Saturday, October 27, 2007
Editorial: In House District 7, stick with Nutter
The three-term delegate has proven himself as an independent thinker and a responsible, effective legislator.
From the RoundTable blog
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Del. Dave Nutter, R-Christiansburg, is a generally thoughtful and independent-minded conservative who has served the 7th House District well in his three terms in the Generally Assembly. Voters should send him back on Nov. 6.
The 7th District includes the city of Radford and parts of Pulaski and Montgomery counties.
Nutter, economic development coordinator at Virginia Tech, has been a staunch advocate for higher education, recognizing the value of the commonwealth's investment in what he calls "human capital."
His opponent, Democrat Peggy Frank, a Christiansburg attorney and former assistant prosecutor, seems very capable. But she is a political unknown. While many Virginians share her frustration with the political gridlock in Richmond, it's uncertain how effective she could be in breaking it, especially if Republicans, as expected, retain the majority.
Nutter, on the other hand, is a known quantity with an extensive record.
We don't agree with everything in that record. He opposes the most sensible and efficient method of funding transportation: an increase in the gas tax, which has remained fixed at 17.5 cents per gallon since 1986.
His opposition doesn't appear tied to a reflexive anti-tax ideology (Nutter voted for the 2004 budget package that helped keep the state solvent), but out of a concern that the increase would need to be prohibitively large to be meaningful. He noted that a 5-cent increase would generate only $250 million a year, while the anticipated need for new revenue is closer to $1 billion.
Nutter also opposes Gov. Tim Kaine's pre-K proposal, even the scaled-back version the governor is preparing to present.
When he sponsored an ill-conceived measure to grant localities veto power over rail projects that receive state funding, he was guilty of pandering to noisy constituents upset over the proposed intermodal yard in Elliston.
But while we are often on the opposite side of issues with Nutter, he is certainly not guilty of marching in ideological lock-step with the Republican Party, especially its current hidebound leadership.
Voters should stick with the known quantity here. Nutter has been a responsible, thoughtful, forward-looking and effective legislator.
He has earned a fourth term.
