2014 VA Senate debate: on Principles & Values


Ed Gillespie: Don't let the Left fill the vacuum of minority voters

Former Republican National Committee Chairman Ed Gillespie, who is running for Senate in Virginia, appealed to his party to reach out to minorities and other groups instead of letting the left "fill that vacuum." Gillespie, speaking at the Conservative Political Action Conference, is running against popular Democratic Sen. Mark Warner in a state that has grown more diverse--and increasingly friendly to Democrats.

The Republican argued that it was important for his party to "be there" in communities that have trended away from the GOP, noting that candidates don't need to speak Spanish to go on the Univision or Telemundo television networks. He also mentioned his own efforts to offer campaign videos in other languages. "We certainly should not cede those audiences to the left," Gillespie said of groups that don't typically vote for Republicans, including many minorities. The left will "fill that vacuum, and we cannot allow that vacuum to occur."

Source: Politico.com coverage of CPAC and 2014 Virginia Senate race Mar 6, 2014

Bob McDonnell: Indicted on corruption charges days after leaving office

The indictments of former Gov. Bob McDonnell and his wife, Maureen, reveal new details about requests for financial help from a prominent businessman while the offering to help promote the company's new product. Some excerpts:
Source: Washington Post: 2014 Virginia Senate & Gubernatorial race Jan 21, 2014

Ed Gillespie: Planned political reporting career at Catholic U. of America

Although he found enjoyment in politics at an early age, the idea of working in that field was a reach much further than he was able to embrace: "I was fascinated by politics. I went to college [at the Catholic University of America] to be a reporter and to cover politics. Coming from a town like Browns Mills, my brothers, sisters and I are the first generation of Gillespies to ever attend college. My parents never went," says the Chairman. "My father was an immigrant from Ireland, and Washington DC might as well have been Athens, Greece. It seemed so far away. But I thought I could go there and be a newspaper reporter. I could cover politics. I never dreamed that I could be in politics."

"[My childhood] was fairly idyllic, playing a lot of sandlot baseball. I had a dog and he & I would go out on long treks. It was a small town childhood," says Gillespie. "New Jersey is like two different states. There's the 201 [area code] state and the 609 state. I grew up in the 609 state.

Source: South Jersey Magazine on 2014 Virginia Senate race Jan 1, 2005

Ed Gillespie: Raised a Democrat; first job with Democrat; switched to GOP

While attending Catholic University, Gillespie worked several jobs to help support his education; at one of these positions--a Senate parking lot attendant on Capitol Hill, says Gillespie, "One of the people I parked cars with was an intern in a congressional office and he told me of another opening in that congressional office, and I ended up interning there. That eventually led to a job and I was able to work my way up the political ladder from there."

While he recalls being drawn to the Republican Party from a young age, the Senator he first served under was a Democrat. Gillespie's official party allegiance didn't change until his boss suddenly decided to switch parties in 1984.

"As an Irish-Catholic kid from NJ, my roots were Democratic. My parents' families were very strongly Democrat. But like so many Irish-Catholic Democrats, I found myself relating more to Ronald Reagan and the Republican Party, which was more staunchly anti-communist and more about opportunity."

Source: South Jersey Magazine on 2014 Virginia Senate race Jan 1, 2005

  • The above quotations are from 2014 Virginia Senate debates.
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  • Click here for more quotes by Mark Warner on Principles & Values.
  • Click here for more quotes by Bob McDonnell on Principles & Values.
Candidates and political leaders on Principles & Values:

Retired Senate as of Jan. 2015:
GA:Chambliss(R)
IA:Harkin(D)
MI:Levin(D)
MT:Baucus(D)
NE:Johanns(R)
OK:Coburn(R)
SD:Johnson(D)
WV:Rockefeller(D)

Resigned from 113th House:
AL-1:Jo Bonner(R)
FL-19:Trey Radel(R)
LA-5:Rod Alexander(R)
MA-5:Ed Markey(D)
MO-9:Jo Ann Emerson(R)
NC-12:Melvin Watt(D)
SC-1:Tim Scott(R) 		Retired House to run for Senate or Governor:
AR-4:Tom Cotton(R)
GA-1:Jack Kingston(R)
GA-10:Paul Broun(R)
GA-11:Phil Gingrey(R)
HI-1:Colleen Hanabusa(D)
IA-1:Bruce Braley(D)
LA-6:Bill Cassidy(R)
ME-2:Mike Michaud(D)
MI-14:Gary Peters(D)
MT-0:Steve Daines(R)
OK-5:James Lankford(R)
PA-13:Allyson Schwartz(D)
TX-36:Steve Stockman(R)
WV-2:Shelley Capito(R) 		Retired House as of Jan. 2015:
AL-6:Spencer Bachus(R)
AR-2:Tim Griffin(R)
CA-11:George Miller(D)
CA-25:Howard McKeon(R)
CA-33:Henry Waxman(D)
CA-45:John Campbell(R)
IA-3:Tom Latham(R)
MN-6:Michele Bachmann(R)
NC-6:Howard Coble(R)
NC-7:Mike McIntyre(D)
NJ-3:Jon Runyan(R)
NY-4:Carolyn McCarthy(D)
NY-21:Bill Owens(D)
PA-6:Jim Gerlach(R)
UT-4:Jim Matheson(D)
VA-8:Jim Moran(D)
VA-10:Frank Wolf(R)
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Page last updated: Dec 07, 2018