the policies that McDonnell and Deeds say they are going to implement are determined  by the state legislature. If McDonnell wants to put GPS devices on sex offenders he should stay in the legislature and pass a law to do that.

So:

(1) It is unclear that Deeds is better than McDonnell. One one issue, guns, he is the worst candidate. Doug Wilder has not endorsed him.

(2) If Dems lose votes because of write-ins or non-votes then they will get the idea that nominating severely flawed candidates is a bad idea.

(3) Depending on who you do a write-in vote for, you can make a point. Vote with some of your friends for a write-in candidate who represents an issue that you care about.

It is a waste to vote for McDonnell under these circumstances. 



Actually, I'd wager (Easy, Teddy - 4/4/2006 11:29:07 PM)
Actually, I'd wager that Doug Wilder pulls the lever for Bob McDonnell on Nov. 8th.  They have had a strong personal relationship for years and Doug respects Bob a great deal, though he wouldn't go so far as an endorsement.  The Times-Dispatch stated today that this is the first time since the late 60's that Wilder hasn't supported the Dem Nominee for Attorney General. 

THAT SPEAKS VOLUMES.



There are other opti (Jonathan Mark - 4/4/2006 11:29:07 PM)
There are other options besides voting for McDonnell. You can leave the ballot blank. You can write in a protest vote.


Jonathan: I probably (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:29:07 PM)
Jonathan: I probably am not going to convince you, but the reason you should vote for Creigh Deeds is that he is a FAR better candidate OVERALL than "Taliban Bob" McDonnell.  Unless you are a single-issue voter, and unless that issue happens to be guns, you'd be making a huge mistake voting for "Taliban Bob" -- for the environment, for education, for personal liberty, for the right to choose, for separation of church and state...so many issues it's hard to list them all. 


Cheers for Tim Kaine (Jenny - 4/4/2006 11:29:07 PM)
Cheers for Tim Kaine! Now, we've to persuade Wilder to get out the vote for Tim. We need him on the final campaign trail especially here in Richmond.


Wow. They were REAL (posta - 4/4/2006 11:29:07 PM)
Wow.  They were REALLY hoping Wilder would just sit things out this time, like when Gilmore won.  I'm sure the spin will basically be to repeat Tucker's quote (what else does the conservative blogosphere do these days) but this is definately bad news for the boys in orange.


Deeds was endorsed b (Josh - 4/4/2006 11:29:07 PM)
Deeds was endorsed by the NRA, largely for the opposite reason that Wilder is endorsing Kaine.

Where Kaine would not consider repealing one-gun-a-month, Deeds has said he would.

That being said, be aware that Deeds opponent may end up under indictment before election day by the Commonwealths Attorney.  At the very least McDonnell is under investigation by the State Board of Elections.  It seems that McDonnell has taken in some $2M of unreported campaign contributions.

In Virginia the laws are really quite simple:  you can contribute to whomever you like, but that candidate MUST REPORT.

For a guy who wants to be the head of Law Enforcement for Virginia, McDonnell sure seems ignorant or cavalier about our Laws.

Waldo has a nice write up.



This is Great!!!Kai (The Rev - 4/4/2006 11:29:07 PM)
This is Great!!!Kaine is racking them up,I hope he runs the table come tues.Everbody check out the article in the roanoke times today,Willey Kilgore (Jerry Mom)is back in the spotlight,http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/38694


Why is Gov. Wilder n (Jonathan Mark - 4/4/2006 11:29:07 PM)
Why is Gov. Wilder not endorsing Deeds? Because Deeds does not support one gun a month.

If Gov. Wilder doesn't support Creigh Deeds why should I?

One does not need to be a betther Catholic than the Pope, and one does not need to be a better  Democrat than Doug Wilder.



tuesistheday: Hopef (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:29:07 PM)
tuesistheday:  Hopefully we'll hear more on that tomorrow at the press conference.


Is Wilder going to c (Jenny - 4/4/2006 11:29:07 PM)
Is Wilder going to campaign with Kaine in Richmond? That would be a big plus for Kaine.


Well Jonathon, the r (Neal2028 - 4/4/2006 11:29:07 PM)
Well Jonathon, the reason you should support Creigh Deeds is simple.  The Democratic party is a big party.  It can house Democrats who aren't well-liked by the NRA (Byrne) and candidates actually NRA endorsed (Deeds).  It's great the Wilder endorsed Kaine, and since he's a former governor he knows what the qualifications are.

Even though he hasn't endorsed Creigh Deeds, that doesn't mean he won't vote for him.  I believe Wilder (and many swing voters) will see a moderate democrat is better than a right wing republican any day of the week.



I meant it is a wast (Jonathan Mark - 4/4/2006 11:29:07 PM)
I meant it is a waste to vote for McDonnell or Deeds under these circumstances.


He lost all credibil (I.Publius - 4/4/2006 11:29:08 PM)
He lost all credibility when he abandoned his wife and started shacking up with his girlfriend... then trying to act like he was still Terry's husband to collect insurance money. 

But hey -- if that's the kind of endorsement you guys want for Kaine, I can't complain.  I hope news of this one gets a lot of airtime. 



I.Publius: You have (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:29:08 PM)
I.Publius:  You have sunk to yet another new low, even for you.  Michael Schiavo "abandoned" his wife?  Hello?  She was brain dead.  As are right-wing radical Republicans, as far as I can tell.

PS If you really want to get into peoples' sex lives, why don't we talk about various Virginia and national Republican politicians' philandering and other vices?  That would provide endless fun,  but I really doubt SCHROCK you want to SCHROCK "go there."



Michael Schiavo neve (In Sickness and Health - 4/4/2006 11:29:08 PM)
Michael Schiavo never abandoned his wife.  If he had wanted to abandon her, he could have divorced her.  He took care of her all of those years, and stayed by her to ensure that her wishes were respected.  No reputable source says that he profited at all from the settlements -- all of that money went to his wife's care and legal fees on her behalf.

All those Republican so-called-Christian moralists say they're all about protecting marriage, but only when that translates to stopping gay people from having legal commitments to one another.  They're all in favor of the government coming in and judging whether your marriage is healthy enough for you to continue to be your spouse's guardian.

Frankly, I don't want these hypocrites judging the quality of my marriage.  If I was in a persistent vegetative state, I want my husband to find happiness and maybe even have children of his own.  But I also wouldn't want him to abandon me completely if my body was not yet at rest.  I didn't choose my parents, I chose my spouse.  He is who I want to care for me, regardless of whether he later falls in love with someone else.  I think Michael Schiavo is a hero, and I hope his endorsement helps other Virginians realize that we don't want the Kilgores of the world getting the government to interfere in our marriages and private medical decisions.



Lowell, not a proble (Conaway - 4/4/2006 11:29:08 PM)
Lowell, not a problem. I ran out of Hitler jokes, so that one had to suffice.

-- Conaway



ROFLMAO!! :) (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:29:08 PM)


No problem, I say it (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:29:08 PM)
No problem, I say it's good to share/Claire!  :)


Idiots. (Susan Brooks, RN - 4/4/2006 11:29:08 PM)


It's all about creat (Josh - 4/4/2006 11:29:08 PM)
It's all about creating a lasting, heredetary aristocracy:

http://polaris.gseis.ucla.edu/pagre/conservatism.html

Bend your knee and like it!



Lowell: Thanks for (Claire Gastanaga - 4/4/2006 11:29:08 PM)
Lowell:
Thanks for the ink/link.  Claire


Conaway: Definitely (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:29:08 PM)
Conaway: Definitely the funniest comment of the day. Thanks!! :) - Lowell


Steve Nelson: Ok, bu (John Sloan - 4/4/2006 11:29:08 PM)
Steve Nelson: Ok, but I still love screwin with you guys :)


Republicans -- The i (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:29:08 PM)
Republicans -- The immigrant-bashing, race-baiting, fear-mongering, ignorance-spreading, liberty-infringing, tell-you-what-to-do Party.  How appealing!!


Wow! Lowell, YOU wer (Steve Nelson - 4/4/2006 11:29:08 PM)
Wow! Lowell, YOU were a Republican at one time? I never would have thunk it!

I have to say it's a very generous gift of the Republican Party to give the Democratic Party "personal liberty and fiscal responsibility". How bizzare.



Didn't Jerry W. Kilg (Josh - 4/4/2006 11:29:08 PM)
Didn't Jerry W. Kilgore try to have the Americans with Disabilities act deemed "Unconstitutional"?

"Cruel and Hateful"?  you betcha



Walt, give me a brea (Steve Nelson - 4/4/2006 11:29:08 PM)
Walt, give me a break.


RickyD: I couldn't (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:29:08 PM)
RickyD:  I couldn't agree more. When I was a Teenage Republican back in the late 1970s, the Republican Party actually stood for personal liberty and fiscal responsibility.

Unfortunately, that all changed in 1980 when the Falwell/Robertson wing took over, along with the Grover Norquist "drown government in a bathtub" crowd, the flat earthers on science and knowledge, the supply siders on economics, and the hyper-nationalists/neo-cons on foreign policy.  It's been all downhill since then, which is why I am no longer a Republican - the FORMER party of Abraham Lincoln and Teddy Roosevelt!



Steve: Back in the (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:29:08 PM)
Steve:  Back in the 1970s, I saw the Democratic Party as the party of George Wallace and Strom Thurmond, and I didn't like it one bit. Actually, the Democratic Party for 50 years was an alliance between (largely) northern liberals and (largely) southern "Dixiecrats."  That alliance shattered over Vietnam, the civil rights movement, the womens' rights movement, the gay rights movement, etc., with the end result being Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush.


Who cares what he th (John Sloan - 4/4/2006 11:29:08 PM)
Who cares what he thinks about the VA Governors race. Personally, when he murdered his wife, I thought he lost all credibility; but that's just me.


Who cares what he th (John Sloan - 4/4/2006 11:29:08 PM)
Who cares what he thinks about the VA Governors race. Personally, when he murdered his wife, I thought he lost all credibility; but that's just me.


Walt: He "murdered h (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:29:08 PM)
Walt: He "murdered his wife?" Even though Terry was brain dead and in a persistent vegetative state, according to the doctors treating her?  Please explain.


Walt: Also, I take i (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:29:08 PM)
Walt: Also, I take it you're one of the 13% of Americans who believe that the government was correct to interfere in this case?  Well, I'm one of the 82% who believes otherwise.


If there's a video o (Conaway - 4/4/2006 11:29:08 PM)
If there's a video of the autopsy, Sen. Frist can take a looksee and confirm...


I'd rather who hadn' (Jenny - 4/4/2006 11:29:08 PM)
I'd rather who hadn't posted Terri'picture. It adds an exploitative feel to the post.


Jenny: I respect you (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:29:08 PM)
Jenny: I respect your position on this, but I feel that at this point the picture has been seen by pretty much everyone in America.  The news media spread it far and wide, and now it is instantly recognizable by probably 90%+ of the country.  That's why I used it...as a visual accompaniment to get the story noticed, not to "exploit" it.  I feel really bad for Terry Schiavo and her family, and would never wish this on anyone...


I don't know how Mic (RickyD - 4/4/2006 11:29:08 PM)
I don't know how Micheal Schiavo made it though this horrible ordeal.  Dealing with his wife's condition and all the fights with her family would have been exhausting.  I can only imagine the anguish this would caused Micheal.  Having all the media attention (for political gain) and then the politicians condemning the choice to end her life with dignity was an unnecessary burden.  Some decisions need to be left to individual and their families.  Republican efforts to legislate morality are one of my biggest concerns and one of the reasons that I am working to elect Democratic leaders.


It's pretty predicta (KathyinBlacksburg - 4/4/2006 11:29:11 PM)
It's pretty predictable that the spinners over on the far right are conjuring up disinformation about Mark's support of Tim.  Why, this very morning I (along with about 300 other people) saw the two of them together in Christiansburg.  They have double digit numbers of stops together between now and Tuesday.  They've had many joint appearances previously.  There's absolutely no mistaking Mark Warner's strong support of Tim Kaine, Leslie Byrne and Creigh Deeds.

But when the GOPhers don't have anything to run on, well, they just make stuff up.  The KILL-mores are out in force re-enacting SNL's Bizzaro World.  It was no honest "mistake"  that they spread the disinformation.  If we fail to include an apostrophe, or even make a typo,they dog us.  If we make an honest mistake,  they dog us more.  But let them correct any of their false claims... I don't see them doing it.  And they claim to be the "accountability" party. 



Will they now ap (Steve Nelson - 4/4/2006 11:29:11 PM)
Will they now apologize and admit that they made a HUGE mistake?

Nope.



It occurs to me that (Teddy - 4/4/2006 11:29:11 PM)
It occurs to me that the right wing bloggers may have thought they were on to something when they pictured Mark Warner as about to "pull the plug" on Kaine because it was feared that a Kaine governorhsip would detract from Mark Warner in the future. That is EXACTLY what a Republican operative would do in the same position, and EXACTLY how a Republican would think politically about every nuance and phase of his/her possible future campaign for higher office. They have no natural personal ethics (which is why Bush places such enormous emphasis on having only loyalists around him who fawn on him at every turn, just like any old time absolute monarch), and their world is a dog eat dog world of Darwinian survivalism. So of course the bloggers were judging everybody else by the standards of the GOP


Last night represent (JC - 4/4/2006 11:29:11 PM)
Last night represented a major victory in Warner’s undeclared campaign for the Democratic Presidential nomination in 2008. If elected President, Warner would likely be faced with the need to clean up eight years of Republican fiscal irresponsibility, bureaucratic mismanagement, and destructive partisan bickering. Oh well, been there, done that.


Ben: I like that sl (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:29:11 PM)
Ben:  I like that slogan.

Corey:  I think it's a bit premature to write off Hillary, but certainly that was an extremely impressive evening for Mark Warner!



I saw this written b (Corey - 4/4/2006 11:29:11 PM)
I saw this written by Kos on the midday open thread today:

"Warner can rake in the bucks. His first fundraiser netted an astonishing $2.5 million. Forget Hillary. Warner will be the candidate to beat. Not saying he's my choice, but he'll be the frontrunner at some point during the 2008 cycle."

There's a good discussion about Warner in the thread now.

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2005/12/7/13190/8452



So who is running ag (Jen Little - 4/4/2006 11:29:21 PM)
So who is running against Allen???

Dems don't bail on us now!!!  We got the MO!

I just want to know where to send the check!



If we can get five r (Chris from ASL - 4/4/2006 11:29:21 PM)
If we can get five republicans to vote with the Dems, Bolling becomes irrelevant. Speaking of which, who can field to replace him?


I agree with you abo (Texas Kat - 4/4/2006 11:29:21 PM)
I agree with you about Wes Clark's ability to connect with 'outside the Beltway' voters.

His message of duty, honor, country, faith, family, courage is well received in many places where 'traditional' Democrats fear to tread.

I hope we see much more of him helping Democrats like Tim Kaine.  He's MY choice to lead the ticket in '08.



Russ Potts is one!!! (Jen Little - 4/4/2006 11:29:21 PM)
Russ Potts is one!!!  Didn't he keep his seat?  So now only 2 more!


How do voters come u (KathyinBlacksburg - 4/4/2006 11:29:21 PM)
How do voters come up with Boling, McDonnell, Albo, Marshall, Cosgrove, and more?  But they reject a candidate (Leslie Byrne) who stood for working people, health care, education, pension security, fair wages, ending the tax incentives for off-shoring, envirornmental protection --all things most Americans want--lost.  The fact that nearly half of Virginia voters selected Leslie shows just how mainstream she is.  How do voters time and again vote against their own interests just because a wingnut ironically labels one with truly mainstream values "extremist" and "liberal?" 

But I must say if Democrats had cared more about those two races, things might have been otherwise.  Too many are willing to ride things out and only jump on the bandwagon at the last minute, when "electability" finally appears doable.  Voters so much want to be with a winner many just won't help unless it's a "sure thing."  It's gaming pure and simple.  But this tactic is a self-fulfilling prophesy.  And this use of self-fulfilling prophesy will continue to doom us to partial or full failures as we move forward.  The closeness of Leslie and Creigh's races ought to undercut their approach.

I'm delighted that Tim Kaine won.  But just how much do we have beyond symbolism without Leslie and Creigh?  Boling has already acted like a jerk in his victory statement, suggesting he's going to dog Tim.  He'll break ties.  And the new AG is unlikely to run his job on behalf of all Virginians.  We don't have the two houses of the legislature (big deal -- a few more seats).  The courts are generally overwhelmingly wrong-wing. I don't need to say anything about how the wrong-wing owns the entire federal government and has obliterated every aspect of bipartisanship. 



Why doesn't Russ Pot (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:29:22 PM)
Why doesn't Russ Potts just switch to the Democratic Party. He obviously will find a far more welcoming reception there than from the Republicans!!


Russ Potts is Russ P (Teddy - 4/4/2006 11:29:22 PM)
Russ Potts is Russ Potts; he'll be an Independent before he'll convert, I suspect, and his constituents would probably disown him. Isn't there an ongoing investigation into Mr.Bolling's insurance company? Could we possibly find him under future indictment? He needs to have his wings clipped.


Don't forget the vic (Craig - 4/4/2006 11:29:22 PM)
Don't forget the victory of Dave Marsden over Michael "give gang mambers assault weapons" Golden.


Kevin (KCinDC): Wel (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:29:41 PM)
Kevin (KCinDC):  Well, thank goodness...I was really starting to worry there!! :)

Annie:  On second thought... LOL



Down to a 245-vote m (Nell - 4/4/2006 11:29:41 PM)
Down to a 245-vote margin. Yow.

Steve, lay off the "If the Deeds campaign is putting you up to this" stuff.  Aside from insulting Lowell and Waldo, as if neither one were able to have any independent political thoughts, and as if the basis for this story weren't right out there in the news, your insinuation is just ridiculous. 

At this moment the Deeds campaign is having to prepare both a transition team and a recount plan.  Don't you think they're a little bit too busy to be planting stories in blogs?

I look forward to the next several years, in which the full corruption of the national Republican money-laundering machine will be laid out for all to see.  Lowell, Waldo: you probably know about the new site that Josh Marshall is preparing (and fundraising for) that will follow that story.  That site will depend on local bloggers reporting the connections of R's in their areas to the national apparatus; I'm looking forward to contributions from you both.



I guess you guys wen (OnBackground - 4/4/2006 11:29:41 PM)
I guess you guys went to the see the Edward R. Murrow movie, but unfortunately you didn't learn the lesson about guilt by association and the Big Smear.  This posting is pure sleeze, far more over the top than some during the campaign and only the Sullivan case protects you from the lawsuit this should generate.  And now that the campaign is over, its time to call you on it.  Have you no shame?  In the end, gentlemen, have you no decency?  If the Deeds campaign is putting you up to this, then the shame rubs off. 


Uh Lowell? Didja see (Annie - 4/4/2006 11:29:41 PM)
Uh Lowell? Didja see the longer range forecast? Gamma's coming to get us!  Really.  Apparently she's going to take a course similar to Wilma and like Wilma cause a Nor'easter to form off the coast of the Carolinas.  And it's now cold enough that the precip will be --- yep. SNOW!!!!



Gamma is only the th (KCinDC - 4/4/2006 11:29:41 PM)
Gamma is only the third letter, and there are 24 letters in the Greek alphabet, so we've still got 21 to go before we reach Omega and run out. I think you can relax for now.


Well Lowell, this wh (David Lang - 4/4/2006 11:29:41 PM)
Well Lowell, this whole year has been ridiclous with all the fires in Califoria, hurricanes, tornados, earthquakes, war in Irag, bombing all around the world, and lastly the most important Bush as president and his little republican friends. 

But look to the better side, it's almost time for winter and that means snow. Go make yourself a snowman.



http://www.ancientsc (Timothy Seeley - 4/4/2006 11:29:41 PM)
http://www.ancientscripts.com/cyrillic.html

Here you go Lowell and friends. Enjoy your studies....



Take it up with the (Waldo Jaquith - 4/4/2006 11:29:41 PM)
Take it up with the Washington Post, Steve.  They report, you decide.


There is a press rel (Corey - 4/4/2006 11:29:42 PM)
There is a press release cited here:
http://www.coreyhernandez.com/node/30 from the DNC that said Republican VA congressman Cantor and Goode are both connected to the Abramoff Pay-To-Play scandal. 

Now we need to keep it (or get it?) in the media and keep repeating it over and over.



Once we're sure of t (Teddy - 4/4/2006 11:29:42 PM)
Once we're sure of the facts I think a concerted campaign of letters to the editor for all the local papers in their districts, as well as to the major ones... even to the little weeklies. And keep it up until the Times Dispatch etc are shamed into doing a little investigative reporting of their own. Also, keep up the exposure on the blogs, as it does seem that blog reports are beginning to have an affect. The next election begins now!


I think "What up dog (Brian - 4/4/2006 11:29:44 PM)
I think "What up dog?" is what Randy Jackson from American Idol always says, right?


No clue, I watch abo (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:29:44 PM)
No clue, I watch about 0.001 hours of TV per week.  Luckily, I DO read People and Entertainment Weekly on occasion when I'm at the gym, so I'm not completely clueless. But I had never heard of this one before...


Welcome Bruce! (JC - 4/4/2006 11:29:44 PM)


Interesting read. O (KathyinBlacksburg - 4/4/2006 11:29:44 PM)
Interesting read.  One paradox of the false claims that Christmas is under attack (by non conservatives, preesumably) is that some of the very people yelling and screaming about this have reduced the number of services on Christmas, or eliminated them in some cases.  By their reductions, either they are contributing to the problem themselves --or they are worried the take (collection) won't warrant the effort and expense of the services.  Could it be that the real problem is commercialsim and greed by some of these same ministers?  Personally, I think the whole thing is a ploy to increase donations.


Kathy: Excellent po (Lowell - 4/4/2006 11:29:45 PM)
Kathy:  Excellent points, as always, and well stated. Come write for us anytime...

JC:  I love "Abromokwanzaa," except I can't pronounce it. How about, "Abromokwanzistmukah?"



The idea that bodies (KathyinBlacksburg - 4/4/2006 11:29:45 PM)
The idea that bodies of lawmakers are trying to enact declarations to "save" Christmas is just amazing. I also think the so-called war on Christmas is an attempt to demonize the spiritual lives of others.  But most of all, its geared toward mobilizing a group of voters for next fall. 

There are other current tactics that stereotype and demonize those of other faiths.  For example, in a chain letter circulating the internet, there's a supposed bet by two young people of faith.  One bets they couldnt' find 200 people in America who believe in God.  The other bets they can.  And the reader is supposed to sign on to "prove" that there are at least 200 people in the entire country who believe.  This specific chain letters is propaganda designed to persaude the reader that there's just about no one else who'll sign on.  Note that according to Pew Research, at least 90% of Americans do believe in God.)BTW).  But note the condescension and offensive ness of the two betters beliving they are among the 200 holiest people in America.  This kind of thinking, promoted by some denominations, is designed to spark and "us" against "them" mentality.  At the very time when people of all faiths should come together in mutual respect, wedges like this cause the opposite.  And somehow I don't think arrogance is part of the spirit of the season, or the day. 



Well all of it is ju (JC - 4/4/2006 11:29:45 PM)
Well all of it is just a cover for the war on Abramokwanzaa.