Virginia AG Cuccinelli Intervenes in Presidential Primary Dispute
Posted by Jim Hoft on Saturday, December 31, 2011, 11:44 AM
Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli is intervening in the presidential primary dispute and will filed emergency legislation. Cuccinelli’s proposal is expected to state that if the Virginia Board of Elections certifies that a candidate is receiving federal matching funds, or has qualified to receive them, that candidate will upon request be automatically added to the ballot.
FOX News reported:
Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli is intervening in the Virginia presidential primary dispute and plans to file emergency legislation to address the inability of most Republican presidential candidates to get their name on the ballot, Fox News has learned.
Only Mitt Romney and Ron Paul qualified for the Virginia primary, a contest with 49 delegates up for grabs.
The failure of other candidates to qualify — notably Newt Gingrich and Rick Perry — led to complaints that the 10,000-signature requirement is too stringent.
Cuccinelli, who is a Republican, shared the concerns.
“Recent events have underscored that our system is deficient,” he said in a statement. “Virginia owes her citizens a better process. We can do it in time for the March primary if we resolve to do so quickly.”
Cuccinelli’s proposal is expected to state that if the Virginia Board of Elections certifies that a candidate is receiving federal matching funds, or has qualified to receive them, that candidate will upon request be automatically added to the ballot.
Two former Democratic attorneys general are also backing the move, along with a former Democratic state party chairman and a former Republican state party chairman.
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Published May 23, 2012 at 4:57 am - 64 Comments
FurryGuy commented:
Overly Byzantine rules being replaced by affirmative action set-asides.
It is no wonder we have a permanent political class in this country. No one but a career politician can run the gauntlet.
ogee commented:
Wouldn’t ya know. neocons and demonrats changing the rules as they go along to suit them.
They are all as crooked as the day is long. Let’s face it. Those that did not get the required signatures to be on the ballot should not be on the ballot. Required signatures for candidates and bills is nothing new. Sheesh! All but 2 candidates FAILED to meet the requirements……….
so let’s just change the rulzzzzzzzzz for them….. makes me sick.
lily commented:
Doesn’t make me ‘sick’. I want the VA primary voters to have all the choices among the major candidates. I think Perry and Gingrich are arguably major candidates.
Keeping them off the ballot seems like the politically trickery to me.
bg commented:
++
OT..
Virginia inmate wins legal jihad, submits prison to all kinds of sharia
He noted that the three politicians’ campaign war chests are
heavily funded by radical Islamists who support the mosque.
The Third Jihad et al
Obama et al
MB et al
[scroll threads for more]
==
bg commented:
++
who will qualify..
hmmm hmmm hmmm..
==
DCT commented:
“Recent events have underscored that our system is deficient,” he said in a statement. “Virginia owes her citizens a better process. We can do it in time for the March primary if we resolve to do so quickly.”
I agree with Cuccinelli…however, the candidates should have had their bases covered. They met part of the requirements but exclusion for major candidates because of rules designed to limit participation in elections need to be revised and reconsidered. Thanks Ken.
JCraig commented:
This seems to be a move in the right direction. But independents and demorats should not be allowed to vote in the GOP primary.
Patty commented:
http://images.redstate.com/files/Guidelines%20for%20Observers.pdf
http://images.redstate.com/files/Guidelines%20for%20Petition%20Verification.pdf
http://images.redstate.com/files/RPV%202008%20Presidential%20Primary%20Petition%20Verification.pdf
some guidelines
FurryGuy commented:
I understand that there has to be some restriction on the number of available candidates on a primary ballot, otherwise we would see the ineffectualness that characterizes Parliamentary elections and politics, but to have federal matching funds be a primary prerequisite of inclusion smacks of governmental offices are only for career politicians.
bg commented:
++
March 31, 2011
Goodbye to Federal Funding for 2012 Candidates
help!!
==
noway commented:
why in the heck should democrats be allowed to pursue their bs goals by voting in the repub primary in virgina? NO
bg commented:
++
JCraig #7 December 31, 2011 at 12:11 pm
too late..
==
valerie commented:
The “10,000 signature requirement” is a bit of a misnomer. The candidates got voters’ signatures that were subsequently invalidated due to rules about who would be allowed to collect them.
bg commented:
++
valerie #14 December 31, 2011 at 12:43 pm
both had over 10 thou sigs..
obvious ACORN was not involved, Obama not so much..
==
Listen Up commented:
Glenn Beck tells America: “We MUST support Ron Paul”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wyx9tw0TEPM
Polarglen commented:
Cuccinelli is Romney’s VA Campaign Manager — enough said.
Bill Mitchell commented:
I have a feeling that Newt is going to do MUCH better in Iowa than people think. Some last minute big spending my outside groups in his favor along with a “Stop Paul” movement may consolidate votes for Newt.
So I predicting late Newt surge and possible win in Iowa.
Patentlee commented:
Since the deadline for the primary has already passed, wouldn’t this proposed law have an improper retroactive effect if it applies to the upcoming primary?
Sickofobama commented:
I think what Cuccinelli is doing is right on.
The RINO Party in Virginia does not want Perry or Gingrich on the ballot.
Cuccinelli, I believe, knows it is vital not to piss off us conservatives.
He is going after Obamacare and needs us.
Sickofobama commented:
#16:
Glenn Beck is full of shiite.
I quit listening to him 3 weeks ago because of that remark and also his remarks about the Tea Partiers voting for Gingrich over Obama would be racist.
gee! commented:
#20 bing……….
Craig commented:
Newt Gingrich Sides With Bill Clinton and Al Gore Over Conservatives In 1995 $40 Billion Mexican Bailout
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=FaMX8RGggcM
donh commented:
If Gingrish gets on, he will still play to lose it. This move only means the party is taking too much heat for what people see as a rigged primary. EVERYONE but Ron Paul will take a dive to hand Romney the nomination without any real contest over policy. This primary is being managed by RNC chair Rinse Prius like a WWF style rigged wrestling match. Cain forfeits lateralling his football to Gingrich , then Gingrich hangs himself and laterals his gift wrapped votes in Romney’s lap. The non Romney vote gets tossed around the ring like a hot potato nobody wants to touch until it has nowhere to land but Romney’s lap … and we get manipulated into an Obama vs Romney lose lose contest. Then the Rinos get to shove their lesser of 2 evils sales pitch of the same old big government agenda with a slightly better supreme Court pick…. all that hard Tea Party work for NOTHING.
retire05 commented:
#17, where do you get your information? Ken Cuccinelli is NOT Mitt Romney’s Virginia campaign manager. I would think if you were going to comment on the Va situation, you could at least get your facts right.
Bill Bolling, the Lt. Governor of Virginia, is Romney’s campaign manager, and therein lies the problem with was has been going on in Virginia for the last six weeks.
The standard for qualification for the Va GOP primary has, for the last three presidential election cycles, been 10,000 signatures on petitions for the candidate. Signatures that were not verified. This year, the requirement was the same, but on October 24th, Michael Osborne, who was running for office in Virginia, filed suit against both the state election board and the RPV claiming that while they verified his signatures, they did not verify the signatures of his primary opponent.
So in November, the RPV changed the rules (in mid-stream so to speak) and ruled that any candidate with 15,000+ signatures would automatically be put on the primary ballot and those signatures would NOT be verified although the Osborne case has not been settled or even gone to court and probably will not go to court prior to the primary. This was a knee-jerk reaction (excuse?) on the part of the RPV to change the rules midway in the campaign season. They were not bound to do so since there has been no court action, or ruling, in the Osborne case.
Now comes the scandal and the suggestion that something untoward was happening within the Virginia GOP.
Mitt Romney had basically been running his campaign out of Bill Bollings campaign headquarters in Richmond. The signatures gathered for Romney were being handed over to Bolling and Bolling, not Romney, submitted those signatures to the RPV on December 20th. People are wondering if, when the rule was changed to the 15,000 benchmark in November, if Bolling knew that Romney had already reached that number. Bolling turned in 16,026 signatures for Romney, none of them verified except we are told that the Romney campaign itself, claims to have verified 25% of them, which the RPV took them at their word.
Ron Paul, on the other hand, also did not have his signatures verified although he had not reached the 15K benchmark for no verification, with only 14,361 signatures, completely violating the new rule. But polls showed that Paul was garnering only about 9% while Romney was getting 25% being beat out by Gingrich @ 30% or as high as 41%. To the RPV, Paul was presenting absolutely NO challenge to Romney.
One other point: the Virginia primary is a proportional primary IF there are three or more candidates on the ballot. By reducing the primary to just TWO candidates, it becomes a winner-take-all primary. This is a fact that was not lost on either the RPV or Bill Bolling.
On January 20th, when Bolling, who himself filed Romney’s signatures said:
“I don’t think there’s any question that having a Republican president would help improvce our chances in 2013 in Virginia, and having a Republican president who is a friend would help MY chances in 2013.”
Bolling is running in 2013 against Ken Cuccinelli for the office of Governor.
Now, add to that the recent decision on the part of the RPV to require a “loyalty” oath to be signed by the voter before they are allowed to vote. The oath requires the voter to swear to vote for, and support, whoever is the final GOP nominee. I suggest this “oath” will be found unconstitutional.
The sad part is that the RPV has (in my view, illegally) disenfrancised thousands of Virginia voters by limiting their selection in the primary. Primaries are designed to allow voters to pick the candidate of their choice that will represent them in the general election. By reducing the number of qualified candidates on the ballot, the RPV has basically told voters who they can, and cannot vote for. Any candidate, who meets the Constitution requirement for office, and who has filed to run in that state, should be allowed on the ballot. We squawk when the Democrats try to supress voter’s rights, we should be sqawking just as louding about the shenigans going on in Virginia with the Republican Party of Virginia.
Craig commented:
Listen-up, #16,
WOW! Never thought Glen Beck was so brilliant. He moved up in my personal appreciation.
He is 100% right.
You get a progressive like Gincrich as President, you lose it all: freedom, constitution, etc.
This Lisa caller was really a moron who understood nothing. It is scary to think that people like her will be voting.
Ron Paul all the way!
bg commented:
++
Listen Up #16 December 31, 2011 at 12:52 pm
that title is, well, lets say deceptive, but when it
comes to Ron Paul, what the he-ll else is new..
==
RedBeard commented:
Virginia has every right to change its policies and run elections as it sees fit, under the Constitution.
But that doesn’t alter the curious fact that some supposedly serious candidates failed to complete the very basic and not very difficult task of getting the required signatures.
Seems like a teacher giving a second chance to a student who claimed that his dog ate his homework.
retire05 commented:
Craig, the comforting part is that we know YOU will not be voting in this election. Canadians are not allowed to vote in U.S. elections. That is unless you want to vote for Obama. The Democrats take dead people, illegals and Canadians.
bg commented:
++
Polarglen #17 December 31, 2011 at 12:55 pm
[Cuccinelli is Romney’s VA Campaign Manager]
link please, oh wait..
retire05 #25 December 31, 2011 at 1:50 pm
[Bill Bolling, the Lt. Governor of Virginia, is Romney’s campaign manager]
bottom line, no matter who’s right/wrong, links
go a long way in helping back up ones claims..
==
retire05 commented:
RedBeard, of the 11,910 signatures gathered by Perry, over 5,000 of them (almost 1/2) were disqualified. Now, if the RPV applied the same scrutiny to the Romney and Paul signatures, they would not have made it either as Romney would have been reduced to 8,000 and Paul to 7,000.
The RPV has not reported what percentage of Gingrich’s over 11,000 signatures were disqualified.
Virginia has a right to change their election rules, but not less than 90 days from an election. The new “loyalty” oath rule violates the 90 day requirement and loyalty oaths have been ruled unconstitutional. Even the POTUS oath does not require loyality, just the swearing to “protect and defend.”
retire05 commented:
bg, perhaps I should do as you do and link back to my own comments as my “link?”
Promise to be nice, and not continue to print falsehoods about the GOP candidates, and I might consider giving you a link, until then……………………………………………………….I will remind you of the statement made by Theresa Hinze Kerry.
bg commented:
++
retire05 #30 December 31, 2011 at 2:27 pm
oh no!!
don’t bust the bubble!!
i’m sure Craig is looking forward to
voting for Obama at least twice..
==
bg commented:
++
retire05 #33 December 31, 2011 at 2:34 pm
uh, you never post links, hello??
==
RedBeard commented:
On what basis were all those signatures rejected? Has the state issued any clarification or explanation?
The one thing I can’t understand is the practice of giving a candidate a free pass on signatures if he turns in 15,000 or more. Why does that number magically mean that there are not 12,000 bogus ones in the pot? Bizarre. Seems to me that the examination and rejection criteria should be the same for all, regardless of the total signatures submitted.
bg commented:
++
retire05 #33 December 31, 2011 at 2:34 pm
oh phuch goodness sake ret05..
i post facts..
words from PERRY’s OWN MOUTH, WORDS WRITTEN BY HIS HAND
(not that he can remember any of them), ergo, how the hell are
they falsehoods??
==
bg commented:
++
retire05 #33 December 31, 2011 at 2:34 pm
==
retire05 commented:
bg, you post CRAP gleened from Alex Jones and Ron Paul about Rick Perry. End of story. You’re just too dishonest to admit it. Bilderberger, bah humbug! Just more Jones/Paul lies.
And yes, I post links, just not when DEMANDED by the likes of someone as dishonest as you.
bg commented:
++
retire05 #39 December 31, 2011 at 2:44 pm
liar, prove it..
==
retire05 commented:
RedBeard, there in lies the problem. The rules were changed, not prior to the candidates being allowed to start gathering signatures in July, but in mid-November when Bolling would have been aware of how many signatures Romney had already gotten.
The Virginia GOP, along with the Board of Elections, are looking like a bunch of incompetent oafs who change the rules at whim to promote who they are backing. Remember, many of the Virginia voters in the north of the state work for the federal government in D.C. Romney, as a Republican, would be their automatic choice; big goverment, overbearing goverment, ect. Its no coincidence that the one candidate who was the biggest threat to Romney in Virginia, Gingrich, was thown off the ballot.
retire05 commented:
bg, take your p!ssing contest to someone else. I am not interested in dealing with you, a liar and a flake.
bg commented:
++
retire05 #39 December 31, 2011 at 2:44 pm
Alex Jones??
Alex Jones??
how about this??
Alex Jones or Ron Paul??
you tell me crazy..
and i could go on, but why bother, you’re just an instigating liar
because you believe ti makes you appear more honest.. haha!!
==
bg commented:
++
retire05 #42 December 31, 2011 at 2:49 pm
okay, i don’t mind ending what you started..
so go dry up already..
==
donh commented:
They toss people from the ballot because Rinos like Mitt Romney treat the whole Republican party like grandparents pushed out to pasture into a rest home , loaded up on sedatives , and spoon fed warm oatmeal , because the trust fund preppy kids are tired of waiting for you to die . They demand to spend down our inheritance NOW….With Romney it will be 4 more years of 2 trillion dollar annual budget deficits, a return of TARP style bail outs to politically connected business , a decline in quality of serivces to the elderly and needy . More scamming of the welfare estate by able bodied adults, drug addicts, OWS, illegals ect.
bg commented:
++
December 31, 2011
National
27.4 Gingrich +2.2
25.2 Romney
12.2 Paul
6.4 Perry
6.2 Bachmann
4.0 Santorum
2.0 Huntsman
Iowa
21.6 Romney +0.4
21.2 Paul
14.0 Santorum
14.0 Gingrich
11.8 Perry
8.6 Bachmann
2.6 Huntsman
New Hampshire
38.0 Romney +19.7
18.3 Paul
17.0 Gingrich
10.5 Huntsman
3.8 Bachmann
3.3 Santorum
2.3 Perry
South Carolina
37.0 Gingrich +16.0
21.0 Romney
8.7 Paul
6.7 Bachmann
5.7 Perry
2.7 Santorum
3.3 Huntsman
Florida
38.3 Gingrich +12.0
26.3 Romney
5.7 Paul
4.3 Perry
4.3 Bachmann
2.3 Huntsman
1.7 Santorum
!! MERRY NEW YEAR ~ HEALTH & HAPPINESS TO ALL !!
==
Bob in VA commented:
Really no surprise here. Current AG is running for Governor when Bob McDonnell can’t be re-elected. Bob McDonnell, a Romney supporter, favors the current Lieutenant Governor Bolling to replace him. This is Cuccinelli’s payback for the Gov not supporting him. I like the current AG for suing Obamacare. But that’s just me.
RS commented:
Virginia’s rules insist that a candidate have LOCAL organization and wide support from registered voters.
The rules are clear. They were given to the candidates. They were REMINDED of the rules again.
The problem lies with poor organization in the loser camps.
Bad Actor commented:
I quit listening to Glenn Beck after he left Fox. I’m glad I got off the GB scare-a-thon treadmill. Every day I was more and more stressed out. I used to like GB, but now I think he is a huckster.
And I really can’t believe he’s telling his audience who to vote for! His big thing used to be that he was educating us so we could make an intelligent decision on our own. What a hypocrit. Down with Glenn Beck.
workingclass artist commented:
This is good news!
Gig Em’
Perry 2012
workingclass artist commented:
@#48
The problemo is the rulez are stupid! That loyalty oath takes the cake!
workingclass artist commented:
“Meanwhile, four GOP candidates on Saturday joined fellow candidate Rick Perry’s lawsuit against the state, urging the Board of Elections to either allow them on the ballot or at least refrain from taking any action until a Jan. 13 court hearing.”
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/12/31/virginia-attorney-general-intervenes-in-gop-primary-ballot-dispute/#ixzz1i9YhxWJA
Righteous!
bg commented:
++
OT..
Michael Reagan ~ Newt Gingrich
==
J Descartes commented:
Can’t wait to see if Ron Paul institutes sharia law if he is elected. I’m sure all the Ronulians would support a move like that. What a pathetic bunch they are.
Its the Ronulians working to keep the others off the ballot. Wonder why that is?
J Descartes commented:
As Descartes would say, “its constitutional in Afghanistan.” The Left not only tolerates evil, it nutures it.
bg commented:
++
hmmm, ACORN or OWS Pauliens had to be involved..
[The Republican Party of Virginia said Dec. 24 that Texas Governor Rick Perry and Gingrich failed to get signatures from 10,000 registered voters as required to be placed on the ballot. Many of the signatures collected for Gingrich were improperly excluded because of a “missing or illegible address,” attorney Jonathon Moseley said in the complaint filed yesterday in state court in Richmond County.
Gingrich said this week that someone hired to collect signatures provided false ones. Two other Republicans, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney and U.S. Representative Ron Paul of Texas, qualified for the primary scheduled for so-called Super Tuesday.
Yesterday, Perry lost a bid to stop Virginia election officials from printing or distributing ballots without his name on them. A federal judge in Richmond said he wouldn’t stop the printing before the next hearing in the case, scheduled for Jan. 13. He didn’t rule on the merits of Perry’s challenge.]
==
bg commented:
++
OT..
here we go, inch by inch, yard by yard.. *sigh*
Obama Will Govern Without Congress
what freakin’ Congress??
we have a Congress??
they sure fooled me..
GAH!!
==
bg commented:
++
OT..
Gingrich: Justice Dept Wants to ‘Steal Elections’
i believe it..
==
retire05 commented:
So the Obama appointed judge has refused to put a hold on the printing of the Va GOP primary ballots? So what? The judge also set the hearing date for January 13, 2012 and recommended that ALL GOP candidates be joined in the Perry lawsuit. Four candidates have now joined, Gingrich, Backmann, Huntsman and Santorum.
So while Perry, now along with the other four candidates, seeks legal remedy to a highly unconstitutional rule made by the RPV, along with the “loyalty” oath requirement which will never stand Constitutional muster, Gingrich is whining and placing the blame on “someone hired to collect signatures.”
Unfortunately, Newt Gingrich also failed to make the Missouri primary ballot.
bg commented:
++
retire05 #59 December 31, 2011 at 5:27 pm
so, what’s the substance of Perry’s
suit against the Virgina ballot count??
==
bg commented:
++
oh btw, this, re: the fix for Perry is in, is funny..
==
Cheryl S. commented:
The next target of the “battleaxe” Hillary Clinton. The dismantling of the electoral college.
Oh my God.
Evil never sleeps.
Texas_Treeroach commented:
Let Virginia straighten out its own hash.
Rose commented:
Changing the rules midstream isn’t right – but since they already did it once in October – this decision sounds reasonable and gives choices to the VOTERS – which IS the point!
FurryGuy commented:
Suppose it had been RP that had been excluded from the Virginia Primary. I seriously doubt the false Messiah cultists wouldn’t riot to correct that “mistake”.
FurryGuy commented:
When one has already screwed the pooch, it doesn’t help matters to go after all the neighborhood strays to compensate. Knew-jerk legislative tinkering almost never bodes well. Feel-good intentions almost never lead to well-done outcomes.
No matter what the outcome of the Virginia debacle is, simply because my home state has chosen to be near the bottom of the primary barrel makes any vote I cast to be pro forma protest. More often then not the candidate has already been selected when we vote.
retire05 commented:
#61, it seems the author of your little article doesn’t seem to know the difference between tort law and election law. Not understandable when he, himself, is a personal injury (tort, known in some circles as an “ambalance chaser”) lawyer.
Had you two grey cells bumping together, you would have noticed that he completely misrepresents Texas tort law when he says: “Presidential candidate, Rick Perry of Texas, who continually touts his record in Texas for taking away his citizens’ rights to sue for harms done to them”
I understand that you are not real bright, but in Texas no ones right to sue for harm has been removed. What has been done is taking away the right of a stupid woman who sticks hot coffee between her legs while driving, resulting in burning herself due to her own stupidity, to sue for millions of dollars. What the Texas law does is tell the litigant that if their law suit is found frivilous by the judge, they will have to pay the court costs and the legal fees of the defendant.
Anyone in Texas is allowed to sue for harm, but the award is limited to actual damages (medical bills, lost wages) and places a limit on punative damages (look up ‘punative damage’)
Now, understanding that you are not the brightest bulb on the Christmas tree, I suggest you invest a little time in learning the difference between civil, criminal and election laws. The Virginia primary is considered a primary to select a candidate for a national election, and even Virginia statutes treat them differently with statutes that apply to only local (state) elections and statutes that apply to (federal) elections, i.e. the primaries (those statutes are found on-line, and I know you can use a search engine but suspect you are too lazy to inform yourself).
Really, bg, get a life. Being a vitriolic bile spewer is not a desirable trait.
bg commented:
++
retire05 #67 December 31, 2011 at 7:02 pm
project we much??
==
retire05 commented:
bg, you are an uninformed reactionary. I would think someone you age would have gained a little more knowledge, a little more rational, a little more finesse, but alas, some people are hopelessly mired in remaining just as absurd as they were when they were young. That would be you.
You think that Youtube videos and articles from left wing publications/websites defend your position. They don’t.
I understand that you are now a waif wandering in the wilderness not really having a candidate. You have bounced from Palin (who I told you would not run) to Cain and now to God knows who. You are insulting, arrogant and just flat out lack basic intellect. If it were not for links, especially back to your own comments, you would be held mute. You are here constantly, indicating that you have no personal life, no other interests other than trying to insult anyone who has the audacity to disagree with you.
We are on the brink of new year. I suggest you get a hobby, take up Nigerian women’s basket weaving or some such other mundane activity that will allow you to participate in human endeavor. Again, being a vitriolic bile spewer is not a desirable trait.
Now feel free to take the last word as I know that your self-overrated ego will not permit anything else.
Happy New Year and God bless.
Molon Labe commented:
BG
Trying to argue with retarded is beyond reason. The creature from the black lagoon doesn’t exist within the same parameters of reality as you and the rest of the world. She’s one of these welfare, amnesty types out to colonize the USA with all sorts of thrid worlders. Perry meets her requirements which is why Americans dumped him in a hurry.
Retarded is one step above the Ronulians. But at least she isn’t Craig. Her wardrobe is better.
bg commented:
++
Molon Labe #70 January 1, 2012 at 12:11 am
thanks, but not to worry, TW the self asserted Alinsky
shrink :aka: the big yawn yarner doesn’t bother me..
Health & Happiness To You & All In The New Year !!
==