...courtesy of today's Washington Post:

But with Northern Virginia's population expected to grow by more than 500,000 residents over 20 years, officials are also urging residents not to expect too much. Traffic congestion will continue, they say, but might not be as bad as it would have been without the new revenue.

Wow, that's really exciting Josh, "might not be as bad."  Woo-hoo!!! :)

Josh, there are people who spend 2 hours in traffic EACH WAY, 5 days a week, 52 weeks a year.  That's four hours a day that they can't do things or be with their families.  THIS IS NOT A POLITICAL ISSUE FOR THEM.  It's real people, with real kids and real lives.

The fact that you would flip your position on this to try and secure a job with this DEMPAC thing by kissing the Governor's butt is pathetic.

You are no better than the people who play politics with stem cell research and destroy people's hopes that way.

http://www.raisingka...

He hasn't changed his position on this yet, but I'm working on him.

I think that Tim Kaine's amendments helped improve this negotiated-in-secret, GOP transportation monstrosity.  However, I still don't see the long-term, dedicated sources of revenue adequate to seriously impact Virginia' transportation needs in coming years.  Also, I am concerned that by not raising enough money to cover our transportation investment needs, we will either be forced to accumulate more debt or to cut into other important programs like public safety, health, education, and the environment.  As far as the new authority granted to localities and regions, the jury's still out in my humble opinion.  We'll see what they do with it...

But it is good politics.

My position has remained the same, and as usual you do more damage than good with everything you do. 

Real kids, real people, real Virginians are going to have a real solution.

As I said yesterday on NLS:

1 - It taxes the poor and has virtually zero progressive elements
2 - It potentially taxes people in apartments to pay for roads which they tend not to use
3 - It raids the General Fund
4 - It uses 20 year debt to pay for roads sticking children with this generation's responsibilities
5 - It barely addresses disincentizing the problem (too many people in cars)
6 - It's a capitulation to the Republican ideologues
7 - It funds less than 20% of the estimated transportation capital shortfall for the next 20 years
8 - It's more of Northern Virginia paying for Northern Virginia's problems instead of the rest of the state pitching in
9 - The structure designed by the GOP is a radical departure from the way we've funded road building in Virginia for the last 90 years
10 - It's potentially a gift to endangered incumbent Republicans in hotly contested races
11 - Very little of it would be paid by out-of-staters who use our roads like the gas tax, 1/3rd of which is paid by non-Virginians
12 - IT DOESN'T EVEN COME CLOSE TO FUNDING THE PROBLEM - $108 BILLION OF NEEDS OVER 20 YEARS.  THIS PLAN RAISES LESS THAN $20 BILLION.  Read Sen. John Edwards comments in the Washington Post this morning.

Stop the cheerleading and apply your political principles to this "compromise."  They don't synch.

...Not Harry F. Byrd, Sr. knows what he's talking about.

1.  Localities like Fairfax will be able to levy taxes on businesses and will be able to offset the burdens on homeowners.
2.  It targets localities with an unprecedented amount of local mass-transit funding, specifically progressive.
3.  General fund raid was effectively abandoned though Kaine's amendments.  It was largely reduced and the amounts that remain are counterbalanced by the increased Bond issue.
4.  What's the use of having AAA bond ratings if you don't use them?  The reason we haven't had large scale investment in transportation for 2 decades is that we haven't had the $$.  This investment in informed land use growth empowers localities to do what they need to do to boost economies and keep the commonwealth moving forward.
5.  I agree that a gas tax has any number of large-scale benefits, desensitizing included.  The diesel gas tax does some. In the absence of Democratic majorities, a general gas tax increase wouldn't happen, because of how badly the republicans fear their no-tax base.
6.  Absolutely not.  Kane overwhelmed their ideology with real solutions.  This is the biggest win for us and it's the thing that's going to undercut the Republicans through November.
7.  There are better people to answer this question.  I'll round them up and get them in here.
8.  The point is that it EMPOWERS Nova to take care of the critical infrastructure we need to keep moving forward.
9.  Here's where Tim Kaine has worked real magic.  His change will empower localities to do things they've had their hands tied over for a century.  This thing trumps the Dillon rule in ways that will truly transform the way localities handle their transportation needs.
10.  Not if Democrats embrace it and hold it up as the kind of "management by results" Virginians can expect when we hold the majority.
11.  I'm with you on this one.  Let's hope a lot of through traffic is diesel driven.
12.  It moves things forward and once there are Democrats in the majority we'll be able to do that much more.

1 - How is taxing apartment buildings (a commercial property), and not single family homeowners fair to the poor?

2 - An unprecedented amount?  It would've been a lot more if they'd raised the money they should have.  I'm not sure taking more money from poor people via apartment taxes and "abuser fees" and sticking it into mass transit isn't a net gain for the poor.

3 - You're totally 100% wrong on this Josh.  They're taking what $50M/yr. from the GF + 2/3rds of all surpluses?  Don't surpluses usually got to GF expenditures?  Remember last year when the Albo, et al. refused to put use the surplus to provide 1900 Fairfax County kids with childcare?  Raw sewage in Lynchburg?  This raids the GF - our social safety net and core governement services.  PERIOD.

4 - Unless you have a different state party chair than I do, for two years Dick Cranwell's been preaching that the Democratic Party does not believe in using debt to pay for our current obligations.  Debt taxes future generations and kids.  PERIOD.  Debt is a GOP trick to restrict government for generations to come.  It's a lack of will to fund the government.  It's fiscally irresponsible and reckless.

5 - The gas tax would happen if we'd go to the voters, use this as an issue to have a public debate, and hit Devolites, Albo, O'Brien & Cooch over the head with it.  Obtaining a gas tax increase isn't possible with this crew, but it will be after November (I'm not so sure any more after this).

6 - How is totally restricturing government funding of transportation into a system which was effective proposed by Jerry Kilgore not capitulation to ideologues?  I'm missing you on this one.

7 - Go check out for yourself.  Read page 2 of the Report Summary:
http://www.vtrans.or...

Go add up how much money this is providing.  You think Sen. John Edwards doesn't know what he's been talking about.  THIS PROBLEM HAS BEEN ON THE TABLE SINCE THE EARLY 90'S.  The GA has known its coming.  They aren't dealing with it.  This plan is NOTHING with Republican election year politics.

8 - I didn't hear you say anything about why Northern Virginia all of a sudden responsible for its problems instead of all Virginians?  Localizing government is a Republican strategy.  It's anti-government, anti community, it's every man and jurisdiction for himself.  Government doesn't work that way.

9 - Sure.  Now when we go to Richmond and say we need $1B for another Mixing Bowl, they can just say NO- you've got your own taxing authority.  You don't need any money from the rest of the state.  That's real "empowering."

10 - You think people vote for "management by results?"  I don't remember many people campaigning on that last cycle.

11 - Ok.

12 - Ok.

I didn't even mention the possible constitutional/legal problems with this entire structure/plan, the fact that several jurisdictions might not enact the local taxes and free ride on us some more, or a host of other problems.

The bottom line is that raising the gas tax or applying the sales tax to gas is the only, obvious solutions.  Republicans won't do it.  We should hammer them at the polls for their irresposibility and take it to the voters.  If we can't win that argument given what we're facing, we don't deserve to be in the majority.

so do i.

A Democratic majority would get that for us, but without that majoirty we have to deal with the irresponsible republicans who hold the reigns of power.

This isn't the greatest solution to the traffic disaster, but it provides the opportunity to move forward, and gain the political wins necessary to do the job right with Democrats in control.

This thing is a huge victory for Democrats, in the leadership and on the front lines, because it proves that we can take even the worst of the worst and get things done.  Republicans never can and never will be able to do anything like that.  We keep fighting for the principles for which we stand, but we have to deal with the republicans, because even though they're perpetually wrong, they're not evil. 

This is a deal with a cross-section of the commonwealth, not a deal with the devil.  It's our ability to get results that is the winner here, and their intractible arrogance is their downfall.

This thing gives us progress, and results.  It will also garner for Democrats a series of palpable elector wins because now Virginia knows that Democrats can be trusted, while Republicans absolutely cannot be.

My view was that we had a real opportunity to distinguish the Democratic Party's governing philosophy from the Republican Party on this one.  We could have gained some voters, some real momentum, and some seats for the long-term.

Now all we've done is muddy up the waters and reinforce Republican leaning independent voters' view that we have no ideology and no spine other than taking whatever we're given by the other side. 

I don't think that moves the Democratic Party football any further down the field.  Maybe we just got first down on this, but we certainly didn't come anywhere close to putting it in the endzone.

Dems get results.

Republicans obstruct.

Dems get more results.

Politics ain't pretty, but remember that most people don't give a care about process.  They just care that somebody's getting something done.

Democrats are going to win this because, the Virginia way means working together.  We can, they can't.  Democrats are going to prove that we can both govern and get elected.

This moment is a flexpoint in Virginia politics.  you can quote me.

The Republicans can say they stood up for their principals and made it perfectly clear that if Kaine modified their bill much that they'd reject it.  They forced Kaine to bend to their will - meaning they pushed through a transportation bill on their own terms.  Democrats are now spineless compromisers forced to govern to the will of the Republicans who put forth the plan that will solve Virginia's transportation problems without any new taxes.

Ok - I don't see it as that bad.  But Republicans will be pushing variations of this argument going into November.  And if they manage to sell that message it will hurt Democrats.

So which party is going to spin better?

This thing is a done deal.

The time to air all of these issues was during the development process, during the session, during the debate.

Even though the republicans developed this thing in private, Tim Kaine's alchemy has turned this from Lead Weight to pure gold if Democrats can just carterize the wounds of this ugly session and move on stronger.

Kaine's bill is a power house.  It does enough to deliver for hard pressed localities in Nova and Tidewater, and it also gives Dems across virgina a rallying cry:  Dems Git-r-done!

If we'd been in power we'd have a better solution, but we went into this session with the majority we had, and came out with a truly remarkable achievement.

This step forward does enough to convince Virginia that Democrats deserve the majority.  With that in hand, we can do even more.

I applaud you for the great work you are doing, keeping the faith and standing up for the principles and the ideology of what's best for Virginia.  Principles matter and it's work like you've done and like Brian Moran did that keeps us moving forward over the long haul, but it's results that keep Virginia moving forward. 

Democrats get results, Republicans get angry.

There's no way the HOD would have come along.  That's why we should have framed a debate that smoked them out and taken it to the People of Virginia who could then voice their views.

I said it all here:

http://www.raisingka...

Mark your calendars.  This is the day I say, "I don't know."  I have gone back and forth.  My delegate is a very conscientious guy who really worries about getting the answer right.  He finally decided to vote for it.  And I'll trust him, because he knows more about the fine points.

Myself, I think this is smack dab in the middle of the gray shades.

And I'll work to re-elect him because he's a good decision maker.  In the end, I think that has to be our next focus--getting smart people into the General Assembly.

Tim Kaine was the only Democrat who did anything about transportation this year (and to his credit, he did do alot for his part). The Democrats in the General Assembly contributed nothing to this bill and were hoping for a veto so they could have a campaign issue (as were other sites and Democratic candidates). That's not leadership, that's a travesty

Republicans created this bill and Tim Kaine showed REAL leadership by working with them to make a better one rather than pouting in a corner like the GA Democrats did

I am very upset with my Democratic State Senator and many in my community will be joining suit in refusing to vote for her reelection as she had nothing to do with the Transportation relief we are posed to recieve in NoVa. We elect a representative to do something for our community, not play petty partisan games

The Republican's didn't invite anyone else to their private bill writing party.  All the Democrats could do is vote - and a number of them even voted for the Republican bill.

...is how no NoVA Democratic senator voted for the bill, including my own Senator Janet Howell. They were obviously hoping for the bill to get vetoed by Gov. Kaine so they would have a campaign issue. That's just irresponsible and stupid

Because this bill is so totally warped and riddled with problems.

dominating this debate can roughly be described as:
1. Compromised progress is better than no progress
2. It's better to do nothing than do something wrong

The politicians, business leaders, and a percentage of frustrated commuters are lining up behind door number 1.  It is, as Josh points out, smart politics.  And it may end up providing some relief.

I fall under the second group on this one.  Governor Kaine may have improved a monstrosity, but it's still an ugly beast.  AKA putting lipstick on a pig. 

Whatever you want to call it, it's ultimately not the direction we need to be going.  Short sighted, feel good, politically practical compromises are just that.  We need long term solutions that truly address the financial, environmental, and congestion aspects of the entire transportation ecosystem.