Mainstream media outlets and political pundits have overtly claimed that there will be another electoral “Blue Wave” in Virginia during the 2018 midterm elections, following the Democrats nearly taking back the House of Delegates in 2017. One of the congressional districts most targeted by the Democrats in the country and seen as a vulnerable seat is VA-10, currently held by Republican Congresswoman Barbara Comstock.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) has dumped mounds of cash into the district which has 10 running for the nomination to challenge Comstock following the primary. With a not so popular Republican president, obviously Donald Trump will have something to do with voter’s ballot decisions this November in an ever-increasing blue-voting Northern Virginia. Nevertheless, all politics is local – a euphemism that may break beyond what predictions hold.
Although Hillary Clinton carried the VA-10 in 2016 by over 10 points, incumbent Republican Comstock won reelection by six points. This is seemingly surprising victory in “Blue Virginia” can be most attributed to her service to her constituents and ability to act as a mediator in the area.
Comstock has done well in her two terms in Congress by shielding herself from the rampant political drama in Washington. She has shown throughout her time in on The Hill that she has an independent political nature that is typically highly-favored among moderate Virginians. Even though many progressive activists like to charge that she has voted with President Trump 97 percent of the time as noted by the Washington Post, she does not let character issues cloud her judgement when it comes to policy and serving her constituents.
President Trump stumped hard for U.S. Senate candidate Roy Moore in the Alabama special election. Although she is a Republican, Comstock has been one of the most outspoken people on the national stage in her criticism of elected officials accused of sexual abuse.
In light of a myriad of politicians being accused of abuse, she has worked on legislation to combat sexual harassment in Washington. In February, Comstock took to the House floor in support of a bill that was set to rectify the problem of sexual harassment among elected officials and payouts from their offices.
Furthermore, Comstock understands the issues of looming government shutdowns and the impact they have on the vast amount of government workers that live in her district partly making up the urban areas of Loudoun, Prince William, and Fairfax counties.
President Trump announced last month that if congressional Democrats did not support a legislative crackdown on dangerous illegal immigrants, including members of the transnational MS-13 gang, he would shut down the government. However, this did not sit well with the congresswoman.
“We don’t need a government shutdown on this,” said Comstock. “I think both sides have learned that a government shutdown was bad, it wasn’t good for them.”
Although many in the mainstream media called her commentary a stunning public reprimand of the president, she referred to it as a just “polite conversation.”
Regardless of what is popular in Washington with policy considerations, Comstock knows that sometimes an elected official cannot just work for the people, but must work with them as well. She knows government shutdowns are detested by the thousands of federal government workers and contractors in her district and has worked to make sure their concerns come first, ahead of the larger political narrative.
Democrats have been running hard on gun control in the beginning of the election season as a result of the school shooting in Parkland, Florida. This is another political narrative that has come from pundits, media types, and elected officials who have used victims of mass shootings as political fodder to further their own progressive causes.
While members of the liberal left run around screaming about taking away guns and crying at the sight of an AR-15, Comstock is actually working in Congress to provide better resources to school and law enforcement officials to keep students safe. In a recent press release, the congresswoman said:
“School Districts across the region have School Resource Officers (SROs) who are sworn law enforcement officers who are properly trained and armed to protect the schools and students they are assigned to serve. These law enforcement officers are presented with opportunities on a daily basis to help a child out of a bad situation or to help a child turn their lives around and to work with their families and school community to provide support.
According to the National Association of School Resource Officers, SRO programs across the nation are founded as collaborative efforts by police agencies, law enforcement officers, educators, students, parents, and communities. The goal of NASRO and SRO programs is to provide safe learning environments in our nation’s schools, provide valuable resources to school staff, foster a positive relationship with our nation’s youth, and develop strategies to resolve problems affecting our youth with the objective of protecting every child so they can reach their fullest potential. School-based policing is one of the fastest growing area of law enforcement.’ Our veterans often make up the population that serve in these important roles in our schools.”
SROs have been found to reduce the incidence of violence and crime in schools. Of course, it does not fit the media narrative. The progressive narrative is a means to an end for more government control over citizens.
Rather than succumbing to pressure from activists and interest groups, Comstock is working to provide real solutions to the problems at hand surrounding the increase of violence in the nation’s schools. She understands that more community involvement and coordination between law enforcement and school administrators, teachers, staff, and students will help stave off further incidents in schools – not more stringent laws that criminals do not adhere to.
The progressive left honestly believes that nightly news cycles and political mudslinging is the best way to secure their voter base. Their motives are not in the interest of their constituents, but in the interest of their nature of power grabbing
Therefore, the overconfident nature of Democrats should not come without pushback – Comstock is a robust candidate.
