Posted on 11/08/2013 6:16:14 AM PST by Kaslin
The most alarming message for Democrats from Tuesday's elections was the near obliteration of Terry McAuliffe's lead over Ken Cuccinelli in Virginia. An October poll, conducted a week after the government reopened, had placed him 11 points ahead. On Election Day, Cuccinelli lost by only 2.5 points. McAuliffe's precipitous tumble was caused entirely by Obamacare.
There was bad news for Republicans, as well. The government shutdown damaged Cuccinelli, possibly costing him the race. But there were other factors; the money gap (he was outspent 3 to 1), outgoing Republican Gov. Bob McDonnell's ethics troubles and Cuccinelli's dour mien all made it possible for a gasbag Democratic moneyman who admitted that he didn't read legislation and would hire someone to handle such trivia to take Thomas Jefferson's seat in Richmond.
Yet in Virginia's 34th District, just outside Washington, a very conservative delegate was able to run between 8 and 18 points ahead of Cuccinelli and win. And that was a district that went for Tim Kaine for senator and Barack Obama just a year ago.
Barbara Comstock is as conservative as any right-winger could desire -- pro-free enterprise, pro-life and pro-Second Amendment. Her opponent, Kathleen Murphy, a doctrinaire liberal, was supported by the unions, Michael Bloomberg, NARAL and Planned Parenthood.
If conservatives want to win elections and not just preen about their ideological purity, they should study Comstock.
How can conservatives cope with the "women's issues" that are handing Democrats huge percentages of the female vote? Comstock is not furtive about her opposition to abortion. At a debate the week before the election, she spoke affectionately of her son-in-law's birth mother and of her "courageous and loving" decision to place him for adoption. She also took a page from Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal's book and endorsed making birth control pills available over the counter as the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommends. It's hard to paint her as someone who wants to keep women barefoot and pregnant when she advocates making birth control pills easier to obtain. Her opponent opposed this.
Comstock fought back aggressively when Murphy accused her of opposing funds for cancer screening. (This smear was used against a number of Virginia Republicans this year.) Comstock pointed out that Murphy was referring to a Democratic legislative effort to pull cancer screening funds from the health department and turn them over to Planned Parenthood.
Comstock authored legislation to ease telework (traffic congestion plagues her region), to require competitive bidding on state transportation projects (unions were unhappy, but taxpayers saved $400 million), to curb human trafficking and to provide more in-state slots at Virginia colleges. She sponsored legislation on Lyme disease and joined efforts on all-day kindergarten programs and instant background checks for gun purchasers. Why those? Because her constituents requested them. "You're supposed to be serving them," she notes, "not the other way around."
Government agencies usually spend all available funds at the end of the fiscal year rather than return money to the treasury. McDonnell passed legislation offering state employees a 3 percent pay bonus if they could identify savings in their agencies. It was a win-win; state employees got a raise, and taxpayers got less spending. Comstock suggested applying the same principle to schools -- with the surprising approval of the teachers union. "Lots of teachers are in favor of eliminating 'curriculum specialists' and other bureaucrats," she notes.
Comstock finds common ground where it won't compromise important goals or principles. She founded a Young Women's Leadership Program for middle- and high-school students and invited a number of leading Democrats, including Donna Brazile, as well as Republicans, including Kate O'Beirne, to share their experiences and advice.
People expect their state and local governments to take care of things such as roads, bridges, congestion, schools and public safety, she explains. One of her mentors is former Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, who, among other reforms, reduced wait times at the Bureau of Motor Vehicles from hours down to an average of seven minutes. It was a symbol of efficiency and good stewardship.
Comstock doesn't believe in "putting sticks in the eyes" of her opponents. She fights false accusations aggressively, but she smiles whenever possible and offers concrete accomplishments that make her constituents' lives easier. Virginia is more conservative because its House of Delegates has such a smart and savvy member. She hasn't compromised her principles. She is not a sellout, a squish or a RINO. She's something all Republicans should aspire to be -- a winner.
“She fights false accusations aggressively...”
THAT’S what I like to hear.
sounds like someone i could support she needs to move up the ladder
And that is exactly what is needed but that is a lot easier to do in a local delegate race that takes very little money to counter such false accusations.
McCauliffe is governor yes, but thankfully there is a Republican house and senate.
Just imagine what we could do in DC if we not only had a Republican controlled House; which we do, but also a Republican Senate?
“The government shutdown damaged Cuccinelli, possibly costing him the race.”
Nope. Not buying this BS.
The mangled message and very public infighting among the RINO’s and the Conservatives in the GOP is what damaged Cuccinelli. Add to that the utter lack of support from the monied interests holding the purse strings in the GOPe, and you have the recipe for loss.
The dhimmicraps were responsible for this shutdown, pure and simple. BUT, the pubbies couldn’t quit squabbling long enough to keep that message in front of the voters.
We had a Republican-controlled House and Senate, along with a Republican President, not that long ago.
They still surrendered to the Dems.
How do you surrender to people that ideologically are removed from you by a mere matter of degrees? The libs, Dem and GOPe alike, want the same thing; government control over the US citizenry.
You surrender by not moving the agenda you ran on forward.
After all this time, after all that has transpired, after the GOPe has declared open warfare against Conservatives in this country; you still think they were sincere in their campaign promises!?!
bump
I think a lot of people did.
That’s why they supported the Republican Party in the first place.
Now, more and more eyes are being opened as to what the Republican Party actually is.
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