Thursday, October 22, 2009
Contrasts sharp in attorney general race
They even have differing views of the attorney general's duties.
Related
roanoke.com/politics
The two men running to serve as Virginia's attorney general share few similarities in style, substance or nature of focus, but fate conspired to bring them together long before they first clashed in the political realm.
For a year in the 1980s, Republican Ken Cuccinelli and Democrat Steve Shannon shared the halls of Gonzaga High School in Washington, D.C.
It was, Shannon said, a "classic freshman-senior type relationship" -- that is, the younger Shannon knew of Cuccinelli, but not the other way around.
Despite the high school connection, the two men have blazed remarkably different paths to the 2009 race for attorney general and, true to form, their respective campaigns display that same difference in style and emphasis.
Cuccinelli, whose outspoken conservatism and willingness to challenge the status quo have charmed Republican activists as much as his natural charisma, has run a broad-based campaign focused nearly as much on social issues and national politics as the public safety aspect of attorney general.
Shannon, whose quiet calmness belies a focused intensity, has concentrated more narrowly on the "top cop" nature of the job. He's touted his experience as a state prosecutor and run a campaign targeted squarely on issues of gang violence, sexual predators and family safety.
Perhaps no disagreement defines the difference between the two as much as their views of the attorney general's duties.
Shannon has based his entire campaign around the idea that the attorney general is Virginia's top prosecutor, setting the tone for law enforcement and coordinating efforts to tackle regional issues that localities can't handle alone.
"It's important to have an attorney general who has a practical knowledge and understanding of the criminal justice system," Shannon said. "Ken Cuccinelli just doesn't have the experience."
Cuccinelli dismisses Shannon's experience -- about three years as an assistant commonwealth's attorney in Fairfax County: "The fact of the matter is he doesn't have much of it."
Cuccinelli says that his first priority is also public safety. But prominent Democrats say they're worried he will instead focus on the cultural issues that have become a hallmark of his legislative career.
"I'm very concerned if there's a law he doesn't like from his personal political agenda that he won't enforce it," said House Minority Leader Ward Armstrong, D-Henry County.
Cuccinelli has never been one to back away from or compromise on his beliefs. But he said the job will require him to move from a proactive stance to a reactive one: "It will require a bit of a shift in how I function, but still the bully pulpit is there. And I'll certainly use it. But I think what you'll find is I'll use it to address events and political debates that arise rather than stoking them."
Certainly, Cuccinelli's hard-line stances on social issues and taxes have made him a favorite of conservative activists around the state -- if not with moderate Republicans that led the Senate during his first years in the chamber.
He's bragged at times about his propensity to wind up on the wrong end of 39-1 votes. But he's also worked closely with Senate Democrats on nonpartisan issues -- particularly on mental heath reform that followed the 2007 shootings at Virginia Tech. And he was one of the chief architects on legislation to protect private property from eminent domain that came in the months following the U.S. Supreme Court's 2005 Kelo v. City of New London (Conn.) decision.
Cuccinelli clearly relishes the political aspect of the job: "One of my favorite quotes on the floor of the Senate is when people stand up and say, 'Let's take the politics out of this.' Well then get off the Senate floor. Accept the reality of where you're serving."
That willingness to scrap helped him to three successive state Senate wins in blue-trending Northern Virginia and secured his statewide reputation.
"He just had more connections with the grass-roots Republican activists than anybody in recent memory," said Sen. Ralph Smith, R-Botetourt County.
That network propelled him to a strong win in June at the Republican state convention. Former U.S. Attorney John Brownlee -- who, like Shannon, ran a campaign centered squarely on his experience as a prosecutor -- was considered Cuccinelli's strongest opponent for the nomination. Despite that, Cuccinelli won the 6th Congressional District -- Brownlee's Roanoke home base -- outright.
Shannon's involvement with public safety issues goes back to the late 1990s, when his wife, Abby, heard about the Texas "Amber Alert" program and embarked on a campaign to bring it to Northern Virginia. The result was the Metropolitan Washington Amber Alert -- Virginia's first. Soon after, then-Gov. Mark Warner instituted the idea statewide.
He worked three years in the Fairfax County commonwealth's attorney's office before he was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates in 2003. He has since become one of the "go-to" delegates for Democrats on criminal issues.
"He's the most focused individual that I've ever seen," Armstrong said. "When he identifies a particular goal, he's relentless."
Del. Kenny Alexander, D-Norfolk, who sits behind Shannon in the House of Delegates, said, "He's always in uniform as a legislator."
That extends to some of the more informal moments on the House floor, when other legislators are cracking jokes or playing computer solitaire.
"Steve would take that opportunity to learn more about the bill, learn more about the issue, learn more about the budget," Alexander said.
But Cuccinelli has questioned whether Shannon has learned enough about the attorney general's office, and he's pointed to the state's handling of this summer's Melendez-Diaz vs. Massachusetts decision by the U.S. Supreme Court as Exhibit A.
The court ruled in June that forensic analysts must be available to testify in cases involving scientific evidence. Cuccinelli quickly called on Gov. Tim Kaine to convene a special session of the General Assembly to tweak state law to avoid widespread dismissals of drug and drunken-driving cases. Shannon's campaign dismissed Cuccinelli's urging as a "political stunt" and argued that the ruling could be addressed administratively.
When Kaine called for the special session in July, Cuccinelli claimed vindication.
"Melendez has become a very important element of this campaign because it was a major pop quiz of what an attorney general is called upon to do in the criminal justice system," Cuccinelli said. "I passed and he failed."
Shannon has a different story -- one backed up by Kaine -- saying that he worked closely with the governor's staff to recommend a variety of solutions, both administrative and legislative.
The two also have traded shots over Del. Phil Hamilton, R-Newport News. In late August, Republican leaders called for an ethics investigation of Hamilton -- an influential Hampton Roads lawmaker who holds a key role on the House Appropriation Committee -- after Old Dominion University released e-mails showing that he secured $500,000 a year in state funding for the university's Center for Teacher Quality and Educational Leadership while asking for a $40,000-a-year job for himself.
Shannon called for Hamilton's resignation, as did both party's candidates for governor and lieutenant governor. Cuccinelli remained silent on the issue.
Shannon said that silence, along with making the sole Senate vote against a 2004 bill to increase penalties for officials who misuse public funds, shows Cuccinelli "doesn't take public corruption seriously."
Cuccinelli argued that Shannon is the one who made the mistake on Hamilton: "There are three people in Virginia who should be keeping their mouth shut in terms of prejudging the case: [Acting Attorney General] Bill Mims, Steve Shannon and me. One of us may end up with the decision to proceed criminally against Phil. I take that very, very seriously."
