Decision Virginia

Ryan Nobles – bio | email

Now that the winner and losers have been officially decided at the ballot box, it is time to dig a bit deeper and see who will benefit (and lose) the most in Virginia politics.

Losers -

Gov. Tim Kaine - It is hard to believe that just a little more than a year ago, Virginia’s current governor was a whisker away from becoming the nominee for vice president of the United States. It seems that since his close friend President Barack Obama turned to the more experienced Joe Biden, Kaine’s fortunes have gone down hill. He was forced into a job he didn’t want (DNC Chair) and as a result had to constantly deal with questions about where he was having dinner each night. Taking on the job also put him at the center of yesterday’s losses not only in Virginia, but in New Jersey too, a state he has little to nothing to do with. Kaine now is left with a little less than two months to define his legacy in the governor’s mansion. A legacy that, regardless of his legislative and governing accomplishments (Smoking Ban, his stewardship in the wake of the Virginia Tech massacre), will now be defined by one huge political win (Barack Obama) and one enormous political loss (last night). Kaine, however, still enjoys the trust and friendship of the most powerful man in the world and his political destiny may still be ahead of him.

Jeff Frederick (former Republican Party chair) – Yes, there were Republicans who did not come out ahead last night and Frederick is among them. The feisty leader of the conservative wing of the party was on the precipice of causing a huge rift in the Republican party last spring. But within less than a month he became marginalized by the McDonnell machine and reduced to a few errant tweets that eventually no longer became news. In the days leading up to the campaign, Frederick tweeted about a write-in campaign for his former seat in the House of Delegates, and the formation of a separate Conservative party in Virginia. Frederick, who once held a position so powerful that his off-the-cuff comments about Barack Obama garnered national attention, may now only be remembered as the guy who once held one of the few seats in the House of Delegates that switched to the Democratic party in 2009.

Mike Henry (campaign manager for Terry McAuliffe and Steve Shannon) – Perhaps the most respected mind in Virginia politics, Henry had the distinction of presiding over two losses in one campaign season. The expectations may have been too high for a man who had been almost perfect in Virginia politics. He didn’t appear to have enough time to convince Virginia voters that McAuliffe was one of them and by the time he reached the Shannon campaign, the growing tsunami was already overwhelming. Henry is still incredibly well-respected and I am sure he will be back in the very near future (Terry McAuliffe is already considering a run in 2013).

Winners -

Phil Cox (McDonnell campaign manager) – The man at the top of the Bob McDonnell machine withstood criticism about his ties to controversial conservative groups to become the biggest “behind the scenes” player in Virginia politics. This morning Bob McDonnell named him the head of his transition team and, depending on what his goals are, he may end up with a prominent position in the new administration. Cox managed a fickle and unsettled GOP in the spring and became the first Republican campaign manger to effectively integrate the internet and social media into an overall strategy.  He also helped to guide Team McDonnell through the rough waters of the revelation of the candidate’s master’s thesis to cruise to a landslide victory.

Republican Bloggers/Internet Stars - Up until yesterday, it was just a given that Republicans would lose the war online. It may be too early to declare them victorious in 2009, but the GOP’s presence on the internet grew exponentially in this campaign. From offering right-leaning bloggers better seating at the Republican convention than the media, to gathering more Facebook friends and Twitter followers for Bob McDonnell than any other candidate, Republicans did not just hand the internet over to the Democrats. Sites like Bearing Drift have now become important players that candidates and voters can no longer ignore. They may not be the difference between winning and losing, but they are now having an impact, something they could never say before.

Brian Moran (former Democratic candidate for governor) – He watched as one of his one of his two opponents for the Democratic nomination lost in a landslide and the other already floated the idea of running again and hasn’t said a word. Brian Moran is rumored to be in talks to make a play for the Democratic Party’s chairmanship and could be well positioned to be a prominent and vocal opponent to the McDonnell administration. The former leader of the Democratic House Caucus, Moran is accustomed to the back and forth bickering related to the legislative process and could prove to be a go-to guy for reporters looking for the counterpoint to the McDonnell agenda. The question is, does he want that role? Regardless, Moran looks to have options. Options that weren’t available in early June.

Both Creigh Deeds and Bob McDonnell will take the stage at a major higher education forum taking place at the Richmond Convention Center Thursday morning. Deeds and McDonnell will be among a group of speakers brought in by the Virginia Business Higher Education Council (VBHEC) to discuss the role higher education should play in an economic recovery.

VBHEC has created a special campaign called “Grow by Degrees“. The campaign boasts the support of a broad range of current and former statewide elected officials, from a variety of political stripes.

Tomorrow’s event will showcase the goals of the event and will provide both Deeds and McDonnell the opportunity to share their plans for higher education as well.

In addition to the candidates, the guests of the event will also hear from Gov. Tim Kaine and two different panel discussions featuring prominent politicians and business leaders.

Details from the event can be found after the jump…

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It wasn’t a surprise, but Tuesday, Gov. Tim Kaine announced his plan to address the Commonwealth’s growing budget gap. He announced $1.35 billion in cuts today. Those cuts will have a human impact. Close to 600 workers will be laid off and every state employee will be required to take 8 hours in unpaid furlough time.

NBC12 has been covering the story all day today. Andy Jenks will have a live report during our 5pm and 6pm newscasts.

You can see Governor Kaine’s entire press conference on the issue,  uncut, by clicking here.

During First at Four, I interviewed Ronald Jordan, the President of the Virginia Governmental Employees Association. He gave me a very frank assessment of the state’s situation. You can see that entire interview by clicking here.

Perhaps the most interesting quote from Mr. Jordan:

“The days of the cushy, permanent state job left about 15 years ago.”

Tonight we will look at the impact the cuts will have on higher education. The rollbacks could hit local institutions to the tune of 15%.

I’ll have more updates as they come available.

It wasn’t quite an Arnold Vinick moment, but Monday afternoon under intense pressure from a frenzied 24 hour media barrage about a paper he had written 20 years ago, republican candidate for governor Bob McDonnell took questions from reporters during a close to 90 minute conference call. During the call, McDonnell gave a lengthy explanation about his motivation for writing the paper and attempted to explain how his views have changed over the past 2 decades.

In perhaps the most heavily participated conference call of the campaign, reporters from all across the state and national media outlets picked out specific lines from the close to 100 page document, forcing the candidate to explain himself.

Here are a few clips I picked out from the call, to give you an idea of how McDonnell is reacting in the wake of the revelation.

McDonnell’s team is hopeful that his candid response to the discovery will allow the controversy to be put behind them. Tuesday they hope to change the message by getting back on the campaign trail and making a major education announcement in Alexandria. The event will take them right into Northern Virginia, the region where this paper could cause him the most damage.

While republicans are ready to turn the page, democrats are planning to get everything they can out of this document. They have already sent out fund raising missives to supporters across Virginia and the entire U.S. Their goal appears to be working to fire up a passive base by calling the paper, McDonnell’s “blueprint” for a long term political agenda. The talking point could be found at just about every level of the democratic hierarchy. From grass roots supporters to the state’s top dog and DNC chair, Tim Kaine who we caught up with this morning.

Here is the uncut clip from the Governor’s remarks on the issue (note the use of the word “blueprint”):

Both sides have now played their hands with this significant campaign development. How the voters respond could determine the course of the remainder of this campaign.

There is no question that Barack Obama’s campaign for president broke new ground in many ways and started a movement that eventually turned into an overwhelming victory. While the process was similar to past presidential campaigns, the way it was executed was different. Utilizing the internet and an overwhelming amount of on the ground paid staffers, the Obama team was able to deliver their message quick and effectively. It was clear, the voters responded.

In fact Obama’s movement was so successful that even Republicans are attempting to use some of it’s tactics. Republican gubernatorial candidate Bob McDonnell has recently copied Obama’s Facebook style social networking tool to help recruit volunteers for his campaign. It is something Democrat Creigh Deeds (who has the support of Obama) has not even developed yet.

Generally these political organizations, created by candidates, are handed off to their political parties after the candidate heads to the White House.  But once they are no longer shepherded by their creators, the political parties somehow lose the essence of what made the strategy effective. This is something Barack Obama (and in particular, his chief strategist David Axelrod) does not plan to let happen.

While the President has offered many of the same tools he used during the campaign to the DNC and its new Chairman Gov. Tim Kaine, the organizational structure itself still belongs to Obama. That structure is filled donor lists, e-mail addresses and willing volunteers. Volunteers that are committed more to the man and his ideas than any party affiliation.

Obama’s team strongly believes that they can use the momentum built during the campaign to push his agenda and his political brand while he is an office. That is why they transformed “Obama for America” into “Organizing for America”.  (In fact the new “OFA”, as it is referred to, can be found on the internet at www.BarackObama.com) Just like Team Obama put boots on the ground to round up votes and cash in key battleground states, this new version of OFA is on the ground rounding up support for his initiatives. That effort will be front and center tomorrow at an event in Richmond.

Local Del. Jennifer McClellan will lead a press conference at the Fan Free Clinic to discuss the current state of health care and its impact on Richmond. They will also make the case the the President’s proposed health care reform measures be passed. The event looks very similar to an Obama campaign event, with a local dignitary speaking about an important issue and community members impacted by the issue offering their support.

But the comparisons go even further than that.

Just like during the campaign the event will be orchestrated, behind the scenes, by full time paid OFA staffers. These individuals aren’t paid by the White House, but this independent political organization. All around the country, particularly in battleground states, there are similar people who have full time jobs working to convince you that the President is making the right moves. It is an unprecedented political tactic.

Can the Obama team duplicate the excitement of an historic presidential race and apply it to a dry debate over health care reform? Your chance to find out is tomorrow in the Fan. Details on the event are after the jump.

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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

Governor Tim Kaine is out of the state for the weekend, but according to spokesman Gordon Hickey, his legal staff is busy at work preparing to present the Governor with a long list of options to deal with the problems presented by the Supreme Court decision Melendez-Diaz v. Massachusetts.

Senator Ken Cuccinelli, a candidate for Attorney General called on the Governor to bring the legislature back to Richmond to deal immediately with the issue, that he claims. will lead to the prosecutors across the commonwealth dropping D.U.I cases.

“No one is taking this lightly,” said Hickey. “The Governor’s legal staff is exploring a variety of options and taking legislative action is among them.”

In a statement released late last night Cuccinelli said that the Kaine administration cannot waste time and must get the General Assembly back to work, before Commonwealth’s Attorneys across the state run out of options. Hickey said the Kaine administration is taking a measured approach to the issue and it indicated that it would be irresponsible to call the entire legislature back before exhausting all the options the Governor has in front of him.

“There is no need to jump right to the legislature,” Hickey said. “The Governor is closely working with his legal team to determine the appropriate course of action.”

Hickey said that while Kaine himself has not received calls from CA’s around Virginia, there have been “calls of concern” and that is why the staff is busy at work getting ready to provide the Governor with some options.

**UPDATE**

Cuccinelli’s opponent Steve Shannon’s campaign has weighed in on the Melendez-Diaz issue on not suprisingly pointed to their candidates’ career as a prosecutor. Incoming Campaign Manager Mike Henry said that Cuccinelli is only attempting to “hide his weak record on drunk driving laws, with a PR stunt that would cost taxpayers money.”

Henry said that Shannon supports Governor Kaine’s efforts to find an administrative solution to the problem. His full statement can be found after the jump.

**UPDATE ENDS**

Meanwhile, Cuccinelli released to the media, the letter he sent to Kaine, asking him to bring the legislature back. A copy of the letter is posted after the jump.. Read the rest of this entry »

Republican candidate for Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, a member of the Virginia Senate himself, is asking Governor Tim Kaine to call a special session to deal with a Supreme Court ruling dealing with drinking and driving.

In a statement released late tonight, Cuccinelli claims that the decision by the Supreme Court justices in the Melendez-Diaz v. Massachusetts case presents a problem whereby prosecutors are being forced to suspend drunk driver prosecutions.

According to the Cuccinelli release, the Melendez-Diaz ruling prevents local Commonwealth’s Attorneys from using a certificate of analysis of their findings for use in court in drug and D.U.I. cases. In the past it has served as sufficient evidence to prove that a substance was in a defendant’s blood stream. In the wake of this case, Cuccinelli believes it will be necessary for prosecutors to call actual scientists to the stand in each case. Something the state has neither the time or money to pursue.

Senator Cuccinelli said, “A legislative fix would be much better than hiring 100-200 new scientists, which we couldn’t do now even if we tried.”

Cuccinelli said that if Kaine is reluctant to take call for the special session, he is going to encourage his legislative colleagues to do so on their own.

I am schedule to sit down with the Senator tomorrow to learn more about this effort. I will also reach out to his opponent Steve Shannon and Governor Kaine’s office as well. For now, you can read the candidate’s full release after the jump:

**UPDATE**

It is apparently a big night for news in the AG race. My friend Ben Tribbett at NLS is reporting that Mike Henry, of Warner/Kaine fame has signed on to help Steve Shannon. A quality, insider get for the for the first time statewide candidate.
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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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Senator Mark Warner, a close ally of Governor Tim Kaine and a former governor himself, weighed in on the attacks his successor is taking from Republicans regarding his travel as DNC chair. During an interview yesterday from Washington, Warner told me that while he is confident that Kaine will always put Virginia first, the Governor should not be surprised the attacks are coming.

“I am sure, Tim Kaine understands that he was going to take some shots,” said Warner. “I am sure the Democrats took some shots at former Governor Gilmore when he was RNC chair.”

Kaine has been dealing with an almost daily barrage of attacks from the Republican Party of Virginia regarding his travel as DNC chair. The party even released a web video, parsing his words and accusing him of abandoning Virginia in a time of crisis. Kaine’s staff defended the Governor and said his travel was only on his time and generally only on the weekends when his state business was complete.

But his explanation was not enough for various media outlets that criticized the Governor on their editorial pages and investigated his travel even further to learn that not all of it took place only on weekends. When pressed by the Washington Post, Kaine refused to say that he will release his entire travel schedule ahead of time, but will only answer questions truthfully if a reporter were to ask about a specific trip.

Senator Warner, wouldn’t say if he thought that Kaine owed it to Virginia taxpayers to release his complete travel schedule, but did say that he understands the Governor’s concerns over his security.  “I do know as a former governor, from a security standpoint the state police folks who provide incredible executive protection for the Governor and their families, like to not broadcast too much, ahead of time in particular,” said Warner. But the Senator did not go as far as to say that Kaine was handling the release of the information appropriately.  “I will let Governor Kaine and you folks work out all the issues on the travel.”

But while Warner did not emphatically defend the way the Governor is handling the questions about his travel, he was quick to say that under Kaine’s stewardship the commonwealth of Virginia is outperforming the rest of the country. He said that when he is on the clock, Kaine is making all the right moves.

“I think his first job, his 9 to 5 job and for that matter not just 9 to 5 but more like 9 to 9 everyday, is still Virginia first and foremost.”

Extended clips from my interview with Senator Warner can be found after the jump. Read the rest of this entry »