The Washington Post Endorses Eric Brescia, Aaron Ringel, and Tom Rust

The Washington Post released their endorsements of the House candidates starting on Friday. I’ll have more criticisms of their list in tomorrow’s edition regarding the candidates they should have endorsed, but in the meantime, I will praise their efforts for today’s endorsements.

As you have read several times on this blog, Del. Tom Rust is the better choice to his opponent, who is a carpetbagger (currently represents the Dulles District on the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors, owns a house in the Broadlands, and rents an apartment in Sterling). The Post agrees, and they endorsed Rust in his re-election bid.

District 86: Thomas D. Rust, the incumbent, is one of the more effective lawmakers in the General Assembly, a pro-business Republican who has also gained backing for some of his initiatives from environmentalists. Mr. Rust has enacted important legislation that will ease the way for more toll roads to be built, and he’s played a constructive, responsible role in securing funding for education and other priorities that many in his own party opposed.

In Arlington, two rising stars in the Republican party have also received the endorsements of the Post. Both Aaron Ringel (who is challenging Bob Brink) and Eric Brescia (who is running in the 47^th District) are excellent candidates, who will bring refreshing change in Richmond for their respective districts.

By contrast, Mr. Brescia, an economist who’s just 24, is a relative newcomer. However, he is exactly what the Republicans need in Northern Virginia: an independent-minded thinker who has fresh and specific ideas for how to save money in health care and make government work better.

Robert H. Brink, the Democratic incumbent, has held this seat for a decade, and in that time he’s barely faced a serious challenge. This year he has one in the form of Republican Aaron Ringel, a bright young combat veteran of the war in Iraq who works for a defense contractor. Mr. Brink is a competent legislator but he has opposed widening Interstate 66. That wins points with some homeowners who’d be directly affected but does little for the tens of thousands of commuters who suffer that road daily. Mr. Ringel takes a broader regional view of that issue.

This is definitely good news and could add two more pickups for the Republicans in Arlington, which is typically a Democratic stronghold.