Excellent, substantive VA-07 debate tonight in front of a large (150+) crowd of Goochland-Powhatan Dems. The candidates are, in alphabetical order: Helen Alli, Abigail Spanberger and Dan Ward. The debate moderator is my friend, long-time federal prosecutor Gene Rossi, who ran for the Democratic LG nomination last year, and who clearly missed his calling in life as a debate moderator! 😉
Seriously, though, this was a substantive, informative debate between three strong candidates, any one of whom would be infinitely better than a man who is truly one of the biggest disgraces in Congress (and that’s saying a lot!), Dave “I’m an Economist!” Brat (R).
Check out the videos, below, and the many interesting topics covered — gun violence (all three support gun violence prevention measures), health care (Ward said we need to reinforce the ACA and expand Medicare, Alli wants universal health care, Spanberger supports Sen. Kaine’s proposal to expand Medicare as a public option), the budget/national debt, education, Russian interference in our elections, income inequality, corporate welfare, criminal justice reform, the opioid crisis, which House committees the candidates would like to be on (Spanberger said Intelligence, Alli said health care, Ward said transportation and infrastructure), will the candidates unite after the primary (all three said absolutely yes), LGBTQ equality (all three strongly support it), have they ever been a lobbyist (Alli and Spanberger said they hadn’t been, Ward said he had been for aviation safety), did they vote in the 2017 gubernatorial primary (Spanberger and Alli did, Ward didn’t), did they vote in the 2016 presidential primary (all three said they did), do they favor term limits (all three do), the historical figures they admire (Ward said FDR, Alli said Martin Luther King, Spanberger said Eleanor Roosevelt), are they willing to get in Dave Brat’s grill (Alli said she’s been in Dave Brat’s grill and she’s going to stay in Dave Brat’s grill, Spanberger said she’s seized the opportunity to be in Dave Brat’s grill and intends to stay there, Ward said he’s been in Dave Brat’s grill and Brat has lied to his face).
With that, enjoy!
P.S. Note that Ralph Northam barely lost this district last November, by just 4 points; Northam actually won the district (against EW Jackson) by 1 point in 2013. So it’s definitely winnable, especially against an unpopular nutjob like Dave Brat. So let’s win it!
Sign up for the Blue Virginia weekly newsletter
