February 16, 2007
2007 Former Va. Gov. Gilmore Counting on Conservatives in 2008
ALEXANDRIA, VA. (AP)
The Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) announced today that former Virginia Governor James S. Gilmore, III will address the nation's oldest and largest gathering of conservatives on Saturday, March 3, 2007 at 2:30 p.m. in the Omni Shoreham Hotel's Regency Ballroom in Washington, DC."When he was governor, Jim Gilmore's willingness to fight for lower taxes in the face of Democratic opposition made him a hero to conservatives," said American Conservative Union Executive Vice President J. William Lauderback.
ACU is CPAC's lead sponsor. "Jim's lifelong commitment to studying terrorism, in an effort to ultimately defeat it, has led him to his current position as Chairman of the National Council on Readiness & Preparedness.
We are confident his remarks will send our more than 5,000 grassroots activists back home with timely and provocative ideas on how best to combat our enemies," concluded Lauderback.
CPAC Director Lisa De Pasquale added that, "In addition to speeches and debates, CPAC features a Radio Row for syndicated and local talk radio shows, exhibitor booths for organizations and campaigns to recruit members and exchange ideas, a job fair and activist training opportunities.
At the end of the conference the results of a straw poll will be announced indicating the conservatives' choice for president in 2008," concluded De Pasquale. CPAC is a project of the American Conservative Union Foundation, in association with Young America's Foundation and Human Events.
The conference is co-sponsored by over 100 of the nation's leading conservative organizations. For continued updates on the program or to register online, visit www.cpac.org
Thursday, March 1, 2007
In Gilmore's Bid for Presidency, Modesty Isn't on the Ticket
January 18, 2007
By Michael D. ShearWashington Post Staff Writer
No, it won't be Mark Warner, who shocked the political world by pulling out just when it seemed he was going after the Democratic nomination.
And it won't be George Allen, who lost his luster and his reelection campaign for the U.S. Senate after calling a young Indian American man "macaca" last year.Instead, it will be James S. Gilmore III, the butcher's son who sprinted from local prosecutor to attorney general to governor during the 1990s.
Now, after a half-decade out of office, he has officially declared his intention to run for president in 2008."I believe that this nation needs conservative leadership," he said in a statement that showcased his trademark ego. "Alone among those considering a candidacy for the Republican nomination, I have a record of real leadership as a tax cutter and job creator, as a leader on national security issues, and as a national leader in our party."Across America, the announcement was greeted with the same ho-hum reaction that most of the candidates receive.
Few people outside of Arkansas got terribly excited by the news that the state's former governor Mike Huckabee was thinking about a presidential bid. Fewer still could name the U.S. senator from Kansas who is also a conservative GOP hopeful. (Sam Brownback.)In Richmond, though, Gilmore's presidential plans are all the buzz: Does he really think he can win? If not, what is Gilmore up to? Is he going to run for the U.S. Senate next year? What about governor again in 2009? The answer to the first question appears to be unquestionably yes.
The self-confident former governor simply believes he is the best candidate, and no one is going to tell him otherwise.It's a vital trait for candidates who want to compete at the presidential level. Bill Clinton had it, as did the current President Bush. (It may be that Warner, despite his self-assured appearance, dropped out because he doesn't have that same fire.) Gilmore, associates say, has never heard of self-doubt.So could he win? The conventional wisdom says no. He's unknown outside of Virginia and has largely faded from view in his own state.
To make matters worse, his gubernatorial legacy has been the subject of constant trashing by his Democratic successors and even some of his Republican adversaries in the legislature. To their way of thinking, Gilmore pressed for his famous car-tax cut despite worsening economic times and handed a fiscal crisis to Warner and the General Assembly.What's worse, members of both parties blame Gilmore for much of the state's recent transportation mess. They accuse him of essentially faking the numbers at the Virginia Department of Transportation to make things look rosier than they really were.
During his term, VDOT was beset by cost overruns, political manipulation and management failures.Gilmore denies that. But his public relations effort has been hobbled during the past several years. There's simply no way for a former governor to match the bully pulpit of a current one.Add to that Gilmore's less-than-charismatic style, and it's a wonder that he is even thinking about running again in Virginia, much less the entire country.
But not everyone is so quick to dismiss Gilmore's chances in the presidential ring. As it stands, the Republican presidential field is dominated by political moderates who are trying to remake their image to appeal to conservative primary voters. And each of the front-runners has liabilities.Arizona Sen. John McCain has infuriated conservatives for years and now needs their support.
His backing of a surge in troops in Iraq is also a land mine. Former New York mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani is famously pro-choice and pro-gun-control. And former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney has to explain liberal positions he took when running against Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D) a few years back.All of which leaves the field clear for an honest-to-goodness conservative to grab the party's conservative base and run for the finish line.
Gilmore is betting that he could be that person.He was a law-and-order attorney general, a tax-cutting governor and the head of the Republican National Committee before clashing with Karl Rove and Bush. (An exchange that probably earns him brownie points among some voters these days.) In the year before the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, he led an anti-terrorism task force that recommended many of the changes that are now being implemented.Gilmore, at least, is convinced that his resume is a winning one. And if it isn't, he will have grabbed headlines that won't hurt as he considers a comeback in his home state in 2008 or 2009.It's hard to see the political downside in that.
Candidate tuned in on terrorism
January 10, 2007
by Bob Barrspecial to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The gulf between the reality and the perception of presidential politics is perhaps nowhere more apparent than in the following question: Which candidate possesses the most solid understanding of the threat posed by terrorists and of the manner of defenses our nation must employ to prevent and respond to such attacks?Based on nothing more than the fact that he was mayor of New York City on Sept. 11, 2001, many voters would likely guess that Rudy Giuliani's anti-terrorism credentials place him at the top of the class.Other voters might pick Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), based simply on the fact that he served in Vietnam and was a POW in that conflict. Both answers would be incorrect.
The best person qualified to serve us in this regard was governor of a major state. He headed one of the two major parties in our political system. He also has proved he has the courage to propose a tax cut and see it through, even at great personal political cost.Perhaps most important, this man chaired a congressionally appointed national commission that comprehensively studied the full range of potential terrorist threats to America and the measure of our responses.
James Gilmore, governor of Virginia from 1998 to 2002, chaired that commission, and he has now filed papers as a Republican candidate for the highest office in the land.Importantly, the terrorism commission chaired by Gilmore was formed two years before the Sept. 11 attacks.
He was a leader in the field before half the country became armchair anti-terrorism experts. Notably also, in one of its early reports in December 1999, this commission alerted the country that a catastrophic terrorist attack on the United States was not only likely but also a virtual certainty.Moreover, the Gilmore Commission correctly recommended that the country should take extensive and specific steps to coordinate strategy among federal, state and local government offices, including improved intelligence gathering and coordination among investigative agencies.
The government's failure to heed the prescient work product of Gilmore's commission allowed major systemic weaknesses in our defenses to continue, which in turn improved the chances for success by the Sept. 11 terrorists.The subsequent "9/11 commission," which cultivated and obtained much more publicity than its predecessor Gilmore Commission, noted these fundamental flaws in our defenses.
The difference between pre-catastrophe, fact-based warnings and post-attack analysis is the difference between preparing a team to win a major bowl appearance and analyzing the game films the day after an upset loss.Still, relatively few Americans outside Virginia — where Gilmore's name still readily comes to the lips of those residents who appreciate an elected official who actually implemented true, fiscally and socially conservative policies — know the soft-spoken, gentlemanly lawyer from Richmond. However, that is certain to change in the coming months as tough questions and spirited debate blow away the fog surrounding the current crop of actual and likely 2008 candidates.Gilmore, whose background also includes a stint in the Army as a — you guessed it — counterintelligence expert, is also a true friend to more libertarian-leaning conservatives, being a steadfast and knowledgeable defender of privacy and other civil liberties in the face of the government's anti-terrorism efforts.In the coming months, Gilmore is likely to surprise many of those other candidates who have garnered more of the early limelight, but whose credentials appear brighter thanks more to their own self-serving burnishing than to the true substance of their actual accomplishments.
by Bob Barrspecial to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The gulf between the reality and the perception of presidential politics is perhaps nowhere more apparent than in the following question: Which candidate possesses the most solid understanding of the threat posed by terrorists and of the manner of defenses our nation must employ to prevent and respond to such attacks?Based on nothing more than the fact that he was mayor of New York City on Sept. 11, 2001, many voters would likely guess that Rudy Giuliani's anti-terrorism credentials place him at the top of the class.Other voters might pick Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), based simply on the fact that he served in Vietnam and was a POW in that conflict. Both answers would be incorrect.
The best person qualified to serve us in this regard was governor of a major state. He headed one of the two major parties in our political system. He also has proved he has the courage to propose a tax cut and see it through, even at great personal political cost.Perhaps most important, this man chaired a congressionally appointed national commission that comprehensively studied the full range of potential terrorist threats to America and the measure of our responses.
James Gilmore, governor of Virginia from 1998 to 2002, chaired that commission, and he has now filed papers as a Republican candidate for the highest office in the land.Importantly, the terrorism commission chaired by Gilmore was formed two years before the Sept. 11 attacks.
He was a leader in the field before half the country became armchair anti-terrorism experts. Notably also, in one of its early reports in December 1999, this commission alerted the country that a catastrophic terrorist attack on the United States was not only likely but also a virtual certainty.Moreover, the Gilmore Commission correctly recommended that the country should take extensive and specific steps to coordinate strategy among federal, state and local government offices, including improved intelligence gathering and coordination among investigative agencies.
The government's failure to heed the prescient work product of Gilmore's commission allowed major systemic weaknesses in our defenses to continue, which in turn improved the chances for success by the Sept. 11 terrorists.The subsequent "9/11 commission," which cultivated and obtained much more publicity than its predecessor Gilmore Commission, noted these fundamental flaws in our defenses.
The difference between pre-catastrophe, fact-based warnings and post-attack analysis is the difference between preparing a team to win a major bowl appearance and analyzing the game films the day after an upset loss.Still, relatively few Americans outside Virginia — where Gilmore's name still readily comes to the lips of those residents who appreciate an elected official who actually implemented true, fiscally and socially conservative policies — know the soft-spoken, gentlemanly lawyer from Richmond. However, that is certain to change in the coming months as tough questions and spirited debate blow away the fog surrounding the current crop of actual and likely 2008 candidates.Gilmore, whose background also includes a stint in the Army as a — you guessed it — counterintelligence expert, is also a true friend to more libertarian-leaning conservatives, being a steadfast and knowledgeable defender of privacy and other civil liberties in the face of the government's anti-terrorism efforts.In the coming months, Gilmore is likely to surprise many of those other candidates who have garnered more of the early limelight, but whose credentials appear brighter thanks more to their own self-serving burnishing than to the true substance of their actual accomplishments.
Former Va. Gov. Gilmore Sets Up Exploratory Presidential Campaign
January 9, 2007
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) -- Former Virginia Governor Jim Gilmore has set up an exploratory presidential campaign for 2008. Gilmore's aide, Matt Williams, says the Republican filed papers today with the Federal Election Commission in Washington to form the Jim Gilmore for President Exploratory Committee. Williams said Gilmore was in a meeting and not immediately available for comment.
Gilmore, who's 57, said in interviews last month that he didn't see a true conservative running for president, and said he would assess his own chances for a presidential run. Gilmore was elected governor in 1997 by promising to cut Virginia's property tax that local governments levy on personal cars and pickup trucks.
He becomes the sixth Republican to form an exploratory committee for 2008 after former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, Arizona Senator John McCain, former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, former Wisconsin Governor Tommy Thompson and Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) -- Former Virginia Governor Jim Gilmore has set up an exploratory presidential campaign for 2008. Gilmore's aide, Matt Williams, says the Republican filed papers today with the Federal Election Commission in Washington to form the Jim Gilmore for President Exploratory Committee. Williams said Gilmore was in a meeting and not immediately available for comment.
Gilmore, who's 57, said in interviews last month that he didn't see a true conservative running for president, and said he would assess his own chances for a presidential run. Gilmore was elected governor in 1997 by promising to cut Virginia's property tax that local governments levy on personal cars and pickup trucks.
He becomes the sixth Republican to form an exploratory committee for 2008 after former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, Arizona Senator John McCain, former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, former Wisconsin Governor Tommy Thompson and Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas.
Gilmore Makes it Official: Former Virginia Governor Files a Presidential Exploratory Committee
January 9, 2007
ALEXANDRIA, Va. -- Former Virginia Governor Jim Gilmore made it official today by filing the necessary paperwork with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) to form an exploratory committee to explore a potential candidacy for President of the United States.
"Today, I filed the papers necessary to explore a candidacy for President because I believe that this nation needs conservative leadership. Alone among those considering a candidacy for the Republican nomination, I have a record of real leadership as a tax cutter and job creator, as a leader on national security issues, and as a national leader in our party. I intend to move quickly to form a national campaign team and to make my decision on moving to a formal candidacy," Gilmore said.
Governor Gilmore will soon announce his committee’s leadership structure, which will include several prominent Republicans with experience in presidential campaigns. Jim Gilmore was the governor of Virginia when the Pentagon was attacked on Sept. 11, 2001. A former Army counter-intelligence agent, he chaired the Congressional "Gilmore Commission" from 1999 to 2003 to assess America's terrorism response capabilities. Mr. Gilmore is now serving as Chairman of the National Council on Readiness and Preparedness, a non-profit community-based grassroots organization to strengthen homeland security and provide forums to develop a national strategy that includes the local first responders, small and large business, and the leaders of many communities throughout America. A former Chairman of the Republican National Committee and Republican Governors Association, he is currently a partner at the Washington office of Kelley Drye Collier Shannon, where he chairs the Homeland Security Practice Group.
ALEXANDRIA, Va. -- Former Virginia Governor Jim Gilmore made it official today by filing the necessary paperwork with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) to form an exploratory committee to explore a potential candidacy for President of the United States.
"Today, I filed the papers necessary to explore a candidacy for President because I believe that this nation needs conservative leadership. Alone among those considering a candidacy for the Republican nomination, I have a record of real leadership as a tax cutter and job creator, as a leader on national security issues, and as a national leader in our party. I intend to move quickly to form a national campaign team and to make my decision on moving to a formal candidacy," Gilmore said.
Governor Gilmore will soon announce his committee’s leadership structure, which will include several prominent Republicans with experience in presidential campaigns. Jim Gilmore was the governor of Virginia when the Pentagon was attacked on Sept. 11, 2001. A former Army counter-intelligence agent, he chaired the Congressional "Gilmore Commission" from 1999 to 2003 to assess America's terrorism response capabilities. Mr. Gilmore is now serving as Chairman of the National Council on Readiness and Preparedness, a non-profit community-based grassroots organization to strengthen homeland security and provide forums to develop a national strategy that includes the local first responders, small and large business, and the leaders of many communities throughout America. A former Chairman of the Republican National Committee and Republican Governors Association, he is currently a partner at the Washington office of Kelley Drye Collier Shannon, where he chairs the Homeland Security Practice Group.
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