What is leadership? In Virginia, it means facing a budget crunch that is straining the commonwealth's ability to meet core responsibilities in the areas of education, public safety, health care, the environment, transportation and failing to make any meaningful progress. Instead of action, our legislators choose partisan brinksmanship, games and name-calling. The 2008 Virginia General Assembly is marred by its glaring failure to address an acute transportation funding shortfall conservatively estimated at $1 billion a year. Now, a depressed economy means sharply declining state revenue and a growing budget shortfall that looks like it will add at least another $1 billion to the red ink.
Political courage and leadership are needed to navigate the current economic downturn while still making the necessary investments in transportation that will revitalize and sustain economic growth and protect our best-in-the nation business environment. Especially now, with state revenue falling, Virginians expect their elected officials to work together across party lines to achieve meaningful solutions. A majority of the voters care little about Republican or Democrat ideals....we simply want our government to function in a manner that provides funding for core services and proper stewardship of our resources. It's time to stop playing games and get down to the business of governing.
This blog has been started in the hope of starting a conversation about how to accomplish this goal. It isn't pro-republican or pro-democrat and certainly isn't anti-anything - other than partisan bickering! Let's put Virginia first and politics second.