*40th District: Rex Simmons over Tim Hugo, who the Post slams for "flip-flopping" on raising taxes.
*45th District: David Englin over Mark S. Allen, who the Post says should not replace "a promising newcomer."
*50th District: Jeanette M. Rishell, who the Post says is "more likely to be effective in seeking funding for transportation and education in a district that badly needs more money for both," over Jackson H. Miller.
*51st District: Paul F. Nichols as "more likely to pursue pragmatic solutions in Richmond" than Faisal Gill. Now THAT'S the understatement of the week! :)
*52nd District: Christopher K. Brown over Jeff Frederick, who the Post calls "a glib extremist who thinks it's possible to pay for new highways while neither raising new revenue nor diverting it from other critical priorities such as schools." The truth hurts!
*67th District: Chuck Caputo over Marc R. Cadin, who the Post calls "a free-luncher peddling the preposterous line that Fairfax can raise teachers' salaries and create a "21st-century bus system" -- even while cutting taxes." Nailed it again!
*88th District: Carlos Del Toro over Mark L. Cole, who it blasts for peddling "snake oil masquerading as policy." Ha. :)
These are all dead on, after a few endorsements that left a lot of us scratching our heads (Jill Holtzman Vogel -- extreme AND ethically challenged? huh? -- over the extremely impressive Karen Schultz). This morning, however, I can honestly say: GREAT JOB by the Washington Post!
P.S. Del. Adam P. Ebbin faces only "nominal opposition" in the 49th district, but the Washington Post is correct when it writes that Ebbin "has the rare courage in Richmond to speak out against the political scapegoating of illegal immigrants, religious minorities, homosexuals and other easily exploited groups." Great work, Del. Ebbin!
Only 12 days to the election.
then we can start 2008
Loudoun Times-Mirror, Clark Times-Courier, and Fauquier Times-Democrat Endorse Karen Schultz for State SenateModerate better suited for job
Winchester, VA - Calling her "better suited to get things done in a bi-partisan fashion," the Loudoun Times-Mirror, Clark Times-Courier, and The Fauquier Times-Democrat all endorsed Karen Schultz for State Senate in the 27th Senate District today.
In their endorsement, the papers noted that Schultz's "background and success on education far outweighed her opponents." The paper also stated that Schultz was also "better suited for the job."
Upon learning of the endorsement Schultz responded, "I'm honored to have the endorsement of community papers across the area," Schultz said. "This shows the building momentum for common-sense, moderate leadership throughout Virginia."
Please find the entire endorsement below:
27th Senate Interesting race here, but we prefer Karen Schultz (D). Her background and success in education far outweigh that of her opponents. Also, she's better suited to get things done in a bi-partisan fashion. Schultz wants to encourage comprehensive smart growth, which would help with overcrowding in schools, traffic jams and the environment. This moderate is better suited for the job than conservative Jill Holtzman Vogel® and fellow moderate Donald Marro (I).
Whether sporting his education, transportation or business cap, Caputo is a consensus builder who is comfortable working both sides of the aisle to get things done. *** At every level, Caputo showed that he's attentive to the needs of his community and has the work ethic to follow those needs through to completion. *** Our main reservation with Cadin is his void of public service and lack of roots in the community -- glaring omissions when stacked against Caputo.
Caputo has been endorsed by a slew of business, civic, and environmental organizations. I see no endorsements for Cadin on his website.
Cadin is an insurance industry lobbyist who got $133,000 from the insurance industry to run. Here the sound of money being flushed down the toilet? whooooosh
The way Cadin seems to have gone to ground the last couple weeks it's almost like they have pulled his money to put it where it can do some damage control on closer races. In fact in a bunch of the stronger Dem races they are seeing similar "going dark" like the Republicans are out of money or resources. Their mailings have stopped, No new TV or Radio, Robo-calls have stopped, Xerox copies instead of printed handouts and many have not been seen at debates or forums even, and if they are they are, they are talking like they are independent RINOs and waffling on all the core issues or just screaming about illegal aliens with no solutions. I guess they may be saving their resources for the GoTV effort.... but wait until they see the army of volunteers the Dems have mobilized..... and nobody on the Dems is backing off anywhere....
I think this makes a clean sweep of the highly read newspapers--the Fairfax Times, the Centreview and the Post, all with strong endorsements.
Jay O'Brien and George Barker have run a mostly civil campaign (although O'Brien's recent invoking of homophobia is deplorable), perhaps because they live just a few blocks from each other. They offer a clear choice for voters. The incumbent is a social and fiscal conservative who opposes almost all new taxes.The challenger, Barker, has a broad range of expertise, in health care, mental health, aging, transportation, land use and the environment. Harvard educated, he has been intensely involved as a leader in local community efforts.
"I want to see the Northern Virginia delegation united," Barker says, citing a long history of bipartisan cooperation in his work and civic involvement.
Barker's depth and range are complemented by a substantial understanding of the process. He knows that, going into lean budget years in Richmond, it will be important to start to lay the groundwork for "agreement on where we need to go over some longer period of time," in areas such transportation and mental health services.
The bottom line: George Barker is going to win, and he's going to make a GREAT state senator for the 39th district!
This poll was done for the Caputo campaign and has a 5 +/- margin of error. According to Caputo's campaign manager:
"He [Caputo] has a 21-point edge, 47-26, among independents and has secured 90 percent of the Democrats," said Lestingi. "Chuck also pulled 9 percent of strong Republicans from Cadin's base. Cadin pulls 78 percent of them, meaning 13 percent of strong Republicans are undecided." Lestingi said the 9 percent is "a big deal because the stats show his base is defecting to Chuck at a higher rate than the typical 4-5 percent - so Cadin is in trouble."