The official baseball season has started for another year. But the political game of inside baseball is year round, never taking a break. The general public has no idea this game is being played.
Up in Arlington, 24-year Treasurer Frank O’Leary is facing a primary challenge. Not because O’Leary is not doing his job – heck, the guy’s been named North American Treasurer of the Year – but because it’s payback time:
One insider surmised that it could be payback time from O’Leary’s intra-party critics, still mad that he supported and in some ways sponsored Ingrid Morroy’s insurgent bid against Margo Horner for commissioner of revenue four years ago. Morroy defeated Horner, then seen as heir-apparent to long-time Commissioner Geraldine Whiting, in the 2003 Democratic primary, and went on to win the general election.
Down here, we have Henry Light challenging Johnny Joannou for the Democratic nomination in the 79th. In 2005, Joannou endorsed me – the Democratic nominee – for Treasurer over Tom Moss. I’m told that Moss will be endorsing Light, just to get back at Joannou. And then there’s the Joannou-Mark Warner tiff from 2004 that will play out this Saturday with Warner coming to town to do a fundraiser for Light.
Out at the Beach, there have been rumblings that all of the Democratic candidates will get independent challengers. (At first, the rumor was that there would be primary challengers but the filing deadline has passed.) That’s because the 2005 candidate in the 83rd was passed over without comment for another run this year.
Lest we think it’s only the Democrats playing this game, one only needs to look at the Republican primaries slated throughout the state.
How about a new game for politics, one in which the consideration is only what is best for the people? Wouldn’t that be refreshing?
VIVIAN J. PAIGE | All Politics is Local 
Hi Vivian:
Just taking a break from work & local politics and thought I’d see what’s going on in Norfolk. Yes, Frank O’Leary is the man. You could not ask for a more dedicated public servant or one who knows how to use his department to benefit common citizens, i.e. by offering programs such as on-site DMV registration (Would have been you also if you’d been elected, I’m sure).
Hope you’re doing well. Chap Petersen
Actually, the City of Norfolk already has a DMV Select site in the Commissioner of Revenue’s office. Sharon McDonald implemented it nearly two years ago. Also, a DMV Select site is more appropriately placed in the COR office than in the Treasurer’s office.
Interesting that this reporter characterized Ingrid Morroy’s 2003 campaign as ‘insurgent’, After all, she worked for Frank O’Leary at the time. When a major player in local politics backs his protege’s run for a closely related office, that hardly qualifies as an insurgency.
Not that that kind of maneuvering has anything to do with either of these fine people’s aptitudes for their jobs. It just bothers me that in this kind of discussion, there’s an implicit assumption that things like ‘competence’ and ‘dedication’ are mutually exclusive with ‘ego’ and ‘power politics’. That just isn’t true.
That gets to the whole idea of ‘payback’. Running for office is a bruising experience, as Vivian well knows. Being rejected, by voters, by party insiders, by anybody, can cause real emotional hurt. It takes more than a bit of ego to put oneself through that; indeed, it’s hard to find a successful politician who isn’t at least a bit of a prima donna. And as nice as it might be to expect that those human beings will just put their feelings aside completely and move on, it’s not a good idea to count on it.
First off, any help that Light can get, I’m sure he take it from all comers. Regardless of reason. There are many reasons to dislike Joannou and his voting record.
With that out of the way, if Georgia Allen wants to play hard ball she’ll get crushed–again. Just like she did in 2005. She wasn’t a real challenger then and neither will she be now. I see no reason for the Virginia Beach Democrats to choose a woman that stormed out of a party breakfast after the election because she wasn’t given enough help. Not over the former commander of the Norfolk Navy Base.
It’s hard to help someone that cannot help themselves. Just look at her fundraising numbers.
Virginia Beach has some amazing candidates running for office this go around. We have a real chance of taking seats away from Republicans and yet we have those that choose to place themselves on the outside throwing stones. If she wants to marginalize herself even further, let her.
Oh, and the party doesn’t choose who runs. It’s the candidate who puts themselves out there. Virginia Beach isn’t that lucky to have too many good folks who want to run for office.
Oh, one other thing here. I have it on good authority that Tom Moss attended a Johnny Joannou fundraiser this evening. You may need to recheck one of your sources, Vivian.
This post really wasn’t about the individual candidates. It was about the game itself. Those were just examples.
There is a reason why people who don’t live and breathe politics think it’s a dirty business – because it can be. And inside baseball is part of the dirty part.