Virginia's 11th, 2010

I live in Virginia's 11th Congressional District, where the Republican primary is scheduled for June 8.  I have ample reason to be interested in this fact.  VA-11 is currently represented in Congress by the most contemptibly liberal Democrat you could imagine - Gerry Connolly.  Mr. Connolly is a freshman Representative who richly deserves to be recognized with the "one and done" award come November.

1)  First and foremost, he has a 100% Pelosi Index.

2)  He's also careless about his political associations with America's avowed enemies.

3)  And at his contemptible worst, he actually tried to have an elderly constituent arrested by the Capitol police during the peaceful November 5 Emergency House Call rally.

In short, Connolly is the very embodiment of the mindlessly ideological Progressive technocrat that was swept into office in 2008.  Connolly has to go, and I want to make sure his general election opponent is the best possible choice to send him packing.

As I have made clear during this blog project, I am philosophically conservative with strong libertarian leanings, and I have voted (R) all of my adult voting life.  But make no mistake, the voting pattern is simply a pragmatic response to the voting options that have been placed before me in each cycle at each location.  For example, had I been an adult at the time, I'm certain I would have voted James Buckley over Jacob Javits for NY Senator in '68.  More recently, I would have enthusiastically voted Doug Hoffman in NY-23, had I been eligible in that district.

I think I have also clearly (or "transparently" if you prefer) stated my opinion that the best 2010 electoral strategy for the great American Conservative majority (or TEA Party patriots, if you prefer) is to support the most solidly conservative candidate in each district; whether the party label be Republican, TEA, or Independent.  (Conservative Democrat became an extinct species around approximately 1972.)

So, what are my options this time?  Not bad, actually.  The Republican primary is a two man race between two guys who seem to be competing for the vote of guys like me.  The contestants are Keith Fimian (who lost to Connolly in the 2008 Progressive wave) and Pat Herrity (a local county supervisor).

They are remarkably similar in their policy positions.  Most importantly to me, both have pledged to repeal ObamaCare.  They also both present themselves as tax cutters (although this conservative blogger points out a contradiction in Herrity's record.)  Fimian is running as the "outsider" businessman with no previous political background.  But he was nominated by the party in 2008. Herrity may be the GOP insider's candidate in 2010, he's got more elected pol endorsements on his official site.   Neither candidate is anywhere near being able to match Connolly's fundraising war chest.

I don't know yet who I will vote for in the primary.  Perhaps one or the other will self-disqualify himself with a stupid ad that ticks me off.  We'll see.

But this much I am sure of:  I will vote for the winner of this primary in the general, and the loser in the primary had better not pull a Charley Crist in the general.  The objective in 2010 is to save the republic from contemptible Progressive ideologues like Connolly, and I will never forgive any Republican who puts personal gain ahead of the republic.

Update May 2, 2010: Just Because My Telephone Is a Camera Too