After defeating scandal-plagued Republican Delegate Phil Hamilton in 2009, Virginia Democrats made ethics reform a priority in the 2010 session. Yesterday, despite their minority status in the House, Democrats successfully passed an ethics overhaul authored by DLCC Finance Chairman and State House Minority Leader Ward Armstrong.

But while Armstrong is credited with writing the legislation, it was truly a team effort among House and Senate Democrats:

Armstrong, a Democrat from Henry County, said the Hamilton case demonstrated that the Assembly's self-policing system is broken and the voters expected it to be fixed.

"The next time something like that happens - and it will - we'll have a mechanism in place to deal with it," he said.

Armstrong's bill incorporated proposals from Del. Robin Abbott of Newport News, the Democrat who unseated Hamilton. She ran on a platform that included ethics reform.

"I'm very pleased" by the Senate vote, Abbott said Wednesday. "It gives us some transparency in the process, and it also provides protection against frivolous complaints. I got everything I wanted."

The vote was a vindication of sorts for Sen. Ralph Northam, a first-term Democrat from Norfolk, who sponsored a companion bill that closely tracked the Armstrong measure and was unexpectedly shelved by a House committee last week.

Senate Republicans voted en-mass for the bill on final passage, but not before trying to kill the bill on a technicality. All 18 Republicans voted for an amendment that made a “minor wording change” that did not affect the substance of the bill. Had the amendment passed, the bill would have gone back to the House of Delegates, where the Republican majority could have quietly let the measure die.

Democratic senators voted unanimously to keep the decision in the Senate’s hands, and because of their narrow majority, the bill now awaits the governor’s signature.

The Virginia political scene was recently rocked by reports of Republican Delegate Bob Marshall’s news conference in which he said that children born with disabilities were God’s punishment for women who’ve ever ended a pregnancy:

State Delegate Bob Marshall of Manassas says disabled children are God's punishment to women who have aborted their first pregnancy. (...)

"The number of children who are born subsequent to a first abortion with handicaps has increased dramatically. Why? Because when you abort the first born of any, nature takes its vengeance on the subsequent children," said Marshall, a Republican.

"In the Old Testament, the first born of every being, animal and man, was dedicated to the Lord. There's a special punishment Christians would suggest."

Even more outrageous than the remarks themselves, Marshall used them to support a bill he sponsored to cut off state funding for an organization that provides low-cost pre-natal health care for women – exactly the sort of care that can prevent complications during pregnancy, including some birth defects.

Amazingly, Marshall still refuses to apologize for what he said. Marshall told the Washington Post that he “regret[s] any misimpression” he “may have created,” but just two days later he threw a tantrum and denied he ever said such a thing. He now claims the words “never came from my mouth,” and that the media keeps repeating the story "without anyone producing the smoking-gun tape.”

But we have the tape, provided through the Staunton News Leader website, and we think it speaks for itself.

So listen for yourself, and then sign our petition calling for Bob Marshall to resign from the legislature.

Virginia Democrats continued their rebound last night by keeping control of the vacant 41st Delegate district in a Fairfax County special election. Like the special Senate election in January, most observers gave Republicans the edge in this race, coming so soon after the 2009 gubernatorial race. But Democrat Eileen Filler-Corn leads unofficial returns by 42 votes over Republican Kerry Bolognese:

Education was the issue that dominated this race. Filler-Corn clearly struck a chord with voters with her message of fighting back against devastating cuts to Fairfax County schools proposed by Republicans in the legislature -- cuts that would lay off hundreds of teachers and support staff in a rapidly-growing county.

Congratulations to DLCC Board member and Virginia House Minority Leader Ward Armstrong and the Virginia House Caucus for running a great campaign.

Something unprecedented happened over the weekend in Virginia when a Republican former Delegate, who served in the legislature for over 30 years, endorsed the Democratic candidate he once defeated in one of his re-election campaigns:

Former Republican delegate James H. Dillard II, who served as Virginia's 41st District House delegate from 1972 to 2005, endorsed Eileen Filler-Corn, a Democratic lobbyist who served as an adviser to two former Virginia Democratic governors.

Dillard defeated Filler-Corn in 1999 in a hotly contested race for the 41st House District, which is in Fairfax County and includes the areas of Burke, Fairfax Station and Springfield.

The 41st House seat opened up again when Sen. David W. Marsden (D-Fairfax), who succeeded Dillard in 2005, defeated Republican Stephen M. "Steve" Hunt by 324 votes in a Senate special election in mid-January. He resigned his House seat a day later.

Filler-Corn is now the Democratic nominee in the special election to fill Sen. Marsden’s House seat, to be held March 2nd.

Cross-party endorsements are rare but not unheard-of, especially in state politics. But none of us can ever remember a situation like this happening before. In a statement announcing the endorsement, Dillard praised Filler-Corn for her honesty, civic commitment, and her strong support for Virginia’s public schools:

“As a Republican I am willing to cross party lines to support a moderate who cares strongly about providing excellent educational opportunities for our children in our public schools and institutions of higher learning. Unlike her opponent, who believes we spend 'excessive' amounts on public education, Eileen will fight to get our fair share of education dollars…”

For more information about Eileen Filler-Corn or to help with her campaign, visit eileenfordelegate.com.

We've become accustomed to hearing ridiculous statements from the likes of Virginia Republican State Delegate Bob Marshall. After all, this is a man who last year compared the federal economic recovery package to slavery, and who once said "[S]ometimes incest is voluntary" when talking about abortion.

But Marshall's newest rant is shockingly offensive, even for him:

State Delegate Bob Marshall of Manassas says disabled children are God's punishment to women who have aborted their first pregnancy.

Speaking at a press conference over the weekend, Marshall told reporters:

"The number of children who are born subsequent to a first abortion with handicaps has increased dramatically. Why? Because when you abort the first born of any, nature takes its vengeance on the subsequent children."

"In the Old Testament, the first born of every being, animal and man, was dedicated to the Lord. There's a special punishment Christians would suggest."

At the event, Marshall announced that he would sponsor a bill to eliminate state funding for Planned Parenthood in Virginia.

This week, Democrats in the Virginia House and Senate introduced a sweeping package of ethics reforms that would prevent scandals like those involving former GOP Rep. Phil Hamilton. Hamilton came under fire last year when officials learned that he negotiated a job offer for himself with Old Dominion university even as he worked to secure public funds for the school.

The bill would create a five-member ethics advisory panel, which would be empowered to investigate potential misconduct by lawmakers -- even if they resign -- and hold meetings in public.

Additionally, the bill would require:

--A legislator to disclose any wages or salary paid to him or an immediate member of his family, regardless of the amount, by a state or local government or advisory agency employer:

--the Clerks of the House and Senate to establish a searchable electronic database, available to the public through the Internet, containing the information from the disclosure of personal interests statements filed by legislators, legislators-elect, and candidates for the General Assembly.

--That payments to a member for office expenses and supplies may be made only upon the member's submission of a voucher for the expenses.

--A member of the General Assembly to disclose in his annual disclosure of personal interests any salary and wages in excess of $10,000 paid to him or his immediate family for employment with a state or local government or advisory agency.

If passed, the legislation would be the first overhaul of Virginia's General Assembly Conflicts of Interest statutes in more than 20 years.

As Virginia gears up to begin a new legislative session, Republicans are trying to nationalize politics in the state, focusing in on Congress and the Obama administration:

"I think the federal government is out of control," said House Speaker William J. Howell (R-Stafford). "There's genuine concern, not just from Republicans, but from people who are just concerned citizens. . . . And I believe the message is clear: We better be paying attention."

GOP lawmakers have already promised to introduce legislation to oppose provisions of the health reform bill and forbid the federal government from regulating any good or service produced or rendered entirely within the borders of Virginia.

If those seem like strange priorities in a state suffering from high unemployment and a $4 billion budget shortfall, it's because they are. But with the GOP captivated by the Tea Party movement and right-wingers becoming ever more fixated on Obama, it's completely unsurprising.

Luckily, Democrats control the Virginia senate, and Dave Marsden's special election victory on Tuesday night has helped to solidify the majority.

The first state legislative seat to change parties in a special election this year went to Democrat Dave Marsden of Virginia, who scored an election-night upset over Republican Steve Hunt to win the 37th Senate District in Fairfax County. The seat was left open when Republican Ken Cuccinelli was elected Attorney General in the fall.

The Marsden Campaign’s impressive get-out-the-vote operation reveals itself in the district vote totals. Not only did Marsden win the early vote by more than 2-1 (providing just a few more votes than his total margin of victory), but turnout in his best-performing district was a full 9 points higher than in Steve Hunt’s best district.

Though 2010 is still young, this victory could turn out to be the most important special election all year. It gives Virginia Democrats a welcome shot of energy after a disappointing 2009 campaign, and it solidifies Democratic control of the State Senate ahead of redistricting. The Democratic margin there will now be 22-18, making it unlikely that any unforeseen events could flip control to the Republicans.

Congratulations to DLCC Board member and Virginia Senate Majority Leader Dick Saslaw and his political staff for running a great campaign.

After disgraced Republican Phil Hamilton lost his Delegate seat to Democrat Robin Abbott, Hamilton short-circuited a House ethics panel investigation by resigning from the State House. The investigation was being conducted behind closed doors – over the objection of House Democrats who felt a public inquiry would help win back the public’s trust in their leaders.

But with Hamilton gone, even the secret investigation has been called off, and Republican Speaker Bill Howell has faced mounting criticism for his mishandling of the case. In response, Howell announced he was releasing the ethics panel’s full report…

…which apparently doesn’t exist:

In direct response, House Speaker Bill Howell (R-Stafford) "voluntarily" released today the report of the House Ethics Advisory Panel.

The only problem? There is no report.

The five-member House Ethics Advisory Panel, led by Judge William Sweeney, did not turn over the testimony or documents it collected before it halted the investigation after Hamilton resigned last week.

Howell's office says that even the Speaker and his staff do not have access to the confidential information collect by the ethics panel.

How embarrassing for the Speaker. If Howell had simply listened to his Democratic colleagues and conducted the investigation in public, all the information would be out in the open. But instead of proving that Virginia holds its elected officials accountable, the Hamilton case has become just another example of Republicans sweeping corruption under the rug.

And now Virginians may never learn the full story.

Election Day is exactly one week away, so call every Democrat you know in Virginia, and remind them to vote! Meanwhile, these are a few of the Virginia Delegate races making news this past week:

• HD-10: Democratic Minority Leader Ward Armstrong continues to set a good example for his fellow delegates by taking nothing for granted in his re-election campaign. Armstrong, who also serves as the DLCC’s Finance Chair, has sent word that he’ll be busing local constituents to a November 19th hearing on a proposed utility rate hike. Armstrong has spent more than a year leading opposition to the rate hike.
  
  

• HD-23: Democratic Delegate Shannon Valentine of Lynchburg just picked up a late endorsement from Preston Bryant, a prominent local Republican from the Lynchburg area. Bryant served ten years in the House of Delegates before joining Governor Kaine’s administration, but he sided with Valentine because of her strong record in the legislature and her opponent’s “distasteful campaign tactics.”
  
  

• HD-42: Several families of Virginia Tech shooting victims have come out against Republican Dave Albo’s re-election bid. The families believe Albo used political maneuvering to block a bill to close the gun-show loophole, despite his promise to support the legislation. And when the families asked Albo to explain his betrayal, he told them to “just forget it.” Albo’s Democratic challenger is Greg Werkheiser.
  
  

• HD-51, 52: U.S. Senator Jim Webb campaigned with 51st District Delegate Paul Nichols and 52nd District Democratic candidate Luke Torian (who’s running in an open seat) over the weekend. Both are considered key races in any scenario where Democrats reclaim a House majority.
  
  

• HD-99: Democratic Delegate Albert Pollard also earned a late endorsement from a well-respected local Republican, former State Senator John Chichester, who represented the area for nearly 30 years until 2007. Meanwhile, another group of 15 victims’ families from Virginia Tech and Appalachian School of Law has denounced Republican challenger Catherine Crabill for encouraging people to take up arms in the event of an election loss (the infamous "Bullet Box" speech).
  
  

• State Senate: The Richmond Times-Dispatch is looking past this Tuesday for clues about how the Virginia elections will affect the ballance of power in the State Senate. Three sitting Senators are running for other offices (Democrat Creigh Deeds and Republicans Ken Stolle and Ken Cuccinelli). Each of these seats would be filled by special election if the Senators win their elections next week. In addition, whoever wins the governorship may try to appoint Senators to his cabinet, triggering even more special elections.