A Sanders Nomination Would Threaten Reelection For Luria and Spanberger

Three Virginia Democrats who could lose
their seats if Sanders wins the 2020 nomination.

In 2018 Democrats picked up three (3) congressional seats in moderate districts where the Democrat candidates ran as moderates and disavowed more extreme positions of the far left in the Party.  Now, with the potential of a Bernie Sanders nomination, all three House members are seeing their prospects for reelection threatened by the potential of a radioactive top of the ticket.  While Bernie Sanders and his followers - who seemingly have imbibed large amounts of Kool-Aid laced with a mind altering drug - remain in denial as to Sanders toxicity in many parts of the country, Democrats in touch with reality are terrified a Sanders nomination would allow Republicans to not only retain the White House and and control of the Senate but also allow the GOP to recapture the House of Representatives. It is insane to nominate a candidate whose only chance of winning is that voters might hate Trump more.  It could set the stage for a repeat of 2016 when many voters (foolishly, in my view) stayed home because they disliked both candidates. A piece in the Washington Post looks at the disaster that a Sanders nomination would be for Virginia Democrats.  Here are excerpts:

Rep. Elaine Luria (D-Va.) wasted no time in denouncing presidential candidate Bernie Sanders this week after he said he would skip the annual conference of the pro-Israel American Israel Public Affairs Committee.

“Senator Sanders’ comments only contribute to the divisive rhetoric often used when discussing the issue of Israel’s right to exist,” Luria said in a statement Tuesday that rocketed around social media.

Her swift reaction was an example of the tactics she and other centrist Democrats may use to try to steer clear of the senator from Vermont, a self-described democratic socialist, if he wins their party’s presidential nomination.

Analysts say Sanders could endanger down-ballot incumbents, especially moderates such as Luria, a Navy veteran who ousted a Republican in a swing district in 2018 and helped Democrats win control of the House.

Already, GOP candidates and groups targeting the once deep-red Virginia districts held by Luria, Rep. Abigail Spanberger and Rep. Jennifer Wexton have tried to link the freshman lawmakers to Sanders and others in the party’s left flank. Luria, who has endorsed former vice president Joe Biden, won’t risk being painted as a Sanders acolyte — especially when it comes to one of her signature issues: Israel.

In 2018, Luria, Spanberger and Wexton appealed to moderate Democrats and Republican-leaning independents by promising to work with Republicans and vote independently of their party.

Sanders, who favors starkly liberal positions such as a single-payer health-care system, free public college and a national ­$15 minimum wage, could force them to go on the defensive and undermine their efforts to win a second term.

“The Democratic nominee doesn’t matter much except if it’s Sanders,” said Rachel Bitecofer, assistant director of the Wason Center for Public Policy at Christopher Newport University in Newport News, Va.

Mark Rozell, dean of the Schar School of Policy and Government at George Mason University, said Spanberger and Luria have the most to lose with Sanders at the top of the ticket. Sanders plans to barnstorm Virginia ahead of the primary, with rallies in Richmond on Thursday as well as in Wexton’s hometown of Leesburg and Virginia Beach, in Luria’s district, on Saturday.

“The voters in their district turned Democrat because each of them ran as political centrists,” Rozell said. “But the voters could turn right back again if they perceive that the Democratic Party is captured by the ideological extreme wing.”

[T]he National Republican Congressional Committee is already taunting her [Luria] about Sanders, asking in a mass email Tuesday: “Is she ready to reverse course and refuse to support the socialist and upset her socialist base?”

Spanberger and Wexton have not made endorsements in the presidential contest and have no plans to at the moment. Spanberger, a former CIA officer, said she has already cast her absentee ballot; she declined to reveal her choice or rule anyone out.

Rob Jones, one of several Republicans vying to challenge Wexton in November, suggested last week that because Wexton often votes the same way as Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), a top Sanders surrogate, Wexton must support Sanders.

Wexton balked at that logic, and said: “I will not be supporting Bernie Sanders in this primary.” She said she favors a candidate who will work to lower health-care costs, reduce gun violence, strengthen the middle class and bolster the federal workforce.

In 2018, Wexton defeated the Republican incumbent Barbara Comstock, who Rozell noted was in a similar bind when it came to Trump. Comstock disavowed Trump, who was deeply unpopular in Virginia, and even called for him to drop out of the 2016 presidential race after the disclosure of the 2005 video of him making lewd comments and bragging about groping women.

“He [Trump] wins, she loses,” Rozell said. “Remarkable.”

On Super Tuesday, I urge voters to vote for anyone but Sanders.  Sanders must be stopped at all cost.  #neverSanders.

Virginia Re-elects Kaine, Throws Out Three Republicans

Virginia continues its transformation into a blue state as Tim Kaine handily defeats GOP extremist and Neo-Confederate Corey Stewart and three Republican members of Congress go down to defeat.  Elaine Luria sent Donald Trump puppet Scott Taylor into retirement, pro-Trump David Brat lost to Abigail Spanberger, a former CIA officer, and Jennifer Wexton utterly crushed Barbara Comstock.  Following the calls to racism and  trends of other recent elections, Virginia's cities and suburbs voted heavily Democrat while its increasingly out of touch with reality, backwater rural regions voted against their own long term economic interest and allowed themselves to be duped by GOP calls to racism and hatred of others.  Thankfully, Virginia's urban and suburban areas - the economic dynamo of Virginia's economy - reject GOP efforts to create a new Gilded Age filled with discrimination and bigotry.  Here are highlights from the Virginian Pilot:

Virginia voters reproached President Donald Trump for the second year in row as Democrats flipped three congressional races and scored a convincing victory in a U.S. Senate race.

Democrats won GOP-held districts in Northern Virginia, Hampton Roads and the Richmond area, boosted by suburban voters unhappy with the president. The Virginia victories helped put Democrats on track to take control of the U.S. House.  All three Democratic congressional victories were by women, two of whom are new to politics.

"We succeeded at the polls tonight because voters rejected the politics of hate, the politics of division and the politics of ideology," said Abigail Spanberger, a former CIA officer.  She knocked off Republican Dave Brat in a Richmond-area district. Brat was a tea party favorite who scored a major upset four years ago when he defeated then-U.S. Majority Leader Eric Cantor in a GOP primary.

In Hampton Roads, Elaine Luria defeated Republican Rep. Scott Taylor. Luria, a former Navy commander, had never run for office before, like Spanberger. A former Navy SEAL, Taylor was viewed by many as up and comer in the GOP who had potential for future statewide run.

Republican Rep. Barbara Comstock, another rising star in the GOP, lost her Northern Virginia seat to state Sen. Jennifer Wexton.

Democrats controlled only four out of 11 congressional seats in Virginia prior to Tuesday. Now they are set to control seven seats to the GOP's four.

The strong showing by Democrats highlights Virginia's continued dislike of the president, particularly among suburban voters. Virginia served as an early indicator for anti-Trump energy during its 2017 race for governor. Democrats trounced Republicans in all three statewide races and won more seats in the state House than virtually anyone expected.

Health care and immigration were top issues in voters' mind in this election, according to a wide-ranging survey of the electorate. And nearly 7 in 10 voters said Trump was a reason for their vote.

One bright spot for Republicans was Denver Riggleman, who won an open seat in central Virginia against Democrat Leslie Cockburn in a district that Trump won by 11 percentage points.

With Corey Stewart's huge loss to Tim Kaine, one has to wonder when the Virginia Republicans will decide to come into the 21st century and stop nominating lunatic Neanderthals. 

Virginian Pilot Endorses Tim Kaine, Elaine Luria and Donald McEachin

Elaine Luria and Tim Kaine - the best choices on November 6, 2018

While be too soft on why Scott Taylor is not acceptable for re-election to the House of Delegates for the 2nd Congressional District, the Virginia Pilot nonetheless went on to endorse Tim Kaine, Elaine Luria and Donald McEachin for the U.S. Senate, 2nd congressional district, and 4th congressional district, respectively. In the case of the Republican candidates for Senate seat and the 4th congressional district, the Pilot properly notes that the GOP candidates are right wing whack jobs who would not properly represent the interests of Virginia and the 4th district.  In the case of the 2nd district, the Pilot correctly notes that Luria is the better candidate, particularly in light of Taylor's staff's involvement in felony level fraud in seeking to keep Shaun Brown on the ballot to split the non-Republican vote. Taylor's blatant dishonesty on his voting history and his unbelievable claims of ignorance about the effort to put Shaun Brown on the ballot in my view, disqualify him from re-election.  The following are excerpts from the Pilot editorial endorsements: 

 2nd Congressional District:

Taylor's opponent, [Elaine] Luria, also is a Navy veteran of 20 years, and a small business owner in Norfolk. She has never held elected office, but she seems to have a good sense of the district’s concerns, particularly when it comes to health care, the protection of social safety net programs, and the needs of veterans.

Taylor has tried through advertising to paint her as an acolyte of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, but Luria projects as a centrist Democrat, which is keeping in line with the moderate electorate in the 2nd District. And her insistence on improving the way Washington works — improving the process by which Congress governs — is an issue with particular resonance in a place that depends so much on federal budgeting and spending.

Both Taylor and Luria are capable candidates, and both could represent the district well. But Taylor’s involvement in the cynical effort to place Brown on the ballot, his inability to account fully for the behavior of his staff and his lack of understanding of how his decisions raise legitimate questions about judgment and trust is a disqualifying offense.

Voters can be confident that by replacing him with Luria, they will be in good hands for the next two years.

4th Congressional District: 

Democratic incumbent Rep. Don McEachin . . . . remains the best candidate, as his opponents cannot make a compelling case to replace him. 

Libertarian Pete Wells is a well meaning and earnest candidate, but he lacks detailed knowledge of the issues facing the district.

And Republican Ryan McAdams might have enjoyed a turn in the spotlight when Vice President Mike Pence came to campaign for him recently, but his refusal to endorse the science of climate change — along with his endorsement of the U.S. withdrawal from the Paris accord and his belief that carbon might not be the cause of global warming, in opposition to countless scientific studies over decades — is unacceptable in a district where sea-level rise is an existential threat.

The 4th District needs McEachin to be a more familiar face in Hampton Roads — but it needs him to be the representative, above all.

U.S. Senate:

Finally, for U.S. Senate, incumbent Democrat Tim Kaine faces Republican challenger Corey Stewart and Libertarian Matt Waters in what should be a straightforward choice for Virginians.

Voters might not know Waters, who is running a lightly funded, almost Republican-lite campaign on his party’s ticket. But they are probably by now familiar with the bombastic Stewart, the chairman of the Prince William Board of County Supervisors.

He came to statewide attention in 2016 as the chairman, for a time, of the Donald Trump campaign in Virginia before last year mounting an unsuccessful campaign for the Republican gubernatorial nomination.

His time in the spotlight has done little to make him a palatable option to represent Virginia. The Minnesota native seized on the issue of preserving Confederate statues as a path to political relevance and has worked in the year since to distance himself from Jason Kessler, organizer of the “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, with whom Stewart appeared at a different 2017 rally.

In contrast with his GOP opponent, Kaine has conducted himself as a senator with the type of affable, common-sense professionalism that distinguished his four years as governor and his time as mayor of Richmond before that.

The 2016 Democratic Party nominee for vice president has been a pointed voice in favor of reasserting congressional authority on military engagement and on behalf of service members, veterans and their families, a great many of whom live and work in this region.

A former civil rights lawyer, Kaine advances policies promoting diversity and inclusion, rather than pushing the politics of division and bringing more anger into the public square. And he helped lead the effort to thwart repeal of the Affordable Care Act, the mechanism by which some 400,000 Virginians will soon have access to coverage through Medicaid expansion.

The Daily Press likewise endorsed Tim Kaine here.

Don't Fall for GOP Claims on Protections for Preexisting Conditions

At times I am amazed at how stupid Republicans think the public is when it comes to believing their lies.  True. with Trump supporters, especially evangelical Christians who tend to be the least educated segment of society, there is a high level of stupidity, some fueled by intellectual laziness and some spurred by racism to which the GOP has played ever since the rise of Richard Nixon's "southern strategy."  But when it comes to health care - especially maintaining protections for preexisting conditions - anyone paying any attention can see that the rhetoric that one is hearing from Republican congressional candidates is 180 degrees the opposite of the votes and actions over the last two years.  For example, how can one be a champion of protecting preexisting conditions (as claimed by Republican Senate candidate Josh Hawley who hopes to unseat Democrat Claire McCaskill) while in charge of a state filed lawsuit seeking to end those very protections.  Locally, the same holds true for Rep. Scott Taylor who is singing one line now, but voted very differently.  A piece in the Washington Post looks at GOP lies which are in high gear as election day approaches.  Here are excerpts:

What began over the summer as a halfhearted attempt by Republicans to push back against Democratic attacks on the issue of health care has exploded into a full-throated reversal of their positions, particularly on protections for sick Americans.

In Missouri, Republican Senate candidate Josh Hawley has been hammered by the woman he hopes to unseat, Democrat Claire McCaskill, for being among the attorneys general who have asked a federal court to render unconstitutional the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare, which compelled insurance companies to cover those with preexisting conditions.

“You don’t go to court and get rid of important protections when there is no backup, when people will be in a free fall,” McCaskill said in a debate Thursday night.

In Texas, where he is trying to beat back a well-financed challenge by Democratic Rep. Beto O’Rourke, Sen. Ted Cruz said in a debate Tuesday that he would “protect preexisting conditions.” Cruz forced a government shutdown in 2013 over his effort to repeal Obamacare. In a House race in California, Republican Rep. Dana Rohrabacher is, like Hawley, using his child’s illness to attest to his embrace of protections for preexisting conditions, even though he repeatedly voted to quash the Obamacare bill that first secured them.

Democrats and health-care specialists say that the proposals being put forward by Republicans contain exemptions that mean the sick would not be fully protected or would be charged exorbitant rates for coverage, as they were before the ACA became law.

Still, the sudden scramble by Republicans underscores the speed with which voters have also reversed themselves on the most popular provisions of the act, even as Republicans worked relentlessly to repeal them. It also raises a political irony: The same issue that gave birth to the tea party and propelled Republicans to power in the 2010 midterm elections could cost them dearly eight years later.

Republicans appeared to have been caught flat-footed about the change in voter opinion about insurance coverage, which has been cited by voters in multiple polls this year as the issue they care most about.

[A]s the GOP shifted its focus to tax cuts — which have not gained traction among voters — Democrats built an entire midterm campaign strategy around preserving the law’s most popular provision.

The actions of Republicans, including the president, before this election year have not matched their rhetoric over the past few weeks.  For more than eight years, their greatest and most unifying party rallying cry has been repealing Obamacare.

Trump also has bragged repeatedly about his administration’s many steps to undermine the law and water down protections, even as his administration has refused to defend any part of the law against the lawsuit filed by Republican attorneys general. “I think the big issue is the brazenness [with] which this mantle is being put on to say this is something they’ve always supported,” said Sabrina Corlette, professor of health policy at Georgetown University.  Most health-policy experts say the Republican position is contradictory because without a replacement plan in place, people with past or existing illnesses would lose the protections they have now.

“The irony is that what allowed the House to pass [the repeal bill] was a proposal to weaken protections for preexisting conditions. This was not an obscure part of the debate,” said Larry Levitt, senior vice president for health reform at the Kaiser Family Foundation.

If you care about health care coverage - and Social Security and Medicare - the only option is to vote Democrat on November 6, 2018.  Do not fall for the GOP lies.  

Polls: Rep. Scott Taylor Falling Behind Elaine Luria

Scott Taylor's campaign's sleazy - and illegal - effort to place Shaun Brown on the November ballot as an independent candidate for Virginia's 2nd Congressional District seems to be blowing up in Taylor's face in the wake of media coverage of the forged signatures and irregularities in how signatures were gathered to place Brown on the ballot.  Yes, there are many other reasons to oppose Taylor, not the least being his lock step voting with Donald Trump and the GOP vulture capitalist and tax cuts for the wealthy agenda. But the entire Brown affair reveals just how morally bankrupt - and incredibly arrogant - Taylor is in reality. As for some in the LGBT community who support Taylor for his supposed support for the LGBT community - frankly, I suspect their support is more motivated by political aspirations of their own - the truth is that the pro-LGBT legislation Taylor sponsored in Congress had no chance in Hell of passage (a fact known to Taylor) and, therefore, was little more than a ploy to dupe members of the LGBT community into shortsightedly supporting him.   A piece in Roll Call looks at Taylor's much deserved sinking prospects.  Here are highlights:

Democrat Elaine Luria led Rep. Scott Taylor by 8 points in Virginia’s 2nd District amid lingering questions about the Republican lawmaker’s role in a ballot signature scandal, according to an internal poll released by Luria’s campaign Tuesday.

The survey, conducted by Garin-Hart-Yang Research Group, gave the Navy veteran a 51 percent to 43 percent lead over Taylor. A June survey by the same firm showed her trailing by 4 points, the campaign said.

Luria’s campaign credited her lead partly to the alleged scheme to submit fraudulent qualifying petitions to help independent candidate Shaun Brown make the ballot — an apparent attempt to siphon support from Luria.

“While voters in the district have been bombarded by coverage of the election fraud scandal surrounding Congressman Scott Taylor, we have remained focused on sharing Luria’s record of service to her country and community,” Luria campaign manager Kathryn Sorenson said.  “This is a swing district, and we are going to fight for every vote between now and Election Day.”

A special prosecutor is investigating four of Taylor’s campaign staffers for allegedly forging dozens of signatures on Brown’s behalf.

A Richmond, Virginia, circuit court judge ordered Brown’s name removed from the ballot Sept. 5 after finding the petitions she submitted were “rife with errors, inconsistencies, and forgeries.” The Virginia Supreme Court last week dismissed Brown’s appeal.

The Democratic Party of Virginia, which filed the original lawsuit in August to kick Brown off the ballot, has accused Taylor of helping Brown, his 2016 Democratic opponent, in a backdoor maneuver to split the Democratic vote.  Taylor has denied those claims.

Make sure you are registered to vote and, if you live in the 2nd District, get out and vote for Elaine Luria on election day.  If you live outside of the 2nd District, make sure you are registered and vote for every Democrat on the ballot on election day. 

Scott Taylor Staffers Submitted 4 Dead People, 59 Fraudulent Signatures

I first met Scott Taylor at a Hampton Roads Pride launch event when he was - in my view - pandering to LGBT voters and claiming to be "LGBT friendly," a pretense he has continued.  At the time, I had a hard to define reaction that Taylor was a bit off and not necessarily genuine.  Nonetheless, I backed Taylor over Randy Forbes, a former law school classmate who had become a Christian zealot over the intervening years and supportive of endless anti-gay efforts.   I figured Taylor was the lesser of the two evils.  Fast forward to today, and Taylor has largely marched lock step with the Trump/Pence, the most anti-LGBT regime in decades which is actively undermining LGBT rights and rescinding LGBT non-discrimination protections.   Now, the unease I felt about Taylor has been quantified by the ongoing scandal over the fraudulent signatures collected by Taylor's campaign staffers to put Shaun Brown on the November ballot as an independent candidate for Taylor's congressional seat.  The obvious goal: to drain votes from Taylor's Democrat challenger, Elaine Luria.  The Virginian Pilot looks at the deepening scandal.  Here are some tawdry details:

The problem was that Floyd Newkirk died in 2016 at the age of 83, according to his obituary. He was a retired Marine, Korean War veteran and long-distance truck driver. Eddie Newkirk was disheartened to hear that his deceased father’s name was used for political gain. “I’m not surprised,” he said. “But I’m disappointed that someone would stoop to that level.”

The elder Newkirk was one of four Virginia Beach men who had died in recent years but whose names appeared on the petitions. The others were Hugh Doy, Melvin Chittum and R. Stuart Cake.

A team of reporters from The Virginian-Pilot conducted a two-week investigation of Brown’s petition signatures, trying to contact each voter listed on the dozens of pages submitted by five people paid by Taylor’s campaign.  The Pilot reached 115 of the 584 people listed – or a family member – by phone.

Of those reached, 51 people – including several local Republican politicians – acknowledged signing the petition. Six others weren’t sure whether they did.  But 59 – more than half of those reached – declared the signatures to be fraudulent.

Some of the fake entries contained misspelled names. Others included an outdated address next to the name. One person was in the hospital being treated for throat cancer on the day he was reported to have signed. Another said she was out of town attending a graduation ceremony.

Many of those named were elderly people, including Floyd Felten of Virginia Beach, whose name also was misspelled. Felten’s daughter, Carol Campbell, said she’s sure that her father didn’t sign. “He’s 102,” Campbell said. “He really can’t sign his name that well.”

Most of those who said they didn’t sign had no idea how their names ended up on the petitions. Some said they were Taylor supporters or Republicans, had given money to Taylor’s campaign, were on an email list for him or had agreed to put his campaign signs in their yards.

Most of the signatures submitted by the Taylor supporters were obtained during a two-day blitz on June 8 and 9, just days before the June 12 filing deadline.

Brown, a Hampton businesswoman who ran as a Democrat against Taylor in 2016, has said she didn’t know that Taylor staffers were collecting signatures for her. She faces trial in October on charges that she defrauded the federal government through a summer meal program for children. She was tried on the charges in federal court earlier this month, but the case ended with a hung jury. She did not return a call from The Pilot seeking comment for this story.

The Pilot found five people associated with Taylor’s campaign listed as being among the circulators of the petitions: Heather Guillot, Lauren Creekmore, Roberta Marciano, Daniel Bohner and Nicholas Hornung.

Federal Election Commission records show that Creekmore, Marciano and Hornung each received payments from Taylor’s campaign this year that were listed as payroll disbursements. Creekmore received five payments totaling $6,036; Marciano got three for $3,097; and Hornung got two for a total of $2,041, the records show.

Guillot, who served as chief of staff and campaign manager for former Republican state Del. Rocky Holcomb, had the most that were questioned – 29 reported as fraudulent. She also was the only one who had the names of dead people listed on her submitted petitions.  Thirteen people claimed that signatures submitted by Marciano were forged, and 12 said the same about signatures handed in by Creekmore.

Taylor spokesman Scott Weldon refused to say whether any of them were still associated with the campaign.

Before submitting petitions to get Brown on the November ballot, workers were required to sign an affidavit on the back of each page.  They promised that they had witnessed the signature of each person named on the document. They also acknowledged that breaking this promise would make them guilty of a felony, punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a $2,500 fine. Each affidavit also had to be notarized.

If the prosecutor determines there’s enough evidence to support charges in the case, they likely would include felonies such as filing false statements or perjury, said Matthew Shapanka, an attorney in Washington, D.C., who specializes in political law.

Among those who acknowledged signing the petitions were numerous employees of the Virginia Beach Sheriff’s Office, a detail first reported by the Richmond Times-Dispatch.  The Pilot’s investigation found 52 sheriff’s employees listed on petitions submitted by Taylor’s campaign staff. . . . they were passed around during the workday by members of his staff, not the Taylor campaign members who signed affidavits on those pages.

If that’s the case, then those 52 signatures also were obtained illegally, said Rebecca Green, a professor at the College of William & Mary’s law school who runs the election law program.

Taylor's feigned lack of knowledge defies belief. Sadly, Taylor has shown that he is not only only too willing to dupe LGBT voters, but he seeming also subscribes to the morally bankrupt standards of Trump.  Taylor needs to be voted out of office in November. 

Scott Taylor Paid to Get Failed Democrat Candidate on Ballot as "Independent"

Scott Taylor and his apparent role model, Donald Trump

I have made no secret of the fact that I want to see GOP Congressman Scott Taylor defeated this November and replaced by an individual who will not vote for Donald Trump's agenda roughly 98% of the time.  Now, Taylor, whose chances of re-election have been re-categorized as a "toss up"  has been exposed of engaging in dirty tricks and deceptive acts in  what can only be deemed an act of desperation given his seemingly declining re-election hopes. As the Virginian Pilot is reporting, Taylor paid his campaign workers to assist a failed Democrat primary candidate, Shaun Brown, who is facing charges of defrauding the federal government on the ballot for November as an independent.  The obvious goal - peeling off votes from his Democrat challenger, Elaine Luria.  Dirty tricks and corruption are one of the leading problems with Congress and by this action, Taylor has shown that he is indeed part of the problem and willing to engage in fraud and deception.  Here are highlights from the Pilot: 

Four of U.S. Rep. Scott Taylor’s paid campaign workers gathered more than half the signatures needed to assure Shaun Brown a spot on the November ballot as she faced charges of defrauding the federal government.

Brown, who had originally sought the Democratic nomination to challenge Taylor, is now running as an independent against Taylor, seeking to represent the Williamsburg-to-Eastern Shore 2nd Congressional District. Norfolk business-owner Elaine Luria is the Democratic candidate.

The staff members’ efforts were first reported by WHRO-FM radio, which obtained the records through a Freedom of Information Act request and are published on its website.

Stephen Farnsworth, a political scientist at the University of Mary Washington, said the Taylor campaign’s work was most likely an effort to split the vote against him.

“The first rule of politics is to figure out a way to divide your opposition,” Farnsworth said. “It’s one of the oldest tricks in the book …

Brown was still pushing hard on deadline day to nail down enough signatures – she herself gathered more than 50 that day, the elections department records show.

Federal Election Commission records, meanwhile, show that Taylor’s four staff members – Lauren Creekmore, Roberta Marciano, Nicholas Hornung and Heather Guillot – were each paid more than $1,200 the week after turning in the signatures.

Asked if Taylor was aware of what the four were doing, spokesman Scott Weldon replied: “Yep, of course he knew.”

Brown, who was charged in December with defrauding the federal government, had originally planned to run as a Democrat. But after the Democratic Congressional Campaign Commission endorsed Luria, a Norfolk business owner, Brown began gathering signatures in May, seeking a place on the ballot as an independent. Luria campaign manager Kathryn Sorenson issued a statement Wednesday afternoon:

“Dirty and deceptive politics like this are exactly why Washington is broken and people are losing faith in their government. Clearly, Scott Taylor is terrified and willing to do anything to avoid going head to head with Commander Luria.”

Brown’s trial on charges of defrauding the government by overstating the number of meals her nonprofit agency distributed under a federal summer program for young people goes to a jury this week.

In a court filing for the case, prosecutors said they have evidence Brown lied to an investor while seeking funds for that agency, and that she falsified campaign finance filed with the Federal Elections Commission.

Lies, questionable morality, and loyalty to Trump define Taylor.  If you live in the 2nd Congressional District, vote for Luria in November and send Taylor into forced retirement.

Corey Stewart Could Endanger Other Virginia Republicans

As a former Republican and activist within the Republican Party of Virginia, the selection of Corey Stewart as the party senate nominee underscores the sad reality that the Virginia GOP has become as insane as a rabid dog. As recently as 15-20 years ago, Stewart would have been hard put to be elected to a a city or county committee.  Back then, of course, moderates were still the norm within the Party.  Now, with evangelical Christian extremists and white supremacists (the two groups are difficult to differentiate) controlling the base, insanity and bigotry are the norm.  One can only hope that Stewart goes down to a horrific defeat and kills the delusional myth that Republicans have not won statewide office in Virginia for nearly a decade because their candidates were "too liberal."  Two pieces look at the likely consequences of Stewart's selection.  One is found in Bearing Drift, a conservative site, which argues there is no conservative case for supporting Stewart and refers to Stewart as the "Gauleiter of Prince William County" (for Fox News viewers, "gauleiter" is a political official governing a district under Nazi rule), and the other is in the New York Times.  First highlights from Bearing Drift:

Back in February 2014, I penned a piece warning about the rise of the nativist alt-right in Republican politics. . . . The Republican Party of Virginia . . . . has descended into a parody of itself, finally lifting from the dust the battle standard of Massive Resistance and waving it proudly in the hands of one man: Corey Stewart.

Let us be clear where things stand.  Our chairman, John Whitbeck, is best known for his jokes about Jewish people at party gatherings.  For an unprecedented 11 times, Whitbeck defended Fredy Burgos, a man whose anti-Semtism and fondness for Augusto Pinochet were abundantly clear, but never worthy of countenance until this publication forced his hand.  Yet while removed by State Central Committee by a margin so close as to be an embarrassment unto itself, Burgos was in fact rewarded for his troubles, earning a role as vice chairman of the Fairfax GOP, a full 1/8th of the Commonwealth of Virginia.

The litany of stupid and the obtuse only becomes worse.  The current executive director proudly boasts of how Governor Northam has betrayed his “heritage” on social media and openly shares material from known alt-right operatives.  . . . members and activists have abandoned the party in droves.

It gets worse.  Proudly, the alt-right brags about electing two Republican congressmen (Brat and Garrett), proudly they take photos next to our candidates pledging themselves to their cause (Stewart), and the mewling from erstwhile conservatives in protest is barely audible — protecting access to power over their own conscience, excusing weakness for prudence.  It’s folly.

In 1993 nearly 25 years ago.  Back then, the Republican Party was the party of free minds, free ideas, and a free society.  Free speech was sacrosanct; free trade was the pillar that destroyed Soviet communism.  Around it all was a wholesale commitment to family and the American entrepreneurial spirit — that equality of outcome could never be guaranteed, but equality of opportunity was our first and foremost responsibility as a polity. So when is it enough? Was it enough when in 2014 Dave Brat abased himself before the likes of Breitbart.com — the self-declared mouthpiece of the alt-right?  Was it enough when the alt-right spiked the football in 2016 with cries of “Hail Trump!” as they celebrated their election night win?  Was it enough when in 2017 they earned invitations to town halls in Charlottesville?  Was it enough when three people — two of whom were Virginia State Troopers — died during the August 2017 alt-right rallies in Charlottesville?

Is it enough now when their groomed and chosen candidate — financed by the likes of Chris Ekstrom and run by Rick Shaftan — rides the wave of white nationalism?  To a party nomination contest?  And wins?

Let’s be clear about what happened.  The future of the Republican Party of Virginia fought the past, and lost. 

For 25 years, I have believed — perhaps erroneously — that the Republican Party was the best home for my beliefs as a conservative, as a Virginian, and as a Catholic. With the nomination of Corey Stewart?  That is now an impossibility.

[W]hatever the threat political socialism presents to the American republic, the answer cannot, is not, and never will be white nationalism.  My children deserve a better future than this; their children deserve a better future.  If the great story of America is to be abruptly ended in a syrup of debt and moral relativism, I would much rather go down standing athwart history yelling STOP! rather than participate in the moral contagion of a once great party. [W]e are watching in real time as the party of freedom descends into a party of rank and bitter nationalism. . . . So unless you stand up and do something now? Get used to this sound and become comfortable with its grip.  It will have you and the people you love by the throat soon enough.

The sound referred to is a clip of a Hitler Youth singing "The World Belongs to Me."  I suspect many more will be exiting from the Republican Party of Virginia.

The piece in the New York Times looks at Stewart's ugly history and the possible reverberations for others on the GOP ticket in November.  Here are excerpts:

He [Corey Stewart] once stood proudly before a Confederate flag, declaring it was not a symbol of hatred, but “about our heritage.” After the march of torch-carrying white supremacists in Charlottesville last year, which led to the death of a counterprotester, he criticized “weak Republicans” who “couldn’t apologize fast enough.”

As officials around Virginia have grappled with whether to remove Confederate statues, he has compared those politicians to leaders of the Islamic State. Now Corey Stewart, a county official who for years has played to the hard-right fringe, captured the Republican nomination for Senate in Virginia.

He did so in a low-turnout primary on Tuesday when many centrist Republicans apparently stayed home, unhappy with a three-way race among candidates all professing strong loyalty to President Trump and given to fiery culture war pronouncements.

[Stewart] received a congratulatory overnight tweet from the president, who called Mr. Stewart’s Democratic opponent, Senator Tim Kaine, “a total stiff.”

Tellingly, though, the National Republican Senatorial Committee, the party’s campaign arm, said it would not support Mr. Stewart, who lags far behind Mr. Kaine in fund-raising and has a history of cozying up to white supremacists and anti-Semites that threatens to make him an albatross for down-ballot Republicans. . . . The real worry for national Republicans — and the hope for Democrats — is that Mr. Stewart’s nomination may cost some incumbent Republicans in Virginia their seats in Congress.

“For the G.O.P. candidates in the down-ballot House races in Virginia, having Stewart on the ticket is going to be a very tough challenge,” said Mark Rozell, dean of the Schar School of Policy and Government at George Mason University. “Somehow they will need to separate themselves from the more extreme elements of his message, while at the same time not alienating the Trump Republicans whose votes will be needed.”

Virginia Democrats quickly moved to join Mr. Stewart at the hip to other Republicans in competitive House races.  “There is no place to hide — you are either running with Corey Stewart and you condone his vile politics, or you don’t,” said Susan Swecker, the state Democratic chairwoman.

Mr. Stewart could especially hurt Representative Barbara Comstock, a Republican defending a seat in affluent Northern Virginia that is emblematic of how the state has been shifted from its once-fixed Republican moorings by an influx of immigrants and college-educated professionals.

The center of gravity for the Republican Party in the state has shifted “from the country club to the country,” as one Republican strategist, Tom Davis, put it.  “Every candidate will be asked if they support Stewart,” said Mr. Davis, a former congressman from Virginia. “This is more nuanced than the media would have you believe, but in high-education areas, it is a killer.”
 If the turnout pattern repeats in November, at least two other Republican House members besides Ms. Comstock could also be in trouble: Dave Brat and Scott Taylor. “Stewart’s fearmongering and division-sowing campaign will turn many Virginians to the Democratic ticket,” said Schuyler VanValkenburg, a Democratic state legislator who lives in Mr. Brat’s district, the Seventh.

Mr. Taylor, a former Navy SEAL who represents the Second District, centered on Virginia Beach, will face Elaine Luria, a former Navy commander.  “My opponent will either embrace Corey Stewart, be silent or distance himself from him,” Ms. Luria said in an interview. “Virginia favors equality, diversity and economic opportunity for all. Corey Stewart’s race-baiting rhetoric is offensive to everybody in Virginia.”

In January 2017, Mr. Stewart met with and praised Paul Nehlen, an outspoken anti-Semite who is now making his second run for Congress in Wisconsin. Mr. Stewart was also endorsed last year by the white nationalist Jason Kessler, who later helped organize the deadly white supremacist rally in Charlottesville.

It is pitiful - and frightening - what the Republican Party of Virginia has become.