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Feb.
25, 2005, was Black Friday for the Virginia
Republican Party. Winchester Republican Sen. Russ
Potts threw the biggest monkey wrench into
Virginia
party politics and election campaigning since Harry
Byrd fractured the Virginia Democratic Party in the
1970s.
Of
course, we live in strange times, where fiscal
conservatism means, "I can tax and spend better
than you, because I love Virginia
more."
At
the moment, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tim
"Pinch Me, I'm Dreaming" Kaine appears to
have a free ride to the governor's mansion. In The
Washington Post, Kaine said, "What the
Potts candidacy says is there is discord within the
Republican Party, there is concern about Kilgore's
leadership. ... It bolsters my message. It
emphasizes the discord in the party."
At
first glance, the Blue Dog says Republican Jerry
Kilgore will probably lose the general election with
the addition of the Potts candidacy. And it's more
than likely the tainted Kool Aid has already been
passed around the table at Kilgore's
Richmond
headquarters.
Since
Friday, the Republican Party of Virginia and the
Kilgore Communications Report have both fired off
multiple hit-the-panic-button-type press releases
condemning Potts.
The
GOP tried to spin the political bottle back at
Kaine, commenting in a press release, "This is
horrible news for Tim Kaine’s campaign for
governor. He now has a challenger who shares
his liberal views. Today the liberal high-tax
lobby has a second candidate to choose from, leaving
Tim Kaine and Russ Potts to fight over the votes of
people who hold the minority opinion in Virginia."
And
Gov. Mollycoddle is playing the GOP like a fiddle
with the Potts candidacy. Warner told The
Washington Post, "One would be a fool to
underestimate Russ Potts."
Just
my opinion, but the multiple press releases
condemning Potts are a sign of GOP desperation.
Democratic
attorney-general nomination candidate, Bath County
Sen. Creigh Deeds, said, "Russ Potts is a
Mountain Valley Republican. He is fiscally
conservative and socially responsible. He is a
moderate who adds excitement to the race."
But
Deeds also said, "For the record, I support Tim
Kaine."
Kaine
will likely shore up his base in the coming weeks
with the addition of a Potts independent candidacy.
But could Potts win as an independent with votes
from moderate Democrats and Republicans?
Blue
Dog's facts: Potts needs only 33.4-percent of the
vote to win. Former U.S.
Senator Harry Byrd won twice as an independent, and
don't forget about Henry Howell's populist winning
independent campaign for lieutenant governor in
1970.
According
to RaisingKaine.com, a recent Emerson
College
poll found that Kilgore is leading Kaine in a
two-way race by the slim margin of 33 percent to 26
percent. With 41 percent of Virginia voters still undecided, I say Potts' chances are not
looking too bad at this point.
Russ
Potts is a favorite with the Virginia's teacher associations, the chamber of commerce and
the pro-tax business political-action committees. As
a state senator, Potts has supported tax increases
for education and transportation.
Virginian's
environmental community knows that Potts is the
original yo'
homey, home-slice, partner, buddy and the
genuine cool one for Northern Virginia's pro-road
constructors and cookie-cutter developers and the
powerful real estate broker PACs as well.
It's
obvious to the Blue Dog why candidate Russ Potts
calls himself a middle-of-the-road.
The
Associated Press wrote that Potts joked when asked
about this campaign plans, saying, "There'll be
a little vinegar out there this year." And we
all know Virginia's high-tax lobbyists love vinegar-flavored barbecue
pork barrel.
Potts'
shots
Is
Potts a conservative, moderate or liberal?
The
Valley Yellow Dog (an anonymous Valley Democrat)
commented, "There are no liberals in Virginia, right-wing rankings not withstanding. Sen. Potts
is a moderate or, in Valley-speak, a left-wing
liberal."
Phillip
Rodokanakis, the vice president of the conservative Virginia Club for Growth, said, "As to whether Potts is
a conservative, moderate or liberal, he’s neither.
He’s off his rocker in search of the marbles he
lost long ago. He’s flexible, taking whatever
position suits him for the time being."
There's
a trust issue with Potts. He originally signed the
Taxpayer Protection Pledge in 1997 and then
campaigned on that fact, but now claims he made a
boo-boo.
In
a press release, Mechanicsville Sen. Bill Bolling
said, "Over the past few years Russ Potts has
shown that his core values are higher taxes and
bigger government. He has abandoned the
conservative values upon which he was elected to the
Senate of Virginia. His record is that of a liberal
Democrat, and he will compete with Tim Kaine for the
liberal vote and the vote of liberal
special-interest groups."
Democratic
lieutenant-governor nomination candidate Leslie
Byrne offered up a different perspective to the Blue
Dog: "Like
most of us, Sen. Potts is a mixture of views and
positions. He won't pass anybody's 100 percent
litmus test on ideology. Having served with him in
the Senate, I saw a thoughtful legislator who
occasional would try to interject some common sense
into his party and the Senate."
Byrne
went on to say, "As a Republican running as an
independent, Russ will require those who always
believed they were Republicans to examine what that
means. Do they want government to pay their bills?
Do they want Virginia
to invest in making its education system an open
door to opportunity for all Virginians? Or do they
want a party that thinks government should spend its
resources peeking into our private lives to make
sure they approve of what Virginians are doing in
their bedrooms?
"I
look forward to seeing him on the campaign
trail."
Rino's
revenge
Introduced
in the 2005 General Assembly session, Senate Bill
952, authored by Potts, would have required Virginia
students to be instructed on the responsible
treatment of animals.
Hmm
... does that mean Potts' legislation includes
elephants or donkeys, or just those silly little
RINOs - Republicans in Name Only?
My
friend the Red Dog notes that Potts will stand to
lose his seniority in the Senate. The GOP Senate
caucus needs only a four-fifths vote (of the
24-member caucus) to rid itself of Potts. But
notwithstanding party rules, the official removal of
Potts from his committee seats would take a
two-thirds vote from the entire Senate.
Shortly
after his announcement, Potts became the center of
discussion during a two-hour closed Senate
Republican Caucus meeting in the same Old Senate
Chamber. The GOP insurrection has already begun with
several Republican senators calling for Potts to
relinquish his chairmanship and committee
assignments to no avail.
The
Times-Dispatch reported
that Potts said, "I absolutely, unequivocally,
refuse. It's my party, too."
Later
that same day, Virginia Republican Party chair Kate
Obenshain Griffin requested Potts to "resign
immediately from his state Senate seat to allow Gov.
Mark Warner to call a special election for Senate
District 27."
The
Daily News wrote
"Potts called himself a populist and likened
himself to Harry Truman. He agreed that his
candidacy is a long shot, but 'if the Boston Red Sox
can win the World Series, if Virginia Tech can beat
Duke at basketball, not football, then Russ Potts
can be elected governor.' "
Hey,
Russ Potts! You might as well include "when
Haiti
freezes over."
A
cradle-to-grave Virginia Republican, Dry Throat,
told the Blue Dog, "Stick a fork in it! Potts
is done. Playing Ross Perot to end his career
as a Republican proves he's just another closet
liberal going further left. Potts is such an
egotist that he doesn't want to go out without
putting some salt in the wounds of his
opponents."
Straightforward-speaking
Dry Throat also said, "The true measure of his
patronage in Virginia is his hiring of a Connecticut Yankee to come down
and try to cut off the manhood of Kaine and Kilgore
in one fell swoop. It's easier to cut down one tree
in the forest and let that tree take the other trees'
root systems with it. Timber!"
The
Fitch and Hanger factor
Last
week, a Shenandoah Valley GOP member questioned the
Blue Dog about Republican gubernatorial candidate
George Fitch.
"Why’s
he doing it? Its one thing to build up your name
recognition, but it is self-defeating if you piss
off every Republican in the state in the process. Is
it a delusional or ego issue?"
Delusional
or an ego issue? Neither. At first glance, the Blue
Dog says Warrenton mayor Fitch is too legit to quit.
Conservative Fitch's motivation could be to box
Kilgore in a corner with the tax issue, and
specifically, the no-tax pledge that Kilgore has
attempted to publicly ignore, and back off his
previous signing of the lifetime no-tax pledge.
Is
Kilgore's new campaign slogan always an anti-tax
bridesmaid, never an anti-tax bride?
The
Kilgore campaign press release concerning Potts
independent candidacy stated, "There are now
two liberal candidates for governor who are equally
committed to raising taxes next year and only one
candidate who is not only against further tax
increases, but also is in favor of tax relief."
Oh,
please, Jerry, just take the pledge against taxes
before conservatives start believing you hate taxes,
but love
Virginia
more, like your GOP brother-in-arms, Russ Potts and
his panacea candidacy.
The
tax-increasing Republican from Winchester
will ultimately become the true spoiler in the race
for the governor's mansion if you don't stop
waffling.
Potts
is now set to attempt an independent candidacy and
is rumored to have an independent slate running with
him. Yes, a slate of pro-tax GOP members.
Remember
the issue of tax neutrality versus tax increase
versus tax reform? Rumors say Mount Solon Republican
Sen. Emmett Hanger is jumping into the
lieutenant-governor fray this week, possibly, like
Potts as an independent candidate. That independent
candidacy is a debatable subject, just like tax
neutrality. But there is no such thing as neutral
taxes, only double taxes with our state government.
Will
Hanger or others latch on to Potts' campaign
coattails? After all, Potts has the promise of big
money, the Vision for Virginia PAC and will have
support from pro-business PACs and a few
Democrat-leaning 527s organizations that have
nothing better to do.
Rodokanakis
said, "Potts is no Ross Perot. I doubt that he
will have a significant impact on the race. Once
people listen to him talk, they’ll take him for
what he is, a lunatic who keeps on forgetting to
take his anti-depressants every morning."
Red
Dog, a conservative House of Delegates member, told
me that several pro-tax Republicans have meet with
another former Virginia independent, Harry Byrd, about running as an
independent. But that hot tip sent to the Blue Dog
could be nothing more than a roorback (a false rumor
premeditated to smear an opponent.)
Red
Dog also whispered that Sen. John "Cha-Ching"
Chichester
and his fellow pro-tax Republicans have brokered
another political deal with the governor to split
the GOP vote this election so choirboy Tim Kaine can
win.
On
the other hand, the Valley Yellow Dog said, "It
would be truly delicious if the right-radical
political correctness that the Virginia Republican
Party enforces on those who call themselves
Republicans came back to haunt them yet again."
"I
find the current crop of clean-shaven, short-haired,
earnest young Republican apparatchiki nauseating in
the extreme as they march in lock step chanting the
Slogan of the Day."
--
March 14, 2005
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