Herring wants your house and hates your car?
THIS letter is long because of questions being asked about Mark Herring, Mick Staton's opponent on Tuesday. This is an example of what to expect from a "Senator" Mark Herring.
This letter is meant to be forwarded on to family and friends. It is not authorized by any candidate. It is a short list of some bad deeds of Mark Herring as Supervisor. I served with him for 4 years.
For balance, Mr. Herring and his family are gracious people who represent a part of Loudoun County's past. I remember how Herring brought back conservative Suzanne Volpe's nomination for the Sterling District Women's commission seat a 2nd time and Volpe was elected. That was gracious of then-Sup. Herring.
Unfortunately, there are 20 wrong headed actions Mark Herring has done or will do to you. He will increase taxes, destroy traditional marriage in Virginia, restrict the use of your car and take your house if he is elected Senator. I have prepared a *partial* list of 20 Wrong Headed Herring Actions.
Mark Herring is a younger version of radical left Supervisor Jim Burton who clenched his fists in the air and declared "We have to figure out a way to get people out of their cars".
Wrong Headed Herring Action 1
Newly elected "moderate" Democrat Delegates Caputo and Poisson voting for gay marriage last week. So will "Senator" Herring vote for gay marriage.
Wrong Headed Herring Action 2
wanted rooftop gardens for all commercial buildings pushed for a no-car zone in part of downtown Leesburg (this is not a joke)
http://www.leesburg2day.com/current.cfm?newsid=1778
Wrong Headed Herring Action 3
reconsidered (his)..2002 "no" vote on the tax rate for the purpose of breaking (a)deadlock and in the process voted for out of control loudoun county budgets 2000-2003
http://www.leesburg2day.com/current.cfm?newsid=5146
Wrong Headed Herring Action 4
refused to allow an up or down vote for his own Nomination for Senator
Wrong Headed Herring Action 5
refused to allow Sterling District a representative on the Water Resource Technical Committee
http://inetdocs.loudoun.gov/archive/bosarch/docs/bosminutes_/businessmeeting_/2001minutes_/01022001/office2k/office2k.htm
Wrong Headed Herring Action 6
HERRING WANTS TO RESTRICT YOUR CAR-- CRITICAL OF ROUTE 28 IMPROVEMENTS
"(Herring) stated that millions of dollars was being spent to just one element of this (Transportation )system, which was the private automobile." Direct quote from the Minutes
http://inetdocs.loudoun.gov/archive/bosarch/docs/bosminutes_/businessmeeting_/2001minutes_/01162001/office2k/office2k.htm
Wrong Headed Herring Action 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13
- voted for sales tax increase, 70 per cent of Sterling said NO
- voted for franklin park, 70 per cent of Sterling said NO
- voted for howard hughes institute tax exempt status, six million dollars tax write off
- voted for six thousand residential units in one night, density packing
- voted for christmas lights regulation
- voted for purchase of development rights, $8 million to western loud.landowners.
- took overseas trips to Germany
Wrong Headed Herring Action 14
Endorsed by the Virginia Partisans Gay & Lesbian Democratic Club
Wrong Headed Herring Action 15
Alters Newspaper Quote In Fliers, Tells paper He will keep altering.
Newspaper reporters confront Herring officials about mis-representing direct quotes from the newspaper. Herring campaign will not change misquotes.
http://www.leesburg2day.com/current.cfm?catid=31&newsid=11613
>>>How Sup. Herring Killed Property Rights Follows
Wrong Headed Herring Action 16
>>>Herring Felt The Out of Control Loudoun County Spending Was Fine
From the official minutes: "Supervisor Herring stated that Supervisor Delgaudio's comment that this (year 2000) was a blotted (sic) budget did not make it so."
http://inetdocs.loudoun.gov/archive/bosarch/docs/bosminutes_/businessmeeting_/2000minutes_/04032000/office2k/office2k.htm
In my first term (2000-2003), I called the old 2000-2003 board "nightmarish" in its promotion of a dark sky ordinance that would black out Sterling with lights out curfews including Security lights, make most kinds of light fixtures illegal and limit the wattage on Christmas Lights, and increase taxes and spending.
The contest between Mick Staton and Mark Herring this Tuesday, January 31st, 2006, could mean the loss of your home or the taking of property by the state through condemnation.
Wrong Headed Herring Action 17
Herring voted to impose historic districts on a community where 85 per cent of the population refused to participate dispite 8 separate first class mailings asking them to sign up. 85 per cent of the citizens refused to volunteer to be in an historic area. Herring voted to impose a historic district any way, over a clear absence of approval.
Wrong Headed Herring Action 18
Herring voted to create an Environmental and Historic Resources Program. with a budget of $350,000.00 and new regulations. This meant the average house cost would rise $10,000-$15,000 due to new inspections and permits required.
http://inetdocs.loudoun.gov/archive/bosarch/docs/bosminutes_/businessmeeting_/2001minutes_/01022001/office2k/office2k.htm
Herring spoke at length to promote the adoption of policies that would lead to putting trees on the top of commercial buildings and solicited governmental and private builders to put trees on top of buildings.
This would have increased the cost of the roofs and cut the roof's years of service in half, doubling the cost of roofs by millions of dollars.
Herring promoted making Leesburg and other areas of the county a "car-free" zone in which no car would be allowed, starting in Leesburg and other population centers.
Herring lead and promoted the giving away of $8 million to rich people in the form of Purchase of Development Rights (PDRs) for land that was never going to be developed. Some of these recipients of tax dollars were Democratic Contributors.
>>>Where did Herring begin to destroy your Property Rights?
It began, and continues, as I have said for 6 years with the Mark Herring Old board 2000-2003, on May lst, 2000 exactly.
That Scott York - Herring board majority deleted the "property rights" provision in the Loudoun County Plan. Once the county deleted its duty to preserve property rights, the government workers got the green light to ride rough shod over property rights and drive up housing costs.
>>> RE-ELECTION OF DELGAUDIO ENDED HERRING REIGN TEMPORARILY
My re-election and call to arms in 2003 brought a Republican majority and Sterling District services were restored overnight. But Now Herring is back, this time for State Senator. A Herring victory would spell doom for prosperity and cause financial disaster for all of us.
>>> IT BEGAN ON MAY lst, 2000
I will go back to May 1st, 2000 --when the old Scott York -Herring board majority was just starting out --to recall some observations that I made then and still stand today as relevant.
Then-Supervisor Herring and that old Scot York - Herring board made it seem forbidden to even breath a word of "property rights".
And they actually deleted references to property rights yet deny it even today.
Here's what I said on May lst, 2000, (changes in tense in parenthesis). "It's a pattern of misinformation, confusion or lies. A disservice to the taxpayers. I state forthrightly my positions. I do not hide and deny my statements or actions. But this board denies repeatedly the actions it takes soon after they take them.
http://inetdocs.loudoun.gov/archive/bosarch/docs/bosminutes_/businessmeeting_/2000minutes_/05012000/office2k/office2k.htm
There seem to be ......major mistakes, or lies, in a recent series of public denials (back in 2000) by Chairman York, on behalf of the board, being made.
(Chairman Scott York back in 2000)...challenged me by stating at a meeting exactly "where did the Board delete the protection of property rights?"
(So I answered him) "Mr. Chairman, and fellow Board members, On May lst,(2000) the Chairman said, "No property rights were deleted". Chairman York.. (was) mistaken.
I ......respectfully (told) Scott York :
Mr. Chairman,...I have to believe that you forgot about this particular action of the board....... Here is what my notes say the public record is: On April 3rd, 2000 the board reconvened after a lunch with Loudoun's legislative representatives to Richmond At approximately 1:45 p.m. EST the Board took up Roman Numeral VIII (seven) entitled "action", item number six, entitled "Framework for Review of the General Plan" (39 pages).
IN RE: VISION FOR LOUDOUN COUNTY http://inetdocs.loudoun.gov/archive/bosarch/docs/bosminutes_/businessmeeting_/2000minutes_/04032000/office2k/office2k.htm
Wrong Headed Herring Action 19
SUPERVISOR MARK HERRING MOTIONED TO CUT PROPERTY RIGHTS ON THE RECORD.
On April 3, 2000, Supervisor Mark Herring motioned to delete section 7 on page 13 which was under the section "Proposed Smart Growth and Revitalization Principles"and to substitute the "Vision" statement adopted by the board. It read "Recognize the private property rights of the individual within a balanced framework that considers the public interest and shared values of the community."
I objected. I said this motion proves my point that this Board is out to destroy property rights in this county. That governments must protect property rights..that was the previous Louduon County policy for 200 years.
Wrong Headed Herring Action 20
>>> HERRING WANTS YOUR HOUSE.
Mr. Herring countered that "it is not the responsibility of the county to protect property rights and that it is the duty of the state and federal governments to take care of those issues."
Clearly, it is reasonable to ask if Herring thinks the sort of land grabs sanctioned by the infamous Kelo Court decision are fine and dandy. That decision makes it legal for counties to seize properties for "economic development".
Would Herring oppose defining eminent domain in the VA constitution such that counties couldn't seize land for tax dollars and economic development? This fellow is arguing quite publicly for counties to have more POWER.
>>NOW SUPERVISOR HERRING WANTS TO BE STATE SENATOR
I remind(ed) the Board (in the year 2000) that I condemned the vision statement because it called for more government spending with a de-emphasizing and elimination of private property rights and private initiatives being preferred over government actions.
The debate ended and (then) Supervisor Herring's resolution deleting property rights from the Framework for the General Plan was adopted...
"......This Chairman and this Board is denying that these horrible actions are taking place......
But the old Scott York - Mark Herring Board did delete property rights - from the framework for the General Plan. "(unquote)
I think this is more than enough for some of your friends and family to know exactly where Herring stands or stood on some of the issues when he held elected office.