Why is Corey’s hand out again?

MoonHowler

Corey  Stewart has an urgent emailer out once again asking for money.  I chose the word ‘ask’ because the Corey supporters took offense the last time I said ”beg.’   We have 48 hours to reply.   Here’s what he says:

Dear Friend,
 
As we approach the end of August, my campaign faces a critical deadline that we must meet. For the end of this quarter, we have set fundraising goal of receiving 50 contributions before midnight on August 31st. Will you be one of those 50 by donating $10, $20 or $50 to my campaign?

We must keep my opponent’s Liberal agenda at bay and stand strong for conservative fiscal policies of balanced budgets and low taxes. Under my leadership as Chairman, the Board has trimmed spending by more than $140 million, resulting in Prince William County’s AAA bond rating status.

In less than 48 hours our campaign faces a critical fundraising deadline and I am asking you to stand with me by making a contribution today in an effort to move Prince William County forward.

All the best,

Corey Stewart

 

Ahem…let’s get a few things straight.  Stewart implies a cause/effect relationship between his trimming of the budget and the county’s AAA bond rating status.  That AAA bond rating status was there before the budget was trimmed by more than $140 million. 

Secondly, you would think the wolf was at the proverbial door.  Checking www.vpap.org, it shows the following for Corey Stewart:

Total Receipts                                                                    $477,460

Total Disbursements                                                       $332,615

Cash on Hand

Stewart for PWC Board Chair-Corey Stewart          $209,986

Va Rule of Law PAC                                                                  $946

That’s a lot of money to blow.  He hardly is facing political destitution with $209,986.  I would have to know where he had squandered the other money before I wrote a check to his campaign.  His democratic opponent, is also sitting on a lot of cash.  Why should it cost so much to run for office in Prince William County? 

Should a campaign be all about money or should we demand those who want our vote stop the out of state inflow of money and the developer checks being infused into campaigns?  Why do I always feel like the voters of PWC have always just been ‘had?’

Virginia rest stops to get food, drinks and merchandise

MoonHowler

From the Associated Press:

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Gov. Bob McDonnell’s administration has awarded a contract to a Pennsylvania-based catering company to sell food, drinks and merchandise at Virginia highway rest areas.

 CRH Catering of Connellsville, Pa., will pay the Virginia Department of Transportation about $2 million a year for vending and advertising rights at the state’s 42 rest areas and welcome centers. Most are along interstate highways.

I thought we were prohibited from installing vendor sales at our interstate rest stops because of federal regulations and that Governor Kaine has applied for relief from the regulations.  How is it we can now have vendor machines at interstate rest stops?  Actually it is a good idea but the bidding  should have been limited   to Virginia companies first.  If no Virginia companies met the specs, then out of state companies could then bid. 

Bringing in CRH Catering is supposed to add an extra  million dollars a year to help offset the cost of keeping rest areas open.   Rest stops should be open.  To do otherwise is dangerous and irresponsible to travelers and it hurts the tourist industry.

 

“Melanin is thicker than water?”

MoonHowler

I guess Rush Limbaugh has just announced that he will vote for whatever white candidate is on the ticket. According to News One:

Right wing talk show host, Rush Limbaugh reiterated what he said during the 2008 Election when he said that Powell supported the candidate Barack Obama “because he’s Black” on his radio show.

After Colin Powell told CBS News “Face The Nation” that he wasn’t sure who he was going to vote for in the 2012 Election, Limbaugh said on his radio show that Powell will vote for President Obama in 2012 because “melanin is thicker than water.”

Colin Powell is one of the most respected military and political leaders of our time.  He has served his nation in time of war as a general and again as Secretary of State under George W. Bush.  He is hardly  ‘wink wink nudge nudge’ material. 

Using Limbaugh logic (is that an oxymoron?), the United States must have a great many more blacks than are showing up on the census in order for Obama to ever have been elected in the first place if “melanin is thicker than water.”   Perhaps Limbaugh is math challenged. 

This kind of thinking is popping up in all sorts of places.  Rush was actually a little kinder than a couple of the local blogs here in Prince William County who have busied themselves with making fun of those individuals and organizations supporting local “minority” candidates for office.   I suppose they forget that PWC is now a majority-minority  county.  As of 2008, about 10% of the counties in the United States were designated at majority-minority which simply means that non-Hispanic whites are less than 49% of the population.  More areas are joining those majority-minority ranks, according to today’s Washington Post. 

I would hate to see our  elections break down along racial lines, especially our local elections.  Locally, some groups seem to have little compunction against name-calling and finger pointing if the candidates aren’t “their brand.”  Perhaps some of the blogs need to stick to topic  and issues rather than   trying to hang labels on certain candidates.