Delegate Bill Carrico ran a very public and successful campaign against a double-digit rate increase for Appalachian Power Company. He was the white knight on the majestic steed - ready to slay the dragon of corporate greed on behalf of consumers. But all was not as it seemed.
While the fight was still joined, Carrico voted for a utility re-regulation bill that was drafted in secret by the industry and took much of the rate-setting authority away from the State Corporation Commission. This was the same authority that allowed the SCC to roll back the Appalachian rate hike.
Carrico's duplicity doesn't end there. While touting his power company fighting bona fides on the campaign trail, Carrico has been pocketing the industry's money - $23,851 in all from energy and natural resources companies, including $1,250 from Appalachian Power Co., according to the Virginia Public Access Project. The sector is his largest source of campaign cash.
Voters should be wary. Carrico cannot serve two masters. And the power companies have more financial clout and political influence than ordinary citizens.
We cannot support a candidate who is attempting to play both sides in such a manner. In the end, he will not be able to serve either interest well. And, because of the influence and the money involved, it is likely that consumers - not the power companies - will be the losers.
For this reason, we endorse Carrico's Democratic opponent, Susie Dixon Garner, a certified public accountant and former member of the Galax School Board. Garner isn't the strongest candidate ever, but she isn't trying to pull the wool over the eyes of constituents.
Refreshingly, Garner isn't beholden to special interests. She's raised $88,762 - most of it the old-fashioned way, from small, individual donors and family members. Other than individuals, her greatest financial backing comes from the Democratic Party apparatus, which clearly hopes to win this seat. The Republican Party is pouring sizable sums into Carrico's campaign, as well.
This is a high-stakes year for both parties; every race matters. Control of the state legislature is in the balance.
Carrico is a reliable partisan. He votes in ideological lock-step with the House Republicans - a group that couldn't find the political center if they tripped over it.
Although there is blame to go around, it was primarily the House Republican leadership that pushed the transportation funding package that included the loathsome abusive driver fees. House leaders seized on the fee scheme and other tricks to raise revenue without having to call the measure a tax increase. But a fee is just a tax by another name.
Unlike Delegate Terry Kilgore, Carrico does not promise to repeal the Draconian abuser fees. Instead, he prefers to extend them to out-of-state drivers, as well - never mind the logistical problems inherent in collecting such a fee through other states' motor vehicle bureaus. Rather than recognize a bad law when he sees it, Carrico blames "media hysteria" for the uproar over the fees.
Garner, meanwhile, would vote to repeal the fees, which she correctly identifies as a stealth tax.
Carrico wants to make illegal immigration an issue in this race, but this is primarily a federal matter. Carrico wants to empower the Virginia State Police to arrest, detain and deport illegal immigrants.
While this might sound appealing to some, there are real logistical problems with this approach. Unless the State Police plans to offer taxi service to the border, deportation still would be carried out by a rather unresponsive, understaffed federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement bureaucracy. Carrico's proposed solution is window dressing, but it cannot fix a fundamentally broken federal immigration system.
Garner is a newcomer to state politics, but she has 12 years experience as a school board member. She's also run a business and served on the local community college board. Her ideas are a bit vague on some issues - like the needs of the state's mental health system.
But we trust Garner more than Carrico at this point. He's played both sides on the power rate issue. He's an unrepentant supporter of the "abuser" fees. And he is investing much of his time on immigration, a federal concern.
We've had enough of Carrico. Garner deserves a shot. We recommend her for the 5th District.