Perhaps, if the government would not waste the taxpayer’s money on unnecessary programs, we might not be in this situation. With Congress and President Obama determined to get their version of health care reform passed, the deficit will continue to grow in a rapid pace. Is this what we want our future generations to be saddled with? It’s time to curb the spending and focus on common sense reform.

Keith Fimian, having already run for this seat in 2008 and campaigning for it throughout 2009, had a considerable head start.  This head start would appear to many, an insurmountable obstacle, especially for one announcing their entry in January of 2010, as was the case for Pat Herrity.  Right out of the box, Keith Fimian scored a quick point by blasting Herrity’s endorsement-laden candidacy announcement (go here for a more “serious” discussion).  Hoping to capitalize on perceived animosity toward political insiders, Fimian quickly went to work to immediately cast Herrity as the race’s political insider. However, there were still plenty of campaign opportunities throughout the snow-ladled month of February, en route to the June 8, 2010 Congressional primary.

Despite some criticism, within two weeks of his campaign announcement, Herrity put up his issues.  Of course, in contrast to Fimian’s issues, no major differences are apparent.

Since January, Herrity has successfully defined himself as the experienced candidate.  With both candidates trekking through the Prince William and Fairfax Republican meeting circuit, Herrity has made one thing clear: he is the one with experience.  Currently holding the seat of Springfield Supervisor on the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, Herrity has undisputedly taken on the role of leader of the growing local Republican Party in Fairfax (to which the endorsements of his fellow supervisors attests).

Fimian has made his business experience abundantly clear and, in that respect, has therelative  edge over Herrity, who also possesses significant business experience.  At the same time, Fimian has a credible amount of political experience, while Herrity maintains the relative edge.  Since this is a political contest, Herrity has a perceived advantage when it comes to experience.

What kind of advantage does  this experience give Herrity?  Who is to say?  For instance, how does this experience answer the questions posted by Mason Conservative?  Will it be the experienced double-talk that we hear from so many experienced politicians, or will it be an earnest profession and application of principles?  In the coming months, there will be plenty of opportunities to see.

From “The Truth About Cars“:

A federally funded ticketing blitz in the state of Virginia landed a total of 6996 traffic tickets this weekend. The blitz, dubbed “Operation Air, Land & Speed” coincided with frantic efforts by state officials to close a$2.2 billion budget deficit. Supervisors ordered state troopers to saturate Interstates 81 and 95 to issue as many tickets as humanly possible over the space of two days.

Despite liberal activists’ complaints, federal and state officials are effectively keeping the citizens safe and secure from the terror of abusive drivers and budget gaps:

Officers had no trouble delivering the requested number of speeding tickets with a total of 3536 ordinary speeding citations written. In addition, another 717 “reckless driving” tickets were filed, although these most often are simple speeding tickets that happen to carry a fine of up to $2500. Driving as little as 10 to 15 MPH over the limit can qualify for this enhanced punishment. On the other end of the scale, some 310 tickets were handed to drivers who either forgot to wear their seatbelts or made a choice not to do so.

Activists with the National Motorists Association pointed out that enforcement efforts may have concentrated on areas where speed limits are expected to rise to 70 MPH following Governor Bob McDonnell’s signature on legislation raising the state’s maximum speed limit (view law). This would mean a significant number of tickets were issued for conduct that will be perfectly legal in a matter of months. The group also indicated that state police tactics may run afoul of state law.

“Keith Fimian is in an outstanding position to win the race for U.S. Congress in Virginia’s 11th District. Voters are extremely disenchanted with the current state of affairs in Washington and are significantly more favorable toward a Republican candidate,” Jim McLaughlin, Fimian’s pollster said. “Congressman Gerry Connolly’s favorable rating and vote share are both well below the 50% thresholds for strong incumbents. The fact that Keith Fimian is already beating Gerry Connolly shows how vulnerable Connolly is to Fimian’s challenge.”

“I am excited that this poll shows that I am the best candidate to win this seat.” Fimian said. “This is because of my energetic grassroots support, strong fundraising results, my message of fiscal responsibility and the concrete proposals I am offering to create a vibrant environment for job creation. Voters also welcome my commitment to eliminating the culture of wasteful spending and corruption that career politicians have created in Washington.”

Fimian has also raised more money than Connolly for two consecutive quarters, in addition to being named a “Contender” in the NRCC’s Young Guns Program.

House Speaker Bill Howell reacted to the news quite well by acknowledging Armstrong’s ambition on the House floor.

Late last year the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) took the first steps toward a national energy tax by writing anti-growth regulations that make carbon dioxide – something that is necessary to sustain life on earth – a regulated pollutant under the Clean Air Act.  This backdoor attempt to institute a national energy tax will stifle economic growth and kill jobs, especially in the manufacturing, transportation, energy, and agricultural sectors.  Now more than ever, with the national unemployment rate hovering around 10 percent and 15 million Americans looking for work, these harmful rules must be stopped.

The EPA’s regulations represent a clear and present danger to our economy and to all of our efforts to provide the conditions for job growth and prosperity.  These new regulations will cost hundreds of billions of dollars to implement and would ultimately affect millions of small sources of emissions such as hotels, hospitals, churches, farms, office buildings, restaurants, and other small businesses.  These rules will inject uncertainty into the economy, delay or halt new construction, and deter investment.  Citing the negative impact to their states, these regulations are strongly opposed by several States’ Governors, Attorneys General, environmental agencies, and agricultural agencies.

The unelected bureaucrats at the EPA should not be creating national energy policy for our country and so I have joined with Republicans and Democrats in both the House and Senate in supporting legislation which would prevent the implementation of these job-killing regulations posed by the EPA.

Instead of passing regulations which will simply raise energy costs and ship jobs overseas, our nation needs an “all of the above” solution to cleaning up the environment, lowering energy costs, and creating more American jobs.  We need comprehensive energy legislation which reduces our dangerous dependence on foreign energy and puts millions of Americans to work.  We must encourage innovation within the energy market to create the renewable fuel options and energy careers of tomorrow, promote greater conservation and efficiency by providing incentives for easing energy demand and creating a cleaner, more sustainable environment and increase the production of American energy by responsibly utilizing all available resources and technologies and streamlining burdensome regulations.

America’s economy is intrinsically linked to the availability and affordability of energy.  During this economic slow-down we should be adopting policies that seek to rebuild our economy and create more jobs; we need reliable and affordable energy supplies.  Unfortunately, the new regulations the EPA is pushing would only further cripple our economy.  Instead of government mandates and bureaucracy we should focus on policies that support technological advances and consumer choices.  The bottom line is that we need policies which encourage investment in environmentally sound, cost-effective practices without stifling innovation and setting our economy further back.

To contact me about this or any other matter, please visit my website at www.goodlatte.house.gov.

Have a great weekend and be back Sunday with my usual antics.

GO MARYLAND…BEAT DUKE!!

I had to mention one of the greatest ACC and college basketball rivalries in the world.  Fear the Turtle!!

MARYLAND WON 79-72!!  WOO HOO…The Terps are tied for first in the ACC!

Rangel’s problems have now left New York and traveled down to Virginia, as one of our own elected officials received money from his leadership PAC when first running for Congress. Of course, there is no mention on whether Rep. Gerry Connolly has returned the $7,000 contribution he received from Rangel or even if he would vote to remove him from the Ways and Means Committee Chairmanship. Connolly received this contribution on June 25, 2008. Perhaps, we should call Connolly and demand he return the contribution, as he is supposed to be part of the “most ethical Congress,” right?

Keith Fimian released this statement on Connolly’s refusal to give back or donate Rangel’s contributions to his campaign.

“Gerry Connolly should immediately return all funds he accepted from Rangel,” Fimian said. “As bad as it is that he is still holding onto to those tainted funds, it is even worse that Connolly voted to let Rangel off the hook for his ethical violations after having accepted campaign contributions from him in 2008. As the saying goes, money talks…and Gerry Connolly listens.”

“Aside from the campaign cash, Connolly’s vote to give Rangel a pass on his ethics violations should come as no surprise to anyone who remembers Connolly’s tenure on the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors,” Fimian said. “When it comes to ethical lapses, I have no doubt that Gerry Connolly can empathize with the situation Representative Rangel finds himself in.”