Virginia House of Delegates Republican Caucus
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Delegate Sam Nixon on WRVA
Aug 19th
Delegate Sam Nixon interviewed on WRVA August 19.
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Speaker Howell on Latest $1.5 Billion Revenue Projection Reduction by Governor Kaine
Aug 19th
RICHMOND, VA – Virginia House of Delegates Speaker William J. Howell (R-Stafford) today issued the following statement after Governor Kaine’s remarks to the Joint Legislative Money Committees regarding the latest downward revision of the revenue forecast upon which the Virginia state budget is set:
“Families and businesses across the Commonwealth are grappling with the worst economic recession in generations,” remarked Speaker Howell. “Along with them, leaders in state government must wrestle with the grave financial challenges with which we are confronted. Throughout the ongoing process of adjusting the revenue estimates for the current fiscal year, we must not lose sight of the very real and painful consequences this recession is bringing to bear on Virginians who are struggling to live within their means.
“While no one takes pleasure in predicting a lengthy recession, many experts remain unsure if the economy has reached the bottom of the downturn let alone the length and strength of any potential recovery. This uncertainty demands a sober, realistic and above all conservative approach to the Commonwealth’s revenue forecast not only for this current 2010 fiscal year but the upcoming 2011-2012 biennial state budget. Fiscal prudence dictates adopting estimates that are restrained and reflective of the apprehension permeating the economy.
“At the Governor’s Advisory Council on Revenue Estimates (GACRE) meeting on August 5, I and other legislative leaders recommended adopting the least optimistic revenue forecast presented to us by the Administration. While GACRE is strictly an advisory panel and has absolutely no formal approval authority because that resides solely with the Executive Branch, I am pleased Governor Kaine has finally taken a realistic view on the projected budgetary shortfall the legislature will be facing at the upcoming 2010 General Assembly session.
“With a clearer understanding of our future revenue figures, it is now up to Governor Kaine to use his authority given to him by the General Assembly to implement the needed spending reductions – sooner not later – to ensure that the Commonwealth adheres to its constitutional responsibility of maintaining and producing a balanced budget. The longer the Commonwealth delays not doing anything about aligning spending with incoming revenues, the harder it is to make up the difference.
“As Virginians are painfully aware, fiscal responsibility by state leaders, business growth and job creation – not higher taxes or more spending on government programs – are the keys to a robust economic recovery. Going forward now and later this year, I hope the Governor chooses the right path in addressing Virginia’s ongoing budget shortfall.”
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House Leaders Call on Kaine Appointee to Immediately Relinquish Government Post
Aug 17th
House Leaders Call on Kaine Appointee to Immediately Relinquish Government Post
-- Attorney General Opinion Legally Requires Pomata to Cease Serving Dual Jobs --
RICHMOND, VA – Citing the August 14, 2009 opinion released by Virginia Attorney General William C. Mims, Virginia House of Delegates Speaker William J. Howell (R-Stafford), House Republican Majority Caucus Chairman and a senior member of the Joint Commission on Technology and Science Samuel A. Nixon, Jr. (R-Chesterfield) and House Science and Technology Committee Chairman Kathy J. Byron (R-Campbell) today issued the following statements calling on Leonard M. Pomata, Virginia’s Secretary of Technology as well as the Commonwealth’s Chief Information Officer (CIO), to immediately relinquish one of those positions:
“The Attorney General’s opinion could not be more clear in its finding that Mr. Pomata’s capacity to serve simultaneously in both offices of the Secretary of Technology and CIO ‘legally are incompatible,’” noted Chairman Nixon, patron of House Bill 1926 in 2003 that created the independent role of CIO under the Information Technology Investment Board (ITIB). “For over two long months now, I have called on the ITIB to rescind their decision to appoint Secretary Pomata as CIO or for the Secretary to step down of his own volition as I believed the dual roles created a legal conflict. The ITIB, Secretary Pomata and Governor Kaine all chose to ignore my serious concerns. Now the Attorney General’s opinion has validated my original position. It is my hope that Governor Kaine and Secretary Pomata take swift and appropriate action in accordance with the findings of the Attorney General’s opinion.”
“The concerns raised by the House Science and Technology Committee in June, and subsequent correspondence with Technology Secretary Pomata, underscore the importance to the taxpayers of Virginia that we resolve – sooner not later – the many issues surrounding the Commonwealth’s approach to information technology services,” said Chairman Byron, who leads the panel that interviewed Secretary Pomata on June 29, 2009. “Before the Commonwealth can move forward on those critical contractual and technical issues necessary to delivering quality IT services, we need to get our own house in order and comply with the law. The first step toward real progress in addressing any unresolved problems and achieving a successful partnership with the state’s contractor in the future is for Mr. Pomata to heed forthwith the opinion of the Attorney General and long-standing calls by legislative leaders.”
“There is no question that Governor Kaine and Secretary Pomata need to act immediately to determine in which one government role Mr. Pomata should serve and which one he should resign,” remarked Speaker Howell. “Like so many, I await the decision by the Secretary or Governor so Virginians can be assured that their leaders are acting in accordance with the law.”
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Examiner.com profiles Ernesto Sampson – Candidate for the 69th District
Aug 11th
Meet Ernesto Sampson - Candidate for the 69th District
More jobs. Better schools. Public safety –
Who could disagree with that?
All politicians want to create employment, improve education and ensure that we are safe in our homes, workplaces and streets. The real question is, when we go to the polls, who do we vote for to ensure that these promises are delivered at a federal, state and local level?
Ernesto Sampson, a Richmond financial adviser and mentor to area youth in the Richmond community is running for public office in the for the Virginia House of Delegates this November 3rd and espouses the above policies.
I followed Mr. Sampson on the campaign trail Saturday knocking on doors and speaking to local area residents about the issues that concern them. No surprise that jobs, health care, law and order and education were the top of most people’s lists. Nary a word about Iraq or global warming. People are hungering for someone who is looking out for them on a local level.
There is much chatter around water coolers and web sites about the rejuvenation of interest in politics in recent months.
Out on the streets of the Fan District this weekend with Ernesto it was palpable.
Running for election as Delegate for the 69th District is hardly comparable to running for the Oval Office and leader of the free world, but it’s running for elective office all the same. And it’s infectious; just ask his team of over 30 enthusiastic supporters who turned out in force to knock on well over 2000 doors and introduce the candidate to the community when they could have been doing something else on a sunny Saturday. But they were there and happy to be supporting Sampson.
Ernesto Sampson will be on the ballot in November 3rd as a candidate for a district that straddles both sides of the James River from Floyd Ave in Cary Town down Hull Street Road into the heart of Chesterfield.
On a political, personality, policy and historical level the result of the 69th District will be under the psehological microscope.
If voters turn out in areas of Richmond and Chesterfield Counties in a certain way; is this sending a message to the current Administration or are they voting for a candidate who has their best interests at heart? I say both.
Given his career as a financial adviser who graduated from the Virginia Military Institute with a B.A. in economics and finance, Sampson sees daily the ramifications of the current economic climate and is disturbed with the trend in unemployment and high-school drop outs, which correlates directly with an increase in crime.
Ernesto Sampson is passionate about creating and saving jobs. In his own personal career he is qualified to understand both the intricacies and the basic current economic climate and how it affects the average ‘Joe’ and his 401K and other investments. He also advises small business owners in the community on how to navigate the economic cycle by giving them the tools they need to grow their business, maintain revenues in fluctuating economic markets and increase staff as their company expands.
As former Speaker of the House Tip O’Neill famously said “All politics is local.”
We worry about the potholes in our streets, our children’s schools, our garbage collection and more importantly, our safety. We also worry about whether we will wake up tomorrow to our job or, if we have been laid off recently, whether we can find some semblance of employment to provide for ourselves and our families.
Ernesto Sampson says “The needs of our community are many. But through my upbringing, my work, and my involvement in my home community, I have learned that waiting for politicians to solve our problems just doesn’t work.”
As a resident, mentor of youth, and a proponent of small business interests in the 69th District Community, Ernesto is eager to support, represent and be the Voice his Community. According to campaign staff, Ernesto and his ‘Street Team’ have visited over 8,000 residences within his district since the beginning of June, with plans to visit every residence before the election.
This will be an interesting contest to watch; not just for those voters in the 69th District but those in the Commonwealth and the rest of the country.
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Speaker Bill Howell on WTOP – Discusses House of Delegate 2009 Races
Aug 11th
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Speaker Bill Howell on WTOP with Mark Plotkin - August 7, 2009
Washington Times: Veteran vies for Virginia House
Aug 7th
Profile of Col. Richard Anderson in the Washington Times. Rich Anderson is the GOP candidate for the 51st House of Delegates Seat.
Thursday, August 6, 2009
CITIZEN JOURNALISM: Veteran vies for Virginia House
Bill Card SPECIAL TO THE WASHINGTON TIMES
Retired Air Force Col. Richard L. Anderson is running to be the delegate for Virginia's House 51st District. The Republican will compete for the seat in a November election against Democratic incumbent Paul F. Nichols.
Service to the nation is a "calling," said Col. Anderson in an interview with The Washington Times, held at the headquarters of the Prince William County Republican Committee. He is fueled by the same inspiration that pushes people to be doctors, nurses, police officers, firefighters, ministers and teachers, he said.
The candidate was born and raised in Roanoke. He was interested in politics throughout his youth. He received a degree in political science from Virginia Tech.
Col. Anderson was in the Air Force for nearly 30 years, rising from an ICBM launch crew commander and ending his career as the military assistant to the deputy undersecretary of defense for technology, security and national disclosure in the Office of the Secretary of Defense. Shortly after he retired from the Air Force this year, he decided to run for office. He had many options but felt a great pull toward public service.
Col. Anderson has an extensive support network for his endeavor. His wife, Ruth, is retired from her role as a lieutenant colonel in the Air Force and is active in the local Republican Committee, serving as its secretary and the president of Prince William Republican Women. His former colleagues, both in the Air Force and many in the other services, have given both spiritual and financial support for his campaign. The constant relocation in a 30-year career have provided a large contingent of former neighbors, friends and church members who have offered encouragement.
Col. Anderson has been working the phones and knocking on "thousands of doors," he said. He has discovered that Virginians have four major issues on their mind.
"Transportation, traffic and congestion" are at the forefront of their concerns, said Col. Anderson. He seeks to bring improvements "not with paving but rather with transit." He blames politicians in Richmond for not crafting substantive solutions and admits that transportation is one of many issues that made him want to get involved.
The next major concern is jobs, he says. He wants to protect existing jobs and put the unemployed back to work mostly by keeping taxes low, producing more energy and encouraging businesses that hire more workers.
Virginians are also concerned about the economy, he said. He said that transportation, jobs and the economy go hand in hand: If you improve one, you positively affect the others. He has been talking to the business community and thinks that it will be the small businesses that will pull us out of our current economic problems. He stated emphatically that "we must preserve, protect and defend" small businesses.
The fourth issue that Col. Anderson is hearing most at front doors is education. He is keenly aware of how budget cuts and the reduction in classroom assistants is affecting the quality of education. One teacher told Col. Anderson that he was spending $1,500 a year of his own money for classroom supplies. The candidate is indignant that senior staff members in the school system appear to be self-interested rather than making improvements for those who work hard in the classroom.
When Col. Anderson was asked what he wanted to tell men and women in the Air Force who might be thinking about following in his footsteps into politics, he replied without hesitation: "Do it. Americans have been running for office since the beginning of our nation. The motivation to run has been as varied as the people who run. However, for those who love their country, there is no better way to exhibit that love than to run for office."
• Lt. Col. Bill Card is retired from the Marine Corps. He and his wife live in Dumfries, Va.