Anti-Tax Rally Mobilizes Grassroots in Fairfax County

Tonight, about 80 anti-tax activists held a rally outside the Fairfax County Government Center to protest the proposed rise in real estate taxes. There was a great air of dissension from many Fairfax County and Northern Virginia residents alike about tax hikes as a means to solve our budget woes. In fact, many of the participants at the event attended the hearing, where Arthur Purves of the Fairfax County Taxpayers Alliance and James Parmelee of Republicans United for Tax Relief both delivered testimony before the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors hearing about how taxes will not help prosper our county’s economic growth. More taxes are not going to help Fairfax County families. In fact, this will cause many families to leave Fairfax County for other jurisdictions with lower taxes.

Additionally, Springfield Supervisor Pat Herrity stopped by, former 11th District Congressional candidate Keith Fimian, and Kerry Bolognese, who is running for the 41^st House of Delegates seat against David Marsden.

I got to meet several participants who traveled from Sterling and Manassas to join the rally here in Fairfax. Both the Loudoun and Prince William County Board of Supervisors will be addressing this issue soon.

Here are some pictures from the event:

**Pictures courtesy of B.J. Bluth, Ph.D.**

Video will be posted tomorrow morning of the rally. Hopefully, you will be able to attend the Northern Virginia Tea Party on April 15^th at the Merrifield Post Office from 5-7 p.m. For more information on this event, please check out the Northern Virginia Tea Party website.

**Cross Posted at Crystal Clear Conservative

Do you think RPV Chairman Jeff Frederick Should Step Aside?

There has been a considerable amount of buzz within the blogosphere and mainstream media about whether or not Jeff Frederick should step aside as Chairman of the Republican Party of Virginia. There has been some convincing arguments from both sides, but I feel that we cannot remain unified as a party or win races with such infighting. This is why I have decided to remain neutral in even reporting this material and have kept my opinions silent on this matter. The decision now lies in the hands of the State Central Committee, and they will ultimately vote on what will be in the best interest of the party.

I have decided to create a poll gauging whether or not Jeff Frederick should step aside as the Chairman of the Republican Party of Virginia.

Check out the poll at Crystal Clear Conservative.

Personally, I supported Jeff Frederick at last year’s convention, because I felt that he would lead our party in the right direction. I am now left wondering how he will be able to lead our party after all of the accusations and be able to work with the State Central Committee to ensure victory in November for all of our statewide candidates and retain a strong majority in the House of Delegates. We need to be unified or we will continue to lose. While Jeff Frederick has defended his record and submitted his rebuttal to the accusations, I am uncertain if we can work together with this cloud of controversy.

Now, I am not calling for anyone to resign, rather it falls on the hands of the State Central Committee, who decide to ignore the grassroots and not allow for Frederick to redeem himself in the 2009 elections. While I am a grassroots activist, it will become difficult to lead effectively with everyone going against you. Sometimes, when there is dissension, it can bring out true leadership. This will be interesting to watch how this plays out, if Frederick remains as the RPV Chairman.

While we have lost some major races in 2008, most of this had to do with a bad candidate at the top of the ticket (John McCain) and just a referendum on the Republican party at the national level. While many would argue on the real reasons why Virgil Goode and Thelma Drake lost last November, I would say it was the general attitude that many Americans held about the Republicans in Congress. It is not necessarily Jeff Frederick’s fault.

Then, we move onto the recent special election races, where two Republican candidates won (John Cook in Fairfax’s Braddock District and Barry Knight in the 81st HOD race) and three Republican candidates lost (Joe Murray in the 47th House District, Pat Herrity, who ran for Chairman of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors seat, and John Coggeshall for the Norfolk’s Commonwealth Attorney). There were lots of reports that the RPV did not provide adequate assistance with these races, and the sole pressure was placed on the unit chairmen (many of them, with the exception of Alexandria signed this letter). I always thought these local races were supposed rely on the strong leadership of the unit chairmen.

We can not always call for someone to step aside when things go awry. This is when real teamwork becomes essential. Maybe, it is time for all Republicans to work together for the common revival of our core principles of being advocates for limited government, lower and fair taxation, and calling the Democrats on their flawed policies. Attacking each other from within accomplishes nothing, and this is a lesson I have learned from observation.

It’s time to unite for the good of the Republican party. The decision will made on April 4th on who will emerge victorious in this fight, and whatever the outcome, it is time to work together to ensure victory in November.

Cook Wins!

Money and signs can’t buy you an election! However, a strong grassroots base and hard work will buy you a victory. John Cook has now been declared the winner of the open Board of Supervisors seat for Braddock district, and he will join fellow Republicans Pat Herrity and Michael Frey on the Board.

Here is Cook’s victory statement:

“Today the results from the Fairfax County Board of Elections show that I have been elected the next Braddock District Supervisor. I thank the Board of Elections for its difficult but professional work today counting the votes that were cast.
I want to thank the voters of Braddock District for the confidence they have placed in me. There is no greater honor in public life than to be selected by your neighbors to be their representative in government. I look forward to serving my Braddock District neighbors on the Board of Supervisors. Working together, we will strengthen our neighborhoods, bring new and innovative ideas to the challenges we face, and bring a fresh voice of fiscal responsibility to the County.

I want to thank my campaign chairman Tessie Wilson, Supervisor Pat Herrity, my campaign staff and all the volunteers who made this grass-roots victory possible. Most of all, I thank my family, whose love and support made this race possible.”

Congratulations to John Cook!