Redistricting: Bob McDonnell’s Next Move

( – promoted by lowkell)

Now that VA Senate Dems have failed to adopt the right political strategy by getting out front early and often supporting non-partisan redistricting, I’ve been asking myself how I would exploit this gift if I were Bob McDonnell.  

I find it very hard to believe that Bill Bolling’s email was sent out without coordinating its content with McDonnell. So, I believe that what McDonnell is going to do now is to pursue some variation of the Bolling strategy.

Claiming that he is just making the Senate Dems’ plan “less partisan and extreme”, and claiming further that he is “taking into account” what his Redistricting Commission and the college students recommended, McDonnell will propose amendments to the Senate Dems’ plan to improve the GOP’s chances of winning a Senate majority.

In doing this, McDonnell will try to offer enough incentives to peel off a minimum of two Senate Dems to vote with him on his amended version of the Senate Dems’ plan. If he succeeds, these two Dems and all 18 Senate Republicans will vote for the McDonnell amended plan, and allow Bolling to break a 20-20 vote in the Senate to approve the McDonnell amended plan.