Actually, having an extremist like Marshall leading the way might be a good thing for us.  With Democratic control of the Senate and Kaine as Governor it's unlikely that Marshall could do much real damage.  His extremist agenda would further underscore that the GOP represents a minority of theocrats, xenophobes, and big business interests while espousing a hard-line anti-tax stance that defines irresponsible government.  He'd lock in 25% to 30% of the vote but that would be about it.

Bob's a trainwreck. But no matter how unhappy they might be with Howell, I just don't think they're dumb enough to replace him with Marshall.

Sticking his nose into School Board elections in Stafford County. First, he lends he endorsement to write-in candidate Price Jett Jr. and helps bankroll Jett's big-budget high-stakes strongarm effort. Then, when Jett falls short at the polls, Howell writes a letter to the State Board of Elections requesting that the canvass be delayed five days! This is so "the will of the people" can be given time to work! When that tack fails, he gets on a conference call with the SBE and the Stafford BE and tries to browbeat them into allowing such an illegal maneuver. When it is pointed out to him that by statute the canvass cannot be delayed, he finally backs down and Patricia Mancini's victory is certified.

WTF is the Speaker of the House of Delegates doing getting involved in a supposedly non-partisan School Board race? I bet if Marshall gets wind of this, it could go surprisingly badly for Mr. Howell.