The Washington Post has again endorsed Senator Creigh Deeds for Governor of Virginia. Ironically, it appears that Mr. Deed’s courageous stance that he would not rule out a dedicated transportation tax solidified his endorsement. His opponent, Attorney General Bob McDonnell, has proposed a hodge podge of ways to cannibalize various state services like education, health and public safety.
The entire Washington Post endorsement may be read:
A LEGACY of sound policies, coupled with the proximity of the federal government, has partially protected Virginia from the harsh retrenchments that the recession has forced on many states. Yet the commonwealth faces a daunting crisis in the form of a drastic shortfall in transportation funding, measured in the tens of billions of dollars, that threatens future prosperity. If the current campaign for governor has clarified anything, it is that state Sen. R. Creigh Deeds, the Democratic nominee, has the good sense and political courage to maintain the forward-looking policies of the past while addressing the looming challenge of fixing the state’s dangerously inadequate roads. The Republican candidate, former attorney general Robert F. McDonnell, offers something different: a blizzard of bogus, unworkable, chimerical proposals, repackaged as new ideas, that crumble on contact with reality. They would do little if anything to build a better transportation system.
