Vol. 42, No 3 www.arlingtondemocrats.org March 2017 Fisette retiring after 20 years Meet all three lieutenant governor primary candi- dates at the 2nd Saturday on County Board After almost two decades on the Arlington County Board, Jay Breakfast. Fisette has decided not to run for re-election this fall. See Page 5. In an announcement, Fisette said, “I just returned from a trip abroad, where I gave this a lot of thought. I have decided that it’s time to find a new platform and seek new ways of protecting and advancing some of the progressive values that are so important to me, values we have championed here in Arlington that are threatened by the current administration. I will not seek a sixth term on the County Board. Stay tuned.” Fisette said he has not yet decided what exactly he will do next, but it will not involve elective office. Bath County (with just Assuming more than one Democrat files to succeed him by the 4,500 people) has a big deadline of Thursday, March 30, a caucus of Arlington Democrats will be held Thursday, May 11, and Saturday, May 13, to choose a electoral fraud scandal— nominee for the November ballot. G. N. (Jay) Fisette, as his name appeared on the ballot, announced but not the kind the GOP his retirement last Wednesday, four days before his 61st birthday. He warns about. moved to Arlington in 1983 to start his career working for the federal government. See Page 10 On his retirement December 31, he will be the second longest- continued on page nine Are the times achangin’? Here’s a surprise that suggests the times they Henrico County outside Richmond. First elected are a changin’ when it comes to this year’s House in a 2000 special election, he has now been re- of Delegates’races. elected eight times and has faced just one Demo- The air in many districts now held by Repub- cratic and one Libertarian challenger in all that time. licans carries a whiff of change, part of it courtesy This year, two Democrats are eager to take him on. of the unease many citizens feel with President Then there’s the very ideological Del. Bob Trump in the White House. Marshall of Prince William County. He was the And check out our t-shirt What’s the evidence of that change? Well, author of the (now-invalidated) state constitutional Democrats are lining up to run for the Democratic amendment forbidding same-sex marriage. He has of the month on Page 3. nomination for seats in the House of Delegates. drawn three Democrats eager to oust him. That’s a huge change from past years when the party Republican Del. Rick Morris from Suffolk, has often had to dragoon candidates to oppose south of the James, may be the most unpopular Repubs enjoying gerrymandered districts. member of the House of Delegates. Not only are Right now, there are already seven CON- three Dems champing to go after him, but two Re- TESTED Democratic primaries on tap, two of them publicans are also challenging him in the GOP pri- with three candidates seeking the nomination. That mary! tells us those candidates have been talking to their All 100 seats in the House of Delegates are up local voters and see a real chance of winning in the for election this year. In 2015, every delegate who fall, with a little help from their friends (and Donald ran for re-election won. Not a single incumbent Trump). was defeated. But that may change this year. The Take Republican Delegate John O’Bannon of continued on page eight ACDC Voice, March 2017, Page 2 Report from Chairman Kip Malinosky Moving Virginia forward As Trump’s corrupt and chaotic admin- this year Republicans blocked sensible crimi- Justin Fairfax, Susan Platt, and Gene Rossi. istration already flounders at the federal level, nal justice reforms. And our terrific Attorney General Mark Her- we have the opportunity to go on the offense In the commonwealth, where Democrats ring, who has been a champion for marriage in Virginia. The leadership of Governor Terry have won the last seven statewide elections, equality, consumer rights and standing up to McAuliffe, Lt Governor Ralph Northam and how is it that Republicans can block popular the unconstitutional executive orders of the Attorney General Mark Herring has created legislation proposed by a popular governor? Trump administration, is running for re-elec- 185,000 jobs, quadrupled renewable energy In a word: gerrymandering. Despite Hillary tion. use and promoted equality by restoring vot- Clinton winning Virginia by more than 5 per- And the news gets better as we turn to ing rights to nearly 130,000 former offend- centage points, the House of Delegates sits the House of Delegates. There are now 45 Re- ers. This results-oriented, inclusive leadership with a 66-34 Republican majority. These dis- publican seats being challenged, ensuring that in Virginia stands in marked contrast to the tricts were drawn after the disastrous 2009 Democrats are now contesting 79 of the 100 cruel, mercurial leadership of Republicans in election, in which Virginia Democrats lost all seats. Currently, there are 17 seats held by Washington. three statewide offices and 17 seats in the Republicans in districts that Hillary Clinton While Virginia has made great progress House of Delegates. Republicans wasted little won last November. We have challengers in in these last three years, so much more could time in drawing up maps to maximize their all 17, including 11 districts in northern Vir- be done with a Democratic General Assem- partisan advantage. But this year, we will elect ginia. If we are able to flip all 17 seats, we bly. Republican legislators in Richmond have the governor who will have a significant role will retake control of the House of Delegates. followed the lead of Republicans in Washing- in the 2020 redistricting process. We have the opportunity for a game-chang- ton and opposed a Democratic chief execu- Luckily, Virginia Democrats have two ing election. Not only will we have the chance tive on almost every significant piece of leg- excellent choices for our next governor—Lt. to greatly improve the lives of Virginians, but islation. Republicans repeatedly blocked the Gov. Ralph Northam or former Congressman also we can send a signal to Republicans in expansion of Medicaid, denying hundreds of Tom Perriello. Both are running on continu- Washington that they enable Trump at their thousands of Virginians access to health care. ing to create good paying jobs, expanding peril. Republicans removed McAuliffe’s appoint- access to health care, investing in education What can we in Arlington do? We will ment of a highly qualified women, Justice and fighting for equality for all. We have three register voters to ensure we empower citizens Roush, from the Virginia Supreme Court. And great choices for lieutenant governor with at the polls. We will be knocking on doors and making calls to first-time, 2016 voters and asking them to commit to voting in 2017. If we hit our targets in Arlington to put us on Jerry Botland the path to a 55 percent turnout with a 70 per- cent Democratic margin, then we will be mak- Computer Consulting ing every effort to help Democratic challeng- ers in the seats that Clinton won. Troubleshoot and resolve computer and While we must be steadfast in our de- computer related problems. fense in the U.S. Congress, we have the Perform upgrades, set-up wireless routers and print servers. chance to go on the offense in the Virginia Transfer old files, address book and emails General Assembly. Let’s make it happen. from an old computer to a new one. Phone: (703) 933-0558 — [email protected] Published monthly by the Arlington County Democratic Committee 2001 Jefferson Davis Highway, Suite #604, Arlington VA 22202 Mailing address: P.O. Box 7132, Arlington VA 22207 Tel: (703) 528-8588 http://www.arlingtondemocrats.org Chair: Kip Malinosky — [email protected] Editor-in-Chief: Warren L. Nelson —(703) 243-7867 (h), [email protected] Views expressed do not necessarily represent those of the ACDC unless expressly approved by an appropriate committee resolution Copyright ©2017, ACDC, All Rights Reserved ACDC Voice, March 2017, Page 3 Next Monthly Meeting s a Hey! It’ All Dems Invited brand new Wednesday, March 1, 7 p.m. T-Shirt localtion. Unitarian Universalist Church of the month 4444 Arlington Blvd. (Route 50) Enter parking lot from George Mason Blvd, just south of Rt. 50 It’s one of our most popular meetings of the year—the RICHMOND RECAP. Each spring, after the General Assembly completes its shenanigans on the banks of the James, the Arlington delegation reports on the many high points (and their favorite low points) of the session. With the GOP enjoying a majority in both chambers, there is never a shortage of low points— though this year we won’t have legislation banning low slung jeans to chuckle over. For members of The Roosevelt Society, come an hour early, at 6 p.m., for a reception with the delegation members. State Senate tie votes that are really campaign stunts Could it be that the state GOP tried to broke a tie on an immigration bill to ban pull off some stunts in the State Senate this sanctuary cities in Virginia, GOP guberna- session to posture for the gubernatorial cam- torial candidate Ed Gillespie issued a press paign? release bashing Northam for his vote. In the just completed Richmond legisla- Clearly, the press release was prepared be- tive session, there were six mysterious tie fore the vote.