McEachin earlier this month in the Democratic response to the State of the Commonwealth address correctly observed that Gov. Bob McDonnell wants to shift general-fund money from education to transportation by raising the earmark percentage on sales taxes for transportation, costing schools $165 million once Bob's plan is fully implemented.
However, in the same statement, McEachin claimed, "Overall in this, [Bob's] first budget, the governor is cutting pre-K and K-through-12 education by hundreds of millions of dollars." Well, this earned McEachin a False rating from PolitiFact Virginia on Thursday, the third False/Pants on Fire rating in a row for the commonwealth – that's bipartisanship you can count on.
The fact-checkers pointed out that Bob's two-year budget calls for a $500 million increase in education. The Virginia Senate Democratic Caucus said that since Bob wants localities to pitch in more for teacher's pensions, that money is being diverted away from education purposes. Yet, even when subtracting what would go to pensions, Bob's plan would still allot $155 million more for education.
PolitiFact points out that even if some localities choose to cut education spending, they also have the option of raising taxes or cutting non-education spending to follow state mandates.
Stay tuned: PolitiFact said it'll now investigate McEachin's claim that Bob's budget cuts pre-kindergarten programs.
The Richmond Times-Dispatch on Wednesday rounded up many congressional Virginians' responses to the address, with Republican responses being usual (for either party) backhanded partisan comments: Majority Leader Eric Cantor rehashed his lie that the stimulus failed, Rep. Scott Rigell flashed the class warfare card, Rep. Rob Wittman doesn't like raising taxes on the rich, and so on.
Congressman Forbes, on the other hand, seems to have lost his groove:
"Hardworking American taxpayers rise early and go to bed late. I'm sure they are angry with Washington speechwriters who talk about bringing new values to government. Values that can regulate light bulbs, but cannot regulate government spending. Values that ban prayer and faith from public places. Values that talk about jobs, but only manufacture regulation and red tape. These hardworking taxpayers know that America can and will be rebuilt, but they believe it should not be rebuilt on their backs, but by their hands."For all you people who get the recommended seven hours of sleep, you're not working hard enough!
Randy's comments on light bulbs is a reference to the Light Bulb Freedom of Choice Act, a tea party bill meant to repeal part of an energy bill signed by raging liberal George W. Bush in 2007 that requires incandescent bulbs to be 30% more efficient. Never mind that General Electric and the National Electrical Manufacturers Association support the efficiency standards, and the greener light bulbs will save the country $12.5 billion a year.
But on a larger point, Randy picked up on Texas Gov. Rick Perry's meme that the government is trying to stamp out religion in the public sphere. This is the same man who embarrassed an already-historically unpopular Congress by proposing a resolution in fall to reaffirm that "In God We Trust" is the national motto.
What the federal government or Obama administration have done to "ban prayer and faith from public places" is a curious accusation. But compared to other nations, public faith and worship seem pretty idyllic in America.
An Indonesian atheist was charged this month with blasphemy for writing "God does not exist" on a Facebook page; he faces five years in prison. In theocratic Saudi Arabia, it is illegal for non-Muslims to practice their religion publicly. In communist China, only state-sanctioned "patriotic religious associations" are protected under the constitution, and all proselytizing in public is outlawed. Baha'is are the largest religious non-Muslim minority in theocratic Iran, but because their faith is not recognized by the constitution, they are not allowed to practice their religion, serve in government or military leadership roles, inherit property, or attend college.
If Randy wants to know what real religious oppression in public is like, he can see for himself by visiting one of those countries, preferably with a one-way plane ticket.
Some of Bob's greatest hits include saying that children born with a handicap is divine punishment for the mother having an abortion; homosexuality "undermines the American economy"; gays should be banned from the Virginia National Guard because of DADT repeal; arming college professors is a wonderful idea; and that repealing DADT will "jeopardize our alliances" because Muslims won't want to serve with homosexuals.
In sentiments that are actually tame by Bob's standards, he's defending a bill he proposed that would nullify the federal light bulb efficiency standards by allowing them to be sold in Virginia. "I have identified other powers reserved to states under the 10th Amendment that we can manufacture these in Virginia without federal interference," he told the Loundoun Times-Mirror this month, harking back to the Edmund Ruffin days. Bob also said that the energy-efficient CFL bulbs contain dangerous levels of mercury. In actuality, exposure to a broken CFL is equivalent to a nibble of canned tuna.
But Bob might have topped himself with this one: His bill is too crazy even for Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli (who should be "former attorney general" after announcing his bid for governor). Cooch's office told the Claims Journal of San Diego on Tuesday that because he thinks the light-bulb law is constitutional, it can't be pre-empted by the state: "While the attorney general does not support the federal light bulb ban as a matter of policy and hopes that Congress will repeal it, the primary job of the Office of the Attorney General is to make legal judgments on the law as it is, as opposed to how one might wish it to be."
Cooch is famous for fighting the healthcare reform law in federal court (and losing) but sees a difference with the light-bulb law. Healthcare reform "sought, for the very first time, to force citizens into commerce for the sole purpose of then being able to impose regulations," Cooch's office said. "That is very different from the light bulb ban."
It takes a special kind of crazy to out-crazy Ken Cuccinelli, and Bob found it. No doubt he will stumble upon it again and again as his Senate campaign keeps rolling.
That's Bob – a few watts short of an incandescent – Marshall, today's Worst Virginian in the World!
