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Eight candidates six Republicans and two Democrats are vying in June 13 primaries for a chance to succeed retiring Del. Peter F. Farrell, R-Henrico.

Farrell, 33, who has held the seat since 2012, surprised many Virginia politicians when he announced in March that he would not seek re-election. Farrell, who has an 18-month-old daughter and a growing investment firm, said that it was a tough decision, but with a young family and a growing business I cannot give the job as delegate the time and energy that it deserves.

The six Republicans in the GOP primary are Graven Craig, Surya Dhakar, George Goodwin, John McGuire III, Matt C. Pinsker and Jay F. Prendergast. The two candidates in the Democratic primary are Melissa M. Dart and Lizzie Drucker-Basch.

A registered voter in the district may cast a ballot in the Republican primary or the Democratic primary, but not in both contests.

Traditionally, the 56th has been a solidly Republican district. While Democrat Hillary Clinton carried Virginia in November, Republican Donald Trump carried the 56th District by nearly 20 percentage points.

Farrell succeeded Del. Bill Janis, a Republican who represented the district from 2002 to 2012. Janis did not seek re-election in 2011, choosing instead to mount an unsuccessful run for Henrico County commonwealths attorney.

Democrats have not fielded a candidate for the seat since 2009, when Janis was elected with nearly 70 percent of the vote.

The district includes Louisa County, which makes up 40.26 percent of the district, and parts of Henrico, Goochland and Spotsylvania counties.

Here is a look at the candidates:

Graven Craig is a personal injury attorney at his law firm in Louisa, where he has lived and worked since 1997. He is one of four founders of the United Self Defense Law Firm, which specializes in defending gun owners who use them in self-defense.

A native of Charlottesville, Craig attended the University of Maryland for his undergraduate degree before earning a law degree from George Mason University. He has been married for 21 years and is a father to three teenagers.

Craig said he wants to protect civil liberties outlined in the Bill of Rights, which he described as having come under attack because of government overreach.

Craig said he also seeks to ensure fiscal responsibility in Virginia, calling it concerning that the General Assembly this year raided the rainy day fund to balance state spending.

We need to figure out where we can cut some spending, and were going to have to have the courage to cut spending, he said.

Surya Dhakar says he wants to abolish state income taxes, rein in government spending, eliminate overreaching regulations on businesses, and provide affordable health care to Virginians.

A dentist with his own clinic in Glen Allen, Dhakar leads the Republican candidates in campaign contributions with $58,173 to date, far more than any of his rivals, according to the Virginia Public Access Project.

He has lived in Henrico County since 1995 when he began dental school at Virginia Commonwealth University. He previously obtained a doctorate in ocean science from Old Dominion University in Norfolk.

Dhakar said he supports Republican gubernatorial candidate Ed Gillespies proposed 10 percent personal income tax cut over three years, adding that he wants to eliminate state income taxes entirely if the proposed cuts go well.

He said he has not seen any delegates who have proposed any tax cuts or proposed ... removing regulations for businesses.

George Goodwin is a retired senior intelligence analyst who runs a cow and calf farm with his son in Louisa, where his family history spans generations. He went into the U.S. Air Force following graduation from Virginia Military Institute in Lexington. He holds degrees from VMI and the University of Virginia.

After working with the Virginia Department of Transportation as a highway engineer, Goodwin served as director of the National Ground Intelligence Center. After retirement, Goodwin worked as a campaign manager for the state Senate bid of Republican Tom Garrett now the 5th District congressman and did the same for state Sen. Mark J. Peake, R-Lynchburg.

Goodwin served as a legislative adviser for Garrett and Peake. He said his four years of experience in the legislative process is what sets him apart from the other candidates.

I can go down there on Day One and be effective because I know how it operates, he said. Ive done it.

Goodwin said he hopes to do away with unfunded mandates and make Virginia more business-friendly by getting rid of restrictive regulations on small businesses.

John McGuire III is a former Navy SEAL and founder of SEAL Team Physical Training Inc., an outdoor fitness training program with locations in Richmond, Henrico, Charlottesville, Washington and Atlanta. He lives in Henrico with his wife and five children.

McGuire said the strengths he would bring to the voters of the 56th are his abilities to be a leader and team-builder. While the run is his first for public office, McGuire said he has excelled in the military and in business when he was still brand-new, which he attributes to his gift of uniting people.

McGuire said it would be premature before hes elected to say what exactly he would do in the district, but he said hes interested in growing businesses in Virginia and wants to continue providing support for veterans and law enforcement officers.

I just want to make sure we have a better future for our grandchildren, McGuire said.

Matt C. Pinsker is a captain in the Army Reserve and an adjunct professor of homeland security and criminal justice at Virginia Commonwealth University.

He also works with his own law firm that specializes in criminal defense for people suffering from addiction. As a small-business owner, Pinsker said he sees the negative effects of high taxes and regulation on businesses.

Im really the only candidate whos not only talked the talk but walked the walk, he said.

A lifelong conservative, Pinsker attended Mills E. Godwin High School where he founded a Republican club before graduating from the College of William & Mary. He lives with his wife near his family home in western Henrico.

Pinsker said he actively works to help veterans who suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder, gives law enforcement officers support and training as a professor, and fights to preserve conservative values. He added that those are some of the issues he would work toward resolving as a delegate.

Jay F. Prendergast works in commercial media at Studio Sound, a nationwide company that produces commercials for television and radio. He was a radio personality in Virginia Beach for more than a decade before moving to Henrico in 2007 with his wife and four children.

A native of Alexandria, Prendergast calls himself a forever Virginian. He attended T.C. Williams High School and went on to earn a degree in broadcasting from the University of Virginia.

In 2006, Prendergast unsuccessfully ran for a City Council seat in Chesapeake an experience he said provided a good lesson on local elections. Compared with the other candidates, Prendergast said he holds similar conservative views but distinguishes himself in that he has a flexible schedule to work the position full time.

He said he believes in holding government accountable and promoting fiscally responsible practices, saying he would promote a true free-market economic system for the people of the 56th.

If you free the people up to pursue their dreams, thats the best way to get things done, Prendergast said.

Melissa M. Dart works full time as a health care administrator with AllyAlign Health, a small company based in Henrico. She has worked in the industry for 20 years, which she said gives her detailed understanding of an issue important to all members of her district.

Dart is married and has three young children. She attended the University of Richmond for her undergraduate degree and has a masters in health care from Virginia Commonwealth University.

The motivation to run for office came to Dart after the confirmation of U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, she said, because she was concerned how it could affect the public school systems nationwide.

Dart says she thinks the Democratic Party has a real shot at winning the 56th, and her campaign is important to her personally because a woman has yet to be elected to that office in the district.

I think that the demographics have changed, and I think a Republican being in this seat for so long doesnt represent the true progressive voices that are more and more a part of this district, Dart said.

Lizzie Drucker-Basch owns a property renovation company that rehabs historic buildings in the Richmond area.

The small-business owner has lived in western Henrico County for 15 years and has three children who have gone to public schools there. She serves on the board of directors for the Disability Law Center of Virginia and on the Henrico County Special Education Advisory Committee. She holds degrees from Syracuse University and the University of Chicago.

A first-time candidate for office, Drucker-Basch said she thinks the Democratic Party has gotten away from its roots and its base. Drucker-Basch dismissed the idea that the district is inherently Republican, saying the constituents want good jobs and education opportunities for their children the same desires she has for her own family.

Its going to be Republican if we dont show up and show that we care, she said.

Continued here:
6 Republicans, 2 Democrats seek retiring Del. Farrell's seat - Richmond.com

A member of the House Intelligence Committee says Republicans are not letting up on efforts to determine who in the Trump administration is leaking classified information to the press, or efforts to eventually hold those officials accountable.

"How many times have I heard accusations of collusion between Trump officials, campaign officials and the Russians with no evidence of that," said Rep. Chris Stewart, R-Utah, who sits on the committee. "Yet we do know that there was unmasking, and we know that there was leaking. And I can assure you, we're not letting that go at all."

When then-FBI Director James Comey testified before the committee in March, Republicans on the committee pounded him about whether the bureau was actively searching for the source of leaks of classified material, like the leak of the transcript of a phone call between former national security advisor Mike Flynn and Russian Ambassador Sergei Kislyak.

However, when former CIA Director John Brennan went before the same committee this week, questions about intelligence leaks seemed to dry up significantly.

"In the last hearing, we didn't hammer on that because frankly, there wasn't much point of it with Director Brennan, especially in an open session," Stewart said. "But I assure you, we're not turning a blind eye to that. In fact, it's one of the things that many of us are focused on."

Even though Brennan wasn't pressed on the questions of leaks like Comey, the topic did come up, and Brennan sounded off.

"What I was very concerned about, though, is the subsequent releases of what appears to be classified information, purporting to point to the originator of the information, liaison partners," Brennan said, referring to reports which detailed conversations President Trump had with two Russian officials in the Oval Office. "These continue to be very, very damaging leaks and I find them appalling. So, that was where the damage came from, I think, that it was released in the press."

Since the appointment of a special counsel, concerns have emerged about potential power struggles between the investigations coming from the legislative branch versus the DOJ investigation. But Stewart is hopeful the special counsel will make it more likely that leakers, if they're found, will be held accountable.

"Because leaking is potentially a criminal activity, that's best done from more of a legal point of view than a counter intelligence or intelligence point of view, which we're focusing on in the committee," Stewart said.

At the time of Comey's appearance before the House Intelligence Committee hearing in March, the main leak of concern was the published report of a transcript of an intercepted call between Flynn and Kislyak.

But since that time, leaks have become an even broader concern in other areas. For example, the UK said this week it would stop sharing information with the U.S. about the bombing at the Ariana Grande concert because of constant intelligence leaks.

That prompted President Trump to again warn that he would be coming after the leakers. He said he has asked the Justice Department to launch a "complete review" of the problem.

"Part of the reason that it frustrates me and many others is there doesn't seem to be any legal repercussions, and doesn't seem to be any real effort yet by the Department of Justice to pursue, to hold these people accountable," Stewart said. "Until we do that, I think we're going to be left with a pervasive environment of leaks because people can do it without fear, and we've just got to correct that."

More:
Rep. Chris Stewart: Republicans not letting up on anti-Trump leakers - Washington Examiner

There are decent Republican people. There are Republican voters and politicians and writers who promote principles of public decency. But there aren't enough of those individuals to have prevented the Republican Party, as a national institution, from becoming one that welcomes and encourages violence and white-supremacist racism.

The party's pre-Trump history is obviously not spotless. But 10 and 20 years ago the Republican party was usually forced to marginalize and disavow its openly racist, fascist elements, if only for reasons of political expediency. Not so anymore. Consider:

Are there elected Democrats who express dubious views and commit crimes? Yes! But when those individuals get caught, they resign. They become, for example, "disgraced former congressman Anthony Weiner." But the idea of disgrace is no longer a relevant concept in a Republican Party whose leaders and voters collectively condone and encourage violence against women, violence against the press, and the expression of white-supremacist views. That's not hyperbole, or a cheap shotit's just reality. Happy Memorial Day!

Read more here:
The Republicans Are the Party of Thugs and Nazis - Slate Magazine (blog)

To the Editor:

What happens when a public servant swears to, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States, but has little concept of what that means?

Unfortunately, we are faced with that predicament now. I am not merely talking about the president. I also am referring to those members of Congress, like our Congressman Randy Hultgren and his Republican brethren who support him. Thomas Jefferson addressed this when he said, All tyranny needs to gain a foothold is for people of good conscience to remain silent. The silence from Randy is deafening.

When a president expects loyalty from a public servant, as our current president did from James Comey, he completely undermines the intent of his oath. The Founding Fathers, in their ultimate wisdom, intended that citizens be subservient to the Constitution. This is where the country being run as a business rather than a Republic diverge. Our Constitution was written in response to being ruled by a King who had ultimate authority and demanded loyalty from his servants. The framers wanted no part of that system. Thats why they brilliantly devised the separation of powers, assuming one would be a check on the other. I am wondering when Republicans in Congress will actually read the oath they took and act on it.

Now is the time to prove their patriotism to our country and not their party. We need an independent investigation now.

Kathleen Bogolia

McHenry

Sponsored By

More here:
Letter: Republicans, prove your patriotism - Northwest Herald

This article first appeared on the Dorf on Law site.

Everyone is still trying to figure out what to make of the last two weeks of nonstop news about Donald Trump's unraveling presidency. His trip abroad is generating a bit of news (including his curtsy to a Saudi ruler), but until he inevitably becomes unhinged by the rigors of travel and diplomacy, the rest of the world will have some time to digest the multitude of shocking revelations that led to the appointment of a special counsel to investigate the Trump/Russia mess.

The overarching question that has generated serious political commentary is whether and when any Republicans will turn against Trump. Until that happens, he is in no danger of being forced from the White House. Of course, even something short of Trump's removal from office is a win for sanity, both because nonstop drama will derail the Republicans' regressive policy agenda and because it will keep Trump's supporters on the defensive in the 2018 midterm elections.

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Still, it is reasonable to wonder what exactly it will take to shake a few Republicans loose. As it happens, this is a subspecies of a question that I have been asking for the past few years, which is when the Republicans' headlong rush into fact-free extremism will push enough people to oppose them.

In late 2015, for example, I wrote " At This Point, Would Any Republican Ever Leave the Party? " along with three follow-up columns on Dorf on Law ( here, here, and here ). I focused there on whether the Republican Party is still home to any moderates, in a sense of that word that is more meaningful than simply "not quite as far out on the right fringe as the others."

Once Trump emerged as the Republican nominee and then shocked everyone by stumbling into an Electoral College win, the question was whether the supposed leaders of the Republican Party would actively oppose anything that he did. Needless to say, they have instead been cowering in their offices and refusing to criticize their new overlord.

With everything that has recently come to light, however, the question again becomes whether any Republicans will rouse themselves into action, putting true patriotism above party and political careerism. We are seeing some mild stirrings, but it is far too early to have any confidence that anyone will stand up and be counted.

One way to think about this is to look at the specific people whose reputations and track records make them the most obvious candidates to oppose Trump. Unfortunately, the Bush family, Senators John McCain and Susan Collins, and a few others have consistently failed to live up to their hype.

Sen. John McCain (L) (R-AZ) and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R) (R-SC) at the U.S. Capitol November 14, 2012 in Washington, DC. Win McNamee/Getty

And sure enough, just when McCain made headlines last week by calling the current situation of "Watergate size and scale," he immediately weaseled away from his almost-brave maverickiness.

As CBS News put it : "But in an interview with Fox News's Chris Wallace on 'Fox News Sunday,' McCain appeared to walk back his previous comments, saying he was referring to the administration's managing of the situation, and not the scandal itself." Profiles in courage this is not, at least so far.

Rather than focusing on specific individuals who might ride to the rescue, however, it might make more sense to describe the conditionsboth internal and externalthat would lead a Republican to break with Trump.

In other words, we need to think about a Republican office-holder or grandee who is being confronted with the ongoing embarrassments and evidence of possible crimes and treason by his or her president and who finally says, "No more."

These people, we must remember, are still Republicans, which means that they have not been driven away by the climate change denialism, the dog-whistle racism that became Trump's open bigotry, the efforts to give to the rich and take from the poor, the aggressive attempts to control women's bodies and so on. For most of the party, those are their reasons for being Republicans, after all, rather than reasons to quit.

So, we are asking what the conditions are that would make an extreme conservative possibly turn against Trump, which would possibly lead to setbacks in Republicans' policy and electoral goals.

Although it is true that most Republicans live in the Fox News bubble, it does not appear possible that they are able to remain blissfully unaware of what is going on. Even a congressman from one of the most pro-Trump districts in the country had recently begun to wonder whether "[t]his Trump thing is sustainable."

That particular Republican congressman, it turns out, happens to watch CNN. But most of his constituents do not, so when only one of a series of his town hall meetings had any anti-Trump acrimony, the congressman decided that there was little downside to sticking with Trump.

None of which is surprising, nor is it meaningful for assessing Trump's future. A first-term congressman from rural Kentucky does not hold the key to the impeachment process.

The point is that Republican officeholders cannot escape the news about Trump. Even those who insist on listening only to friendly news sources are confronted by reporters asking about the latest controversies. The vast majority will be unmoved, but their " epistemic closure " is not sufficient to allow them simply to remain ignorant about what is happening.

What really will make the difference? That is, what factors could come together to allow some Republicans to break ranks?

The most obvious possibility is for someone who is nearing the end of the political road to decide to do the right thing. For example, when the Republican leadership needed to find enough Republican votes over the last few years to pass increases in the debt ceiling, they would rely on the handful of retiring House members each term to do the right thing.

This, indeed, is a recurrent theme in literature and cinema, with the grizzled and compromised anti-hero suddenly standing up for what is right. Think about movies with contract killers and other bad guys who want at long last to do something good and decent before they die.

A variation on this theme was Clint Eastwood's film "Gran Torino," where he played what we might call a "casual xenophobe" who learns that he is dying and sacrifices himself to save an immigrant family.

Of course, not everyone who is leaving office is suddenly going to find their integrity. Some are so morally compromised by years of political gymnastics that they simply do not know what integrity means. Others, such as the hyper-partisan Rep. Jason Chaffetz of Utah, are young and almost certainly clinging to delusions of future political greatness. Even so, Chaffetz has shown some mild signs of breaking with Trump before he leaves office next month.

Short of retirement, some politicians might feel some safety in breaking from Trump if their own reelection races are years away. Republican senators who are not up for reelection until 2020 or 2022 would fall into this category, especially that earlier group, because they need to ask themselves whether they want to run for reelection down the ballot from Trump.

Neither of these conditionsbeing near retirement or being far away from facing the votersis sufficient, of course. John McCain won reelection in 2016, after all, and he will either retire in 2022 or run again at age 86. Even so, as noted above, he is at best wobbly right now.

Then there are the people who will run for reelection very soon but are simply scared that backing Trump will be worse for them than abandoning him. That one Kentucky congressman is not in danger, but many in somewhat competitive districts are. For them, the balance is between risking a challenge in their primaries and being stained with the R label in a general election.

Perhaps the most difficult question is how to find Republican officeholders who would be willing to sustain the punishments that would come from turning against Trump. There are all kinds of institutional punishments that can be meted out against turncoats, from losing prime committee assignments to the pettiest matters of being given bad office space and losing parking privileges.

But the more important punishments are external. There is unfortunately a large faction of Trump supporters who will immediately attack anyone who weakens on Trump. Although I do not engage with social media, I am not one to downplay the fear that the Republican targets of these onslaughts must feelespecially because such attacks sometimes include death threats.

In short, unless some huge new revelation turns this into a full-on run for the exits by Republicans, Trump will go down only when there are enough Republicans in the House and Senate who in one way or another do not care about their political futures and are willing to deal with the professional and personal harm that they will risk to themselves and their families.

On the other hand, politicians are often looking for a way to build a legacy. People today do not remember the vast majority of Republicans who stuck with Richard Nixon to the bitter end, but newspapers have recently been filled with Howard Baker's name, recounting his history-turning role in the Watergate hearings.

Again, most Republicans seem perfectly happy to be on the wrong side of history when it comes to voting rights, climate change, inequality, women's rights, same-sex marriage (although that has notably shifted) and so on. They also seem largely unworried by Trump's manifest unfitness for the presidency.

But some number of them could wake up one day soon and say: "Some things are too big to ignore. I love my country and the Constitution. When my story is told, I want to be remembered as a patriot."

Will there be enough Republicans who finally decide that the country must be saved?

Neil H. Buchanan is an economist and legal scholar and a professor of law at George Washington University. He teaches tax law, tax policy, contracts, and law and economics. His research addresses the long-term tax and spending patterns of the federal government, focusing on budget deficits, the national debt, health care costs and Social Security.

See the article here:
Neil Buchanan: What Will It Take for Republicans To Dump Trump? - Newsweek