The Story
Terry McAuliffe: The Wrong Choice
I’m from Arlington, Virginia, so it probably isn’t very surprising that I’m a Democrat.
I’ve supported the obvious Gore, Kerry and Obama, but I’ve also supported Warner, Kaine and Webb. Ever since I started paying attention to politics, it seems that my party’s been on a pretty decent winning streak in Virginia.
Which is why I’m terrified of Terry McAuliffe.
Despite the fact that both of its latest governors and both of its current senators are Democrats, Virginia is still something of a purple state. As such, I don’t believe in having a governor that subscribes to either extreme.
Governors Warner and Kaine are both moderates and Senator Webb is a former Republican (the other senator being former Governor Warner). That’s how the leaders of this state should be, as we have a fairly even amount of Republicans and Democrats.
However, Terry McAuliffe is not a moderate, and even though I agree with many of his beliefs I wouldn’t want him running my state.
The other three men in the running for governorship -- Democrats Brian Moran and Creigh Deeds, and Republican Bob McDonnell -- have all held positions in the Virginia state government. They all have worked with members of the opposite party to get things done.
The only office McAuliffe has ever held was Chairman of the Democratic National Committee: the very definition of partisan politics. This doesn’t make me too hopeful about his experience working across party lines.
Even disregarding this lack of bipartisanship, note the amount of success the DNC had during McAuliffe’s 2001-2005 reign: Democrats lost seats in the House, Bush was reelected and the only big Democratic victor was, in fact, Tim Kaine.
And in his work as a consultant to presidential campaigns, McAuliffe’s record is equally shaky: he worked on Jimmy Carter’s 1980 reelection bid, Dick Gephardt’s 1988 presidential campaign, Bill Clinton’s 1996 reelection campaign and Hillary Clinton’s 2008 race.
A 25% success rate. Way to go, Terry.
But what gets me the most about McAuliffe is the obsessive and often delusional fervor he displays when he thinks he’s in the right. Throughout Hillary Clinton’s campaign, interviews of McAuliffe consisted of him repeating sound bites, then responding to any questions by screaming the sound bites at the top of his lungs.
When the campaign began to flounder, he persistently and angrily retorted that Clinton won Michigan and Florida (and later Puerto Rico.) When it was noted by whoever was interviewing McAuliffe that Obama’s name wasn’t on the Michigan ballot or that Puerto Rico had no electoral power in the actual election, McAuliffe retorted that the reporter was biased.
Even when it was clear that Obama was the victor, McAuliffe desperately attacked everyone around him with the logic that it wasn’t over until it was over.
But it was over -- far over.
The fact that he has only ever coordinated with other Democrats, paired with the vehemence displayed whenever his views were questioned, makes the idea of McAuliffe being the governor of a purple state quite worrisome.
I don’t think that Obama’s election has magically led us to a post-partisan America, but electing more moderates can certainly keep us moving in the right direction. It worries me that primaries tend to bring out the more partisan electorate; given his national fame (and national fundraising ability) and the more liberal values of Northern Virginia, it wouldn’t surprise me if McAuliffe became the Democratic nominee for governor.
And if he does, I might seriously consider voting for the other side if I find him to be more moderate.
Or, better yet, less repugnant.
Jay Lyon is an opinions contributor for The DSJ. His views do not necessarily represent those of the entire staff.