Smith will run in VA-03
By JR Hoeft | Friday, April 9th, 2010 | PoliticsThird District Republicans announce Chuck Smith has accepted z call to run for the GOP in their district:
Sean Devlin, Chair of the Third District GOP Candidate Committee, today announced that Chuck Smith has accepted a call to run as the Republican candidate for the House of Representatives. This announcement concludes a lengthy effort by grassroots Republican leaders from throughout the Third District to draft Smith and persuade him to take on this important challenge.
“The incumbent may call the Third District home, but he represents only Washington special interests,” said Mike Wade, Chairman of the Third District Republican Committee. “There were many fine individuals who considered running this year. I want to thank them for their decision to help draft Chuck Smith. Their decision to bring a united front to our effort means we have a chance to elect a Congressman who will actually represent us, the people of the Third District
In accepting the draft to run, Smith outlined his reasons for running. “Over the past year, spending in Washington has been out of control, and it is only getting worse,” Smith said. “We must help turn the tide by winning this congressional seat for the people. To win, we need a candidate who is conservative, principled and can provide a clear vision for voters on how to get our economy moving again. I believe I am that candidate.”
Concluding his statement, Smith added “There comes a time when our decisions must consider the Greater Good. Our purpose in life is beyond our personal immediacy, interest and goals.”
Chuck Smith is a veteran of the Marines and served as a Navy JAG. As a veteran, he understands how important our men and women are to our national security and the sacrifices their families make on a daily basis. As a community leader active with the Republican Party for many years, Smith has talked with hundreds of small business owners who are struggling under an ever-increasing number of mandates passed by this Congress. His number one goal will be to change the direction that our federal government is going in and make creating new and better jobs our national priority, second only to our national defense.
“For too long, the current representative has failed to demonstrate leadership on behalf of the citizens of the Third District,” said Chairman Wade. “We are determined to give the people the ‘best of the best’ to represent them in Congress.”
The Republican nomination will take place at a convention on May 22, 2010, in Henrico County.
The Third Congressional District encompasses the Cities of Hampton, Norfolk, Newport News, Portsmouth, Richmond and the Counties of Charles City, Henrico, Prince George, Surry and New Kent. Mr. Smith’s complete statement of Acceptance to Draft to run is attached to this release.
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Conservative to the core; liberal with his opinion! J.R. has been involved in politics for over a decade and has worked on several campaigns in Hampton Roads. He has served on the Executive Committee of the Republican Party of Chesapeake and the Central Committee of the Republican Party of Virginia. He is also the director of “Blogs United” in Virginia. E-mail J.R.. Follow J.R. on Twitter.
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20 Responses to "Smith will run in VA-03"
DJ,
Will you follow the party plan and support the nominee?
So, just because he’s “drafted”, does that mean he automatically gets to be the nominee? Even though the other candidates have dropped out, does anything preclude someone else from entering at this point?
Folks Chuck is the man. You need to get behind Chuck Smith in the 3rd. The 2nd district is a crowded field I think you will see what Chuck Smith can do esp now he has the right team behind him.
Do not under estimate Chuck folks. I’m sending money when I get a link to his site.
I believe this is a good opportunity to mention that I am running against Bobby Scott in Virginia’s 3rd Congressional District, have a website at jamesquigley4congress.com and have a PayPal account set-up and taking campaign donations at this time.
Will you follow the party plan and support the nominee? – Lee Talley
Lee, if the devil himself were the nominee, would you still follow the “party plan”?
It is things like THIS that has caused division and forced people out of the party. It is also the silly self-serving oath to support the nominee no matter how horrible. How many times will you ask good Republicans to bend over for the sake of blind loyalty controlled by a few “good ‘ol boys” in power?
James Quigley, Libertarian candidate for Congress in the 3rd district, military veteran having served in Afghanistan and Iraq, and member of the Tea Party movement, will not back down.
James Quigley has supported several good conservative Republicans.
Sure, James Quigley was at the Newport News fund raiser for Republican AG Ken Cuccinelli. Sure, James Quigley will stand beside Republican Delegate Bob Marshall after he poorly chose words and had them twisted to Democrat advantage when some other Republicans suddenly forgot all the good Marshall has done. When they refused to hear Marshall declare every child to be a blessing. Maybe some Republicans are willing to sell their souls to the Party Plan?
James Quigley will not.
James Quigley can be counted on to oppose socialized medicine. He can be counted on to oppose Cap & Trade. He can be counted on to support smaller government and fiscal restraint. He can be counted on to defend YOUR tax dollars. He can be counted on to oppose bail outs on principle!He can be counted on to oppose the use of eminent domain for the purpose of development and special interest back scratching. As a combat veteran that already flew combat missions in Afghanistan served in Iraq, and currently works for a Defense Contractor, he can be counted on to bring his actual military experience and knowledge to Congress and serve once again to protect the USA. He can be counted on to not voluntarily neuter the United States by signing damaging agreements with Putin’s puppet. He can be counted on to support your 2nd amendment. He can be counted on to embrace legal immigration while restoring the meaning of “Illegal” to illegal imigration. Why? He’s a true believer. Isn’t it refershing to know where SOMEBODY stands?…….and what district he’s running in.
If Chuck wants to go from his attempt at a run in my home district in the 2nd district, to running against a tough Bobby Scott in a 3rd district gerymandered for Democrats AND split anti-incumbent votes with Quigley, so be it. If he thinks being annointed with the letter “R” is enough, he can take his chances.
I would encourage you all to donate to James Quigley’s campaign and volunteer your time. Paypal and information available at his site here:
http://jamesquigley4congress.com/
When the 3rd District has a nominee I will support them.
Until the convention, I will justifiably protest this colossally bad idea, as well as make my disappointment known. I’ve yet to hear one good reason or justification which makes up for the fact that Chuck is a failed candidate. It’s that simple.
[...] Read more from JR Hoeft at Bearing Drift [...]
Britt,
If the Devil himself was the nominee he wouldn’t be the the devil now would he. Cause we all know the Devil is a Democrat!
Now that being said even if Marshall was our nominee. I wouldn’t speak ill of him either.
He seems to do a good job of that on his own. Sorry Britt as a parent of a child with Autism I cannot condone Marshall’s actions. He was wrong and should just have said I was wrong. He did the typical I apologize if you are offended apology which is way different than admitting he was wrong. Big difference in my eyes. Besides that if anyone should have known better to go there in his statements it should have been Bob. It wasn’t a democrat twisting of his statements either. I saw the video and I read the transcripts. He was wrong and vile for what he said.
Lee, I understand you being offended by what was said. I also see it as a poor choice of words. While I stuck by Marshall and will continue to on my blog, I did maintain his wording to be hurtful to many that traditionally support him.
The delegate found evidence of physical repercussions being possible for children being born after previous first abortions. That is where “nature” was called into the picture. If he finds this evidence plausible, it would be hard for a man of conviction to say that he was wrong in principle.
Of course, children are born everyday with autism or other challenges where no abortion ever took place. Challenges face good parents and their children with no moral/immoral act being the culprit. In that instance, clearly there is no connection to the evidence he cited nor his statement. He did state, “every child is a blessing”. Like many parents of children with special needs, Del. Marshall is vehemently opposed to abortion, because they recognize that blessing and that God given life. I can understand where one could mistakenly construe his statement to mean some sort of “divine punishment” was involved. However, he clearly said the word “nature” and cited evidence connected to first abortions. Many parents that have had previous abortions and even those that did not, saw his statments as pointing fingers of blame or just being offensive. To me that reaction is understandable. Even though he intended to give further reason to discourage abortion by citing evidence, he did hurt parents like you, with his statement despite his not intending to. In many such cases, no abortion was even in the picture.
How does Del. Marshall take back what he sees as evidence of a possible causal connection? As a principled man, he can’t. He can, as you point out, apologize for offending parents with special needs children and reiterate continually that he sees every child as a blessing and not a punishment. He has done that. Perhaps he could have found a way to apologize for his wording and not taking extra care given the sensitive subject and not feel that he was admitting some sort of guilt he felt no blame for. I also think the mere fact that some opportunists among the Democrats jumped on this not out of principle, but as to not waste a good “gotcha” moment, further rankles the good delegate.
Not only has he apologized for offending parents, reiterated his stance that every child is a blessing, taken the spearhead position on Pro-Life, but he has backed up his rhetoric with ACTION. Autism charities praise this guy! He champions legislation protecting children with special needs. He walks the talk…….how refreshing for a change. Given what Delegate Marshall has DONE, I find it a bit easier to forgive him for somethinghe poorly SPOKEN. We are all flawed beings, however I think Del. Marshall at least attempts to be as “perfect” as it is possible for him to be. Though, an attempt destined to fail, it is an attempt worthy of praise. What isn’t destined to fail is the fact that he and the rest of us, can do SOMETHING to make the world just a tiny bit better, no matter how small in measurement. When you consider the good he has done for all of us and additionally for children with challenges, I think we could stand to forgive him for being human, being a bit stubborn with his convictions, and not always living up to levels of perfection that we sometimes expect.
All that said, I do understand your reaction. I would hope you don’t hold it against him permanently, but I would understand if you did. You’re a parent.
As to the hypothetical reference of the devil being a Democrat, if a RINO can infiltrate the GOP, so can the master of treachery. So, again, I question the blind adherence to any party plan.
I will support Chuck because I worked for his initial 2nd district campaign, but I will not support him blindly because the Republican leadership has said so.
You know what Dan, I can respect that.
I may disagree with the choice, but I can respect that kind of decision making and supporting the guy you believe in.
May the best person for the job win.
Thanks Britt that was a fair analysis of the Marshall situation. I don’t want to be angry but when ignorance persists I cannot help but be so angered.
Now as far as the party plan goes Its not that I adhere to it blindly. We are a nation of laws and esp as Republicans be believe in the rule of law. When it comes to party politics the party plan is law, period. If I am to further fight RINO’s and others from taking advantage of my party to further their own means then I must obey that plan in order to be the most effective. Wouldn’t you agree?
Here’s why I am supporting Chuck. When he was running in the 2nd I haven’t yet met a candidate that would go anywhere and work any race to support his party and his beliefs framed by our party. He didn’t have expensive staff or consultants he did his own leg work, his own facebook work, damn near everything. He did this all in the light of other bigger guns and players coming into the 2nd. Chuck went till he couldn’t go no more. He left it all on the field. At the end of the day, thats all I ask of any candidate is work your A#$ off. Judging from Chuck’s previous work he will do so for us in the 3rd and wherever he may be for our party, our state, and our country. Now Chuck isn’t one man he’s part of a much larger team. A team of people who I know and respect greatly and I am proud to serve Chuck and that team in any capacity.
The simple fact that Chuck could not cut it in the 2nd and then was courted to run in the 3rd when he does not even live in our district is laughable at best. Do not misunderstand me, I have met and talked with Chuck and I think he is a great guy. That being said you need certain things to be viewed as a viable candidate. Let me list just a few and see what conversation ensues:
1) Residency in the district that you want to represent – This is an issue that Bobby will hit hard and stay on point with throughout the “campaign”. I certainly would. It weakens a candidate from the very beginning. I fully understand the rules. He does not have to live in the distict. But seriously, this is an impediment from Round 1.
2)Financial viability – A serious candidate needs to have anywhere from $1-2 million dollars to be “in the game”. I encourage all readers to look at VPAP and check out both Chuck and Bobby. A very telling story.
3)Legitamacy – Chuck could not make it in the 2nd. He gave it a good effort but could not gain traction and stepped down. Now he has been courted by “3rd District elite” and has landed in the 3rd. What differences will there be to make this run any different than his first run?
I am all for running a strong Republican against Bobby Scott in the fall. Having said that and listing my points above I do not see it in Chuck Smith. We will be wasting time, effort and energy and not get more than Winsome Sears did just a few years ago. I am completely against this and will continue to voice my opinion as able. We are asking for trouble with this and it will haunt us for years to come…
Lee, Morgan Griffith has a record of winning elections. Chuck doesn’t. Morgan Griffith didn’t try running in another congressional district in this cycle, and prove an inability to gain support, traction and money. Chuck did. It looks like Chuck is shopping around for a seat to run for. If he doesn’t gain any traction in the third district, I suppose he could try to run for one of the VB city council seats this year. What makes Chuck more viable than the other 2 or 3 candidates that have announced their intention to run for the nomination?
Mike, check your email, as we discussed all of this via email, thanks
DJ I have had no discussion with you, nor have I received any email from you. You apparently have selectively edited my posting and those of others two times, this is unacceptable.
I provided this post at 12:45AM on 4-12-10 and again on 12:15AM this morning (4-13-10). The count of the entire string should now be 27 or 28 posts (counting my post 1 time), not the 16 shown.
I find it reprehensible that DJ Spiker, a self-proclaimed leader and member of the “3rd District Elite”, has editorial privileges, which he appears to be abusing.
Here is my original 12:45AM post from 4-12-10:
I just learned from Sean Devlin that “DJ Spiker and Jim Hewitt are raising all kinds of hell regarding our draft of Chuck Smith”. I honestly had never heard of Bearing Drift; however, have enjoyed all the “vitriol” (as our beloved Obama would call it) that has been spewed about finally having a viable opponent for Bobby Scott.
I am at a serious loss Jim Hewitt, with your opposition. Your reference to “3rd District elite” selecting Chuck Smith is particularly disturbing.
Jim Hewitt, you are a member of the “3rd District elite” and knew full well that Chuck Smith was being drafted. I personally called you at 7:55 PM on 3-24-10 and left you a message to call me. At 8:29PM the same date, you returned my call and we discussed Sean Devlin and my plan to draft Chuck Smith. I was very pleased that you supported our plan to have Chuck Smith drafted. In addition, I looked forward to supporting you financially and with participation in your May 4th School Board election, which you indicated had you consumed. I greatly appreciated your offer of help after the completion of your race in early May.
After our call on 3-24-10, I advised Sean Devlin of Jim Hewitt’s commitment to support our efforts with the Draft of Chuck Smith. We both felt this was a strong indication of overall party support, because Jim Hewitt is the most successful candidate in Portsmouth!!!
Jim Hewitt actually has won a seat with the School Board. In addition, Jim Hewitt’s tremendous support of McCain in 2008 and McDonnell in 2010 in scheduling and manning the Portsmouth Victory Center a tremendous number of hours, proved his loyalty to the party. Thus Jim Hewitt, getting your support on March 24th for the plan of bringing Chuck Smith to the 3rd, suggested we would have a tireless and successful candidate who knew how to succeed in running races in the 3rd. Thereby, ensuring the retirement of Bobby Scott in 2011.
Jim Hewitt, what happened? Why the change? When you changed your mind, why did you not call me? You know I would have valued your input and insight.
I cannot say I ever saw DJ Spiker in the Portsmouth Victory Center at any time in 2008 or 2009. I learned that DJ Spiker broke confidentiality and wrote on this Blog about the Chuck Smith draft, apparently in an effort to ensure Bobby Scott ran unopposed again. Why DJ Spiker would do this, I do not understand.
Anyone who is opposed to the Draft of Chuck Smith, please provide an alternative first, before attempting to interfere with the campaign of the next Congressman from VA-3.
CHUCK SMITH IS GOING TO BEAT BOBBY SCOTT IN 2010. Mr. Smith is GOING TO WASHINGTON in January 2011 to serve the 3rd, rather than himself in the manner we have tolerated for 18 long years with Bobby Scott.
Lead, Follow or Get out to the Way!
Being Negative is generally not Tolerated among healthy people or healthy institutions.
To provide an adequate degree of redundancy:
1st Step: Nay sayers need to provide a viable, tangible alternative Republican 1st and enter him or her into the Convention,
Only After Completing Step 1:
Step 2: Then Question the adequacy of Chuck Smith.
CHUCK SMITH IS GOING TO BEAT BOBBY SCOTT IN 2010. We need all the support of all members of the 3rd to do this.
I’ve never Blogged before.
I Do Feel Better Now.
Thank you for considering my naïve efforts and improving my mental health.
The fact that Republicans have a candidate WILLING to run is a victory! Though I was not involved in Chuck’s decision, that he is willing to put himself forward and face all comers, accept the media gauntlet, endure the public’s support as well as name-calling, fight the various political machines, and get up the next day and do it all over again is admirable if not downright courageous!
His opponent, Mr. Scott: is he any better than when I ran against him? Is he accountable to the voters? Are his votes reflective of the district?
If we allow the naysayers to discount Chuck’s candidacy on the basis of the campaign being an uphill fight, then we will never attempt anything in life. America would not be a nation today had they listened to the naysayers and not fought against England’s tyranny!
Help Chuck to victory!
Chuck Smith is our candidate whether we like or dislike a small or large part of his qualifications. We have to get behind him and NO OTHER or SCOTT WILL WIN and that is UNACCEPTABLE!! If there is another candidate that is better, let us get him ready to run in 2 years…we are out of time. Get your signs, hit the pavement and let’s BEAT BOBBY SCOTT. I will help cover my area..Varina District. So get a hold of Mike Wade and he will get you connected to the Campaign staff so we can let Virginians know in our district that Chuck Smith is our candidate. Put up lots of signs, knock doors and pass out brochures in stores, parks etc. C’mon guys…we have a lot of work to do but once we defeat Scott, it will be SOOOOO NICE!! God Bless You All and Let’s Win this November!! See you guys in D.C. with Glenn Beck and Palin…you don’t want to miss that so come on up and let’s shake up Washington…WooHoo!! (Oh,BTW…be on the lookout for a Chuck Smith meet and greet event. I have not met him and am anxious to see and talk to our candidate.)
Bobby Scott just voted NO in “YOUCUT” to reform Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac saving the taxpayers 30 Billion Dollars. This is the 3rd week Bobby Scott has voted NO on saving taxpayers Dollars. Enough is Enough…Bobby Scott has to go….Get Behind Chuck Smith So WE Can Save Our Country…Time Is Of The Essence!
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