Just When You Think the Republican General Assembly Couldn't Do Worse...

The ghost of Jim Gilmore lives, not just in the GOP presidential race. (Yes, Gilmore actually thinks he has a chance with his narrow "no car tax" mantra.) Gilmore's hammer-head shark government, which left both our state budget and bond rating behind, has reared its ugly head once again. GOP leadership, and its pawns, created more poor government, issue by issue. Once again, citizens are the losers.

• First, the GOP transportation plan would rob hundreds of millions from the general fund, year after year. This would once again pave the way, not for sound highway planning, but for another state fiscal crisis. It's an irresponsible way to handle our state transportation crisis.


• Then comes the GOP refusal to take redistricting out of the partisan arena. No comment necessary.


• HR 48. a "sunshine" bill requiring all subcommittee votes to be recorded was defeated. Where's the accountability, from the supposed GOP accountability "police"?


• HB 2072, which would permit pregnant women to vote absentee, was tabled. Nor would the GOP majority allow those volunteering on election day to vote absentee. (There's) no care about democracy there. Of course the GOP can afford to hire professionals to do its GOTV, so it can only gain from suppressing volunteers on the other side.


• A bill including dating violence in family life curricula passed, but 14 Republican males voted "Nay."

With all this steamrollering over good legislation, how does Del Carrico have time (and gall) to re-submit his bill institutionalizing state and institution-mandated prayer in the guise of freedom to pray? We already have the right to pray in public buildings. But the institutions of government have no constitutional or legitimate business coercing, or implicitly coercing by power of their authority, any prayer in public buildings. Once again, Carrico cares more about theocracy and less about "rendering to Caesar the things that are Caesars and to God the things that are God's."

And, then there's Del. ("Sideshow" Bob) Marshall's plan to interfere in married couples' divorces. Carrico, Marshall et al should spend more time taking care of their own lives and less intruding on others.