Decision Virginia

In a press release that arrived in most reporter’s inboxes, after 5pm on a Friday afternoon, Governor Tim Kaine responded to Republican Party of Virginia Chair Pat Mullins request to disclose information about his travel as the Chairman of the Democratic National Committee.

In a two page response, Kaine aide Lynda Tran explained that the request was denied because of the administration’s judgment of the rules pertaining to the Freedom of Information Act.  Tran cited a number of different sections of the law that supported her claim that Mullins did not have a right to the information.

Tran wrote that FOIA attempts to “balance transparency and disclosure against the the impact the revelation of specific information could have on the Governor’s ability to properly and effectively carry out the business of the public.”

After building the case that the law supported their claim that Kaine did not have to provide any information regarding his personal travel, Tran went on to write that the Governor is going above and beyond by providing the details of his travel when asked about a specific event.

“..it is in the spirit of transparency and in the interest of Virginians that Governor Kaine is choosing to respond to questions pertaining his schedule during any of the numerous events that a regularly disclosed as part of his public schedule.”

Finally, on Mullins request for the costs associated with Kaine’s security detail, Tran pointed the RPV chair to the Executive Officers Protection Unit.

Meanwhile the RPV is still deciding how to react to the Kaine’s response. Spokesman Tim Murtaugh’s full statement can be found after the jump.

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Ryan Nobles – bio | email

At least two prominent Virginia newspaper editorial boards have picked up on the Republican Party of Virginia’s questioning of Governor Tim Kaine’s travel as chairman of the Democratic National Committee. The Richmond Times-Dispatch and the Roanoke Times have printed editorials that pick up where RPV Chairman Pat Mullins left off. A fact, Republican Party leaders were all too happy to trumpet to reporters this morning.

Meanwhile the Washington-Post printed a very probing news story about Kaine’s travel and how it impacts his job as Governor.

Each one of the editorial boards are very specific in their request of Kaine. They all believe that the public has a right to know exactly where he is going and how much it is costing taxpayers.

The Roanoke Times said:
“..the governor has a duty to Virginians beyond just the letter of FOIA. The only way the public can verify that his moonlighting has not interfered with his gubernatorial responsibilities is if it knows where and when he traveled and on whose dime. If big Democratic donors who have business before state agencies have provided free flights, people ought to know.”

Meanwhile the Times-Dispatch takes it a step further, by connecting Kaine’s DNC work to Jim Gilmore’s ill-fated run as RNC chair and even going as far as to thank the Republicans for bringing the issue forward:
“Although the governor can keep his golf game to himself, a partisan gala in Muscatine belongs on the public record. Kaine’s staff also said the DNC had agreed to reimburse the state for the cost of his security detail. Payment should have been made at the start. Taxpayers should thank the GOP for raising the issue.”

You may recall that Kaine was very reluctant to take the DNC Chairmanship in the first place. It was probably because he wanted to avoid reading editorial pages like this. The Governor has worked hard over the past three years to present himself as a transparent executive, willing to answer the tough questions. It will be interesting to see if this round of criticism changes his approach to his job as Governor or Party Chairman.

Republican Party of Virginia Chair Pat Mullins teamed up with Del. Chris Saxman on Friday to announce their plan to submit a Freedom of Information Act request of Governor Tim Kaine’s travel since he began as Chairman of the Democratic National Committee. The announcement was accompanied by a web video produced by the RPV that ridicules Kaine’s non-government related travel and encourages Virginians to call his office and complain.

The attack follows a persistent strategy by the Republicans to muddy up the relatively popular sitting Governor to neutralize his impact in the fall elections. Mullins has already rapped Kaine’s DNC work, calling him a “part-time” governor and Republican candidate for Governor,  Bob McDonnell told me that Kaine is not a “Virginia Democrat” anymore and he is “tied to the extremely liberal and big government policies of Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi.”

There is no doubt that Kaine’s role as DNC chairman, a hyper-partisan role, leaves him vulnerable to these type of attacks. And it is not just the Governor’s political enemies who are questioning his work. The Washington-Post wrote about the Governor’s recent trip to Kansas City and how the local paper described Kaine as the “former Governor of Virginia”.

I just spoke to a representative from Governor Kaine’s office on this matter. Lynda Tran said that the Governor’s travel schedule and his security protection is “no different than any other previous governor of Virginia.” She also said that his security detail, which Mullins specifically mentions in the FOIA request, is “with the Governor 24 hours a day, whether he is sleeping in the mansion or hiking in the mountains with his children.”  Tran went on to say that the  protection is something the “people of Virginia have deemed necessary for their governor.”

The Governor’s office has not received the FIOA request, but they when they do, they plan to hande it appropriately. Meanwhile, they are trying to downplay the position the RPV attempts to put the governor in, with their satirical web video.

“They [RPV] are taking small clips of Friday and Saturday night events,” said Tran. “Even governors are allowed to have a little fun.”

You can see the request and the video after the jump..

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Ryan Nobles – bio | email

Republican Party of Virginia chairman Pat Mullins is renewing his party’s call that Tim Kaine devote all of his energy to the job of Governor of Virginia. His statement comes in reaction to what the Governor (who also serves as the Chairman of the Democratic National Committee) said to the DNC executive committee at their meeting in Richmond last Friday.  

In case you missed it, here (in part) is what Kaine said:
“I am trying to juggle two pretty challenging jobs. As I shared with you in January, It is not an easy time to be a Governor. As I talk to Governor’s all across the country we all agree it is a tough, tough time to be a governor.”

Mullins said today that if he can’t handle both job of DNC chair and Governor he ought to pick one or the other:
“He simply cannot be a part-time governor when people are looking for full-time solutions. If Tim Kaine thinks his burdens are too great, he should pick one job to do and resign from the other.”

This is not a new attack by Republicans and for the most part it has not seemed to stick. This could be as much about attacking Governor Kaine as it is about stirring up grass roots support for Mullins, who faces a vote from the party faithful at the end of the month to hold on to his job as Chairman.

I re-posted the video from Governor’s Kaine statement from Friday to give you the chance to see for yourself what the Governor said.
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Local Congressman Eric Cantor (who is fast becoming one of the chief voices of opposition to President Barack Obama) is working hard to prevent attempts to move enemy combatants, currently housed at Guantanamo Bay, to military prisons in Virginia.

Closing down Guantanamo was a campaign pledge for the President and he promised to make it a reality in the very early stages of his administration. Shutting the facility down isn’t the problem, it is what to do after that is making life difficult for Mr. Obama and his staff.

By closing Gitmo’s doors, the Federal Government is faced with the daunting proposition of what to do with the detainees held at the facility. It seems that every scenario creates a bigger problem. By releasing them to their home countries, you run the risk of letting them return to the activity that got them into the military prison to begin with. By housing them in U.S., you run the risk of creating new, in-country terrorist targets and will be forced to spend taxpayer dollars to fortify the the proposed installations.

This laundry list of problems has created an opportunity for Eric Cantor. Cantor has become very vocal in his opposition to any of the proposed solutions, citing the reasons above. Cantor has proposed legislation that would force the feds to receive approval from the governor and state legislatures of any state that could become home to these enemy combatants. That would effectively prevent any terror suspects from being brought to the U.S. because no politician would run the risk of approving a move that is bound to be unpopular.

However, Cantor and (no other politician for that matter) seems to have the solution. It has created a problem that will just continue to grow.

After the jump you watch the video from out story on this topic that aired on NBC12 Friday night. In addition, I have an extended clip from Rep. Cantor where he reveals that he is supporting Pat Mullins for Republican Party of Virginia Chair. You may recall that we broke the news a few weeks ago that Mr. Cantor was no longer supportive of Jeff Frederick as chairman.

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Ryan Nobles – bio | email

The State Central Committee of the Republican Party of Virginia has selected current Louisa County Republican Chairman Pat Mullins as chairman of the state party. Mullins will keep watch over the party until the entire state committee gets the chance to pick a new chair at the end of the month. Mullins is a longtime party insider and at one time served as the Chairman of the Fairfax County GOP before moving Louisa County.

While Mullins could be a candidate to take over the job full time, his election today does not spell the end of Jeff Frederick’s tenure at the RPV. Frederick who has, for the most part, been quiet since being removed from the post, began posting again on his twitter page. Yes- that same twitter page that was among the many problems that contributed to his demise at the top of the party.

No one seems to sure as to what Frederick’s next move will be. Despite his problems he still enjoys the support of a rabid group of generally conservative Republican members who are no doubt encouraging him to not give up. That support could lead to Frederick submitting his name for election once again as RPV Chair. He could also run again for his seat in the House of Delegates. (His wife Amy announced earlier this week that she will not run for the position).

While few expect Frederick to go away quietly perhaps this post on his twitter feed from today, may lend some insight as to what his next move may be.

@JeffFrederick-VAGOP SCC selected new chair; bad move since appt only valid 4 27 days. An attempt to instruct the Convention delegates, once again showing disdain 4 grassroots.

Frederick’s tweet then led to a lively discussion on Facebook, that was compiled by Bearing Drift.

And who says Republicans don’t “do” social media? This fight is far from over.

Meanwhile, Bob McDonnell, the party’s candidate for Governor (who may be suffering the most from this controversy) released a statement on the Mullins appointment. You can read it, in its entirety after the jump..

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