Goings on About Town

• Blue Virginia reports that Dennis Findley dropped out of the race for the Democratic nomination for the 10th Congressional seat (Frank Wolf's current seat). Dennis is a terrific guy, and I hope that we will see more of him in another capacity!
• Of the folks who are left in that race, I have met Rich Anthony and Jeff Barnett. I like them both, and think either would be great! Rich brings job-creation experience and Jeff brings the experience of 30 years in the military, as well as private-sector work. I'm enjoying watching this race.
• Tomorrow (Saturday) is the last day for Public Input on the Loudoun County Budget. You can sign up on-line or over the phone. So, head on over to the Loudoun County Government Center in Leesburg tomorrow and tell my spouse and the rest of the BOS what you think Loudoun's priorities should be!
• Did you know that the school budget is currently 4/5'ths of the entire budget?

Watch the Health Care Summit

Here: http://www.sunlightfoundation.com/live/. They are showing the live feed. Next to the live feed is the name of the current speaker, and a list of industry donations to that speaker.

Links from around the world, and around the block (edited again to add more links)

Everybody's talking about it:

Read comments at your own risk, many of these blogs are not moderated.

• Blue Commonwealth including one from Congressional Candidate Rich Anthony
• Blue Virginia (who posted VIDEO!), as well as Rich Anthony's and Stevens' responses.
  Here's the video clip: Please note that Del. Marshall is reading from a printed statement which you can see clearly when he picks it up at the end of the clip. He did not misspeak. He said what he meant to say.
  
• Hoyden About Town (an Australian blogger!) and Feminists with Disabilities (same post, two places)
• Kate Harding (a long and well-thought-out post)
  
• Disability Studies, Temple U. (with a link back here, it's an infinite loop!)
• Feministing
• Not Larry Sabato with his usual brevity.
• Shakespeare's Sister
• Vivian Paige (who I linked to below)
• The Bad Mom's Club
  
• Too Conservative has a pretty thoughtful post on it
• The Loudoun Independent posted Stevens' response.
• NARAL Pro-Choice VA
  
• And because I just can't help myself, once again...the videos from Olbermann and Maddow.
  

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

If you have more links, let me know in comments and I'll post them here.

ETA: MORE LINKS!!!

• First Draft
• Blue Virginia walks us through Marshall's melt down
• Stevens (teh spouse!) responds to Marshall's melt down
• Pandagon
  

Press Release from Stevens Miller*

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Stevens Miller (D-Dulles), 703-405-6882, steve@millerhousehold.com

Supervisor Stevens Miller's Response to Bob Marshall's Insults to Women and Their Children with Special Needs

Loudoun, VA USA – February 23, 2010

I condemn and reject as inhumane, inaccurate, and inappropriate the remarks attributed in the press recently to Delegate Bob Marshall (R-13). According to NBC , Marshall said this:

“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.”

The cruelty to parents of children with special needs—as well as to those children themselves—of such remarks is shocking. Further, it suggests a dangerous willingness to use legislative power to enact Mr. Marshall's personal views of the meaning of the Christian Bible. That's because he made his outrageous remarks at a press conference opposing state funding for Planned Parenthood, which Marshall falsely states receives half-a-million dollars from Virginia. The actual amount, in the form of Medicaid reimbursements, is $35,000.

All of this arises now because the legislature is considering allocating voluntarily paid monies used to purchase license tags that will say, "Trust Women, Respect Choice," to support Planned Parenthood's health-care mission. Virginia already allocates the voluntarily paid money for "Choose Life" license plates to anti-choice advocates, so this would only balance the options for Virginians to express themselves and support their own positions.

I support the right of every Virginian to practice religion or not, as they each see fit. I also support the right of every woman to make her own choices about reproduction, health-care, and her own body. I will never support any elected official in an attempt to use the power of legislation to enact religious law. This is an alarming trend in the Commonwealth, and must be confronted as what it is: an unconstitutional effort to make selected divine scriptures into Virginia state law.

I will have more to say on this issue soon. Because Del. Marshall and I share several thousand constituents, however, I wanted to make my feelings and views known, so that our citizens will know that not all of their elected officials believe God is punishing them for acting on their rights.

*Disclosure statement: I'm married to Stevens Miller.

"Sideshow Bob": Heard 'round the world

An Australian blogger posted about him.

He's made it onto Olbermann!

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

And Maddow!

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

As Vivian Paige says, "Just in case you think the News Leader made a mistake in the quote, listen yourself" There's audio on her post.

Marshall has tried to walk back his statement, but I think that he may now have lost quite a bit of the support he had gained through backing the Autism insurance bill.

Here's a link to his press release apologizing for "any misimpression" his "poorly chosen words may have created". As others, notably Liss and the great crowd at Shakesville have said before, that's not an apology. An apology is "I'm sorry I said that. I shouldn't have and I was wrong." Instead, he gives us his regret that we understood very well what he clearly said in a prepared statement at a press conference he called.

Our old house is right outside Marshall's district. Marshall has several thousand constituents here in Loudoun County. I really, really hope that in 2011, Delegate Bob Marshall finds himself out of a job. Southern Walk, Brambleton, South Riding...get working on that, won't you?