Virginian Pilot Endorses Scott Taylor and Donald McEachin

It what must be a blow to ego of the perennially worthless and rabidly anti-gay Randy Forbes, that the Virginian Pilot has endorsed his GOP primary challenger, Scott Taylor, for Virginia' 2nd Congressional district.  For the 4th District which Forbes fled after its redrawing which took away his insured re-election, the Pilot has endorsed Democrat, Donald McEachin who is a long time supporter of LGBT and women's rights. Thankfully, in the editorial, the Pilot lists out Forbes' lack of constructive legislation over his tenure.  The only thing left out of the take down is Forbes' love of and advocacy for ever right wing Christian resolution coming down the pike.   Here are editorial highlights:

When federal judges in Richmond forced a redrawing of Virginia’s eastern congressional maps, Forbes’ reliably conservative 4th Congressional District seat became demographically untenable for a man known more as a Christian social warrior than an effective lawmaker.

So Forbes decamped into the 2nd District from the 4th, where he still lives. Because the 2nd District grew more Republican in that process, the June 14 primary is likely to determine the prohibitive favorite in November.

A candidate’s physical home may matter less than it once did, but it’s not irrelevant. Neither is a candidate’s record.  On that score, Forbes’ performance in Congress has been wanting since his election in 2001. The only bill to become law under his name was the one to rename a post office.

Forbes built his current candidacy on support for the military, his membership on the Armed Services Committee, and his chairmanship of the Seapower and Projection Forces Subcommittee. But the record during his time in Congress presents its own problems.

• Naval Air Station Oceana in Virginia Beach suffered an existential threat during the 2005 Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission round because Florida was better positioned and prepared than Virginia.

• A few years later Forbes fought to give Virginia localities the right to veto a new outlying landing field for Oceana, which would’ve tied the Navy’s hands.

• In 2011, the Pentagon disestablished the Joint Forces Command in North Suffolk, a decision that damaged the region’s push to make modeling and simulation a vector for growth.

• Just last month, in an Editorial Board interview, Forbes said he now opposes drilling for oil and gas off Virginia’s coast because of Pentagon concerns. Forbes’ reversal is curious because the Pentagon has said since at least 2006 that drilling off Virginia would imperil its training mission.

If Taylor brings inexperience to the task, Forbes’ tenure doesn’t inspire confidence.

Neither does his willingness to dwell on issues that divide rather than unite, including in 2013 waging “a lengthy crusade to convince his colleagues and the National Republican Congressional Committee brass they shouldn’t back some gay candidates,” according to Politico.

The 36-year-old Taylor has vowed to avoid such distractions, and has made it a point to strive toward the kind of big tent that has been missing from too many GOP campaigns. . . . . he’s also a candidate of intellectual heft, and his relative moderation would serve the voters of the 2nd District — as did Scott Rigell’s — better than the alternative.

The 4th District, which Forbes vacated, also has decisions to make. The vacancy attracted four candidates — two Democrats, two Republicans — and the winners of this month’s primary will face off in November.

The revised 4th District is more compact than its previous incarnation, with the furthest boundary moving east. It now includes Richmond and Petersburg, which means the center of power has shifted from Hampton Roads.

On the Democratic side, state Sen. Don McEachin appears best positioned to succeed in that role. A lawyer with 16 years in the General Assembly for the people of Henrico County, McEachin has family ties to the Peninsula and experience serving a diverse constituency.

He was quick to admit that he has a learning curve when it comes to advancing issues on behalf of Hampton Roads, and it shows. Though passionate on matters of social justice, he is more tentative when asked about the military or when to deploy it.

He shows a willingness to learn, however, and his success in the legislature inspires some confidence that he has potential as a D.C. lawmaker.

Senators Adam Ebbin Donald McEachin Introduce LGBT Employment Non-Discrimination Bill in Virginia Senate

As this blog has noted numerous times in the past, LGBT Virginians currently have no employment non-discrimination protections - even if they are state employees. That's right, zero protections.  And this sad state of affairs can be attributed directly to the Virginia GOP which has slavishly followed the demands of The Family Foundation ("TFF") that LGBT Virginians be kept as less than full citizens in all ways at all times.  As explained in a press release from Equality Virginia, two Virginia senators are trying to change this shameful state of affairs.  At least for state employees.  The rest of us will remain subject to being fired at will by anti-gay bigots unless and until ENDA is enacted by Congress, something unlikely to happen thanks to the GOP controlled House of Representatives.  But back to today's events.  Here are pertinent portions of EV's press release:

When: Thursday, Jan. 17, 2013, 9:30 a.m.

Where: House Briefing Room, General Assembly Building, 1000 Bank St., Richmond, VA 23219

Who: Join Senator Adam Ebbin (D-30) and Senator Donald McEachin (D-9) with co-patrons from both chambers of the General Assembly to announce support for Senate Bill 701. Equality Virginia and community leaders in support of protecting lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender state employees will also be available for comment.

More information:

Currently there are no workplace protections at the state or federal level for sexual orientation or gender identity and expression. Consistent polling shows that 90% of Virginians believe that LGBT people should have the right to work for the government without discrimination.

In Virginia, most top private employers already extend these protections leaving state government at a competitive disadvantage. Eighty percent of Virginia’s top 25 largest private employers have policies including at least sexual orientation which helps in recruiting and retaining top talent.

Bill Description:

“Nondiscrimination in state employment. Prohibits discrimination in state employment based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, age, marital status, disability, sexual orientation, or status as a special disabled veteran or other veteran covered by the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974, as amended. The bill defines “sexual orientation” as a person’s actual or perceived heterosexuality, bisexuality, homosexuality, or gender identity or expression.”

Of course, the big question is whether or not The Family Foundation will sufficiently threaten and intimidate the political whores in the Virginia GOP to have the bill killed.