Tag: Larry Sabato

by Lowell Here are a few national and Virginia news headlines, political and otherwise, for Monday, February 10. China’s Xi Appears in Public; Death Toll...

See below for my grades, in descending order from "A" to "F", for pre-election predictions made by individuals and organizations that covered Virginia. Personally,...

"Sabato's Crystal Ball" just came out with its final 2016 predictions. Here they are, with my comments/critiques. Mostly, I agree...except where noted. First, on the...

According to Larry Sabato's "Crystal Ball," updated this morning, there are now 16 Republican-held House of Representatives seats now in the "Toss-Up" category, with...

If you're a Democrat, you've got to like this prediction. Our Electoral College totals have not budged: 347 electoral votes Safe, Likely, or Leaning to...

Poor Bob McDonnell. He just can't run away from that danged transvaginal ultrasound controversy the wingnuts in his party stirred up and he went along with. If he's reading the press, he's bound to see media outlets predicting that his vice-presidential hopes have disappeared into a blob of ultrasound jelly.

The Economist this week features an article detailing what it calls McDonnell's political "tone-deafness and inattention to detail." While he won the governor's mansion as the "jobs governor," not a crusader for right-wing social wedge issues, from the early days of his administration he has been repeatedly inciting those very fights. Remember his proclamation praising Virginia's Confederate history, the one that omitted any mention of slavery? Or, how about his appointment of Fred Malek, once Richard Nixon's infamous "Jew counter," to head his commission on shrinking state government.

The Economist also points out that by first praising the idea of forcing what amounts to state-demanded object penetration rape of a woman and then changing his mind to simply require a completely unnecessary transabdominal ultrasound that a woman must pay for, McDonnell brings to mind again that 1989 thesis he wrote for Pat Robertson's school, the one in which he called feminists  "detrimental to the family" and said public policy should favor married couples over "cohabitators, homosexuals or fornicators."

Larry Sabato also recently weighed in on this, declaring it has severely damaged McDonnell's chances to be on a national ticket.

University of Virginia Center for Politics Director Larry Sabato has some strong words for Bob McDonnell this morning. Sabato tweets:

Already tweeted about Gov. McDonnell's Confederate proclamation, but it's becoming increasingly clear this is a disaster for him & VA...McDonnell is even being denounced in a Richmond Times-Dispatch edit. The RTD normally leads the cheers for the GOV...VA's national image is suffering. It looks like the Old Dominion again, not the New Dominion so many in BOTH parties have worked hard for...Unlike some, I have no problems with a proclamation saluting Civil War sacrifices & urging study and reflection as we approach war's Sesqui...But it MUST include unqualified condemnations of slavery and secession. To do less is to elevate 19th century VA over 21st century VA...In his own interests, and the state's, Gov. McDonnell must amend this proclamation promptly or face long-lasting recriminations & turmoil...I know Bob McDonnell a bit. He was born in Philly, grew up in NoVa, has never shown slightest evidence of prejudice that I've seen...He hoped to slip this in quietly to please a small vocal part of VA constituency. Didn't work. Now he's being redefined by it. Action needed.

So, my fellow Virginians, what we have here is a complete and utter debacle - but not a surprise in the least bit! - by Pat Robertson's Manchurian Candiate after just 3 months in office. As if this isn't bad enough, Bob McDonnell's "Confederate History Month" proclamation comes on top of several other debacles - protection (or lack thereof) for GLBT citizens, ridiculous lawsuits against the federal government on health care and climate change, etc. - by McDonnell and Kookinelli since they took office in January 2010 (seems like an eternity ago).

Now, I realize that Creigh Deeds wasn't exactly the ideal Democratic gubernatorial candidate (to put it mildly!). But, to everyone who stayed home on Election Day 2009...well, something tells me you're not too happy right now! Anyway, don't say you weren't warned about how extreme and destructive Cooch and McDonnell would be if they were elected. I've been blogging about them since 2005, and it's been clear to me since pretty much Day #1 that they're completely off the deep end. Now, they're proving it.

UPDATE: Colbert King weighs in, says "Bob McDonnell can't change Virginia's history of slavery." As much as he would like to, that is.