McAuliffe touts green energy

The Free Lance-Star
May 10, 2009
By Dan Telvock

As soon as he stepped out of his black Tahoe hybrid yesterday, Virginia gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe told about 35 supporters that he hears a lot of jokes about his chicken-waste idea.

"We can turn not only chicken waste, but all agricultural waste, into renewable energy," the Democrat said from a small office on Lafayette Boulevard in Fredericksburg.

The idea is a prominent component of his campaign. McAuliffe, who will face Creigh Deeds and Brian Moran in the June 9 primary, had canvasses from Fredericksburg to Leesburg yesterday. Whoever wins the primary will face Republican Bob McDonnell, the former state attorney general.

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Terry McAuliffe makes his case

Richmond-Times Dispatch
May 10, 2009
By Terry McAuliffe

Across the commonwealth, folks are worried about jobs, about our energy future, about the quality of their children's education, and the value of their homes. We've been lucky here in Virginia -- we've had two great governors in Mark Warner and Tim Kaine, and they have worked hard to put Virginia in a place to weather the economic downturn much better than other states. But our next governor is still going to have some serious economic challenges to address, and that's why I'm running for governor: I believe I have the right experience and the best vision to get our economy moving again.

For nearly 20 years, Virginia's been my home. My wife, Dorothy, and I are raising five children, and I want to make sure Virginia continues to be a great place for them to find opportunities when they're adults. That's what I want for all of Virginia's families.

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Sneak Preview

I can hardly believe it. But at midnight tomorrow, we'll only have one month to go until Primary Day on June 9th. We've worked incredibly hard, and this is no time to let up.

Everywhere I go, when I talk about Terry's Business Plan for Virginia and the way he proposes to lead our Commonwealth through these tough economic times, people are eager to support his candidacy. But there are only so many places that Terry and I can be at once. With just 32 days until the election, we need your help to communicate Terry's message all over the Commonwealth. As a part of that effort, even I am taking to the airwaves to share a little bit of our personal story and why Terry has chosen to run.

I recorded a special TV ad for Terry that is set to air on Mother's Day. And if you make a contribution of $5 or more, you'll get to preview the ad before it hits the airwaves.

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Weekly Blog Roundup 5/8/09

This week in the blogosphere, there were reports on Terry's many recent endorsements, including local leaders, unions, organizations, and a famous hip-hop artist. Bloggers also talked about Terry's events and determination to improve Virginia's economy.

Lowell at Blue Virginia reported on Terry’s endorsement from the Virginia League of Conservation Voters, saying:

As of today, Terry is THE environmentalist candidate in this race. Rock and roll!

Others agreed, like commenter Tom Counts...

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On the Campaign Trail with Terry McAuliffe

May 8th, 2009
The New York Times
Adam Nagourney

The Virginia Democratic Party’s annual Jefferson-Jackson dinner, held at Richmond’s sprawl of a convention center on a mild Saturday night in February, was particularly festive this year. The Democratic Party is enjoying a resurgence in Virginia, propelled first by the November victory of Barack Obama — the first Democratic presidential candidate to win the state since Lyndon Johnson — and now by a lively battle for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination. There are three men who want the nomination, but on this weekend, you could be forgiven for thinking that there was only one, and that his name was Terry McAuliffe.

There were McAuliffe signs everywhere, an exhausting blur of blue and yellow starting at the airport and rolling for nine miles to the entrance of the Greater Richmond Convention Center. There, bustling McAuliffe campaign workers, rolling around on electric carts, hoisted a McAuliffe for Governor banner over the street. A marching band stepped in place, before accompanying McAuliffe and his supporters as they paraded around the center, grandly announcing his arrival. Inside, volunteers scattered the hall with 2,500 McAuliffe fortune cookies, which crumbled open to reveal fortunes like high speed rail is in your future. The fortune-cookie count came courtesy of the McAuliffe campaign, which also reported that the campaign had purchased 39 dinner tables, printed 1,000 McAuliffe for Governor signs, issued 300 glow sticks to wave at the dinner and was paying for two after-dinner parties, with open bars. It was a display of political money and muscle that was quite unlike anything anyone had ever seen at the annual dinner. “When I decide to do something,” McAuliffe said as he marched along with his band, “I do it.”

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McAuliffe Releases New Web Ad, Mail Piece Focusing on Chicken Waste to Energy

Following his endorsement yesterday by the League of Conservation Voters, gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe today unveiled an ad on the internet and a campaign mailer touting his support for clean, chicken waste-to-energy technology.

In the ad, McAuliffe notes that chicken waste-to-energy techology has the potential to power 40,000 Virginia homes as well as, "The power to create jobs right here, clean up the environment, and the power to help make us energy independent. Visit my website and read my plan."

Click here to read more and view the ad.

McAuliffe Campaign Releases New Radio Ad Highlighting Plan to Ban Predatory Lenders

Today, gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe released a new ad highlighting the predatory lending problems plaguing families across the Commonwealth and his plan to ban predatory lenders.

"Every day Virginia families struggle to make ends meet and sometimes they need a small loan to get by. But some loans come at too high [of] a price because legislation that was passed in Richmond in 2002 allowed predatory payday lenders to do business in Virginia," says a female announcer in the ad. "For Terry McAuliffe the solution is simple. He is the only candidate for Governor who proposed doing the right thing - ban all predatory lending in Virginia."

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McAuliffe travels this part of campaign trail in algae-fueled car

May 7th, 2009
The Progress-Index
Markus Schmidt

PRINCE GEORGE — Democratic gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe believes that a interstate high-speed rail would create 176,000 new jobs in Virginia. “We ought to have high speed rail from Washington to Richmond to the Hampton Roads area,” McAuliffe said in an interview with The Progress-Index in Prince George County, where he was campaigning yesterday.

McAuliffe added that the rail could have a stop in Petersburg.

He also pointed out the environmental benefits of such a project. “You’d get rid of tens of thousands of tons of CO2 emissions and we’d get a million cars off the road,” he said.

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The Only Poll That Matters

All of the hard work you've done is starting to make a big difference, according to the latest public polling. After showing Brian Moran in the lead last month, yesterday Public Policy Polling confirmed that Terry McAuliffe has a double digit lead.

PPP noted that, "This is the fourth time PPP has polled this contest and the first time one of the candidates has broken away from the pack." These numbers come just after last week's Survey USA poll, which also showed Terry with a double-digit lead.

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Virginia Elected Officials, Local Police Union Endorse McAuliffe for Governor

Today, the Arlington Coalition of Police Union and elected officials from across the Commonwealth announced their support for gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe, citing his plan to create jobs and his engagement with local leaders and elected officials throughout the campaign.

"Our police officers and other front-line public servants are feeling the strain of this recession," said Union President Ken Dennis. "We need a governor who is not only going to work to improve our economy here in Virginia, but who will partner with local police and government officials to tailor our path forward to the needs of individual local communities. Terry has not only demonstrated that he will be our partner in the governor's office, but that he will take seriously our input and ideas, and in doing so, will improve all of Virginia's communities."

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