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For once, I'm not talking about coal-fired power plants or the incredible natural resources in Appalachia like wind, natural gas, and coal which we currently exploit for electricity production.
I'm talking about the incredible electoral opportunity in Appalachia which Democrats MUST understand and act upon as we move towards the general election. It is especially prescient as we watch the West Virginia primary today. Within Appalachia lies the key to a Democratic Presidency
Appalachia is a treasure trove of 70 "swing" electoral votes. Thats as many as Texas, Florida, New Hampshire, and New Mexico combined.
But the thing about Appalachia people need to understand is that it largely represented by Democrats, and should be a Democratic bread and butter area in the Presidential election. Our candidates will ignore Appalachia at their own peril.
The Hill asked all 97 Senators not running for President if they would accept an offer for Vice-President... I thought it was worth posting Jim Webb's response:
Sen. Jim Webb (D-Va.)
"I'm not really interested. That's all I want to say."
In reality- I don't think anyone who was offered the Vice-Presidency would realistically turn it down... including Jim Webb (who would make the perfect addition to an Obama ticket).
If you're interested- John Warner would also turn down such a bid :)
Sen. John Warner (R-Va.)
"No, I'm not getting into that. I'm happily in the twilight of my retirement."
Imagine if House Speaker William J. Howell parked his car in the middle of Route 1 during rush hour and left it there, backing up traffic for miles. Picture Del. Dave Albo cutting the wires on an Orange Line car, leaving you stranded at East Falls Church.
Seem like a stretch? It's not. The special session hasn't even started yet, but already House Republicans are pledging to block any transportation improvements. And there's a direct, cause-and-effect connection between what happens in Richmond and your ride to work. Roadblock Republican politics add minutes to your commute.
We're not even talking about major new projects like Beltway HOT Lanes and the Silver Line. We're talking about simple repairs that don't get made - a pothole that doesn't get filled, causing a flat tire, triggering a traffic jam. Metro rail cars that aren't quickly repaired, meaning the 8-car train you could've boarded is now a 6-car train you can't squeeze on.
So the next time you're stuck in traffic on Route 7, don't take your anger out on the drivers around you - blame the Roadblock Republicans. If your Metro train breaks down, leaving you stuck on a platform with a thousand of your closest friends, don't blame the train operator - blame the Roadblock Republicans.
Have your friends, neighbors, and coworkers made the connecton? How we can get more of them to see the big picture?
(An important topic, particularly on Israel's proud but troubled 60th anniversary. - promoted by Lowell)
ABC's Jake Tapper, certainly no shill for Democratic or Progressive causes, has a story up abut criticism of Barak Obama by Future Former House Minority Leader (FFHML)(TM) John Boehner (R-OH) and Minority Whip, our very own Eric Cantor (R-VA), over some of Obama's recent comments about Israel.
There is no nice way to say it: Both Boehner and Cantor lied.
I don't care much about Boehner. He's from Ohio, and his mismanagement of his caucus and well-reported bizzare behavior in the House suggest that he is on a path to political oblivion. He will, of course, win re-election to his seat, but rejection by his caucus in January is probable, and that would arguably spur his retirement as he seeks to cash in on the lobbyist gravy train while he can.
I never thought I'd agree with the super-conservative Free Lance-Star editorial board. Until this morning, that is, and their editorial, "Webb talk":
HERE'S A THOUGHT: Gerald Pomper, professor emeritus of political science at Rutgers University, suggests on realclearpolitics.com that if Barack Obama succeeds in winning the Democratic nomination for president, he should pick Virginia Sen. Jim Webb as his running mate.
His thinking is sound. The articulate and urbane Mr. Obama lacks experience and credentials in foreign policy and national security. Those who see defense as this nation's most pressing need would be drawn to the GOP's Sen. John McCain.
But adding Mr. Webb to the Democratic ticket would diffuse some of that enthusiasm [for John McCain]...
If that's not enough, Mr. Webb claims rural roots among the Scots-Irish frontiersmen whose descendants work in the coal mines of Appalachia and fill blue-collar jobs all over America--exactly the constituency most resistant to Mr. Obama.
I couldn't agree more with this analysis. Jim Webb is the perfect complement to Barack Obama, bringing tremendous national security credentials; a strong emphasis on economic fairness and social justice; and an appeal to rural, working-class, sometimes voters (many of whom were "Reagan Democrats" like Webb). The only major downsides, as far as I can tell, are: 1) that Webb isn't big on campaigning; and 2) that we'd lose Webb in the U.S. Senate.
On the first point, I'm not particularly concerned about that. Webb is an excellent public speaker and debater, and that's worth a lot right there. Also, the 2006 campaign proved that Webb could "suck it up," so to speak, and get out on the campaign trail even if he didn't particularly enjoy it. On the second point, it's true that we'd lose Webb in the Senate, but that wouldn't be disastrous as Gov. Kaine would appoint Webb's successor (Chuck Robb?), pending another election. For those who don't believe Democrats could hold that seat, I'd just throw out a few names as possible candidates: Chap Petersen, Donald McEachin, Jody Wagner, Brian Moran, Creigh Deeds. As far as I can tell, any of those would be strong candidates to hold Webb's seat in an election against, let's say, Jim Gilmore. Meanwhile, we'd have Jim Webb in the White House, Mark Warner and the interim Kaine appointee in the U.S. Senate. Not a bad tradeoff, if you ask me.
Mr. "Straight Talk," who for years has voted against renewable energy and for Big Oil subsidies, yesterday was speaking out of both sides of his mouth once again:
When we debate energy bills in Washington, it should be more than a competition among industries for special favors, subsidies, and tax breaks. In the Congress, we need to send the special interests on their way -- without their favors and subsidies. We need to draw on the best ideas of both parties, and on all the resources a free market can provide.
Well, that's great, except for the "Blustery Irony" that former Assistant Energy Secretary Joseph Romm points out at Gristmill:
In December, McCain himself failed to show up for a key vote that would have extended the wind power production tax credit, which has been a key driver of wind power in this country -- allowing it to compete with our better-subsidized power sources (like nuclear) in this country, and to partly offset the much bigger subsidies other countries have for renewables. The vote would have shifted money from subsidies to the oil industry, which hardly needs it given record oil prices and record oil profits (see "How high must oil go before we end subsidies?")
McCain's vote could have broken the conservative filibuster blocking the effort to support renewables, since the clean energy tax package failed 59-40, but his spokesperson said that "he would not have supported breaking the filibuster." This was but one recent example of a series of missed votes or anti-renewable votes McCain has cast in recent years.
In other words, John McCain (sometimes) talks a good game on energy and the environment, but when push comes to shove, he ducks the tough votes or sides with the oil industry against wind, solar, etc.
Having said all this, I WILL give John McCain credit for seriously addressing climate change, for promising to sign "cap-and-trade" legislation if he's elected president, for blasting the Bush Administration ("I will not permit eight long years to pass without serious action on serious challenges"), and for pledging "I will not shirk the mantle of leadership that the United States bears" on global warming.
The Washington Post reports that Gov. Kaine's "latest effort [on raising revenue for transportation] appears to be doomed."
...House Republicans said Monday the governor's $1.1 billion plan has virtually no chance of passing their chamber, and some Senate Democrats vowed to rewrite it to include an increase in the state's gasoline tax.
Del. David B. Albo, a Fairfax Republican involved in transportation negotiations, said Kaine's plan had a "0.000 percent chance" of winning approval.
And then there's this:
Minutes after Kaine unveiled his proposal, House Majority Leader H. Morgan Griffith (R-Salem) and Minority Whip M. Kirkland Cox (R-Colonial Heights) predicted it would not reach the House floor.
"I don't see anything positive in the governor's plan that makes it something that's likely to be considered," Cox said. "It's all tax, tax and more tax."
In other words, it's "my way or the highway" -- actually, the crumbling highway, collapsing bridge and overcrowded Metro train -- for House Republicans. Apparently, Messieurs Griffith, Cox, Albo et al. will vote for nothing that contains one penny of tax ("fees," now, they're a different story...), regardless of the form (gas tax, property tax, estate tax, grantor's tax, car tax, horse and buggy tax, you name it) or the purpose (transportation, schools, public safety, etc.).
That's it, that's the House Republicans hard-right, flat-earth, no-taxes-ever philosophy in a nutshell. And I say this as someone who has serious issues with Gov. Kaine's latest proposal. However, don't just declare it DOA, for god's sake, use it as a starting point for negotiations, work on it, tweak it, improve it! Simply throwing up your hands and saying "hell no!" is not responsible governance. Perhaps this is why Virginia Republicans keep losing elections? Pathetic.
P.S. As Senate Majority Leader Dick Saslaw (D) says, "If . . . that crowd just wants to stick their heads into the sand and pretend we don't have a problem and run this state into the ground, I can't physically force them to do this." Very true.
UPDATE: The Richmond Times Dispatch writes, "Posts on two closely read Democratic blogs, RaisingKaine.com and NotLarrySabato.typepad.com, were sharply critical of Kaine for relying on the sales tax, describing it as unfair to poor people." Frankly, that's typical corporate media oversimplification. In actuality, I discussed the fact - and it is a fact -- that the sales tax and the gas tax are both regressive (e.g., they hit lower income people harder, on a proportional basis, than wealthier people). I agreed with the Commonwealth Institute that if we're going to utilize regressive taxes to achieve public policy goals such as transportation, we should make an effort to offset the regressivity in other ways. I also stated my preference for a dedicated gas tax over a broad sales tax, just as the federal gas tax is dedicated to the Highway Trust Fund. Finally, let me just emphasize that I do not believe the answer here is to just throw up our hands and give up, as Dave Albo et al. want to do. The answer is to work at this until we get it right for Virginia. Isn't that why we send these people to Richmond?
Dana Milbank profiles the perils of obstructionism. A motion to recommit, according to House rules website, is "traditionally the right of the Minority and gives them one last chance to amend or kill the bill." So, who did the GOP use this legislative weapon against recently? Our mothers.
It was already shaping up to be a difficult year for congressional Republicans. Now, on the cusp of Mother's Day, comes this: A majority of the House GOP has voted against motherhood.
On Wednesday afternoon, the House had just voted, 412 to 0, to pass H. Res. 1113, "Celebrating the role of mothers in the United States and supporting the goals and ideals of Mother's Day," when Rep. Todd Tiahrt (R-Kan.), rose in protest.
"Mr. Speaker, I move to reconsider the vote," he announced.... This time, 178 Republicans cast their votes against mothers.
It has long been the custom to compare a popular piece of legislation to motherhood and apple pie. Evidently, that is no longer the standard....
Republicans, unhappy with the Democratic majority, have been using such procedural tactics as this all week to bring the House to a standstill, but the assault on mothers may have gone too far. House Minority Leader John Boehner, asked yesterday to explain why he and 177 of his colleagues switched their votes, answered: "Oh, we just wanted to make sure that everyone was on record in support of Mother's Day."
By voting against it?
And guess now many of Virginia's House Republicans voted in favor to "recommit" a resolution supporting Mother's Day? All of them. Davis, Wolf, Drake, Goode, all of them. Seriously, the GOP is becoming a parody of itself.
The following statement is from the 11th CD's next representative, Leslie Byrne.
Byrne: "It's time to end waste, fraud and abuse in defense contracting"
On Monday, May 12, 2008 at 2:00 p.m., the Senate Democratic Policy Committee will hold an oversight hearing on waste, fraud and corruption in Iraq. The following is a statement from Leslie Byrne, Democratic candidate for Congress in Virginia's 11th District, on ending the abuses in Iraq contracting.
"I am encouraged to see the Senate Democrats take the lead on investigating the impact of waste, fraud and abuse on our efforts to end the bloodshed in Iraq. And I'm outraged that there is a need for such an oversight hearing. American taxpayers shouldn't be footing the bill for unethical defense contractors who want to bolster their bottom lines at our expense.
Wow, the race for RPV chairman is getting rough. In response to these leaked documents, Del. Jeff Frederick's wife Amy wrote the following:
FROM THE DESK OF
Amy N. Frederick
An Open Letter To William Howell, Speaker Of The Virginia House Of Delegates
Dear Mr. Speaker:
I received your letter this morning. To say that I was shocked would be an understatement.
It takes some nerve for you to write me to outline all the reasons my husband should not be Chairman of the Republican Party of Virginia (RPV). Worse, your letter to me was apparently timed to arrive the same day RPV (the organization our opponent currently oversees) leaked misleading documents intended to attack Jeff's integrity.
Can you imagine your reaction if Jeff sent a letter to your wife Cessie telling her -- in light of the House Republican Caucus losing 11 seats to the Democrats since you've become Speaker -- that you should not be Speaker any more? That the House GOP has gone from a very healthy governing majority to now a slim 3 seat majority under your leadership and therefore you're not best qualified to be Speaker?
Then, on the same day after such a letter, you were attacked for standing on the podium at the 1993 Virginia Republican Convention to ask Republicans to defeat a pro-life nominee for Lt. Governor with a pro-choice alternative?
I believe you'd demand an apology from Jeff immediately -- and while I can't demand anything, I do believe you owe me an apology.
Head on over to Bryan Scrafford's blog and check out Judy Feder's live blog at 3 pm today. Thanks to Bryan for doing this, and also for being such a strong supporter of the 10th CD's next congresswoman! :)
UPDATE: It looks like this was a highly successful live blog, tons of positive comments. Check it out.
This was written for Daily Kos, which is why the references to other Congressional candidates, but it certainly should be of interest to this community
One thing interesting this cycle is the recognition of some candidates that they have the power through their campaign to do good beyond themselves. We have seen this with Charlie Brown, Democratic Congressional Candidate in CA-04 with his Veterans Charity Challenge. And of course we all know about the Obama campaign and its cooperation with the DNC to register more voters.
Now let's add Tom Periello, Democratic Congressional Candidate in Virginia's 5th CD, against the noxious Virgil Goode. Tom, who is a founder of the progressive faith movement, is tithing volunteer hours.
The results are in, and a plurality (29.9%) of RK readers would like Jim Webb to be Barack Obama's running mate. The other Virginia choice, Gov. Tim Kaine, received just 8.8% of the vote. There was a three-way tie for second place between Bill Richardson, Kathleen Sebelius, and Wes Clark, all with 13.6% of the vote. And Hillary Clinton, the runner up to Barack Obama? Only 7.5% of RK readers want her to be on the ticket, just ahead of "other" (6.8*) and Janet Napolitano (6.1%). We'll see what happens, but with Jim Webb's new book coming out shortly, he'll certainly be in the public eye.
(Gov. Kaine's press release is in the comments section. I very much like the Transportation Change Fund, which recognizes that "traffic challenges cannot be solved through road construction alone." Very true! - promoted by Lowell)
I've been reading the news reports on Gov. Kaine's plan to raise $860 million for Virginia's transportation system. The key facets appear to include:
*A 1 percentage point increase in the sales tax in northern Virginia and Hampton Roads, with food and over-the-counter medicine being exempted.
*A 25-cents-per-$100 increase in the grantor's tax, paid by people selling their homes.
*Transferring $180 million from the transportation trust fund, normally used for building new roads, for use in maintenance.
*Increasing the auto titling tax from 3% to 4% and adding a $10 registration fee to the sale of used and new cars.
Also, Bob Lewis reports, "Kaine said he will also insist that all money from the increase in the grantor's tax be routed directly into the state's Transportation Trust Fund and that most of the new money be committed to mass transit projects, the Democrat who heard the briefing said."
You think the Democrats are divided? Well, how about this on the Republican side?
...quietly, largely under the radar of most people, the forces of Rep. Ron Paul have been organizing across the country to stage an embarrassing public revolt against Sen. John McCain when Republicans gather for their national convention in St. Paul at the beginning of September.
[...]
They hope to demonstrate their disagreements with McCain vocally at the convention through platform fights and an attempt to get Paul a prominent speaking slot. Paul, who's running unopposed in his home Texas district for an 11th House term, still has some $5 million in war funds and has instructed his followers that their struggle is not about a single election, but a longterm revolution for control of the Republican Party.
I'm sure John McCain is thrilled about this. But wait, it gets worse!
ABC's Jake Tapper, certainly no shill for Democratic or Progressive causes, has a story up abut criticism of Barak Obama by Future Former House Minority Leader (FFHML)(TM) John Boehner (R-OH) and Minority Whip, our very own Eric Cantor (R-VA), over some of Obama's recent comments about Israel.
I never thought I'd agree with the super-conservative Free Lance-Star editorial board. Until this morning, that is, and their 
Mr. "Straight Talk," who for years has voted against renewable energy and for Big Oil subsidies, 
The .jpg)
Dana Milbank 
The following statement is from the 11th CD's next representative, Leslie Byrne.
Wow, the race for RPV chairman is getting rough. In response to 
This was written for Daily Kos, which is why the references to other Congressional candidates, but it certainly should be of interest to this community
I've been reading the news reports on Gov. Kaine's plan to raise $860 million for Virginia's transportation system. The key facets appear to include:
You think the Democrats are divided? Well, how about 
