And Virginia's political person of the year is ...

... Tricia Stall, the anti-tax absolutist whose primary election victory helped hand the Senate to the Democrats.

Virginia political insiders were all atwitter in early 2007 because it was the beginning of a showdown election year with all 140 lawmakers up for re-election. But nobody was expecting a tough campaign on the Peninsula.

Enter Tricia Stall.

Stall, a long-time anti-tax activist from Newport News, tapped into that strong grassroots network to knock off a well-funded 12-year incumbent Republican senator, forcing the state GOP to defend another seat in an already contentious election year.

Democrats were prepped for the campaign trail thanks to the fund-raising prowess of Gov. Timothy M. Kaine and former Gov. Mark R. Warner, and Stall’s primary win forced the GOP to spend almost $1 million to try to hold onto a seat that the Democrats originally did not plan to challenge.

Her primary victory also made numerous state politicians on the Peninsula remarkably uncomfortable on the campaign trail. Sen. Thomas K. Norment, R-James City, and Sen. Ken Stolle, R-Virginia Beach, came to Newport News to express their political love for her, even after bashing her as unelectable during the primary.

Meanwhile, Del. Glenn Oder and Del. Phil Hamilton caught flak from some die-hards who felt they weren't working hard enough for Stall. Her biggest champion, Del. Tom Gear, is likely to feel a backlash within the GOP for his hand in giving the Senate back to the Republicans.   

Stall cultivated a fierce group of loyalists and showed just how strongly many voters on the Peninsula abhor taxes. But she was unable to win the general election in November.

Winning the Peninsula seat gave Democrats the majority in the state Senate and ensured that they would have a seat at the table in 2011 when state lawmakers re-draw Virginia’s political boundaries. If the GOP had held the state Senate, Republicans might have been able to craft districts for themselves, essentially ensuring their dominance for years to come.

That means Stall’s loss is going to have major political ramifications in every corner of the commonwealth for at least the next decade. It already appears to have sunk into the collective consciousness of Virginia Republicans. When the 1st Congressional District GOP was forced to choose a replacement for U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Davis, they opted for the more moderate candidate, backing Rob Wittman.

The perfect political wager: pork versus bull

The governors of Virginia and Kansas -- that would be our Tim Kaine and their Kathleen Sebelius -- have placed a friendly product-versus-product wager on the Orange Bowl, in which our Hokies will take on their Jayhawks.

If Kansas University wins (yeah, right), Kaine will pack up a Virginia ham and send it west. The more likely outcome, of course, is that Kaine will have to decide how to cook the assortment of Kansas beef that Sebelius will ship this way after Virginia Tech prevails.

The Orange Bowl will be played in Miami on Jan. 3. Sebelius will be in attendance, but Kaine's office says the governor won't be able to attend.

Holiday greetings from governors around the U.S.

Stateline.org, a news site that focuses on news about state governments, offers a great collection of greeting cards today -- cards sent out by governors around the country (Tim Kaine among them).

Click on the card, then click on "Next page" to open and read it. It's a fun little collection. And, as Stateline.org staff writer Eric Kelderman points out, some of them even say, Merry Christmas.

Webb still likes Democrats' chances in Virginia in '08

Sen. Jim Webb isn't letting the thrashing the Democrats took in the 1st Congressional District this month spoil his optimism for 2008.

In an interview in this morning's Washington Times, Webb says Virginia will be in play come November 2008 and believes the state may vote for a Democratic presidential candidate for the first time since going for Lyndon Johnson.

Webb points to Democratic victories in Hampton Roads in November (John Miller over Tricia Stall and Ralph Northam over Nick Rerras in area state Senate races, among others) and the presence of Mark Warner on the ballot next November as reasons for his optimism.

Gov. Kaine stumping for Obama in South Carolina.....

Gov. Timothy M. Kaine is on a quick campaign tour for Barack Obama, and by the time you read this post he'll probably be back in Richmond for Christmas.

But it's interesting to watch Kaine when he gets out of Virginia's boundaries, and we get a rare opportunity here to see his brief pitch for Barack Obama for president.  The video comes from the Illinois senator's campaign Web site and about half of the footage is of Congressman Jesse Jackson Jr. of Illinois. 

Jackson Jr. makes the emotional pitch, but Kaine does a pretty nice job following it up by talking about independent voters and moderate Republicans. This seems to be the emerging battleground between Obama and Hillary Clinton and Kaine is right on the front line.

Full video - here.

Mamie Locke to Hillary Clinton: I haven't endorsed anyone yet

State Sen. Mamie Locke got top billing in May when Sen. Hillary Clinton’s campaign trotted out a list of endorsements from Virginia political leaders.

Seven months later, Locke’s name is still filed on Clinton’s campaign Web site under the title "Leading Virginia officials endorse Clinton" along with hundreds of others plug from big names from across the county.

There’s only one problem.

"I did not then, nor do I now endorse anyone in the presidential race," Locke wrote in a two-sentence e-mail Friday afternoon. "I thought this had been corrected back then."

In fact a quick look at Locke’s Web site indicates that she might be inclined to support another Democratic hopeful. The first picture in the photos section is an action shot of Locke grinning and pointing at the camera as she stands next to Illinois Sen. Barack Obama.

With the presidential race finally entering a stage where the voters have a say, the crowded field of candidates continue to rely on endorsements as a way to connect with like-minded voters. Prominent Virginia Republicans have taken sides within the GOP ranks and many Democrats have picked favorites as well. Gov. Timothy M. Kaine started the round of endorsements in early February, announcing his support for Obama.

Informed about the endorsement press release, a spokesman in Clinton’s campaign headquarters in Washington investigated for about a half an hour before calling back Friday afternoon. By that time, Locke’s name had already been removed from the list.

"Apparently there has obviously been a mix-up on our part," Clinton spokesman Isaac Baker said. "We apologize for the confusion."

Baker said that Locke had informed the campaign about the error in the spring and officials thought that the problem had been fixed. Baker said that Locke was the only wrong name on the list.

The veracity of the other names on the list could not be confirmed as the long holiday weekend approached. The three state delegates on the list — Dels. Albert Eisenberg, Lionell Spruill and Johnny Joannou— did not return calls.

Reached Friday afternoon, a spokesperson for state Sen. Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, could not recall whether Lucas had made an endorsement and said it would be impossible to verify until early next week.

What 40 days did for Rob Wittman

Every politician in America realized that the federal government should not slap a tax on the payments made to the families of victims of the Virginia Tech massacre.

It'd look pretty ugly dipping into that pot.

So President Bush signed the bill exempting payments to the families from taxes, and was joined by a handful of Virginia politicians, including new U.S.  Rep. (and Virginia Tech alum) Rob Wittman (on the left).

Run the calendar back in your head. This photo was taken on Dec. 20. Go back 40 days to Nov. 10, the night before 1st District Republicans chose their nominee. Who thought Wittman was going to come out of that convention?

Back then he was a fairly obscure first-term state delegate from the Northern Neck. Now he's rubbing elbows in the Oval Office.   

Obama and Paul to top ballots in Virginia primary

Barack Obama and Ron Paul will top their party's ballots in the Virginia presidential primary come Feb. 12.

The State Board of Elections drew the order today -- using sealed envelopes drawn from a bowl.

On the GOP side, Paul, a Texas congressman, is followed by Arizona Sen. John McCain, former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, the Associated Press reports.

After Obama on the Democratic ballot will be Ohio Congressman Dennis Kucinich, New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, Delaware Sen. Joe Biden and former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards.

Bobby Scott endorses Obama for president

Illinois Sen. Barack Obama is being endorsed for president today by U.S. Rep. Robert C. "Bobby" Scott.

In a press release the Virginia Democrat said he was supporting Obama because of his "sound judgment on the Iraq war and leadership on critical issues such as health care and crime policy."

"Senator Obama demonstrated the judgment we need in a president when he opposed the Iraq war from the start," Scott said. "His decades of public service is a resounding testament to his ability to build bridges across party lines and make change happen on bread and butter issues like health care, housing, education and creating safe communities.

"Moreover, he shares my belief that it is the sacred responsibility of government to secure our democracy through the protection of our voting rights and civil liberties."

Obama has already been endorsed by Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine, who will also be contributing to Obama's campaign effort today.

Kaine is scheduled to join a media conference call with Iowa state Rep. Pam Jochum to talk about recent polls that say Obama has the best chance of the Democratic candidates to win over independents and Republicans.

Confused by the guv's vehicle inspection-drivers license proposal?

A lot of people are trying to figure out whether they will actually save money or lose money under Gov. Tim Kaine's proposal to increase the cost of vehicle inspections while requiring them less often while at the same time raising the amount drivers will have to pay to renew their licenses (exclusive of any abusive driver fee they may or may not owe).

To try to clear that up for you, here's the governor's proposal expressed as a simple mathematical formula:

[(16 x 2) - 20]/2 + [(Y x 4, where "Y" is greater than/equal to 3 and less than/equal to 7)] – [(10/5) x Z, where "Z"="Y"] = Your savings (or loss)*

We hope that helps.

In any event, it's a lot easier to understand than why the governor decided to do this.

*Full disclosure: I have no idea if this formula is correct. Feel free to add corrections.

**And does anyone know how to insert mathematical symbols in HTML?