Not a bad start for a new host looking to make his mark in the Virginia commentariat. Except Riggleman wants to be more than a talk jockey.
In an interview with Bloomberg Radio, Riggleman said “The Virginia Republican Party is so broken” that the time might have come for “a third-party run” for governor.
The last truly third-party candidate to make a splash, and a difference, on Election Day was Libertarian Party nominee Robert Sarvis in the 2013 gubernatorial race. Those were unique circumstances: The major party nominees — Terry McAuliffe and Ken Cuccinelli II — were deeply polarizing figures, and Sarvis benefited from it. Could the major parties do something similar in 2021 — say, a race between state Sen. Amanda F. Chase (R-Chesterfield) and McAuliffe? Probably not (but don’t bet against it just yet).
In the 2005 gubernatorial race, then-Sen. Russ Potts (R) made a self-styled “independent Republican” bid against Tim Kaine and Jerry Kilgore. Potts flopped at the ballot box.
If Riggleman really does think he needs to make statewide run to burn the crazy out of the GOP’s bloodstream and the “Marxism” out of the Democratic Party, then his chances of success are (theoretically) higher running for the GOP nomination.
Trouble is, Riggleman believes the GOP is under the thumb of “theocrats” — an allusion to the man who defeated him for the 5th Congressional District nomination, former Campbell County supervisor and self-proclaimed “biblical conservative” Bob Good.
Maybe Riggleman’s theocrats believe they are in control. Certainly, they and their cronies were able to toss him aside, in part because he dared officiate at a same-sex wedding. But at the state level, they have been in full retreat before successive Democratic waves.
That’s not to say the fringe don’t have substantial say over what remains of the once-formidable Virginia GOP.
Riggleman’s offense ranks even higher. He’s a RINO. And not even the president’s unreserved endorsement could overcome the fringe’s determination to drive Riggleman out of office.
If Republicans pick their 2021 statewide candidates via a convention, then Riggleman should run as an independent. A convention organized and run in the current GOP environment would hardly tolerate his presence.
If Republicans opt for a primary, then Riggleman would likely have to contend with Del. Kirk Cox (Colonial Heights), whose chances of winning the gubernatorial nomination are much greater in a primary setting.
And then there’s Chase, whose candidacy is approaching an Andy Kaufman-like level of surreal entertainment. Riggleman says that he doesn’t have anything personal against Chase, but he thinks a candidate needs to have “a sober look at government” and notes that he “certainly [doesn’t] yell as much.”
And, unlike Chase, he may also be able to keep his story straight about little things such as wearing masks in pubic settings during a pandemic.
Riggleman says he will make a decision on whether to run sometime in the next couple of months. Cox said he would wait to make his decision until after the November elections, though it would be shocking not to see him make his bid official.
Regardless of what Riggleman does, “Denver: Unplugged” is already the best one-man political show in Virginia.
OTTAWA – Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says the NDP is caving to political pressure from Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre when it comes to their stance on the consumer carbon price.
Trudeau says he believes Jagmeet Singh and the NDP care about the environment, but it’s “increasingly obvious” that they have “no idea” what to do about climate change.
On Thursday, Singh said the NDP is working on a plan that wouldn’t put the burden of fighting climate change on the backs of workers, but wouldn’t say if that plan would include a consumer carbon price.
Singh’s noncommittal position comes as the NDP tries to frame itself as a credible alternative to the Conservatives in the next federal election.
Poilievre responded to that by releasing a video, pointing out that the NDP has voted time and again in favour of the Liberals’ carbon price.
British Columbia Premier David Eby also changed his tune on Thursday, promising that a re-elected NDP government would scrap the long-standing carbon tax and shift the burden to “big polluters,” if the federal government dropped its requirements.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
Simon Jolin-Barrette, minister responsible for consumer protection, has tabled a bill to force merchants to calculate tips based on the price before tax.
That means on a restaurant bill of $100, suggested tips would be calculated based on $100, not on $114.98 after provincial and federal sales taxes are added.
The bill would also increase the rebate offered to consumers when the price of an item at the cash register is higher than the shelf price, to $15 from $10.
And it would force grocery stores offering a discounted price for several items to clearly list the unit price as well.
Businesses would also have to indicate whether taxes will be added to the price of food products.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
Quebec legislature member Youri Chassin has announced he’s leaving the Coalition Avenir Québec government to sit as an Independent.
He announced the decision shortly after writing an open letter criticizing Premier François Legault’s government for abandoning its principles of smaller government.
In the letter published in Le Journal de Montréal and Le Journal de Québec, Chassin accused the party of falling back on what he called the old formula of throwing money at problems instead of looking to do things differently.
Chassin says public services are more fragile than ever, despite rising spending that pushed the province to a record $11-billion deficit projected in the last budget.
He is the second CAQ member to leave the party in a little more than one week, after economy and energy minister Pierre Fitzgibbon announced Sept. 4 he would leave because he lost motivation to do his job.
Chassin says he has no intention of joining another party and will instead sit as an Independent until the end of his term.
He has represented the Saint-Jérôme riding since the CAQ rose to power in 2018, but has not served in cabinet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
