1. Changing Their Ride?
News that Rick Boucher spent almost $30,000 in campaign funds to purchase a Ford Edge could possibly give Morgan Griffith’s campaign in the 9th congressional district just the kind of traction he’s been seeking. While Boucher’s expenditure is permitted under campaign finance rules (so long as the vehicle is used for campaign-related purposes), Griffith will undoubtedly portray it as a metaphor for the kind of inappropriate spending rampant in Washington. The GOP will spend a ton of money telling folks in the 9th about Boucher’s Edge, trying to entice them to change their ride.
2. Combing the Expenditure Reports
With a public increasingly concerned with the lack of spending restraint in Washington, the campaign expenditure reports of candidates will come under increasing scrutiny this election cycle. (And incumbents are likely to have their previous reports subjected to a full and complete exhumation.) Any indication that you might spend other people’s money frivolously and/or inappropriately will be grist for the campaign mill. If you have any doubt that both sides plan to use the tactic, just consider the charges the Democrats leveled at Christine O’Donnell within hours of her defeating Mike Castle in Delaware.
3. The Privatization Challenge
Doesn’t appear to be getting any easier. The McDonnell administration produced a sensible plan that was crafted to address most of the objections that the opponents had raised. But the politics of privatization are another matter altogether. Organized opponents continue to outnumber the transportation and merchants associations that have endorsed the plan. Moreover, it’s not easy to develop a strong grassroots movement around liquor privatization when it is other elements of the GOP agenda that seem to be exciting the base. Most reporters to whom I’ve spoken don’t believe that there’s enough momentum right now in the Assembly for a successful special session on ABC. Bob McDonnell is a very savvy politician. It’ll be interesting to see if he recalibates the politics and builds support with some clever horse-trading.
4. Young Gun Eric Cantor
Was in town this week to sign copy of the book he recently published with two of his Young Gun colleagues in the House Republican Caucus. The visit prompted speculation about Cantor’s future in Richmond area political circles. If the GOP wins the House, will Cantor be willing to challenge John Boehner for the Speakership, especially after the House Majority Leader stepped all over the GOP message on taxes this week? Or is Cantor trying to position himself for a spot on the GOP ticket in 2012? In any case, Cantor is likely to become the most influential Virginian in Congress if the conventional wisdom holds up in November.
5. The Blue Ridge Caucus
Is the name of the new political blog that The Roanoke Times has recently started. I was pleased to see the paper take a step to feature two excellent political reporters. Mike Sluss has skillfully covered state politics for a number of years, recently doing a great job on the U.S. Navy Veterans Association scandal. And Mason Adams has developed a estimable body of work covering politics in and around the Star City. An added benefit is that Dwayne Yancey, author of one of the best campaign books ever written in Virginia, When Hell Froze Over, promises to leave his editor’s seat now and then and offer his reflections on what’s going on in the Commonwealth.
6. Radford Removes White Supremacist’s Name from Building
An inquiry from the Roanoke paper also played a role in prompting Radford University to remove the name of John Powell from an art and music building at the school. According to a story in the RT, it appears that Powell, a well known advocate for Appalachian folk music, had also been centrally involved in the passage of Virginia’s notorious Racial Integrity Act in 1924 and had also been allied with the eugenic movement in Virginia, one of the most disturbing chapters in the history of public policy in the Commonwealth. When the paper recently reminded the university that Powell’s name remained on the building despite an earlier intent to remove it, the Radford Board did the right thing and voted unanimously to take his name down immediately.
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