Three for Thursday: Andrew Hurst, Democrat for US Congress, the 11th District

In an attempt to cover the broad array of brilliant Democrats striving to represent Progressive Principles in the Commonwealth of Virginia, Raising Kaine offers "Three for Thursday".  Every Thursday we will ask three questions of the candidates, office holders, activists and volunteers striving to put Responsible Government to work for all Virginians.

Three for Thursday:  Andrew Hurst

Pop Quiz:  In 2002, which Virginia Republican Congressman branded anyone who questioned the Bush Administration's foreign policy as "giving aid and comfort to our enemies".

You may be surprised to know that this little piece of McCarthyism was first spouted by none other than Virginia's, supposedly "Moderate", 11th District Congressman Tom Davis.  Conventional wisdom sees the 11th as a safe hold for the Republican Davis, but there are opportunities in the 11th.  Consider this from Wikipedia:

Even after redistricting the 11th Congressional District in Davis' favor, the voters of his new district continue to move toward the Democratic Party. Though Davis had redistricted a district in 2000 that Gore had carried by 2% into a district that Bush carried by 7% (a nine-point Republican swing simply by redrawing lines),  the new district voted for Bush over John Kerry in 2004 by less than a 1% margin (49.9% to 49.3%). 

Moreover, in the 2005 Gubernatorial election, the 11th went for Tim Kaine 55.7%-42.4%.  Could 2006 be the year a Democrat unseats Tom Davis in the increasingly Democratic 11th?

This year, the Democrats are fielding two strong candidates to unseat Davis after 12 years in office, former State Department official and the 2004 Party Nominee, Ken Longmyer, and the Northern Virginia Lawyer who was named the 2005 BADC Young Lawyer of the Year, Andrew Hurst. 

Mr. Hurst was kind enough to answer a few questions for us about Tom Davis,  Ken Longmyer, and why Andrew Hurst is the right guy to fight for Responsible Government in Washington.

Raising Kaine 1.  Two years ago, Ken Longmyer was able to only eke out 38% of the vote; yielding 60% to Tom Davis.  This happened in the 11th District where George Bush beat John Kerry by less than 1% (49.3% to 49.9%).  Davis outspent Ken Longmyer by 24 to 1 ($1,835,000 to $72,000). In terms of votes and dollars how can you do better in 2006 than Ken did in 2004?

Andrew Hurst:
Reaching voters in a district this size requires grass-roots energy, resources and money.  Our campaign has generated more excitement and energy among the grassroots than any challenger to Tom Davis.

One of the primary reasons I am running for office is to change the way we fund elections, and make money matter less in campaigns.  However, as the system exists today, candidates must raise funds to engage the people in their districts. 

We missed a historic chance in 2004.  There was an energized Democratic base that nearly won the 11th District for a Democratic Presidential candidate for the first time in the District's history.  One of the big reasons we lost by a landslide in the Congressional race is that our candidate raised very little money and wasn't able to assemble much of an organization outside of the party apparatus. That doesn't make him a bad person or any less well-intentioned; in fact, I like and admire Ken very much.  But it does mean that he was unable to garner the resources necessary to reach voters.  And we've seen no indication that this campaign will be any more successful than his last one. 

My campaign, on the other hand, has been far more successful in gathering resources and building energy.  We already have built a grass-roots network of 150 active volunteers, and hundreds of people have shown their support by contributing to my campaign.  I have already raised more money than our nominee did in the entire 2004 election cycle, and did so without accepting PAC or special interest money.  We have a solid plan, and are on track to raise the hundreds of thousands of dollars needed to compete with Tom Davis. 

It took a lot of hard work and perseverence to build this network.  As a new candidate running against the prior nominee, I had to establish myself with each and every volunteer and contributor, and prove to them that my ideas, energy and vision could succeed come the general election.  Our fundraising is one measure of faith on the part of hundreds of people that we can succeed.  These resources, coupled with the grassroots energy of our hundreds of volunteers and our fresh ideas on how to reform Washington, will get us the votes needed to turn the 11th District blue again. 

Raising Kaine 2.  Wikipedia says this about Tom Davis:  Despite an admitted transportation crisis and some of nation's worst traffic, Tom Davis has received a 100% approval rating from developers like the Associated Builders & Contractors and 93% from the Stone, Sand & Gravel Association and 100% from Commerce, and the Retail and Restaurant associations. (www.vote-smart.org).  Is Tom Davis part of the problem, and why isn't he going to fulfill his "Contract with America" promise to step down now that he's served 6 terms?

Andrew Hurst:
The two questions you ask are related.  Because at the end of the day, Tom Davis' record in office shows that the only thing he stands for is staying in office.

When Tom first ran for Congress in 1994, he told voters that he believed in term limits, and that six terms was an appropriate limit on the term of a member of Congress.  He signed a "Contract With America" that explicitly said the same.  This pledge was used to great advantage by the Republicans that year, and people voted for Tom Davis based in part on his belief in term limits.

Six terms is up, and Tom apparently has no intention of fulfilling that promise.  He has complete control over whether he runs for office; if he believed in term limits, he would decline to run in 2006.  He is running, and has offered no explanation for breaking his promise.  The reality is that he never really believed in term limits, and used the pledge to get elected.

He does the same with every issue and special interest he deals with.  To the extent he can use them to raise money or garner support for his re-election, he does so without regard to the consequences.  He makes promises, casts his votes, holds hearings, issues subpoenas and makes public statements for the sole purpose of fulfilling political ambition. He gets high ratings from countless special interests who pour money into his campaign, but pays no attention as to how his actions affect the only interest he is supposed to serve -- that of the people of the 11th District.

Mind you, this is not to say that building and developing in northern Virginia are inherently bad.  I support a number of construction and development efforts, such as rail to Tysons and Dulles, and smart growth to provide affordable housing in the 11th.  But all interests must be balanced when our elected representatives address these issues, including the interests of Northern Virginians as a whole.  When these are ignored, some of the problems that result are our traffic congestion, budget deficits and a health care crisis. 

We need a Representative whose first priority is not staying in office, but to do the best job for his constituents.  This Representative should share our core beliefs, and stick by his word.  Tom Davis has failed to do so, and I will not.

Raising Kaine 3.  You have repeatedly said that your candidacy is based on issues like open government and lobby reform, yet I rarely hear you speak about why you are specifically qualified to bring those issues to the fore.  What gives you credibility on the critical progressive principle Responsible Government?

Andrew Hurst:
First, I am practicing what I preach.  I accept financial contributions only from human beings, not from any PACs or other special interests.  I have made a pledge to run a positive campaign focusing on the issues, rather than one based on divisive, negative attacks or destructive whisper campaigns.  I am an established professional who is new to elective office.  I am interested not in the way things are done, but the ways things ought to be done. 

Second, I speak from experience.  As a lawyer in the Washington area for more than a decade, I've sat at a defense table with people whose lives have been shattered through the current federal campaign finance and ethics systems.  I have watched the rules being taken advantage of time and again, and have seen some of our representatives flout common sense and conventional morals to remain in office.  More importantly, through my experience, I have developed specific and realistic ideas on how these regulatory constructs can be improved.  In other words, I think I bring experience to the table on these issues that no other candidate or official has.

Finally, I think what gives me even more credibility on these issues is my passion for them.  Campaign finance, ethics reform and accountability in government are what brought me to this race.  While most of your readers haven't yet seen me speak in person, those who have can attest to the fact that I burn when I talk about these issues.  In am convinced to my core that these problems are at the root of Congress' neglect of the problems that affect us every day like health care costs, traffic, and the war in Iraq.  I talked about these issues long before Jack Abramoff, Duke Cunningham and Scooter Libby, and will be talking about them long after those cases have come and gone.

Andrew Hurst is one of those exciting candidates who seem to arise from the hard-working party ranks when we need them most.  Andrew Hurst has "The energy and vision to reform Washington."  He also has a great Virginia Campaign Manager in James Walkinshaw.  Together they have constructed and a ground game called "11 Weeks in the 11th", which speaks of party building, dynamic grassroots action, and palm-pressing, shoe leather, retail politics. 

Andy's going to knock on a lot of doors.  With every one, he reinforces the strength of the Democratic Party in Virginia.

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