Moonhowlings

So the truth is out.   Confirmed, via the most recent article in the in an interview with The Washington Post that he plans to introduce a policy next year on the concept of “clustering,”a new approach to managing the county’s rural area.

Allow me to interject some facts here.  There IS a “cluster ordinance” in the comprehensive plan for allowing clustering of homes on large tracts of land.  I will put a copy of the ordinance  up on the rural crescent website and link to it so people can become better informed.   I am hopeful that maybe even Corey and Peter Candland will visit the link in order to educate themselves on the current cluster ordinance.

Lo and behold, Peter Candland is already finding ways to do Corey’s bidding!   I don’t think that Peter has a full understanding of land use or else he would understand why Corey’s proposal is bunk.

“That, I believe, succeeds at nothing,” Stewart said. “I think that we need to look at better ways of preserving very large areas of rural ground as well as promoting more commercial office space and high-end retail. We have to take the emotion out of this debate and give it a cold, hard, objective look.”

Stewart said his argument is that having a hodgepodge of 10-acre lots doesn’t make sense. Better, he said, to have a development on 100 acres, where 30 acres are developed and the other 70 are open space, he said. Stewart said that such a policy would take a long time to develop, and the board would do so “in conjunction with the community.”

Candland said he rejects the commonly used term “slow growth,” saying “managed growth” more adequately describes his philosophy to encourage growth along with adequate infrastructure. But he largely agrees with Stewart’s philosophy of bringing the county more high-end retail and office space, he said, adding that improving the county’s quality of life will drive economic growth.

“Plain and simple,” Candland said, “we need to bring business to Prince William County.”

The level of ignorance astounds me.    I wonder if Corey and Peter are aware that there is plenty of undeveloped land in the “Development Area” that has YET to be rezoned for its allowed long range use.  There is not a lack of opportunity for high end retail and commercial (anyone heard of Innnovation?) in Prince William County.  There is a lack of those high end retailers and Corporations CHOOSING to do business here. 

Busting open the Rural Crescent will only have one sure fire result, higher taxes for everyone.  Gotta love those conservative values.

I wonder if Michael Neibauer from the Washington Business Journal will have a follow up article to citizens of Prince William County affirming his pre and post prediction on Canlands election being the “game change” for development in the western end.

Not that there’s some massive push to build new homes in Prince William County, especially the western end. But when a proposal does come along — and it will — Candland’s victory may give the developer a narrow opening.

Does everyone remember this statement from Corey, Washington Post Oct 19th?

Stewart said that developers were pleased with the direction the board has taken as a whole in easing permit restrictions, building roads and other key infrastructure and keeping taxes low.

He said that he has never taken donations from developers while they have a project pending before the board.

I’ll bet “developers are pleased with the direction of the board!”  Does Avendale ring any bells?!

Tell me, please, why do people spin the truth when the facts can so clearly create obvious contradictions.  From today’s Inside Nova:

On Oct. 7, Bruni Peters of Fairfax-based RK Realty contributed $10,000 to Stewart – just 11 days before Stewart and the rest of the Prince William Board of County Supervisors unanimously approved a comprehensive land use amendment and a re-zoning of one of Bruni’s future mixed-use properties.

At issue is the Hunter at Haymarket development. Thanks to the board’s vote, a six-acre portion of a 44-acre parcel of land off U.S. 15 was approved for office space. The board also approved a higher density residential zoning for nearly 10 of 15 acres that were originally designated semi-rural residential.

Read more…

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From insidenova.com:

An estimated 150 to 175 individuals from 35 to 40 families from the Marumsco and Holly Acres mobile home parks were left homeless when more than 10 inches hit the U.S.1 corridor in Woodbridge last Thursday. The heavy rainfall caused massive damage to the parks; 66 out of 108 units in the Holly Acres park were declared unsafe to inhabit.

Many of the displaced flood victims are staying at the Dale City Recreation Center because they have no where else to go.  This arrangement will be very short-lived because the county is shutting the shelter down at 5 p.m. on this coming Friday.

Those still staying at Dale City Recreation Center – between 35 and 40 families – have until Friday at 5 p.m. before they have to leave the Red Cross-administered facility. Many of those families came to speak to the board on Tuesday, relaying their plight.

 Prince William Countydoesn’t have Section 8 housing vouchers at this time. And Prince William Board of County Supervisors Chairman Corey A. Stewart reiterated to the crowd gathered at Tuesday’s meeting that the county could not provide permanent housing to the victims of the storm.

Residents and community activists appealed to the county at the BOCS meeting. 

Read more…

Corey  Stewart has an urgent emailer out once again asking for money.  I chose the word ‘ask’ because the Corey supporters took offense the last time I said ”beg.’   We have 48 hours to reply.   Here’s what he says:

Dear Friend,

 

As we approach the end of August, my campaign faces a critical deadline that we must meet. For the end of this quarter, we have set fundraising goal of receiving 50 contributions before midnight on August 31st. Will you be one of those 50 by donating $10, $20 or $50 to my campaign?

We must keep my opponent’s Liberal agenda at bay and stand strong for conservative fiscal policies of balanced budgets and low taxes. Under my leadership as Chairman, the Board has trimmed spending by more than $140 million, resulting in Prince William County’s AAA bond rating status.

In less than 48 hours our campaign faces a critical fundraising deadline and I am asking you to stand with me by making a contribution today in an effort to move Prince William County forward.

All the best,

Corey Stewart

 

Ahem…let’s get a few things straight.  Stewart implies a cause/effect relationship between his trimming of the budget and the county’s AAA bond rating status.  That AAA bond rating status was there before the budget was trimmed by more than $140 million. 

Secondly, you would think the wolf was at the proverbial door.  Checking www.vpap.org, it shows the following for Corey Stewart:

Total Receipts                                                                    $477,460

Total Disbursements                                                       $332,615

Cash on Hand

Stewart for PWC Board Chair-Corey Stewart          $209,986

Va Rule of Law PAC                                                                  $946

That’s a lot of money to blow.  He hardly is facing political destitution with $209,986.  I would have to know where he had squandered the other money before I wrote a check to his campaign.  His democratic opponent, is also sitting on a lot of cash.  Why should it cost so much to run for office in Prince William County? 

Should a campaign be all about money or should we demand those who want our vote stop the out of state inflow of money and the developer checks being infused into campaigns?  Why do I always feel like the voters of PWC have always just been ‘had?’

Elena speaks with Channel 7 News:

According to insidenova.com, the county has filed suit against the federal government. 

Prince William County filed a lawsuit today against the Department of Homeland Security, according to a county press release.

In 2007 the Prince William Board of County Supervisors passed an ordinance that requires county police officers to check the immigration status of anyone they arrest.

If police find that they have arrested someone who is in the country illegally, they turn that person over to the department for deportation.

To date the county has turned over more that  [sic] 4,000 people over to DHS, the release stated.

At issue is the fact that an illegal immigrant who was an habitual offender hit a car carrying 3 elderly nuns.  One nun was killed and the other 2 were seriously injured.  The sisters belong to the Benedictine order and requested at the time of the tragedy that people not use the death of the sister to advance their political viewpoint.  The politicians and anti-immigration crowd of Prince William County have ignored the sisters’ request and have done quite the opposite.

Read more…

An email from Corey Stewart:

For the past couple of weeks, liberal DC politicians have been flirting with a national default and the prospect of a declining credit rating. With such an irresponsible approach to take care of the nation’s debt, we are fortunate that in Prince William County our AAA bond rating is stable.

Our AAA bond rating and steady financial outlook are a result of my willingness to make hard decisions and stick to my convictions.  In tough times we kept taxes low and reduced government spending while still making critical investments in our schools and roads.

These same DC Liberals that are spending our children’s future away are attempting to bring their reckless policies to Prince William County and we need your help to keep proven conservative leadership right where it belongs. Will you help us by donating $5, $10 or $20 to our campaign?

Read more…

Jennifer Buske has written an article about the area plans for the Sesquicentennial for the Washington Post entitled “As Civil War anniversary nears, Manassas sees a historic opportunity.”   In the Friday the 13th  article she writes what begins as an ode to deceased event planner Creston Owen and takes us though the history of the arriving at the Sesquicentennial.  Included in the article is a comparison between the Manassas Battlefield and Gettysburg.

Any attempts to compare the two battlefields ended about the time of the battles themselves.  Manassas is not Gettysburg and never will be, based pretty much on location, location, location, both then and now.  Gettysburg pretty much is a dedicated battlefield.  Manassas is a suburb of D.C.  And here is the gist of the problem.

According to the Washington Post:

Playing off the excitement of the sesquicentennial, Corey A. Stewart, the Board of County Supervisors chairman, said he wants to begin branding Prince William as a military history corridor where people can stop at the battlefield, the National Museum of the Marine Corps and the future American Wartime Museum. That attraction is scheduled to open in 2014 and cover every era of war from World War I to Iraq and Afghanistan.

Read more…

It seems that Corey Stewart is still attempting to flirt with running for the U. S. Senate, according to the Richmond Times Dispatch. In an interview, Corey boasts that people either love him or hate him:

“I’ve been a very controversial figure, and people either love me or hate me,” said Stewart, 42.

The moment of blithe self-awareness followed a ceremonial announcement of his bid for re-election as at-large chairman of the Prince William Board of County Supervisors. Elected countywide, the position answers to more than 400,000 constituents.

But with political ambition to spare, Stewart, an affable international trade attorney and spirited conservative, has designs on higher office — a seat in the U.S. Senate.

Corey still doesn’t get it.  No one I have ever talked to hates Corey.  They dislike his style of governance–that fly by the seat of your pants way of saying one thing to one person and the opposite to the next person.  Corey has a reputation for breaking his word.  He signs pledges he does not keep when a better deal comes along, such as his sell out on the Avendale property.  His total disregard for previous pledges to guard the Rural Crescent was highlighted on this blog.   Most people who know Corey say he is affable and fun to be with.   Many who know him simply don’t trust him, having been screwed over in the past.

Read more…

Some thoughtful considerations from Moonhowlings regarding the Honorable Mr. Corey Stewart’s announcement today at 1:30 about  his re-election plans:

So who is going down to the McCoart Building at 1:30 and ask Corey to sign the pledge that if elected as chairman again, he will not run for another office midterm?

Will he keep that pledge as well as he kept his pledge to protect the rural crescent?

PWC residents need to remember that special elections to replace him are expensive and would be for the entire county, not just a magisterial district. Also, who wants their chairman tending to business other than county business.

Later on down the road we can discuss land use, developers and their campaign contributions, the Grizzlies, the rural crescent, the mischaracterization of the UVA report, blatherings about denying medicaid, and sending out his colleagues’ private emails regarding a high ranked county employee (think police chief) to a local blogger.

Today, let’s just concentrate on his level of commitment to the county. The question becomes, Mr. Stewart, if you  are  priviledged enough to be  re-elected, will you serve your 4 year term?

That is the commitment Corey must make if the electorate of Prince William County is to vote him for another term.

Corey, you need to address this issue. We aren’t your stepping stone.  What are your intentions?

The citizens of this county deserve the answer to this question. 

Tomorrow at 1:3o, Corey Stewart will announce that he is running for re-election for Prince William County Board of Supervisor for the Chairman’s seat.  Stewart currently holds that position.

Prince William County voters need to ask him one question:  Does he plan to serve as chairman for the entire 4 years if elected chairman?

Stewart has toyed with running for Senate and other state election during this past election cycle.  Prince William County residents don’t need to  have their chairman campaigning the entire time in office.   Either he runs for Chairman of the BOCS or he sits it out and campaigns for another office.  There is simply no reason for him to campaign for another office on our time.

It’s official.  Former Virginia Governor George Allen will run for the U.S. Senate for the seat currently held by Senator Jim Webb.  As a matter of fact, George Allen ran for the same seat in 2006 and lost to Senator Webb.  Part of Allen’s problem was a screwed the pooch remark made about a Democratic operative who had been shadowing him.  He called the young man, Macaca, attempting to be funny.  It wasn’t and Allen still bears the scars from his unfortunate mistake.  The Democrats were all over that mistake. 

George Allen speaks of it today.  According to the Huffington Post:

“I made mistakes and I take responsibility for them,” Allen said in an interview with Bearing Drift, before seemingly attempting to play off the slur as a fabricated word that other people had mistakenly interpreted as offensive, a move that he similarly attempted in 2006.

“I needlessly drew a college student who was following me around all over Virginia into the race, and I should not have. He was just doing his job and I should not have made him part of the issue,” Allen said of S.R. Sidarth, the Democratic tracker of Indian descent he was addressing. “It was not done with malice, and if I had known that that made-up word would be connoted as a racial insult I would not have said it.”

After Allen used the phrase in summer 2006, it quickly became a racially-charged ball and chain that is largely thought to have sunk him in his battle against his opponent, Democrat Jim Webb.

As George Allen, who was the one time darling of Virginia Republicans, attempted to address the perceived macaca problem, our very own Corey Stewart was quick to seize the opportunity to throw Allen under the bus:

Stewart, who is heading to Richmond, Va. on Tuesday to talk to party activists and court donors ahead of his own likely Senate bid, said he, along with other Republicans in the state, is “concerned that [Allen's] not going to be able to shake off the ‘macaca’ moment.”

 

Corey might want to think about his own transgressions in the loose lips department. The moonhowlings folder has all sorts of gaffes that I feel certain the Allen campaign would find useful. A few Allen aides could use our search engine to pull out highlights, or should I say  low lights of many a slip of the tongue made by Stewart.

Corey exploits the dead for political purposes.  For shame.   I don’t hear Corey Stewart talking about drunk drivers killing a grandmother and her grandchild or an habitual drug offender veering across a median strip to cause an inferno that  killed 2 people and seriously  injured a third. I suppose those deaths just don’t have the same ring as an ‘illegal immigrant.’

 I thought that the Attorney General said that this was BAD legislation. Why is Corey still pushing it? If the Cooch says its bad, then it must stink. Which delegate or state senator is going to go charging in come January and insist on passing bad legislation?

.’UPDATE:  A long time resident of Prince William County sent me a suggested scenario just for those who want to take a trip  back in time to days of old…just for a moment.  Come gather round to see how Corey became Corey, the Red-nosed Exploitative Reindeer. 

Corey the Red-Nosed Exploitative Reindeer 

I’m sure when Greg Letiecq knocked on the door with the camera Corey said, “Oh no, do I have to make this video today? It’s Christmas!” And Greg said, “Corey, if you don’t do my evil bidding, I will reveal all of your secrets from 2007 and your political career will be over, bwhaahahahahaaa!”

Corey then said, “But no one in Virginia supports this law, not even the Republicans, at least not the respectable ones. And your script, it’s really going to make me look like an ass. Trying to convince the whole state to pass a law that I couldn’t stop my own board from repealing? You know they’re going to rip me to shreds when they find out how much it cost.”

Greg: “We’ll deny it, and find a polarizing way to distract them.”

Corey: “What if they find out the real crime statistics?”

Greg: “We’ll accuse anyone who looks up the real statistics of being an illegal alien apologist, a traitor, and a socialist. Then I’ll get my three lady friends to write them some angry emails. They’ll back down.”

Corey: “Alright, come in, we’ll shoot it in my office. But I’m not doing it over and over again. Last time was so exhausting.”

Greg: “Fine, fine, we’ll do it in one take.”

Corey: “Can we cut this part where I try to exploit a tragic accident and the Christmas holiday? I think that’s really in poor taste.”

Greg: “Nope. That’s the best part. Trust me, if you get people riled up enough, you can turn them against those losers George Allen and Ken Cuccinelli. They’re not tough like you are. They’re soft and weak. You are the only Republican who is man enough to walk in Sharon Angel and Jan Brewer’s non-immigrant looking shoes!”

Corey: “Thanks Greg, that’s kind of you.”

Greg: “Now sit here in front of this painting. I’ll frame it so the guy’s head is chopped off so it subtly reminds people of headless bodies.”

Corey: “Good idea.”

Disclaimer: The above is satire. I have no idea who really made the video.
MH

Corey is just the gift that keeps on giving.  The Washington Post in its Virginia Political blog section quotes Corey:

The always-outspoken Stewart repeated his remarks today, and said he doesn’t worry that McDonnell may back Allen because voters already showed they don’t support Allen by voting him out of office in 2006.

“They’re old friends,” Stewart said. “George Allen has a lot of old friends. It’s not Bob McDonnell who chooses the next senator from Virginia. It’s the electorate. … And they have already decided Allen had a mediocre term as senator. He needs to move on.”

McDonnell also has said he probably won’t endorse anyone.  Perhaps discretion is the better part of valor.  Maybe Corey needs to emulate the governor.  He just keeps digging himself in deeper and deeper.  If he keeps it up, about 10% of the population will support him, if he is lucky.  That’s won’t send Mr. Stewart to Washington. 

Sometimes it isn’t a real good idea to draw negative attention to one’s self.  Now that the UVA Report on Illegal Immigration has been finalized, it will somehow be interpreted and reinterpreted as the Chairman feels necessary. 

First off, YOUR UVA report that YOU, the taxpayers of PWC paid almost $400,000 for is now residing on the Chairman’s Virginia Rule of Law Act website.  You can even download it from there.  I suggest that the Corey Stewart  read the report cover to cover because he is getting some of the information wrong–dead wrong.

Here is what the report actually say about serous crime: 

Crime and arrest statistics reported by PWCPD do not, on the whole, show reductions that might be associated with the immigration policy, but they do show that serious violence, particularly aggravated assault, has dropped sharply in recent years. Considering that illegal immigrants account for only 3% of offenders currently arrested for aggravated assault, it seems unlikely that the policy was a major cause behind this trend, but it could have been a contributor. Finally, the views of officers, as measured in interviews and surveys, are somewhat mixed. Most feel that the policy has been effective in controlling crime and disorder related to illegal immigrants, but they are split as to whether the policy has reduced crime overall, and their general view is that immigrants do not contribute heavily to serious crime in PWC.

Additionally upon inspection of the crime statistics from the Prince William County Police website:

in 2007, there were 310 aggravated assaults committed by both adults and juveniles.  In 2008 there were 197 aggravated assaults committed by both adults and juveniles.  That is a reduction of 113 aggravated assaults or  a  36.5% decrease.  Yet the chair tells us there was a 47% decrease. 

Mr. Stewart needs to tell the truth and stop reworking the numbers to suit his own personal goals and agenda. 

Finally, in the BOCS meeting yesterday, Mr. Stewart and the other supervisors who voted in the affirmative seem to want the state to adopt PWC”s illegal immigration policy of status check post arrest.  The model legislation bill  (click to download) tells another story.  It is an IRLI form with Virginia Rule of Law Act written on it also.  It goes much further than the Prince William current  model and has the thumb print of F.A.I.R. and Mike Hethmon all over it.   It permits probable cause stops to check for immigration status as well as other things that just might get the state sued. 

I think most of us don’t want to end up like Arizona.  If Corey Stewart, Ken Cuccinelli  and F.A.I.R. have their way, that is exactly where the state of Virginia will end up. 

We commend the Prince William County police for the job they do, under the leadership of Chief Deane.  The PWC model that questions status of all people post arrest is a workable solution to the problem.  What works for our community might not work for another.  Let’s not dictate what others should do.  Millions of dollars were spent to get to where we are now.  Its time to move on without going through all of this again. And Virginians  certainly don’t need to be F.A.I.R. lab rats again.

That’s one thing you can count on.  Corey didn’t leave us in suspense for long.  Here’s what it was all about:

Dear Subscriber, I will appear on Fox & Friends this Thursday morning at 6:20 a.m. to discuss exciting developments in our fight to curb illegal immigration in Virginia. I need your help. Please let me know if you have any stories of how illegal immigration has hurt your community by replying to this email. I’m going on Fox & Friends on Thursday because I have exciting news for the Virginia Rule of Law Campaign. For the first time, a neutral third party has confirmed that states and localities can combat illegal immigration through law enforcement. I’ve included some highlights from the report for you below. It is important we start telling our local and state elected officials about this report. You can click here to read the report that was presented to the citizens of Prince William County.   Highlights from the Report: Aggravated assault declined 46.7% as a result of the policy (while increasingly dramatically in neighboring counties, 75% in Loudoun, and 37.5% in Spotsylvania) Hit-and-run accidents declined 41% as a result of the policy Substantial numbers of illegal immigrants did leave the County Prince William County is viewed by its residents, regardless of race or ethnicity, as inclusive and as a great place to live

That neutral third party he is speaking of is the  UVA Report that our supervisors willingly allowed to be attached to our legislative package.  We, the taxpayers of Prince William County,  paid almost $400,000 for that report, according to news sources,. 

I rest my case.  He was sure in an all-fired hurry to have that press conference  and to vote on that attachment to the legislative package.  How does it feel to have contributed almost $400,000  towards Corey’s Virginia Rule of Law Act? 

I hope everyone writes to John Stirrup, Maureen Caddigan, Mike May, John Jenkins and Wally Covington to thank them for giving it all away.  Expect county supplies, technology and personnel to  follow suit and be spent on this initiative.  He can now use his office and OUR resources to pursue his own personal goals. 

I am totally disgusted.   Corey couldn’t even give it 24 hours, could he?  Any time someone needs immediate need fulfillment like was exhibited yesterday by Corey, be suspicious.

You might also want to ask who Corey’s Faux News link is.  I guess he had to speed things along locally so he could make his date with destiny on Faux News Thursday morning.