http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PbZgUS10bPY
He served in the military, cut taxes, reduced the rate of growth of state government, defended the unborn
and most importantly kept his promises.
Posted on 09/24/2008 6:35:40 AM PDT by Maelstorm
HARRISONBURG - Former Gov. Jim Gilmore, a Republican, is not ready to support the Bush administration's proposed $700 billion bailout of America's troubled financial institutions.
Gilmore, seeking the seat now held by retiring Sen. John Warner, R-Va., said accountability has to be built into any plan to rescue such firms as insurance giant American International Group Inc. and other lenders saddled with billions of dollars in bad debt.
Gilmore, who was in Harrisonburg on Monday to address the Rotary Club, made his remarks with six weeks to go before Election Day. Gilmore is facing another former governor, Mark Warner, on the ballot.
Regulatory Controls
"I understand that you don't want the entire financial system to collapse," Gilmore said after the lunch meeting. "I would like a more free-market approach."
But, with so much public money involved, Gilmore wants any plan to include more federal oversight and loan accountability.
"We have to have some standards on loaning so that we know that the asset is reliable when it's created. We used to do that," he said of traditional loan practices.
Last week, the federal government said it would provide AIG with a two-year $85 billion loan to avoid bankruptcy. In return, the government will get a 79.9 percent stake in AIG and the ability to remove senior management.
Now, Congress is considering a larger plan, $700 billion in all, proposed by Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson to cover qualifying lending institutions that made bad loans, including mortgages.
According to The Associated Press, the government would hold the assets until they can be sold off.
"We may be forced to do this to avoid a collapse," Gilmore said.
Warner also favors regulatory oversight, his spokesman Kevin Hall said Monday.
The government bailout should not be used to pay chief executive officers millions of dollars as part of golden parachute agreements, Hall said. And, as much as possible, taxpayers should get their money back, he said.
Labor Battle
In other areas, Gilmore criticized Warner's position on the proposed Employee Free Choice Act, federal legislation that would end the secret ballot practice for unionization of shops.
Under the bill, a union's certification would happen when it collected enough signed authorization cards from a majority of employees.
"I will oppose that legislation," Gilmore said. "Mark Warner said he will support that legislation."
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce also opposes the change and urged Congress to do the same in a 2007 letter.
"The card check process exposes employees to abuse, threats, and intimidation all in the name of the union accumulating the required number of signatures," according to the chamber's letter.
The AFL-CIO - the nation's largest federation of unions -supports the bill. On its Web site, the federation says the proposed legislation would make it easier for people who want to unionize to do so.
According to Hall, Warner would work to find a way to reform the process and level the playing field, which he believes has tipped toward management.
The proposed legislation affects the process, not the state's right-to-work status, Hall said. Right-to-work laws prohibit employers from making membership in a union a condition of employment.
In spite of Warner's being at odds with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's position on the issue, the organization has endorsed him for Senate.
In a previous statement, Bill Miller, the chamber's senior vice president and political director, has said his organization believes Warner would be an effective legislator "and supporter of businesses of every size" if elected.
Warner Lead
Gilmore said he's confident that if the election is focused on the issues, he can close the gap with his Democratic opponent in the public opinion polls.
A strong showing by Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., in Virginia may also help Gilmore in his campaign
The latest statewide poll by SurveyUSA of likely voters showed Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., leading McCain by 51 percent to 45 percent.
But Gilmore trails Warner by 24 points, according to similar polls, 57 to 33 percent.
Contact Jeff Mellott at 574-6290 or jmellott@dnronline.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PbZgUS10bPY
He served in the military, cut taxes, reduced the rate of growth of state government, defended the unborn
and most importantly kept his promises.
Gilmore is going to have to do something dramatic to win. I have spoken to him and his staff that he needs to hit the immigration issue hard and distance himself from McCain just like he did on ANWR. He really has nothing to lose at this point. He should roll the dice with a bold move or he is going down to sure defeat.
I watched a bit of the debate with Mark Warner...how can the VA voters trust that slime bucket Warner? Warner had that idiot smirk on his face and sounded like a 14 year old debater...
He doesn’t have anything to lose. He did really well in his debate in Fairfax but the media around here covered it superficially. This race would be a lot different if the national GOP had run some ads whittling Mark Warner down to size for his big spending lies. Gilmore needs some better honed ads.
Warner has more favorable ratings for whatever reason. Gilmore can nail him on the immigration issue, which has great reasonance in NoVA. He needs to something to distinguish himself from Warner. He tried the energy issue so Warner changed and said he was in favor of offshore drilling and that he agrees with Obama and McCain that we should not be drilling in ANWR.
Gilmore spoke to us last week before the debate at a local GOP meeting in McLean. He said that he has received very little money from the RNC, which is giving the vast majority of money to the McCain campaign. Warner has lots of money. Gilmore doesn’t.
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