Decision Virginia

The crowd is gathering in Emporia is this afternoon for President Barack Obama‘s visit. Invited guests were allowed to begin filing in around 2pm. Mr. Obama is scheduled to arrive sometime after 5pm.

As he makes his way to the Commonwealth his team is being roundly criticized by republicans because of the campaign feel of the tour, which is being paid for with taxpayer dollars. The White House insists the event is to drum up support for the American Job Acts, but today Vice President Joe Biden hinted that trip these official trips do serve a dual purpose.

“Are we campaigning?” he said. “Yes! We are campaigning to change this environment.”

Biden was speaking at an event in York, PA. Just like Virginia and North Carolina, swing states Obama and Biden won in 2008 and states that will be vital to their re-election hopes.

The look of this event in Emporia is very much feels like a campaign swing. Emporia was a stop for then Senator Obama during his 2008 campaign.

I will have live updates from Emporia as the happen. We will carry the event live on NBC12-TV and NBC12.com and I will have constant updates on my twitter feed: twitter.com/ryanobles.

Virginia Governor Tim Kaine has just a few weeks left in his time at the Commonwealth’s Chief Executive. Recently, I sat down with the Governor for a lengthy look back at his four years in office. Kaine revealed quite a bit during our discussion, much of which I will share over the next few weeks, leading up to the inauguration of his successor Bob McDonnell.

Among the many things we discussed was the vetting process during the campaign for President, that propelled Kaine into the national spotlight. Kaine developed a very close relationship with a then, Senator Barack Obama and was one of his early backers.  Even though Kaine was not very well-known across the Country, that friendship was one of the main reasons that Obama considered Virginia’s Governor to be his running mate.

Kaine, who was very quiet about the vetting process at the time, told me today that he, Joe Biden and Indiana Senator Evan Bayh were Obama’s three finalists. The selection process  has been outlined extensively in campaign manager David Plouffe‘s book, “The Audacity to Win“. Kaine said that he was whisked away to several covert interviews including one with Obama himself. He said around that time, the candidate told him what his thought process was.

“The president told me at one point, he said you know, you are my heart pick and Biden is my head pick,” Kaine told me.  ” Sometimes I go with my heart, sometimes I go with my head.”

At the time, national pundits were very skeptical that Governor Kaine had the foreign policy credentials necessary to serve as Vice President. That concern was compounded by the fact that Senator Obama’s experience in foreign affairs was also not extensive.  Apparently, Kaine felt the same way.

“I remember the next day Georgia and Russia went to war,” said Kaine “and I thought okay, it’s going to be Biden!”

Looking back, Kaine said that Biden turned out to be the right choice. Not only because he and Obama ended up winning by such a large margin, but because the Vice President has been able to leverage his connections with members of Congress to push forward the President’s agenda when it comes to health care reform.

The extended clip from Kaine’s comments on the Vice Presidential search are below:

I’ll have more from my interview with the Governor in the coming days. To see my story from NBC12-TV on Kaine’s reflections of his time in office, click here.

He put the Obama administration’s critics on notice, raised a bunch of cash for his party’s nominee for Governor of Virginia and only made one, minor but noticeable gaffe. All in a day’s work for the Vice President of the United States of America.

Joe Biden, the charismatic and experienced lawmaker charmed a crowd of close to 100 invited guests today at J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College in Henrico. It was clear from the start of his speech that not only was the V.P. here to defend his team’s stimulus plan, but also to specifically target one of it’s chief critics, local congressman Eric Cantor.

During his nearly 40 minute address, Mr. Biden talked at length about specific examples of what he sees as progress that has resulted from the stimulus plan. From the protection of some 7,000 public sector jobs to the potential for local small business owner John Fernandez (pictured above with Biden) to add 25 jobs by the end of the year, Biden attempted to make the case that the expensive investment was worth it.

At one point Biden asked Central Virginians and the stimulus plans critics to step back and “look around” at the progress. Perhaps a tough sell to a community like Richmond that has seen the loss of a number of locally based companies. (Something we explored tonight on NBC12 news at 11.) But that wasn’t enough. Biden specifically went after Cantor by hinting that the Congressman was a hypocrite, for fighting against the stimulus, while at the same time begging for money to develop high speed rail from Richmond to Washington, D.C. (For his part Cantor called the Recovery Act a flop).

((Video from that section of Biden’s speech, plus more on the VP’s trip can be found after the jump)) Read the rest of this entry »

Ryan Nobles – bio | email

The Washington Post is reporting this afternoon, that without mentioning Richmond Congressman Eric Cantor by name, Vice President Joe Biden plans to target the House Minority Whip during his remarks today at J. Sargaent Reynolds.

The Post received an advance copy of the speech and in excerpts released by the paper, Biden challenges opponents of the Recovery act to stop opposing the plan for the sake of opposing it and recognize the results it is already producing. Cantor is one of the chief opponents of the Obama Administration plan and this week delivered the Republican weekly radio address where he hammered the White House’s “pork barrel spending”.

Here is a section of the Post report:
“To those who say that our economic decisions ‘have not produced jobs, have not produced prosperity, and simply have not worked’ I say, take a look around,” Biden will say, according to prepared remarks obtained by The Washington Post.

“I say, ‘Don’t let your opposition to the Recovery Act blind you to its results,’” Biden plans to say in the Richmond speech. “‘Come see what I see everywhere I go: workers rehired, factories reopened, cops on the street, teachers in the classroom, progress toward getting our economy back on the move.’”

Without naming Cantor directly, the rhetorical assault is aimed directly at the Richmond lawmaker, who has helped lead the Republican Party to its most effective message since Obama became president: that Obama’s stimulus bill has not produced jobs.

Meanwhile Cantor, appears to be ready for a fight. He has already held a press conference call in response to the Biden visit and his staff released a video clip of a press conference today where the Congressman addresses the issue. “I have said consistently since the numbers have come out: this stimulus plan has been a flop,” said Cantor. “This is President Obama’s economy, let’s get down to business here and get people back to work in this country.”

You can find that clip after the jump. Don’t forget that we will stream the Vice President’s speech live on NBC12.com. My first live report on television will be during our First at Four program and throughout the early evening newscasts.

Read the rest of this entry »

Richmond is gearing up today for a visit from the Vice President of the United States, Joe Biden. Mr. Biden is here to discuss President Barack Obama’s stimulus plan and specifically the role Community Colleges play in a 21st century economy.

Biden will speak to a group of invited guests at J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College at 4:45 this afternoon.

In addition to his policy speech, Biden is expected to headline a fundraiser for Democratic candidate for Governor Creigh Deeds. That event is being held at a private home and is not open to the press.

You can watch Vice President Biden’s entire speech by logging on to our main web site www.nbc12.com. Our coverage online will depend on the VP’s schedule, but we hope to begin streaming live around 4:30pm.

In addition to our web coverage, I will have frequent updates here and live reports on NBC12 television beginning at 4.

Vice President Joe Biden will come to Richmond this Thursday and will make the most of his visit. Not only will the VP headline a lucrative fundraiser for Gubernatorial candidate Creigh Deeds, he will also speak on the campus of J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College at an event designed to highlight the success of the Recovery Act. (also known as the stimulus).

While President Barack Obama continues to enjoy relatively high approval ratings, they have tracked back a bit since the early highs of his presidency. Much of the slippage seems to be connected to voters perception of the progress being made in turning around the economy. It appears that this event featuring Biden will be designed to show how the stimulus is being put to work on the ground level in places like Richmond.

The Vice President is an interesting spokesperson for the administration’s efforts to show their efforts are working in the wake of comments he made last week where he said that they “misread how bad the economy was.”  Biden’s comments forced President Obama to respond in a separate interview where he said that his administration did not “misread” the economic situation, but instead they had “incomplete information”.

Regardless of the words, the Obama team is scrambling to restore the public’s confidence in their handling of the economy. The Biden visit comes against the backdrop of rising unemployment and the rumors that a second (third if you count President Bush’s initial plan) stimulus could be on the way.

The state of the economy will also play an important role in the race for Governor of Virginia.  It can’t hurt that in addition to raising some cash for Creigh Deeds that Mr. Biden will attempt to make the case that Democrats are still the party best capable of turning the economic situation around. There is no doubt that while the Vice President has work to do for Team Obama, it is no coincidence that his effort can be helpful to Team Deeds as well.

**UPDATE**

According to the Deeds campaign, the Senator will NOT appear with Vice President Biden at the stimulus event at J. Sargeant Reynolds. Campaign officials said this is a White House policy event, not a political event.

**UPDATE ends**

We will have complete coverage of Vice President Joe Biden’s visit to Richmond here and on NBC12. The official release regarding his trip can be found after the jump:

Read the rest of this entry »

The Obama campaign, hoping for an additional little press hit, just announced that Joe Biden is coming to Richmond tomorrow for an informal meet and greet with supporters to help encourage their get out the vote efforts.

They announced the visit, but said that Biden’s exact whereabouts are a secret so he can meet with the supporters without the glare of the media spotlight.

Ryan Nobles - bio | email

I am sure that this post will lead to quite a few comments accusing the Richmond Times-Dispatch of being a “right-wing” mouthpiece and others that express the brilliance of the local publication. But I do feel that it is significant that the local newspaper did weigh in on the race for President today and decided that the choice for Virginia and for America is Sen. John McCain.

In a rather lengthy piece, the editorial board expresses many reasons why as the title of the endorsement says it is “Time for McCain”. The crux of their argument is that the state of the world is too unstable for an inexperienced person to ascend to the White House. They say that McCain is “the right man for our perilous times”.

It is a bit interesting that the McCain endorsement comes out today, in light of a few other endorsements that were probably a bit of a problem for the Republican ticket, including the Sarah Palin’s paper the Anchorage Daily News. It is interesting, specifically because of what the T-D had to say while sizing up the two candidates for Vice President:

The addition of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin to the ticket has been a mixed blessing. She has electrified the Republican base and demonstrated an exceptional talent for retail politics. She boasts a strong record so far as governor. But it is a short record. At times, Palin’s limited experience has shown, raising questions about her mastery of some complex issues. Her treatment by the press has been deplorable. But that does not mean all of the doubts about her readiness are misplaced. Still, we suspect she has a bright future in national politics, particularly after she has broadened her experience, perhaps as vice president. She seems to be a quick study.

Democrat Joe Biden has made himself into a laughingstock. In his interview with The Times-Dispatch, McCain clearly enjoyed recounting Biden’s recent guarantee that a President Obama would face a major international crisis within six months of taking office. “It’s one of the most remarkable statements I’ve heard in American politics . . . .It’s about Joe Biden riding to the rescue,” McCain said. Obama has publicly dismissed his running mate’s comments as “rhetorical flourishes.” McCain’s response: “He didn’t know Joe Biden was capable of rhetorical flourishes? I could have told him that!”

They also stop short of any glowing comments about Barack Obama, aside from saying his candidacy “reflects well America’s remarkable progress over the past half century.”

Ryan Nobles - bio | email

12 days to go and the race only seems to heating up. While it seemed that Barack Obama seemed poised to runaway with the election, a new set of polls shows the race tightening up. That trend is not only apparent nationally, but here in Virginia as well. While Obama, certainly has the edge, John McCain has not given up quite yet. 

Evidence of McCain’s final push here in Virginia is a series of campaign events across the commonwealth over the next couple of days. The highest profile event features the GOP VP nominee, Sarah Palin who will headline three different rallies in Virginia on Monday. She will be in Leesburg (where Barack Obama was yesterday) Fredericksburg and  Roanoke. 

But McCain isn’t just sending out his running mate to Virginia, he also is bringing perhaps, his highest profile surrogate, Rudy Giuliani to Richmond. Giuliani will join another former presidential candidate, Steve Forbes at a local businesses Dominion Insulation. Their goal is show why McCain’s plans for business is better for American people.

This event is part of their latest effort that began right after the last presidential debate where they are using Obama’s chance encounter with the now famous “Joe the Plumber”. McCain has now produced an ad featuring people connecting themselves to Joe the Plumber and has hosted a series of events showing local people who consider themselves versions of Joe the Plumber. In fact, in response to Obama’s event in Richmond yesterday, a group of such people held a press conference with Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling. 

While the Republicans are doing their best to stay competitive, Sen. Obama continues to use vast resources to continue to push. Obama will be off the campaign trial for a few days to visit his grandmother in Hawaii, but his running mate will continue to campaign. Joe Biden will be in Danville and Martinsville on Friday.

In addition, the Obama campaign will reach out specifically to Jewish voters in Richmond, by bringing in the former U.S. Ambassador to Israel Martin Indyk to the Weinstein JCC tonight at 7:30pm.

Today will be an interesting one for a quiet stretch of Parham Road in Henrico County. The Obama-Biden campaign will be bringing Indiana Senator Evan Bayh to J.R. Tucker High School to pinch hit for Vice Presidential candidate Joe Biden who was forced to cancel his appearance there because of an illness in the family.

What is interesting about this particular event is that it is happening right across the street from the McCain-Palin Richmond area headquarters. This was not lost on McCain supporters who held an counter-event of their own with former POW and McCain friend Paul Galanti. Our reporter Laura Geller is on the scene and sent me this picture of the scene there.

The Obama-Biden event featuring the Senator Bayh, who was at one time on the short list to be Obama’s running mate (remember that speculation) will happen at 5. I’ll share with you some pictures of that event later on.

There is some intrigue to these dueling events because of a story today from Politico that indicates that some high ranking Virginia Republicans are starting to get nervous that Barack Obama may be in a position to steal Virginia from the GOP. The story has quotes from Tom Davis and Eric Cantor, who don’t come right out and voice their frustration, but allude to the fact that the Republicans have not dedicated the type of resources the Democrats have.

The most stinging quote comes from an unnamed “Richmond based GOP-Operative” who complained that McCain “didn’t take threat seriously soon enough… One public visit since securing the nomination and I can’t tell you one significant surrogate who has come.”

It is interesting that this unnamed operative mentions the lack of high profile surrogates on a day like today where within minutes of Biden being forced to cancel, the Obama camp announced that Bayh would be taking his place. Not that Evan Bayh is Hillary Clinton, but the McCain campaign has not had anyone the likes of his stature here to tout McCain’s credentials. That in addition to only one significant visit since wrapping up the nomination compared to Obama’s visits which now number more than a dozen.

McCain’s Virginia supporters, including George Allen (who talked to many Virginia TV stations yesterday) seemed to hint that a McCain or Palin visit was on the horizon, but did not give any indication as to when or where.

There is no doubt however, that Obama’s relentless efforts to close the gap in the polls, coupled with a surge in new voters (voter registration ends Monday) have made this state a solid toss-up and leaves it very vulnerable for Republicans come November.