Open source, procurement, and gov tech.
Bob McDonnell is refusing to sign an anti-tax pledge, and the Washington Times is upset. I’m impressed with McDonnell. We’re seeing right now, in California, what happens when a state refuses to raise taxes as a matter of principle. Sometimes it’s necessary, and to say “I’ll never raise taxes no matter what” is foolish. McDonnell …
Continue reading “McDonnell refuses to sign an anti-tax pledge.”
I’m not the only one who thinks that this governor’s race is Sen. Creigh Deeds’ to lose: E.J. Dionne agrees. Dionne joined us at The Omni on the night of the election, and points out that while he’s been to a great many victory parties in his career, but “the ties to the candidate seemed …
Four years ago the NRA endorsed Creigh Deeds for AG rather than Bob McDonnell. Now they’ve got the same two candidates, only the stakes are higher. Will they repeat their 2005 endorsement? If the NRA endorses Deeds in this race, I’ll become a member.
Jeff Schapiro, as a part of a longer Richmond Times-Dispatch piece about the troubles faced by Bob McDonnell, makes this notable point, among others: For a party in almost nonstop retreat since 2001, the Virginia GOP shows no sign of retreating from the well-right-of-center orthodoxy that has left it defensive and depleted its bench. Why …
Continue reading “McDonnell’s unenviable position in this race.”
Bob McDonnell is outraged—outraged!—that that “an outside group” receiving money from from “big national” interests would try to influence the outcome of Virginia’s election. This, of course, is awesomely hypocritical. McDonnell funneled $2,083,500 into his race against Creigh Deeds in 2005 via just such a group (or $6,430.56 for every vote by which he won), …
Well, this is going to be awkward. Follow me. In 2000, Bob McDonnell set up the Faith and Family Alliance, a non-profit that was run by McDonnell’s one-time campaign manager, Robin Vanderwall. (Vanderwall is currently serving a seven-year sentence for attempted child molestation.) The Faith and Family Alliance was used to launder money for political …
Continue reading “The new RPV chair smeared Eric Cantor in the 2000 primary.”
Bob McDonnell says he opposes transferring Guantanamo Bay prisoners into any Virginia facilities. For the record, I’d be perfectly happy to have them in Virginia. Hell, I’d be happy to have them right here in Albemarle County, in any place that’s appropriate for a prison facility of that size. McDonnell describes these guys as “some …
Continue reading “McDonnell opposes establishing a prison for Guantanamo prisoners in Virginia.”
I’ve heard Republicans crowing about winning some board of supervisors seat upstate somewhere. That’s not something I can possibly muster up interest in, but I had to laugh when a read a bit about the winner, John Cook, this evening: Cook is among those in the Virginia GOP who blame the party’s slide in recent …
Continue reading “How does a Republican win in Fairfax? Don’t be a dick.”
I’ve been researching a blog entry for a few weeks, but I see that Anita Kumar went and did me one better, turning out an article on the topic in today’s Washington Post. What’s up with candidates for governor “working” for law firms? Both Bob McDonnell and Creigh Deeds work for law firms, although it’s …
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Attorney General Bob McDonnell just wrapped up a press conference in which he announced that he’s resigning to run for governor full-time. His campaign manager described it as “the most difficult decision Bob has ever had to make,” but that strikes me as enormously unlikely. McDonnell is the fourth consecutive Republican AG in Virginia to …