Top 10 Reasons Why Virginians Shouldn’t Even CONSIDER Voting for Mark Obenshain

(UPDATE: Also see Va. AG candidate Mark Obenshain is Cuccinelli’s clone – the truth really hurts! – promoted by lowkell)

I could probably list 100 reasons why Virginians shouldn’t vote for a right-wing extremist like Mark Obenshain for ANY elective office, let alone one of the Commonwealth’s most powerful positions – Attorney General. From LGBT equality to women’s reproductive freedom to health care to voting rights to animal welfare to guns to energy and the environment to the economy – the list is endless – Obenshain is not just out of the Virginia mainstream, he’s completely off the deep end. But don’t worry, I’m not going to list 100 reasons not to vote for this Cuccinelli clone, just the top 10. Read them, spread them around, and make sure you tell everyone you know to vote for Mark Herring on November 5!  Thanks.

1. He’s a Cuccinelli clone: Obenshain said in 2011 that he and Ken Cuccinelli are “two peas in a pod, philosophically.” Obenshain has called Cuccinelli “‘a principled and effective attorney general’ who has earned the admiration of friends and foes alike.” He’s said that Cuccinelli has “done a great job” as Attorney General, and that he (Obenshain) would “build on his work, without missing a step,” if elected to the position. Shudddderrrr.

2. He’s a raging homophobe: In 2010, Obenshain voted against adding sexual orientation to current anti-discrimination policies in Virginia state government hiring. In 2013, Obenshain voted against prohibiting state agencies from discriminating against job applicants or employees based on their sexual orientation. In January 2013, he walked out of the Virginia Senate chamber rather than voting on the judicial nomination of an openly gay former prosecutor. In 2004, he voted in committee (along with – guess who? – Ken Cuccinelli) against overturning Virginia’s “ban on

sodomy between consenting adults.” We could go on all day, but you get the picture. In today’s world, being a homophobe should be an automatic disqualifier, of course, for anyone seeking public office. End of story.

3. He’s an anti-choice extremist when it comes to women’s reproductive freedom. In 2009, he sponsored a bill to require women to report miscarriages to police within 24 hours or risk going to prison. In 2012, he voted for the infamous “transvaginal ultrasound” mandate. In 2009, 2010, and 2011, he introduced amendments to prohibit state funding for “any organization providing abortion or abortion counseling services.” In 2007 and 2011, he sponsored “personhood” bills to “extend constitutionally guaranteed rights to the unborn from the moment of conception.” That would effectively criminalize all abortions, as well as many forms of contraception, embryonic stem cell research, and possibly in vitro fertilization. Crazy stuff.

4. He’s against open, transparent government. In 2006, he voted in committee against prohibiting “gifts from lobbyists and other persons to General Assembly members during regular legislative sessions.” In 2012, he voted in committee to kill a bill to “require that the state budget be available to the public for at least 72 hours prior to a vote on it.” In February 2013, he voted in committee to allow state legislators to continue to be compensated “for attending conferences for which the agenda and materials are not available to the public.” And last but not least, in 2011, he voted in support of allowing Virginia’s attorney general to use subpoena power “to investigate areas of academic inquiry and research.”

5. He’s extremely weak when it comes to child abuse. In 2011, Obenshain was one of three state legislators who voted against extending from two years to “20 years the period in which a victim of childhood sexual abuse may file a lawsuit against an abuser.” Obenshain at the time called the proposed time extension unfair and “truly mind-boggling.” Seriously, he did. Also, in 2004, Obenshain voted against requiring “clergy to report suspected instances of child abuse,” and in 2006, he voted against adding “clergy to the list of professionals required to report suspected cases of child abuse or neglect.” As if all that’s not bad/crazy enough, in 2008 Obenshain voted against a budget that included funding $1.5 million for Alicia’s Law, which creates task forces aimed at catching online child-sex predators. My god; with a record like this, Obenshain is basically the LAST person on earth we’d want as our state’s AG!

6. He’s weak on crime. For instance, in 2007, he voted (along with…yep, Ken Cuccinelli) in committee against making it illegal to defraud by filling out a credit card application in another person’s name. In 2008, Obenshain (again with Ken Cuccinelli) voted in committee to kill legislation to increase penalties for drunk driving and vehicle-related felonies. In 2009, Obenshain (along with…yep, Ken Cuccinelli yet again) voted in committee against enhanced penalties for “recruiting another to participate in a gang” and “gang-related offenses occurring on or within 1,000 feet of school property or on a school bus.” And in 2011, Obenshain voted in committee to kill Mark Herring’s bill to make it a felony to use “deception, intimidation, undue influence, coercion, harassment, duress, or misrepresentation” to steal from the elderly or other vulnerable adults, with “enhanced penalties when the offender is a caregiver or a person in a position of trust.” Again, this is the LAST person we’d want as our Attorney General!

7. He’s a gun extremist. Obenshain said that opposition to his bill allowing guns in bars was “nonsensical.” He voted for the repeal of Virginia’s one-handgun-a-month law. He voted to allow guns in child day care centers. He voted against closing the gun show loophole. In this campaign, he posed proudly with NRA leader Wayne LaPierre and also with right-wing hate radio host Mark Levin, while sporting a “Guns Save Lives” sticker (see photo above). It’s endless, pretty much.

8. He’s against working people. In 2006, Obenshain said that advocates for “raising the minimum wage…[are] asking government to

substitute its judgment for that of the marketplace.” In 2007, he voted (along with Ken Cuccinelli, of course) against raising Virginia’s minimum wage. In 2005, he was one of two state senators and six state legislators who voted against making it a felony to intentionally and fraudulently refuse to pay wages for work performed. In 2004, he voted against a bill to allow “parents or guardians to take up to four hours leave from their jobs each year to attend their children’s school activities.” In 2009, he criticized a proposal to make part-time workers eligible for unemployment benefits, calling it a “boondoggle” and “unnecessary.” And in 2004, he voted against a budget that included significant funding for economic development initiatives, including funding “to market distressed areas of the state.” Charming, huh?

9. He is against your right to vote. As the Washington Post pointed out, Obenshain “has been a champion of the GOP push for more restrictive voter ID laws, which would reduce access for poor and minority voters,” despite “zero evidence of voters misrepresenting their identity at the Virginia polls, the ostensible justification for such laws.” In 2012, Obenshain sponsored legislation to require identification to cast an official ballot. he followed that up by voting, in 2013, to eliminate “several forms of ID currently acceptable at the polls,” moving Virginia “a step closer on Friday to joining the few states that require voters to present photo ID at the polls.” And in 2013, he voted against amending the state constitution to automatically

restore voting rights to nonviolent felons.

10. If you care about animal welfare, you should NOT vote for Mark Obenshain. In 2005, Obenshain (and Ken Cuccinelli, of course!) were two of five Senators who voted against legislation to regulate “puppy mills.” In 2007, he (and Ken Cuccinelli) voted in committee against requiring veterinarians and employees at shelters to report to law enforcement “injuries to a dog when the injury is consistent with fighting of dogs.” In 2007, Obenshain and Ken Cuccinelli were the ONLY two Senators to vote against increasing penalties for engaging in cockfighting. Obenshain’s abysmal record on animal welfare also includes voting “against a bill to end competitive fox penning, an action so heinous that opponents call it ‘barbaric.'” No wonder why the Humane Society has endorsed Mark Herring for Attorney General.

OK, so those are my top 10 reasons why you shouldn’t even CONSIDER voting for Mark Obenshain, although honestly you could probably dive into his record and pick out your own top 10 pretty easily. For instance, he’s awful on education, with a ZERO rating from the Virginia Education Association. So add that one to the list right away, bringing us to ELEVEN reasons you should definitely not vote for Mark Obenshain. And he’s terrible on energy and environmental issues, it almost goes without saying with someone who’s taken hundreds of thousands of dollars from coal companies and other fossil fuel interests (e.g., the Koch brothers). Any other issues you care about? He’s almost certainly awful on those too. So why don’t you know about this? Probably because he keeps it quiet, and because Virginia Democrats have only just recently has had enough money to let voters know about Obenshain’s record. But now you know, just in time to vote against this guy on Tuesday. Thanks.