Bob McDonnell and Bil Bolling came out with a jobs plan today that calls for making Bolling the state’s Chief Jobs Creation Officer if McDonnell is elected.
Given the heat of a political campaign, I’m sure that reaction to the idea will break down along partisan lines.
But we’re really overdue for a serious reexamination of the role of the Lieutenant Governor in Virginia, one that specifies responsbilities beyond presiding over the Senate, breaking tie votes, and preparing for a gubernatorial run.
I was a fan of Mike Signer’s suggestion in the Democratic primary to think about about the LG as a public advocate for citizens.
And the McDonnell-Bolling suggestion is grounded in the reality in that almost half of the states, the LG has some responsibility for economic development and workforce related matters.
Virginia is one of the states that has the least extensive set of responsibilities for the LG.
If we are going to hold a statewide election to independently choose the LG, doesn’t it make sense to have a job description relevant to the challenges we face in the 21st Century?
Bill Bolling and Jody Wagner are both talented individuals and they can help lead this dialogue.
But it would be even better if Creigh Deeds and Bob McDonnell agreed to upgrading the LG’s role, regardless of the party affiliation of the person holding the position.
It’s time to make the responsibilities of the LG part of a bipartisan reform package.
Bob,
Given Virginia’s history of ticket splitting, doesn’t this set up the potential of an l.g. working at cross purposes with the governor? In a state where the governor only has four years to work on his policy program, is that what we want? And seriously, some of the recent occupants of the office have been pushed to their limits to cover presiding over the Senate, breaking the infrequent tie vote and calling the governor every day to see if he’s breathing. If the governor and l.g. ran as a ticket, this proposal might make some sense.
[...] Inspired by Dr. Bob Holsworth’s Time To Update the Lieutenant Governor’s Role [...]