Say goodbye to the Virginia Way

Virginia voters seem to have had enough of the “Virginia Way.” Or at least those who responded to a CNU poll that asked people what they thought should be done about ethics, redistricting, and term limits for Virginia’s political class.

Respondents want tougher gift limits. That’s likely to happen, but will still not substitute for common sense.

They want an independent commission to draw legislative lines. It sounds good in theory, but we must always remember that there is no such thing as a genuinely independent commission composed of purely disinterested people. Certainly not in Virginia.

And my personal favorite is term limits for legislators. Yes, poll respondents also want to allow Virginia’s governors to run for a second term (the question’s wording almost guaranteed such an outcome), and amendments which would allow a governor to run for a second, consecutive term have been introduced for as long as I can remember. Not surprisingly, former governors are almost always in favor of the idea.

The general argument against it? This would give the governor too much power. If the governor is willing to give up some of the authority currently in his power — such as over appointments — then maybe he could get that second term.

So strike a deal: the governor gives up a few things, and can run for re-election. But the General Assembly will be term limited — say three House and two Senate terms. The howls about institutional memory being lost, power shifting to lobbyists and many, many more will be uttered to stop such an idea. This in defense of a body already informally known as the best group of folks Dominion Power’s money can buy.

It won’t happen.

But what we are seeing, perhaps, is that voters really have no belief in, or fondness for, that old Virginia Way. As Quentin Kidd notes:

…voters’ view of “the Virginia Way” – a self-policing political culture that doesn’t require strict ethics laws – is not a reality.

“Clearly the idea that Virginia has an exceptionally ethical and honest political culture is a figment of the imagination. The public simply doesn’t buy it,” Kidd said.

And for a more earthy, and informative, assessment of that fictional political culture, check out Chris’ post. Here’s a snip:

The Virginia Way is just a clever way of explaining why those in power in this state always stay in power.

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