September 2011

Three people sent me this blast email from John Wood, all of whom thought it was fishy.  It was sent to an email list called “Sterling Women” by someone in that organization, but the email is written by John Wood.  He makes his Educate Loudoun pitch, but somehow forgets to mention that Educate Loudoun is supporting the current no-reform, protect the status quo, renew Hatrick’s contract School Board Chairman John Stevens.  He then ends by touting the business need for good schools and lists his credentials, including his spot as Chairman of the Loudoun Economic Development Committee.

This is right down the same path as his infamous letter on EDC letterhead urging the Board of Supervisors to “fully fund” Hatrick’s provably bloated school budget.  Once again we hear about how Hatrick’s budget is more important than our tax rate to attract and retain businesses.  And if this is a political advertisement for Educate Loudoun, shouldn’t this have a disclosure similar to a candidate email blast?  While I like their stated goals and some of the candidates they have endorsed, I still don’t trust a thing about this PAC.

Text of the email is provided below the fold.

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Let me begin by saying I supported David Ramadan.  Early on, when he was appointed to the George Mason University Board of Visitors, I was among the first to congratulate him.  When he was the subject of protests by wing nut anti-Muslims, I was among the first to defend him.

But something happened somewhere along the campaign trail, and that something is deeply troubling.  Now Nixonesque in his no-holds-barred approach to campaigning and countering dissent, Ramadan has proven my support woefully misplaced.

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A great piece on why Governor McDonnell is equally (if not more) qualified to be in the Presidential running.
I expect him to be on all candidates short-lists for VP at the very least.

Ashburn Patch has been on quite the tear lately getting some good scoops and stirring things up a bit.  Dusty Smith runs that particular patch and as a former Leesburg Today and Center for Public Integrity reporter, he has a unique and deep perspective on Loudoun politics.  Here’s a few interesting bits from the last week:

The Cliff Keirce article I mentioned a few days ago got pretty interesting in comments, check it out again.

The LCDC Vice Chairman tried (and I do mean “tried”) to defend Andrea McGimsey from Cliff and was pummeled in comments.

And Andrea McGimsey proves once again how utterly clueless and unprepared she can be, and why she absolutely does not belong on that dais anymore.

Patch sometimes gets a bit lost in the Loudoun media shuffle, but they deserve to be added to your regular web wanderings.  I do wish these articles were easier to find and/or stayed on the front page a bit longer.  Hopefully these links will make them easier for everyone to see, as they should be more widely read.

I talked with Peter Smith at the Old Dominion Watchdog about social media and the 2012 VA Senate race.

Here’s a snippet:

Vincent Harris, a social media consultant who has worked with several GOP campaigns including Gov. Bob McDonnell’s 2009 governor’s race, said the Facebook gap is more important to the race than Allen’s weakness on Twitter.

More than half of Americans have a Facebook account; 7 percent use Twitter.

Twitter accounts “are not at all engaging average voters, and that is just a fact,” Harris said.

Harris said Allen has taken advantage of the personal or social touches of Facebook, while Kaine’s page seemed far less engaged than his initial announcement video or Twitter account. Allen’s page allows supporters to post on his wall, and he also engages directly with fans in comments, “likes” supporter’s statuses and solicits feedback — features absent from the Kaine page.

“It seems like Kaine’s releasing information, without trying to get information back,” Harris said.

Allen’s chief online advantage lies in advertising. Facebook allows candidates to target potential voters based upon profile information, providing a 21st century version of the direct mail campaigns traditionally used to drive support.

“Facebook really has the most advanced metrics in terms of online advertising,” Harris said. “George Allen, who has a problem with women and minority voters, is going to be able to micro-target with specific messages just seen by that specific niche audience.”

Republicans are raised with Ronald Reagan’s “11^th Commandment,” that being Republicans should never speak poorly of other Republicans.  Well, folks, the commandments in my Bible ends at 10 (cue the Spinal Tap video), and Reagan was just plain wrong on this one (cue the lightning strike).

First of all, the very idea of putting party ahead principle smacks of both Stalinist totalitarianism and Orwellian though control.  I am an American before I am a Republican.  I happen to agree with vast majority of the Republican Party’s ideas, and that’s why I joined the party.  It is, however, only a means to an end.  I belong to the party because it fits with my beliefs, and not the other way around.  When the party or the party’s candidate diverges from my principles, I follow the path of my principles.

Silencing legitimate criticism of a candidate does no one any good.   An embarrassing candidate is a lightning rod for the opposition, and taints the party’s good candidates.  We see that all the time, especially in presidential or gubernatorial elections where the top of the ticket is unpopular and drags down all the party’s candidates.  As such, it is far better to cull the heard of these inferior candidates, and even possibly lose an election or two, than suffer with a buffoon year after year, election after election.  The party and the electorate are far better off in the long run,

I readily admit that I have filled in the oval for the candidate with the R following his name despite some misgivings.  I did so not because the party told me to but because I believed that, despite the candidate’s shortcomings, it was still the better alternative.  On the other hand, a candidate may be so despicable that party affiliation must take a back seat.  Unfortunately, I feel that is the situation with several local races, and I, for one, will not abdicate my responsibility as an American voter and support these clearly inferior candidates nor ignore obvious evidence of their unfitness for office.

So don’t be surprised if in the coming weeks you see some painfully blunt assessments of these candidates.  And one in particular.

I had a couple folks interested in writing occasional guest posts recently, but some of the threatening activities of the last couple days have inspired a couple more folks to want to chime in occasionally in a longer form than comments.  The BS political games are ramping up big time in these last several weeks and there is just no way for anyone to cover it all.  if anyone has something in mind at any time, send me an email to discuss.

That means don’t lie to them, don’t threaten them, and don’t mention their families.  Ever. You may not like what they have to write, but keep in mind they have the pen and will always have the last word.

Brian Schoeneman, the Republican challenger to David Bulova for the 37th HOD seat in Fairfax County, is looking stronger and stronger.  As a first time candidate with little initial fundraising, Brian has impressed people with his great disposition, mainstream views, and hard work.  Bulova seems to want to coast to victory without working for it, not a smart thing to do in a strong Republican year.

Recently Schoeneman was subjected to a ridiculous push poll (Shaun Kenney covered it well) that, among other things, called him a “segregationist”.  Anyone that has read Schoenman’s well reasoned posts here and elsewhere know that he is anything but.  It’s a completely ludicrous statement with zero basis in fact.  The Dems would not be doing this if their polling showed Bulova comfortably ahead.

And now NLS reports that Schoeneman will be provided an initial $75,000 in targeted funds from RPV.  Any first time candidate running against an entrenched incumbent in a perceived safe seat is going to have fundraising challenges.  But Schoenman’s hard work has paid off and the RPV support will be a huge force multiplier.  Look for Schoeneman to far outperform expectations.

I am glad to be working with Keith Fimian again….he’s a fantastic campaigner and a great guy.

His PAC’s new site is:

http://www.virginiagopfund.com/