Deeds and McDonnell Square Off at Chamber of Commerce Forum

In the midst of what is becoming a bitter and hard-fought campaign, the Republican and Democratic nominees for Virginia Governor appeared at the Loudoun Chamber of Commerce’s Virginia Gubernatorial Candidates Forum on Tuesday, Oct. 6.

Not truly a debate, Creigh Deeds (D) and Robert McDonnell (R) never took the stage at the same time. Instead, the pair took turns fielding questions from a panel representing the Loudoun business community. While the campaign news in recent days has been hijacked with peripherals, at this event, the two candidates were all business.

Creigh Deeds

The State Senator from Bath County took the stage first, emphasizing his likeable nature and his history of “reaching across the aisle” to enact bipartisan legislation.

Deeds performed particularly well when speaking on the challenges of education. While stating that schools should undergo an efficiency review—Deeds is confident that a $500 million could be saved through this process, he also reiterated his refusal to fund other programs through Virginia’s general fund, which he believes will affect education funding. It has been a recurring campaign issue that McDonnell’s transportation plan will impact this funding, by taking money from the general fund and moving it to transportation—a claim that McDonnell refutes.

Deeds also spoke in depth about workforce training and improvement in math and science training through loan forgiveness and the use of grants. Deeds also plans to increase needs-based financial aide by $40 million.

Having a strong record in the legislature, Deeds was most successful in presenting himself as someone with a strong record and pointing to the successful legislation that he either drafted or had a strong hand in developing. When asked what bills he was most proud of, Deeds referenced the Governor’s Opportunity Fund, the Tax Credit Bill and the Virginia’s version of Megan’s Law.

Positioning himself as an extension of the Mark Warner and Tim Kaine administrations, Deeds said, “My record reflects my priorities.”

Bob McDonnell

In a forum setting, it is difficult to “win on points” as each candidate’s message is filtered by the political leanings of the audience. However, while the issues are debatable, McDonnell certainly won on presentation—answering questions with a cool, casual manner that his opponent was unable to match.

While certainly not the most important trait for a governor, McDonnell made a compelling point during his time on stage. He emphasized the governor’s role in meeting with out-of-state business leaders, telling Virginia’s story, and convincing them why the Commonwealth is the right place to locate. He stressed confidence and the ability to communicate as core to a governor’s role as the dealmaker to recruit new business.

McDonnell’s manner also allowed him to win over the crowd through humor, a welcome distraction for the audience during the policy-heavy questioning. In reference to his ability to govern, McDonnell said, “I know how to manage in times of crisis. I have twin boys who just got their driver's licenses.”

McDonnell distinguished himself in discussing the business-based solutions for the economy, including his discussion of Virginia’s future role as an energy provider.

“We should be the energy capital of the east coast,” said McDonnell, who plans for a further use of coal, exploration into nuclear power, and drilling for offshore oil. He also highlighted advances in biodiesel.

Espousing a traditional fiscal conservative view, McDonnell also found a welcome audience in his opposition to new taxes, especially in light of tax changes on the federal level. “We can’t tax our way out of this,” said McDonnell. For those infrastructure needs where new funding is required, McDonnell’s plan calls for much more use of public-private partnerships, in addition to other funding sources. On transportation, McDonnell dismissed his opponent’s plan for a commission to examine the issue, saying, “I’m the only candidate with a transportation plan.”

Both candidates addressed transportation—the hot topic among both voters and business leaders in the area. McDonnell has a plan and suggested funding mechanisms in place—although he expressed strong opposition to any suggestion that new taxes be collected to fund transportation improvements. Deeds has proposed a bipartisan commission, similar to that former Governor Gerald Baliles implemented in 1986. Deeds characterized it as the last successful transportation solution, and said that this commission-based solution is “the only solution that will work.”

McDonnell also highlighted his understanding of Northern Virginia, having grown up in Fairfax, and said that he remembered visiting friends in Sterling. With this in mind, and also noting the similar problems in his current home of Hampton Roads, McDonnell spoke convincingly of the “donor status” of Northern Virginia—where taxing and allocation formulas have created a scenario where Northern Virginia sends considerably more money to Richmond than it receives back.

The Campaign

According to a series of polls, McDonnell appears to be enjoying a healthy lead of his opponent. However, other polls do show the race tightening as Deeds works to close the gap. Both candidates have been relying heavily on paid media and television spots, which have grown increasingly negative in tone. While both campaigns cry foul at their opponent’s tactics, neither seems willing to take the high ground with the fate of the Commonwealth at stake.

The Deeds campaign has been capitalizing on McDonnell’s conservative view on social issues, taking advantage of the attention brought to McDonnell’s 1989 Regent University thesis paper, which espoused several conservative viewpoints, including a reluctance towards women in the workplace. McDonnell has since clarified his position, explaining its evolution. McDonnell points to his daughter as an example of the support he has for working women.

Alternatively, the McDonnell campaign has also pursued negative advertising—attacking Deeds for the tenor of the campaign, and lack of focus on the issues. The McDonnell camp was also recently taken to task after comments made by Sheila Johnson, cofounder of BET and owner of the Washington Capitals, at a McDonnell event. While explaining her support for McDonnell, Johnson criticized Deeds’ speaking ability and harshly mimicked a stammer in Deeds’ voice. The Deeds campaign and disability rights activists were quick to demand an apology.

Loudoun

Perhaps the real story of the event was Loudoun County itself, and its growing importance to Commonwealth as a swing county. It speaks to the county’s importance—in terms of voters, volunteers and financial contributions—that both gubernatorial candidates were present at this event, the first where both candidates for governor appeared jointly in the chamber’s history. This success, certainly a coup for the Loudoun Chamber of Commerce, is drawing the serious attention of statewide and national figures, building from the personal appearances made by a presidential candidate and both vice-presidential candidates in the 2008 elections.

It is particularly impressive that both candidates appeared before Loudoun’s business community at an event held so close to the actual day of the election. Both campaigns have indicated that they will be doing more work in Loudoun in the coming days.