I love the headline where it says that Lambert “admits” he gave to a Republican.

Memo to the Free Press:

That’s public record. It has been since they filed the report for that period that year. I guess it took Don to tip them off to it. Nice reporting by the Free Press.

(Psst! Did you know that Benny gave a Republican $1,000?)

Since when was that considered a reputable publication, anyway? What masquerades as a news story takes sides, even in a Democratic primary.

The whole thing is one big editorial.

BTW — how much would it cost for them to have a web site, for God’s sake? Ray Boone is making a fortune. To have the story scanned and posted is a little bit embarassing for the paper.

Posted by Stupy on 30 March 2007 @ 4am

At least the commissars at Raising Kaine are finally enforcing party loyalty.

Posted by Judge Smails on 30 March 2007 @ 6am

Waldo, is it so hard to grasp the difference between being an elected Democratic official who contributes to and publicly endorses Republican candidates and a regular citizen/voter?

You can do anything you like politically. The party plan of the DPVA forbids candidates elected as Democrats (and Democratic caucus voters) to oppose Democratic candidates in general elections. Pretty straightforward, pretty minimal requirement for having a party at all.

Posted by Nell on 31 March 2007 @ 9am

Nell, in all of the blog entries that I’ve read and the conversations that I have had with people across the state on this topic, you are the very first person that I have seen suggest that a bright line exists between elected officials and others. In fact, what I’ve most often been told is that I, as a member of the Albemarle County Democratic Committee, am held to the exact same standard.

Posted by Waldo Jaquith on 31 March 2007 @ 11am

I wasn’t arguing for the existence of a bright line, but a distinction that’s a matter of common sense about the political impact and consequences.

It’s in the party plan: committee members and elected officials who publicly support a Republican in a race in which there is a Democratic nominee, by contributing or endorsing publicly, can be removed by the committee (not ‘must be’).

A public endorsement by an elected official has much more impact, in general, than that of a committee member (particularly in those local committees whose bylaws don’t limit the number of official members). The higher-profile the race and the endorsement, the greater the impact.

So no one has to “turn in their party card”; it’s a judgment call by the committee of which they’re a member. I’d make the same call that the party committee made in the case of Benny Lambert. Would you?

Posted by Nell on 1 April 2007 @ 12pm

what I’ve most often been told is that I, as a member of the Albemarle County Democratic Committee, am held to the exact same standard

Has your response to being told that been “Well, I’ve given to Republicans before and I’ll probably do it again, so maybe I should turn in my party card right now.”?

Posted by Nell on 1 April 2007 @ 1pm

I’m with Nell on the line between elected D’s and the rank and file. (Not sure what you’ve been reading, Waldo, since this isn’t the first time I’ve said that.) There is no doubt in my mind that those who feed at the party trough should be held to that standard. Unlike Nell, though, I disagree with the actions of the party in the case of Lambert. He should have been stripped of his membership. Even though it would have been symbolic (because anyone can call themselves a Democrat), it would have demonstrated that such behavior is unacceptable.

Posted by Vivian J. Paige on 1 April 2007 @ 8pm

At the risk of discrediting myself here, I hasten to say that I actually agree with Vivian, because I was going on the assumption that Lambert had been booted by his local committee. I haven’t been following it closely, and was assuming from the reaction right after the election that his local committee members were going to strip his membership.

Posted by Nell on 3 April 2007 @ 12am