Bolling for Lieutenant Governor - Setting the Record Straight on the Life Issue

Earlier I wrote about the attacks on Bolling's record and why I support Bill Bolling for Lieutenant Governor. Attorney General. In a recent e-mail, Mark Obenshain responds to yet another e-mail from the Muldoon campaign and lays out Bolling's record on social issues. Coming from someone who has worked with Bolling for years in the state senate I think it is definitely a must read article. I hope you will join with me in voting for Bill Bolling for Lieutenant Governor at the RPV state convention on May 30th.

Friends,

You may have recently received an email from Patrick Muldoon, who is running against Bill Bolling for the nomination for Lieutenant Governor. That email is full of so much inaccurate information that I felt compelled to write and set the record straight.

While I always welcome competition as a method to strengthen our party, and
while I believe that we must hold our public officials accountable for their stances, it cannot be at the expense of the truth.

I’m sad to say that a small group, determined to derail our victory in November, appear to be attempting to smear and falsely attack a man who has been a faithful friend to our conservative cause, Lieutenant Governor Bill Bolling.

I have known Bill Bolling and served with him in the Senate for years, and I can tell you that his opponent is not telling the truth about Bill’s record.

Let me set the record straight, point by point.

Claim: Bill did not oppose making the Plan B Morning After pill available to minors.

Truth: Bill Bolling has consistently opposed making the morning
after pill available to minors.

While his opponent has no record on Plan B, as a member of the State Senate
Bill Bolling:

• Voted to require parental consent before minors can get Plan B
• Voted against allowing Plan B to be distributed over the counter without a
  physician's prescription
• Voted against allowing Plan B to be distributed on Virginia's college
  campuses

Claim: Bill supported mandatory HPV vaccinations for grade-schoolers.

Truth: Bill Bolling has never supported mandating HPV vaccinations
for grade-schoolers, or anyone else for that matter.

In fact, when legislation to mandate the HPV vaccine was introduced in the General Assembly Bill publicly stated his opposition to that legislation and he fought for the no-cause parental opt-out that was ultimately included in the legislation that passed the Senate 40-0. Bill’s position was consistent with the position of The Family Foundation and the Catholic Diocese of Virginia: that parents should be made aware of the link between HPV and cervical cancer, but the vaccination should be a choice that each parent makes for themselves.

Claim: Bill campaigned around the state supporting the HPV vaccine in exchange for contributions from its manufacturer, Merck Pharmaceuticals.

Truth: Bill has never encouraged anyone to get the HPV vaccine.

In 2007, Lieutenant Governor Bolling and his wife, Jean Ann, participated in a bi-partisan national effort called “Ending Cervical Cancer in Our Lifetime.” This program was sponsored by the National Lieutenant Governor’s Association and was aimed at helping women make the connection between the HPV virus and cervical cancer. The program encouraged women to go to their doctors for regular cervical cancer screenings. It did not encourage anyone to get the HPV vaccine. And by the way, the last campaign contribution Bill recieved from Merck was $500, and that was six years ago!

Claim: Bill supports a “hook-up cultural agenda” of promiscuity and unprotected sex, and he is a “favorite Republican” of Planned Parenthood.

Truth: This one is simply laughable.

Bill Bolling is one of our most consistent conservative leaders. He is a family man, a dedicated Christian and a Sunday School teacher. He fought Tim Kaine’s attempts to eliminate state funding for abstinence education. He cast the tie-breaking vote in favor of denying state funds to Planned Parenthood. But there are probably two statistics that sum it up best:

Bill Bolling has a 100% lifetime rating from the Virginia Society for
Human Life.

Bill Bolling has a 0% lifetime rating from NARAL/Planned
Parenthood.

It is unfortunate that Patrick Muldoon feels the need to mangle the record of a good man in order to further his campaign, but the sad truth is that he has no positive record to stand on. By contrast, Bill Bolling’s record speaks for itself:

• 100% pro-family voting record from The Family Foundation
• Endorsed by the Virginia Society for Human Life (2005)
• Supported parental notification and consent legislationSupported a ban on
  partial birth abortions
• Supported higher patient safety standards for abortion clinics
• Cast the tie-breaking vote to deny state funding to Planned Parenthood
• Fought to restore abstinence education funding that Governor Kaine stripped
  from the budget
• Led the fight to pass the Marriage Amendment

That’s a solid conservative record that we can be proud of.

A little over a year ago Bill Bolling put aside his personal ambitions and decided not to seek the Governor’s Mansion. Our party has benefited greatly from Bill’s sacrifice. Perhaps others should follow his example.

If we are going to win in November, we have no time for the politics
of negativity and personal destruction.

I’m proud to support Lieutenant Governor Bill Bolling and I urge you to do so as well.

Senator Mark Obenshain

Harrisonburg, Virginia

Amy Frederick no longer running for Delegate

In a recent letter, Amy Frederick announced she will no longer be running to replace her husband Jeff Frederick in the VA House of Delegates. In early February she and her husband announced she was exploring a bid for the House of Delegates.

April 28, 2009

Dear Friends:

Since first beginning to explore the possibility of campaigning to represent the people of the 52nd District in the House of Delegates, I have been humbled by the support and encouragement I received from across eastern Prince William county, and indeed, beyond. Having been honored to stand by Jeff's side for the past six years as he has served, I have had the opportunity to meet and get to know many of the people of this district. They have made this job a rewarding experience for both of us, and the lasting friendships will always remain.

Today, it is with mixed emotions that I announce my withdrawal from the race to succeed Jeff in the House of Delegates.

Unfortunately, some in the leadership of the Republican Party have demonstrated a greater interest in playing politics than in advancing our conservative principles and making life better for the families and the citizens of Virginia. I'm not interested in running for office to serve under broken leadership, where the Speaker compromises principle for what he perceives as immediate political gain. What so many entrusted with leadership in our party fail to recognize is that ignoring our core principles in pursuit of titles and power without purpose is exactly the behavior that severely reduced our ranks in the House, handed the Senate to the Democrats, and has resulted in one statewide loss after another.

Although my campaign ends today, it has been a pleasure to travel around the district and introduce myself as a potential candidate to so many wonderful people.

I want to first thank my friends and family for supporting me and encouraging me to run. I also want to thank Kris Morris and my supporters, who have spent hours volunteering on my behalf. To these people, I will remain forever grateful.

I'm excited about the future, and I will be working hard to make sure that people of principle who share Jeff's and my commitment to service are elected and re-elected this year. I'm confident that in years to come, our party will have new leadership and a new direction, which will bode well for fresh, new ideas -- and ultimately, handing our children a better Commonwealth than the one we inherited.

Most sincerely,

Amy Frederick

According to a comment by Amy on facebook she believes Rafael Lopez will be the Republican nominee for that seat. As of yet there noone has filed from the Democrat Party to run for the seat.

It will be very interesting over the coming years to see what the Frederck's do in party politics. I can't imagine they are done for life.

On another note, so far it seems noone is trying to challenge Pat Mullins for RPV chairman. The vote on the matter by state central is on Saturday, and if someone decides to challenge Pat, then we will have a vote at the state convention May 30th.

Tedisco Concedes to Scott Murphy

On Friday Jim Tedisco conceded the contest for New Yorks 20th congressional district. After counting the votes Tedisco was down by 400 votes, and instead of dragging it out, he decided the proper thing to do was concede. In his concession speech he said,

“This was a closely contested election that perhaps lasted a little longer than anyone may have expected or wanted. Ultimately, it became clear that the numbers were not going our way, and that the time had come to step aside and ensure that the next congressman be seated as quickly as possible.”

This was a campaign I had the opportunity to work on, and I would have loved to see Jim Tedisco as the next congressman from NY-20. That said he worked hard, the vote counting was fair and accurate, and when he realized the votes weren't there he did the proper thing and conceded. While Democrats are trying to use Tedisco's concession to get Norm Coleman to concede in Minnesota, they are two different races. In New York the vote counting was fair and untainted. Minnesota was full of wierd practices like finding votes in the back of a poll workers car. Those are issues that have to be dealt with. Hopefully after everything is said and done Coleman will be retain his seat in the U.S. Senate.

For some excellent analysis as to why Tedisco lost click here. It is a very good reminder of the importance of sticking to principles over polls, something I hope McDonnell does this year.

For analysis of what this election means to the GOP as a whole click here.

Pat Toomey vs. Arlen Specter

In 2004 Pat Toomey challenged Arlen Specter for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate. With the help of Rick Santorum and President Bush, Arlen Specter won by just 2 points. Since being reelected in 2004 Arlen Specter has become very unpopular with Republicans for his stances. He did a poor job as judiciary chairman, allowing nominees to go without a committee vote for extended periods of time. However most recently he helped Obama pass his 787 Billion stimulus bill.

This and other actions have lead to a very negative opinion of Arlen Specter by Pennsylvania voters. In a Rasmussen poll released yesterday Pat Toomey lead Specter 51% to 31%. Specter's negatives 55% while Toomey's were only19%. These are pretty one sided polling results. If Toomey decides to run it sure looks like Obama will lose an ally, and one more RINO will no longer be in the U.S. Senate.

When it comes to liberal Republicans, a liberal Republican from a blue distrct is fine, but a liberal Republican who undermines his caucus like Specter has deserves to be primaried. I hope Pat Toomey is successful in 2010 and becomes part of an amazing Republican Senate class of 2010.

Cuccinelli on the Issues: The 2nd Amendment

The third in a series of issue positions
from the Cuccinelli for Attorney General Campaign

The 2nd Amendment is one of those key issues that define the differences between conservatives and liberals. Liberals - and even some misguided Republicans - believe that the Government should have the right to impose restrictions on the purchase of any firearm - and what type of firearm a law abiding citizen should own.

Some (especially those on the left) believe that no-one - with the exception of law enforcement and the military - should have the ability to possess firearms. While this seems unrealistic, the left has for years followed through with a "legislative war of attrition" on the 2nd Amendment - seeking to ban incrementally, specific types of firearms, ammunition and sales.

As a State Senator, Ken Cuccinelli is the only candidate for Attorney General that has votes AGAINST attempts to weaken our rights as written in the 2nd Amendment of the Constitution.

Ken has:

• Worked for the repeal of unreasonable restrictions on concealed carry permit holders and worked for the reciprocity between states that issue concealed carry permits (for example, a conceal carry holder in Virginia would be allowed to carry and conceal in any other state with similar laws)
• Drafted and successfully passed legislation that stopped some liberal county governments from requiring background checks via the U.S. Mail when purchasing a firearm, resulting in a waiting period. While Ken supports the current process of instant background checks at the point of sale - his legislation eliminated local governments' attempts to impose waiting periods with the additional, duplicative check.
• Worked to expand locations where law abiding citizens with carry conceal permits can carry - including state parks.

Ken's support and activism on behalf of the 2nd Amendment has never wavered - despite representing an area of the Commonwealth traditionally hostile to those rights. Ken Cuccinelli's support of our rights are not born from politics, but rather from a deeply held belief that Constitutional rights as written by our Founding Fathers are sacrosanct - and we should fight on all levels to protect those fundamental rights guaranteed under the US Constitution.

As you begin to learn the candidates' positions (or the lack thereof) ask yourself this question: What has this person actually done or accomplished on the issues we care about? Then look at the RECORD OF ACCOMPLISHMENT from Ken Cuccinelli and you'll see that Ken's positions are not just political rhetoric.

Maybe that's why the Gun Owners of America and the Virginia Citizens Defense League have both endorsed Ken's candidacy for Attorney General. Ken also has an "A" rating from the National Rifle Association. Ken is the ONLY candidate endorsed by 2nd Amendment organizations in this race.

As your next Attorney General, Ken will continue the fight to protect the 2nd Amendment rights of law abiding citizens and any attempts from Liberals in Washington, or in Virginia, to restrict those rights.