By Warren Fiske and Julian Walker
RICHMOND
This isn't the fight Gov. Timothy M. Kaine wanted.
He envisioned being the education governor who would start state-run pre-school programs for every 4-year-old in the commonwealth. Before announcing his candidacy for governor in 2005, the Democrat toured schools in every Virginia city and county.
But from the moment of his inauguration, transportation has demanded a great share of Kaine's energy. His first week in office, he proposed a $2.1 billion tax increase to improve roads, rail and mass transit. House Republicans killed the plan.
Today, Kaine will square off in the latest round of what appears to be a ceaseless fight over raising revenues for roads. He has called the General Assembly into special session to consider a $1.1 billion package of transportation taxes.
House Republicans are poised for another kill. Kaine is vowing to campaign against them in their 2009 re-election bids. The outcome of the transportation battle may well determine Kaine's legacy.
"Transportation, whether Kaine likes it or not, will determine how his administration will be remembered," said Sen. Kenneth Stolle, R-Virginia Beach.
Across the state this spring, Kaine held 20 town hall meetings to sell Virginians on the need for tax increases. New revenues for roads haven't been raised since 1986, he noted. Congestion, he said, is threatening the quality of life and the economic futures of Hampton Roads and Northern Virginia. He warned that the state could run out of money to build new roads in 2015.
Kaine's approach at many forums has been low key. The 50-year-old governor, wearing a dark suit, stood behind lecterns and relied on his logic to sway audiences. On the way home from events, he frequently stopped with his security guards at burger joints. Sometimes, he'd pull out his iPod and headphones and chill out in the back of a black SUV.
Legacy is a big deal for those who watch Virginia governors: Mark Warner raised taxes to benefit education, health programs and public safety; Jim Gilmore cut the car tax; George Allen abolished parole and reformed welfare. Virginia is the only state that does not allow governors to serve second terms, so they have to hit the ground sprinting.
Kaine said he's not worried how history will record him. "It's not how I define myself," he said in a recent interview. He considers himself "a problem-solver," adding, "I think like an executive: managing performance, setting goals and going after it."
Whatever the outcome on transportation, Kaine said he will take satisfaction for managing the state in difficult economic times without sacrificing major programs. Earlier this year, he pushed through a limited expansion to pre-kindergarten programs. He also worked with the legislature to overhaul the state's mental health system, improve foster care and enhance protections for victims of sexual and domestic violence.
His empathic style was on display in the wake of the April 2007 tragedy at Virginia Tech when 32 students and faculty members were killed by a gunman. Within a day, Kaine returned from a Far East trade mission and was on the campus.
Although the families of some victims objected that they were not allowed to participate in an investigation of the shootings, others credited Kaine for being a compassionate ally. The governor gave his personal e-mail address to each of the families.
"You can never prepare for the devastation that the families went through," he recalled. "A lot of the e-mails I would get from them were written at 3:30 in the morning. "
For all of his geniality, Kaine does have a temper.
He describes his fuse as a "slow burn" that flares when he perceives injustice or political insincerity. It's been sparked this year by Republicans who have criticized his transportation plan.
What gets to Kaine is the refusal of many GOP lawmakers to vote to impose general taxes for roads. The Republicans, instead, want to empower local governments to impose taxes that have always been controlled by the General Assembly.
Kaine has accused them of shirking the duties of "adult leadership." He said, "All I hear is, 'No, never, no, never, no, never.' "
Some Republicans have said Kaine is playing politics with transportation and embracing tax increases without exploring other alternatives such as leasing roads to for-profit companies that would be able to recoup their investments through tolls.
"He ran around and did all these town hall meetings that don't really mean a lot and said, 'The sky is falling,' " said Del. Kirk Cox, R-Colonial Heights.
Other Republicans accuse Kaine of stirring up transportation to draw attention to himself as a possible vice presidential pick for U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee.
Kaine, who was one of Obama's early supporters, doesn't think the No. 2 spot is in his future.
"I'm not going to say it's not nice to see people mentioning your name, but my intuition tells me Sen. Obama is going to go in a different direction," he said.
Kaine said his days of holding public office may be done when his term expires in January 2010. "You never say never, but I had a pretty strong feeling when I was running for governor that it would be my last race."
He said he'd like to stay in Richmond, where he has lived for decades, and acknowledged interest in one day becoming president of Virginia Commonwealth University.
Some lawmakers said this may be Kaine's last best chance to pass a transportation package. Next year, the entire House will face re-election, and members may have no stomach for a tax fight. In 2010, there will be a new governor.
Kaine disagrees.
"I wouldn't say inaction in the special session means no action until 2010," he said. "One of the reasons I started transportation from day one was I knew it might not happen on day one."
Warren Fiske, (804) 697-1565, warren.fiske@pilotonline.com
Julian Walker, (804) 697-1564, julian.walker@pilotonline.com
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Mike
"We have now made it clear that it is up to our delegates, senators, and the Governor that we want the problem fixed; the method is up to them, but if they come back home without a solution, we need new delegates and senators."
Mike I toally agree. My fear is this session will end with a do nothing mentality once again. Which will throw us deep in debt in the future.
Just one small conflict here George honey
Quote "The legacy of Kenneth Stolle and the remaining GA Republicans will be their do nothing reaction, once again, to transportation needs which will result in the GA Republicans NOT being re-elected. GA Republicans make every effort to block anything a Democratic governor tries to do for the betterment of the Commonwealth. Therein lies the problem(s!"
Now, put that quote against this from todays Pilot: "The governor's plan lacks support even among key Democrats..." Something doesn't jive here does it George?? This would seem to indicate your Demo gov's plan is rejected by both sides of the isle. So....who ya gonna blame now? Terroist cells hiding here while our troops are over there no doubt. Ya can't have it both ways. Appears even some of the Demo's have sprouted roots of common sense regarding this one. So if we don't re-elect the Dom's or the Rep's cause of this, should we all become Libetarians??
Exactly.
Exactly.
Great Solution!
As citizens, we should DEMAND that the people who REPRESENT US go to this special session and not come back until they have a solution. Yes... a workable, viable solution might anger some people... but the hard choices have to be made. Republicans and democrats alike have an obligation to act in the best interest of this commonwealth. Every voter should tell his/her senator and delegate that they will do everything in their power to ensure that they are not reelected if they return from this session with anything less than a solution. We should demand that our GA members do their jobs.
Of course the simple answer
Of course the simple answer is that Warner's efforts were to restore funding to the General Fund that were depleted by the Commonwealth's assumption of the obligation for paying the car tax; transportation is funded basically by the Transportation Trust Fund, and those revenues, based mostly on the gas tax, have not kept up, and in fact, the buying power of that revenue stream has actually gone down. The Governor's proposal actually includes a "poisen pill" that requires the money for regional projects to go into a lock box so that the funds can only be spent for, in our case, the six regional projects.
Makes me wonder
If Gov Warner, as he states in his commercials, left the state is such great financial standing after his very large tax increase then why does Gov Kaine feel he need to impose another large tax increase? Just makes you wonder where the money is going.
Any solution will be a
Any solution will be a combibation of revenue sources. Remember the referendum; every voter went into the booth and had their own reason for their vote. But I suspect the reasons for a no vote then were varied and specific to each voter, and the recent scientific poll showed exactly the same result. That is, there is broad consensus that we have a serious problem, that it is getting worse, and that we need new revenue to solve the problem. However, when the specifics are polled, citizens have many different views. Some want more public transit, some want a different mix of projects, some prefer the gas tax, some like the sales tax, some want tolls, others do not. Point is, the perfect plan is the enemy of a good plan, and that is why government by referendum is a prescription for gridlock. We have now made it clear that it is up to our delegates, senators, and the Governor that we want the problem fixed; the method is up to them, but if they come back home without a solution, we need new delegates and senators.
Truckers
Need to pay for the Rt. 460 upgrade & all upgrades that point west. That's the route they use to send transit out of state. No wonder regular drivers resist this. If you use it to make your $$'s, you need to pony up & pay your share, don't just pass it on to the public. I know I'm tapped out on taxes & any further increases will only put people like me further & further behind. I say it's time to cut the fat, get rid of some these BS programs, IE: $$'s for nothing. If I could stay home, collect welfare & every other form of public assistance I'd feel guilty as hell for not paying my own way. If you make your way this way, you're a slacker & hurt every tax paying citizen in the process. So get off your butts & contribute to the cause instead of just take, take, take. Cut the fat, reallocate the funds to transportation & it will work. Of course that'll never happen. We all know whom it will hurt, & they all vote democrat. L
Taxes and tolls
I'm not opposed to either, but when it comes to tolls, where they will be collected holds the key. Tolls are a form of "user tax". If you are going to use a portion of the highway, then pay for it.
Taxes OR Tolls; not both
While higher taxes are unpopular, I'll support them as long as they are used properly to support new addition to our highway system and upgrading frankly some ragged roads in this area. I can accept tolls on new projects such as the 3rd crossing. But if the idea is to both raise taxes AND collect tolls at every crossing then they have lost my vote. I don't like the toll concept anyway as it will add to the main problem which is congestion congestion(and no matter what they say about EZ pass not everyone will have it so you will have to wait for the cash drivers to pay before you merge into the EZ pass lane and blow by them!)I think if the lawmakers didn't try to stick us both ways and have their cake and eat it to they might accomplish something!
The one-term governorship
The one-term governorship does need to be fixed by expanding the term to six years. I don't think two four-year terms is a good idea.
I think there's a good chance either Kaine or Lieutenant Dan will be Kaine's VP pick. Not that either is a good choice, but, it's the only chance Barry has of picking Virginia off. Lt. Dan gets more press as the VP pick, but I'm sure Barry's people have looked at his popularity rankings; he's one of the least popular Senators, with a less than 50% approval rating in Va.
The Problem
The problem lies with Governors that continue to grow the budget with excessive spending. Give the rebublican bashing a break. It's getting old hearing that republicans are the root of all evil. The conservatives in our GA demand good value for our taxes, that's not so bad for VA.
legacy
"Transportation, whether Kaine likes it or not, will determine how his administration will be remembered," said Sen. Kenneth Stolle, R-Virginia Beach."
The legacy of Kenneth Stolle and the remaining GA Republicans will be their do nothing reaction, once again, to transportation needs which will result in the GA Republicans NOT being re-elected. GA Republicans make every effort to block anything a Democratic governor tries to do for the betterment of the Commonwealth. Therein lies the problem(s!
VA is the only state that has a 1 term Governor, making it difficult to get much done before the term is up. That's a problem for everyone in VA and needs to be fixed.
Seek And You Will Find
The last time we had a "Transportation Governor" it was Gerald Baliles(D), a fine Governor, all in all. In 1989 he signed off on brand new taxes for all Virginia consumers of natural gas and electricity and raised the gas tax too, I believe to .261 per gallon. Think of all the homes built using gas and electrcity since 1989! When talking car tax relief, it doesn't apply to luxury vehicles over a certain value or those used for business puposes. Baliles promised a three-lane highway both ways on I-64 between Hampton and I-295 for port trucking. We've just finished Virginia's largest "bull market" in tax history thanks to commercial and residential real estate valuations. I believe $4,000,000,000 was set aside for Virginia in the 2005 Federal Transportation Bill. Where did it all go and where is that three lane highway?