Let's get into some good old Virginia politics! There are three guys running for Governor in 2009 - Brian Moran, Creigh Deeds, and Terry McAss/McAuliffe.
ENDORSEMENTS!!
Moran has received endorsements from:
Delegate Ward L. Armstrong, House Minority Leader
Sheriff Steven Draper, President of the Virginia Sheriffs’ Association
Martinsville Democratic Committee Chair Lorene Martin
And Nearly "two-thirds" of the Democratic Party's Steering Committee:
Pixie Bell, Party Secretary
George Burke, 11th District Chair
Sandra Brandt, 2nd District Chair
Marjorie Clark, 7th District Chair
Audrey Collins, 4th District Chair
Kerry Donley, Immediate Past Chair
Treasurer Abbi Easter
Rich Galecki, 10th District Chair
Margo Horner, 8th District Chair
Frank Leone, Jr., DNC Member,
Gene Magruder, Chair of the Va. Association of Democratic Chairs
Suzette Matthews, 1st District Chair
Evelyn Morris-Harris, Chair of the Democratic Black Caucus of Va.
Rachel Rifkind, Chair of the Women's Caucus
Justin Wilson, vice chair of Technology and Communications.
Mame Reiley, DNC member and steering committee member
Lionell Spruill, Delegate, DNC Member (source)
McAuliffe has endorsements/being supported by:
Billionaire Randal J. Kirk, Tim Kaine's biggest donor. The guy has donated "$600,000 to Kaine since he took office in 2006"
And maybe a few more, but I must stop there to discuss something. I find it very telling that on Terry's own website the only type of endorsement/support he has is that of the above: a big check-writer. I don't like it. As Moran said, "Virginia’s not for sale." I know Brian has been running longer than Terry (heck Terry just has an exploratory committee), but still.
I also don't like that Terry is basically known as "a clinton guy" (at least he is in the minds of many voters).
Really, the one thing I like about McAuliffe is that he says he would try to get rid of the Dillon rule. Who knows how he would do that as governor (he would need general assembly support), but it's still something I admire.
Also, food for thought: When Moran decided to resign his house seat to run for governor, that told me he was serious about this. One of his opponents, Deeds, has decided to keep his seats.
In response, Moran had this to say:
"This is about the next 4 years, this is not about the next 45 days."
While some might take this the wrong way (he's leaving during the most important time of the general assembly!), I'm not sure anything else can get done in this general assembly given the budget and Virginia Republicans refusal to compromise/get anything done. The Virginia Dems have fought for everything they could and have won and lost their battles. At this point, we need to continue the Virginia leadership at the governor position. The General Assembly, sadly, is a lost cause. It was pretty much a failure after a transportation bill did not get through.
I also like that Moran is from, well, that "fake" part of Virginia we like to call "NoVa" - that is Northern Virginia. There is a major divide between the suburban northern virginia and the rest of the state, but before I say something stupid about rural virginia, i'll just leave it at - I'd like to have a governor from a major metropolitan area.
So, while I haven't decided who I am voting for yet, I'm certainly leaning towards Brian Moran.