|
More
interesting is Day’s suggestion that “government
by referenda” might become the defining issue of
the race, offering the missing “gravitas.”
Kilgore is proposing referenda on tax increases;
Kaine opposes it.
It's
got all the markers of an issue that could get
legs. It is simple. There are significant
consequences. It is reducible to sound-bite and
bumper sticker ("Let the People
Decide"). There are differences between the
candidates. And it has the two characteristics
that seem requisite anymore in politics. Does it
pander? Does it insult our intelligence? Of course
it does, on both counts.
Apparently,
Day believes that because it is reducible to a
bumper sticker, it’s automatically suspect.
Perhaps he should consider his side’s bumper
sticker possibilities (“Let the Blue Ribbon
Commission Decide” or “Let 21 Senators
Decide”).
Still,
candidates debating tax increases in terms of who
determines tax increases and under what
circumstances seems like a good issue to put before
the voters. We can only hope that Day is on to
something.
In
other looks at the campaign, Jeff
Schapiro speculated in the Richmond
Times-Dispatch that issues outside Virginia
might decide the gubernatorial race. Bob
Gibson of the Daily Progress reviewed the
debate issue from a tactical standpoint. In
the Washington Post, Gordon
Morse found problems with Republican candidates
Jerry Kilgore, George Fitch, and Bill Bolling.
Democratic campaigns seem to be flawless and Morse
finds some kind words for GOP Lt. Gov. candidate
Sean Connaughton, although he stresses that’s not
an endorsement.
Following
the Money
Jeff
Schapiro also wrote of a web site being built to
allow anyone to review state
spending. Showing a noteworthy lack of
skepticism, Schapiro accepted Walter Kucharski’s
declaration that the site will be from a
“citizen’s point of view,” even though “two
wonks” are constructing the page. Kucharski is the
Auditor of Public Accounts. Citizens might feel more
confident about the potential usefulness of the site
if Lee and Paulette Albright of Montebello, the
couple behind exposure of Department of Game and
Inland Fisheries spending hijinks, tested the site
before it debuts.
The
Taxman Cometh
There
has been some talk that Virginians are not
particularly concerned about rising real estate tax
bills. Perhaps that’s because no major pundits
have bothered to ask. Wil
LaViest of the Daily Press broke the
moratorium, quoting numerous Hampton Road residents,
including Rhonda Woods of Hampton: "I struggled
to pay the payments on the house, and my house is
paid off," she said. "Now I'm going to
have to struggle to pay taxes.”
Roanoke
Times, Last Bastion of the First Amendment
According
to Kathryn
Welch, a Blacksburg writer and industrial
psychologist, “bullies … (like The
Salt Lick?) try to silence Tommy Denton and
staff, whose op-ed section is the only place in The
[Roanoke] Times where moderate and progressive
views appear. These same bullies also try to
intimidate letter writers.” To Welch, editorial
page editor Denton and his staff are “small town
heroes” operating in a “hostile environment.”
Columnist
Gets Results
Richmond
Mayor Doug Wilder came to City Hall promising
belt-tightening, but Michael Paul Williams of the Richmond
Times-Dispatch noted
that Wilder seemed oblivious to appearances
regarding a proposed $25,000 pay raise that would
bring his salary to $150,000 per year. That’s
higher than the salaries of mayors in Atlanta,
Baltimore, and Washington, DC. Shortly after
Williams’ column appeared, Wilder announced that
he would not
accept the raise.
The
Precipice of Development
A
budget shortfall in rural Carroll County is causing
supervisors to consider lifting a land-use tax
assessment deferral policy on undeveloped land. Liz
Field of Wytheville writes in the Roanoke Times
that such a move would “destroy scenic open
space” in an area increasingly dependent on
tourism.
Blog
Round-Up
Commonwealth
Conservative played host to a national blog
highlight program, “Carnival of the
Vanities,” selflessly using the platform to
introduce Virginia blogs to a wider audience.
Host John Behan also offered extensive coverage of
the Tim
Kaine campaign campaign, a subject ignored by
most major pundits. The Jaded JD offered analysis
of the Kaine campaign based on recent poll results
showing Kaine within the margin of error.
Incredibly
detailed information on House
of Delegate races races is available at Virginia
House of Delegates Elections 2005, operated by the
intriguingly named “Not Larry Sabato.” That
moniker has spawned a host of imitators in comment
sections, such as “Not Mark Rozell” (Rozell
being an American University professor-pundit).
Anonymous
blogging was debated at Bacon’s Rebellion, as
was a code
of ethics for bloggers.
This
past week ended with a blog-sprawling discussion of
the Virginia anti-tax philosophy, ignited by a question and fueled by the Phil Rodokanakis response
on Bacon’s Rebellion and Norm Leahy’s riposte
at One Man’s Trash. The campaign blog of Shaun
Kenney also jumped into the fray. Kenney is a
candidate in the House of Delegates race in the 54th
District. The real-time back and forth among
credible participants in blog discussions simply
can’t be duplicated in print media.
--
May 23, 2005
|
