Money in politics is nothing new. Seems that every year, more and more dollars are spent by candidates to run for office. Much of the money goes into advertising. With the coming vote on the Marshall/Newman amendment, opponents and supporters are gearing up for an expensive campaign:
To help rally amendment opponents, the Commonwealth Coalition, a Richmond-based group, has set an ambitious goal of raising $3 million, organizers said. They want to fund a barrage of radio and television ads in the fall. Meanwhile, the Family Foundation Action, which is organizing amendment supporters, has set a best-case-scenario fundraising goal of $900,000, although activists and volunteers said they expected to raise less than that.
Can you imagine what the Food Bank could do with nearly $4 million? It seems such a waste of precious resources. And I must be missing something when the sponsor of the amendment thinks it is unnecessary:
“There is a law on the books right now that does the same thing as the amendment and that has never been challenged in court,” said Del. Robert G. Marshall (R-Prince William), sponsor of the legislative resolution creating the proposed amendment.
Huh?
How about we just print out Governor Tim Kaine’s remarks and pass them out?
Opponents, who include Gov. Timothy M. Kaine (D), have argued that the language of the amendment — that the state will “not create or recognize a legal status for relationships of unmarried individuals” — is so broad that it also would affect contracts between unwed heterosexual couples. Kaine spoke on that point in a radio interview Thursday.
The amendment “in my view disenfranchises . . . unmarried people, both same-sex or heterosexual couples,” Kaine said. But he took his criticism one step further, saying that the proposed amendment was discriminatory:
“There’s nothing else in the [Virginia] Bill of Rights that takes away rights of people. We’re equal citizens in the state; we ought to be treated equally.”
VIVIAN J. PAIGE | All Politics is Local 
Never listen to fundraising “goals”….it’s more like fundraising “spin”
These Amendments pass in state after state, and I don’t see a lot of national $$ flowing into Virginia if Oregon couldn’t defeat it.
I hate to say this…and you know that I really am uncomfortable saying this…but I agree with Gov. Kaine here.
We’ve got a long standing tradition in this country when it comes to constitutions (federal or otherwise) of guaranteeing the rights of citizens.
When we go the prohibitive route, we generally get ourselves into trouble.
Statute is meant to prohibit actions. Constitutions and their amendments ar meant to establish the rights of the governed.
I know they generally pass so I’m torn between wasting the money on the effort and throwing everything – including Jim 😉 and the kitchen sink – at it to try to defeat it.
This contest is not being waged in 2004, but in 2006. Voters tire of being “used” as turnout tools. Political issues, like products, have market development curves. We hope to make it clear over the next couple of months that this is a fight we can win and there will be a return on investment! A victory will send a strong message (across Virginia and the nation) that voters are sick of being trifled with … they want their representatives to work on important, life-changing stuff, like quality schools, transportation systems that move people not cars, reduced property taxes, affordable and accessible health care. Time to get these guys out of our private lives and into our public schools.
Claire Gastanaga
Campaign Manager
The Commonwealth Coalition
http://www.votenova.org
P.S. Thanks for giving your views on the Marshall/Newman Amendment a prominent place on your blog!