Moran keeps lining up local donors...

It'll be interesting to see the next public bank balance for Del. Brian Moran, D-Alexandria, because his run for the governor's office appears to be pulling in some nice local cash.

Moran is going to be back in town the day after Thanskgiving for a fundraiser with some political heavyweights. You'll recall that just last week Moran headlined a Peninsula fundraiser with Dr. William Harvey - the head of Hampton University and Hampton Mayor Molly Ward.

Well, this Friday Moran is going to be courting donors with the help of some prominent local lawyers including former Del. Alan Diamonstein, D-Newport News. Diamonstein has a longtime member of the House and a significant powerbroker especially on the Peninsula. 

The host list also includes: 

Duncan and Diana Garnett - he is a partner in Diamonstein's law firm.

Hampton City Councilman Randy Gilliland.

Gaylene Kanoyton - a prominent Hampton Democrat especially in the black community.

Marqueta Tyson - an attorney in downtown Hampton.

Rounding out the list - Carolyn B. Cox, Pat DeConcini, Susy Rotkis and Dick Sweetman.

Moran is a former prosecutor so he should fit right in with the law and order crowd. The governor's race seems a long way off right now - but with a huge Democratic primary in early June, the campaign is well underway. 

Sen. Creigh Deeds, D-Bath, is working the Internet this week - sending out emails asking folks to join his campaign and help collect enough signatures from registered voters to get Deeds officially on the ballot. 

Former Democratic National Committee Chairman Terry McAuliffe hasn't formally announced if he's going to run for governor. McAuliffe says he plans to make a formal announcement in January.

(Side note - Gov. Timothy M. Kaine said Tuesday that he plans to stay neutral in the Democratic race - so these guys will have to hit up other folks for plumb endorsements.)

Meanwhile, across the aisle Attorney Gen. Bob McDonnell doesn't appear to have any serious competition for the GOP mantle - especially with Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling planning to keep his seat.

Anyone out there we forgot?

Welcome to the land of the perpetual election....

Gov. Timothy M. Kaine set another special election date for an open House of Delegates seat early next year - which puts two spots up for grabs on January 6. 

In the always balance-conscious House - a two seat swing to either party would be a big deal - especially with House lawmakers facing re-election next year. House Republicans would love to pick up another seat to bolster their majority, while Democrats would like nothing more than to chip away at that lead early. The races all take on higher stakes because the folks elected next year are going to set the table for redistricting.  

Del. Terry Suit, R-Virginia Beach resigned earlier this year to take a lobbying job and Del. Dwight C. Jones, D-Richmond, won the mayors race in Richmond in November. Kaine already marked Jan. 6 on the calendar for voters to pick Suit's replacement and he said Wednesday he wanted to get voters to the polls again in Richmond so that Jones' district has a representative when the General Assembly comes back to town. 

But a quick scan of the districts indicates that we don't know who is going to win each seat - but we probably know which side of aisle the new lawmakers are going to come from. Suit's Virginia Beach district fits in the GOP base - while Jones' Richmond seat is probably going to stay with the Democrats. Neither Jones nor Suit faced a campaign challenge in 2007. 

Then again we're talking about an early January election in a state that is full of people who are tired of talking about politics. That means that any hopefuls are only going to have to clear an amazingly low turnout bar - which could swing the races.

Any strong personalities waiting in the wings?

Could Obama fund the third crossing?

President-elect Barack Obama said Tuesday that he wants to jumpstart infrastructure projects across the country to help turn around the sagging economy and lay the groundwork for future economic expansion.

So if Obama wants to invest in bridges, interstates and tunnels - what better place than Hampton Roads - which just so happens to sit in the state of a good friend of Obama's Gov. Timothy M. Kaine. You might recall that Kaine' early endorsement of Obama helped a mutual friendship develop between the two Harvard Law alums - so much of a bond in fact that Kaine made it onto the short list of portential vice-presidential candidates.

Kaine didn't make the jump to the national ticket, but he was a big time surrogate for Obama in the race against Republican John McCain and Sarah Palin. Kaine barnstormed around the country for Obama - and Hampton Roads' traffic problems seem to fit the plan the Obama laid out Tuesday.

Obama is making the case that the infrastructure investment would help inject capital in the tanking national economy. Major construction projects - like say the third crossing - would create a slew of high paying construction jobs that couldn't be outsourced anywhere. The jobs would be longterm in large part because the projects would take years to build, and they would create tax revenue for the states, might help the housing market and also add money to the local stores that catch the shopping windfall.

Lawmakers have attempted to make the case that Hampton Roads and Northern Virginia can make a strong unique claim for federal funding. Hampton Roads is the largest Navy port in the world and the amount of military bases and federal outposts along the urban cresent make smoothing out traffic problems a national security issue. Add in the power - and potential growth - of the Port of Virginia and Dulles International Airport and you've got some strong economic points. 

Then again, Obama statements seem to imply that the only projects to get fast-tracked are ones that are already underway. Do years of disagreements and arguments over proposed projects count toward underway?   

For the full story about Obama's construction projects - click here  

Virginia is being "piggy" on aircraft carriers, Florida lawmaker says

From the Associated Press:

U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson says Virginia officials are being "a little piggy" for trying to block a decision to move a nuclear aircraft carrier from their state to Mayport Naval Station in Florida.

Nelson, joined by Sen. Mel Martinez and U.S. Reps Corrine Brown and Ander Crenshaw told a Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce committee Tuesday they have a fight on their hands with the Virginia delegation, which says the Navy should not spend the $500 million to make the base at the mouth of the St. Johns River nuclear ready.

"It's a little piggy of the Norfolk, Va., delegation to say they want to have all five nuclear carriers," Nelson, D-Fla., said.

Florida lawmakers say it makes strategic sense to not put all the East Coast nuclear carriers in the Virginia port because of a natural disaster, such as a hurricane, or a terrorist attack.

A new carrier would bring about 3,190 military personnel into the area and pump $500 million a year into the north Florida economy.

Does ON THE BUS coverage on the campaign trail matter anymore?

Traditional campaign coverage starts and ends at the very same spot - the candidate's bus.

Riding on a contender's bus, a reporter is supposed to draw in a sense of the candidate, the tone and tenor of the race and read an ever-changing litmus test of how the public is reacting on the trail.

So that's what makes a new article in the American Journalism Review such an interesting read. The story details coverage hurdles and talks about what it's like being out on the trail with Barack Obama and John McCain. But more than that, the story looks at how newspapers are scaling back coverage in tight financial times - all through the lens of the developing "new media" of blogging and the Internet.

Interesting tidbits in the story come from Michael Shear of the Washington Post. Shear covered the General Assembly in Richmond for years before moving on to the presidential campaign.   

"You'd never see the anger of the crowds [at McCain's rallies] if you just watched a tight shot on TV," says Michael Shear, the Washington Post's campaign road warrior. "You don't see the warm-up [speeches] 45 minutes before John McCain arrives, the way the crowd gets whipped up by the local talk-show host or the mayor.... You don't see people flipping off the people on the press bus. If you're only there sporadically, you wouldn't understand how things have changed and what's different from before."

To read the full article click here.

Not much hope for transportation at the General Assembly this year...

It's been a rough couple of years for local elected officials backing major construction projects to beef up Hampton Roads' fragile transportation network and no relief is on the horizon.

On Wednesday, regional planers held their monthly meeting in Chesapeake to discuss a number of priorities including disposal of solid waste and storm water runoff - but if was an off the cuff comment that pointed toward the General Assembly.

Newport News Major Joe Frank has been a consistent voice for transportation upgrades for years - and he's been outspoken about his frustration that state lawmakers haven't stepped up to fund local road priorities. On Wednesday, Frank attempted to read the tea leaves about this year's legislative session in Richmond.

"We don't expect - I don't think anyone expects - the legislature to do very much on transportation this year," Frank said. "But who knows?"

The odds are stacked against any major breakthroughs. Gov. Timothy M. Kaine is entering his final year in the executive mansion, lawmakers in the House of Delegates are facing re-election in the fall, and at least three high profile players are eyeing the governor's office - and a major Democratic primary in June 2009 - with Del. Brian Moran, Sen. Creigh Deeds, Attorney Gen. Bob McDonnell and Terry McAuliffe all ramping up campaigns.

All that means you'll have a lot of people looking toward the campaign trail and the fundraising circuit and worried about making any major decisions and giving their opponents any new ammunition. In 2007, it was fear of Election Day that  triggered the Republicans to back the Hampton Roads Transpotation Authority - which was eventually dismantled after public backlash. 

This past summer - lawmakers went to Richmond for a special session on transportation, but they were unable to make any real progress. Kaine said that the special session would show voters who wanted to confront the state's traffic mess and who wanted to avoid the problem - and he would use that on the campaign trail in 2009. But are voters going to remember what unhinged the transportation efforts and will there really be retribution at the ballot box? 

With the state strapped for cash this year - and with only 45 days in Richmond instead of 60 - the obstacles are surely mounting. 

But is there a transportation push waiting to happen? Should we hold our breath?  

The politics of moving an aircraft carrier named Bush

The Hill.com has taken a look at the dispute over shifting an aircraft carrier from Virginia to Florida in political terms -- as a battle within the Democratic Party and make-or-break moments in political careers.

It's an interesting subtext to what some people think, naively, is purely a matter of national security.

The carrier battle -- the Navy says it wants to move a carrier to Florida's Naval Station Mayport, which lost its aircraft carrier when the Navy retired the aged and worn-out USS John F. Kennedy -- does have the potential for great political intrigue.

Has Virginia lost its military influence with the impending retirement of Republican Sen. John Warner?

Can Sen. Jim Webb, a secretary of the Navy during a Republican administration, take Warner's place as Virginia's voice on the military?

Is the state actually better off (militarily) being represented by Webb and another Democrat, Sen.-elect Mark Warner, now that a Democrat is moving into the White House?

Ditto in the 2nd Congressional District, where Democrat Glenn Nye is succeeding Republican Thelma Drake?

And what about all those Florida connections? The carrier apparently at issue is the George H.W. Bush, which is still in the yard in Newport News. H.W.'s sons -- one a lame-duck commander-in-chief, one a former Florida governor -- would seem to line up in Florida's favor.

But then, both Florida and Virginia did go blue this year. Will one or the other be punished? Rewarded?

A side note: The aircraft carrier dispute came up when Rep. Rob Wittman from the 1st District came in to meet with the DP editorial board prior to the election. He had a couple of interesting things to say on the topic. (I sat in on the conversation.)

One was, "we cannot lose to Mayport." It wasn't clear whether he meant to say "we cannot afford to lose" or "there's no way we will lose."

But he also said he'd heard from another lawmaker that "the president said to a contingent from Florida, 'We're going to have a carrier in Florida.'"

That sound ominous, from a Virginia perpective.

And he said something that astounded me -- because he actually seemed to believe it. Wittman said he didn't think politics would be the deciding factor.

I'm afraid all I could manage as a follow-up question was, "Really?" He shrugged and nodded in the affirmative.

As it turns out, the only answer to that question, as Wittman perhaps implied, is, "We'll see."

Here's a link to The Hill story.

Local lawmakers reach out to Obama on aircaft carriers...

It's always nice to start a note off with a complimentary tone - and local lawmakers from both sides of the aisle kicked their Tuesday plea off on the right foot.

"Dear President-Elect Obama: Congratulations on your hard-fought and historic election."

Now down to business.   

Five local lawmakers have inked a letter to President-elect Barack Obama asking him to take a second look at the plan to move an aircraft carrier to Mayport, Florida. The lawmakers say that the $500 million needed to upgrade the port facility in Florida is a waste and simply a duplicate effort.

This is probably one of the few times you're going to see a joint note from U.S. Rep. Thelma Drake and U.S. Rep-elect Glenn Nye. In addition to those signatures the letter also bears the names of U.S. Reps. Randy Forbes, Robert C. "Bobby" Scott, and Rob Wittman. 

 Here's the meat of the letter:

For this reason, we wanted to offer a bipartisan suggestion as to how you can save half a billion dollars that could be directed towards more critical defense priorities as you prepare your Fiscal Year 2010 budget.  Today, the Navy announced its preference to expand its footprint by investing $500 million to upgrade the Navy’s port at Mayport, Florida to accommodate a nuclear aircraft carrier in addition to the existing East Coast port in Norfolk, Virginia. This cost does not include the additional annual expense of dredging in the harbor in Mayport or the personnel and operational impacts of starting up and shutting down the nuclear component of the port each time a carrier docks in Mayport.

 Most importantly, this decision ignores the fact that there is no national security or strategic rationale requiring this buildup, unlike the decision in recent years to increase the proportion of the Navy’s fleet in the Pacific from 50% to 60% to balance an expanding Chinese Navy.  Some have suggested that our East Coast aircraft carriers must be strategically disbursed to avoid a Pearl Harbor-like attack.  As any sailor can tell you, these carriers are dispersed around the world on a routine basis in times of peace, and in times of war.  In fact, the last time all the carriers were in port at Norfolk for a matter of days, many pictures were taken because it was such a unique event.

Our concern remains that this would be an unwise use of taxpayer dollars in the face of a serious budget deficit.  We are in agreement that we should focus on completing the ongoing consolidation of military facilities as prescribed in the 2005 BRAC law, not spending money to expand a footprint the Department of Defense asked Congress to reduce just three years ago.  As Admiral Mike Mullen has stated, extensive analysis has demonstrated that we need a minimum of 313-ships in our Navy.  We do not see how we can get there if we do not make the tough budget choices and the easy ones.  We humbly suggest to you that choosing not to expand the number of nuclear ports on the East Coast is one of the easy choices.

Obama keeps looking to Virginia for expertise...

President-elect Barack Obama is looking to the University of Virginia as he assembles a transition team to guide his path to the White House.

On Tuesday, UVA announced that law professors Jonathan Z. Cannon and David A. Martin are set to become part of the transition team. According to their respective backgrounds, Martin has been tapped to help Hameland Security because of his expertise on immigration and citizenship. Meanwhile Cannon is going to assist the Environmental Protection Agency because of his work in environmental law.   

Here's the text of the release from UVA: 

Martin will bring a special focus on immigration issues to the Homeland Security Team. He is the co-author of a leading casebook on immigration and citizenship, and served as general counsel of the Immigration and Naturalization Service from 1995 to 1998 under President Clinton.

Responsibilities formerly handled by the INS were transferred to the Department of Homeland Security when DHS was created in 2003, and are now assigned to three separate bureaus.

"I am honored and excited to be involved in this transition work," Martin said. "Immigration will be a significant issue for the new administration to consider, and I welcome the opportunity to contribute toward making the immigration pieces of Homeland Security work as effectively as possible."

Martin is the Warner-Booker Distinguished Professor of International Law. Before joining the Virginia faculty he was special assistant to the assistant secretary for human rights and humanitarian affairs at the U.S. Department of State.

He has twice served as a consultant to the Administrative Conference of the United States, preparing studies and recommendations on federal migrant worker assistance programs and on reforms to political asylum adjudication procedures. In 1993 he undertook a consultancy for the U.S. Department of Justice that led to major reforms of the U.S.political asylum adjudication system.

In 2003-04 he was asked by the State Department to provide a comprehensive study of the U.S. overseas refugee admissions program, leading to recommendations for reform of that system.

Cannon, the Blaine T. Phillips Distinguished Professor of Environmental Law and director of the Law School's Environmental and Land Use Law Program, served as general counsel for the Environmental Protection Agency from 1995 to 1998 and as assistant administrator for administration and resources management from 1992 to 1995. He also held senior management positions at the agency from 1986 to 2000.

"It's a privilege to serve and help the new administration get established and begin to operate effectively," he said.

Cannon was in the private practice of environmental law before joining the EPA and also served as an adjunct professor at Washington and Lee School of Law, where he taught environmental law. He has written numerous articles on environmental law and policy, including several on relationships among the EPA and the White House, Congress and the courts. He has also written on the Supreme Court's decision in Massachusetts v. EPA, a 2006 ruling that affirmed the EPA's right to regulate greenhouse gases, which is likely to figure importantly in early efforts to address climate change.  

Former Leahy aide to be Warner's chief of staff

Sen.-elect Mark Warner has chosen a former longtime aide to Vermont Sen. Patrick Leahy as his chief of staff.

Luke Albee, now with the political consulting firm Ricchetti Inc., spent 11 years as Leahy's chief of staff and 20 as a Senate aide.

"I am pleased to have someone with Luke Albee's experience working with us in the Senate," Warner said. "Luke has earned respect from both sides of the aisle, and he's widely known for his ability to bring people together to create common-sense solutions."

Albee, 48, is a graduate of the University of Vermont and earned a masters' degree in international relations from the London School of Economics.  Albee and his wife, Beth, have four children.