Politico: Goodlatte “almost certainly” will be new Judiciary chairman
Bob Goodlatte
Buried in GOP Vice Presidential candidate Paul Ryan’s 12-minute speech at a Hotel Roanoke fundraiser this month was the prediction that Congressman Bob Goodlatte, R-Roanoke County, would be selected as the new chairman of the House Committee on the Judiciary next year.
Today, Politico has a story about the scramble on Capitol Hill to secure chairmanships of several House committees for next year. Republicans look likely to retain control of the chamber, and seven different chairman will step down due to committee term limits. Those term limits, if you remember, were the reason Goodlatte had to step down after four years as chairman of the Agriculture Committee and two years as its ranking member (meaning he was top Republican when Democrats were in the majority and therefore controlled the chairmanship).
When Republicans retook control of the House in 2010, Goodlatte was left without a chairmanship, though he was given the Subcommittee on Intellectual Property, Competition, and the Internet (though given the subcommittee’s key role in shaping the Stop Online Piracy Act, that may not have been the best thing from a political perspective).
But with the turnover atop the committees, Politico now reports: “Judiciary Chairman Lamar Smith of Texas will almost certainly be replaced by Rep. Bob Goodlatte of Virginia.”
This all assumes, of course, that Goodlatte defeats Democratic challenger Andy Schmookler of Shenandoah County and wins re-election to an 11th term. You can read the Q&A those two candidates submitted to the Roanoke Times Editorial Board, which ran on Sunday.
Schmookler’s campaign, by the way, is touting a video of his Labor Day speech in Harrisonburg as going “viral,” as it’s been viewed nearly 90,000 times on Youtube. You can read that news release from the Schmookler campaign and watch an embedded copy of that video after the jump.
Otherwise, weigh in with your thoughts on what a Goodlatte chairmanship in the Judiciary Committee might mean.
– Mason Adams
Schmookler’s Labor Day Speech Goes Viral
YouTube Video nearly 90,000 Views
*FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE*
An audience nearly twice the size of the population of Harrisonburg and and approaching the size of the population of Roanoke has tuned in to watch a brief but powerful speech that 6th district congressional candidate Andy Schmookler delivered over Labor Day weekend. That is 23 times more viewers than the most-watched YouTube video posted by his Republican opponent, and nearly four times more viewers than all 205 of his opponent’s videos combined have gathered.
The video of Andy Schmookler speaking on Labor Day in Harrisonburg was posted by a campaign supporter. Here is a URL: http://bit.ly/AndyHarrisonburgLaborDay. Schmookler delivered a strong statement on the current political climate. Below is a quote from the video:
[A] dark and sick and broken spirit…has taken over a once great [Republican] Party… A spirit which never has enough of either wealth or power. Even though we have the greatest income inequality that we’ve had in living memory, this force is working to widen that gap still further– with the Ryan budget…with Mitt Romney’s tax proposals. All of them take from average Americans to give to those who already have the most… The only way a force like this can have power is by deceiving people into believing that they are something that they are not.
Schmookler, who runs on a message that his campaign and supporters say is not about liberal vs. conservative but about constructive vs. destructive, charges that today’s Republican Party makes a fight over everything, citing their rejection of initiatives from President Obama and Democrats based on proposals that were originally Republican.
Schmookler, running in what is usually considered a “safe” Republican district , has been reaching out to conservative and libertarian voters by invoking his own passion for upholding the Constitution, defending individual liberties, and fortifying the foundations of the American democracy. He has reached these viewers through ingenious use of social media. Schmookler has over 2,100 likes on Facebook, and over 2,200 followers on Twitter, respectively. Follow Andy on Twitter at @AndySchmookler.
“I am thrilled that this video has gone viral, kindling the interest of nearly 90,000 viewers so far. This strengthens my hope that this truth is ready to catch fire among our people and to help us surmount our present dangerous political crisis,” says Schmookler.
September 26, 2012 - 10:06 AM
This moron has the kahunas to speak about `taking away from the people ??? Obama has spent us into oblivion…he`s spent more than all Presidents combined…He just threw away $535 Million into Solyndra which went bankrupt a short time later…and the American taxpayer is left holding the bill…If there is anything that is `Broken` , it is the Demcratic party…the out and out lies, distortions coming from these lifetime politicians who want only to stay in power and pad thier own pockets and `rule from on-high`…they could care less about the poor and indigent…Just give them thier all-mighty power and allow them to keep the less fortunate on the Democrat plantation…where a vote is easy to maintain and keep with a promise for the future….which, for the last 6-7 decades, still isn`t there…WAKE UP, IDIOTS ! This Schmookler joker also backs Obamacare, although he won`t admit it….at least during an election year !!!
This guy is a socialist goofball. Ill be suprised if he gets 10% of the vote.
“1.This moron has the kahunas to speak…”
You’re pure gold, dude. Don’t change a thing.
Jeff Doto, your track record here truly precludes you from calling anyone a “moron”. Most especially the intelligent, sincere and honest Mr. Schmookler. There are “IDIOTS” who need to wake up, he is just not among them.
ANY president after Bush would have “spent us into oblivion” to some extent. The economy crashed and the Bush debts came due.
Obama has NOT “spent more than all Presidents combined” that is a falsehood.
While your small mind is stuck on Solyndra, we will recover as we did when Steinbrenner got 400 million for Navy ships rotting in some port. The price of investing is that sometimes you are wrong. The default rate is not large for government loans of this nature. Certainly not more so for Obama than others.
Since this is America, the “American taxpayers” have always footed the bills. They did for Reagan, for Bush and for Obama. See how that works? Duly elected presidents get to incur obligations for us. Did you go apoplectic over Reagan’s or Bush’s spending or is it only Dems you despise? Our debt is not all, not even mostly on Obama. That too is a falsehood.
The Democratic Party is not the one that is telling “out and out lies, distortions” or using bigoted class warfare memes. That is the right wing media for the TP/GOP.
Do you believe your side has no “lifetime politicians”? Ever heard of Paul Ryan?
Even a glance at the differences by an honest and competent observer proves beyond doubt it is not the TP/GOP who cares “about the poor and indigent”. The safety nets the indigent have are in large part due to Republican efforts too. Back before they all lost their minds and caved to the “TEA Party” they knew this was our obligation.
Even if the old lie was true, better a “plantation” than dying in the gutter where people like you think they should be.
A “powerful speech” it is to laugh. Only through the eye of the left wing beholder. The overwhelming defeat of Dems last election was indeed to stop Obama. Thats what the people wanted and got. Reps are doing exactly what they were elected to do.
We do hope Goodlatte will do better as Judiciary Chairman he did as a leading co-sponsor of SOPA. if Obama wins and we need to impeach him, can Goodlatte be relied upon to act boldly? What about concerns over illegal wars or other potential acts of the executive being held to the letter of the Constitution? Will Goodlatte (who in May 2012 opposed the Jones-Amash Amendment to repeal the detention of Americans portion of the NDAA) be a good interpreter of the Constitution now that the offending section of that law has been found unconstitutional by a federal judge? Will the recent prolonged (and ultimately slap on the wrist treatment) of the Rep Maxine Water’s case — handled specifically by Bob Goodlatte — be standard? Will he be compromising and pragmatic as Judiciary Chair? How will Virginia fare? Cuccinelli challenged Obamacare on constitutional grounds; Goodlatte voted three times to fund the healthcare program saying there was nothing else he could do. I’d take Gohmert, Issa, or Pence over Goodlatte — mainly because I don’t see his chairmanship helping Virginia in any case. I hope I’m wrong on this assessment.
Goodlatte’s record of seat warming and you worry about needing him to “impeach Obama”? Wow, good thing you lost! What a way to look at “serving”. Yes, I bet you do like Gohmert and Issa. When government is a battlefield, America is the loser. Does that even occur to you people? How long do we have to suffer for that light to dawn? Did you truly learn nothing from the Clinton “impeachment”? Who is a world leader now and who is not heard from except in the has been circle? Can you connect dots?
So, Ms. Kwiatkowski, if you’d been in the House, I presume that you wouldn’t have given Rep. Waters a fair hearing and evaluation of the evidence and found her guilty of ethics violations? Was Goodlatte supposed to find her unilaterally guilty against the best judgment of the 9 other members?
Get over yourself Ms. K. Your views were too extreme for traditional Virginians. Besides, as I recall, Amash’s amendment protected foreigners as well? Do we really want to provide due process rights to foreign terrorists? I’m not a fan of Mr. Goodlatte, but you didn’t personify or relate to traditional Appalachian values (like politeness and reverence to community) but again all our candidates appear to be Yankees these days. If Dems were serious about Roanoke, they should get a conservative Dem (who opposes Obama but likes Mark Warner) from the area to run who isn’t so odd and professorial.
Glad to see a Liberterian chime in.
*Libertarian*
was given the Subcommittee on Intellectual Property, Competition, and the Internet
Big brother Goodlatte made sure that us children couldn’t gamble on internet poker in the US. I love seeing the republicans proclaiming to be the party of internet freedom but then blocking legislation for online gambling and trying to crackdown on pornography.
Truth be told, Goodlatte (for all his faults) is very much like a conservative Dem from Virginia would be as far as his “governance”. He votes his party line and stays out of trouble. He is not overtly open to compromise but would do so if others did. He is no Patrick Henry, but he is not a dangerous right wing TPr either.
Getting good people to get into the brutal political ring is getting harder and harder to do with the constant exception of ideologues like Ms. Kwiatkowski.
“if Obama wins and we need to impeach him, can Goodlatte be relied upon to act boldly? ”
Bwahaha. You can’t possibly be serious? Who “we”? You’re not getting close enough to DC to “impeach” anyone.
Cuccinelli lost across the board on the ACA. Obama is dominating in the electoral college and has the “battleground states” (not so much anymore) firmly in hand. Accept it and move on to something realistic.
#6 That was pretty amusing, Karen. Thanks for a grin to start the day.