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Where’s Pete Snyder’s Money Coming From?

By
lowkell
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0

A story posted back in February on JH Politics about one of the leading Republican candidates for Virginia’s next Lt. Governor should have received a lot more attention than it did. The gist of it is that a “huge chunk” of Pete Snyder’s funding has come from one source – “the Ending Spending Fund, an independent Super PAC,” which has “invested $235,000 in Snyder, and this is before he’s even the Republican standard bearer.” As JH Politics points out, “It’s a dazzling sum at this stage in the race.” It also makes “Ending Spending” by far and away Snyder’s top donor, with the runner trailing by $225,000.

To put it in perspective, JH Politics compares the ginormous amount of money “Ending Spending” has poured into Snyder’s 2013 campaign with how much they spent against Tim Kaine in 2012, and finds that it’s a great deal more for Snyder. Which raises the question, “Is Pete Snyder’s election to Lieutenant Governor, a part-time position that five other viable Republicans are running for, worth $100,000 more than a United States Senate seat?” Apparently, “Ending Spending” sees having Snyder breaking ties in our State Senate as highly valuable, the only real question is “what’s in it for them, exactly?”

Who is behind “Ending Spending?” According to Open Secrets:

Ending Spending is a conservative 501(c)4 group that focuses on federal spending and the national debt. The group originally targeted earmarks, but broadened its message to include balancing the federal budget and paying down the national debt. The group was founded by Joe Ricketts, the former CEO of TD Ameritrade and a known conservative backer. Brian Baker, the current president of Ending Spending, was an adviser to former Sens. Robert Dole and Richard Shelby. The group does not disclose its donors, and its money goes towards electioneering expenses.

Also, according to Open Secrets, in the 2011-2012 cycle, “Ending Spending” had $13,250,766 in independent expenditures ($6,452,125 for Republican candidates and $6,674,460 against Democratic candidates). It all kind of gives you a warm, fuzzy feeling, doesn’t it? No, I didn’t think so.

Just to give you a flavor for how slimy this group is, check this out:

On May 17, 2012, The New York Times published a story by Jeff Zeleny and Jim Rutenberg reporting that The Ending Spending Action fund had been presented with a 54-page proposal entitled, “The Defeat of Barack Hussein Obama: the Ricketts Plan to End His Spending for Good.” According to the Times, the proposal, written by a vendor seeking to be hired by Ending Spending, suggested a $10-million ad campaign to “attack President Obama in ways that Republicans have so far shied away” and called for “running commercials linking Mr. Obama to incendiary comments by his former spiritual adviser, the Reverend Jeremiah A. Wright.”

As if all that’s not bad enough, there’s this issue as well:

Virginia Republicans deserve to know whether Snyder was involved in discussions with Ending Spending PAC (which would be a violation of campaign finance law due to his position as Victory Chairman) [in 2012]. If he was involved in illegal conversations, did he ask Ending Spending to withhold money for his inevitable run? Inquiring minds want to know.

Hmmmm.

Speaking of 2012, on February 18 of that year, “Ending Spending” staff posted this endorsement of Snyder on their blog. Then, on December 26, 2012, Snyder got $235k from “Ending Spending.” Interestingly, it is unclear whether the contribution came from the “Ending Spending PAC” (a federal political action committee) or the “Ending Spending Fund” (a 501(c)4 Super PAC). But either way, my understanding is that under Virginia campaign finance law, “Ending Spending” should have to register in Virginia if they are involved in expressly advocating for a Virginia candidate. In fact, I’ve been told by a knowledgeable source that under a certain Virginia designation, they could even be forced to disclose their donors. According to this same source, Snyder is also supposed to confirm that the PAC is registered upon receipt of a contribution. From what I can tell, they have not done so. So could there be a potential technical violation of Virginia law, or an attempt – for whatever reason(s) – to cover up the real source of the money? It’s hard to say.

In sum, what we have here is a shady out-of-state group, funded by a single, reclusive, far-right-wing, anti-Obama billionaire, trying to single-handedly select our next lieutenant governor. Oh, and that potential lieutenant governor appears to be skirting Virginia campaign finance laws, if not outright violating them. I don’t know about you, but none of that makes me particularly comfortable.

P.S. Here’s some interesting reading on “Ending Spending”/Joe Ricketts’ (failed) foray into Harry Reid’s reelection.

Who just endorsed Scott Lingamfelter?

By
ChopraForVirginia
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2

( – promoted by lowkell)

Lingamfelter: Wrong for Virginia

You’ll never believe who just endorsed Scott Lingamfelter for Lieutenant Governor of Virginia.
Who could chime in to help Scott Lingamfelter stand out in a crowd of seven Republicans? Who would help him move even farther to the right? Who does Lingamfelter want on his team to help him win?
Tom Tancredo, that’s who.
Wait. Who?

Tom Tancredo. From Colorado. A former Congressman and a former candidate for President.
Tom Tancredo, who doesn’t believe in evolution. Who voted against renewing the Voting Rights Act. Who said that President Obama is a greater threat to America than Al Qaeda. Who suggested a “civics literacy test” as a requirement to exercise the right to vote. Who said that Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor was a member of the “Latino KKK.” Who said that President Obama should be sent back to Kenya.
“I am honored to have the support of former Colorado Congressman and great American patriot, Tom Tancredo!” – Scott Lingamfelter
Tom Tancredo and Scott Lingamfelter want to move Virginia backwards. On Election Day, we can turn the page and choose leaders who will move our Commonwealth forward.

Train Wreck in the Commonwealth

By
kindler
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3

It turns out that Mr. Cuccinelli does in fact have a transportation plan.  It’s called the train wreck.  Or that at least appears to be his campaign strategy.  

Even as stalwart a Cuccinelli critic as myself did not foresee what a disaster this man would be as a candidate for governor.  I figured that he might have learned a lesson from the political successes of Gov. McDonnell and at least make some moves to the center — I mean, at least throw political moderates and independents an occasional bone.  But it seems that he is way too busy throwing raw meat to the radicals in his party to make any concessions to the actual electorate.  

It is true that according to current, early polls, he remains tied with Democrat Terry McAuliffe.  But the bigger picture is that every single day, he is supplying his opponents with fresh ammunition, reinforcing his image as an unrepentant fanatic, in bed with industry, and giving his enemies more inspiration to fight him even as he daily adds to their ranks.  At a time when he needs to be expanding his appeal, he seems steadfastly determined to narrow it.

The news cycle reflects near-daily hemorrhaging, from the stories about his conflicts of interest with Big Tobacco company Star Scientific last Saturday, to his archaic defense of sodomy laws on Wednesday back to his campaign’s refusal on Thursday to say if he personally has committed any “crimes against nature” to Friday’s revelations that two of his staff also have inappropriate ties to Star Scientific and that his Star Scientific buddies sell tobacco candies, perhaps to minors.  All this not long after his new book reinforced his extremist image (even considering Social Security and Medicare to be socialist plots) and his speech to the CPAC conference and interviews with Iowa and New Hampshire radio stations raised questions as to whether he’s more focused on 2016 than 2013.  

It’s not just his failure to appeal to anyone outside of the Tea Party circle.  Few commentators have noted that Cuccinelli just lost what was likely to be his best weapon against Terry McAuliffe — the charge of practicing “crony capitalism.”  The next time Republicans make such an accusation, the McAuliffe campaign need articulate only two words: Star Scientific.

Nor can anyone blame a bad campaign manager or bad luck or the so-called “liberal media” for any of this, when it is quite clear that all of this garbage is coming directly from candidate Cuccinelli himself.  As Jim Webb likes to say, “The fish rots from the head down.”

I am certainly not suggesting that this situation should in any way make Democrats feel overconfident nor that McAuliffe’s team should take their foot off the accelerator for even a moment.  Tragically, we’ve seen enough examples over the years of Democrats blowing golden opportunities.  My point is precisely that Terry needs to seize this opportunity and take full advantage of it.  While Cuccinelli constantly reinforces his extremist image, Terry needs to spend more money and time introducing himself to the voters as the moderate, reasonable alternative.  

The train wreck vs. the efficient high-speed train that gets you where you want to go — that’s a race we can win.  So let’s get out there, capitalize on Cuccinelli’s lunacy, and give this disaster movie the happy ending that the people of the Commonwealth deserve.  

Cautionary Tale: What Happens When the Tea Party Takes Over (Alternative Fuel Standards, Watch Out)

By
KathyinBlacksburg
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0

North Carolina WAS a pretty progressive state for an increasingly purple one. It had even enshrined North Carolinians’ right to clean air and water in the state constitution. That was then. The Tea Party has shoved NC into a headlong list of “never minds” and rewrites of law sending our state back to the 19th Century. Sound familiar? The NC House of Delegates became a laughing stock, when in 2012, it forbade state scientists study of the rise of sea levels.  (You wouldn’t want to provide evidence that global warming is real, would you. Snark, for the literalists out there.) Also in 2012 it went headlong into an effort to open the state to horizontal fracking and pretend to protect the public against its ravages.

Then, yesterday, the NC House Commerce Committee passed a bill to repeal NC’s alternate fuels standards. The downward trajectory of NC continues in full bloom. If you have been asking how low can NC go, you haven’t seen the end of the absurdity the GA, or Art Pope’s puppet governor are concocting. Here is the background:


In 2007, North Carolina became the first state in the Southeast to adopt such a standard – Senate Bill 3 passed both chambers with overwhelming bipartisan support and requires state utilities to supply 12.5 percent of renewable energy by 2021. Since then, clean energy companies have generated billions in revenue and have created thousands of in-state jobs – all while reducing pollution and saving ratepayers money.

But now, North Carolina has joined the growing list of states in which organizations like the Heartland Institute and the American Legislative Council, or ALEC, and Koch-backed Grover Norquist have been lobbying against renewable energy policy, and pushing “model legislation” to undo these standards. House Bill 298, called the “Affordable and Reliable Energy Act,” was introduced by known ALEC member Representative Mike Hager, and aims to fully repeal the energy standard.

Of course, 2007 was before the Tea Party (TP) took over the House. And the TPs are fast ruining our once-great state. NC, fifth in the nation for solar power, will before long fall like a rock. Ironically, realizing a good thing when they see it, even the normally stodgy power companies opposed a previous effort to repeal the standards.  But never mind. The Tea Party is on a race to the bottom.

But here’s the thing. The bill passed out of committee with a single vote. (See how important a single race is? Have you helped Jennifer Boysko in her 86th District HoD race yet?)

Virginia’s Next AG, Mark Herring, Announces “Equality Agenda” for LGBT, and All, Virginians

By
lowkell
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2

Please click here or on the image to view the entire “Equality Agenda,” in .pdf format, from Virginia’s next Attorney General – one we can all be proud of for a change! – Mark Herring. Here are a few highlights, and note the glaring contrast with Ken Cuccinelli’s far-right-wing, ideologically extremist, homophobic and anti-women’s-rights agenda. Note also that the two Republicans (Mark Obenshain and Rob Bell) running for AG have talked about how Cuccinelli is a model for them. In short, they are “Cuccinelli clones,” as Mark Herring puts it. And that’s the LAST thing Virginia needs!  Instead, how about….

*”Mark will use the power of the Attorney General to support initiatives to protect lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) Virginians from discrimination and disparate treatment in state and local agencies and programs.”

*”As Attorney General, Mark will partner with local school divisions to implement the new law and adopt anti-bullying policies that include and protect LGBT students”

*”Mark Herring believes that civil marriage is a fundamental right, and he supports marriage equality for same-gender couples.”

*”Mark believes that it is wrong that Virginia law currently requires state and local government social services agencies to contract with, and fund with taxpayer dollars, adoption and foster care agencies that actively discriminate against LGBT Virginians seeking to adopt children.”

This is great stuff, far beyond what any other candidate for Virginia Attorney General has ever proposed, and a strong reason to enthusiastically support Mark Herring’s campaign. Thanks.

UPDATE: On a conference call a few minutes ago, Sen. Adam Ebbin said that Sen. Herring is “running without reservation…about his support for [the LGBT] community.” More broadly, Ebbin argued that Mark Herring is the best person to restore the integrity of the office of Attorney General after Ken Cuccinelli has “lowered it in a non-professional way.” Ebbin added that the public is more than ready for – in fact expects – an AG like Mark Herring who stands up for equality for all Virginians, and has done so for many years. Ebbin added that Mark Herring has shown his electability over the years by winning votes from independents, and is the most electable Democratic candidate as well as the best candidate for AG on the merits. Ebbin added, “the Republican alternatives are frightening.”

Respected Virginia LGBT activist Charley Conrad talked about his strong support for Mark Herring. Conrad talked specifically about the importance of strong anti-bullying measures being implemented, and praised Sen. Herring for supporting these measures. Conrad also said he is very pleased by Sen. Herring’s non-discrimination pledge in his own office. Conrad added that we can’t afford any more of the “craziness” we’ve seen from the AG’s office, but instead we need “true equality leadership” from Mark Herring.

UPDATE #2: Sen. Herring was asked (by the Washington Blade) about the controversy over Cuccinelli’s defense of Virginia’s “Crimes Against Nature” (anti-sodomy) law. Herring responded, “Ken Cuccinelli is wrong on this, and it shows he is captive of the hard right wing of the Republican Party and he’s using this to try to galvanize the far right in his campaign, and shows why he would be a bad governor and why he’s not been a good Attorney General.”

Sen. Herring ripped Ken Cuccinelli on his persecution of leading climate scientist Michael Mann as “wrong” and “downright unAmerican.” Herring added, “That kind of attack on science went out with Galileo..”

Sen. Herring said that Mark Obenshain and Rob Bell would take the AG office in the same direction as Ken Cuccinelli has done – they’ve both voted in lockstep against a woman’s right to choose, supported anti-LGBT legislation, etc. Sen. Ebbin added that Sen. Obenshain carried the bill to allow discrimination at Virginia universities. Herring emphasized that “Virginia deserves better” than the type of policies pushed by Ken Cuccinelli and his clones, Mark Obenshain and Rob Bell.

P.S. Yet again, this makes me proud to be supporting – and consulting for – Mark Herring for Attorney General!

Virginia News Headlines: Friday Morning

By
lowkell
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25

Here are a few Virginia (and national) news headlines, political and otherwise, for Friday, April 5.

*Film critic Roger Ebert dies at 70 (Great film reviewer, great progressive, great American. I will miss you, sir!)

*Obama budget offers deeper cuts, more taxes (This deal makes no sense; if Obama’s going to offer cuts in an attempt to gain GOP support – good luck with that! – then the focus should be on reining in health care expenditures, not on Social Security.)

*Majority Now Supports Legalizing Marijuana (On yet another issue, the country is progressive, not conservative.)

*Is this the best the GOP can come up with? (“I think I’ve figured it out. Republicans must be staging some kind of fiendishly clever plot to lure Democrats into a false sense of security.”)

*Highs and lows of Assembly’s last day

*Virginia’s Ken Cuccinelli Defends Law Against Sodomy (“A guiding judicial ruling in the LGBT rights movement is indirectly being challenged with the sordid case of a 47-year-old man and teenage girl”)

*Come on, Cuccinelli (“The University’s Virginia voters should consider Cuccinelli’s unconstitutional approach toward sexual liberties when hitting the polls in November”)

*The Virality of Ken Cuccinelli

*Virginia AG doubles down on anti-sodomy law

*Virginia AG Ken Cuccinelli Defended Opposition To Sodomy In December 2009 Speech

*Cuccinelli will appoint outside counsel for suit involving firm he owns stock in (In sum, Cuckoo’s a right-wing nutjob AND he’s corrupt. Great combo, huh?)

*Cuccinelli to recuse office in Star Scientific tax suit (Recusing himself after he got caught? Wow, impressive ethics there! Not.)

*Liberal Group Gives The Tumblr Treatment To Cuccinelli Following Sodomy Uproar

*The Republican candidate that is great news for Democrats

*Cuccinelli Campaign Won’t Say If He’s Committed Any Crimes Against Nature

*Kaine speaks to politics class (“Virginia Democratic Senator talks political experience, addresses social issues, congressional tension”)

*McDonnell announces public-private partnership to expand Virginia’s cyber security industry

*Virginia AG to investigate possible ‘duplicate voting’ (The right-wing obsession with mythical “voter fraud” continues…)

*Arlington, Metro to study bus stop cost (“Officials are teaming up to learn how the Columbia Pike bus stop came to cost $1 million.”)

*LG candidate hits McAuliffe over business moves (Why does Pete Snyder hate capitalism? Heh.)

*Virginia Democrats targeting GOP House, Senate majorities

*Chesapeake’s Cosgrove announces Va. Senate bid

*Rigell: Va. Beach man illegally held in Afghanistan

*Postal Service to shift Norfolk processing to Richmond

*Cities to drop road projects after funding cut

*Historic oyster replenishment to begin in Virginia

*Snow, sleet causing crashes in Roanoke, New River valleys

*Nats sweep opening series with 6-1 win

*Capitals vs. Islanders: Washington moves atop Southeast Division

To the South: Nutcase NC General Assembly Would Make Cooch Proud

By
KathyinBlacksburg
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3

The “intertubes” have been abuzz with Crazy Cooch stories. He’s so taken by the subject of sodomy laws that he wants the courts to revisit and reverse previous rulings  on the subject.  He doesn’t even respect the SCOTUS which has long been dominated by (duh!) his side.  The man is whacked. Ooops, sorry, no pun intended. Nothing I am about to say should discourage  anyone’s keeping Crazy Cooch’s idiocies front and center every day until November. No, I plan to mention him in just about every post I do from now until Nov. Everyone should. But Crazy Cuccinelli has kissin’ cousins South of the state border in NC. And they are on the fast track to out-do Cooch–by a long shot. Here is just one of their escapades.

Not wanting to let Cooch be the only whack-job in the nation, 11 sponsors in NC’s GA put forth a bill/resolution spitting on SCOTUS themselves.  But it does more than just spit on the court as arbiter of anything affecting NC. It purports to enable the establishment of a state religion. And, voila, Virginia wasn’t the only laughing stock in the headlines yesterday. Read about it here and read the full bill here. Here are the key parts,


Be it resolved by the House of Representatives, the Senate concurring:

SECTION 1. The North Carolina General Assembly asserts that the Constitution of the United States of America does not prohibit states or their subsidiaries from making laws respecting an establishment of religion.

SECTION 2. The North Carolina General Assembly

does not recognize federal court rulings which prohibit and otherwise regulate the State of North Carolina, its public schools, or any political subdivisions of the State

from making laws respecting an establishment

of religion.

So bad was the fallout, and seeing future election losses piling up right before his eyes, the Speaker of the House and resident idiot, Tom Tills (the worst so-called legislative leader in the nation) called off his fellow crazies. The bill now has no chance of becoming law, we are assured. Tillis also claimed that the bill didn’t really establish a state religion.

Hahahah.  Ah, the technicality. The resolution doesn’t establish a religion. Rather, it allows the establishment. Distinctions are important, ya know. But more to the point, the state of NC gives SCOUTS the old middle finger salute. It finds the courts irrelevant and thus doesn’t listen to them (fingers in ears).

Follow the link to read the “great” Tenther language too.  NC is a laugh a minute. I think they took lessons from Cooch.  Any more ridiculous laws he can reinstate?  Or established precedent to single-handedly toss out? Pass the faux lawbooks.

PS I m laughing because ya have to do it or it would just be too damn sad. With jokers like these “leading” our states, we are so hosed.

Ken Cuccinelli, Star Scientific, and Celebrity “Tobacco Candy”

By
lowkell
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6

So, while Ken Cuccinelli’s team is busy ranting and raving about pedophilia (don’t ask – they’re totally off the deep end/foaming at the mouth, as usual), it turns out that Star Scientific – the company Ken Cuccinelli is heavily invested in (Cuccinelli, as well as Bob McDonnell, are also close friends with Star’s CEO, Jonnie Williams) – is busy marketing “flavored tobacco lozenges” that has been called “misleading to consumers and could appeal to children.” Here’s more info:

Currently, Star Scientific manufactures two brands of dissolvable tobacco, Ariva and Stonewall. Both brands contain Virginia StarCured flue-cured powdered Virginia tobacco compressed into smoke-free, spit-free, flavored dissolvable tobacco pieces packaged in blister packages and cardboard carton. The Ariva and Stonewall brands are marketed as a means of “reducing toxins in tobacco so that adult consumers can have access to products that expose them to sharply reduced toxin levels” while still providing consumers with tobacco and nicotine. The product is not marketed as a smoking cessation product, but an “alternative tobacco product” that is “not combusted.”

Lovely, huh? Well, it gets worse. According to a Forbes article, Ariva markets this crap in the form of “brown mints [that] taste like sugar-coated tobacco…laced with 2mg of nicotine, a little more than what you’d get from a cigarette.”

So…the company that Cuccinelli’s so tight with makes and sells tobacco products that have been broadly condemned by U.S. Senators (“Senators to FDA: It’s Time to Close the Door on Tobacco Candy“), and public health experts (“this is a product that looks like a food, is used like a drug“), because they have more nicotine than cigarettes, and are basically candy that could be attractive to kids.

While public health groups may not be fans of the products (like Ariva) that Ken Cuccinelli’s favorite tobacco company makes, celebrities like Lindsey Lohan and Paris Hilton most certainly are! Lohan has been pictured time and again with the product that Cuccinelli is invested in. Numerous other celebrities – Kanye West, Janet Jackson and Model Miranda Kerr – attended a bash (at Pink Elephant, NY City) that Star Scientific threw to promote Ariva. Yet another party, this one held in Miami (at Cameo nightclub, during which “Paris Hilton was at the center of a bizarre nightclub incident when she comforted an entertainer in an Oompa-Loompa costume injured when the crowd rushed the stage“) featured a performance by Jeff Beacher’s Madhouse, which brags about its “outrageous acts, exotic dancers and little people.” And then there was the party held at Crimson in Los Angeles ; the flyer for that one is pictured to the right.

So, to summarize: Ken Cuccinelli only holds stock in one company on the planet. That company is Star Scientific, makers of the Ariva tobacco candy that health experts hate, but that Lindsey Lohan, Paris Hilton and people who hang out with “outrageous acts, exotic dancers and little people” love. How’s that for traditional family values?  

American Bridge Launches “Ken on the Issues”

By
lowkell
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1

Today, American Bridge launched Ken on the Issues, which they describe as “a tool to educate voters on Cuccinelli’s extreme views on everything from sexual orientation and climate change to Medicare and reproductive freedom.” The following statements, here (click to “embiggen”) and on the “flip,” show that Cuccinelli has focused his entire career “on furthering his extreme agenda rather than finding mainstream solutions for Virginians.” I’d add that he also has a bizarre obsession with matters of sex and sexuality, an attraction to conspiracy theories (e.g, “birtherism”), a fanatical hatred of our government, an agenda aimed at serving the interests of truly bad actors (the Koch brothers etc.), plus a healthy dose of bigotry and intolerance of various kinds.

Then there’s his denial of climate science and persecution of one of the leading climate scientists in the world, Professor Michael Mann. That alone should be far, far more than sufficient to disqualify him from consideration for any Virginian’s vote. In sum, this is the LAST guy we’d ever want to put in a position of authority, let alone governor of Virginia!

P.S. Also make sure to read the full citations here.  















Analysis: Cuccinelli’s Defending Unconstitutional Law, but Not Anti-Gay Per Se

By
Goldmanusa
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1

Analysis: Cuccinelli appeal of big Sodomy case NOT ATTACK ON GAY RIGHTS

by Paul Goldman

At 200 proof-politics, we laid down the marker weeks ago: We judge strategy, not the merits. We tell the players this: there are many who consider water boarding torture, surely not in the rules. But there is also a prerequisite to being water boarded: you have to be taken prisoner.

In a VA race for Governor, there are no prisoners. The game is a lot tougher. There is no time for water boarding. If you have to agonize figuring out your self-interest, then maybe you should be running for Governor of Gitmo.

A key part of the 2013 strategy for those who want to defeat Mr. Cuccinelli is clearly to turn him into an anti-gay bigot. We have searched the political data base and believe, in that regard, the 2013 governor’s race here in Virginia could be a precedent setting one. Why? We at 200 proof believe such a strategy, if successful, will cost the AG the Governorship all other political factors being even. In that regard, it could be like the 1989 Wilder race credited as the pivotal campaign in the abortion debate at the state level.

2013 could therefore be the pivotal again, only this time for use of the anti-gay strategy, potentially a very big one going forward. Thus, we at 200 proof follow all anti-gay strategy moves closely looking at both sides.

We understand the rules of the game: politics is a contact sport. Having been the only white person willing to help Doug Wilder make his statewide history, I am no stranger to the arena here. These issues hit home to a lot of people in special ways. Either side can get burned real easy.

It is a tough business. Today’s strategy discussion is provided to us by the Washington Post. “The appeal has gotten national attention as Cuccinelli’s gubernatorial bid ramps up” wrote their reporter today. The “appeal” that the Post writes about is the AG’s decision to ask the Federal 4th Circuit to reconsider its recent ruling in the case of Mr. William MacDonald.

The Post quotes anti-Cuccinelli forces as saying that this appeal shows he is an anti-gay bigot, using the case to pursue some anti-gay agenda.

So we looked up the case. The 4th Circuit overturned the 47 year male’s conviction for  criminal solicitation. It involved a 17 year old female not his wife. It is not a a case of prostitution or forcible coercion. But apparently – the facts are sketchy in the 4th circuit opinion – they did engage in an act of sodomy not due to mutual consent. Sodomy is a felony under Virginia. Thus, Billy Boy was convicted for criminal solicitation of a 17 year old female: he enticed her to commit a felony, in this case sodomy. Thus is a prima facie case of criminal solicitation.

Neither party is gay. Secondly, the sodomy statute covers everyone, anywhere, any status or sexual orientation. Indeed, Billy Boy originally filed a police complaint charging the female victim with attacking him, and forcing him to submit to sodomy!

Right…Billy Boy was the victim here. I should have figured. He maintained that fiction even on the stand at trial, and one assumes his wife supported this view in her testimony.

The jury didn’t believe him. So he got convicted of criminal solicitation. 200 proof asks: Where is the anti-gay bias here?

Billy Boy, who has an apparent history of particular interest in underage females, then started appealing his conviction, claiming the Supreme Court in Lawrence v Texas had said sodomy could not be the basis of a felony charge. Therefore, he could not be convicted for criminal solicitation in this case since there was no predicate felony. A solid legal thesis.

After losing in all the VA courts and the lower federal court, Billy Boy finally won in the 4th Circuit, with one dissenting opinion. I have read the case, including the dissenting opinion – from a Judge appointed by President Obama.  A very thoughtful dissent. .

My conclusion: Asking the 4th Circuit to reverse their decision is not anti-gay. The dissenting Judge would agree with me. This doesn’t mean Cuccinelli has made the right legal choice.

Let me explain.  

The 4th Circuit misread the Lawrence case in as much as it used that case as the basis for their overturning the MacDonald conviction. The dissenting Judge makes the same point.

The decision in the Lawrence case couldn’t be clearer: “We conclude the case should be resolved by determining whether the petitioners were free as adults to engage in the private conduct…” declared the majority opinion.

ADULTS. The case involved two adults, both men, engaging in an act of sodomy in the privacy of their home. The Court said further: .

“The present case does not involve minors. It does not involve…coerc[ion]…[it] does not involve public conduct or prostitution…The case does involve two adults who, with full and mutual consent from each other, engaged in sexual practices” in private.

How could the Court have been any clearer as to its holding? Yes, the broad discussion went much further. But in law, holdings are always to be read as narrow as possible even when a court doesn’t remind you to do it.

The Lawrence case overruled a Texas penal statute aimed at same sex conduct. But as the language above indicates, the court didn’t decide the matter on that grounds, but on due process, adult behavior without reference to the sex of the adults. So in that sense, the decision went further than necessary to decide the actual controversy. They got it right. But it is still limited by their words. .

So I get Cuccinelli’s appeal on Lawrence as controlling precedent. The dissenting Judge does too. Lawrence should not be used to decide this case as a matter of controlling precedent since it didn’t reach the constitutional question raised by Billy boy.

BUT: To me, this only begs the larger question. Is the sodomy statute constitutional? NO. This is clear. The Supreme Court has made this clear in many ways in other cases even if it has not reached this precise question. The statue, as written, violates the 14th Amendment if not others.

That is surely not debatable. It is not an enforceable criminal statute in this case.  .

BUT THEN: There are other procedural aspects to the case, which are too boring and too complicated even if I understood them perfectly. Which I don’t. But they go to the issue of whether Billy Boy is barred from making certain arguments even if he has a valid constitutional point.

However, I do know this: There is nothing in the Code of Virginia requiring the AG to defend the Sodomy law to the bitter end if he or she believes it is unconstitutional.

Which it is, on its face, as the 4th Circuit decided even if using Lawrence might not be correct.

I carry no brief for Billy Boy, he preys on underage females, there should be laws to stop him. And yes, I want an AG who is trying to stop the Billy Boys of the state from preying on underage females.

HOWEVER: We should also want an AG who is willing to stand-down on constitutional statues and if need be stand-up the General Assembly and say they have to fix these laws, don’t just rely on the courts to do the work.

FACTS MATTER: Based on the 4th Circuit opinion, it appears this case only got to court because MacDonald falsely accused the underage female victim of sexual assault! This in turn led to the police investigation.

There is no anti-gay bias in the legal facts at all. There is no anti-gay basis in the prosecution of the case. There is no anti-gay bias in the AG’s defense of the conviction and the law, something AG’s do, they defend the Commonwealth.

Cuccinelli is not defending an anti-gay legal bias. However, he is defending, even prosecuting in some respects, an unconstitutional law. 200 proof believes this is a bad strategy for an AG running for Governor to defend an unconstitutional law to the bitter end. The 4th Circuit got the big issue right, the VA sodomy is unconstitutional.

Thus, in the end, the law can’t do what the AG says he wants to do: protect underage females from older, sexual predators.  Why not use the 4th Circuit Case as an opportunity to make that point, to finally force the GA to fix the laws so they can be used to protect our children?

Bad laws cannot make good policy. Respect for the law is what keeps us from the jungle said Justice Holmes. Ollie got it right.

Billy Boy ain’t worth it. He knows the police know where he lives. He still has the other convictions for misdemeanors, he ain’t challenging those, they are legal.

As for any anti-gay bias, the 200 proof truth is this: the current VA sodomy law doesn’t hurt gays, it hurts us all.

In life, some things are wrong: it is that simple.

The due process clause, along with other constitutional provisions, gives us all a zone of liberty, of privacy, of whatever you want to call it.

I thought this was a conservative principle.

The AG isn’t being anti-gay with this appeal. But he is not being a very good lawyer in my view. And if he is playing into the  “Cuccinelli is an anti-gay bigot” mantra, 200 proof says: like we said at the start of the column, things are probably fairer at Gitmo.  

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