Sen. Leahy Visits Glebe Elementary
Third graders from Glebe Elementary School in Arlington welcomed a special guest today: Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.).
Students at the school had written letters to the Vermont senator “about conservation and what the students are doing here at Glebe to help in conservation efforts,” according to school principal Jamie Borg. Leahy, the grandfather of a Glebe student, “decided to respond to their letters in person.”
Leahy personally delivered letters to each third grade student, then engaged them in a conversation about the branches of government — a topic they had been studying.
“Senator Leahy was able to talk to the students about it in depth and explain his role in government,” Borg said.
He also told students some personal stories, like celebrating his birthday with President Obama in Vermont and doing voiceover work for Batman: The Animated Series.
“The children were very impressed!” said Borg.
Leahy’s wife, Marcelle, joined him for the classroom visit this morning. Leahy, 73, was re-elected in 2010 to a seventh term in the U.S. Senate.
Courtesy photos
Video: Moran Speaks Out Against Federal Pay Freeze Bill
Today the House of Representatives passed a bill (261-154) that would freeze the pay of federal workers for a third straight year.
Rep. Jim Moran (D-Va.) spoke out against the bill, comparing it to Irish satirist Jonathan Swift’s “A Modest Proposal.”
“Today, the House majority, unfortunately without Mr. Swift’s humor or irony, offers its own Modest Proposal,” Moran said. “To ensure our elderly are cared for, let’s cut the pay of those responsible for their health. To make sure our food and drugs are safe, let’s diminish the benefits of those whose job it is to screen for safety and unintended effects. To find a cure for cancer, let’s punish the researcher who toils daily to save millions of Americans from the disease. To care for our veterans, who were sent by this body to fight in foreign lands, let’s make their caretakers find a second job.”
The proposal, H.R. 273, is not expected to be taken up by the Senate, and thus not expected to become law. Federal workers are currently slated to receive a 0.5 percent pay raise after March 27, thanks to an executive order issued by President Obama in December.
H-B Woodlawn Students Start Gun Control Petition
Two H-B Woodlawn students have created a petition calling on Congress to pass stronger gun control laws in the wake of the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre in Connecticut.
The online petition has gathered 133 signatures already and resulted in 336 letters and emails being sent to Congress. Seventh graders Nicole and Daniel created the children-driven petition with the hopes that it will garner student support beyond Arlington.
“We are representing the children of the United States who do not want to wake up every morning with a thought that someone close to us, or even ourselves, might die that day,” they said in the petition. “We do not want to see our friends or loved ones die in schools or movie theaters or malls any more.”
“Please help us stop the killings and the murders and the massacres by enacting legislation that will ban assault weapons and require a special license, a strict application process with a background investigation and a mental check for every person wanting to acquire a gun,” the petition said.
This morning, the National Rifle Association held a press conference in which the organization blamed the media, the entertainment industry and video games for a culture of violence, and called for armed security guards in every American school.
“The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun,” said NRA CEO Wayne LaPierre. ”If we truly cherish our kids more than our money… we must give them the greatest protection possible. And that protection is only available with properly-armed good guys.”
Nicole and Daniel’s father, Arlington resident Michael Getter, said that arming more citizens is not the answer.
“The time has come to take meaningful steps in preventing mass executions that have become practically a commonplace in our county,” Getter said. “There seems to be very little evidence that ease of access and proliferation of dangerous weaponry among US population is making this county any safer for its citizens.”
Photo via Arlington Public Schools
Biden Visits Metro 29 Diner
Vice President Joe Biden hosted a lunch at Arlington’s Metro 29 Diner (4711 Lee Hwy) this afternoon, to discuss the country’s trek toward the fiscal cliff.
Biden arrived at the restaurant around 1:15 p.m. to meet with seven people who say their finances would take a hit if the country goes over the fiscal cliff.
One of the attendees, Anne Marie Munos, lives in Falls Church. She was chosen based on her online response to the White House request for citizens to discuss why Congress should extend middle class tax cuts.
“I can’t see how we can afford to pay more taxes,” wrote Munos. “We certainly won’t be able to boost the economy because our buying power will suffer even more than it already has.”
Biden said it would take “15 minutes” for a bill to get finished if Congress agreed to let taxes on the wealthy increase.
“This is no time to add any additional burden for middle class people,” said Biden. “The downside of going down this cliff… is real.”
The lunch visit was not announced in advance, and other customers were not prevented from using the restaurant during the visit. Biden and his guests were taken to a separate section of the restaurant and guarded by security. Patrons were allowed to enter the restaurant after going through a security check, and a few dozen gathered around to listen to the Vice President speak.
After finishing lunch with his guests and spending some time taking photos with other customers, Biden left Metro 29 Diner around 3:00 p.m.
Moran Proposes Bill to Reduce Voting Wait Times
Rep. Jim Moran (D) says lines to vote in last month’s election were “prohibitively long,” and is proposing legislation designed to reduce wait times at the polls.
Moran introduced a bill called the Voting Line Reduction and Online Registration Act yesterday (Tuesday). The bill comes a month after Arlington set a new voter turnout record, while residents reported waiting in 3+ hour lines to vote.
“Voters in many states, including Virginia, faced waits of up to four hours to vote, due in large part to insufficient or faulty voting equipment,” the congressman’s office said in a press release. “Moran’s bill addresses these problems by directing the Election Assistance Commission to set a minimum number of voting systems, poll workers, and other election resources at each voting site for all Federal elections.”
The 51-page bill also “establishes a system where individuals can both register and update their voting information” online, and mandates at least a week of early voting. Virginia currently allows in-person absentee voting, but voters must have a valid reason to be voting early.
Lawmakers: Federal Workers Have Already Taken Big Cuts
Federal government employees have made a substantial contribution to federal debt reduction efforts already, say local lawmakers who are trying to ensure that federal workers don’t take a big hit in any upcoming debt reduction package.
The lawmakers are cautioning President Barack Obama and leaders in the House of Representatives to “carefully consider the implications that any proposed agreement would have on these Americans so that it reflects the substantial budget savings that the Federal workforce has contributed thus far.”
The lawmakers — Democratic Reps. Jim Moran (Va.), Steny Hoyer (Md.), Chris Van Hollen (Md.), Gerry Connolly (Va.), Donna Edwards (Md.) and John Sarbanes (Md.), plus Republican Reps. Frank Wolf (Va.) and Robert Wittman (Va.) — sent a letter to Obama this week highlighting $103 billion in cuts taken by federal employees in the form of pay freezes, delayed raises and increased benefit contributions.
“The letter comes as Congress and the White House work toward a solution to avoid sequestration cuts mandated to go into effect on January 2, 2013,” Moran’s office noted in a press release.
The text of the letter, which was also sent to House Speaker John Boehner and Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, after the jump.
Photo courtesy Andrew Clegg
Jason Howell: Why You Should Vote For Me
Last month we asked the four candidates for the U.S. House of Representatives, Eighth District of Virginia, to write a sub-750 word essay describing why the county’s residents should vote for them on Election Day (Nov. 6).
Here is the unedited response from Jason Howell (I):
We can do better.
Our politics is broken, because our politicians don’t represent citizens. That is the problem. I am running for Congress as an Independent to represent people rather than parties, ideas rather than ideology. I have lived in this area for 25 years and have spent the last 20 years, beginning in college, working in mostly accounting and finance. I’m running to do something that neither party seems to want to do: take responsibility for the big problems we face as a country (the economy, the debt, immigration, traffic in our area and certainly taxes). It is after all, we the people. We are those people.
Over the course of this campaign, my wife and I and a small group of about 40 volunteers have been working for you. My full-time career began as a bank teller where I learned as an 18 year old how important social security and interest rates checks were to our senior citizens. My parents were immigrants so to save on student loans I worked my way through Northern Virginia Community College and George Mason University earning an accounting degree. In accounting I learned that you can’t fake math and budgets need to balance. Before starting my own firm, my last regular job was as a recruiter at an accounting and finance staffing firm. I was a commission only recruiter for 3 years and my best days were when I got someone a job. This is what we need now. Someone who gets why fiscal policy is important to seniors, knows how important balancing the budget is and has literally found people jobs.
Like his legislative colleagues who share in the all-time low approval rating, Jim Moran has T.R.I.E.D. – Traffic, Regulation, Immigration, Economy and Debt – working on critical issues but unfortunately failed. Passionate partisanship has painted many politicians into a political corner and Mr. Moran, a member of the minority in the U.S. House, is no exception. We can do better.
Traffic, regulation, immigration, the economy and debt are issues I will tackle during my first term.
Traffic
We are number one in traffic. Despite the millions of dollars earmarked and spent, we still hold the dubious distinction of being number one. I will champion telecommuting policy so that Senior Executive Service level employees know that it is a priority. For more about my ideas on telecommuting policy, click here.
Regulation
To slow relationship bank consolidations and the influence of the now “too bigger to fail,” I will work with other legislators to create criteria for smaller banks that allow exemptions from the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act. Small, relationship banks did not create the crisis and have been unequally burdened. For more details regarding my stance financial regulation click here.
Immigration
Jim Moran voted for the last major piece of federal immigration legislation called the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Reconciliation Act of 1996 (IIRIRA). IIRIRA removed judge’s discretion to adjudicate crimes worthy of deportation. This is what led to the record 396,906 “removals” of 2011. I support the DREAM Act, the Startup Act 2.0 and changing policy to incent the US Citizen and Immigration Services (USCIS) to succeed. For more of my ideas regarding immigration click here.
Economy
In Congress, I will be a good steward of our responsibility to manage fiscal policy. To stimulate our economy I will leverage my finance background to help lead in three areas: taxes, housing and trade. For details about my plan to work on economy click here.
Debt
With nearly $16 trillion in short term debt and $60 trillion in long term debt obligations, we cannot just cut our way to balancing our budget and repaying our debt. I support taking some actions in the short term to buffer our economy – like continued tax relief in 2013 – that we may not take in the long term to reduce our debt. For long term debt reduction, I will work with the Government Accountability Office’s 2012 report to detail an organized plan for reducing the 81 areas of government program overlap. For the GAO’s 2012 report details click here.
This is your opportunity to vote for someone in Congress rather than just against Jim Moran. You can carve your initials into the wall of history by replacing an incumbent with an Independent. You’ll be glad that you did. Vote for Jason J. Howell (VoteJasonHowell.com). We can do better, we must do better and if you vote for me on November 6, we will do better.
Janet Murphy: Why You Should Vote For Me
Last month we asked the four candidates for the U.S. House of Representatives, Eighth District of Virginia, to write a sub-750 word essay describing why the county’s residents should vote for them on Election Day (Nov. 6).
Here is the unedited response from Janet Murphy (IG):
We need the Green New Deal jobs! We need sustainable green jobs. Rail Jobs! Wind Jobs! Solar Jobs! With the Green New Deal we will create 25 million new American green jobs.
We need to balance the budget and pay off the federal debt. Install an auditable accounting system at the pentagon. Bring the troops and tax dollars home. Cut wasteful military spending of precious taxpayer dollars. These are positive, fiscally responsible Green Party solutions.
We need to invest in green infrastructure. Build rail. Every dollar invested in rail grows business, increases revenue. Promote eco-business in solar and wind for the green economy. Every dollar spent on rail infrastructure creates $28 more dollars of economic benefit.
We need the Potomac Yard Metro rail stop. We need the Cameron Station Virginia Rail Stop. Build the Columbia Pike Rail, and Rail from Alexandria to Arlington. We need rail along I-66. We need a new rail tunnel under the Potomac River. Where rail goes, business and the economy grow. Rail increases the value of our homes, and communities.
Rail saves lives. 33,000 Americans are killed every year on our roads. 330,000 Americans are injured every year on highways. Every week another local teenager dies in traffic wrecks. Rail is the life saving positive solution.
Please join the Independent Green Party of Virginia www.VoteJoinRun.US! Be an Independent Green Party candidate in 2013 for state legislature, House of Delegates, or local office. Advocate on the ballot for positive green solutions. Offer Green constructive, productive solutions. We need “More Candidates, Less Apathy”!
This year, my party, the Independent Green Party of Virginia, put the most congressional candidates on the ballot for a single party in Virginia, since 1916! That’s what hard work and positive green action can do! Outside the two larger parties running for Congress are Gail for Rail Parker District 1; Kevin Chisholm District 10, Dr. Ken Hildebrand District 5; Peter Marchetti District 11, Janet Murphy District 8; and Green Party Candidate for President Jill Stein.
We need a full slate of 100 Independent Green Party candidates for House of Delegates in 2013. We need you to be one of them. Together, let’s build the growing Green Economy of tomorrow now!
Like the Redskins have done at their stadium, we need to put solar on the roofs of all our schools, public and private buildings. The time for solar is now! The U.S. Air Force Academy has solar panels. Nellis Air Force base saves $81,000 per month with a huge solar farm. We could put solar panels on every home. Hickam in Hawaii will have solar. Renewable energy will help us keep our air and water clean.
This is what I believe. As an environmentalist I am a strong advocate for humane treatment of animals both wild and domesticated, and I pursue strategies for responsible stewardship of our gifts and resources.
We need rail jobs, solar jobs and wind jobs energy jobs to cut American dependence on fossil fuels. The Green New Deal makes America safer and more secure, while providing new jobs and expanding the economy in a healthy community and country.
I bring wide experience in business and in the community. My ten years of practice in real estate provided me with an understanding of the essential needs of our community for housing that leads to positive solutions. Ban the death penalty, end the drug war.
We must have Medicare for all. We must fight to protect, preserve, and grow Social Security.
To produce revenue, I agree with many economists on the need to enact a transaction tax on Wall Street, and protect that revenue to balance the budget and pay off the federal debt.
We could cut U.S. military spending by 90% and still be spending more than any other nation on earth!
Let’s change the formula for federal funds for transportation to fairly support rail. High Speed Rail Interstate and Light Rail build value into our communities businesses and homes. Rail also adds to a clean environment and long term security and growth.
WE NEED MORE TRAINS (LESS TRAFFIC) AND RENEWABLE ENERGY.
Patrick Murray: Why You Should Vote For Me
Last month we asked the four candidates for the U.S. House of Representatives, Eighth District of Virginia, to write a sub-750 word essay describing why the county’s residents should vote for them on Election Day (Nov. 6).
Here is the unedited response from Patrick Murray (R):
Although Jim Moran can point to a number of accomplishments in his thirty plus years as an elected official in Northern VA, his tenure has also been haunted with repeated instances of divisive language and questionable ethics, largely self inflicted. Despite the latter, Jim’s 8th District seat has always been considered “safe,” owing to the majority of Democrats who live here. I get that, probably better than most having run twice now for this seat.
The favorite question I get from members of the media is “Why are you doing this?” The answer is that I want to put people over partisanship and forge bipartisan solutions so that we can move this country forward.
I don’t seek big government or small government; I seek good government. I have taken no oaths or pledges other than the one I took to support and defend the Constitution when I joined the Army in 1985.
I want to balance our budget, but not on the backs of government employees and veterans. I do not support amnesty for illegal immigrants, but I do believe we need a solution toward residency their children who find themselves here through no fault of their own. I am a pro-Life individual who also finds the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) to be unconstitutional.
I’ve met President Obama and find him to be a good man who wants the best for America but whose policies I differ with. If he is reelected I will be the first to volunteer to work with him to find solutions that move America forward. I’m not interested in playing politics; I’m interested in solving problems.
Jim Moran has done some good things for our District, but as can happen when someone’s tenure extends too long, his actions attest to the fact that his head and his heart are no longer in his work. He is missing votes at double the rate of all other Members of Congress despite representing the District next door to Washington, DC. He has been completely absent on the critical issue of Sequestration even though our District will be among the hardest hit in the entire nation. Given this issue and many others, he has not even bothered to hold a town hall meeting for his constituents in almost 600 days.
Now Jim Moran is embroiled in a highly disturbing voter fraud scandal, with two (as of now) separate criminal investigations probing his campaign. Enough is enough. Jim has had his turn, but it is time to move on. I intend to put people over partisanship; to do that, I need your vote on November 6th.
Rep. Jim Moran: Why You Should Vote For Me
Last month we asked the four candidates for the U.S. House of Representatives, Eighth District of Virginia, to write a sub-750 word essay describing why the county’s residents should vote for them on Election Day (Nov. 6).
Here is the unedited response from Rep. Jim Moran (D):
Our country and our region are facing some of the biggest challenges in our lifetime. Gridlock in Congress, driven by Tea Party fueled obstructionism, threatens our economic future. While we currently continue to enjoy a strong economy in Northern Virginia, with unemployment rates at half the national average, a failure by Congress to prevent draconian cuts through the sequestration process could be devastating. Bloomberg News recently reported that sequestration would result in a loss of $10.8 billion just in federal information technology contracts in Virginia’s 8th District. Our congressional district would be harder hit than any other in the country.
I voted against the legislation which created sequestration. I also opposed the Iraq War and the Bush tax cuts, which were unpaid for and led to the painful budget situation we are currently in. To avoid this looming threat, I’ve been working with colleagues on both sides of the aisle to reach a bipartisan resolution. The No Labels organization (www.nolabels.org), a movement of Democrats, Republicans and independents dedicated to the politics of problem-solving, recently commended me, giving me their seal of approval for my efforts. Make no mistake, I am a progressive Democrat. But I understand that in order to overcome the crisis we face, it’s going to be necessary to work with Republicans to achieve compromise.
Facts are facts. We currently spend more than we can afford (roughly 25 percent of GDP) and bring in less revenue (roughly 14 percent of GDP) than at any time in modern history. Congress and the President have to find a way to meet in the middle on these figures, doing it in a way that won’t harm our economic recovery. I am committed to reaching that compromise, which will require both parties to put the public interest above partisan politics.
As your Congressman, I spend every waking hour thinking about how to keep our region one of the best places to live and work in the country. I’ve secured billions in federal funding to strengthen our research and technology industries, modernize our infrastructure, and provide many of our local non-profits with the resources needed to care for the most vulnerable in our community. I’ve worked hard to make the Rosslyn to Ballston Metro corridor the apex of information technology and graduate school research in the country. By co-locating the graduate schools of Virginia Tech, George Mason and Marymount with our defense, science and technology activities at Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Office of Naval Research (ONR), we have a foundation that will continue to attract the best and brightest members of the “creative class” from around the world. I have also helped fund countless other projects to make housing more affordable, bus and rail transit more accessible, and regional bike trails more enjoyable.
Northern Virginians expect their representatives to reflect their values. I’ve consistently received the highest scores from the League of Conservation Voters, the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the U.S. Humane Society, Planned Parenthood, as well as many other environmental, arts, housing, and human service organizations.
As a senior Member of the exclusive Appropriations Committee, I’ve led the fight to defeat conservative attempts to undermine the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts, the Endangered Species Act and other landmark environmental laws. The Interior and Environment Appropriations Subcommittee is ground zero for this battle. As the subcommittee’s top Democrat, I, along with Congressmen Ed Markey and Henry Waxman, serve as our party’s principal legislators on environmental issues.
Northern Virginia is home to the highest concentration of federal workers in the country. Despite constant attacks on their work and their mission, federal employees play an essential role in America’s economy and society. I recently authored several major reforms to our civil service, including providing employees monetary compensation for unused sick leave, fixing outdated rules for CSRS employees interested in performing part time work, and allowing FERS employees to combine their past service with new service for annuity credit calculations.
I feel strongly about the need to protect animals from abusive and inhumane treatment. Given the major problems facing our nation, some consider this a low priority. I disagree. As Chairman of the Animal Protection Caucus, I advocate for all legislation consistent with making this a more caring and compassionate world for all living things. Whether enacting laws to prevent the sale of dog and cat fur, banning the barbaric practice of horse slaughter, or pressing for more humane treatment of circus elephants, lions and tigers, we have sensitized Congress to issues that would otherwise be ignored. It speaks to our humanity, as a nation which believes in fairness and compassion, that all our laws are consistent with our values.
On Tuesday, November 6th, I ask for your vote. I’ve dedicated my adult life to Northern Virginia. And I remain dedicated to protecting our community from the kind of unwise and unnecessary funding reductions that would come from sequestration, and most importantly to use all the resources within my power to promote peace, justice and environmental sustainability.
Thank you for your consideration. I look forward to continuing to represent you over the next two years.
Candidates Make Final Push Before Election
(Updated at 6:50 p.m.) The local candidates for Congress and Arlington County Board are making their final pushes to woo voters in the six days left until Election Day (Nov. 6). The common theme: hitting the streets this weekend.
“A lot of people wait until the last week to tune in to make their decision. People in Arlington have busy lives and we want to give them an opportunity to check in if they haven’t checked in yet,” said Matt Wavro, Republican candidate for Arlington County Board. “We’re making a last minute push to get the message out as far as we can. We will be at Metro stations handing out literature and continue talking with voters in every form we can get to to make sure the message gets out. It’s a sprint to the finish line.”
One of Wavro’s opponents, Green Party candidate Audrey Clement, agreed that last minute campaigning could sway voters.
“I think there are a lot of disinterested voters out there who ordinarily wouldn’t vote but will this year, because the race between Obama and Romney is so close,” she said. “I’m counting on these voters to split their ticket and will be canvassing the county through the weekend.”
Libby Garvey, the Democratic candidate for County Board, continues to encourage voters to take advantage of early voting.
“We’re especially emphasizing in-person absentee voting this year — you never know if there will be a work crisis or family emergency on election day!” said Garvey.
Jason Howell, Independent candidate for Congress, said he and some volunteers will get out into the community throughout the weekend to meet voters.
“We are excited about our campaign heading into election day,” said Howell. “We have worked hard all year, campaigned the right way and we’re not done yet.”
Janet Murphy, Green Party candidate for Congress, expressed disappointment over the cancellation of her final planned campaign event yesterday (Tuesday) due to Superstorm Sandy.
Rep. Jim Moran (D) is confident in his ability to win re-election and is spending his final days assisting other Democrats.
“Our campaign is running strong down the final stretch. We feel very comfortable with our race, but it’s going down to the wire for the President and Governor Kaine. Our focus is on helping to again, turn Virginia blue,” said a spokesperson for the Moran campaign.
Rep. Moran has made efforts in recent days to move beyond a controversy involving his son. A video surfaced last week showing what appears to be Patrick Moran discussing how to cast fraudulent ballots; the video prompted Patrick Moran’s resignation and an investigation by the Arlington County Police Department. The Virginia State Board of Elections has since voted to involve Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli.
Patrick Murray, Republican candidate for Congress, believes Moran’s handling of the controversy is pertinent to the election.
“He [Moran] has missed votes at double the rate of all other members of Congress despite having the District nearest to Washington, D.C.,” said Murray. “He has been AWOL on sequestration solutions, and he has not even held a town hall meeting in almost 600 days. Now in the wake of this massive voter fraud scandal where there are two separate criminal investigations into his campaign, Moran has vanished.”
(A Moran spokesperson responds: “Rep. Moran has over a 97% voting record in the current Congress and held 8 open community forums this year.”)
Howell prefers to keep the focus off of the video controversy and instead on who is a more desirable candidate.
“The Patrick Moran I’ve met on the campaign trail is a good guy and as his father said, will learn from his mistakes. We all do,” said Howell. “What I expect your readers to do is evaluate me against a future with Jim Moran and decide whether in 2013, we can do better.”
Moran Asks McDonnell to ‘Prod’ GOP on Sequestration
Three Democratic members of Congress from northern Virginia, including Rep. Jim Moran, have sent a letter to Gov. Bob McDonnell (R) in support of avoiding the “economic disaster” of sequestration through a “balanced approach to deficit reduction.”
The letter asks McDonnell to “prod” Republicans in Congress to support a deficit reduction package that closes tax loopholes, eliminates “unneeded subsidies,” and avoids deep cuts to social safety net programs.
Sequestration could cost Virginia 207,000 jobs and $20.9 billion in lost economic activity, according to one economist.
From a press release:
Congressmen Jim Moran (VA-08), Gerry Connolly (VA-11), and Bobby Scott (VA-03) wrote to Governor Bob McDonnell today detailing the impact sequestration cuts would have on Virginia families and urging Gov. McDonnell to use his leadership position in the national Republican Party to prod House Speaker John Boehner and Majority Leader Eric Cantor “to begin discussions on a balanced deficit reduction package that can garner bipartisan support” and avoid an economic disaster for the Commonwealth.
The Virginia lawmakers were responding to McDonnell’s October 9 letter urging President Obama and the Virginia Congressional delegation to support a House Republican “cuts-only” plan that would shift all defense cuts to safety-net domestic programs. “We were puzzled by your recent letter to the President and congressional delegation urging support for the cuts-only approach,” the three Democratic lawmakers wrote. “Your concerns about the impact on Virginia of a sequester to defense spending, which we share, applies almost equally to nondefense discretionary spending, to which your letter is silent.”
The lawmakers questioned Governor McDonnell’s support of the “Sequester Replacement Reconciliation Act” (H.R. 5652) passed by the House on May 10 on a party line vote. The legislation would prevent the sequestration cuts to defense programs by cutting an additional $300 billion over the next 10 years from safety net programs like Medicare, SNAP (food stamps), and non-profit health clinics providing preventive services. The bill also requires all current and future federal workers to pay an additional 5 percent of their salary toward their federal pensions. “Contrary to its title, this bill does not avert sequestration, instead shifting cuts to safety-net domestic programs in the early years and leaving the door open to across-the-board cuts in later years.”
Along with the defense cuts and their impact on Virginia’s federal contracting sector, sequestration could trigger massive layoffs in the federal workforce, and would result in fewer air traffic controllers, border guards, food inspectors, and cuts to public safety and nearly every other government function. The House Republican bill advanced by McDonnell would only make those cuts more severe since it contains no balance of new revenue.
Ironically, in 2011, Governor McDonnell wrote the Virginia delegation calling for a bipartisan solution with all options, including revenue, on the table. The cuts-only approach advocated by Governor McDonnell in his October letter departs from his previous bipartisan approach. “Last year…we applauded your initiative. We hope you will join us in calling on Speaker Boehner and Majority Leader Cantor to begin discussions on a balanced deficit reduction package that can garner bipartisan support. We stand ready to work with you to achieve a balanced solution that delivers on the tradition of our Commonwealth,” Connolly, Moran, and Scott wrote.
Sequestration, which mandates $1.2 trillion in deficit reduction, came about after House Republicans, for the first time in history, refused to support the President’s request for a clean debt limit bill and instead demanded massive cuts. A commission formed in the aftermath failed to reach agreement on the savings when Republicans refused to consider closing tax loopholes, ending unneeded subsidies or any other revenue measures, and walked away from the table.
Unless Congress is able to find these savings, on January 2nd, defense spending immediately will be cut by about 10 percent, while non-defense discretionary spending will be cut by roughly 8 percent, and payments to Medicare providers will be cut by two percent – a total reduction in spending of $110 billion for fiscal year 2013.
Dr. Stephen Fuller of George Mason University predicted sequestration cuts could cost Virginia 207,000 jobs and put a $20.9 billion hole in Virginia’s economy.
Connolly, Moran, Scott, and other Democrats in Congress have repeatedly urged the House Republican leadership to cancel the 5-week August recess and the current 7-week recess to bring Congress back to Washington to deal with sequestration and other pressing fiscal matters that expire at the end of the calendar year.
October 18 Connolly, Moran, Scott Letter to Gov. McDonnell – http://connolly.house.gov/uploads/McDonnell%20sequester%20response%20Connolly%20-%20Moran%20-%20Scott%2010-18-12.pdf
October 10 Letter from McDonnell to President Obama and Virginia delegation – http://connolly.house.gov/uploads/McDonnell%20sequester%20letter%20to%20POTUS%2010-10-12.pdf
McDonnell Letter of July 2011 from McDonnell to President Obama and Virginia delegation – http://connolly.house.gov/uploads/McDonnell%20to%20President%20on%20debt%20ceiling%2007-20-11.pdf
Bush Advisor Praises Moran, Former Dem Congressman Fundraises for Murray
(Updated at 5:20 p.m.) In a bout of bizarro bipartisanship, a former top advisor to President George W. Bush has offered praise for Rep. Jim Moran (D), and a former Democratic congressman is headlining a fundraiser for Moran’s Republican challenger, Patrick Murray.
Today the group No Labels, a “grassroots movement of Democrats, Republicans and independents dedicated to the politics of problem solving,” announced that Moran has earned its “official Problem-Solvers Seal of Approval.” No Labels co-founder and former Bush advisor Mark McKinnon said Moran “emphasize[s] working together and solving problems, not scoring political points.”
“Throughout his career in Congress, Moran has shown a continued willingness to work across the aisle and find common ground with members of the opposite party on important issues,” McKinnon said in a press release (below, after the jump). “His attitude is what Congress needs more of.”
Meanwhile, Artur Davis, a former Democratic congressman and a national co-chair of President Obama’s 2008 campaign, is headlining a private fundraiser for Murray in Alexandria on Oct. 15. Davis, who lost his bid to become Alabama’s first black governor in the state’s 2010 Democratic primary, recently switched his party affiliation from Democrat to Republican and spoke at this summer’s Republican convention.
Murray’s campaign said it’s “proud to have the support of Congressman Davis” and “common sense voters of all partisan backgrounds.” It also commented on the No Labels award and this week’s endorsement of Moran by the Washington Post.
In a one-paragraph endorsement that called Moran “conscientious and constituent-oriented,” the Post also noted that the 11-term congressman “has embarrassed himself, and his constituents, with ill-considered comments in the past.”
“If voters want a common sense Congressman who will find solutions and won’t embarrass his constituents, their choice is Colonel Patrick Murray,” said Murray campaign spokesman Reece Collins.
Independent Jason Howell has previously described himself as the true non-partisan candidate in the congressional race, which also features Independent Green candidate Janet Murphy.
“The ability to go in there and create relationships without parties’ strings is what I bring to the table,” Howell told ARLnow.com in June.
Moran Says Bill May Reduce Spy Recruitment
Foreign intelligence agencies often recruit spies and double agents within the American government by targeting federal employees in financial distress. Rep. Jim Moran (D-Va.) says the passage of a bill in the House of Representatives today will prevent those intelligence agencies from finding financially-troubled feds with only a few clicks of the mouse.
Moran applauded the passage of bill S. 3625, which will delay certain provisions of the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge (STOCK) Act from taking effect. The provisions would have required automatic online posting of the financial disclosure forms of 28,000 senior federal employees (GS-15 and SES level). The forms could reveal information about employees’ stock portfolio, real estate investments, and retirement funds.
In an Op-Ed in the Federal Times, Moran wrote:
Under the proposed online system our enemies around the world might be able to search thousands of records with a single keystroke — anonymously exploiting an easily accessible database to search for subtle differences in financial disclosures.
If analyzed closely, these differences might betray the identity of members of the intelligence community, while simultaneously providing information to our enemies as to which employees might be struggling financially — a known criteria used by foreign intelligence services to target individuals for espionage.
The bill, which will now head to the president’s desk following today’s voice vote in the House, will delay the online reporting provisions for senior federal employees from taking effect until Dec. 8. It also requires a study of “issues raised by website publication of financial disclosure forms” by the National Academy of Public Administration.
Earlier this month, a federal judge blocked enforcement of the STOCK Act until Oct. 31, after the American Civil Liberties Union argued that posting employees’ financial information is a violation of their privacy.
The full press release from Rep. Moran’s office, after the jump.
Photo courtesy Andrew Clegg
Republican Candidate Murray Is Back on the Attack
Editor’s Note: See previous profiles of Rep. Jim Moran (D) and Jason Howell (I).
(Updated at 4:05 p.m.) Republican congressional candidate Patrick Murray says he has a better chance this time around, his second shot at unseating longtime 8th District Rep. Jim Moran (D).
He is more well known, redistricting has cut out Reston from the map and added more conservative areas near Mount Vernon, and he expects the presidential election to help get-out-the-vote efforts.
But from a practical perspective, Murray knows Moran’s more than 20 years of representing Arlington, Alexandria, Falls Church and parts of Fairfax County is not likely to end after Nov. 6.
“I can’t help that. Just because the district is difficult, the cause is the same,” said Murray, the first Republican challenger to take on Moran for a second time since Demaris Miller in 2000. “So many people were just happy to see that somebody was running against this guy for the second time, that I had stuck around. These guys come out of the woodwork, they run once against Moran and then they vanish.”
“He scares them off,” Murray added.
That seems to be a point of pride for Murray, the retired Army colonel who three years ago passed up a chance to attend the prestigious Army War College — which trains future generals — to run for office.
(Murray lived in Alexandria for eight years earlier in his military career, but moved back there in 2009.)
In the 2010 election, he briefly vaulted into the national spotlight when Moran characterized him as a “stealth” candidate without “public service” experience. Murray said it was a criticism of his military career, which he felt was a type of public service. Moran said he was simply pointing out Murray’s lack of local service to Virginia communities.
Once that happened, campaign contributions from 26 states started coming in.
“It was mostly veterans. They’re not rich,” Murray said. “But it was $25, $50 bucks saying ‘Go kick this guy’s ass because now I see how he feels about us.’”
