Volume 1, Number 8. November 2010 * Special Election Recap

The ViciousCycle of

AmericanElections

Rick Boucher:Capped and Traded

Scott RigellNever StoppedBelievin’

How Hurt AlmostLost the 5th

The Republican Party– True to Its Core

Bearing DriftVirginia Politics on Demand

J.R. Hoeft, Publisherjr@bearingdrift.com

Michael Fletcher, Editor-in-Chiefmrfletcher58@gmail.com

Alan Moore, Editoralan@bearingdrift.com

Contributors this issue:

DCHJason W. JohnsonShaun V. KenneyBrian KirwinAlan MooreBrian W. SchoenemanWard SmytheJosh St. Louis

Guest Contributors

Dr. Quentin Kidd

© Copyright 2010

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BearingDrift.com / Page 3

In this Issue4 How the 2010 election helps set-up 2012

J.R. Hoeft

10 Yeas and Nays

12 The Viscious Cycle of American ElectionsGuest commentary by Dr. Quentin Kidd

14 Scott Rigell Never Stopped Believin'Brian Kirwin

16 How Hurt Almost Lost the 5thShaun V. Kenney

18 Is Virginia's 8th Congressional District a lost cause?

Josh St. Louis

20 How Morgan Griffith Pulled Off Virginia's Upset of the Night

Jason W. Johnson

22 Fimian Comes up Short in the 11thAlan Moore

24 The UntouchablesDCH

26 The Republican Party - True to Its CoreBrian W. Schoeneman

30 Now Thank We All Our God Michael R. Fletcher

32 The Final Ward

Volume 1, Number 8 / November 2010

Of Tea, Taxes and Truman:How the 2010 election helps set-up 2012

by J.R.HoeftThe past couple weeks pundits and politicians havetried to explain “what happened” with this pastelection.

I have my own opinions, and you can read my op-edabout how Virginia led the change, but I think what ismore interesting is how those most affected arereacting.

First and foremost, let’s start with the administrationand the big guy himself.

The “new normal” Truman?

In President Barack Obama’s interview with “60Minutes” post-election, he hoped that we aren’tentering what he called a “new normal” of highunemployment and debt with our economy. I cancertainly agree with that. What I also hope is that wearen’t entering a “new normal” of Americanpresidents passing the buck.Check out these choiceObama clips from theInterview:

“One of the challenges we hadwas that we'd lost four millionjobs in the six months before Iwas sworn in. We lost 750,000jobs the month I was sworn in;600,000 the month after that;600,000 the month after that.So, what you had was theeconomy continuing to getworse in the first severalmonths of my Administration,before any of our economicpolicies had a chance to beput into place.”

“I had a $1.3 trillion deficit waiting for me….”

“The bank interventions. TARP, that we inherited fromthe previous administration….”

“I also do think that the American people are concernedthat the debt and deficits that have been built up overdecades….”

“There's a reason why our health care system hasn'tbeen reformed over the last several decades. Whyevery president talks about it and it never happens.Because it's hard….”

“I couldn't get the kind of cooperation fromRepublicans that I had hoped for.”

Regarding the last six months prior to the electionObama said, “I think whatever proposals we putforward were not gonna get a serious hearing.Because it didn't serve short term political purposes.”

BearingDrift.com / Page 5

The President promised to change the tone inWashington, and says that he and the Americanpeople hope: “That Democrats and Republicans aren'tshouting across the abyss, but instead are trying to sitdown and have a conversation and come up withpractical solutions. And we have not seen enough ofthat over the last two years.”

Yet, in trying to fulfill his promise of televising thehealthcare hearings: “Trying to coordinate an ongoingconversation on television was, you know, somethingthat we ultimately said, you know, ‘This is just toocumbersome, we can't pull it off.’”

President Truman would be proud.

The President did take responsibility for something

Of course, the President never would say that hispolicies were part of voter angst.

Clearly his adding more than $3 trillion of debt in 21short months and further raising the debt ceiling(more debt and faster than any president in history),advocating for a national energy tax (which punishesour own energy producers in coal and oil),nationalizing the student loan industry, attempting tonationalize the automobile industry, bailing out WallStreet, and of course, giving us ObamaCare, hadnothing to do with voter reaction on Election Day.However, the interview was enlightening because hedid finally find some fault with his own performancein office.

“I think that over the course of two years -- and Imentioned this during the press conference -- wewere so busy and so focused on getting a bunch ofstuff done that we stopped paying attention to thefact that we yeah, leadership isn't just legislation. Thatit's a matter of persuading people. And giving themconfidence and bringing them together. And setting atone. And making an argument that people can

Of course, the President never would say that hispolicies were part of voter angst.

understand. And I think that we haven't always beensuccessful at that. And I take personal responsibilityfor that. And it's something that I've got to examinecarefully as I go forward,” the president said. “I thinkwhat's still fair to say is that I can do better than I'vedone in painting a picture for people about wherewe need to go. That pulls people together asopposed to drives them apart. And that's one ofmy central tasks over the next couple of years.”

Despite 24 hour news coverage over television, radio,newspapers and the Internet – and his appearing onsaid media virtually every day either from the WhiteHouse or on the road – Democrats lost big in themidterms because the president failed tocommunicate with us?

Continued on Page 6

Volume 1, Number 8 / November 2010

I guess we all need to get ready for all-Obama,all-the-time, the next 24 months.

It’s the economy, stupid. And those evil Republicans.

Of course, as the quotes above partially show, theadministration really feels the impetus for therepudiation on Nov. 2 is from factors completelybeyond their control. To them, what happened in themidterms is a result of the economy and thosedastardly Republicans.

“I think first and foremost, [the election results were]a referendum on the economy. And the party inpower was held responsible for an economy that isstill underperforming and where a lot of folks are stillhurting,” said Obama.

Note the president said “the party in power.”

This “distant” and “aloof” behavior is not winning himor the administration any friends with Democrats, andit might make their own ambitions of a second termeven more complex over the next two years.

Politico reported that Democrats in the House aregetting a bit annoyed with the administration:“This guy swept to power on a wave of adulation, andhe learned the wrong lessons from that,” said aDemocratic official who deals frequently with theWhite House. “He’s more of a movement leader thana politician. He needs someone to kick his ass onthings large and small and teach him to be apolitician.”

Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.) expressed a much deeperfrustration to POLITICO: that the president never hadHouse Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s back — and it cost bothof them. “They not only failed to defend her and heraccomplishments on their behalf,” said Miller of theWhite House, “they failed to defend themselves.”

Continued from Page 5

November’s losses have left high-level Democratsfeeling freer to open up about White House misstepsover the past two years — complaints that wererepressed when Obama was strong but now are beingaired as clues to his team’s isolation as he tries toregain command of the capital after his midtermthrashing.

Where the administration goes from here is anyone’sguess, but it appears they are going to try to paint theGOP as intransigent the past two years, and nowobligated to compromise over the next two years.

The President also said, “I think the Republicans wereable to paint my governing philosophy as a classic,traditional, big government liberal. And that's notsomething that the American people want.”

He was backstopped by his senior adviser, DavidAxelrod.

“During the past two years, the other party decidedthey didn’t want to participate,” said Axelrod. “Whatthe electorate wants is for both parties to sit down,work together, and get this economy moving again.”

Of Tea, Taxes and Truman

BearingDrift.com / Page 7

Not so fast says the GOP

What the electorate said was “stop the spending, dothings differently, we’re worried about our childrenand our grandchildren, and we can’t keep going on aswe are,” said Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) in a recentappearance on “Meet the Press.”

And that sentiment is echoed by Virginia’s own Rep.Eric Cantor, the man most likely to become MajorityLeader:

“The broken state of our government is a direct resultof years of unsustainable growth and mismanagement-- under the watch of both parties. Righting the shipwill not happen overnight, but our work must beginimmediately,” he said. “Make no mistake, we arecoming to Washington to rein in the deficit, to teardown barriers to job creation and to reform agovernment that has grown out of touch with thegoverned.”

Cantor also doesn’t accept the administration’spremise that the GOP sat out the past two years.

“For the past two years, House Republicans have beencommitted to developing alternative solutionsgrounded in the time-tested principles of fiscalresponsibility, small government, economicopportunity and reward for hard work,” said Cantor.“Faced with an administration and a Congress thatseemed intent on reorienting the role of governmentin America, time and again we stood up against them.Now it is our responsibility to lead with the sameconviction, vigor and determination.”

Cantor’s Challenge

The Republicans captured a sweeping mid-termelection victory the likes we haven’t seen since 1946;Republicans have more congressmen in office than atany time since 1947.

Photo: Jane Dudley

Cantor doesn’t want to see the GOP blow it.

“This election marks a great victory for common sense.For the GOP, it's a golden opportunity at a secondchance,” he said. “Republicans now have to prove toa suspicious public that we are ready to govern in aconservative manner by returning this country to aland of opportunity, responsibility and success.”

And he’s right to call the public suspicious.

Whether you look at a USA Today/Gallup poll, or onefrom CBS or ABC News, among others, no poll leadingup to the election had congressional approval over25%. Last I checked, even with Democrats in themajority, Republicans still were part of thecongressional make up.

Continued on Page 8

Cantor doesn’t want tosee the GOP blow it.

Volume 1, Number 8 / November 2010

Continued from Page 7If you drill-down further into these polls, you see thatRepublicans fare little better, with an approvalhovering around 30% – hardly what one would callstratospheric support.

So, if Republicans are not the darlings of theelectorate, clearly they are not in any position tothink too much of themselves and their policies asproviding the impetus to victory this November.

As the president correctly asserts, this was arepudiation of the “party in power.” While he tries topass the buck on the previous administration, he failsto recall that Democrats gained a majority in Congressin 2006 and the president himself has been in officefor 22 months. This means that for nearly four years,at least one branch of the federal government hasbeen in complete Democratic control.

Blaming the country’s failures on the GOP or theprevious administration is pretty disingenuous.

Again, the polls bear this out. The American peopleare upset over policy, and were looking for anAlternative:

Do you support healthcare? 49% of likely voters hadan unfavorable view.

Do you support stimulus bills? 68% of Americans saidthe nearly $800 billion American Recovery andReinvestment Act was a “waste.”

But perhaps the most important issue of all isenthusiasm.

Gallup did a very interesting poll about a week outfrom the election and found that the economy andhealthcare were motivating Democrats to vote (51and 31% respectively), but stated that because theadministration took action through the stimulus andthe health care reform bill, Democrats had little

reason to go to the polls. From a GOP perspective,voters were very much fired-up about economicconditions (36%), size/power of government (28%),and healthcare (20%) – all things which, from aRepublican’s perspective, need to have somethingdone: in other words, a reason to go vote.

Getting help for the future from the Democrats andthe Tea Party?

This last point on enthusiasm is not to be taken lightly.It had a lot to do with Republican congressionalvictories in Virginia, as discussed elsewhere in thismagazine. While Democrats sat on their hands thiselection cycle, Republicans “rode the wave” to victory.

But will that lack of enthusiasm by Democrats and thatinjection of the enthusiasm by the Tea Party last into2012? It very well might.

Amazingly, Congressional Democrats are returningboth Senator Harry Reid and Representative NancyPelosi to their party’s top positions in the U.S. Senateand the House. These two polarizing figures, inaddition to the President wanting to be even more ofa media maven (I still don’t see how this is possible),will continue to demonstrate time and again over thenext two years why further change is needed inCongress and the White House.

Like a leopard can’t change it spots, neither canliberals. So, rest assured, we will be blessed asconservatives with two more years of Democratscontinuing to advocate those high-dollar,tax-and-spend policies that the Tea Party can’t stand –and the GOP must stand against.

But what of the Tea Party? Will they remain motivatedand turnout in 2012? Will the GOP stand firm forlimited government, lower taxes, personal freedomand responsibility – and, if they do, will the Tea Partyremain engaged enough to continue their participation

Of Tea, Taxes and Truman

BearingDrift.com / Page 9

and loose affiliation? Does the Tea Party even havesufficient numbers to make a lasting movement andcounter the ObamaMania we saw in 2008 (and may,at least in some proportion, see again in 2012)?

Patrick Ruffini at National Review gives a pretty fairwarning:

“Yet the Tea Party must take care to avoid the fate ofconservatives in the late 2000s, who more or lessthrew in with the Bush administration, only to getdisillusioned by the rise in domestic spending. It’s afate that threatens also to befall the progressivemovement in 2010; the “netroots” went all in forObama in ’08, only to have to disown his politicalineptitude this cycle, and have now largely fadedfrom view. This doesn’t mean that the Tea Party mustbe cynical and oppositional, but rather that it shoulduse this interlude to further develop its leaders andorganizing principles.”

In Virginia, where we have one of the most robust TeaParty organizations, it is still small by comparison.

Case in point, on election eve, a sparse crowd of about100 gathered in Virginia Beach at a Tea Party rally,while Republican Congressman-elect Scott Rigell andthe GOP Virginia leadership team of Gov. BobMcDonnell, Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling, Atty. Gen. KenCuccinelli, and Chairman Pat Mullins attractedhundreds (many who came to the event from the TeaParty rally).

Additionally, at the state level, while nearly 4,000people attended clearly the largest Tea Partyconvention held in any state, it is still led byconservative stalwarts in Virginia who have tried thisbefore.

Folks like Pat McSweeney and Jamie Radtke, highlyinvolved in the now two years defunct VirginiaConservative Action PAC, seemed to take to the Tea

Party like fish inwater. Undertheir leadership,they have beenable to harness the energy of limited governmentloyalists and build the movement to something of aforce.

But can it continue?

Time and again through the nineties, the “independent”voter tried to put their energies into a “third way”,whether that was via the Reform Party or even theGreen Party. Will the Tea Party be anything other thandisaffected voters?

Ruffini says the Tea Party will be helped by the factthat they were not successful with their endorsedcandidates in Delaware, Washington, Colorado andNevada – that it allows them to continue to mountwhat he calls “an insurgency” campaign which keepsmotivating the base.

But more important than the insurgency, the TeaParty is actively trying to build a movement.

“Power in D.C. must be devolved, and one of the waysyou do that is to run out the ruling class, one by one,and not just in D.C., but in state capitals andmunicipalities. If the Tea Party can begin to control thenomination process — for not just the Republican party,but even the Democratic party, by running moreconservative options in Democratic primaries — thenthe movement begins to control the parties, and thencontrols the system,” said Ned Ryun, executive directorof the Tea Party affiliated American Majority in NationalReview. “I think the national leaders are beside thepoint; if they go away, the movement still exists. If thelocal leaders go away, the movement dies.”

The next two years should prove interesting as thesequestions begin to be answered.

Volume 1, Number 8 / November 2010

Yeas

The President’s Visit – In a last minute attempt to rallyliberal supporters in what everyone projected to be aclose race, President Obama appeared inCharlottesville in support of one-term CongressmanTom Perriello. Perriello lost to State Senator RobertHurt 51% - 47%. We look forward to welcoming thePresident back in the next election cycle.

Rumor has it that in 2012 Jim Webb, the angrySenator, will decline to run for re-election makingway for part-time Governor and current-for-a-whileDemocratic National Committee Tim Kaine. With thesuccess that Kaine had as Governor and most recentlyat the DNC, we welcome the change.

The Richmond Times-Dispatch released detainedinformation regarding state employees making$50,000 or more annually. While we were notsurprised, it was distressing to find that the highestpaid among them were at our colleges anduniversities. We don’t care how valuable one mightpresume themselves to be, there’s no justifiableexplanation for anyone on a public salary to drawmore than $700,000 annually.

Bill Stanley and Greg Habeeb quickly announced runsto fill the vacated seats of Robert Hurt and MorganGriffith respectively. Other candidates are rumoredto be in the hunt, but we would be genuinelysurprised if any of the challengers would knock outthese qualified, top-tier candidates.

TARP makes money. The “bailout” roundly criticizedby leftists for being too little and conservatives forbeing too much did precisely as its architects said itwould. Government as the lender of last resort nowseems to have a muddied record as it is confused withthe Obama stimulus plan, but there’s no question that

TARP slapped down the threat of $7.5 trillion ofsovereign wealth fund money buying up Americanassets by warming up the printing press at the Fed.

Rick Boucher’s slush fund. OK, this isn’t a “yea”necessarily. But we can’t all be as cool as RickBoucher, can we?

Prince William County BOS Chairman Corey Stewarttells the federal government to stuff their stimuluspackage after the PWC School Board signaled theirintent to spend the money on new hires (i.e. Recurringexpenses). Well played, sir.

The Veterans of Foreign Wars could have rolled overon their PAC endorsement. Thousands of phone callslater from angry members, and the membershipreminded the leadership who was really in charge.VFW members – we salute you.

Nays

Governor McDonnell’s father passed away on ElectionDay at the well-lived age of 94. Our condolencesextend to the Governor’s family.

So just who was behind those mysterious KennyGolden and Jeff Clark mailers? Most of Virginia mayhave lost interest, but hopefully the good governmentwatchdogs of the world (and the Federal ElectionCommission) will run this one to ground.

Survey USA had some of the most wild, whacked,egregiously wrong polling of the campaign season.Seriously, fellas?

Third party candidates. EPIC FAIL.

BearingDrift.com / Page 11

Tom Perriello taps car. Car swerves off road. Oneperson was injured, screams the Richmond Times-Dispatch! But don’t fret – the Congressman is OK.The injured person? Gotta wait six paragraphs beforewe concern our pretty little minds about the plebes…

In a shameless attempt to manufacture an Octobersurprise in the Second Congressional District, racistemails from a Virginia Beach GOP surfaced and werepromptly promoted by a liberal blog. A promptcondemnation from the Rigell campaign and theresignation of the official deflated the attack.

Photos that surfaced of a young First DistrictCandidate Krystal Ball proved to be embarrassing toboth the candidate and those who released them. Ifyou follow Virginia politics at all, you know the story.It was unfortunate both that the photos were takenand that they were released. Perhaps moreunfortunate has been Ball’s attempt to exploit theissue into her own fifteen minutes of fame. Skepticswould wonder if Ms. Ball released the photos on herown.

In spite of referring to Veteran Patrick Murray as aone of the stealth candidate who “haven’t been inoffice, haven’t served or performed any kind of publicservice,” the 8th District sent an anti-semitic,ill-tempered Jim Moran back to Congress.

Tea Party activists are applauding the move thatwould have DMV issue “Don’t Tread on Me” licenseplates in the design of the Gadsden flag. But does agovernment produced and sponsored product conveythe right message? We have our doubts.

On Friday, November 12, a firewall failure at VirginiaInformation Technologies Agency's ChesterfieldCounty once again caused disruption in the statecomputer network once again prevented the DMVfrom issuing drivers licenses. Does Sam Nixon wishhe was back in the House of Delegates?

The Libertarian Party of Virginia has to be feelingpretty down right about now. At the very momenttheir issues are in the very forefront of the Americanpublic’s mind, they have neither been able to harnessthe anti-party sentiment of the Tea Party movementnor were they able to field any candidates thatseriously contended with either major party candidate.If this is the best the LP can do, maybe – just maybe –it’s time to pack it in, folks?

Chuck Smith got rocked in VA-03, and there’s noreason it had to happen. Shame on those who allowedit to happen. Shame on those who smacked away thehands that tried to help Smith.

National Public Radio. Need we say more? Probablynot… we’d get removed by the comma cops at BearingDrift.

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors continues tohost the Islamic Saudi Academy, despite all the allegedterrorist activities and concerns from the public.Poor decision.

ABC privatization crashed and burned, sounding morelike a Monty Python sketch than a serious policydirection. If we can’t get this right, what hope is therefor smaller government, folks?

Phil Cox threatens House Republicans. HouseRepublicans finally issue the whiskey-tango-foxtrot.Phil Cox finds nice new home with the SenateRepublicans.

Volume 1, Number 8 / November 2010

Guest commentary by Dr. Quentin KiddTo understand the results of elections today, one hasto understand the three major parts that make up theelectorate and the forces that motivate those parts. Ifind this easier to do by looking down from 30,000feet than by looking up from the forest floor.

First the parts of the electorate. Today’s electorate iscomposed of three parts of nearly equal size, theRepublicans, the Democrats, and the Independents(although non-affiliated is probably the more accuratedescription of this third group). Each part constitutesapproximately a third of the whole, although thisdivision is in constant flux.

Over the last forty years, the proportions that makeup the Republican and Democratic electorate havebeen shrinking, and the proportion that makes up theIndependents has been growing. For instanceaccording to data from the American National ElectionStudy, in 1952 nearly 90% of all Americans (not justthose who vote, but all Americans) called themselvesRepublicans or Democrats and around 10% said theyhad no preference or were Independents. Todayaround 65% of all Americans call themselvesRepublicans or Democrats and around 35% saythey have no preference or are Independents.

This movement towards a greater proportionof the population that is less partisanly-oriented is important to understand. Forone, it means that partisan cues, always soimportant in helping voters makedecisions, are less important to a growingportion of the population (theIndependents). But it also means thatthose who continue to identify as

Democrats or Republicans (we call them the “base”these days) are certainly the most committedpartisans and because of this make the partiesideological tents much smaller than they used to be.There is much less moderate influence in either partyand much more partisan influence in them.

How do these parts relate to each other? With theRepublican and Democratic parties composed of themost partisan elements of the electorate, the politicsthat comes out of them are by definition morepartisan and less compromising. We see this mostevidently in Congress, where Democrats andRepublicans have found little ground upon which tocompromise on all sorts of policy for several yearsnow. Electorally, it makes little sense to compromiseif in doing so you risk being punished by yourincreasingly narrow base, or having your base simplynot show up to support you because their partisanspirits aren’t excited enough.

The effect this increased partisanship has on Independents is two-fold. First, a lot of Independents are turned off by the hyper- partisanship of the two parties, and because of this many of them simply don’t vote. A large part of the explanation for why voting rates dropped steadily from 1960 through the first part of this century was due to the fact that an increasing number of people were calling themselves Independents and not voting because the increased partisanship turned them off.

BearingDrift.com / Page 13

But, for those Independents who do continue to vote,the effect is an almost schizophrenic bouncing backand forth, from the left to the right. And it is this back-and-forth of the Independents, which has producedtwo mid-term “wave” elections in a row, in 2006 andnow in 2010. A look at how Independents voted inrecent elections show their erratic nature. In 2004,for instance, Independents split their votes betweenGeorge W. Bush and John Kerry 48%-49%. Since theRepublican base was more excited about Bush thanthe Democratic base was about Kerry, Bush won. Inthe mid-term elections of 2006, Independents voted57% to 39% for Democrats and since the Democraticbase was more energized than the Republican base,the result was big Republican losses and Democratsgained control of the House and Senate. In 2008,Independents broke for Democrats again 53%-44%and this along with a more energized Democratic basegave Democrats the White House and strongercontrol over Congress.

However, in 2010, Independents went Republican55%-39%, and this along with a very energizedRepublican base and a slightly demoralizedDemocratic base, gave Republicans huge wins in theHouse and big wins in the Senate.

It would seem then that the key to electoral success isto appeal to the Independents. But, this runs right upagainst what the two parties have to do to appeal totheir bases. Republicans and Democrats have differentviews about the role of government, level of taxes,health care, and many other issues. Their views arepositively motivated by their ideologies, and theirideological bases have been shrinking in recent years.

Independent voters are motivated less by positiveideological concerns than by practical concerns aboutsolving problems: Independents are very utilitarian,and as a result they often find themselves votingagainst something that doesn’t seem to be working.In 2006 the Bush administration’s policies in Iraqseemed to be failing, and Independents voted againstthem. In 2008 Independents further punished theBush administration for its handling of Iraq and theeconomy. In 2010 Independents punished Democratsfor not taking care of the economy.

The motivations of partisans are often positive. Thatis, they are often voting for their party or for anideological position that is consistent with theirpartisanship. They may be more or less motivateddepending upon the performance of their party inoffice, but they are generally voting for something.The motivations of Independents, the roughly 1/3 ofthe electorate that decides the winners, are oftennegative. That is, they are often voting against theparty in power because they do not approve of themfor some reason.

This is, sadly, the key to understanding the results ofelections today in America: what are the Independentsupset with and what are they willing to vote against.It is a vicious cycle that appears to have no end in sight.

Dr. Quentin Kidd is anassociate professor of politicalscience at Christopher NewportUniversity in Newport Newswhere he specializes in thestudy of southern politics,civic engagement, and politicalbehavior.

Volume 1, Number 8 / November 2010

2“Don’t Stop Believin’ “ was the anthemplaying as Scott Rigell hit the stage to declarehis victory for the Second CongressionalDistrict. With a musician’s showmanship,he shook hands across the stage, turned tothe audience, and raised his hands in victoryin perfect time with a drum crescendo.

Believing is something Rigell never stoppeddoing. Judging from his 53%-42% drubbingof one-term wonder Rep. Glenn Nye, youcouldn’t fault a few people if they forget therough road it took to get there.

Rigell’s primary opponents kept hisnomination under 40%, and many of themcampaigned far to the right of Rigell, whodidn’t leave much room on his right to beginwith. The primary got negative, all focusedon Rigell, but all faced on issues and nevergot personal.

Still, the major accomplishment that set thestage for a November victory was not hisvictory in that primary, but who joined him inhis victory. Ben Loyola. Bert Mizusawa.Scott Taylor. Jessica Sandlin. Rigell’s primaryOpponents.

In what could’ve been a divisive split among factions inthe Republican primary, these candidates immediatelyendorsed Rigell and each one worked event afterevent, face to face and in media, to support Rigell forCongress.

The press presumably would’ve written enoughstories about a GOP-Tea Party split from June toNovember but never got the chance.

Rigell worked hard over the summer solidifying thatbase, and expanding it to independents with greatsuccess. It proved to be a worthy time investmentwhen the Democrats made the strategic decision togo after that base themselves.

Scott Rigell Never Stopped Believin’by Brian Kirwin

BearingDrift.com / Page 15

x

Typical attacks on Rigell from the Democrats wereabandoned. Typical defenses of Nye were similarlyback-burnered. Democrat strategy, tipped weeksearlier in polling calls to Republicans to test attacks onRigell, was to peel conservatives from him and directthem to gadfly independent candidate Kenny Golden.

Mailboxes and televisions were full of Democratic-funded ads touting the conservatism of Golden overRigell, and the most it gave voters was a slight pause.

By Election Day, Rigell’s work uniting those on theright and center-right showed its power. Conversely,Democrats’ almost singular focus on promotingRigell-Golden vote splitting left very little messagingabout why anyone should vote for Glenn Nye.

Nye’s vote percentage in polling never escaped thelow 40s and his 42% finish was more due to shoulder-shrugging Democrats than Tea Party conservatives.

Conservatives paid little attention to advertisementssupporting Kenny Golden that were “paid for andauthorized by the Democratic Party of Virginia.” Inthe end, Golden’s 4 %, once thought likely to be thedifference between a Republican win and aRepublican loss, was too insignificant to warrant afootnote.

Rigell’s campaign was not without missteps, but theywere missteps that were quickly overcome. Earlydrama from the Rigell camp about which candidatesshould debate gave way to an “anyone, anytime,anyplace” stance that robbed Golden of his lastdecent press coverage. Even last-second smears fromDemocratic bloggers landed nary a scratch on Rigell,who frequently and rapidly responded in classyfashion and built an air of inevitability about this racein the closing weeks.

Perhaps it’s human nature to examine a blowout as acollapse of the loser rather than the excellence of thewinner. Rigell truly ran an exceptional race that wonHampton and Norfolk as well as landslides on theEastern Shore and Virginia Beach. Nye won all ofthese in 2008.

How similar 2012 is to 2008 will decide if Rigell is ourown one-term wonder or a Congressman that hasbuilt coalitions to gird a conservative majority foryears to come.

Rigell has launched a mission of ethics reform forCongress with ideas that have great popularity andpromise: term limits, limits on Congressional officeperks and franking, and bans on non-defenseearmarks.

All these ideas have supermajority support and go along way to attracting the independent, change-oriented voters that made up the 2008 votingpopulation. The longer Rigell wears the reformer’shat, the stronger his polling will become. The realitythat Congressional re-election campaigns begin theday after the election ends was never more clear thanwhen Rigell announced these reforms in a package hewill advocate, with the added pledge to follow themwhether they are passed into law or not.

In one day, Scott Rigell showed more leadership thanGlenn Nye did in two years.

Perhaps that, more than anything, tells the story ofthe 2010 election in Virginia’s Second District.

In one day, Scott Rigell showed more leadershipthan Glenn Nye did in two years.

Volume 1, Number 8 / November 2010

5How Hurt Almost Lost the 5th…or, why Virginia’s 5th District is fertileground for a Democratic challenger in 2012by Shaun V. Kenney

That’s a fairly brutal assessment, but for numbercrunchers sweating out the last weeks of thecampaign, it’s the wall those who understood thenumbers knew was coming.

Let’s not sugarcoat what happened in 2008 either.Republican Rep. Virgil Goode was a native son and afavorite to win, with a 23 point lead against anunknown and untested Capitol Hill lobbyist and NewYork City lawyer (who also had a beard at somepoint… and we hate beards in Southside). Perriellopulled off an impossible win, and he knew he had tofight to keep Virginia’s Fifth in the blue column.

This doesn’t mean the GOP ran anything near aflawless campaign. With $250,000 in the bank, theGoode campaign with old timers and 5th DistrictRepublicans linking arms and expecting another double-digit win were indeed rolled by that inexperienced(and underestimated) New York lawyer, who promptlybecame the darling of the progressive left.

Tom Perriello now has a statewide reputation, if not anational one, for his spirited defense of progressiveprinciples while every other Democrat – liberal orprogressive – was running for the hills and away fromPresident Barack Obama.

In fact, Perriello did what most pundits deemed to bethe unthinkable. He brought Obama out toCharlottesville for a rally in the worst politicalenvironment for Democrats since 1994. What gives?What did Tom Perriello know that the rest of theworld didn’t know?

The answer to that is frighteningly simple if you’re aRepublican, as the following chart shows. Despite thehorrendous turnout for Democrats in the worst yearsince 1994, and despite the supposedly stellarturnout and the Tea Party tsunami that was aboutto sweep out every liberal and progressive coast tocoast, the revolution simply didn’t happen.

LOCALITY 2006 2010 % Change

Albemarle 16,106 16,584 103.03%

Appomattox 3,518 3,768 107.11%

Bedford 9,273 8,728 94.12%

Brunswick 1,686 1,573 93.30%

Buckingham 2,593 2,281 87.97%

Campbell 12,372 12,189 98.52%

Charlotte 2,613 2,381 91.12%

Cumberland 1,882 1,657 88.04%

Fluvanna 4,791 4,857 101.38%

Franklin 12,748 11,247 88.23%

Greene 3,386 3,670 108.39%

Halifax 6,516 6,254 95.98%

Henry 7,358 6,205 82.32%

Lunenburg 2,230 2,190 98.21%

Mecklenburg 5,365 5,539 103.24%

Nelson 2,826 2,694 95.33%

Pittsylvania 13,641 13,531 99.19%

Prince Edward 3,027 2,710 89.53%

Bedford City 1,182 1,035 87.56%

Charlottesville City 2,880 2,662 92.43%

Danville City 6,899 6,135 88.93%

Martinsville City 2,307 1,660 88.93%

127,385 121,570 95.44%

In fact, if one compares 2010 GOP turnout with thedreadful 2006 numbers when Democrats captured boththe House and the Senate during President George W.Bush’s second term, a pretty frightening scenarioplays out.

Figure 1. Comparison chart of VA-05 midyear elections showing2006 and 2010 vote totals, including the percentage of 2010turnout against 2006 results.

BearingDrift.com / Page 17

Seven localities actually performed less than 90% ofthe 2006 midterm election turnout. Averaged outacross the district, Republican turnout was actuallydown almost five percentage points – a pitiful showingfor a 2010 environment that was supposed to leaveno doubt.

There are several lessons to be drawn from this.

First, grassroots organization in Virginia’s Fifth Districtneeds a drastic overhaul. Virgil Goode no longer beingthe congressman, there is no way to paper overterrible precinct and GOTV efforts with the moment-um of Goode’s name. Only a handful of localitiesreally had the sort of focus on turnout and GOTV onewould expect in other districts across Virginia.

Second, it was apparent on the ground that while theprimary candidates smiled at the camera, the brutalway the primary was won for Robert Hurt damagedthe willingness of quite a few supporters to join rankswith those who threw the barbs. Moreover, theydamaged their candidate’s brand early, and as theprimary results proved they did so without muchreason.

Third, it is important to remember that the DNA ofVirginia’s 5th is that of a conservative Democrat. Let’snot forget that this is the same 5th District that onceelected such left-wing luminaries as L. F. Payne (oftenpilloried as “Left Field” Payne by contemporaries inRichmond). Apart from Virgil Goode switching partiesand running for re-election, this is the first time the 5thDistrict of Virginia has elected a Republican withoutthe benefits of incumbency since Rep. John R. Brownin 1887.

Not only is the prospect of a serious Democraticchallenger looming in a 2012 presidential year, butone false step on issues near and dear to the limitedgovernment Tea Party movements could translateinto a serious and costly primary challenge from theright.

Lastly, redistricting in Virginia’s 5th may be a difficultbattle of demographics. The purpling of the northernpart of the district may have been arrested for a time,but there’s no question that Albemarle, Nelson,Fluvanna, Buckingham, and perhaps Cumberland areall flickering blue. The fear that Perriello could verywell have built an unassailable Democratic districtstretching from Charlottesville to Petersburg may ormay not have come true, but those same demographicrealities that would have made Perriello secure afterredistricting had he won is a ticking clock forwhomever inherits this slice of Central Virginia. CanHurt hold on in 2012 even after redistricting? Not with2010’s campaign efforts, that’s for sure.

Given the 12 point enthusiasm gap for Republicansgoing into this election, the fact that Hurt walked awaywith a four point win is, of course, still a win. This wasno near miss against a well funded and well organizedDemocratic opponent though. Sloppy campaigningfrom the right and a well-oiled machine on the leftstill seems to be the norm. Whether Hurt canduplicate his predecessor’s outstanding constituentservices, or whether 5th District Democrats forget theirown strength – and whether Tea Party anger remainsdirected towards Obama – will be the deciding factorsas to whether or not “One Term Tommy” stickers willbe replaced with “One Term of Hurt” stickers in 2012.

Republican turnout was actually downalmost five percentage points – a pitiful

showing for a 2010 environment thatwas supposed to leave no doubt.

Hurt will have to walka fine line between thenatural inclinations ofhis district and theTea Party movementwho sacrificed much tosee Hurt beat Perriello.

Republicans didn’t win in VA-05. In fact, independentof about four localities, GOP turnout was down fromGoode’s 2006 win when Republican turnout wasdepressed. Of those four, only two did better than5% -- Appomattox and Greene.

Volume 1, Number 8 / November 2010

8 Is Virginia’s 8th Congressional Districta lost cause?by Josh St. Louis

Will Republicans have to redraw the lines in to get afair shot in the 8th Congressional District? Many seemto think so. After all, the 8th District has served itspurpose over the years as a “Democratic dumpingground.” What will be interesting is to see what willhappen with redistricting now that Northern Virginiahas two Democrats and only one Republican.

2010 saw a new energy for Republicans. A fierceprimary between Matthew Berry and Patrick Murrayenergized Republicans. However, once Murray wonthe primary, he had trouble raising money andrunning an effective campaign. He went through threecampaign managers, and was painted by Moran assomeone who didn’t know anything about thecommunity.

While some questionable comments made by Moranabout public service gave Murray a boost in donationsand media coverage, ultimately Moran argued thathis seniority and earmarks were the reason that the8th district should vote for him again, which they didwith a 61% margin. In fact, in what was a great yearfor Republican in Virginia, Murray didn’t evenbreak 40%.

With all that in mind, let’s look at what it might takefor a Republican to be successful in the 8th District asit is currently drawn. There are two scenarios in whicha Republican can win this district.

Someone “from” the area

The word 'from' is in quotes because a candidatecannot win just living in the district - the candidatemust be involved in the community. Unfortunately,Jim Moran used this argument against Patrick Murray

very successfully. Patrick Murray moved to Alexandriatwo years ago after retiring from the Army. WhileMurray’s military service is commendable, Moran wasable to label Murray as someone who has absolutelyno grasp on local issues.

Republicans need to be seen in the community. Theyneed to be seen as neighbors, not just as people whoshow up every now and then and ask for your vote.Frank Fannon, an Alexandria City Council member,and Dave Foster, a former Arlington County SchoolBoard Chairman were both successful because theyran on being a member of the community, not as amember of the Republican Party.

While both candidates technically ran in non-partisanraces, their common-sense message of results andgood government resonated with voters in NorthernVirginia. Frank Fannon was a household name for thepast twenty years before he ran for City Council.Republicans in the 8th district need to find thecandidate that the community knows and trusts.

BearingDrift.com / Page 19

Other way to win: Moran retires

Jim Moran is an electoral powerhouse and aDemocratic machine. While many Democrats don’tlike him, they often just suck it up and vote for himover the Republican, especially when Jim Moran usesthe argument, “At least I share your values.”

Jim Moran is so successful largely due to his earmarks.With an open seat, the Democrat running can’t run on“accomplishments” for the 8th District. However, itwould also depend upon when Moran retires. IfMoran were to retire in a bad Republican cycle, thisargument may be a moot point for Republicansanyway.

Conclusion

Unless those two scenarios occur, it appears thatVirginia Republicans will have to suck it up and redrawthe lines to make a competitive district forRepublicans in the 8th District. Inside of the beltwayfeatures many government workers and governmentcontractors. As such, a message of smaller govern-ment is like telling people, “Hi, I want you to lose yourjob, and you should vote for me.” In addition, federalspending has greatly helped the area, including inmuch needed transportation funds for the district.

However, at least Republicans in the 8th District haveone thing going for them: they’re not the mostDemocratic district in the state. That honor belongs toVirginia’s 3rd Congressional District.

While Murray’s military service is commendable,Moran was able to label Murray as someonewho has absolutely no grasp on local issues.

Volume 1, Number 8 / November 2010

9How Morgan Griffith Pulled Off Virginia’sHow Morgan Griffith Pulled Off Virginia’sUpset of the NightUpset of the Night

Capped and TradedCapped and Tradedby Jason W. Johnson

When former representative William C. Wamplerstepped on stage at the Bristol Holiday Inn tointroduce Representative-Elect Morgan Griffith, themoment seemed surreal for southwestern VirginiaRepublicans. 28 years earlier, Wampler was unseatedby a young, fresh-faced state Senator from Abingdonnamed Rick Boucher. Ever since that election,Republicans never stopped believing that Rep.Boucher was beatable—even if his landslide victoriesover every challenger seemed to suggest otherwise.Nonetheless, when the Associated Press projectedthat H. Morgan Griffith, the majority leader of theVirginia House of Delegates, had defeated the popularincumbent Democratic representative, more than afew Republicans across the Commonwealth (includingGov. Bob McDonnell) were surprised at the outcome.So how did Morgan Griffith—a man who, only sixmonths earlier was little-known outside of hisSalem-based House of Delegates district—pull off theCommonwealth’s upset of the night? The answer iscap and trade, just not perhaps in the way that manypeople think.

Virginia’s 9th Congressional District, encompassesmost of southwestern Virginia, including theCommonwealth’s coal-producing counties. While therest of Virginia was part of the Solid South, the 9thDistrict earned the nickname “the Fighting Ninth” forits reputation of competitive elections and electingRepublicans. Yet Rep. Boucher thrived in this district,handily defeating challengers for almost threedecades, in fact, serving longer than any of thedistrict’s post-Civil War representatives, through hisadroit blend of social and fiscal moderation andefforts to attract businesses and technologicalinfrastructure to his economically depressed district.Boucher’s role in drafting and passing cap and tradeproved to be the first chink in his otherwise imperviousarmor.

Republicans knew cap and trade was a politicalnonstarter since (at least) the release of the Heritage

Foundation’s devastating assessment of the legisla-tion. When William Morefield, campaigning againstcap and trade, unseated Dan Bowling in a House ofDelegates district encompassing the coal-producingcounties of Buchanan, Russell and Tazewell in 2009,the GOP had an example of just how toxic thelegislation could be in southwestern Virginia. SensingRep. Boucher’s cap and trade-induced vulnerability,seven Republicans filed to challenge him, but one ofthose candidates was unlike any yet faced by Boucher:Morgan Griffith.

H. Morgan Griffith has served in Virginia’s House ofDelegates since winning a hard-fought campaign in1993 to represent his hometown of Salem. Griffith’spolitical acumen propelled him to a leadership role inthe House of Delegates when the Republicans woncontrol of the chamber in 2000. While Rep. Boucherhad faced challenges from members of the House ofDelegates before, none of them had Griffith’s politicalskills and network of contacts. Thanks to Rep.Boucher’s support for cap and trade, Griffith also hadanother advantage that none of Boucher’s previouschallengers had: the full faith of the RepublicanCongressional Campaign Committee. The NRCCinvested almost $1 million in Griffith’s candidacy,

BearingDrift.com / Page 21

x

which in conjunction with Griffith’s own campaigncoffers and contributions from outside groups,Allowed Griffith to compete with a well-fundedincumbent over the airwaves. Robust fundraising alsopropelled Griffith into the ranks of the GOP’s “YoungGuns” program.

Money alone does not account for Griffith’s stunningcome-from-behind victory over Rick Boucher. MorganGriffith was an extremely hardworking candidate,aided by an equally hardworking and dedicated corpsof volunteers. Griffith logged more than 200,000miles on his family’s car, traveling the length andbreadth of the district, introducing himself to votersat small-town festivals, parades and even the WytheCounty Livestock Market. When Griffith could notpersonally attend an event, he was aided by hiscampaign’s “Women for Griffith” group, comprised ofwomen from across the 9th—and even from theneighboring 6th District. Thousands of phone callswere made on Griffith’s behalf by the Virginia TechCollege Republicans, who were competing againsttheir Wahoo rivals to see who could make the mostcalls for their respective candidates (the Hokies won,incidentally). The vigor of the Griffith campaign andits auxiliaries no doubt caught the Boucher campaignby surprise: whether personal appearances ortelevision advertising, previous Republican challengershave not been nearly as ubiquitous as was Griffith.

The final piece of the puzzle—at least that we havespace to discuss—is Morgan Griffith’s message. RickBoucher had been a nuisance for southwesternVirginia Republicans for decades, yet without aconcrete issue to use against him, Rep. Boucherremained untouchable. Cap and trade providedRepublicans with that issue. The coalfield counties offar-southwestern Virginia have long provided Boucherwith a firewall, but with cap and trade, residents ofthese counties had reason to wonder if their championwas still in their corner. Furthermore, with voters inthese western counties viewing anti-cap and trade ads

from Democrats, like Senator-Elect Joe Manchin, viamedia markets in West Virginia, Griffith’s attacks onBoucher for his role in passing cap and trade seemedless like partisan, election-year antics and more like alegitimate warning about a longtime congressman.Finally, President Obama’s and Speaker Nancy Pelosi’sstrong support for the cap and trade legislation servedto tie Rep. Boucher to these unpopular nationalDemocrats. This, combined with Rep. Boucher’s 2008endorsement of then-Senator Barack Obama prior toVirginia’s Democratic Primary—while 9th DistrictDemocrats overwhelmingly supported then-SenatorHillary Clinton—only reinforced the perception thatBoucher was no longer the independent voice that heonce was and has instead become a reliable vote forthe leftist Obama-Pelosi agenda, in a year when beingan ally of President Obama was not an asset.

In January, Morgan Griffith will go to Washington witha mandate to protect southwestern Virginia’s coalindustry and the region’s shared conservative values.He will join a team of other freshmen from theCommonwealth that includes Scott Rigell and RobertHurt. While Rigell and Hurt were long considerednear-shoe-ins to defeat unpopular incumbents,prognosticators had no such expectations of Griffith.Yet in the end, his victory seems perfectly in keepingwith the national mood. Although derided by theMartinsville Bulletin as a “loudmouth redneck” andaccused by Democrats of “buying” the election, MorganGriffith was clearly the right candidate, waging the rightcampaign, with the right resources, at the right timeand with the right issue to unseat the heretoforeunbeatable Rick Boucher. For that reason alone, MorganGriffith has earned his place in the 9th District’s richhistory.

The vigor of the Griffith campaign and its auxiliariesno doubt caught the Boucher campaign by surprise.

Volume 1, Number 8 / November 2010

11Fimian Comes Up ShortFimian Comes Up Shortin the 11thin the 11th by Alan Moore

After a drawn out affair that lasted an extra week,Democratic incumbent Gerry Connolly took the racein the 11th after businessman challenger Keith Fimianconceded. In one of the closest races in the countythis race was filled with voting irregularities borderingon fraud, bizarre attack ads by the incumbent, and alast minute major contribution that probably madethe difference.

On election night both sides went back and forthsharing the lead as vote totals came rolling in. Formost of the night Fimian was leading as the moreconservative Prince William County vote came inquicker than that of the more liberal Fairfax County.As the night progressed however, Connolly started tocreep into the lead. The night ended without a clearcut winner but Connolly had a lead under 500 votes.As the canvassing proceeded in the next few days itbecame clear there was no path to victory for Fimian.

Adding to the intrigue, two voting machines wenthaywire that night. Vote total reports from twoprecincts were suspended until the morning with themachines being locked away in a room at the FairfaxCounty Government Center. Absentee ballots werenot counted until the wee hours of the morning, andprovisional ballots were not counted until a few daysAfterwards.

When all ballots were accounted after canvassing,Connolly led by 981 with 111,720 votes to Fimian’s110,739. The percentage was 49.22%-48.79%, threeindependent candidates received a combined 4,187votes.

The night endedwithout a clearcut winner butConnolly had a leadunder 500 votes.As the canvassingproceeded in thenext few days itbecame clear therewas no path tovictory for Fimian.Photo: Fimian for Congress

The following Friday, Fairfax County RepublicanCommittee Chairman Anthony Bedell released astatement indicating some unusual discrepancies inthe voting. For instance a number of precinctsrecorded more votes than the number of voters in thepoll books. Also, the voting machines failed to registervotes from over 800 voters. An op-ed in theWashington Examiner on November 10th indicated thevoting systems were horribly out of date and the samemodels were decertified by the State of New York.

BearingDrift.com / Page 23

Photo: Connolly for Congress

Even with the noteddiscrepancies there stillwas an uphill battleinvolving legal tussles anda recount, which Fimianlegally had the right toask for with such a closemargin. After a week oflooking at all possiblescenarios, Fimian decidedto concede. Fimian said,“Over the past severaldays I have been review-ing the election returnsclosely. A recount onlyseeks to arrive at anaccurate tally of all votescast. In our race, we havenot seen any obvious errors in the results. And whilewe believe that there are a small number of ballotscontaining votes that have not yet been counted, weare confident based on the canvass that it is notenough to change the outcome of this contest.”

There are a lot of questions that still remain aboutthis race. Many of them center on Fairfax CountySupervisor Pat Herrity’s decision to challenge Fimianin a primary. Some argue that Herrity would havebeen the better candidate and this was a missedopportunity to flip a seat for the GOP. Others arguethat had Herrity not been in the race in the first timethat Fimian would have been able to run directlyagainst Connolly earlier with all of his funds dedicatedto that endeavor. There was also a question abouthow hard Herrity worked to see Fimian elected. Casein point, he was ever spotted canvassing for FrankWolf in the 10th district on Election Day. The tenthwas expected, and was, a complete blowout by Wolf,whereas the 11th was considered tight by every prognosticator, politico, and average citizen.

While the Herrity factor will be debated for years, itdoesn’t change anything. Connolly won reelection bythe slimmest of margins. The Fairfax GOP will have towait two more years for another shot at taking thisseat. There is some debate how redistricting will effectthe 11th. There are rumblings of cutting Connollycompletely out of the mix or at least making the districtmore winnable for a conservative. While that remainsto be seen, the fact is that Keith Fimian ran a race asbest he could and came up just a little bit short.

As for Connolly the writing is definitely on the wall forhim. In the last week of campaigning he received over$1 million from the Democratic Congressional CampaignCommittee. The DCCC gave him close to $2 millionoverall throughout the race. Clearly they saw this raceas a potential loss and did everything they could tokeep it in their column. That money bought them avictory by only 981 votes. By winning by such a slimmargin the RNC automatically puts this seat in thetargeted races list. If Connolly thinks he’s invinciblethen he is in for a rude awakening. This seat may betightly contested for years.

If Connolly thinks he’s invinciblethen he is in for a rude awakening.This seat may be tightly contested for years.

Volume 1, Number 8 / November 2010

by DCH

In six out of eleven Congressional districts, voterseasily returned familiar faces to Capitol Hill. Read onfor an overview of those races and get the scoop onthe worst website maintained by an untouchableVirginia Congressman.

Congressional District 3In the 3rd district, 28year incumbent BobbyScott (D) creamed ChuckSmith (R), with 70%of the vote. Scottrepresents an areastretching from urbanRichmond to NewportNews. Scott opposescreating jobs bydeveloping Virginia'soffshore energyresources and

supported the unpopular Wall Street Bailout (TARP).He brings home the local bacon, requesting tens ofmillions of dollars in earmarks for his district last year.Scott's congressional office has an excellent websiteand makes good use of social media to communicatehis accomplishments to constituents.

Congressional District 4Randy Forbes (R), an 8year incumbent,walloped WynneLeGrow (D) with 62%of the vote. The fourthdistrict runs fromPowhatan toChesapeake. WhileObama won the districtwith 50% of the vote in2008, Forbes’ strongconstituent serviceoperation and highly

visible community presence has kept him popular inthe mostly rural and suburban district. He is known forconstant communication with community leaders andthe public about his congressional work. An outspokenChristian conservative and founder of the CongressionalPrayer Caucus, Forbes is also aggressive in fighting tobring jobs to his district through his roles providingCongressional oversight for the BRAC commissionand as founder of the Congressional Modeling &Simulation Caucus. Forbes also maintains the mostattractive, informative and easily navigableCongressional website I saw in the Virginia delegation.

Congressional District 6In the 6th district, 17year incumbent BobGoodlatte (R) failed todraw a Democratopponent and gained76% of the vote againstIndependent aLibertarian candidates.The sixth districtstretches acrossWestern Virginia fromRoanoke to Harrisonburg.Goodlatte finds that putting

the nation's fiscal house in order is a top priority for hisconstituents. Goodlatte's congressional website is poorlyorganized and difficult to read, featuring the worstpresentation and navigation I found among Virginiadelegation congressional websites. However, theCongressman does have a substantial following onFacebook, where he keeps constituents informed ofhis official activities.

BearingDrift.com / Page 25

Congressional District 7Republican Whip EricCantor sailed to a 59%victory over Rick Waugh(D). the seventh districtreaches from theRappahannock to theconservative suburbs ofRichmond. A nine yearincumbent, Cantor hasenjoyed a quick risethrough party ranks tonational stardom.Cantor's congressional

website is navigable but unimpressive; however, heboasts a fast moving campaign Facebook page that87,000 people LIKE (for comparison, only 33,000LIKE Speaker Pelosi's official Facebook page).

Congressional District 8Jim Moran (D)shellacked PatrickMurray (R) with 61% ofthe vote. His compactNorthern Virginiadistrict shares a borderwith D.C.. Voters therelove his far left votingrecord while apparentlyexcusing his question-able ethics decisions,disrespect for themilitary and anti-semitic

comments. Moran maintains a good congressionalwebsite but has little social media support. Sadly,staff members appear to maintain his Twitteraccount, so we don't get the unfiltered Moranperspective on current issues.

Congressional District 10In Virginia's Tenthdistrict, thirty yearincumbent Frank Wolfeasily overcameopposition from JeffBarnett (D). Wolfgained nearly 63% ofthe vote in his mostlysuburban and ruralNorthern Virginiadistrict. Wolf maintainsan award-winningCongressional website

and communicates frequently with constituents viaemail, Facebook and YouTube. His strong constituentservice and leadership on human rights issues helpkeep Wolf popular among Independents, Republicansand even some Democrats in the tenth district.

Now let's talk about redistricting: should it really beso easy for these guys to win? Where's the fun in that?

Now let's talk about redistricting:should it really be so easy for these guys to win?

Volume 1, Number 8 / November 2010

The Republican Party – True to Its Core

by Brian W. Schoeneman

How many times have you heard that today’sRepublican Party is a far cry from the Party of Lincoln?Or Theodore Roosevelt? Or Dwight Eisenhower? Oreven Ronald Reagan? If you’re like me, you probablyhear it all the time. One of the frustrations of being astudent of history, especially political history, is howsome ideas become engrained in common culture andchanging those ideas – even if they aren’t based in fact– can be a difficult challenge.

I have been trying to educate Republicans on thehistory of our Party, our true record on civil rights andthe value our message of personal responsibility,limited government and constitutional liberty has to awide audience. I am invariably met with snarkycomments from Democrats and liberals who are quickto point out some of the Party’s missteps – the realones and the exaggerated ones – and invariably I amtold that men like Abraham Lincoln, TheodoreRoosevelt, Dwight Eisenhower and others would neverbe welcome in the modern Republican Party – that theRepublican Party of today would be a foreign creaturewere we to recreate Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventureand bring those leaders to today’s world.

I don’t buy into that one bit. While, obviously, someof the issues have changed over time, the core beliefsof the Republican Party remain the same. Lincoln,Roosevelt, Eisenhower and our many Republicanforbears would be more than welcome in the modernRepublican Party.

Don't interfere with anything in theConstitution. That must be maintained,

for it is the only safeguardof our liberties.

~ Abraham Lincoln

BearingDrift.com / Page 27

How can I make that assertion? Simple – take a lookat the various Party platforms Republicans haveadopted in the hundred and fifty six years since theparty was founded. In them, you’ll find a variety ofideas and concepts that could as easily come from theParty of 1860 as from the Party of 2008.

I’ve reviewed five presidential Party platforms fromvarious points in the party’s history – 1860, 1906,1952, 1980 and 2008. See if you can pick out whichyear the following statements were made:

1.) That the maintenance of the principlespromulgated in the Declaration of Independence andembodied in the Federal Constitution, "That all menare created equal; that they are endowed by theirCreator with certain inalienable rights; that amongthese are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness;that to secure these rights, governments are institutedamong men, deriving their just powers from theconsent of the governed," is essential to thepreservation of our Republican institutions; and thatthe Federal Constitution, the rights of the states, andthe Union of the states, must and shall be preserved.

2.) All Americans should affirm that our first obligationis the security of our country. To all those who defendit, we owe our full support and gratitude.The wagingof war, and the achieving of peace, should never bemicromanaged in a Party platform, or on the floor ofthe Senate and House of Representatives for thatmatter.

In dealing with present conflicts and future crises, ournext president must preserve all options. It would bepresumptuous to specify them in advance andfoolhardy to rule out any action deemed necessaryfor our security.

The first requisite of a good citizen inthis republic of ours is that he shall beable and willing to pull his own weight.

~ Theodore Roosevelt

Continued on Page 28

BearingDrift.com / Page 28

3.) Pre-eminently successful in regard to our foreignrelations, [the President] has been equally fortunate indealing with domestic questions. The country hasknown that the public credit and the national currencywere absolutely safe in the hands of his administration.In the enforcement of the laws he has shown not onlycourage, but the wisdom which understands that topermit laws to be violated or disregarded opens thedoor to anarchy, while the just enforcement of the lawis the soundest conservatism. He has held firmly to thefundamental American doctrine that all men mustobey the law; that there must be no distinctionbetween rich and poor, between strong and weak, butthat justice and equal protection under the law mustbe secured to every citizen without regard to race,creed, or condition.

The Republican Party – True to Its CoreContinued from Page 27

4.) It has long been a fundamental conviction of theRepublican Party that government should foster in oursociety a climate of maximum individual liberty andfreedom of choice. Properly informed, our people asindividuals or acting through instruments of popularconsultation can make the right decisions affectingpersonal or general welfare, free of pervasive andheavy-handed intrusion by the central governmentinto the decision-making process. This tenet is thegenius of representative democracy.

5.) We recognize that the health of our people as wellas their proper medical care cannot be maintained ifsubject to Federal bureaucratic dictation. There shouldbe a division of responsibility between government,the physician, the voluntary hospital, and voluntaryhealth insurance. We are opposed to Federalcompulsory health insurance with its crushing cost,wasteful inefficiency, bureaucratic dead weight, anddebased standards of medical care. We shall supportthose health activities by government which stimulatethe development of adequate hospital services without

I have only one yardstick by whichI test every major problem - and thatyardstick is: Is it good for America?

~ Dwight D. Eisenhower

BearingDrift.com / Page 29

Federal interference in local administration. We favorsupport of scientific research. We pledge ourcontinuous encouragement of improved methods ofassuring health Protection.

Take a look at those Party planks and statements ofbelief. Every single one could be incorporated in the2012 Republican Party platform verbatim and no onewould know they came from (1) 1860; (2) 2008;(3) 1906; (4) 1980; (5) 1952.

Of course, over time, the Party has evolved and wehave seen different trends emerge, like the shifting ofthe Party from its northern base in 1860, to a northeastand western base in the first half of the twentiethcentury, to expansion into the south in the 70s and80s. Some Party policies have evolved over time, likethe move from protectionism and the protective tariffto the concept of global free markets. And while, inthe past, both parties had their liberal, moderate andconservative wings, today both parties are morehomogenous.

No one will argue that the Party of 1856 is exactly thesame as the Party of 2010. Political issues change, thepeople change, and the country changes. Issues thatwere bitterly divisive a hundred years ago are acceptedas common today. And issues we fight over today wererarely even contemplated by our Republican ancestors.But as so many things have changed, so many havestayed the same. Our core beliefs remain the same –an unswerving faith in our Constitution, our desire fora government that does not unnecessarily intrude inthe lives of the people, a national government thatensures a strong national defense in peace and in war,and a nation that allows all Americans, regardless oftheir background, to achieve their full potential.

These truths we have long found to be self-evident,since the founding day. So the next time a Democrattells you Lincoln wouldn’t be welcome in our Partytoday, set him straight.

Freedom is never more than onegeneration away from extinction. Wedidn't pass it to our children in thebloodstream. It must be fought for,protected, and handed on for them todo the same.

~ Ronald Reagan

Volume 1, Number 8 / November 2010

Now Thank We All Our GodDoes it really matter which settlers were the first to give thanks?by Michael R. Fletcher

Across the Commonwealth and across the nationchildren are tracing their hands and adding con-struction paper feathers to make turkeys. Andwhile they’re talking about Pilgrims in plain dress andblack hats with buckles their parents are salivatingover the thoughts of cranberry sauce andpumpkin pie. Ah, the traditions of ThanksgivingDay…hardly any of which are based in fact.

When most Americans think about Thanksgiving,thoughts turn to the Mayflower, PlymouthPlantation and, yes, the Pilgrims who, accordingto tradition held feast in 1621 a feast to give thanksto God for his bounty. While, traditions aside,that may be true, it wasn’t the first AmericanThanksgiving.

Almost two years prior to the New England feast, onDecember 4, 1619 settlers at Berkeley Hundred on theJames River celebrated a day of Thanksgiving. For theVirginia settlers, the day was required by their charter.“We ordaine that the day of our ships arrival at theplace assigned for plantacon in the land of Virginiashall be yearly and perpetually kept holy as a day ofthanksgiving to Almighty God.”

Every year the Virginia Thanksgiving is celebrated atBerkeley Plantation in present day Charles City County.

But, much to the chagrin of the Virginians, there is yetanother claim to the first thanksgiving. In September1565, Spanish mariner Pedro Menéndez de Avilés and800 Spanish settlers celebrated a Mass of Thanksgivingto commemorate the successful sea voyage andfounding of the town of St. Augustine. That’s wellbefore the English settlers arrived in Virginia in 1607and even a good ten years before the attempts tosettle at Roanoke Island in North Carolina. So itappears that Virginia may still lay claim to the firstAnglican Thanksgiving, but certainly not the firstcelebration on American soil.

Why then, the emphasis on the New Englandcelebration?

In spite of the prior celebrations in Jamestown and St.Augustine, Thanksgiving was not celebrated as anational holiday and was mainly observed in NewEngland.

Intrigued by the history of the 1621 feast magazineeditor Sarah Josepha Hale embarked upon a campaignto make Thanksgiving a national holiday. In hercampaign she published recipes and menus for turkeyand stuffing and pumpkin pie. Her creations includedtraditions that related in no way to the truth aboutthe Pilgrims.

Hale didn’t stop there in her quest for a nationalholiday. In her quest, she wrote to five Americanpresidents. Zachary Taylor, Millard Filmore, FranklinPierce, James Buchanan and Abraham Lincoln. Herletters produced no results until in 1863, whilepresiding over a nation at war, Abraham Lincolnissued the following proclamation:

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The year that is drawing towards its close, has beenfilled with the blessings of fruitful fields and health-ful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantlyenjoyed that we are prone to forget the source fromwhich they come, others have been added, whichare of so extraordinary a nature, that they cannotfail to penetrate and soften even the heart which ishabitually insensible to the ever watchful providenceof Almighty God. In the midst of a civil war ofunequaled magnitude and severity, which has some-times seemed to foreign States to invite and toprovoke their aggression, peace has been preservedwith all nations, order has been maintained, the lawshave been respected and obeyed, and harmony hasprevailed everywhere except in the theatre of militaryconflict; while that theatre has been greatly contractedby the advancing armies and navies of the Union.Needful diversions of wealth and of strength from thefields of peaceful industry to the national defence,have not arrested the plough, the shuttle or the ship;the axe has enlarged the borders of our settlements,and the mines, as well of iron and coal as of theprecious metals, have yielded even more abundantlythan heretofore. Population has steadily increased,notwithstanding the waste that has been made in thecamp, the siege and the battle-field; and the country,rejoicing in the consiousness of augmented strengthand vigor, is permitted to expect continuance of yearswith large increase of freedom. No human counselhath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked outthese great things. They are the gracious gifts of theMost High God, who, while dealing with us in angerfor our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy. Ithas seemed to me fit and proper that they should besolemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged aswith one heart and one voice by the whole AmericanPeople. I do therefore invite my fellow citizens inevery part of the United States, and also those whoare at sea and those who are sojourning in foreignlands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday ofNovember next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praiseto our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens.

And I recommend to them that while offering up theascriptions justly due to Him for such singulardeliverances and blessings, they do also, with humblepenitence for our national perverseness anddisobedience, commend to His tender care all thosewho have become widows, orphans, mourners orsufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which weare unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore theinterposition of the Almighty Hand to heal thewounds of the nation and to restore it as soon as maybe consistent with the Divine purposes to the fullenjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquility and Union.

Prior to the proclamation, only Washington’s Birthdayand Independence Day were observed as nationalholidays.

Since the Berkeley celebration and for that matter theSt. Augustine celebration took place in what was, atthe time of the proclamation, the Confederate States ofAmerica, there is some speculation among Virginiansthat Lincoln acquiesced to Ms. Hale’s request to drawattention away from Jamestown and the celebrationthere.

That there are competing histories of the firstoccasions of thanks would no doubt be perplexing tothe early settlers. They set out not to establish aholiday of excessive eating and endless football. Theircelebrations of thanks were just that. Expressing thedeep faith that they carried to this country, theythanked their creator and provider for his provisionand protection.

Indeed as we pause this month to celebrate thisholiday, it is not how we give thanks, or what we eat,or what we wear on this day. What matter is the actof giving thanks. The act of being grateful.

On that, we should all agree.

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