There was a lot of rhetoric this past cycle of how the Democrats claimed that they would be the ones to reach across the aisle and work in a bi-partisan manner to get things done in Richmond. It didn’t take long for them to abandon those empty promises.
In a preview of exactly the kind of Washington style politics Richmond doesn’t need, Terry McAuliffe’s campaign attacked General Assembly Republicans in an email this weekend by saying that they, as the Tea Party, were threatening to take the “nuclear option” when it comes to the results of the Attorney General election:
Seriously — this could happen in Virginia:
1) Virginians’ votes are counted and Democrat Mark Herring wins
2) Republicans file for a recount and still lose
3) 87 Republican Legislators declare Republican Mark Obenshain the winner anywaysWe can’t allow the Tea Party to nullify 2.2 million Virginians’ votes and steal this election.
Seriously? Let’s start with the fact that this “nuclear option” has only been floated by the Richmond press corp, then twisted by the likes of MSNBC, DLCC and DPVA into some sort of conspiracy theory that is supposedly in motion. NO ELECTED REPUBLICAN IN RICHMOND HAS PROPOSED THIS SOLUTION! Tea Party or no.
This is a sign of things to come in Terry McAuliffe’s administration. ATTACK the right as the Tea Party, vilify them over something that doesn’t exist, and hope they cower in fear and fall in line when you want something done. Like Medicaid expansion.
Heck, even Slate can’t hold its nose on McAuliffe, saying he “has already begun his reign of sleaze.”
McAuliffe has now appointed Levar Stoney, a GreenTech employee and McAuliffe’s former deputy campaign manager, to be secretary of the commonwealth. Aside from the whole GreenTech ethics investigation, in 2004 Stoney was embroiled in a scandal involving Democratic operatives who slashed the tires of vans mean to drive Republican voters in Milwaukee County to the polls. He told the jury he wanted to become a U.S. senator one day.
What does the secretary of the commonwealth, which is the fifth rung down in the governor’s Cabinet, actually do? Watchdog.org:
Duties of the secretary of the commonwealth include managing extraditions, clemency petitions, service of process, restoration of voting rights, pardons, authenticating foreign adoption documents, certifying notary publics and handling lobbyist registration, disclosures and conflict-of-interest filings.
Stoney will also be responsible for more than 4,000 appointments to state boards and commissions. Let the circle of quid pro quo be unbroken.
Meanwhile, Ralph Northam’s on a victory lap that flies in the face of every claim he’s made of bi-partisanship and shows his true record and what to expect out of the potential tie-breaking vote in the State Senate.
First, his transition team, which Northam said includes people who have shared his “vision for the Commonwealth and have committed their careers to the kind of pragmatic, bi-partisan leadership I will bring to the Virginia Senate and the office of Lieutenant Governor.”
Bi-partisan folks like:
Chief of Staff Clark Mercer, who is ending a stint as the Democratic Party of Virginia’s Political Director and was Deputy Director for POlicy and Research for Mark Warner’s Senate campaign. Also was Chairman of the Alexandria Democratic Committee. So, you know, middle of the road kinda guy.
Democrat Senator Donald McEachin, who became State Senator after beating then Dem Senator Benny Lambert in a primary after Sen. Lambert endorsed George Allen over Jim Webb in the 2006 U.S. Senate race. You know, because of bi-partisanship.
Former Democrat Lt. Governor Don Beyer, who served as Mark Warner’s Forward Together PAC’s Finance Chairman, was National Treasurer of that’s flaming moderate Howard Dean’s presidential campaign in 2004, then served as Virginia state Chairman for the Kerry/Edwards campaign of the same year. OFA, DNC, etc, etc.
Democrat Senator Barbara Favola, who’s top donors include Michael Bloomberg and labor unions.
Dr. Alan Wagner, husband of for Democrat Lt. Governor Jody Wagner who lost to Bill Bolling in 2009.
Man, if that doesn’t scream bi-partisanship then I don’t know what will!
Then there’s what’s on Northam’s schedule for today. This afternoon, Northam will be the keynote speaker at “From Virginia Tech to the Navy Yard: New Approaches to Keeping Guns from Dangerous People,” an event that will unveil gun violence prevention proposals.
What kind of proposals might we see? Well, you can get some insight by again looking at the individuals involved.
UVA Professor Richard Bonnie, advocate for universal background checks and the right of law enforcement to unilaterally seize firearms based on behavior judgments:
The most important change that should be made to gun policy is to make more gun purchases subject to background checks. Another important change is to prohibit firearm purchases (as well as possession in public) by individuals who have had misdemeanor convictions for violent offenses, especially those involving brandishing or firing guns. (Right now, people are disqualified from firearm purchase only if they have been convicted of felonies or misdemeanors involving domestic violence.) Doing this would disqualify individuals whose conduct has clearly demonstrated an elevated risk of violence, whether or not they have been diagnosed with a mental illness. Police should also have the authority to seize firearms from individuals whose behavior demonstrates an elevated risk of violence, as allowed by laws in Indiana and Connecticut.
Josh Horowitz of Coalition to Stop Gun Violence, who at one point said “the proliferation of firearms has made us more dangerous” but now claims “that crime correlates to the number of guns sold without a background check.” He quickly called the tragic shooting in Newtown, CT, “A historic opportunity [that] now lies before us to curb the gun violence destroying our families and communities. For the sake of future generations, let us hope our elected officials seize it.” He’s also behind the kind of rhetoric that gets Second Amendment advocates fired up, like this gem:
How’s this for a followup, Josh Horowitz, the Executive Director of CSGV believes that the government should have a monopoly on force:
“The concept of a government “monopoly on force” may sound inconsistent with the political traditions of a country steeped in stories of its own revolution, but it is the fundamental organizing principle of any nation-state.”
Lori Haas, also of Coalition to Stop Gun Violence and a member of Terry McAuliffe’s transition team.
Shannon Frattaroli and Beth McGinty, both professors at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Center for Gun Policy and Research, which is sponsored by Michael Bloomberg (it’s in the name after all), who is a good friend of the Second Amendment after all…
And both Northam and Sen. McEachin will be there as well.
Not exactly a bi-partisan representation.
It’ll be interesting to see where Northam falls on the policies considering he completely contradicted himself within 6 months, calling for an assault weapons ban and smaller clips in April, only to say in September that the policies are “unrealistic”:
Both Terry McAuliffe and Ralph Northam told Virginians they’d work with all sides to find solutions. But reaching across the aisle just to strong-arm the opposition isn’t what voters had in mind.
