The Henrico Debate
by Robert Russo
Tuesday night nine candidates for Henrico Board of Supervisors and twelve for Henrico School Board squared off at J. Sergeant Reynolds' candidates forum sponsored by the Henrico Business Council. The tone was civilized and ambiguous, with the exception of those challengers who had an actual platform or alternative vision to promote in the short time given. The incumbents for the most part seemed to convey that representing Henrico is so complex it should go without saying, promoting instead their personalities and character. I think someone who meets all the requirements of a Henrico citizen, let's say a retired farmer who has lived here all his life, has little interest in business, and has watched the fleecing of his homeland by developers and the county board working together as all the land around him disappears, every headline a small step toward the extinction of his way of life, wondering if this will ever change, who if anyone will rise to his defense, would walk away disappointed by words like incumbent Dick Glover's vow to "continue to provide the quality of life" for Henrico residents, wondering what group of residents this is referring to. He might however see hope in the only two candidates pledging to minimize government, libertarians Matt Martin and George Marchenko.
"I'm not a politician." says Matt, who is challenging Glover in Brookland District, "I'm a programmer.". While other candidates touted their business credentials in plotting the intricacies of county management, Matt said outright the board should stop planning and deciding peoples' best interests for them, because that very mantle of choice belongs to those who pay the bill.
George Marchenko of Tuckahoe District set the pace in his response to the question of Henrico's biggest challenge by naming growth, to which the next five speakers used their minutes in response. (When an overwhelming issue that affects the lives of all residents is not one of the scheduled topics, but seems to be on the tip of everyone's tongue waiting to come out, it's a sign that leadership is not on the same page as the citizens, specifically that some kind of disclaimer is needed to remind the people "no pain, no gain".) Then Matt hit the nail on the head by stating zoning priorities. In the closing remarks George influenced his opponent Pat O'Bannon's statements by complimenting her (the only candidate for supervisor to do so), adding subtly that she had not put her land deal suspicions into action until this year, which she denied hotly. This was the only actual spitfire between opponents.
The major party candidates had some notable things to say as well. O'Bannon received the only large spontaneous applause of the evening with her reference to suspicious land deals being Henrico's "most urgent need at the moment". However her opening remarks seemed to represent only business interests, saying "consider Short Pump Town Center" as a model for success. Glover admitted "I don't think growth is critical", although he has been criticized by his other opponent Rick Kirkland for over 75% of his campaign contributions coming from developers and construction.*
On the school board side, almost every contender seemed to have a plan for the exact same views, several of them speaking well of each other (Joyce Davis of Varina calling them "the dream team"), as if the election is just a formality because every candidate is part of the same team. Five of the twelve plus Pat O'Bannon bragged they each have three children that are "products" of public schooling, as if their loyalty includes a breeding competition. Davis boasted her coming from a family of educators all of which have master's degrees or higher.
Each speaker showed a different shade of ignorance or disillusion on the academic face but GayDonna Vandergriff of Brookland in particular seemed to personify everything cold and devious about academic ambition and the teacher no student wants. When introducing her children she named the schools they've attended where one would expect the kids' names to be said. Every sentence of her platform was on appearances and certification (performance gaps, SOLs and accreditation) leaving the audience hanging for a couple of seconds before the applause because she felt no need to provide any meat to her argument (such as what these points mean and what the actual goals are), never answering the question she says she gets most, "why are you running?". She herself used the phrase "simply saying it doesn't make it so", words of a charlatan trying to dazzle people with glitter.
Diana Winston of Three Chopt was a close second in representing the "I'm older, bigger and badder than the next academician" attitude, calling on all the "financial resources in this room" that can be used to support the school system. GayDonna was the first to object in absolution to any cuts from the academic budget, while others accepted it as unavoidable. The one candidate who came closest to offering an actual selection in this race was Eileen Davis of Three Chopt, who calls herself an "advocate for children" and made the startling admission that students are the customers of this business. Lisa Marshall of Tuckahoe said she is "more concerned on what is going on in the school than the physical", and an "advocate for people who have no voice". If only this were true.
I for one am glad the candidates for supervisor have diverse objectives to choose from instead of all being products of one institution. From the start one gets the impression of a class system, a contest for businessmen appealing to the fiscal interests of the audience presuming they are all businessmen themselves, so once they are elected what else would they do? In no way is this a requirement for representing the people who live here, especially those who just want to be left alone. Representation doesn't cost anything, if the county budget were reduced to zero every entity that seeks to encroach on someone else would go elsewhere and a peaceful, idyllic rural county of self-made people would remain. Looking at the lineup these same two men seem to be cut apart from that aristocratic cloth. George referred to himself and Matt as "trendsetters"; hopefully that is what they will be in the Henrico board chambers. Remember to vote on November 6!
*http://www.inrich.com/cva/ric/news.apx.-content-articles-RTD-2007-10-29-0177.html
If you have opinions to add to this thread please send them to russo@richmondliberty.org. We welcome your input!