VA House of Delegate Caucus Endorses Rob Bell for Attorney General

Leading up to the Republican Advance, the first of many endorsement lists has been released.  One thing stands out.  The House of Delegate GOP Caucus overwhelmingly supports Rob Bell for Attorney General.  His list includes 36 different Delegates who have endorsed him, an overwhelming majority of the House GOP Caucus.  The list includes Speaker Bill Howell and delegates of every stripe from all over the commonwealth.  The list also includes two former delegates, Bill Carrico and Bill Janis.  Two other things that stand out about the list.  Rob Bell has the support of Congressman Rob Hurt.  He also seems to be distancing himself from Jeff Frederick (former Delegate and RPV Chairman) who recently endorsed him by leaving him off the list.  If Bell won't even acknowledge that Jeff Frederick has endorsed him, should Frederick's supporters back Bell?

Mark Obenshain's endorsement list will be interesting to see in the coming days.

The full list from the email is below.

We Endorse Rob Bell!

5^th Congressional District

Congressman Robert Hurt

Albemarle County

Sheriff Chip Harding

Honorable Ken Boyd, Chairman, Board of Supervisors

Honorable Rodney Thomas, County Supervisor

Botetourt County

Delegate Christopher Head

Campbell County

Delegate Matt Fariss

Caroline County

Delegate Robert Orrock

Jeff Sili, Republican Committee Chair

Chesapeake

Honorable Rick West, City Councilor

Chesterfield County

Delegate Roxann Robinson

Danville

Delegate Daniel Marshall III

Sandra Warren, Republican Committee Chair

Fairfax

Delegate David Albo

Delegate Thomas Rust

Honorable John Peterson, Director NOVA SWCD

Fauquier County

Honorable Jim Fisher, Commonwealth’s Attorney

Honorable Lee Sherbeyn, County Supervisor

Fluvanna County

Honorable Jeff Haislip, Commonwealth’s Attorney

Debbie Rittenhouse, Republican Committee Chair

Franklin County

Delegate Charles Poindexter

Grayson County

State Senator Bill Carrico

Greene County

Sheriff Steven Smith

Gary Lowe, Republican Committee Chair

Halifax County

Delegate James Edmunds

Hanover County

Delegate Christopher Peace

Honorable Trip Chalkley, Commonwealth’s Attorney

Sheriff Dave Hines

Honorable Wayne Hazzard, County Supervisor

Henrico County

Delegate John O’Bannon

Former Delegate Bill Janis

Sheriff Mike Wade

Isle of Wight County

Delegate Rick Morris

Bill Coburn, Republican Committee Chair

Lexington/Rockbridge County/Buena Vista

Cher McCoy, Republican Committee Chair

Loudoun County

Delegate Tag Greason

Delegate Joe May

Delegate David Ramadan

Louisa County

State Senator Tom Garrett

Lunenburg County

Delegate Thomas Wright Jr.

Madison County

Delegate Edward Scott

Honorable George Webb, Commonwealth’s Attorney

William Harvill, Republican Committee Chair

Manassas City

Steven Thomas, Republican Committee Chair

Newport News

Delegate David Yancey

Hazel Call, Hampton Roads Republican Women Chair

Orange County

Doug Rogers, Republican Committee Chair

Honorable Diana Wheeler, Commonwealth’s Attorney

Petersburg

Debra Mallory, 1^st Vice Chair Tri-City Republican Women

Pittsylvania County

Delegate Donald Merricks

Poquoson

Delegate Gordon Helsel, Jr.

Paul Keddell, Republican Committee Chair

Powhatan County

Delegate Lee Ware Jr.

Prince George County

Barbara Tabb, Republican Committee Chair

Prince William County

Delegate Richard Anderson

Delegate Jackson Miller

Richmond

Jerilynn Grigsby, Tuckahoe Republican Women Chair

Scott County

Delegate Terry Kilgore

Spotsylvania County

Delegate Mark Cole

Stafford County

Delegate Mark Dudenhefer

Delegate William Howell, Speaker, House of Delegates

Tazewell County

Delegate James W. Morefield

Virginia Beach

Delegate Salvatore Iaquinto

Delegate Barry Knight

Delegate Harry Purkey

Delegate Christopher Stolle

Delegate Ronald Villanueva

Washington County

Delegate Israel O’Quinn

Westmoreland County

Delegate Margaret Ransone

   

Election Prediction: Tsunami, not a Wave

Very simply the rejection of liberalism, progressivism, and elitism that is occurring is so widespread that this will be a tsunami, not a wave. To quote one democrat consultant...

Everybody that is tied will lose, and everyone that is ahead by a few points will lose because of the GOP wave,” said one party media consultant who is involved in a wide array of House races. “There are going to be some surprises.

The early voting numbers show a strong shift towards the Republicans, and the generic ballot poll shows unprecedented support for Conservativism, and Republicans. Gallup noted just how strong what the generic ballot poll domination means in their last poll...

It should be noted, however, that this year’s 15-point gap in favor of the Republican candidates among likely voters is unprecedented in Gallup polling and could result in the largest Republican margin in House voting in several generations. This means that seat projections have moved into uncharted territory, in which past relationships between the national two-party vote and the number of seats won may not be maintained.

In light of this and other evidence let's make some predictions...

Republicans win at least 70 seats in the house.

Republicans also take back the senate with late wins in NV, Washington, and other places. While it is a stretch for Republicans to win the senate, history gives us some good direction.

Since 1930, every time voters have thrown one party out of control of the House, they've done the same thing in the Senate.

Surprising wins...

• Governor: Tom Tancredo wins Colorado
• Senate: Christine O'Donnell wins Deleware
• House: Patrick Murray wins the 8th district, and Democrats are left with one House seat in Virginia.

Other Important Races

• Rick Boyer, a long time homeschool dad, is running for Clerk of the Court in Campbell Co.
• Brenna Findley is running for Attorney General in Iowa. If she wins this would be a huge win for liberty in the Attorney General office.
• The Iowa Supreme Court Retention vote. If the judges on the ballot lose this would be a huge blow to judicial activism on the state level.
• Also it will be interesting to see the results of the VA Constitutional Amendments. They passed the general assembly, but it seems a lot of people are just finding out about them, and the blogosphere seems very unfriendly to the amendments. Few elected officials are really publicly supporting them.

None of these predictions, or the hard work that thousands have exerted will mean a thing, unless you vote. As you watch the returns, this is a very helpful guide.

Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli Combating Identity Theft

Identity theft is one of the fastest growing crimes in the United States, and Attorney General Cuccinelli, along with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission and 34 other states have taken action against LifeLock Inc, an identity theft protection provider that was not able to provide the security it promised its customers. Lifelock reached an agreement this week with the Virginia, FTC and other states after the company was investigated for allegedly purposefully misleading consumers.

The states and the FTC began jointly investigating LifeLock amid allegations that the company made a range of deceptive claims that misled consumers to believe its services were a "proven solution" that would protect against all forms of identity theft, including criminal, mortgage and child identity theft. The settlement also resolves allegations that the company misrepresented the nature of specific services it provided to protect or alert consumers when their personal information was compromised.

(From Pat Mullins March 12th, Chairman's Update)

Cuccinelli Follows the Law, While McDonnell Follows the Polls

Last week it was revealed that Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli sent a directive to the state universtities informing them they were stepping outside the bounds of the law to have non-discrimination policies that include sexual orientation. This created an immediate firestorm from both sides of the aisle. All the usual suspects yelled bigot, and turning back the clock, and sadly even Republicans came out against the Attorney General's call to obey the rule of law. A prominent College Republican leader (Cole Usry of Christopher Newport University) organized early protests against the Attorney General, and prominent Republican blogs have come out against the Attorney General. One blog even suggested he could kiss future political aspirations good buy as a result of this. Honestly the reaction to the Attorney General's decision has been heavily based on emotion. To my knowledge no one has made the case that Ken Cuccinelli is incorrect in his interpretation of the law. All this blowback resulted because Ken Cuccinelli made good on his campaign promise to "enforce the rule of law."

In response to this firestorm Governor Bob McDonnell is trying to placate the left by issuing "Executive Directive #1." First of all an executive directive is different from an executive order. This is a legally nonbinding statement reminding state agencies that “employment discrimination for any reason other than merit and ability has no place in state government”. The reaction to the Executive Directive has been generally positive, especially from the left. However the VA Family Foundation sent out an e-mail expressing their concern with the directive and noted as troubling the positive statements the ACLU made about it.

Probably the most stinging rebuke to the Governor came from a long time supporter, and social conservative leader, Dr. Mike Farris. Dr. Farris gave the Washington Post a very blunt statement on the issue.

"I think this action is incredibly disappointing, to the point of being shocking," said Michael P. Farris, the chancellor of Patrick Henry College, a private Christian college in Loudoun County. "The deeper message it sends is that people who think homosexuality is a sin are wrong. They are irrational."

Farris, a lawyer and constitutional scholar who ran for lieutenant governor in 1993, said he thinks McDonnell's policy statement will be used in courts to help challenge Virginia's constitutional amendment banning gay marriage, which McDonnell supported. "I don't think the people advising him were doing anything other than reading polls," Farris said.

I am proud of Ken Cuccinelli for standing up for the law no matter how politically incorrect it may be. I also have to side with Dr. Farris in expressing my disappointment in Governor McDonnell. If you can't stand up for traditional values when the law is on your side and the General Assembly is with you, when can you?

Let's hope the governor will follow through on his promise to defund Planned Parenthood. That is something he can do single handedly, and if he doesn't do that this year, can social conservatives ever hope he will fight for us?

UPDATE:: As always Tim Boyer, a good friend of this blog, is willing to call it like it is, and has some similar thoughts on this topic along with some thoughts on the possible political reasons for McDonnell's actions.

Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli Defends the Scientific Process as he Challenges the EPA

In light of the recent climategate scandal Ken Cuccinelli is challenging the EPA to use scientifically verifiable data in its global warming regulations. Many are saying Cuccinelli opposes science, he is actually defending science by requesting that the EPA use the scientific method before imposing draconian regulations that would devestate Virginia's economy.

The Power of Ken Cuccinelli's Endorsement Part II

Some reason I feel like this story may have a lot of parts to it by the time the year is out...

In January we saw the importance of Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli's endorsement when his endorsement of Howie Lind in the 10th District Chairman Race lead to Jim Rich dropping out.

This past week we saw it in the LCRC Chairman race. Days before the vote the endorsement went public, and then he and his staff agressively contacted Loudoun voters on behalf Mark Sell. While Mark's team worked very hard, Ken's endorsement plaid a very big role in a close race that saw the sitting chairman and most of the executive board actively backing Candace Strother.

Ken Cuccinelli's endorsement is one that matters in party races and primaries, because he actively helps those he endorses and it pays off. If people want his endorsement in the future they need to stand with him now as he comes under attack for fighting for conservative principles. Standing with Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli is the right thing to do and the politically smart thing to do.

Ken Cuccinelli Endorses Howie Lind for 10th District Chair

Yesterday our new Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli made news by endorsing Howie Lind for 10th District Chair. Once again Black Velvet broke the story first with an excellent story and the full press release. Ken is a long time activist in the 10th District. He has served as a state senator since 2002 and understands the kind of support our elected officials in all levels of government need to succeed. He consistently won in Northern Virginia when people said he would lose. He won the nomination on one ballot when many were predicting it would take two, and won the general election overwhelmingly when people were saying he was too extreme to win state wide. Ken Cuccinelli understands what it takes to win elections. We need new blood in the 10th District Chairmanship that is willing to work with and listen to everyone, and help elect people at all levels of government within the 10th District.

Ken Cuccinelli believes Howie Lind will make an excellent 10th District Chairman. I hope others across the district will follow Ken's lead in supporting Howie Lind.

If you want to join the team contact Howie Lind and ask how you can help.

Howie Lind for Chairman, PO Box 92, McLean, VA 22101 703-336-3940howie@lindforchairman.com

VA Fraternal Order of Police Endorses Cuccinelli

. Paraphrased Press Release from September 25th:

This week Senator Ken Cuccinelli, Candidate for VA Attorney General, received the single most important endorsement in the Attorney General's race - the Virginia Fraternal Order of Police, the largest law enforcement group in the Commonwealth.

FOP President Tommy Edwards had this to say about the race:

"Ken Cuccinelli's outstanding recognition of the problems faced by the Supreme Court Case Melendez-Diaz, his early and outspoken push for a Special Session, and its ultimate success which will allow the prosecution of certain cases to proceed - is a testament to his skill, knowledge, and support of the law enforcement community."

The momentum is clearly building for Cuccinelli in this race.

Continuing to Follow the Money from Steve Shannon to... Acorn?

Earlier I posted about how Steve Shannon is practically being paid to call for Phil Hamilton to resign. Now it seems that as you follow Steve Shannon's money trail, it may lead to none other than Acorn. This web ad from the Cuccinelli campaign is pretty hard hitting on this connection. This ad has been picked up by the Wall Street Journal and Politico even though it has been out for mere hours.

For someone who constantly criticizes Ken Cuccinelli for having a "personal political agenda" it is ironic there are this many questionable money connections with Steve Shannon.

Should Steve Shannon Call for Himself to be Investigated?

In early September, e-mails came out that seemed to indicate Delegate Phil Hamilton funneled state money to Old Dominion University in exchange for a job. Steve Shannon immediately called on Phil Hamilton to resign, and called on Cuccinelli to do the same. He even began running radio ads in the Norfolk are going after Cuccinelli for not calling on Phil Hamilton to resign.

Cuccinelli has responded by arguing that it is wrong for an Attorney General candidate to weigh in on the issue because he might have to sit in judgment in the case. Some have argued that once again this is evidence that Cuccinelli understands the role of the Attorney General while Shannon doesn't.

Thanks to Virginia's public finance disclosure rules some interesting trends have turned up in donations to the Democrat Statewide candidates. It appears that Phil Hamilton's opponent's law firm gave over $120,000.00 to the three Democrat statewide candidates, including over $50,000 to Steve Shannon. Tom White of VA Right did an excellent job analyzing the numbers. This raises the question should there be calls for Steve Shannon to be investigated? If he was given money from Hamilton's opponent and then as a result started calling for Phil Hamilton to resign, isn't that prid pro quo?

Simultaneously posted on VASocialConservative, Bloggers for Ken Cuccinelli, and Off the Trunk.

Cuccinelli Sets New Fundraising Record

Last fundraising period Cuccinelli outraised Steve Shannon. At this point we don't know what Shannon's numbers are so we don't know if Cuccinelli outraised him, however it is a historic fundraising record. This last quarter Cuccinelli raised more money off of 1,000 more donors than Bob McDonnell raised in the same quarter of his Attorney General bid. Also the Cuccinelli campaign did this without any party money, which McDonnell had a significant amount of in that quarter. This is a great sign of the true momentum of the Cuccinelli campaign. Even in a bad economy many people believe passionately enough in Ken Cuccinelli that they are willign to donate to his campaign. When you are dedicated to standing up for our values people will respond and support you in Virginia.

Cuccinelli summarized it best when he said,

"I am extremely gratified by the large number of people who have contributed to my campaign. It's truly a testament to the overwhelming grassroots support we have around the Commonwealth. Clearly our message of improving the economy, creating jobs and keeping our families and our neighborhoods safe is ringing a cord with Virginians."

Is it really any surprise Ken Cuccinelli has such strong grassroots support when he gives speeches like the one he gave at Buena Vista?

Lets keep the momentum going and make sure Ken Cuccinelli becomes our next Attorney General.

Crossposted at Bloggers for Cuccinelli.

Ken Cuccinelli Successful During Special Session

Last month I described how Ken Cuccinelli called for a special session of the General Assembly to deal with a recent Supreme Court decision. After being accused of making political stunts, Tim Kaine eventually sided with Ken over Steve Shannon and called the special session. The session occurred yesterday, and in one day the solution bill that Ken introduced was passed through both houses of the general assembly.

Special Session

Successful;

Legislature Follows

Cuccinelli's Lead

RICHMOND - Today, Virginia's General Assembly passed legislation requested by Senator Ken Cuccinelli to address the problems created by the ruling of the United States Supreme Court in Melendez-Diaz v. Massachusetts.

Sen. Cuccinelli remarked, "I would like to thank my colleagues in the General Assembly and Governor Kaine for working together to solve this issue quickly." Sen. Cuccinelli added, "Across the Commonwealth, drunk drivers were getting off scott free - this was a public safety issue, and we were able to address it with today's legislation."

On June 25th, the Supreme Court ruled in Melendez that prosecutors could not require defendants to call lab technicians to testify in drug and DUI prosecutions, as this shifted the burden from the prosecution to the defense to produce witnesses in a criminal case. This decision resulted in an explosion of defense subpoenas for lab technicians - threatening to overwhelm the department of forensic sciences and prosecutors across Virginia, thereby causing the dismissal of drug and DUI cases. This decision forced prosecutors to suspend drug and drunk driver cases and caused a bottleneck in Virginia's criminal justice system.

Commonwealth's Attorneys from all over Virginia were severely concerned over the situation and were scrambling for a fix to the problem.

After consulting with Virginia prosecutors and law enforcement, Sen. Cuccinelli was the first to pose a solution to the Melendez problem, and in a letter to Governor Kaine, called for a Special Session on July 9th, just two weeks after the ruling. On July 22nd, Governor Kaine announced during a press conference that a legislative fix would be needed and called the legislature into session.

On July 10th, Democrat Candidate for Attorney General and House of Delegates Member, Steve Shannon called Sen. Cuccinelli's request for a legislative fix a "political stunt," and said an administrative fix was all that was needed. Shannon was rebuked by Commonwealth's Attorneys and even by the Governor.

Governor Kaine endorsed Cuccinelli's approach, noting that "legislative action" was necessary to solve the problems posed by Melendez.

Shannon voted for Cuccinelli's legislation, despite his early and loud opposition to resolving this issue through legislation.

"I'd like to thank Steve for voting for my 'legislative fix'," said Sen. Cuccinelli. "I'm glad Steve and others changed their mind and recognized that my urgent request over a month ago was indeed not a political stunt." Sen. Cuccinelli added, "I will continue working alongside law enforcement and Commonwealth's Attorneys to make sure that this fix has the intended effect - to stop drunk drivers, and drug offenders, from going free due to Melendez."

Sen. Cuccinelli also noted that he looked forward to addressing other approaches to alleviate the Melendez problem, such as live video transmissions from lab technicians. "I just hoping I'm doing it as Attorney General, not as a State Senator," Sen. Cuccinelli concluded.

Senator Cuccinelli was one of five members on the Courts of Justice Sub-Committee which crafted this legi

Tim Kaine Agrees With Ken Cuccinelli, Decides to Call Special Session

One of the biggest stories in the Attorney General's race is Ken Cuccinelli's call for a special session to deal with the Melendez-Diaz v. Massacheusetts decision. While Shannon thought Cuccinelli was going to far, and wanted Kaine to find an administrative solution, it now appears that Tim Kaine agrees with Ken Cuccinelli.

The AP is reporting that a Virginia lawmaker says Kaine will call a special session to deal with the issue later today.

RICHMOND, Va. - A Virginia lawmaker says Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine will call a special session to deal with a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that's having repercussions in the state's courts.

The legislator spoke on the condition of anonymity Tuesday night because he was not authorized to pre-empt the governor's announcement. Kaine has scheduled a news conference for Wednesday, but his office says only that he will make two public safety announcements.

A second legislator, House Democratic Leader Ward Armstrong of Henry County, said Kaine has told him he's leaning toward calling a special session.

The announcement is expected to take place sometime later today.

Cuccinelli was the person who realized how important this issue. He accurately predicted DUI cases would be dismissed, and made the difficult but correct decision. Once again he has stood up for what is best for Virginians, even if it may be politically difficult. Kaine's decision to side with a candidate from the opposite party over his own candidate for Attorney General means that he realized administrative solutions were impossible, and the special session is what is necessary to fix this problem. His actions will validate Cuccinelli's foresight, and accurate understanding of the law.

(Cross posted at Off the Trunk, and Bloggers for Ken Cuccinelli.)

Cuccinelli Outriases Shannon with Historic Fundraising Period

In the last fundraising period Ken Cuccinelli ouraised his opponent, Steve Shannon, by $7,000.00. Ken Cuccinelli raised $291,704 and Steven Shannon raised $284,733. (Contrary to what the Richmond Times Dispatch may write this actually means Ken raised more money.) Not only did Ken outraise Steve, but he also had the most donations. He had 292 donations greater than $100.00 compared with Shannon's 238. On donations of $100.00 or less Cuccinelli had 487 more than eight times as much as Steve Shannon's 57. If donors are votes Ken Cuccinelli is in good shape.

Not only did Ken outraise Steve Shannon this quarter, he pulled in a historic haul. According to Chris Lacivita,

"This was more than the last two GOP candidates for attorney general, Bob McDonnell and Jerry W. Kilgore, raised in the same period, campaign consultant Chris LaCivita said. It also includes no national GOP money, he said."

This historic fundraising report follows only a week after Ken's polling lead was announced. Let's keep this moment going by volunteering, and continuing to donate. If we work hard we will see Ken Cuccinelli as our next Attorney General.

(Simultaneously posted by VASocialConservative and Cuccinelli4AG.)

Democrats Trying to Paint Cuccinelli as a Radical Conservative who Attempts to Confuse his Opponents

In a recent NBC 12 interview Ken Cuccinelli answered the charge that he is some radical right-winger. This is something he is regularly being accused of. As soon as Ken joined the ticket after the convention the ticket was called the "most divisive ticket" by the Democrat Party. While he was unafraid to identify himself as a social conservative, Ken reminded viewers that he is the leader in the senate on both mental health issues, and property rights issues. His ability to reach out and work with people is the reason he is able to serve as a state senator from Fairfax County. If he really were a radical wingnut it would be tough for him to win in Fairfax. Instead he has a "complete record" and seeks to find areas of agreement with all voters.

In the middle of the video (about 1:30) Ken makes the comment "If we can confuse them, we're happy to do that." Lowell Feld of Blue Virginia is trying to use this line as a "gotcha moment" with Ken. One other blogger even referring to this as a possible "macaca moment." They are trying to use this to say, "Ha, Ken is out pulling the wool over our eyes." However while you can pull a sentence out of context with any politician, this is not what Ken is saying. In the preceding sentence, Ken says, "There are a lot of issues I have been working on that just don't fall into their carricature of me." It is in this context that Ken makes the "controversial" statement. It is a matter of confusing people into thinking Ken is a radical right-winger. He is fine with letting people mischaracterize him. If they want to attack a straw man of him he is happy to let them remain confuses. He has a record to point to that is one of getting things done on issues important to all Virginians, and it is this record of getting things done that will lead him to victory in the fall.

(Simultaneously posted at VASocialConservative andCuccinelli4AG.)

Ken Cuccinelli Calls for Special Session of the General Assembly

Ken Cuccinelli Calls for Special Session:

"We need to Protect Virginians from Drug Dealers and Drunk Drivers."

FAIRFAX -- Today, State Senator Ken Cuccinelli, (R-Fairfax), and Republican Candidate for Attorney General, called on Governor Tim Kaine to bring the Legislature back to Richmond immediately to address the problems created by the ruling of the United States Supreme Court in Melendez-Diaz v. Massachusetts. This decision has begun forcing prosecutors to suspend drug and drunk driver prosecutions, "which is a situation that is bad and will likely get worse if we don't act quickly," said Cuccinelli. "The first priority of Government is public safety. It is with this in mind that I call on Governor Kaine to convene the General Assembly as soon as possible to fix the problem with our notice waiver statute in the Virginia Code. While Virginia's law was ruled constitutional by our Virginia Supreme Court, that ruling was a close 4-3 decision, and it is on appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. While I share our Attorney General's opinion that Virginia should prevail under the current statute, the U.S. Supreme Court will not reconvene to hear this case until at least October, and the case is clearly a close call at best," said Cuccinelli. "Commonwealth's Attorneys are on the front lines in the war on crime, they need to be secure in knowing that all Virginia's statutes are constitutional and that their prosecutions will not be undone because of Melendez. And of course the state has an obligation to the defense, to ensure protection under the 6th Amendment. I believe the only way to ensure constitutionality is to conform Virginia's notice waiver statute to Georgia's, which the U.S. Supreme Court said is constitutional in theMelendez case. Anything less I believe would be a disservice to Virginia's Commonwealth's Attorneys and its law enforcement community," concluded Cuccinelli. Until the ruling in Melendez-Diaz, the Virginia state forensic lab was able to submit a certificate of analysis of their findings for use in court in drug and D.U.I. cases. Virginia law allows the certificate of analysis as proof of the drugs involved in the case or blood alcohol content. "With the volume of cases analyzed, requiring court appearances by the scientist in every case has the potential to cripple the criminal justice system," noted Cuccinelli. Local prosecutors across the Commonwealth are also asking for a special session to fix the problem. Louisa County Commonwealth's Attorney Tom Garrett said, "Across the Commonwealth drunk drivers and drug dealers are going free in cases that would have been certain convictions two weeks ago." Senator Cuccinelli said, "A legislative fix would be much better than hiring 100-200 new scientists, which we couldn't do now even if we tried." Senator Cuccinelli noted that under the Virginia Constitution, if the Governor does not act, the legislature can call itself into session if 2/3 of the Senators and 2/3 of the Delegates write to the Governor making such a request. "We can call the special session now, before too much damage has been done, or we'll end up doing it later, after hundreds or thousands of drug defendants and drunk drivers have gotten off spot-free. I think we should act right now."

Ken Cuccinelli's Speech at the Roanoke Tea Party

On July 4th one of Ken's many stops was the Roanoke Tea Party. Ken compared the current situation to the first tea party where the Boston Tea Company was bailed out and then the colonists were taxed. He reminded everyone that it was the Republicans who started the bailouts, and told everyone that as Attorney General he intends to draw a line in the sand with the federal government and protect out state rights. Ken is a true unabashed conservative, let's work hard to get him elected this year so he can fight for us for the next four years.

New Poll is Great News for Ken Cuccinelli

Today the first poll of all three statewide races was released by Public Policy Polling. On the CRFV Blog I posted about the good news this is for the whole Republican ticket. I would take a moment to analyze what this poll means for Ken Cuccinelli.

The poll reports that Ken Cuccinelli leads Steve Shannon 45%-38% overall and 44%-26% among independents. (Ken also enjoys the support of 85% of Republican voters compared to Shannon who only has 80% from his own party.) While this is great news (especially since Shannon is well funded and had no primary contest) when you analyze the undecideds the poll gets even better. Independents have the largest percentage of undecided voters with 30%. Since Ken seems to do well among these voters there is more room for his lead to grow their. Interestingly 14% of Democrats are undecided. If they are undecided this far into the campaign season their has to be a possibility Ken can pick up some of these votes as well.

The person who some people say is too radical to win in Virginia is leading in the first poll, and even leading among independents. Let's continue to work hard and make sure Ken and the rest of the ticket win this fall.

Dave Foster: Post Convention

Last night I attended my first meeting of the Loudon County Republican Committee. Probably one of the most significant things that happened at the meeting was hearing from Dave Foster. Throughout the nomination contest Dave Foster told Republican activists that they had three great candidates to choose from, and that he would wholeheartedly support whoever the convention chose as its nominee. Last night he made good on his promise. Dave Foster addressed the LCRC, thanked his supporters, made some of his trademark humor, praised Ken Cuccinelli, and pledged to do anything the Republican ticket wanted him to do. As part of his efforts to elect Ken Cuccinelli, he announced he will be hosting a fundraiser for Ken by the end of July at his D.C. law office.

Dave Foster also hinted at a possible future run for office. While I'm not sure what office he would run for (maybe the 8th congressional district?) his bid for attorney general has only improved his chances for future elected office. He improved his statewide name recognition, has supporters across the state, earned the respect of those who did not support him, and did little to get people upset at him through his bid. Dave Foster joked in his speech how Ken referred to him as the "nicest candidate in the race." He was definitely a very nice candidate. He was an honorable candidate to campaign against, and I will be excited to see what he does in the future.

Cuccinelli: Sticking to His Principles Even if it Means Losing

This morning National Review Online published an excellent story about Ken Cuccinelli. It highlights his committment to the founding fathers, his belief in core Republican principles, and grassroots support.

June 29, 2009, 4:00 a.m.

Virginia Gentleman
A prospective state attorney general goes back to the founders.

By Michael Warren

Several prints of war paintings hang in the law offices of Virginia state senator Ken Cuccinelli, but the most prominent is titled Sons of Erin: It shows a brigade of Irish-born Union soldiers charging into the Battle of Antietam — or Sharpsburg, as it’s known in Dixie. The Irish brigade, comprised of poor immigrants — many fresh off the boat — lost over 500 men that day. “The Irish were the best fighters on both sides of the war,” says Cuccinelli, a self-described Civil War buff who is half-Irish himself.

Cuccinelli is running for attorney general as a conservative Republican in a right-leaning state that’s having a fling with Democrats. Last year, voters delivered their electoral votes to Barack Obama. Virginia’s governor is a Democrat and so are its two senators. Perhaps this trend makes Cuccinelli an underdog, like those Antietam warriors and their ancestors back in Ireland. The candidate certainly sees it that way, except in one important respect: “They always lose,” he says.

So far, the 40-year-old Cuccinelli has always won. In 2002, he ran in a special election to represent Fairfax County in Virginia’s senate. He won again a year later. Then, in 2007 — a rotten year for Republicans — he had his toughest race yet, winning by about 100 votes in a race that required a recount. He expects a close election this November, too, against Democratic state delegate Steve Shannon.

“I’ve been outspent in all three races,” he says, showing the pride of a businessman who is satisfied to have done the job well for half the cost. It may happen again this fall: Shannon currently leads in fundraising. But Cuccinelli insists that victory is just a means, not the end. “The point is to accomplish the agenda,” he says. What is the agenda? “I’m running to advance a more limited-government, pro-family agenda. The founding fathers would approve.”

The founding fathers play a critical role in Cuccinelli’s political philosophy. He doesn’t have a favorite, but he has a natural affinity for fellow Virginians like Patrick Henry, James Madison, and George Mason. For Cuccinelli, though, the ideas are more important than the people, and he makes the point with another Virginian, Thomas Jefferson. “He articulated the principles spectacularly,” says Cuccinelli. “But he didn’t always live up to them.”

Cuccinelli says the founding fathers got the principles right: “It’s a foundation that can’t be improved upon.” He offers this foundation as a remedy for disenchanted Republicans. “My view is that the GOP platform should read ‘Life, liberty, and property.’ It would save us a lot of paper.” He goes on to criticize Republican efforts of the past decade. “What have the Republicans been supporting? No Child Left Behind, Medicare Part D, and supporting TARP I. So much for the party of small government.”

Cuccinelli becomes most animated when he’s talking about the philosophy behind the principles. He cites the Declaration of Independence’s most famous line, about the self-evident truths that “all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights,” including life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Then he makes an important observation: “Most people forget the next phrase, which explains that it is for these purposes that governments are created.” Cuccinelli considers this phrase — “That, to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men” — the key to understanding what the founders were thinking: Rights are inherent and universal, and governments exist only to guarantee them, not to grant them.

To illustrate this idea, Cuccinelli points to the recent Supreme Court case over gun ownership in the District of Columbia. In his written opinion in District of Columbia v. Heller, Justice Antonin Scalia explained that the Second Amendment did not grant people the right to defend themselves with arms but only reaffirmed the preexisting right of a free people to do so. Cuccinelli leans back in his chair and paraphrases Aquinas: “Natural law is written from the hearts of all men.”

“Read from the founding period and do it continuously,” he says. “That’s what I tell new legislators.” Cuccinelli wants to educate Virginians about Mason, Madison, and the rest. “All of the great founders, except for Adams, are from Virginia,” he says. “When I run in Virginia, I talk about those Virginians.”

In the contest against Shannon, Cuccinelli will need more than a good reading list. “We have a significant grassroots advantage,” he says. “We know grassroots better than anyone else, and we’re more focused on that.” He claims his strategy of knocking on doors gave him the small margin of victory in 2007. This approach won’t work as well statewide, though he plans to repeat the practice as much as possible and encourage his volunteers to do the same.

Will strong grassroots efforts put Cuccinelli over the top in November? Although the races are separate, he’ll run with the GOP’s nominee for governor, Bob McDonnell, who is polling roughly even against Democrat Creigh Deeds. A good election for McDonnell —the state’s former attorney general — will help Cuccinelli’s odds. Even so, the prospective attorney general says he won’t be counting on McDonnell’s coattails. He believes he has the secrets to success: “I’m willing to lose, and I won’t abandon my principles.”

— Michael Warren, a Collegiate Network intern at National Review, studies economics and history at Vanderbilt University.

Tertium Quids has some very interesting analysis of the profile.