01/24/13: Republicans did more than take the state Senate

This op-ed appeared in The Virginian-Pilot on the date shown.

JAN. 21, 2013. The day “The Virginia Way” died.

It’s been a long time coming, actually. Observers have watched its slow demise as Washington-style politics have gradually replaced the genteel way in Richmond. Gone from the chambers are folks whose instincts were to put Virginia and its people first. In their stead are those whose motivation is power.

Power corrupts.

Monday afternoon, the state Senate took up a bill carried over from the 2012 General Assembly session. It appeared innocuous: technical corrections to various districts, not at all an unusual move after redistricting.

The bill had originated in the House of Delegates and had, at first, contained only adjustments to those districts. Twice the Senate had amended it, to include adjustments to Senate districts. On March 8, it was sent back to committee, where it sat, untouched. It reported out of committee on Nov. 26, a strange date since the legislature was not in session.

For the first seven meeting days of the current session, the bill was passed by. On the eighth day, Jan. 21, a substitute bill was offered and senators were given just 30 minutes to read it and debate it.

As it turns out, the substitute bill was no “technical corrections” bill.

Half the Senate knew this — the Republican half. For Democrats and the public at large, it was a complete surprise. At least Democrats had the bill on their desks. Citizens who were watching, either in the chamber or, as I was, online, had no clue the extent to which Republicans had changed the districts.

Within hours, we learned: The maps of all 40 Senate districts had been changed, with 45 percent of the voting age population moved from one to another. At first blush, one or two districts represented by Democrats appeared to be targeted. Upon further inspection, it appears as many as seven of the seats now held by Democrats could change hands.

In hindsight, it’s clear Republicans have been waiting for at least a year for a chance to amend a bill to allow them to reclaim the majority for real and not just on the basis of having a Republican lieutenant governor as a tie-breaking vote. In fact, they discussed the maneuver with Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling, who refused to go along. So they waited until they had an opportunity to pass it without his vote.

Monday provided that opportunity. Monday, when Virginians were celebrating the birth of civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr. Monday, when Virginians were celebrating the inauguration of President Barack Obama. Monday, when longtime Democratic state Sen. Henry Marsh, also a civil rights icon, took the day off to attend and bear witness to the second inauguration of the nation’s first black president.

Under the guise of creating another minority-majority Senate district, Republicans shoved through a bill to put them in a permanent majority.

Never mind that Virginia has voted for a Democrat for president for two successive elections. Never mind that both U.S. senators are Democrats. Never mind that the state Senate, elected by the voters, is evenly divided.

Republicans want to gerrymander things so that they can hold power for years to come. Joe Scarborough, a Republican who served in Congress, admitted publicly what many have said privately: Republicans retained control of the U.S. House of Representatives last year only because of gerrymandering.

Washington has come to Richmond. The Virginia Way is no longer.

Standing to defend this maneuver Tuesday afternoon was Senate Majority Leader Tommy Norment. If you watch the video, which is now showing up on national TV, he claims this was necessary because of the horrible redistricting done by Democrats two years ago.

His memory is conveniently faulty. The original redistricting bill that he refers to was vetoed by Gov. Bob McDonnell. The subsequent bill, under which the current Senate was elected, passed the Senate by a 32-5 vote. Among those who voted for it? Norment.

Redistricting should never be in the hands of legislators. They should not be able to choose their own constituents; we should choose them. Long ago, Virginia should have set up an independent redistricting commission. Ironically, a bill to do just that was killed Monday.

Virginia Senate Democrats are now vowing to hold up legislation, a tactic employed by Republicans in Washington to bring things to a standstill. Virginia has long prided itself on getting things done in a bipartisan fashion, with consideration of what lawmakers believe is best for its citizens.

Those days are gone. The Virginia Way is no more.

There is one remnant left: how they address one another. As they argued Tuesday afternoon, “The Gentleman from Fairfax” stood with his back to, while addressing, “The Gentleman from James City County.”