Vol. 38, No. 1 www.arlingtondemocrats.org January 2013

Celebrate The campaign has begun! Welcome to the year 2013. Gentlemen, start cycle so that voters could focus on state issues and your engines. The election season has now begun! not get tangled in federal topics. Unfortunately, it New Year’s Yes, we just finished a barnburner of a cam- doesn’t always work that way. paign with an outcome we will savor for four more Bob Holesworth, a former professor at years. But this is Virginia, and we have statewide Commonwealth University, said, “At one time, Vir- Day with campaigns for three state offices this year. ginians wanted to ensure that we held elections on Don’t move to if you are too off-years because we didn’t want to be contaminated pooped from campaigning. It also has statewide by the national mood. Ironically, now the entire fellow Dems elections this year. In fact, Virginia and New Jer- attention of the national political insiders focuses sey are the only states to work that way. It will be on Virginia—the attention, the visibility, the quiet elsewhere. money.... It all goes up.” at Chez Virginia and New Jersey decided to elect their (New Jersey has a good reason for its sched- governors out of the normal even-numbered year Mary Hynes continued on page nine See Page 11 for Edna made your vote count all the details President Obama finally got Virginia’s vote in Horner, the chair of the Eighth District Democratic mid-December, six weeks after everyone thought Committee from Arlington, Peg Willingham a he had won it. former Arlington precinct captain who now lives in And the election wasn’t close this time. In fact, Falls Church, and Wanda Howard, a Falls Church Obama won unanimously—13-to-zero. Democratic activist. The four of them drove down We are talking here of the Electoral College to Richmond together. vote in Virginia, the only one that counts legally. Since the first row of the chamber holds eight Hardly anyone noticed when Edna Frady, desks and seats, Edna, as the representative from longtime Democratic chair in Falls Church, cast her the eighth District, literally got a front row seat. vote from the Eighth Congressional District of Vir- Edna reports that the event was completely ginia, along with 12 other electors in Richmond on scripted. As a result, she notes, most photos show the appointed election date, which is the Monday the electors with their heads bent over as they read after the second Wednesday in December. the script. This was the first time Edna had served as an The scripting is partly because no one wants elector and she said she found it “exciting and over- this high point of our democratic system to be in whelming.” any way democratic. Everyone lives in fear that Each elector was allowed to bring two guests some elector may decide to go off the reservation into the chamber of the House of Delegates for the and cast what is called a “faithless” vote, rather than Electoral College vote. Edna brought three—Margo continued on page ten ACDC Voice, January 2013, Page 2

Report from Chairman Mike Lieberman Division

Republican is wrong for tions that could significantly limit a woman’s As we wind up 2012 and get ready for Virginia. His right wing values are simply right to choose in Virginia. He authored a 2013, it will therefore be incumbent on each not our values. He demonstrated this during legal opinion instructing Virginia colleges and one of us who care about this Commonwealth his time in the legislature. He doubled down universities not to protect gay and lesbian stu- to make our voices heard. These voices must on this radicalism as Virginia’s attorney gen- dents from discrimination. And he recently come not only in the form of vocal challenge eral. And if his campaign to date is any indi- signaled that he would be open to proposals to Mr. Cuccinelli’s ideas and tactics, but also cation, we can rest assured he will continue to allow armed teachers and administrators in the form of action – phone calls, door his destructive course if elected governor in in Virginia’s schools. knocks, and retail outreach – to expose Mr. 2013. In none of these actions has Mr. Cuccinelli’s record to the mainstream and alert Indeed, through his work to date, Mr. Cuccinelli represented my views or the val- people that there is an alternative. Cuccinelli has demonstrated that he not only ues of Arlingtonians affected by these poli- I am confident that the voters of Virginia welcomes division within the Common- cies and proposals. Yet he has not only pro- will recognize Mr. Cuccinelli for the destruc- wealth, but revels in it. Through his actions, ceeded unchastened, but is now being re- tive force he is in our Commonwealth, and he has sown seeds of controversy on nearly warded for his divisiveness with a Republi- ultimately, that Mr. Cuccinelli will not be suc- every issue he has touched. can nomination for the governorship that is cessful at the ballot box in November. But As the Commonwealth’s top legal of- now all but his. we have our work cut out for us between now ficer, Mr. Cuccinelli filed a law suit seeking Should Mr. Cuccinelli be elected gover- and then, and ultimately, that outcome rests to overturn Obamacare. He filed amicus brief nor, I hope that he, like his predecessors, will in our hands. in support of Arizona’s new law allowing learn that good government comes from the So as we approach the new year, get pretextual searches of suspected immigrants. middle, not from the extremes, and he will some rest, get some energy, and get ready. He used public resources to investigate a temper his views and advocacy accordingly. 2013 is going to be a bumpy ride. University of Virginia professor for deigning But if Mr. Cuccinelli’s campaign to date is to research and write about the science un- any indication, his move away from the main- derlying climate change. He strong-armed the stream is likely to get worse before it gets Herring speaks state Board of Health into adopting regula- better. at 2013’s 1st 2nd Jerry Botland Sat Breakfast At the first Second Saturday Breakfast Computer Consulting of the New Year, Arlington Dems will get a Troubleshoot and resolve computer and chance to meet and hear from the brand new chair of the state party, Charniele Herring. computer related problems. Without opposition, Del. Herring was Perform upgrades, set-up wireless routers and print servers. elected the new chairman of the Democratic Transfer old files, address book and emails Party of Virginia (DPVA) at the State Central from an old computer to a new one. Committee meeting in December. Herring, 42, of Alexandria succeeds Phone: (703) 933-0558 — [email protected] Brian Moran of Alexandria, who served two years in the post. Herring occupies the seat in the House of Delegates that Moran held before retiring Published monthly by the to run for governor in 2009. She doesn’t Arlington County Democratic Committee have far to drive 2050 Wilson Blvd., Suite 200, Arlington VA 22201 (enter at rear) from her Alexandria P.O. Box 7132, Arlington VA 22207 home to attend the Tel: (703) 528-8588 Fax: (703) 528-2321 Second Saturday http://www.arlingtondemocrats.org Breakfast, January Chair: Mike Lieberman —(703) 408-3940 (h), [email protected] 12, at the Busboys Editor-in-Chief: Warren L. Nelson —(703) 243-7867 (h), [email protected] and Poets in Deputy Editor: Eric Wiener — (703) 524-6899 (h), [email protected] Shirlington. Hungry Views expressed do not necessarily represent those of the ACDC Dems gather at 8:30 unless expressly approved by an appropriate committee resolution a.m. And remember, Copyright ©2013, ACDC, All Rights Reserved please, to bring cash. HERRING ACDC Voice, January 2013, Page 3 Va Dems have Next Monthly Meeting own ball for All Dems Invited Wednesday, January 2, 2013, 7:00 p.m. inaugural NRECA Building, 4301 Wilson Blvd. Corner of North Taylor and Wilson, just east of Glebe and Wilson Virginia Democrats will be holding their Free parking under building; enter from Taylor Street own Inaugural Ball to celebrate the start of the second term of President Barack Obama. We start off the new year with a program devoted The ball is right here in Arlington. And tickets are still available. to immigration reform. Our panel of experts will The black tie-preferred be facilitated by County Board Member Walter event is being held Tejada, who is co-chair of the Immigration Task Sunday, January 20, from 7-to-11 p.m. at Force for the National Association of Counties the Westin Arlington (NaCO). We will also hear from Treasurer Frank Gateway, 801 North O’Leary about the new Navy vessel USS Arlington Glebe Road. The special and the county contribution to its new namesake. guests at the ball in- clude Senators and plus Terry McAuliffe, the only candidate declared for the Democratic nomination for governor. A whole bevy of elected Democrats from $4Dems shatters record throughout Northern Virginia is expected. There is a wide range of tickets avail- The ACDC 2012 Dollars for Democrats of getting above $30,000. able running from General Admission at $250 drive has broken all records. In fact, it didn’t The problem was that everyone was talk- each on up to Inaugural Sponsor tickets priced just break them, it shattered them. Of course, ing about an enthusiasm gap. Well, that turned at $25,000. the drive got a little help from Barack Obama. out to be false fear. To order tickets, go to the state party The previous record for a $4Dems col- The 2012 $4Dems drive not only topped website, www.vademocrats.org, and click on lection in the county was in 2008 when local $30,000, it surpassed $31,000 and $32,000 the Inaugural Ball box you will see at the top Dems contributed $21,258. That reflected the and $33,000..... of the page, enthusiasm for Obama’s candidacy. In fact, after Election Day, the pot to- The ball is hosted jointly by the Demo- Going into this year’s drive, co-chairs taled just a few hundred dollars short of cratic Party of Virginia (DPVA) and the Ar- Karla Hagan, Jody Olson and Warren $40,000. Eager to go over $40,000—a num- lington County Democratic Committee Nelson figured they could top $20,000 and ber they never thought it possible to approach (ACDC). had a hope of surpassing $25,000 and a dream a few months earlier—they passed the hat at the December ACDC meeting cum holiday party. That brought the total to $40,050— and then another check came in the mail at headquarters to bring the total to $40,150! Bumper Sticker Clearly, all the talk about an enthusiasm gap was not just wide of the mark, but totally erroneous. At least in Arlington, Democrats of the Month were even more eager for an Obama win in 2012 than in 2008. What makes the huge $4Dems result even more surpris- ing is that the team mailed out 15 percent fewer solicita- tion letters this year than in 2008. ACDC Voice, January 2013, Page 4 AYDs elect Donkey Ears new board Listening to the doings for 2013 of Arlington’s Dems as overheard by Dan Steen and Mädi Green Arlington Young Democrats didn’t have enough of voting in November and so held their own elections in December for their 2013 Guardian angel follow-up: Back in October, we reported how Dara Alpert Executive Board. Lieberman, wife of ACDC Chair Mike Lieberman, ran to the rescue of a Members showed up in full force at Bailey’s Pub in Crystal City to hear from the man who collapsed on a sidewalk here in Arlington. She jumped out of her candidates and cast their ballots, resulting in car, ran to the man, saw he had no pulse and administered CPR until paramed- the election of nine officers to serve during ics arrived. It didn’t look good for the man when the ambulance drove away. 2013. But Dara and Mike didn’t know who he was and didn’t expect to hear about Lauren Hall was re-elected president, the outcome. After two months, however, one of those who were present at maintaining the office she has held the past the collapse told Dara the man had survived after a week-long coma. What’s year. Hall, a long-time veteran of AYD and more, he awakened with all his mental functions. The man subsequently Arlington Democrats, promised to continue contacted Dara and the others at the scene and had them all out for lunch to the momentum of 2012. “We did a lot of great things in 2012, thank them. During an emotional lunch, Dara learned that the doctors had and I look forward to continuing the effort in told the man only 5 percent of those suffering the kind of heart attack he had 2013 as AYD sets its sights on electing Demo- suffered manage to survive, let alone with full mental functions. They crats to the House of Delegates and statewide reported that the only reason he survived was because someone gave him CPR offices,” said Hall. “We are fortunate to have right away. Mike said, “That means Dara literally saved his life. I believe this so many dedicated and enthusiastic young is proof that there really are guardian angels in this world. I could not be people in Arlington who share a common vi- more proud that my wife is one of them.” sion for our community.” Joining Hall on the 2013 Executive Gender gap: The gender gap in pay is very small in Maryland and D.C., but in Board are Max Burns (Vice President), Mike Virginia it is unimpressively at the national average. In D.C., women earn on Lewan (Secretary), Anthony Dedousis (Trea- average 90 cents for every dollar a man earns, undoubtedly helped by federal surer), Josh Katcher (Finance Director), pay scales. D.C. is tops in the nation. Vermont is second at 87 cents and Conor Marshall (Party Representative), Maryland third at 86 cents. Virginia, however, lags, with women earning just Matt Brown (Political Director), Amaka 78 cents on the male dollar—a penny more than the national average. Gossett (Outreach Director) and Nicole We’re Number One: We are normally quite happy to proclaim when Arlington Davies (Community Service Director, re- or Virginia tops the country in something. But take a look at this one. Ac- elected). The officers were inaugurated Decem- cording to figures compiled by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and ber 12 during AYD’s annual holiday party. Explosives, Virginia tops the nation in the number of registered machine guns! “This is a great group of leaders, who I There were 30,230 machine guns registered in the commonwealth as of know are committed to AYD’s goals,” said March. Virginia tops far more populous , in second place with 29,128, Hall. “I expect 2013 will be a fun year, a busy and California, ranking third in this sweepstakes with 28,774. year and a rewarding year for our organiza- Rocketing Richmond: Gov. Bob McDonnell has issued a statement endorsing tion. We are all excited to get to work.” Israeli retaliation against Hamas for firing rockets into Israel. The last we If you would like to get involved with noticed, Gaza was not in the United States, let alone Virginia. Could the AYD during the New Year, contact Hall at [email protected]. There governor be having dreams of the national elections in 2016? are plenty of events, volunteer opportunities, Getting it right: One of the first things we all learn when we come to Virginia caucuses and political activities occurring and get active in local politics is that this is not the State of Virginia, but the throughout the year. Commonwealth of Virginia. That’s very important. And we all learn it quickly. Well, most of us. It seems that folks in the city of Petersburg just realized that their city seal, adopted in the late 1990s, says Petersburg is in the “State of Virginia.” The City Council has now rectified the error by dropping the words “State of” from the seal. There wasn’t room to put in “Common- wealth of.” ACDC Voice, January 2013, Page 5

The Cooch Corner—Keeping watch on our AG Cuccinelli says Catholic policy makes people depend on government, not God Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli had Cuccinelli said the church has grown so uninsured along with issues he deemed more some stinging words for Roman Catholic accustomed to lobbying government for chari- important, such as abortion. Church leaders in a recent speech asserting table purposes — those functions are best left From a moral standpoint, he said, abor- bishops have “helped create a culture of de- to “the church, if they’re done at all in soci- tion is much more important as a political is- pendency on government, not God.” ety,” he said — that it’s evolved into “the larg- sue than poverty or hunger. The 2013 Republican gubernatorial can- est special interest group in America.” In his September speech, Cuccinelli said, didate—himself a Roman Catholic—offered Speaking later about the church’s role in “One of my great frustrations as a Roman that assessment during a Sept. 29 speech to promoting government dependence, Catholic is how soft and weak the leadership the Cherish Life Ministries Christian Life Cuccinelli suggested churches have abdicated of my church has been. They have for de- Summit held in Northern Virginia. their responsibility by leaning on government cades lobbied government to do this and to A recently posted video of Cuccinelli’s to tackle the “business of serving the poor.” do that—all of which should be done by the speech shows the conservative lightning rod Taking exception to Cuccinelli’s com- church, if they are done at all in society. Over touched on an array of topics, including the ments was James Salt of Catholic United, a time, they have made themselves out to be evils of abortion, the loss of liberty caused by faith-based organization that advocates for nothing but the largest special interest group church policies, and the price paid by the out- social justice. in America. spokenly faithful. “Ken Cuccinelli has a fundamental mis- “And every time they succeed in getting “Those people who take their faith seri- understanding of Catholicism,” Salt told The government to do more of this and more of ously are viciously assaulted for it in the pub- Virginian-Pilot in Norfolk. “He fails to un- that—all with the best of intentions—they lic arena,” Cuccinelli said. derstand that the public sector has a legiti- never ever realized ... that there was always, “As attorney general, my decisions are mate and important role in providing for the always, always a cost. And that cost was al- sometimes attacked for supposedly imposing common good, a well established tenet of the ways in liberty.... my religion on other people,” he said. “All Catholic faith.” “It has never dawned on most of them we ever do — even if I don’t like the decision Cuccinelli has previously criticized the [the Conference of Catholic Bishops] that they — is governed by fidelity to the law.” Catholic Church in Arlington for addressing helped bring it [Obamacare] about. They pave Turning to the Catholic Church, the issue of social justice. In a June 2011 the road to the denial of liberty.” Cuccinelli criticized leaders as “soft and speech, he mocked the Arlington Catholic Later in that speech, Cuccinelli said: weak” for taking positions that have “paved Herald for including in its voter guide issues “I go back to the presumptions of the the road to the denial of liberty.” like poverty aid and health care access for the founders. Think of the presumptions. If you had thrown out what different types of mar- riage do we want, they’d have looked at you like you had three heads. What are you talk- ing about? What are you talking about? “And should we let parents—and now we’re just talking mothers, of course—decide whether children get born, they’d have looked at you like you had five heads. “It took a long time to get the culture of this country to the point of coarseness where that was just acceptable—and not even ac- ceptable, but expected.... “If you laid out a map of the 20 abortion clinics in Virginia across a census map of Vir- ginia,... it probably wouldn’t shock you to learn that just about all of them land in mi- nority areas.... And that’s not a coincidence.... If you know about the foundation of Planned Parenthood, you would understand why that is the case. Margaret Sanger wanted to get rid of undesirables from her perspective.” The 33-minute Cuccinelli speech in full is available at www.youtube.com/ Virginia Attoney General Kenneth Cuccinelli watch?v=5QNT4GulxDA. ACDC Voice, January 2013, Page 6 Webb looks forward to life after Senate

Jim Webb hasn’t decided what he will do in the next chapter of his life—except that he isn’t retiring at age 66 to a life of playing golf. On January 3, he will leave the Senate after a single six-year term, but that doesn’t mean he’s exiting public life for good. He says he might even consider running for pub- lic office again. “I will be working. Trust me,” he said in a recent interview with The Virginian-Pilot of Norfolk as he packed to leave his office on Capitol Hill. “My situation is different than most people up here. I didn’t come out of a law firm. There isn’t a structure that I can easily go back into. But it’s a very healthy thing, at SIX YEARS AGO — Just after being sworn in as a senator, Jim Webb least from the way my career has played it- took a ride on the Senate subway with granddaughter Brianna Hogan self out, to step out every now and then and just think about things.” (left), wife Hong Le and new daughter, LeAnh. He said, “I haven’t firmly decided what I’m going to do.” He acknowledged his op- with that, by the way.” tions might include writing a book to add to Webb won election in 2006 by a 9,329- ministration as an assistant secretary of de- the nine he has already published. Working vote margin out of 2.3 million votes cast state- fense and Secretary of the Navy. with the State Department is a possibility. An- wide. His margin in Arlington was 33,821. His books have included both fiction and other option is returning to his pre-Senate life, In other words, without Arlington, the seat nonfiction. He’s also won an Emmy as a docu- when he spent several months a year in Asia. would not have turned Democratic. mentary filmmaker. He made a point of saying he’s not rul- That victory was one chapter in a career Webb told The Virginian-Pilot he will ing out a return to politics. “Politics has never that began in 1968 after graduating from the continue to write and will probably include his been my calling. Leadership has always been Naval Academy and entering the Marines. As experiences in Congress. “It’s part of my life,” my calling, from the time I was a little kid a lieutenant, Webb served in Vietnam, earn- he said. “But you’re not going to see any tell- sitting at the table talking to my dad about ing the Navy Cross, a Silver Star, two Bronze all book or kiss-and-tell novel. If I was going how to motivate people and how to make hard Stars and two Purple Hearts. to do that, I already would have done it.” decisions. Military leadership has been a part He worked on the staff of the House Webb’s Senate colleagues praised his of it. Unpredictably, political leadership has Committee on Veterans Affairs after law work. But they also noted his independent been a part of it – I’m not saying I’m done school, and he served during the Reagan ad- style. “What he brought was an iconoclastic, thoughtful approach to issues. Nobody ever thought Jim Webb was playing politics,” said fellow Virginia Democratic Sen. Mark Warner. “When he weighed in veterans issues or foreign policy issues, folks listened.” He has rarely spoken with reporters and estimated that he turned down 95 percent of interview requests. He doesn’t like someone else controlling the story. “First of all, because no matter how good you are, you’re not going to get it all right,” he said. “And secondly, I’d rather say it my- self.” With rare exception, Webb said, he doesn’t read what others write about him. “I think it’s healthier not to.” Sen. Claire McCaskill, a Missouri Democrat whose desk on the Senate floor abuts Webb’s, said he has been a unique pres- ence in the chamber because he’s less inter- continued on next page ACDC Voice, January 2013, Page 7

continued from previous page ested in politicking than in trying to tackle Democratic Values in Action large issues. The two of them and Sen. Jon Tester, a Montana Democrat, refer to them- selves as the “redneck caucus” because of their working-class roots, she said. Thermometer busted! “He’s not a back-slapper. He’s not a deal- maker. He’s not someone who depends on the One month ago, Democratic Values in Action (DVA) was far, social graces to catapult his ideas,” McCaskill Actual far short of its goal of collecting 150 cereal boxes in the last half of said. “He’s a cross between a barroom brawler 2012—but a last minute surge—not unlike many an election cam- and a college professor.” 177— paign—saw the goal not only achieved but far exceeded. Webb’s signature Senate achievement Goal After five months of the six-month campaign, DVA had col- was probably the new GI Bill that passed Con- 150 — lected just 102 boxes and it looked like the goal would be missed. gress 18 months after he took office. The leg- But December saw Arlington Dems contributing 75 boxes, thereby islation improved education and related ben- hitting a total of 177 boxes and exceeding the goal by one-fourth. efits for veterans. To date, more than 800,000 Many thanks to one and all. former service members have used the ben- It appeared the great December surge was the result of a) the efits. holiday gift-giving spirit of the month and b) the absence of any Not everything in the Senate worked the electioneering distractions for a change! way he hoped. His aggressive efforts to cre- The cereal boxes were collected for the Arlington Food Assis- ate a national commission to focus on reform- tance Center (AFAC), which says that cereal may seem mundane ing the criminal justice system died on the but is the single most popular and useful food item that can be made Senate floor last year when it was blocked by available to the needy. Republicans. DVA, the charitable arm of ACDC, has other goals for the new The measure, which would have set up year—but will continue collecting cereal boxes every month at the a bipartisan commission to spend 18 months ACDC membership meetings, Second Saturday Breakfasts and AYD examining all levels of the justice system – meetings. Or, just drop them off at HQ. federal, state and local – was intended to lead With New Year’s Day, DVA will be focused on collecting hats to recommendations on how to change laws, and gloves for the Shirlington Employment and Education Center enforcement practices and prison operations (SEEC). Bring them to meetings—along with cereal boxes. to make the legal system fairer and more cost- Questions, comments, or ideas, please contact DVA Chair Kim effective. Klingler at [email protected]. He built broad support by persuading DVA is planning to participate in the National Day of Service more than 70 interest groups that normally January 19. Information on those plans, still in the works, will be don’t see eye-to-eye to back the commission. available at www.Facebook.com/DemocraticValuesInAction. Among them were many major law-enforce- ment organizations, civil liberty advocates and proponents of marijuana legalization. McCaskill said most senators respect Webb, but “I’m not sure everyone gets him, because he didn’t play the game.... He doesn’t PC HELP do the ‘Let’s chew the fat and have a drink.’... Want help with setting up, networking, upgrading, He doesn’t want to make the party circuit.” fixing, or just using your new or old PC? At day’s end, “he wants to go home to his wife and family as quickly as he can get there,” she said. Affordable, personalized assistance. He lives in McLean with his wife, Hong Evenings and weekends. Your home or office. Le Webb, a securities lawyer, along with their six-year-old daughter and his stepdaughter. He also has four grown children. Ron Hicks DBA Systems That Work “It has been the greatest thing in my life to be a dad,” Webb said. “I talk with all my Email: [email protected] kids almost every day.” Webb doesn’t want to be remembered as Website: www.systems-that-work.org someone frustrated by Washington. “You can be disappointed when certain things don’t H/O: 703-528-1009 Cell: 571-217-9949 happen. But I understand the playing field,” he said. “The Senate is designed to slow things Arlington Chamber of Commerce down. But take a look at what we’ve been able to do in spite of that.” ACDC Voice, January 2013, Page 8 A look behind the scenes on Election Day

by Eric Wiener However, other voters had been assisted I have seen 4 a.m. from both sides, go- in coming up with an acceptable ID they could ing to bed and getting up—and going to bed retrieve from home or car, and those voters at that hour is way more fun. However, we got to cast their ballots. Voter Advocates also Virginia Voter Advocates had been instructed called in total voting numbers throughout the to be at our polling sites by 5:30 a.m., before day to the OFA “boiler room,” where the num- the 6 a.m. opening time for voting. Know- bers were crunched. We would ultimately call ing how long it takes for my car and my brain in the vote totals for each candidate for the to get warmed up on a cold morning (and was district once they were tallied. it ever cold), the alarm was set for 4 a.m. Or, Election officers, observers and voter in military terms, zero dark thirty. advocates, as well as the voters themselves, We all anticipated 2012 to be the year of were blessed with no lines and no one wait- the provisional ballot. The well-publicized ing to vote when the doors were shut at the 7 wave of restrictive voting laws passed by p.m. closing time. We did not experience the Republican legislatures across the country, long lines and very late closing times of some and the close nature of the race, had made polling places around the state—some didn’t shenanigans at the ballot box a real concern get to the last voter until 10:45 p.m.—and the of the Democratic National Committee results were ultimately tallied, and the “tapes” (DNC) and of Obama for America (OFA), the produced, by 8 p.m. president’s campaign organization. Now there was an interesting scramble. While the harshest restrictions did not The respective Republican and Democratic pass in Virginia, the ID requirements were party observers are all old hands at this, and made more restrictive, and those without the know what to grab and when. We OFA folk required ID would be obliged to file “provi- were neophytes. The Alexandria Dem folks sional” ballots, which would have to be de- peered at me with gimlet eyes like partisans fended before the Board of Elections before sniffing out a Nazi infiltrator until I waved they could be counted. ERIC WIENER my credentials at them, and then and only The prospect of large numbers of these . . . awake at 4 a.m. then, and only when reassured that I just provisional ballots being filed by Obama vot- wanted the national and state results, and ers, upon which the election might hinge in a cared not about who the new councilman in close race, loomed large. over 70 percent. The polling place was ex- Alexandria was, did they share the figures It was to be the job of us Voter Advo- pertly administered by Charles Bright and Jen- from the tape. cates to assist these voters by either identify- nifer Bright, the election officers, and all were Those figures were Obama 850, Rom- ing acceptable IDs the voters could retrieve dealt with in a fair and respectful manner. ney 498; Kaine 847, Allen 475; Moran 794, and return with, or to assist them with final- Kudos should also go to their staff, each of Murphy 524. These numbers, and numbers izing the provisional ballots. Numerous Vir- whom handled their respective duties with from all over the state, were called into the ginia attorneys, and many attorneys from aplomb. OFA boiler room, and the campaign had a “safe” states, appeared at polling sites While seeing democracy in action can pretty good idea how the state was playing throughout Virginia to assist voters and to be rather interesting—and there is electricity out well before Virginia was called for Obama. make sure all votes were counted. in the air—it can also be like watching grass The Romney campaign had several ob- New rules restricted the ability of voter grow. One poll worker swore that time was servers sitting with me behind the poll work- advocates to speak to voters inside the poll- moving backward right around the 3 o’clock ers throughout the day. Numerous complaints ing place, so a system was developed for “in- hour. At the end of the day, only four provi- were heard from them about dropped calls, side” advocates, such as yours truly, to notify sional ballots had been filed, and all four vot- lost WiFi connections and other technology “outside” advocates that a provisional ballot ers indicated they would pursue the ballots problems. We were witnessing, in real time, voter was coming out, and to try to help them. on their own. the epic failure of the Romney Campaign’s (Inside was much warmer!) All voter advo- ORCA program, their computer program that cates were briefed to expect large numbers of was supposed to beat the OFA army by al- provisional ballots to be cast. lowing instant coordination of efforts. They The Ladrey Senior Building is on Wythe had never tried it out before Election Day, and, Street in Old Towne Alexandria, and is the shockingly, it crashed almost immediately and polling place for a long and narrow residen- never did work properly. That left campaign tial district that hugs the waterfront in North volunteers like the people next to me—who Old Town. The precinct has 2,666 registered were good folks doing their civic duty—blind voters. By Election Day, 528 absentee bal- and high and dry. lots had been cast, and by the end of the day The single work day of a voter advocate an additional 1,359 people had voted, the vast is a very long one, but you get a lifetime of majority of them by noon, for a turnout of stories out of it. ACDC Voice, January 2013, Page 9 2013 statewide candidates The 2013

Here is the lineup, as of New Year’s Eve, of the men and women seeking statewide office this year in the commonwealth. Democrats will select their nominees at a primary in June. The GOP has race is on! opted for a state convention that will give the benefit to more right-leaning candidates. continued from page one Governor ule. Since the media markets for most Jersey Democrat residents are in Philadelphia and New York Terry McAuliffe – A former chairman of the Democratic National Committee, McAuliffe City, they wanted to elect their governor when was a candidate for governor in 2009 before losing the nomination to state Sen. Craig Deeds. those media markets weren’t tied up in their McAuliffe has strong ties to Presidents Obama and Clinton. own state elections.) Republican We have a big problem with our state- Ken Cuccinelli – A former state senator and the favorite candidate of conservative Tea Partiers, wide election schedule. The turnout drops like Cuccinelli has made headlines during his term for his lawsuit challenging Obamacare and his a rock after the presidential year and a major skepticism about climate change. part of the campaign effort this year will be Tareq Salahi – Best known as the White House party crasher, he is also a former vintner and devoted to trying to get Dems off the couch controversial quasi-philanthropist. and out to the polls. Virginia will be electing three statewide Lieutenant Governor officers—governor, lieutenant governor and Democrat attorney general. We will also fill all 100 seats Aneesh Chopra – An Arlington resident, he was named by President Obama the first U.S. in the House of Delegates, where terms are federal chief technology officer after serving under Gov. Kaine as Virginia’s fourth secretary for two years. The State Senate, with four- of technology. year terns, won’t be up until 2015. Ralph Northam – A pediatric neurologist from the Norfolk area, Northam has served in the In Arlington, the County Board seat held Senate of Virginia since 2008. by Jay Fisette and the School Board seat held Republican by James Lander will also be on the ballot. Steve Martin – Serving in either the state’s House of Delegates or Senate since 1988, Martin The statewide primary action will be on currently represents parts of Chesterfield County and the City of Colonial Heights outside of the Democratic side. The GOP opted to use a Richmond in the state Senate. convention. That was a coup organized by Scott Lingamfelter – A former U.S. Army Colonel, the Woodbridge resident has served in Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli to limit the the House of Delegates since 2002. choice of candidates to insiders who are far Jeannemarie Devolites Davis – She served from Fairfax County in both houses of the Vir- more rightwing than the electorate. That coup ginia General Assembly and is married to former Congressman Tom Davis. She also served as will hand him the GOP gubernatorial nomi- the director of the Virginia Liaison Office in Washington, D.C., for Gov. Bob McDonnell. nation. He might have lost a primary to the Corey Stewart – An attorney, Stewart has served as chairman of the Prince William Board of more centrist Lieutenant Governor Bill Supervisors since 2007. Bolling. Bolling, reading the tea party hand- Susan Stimpson – A former state budget analyst, Stimpson holds the top post on the Stafford writing on the wall, has withdrawn from the County Board of Supervisors and was previously chair of the county’s GOP committee. race—and has so far refused to endorse Earl “E.W.” Jackson – A pastor, businessman and conservative activist, Jackson is coming Cuccinelli. off a failed primary bid for one of Virginia’s U.S. Senate seats. Jackson lost his party’s pri- On the Democratic side, no one is yet mary to George Allen last spring. challenging Terry McAuliffe for the guber- Pete Snyder – A Northern Virginia entrepreneur, Snyder served this year as the chairman of natorial nomination. All the big names in the Virginia Victory Campaign, the statewide organization for GOP nominee Mitt Romney and state have opted out of the race. The dead- other Republican candidates. line for filing is March 28, so McAuliffe doesn’t have it quite sown up yet. Attorney General There will be a primary June 11 for both lieutenant governor and attorney general. The Democrat box on this page lists those who have an- Mark Herring – The state senator from Loudoun County and attorney remains the favorite to nounced their candidacies thus far. No oth- earn the nomination. Herring has garnered the endorsement of numerous top Democrats in the ers are anticipated—but you never know. state, including some who were considering running for the post themselves. The good news for Democrats—if not Justin Fairfax – A former federal prosecutor, Fairfax is making his first bid for statewide the commonwealth—is that the GOP looks office. set to present the voters a set of nominees who Republican make Attila the Hun look like a flaming lefty. Mark Obenshain – The Harrisonburg-area lawyer is one of the leading Republican voices in The bad news is that Cuccinelli has out- the state Senate. standing name recognition all across the state. Rob Bell – Also a lawyer, Bell has represented a Piedmont-region district in the House of More than two-thirds of the voters know who Delegates since 2002. continued on page eleven ACDC Voice, January 2013, Page 10 Edna cast the vote that counts for Obama

continued from page one the ballots and announce the result. The next 6. The Certificates are arranged—un- fill in the ballot reflecting the popular vote. step is the casting of the vote for vice presi- opened—in alphabetical order and placed in two special mahogany boxes—Alabama That happened big time in Virginia al- dent, which follows the same pattern. through Missouri in one box and Montana most two centuries ago in the 1836 election. Each state’s electors must complete six through Wyoming in the other. The Democratic Party nominated Richard Certificates of Vote. Each Certificate of Vote On January 6, Vice President Joe Biden Mentor Johnson of Kentucky as its vice presi- must be signed by all of the electors and a Cer- will open the envelopes at a public joint ses- dential candidate. All 23 electors tificate of Ascertainment must be attached to from Virginia refused to support Johnson be- each of the Certificates of Vote. The Certifi- sion of Congress and read out the results, then cause he had previously fathered children with cates are then sent in the following fashion: declare that Barack Obama has been elected an African-American woman he lived with. • One is sent by registered mail to the president of the United States and—probably with an ear-to-ear smile—that Joe Biden has As a result, although Democratic presiden- President of the Senate (who usually is the been elected vice president of the United tial nominee Martin van Buren won a major- Vice President); States. ity of electoral votes nationally, no vice presi- • Two are sent by registered mail to That will be more pleasurable than it was dential candidate won a majority. The deci- the Archivist of the United States; in January 2001 when Vice President Al Gore sion was, therefore, made by the U.S. Senate. • Two are sent to the state’s Secretary of The Senate elected Johnson—with both of State; and; had to declare George W. Bush elected presi- Virginia’s senators supporting him. • One is sent to the chief judge of dent. Twenty-nine states, including Virginia, the United States district court where those When all of this year’s voting and sign- ing in Richmond was completed, Edna and now have laws punishing “faithless” electors. electors met. all the other electors headed down the street Each state has a number of electors equal A staff member of the President of the to the Marriott Hotel where the Democratic to its number of represesentatives and sena- Senate collects the Certificates of Vote as they Party of Virginia put on a luncheon victory tors. That gives Virginia 13 electors, the 12th arrive and prepares them for a joint session of the Congress, which will be held January party. largest haul in the country. In Virginia, the parties choose their elec- tors at their conventions. Edna was elected last spring at the Eighth District Convention. Similar district conventions around the state elected 10 other electors. And the state party convention chose the last two electors. Some states chose their electors in open votes at their primaries. has candidates’ campaign committees select them—figuring there is no way those so picked would be faithless. Under the law, the electors from each state gather in their respective state capitals on the Monday after the second Wednesday in December to cast their electoral votes in a highly formalized process. The Electoral College never actually meets nationally as one body. Although procedures in each state vary slightly, the electors generally follow a simi- lar series of steps. The meeting is opened by the election certification official who reads a Certificate of Ascertainment. This document sets forth who was chosen to cast the electoral votes. Each elector present answers to his or her name, and any vacancies are noted in writ- ing. The next step is the selection of a presi- THE REAL VOTE — Edna Frady of Falls Church, the federal elector dent or chairman of the meeting. for the Eighth Congressional District of Virginia, looks up from the script When the time for balloting arrives, the as she speaks at the meeting in Richmond December 17 of the state’s electors choose one or two people to act as tellers. (It’s hard counting to 13!) Each elec- Electoral College. She next cast the one vote from Northern Virginia tor submits a written ballot with the name of that really counts in electing Barack Obama. And now, she is officially a a candidate for president. The tellers count college graduate. ACDC Voice, January 2013, Page 11 The 2013 New Year’s wingding campaign is It’s almost New Year’s Day and that means it is time to ring in the new politi- cal year with the Arlington County Board. As usual, this is a double event. First, there is a formal County Board New underway Year’s Day session at 10 a.m. with speeches by each Board member on their plans for the year. Then, at noon, Board members and Democrats from all over the continued from page nine county will gather for a purely social event at the home of Board Member Mary Hynes at 1503 North Highland. That just a few hundred feet north of Wilson he is already. That is rare. In Virginia, polls Boulevard and a hop, skip and a jump from the Clarendon Metro station. have shown that most candidates for gover- You can go to the County Board chamber and watch the speeches live or nor at this stage are lucky if one-quarter of come to Mary’s place at 10 a.m. and watch it on TV—or stay in your PJs and watch the public has ever heard of them. it from your bedroom. On the other hand, many of those who But come at noon for the socializing. Bring some bread along or light snack do know Cuccinelli heartily disapprove of food for all to share. Alternatively, bring some wine or cider. him. For questions (and answers) contact [email protected]. A poll taken several weeks ago by showed 7 percent of Virgin- ians saying they would definitely vote for McAuliffe and 12 percent saying they would Letter to the editor: definitely vote for Cuccinelli. But 28 percent said they definitely would not vote for McAuliffe while an astounding 41 percent Time to make Obamacare work said they would definitely not vote for Cuccinelli. It’s time to stop fighting about health re- With regard to Medicaid expansion, the Without a primary, McAuliffe has more form. The Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) Supreme Court decision that upheld the Af- time to introduce himself to middle-of-the- was passed by Congress, declared constitu- fordable Care Act (ACA) also made Medicaid road and independent voters. But, without a tional by the Supreme Court, and affirmed by expansion voluntary. As a consequence, Vir- primary, he may find it harder to get to events the results of the last election. We should be ginia must “opt in” if it is to receive 100 per- where he can do that. proud that 35 million Americans who are with- cent of the funding necessary to meet the medi- Some are concerned that McAuliffe out health coverage will, by the end of 2013, cal needs of its poor. In addition, if Virginia doesn’t have a Virginia record; he has mainly have reliable access to medical care. refuses to expand Medicaid, the state’s health been active nationally, having worked exten- The details of health reform are still be- care providers will face the loss of hundreds sively in Bill Clinton’s presidential campaigns ing developed in each state. Roughly half our of millions of dollars in reimbursement for the and served as chair of the Democratic Na- uninsured will be purchasing insurance through care that they will continue to provide for the tional Committee. state-based insurance markets (called “ex- uninsured patients who will not become eli- But that may no longer be such a drag changes”), and the other half will become eli- gible for Medicaid. on a Virginia candidate. Of the last eight gov- gible for Medicaid, the state operated program Given the situation, why would Virginia ernors, five have been born elsewhere—and for the poor that is largely paid for by the fed- continue to resist health reform? The answer eral government. is two-fold. the last three have been certifiable Yankees— Decisions made in the next few months First, health insurance carriers and their Mark Warner from Indianapolis, Tim Kaine by Governor McDonnell and the 2013 Gen- brokers and agents do not want to subject them- from St. Paul and Bob McDonnell from Phila- eral Assembly will determine the nature of the selves to the enhanced competition that insur- delphia. state’s health insurance exchange and whether ance exchanges will bring to the market. These Before 1982, Virginia’s 63 governors Medicaid will be expanded to include over corporations are spending millions of dollars saw only four born out-of-state—and one of 400,000 uninsured poor people. to lobby state legislatures to water down com- them was born on a ship in the mid-Atlantic After a promising start in 2011, Virginia’s petition in the state exchanges. to an old Virginia family, a second was born efforts to develop its exchange stalled out dur- Secondly, partisan ideologues continue to just over the border in New Bern, North ing the presidential election campaign (when do everything they can to derail Obamacare Carolina, and the third was a Reconstruction McDonnell was on the VP “short list”), and by blocking state participation in health ex- governor who moved into the state right af- the state missed a December 14, 2012, dead- changes and Medicaid expansion, hoping to ter the Civil War and moved out 15 years line for submitting its proposed blueprint to make the system a failure. later. the U.S. Department of Health and Human Contact Governor McDonnell and the Furthermore, Cuccinelli is no FFV Vir- Services (DHHS). leaders of the Virginia General Assembly and ginian. He is a Roman Catholic hailing from There is still time for Virginia to enter into tell them to rise above the self-interest and Edison, New Jersey. a cooperative arrangement with DHHS for its partisan rancor. For the good of Virginia’s And Gov. Bob McDonnell got into the exchange, but without action by the Governor economy and its citizens, let us encourage them governor’s mansion by beating Creigh Deeds, and General Assembly, the state will lose this to rise to the occasion. who has a thick Virginia drawl and a pedi- option and the federal government will take over Rob Abbot gree of Confederate ancestors. the health insurance market in Virginia. Madison Precinct Co-captain