Filed under: Election 2008, Local Press, State Government and Politics, Strategy and Tactics
WSVA 550AM 6th Congressional District Forum
Thursday October 9th 2008 at 10am
Holiday Inn -Tropical Room
1400 East Market Street
Harrisonburg, Virginia
Come watch Congressman Goodlatte explain to the people (and Sam Rasoul) just what it means to be a member of the United States House of Representatives and why we need his steady hand in this time of incredible change and crisis.
Filed under: Election 2008, General Assembly, Local Government and Politics, Local Press, Morning Round-Up, State Government and Politics
And….we…..are…..back.
Four stories you should know about:
-Governor Kaine is warning the General Assembly that major cuts are going to be needed in the budget due to what appears to have been a horrendous miscalculation by then-Finance Secretary, now-LG candidate Jody Wagner (seriously Democrats, this is the best you can do?) Could this be the silver bullet that kills Kaine’s VP chances? I dunno, Barack Obama barely has any accomplishments in his agenda, so even someone with a train wreck of a legacy might be worth it. Hint to Governor Kaine: Lying only works when you’re trying to raise taxes, not spending. For some reason, people tend to get a bit more upset when there’s no money instead of too much (even if it is all in the government’s hands). Personally, I like Delegate Clay Athey’s proposal best:
When the ax falls, it should land first on new programs proposed by Kaine, said Del. Clifford L. “Clay” Athey, R-Front Royal.
”That would free up $300 [million] to $400 million for before getting into core stuff” like education, Athey said.
Also a must read: Senator Obenshain’s response, up over at SWACGirl. Some highlights:
It wouldn’t have taken an expert to determine which way the fiscal winds were blowing in the waning days of 2007. Profligate spending, unfortunately, was the order of the day, and the attempts my Republican colleagues and I made to inject a dose of fiscal sanity into the budget process were dismissed out of hand. Reality and new spending programs were at odds, and the Governor decided that reality would simply have to give way.
………
More to the point, when the Governor presents revenue forecasts put together by his Secretary of Finance, we need to be able to rely on those projections as an unbiased and factually-based estimate. Instead, however, the numbers were merely a ploy to push new expenditures our Commonwealth can ill afford.
-President Rick Zinser is leaving Masanutten Military Academy next year after an eight year run. I’ll be perfectly honest: Colonel Zinser has done a marvelous job at the academy and has greatly changed how it is viewed in the community. Military academies (and this one in particular) are not little prisons; they are well thought out, alternative educational institutions driven by military values. Though I rarely like to do this, be sure to read the profile on Zinser and the Academy in last week’s Herald.
-Republican Electoral Board Member Bev Felming is working with the Woodstock Town Council on massaging the town’s current stance that town elections will be held at the old location (County Government Building) while all others will be at Central High School. The town decided to hold off on action when several residents protested the move, despite the fact that the move recieved no opposition before when it came to both the Electoral Board and the Board of Supervisors. (Although it should be noted there was some that may not have been lodged in public) Read your local government agendas, people!
-Strasburg’s planning commission is tackling the issue of commercial versus residential development once more, this time in the form of a proposal for 80-some condo units on Signal Knob Drive.
Filed under: Congress, Domestic Policy, Events, Local Government and Politics, Local Press, Morning Round-Up, State Government and Politics
Eight stories you should know about:
-The 287(g) program that allows local law enforcement to begin deportation proceedings may be on the federal budgetary chopping block. Shenandoah County participates in this program.
-The Strasburg Town Council is re-thinking the move from eight to six seats. Perhaps some of them realized that they too could be on the chopping block?
-The Woodstock Town Council has decided to keep its elections at the County Government Center rather than move to the school. Note that this applies only to the May General. Personally I don’t like the move at all. Why should these young whippersnaps get Election Day, the holiest of all days in a democracy, when yours truly had to labor tediously awaiting the return home to watch the festivities. I remember in 2000, the one time we did get Election Day off because they scheduled parent-teacher conferences the same day, that I too a nap so I could stay up late in to the night. In retrospect, that was a very good move…
-Dick Bowman has been award the Virginia, Maryland and Delaware Association of Electric Cooperatives distinguished service award.
-The Shenandoah County Fair will offer free admission to all veterans and active-duty service members on August 27th.
-The Virginia Forensic Science Board has rejected a plan to help notify felons of biological data that could be retested. Instead, they’ll be notified by certified mail.
-Preparations are underway for the County Yard Crawl. Please note: this is not an excuse to dump all your old crap on your yard and just hope someone takes it.
-Bill Bolling and Bob McDonnell will run as a team next year, regardless of what happens with Time Kaine in the coming weeks.
Filed under: Congress, Domestic Policy, Election 2008, Events, General Assembly, Local Government and Politics, Local Press, Morning Round-Up, State Government and Politics
Six stories you should know about:
-Rep. Eric Cantor has come out swinging against Barack Obama’s energy policy. Funny. You couldn’t even get people to think about energy policy for most of the last twenty years.
-Representative Goodlatte is touting his coastal exploration plan.
-New Market has released details for its fa…uh, late summer Heritage Festival. You can keep trying to explain to me why you think moving this thing to the opening weekend of the fair was a good idea…..
-Strasburg’s Capital Improvements Plan is headed for an update.
-McCain surrogates Delegates Chris Saxman and Matt Lohr are outlining the Senator’s energy policy in Harrisonburg news conference this morning. Sorry folks, they’re not on the shortlist for veep.
-Larry Hincker, Virginia Tech’s VP for University Relations, spoke to a group of university security officials about crisis communication. That wasn’t a mistype. You may remember his for this gem.
Filed under: Election 2008, Election 2009, General Assembly, Local Government and Politics, Local Press, Morning Round-Up, State Government and Politics
stories you should know about:
-Garren Shipley speculates what the possible selection of Time Kaine for VP could mean for the General Assembly and Election 2009. My speculation: this is fun, but right now I’m at 55% confidence that Kaine won’t be picked.
-Karen Spillman, who was recently hired as Strasburg High’s new principal, apparently has a bit of a history with the media…..and not particularly a good one.
-Bob Goodlatte will be hosting a Veteran’s Fair at the Weyer’s Cave Community center on August 12th from 10 A.M. to 12 P.M. Veterans can get helping enrolling in benefits and learn more about about area VA Programs.
-Just a little bit to the North, but The Winchester Star is reporting that we may be looking at a great peach season this year. Note: In the 2002 census of agriculture for Shenandoah County, fruit made up nearly 48% of cash receipts for crops.
-Also just a bit away, The Winchester Star takes a look at Star Tannery’s fire company and their annual parade. They mention cancellations in Toms Brook and Conicsville, but I believe they mean Toms Brook and Strasburg (and I believe Mt. Jackson as well).
Filed under: Election 2008, Local Government and Politics, Local Press, Party Politics
Not much going down on this slow Monday morning:
-Garren Shipley has more from our breakfast on Saturday morning. By the way, it was a rousing success, with twenty people showing up. Not bad for our first time. Be sure to join us next month.
-Strasburg has its very own police dog and a grant writer.
State Senator Mark Obenshain and Delegate Todd Gilbert are headed back to work today to hopefully work out a deal on transportation. The Northen Virginia Daily has coverage.
I’ll update this post later in the day once we have some sort of report.
UPDATE: Garren Shipley of the Northern Virginia Daily will have a live-blog going of the General Assembly. Essentially, it’ll be like listening to a ball game on the radio, just reading it. This is the closest you’ll get to live coverage today, so be sure to check it out.
Gilmore swung through the Valley today, with a stop in Harrisonburg and Winchester. Apparently the Gilmore campaign planned it so they could have small fundraisers but also small events where the Governor talked about his solutions for working Virginia families. Interesting strategy, particularly when the Governor is working from a distinct disadvantage in terms of dollars. I think we’re beginning to see the street fighter than won two statewide elections in a row. I think Gilmore could very well take off later this summer when Mark Warner is forced to answer for things like failing to follow through on investment funds that he used to bolster his political ambitions.
Senator McCain also had an innovative event today, with small business owners gathering in Richmond to praise the Senator’s economic policies. Thing is, the Senator wasn’t there. They WERE joined by AG Bob McDonnell and LG Bill Bolling (expect to see them EVERYWHERE between now and November 2009).
Attorney General Robert F. McDonnell (R) and Lt. Gov Bill Bolling (R) , two of McCain’s key Virginia surrogates, spoke at the event.
“McCain gets the fundamental truth about the economy, which is you cannot tax your way to prosperity,” McDonnell said.
Christy Swanson, owner of CKB Swanson Inc., also spoke. She told reporters she used to be an Obama supporter, but switched to McCain after hearing him spoke at a recent National Federation of Independent Business convention.
“While I am a Democrat, I am proud to support John McCain for president and looking forward to helping him to victory in November,” said Swanson, who is Asian.
Claudia Garcia Gonzalez, an Hispanic who co-owns of KLM Drywall, spoke to the television cameras in broken English.
“John McCain’s economic plan help company like mine expand and create more jobs,” Gonzalez said.
We’ll have more coverage of today’s Gilmore events in the morning.
Filed under: Congress, Foreign Affairs, In Memoriam, Local Government and Politics, Local Press, Morning Round-Up | Tags: Afghanistan, Bob Goodlatte, Iraq, Local Government and Politics, Towns
Sorry we’re a little late. Days off have a tendency to push everything back. But four stories you should know about:
-Planning Commission Chairman Jeff Aimonetti’s funeral is being held today. Planning Administrator Chris Boies explains the process for replacing Mr. Aimonetti here.
-Speaking of Mr. Boies, he is leaving his job at the end of the month to become the town manager iin New Market. From what I’ve seen at Planning Meetings, they’ve made an excellent choice. Chris really knows his stuff for a 27 year old.
-And speaking of youth, 19-yeard old Justin Ritenour officially became Shenandoah County’s youngest elected official on Tuesday when he was sworn in as a member of the Strasburg Town Council.
-Bob Goodlatte: World Traveler. Or at least this week, anyways, Bob Goodlatte reports from Afghanistan, where the U.S. has been facing a surge in violence. Still, the Congressman points out some improvement on some important fronts, including the fact that the nation has been holding free and fair elections since the Taliban was removed from power.
In May Shenandoah County Republican Committee Member Ed Munden was elected to the Woodstock Town Council. Many may best remember Ed as the former owner of the Radio Shack. However, that was only Ed’s second career; many years before he had been a top aide to Senator John Tower, the first Republican elected to Senate in Texas in the post-Reconstruction era. He played his own small role in the aftermath of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. It had been Tower’s office that assassin Lee Harvey Oswald had contacted as he sought to return to the United States after a stay in the Soviet Union. As Mr. Tower’s Chief of Staff, Mr. Munden was called upon by the media to elaborate upon their dealings with Oswald. The letter was recently rediscovered in a Washington, D.C. attic.
At any rate, Mr. Munden opened up his third act with a clear declaration of the direction he’s looking to take the Town of Woodstock:
Munden said residents were tired of increased taxes, hiked water and sewer rates and other unnecessary changes, including the recent removal of two trees in front of the historic Shenandoah County Courthouse for downtown enhancement purposes.
“Take a good look at the voters’ message and give our voters the change they have asked for and deserve,” he said.
It appears that Mr. Munden will be taking his cues from the Republican Party.
Stay tuned.
