Wednesday, June 10, 2009
From Hopeful to Humble at the Appreciation Parties
Early last evening at Miles Grant’s post-campaign party, when campaign volunteer Christopher Gill was “hopeful, but realistically so,” he said, “This is the local McGovern campaign.”
He meant that they may have lost, but they, especially the volunteers, will continue.
“The mere fact of trying creates a positive effect,” Mr. Gill said. He and other volunteers met for one last campaign party at Union Jack’s English pub in the Ballston Commons Mall.
Although their candidate took fourth place in the five-way Democratic primary in the House of Delegates race, many of the volunteers who stopped to mingle over hors d'oeuvre and drinks said the experience was a good one and that they would continue with other activities, maybe even try for office themselves. “We had a great campaign,” running on important issues like environmental action and equal rights for all Mr. Grant said in a brief interview at the pub. “I’m just happy to be drinking my first beer since being a candidate.” At his campaign party, Andres Tobar told a few gathered in a north Arlington living room, “I didn’t make it...I just wanted to thank you so much.” He said Patrick Hope would take the fight for the House of Delegate’s 47th seat to the November election. “I’m very delighted with his victory.” Mr. Tobar, who came in fifth place, left his own party to go to congratulate Mr. Hope at his. The scene at the home of Mr. Hope's campaign chair was decidedly more upbeat as party-goers, some of the elite from the Arlington political scene, including Al Eisenberg, the incumbent who is stepping down after six years in the House of Delegates. 
“You have supported so many great people over the years,” Mr. Eisenberg said. “Including you, Al!” another person yelled. Mr. Eisenberg’s wife, Sharon Davis, picked up the speech from there, “We’ll work with Patrick to make a smooth transition next year.”
Ted Bilich, a donor to Mr. Hope’s campaign and a supporter from Ashton Heights, said, “This is exciting. I think he’ll be good for our district.” For his part, Mr. Hope, looking tired, and hot, and a little overwhelmed, said, “It’s still such a shock.” “I’m looking forward to a lot of work,” he said, and was thankful for all the support. “I’m relieved, but I’m also very humble.” Labels: 47th, election, house of delegates, primary
8,000 Vote in Primary; Hope and Deeds Win
Despite a thunderstorm in the morning and another in the afternoon, Arlingtonian Kasara Williams turned out to vote in yesterday’s Democratic primary. Why?
“Guilt,” she said, laughing. She said she works in politics.
“If I don’t vote, then everything I’ve worked for is useless,” she said on the front porch of the K.W. Barrett Elementary School, the Buckingham precinct polling location. Her picks did not win the day, however.
A campaign worker in Wisconsin during John Kerry’s 2004 bid for the presidency, she had met Terry McAuliffe when he was chair of the Democratic National Committee.
“I enjoyed talking with him,” and she liked his message, she said, so she voted for him. She also said she voted for Adam Parkhomenko in the House of Delegates race because one of his staffers handed her a flyer at the last minute.
Neither Mr. McAuliffe nor Parkhomenko won their races last night, as Creigh Deeds took the gubernatorial nomination from (some would say out from under) Brian Moran and Mr. McAuliffe. Patrick Hope won a shot at the House of Delegates seat in the 47th District. Mr. Hope will face Green Party candidate Josh Reubner in the fall. Arlington Republicans released the name of Eric Brescia as their candidate, but that has not yet been confirmed with the Arlington electoral board.
Slightly more than 8,000 votes were cast in yesterday’s election.
Mr. Hope took 36 percent of the 8047 votes cast; Alan Howze won 19, Adam Parkhomenko won 17, Miles Grant won 14, and Andres Tobar won 12. In Mr. Hope’s home precinct of Buckingham, he took 220 of the 374 votes cast. Mr. Grant took second place there with 47 votes. In Arlington Forest Mr. Hope took 201 of 449 votes cast, while Alan Howze, 76 votes, edged Adam Parkhomenko, 74 votes, for second place. In Ashton Heights, Mr. Hope won 236 of the 609 total votes, with Mr. Howze receiving 126 votes. Echoing what others interviewed said throughout the day, Kate Hughes said, “They’re all good candidates,” in the House of Delegates race. For governor, she voted for Mr. Deeds who will face Republican Bob McConnell in November. “It’s a tight race,” she said of the gubernatorial run, adding later, “I think we’re going to have a tough fight.” The sense of civic duty drew Keith Eishcheid to his Ashton Heights polling station at the Clarendon United Methodist Church where he met with Mr. Hope, Mr. Tobar and Mike Signer, who lost to Judy Wagner in the primary race for Lt. Governor. The three candidates stood ready to speak with last-minute voters at a poll that hit over 20 percent voting, high for a rainy primary. In the 2007 Democratic primary about 6,600 votes were cast in the race for Arlington County treasurer, the only race on the docket. In 2006, when now Sen. Jim Webb ran in the primary against Harris Miller, about 11,000 votes were cast. Even that number is less than 10 percent of the registered voters. The granddaddy of them all, of course, was last year’s race between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama on the Democratic side, and Mike Huckabee, John McCain, and Ron Paul on the Republican side. A total of about 54,000 people voted, about 45 percent of the total registered, according to Arlignton County records. “I like to vote,” Mr. Eishcheid said, umbrella in hand. He made a point of thanking each candidate for coming. Labels: election, house of delegates, primary
Tuesday, June 09, 2009
Letter: No Lines Today
No line at all to vote today. Was there around 8:15. I parked in the parking lot at Culpeper Gardens, so I avoided all the campaign people stationed on the sidewalk on N. Henderson Road.
Dan Felsenheld
Arlington Forest
Labels: 47th, election, house of delegates, primary
Turnout Looks Brisk, Despite Weather
At 9:15 this morning, about 112 people had voted at the Buckingham precinct and 166 had voted at Arlington Forest. The primaries last year--the one which John McCain and Barack Obama won--had a turnout of about 1100 voters on the day (Democrat and Republican) at the Buckingham precinct, or just shy of 100 an hour on average, compared to about 60 an hour above. Voters of any party can vote in Virginia primaries, so there is no way to tell if the voters are only Democrats. Neither the Republican nor the Green parties are holding primaries in Arlington this year. No clear winner is stepping forward in the 47th seat in the House of Delegates race if a handful of interviews at the Buckingham and Arlington Forest precincts are any indication. Patrick Hope and Miles Grant seem to be the favorites in these neighborhoods, but Andres Tobar also was mentioned. No one spoken with mentioned Alan Howze. Adam Parkhomenko was often cast as the person chosen not to vote for because of his age and inexperience. At the same time people were quick to say that Mr. Parkhomenko was a hard worker. Generally, people said they found all five candidates in the House race to be OK and had a hard time picking the one to vote for. Sara Ellen Swatt, of Buckingham said she would have liked to have seen a woman run for the House of Delegates and blamed the party for not having a strong feeder system to get women into the position to run.
Stephen Goldman was 15 minutes into his commute when he saw a person holding an campaign sign and remembered that he had to vote, so he turned around to get back to his Arlington Forest precinct. He said that during the campaign he asked three House candidates--the three who stopped at his door--to explain how they were different from each other, and was a little disappointed to find their answers "evasive," he said. "But I voted anyway." The number of people interviewed was much too small to make any of this accurate beyond anecdote. Zelmira McCann at the Buckingham Precinct, said she came out to vote to “keep the ball rolling with Democrats” who have had major victories in statewide elections in recent years. She chose Terry McAuliffe for governor and Miles Grant for the House of Delegates, she said. “He’s the ‘Green Party’ type,” she said of Mr. Grant, adding that she’s trying to go green herself. Khyati Desai, also at Buckingham, said she went with Brian Moran for governor and Patrick Hope for House of Delegates saying that Mr. Hope has made service in the community a career. She said its best to be engaged in the process early, so she made sure to vote in the primary. A couple blocks away at the Arlington Forest precinct, Anne Fullerton said if she were a “single-issue voter” that issue would be immigration, so she cast a ballot for Andres Tobar, who is also a friend of hers from church. Jackie Kramer, at Buckingham, voted for Patrick Hope in the House race; she had helped Mr. Hope campaign, and has been active in other campaigns in past years. She voted for Creigh Deeds in the three-way primary for governor. “He’s in the best position to win,” she said. Much of her decision to vote for Mr. Deeds was based on the idea that Mr. Moran is too liberal to beat Bob McDonnell, the Republican candidate for governor. Republicans will not be able to paint Mr. Deeds as a liberal--"He's not a liberal," she said. “We love Brian, personally, he’s our guy. But it’s really a question of who can win.” Labels: 47th, election, house of delegates, primary
Monday, June 08, 2009
Republican Enters Race for 47th
Republican Eric Brescia has entered the race for the 47th House of Delegates seat. He enters a race that tomorrow will see a the five-way Democratic primary turn a hopeful into the party's nominee. Those running for the Democrats include: Miles Grant, Patrick Hope, Alan Howze, Adam Parkhomenko, and Andres Tobar. The Green Party is running Josh Ruebner.
From a press release June 9:
REPUBLICAN BRESCIA ANNOUNCES FOR 47th HOUSE DISTRICT
Eric Brescia today announced his candidacy to represent the people of Arlington's 47th House District in the Virginia House of Delegates.
Brescia accepted the nomination of the Republican Party and will run against [Patrick Hope] the winner of the five-way Democratic primary to succeed retiring Delegate Al Eisenberg.
A professional economist, Brescia will bring his problem-solving skills and experience with financial markets and economic development to the State House during this time of economic uncertainty and growing discontent with politics as usual.
Brescia looks forward to sharing with the residents of Arlington County and the 47th District his common-sense, economic approach to governance. As Delegate, Brescia would work with both parties to get Virginia's fiscal house in order, reform government programs to make them more efficient and effective, and protect and extend personal freedom and civil liberties for all Virginians.
As the first Republican to run in the 47th district since 2003, Brescia hopes to create some balance in the partisan representation of Arlington in Richmond so that Arlington will have a clear and effective voice on both sides of the aisle.
"For too long, the good people of Arlington have elected only one party to its six seats in Richmond and all county offices," explained Brescia. "But as our neighbors in Alexandria just demonstrated in their city council elections, Americans are understandably uncomfortable with one-party rule."
"It's about time the people of Arlington be given a choice between more of the same and a candidate who can work with both parties to bring about real and lasting change for all Virginians."
"I've already heard frustrations from many Arlingtonians, and am looking forward to engaging in an aggressive dialogue about ideas on how to reform our state government, keep and attract private-sector jobs in Virginia, and ensure that Virginians hold their elected leaders and representatives accountable," Brescia added.
Brescia is a resident of Arlington's Virginia Square neighborhood. He is a graduate of Providence College in Providence, RI.
"I am excited that Eric has decided to enter this race," said Mark Kelly, Arlington County Republican Chairman. "At a time when our economy is struggling, Eric will be able to put his expertise as an economist to work for us. And, I think the people of Arlington will like his thoughtful approach to all the issues. Eric will make a great candidate and an outstanding Delegate."
More information on the 2009 GOP state and local campaigns in Arlington is available at www.ArlingtonGOP.org.
Labels: 47th, campaign, election, house of delegates
Letter: Feld Hasn't Called Hope "Names"
Where have I ever called Patrick Hope a "name?" Perhaps you're confusing me with someone else? I have criticized Hope on his I-66 widening stance, as well as his endorsement by an anti-helmet-law, Ron Paul supporter. That's about it as far as I know.
- Lowell Feld
Mr. Feld pens "Blue Virginia" a blog that, among other things, supports Miles Grant in the race for the House of Delegates. He is referring in the letter to yesterday's HeraldTrib Today column where I explained why I like Patrick Hope in the race and how I am tired of seeing name calling by Mr. Feld and Ben Tribbett, another blogger supporting Miles Grant. I should have said that Mr. Feld in my opinion is unnecessarily mean-spirited, while Mr. Tribbett is the one who calls people names. --ST
Labels: 47th, campaign, election, Grant, house of delegates, letter, patrick hope
Friday, June 05, 2009
HeraldTrib Today June 5, 2009
The race for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination, if you haven’t been following, is coming down to the wire, with Creigh Deeds gaining momentum, if the Washington Post and other pollsters are to be believed. (In an odd turn, I was called by some pollster asking if I would be voting for Terry McAuliffe, Creigh Deeds, or Jim Moran. I am guessing that is not a good sign for Jim's brother Brian Moran who is actually running for governor.)
I don’t know of any independent poll in the Democratic primary race in the 47th House of Delegates seat. I was called by the campaigns themselves to give my opinion on those running.
Alan Howze’s, Adam Parkhomenko’s and Miles Grant’s campaigns have conducted “ID calls” or surveys rather than polls.
Polls are much more scientific and ask about age, ethnicity, income and other factors that allow the results to be filtered, their campaigns said. Both Andres Tobar and Pat Hope said they did not conduct polls.
Those that conducted the calls are not giving up the numbers.
Joe Lestingi, Alan Howze’s campaign manager, said that they conducted an ID call, which only asks if voters have decided but does not focus on who has been chosen. It allows the campaign to target undecided voters, he said. Adam Parkhomenko’s campaign said they had conducted an ID call, as well.
Miles Grant emailed back yesterday that a survey he conducted over the Memorial Day weekend did not really generate a whole lot of information, given that it was a holiday weekend. Again, it was not a poll since it did not rise to the level of scientific accuracy.
The survey included only four questions covering a couple topics such as people’s attitudes toward coal-powered electricity, gay marriage and, finally, which of the five candidates the person planned to vote for.
“We got so few responses, I honestly don't even know what the final numbers ended up being -- the only broad takeaways I remember were…that the few responders we got were very supportive of a ban on new coal-fired power plants and full marriage rights for all,” Mr. Grant wrote in an email.
The Alan Howze campaign was not going to tell what they found in their ID call. “I’m not telling you that. It’s like giving away the game plan,” Mr. Lestingi said, adding, “We’re confident.”
Informal discussions with people in- and outside of the campaigns don’t point to a clear winner either, from what I can tell.
“I can tell you this,” Mr. Tobar wrote in an email, “most people are still undecided.”
The primary is held this Tuesday June 9. Voting takes place in your normal voting location:
He’s an honest broker. The stuff on his web site and in his materials that he said he has done in Buckingham, he has done. I’ve seen it.
It might sound like a small step to create the Buckingham Community Civic Association; it might sound as though all he had to do was to get a hundred signatures and he was done. But that’s wrong.
In 2002, about a year before the BCCA was formed, Emanuel Vouvakis tried to start the civic association, and he failed. That September, Mr. Vouvakis held a special meeting to debate the merits of a civic association, and no one showed up. No organizers from the different vested groups attended. When he saw the conflict brewing, Mr. Vouvakis decided the best plan was to draft the by-laws and then rally people to them.
It was Pat Hope, as part of that group, who said at the time exactly what the problem was: the group wanting the association--homeowners mostly--had not gotten buy-in from the renter organizations in the neighborhood first. He told me, when I edited the Buckingham Independent News, that his group needed to work with tenant groups and assure them that their needs would not be “swept under the rug.” There were deep divisions that Pat had to work through, so the process took about a year.
Under Pat’s leadership, the civic association conducted a huge survey of the neighborhood, including going door-to-door with Spanish speakers, a Spanish language version of the survey in hand, to make sure all voices were heard.
That survey became the focus for the neighborhood to move forward, to get county monies for repairs, to build a strategic plan.
I have been in the room with Pat as he mediated a disagreement between two groups at the Buckingham Community Outreach Center, where it was clear those present respected and trusted his leadership. I know it has often been money from his wallet that has paid for gifts that the needy children of Buckingham have received at Christmas time.
During the current campaign, I have liked his focus on the neediest of Virginians. To me, that’s what being a progressive liberal, in the best sense of the word, is. A government should run so as to keep those on the edge from falling over.
That is why I get so angry at the name-calling by the political bloggers supporting Miles Grant. It is not that they support Miles. Miles has run a solid campaign and is standing on a good platform of issues. And it’s not that they are against Pat. I know, as do most people in Arlington, that we can have honest disagreements on issues or on the best ways to handle them.
I have disagreed openly plenty of times on this blog with people and politicians. At times, I have even gotten snarky. Political rhetoric sometimes is biting.
But is name calling really necessary?
That is my problem with Lowell Feld and Ben Tribbett. They don’t seem to understand the difference between a good person with ideas they don’t like and a bad person. Name-calling says the person is bad. Arguing over the issues says the ideas are bad. Frankly, name-calling is childish. Especially when it comes from people who sit on the sidelines and watch while other people do.
If endorsements are important to you, I would suggest checking out the web sites of the five candidates running for the House of Delegates' 47th seat. This list has grown over the last week. Perhaps the most surprising (actually it seemed almost out-of-the-blue for me) is the endorsement of Adam Parkhomenko by Gen. Wesley Clark.
Below, Patrick Hope was endorsed by Willians Silva, a housing and tenant-issue leader in Buckingham (scroll down for the link).
Web sites for the five candidates: If you did not see them earlier this week, here are the HeraldTrib interviews with the candidates.
Walking by the new construction at the corner of N. Henderson Road and N. Thomas Street, I couldn’t help but notice the shape of the sidewalks. I think the corner will look really nice when the sidewalks are done and the grass has grown in. Still, I couldn’t help but wonder how much of the grass will survive. People being what they are, will--I'm afraid--cut over the grass rather than swerve with the pavement. Alas.
Bethel United Church of Christ is hosting its annual strawberry festival tomorrow, Saturday June 6, 3 to 7p.m. For more information, click here.
Central Library is hosting a high school study night just before finals
The library is located at 1015 N. Quincy Street. Parking is available.
Arlington Oaks Condominium is holding its annual yard sale Saturday June 27:
8:00a.m. to 1:00p.m.
The Week’s Headlines…
As always, you can scroll down to see all the recent stories, or simply click the links below (if the link doesn't work, scroll down to find the story, and email to tell me what's busted: heraldtrib@gmail.com --Steve Thurston).
Today's Headlines:
Headlines from Earlier in the Week:
Labels: 47th, campaign, election, house of delegates, polls, psa, redevelopment
B'ham Civic Activist Silva Endorses Hope
Yo, como Latino y residente de Arlington, apoyo a Pat Hope y le pido a toda la comunidad del área que vote por Pat Hope. El ha trabajado fuertemente en el área de Buckingham apoyando los esfuerzos para conseguir nuestro cuadro de juego de fulbito y también apoya nuestro festival anual comunitario de Buckingham. Hope es el único candidato que esta corriendo para el Congreso de Richmond que nos conoce bien y en el cual yo tengo total confianza que que luchará para nuestras intereses.
--Willians Silva
Mr. Silva is a long-time civic activist and affordable housing proponent in Arlington. He lives in the Buckingham neighborhood. "Fulbito" is soccer played on a truncated field (largely in urban/dense areas). --ST
Labels: 47th, campaign, election, house of delegates
Tuesday, June 02, 2009
Candidate Interviews: House of Delegates, 47
I hadn’t planned on doing these interviews since I am a friend of candidate Patrick Hope, and I did not want to conduct what might be seen as biased interviews.
But when Alan Howze came to my door and said to me, “Let’s get coffee” in a way that said, “I can change your mind,” I thought if I got coffee with him, why not with everyone? I called and emailed all five candidates and four agreed to sit and talk with me on tape (or, actually, digital recorder). I was up front with all about my leanings toward Mr. Hope, and have always listed my friendship with him at the bottom of articles about the race.
The interviews (see below) with Miles Grant, Patrick Hope, Alan Howze and Adres Tobar took place at various restaurants and coffee shops in the 47th, and lasted 30 to 45 minutes. Adam Parkhomenko’s campaign said he did not have time in his busy schedule to have coffee, despite being the only candidate who has made campaigning a full-time job. Make of that what you will, but to add context, I should say that I pretty much excoriated him after the Arlington County Democratic Committee debate; I was hoping he would want the interview, just to set me straight.
I had a great time conducting these interviews, and I want to take a moment to thank the four candidates for taking time from a very busy campaign season to sit and speak with me. I found the interviews to be a lot of fun and very informative. It’s nice to know that the 47th has strong candidates in this race. In the interest of full disclosure: I bought the coffee, muffins, eggs, toast or whatever else we consumed while chatting.
The full transcripts which I typed ran about 2,500 to 6,000 words. I tried to get these interviews to similar lengths, lengths which I thought would be informative and readable. They each run about 2,000 to 2,300 words, which is long (but don’t worry, the real test isn’t until next Tuesday, June 9. You have week to study-up!). I like the long-form of the responses as I think they show the candidates’ personalities as well as their ideas and policy goals. You’ll find, too, that the candidates work through answers, showing nuance and complete ideas that might not make it into shorter interviews. It makes for convoluted sentences at times, but that’s the nature of a discussion-based interview, rather than something that approximates an interrogation.
Obviously, I cut a lot from each of the interviews, and occasionally I added words to clarify what was left. I edited my questions often to shorten them, and to clarify them.
I often, but not always, cut the word “and” or “but” from the speakers’ words and started a new sentence if the speaker’s sentence was just getting too long, a common problem in these sorts of interviews.
If I took out more than a word or two (or if the words I erased were more substantial than “and” or “but”), I inserted a three-dot ellipsis (…); this was particularly the case when we got off topic, or when the speaker started and then stopped to restart the sentence.
If I inserted anything the speaker did not actually say, I used square brackets [like these] to show my insertion.
Otherwise, the words a wholly theirs, full quotes. Despite having to remove a lot of content from each of the interviews, I try to make sure the quotes still make sense and are in context. I will happily run corrections or clarifications if the candidate or his campaign can show that it is merited.
Click on the names of the candidates below to read each of the interviews. They are listed randomly (the list chosen by coin-flip).
Please review my policy on emails-to-the-editor and comments: emails sent to me, I assume, are meant for publication and will be published so long they come with a name and a neighborhood at the end of them. (Email me here: heraldtrib@gmail.com). Comments can be added to the end of any of the interviews. They may be anonymous (though I encourage everyone to use their names). Libelous, potentially libelous, or overly mean comments will be erased; emails with similar content will not be published.
Related campaign web sites…
Labels: 47th, campaign, election, house of delegates, primary
Interview: Miles Grant
To get this interview, as well as the others that I conducted, to a similar, readable size, I had to cut quite a bit of material. If I took out more than a word or two (or if the words I erased were more substantial than “and” or “but”), I inserted a three-dot ellipsis (…). If I inserted anything the speaker did not actually say, I used square brackets [like these] to show my insertion.
Otherwise, the words are full quotes. Despite having to remove a lot of content from each of the interviews, I try to make sure the quotes still make sense and are in context. I will happily run corrections or clarifications if the candidate or his campaign can show that it is merited.
My own questions were edited, at times, for clarity and length.--ST
Buckingham HeraldTrib (Steve Thurston): Pre-school for all Virginia’s kids, Universal Pre-K, is supported by all the candidates in the race. It lost during the last legislative session. Assuming we don’t have the money again in the upcoming year for this, what’s your second-best idea for this?
Miles Grant: How that gets dealt with next year, is going to depend on the outcomes of the elections in November, that it depends on who has control of the House of Delegates. It depends on who has control of the governor’s mansion.
That’s why, as a Democrat, I think it’s so critical that whoever gets the [gubernatorial] nomination, be it Terry [McAuliffe], be it Brian [Moran], be it Creigh [Deeds], we campaign our butts off for them, and that we try to pick up those six seats in the House of Delegates…Then I think you’re going to look for some new sources of revenue to try to pay for education, and try to prevent us from having to make too many draconian cuts in the budget…
When I talk about Universal Pre-K, I see it as more of a long-term goal, along the lines of the clean energy goals that I talk about, along with marriage rights for all. But it’s something we’re going to have to fight for and strive towards, but in the short term, we have to play a little defense with the budget, just because of the economic climate that we’re in. BHT: But do you see a short-term win? MG: If anything what we’re looking at is trying to provide a higher level of funding state-wide so that communities don’t have to rely so much on things like property taxes for their education budget because we are talking about the two Virginias…We have northern Virginia which certainly provides for the needs of its children, for the needs of its special-needs kids, for the needs of its bi-lingual kids. In the rest of the state, I think there’s a real question of whether we’re providing that minimal level of education in the rest of the state. We have places where the drop-out rate is approaching 40 percent. In places like that, forget about things like universal Pre-K, which we’re talking about achieving at a high level. We’re talking about failing at a bare minimum of getting our kids a high school diploma. BHT: At the Arlington County Democratic Committee debate Andres Tobar said, I thought rightly, that if we think we’re getting off coal quickly to move to clean energy, we’re fooling ourselves. MG: …I wish he wouldn’t say things like that because who’s talking about getting rid of coal tomorrow? Nobody. No environmentalist is talking about getting rid of coal tomorrow, and stuff like that is really playing into the Republican talking points that, ‘Oh, we can never get off fossil fuels, so why should we try?’ When we talk about our goals for clean energy, look at President [Barack] Obama’s goal: 25 percent renewable energy by 2025. That’s something that’s long-term, that’s achievable. And when we talk about these things, we’re really talking about starting the transformation now because Americans go into this shock-and-trance thing when it comes to fossil fuels. We get shocked by the $4-a-gallon gas prices. Then they come back down and we go into this trance where, well maybe if we don’t do anything, everything will stay the same, and you know, we’ll be fine. But now is the time that we need to start moving away from some of these things. I mean, you know energy bills went up 18 percent in September, 1.5 percent in January, and now Dominion [Dominion Virginia Power Co.] wants to raise them another seven percent. That’s due to the rising cost of coal. 
I think when somebody goes around saying, oh, well we can’t get off coal tomorrow, well when are we going to get off coal? When is it OK for us to get off coal? If not tomorrow, what about next week? What about next month? What about next year? BHT: So what do you want to do in Richmond in January, along those lines? MG: I think the first thing we need to do is frame this as an economic issue. Republicans aren’t going to get on board with us because we’re trying to save the planet, or anything like that. But if we can, say, Look, let’s do an efficiency bill where we’re trying to save consumers money on their energy bills, that we’re trying to weatherize people’s homes. We’re trying to make Dominion [Virginia Power Company] more of a partner…Dominion currently makes their profit by selling us as much energy as possible. If our home isn’t so energy efficient, that’s no skin off their back. So I think an efficiency bill is first step toward that. It’s businesses here in Virginia that are starting to say, there’s opportunities here for clean energy. You see the commercials that are on TV now that single windmill needs 250 tons of steel. Well, where are those windmills going to get built? Are we going to let them get built in Pennsylvania, are we going to let them get built in Germany? Or are we going to build them here?… Look at the last few elections. In 2004, this was not talked about on a national level. In the governor’s race with Governor [Tim] Kaine and [Terry] Kilgore, this wasn’t talked about. But for the first time, you’ve seen President Obama talk about it. Now you’re seeing McAuliffe and Moran talk about it.
And I think the more voters hear about it, the more they’re going to expect not a Democratic or Republican solution, but a solution. The party of “No” is not going to be the right answer anymore. And if you see people like [Republican gubernatorial candidate Bob] McDonnell just saying, oh, “Drill, baby, drill,” voters are going to realize that that’s not a real answer, and Republicans are going to have to get on board with something. BHT: You stepped out with a campaign pledge not to take contributions from Dominion Power or their employees. Now you’re saying we’ve got to make Dominion a partner. Was that pledge a statement you felt you needed to say to get elected, but something else is how I really feel, or what? MG: There’s a difference between working with somebody and taking their giant checks…There’s a difference between having fund-raisers at Dominion executives’ houses, and saying, ‘Look, I’m not interested in your check, but I do want you to be a partner with us.’ I think there has to be a happy medium in there somewhere, and Virginia politicians tend not to find that when it comes to large checks and contributions. I’m just saying, look, I want to have an objective relationship with you, where we’re working together for consumers, and it’s not about, quid-pro-quo, or anything like that. I’ve talked to some delegates from Richmond who’ve said ‘It’s easy for you to talk tough on Dominion when you’re not down here.’ I say, look, I’ll talk tough, but when it comes time to sit down at the negotiating table, let’s cut a deal. BHT: You have gotten support from the gay and lesbian community. The way I’ve heard it, is that you’re tending toward getting the younger people from that community while the older people are tending toward Pat Hope. MG: Sure. Well, I think the question is, do you want somebody who’s going to be, you know, more of the bolder person who’s going to be stepping out and saying marriage rights for all, you know, like we were talking about, you know, marriage rights for all sooner, or marriage rights for all later? Patrick at the Arlington Gay and Lesbian Alliance was saying, I don’t think we can do this right now. I would disagree with that. I think we’ve got to start fighting now, or else when is it OK to start fighting? Next year? Next decade? I don’t know. BHT: At the ACDC debate you listed gas taxes as a way to fund transportation. (Currently they’re about $0.38 a gallon, $0.19 federal, $0.18, state.) Where do you think it should be and why that level? MG: Gov. Kaine had proposed in the past year raising it 30 cents. I think that’s a very sensible first step. I think long term we need to give drivers a pricing that will say, look when you’re going to buy that next car, gas prices are going to be a bit higher than they are now. So that hybrid that you’re thinking about buying is going to be a good investment. Drivers right now have absolutely no idea where gas prices is going be, and if you buy a [Toyota] Prius right now, you’re sort of making that leap of faith that gas prices are going to stay high or even if they go lower, well it’s going to make me feel good. Feeling good is not going to get us out of the climate crisis and our energy crisis. We need to give people a cost certainty and I feel the gas tax is one way to do that. The added benefit of the gas tax is that we can then take that revenue and spend it either on the funding that Metro needs or on the funding for our road maintenance that it needs. I think the one thing that we’ve done poorly lately is focus on expanding our existing roads. And that’s not a solution. Those beltway HOT [High Occupancy Toll] lanes they’re putting in…a month after they’re done, they’re going to be full. Drivers are going to be complaining that they’re not really helping them get anywhere faster because the people who right now are taking [Route] 123 or Glebe Road or something like that are going to be trying to get on these HOT lanes. Same with expanding [Interstate] 66. People who take back roads now, or who take Route 50 now, or who take public transportation now, will think, ‘Oh, 66 is wider, it will take me there in two minutes.’ Well, it won’t. BHT: You first entered the race before Al Eisenberg, the incumbent, got out of the race. I was curious about your strategy there. MG: I’ve been very open…I’m not going to be the guy with the most money in this race. I’m not going to be the guy who gets the most [Democratic Party] establishment support. But I do think I have the strongest message when it comes to the progressive issues that we care about: clean energy and climate action, civil liberties for all Virginians, and community engagement and civic activism. Getting into the race early allowed me to build that volunteer base. Now I get 10 people for every volunteer event that I have. And that’s really going to be my edge in this race… I’m 31 now. I’ll be 32 in November…I’ve got enough of a resume to run on. Chair of Arlingtonians for a Clean Environment. Chair of Community Volunteer Network. [I’ve worked on] Arlington Young Democrats and helping out with the [President Barack] Obama campaign. I’ve been here. I’ve been fighting for these issues. It’s not like I’m just popping out of the weeds and saying, “OK everybody, here I am.” Click here to return to the main interview site. --ST Labels: 47th, campaign, election, Grant, house of delegates, primary
Interview: Patrick Hope
To get this interview, as well as the others that I conducted, to a similar, readable size, I had to cut quite a bit of material. If I took out more than a word or two (or if the words I erased were more substantial than “and” or “but”), I inserted a three-dot ellipsis (…). If I inserted anything the speaker did not actually say, I used square brackets [like these] to show my insertion.
Otherwise, the words are full quotes. Despite having to remove a lot of content from each of the interviews, I try to make sure the quotes still make sense and are in context. I will happily run corrections or clarifications if the candidate or his campaign can show that it is merited.
My own questions were edited, at times, for clarity and length.--ST
Buckingham HeraldTrib (Steve Thurston): You really can’t be sure who’s going to come out and vote. I don’t get a sense that people are motivated to vote.
Patrick Hope: We’re to the point now where we’re starting to really [make] distinct the differences between the five of us. The main thing that we talk about a lot is first my community experience. You know, I’ve been active in the community for the last 10 years. Whether it’s civic association things, or Special Olympics or it’s human services, affordable housing, all those things I’ve been involved in over the years. That’s one thing that distinguishes me from the other candidates…
I’m responsible for bringing in several million dollars into Arlington. And by working together with people, and bringing together interest groups at the local level…As chair of the community services board, we oversaw, mental health, substance abuse, and intellectual disabilities. All three of those different disability groups have three different interests, and they’re not always the same. They all have their groups. Their parents are out there. They’re very single [issue] focused. And it’s a challenge to bring even those groups together into one…
So, at the local level, we’ve been able to all of us get together on the same page. It means, though, that we leave stuff off the table. Everyone comes to the table with their interests, but they also leave that meeting, meaning that some of their high priorities are not going to be dealt with. So, we all come together on a single, common message, whatever that may be for the year… Compromise is hard. But the stakes are just so high. So many people are suffering that, you know, if it means that thousands of more people are being served today than weren’t before, it’s worth it. You always have an end goal,…you always have this ideal where Virginia should be in caring for the most vulnerable populations… Virginia ranks seventh in the nation in income per capita but yet we rank 48th in the nation in Medicaid funding. So, think about it, our funding, our safety net program for the sickest, the poorest people…those people get the short end of the stick every time. Every time. So many people are not even covered. If they want these services—whether it’s health care, they end up going to the emergency room when it’s frequently too late, and it’s so expensive, we’ll cover them there. I mean, we’ll pay for a $40,000 foot amputation, but we won’t pay for a $140 visit to the podiatrist… [We need to] focus on preventive care… BHT: What are we talking about in an economy like this? Where’s the money going to come from? PH: We spend the money in the system. We don’t have to spend a dime. And I wouldn’t even propose that we spend more money, more tax dollars. We have enough money in the system, we just spend it in the wrong places… I mean, think of it this way: when someone comes into the jail, that’s an addict, they get out of jail still an addict. Someone who has a serious mental illness, they come in with mental illness, they go out still mentally ill…It’s a merry-go-round… One thing I’ve been active in creating in Arlington is a drug court. Someone that is presented with a misdemeanor, not a felony, but I’m talking about a misdemeanor, maybe it’s possession. We’re tending to see that their rates of recidivism are very high. So they’ll be back in jail for another reason once we let them off with this misdemeanor, but the next crime it won’t be a misdemeanor, it’ll be a felony. It’ll be burglary. They’ve got to support their habit. And so if we can get to them early and start getting them treatment—and we’ve seen efforts with drug courts that are very rigorous and the rates of recidivism are extremely low. BHT: But that can’t be cheap, either. It seems to me what it takes is an intense will of the person to want to get dry and sober, and an intense will of the system to sort of continually chip at this person to keep him or her dry and sober. It seems to me that we’ve used the prison model because, though possibly expensive, it’s fast and doable. PH: It doesn’t work, though…and there’s a real incentive for the individual to get into this [drug court] program. It’s very rigorous,…almost daily drug tests, you have to be actively searching for a job, and you appear before the court on a weekly basis…If you fail, then the punishment is more stricter than it would have been originally. But the incentive to do it is that the crime will be stricken from your record…
BHT: Your ideas for preventative health care is basically the HMO model, right? Get people care regularly before they need it. PH: It is, but you have to make sure that it’s run correctly. First of all, you’ve got to be in the system. Right now people aren’t in the system. So there’s no incentive for you to even get care… What they’ve done in North Carolina is first they’ve expanded coverage…to bring more people into the system. And for those most expensive chronic diseases like heart disease, diabetes, asthma, hypertension, the most expensive and the most common ones, for the rural areas—this works very well in the rural areas—is you make sure you have case managers and nurses. Once you identify the diabetic, you go to their home, literally [a case worker] goes to their home and makes sure the patient know how to check their blood, makes sure that they are eating right; they’re taking their medications, they get them filled. If they need an appointment with a podiatrist, not only is the appointment set, but they actually have transportation to get there. They actually make sure that they show up to do it. That way, you’re managing their disease… BHT: I can hear conservatives, and even the conservative part of myself, saying that we’re too involved. Are you sure this is revenue neutral? PH: It is. North Carolina did a study on it, and they spent $10 million on their case managers. And just to be clear, the case managers and the nurses are in the rural areas. In the urban areas, like northern Virginia, you put the money in the practice. North Carolina pays $2.50 per month per patient…So, let’s say I have 500 patients under Medicaid with heart disease…I would get paid $2.50 per month per patient to manage their care. So I would hire the nurse. BHT: Wait. $2.50 times 500—what is that, at most $1,500 a month for a nurse? PH: Think of it this way, you probably can already absorb that in your practice, anyway. BHT: Oh, please. How many doctors are lining up to absorb this? PH: Many of them are because they get together, and so the practices will sort of team-up, and they’ll share a nurse between several different practices. The model works very well because you get paid whether or not someone comes in your practice or not…So you have an incentive to keep them out of the office, to keep them well. BHT: Or to not know what’s going on with them. PH: That’s a problem because Medicaid will know. They’ll wind up in the emergency room and there’ll be a cost. The data they’ve had since 2006 in North Carolina, they’ve spent $10 million on all of this. And they save $260 million every year in a reduction in their Medicaid expenditures. So North Carolina’s doing this; Pennsylvania’s doing it; Wisconsin is doing it… BHT: What happens when a patient disappears? These people are on the edge, so they might just disappear. And if they end up in the hospital, what teeth does Medicaid have to censure the doctor since a doctor could say, “Hey, I was here, it’s not my fault they didn’t come in.” PH: There’s an [annual] accreditation process, where you have to make sure that you have the staff and that people actually are communicating. If you fail these things, then you’re out of the program. It’s not just $2.50, just to be clear. You still get paid for the visit. You’re still getting Medicaid reimbursement… All that to my point was that I think we already spend enough money in the system. I think if we were just to spend it differently we could spend it in different ways, we could save a lot of money and expand services, expand care to people. Another area is homelessness…I was very instrumental in starting [Arlington’s] Housing First program, permanent supportive housing…a ten-year plan to end homelessness. Since 2006, we have placed over a hundred people in our permanent supportive housing program. We’re taking people that are homeless off the streets and give them a home… They’re [the homeless are] not thinking about getting a job. They’re not thinking about seeing a psychiatrist. They’re thinking about where [they’re] going to sleep tonight… We’ve found that when you give someone an affordable housing unit that they start to think about getting a job. They start thinking about trying to see a psychiatrist, getting clean and sober. And then they do do that next step… It costs over $100,000 to keep someone homeless…but to give them a home, it costs $40,000 a year…So it’s a different way to spend money. BHT: Everybody at the Arlington County Democratic Committee debate said they supported universal Pre-school. Assuming the budget is still tight, what would be the second best program or alternate idea that you would fight for? PH: The compromise is at-risk kids. We can identify who those kids are. They’re kids at low-income, many kids are from minority families. There’s been data out there, studies out there, that show that there really is no difference between the kids that are from wealthy families and how they perform in later years, whether they get Pre-K or not, but there is a significant gap and a significant distinction for those kids that are at-risk who get Pre-K and those who do not. So the evidence clearly shows that if you’re going to target any population it ought to be those at-risk kids, so that would be my fall-back position on expanding Pre-K. I know it’s a cost…but it’s an investment, too. BHT: About the environment and energy policy. What can we really do in the next year or two in reducing coal emissions and that kind of thing? PH: You know, I don’t think we’re going to be able to flip the switch and cut ourselves off of coal. I’ve said before, I think coal is our past and its present, but it doesn’t have to be our future. We’re not going to be able to flip that switch…I do think if coal represents about 45 percent of our energy right now, there’s no reason to say…we can reduce this by five percent a year, about every five years. BHT: But how? PH: I think we start looking to renewables, wind and solar. I think everything should be on this table, natural gas. I mean I saw a picture of [gubenatorial candidate Terry] McAuliffe wading in algae, you know, seeing if you could use that, and he talks about chicken waste. Look at all the different options, put them all on the table, and let’s slowly reduce the amount of our consumption of using coal… And let’s set a standard, a mandatory standard, of saying let’s reduce our consumption by 2025, let’s reduce it by 20 percent. And that 20 percent, we replace it with renewables. You go down to the coal country, and you ask those workers what they know about black lung disease, what they know about their average life-span of ending at 55-years-old, or what they know about asthma, or not allowing their kids to play out in the front yard. They’d like a new life for themselves. They’d like a new job, a green job. And invest, invest in these coal areas, you know, put some of these facilities down there, so people can transition and get a new job… Let’s teach this [lower consumption] in the schools. Let’s teach [children] about consumption. And let’s teach them about…conserving. It’s the lightbulb, and it’s also turning off the light. Families can have responsibilities, too. Weatherizing your home. Let’s have a program where we can weatherize homes. Let’s reduce your consumption individually by 10 or 15 percent over the next few years… BHT: [Readers: this final question was one I had on my mind a lot, but never wrote down. Therefore, I forgot to ask it in the interview. I wrote it as an email, and Mr. Hope responded via email. ] As a long-serving member of the Arlington Democratic Party, you’re the "establishment" candidate. How do you (or do you at all) shake that moniker? PH: I'm proud of my endorsements in this race because I know how I received them: I earned them. I've established my credibility and reputation over the years not in the Party but in the community. These endorsements come from my associations, efforts, and years of working with community leaders to make Arlington a better place. The support I've received are not from IOU's or friendships, they are made out of mutual respect and appreciation for the results I've delivered. Arlington's State and County delegation is made up of some of the best policymakers and thought leaders in the country and I'm honored to have their support. I look forward to continuing to work with them as a member of the General Assembly. Click here to return to the main interview site. --ST Labels: 47th, campaign, election, house of delegates, patrick hope, primary
Interview: Andres Tobar
To get this interview, as well as the others that I conducted, to a similar, readable size, I had to cut quite a bit of material. If I took out more than a word or two (or if the words I erased were more substantial than “and” or “but”), I inserted a three-dot ellipsis (…). If I inserted anything the speaker did not actually say, I used square brackets [like these] to show my insertion.
Otherwise, the words are full quotes. Despite having to remove a lot of content from each of the interviews, I try to make sure the quotes still make sense and are in context. I will happily run corrections or clarifications if the candidate or his campaign can show that it is merited.
My own questions were edited, at times, for clarity and length.--ST
Buckingham HeraldTrib (Steve Thurston): What are some of the stories that you’ve heard when you’ve knocked on doors?
Andres Tobar: I’ve heard from one parent who commented that but for Medicaid his whole family would have been devastated, and thank God the state does have programs that are offering a helping hand for folks in crisis, or when some of their children have certain illnesses that they couldn’t cope by themselves with, so they get a helping hand…
In fact one of the questions that was asked in one of the debates was what would we cut in light of fiscal situations. What I indicated is, rather than saying what I would cut, I said what I would preserve. Number one is I would preserve our fund for education because I’m very firm that my first priority is education, to make sure that every child gets a shot. I’m a strong advocate for universal pre-school. So as children are ready to come to school, let’s make sure they’re ready to learn.
I did not learn how to speak English until I started the first grade. My parents were immigrants from Mexico. I hope you don’t think I’m playing the immigrant card too hard, but there’s stories at times, you know, that we bring. Our backgrounds are so different, and at times we see people speaking in English, and after awhile we can’t tell the difference of who’s doing what, and we assume everybody’s stories are the same, and they’re not…
BHT: Universal Pre-school died this year when Gov. Tim Kaine tried to get it passed through the legislature, yet it's something all the candidates in this race support. Assuming that the economy is in the same shape next year, what is the second best plan, less than Universal Pre-K, but something that would get at what you’re hoping for?
AT: …Once you get down there, it’s going to be the art of negotiation and compromise. I know that. I’m a very, very realist. But what I’d like to do is make sure that as many young people as possible are going to be having access to this, so they get ready to learn.
As I was pointing out to you, when I was a child, I didn’t know how to speak English until the first grade, and for the first four years, I was learning the language, not the content…You’re trying to figure out how to put those phrases together as opposed to trying to learn the history or all the other things in the content that you’re learning…
You know we have a nine percent drop-out rate for drop-outs in general,…for Latinos it’s a 20 percent rate…We need to take some initiative of how to engage these young people, provide a variety of things like tutoring and counseling and other things that are going to give them the assistance they need to catch-up….
Of course, with respect to teachers, I want teachers to be very competitive in terms of salaries. I would love to have teachers and our police and fire-fighters and our hard-working men and women in blue collar industries to also be able to afford to live in Arlington. I’m a strong proponent of affordable housing.
BHT: Another question in education. Tell me more about the federal DREAM Act that would allow kids who might not have all the documentation, but have been here for years to go to college paying in-state tuition.
AT: …That would be for our young people who are going through our schools and graduating from our schools and their parents are paying taxes, and they’re either on the way to become legal or as soon as they’re eligible, they will start in the program. But actually the DREAM Act goes further than that….[In Virginia] we’re trying to pass something that is somewhat comparable but somewhat palatable for the legislature that we’ve got down there.
The DREAM Act literally would allow for the young people that are graduating from schools that wanted to go to college to be allowed to go to college [with] in-state tuition….As they do that they… would be on a course to become legal residents. And so that would get away from all the challenges that we have right now with respect to immigration…
BHT: And so being a part of the DREAM Act would be a part of becoming a citizen?
AT: Yes, yeah. And it’s something that is very logical, because doesn’t it make sense that we’ve got young people that want to go to college and stay in this country, that we ought to give them a way of doing that? This is going to be the workforce of tomorrow…
BHT: I can hear the conservatives screaming at you right now. You’re either rewarding people who haven’t followed the rules by waiting in their own countries for the chance at immigration, and then you’re giving a spot in college at a lower tuition to them when it could have gone to someone here legally, either by birth or immigration. Does that make sense?
AT: You’re presenting the arguments correctly, but I’m not sure it makes sense….The way that the immigrant advocates have responded to that is the parents are the ones that broke the law. The children came here like any other child would do when their parents tell them to come….The ‘line issue’ is something that you can raise, in terms of getting in line and waiting your turn. You can impose that anywhere along the way.
The reality check is that these are young people that came over here with their parents. They went to school here. They’ve educated in our schools. We’ve invested literally tens of thousands of dollars. We’ve educated them. They’re prepared to learn in our universities, and they want to. We’re not talking about the ones that drop out or the ones that don’t care…We’re talking about a very small number. I mean, we’re not talking hundreds of thousands of kids… Prior to 9/11, there was a process. It wasn’t perfect, but there was a process. If an employer had a job, needed a worker, he could put an ad in the paper,…identify that they have a particular need….But after 9/11, you had a major challenge. We had a full court press by the anti-immigrant lobby, and they shut down everything… BHT: Do you see that as something Virginia can do? Or is it only a federal issue? AT: The federal government is the only one that has authority over immigrant issues. BHT: But I mean, is there a role for Virginia to take an advocacy role for that policy idea? AT: The answer would be an advocacy role, but obviously right now we’re getting just the opposite. You know, clamoring and trying to make local ordinances that would penalize folks who are undocumented, getting the police departments to play a greater role in immigration, as opposed to dealing with the crimes…The legislature kept killing legislation that would allow for undocumented immigrants not to be asked their immigration status, if they were victims or witnesses of crimes. That failed. That was a cruel, cruel set-back… BHT: At the Arlington County Democratic Committee debate, you said a state law you’d like to see replicated here was Maryland’s driver’s license program. You see the idea that people, even undocumented people, should be allowed to get a driver’s license as a public safety issue, knowing that the people on the road have passed the tests and have insurance. How do you balance that with the greater Homeland Security-type public safety? AT: I’m not sure exactly how they’re doing it in Maryland…That opportunity is being sunsetted, as far as I know… There are people who may not be able to prove that they are here legally, so it would be a license that could be issued indicating that this is a license that the bearer will use for driving purposes only, and for no other purpose. There are ways…that you’d do it subtely, but yet everybody in any kind of official capacity would know…that this is only for driving purposes… [You] would know who they are when you stop them as opposed to having no license at all. They would need to learn our laws and get a driver’s license. Then they could get insurance for their car. And they’d comply with all the rest of the laws. Mainly people are working, whether you say legitimately or not, and they need to travel and they will travel… BHT: Well, that was about it. Is there anything I missed that you wanted to talk about? AT: …I’m the chair of the Arlington County Crime Solvers. The reason I got involved in that is literally to find ways of reducing crime, especially reaching out to the immigrant community…and they want to provide a tip, that’s one way of doing it without getting involved. I’m also on the chief-of-police advisory committee. We talk to him every couple of months….and I bring up issues that are happening in our community, concerns and suggestions. I’m very—I can’t say ‘pro-police’—I’m very pro-having-a-safe-environment, safe society….I know that the immigrant community, for the most part, is law-abiding… Where I work at Shirlington…some of them [the clients of the center] have a very good work ethic. For the most part, most of them do. But the ones that are the problem, are the ones that get all the notoriety, and makes it harder on everybody else. BHT: For us, in Buckingham, it’s public drunkenness and urination, and that kind of thing. You only have to see that once a week to be highly annoyed by it. AT: In all candor, I also am the coordinator of another group that has started in October of last year that we call Arlington Service providers to the poor….We’re having a meeting actually on the 20th….The issue this time is going to be alcoholism in Arlington…We’ve united folks from all the “A”s—[community providers:] ASPAN, AFAC, you know, AMEN, plus Doorways and the county to get together and talk about these issues, dealing with the poor that are going to impact us probably even moreso in the next few years while we’re going through this change in economic climate… The community and the churches and everybody has got to step up and say ‘Hey guys, this isn’t where you came from, where you could get away with [it]. Here, you will pay a price. You will be fined, and you will be jailed….If you’re going to drink, drink responsibly.’ That’s the message I want to send. Let’s bring some responsibility… [Latinos] and the African-Americans, and the poor whites, they have lost hope. We’ve got to instill in them the fact that they can make it, and that there is an opportunity…I am probably in the one percent, if not less, that made it through high school and college and a master’s degree and of immigrant parents who were both illiterate… The things that are going on in the immigrant community right now, with the immigrant-bashing…it’s devastating. What I’m very critical of is supervisors in Prince William [County, not the just the chairman] but the other guy who said that he’s going to submit an ordinance that would eliminate any services whatsoever to undocumented immigrants. He watered it down, but it got tremendous press, including the Latino media. And one of the things I point out is that the immigrant community does not know that the local supervisor does not have the authority to overturn the [United States] Supreme Court that says that every child, irrespective of status, is going to get an education. They do not know that there is a federal mandate that hospitals are required to take anybody who is sick. They don’t know that. So, many of the kids, or the families of the kids, were keeping the kids at home. They thought that that ordinance had passed. That is not fair. That’s part of what I want to do in Richmond…I want to go down there and make sure that we change a few things around this kind of way, on a one-to-one basis with a lot of folks. The upbringing that I have, the reason I think I can be effective across the aisle, my background in terms of standing on our feet and doing it on our own has been bred in me from youth. My dad was a farm worker in west Texas. From November to late February, there was no work whatsoever. My dad would buy 100 pounds of flour and corn meal and beans and rice and coffee, and the only thing he would go to the store to buy is perishables. And so we never took a dime from anybody else. No welfare, no unemployment, nothing… BHT: What neighborhood do you live in? AT: I live in Filmore Garden Apartments in Penrose [neighborhood]….Let me point out something: I lived in the 47th 23 years, not consistently, but I owned a condominium, and six years ago, I was invited to consider running for the House of Delegates in the 49th, which would be south of Columbia Pike, and I moved to be south of Columbia Pike. I received the endorsement of every major Democrat in Arlington, including the incumbent Karen Darner. So I moved there. I stayed there. Six months ago I moved across Columbia Pike. If I’m going to be nailed for crossing the street, I’ve got 23 years of living in the 47th which is more than one person…has lived, or equal to, his life. A lot more than some other people have…People who don’t want to vote for me for being a carpet-bagger, I’m sure they could find something else, find another reason. Click here to return to the main interview site. --ST Labels: 47th, campaign, election, house of delegates, primary, tobar
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Letter: Apt. Buildings Not Hospitable to Candidates
Interesting reading about issues campaigning in apartment buildings. [See HeraldTrib Today May 22, 2009 --ST] In the 1990s, I was precinct captain in Rosslyn and Wilson. At the time there used to be a lot more garden apartments, and I would enter (if I could) and drop literature for candidates.
Problem was, virtually every building had a sign banning soliciting or a locked front door. Often I did it anyway if I could get in. In the larger, often fancier buildings, however, delivering lit or going door to door would get you thrown out -- fast. If there was a doorman, forget it.
ACDC has struggled for years to develop a high-rise initiative (using the mail and folks who live in the buildings) and it has paid off, but the fact is apartment buildings aren't hospitable to candidates. And that's quite likely why candidates avoid them, even though you could quickly meet more people faster than going door to door in a single family neighborhood.
Best,
Jason Rylander
The writer is the Press and Public Relations Chair for the Arlington County Democratic Committee --ST
Labels: 47th, campaign, house of delegates
Friday, May 22, 2009
HeraldTrib Today, May 22, 2009
One distinct difference between owning a single-family home and a garden-style townhouse, I’ve found, is the number of times people knock on my door politicking for something.
I lost count of the number of times someone tried to get me to vote for Obama. And three of the five candidates for the House of Delegates race for the 47th have made their appearance, though I was only home for one of them (Alan Howze). Andres Tobar has not made it, as far as I know, and Adam Parkhomenko told me after the ACDC debate that he skipped my house because he knew I was Patrick Hope’s friend, and he did not want to take time talking with someone he was sure wouldn’t vote for him anyway.
When I lived in the Arlington Oaks townhouse, Josh Ruebner the Green Party candidate running for County Board at the time, was the only candidate in 10 years to show up at my door, as far as I recall. I wasn't home, so he left a flier.
All that got me thinking a month ago, so I started sending out emails to people I know living in apartments, and those people have had largely the same experience that I had—no one came calling.
In a recent interview, Miles Grant, who is one of the five running for the House of Delegates' 47th seat, said that he did not get any serious contact from Obamites in the run-up to last year’s primary though, as a member of Arlington Young Democrats, he was a likely primary voter!
Miles lives in Historic Ballston Park (near the Eastern Carry-Out), and swung by my house about a month ago.
Alexandra Morrow, of Arlington Oaks, wrote me an email about a month ago:
“I have not had anyone and personally am thankful I have not. After a long day, I really don't want to contend with people buzzing and trying to gain access to the units. They may avoid us because you do have to gain access not only to the units but then to the doors, and no one wants to be that one person who let's them in!
“I never had anyone knock on my door for the presidential election either, nor did I see anyone around the neighborhood. My guess is they know their time is better spent on communities where they don't have to work as hard just to get to the front door.”
It’s interesting to me, given that it shows off two of the concerns the candidates expressed to me: they don’t want to appear pushy or as though they are somehow invading privacy, and they don’t want to spend time just trying to get through the main door only to find hostile people at the apartment door.
People at the Buckingham Outreach Center, on the Gates of Ballston property, said they had not heard of candidates canvassing there. Writer, HeraldTrib columnist, and Chatham resident Vic Socotra said no one had knocked on his door, ever.
The only person in a complex who said they did get activity was Tom Lauria, in Hyde Park Condominium. They are a rather politically active bunch (I went to a meeting with Sen. Mary Margaret Whipple there a couple years back). The way the meetings were described, however, was that someone invited the candidate in to the community room, and people came from apartments to meet that person.
That fits more with what the candidates say they do. They tell me they find friends in the different places and ask those friends to set-up meet-and-greets of different sorts, breakfasts, happy hours, and such.
For instance, Pat Hope had a “Latinos for Hope” rally at the Buckingham Community Center.
Miles Grant said he gives fliers to supporters in apartment complexes and asks that they distribute them to a list of likely voters who also live at that place. He said he has a volunteer who coordinates that activity.
If that doesn’t work, he joked, “What we’re doing is renting fire engines with ladders that will go up to about the 10th floor and [we’re] just sticking our fliers to the outside of people’s windows.”
The group experience has a different feel than that of someone knocking on your door.
When Alan Howze stopped by, I told him that I write this blog and that I’m a friend of Pat Hope’s and have every intention of voting for him. Alan looked at me with a kind of curious smile and said, “Let’s get coffee.” It was a face that said, “I can change your mind.” I was happy for the opportunity.
He and I have had coffee; in fact, coffee with him made me think of asking the other candidates the same. I have met with four of the five candidates (Adam Parkhomenko’s campaign said they didn’t have time in his schedule). Transcripts of those taped interviews will be out next week.
Nick Benton, the Editor/Publisher of the Falls Church News Press, gave $200 to Adam Parkhomenko’s campaign at some point during the first three months of this year. Just letting you know.
Along those lines, Pat Hope asked me if I’d put a lawn sign in my yard, and, citing my role here at the HeraldTrib, I said no. Pat asked if Cathy, my wife, would be willing to do it, and I said he would have to ask here.
We have a lawn sign.
I’m a journalist, but I don’t see why my wife must give up her right to free speech. (I know this will rub some of you the wrong way, but at least I’m up front about these matters.)
The naturalist and TV persona, David Mizejewski, (featured in a story, below) told me that the eastern tent caterpillar is not invasive, nor is it harmful to the environment and backyard (it leaves behind a few holey leaves).
What I didn’t write was that he and I (we’re about the same age) remember the late 1970s in the northeast when the gypsy moths came in and defoliated entire forests. Since the gypsy moth is also a tent-builder, many people (I’ll include myself here) believe all tent caterpillars are bad. They’re not, and you can fairly easily tell them apart. Gypsy moth caterpillars have a series of blue and red spots along their bodies, whereas the eastern tent caterpillars have a golden squiggle, with blue stripes. Here’s a couple images to help:
I was sick. It has been some combination of head cold and allergies that has been laying me low for about two weeks. (That is part of why the Police Notes, below, are so delayed.)
Anyway, if someone was at the meeting and can give a nice emailed round-up, I'd sure appreciate it. I know American Service Center detailed their redevelopment plans, and apparently someone else was coming, but I do not have details, though I'd love them!
And remember that Rolling Thunder will be rolling and thundering down Arlington Blvd this weekend, with campers no doubt already filling the Assembly of God field. Look for pictures next week. (The police traffic alert is here.)
The Week’s Headlines…
As always, you can scroll down to see all the recent stories, or simply click the links below (if the link doesn't work, scroll down to find the story, and email to tell me what's busted: heraldtrib@gmail.com --Steve Thurston).
Today's Headlines:
Headlines from Earlier in the Week:
Labels: 47th, campaign, election, environment, house of delegates, politics
