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The
26th House District campaign, featuring a Democratic
farmer challenging a Republican farmer, is probably
the most competitive in the Commonwealth.
As
far as the Blue Dog is concerned, Republican Matt
Lohr and Democrat Lowell Fulk represent the best the
county has to offer. Both have served as appointed
and elected officials, participated in local and
state boards ,and given their time to distinguished
community service.
It's
win-win for agriculture in the Central Shenandoah
Valley. And
it should be a great campaign.
As
a columnist, I can present a perspective from each
side of the political aisle. I've
been acquainted with both of these outstanding
candidates, politically and professionally, over the
past decade.
For
the present, the Blue Dog is undecided about
endorsing either candidate and intends to remain
neutral for now, mainly because it's going to
be a very long campaign. And
it's going to be hard to endorse either man due to
friendships and politically loyalties.
Just
a word of advice to those who are discrediting and
attacking these two candidates for being
overambitious puddle-jumpers devoid of leadership
abilities: You're just dead wrong. It's
nothing more than political nonsense and rhetoric.
For
those engaging in name-calling and stereotyping the
candidate, you're doing both candidates a
disservice. It's mean-spirited fodder.
It's
also schoolyard tactics that are incredibly juvenile
and uncalled for.
People
just need a sense of humor with the campaigns and
need to be willing to talk frankly about issues - or
it's going to be a long campaign that creates blood
feuds lasting for the next 20 years.
In
order to elect either candidate, the Blue Dog says
local politico wannabes need to focus their
attention to the quality of life issues in our
Shenandoah Valley, such as taxes and education and
agriculture and crime.
Are
you listening, friends and foes?
Because
that's the winning ticket!
The
Republican farmer
In
the past, I served on the Rockingham County Planning
Commission with the GOP House candidate, Matt Lohr.
When
I was
appointed to the county planning commission, Lohr
was the first commissioner to extend his hand in
friendship and welcome me onboard the GOP-dominated
commission.
As
the
only Democrat on the commission, I'll have to admit
that I was a nervous wreck during my first public
hearing. But Lohr broke the ice, and made the Blue
Dog feel at ease.
After
the meeting, we talked about my life as a Democrat
in the Valley and over time became good friends
while serving together on the committee.
As
chairman, Lohr exhibited the most kind-hearted
demeanor I've ever witnessed by an appointed or
elected public official. And
I've seen enough to judge the differences in those
elected ladies and gentlemen.
Lohr
always did the right thing for the community as far
as land-planning issues, and we often played
tag-team, voting alike, on issues related to farm
preservation, the environment and matters of public
safety.
At
public hearings, Lohr made even the most nervous of
citizens feel relaxed and important when they came
to speak on issues of zoning and land use. He never
once raised his voice in anger - or spoke out of
line - or said an unkind word to any person.
He
spoke like a true Southern gentleman, always saying thank
you and good evening to all concerned at
the hearings and wishing them a safe trip home as
well.
Lohr
had previous experience as a chairman while in high
school, while serving as the state Future Farmers of
America president and in 1991 as the national FFA
vice president.
In
addition to being a dedicated county farmer, Lohr
runs a successful public speaking business, New
Direction Communications, in which he and his wife,
Andrea, give motivational speeches.
The
Lohrs' client list spans the entire USA. It's an
impressive list - with a number of youth
organizations and numerous cliental from farming
community across the United States.
Matt
Lohr has good leadership qualities and is
probably the most genuine person I've ever met in
local politics. He is a devout Christian and
hard-working family man who doesn't deserve the very
personal and negative comments I've read in local
letters-to-the-editor and on the Valley-based
political blogs. (Matter of fact, neither does
Democratic candidate Lowell Fulk. But more on that
later.)
The
Blue Dog questioned Lohr about his attendance
records on county boards - an issue raised by Dems.
"The
truth is that I have attended 82 percent of official
school-board meetings," Lohr told the Blue Dog.
"Someone said they heard the opposition saying
50 percent. That's just not true. Besides,
there are so many parts to serving on the board than
just meetings. I have never slacked in my
duties."
It's
sad to say, but he's correct - because a number of
Central Valley politicos have questioned the Blue
Dog about Matt Lohr's attendance record.
After
spending endless, and I mean endless,
meetings rewriting the county's 20-year
comprehensive land plan update, the Blue Dog can
honestly say that Lohr and myself and the other
commissioners definitely did our time.
With
the 20-year comprehensive land plan update on our
agenda docket, the planning-commission schedule was
extremely demanding and time consuming - considering
that most commissioners held full-time jobs and had
families as well.
In
less than two years time, I would estimate that the
five planning commissioners attended roughly 50
comprehensive-plan update work sessions, meetings
and hearings.
And
I'm not including our appointed duties as
commissioners, which included monthly planning
sessions and the subsequent public hearings for
zonings, master plans and ordinances.
Lohr
was fully committed to the task as commissioner and
as chairman.
Which
is to say, he's no slacker.
The
Blue Dog might add that at the time the county only
paid the commissioners a $50 monthly stipend and
reimbursement for mileage to the meetings at the
government rate.
I'm
not surprised at the Harrisonburg and Rockingham
Democrats' negative and visceral reaction to
his candidacy. Because Lohr presents a highly
regarded and worthy challenger for his opposition.
It's
going to be a horse race to the finish line.
The
Democratic farmer
In
February 2003, the Blue Dog first met Lowell Fulk at
a Democratic committee meeting attended by a small
gathering of the party faithful.
Fulk,
David Mills and I attended the meeting to announce
our individual intentions to seek positions in the
Virginia House of Delegates and the Virginia Senate,
respectively.
Since
that day, I've learned that Fulk, who owns and
operates a family farming operation in Linville, is
a kind-hearted and soft-spoken man, and is also
diligent and steadfast with his convictions on
issues dealing with the Virginia educational system.
Fulk
worked aggressively on reforming the Standards of
Learning as a member of the Valley Parents Across
Virginia United to Reform SOLs organization. And as
a county school-board member, Fulk aggressively
worked to enhance and improve our children's
educational system in the Central Valley.
The
Blue Dog would venture to say education is Fulk's
paramount concern as well as campaign issue. Fulk is
an unwavering opponent of the federal
government-mandated No Child Left Behind act as
well.
Read
more about Fulk here.
It's
more than apparent that Fulk has the ambition along
with the conviction - because he conducted a gallant
2003 campaign against conservative incumbent
Republican Del. Glenn Weatherholtz, who announced
earlier this year that he will not seek re-election
in the fall.
Of
interest is that in the late 1990s, through
third-party sources serving in county government
along with Democratic committee members, Rockingham
County Democrats attempted to recruit Fulk as a
House candidate, but were rebuffed.
Sherry
Stanley, another dedicated Valley PAVURSOL member,
first advised the Blue Dog that Fulk might possibly
become a legitimate candidate due to his exceptional
work as a SOL reformer and school-board member.
After
the attempts to recruit Fulk into the fold failed, a
county board of supervisors member told the
committee, "He's an independent and not
interested in becoming a Democrat."
When
I was a Democratic committee member and later the
Rockingham County Democratic chairman, the Blue Dog
never once saw Fulk participate in any Democratic
function until he ran for office in 2003.
But
that's OK - because as the Democratic House of
Delegate candidate, Fulk made an aggressive attempt
at the Republican incumbent and never once wavered
in his convictions.
Although
he never displayed the word Democrat on his
campaign signs or Web site, he fully embraced the
Democratic Party philosophy. And as a matter of
fact, many Democratic candidates in the Valley don't
use the word Democrat on their campaign signs
due to the GOP demographics and politics of our
Central Valley. That's the Democratic reality.
After
the 2003 election defeat, Fulk reorganized the
Democratic Party in Rockingham as chairman in 2004
and diligently worked hard to elect the Democratic
presidential candidate, John Kerry.
After
the presidential election, the Blue Dog sent a note
commending him for his hard work and effort as
county chairman - and thanking him for enriching the
two-party democratic system.
Fulk's
commitment to 2004 presidential candidate Kerry was
resolute and true to the Democratic causes of
assisting the needy, poor and disadvantaged. He sent
out a plethora of weekly e-mails filled with good
old-fashioned political rhetoric and news clippings
from around the country about the presidential race.
He
encouraged a voter-registration drive in the city
and county and held monthly meetings throughout the
county along with holding several successful
fund-raising activities - inviting special guests
including leaders of local teachers' associations,
school-board members, county sheriff Don Farley, who
addressed crime issues at a county meeting, and
statewide Democratic Party candidates and
politicians, who gave presentations to county
committee and members of the community.
Fulk
was directly responsible for the speakers and the
high attendance at those meetings. He's probably the
best Democratic organizer I've ever witnessed in the
Valley as a political activist and party member in
the past 30 years.
Is
the second or third time the charm?
At
recent Democratic fund-raising event, another county
school board member commented that Fulk "is the
real deal" in the House of Delegate campaign
because he has worked hard for the opportunity to
challenge local Republicans for the prize.
Last
year, Fulk published a poignant and emotional op-ed
endorsing the need for Gov. Mark Warner's tax-increasing
budget, which was later published in the Democratic
Party of Virginia Demo Memo.
Fulk
wrote, "Republicans who willingly told the
truth were subjected to the same smear tactics and
harassment during the debate over Jim Gilmore’s
last budget."
No
doubt, Fulk is a big fan of Warner's politics in
Virginia - and treasures his personal support and
financial political muscle.
Expect
Warner and Lt. Gov. Tim Kaine to campaign hard for
Fulk because winning over rural Virginia is
important to their future success as well.
That
said, it is more than obvious that Virginia is not a
blue state in political standing. Since 1995, the
Democrats are the minority party in both the House
and Senate. Lowell Fulk wants to change that red
tide rising trend in rural Virginia. And Democrats
are counting on Fulk to make that sea change from
red to blue.
In
December, The Daily News-Record wrote, "Fulk
scoffed at the liberal label, pointing out that he
wasn’t even a Democrat until three years
ago."
Just
an observation, but the Blue Dog believes Fulk's
mystique of being the un-Democratic candidate might
actually help his House of Delegates campaign - due
to the conservative demographics of the Central
Valley and the Republicans' stranglehold at the
polling precincts.
But
I also believe our local political theater is like
the weather because sometime it's too cloudy to see
the mountain foothills on the horizon and hard to
judge distances.
Recently,
the DNR reported that Fulk said that too many
Republicans are intent on dividing the community
along emotional issues like abortion and gay rights.
Only
time will tell if the great social divide in the
Central Shenandoah Valley unites behind the
Democratic farmer.
With
that said, the Blue Dog sincerely wishes the best of
luck to both candidates.
--
May 9, 2005
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