Virginians Historically Trend to Pragmatists Over Ideologues In

Vol. 38, No. 7 www.arlingtondemocrats.org July 2013 Virginians historically trend to pragmatists over ideologues

Virginia has always been a fairly moderate state Mo Elleithee, a Democratic strategist who has in its politics, normally rejecting barn-burners and worked for both Mark Warner and Tim Kaine over ideologues and going for candidates who are prag- the years, recently told The Washington Post, “If matic rather than partisan. you look at the last 10 years, the candidate who has Thus, campaigns can sometimes look like a done a better job of demonstrating bipartisanship, rush to the center. the one who has done a better job of communicat- This may prove harder this year for GOP gu- ing a results-first message, is the candidate who won. bernatorial nominee Ken Cuccinelli, who has a solid “In each one of those cases — Warner, Kaine, record of years as a very partisan attorney general. McDonnell — the winner is the one who comes off He even came out with a harshly ideological book looking less ideological,” he said. “The majority of Meet this spring, just as he wrapped up his nomination. Virginians are non-ideological. Even when they To top it all off, he is now saddled with a running subscribe to a particular ideology, they don’t want mate for lieutenant governor who isn’t backtrack- it getting in way of the trains running on time.” the ing on any of his decades of fiery rhetoric. McAuliffe, of course, has a history of parti- Cuccinelli isn’t backtracking either, but rather sanship as a former chairman of the Democratic is trying to shift the debate from his record and to National Committee, a post in which the occupant entire present himself as a man dedicated to bringing jobs is required to be partisan. and investment to Virginia, a topic he has not pre- But, as a businessman, McAuliffe put a car statewide viously been identified with. plant in Mississippi—for which the GOP routinely continued on page eight Dem ticket In House of Delegates races, at the JJ, Dems are far outpacing GOP

The battle lines are now drawn for the House lican. Challenging them would require tapping re- July of Delegates campaigns this fall. sources that could better be used to press for vic- Democrats have fielded challengers to 27 in- tory elsewhere. Meanwhile, the GOP incumbents cumbent Republicans. Republicans have fielded in those seats would be unlikely to spend more than 27 challengers to only seven Democratic incumbents. they would have to spend without a challenger. Of course, it must be admitted that the GOP There are also 11 open seats in the 100-seat Details on Page 4 has many more seats in the House and thus many House. Two of them just opened in June when Re- more targets. But the bottom line is that half the publican incumbents who had backed Gov. Bob Republican incumbents are facing Democratic chal- McDonnell’s transportation plan were defeated in lengers while only a quarter of the Democratic in- primaries by Tea Party candidates, thus opening up D o N O T come to cumbents must battle GOP challengers. two new opportunities for Democrats. the July 3 monthly This means the Republican funders will have The defeated incumbents are Beverly to spend much more money on defense while Demo- Sherwood of Frederick County and 20-year Del- meeting—because it crats can devote much more money, time and effort egate Joe May of Loudoun County. May was ousted has been moved to on offense. by Dave LaRock, a strident opponent of any new July 10. come July There remain 34 of the 100 seats where the taxes who, for that reason, campaigned vocally D O GOP will have a free ride, facing no Democratic against the Metro Silver Line and McDonnell’s 10 for a super program. challenge. Due to GOP gerrymandering, however, transportation bill. LaRock will face off against Details on Page 3. the bulk of those seats are overwhelmingly Repub- continued on page eight ACDC Voice, July 2013, Page 2

Report from Chairman Mike Lieberman A positive vision for Virginia

When talking about this year’s election, four years, he has traveled the state doing lit- Even educated and well-informed it is tempting to talk first about our opponents. erally thousands of events, and meeting and Democrats don’t know about, or at least aren’t Indeed, the Republicans in 2013 have offered learning from Virginians what is important to talking about, what our candidates are offer- up a stunningly extreme right wing ticket, with them. During this same period, he founded a ing. And in the end, especially with swing characters like Ken Cuccinelli and E.W. Jack- successful business – Green Tech Automo- voters, I believe it is a positive vision, not a son filling the newspapers daily with quotes tive – creating jobs and investing in progres- fear of our opponents, that will carry the day. simply unbelievable for candidates seeking sive, environmentally sustainable business. That’s why this fall in Arlington, we will major statewide office. McAuliffe has staked out positions that be talking up our candidates. To be sure, we But as Virginia Democrats, and espe- clearly reflect the positive progressive values will be making comparisons to our Republi- cially as Arlingtonians – one of the most edu- that matter to Arlingtonians. He will fight dis- can counterparts, but our focus will be on pre- cated electorates in America – we must con- crimination against gays and lesbians in Vir- senting a positive picture of what Virginia can stantly remind ourselves that it is not enough ginia, and trusts women to make their own be, and why our ticket is the best option to to simply be against something. To win an reproductive choices. He believes in invest- bring us there. election, the voters need to know what we ment in public transit, and helped facilitate I close this column, therefore, with a re- stand for, not just that we are different from the transportation package that will bring quest – that every time you, as Democrats, the other guys. The most recent proof of that much-needed funding to the Silver Line metro talk about why our opponents are wrong for was Mitt Romney, who ran a national cam- project, among other Northern Virginia pri- Virginia, make sure, in the same breath, to paign about how he was not Barack Obama, orities. He has recognized the importance of talk about why our ticket is right. Give people but left most voters wondering what it was state investment in Medicaid to take advan- something to vote for, not just something to that he would do if elected to the office he tage of federal matching funds, and he has vote against. And when you do, I am confi- sought. prioritized investment in education at both the dent that the people you meet will not only The good news for Virginia Democrats primary and secondary level. These are policy turn out to vote; they will turn out to vote is that we do have something to stand for this positions that matter to Arlington, and that can Democratic. year, and a strong candidate for governor to resonate with voters across Virginia. stand with us. Terry McAuliffe has lived in And, yet, what are voters talking about? Virginia for more than 20 years. For the last —the Republicans and their extreme message. First opponent for Warner in Jerry Botland Computer Consulting 2014 pops up Troubleshoot and resolve computer and The next senatorial election is still 16 computer related problems. months away, but one Republican has stepped Perform upgrades, set-up wireless routers and print servers. forward vowing to challenge Sen. Mark Transfer old files, address book and emails Warner. That is Howie Lind, a retired Navy of- from an old computer to a new one. ficer and the former chairman of the 10th Con- Phone: (703) 933-0558 — [email protected] gressional District Republican Committee, who formally announced his candidacy June 21. The 10th District is just to the west of our 8th District. GOP candidates have not exactly been Published monthly by the lining up to take on Warner, who is by far the Arlington County Democratic Committee most popular office-holder in the state, ac- 2050 Wilson Blvd., Suite 200, Arlington VA 22201 (enter at rear) cording to numerous polls. P.O. Box 7132, Arlington VA 22207 The GOP has already decided to choose Tel: (703) 528-8588 Fax: (703) 528-2321 its nominee at a convention next year. Based http://www.arlingtondemocrats.org on this year’s GOP convention, that should Chair: Mike Lieberman —(703) 408-3940 (h), [email protected] favor the candidate who leans furthest to the Editor-in-Chief: Warren L. Nelson —(703) 243-7867 (h), [email protected] right. Deputy Editor: Eric Wiener — (703) 524-6899 (h), [email protected] In a recent poll of hypothetical matchups Views expressed do not necessarily represent those of the ACDC by Public Policy Polling, Warner would beat unless expressly approved by an appropriate committee resolution Gov. Bob McDonnell by 11 percentage points Copyright ©2013, ACDC, All Rights Reserved and Rep. Eric Cantor by 19 points. Date changed to second Wednesday because of the Fourth of July

ACDC Voice, July 2013, Page 3 Supremes Next Monthly Meeting make voting All Dems Invited Wednesday, July 10, 2013, 7:00 p.m. Special loca-this rights tougher tion—just month Walter Reed Community Center, 2909 16th Street South to enforce (located two blocks east of Glebe Road and one block east of Walter Reed Drive) The impact on Virginia of the recent Supreme Court decision striking one part of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 remains to be As highlighted above, we will meet in a dif- revealed, but it isn’t likely to make anything ferent place AND on a different date this month. better. Our usual meeting date falls on the eve of the The court struck down the part of the law Fourth of July, so we put the meeting off a week. that required any changes to voting rules in Virginia and some other states to be “pre- This month’s program will give you unpre- cleared” with the US Justice Department. cedented insights into the management and me- That will make little substantive differ- chanics of statewide campaigns in Virginia. Our ence in Arlington, whose changes have rou- speaker is MIKE HENRY, who managed the sena- tinely been approved for decades. Locally, torial and gubernatorial campaigns of both Mark even changes in precinct boundaries—of which there have been many in recent years— Warner and Tim Kaine. Henry, who is now Kaine’s must be approved by the Justice Department chief of staff, has been active in Virginia and na- before they take effect. But these just sail tional campaigns for 23 years. through DoJ, given Arlington’s record. However, according to the Virginia ACLU, preclearance has resulted in blocking 15 proposed discriminatory voting practices around the state in the 25 years from 1982 imposed and then sue for redress under Sec- presumably require pre-clearance from a through 2006. tion 5. But one point of the Voting Rights smaller number of jurisdictions—perhaps fo- With Section 4 on pre-clearance now Act was to avoid that catch-me-if-you-can cusing on those that have had voting plans stricken, those changes will no longer have approach to civil rights—an approach that axed by the Justice Department in recent to be sent to DoJ for advance approval. But actually involves more expense and much years. the Supreme Court did not strike down Sec- more bureaucracy than pre-clearance. En- However, it remains uncertain that Con- tion 5, which bars jurisdictions from impos- forcement of voting rights would then be gress will take any action at all. The GOP- ing discriminatory voting practices. much more difficult. controlled House of Representatives will most One possibility is that voters will have However, the court urged Congress to likely just sit on its hands. to wait for a discriminatory practice to be write an entirely new Section 4, which would A. E. Dick Howard, professor of law at UVA, told the Richmond Times-Dispatch, “Section 5 [banning discrimination] becomes an empty shell if there is no valid coverage formula to tell us which jurisdictions must Bumper Sticker apply for pre-clearance. From that perspec- tive, Section 5, while technically in effect, has been gutted.” of the Month The court found that the standards set in 1965 making many entire states—including Virginia and most states of the old Confed- eracy—subject to pre-clearance were out of date after nearly a half-century. The main Virginia voting law change now pending is the law passed earlier this year requiring voters to show photo IDs beginning with the November 2014 elections. Gov. Bob McDonnell said, “Until the Con- gress passes a new [Section 4] formula, there’s nothing for us to submit to pre-clearance.” ACDC Voice, July 2013, Page 4 Whole state ticket will be Donkey Ears Listening to the doings at July 27 of Arlington’s Dems as overheard by JJ Dinner Dan Steen and Mädi Green

Terry McAuliffe, Virginia’s dynamic Democratic gubernatorial nominee, will head- Recuperating: Jean Marshall Crawford, treasurer of the Joint Campaign, line this year’s Jefferson-Jackson (JJ) Dinner. Kitchen Crew salad meister, and updater of ACDC name tags (among 884 Dem He will be joined by both of our other taskings over the years) has been sidelined—but only briefly—by gastric bypass statewide nominees, Ralph Northam for lieu- surgery. She said there was very little pain despite “having had my insides tenant governor and Mark Herring for attor- rearranged so drastically.” For several days afterward, she was confined to ney general. Congressman Jim Moran will also be a heard at the JJ. nothing but liquids. This produced dreams of chewing—very specific dreams— This will be an outstanding opportunity first, fried chicken, then toasted bagels, and next hake. Stalwart Jean pledges to for Arlingtonians to get to know our candi- be at her station with name tags for the July 10 ACDC monthly meeting. dates and gear up for what promises to be one Vacationing: ACDC Treasurer Inta Malis and husband Derrick have returned of the most watched and talked about elec- from a three-week visit to South Korea where daughter Alice teaches English in tions in recent years—courtesy of the Extreme Seoul. Alice said, “Dad came to sightsee and mom came to see me.” They Team being fielded by the GOP. found Korea dynamic and bustling, overlaid with Confucian culture, and the This year’s gala dinner—ACDC’s big- people friendly and technologically savvy. They felt safe day and night as they gest fundraiser of the year—will be held Sat- explored parks, palaces, shrines and shops. urday, July 27. The VIP and general recep- Yet another campaign! Dave Leichtman, ACDC tech savvy guru ran to be the tions begin at 6 p.m. followed by dinner at 7 state party vice chair for technology. He reported (via Facebook, of course) that p.m. he had finished addressing and stamping 277 postcards to state Central Commit- As in recent years, the event will be held tee members as part of his campaign. “Fingers sore, but it hurts so good,” he at the Arlington Gateway Westin Hotel in said. And, it paid off—he won. Ballston—801 N. Glebe Road. The main entrance is on Vermont Avenue, which you Public service in his blood: Southeast Area Chair Gaston Araoz was born in Bolivia reach from Fairfax Drive. Valet parking is and came to the United States in 2001 to attend college. He has now joined Sen. available or you can park in a public garage Tim Kaine’s staff at the Manassas office. Gaston says public service runs in the less than a block from the hotel entrance on family blood. One grandfather was a congressman and senator in Bolivia, while the Vermont Avenue. The hotel is also conve- other was foreign minister, and a great-grandfather was chief justice. nient to the Ballston Metro station. Passages I: Bill Tobin, who was long active in Thrifton precinct before retiring to Ticket prices are holding at last year’s Baltimore, has died at the age of 70. An historian with the Joint Chiefs of Staff levels—$250 for the VIP reception and din- at the Pentagon, after retirement he dedicated himself to Democrats, Meals on ner; $125 for the general reception (cash bar) Wheels and the Knights of Columbus. and dinner; $115 for members of the Passages II: John Lawler, long active in the party though more recently limited Roosevelt Society and $100 for YDs. Printed to reading a printed copy of The Voice, has died at the age of 91. Born in invitations with response cards will be in the Wyoming and reared in Ohio, he had a career as an industrial economist in the mail shortly or you may purchase your tick- Crops Branch of the Ag Department. He took pride in iconoclasm, and was ets online at the ACDC web site. Go to www.arlingtondemocrats.org, and click on “JJ passionate about politics, the arts, correct grammar and beautiful women. Dinner” on the right-hand side of the page. Hot, hot, hot: We always knew it could be hot down in the state capital, but now In addition to the speakers, the event will the weather service says that may all be exaggerated a little. It is investigating a feature the presentation of awards to ACDC’s suspicion that the temperature sensor at the Richmond Airport is defective and stalwart volunteers, a silent auction, and reporting temps higher than actuals. schmoozing and mingling with our elected Loving: “The Loving Story,” a film about Virginia’s Richard and Muriel Loving, officials and Virginia’s most dedicated Demo- who were arrested and prosecuted in 1958 for the “crime” of interracial mar- crats—that’s YOU! riage, has won a Peabody Award. The Loving case was eventually appealed to Continuing their record of presiding over the Supreme Court, which then ruled that the criminalization of interracial notable JJ’s over the past few years, the event marriage was unconstitutional. The film was supported with seed money from is co-chaired by Virginia Robinson and the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities, on which Del. Bob Brink serves as Atima Omara-Alwala. a board member. ACDC Voice, July 2013, Page 5

The Cooch Corner—Keeping watch on our AG ‘Jobs candidate’ still an ideologue

As a candidate for governor, Ken As recently as last week—June 25, to be constitutional in 2003 when the US Supreme Cuccinelli prefers not to talk about social is- precise—Attorney General Cuccinelli filed an Court ruled that all laws criminalizing sexual sues but to present himself as the candidate appeal with the US Supreme Court seeking activity between consenting adults were of job creation and economic development. to preserve Virginia’s law punishing sodomy. barred by the Constitution. As attorney general, however, Ken He asked the justices to overturn a deci- In his petition, Cuccinelli granted that Cuccinelli is the same old Ken Cuccinelli with sion reached in March by the Fourth U.S. Cir- the Virginia sodomy law cannot be used the same old ultra-conservative fixation on cuit Court of Appeals in Richmond that said against consenting adults, but he said the law social issues. the Virginia sodomy law had been made un- remained useful for pursuing sexual preda- tors. And, in the case before the Court of Ap- peals, it had been used to prosecute a 47-year- old man accused of soliciting oral sex from a 17-year-old girl. Claire Guthrie Gastanaga, executive di- rector of the American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia, said, “You can’t use an unconstitutional law to prosecute people.” It did not go unnoticed that Cuccinelli had 10 years as state senator and then attorney general in which to advocate a replace- ment law that would have done what he says he wants to do. Furthermore, the Fourth Circuit Court noted that Virginia already has a law prohib- iting an adult from soliciting sodomy from a minor—if the minor is under the age of 15. But the girl in this case was 17, and the Gen- eral Assembly has never seen fit to make soliciting at that age a criminal offense. Meanwhile, on the gay rights issue, Democratic candidate Terry McAuliffe said Cuccinelli “has spent his career putting up walls around Virginia and telling gay Virgin- ians that they’re not welcome.” Cuccinelli campaign manager David Rexrode fired back that McAuliffe “is eager to attack the attorney general without taking a position himself.... Trying to pin down Terry McAuliffe on this issue is like trying to nail Jell-O to a wall.” McAuliffe had said that a) he will not make repeal of the constitutional ban on gay marriage a legislative priority as governor and b) his first action as governor will be to re- move all existing rules that bar the protection of gays and lesbians from discrimination. It also came to light last month that the brief on gay marriage that Cuccinelli filed earlier with the US Supreme Court on behalf of 19 states argued that legalizing gay marriage would open the door to polygamy. “Once the natural limits that inhere in the re- lationship between a man and a woman can no longer sustain the definition of marriage, the conclusion that follows is that any group- SPEAKING OUT — Del. Patrick Hope makes his sentiments readily ing of adults would have an equal claim to apparent—and large—on his front yard. marriage,” the brief said. ACDC Voice, July 2013, Page 6

Keeping watch on The Extreme Team Jackson won’t back down, but doubles down

E.W. Jackson, the GOP nominee for lieu- government that did that. It tried to solve prob- He also said he had several complaints tenant governor, isn’t backing down but rather lems that only God can solve and that only we filed against him with the Massachusetts doubling down on some of his more controver- as human beings can solve,” Jackson said. Board of Bar Overseers, but that none of the sial remarks about slavery and black families. Next, Jackson’s personal history came complaints was upheld. Jackson has also acknowledged that he to haunt him on the campaign trail. During Jackson said some of his statements have used marijuana and experimented with other an unusual news conference, he sought to been taken out of context to try to make it controlled substances in his youth, and that clear the air about his past by speaking unin- sound as though he believes, for example, that he was forced to file for bankruptcy. terrupted for more than 45 minutes detailing yoga leads to Satanism. At the top of the ticket, GOP gubernato- his personal history. He said, “I do not believe that yoga leads rial candidate Ken Cuccinelli is clearly try- He told reporters he wanted to go back to Satanism. One of my ministers is a yoga ing to ignore his running mate. He generally and “reveal as many of my weaknesses and instructor. What I said was that Christian avoids answering questions about Jackson’s shortcomings as a curious press and my op- meditation does not involve emptying one- positions and conduct. position might want to look into” and, by do- self but filling oneself ... with the spirit of God. In a June speech in Norfolk, Jackson ar- ing so, “maybe save you and your colleagues That is classic Biblical Christianity.” gued that it wasn’t slavery that destroyed the some further research.” The uproar over yoga started when the black family, but Democratic social programs He spent a lot of time discussing his 1993 National Review posted an excerpt from a of the 1960s. bankruptcy filing, which he said came after book Jackson had written in which he said, When that drew criticism, Jackson’s nine years of work to make a go of an AM “When one hears the word meditation, it con- campaign issued a news release that repeated gospel radio station in jures an image of Maharishi and nailed down his argument. Boston. He said many of Yoga talking about finding a “It does not take that much time to search the difficulties came from mantra and striving for nir- the Internet to find study after study that con- extended battles with the vana.... The purpose of such firms the harm big government has caused the Federal Communications meditation is to empty one- black family,” Jackson said in the statement. Commission, contributing self. [Satan] is happy to in- “The evidence of many studies and gov- to his belief that govern- vade the empty vacuum of ernment statistics show that out-of-wedlock ment injects itself unrea- your soul and possess it.” births among black families is about 80 per- sonably into the free mar- Jackson said he felt com- cent among the inner-cities of America,” Jack- ket. pelled to address his theology son continued. “It was painful. It “because it has been twisted “In testament to the strength of the men was difficult. It was em- and distorted and I’m not go- and women who endured the horrors of slavery barrassing,” Jackson said ing to spend the campaign in America, the black family remained largely of the bankruptcy filing. “I talking about these issues, so intact nonetheless,” he said, ignoring the fre- don’t like the idea of not paying off debts.” let’s get it out of the way now.” quent sales of children and spouses at auction. He also talked about his transition over The Washington Examiner cataloged “It is that much more shocking therefore time from lawyer to minister. He said that Jackson’s money troubles as follows: that we have seen the erosion of the black fam- while attending Harvard Law School, he took 1985 — The IRS puts a federal tax lien ily in the last 50 years since the rise of the several classes at the divinity school, although on his Massachusetts home for unpaid taxes War on Poverty.” the Associated Press says Harvard has no dating back to 1983. Cassandra L. Newby-Alexander, direc- record of that. 1991 — Pioneer Broadcasting Associ- tor of African Diaspora Studies at Norfolk “They were not teaching what I believed ates files a complaint seeking $3,600 he owed State University, told the Richmond Times- to be orthodox Christian biblical theology, but the firm. Dispatch that Jackson misunderstood the rather a liberal version of that. I believe in the 1992 — William Fahey wins a judgment causes of the breakup of black families in the inerrancy of Scripture; they did not,” Jack- against Jackson in Massachusetts for $5,906. last half-century. She said migration from son said of the Harvard divinity classes. Not paid until 1998. rural to urban areas and the pressures of city He acknowledged that he was asked to 1993 — Jackson files for Chapter 7 life were the chief causes of family disinte- leave his first ministerial position in 1982, bankruptcy, listing 35 creditors. gration. after two years at a Baptist church in Cam- 2002 — Earl Jackson Ministries is ter- Jackson insisted the cause was Demo- bridge. minated by Virginia for unpaid fees. cratic welfare programs that started in the “It was an older congregation and I was 2007 – A Chesapeake shopping center 1960s by telling women “you don’t need a a young 27-year-old firebrand. It was not a owner wins a $6,700 judgment against man in the home; the government will take good mix,” he said. Jackson’s church for unpaid rent. care of you.” He said such governmental so- He said he has also faced tax liens over 2012 – The City of Chesapeake sues over cial engineering discouraged men from re- time for unpaid car taxes and similar items, unpaid debt; the case is dismissed after he maining in the family home and led to a de- but said that he is currently fully up to date paid. cline in the percentage of black children raised on his taxes. 2012 – His non-profit, Youth with a Des- by two, married parents. “Who hasn’t been late in a payment for tiny Inc., was terminated by Virginia after fail- “It wasn’t slavery that did that. It was something?” he said. ing to pay fees in 2008, 2011 and 2012. ACDC Voice, July 2013, Page 7 Arlington’s minuscule primary turnout is twice the size of the statewide turnout

It was a very quiet Democratic primary around most of the commonwealth June 11 with an embarrassing turnout of only 3.1 percent. Nobody at all voted in some downstate precincts. Few were surprised, however, at the overall low turnout as the absence of a con- test for the gubernatorial nomination limited interest. The turnout percentage was just a hair’s width different from the turnout in 2005, the last time there was no gubernatorial race on the ballot in a gubernatorial year. Arlington’s turnout of 5.9 percent was almost double the state average. Of the 134 cities and counties in the state, Arlington ranked 10th—and many of the locales with a higher turnout had local contests to spur interest while Arlington only had the two statewide offices—lieutenant governor and attorney general. In the lieutenant governor’s race, Arling- NORTHAM HERRING ton was almost the mirror opposite of the state . . . for lieutenant governor . . . for attorney general as a whole. Arlington gave 53.6 percent of its vote to home town candidate Aneesh Both Arlington and the commonwealth gave only barely eked out victory with 51.7 per- Chopra, while statewide the race went to the nod to Mark Herring, state senator from cent. Ralph Northam, state senator from Norfolk, Loudoun County, over Justin Fairfax, an at- According to Carrie Johnson, who with 54.2 percent. torney from Fairfax County. But Arlington keeps records for ACDC and is commonly For attorney general, Arlington was also went for Herring big time, giving him 60.6 known as the ACDC List Lady, the average a little out of synch with the state as a whole. percent of the vote, while statewide Herring age of the 8,556 primary voters in Arlington was 57 and only 614 or 7 percent of the voters were under 30. That underscores the big challenge of getting out the youth vote a year after that demographic played such a major role in the presidential victory. The poor turnout around the commonwealth was notable by the fact that in 21 jurisdictions, which is 15 percent of all the cities and counties in the state, the turnout was less than 1 percent. Down in Seminary precinct in Lee County—the westernmost county in the state in the far southwestern tip—nobody at all showed up in the 13 hours the polls were open. The same was true in Grassy precinct and Oakwood precinct in Buchanan County, also in the southwestern tip. There may have been more; we didn’t check every one of the 2,500 precincts in the state. Only a solitary person voted in Pennington precinct and also in Robbins Chapel precinct in Lee County. They both CAPITAL FIST BUMP — Yes, that’s First Lady Michelle Obama. And voted for Northam and Herring—so it wasn’t she’s fist bumping with Arlington Dem-about-town, Gordon Simonett. exactly a secret ballot! ACDC Voice, July 2013, Page 8 Virginia winners look less ideological

continued from page one Virginia.” tify him with the left wing of the Democratic State Sen. Richard L. Saslaw (D-Fairfax) Party. He’s making a stylistic claim more than rakes him over the coals—but he did that by told The Washington Post that McAuliffe is an ideological claim.” working closely with Gov. Haley Barber, a “in a totally different role” than when he was Republican and former chairman of the Re- DNC chair. “He realizes that if you’re going publican National Committee, a fact that un- to succeed, you have to get along with every- dercuts the GOP argument of unremitting one. And Terry has the personality to do that.” Fall Dem McAuliffe partisanship. In McAuliffe’s case, the roles he has McAuliffe, running as a pragmatic busi- adopted are not necessarily in conflict, says nessman willing to rise above the partisan Ron Rappaport, political science professor at fray, has released a TV ad decrying anyone the College of William and Mary. “Even goal is make promoting a “divisive, ideological agenda” though McAuliffe was the Democrats’ attack and advised against “putting up walls around dog, he wasn’t an ideologue. You don’t iden- GOP sweat McAuliffe and ACDC launch continued from page one Democrat Kathee Myers. No one should be thinking that Demo- ‘Days of Action’ for campaign crats will win a majority in the House this fall. The GOP now has a two-thirds majority—68- The McAuliffe campaign and ACDC weekend knocked on 5,089 doors in Arling- to-32. While the Democratic Party has fielded have started a series of “Days of Action” with ton County alone. About 100,000 doors were enough candidates to win a majority, the odds concentrated campaign activities one after the hit statewide. are overwhelmingly against such a sea other. Campaigns don’t usually swing into gear change. However, the odds of cutting back The first was held the weekend of June until after Labor Day, but the McAuliffe cam- the GOP majority are excellent—and that 15-16 with eight simultaneous canvasses paign is already in high gear five months be- would set the groundwork for taking back the around the county plus tables at two farmers’ fore Election Day. House two years from now. markets and an active appearance at the Blues More such Days of Action are in the The table below shows all the numbers Festival. works with a concentrated need for volun- for statistics fans. Max Bouril, the Arlington County field teers, especially for the door-to-door canvass- organizer for Terry McAuliffe for Governor, ing. said, “Everything ran extremely smooth.” Bouril said, “Arlington is going to be the House of Delegates He said the 106 canvassers deployed that engine that keeps Virginia moving forward.” Fall 2013 Election Remember to attend the Arlington JJ Dinner July 27 — See Page 4 for details

Tickets on sale now at www.ArlingtonDemocrats.org ACDC Voice, July 2013, Page 9

AYDs help mark LGBT Pride Month Arlington’s Young Democrats have been marking Pride Month with the LGBT community. For example, AYDs collaborated with the LGBT Democrats of Virginia, ACDC and the McAuliffe Campaign to staff a table at the Capital Pride Festival June 9. On just that single afternoon, more than 100 people filled in McAuliffe volunteer cards or AYD interest sheets, 37 people signed up to canvass in Arlington and 15 registered to vote—a very successful and busy afternoon. On June 19, AYD members marked the month while gathering at Freddie’s Beach Bar, which is in Crystal City and not far from the Potomac beach(!), where they engaged in Karaoke and Drag Bingo. Pride Month, of course, ended on a high note with the Supreme Court decisions on the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and California’s gay marriage law. AWARDS — Three ACDC stalwarts were winners in Richmond in June. Arlington Precinct Ops Chair Kip Malinosky (left) won the state party’s Lander featured at July grassroots award for the 8th Congressional District. David Leichtman Second Saturday Breakfast (center), who heads technology for ACDC, was elected vice chair of the state party for technology. And ACDC jack-of-all-trades Charley Conrad The speaker at the July Second Satur- day Breakfast will be James Lander, member (right) won the Community Action for Equality Award at the LGBT of the Arlington School Board, who just won Democratic breakfast June 29 during the state Jefferson-Jackson the Democratic endorsement for re-election weekend in Richmond for grassroots organizing. The award was this fall. presented by State Sen. Adam The Second Saturday falls on July 13 and Ebbin in front of Sen. Tim Kaine the site is the usual Busboys & Poets in Shirlington. Bring your appetite and your and 110 LGBT Democrats and Gubernatorial questions for James. The opening bell rings their straight allies. as usual at 8:30 a.m. first debate is set for July 20 The first debate of the gubernatorial race has been fixed for Saturday, July 20, at 11 a.m. Democrat Terry McAuliffe and Repub- lican Ken Cuccinelli will face off before the Virginia Bar Association at its summer meeting in The Homestead, the Virginia resort located in Hot Springs since 1766. The VBA has been sponsoring candidate debates for a quarter-century. More debates are expected, but have not been firmed up yet. McAuliffe proposed five debates across the commonwealth. Cuccinelli responded by calling for 15 debates, which McAuliffe dismissed as a “political stunt.” The last two gubernatorial campaigns have included five debates each. ACDC Voice, July 2013, Page 10 Abortion clinic challenge filed in Arlington

A Falls Church clinic has filed in the Ar- tion to close clinics that provide essential ser- The board took just such a step last sum- lington court the first legal challenge to new vices to mostly poor women ... and, having mer by a 7-4 vote, only to reverse itself, 11- state regulations governing Virginia’s abor- done that, then also oppose Medicaid expan- 2, that September following a memo from tion facilities, so the trial in the challenge will sion. Those positions do not by any rational Cuccinelli’s office refusing to certify the regu- start here. definition that I can fathom support public lations. The Falls Church Healthcare Center filed health. The memo said the law did not allow the the lawsuit in Arlington County Circuit Court “I hope this message gets out to the vot- board to take such action and suggested board against the regulations that reclassified ers of Virginia. The Republican candidates members risked losing legal represen- Virginia’s 19 clinics as hospitals. for governor and lieutenant governor are now tation from Cuccinelli’s office if they did not The new rules say the existing clinics emphasizing their ‘programs’ for jobs. I’m abide by its advice. must meet the building standards for new hos- for jobs too. But do not forget the baggage Before the regulations were adopted, the pitals—such as wide hallway corridors—even that they bring to the ‘jobs’ they seek. Their state’s clinics were subject to the same regu- though existing hospitals are grandfathered in positions on social issues are fully exposed lation as medical offices that also function as and do not have to meet the standards. Fur- and repugnant to many of us, and those posi- outpatient surgery centers, performing inva- thermore, other kinds of clinics that provide tions are a disservice to hundreds of thousands sive procedures such as oral surgery, laser a host of outpatient surgical services are not of Virginians.” surgery, colonoscopies and spinal taps. put under the hospital rules. Edmondson said, ”I apologize for a Edmondson and Anna Jeng of Nor- The 47-page suit filed by the Venable political speech of sorts. But movement from folk were the only board members to refuse Law Firm in Tysons Corner argues that the apolitical to political follows the path this to follow Cuccinelli’s direction. rules are the product of a “legally flawed pro- Board has had to take. My hope is that a The imposition of the standards on the cess” that failed to consider the impact of the change in the leadership of the Common- clinics will likely come down to who is changes on a small business and reflect “the wealth will bring moderation to the regula- elected governor this November. lack of any rational, medical or public health tion of this one major aspect of public health The governor appoints the health com- basis” for regulating the clinics as hospitals. and keep women’s health clinics open.” missioner, who would have the ability to grant It calls the regulations “arbitrary and ca- In numerous speeches before the Board waivers to the clinics from the new rules. The pricious and an abuse of discretion” that sub- of Health during the regulatory process, he last commissioner, Dr. Karen Remley, left the ject the clinics to rules to which medical of- argued that existing clinics should be post in October citing political interference in fices and current hospitals are not subject. grandfathered under the new requirements. the clinic regulatory process. Further, it claims that Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, who refused to certify a Board of Health decision last June to exempt existing clinics from the new rules, overstepped his authority. “After Ken Cuccinelli bullied the Board of Health into enacting burdensome and un- necessary restrictions that reflect his extreme ideology, not medical evidence, it’s not sur- prising legal questions have arisen,” Anna Scholl of the liberal advocacy group Progress Virginia told the Richmond Times-Dispatch. The lawsuit says it would cost the Falls Church Healthcare Center roughly $2 million to renovate its facility to meet the new standards. The clinic had about $1 million in business last year. Meanwhile, Jim Edmondson, a McLean real estate developer appointed to the Board of Health as a consumer advocate by Governor Mark Warner in 2005 and reap- pointed by Gov. Tim Kaine in 2009 completed his last meeting on the board with a broadside about the new abortion clinic rules. Edmondson noted many backers of the new clinic rules argue that they do so to pro- POLITICKING — Here’s the ACDC campaign table at the Capitol Pride tect women’s health. Festival in June, staffed by three McAuliffe interns on the left, plus Sarah “One doesn’t protect health by curtail- Hassmer, the AYD LGBT Caucus co-chair, and a member of the LGBT ing access to care,” Edmondson said. “One doesn’t protect women’s health by taking ac- Democrats of Virginia.