Obama wins Virginia

Brian February 12th, 2008

The votes are in and looks like Sen. Obama has won the Virginia primary, as expected. I had predicted a 60% to 40% victory for Obama and it looks like I will be about correct.

Southwest Virginia - the 9th District - appears, however, to have went for Hillary. This was also not unexpected. I figured Hillary would be strong here.

It is also worth noting that Sen. Obama also won primaries in Maryland and D.C. today.

This past weekend I got to see Bill and Hillary Clinton and Obama during the JJ events in Richmond. The crowd was overwhelmingly for Obama, but Hillary also had a good speech and Bill’s event earlier in the day was fantastic.

Delegate Count

Brian January 21st, 2008

Rick Boucher endorses Barack Obama

Brian January 21st, 2008

Congressman Rick Boucher announced today that he is supporting Sen. Barack Obama for the Democratic nomination for president.

He said:

‘I represent a rural district of 27 counties and cities in southwestern Virginia. George Bush received 60 percent of the vote in my district in 2004,’ Boucher said in a statement. ‘I believe Senator Obama can carry it in 2008, and no other Democratic candidate can.’

I have to admit, I am still undecided. If I could pick between the “big three” right now, without a doubt, it would be John Edwards. However, more so than ever, it is looking like he is out of it. The hard part for me, though, is picking between the remaining big two - Hillary and Obama.

Any advice?

Creigh announces for Governor

Brian December 17th, 2007

Putting months of speculation to rest, Creigh Deeds is now seeking the Democratic nomination for Governor.

The hope among most folks, I think, was that either Creigh or Brian Moran, the other presumptive candidate for the nomination, would choose to run for Attorney General. Both are former prosecutors and would have been excellent candidates for that office.

The problem with that, of course, is that both would also make excellent candidates for governor, too. Both Creigh and Brian will have significant advantages: Creigh has already ran a statewide campaign and nearly won; and, Brian is from Northern Virginia.

It will be a difficult primary for a lot of folks, including me, as I really like both of them.

Here is Creigh’s announcement video:




Drug Dealers: Internet Style

Brian November 25th, 2007

For a lot of illegal drug-users, their dealer is no longer some guy in a long coat and dark glasses, sitting on a busy corner somewhere. Illegal prescription drugs are now just a click away for some Virginians.

However, Del. Bud Phillips, working with Commonwealth’s Attorney Mike Bush, is working on legislation to address this serious problem.

The Bristol Herald Courier reported on Del. Phillips and Mr. Bush’s efforts here.

The Bill will be appearing here for your review soon.

Obviously I am bias, but I think this is a very important issue being addressed and hope that the rest of the General Assembly will agree and support Del. Phillips’ bill.

$5.7 Million to Buchanan County

Brian October 5th, 2007

VCEDA announced yesterday that they have awarded a $5.7 million grant to Buchanan County’s IDA. The funds, says the article, will be used to continue the development in the Poplar Gap area, near the Dickenson County line.

The site is huge and has a lot of potential for Buchanan County’s future and, hopefully, some of that good fortune will seep across the county line.

Sykes, a call-center company, has already agreed to locate a new center there. In between undergrad and law school, I worked a few months at the Sykes call-center in Wise and found it to be a really good company to work for.

Time to withdraw from a few cases

Brian October 5th, 2007

Via Steve, it appears one attorney in the 27th Judicial Circuit may have upset Circuit Court Judge Joey Showalter.

“Showalter issued an order Sept. 13 barring Gerard Marks from practicing in the 27th Circuit ‘until further notice.’

The order gives no reason for Showalter’s decision.”

It seems like every county always has that one attorney who sends the last minute fax asking for continuances, always double-booked, or just always running late.

So far, I don’t think I have that reputation and hope I never get it.

On the Democratic Candidates for Governor

Brian September 23rd, 2007

Our old friend, Jeff Schapiro, takes aim and unloads this week on every potential Democratic candidate for Governor in 2009. He has identified the main problems with a few of them, but I think he is totally wrong on a few, too.

This would, however, be a good time to mention some recent and upcoming events in Dickenson County.

Our local campaigns are in full swing. Dickenson has five Supervisors and all of them are on the ballot this year. Four of the five incumbents are either not seeking re-election (1) or failed to get their respective party’s nomination (3). Thus, creating four open seats.

Of the five Constitutional offices, two are being vacated by retirements. The other three incumbents (two Democrats and one Republican) are seeking re-election.

There has been a lot of talk about a potential “Sweep” (i.e., all ten races) in Democratic circles. As always, it will come down to whether or not we can get our voters out in large margins.

That leads us back to the aforementioned events. We have already had several well-attended events. One in particular, our Annual Fish Fry, was last week and we had a record attendance, somewhere in the neighborhood of 300 people. Congressman Boucher, as always, joined us for this annual event and had his office to help us. Also attending were State Senator Phillip Puckett and Delegate Bud Phillips.

Our next big event(s) will be Saturday, September 29, 2007, in Clintwood. This will be a busy day in town, as the Ralph Stanley Museum Mountain Music Festival will also be taking place and filling the streets.

We are going to kick-off the day with a gravy & biscuit breakfast at 9:00 AM, hosted by Clintwood District Supervisor candidate, Donnie Rife. We are also very fortunate to have a special guest, Chairman of Virginia’s House Democratic Caucus, Brian Moran, joining us for breakfast.

After folks enjoy some of the great Mountain Music around town, we are inviting everyone back down for a delicious lunch at 3:00 PM, hosted by Circuit Court Clerk candidate, Richard Edwards.

Both the breakfast at 9:00 AM, and the lunch at 3:00 PM, are free events and will be held at the Dickenson County Democratic Headquarters building, which is located directly across the street from the Courthouse.

Did Dave Nutter know what he was voting for?

Brian August 15th, 2007

That is the question that 7th District voters have been asking themselves lately.

Just after the new civil remedial fees went into effect, a local news station asked Republican Del. Dave Nutter about the new fees and who they applied to. Because of his blind partisanship, voting however his party bosses tell him to, and being so far out of touch with the citizens of the 7th District, he had no clue what he was supporting.




The Democratic challenger, Peggy Frank, offers the 7th District a clear alternative to Dave Nutter, and will do what is best for the district instead of what is best for a political party.

Peggy Frank, via press release, stated:

The abusive driver fees, which my opponent supported in last session’s transportation bill, are yet another example of how out of touch the House of Delegates is with the people of the 7 th District. The fees my opponent approved grant immunity to out of state drivers for dangerous driving on Virginia ’s roadways while taxing only Virginians. These fees unfairly penalize Virginia drivers and are neither a reliable nor sustainable source of revenue for our transportation needs.

If you live in or near the 7th District, now is your chance to send someone to Richmond that will put your interests first. Contact Peggy Frank’s campaign to find out you can help.

AT&T v. Nascar

Brian August 13th, 2007

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit have now weighed in on which company can have its logos on Virginia native, Jeff Burton’s car.

For the last few years, the car driven by Burton has been bright orange and sponsored by Cingular. When Sprint, then Nextel, took over as Nascar’s sponsor, it obviously sought and obtained language in its contract which would prohibit other wireless companies from sponsoring cars. The wireless companies already in Nascar at that time (e.g., Cingular, Alltel), however, were grandfathered in and allowed to continue.

Once AT&T purchased Cingular, it attempted to change the branding on Burton’s car to AT&T. Nascar and Sprint obviously refused to allow AT&T to do so. AT&T then requested and received an injunction allowing it to change the logos on Burton’s car to the familiar AT&T ones. I have never checked, but I have speculated that the injunction only allowed the logos to be changed, since they kept the car orange.

Today, the Court of Appeals, held that AT&T lacked standing and dismissed the injunction.

It will be interesting to see what Burton’s car will look like at the next race.

Warner to campaign for Susie Garner (5th Dist.)

Brian August 13th, 2007

Via Shawn, I see that Gov. Mark Warner will be joining Susie Garner (5th Dist.) on the campaign trail later this month.

Susie is a great candidate from Galax, who is challenging Republican Bill Carrico. Carrico last ran for Congress in 2006, against Rick Boucher. Congressman Boucher won by a large margin. Susie will have a little tougher race, but she can also win if the folks in the 5th District will work hard to help her, which I expect they will.

Please join Susie and Gov. Warner on Wednesday, August 22, 2007, at 5:30 PM, at the Marion Court House.

Karl Rove to resign

Brian August 13th, 2007

The White House and Rove have announced that he will be resigning at the end of August.

“I just think it’s time,” Rove told the Wall Street Journal. “There’s always something that can keep you here, and as much as I’d like to be here, I’ve got to do this for the sake of my family.”

I believe this will likely help Bush’s approval ratings. Too many stories lately have been about Rove, and not about Bush. Almost all of those articles - maybe all of them - have been negative.

Personally, I say ’so long, Karl’ and good riddance. His departure should be a good thing for all of us.

Back from the Cruise

Brian August 6th, 2007

I think I neglected to mention we were going on a cruise, so being back from it is probably not that important. Since I decided to share a few photos, though, mentioning that we were in Mexico last week seems relevant.

Jayne and I joined several of our friends on a whirlwind vacation which included a cruise aboard the Enchantment of the Seas, with visits to Fort Lauderdale, Florida; Key West, Florida; and, Cozumel, Mexico. The latter, obviously, being the most interesting. With the exception of my quick trip to Canada in 2005, I have not traveled out of the United States. Going to Mexico, however, was certainly a great experience. We really enjoyed the entire trip.

We took a lot of photographs, but here are a few that I pulled out of our pile.

Latest on the civil remedial fees

Brian August 3rd, 2007

In two jurisdictions now, General District Courts have held that the civil remedial fees are unconstitutional. Defense attorneys from all across the state are anxious to also challenge the fees.

The two successful challengers so far have been in the Richmond area (Henrico County and City of Richmond). I, unfortunately, do not know anything about the two judges involved in those cases. It would be interesting to know when they were first appointed and if they have had any political leanings. I would bet our friend Ken, formerly of the Richmond area and now over in Wise, could tell us about these two judges.

What this means politically is anyone’s guess. Ben is doing a good job of keeping score and trying to predict who it hurts, helps, etc. Here is his latest post on the issue.

More of John Edwards in Wise

Brian August 2nd, 2007

Here is a YouTube video of John Edwards in Wise.




The fellow in the video, James Lowe, has a remarkable story that is unfortunately all too common.

Time for Change in Fairfax

Brian July 22nd, 2007

When Fairfax voters head to the polls in November, they will have an opportunity to make Fairfax a better place to live.




Go Chap!

John Hager is new Chairman

Brian July 22nd, 2007

The Republican Party of Virginia met yesterday and elected former lieutenant governor John Hager as its new chairman. Outgoing chairman of the RPV, Ed Gillespie, left after only serving about six months.

Chairman Hager inherits a party that is deeply divided on many issues. Will he be the guy that can pull it back together in time to save a loss of the majority in the Senate? Is he the guy that can stop the seemingly unstoppable rise of the Democratic Party?

Hopefully not. :)

But, nevertheless, congratulations to Chairman Hager.

John Edwards in Prestonsburg, KY

Brian July 19th, 2007

Here is a YouTube video of John Edwards speaking in nearby Prestonsburg, Kentucky.


It looks like his Road to One America tour was very successful.

I used to travel through Prestonsburg on my way to and from law school. My favorite place to stop was a gas station that sold Mean Gene’s Burgers.

Just Busy

Brian July 19th, 2007

Since I have been able to throw up a few posts here lately, folks have been asking the obvious question, which is “where have you been?”

I guess I should have posted some sort of explanation, but the fact that it never got posted is actually the answer to the initial question: I was just too busy. Heck, I have even slacked off on reading blogs, much less having time to post anything myself.

The good news (or bad depending on your perspective of this blog), though, is that I have recently changed jobs and will hopefully have some more time to keep it updated.

My new job is working as an Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney in Russell County. The Commonwealth’s Attorney in Russell is Mike Bush.

Although I have only been “on the job” for a few weeks, I think it is going to be great. There is just no substitute for this type of legal experience. And if I am going to be learning more about criminal law, I think I would rather be on this side of the courtroom.

So anyway, I have more time now than I did and I am going to dabble back into some blogging. I find blogging is usually very enjoyable and I did miss getting to regularly update this site.

Presidential Candidates

Brian July 18th, 2007

Although I have remained undecided on who to support for the nomination, John Edwards scored some big points in my book today. Any national candidate that takes the time to stop in Southwest Virginia deserves our respect.

All too often we are quick to criticize statewide candidates - from both parties - for not giving Southwest Virginia enough attention. Today, however, a front-runner for the Democratic nomination for President was here. That is a great honor for our region.

I am still going to remain undecided, but I am certainly leaning towards Edwards now more than ever. The big reason I am still undecided on Presidential candidates is it is just too dang early. The elections coming up this November, in 2007, are much more important to Virginians.

If Democrats are not successful in 2007, and gain either a majority in the House or Senate, or close to it, the resurgence of the Democratic Party in Virginia will have stalled. We have been enjoying great success the last few years and cannot afford to have that progress slowed.

The framework to make significant gains has been laid. We have some great candidates running in some very competitive districts across the Commonwealth. Folks like Creigh Deeds and Brian Moran have been doing a great job recruiting and assisting our candidates. I suspect, also, that they will continue working hard for these candidates in 2007, because they know that success in 2009 for either of them is largely dependent on what happens this November.

I am very pleased John Edwards visited Southwest Virginia and hope he and the other candidates will also swing through. I suspect they will agree with us that there is no greater place in the country than Southwest Virginia.

- Next »