Cliff Keirce in the news!

Terrific article on Cliff in the Ashburn Patch. My favorite part?

Keirce sees Metro’s extension into Loudoun as a pivotal hook to bring new businesses to the area, and he fully supports the project.

“I’m 100 percent certain it will be completed,” he said. “It’s important not only to the region but to the federal government.”

In a recent meeting with U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood, Keirce learned that while Phase 2 does not have any federal funding currently, Sec. LaHood promised that the federal government would assist in some way with Phase 2 – likely through low-interest federal loans.

Go read it all.

Passing the baton

It may surprise you to hear it, but lots of people are hesitant about canvassing. They're nervous that people will react negatively to them, that they'll have doors slammed in their faces. That's where the Doorbell Queen excels. I make canvassing look fun and easy. Because to me, it IS fun and easy.

This year, I've taken several first-time canvassers out with me. And I saw them, in the course of a couple of hours, go from being hesitant and nervous, to doing doors with verve and elan. I love hearing about father-daughter canvassing competitions. I love hearing from my co-workers all over the district that Cliff Keirce was at their doors. I love hearing from Jennifer Wexton that a 200-door day is becoming the norm for her.

And I especially love pictures like this:

Yellow Shirts for the Win!

That's Cliff's wife and daughter at Mill Run Elementary's Back to School Night. Cliff's been having such a good time, that they had to join in!

I love seeing that my love of canvassing is infectious. There is no cure for the love of doors.

Well, it looks like I have to add another link to my blog roll

My husband took a new gig. WHICH I DID NOT KNOW ABOUT BEFORE-HAND.

I think, actually, I approve.

WHICH WOULD HAVE BEEN EASIER IF I'D KNOWN BEFORE-HAND.

Shouting it from the rooftops

For the first time in my life, I'm endorsing, donating to, and campaigning for someone who is NOT running as a Democrat.

Independent candidate Cliff Keirce is my choice for Supervisor from the new Broad Run district. As I've said before,

"Cliff is a widely known, very popular, well-liked, hugely qualified candidate for this office. He's been Stevens's Planning Commissioner for the last couple of years. Before that, he was on the Facilities Standards Manual Public Review Committee, all while serving on the Broadlands HOA (including as President) and the Loudoun Library Foundation Board. His wife and his children are wonderful people, and he and his family are seriously committed to serving the community."

There is no doubt that Cliff would make a better Supervisor than Shawn Williams.

There is also little doubt in my mind that Cliff will be a better choice for Broad Run than Andrea. He's a better listener, and looks for workable solutions. I've found him to be reasonable, thoughtful, and knowledgeable. These are the traits needed for the Supervisor of the district that will have both the Loudoun Metro stations, and the myriad changes that will come with them.

I've already donated to his campaign ($101, just to make the point), and will be walking for him consistently (probably starting this weekend!)

Did doors with Shanyn Ronis, Valdis Ronis's daughter!

She is an awesome walker. Energetic. Enthusiastic. We were out for over 2 hours, did a TON of doors. It feels like July out there. All you other canvassers, stay hydrated!

In case I haven't mentioned it before, I'm endorsing Valdis Ronis for Supervisor from the new Ashburn District. Tomorrow's a fund-raiser for him, come on out and meet him!

I couldn't BELIEVE how much the traffic was honking on the way into work this morning

Families of geese, right at the entrance to where I work.

Where you can find me today

Over at the Loudoun Times Mirror, writing about language.

Random bullets of a busy weekend

• NARAL Pro-choice VA's LUNAFEST event was splendid! Valdis Ronis and his daughter Shanyn joined us, along with many others. We also got donations from many local businesses, as well as local friends. So here is a thank you to Valdis, Erika, The Reign of Cats and Dogs, and Rouge Spa. Your generosity is appreciated.
• The kick-off for Cliff Keirce was terrific. Bonefish was generous with the food and drinks. I had great conversations with lots of people. People from within and without the new Broad Run were there. Including some people I think Andrea would have expected to be fully with her. I gave a donation, and have pledged to walk with Cliff in Oakgrove and many other precincts. 
• Went to two picnics (one on Saturday with my son's after-school, one on Sunday with the UUs of Sterling).
• On Sunday at church, I was suddenly overwhelmed with gratitude for being a part of the UUs of Sterling. The members of that church are all community-oriented, politically aware, generally progressive. I realized that leaving the LCDC didn't mean I had left the only community that was involved locally in causes that are important to me. 

LCDC Members: I'm not asking any of you to choose sides

It's not going to hurt my feelings if you want to stay with the LCDC. It's not going to hurt my feelings if you just want to focus on getting through this election, and not get involved in any of this sturm und drang. It's really okay.

I mean it.

And thank you for the calls and emails. I really appreciate each and every one.

Cliff Keirce, Andrea McGimsey, the Hatch Act, and you

Cliff Keirce, who has been a friend of the family since we moved into the Broadlands, has announced a run as an Independent candidate for Supervisor for the new Broad Run district.

Cliff is a widely known, very popular, well-liked, hugely qualified candidate for this office. He's been Stevens's Planning Commissioner for the last couple of years. Before that, he was on the Facilities Standards Manual Public Review Committee, all while serving on the Broadlands HOA (including as President) and the Loudoun Library Foundation Board. His wife and his children are wonderful people, and he and his family are seriously committed to serving the community.

The Hatch Act makes it impossible for him to run for a party nomination, but an Independent label suits Cliff better than either party label anyway.

Cliff is, by all measures, a terrific candidate and deserves to have the unqualified support of all who know him.

Meanwhile, Andrea McGimsey, current Potomac Supervisor, is also in the new Broad Run district and has announced that she is going to run for reelection. I agree with Andrea on most issues, she's been a phenomenal advocate for making Loudoun an environmentally responsible locality and her work on that topic has helped Loudoun win awards for energy efficient policies. She's kept her campaign promises to be a proponent of slow-growth and sustainable policies.

Andrea has earned the trust and admiration of many in Loudoun for her strong and outspoken advocacy of many issues. She's a popular and welcomed figure in Democratic and environmental circles and she has done outstanding work in many areas. She has been a good friend to the Community Services Board* and Loudoun Abused Women's Shelter**, as well as many other organizations of which I am fond. Just like Cliff, she deserves to have the unqualified support of all who know her.

And there's the problem. They are both running for the same seat on the Board of Supervisors, and as much I want them both on the board, we can only pick one.

(Before I start discussing the choice ahead, I would like to point out that in the HOA 4 plan, Andrea and Cliff were not drawn into the same district. Actually, they weren't drawn in together under any of the plans Stevens backed. So the very fact that voters are in a position of having to make this particular choice is pissing me off.)

Now, for the race itself:
First is the fact that this is going to be a 3-way race. Members of either party committee who think that Cliff would be a terrific candidate are in a bind, since it looks like both parties are going to have an official nominee. Members of the LCDC have pledged to help get Democratic candidates elected and pledged not to work against a Democratic candidate in a race where there is one. If there isn't one, LCDC members are  free to back whichever other candidate they choose. I'm assuming the situation is the same for those in the LCRC.

This means that I, like others on the LCDC who live in the new Broad Run, have three choices in this election:

1. Back Andrea
2. Leave the LCDC to back Cliff or
3. Sit down and shut up.

Now, if it weren't for the Hatch Act, Dems could say to Cliff, make a stand: Join the Dems. But that position is closed off to him by law and it's unfair to ask him.

Second, is the political reality of the new district. I can't speak to the politics of the other areas in the new Broad Run, but I CAN speak to the politics of the Broadlands. The people in Broadlands like to vote for the moderate. They don't like mean-spirited politicians: they didn't like Dick Black or Steve Snow and were ready to vote for reasonable Democrats to get rid of them. But, given a seemingly reasonable moderate Republican or, for preference, an Independent, they'll vote for that person over a Democratic candidate (see the Poisson/Greason election). Cliff Keirce has been elected, and re-elected, and re-re-elected to the HOA board in the Broadlands. The residents know him, like him, and expect him to be reasonable and a good advocate. People who have opposed him on various issues respect him and consider him fair-minded, even when they disagree with him vehemently. All of which is to say that I think that Cliff can win the Broadlands, no matter whether he runs in a 3-way race or a 2-way race.

If Cliff were not in the race, I think the Broadlands would vote for Shawn Williams, unless Andrea can make a big enough stink about him being a Dick Black fan. The residents of the Broadlands don't want to be preached to by either side of the political spectrum. They're proud to live in a community with lots of environmentally-friendly features, but that doesn't mean they want to see any clothes-lines or compost piles. They may or may not care a great deal about social issues, regardless, they don't want the people representing them to be rabid about such issues either.

(Please note I am speaking in generalities here, each resident of the Broadlands is an individual and this generalization will not apply to all those individuals).

It is my opinion that if a candidate wins the Broadlands, they will win the new Broad Run.

Third, what can the opposition use? For the last several months Andrea has said many times from the dais, that her full-time job as the Executive Director for Oatlands makes it difficult for her to attend daytime BOS meetings, or to be prepared for the ones she attends. It makes her sound like she can't maintain the effort needed to stay on top of her committments. I think an opponent could use those statements to ask why she's running for a second term if she's finding it hard to keep up.

Against Cliff is the fact that he was a vocal proponent of the hospital in the Broadlands (which actually will be viewed positively in many quarters), and is a high-order nerd (collecting comic books and signed first editions - much like me, actually). He has large presence online and in the local papers, and that's always dangerous for a candidate who doesn't want his words used against him. His clothing sense is questionable (while I might see it as plus, I'm not sure if voters are going to welcome a guy knocking on their door in a Thor's Mighty Hammer t-shirt).

I wish I didn't have to choose between two terrific candidates. I wish that it were a 2-way race between one of these two great candidates and the LCRC's candidate. And it's my guess that there are many people who consider themselves Democrats who are feeling the same way today.

It's not my way to sit down and shut up, so I only have two choices. Stay with the LCDC and back Andrea, or leave the LCDC and back Cliff. I've never worked against a Democratic candidate before, nor have I ever worked against the person I thought was the better candidate. I've always felt that the Democratic candidate, if there was one in the race, was the better candidate, which is why I'm a member of the LCDC in the first place. But what if a committed Dem thinks that Cliff is the better candidate? For that matter, what if a Republican does?

What are your thoughts?

*I'm a member of the Board of the CSB.
**I did an internship with LAWS.

While we're discussing the door-knocking season

There's one possible candidate who won't be needing me to canvass for him this year.

Stevens, I couldn't be prouder of all the work you've done for Loudoun and Virginia the last few years. Thank you for letting me be part of it.

I've been waiting 30 years for this day

It's getting easier to be green

Up until last November, neither of our cars were terribly efficient. I had a 2002 Kia Sedona, he had a 1997 Jeep Wrangler. Both were bought used. The Kia was bought when our son still had a lot of equipment to haul around.

We were thinking about getting more efficient vehicles, but you know what the greenest car is? One that you already have that's in working condition. So we waited...and we dreamed of better than 20 miles to the gallon.

Then I was in a collision, and the Kia was replaced with a 1998 Toyota Camry. People, I regularly get over 30 miles to the gallon in that puppy, just tootling back and forth from work!

And then we had to replace the Jeep. This past weekend, we got a 2002 Honda Civic. It's even more efficient than the Toyota! Plus I work just a few miles from home! This is so exciting!!! Just as Big Oil is taking advantage of unrest in the Middle East to gouge consumers, we're thumbing our noses at them and benefiting local businesses at the same time!!

The Toyota was purchased at Lindsay Volkswagen. We went back to them last week, but they didn't have anything in our price range this time (though they had a sweet red Mini Cooper), so we got the Honda from Honda of Dulles. We had a great experience at each of their stores, and I've recommended them to friends. If you're in the market for a car, you really could not do better than to shop at either of their stores --- and they're even in our district!

Q&A

Paul (a friend of mine from High School) asks:

"Ok Liz, here's two questions. Do you miss living in New York and do you think you'll ever move back??"

And the answers are: I often miss living in NY and...probably not.

There is so much about NYC that I love: not needing a car; the parks; the Indian Restaurants in the East Village; the general walkability; living near my parents.

But I love Loudoun and Virginia too. I feel at home here, I feel that my being here makes a difference, and I'm hoping that someday it will be a county where I won't need to drive everywhere. Now, if only someone would get working on a transporter so I can see my parents more often...

DON'T ASK, DON'T TELL HAS BEEN REPEALED!!!

This is the best news I've heard in a long time..

George Takai Takei, I think I love you

via Kathy A.

NOT SAFE FOR WORK.

This message, for that Arkansas School Board member who has since resigned, is a thing of beauty. I love listening to George Takai Takei say my favorite insult.



Yes, yes indeed. That former school board member certainly was a useless tool of the patriarchy. George used the perfect word.

<Gasp!> Rational Debate Erupts in the Loudoun Blogosphere!

John Stevens and my own Stevens (Miller, that is) have an interesting set of posts up. Read John's first at Our Loudoun Schools, and then read Stevens's response at Without Supervision.

Logic! Reason! SCIENCE! Well, maybe not science.

I am excited to see something that is rarely seen in the Loudoun blogosphere, a calm rational substantive debate based on thoughtful interpretations of the facts.

Check out my Letter to the Editor in InsideNOVA!

It's on Cuccinelli's opinion regarding abortion clinics.

EXCLUSIVE!!! Interview with Jeff Barnett: Pro-choice Edition

Jeff, thank you so much for taking the time to answer some questions for my blog. So let's start with the big one: where do you stand on Choice?



Thank you, Liz, for the invitation. The question you ask is a very important one to me, and it's something I've felt strongly about for much of my life. In a modern democracy - one that prides itself on being a free society - few things could be more important than a woman's right to control her own body. The decision to have a child should be made by a woman in consultation with her family, her doctor, and her god. The government has no place in that conversation.

What did you think of Cuccinelli's opinion on abortion providers in Virginia?




I disagree strongly with Mr. Cuccinelli's opinion. Singling out abortion providers for significantly stricter oversight is not so much an attempt to protect our health as an attempt to discriminate against certain outpatient centers and shut down clinics that perform abortions. I will discourage the Attorney General's office from using the people's tax dollars to crusade against constitutionally permissible and medically accepted treatment.

Would you be in favor of repealing the Stupak amendment [no insurance plan that uses Federal funds can cover abortion]?



The health care reform legislation was a monumental achievement, and we drew support from a wide variety of legislators to get it done. I won't do anything to jeopardize our commitment to providing medical care to millions of previously uninsured Americans.

If I have the chance to repeal the anti-choice provisions of the health care reform without damaging the law's broader goals, I will seize the opportunity. Realistically, however, I don't know how likely that is to happen right away. We got the much-needed votes to pass health care reform legislation from a lot of people who oppose choice, and we got them because the President gave his word that certain things would happen. The President isn't a man who takes his promises lightly, and I'm not a man who asks him to break them. Making sure these health care plans cover abortion is important. This is a battle that we're going to win, but not within the next few months.

The Stupak Amendment makes it all the more important, then, that we make sure that the other means of securing the procedure are available and fully funded. There are many private channels that we must reinforce in order to make sure that this procedure isn't only available to the wealthy. In the absence of public funding, we have an obligation as leaders to make sure women are aware of the full range of contraceptive, preventive, and emergency options available to them.

Do you agree that medically required abortions (ones where the fetus is already deceased, for example) should not be treated differently from other medical procedures and shouldn't require special insurance?


Yes, I agree. I understand why the issue of choice is, in many circumstances, contentious. People of good conscience can have powerful differences on these fundamental issues. But the idea that health insurance would not cover treatment that is medically necessary to save a woman's life is unacceptable.

Do you think that oral contraceptives should be available without a prescription?



Yes, I do: you shouldn't need a doctor's permission to take control of your own body. Nevertheless, I think that opponents of this practice have some important concerns that we should address as we move towards making a range of contraceptives more readily available. Oral contraceptives, like many drugs, affect the way the body works in significant ways, and they aren't without side effects, however rare. Furthermore, reliance on birth control that isn't being properly used can lead to some pretty significant consequences. For those two reasons, it's helpful to have guidance when beginning a significant new medical regimen of any kind, birth control or otherwise.

The way to fight the side effects of oral contraceptives and to make sure they aren't misused isn't with prohibition and restriction: it's with information and education. I believe that oral contraceptives should be available without a prescription, but I also think that it's important that, when possible, we continue to consult our doctors before making significant medical decisions.

Do you think that pharmacists should be required to provide legally prescribed medication to their customers and patients?



Yes. Freedom of choice and freedom over your body don't mean much if you can't access the medication you need.



Thank you again, Jeff, for taking the time to answer my questions.

Back to School Nights!

The weather outside is delightful. Sunsets, balmy breezes, that slight rustle from leaves preparing to change. And that happy refrain, "Hi! I'm Liz Miller! My friend Jeff Barnett is running for Congress!"