I am officially uncommitted in the 2009 gubernatorial primaries - that's for all the candidates, not just the ones running for governor. I am not yet committed for LG or AG either. And I want to be fair to everybody running. Also, I'll probably be heavier on the praise than the criticism regardless of whether I endorse or not. Besides the obvious fact that, yes, I am a political hack for the Democrats, I have no desire to see any of our candidates so bloodied in the primary that they can't compete in the general. In Virginia, more than in some other places, like the Northeast, there are stark differences between Republicans and Democrats, even the most conservative of Democrats is more mainstream than the Republicans. So, it's not hard, except in exceptional situations, to remain open to all sides in a Democratic primary.
I am impressed with Terry McAuliffe's first commercial because he's smart enough to realize that jobs and the economy are probably going to dominate most voters attentions. First, here's his ad.
Now for some commentary about the ad.
Yesterday's bad news about major companies like Caterpillar and Sprint-Nextel shedding hundreds of thousands of jobs worldwide sent shock waves across an already crumbling economy. And some of those jobs are in our region. Nobody is feeling secure right now. And when voters' pocketbooks and financial futures are being directly threatened, it sure gets their intention. Right now, Terry looks most in touch for picking that up.
To me, that fact is more important than the fact that he was the first to launch a television commercial. I agree with critics who say it's too soon. But at least he's talking about jobs in a tangible way. Green jobs are crucial to a new economy. But they seem too far away to people feeling threatened right now. Concentrating on the ports, seems to be supporting shovel ready jobs right now.
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