Sometimes people deserve to have their faith rewarded

Whether I deserve it or not is not up to me, of course, but suffice to say, Doug Wilder certainly rewarded my faith in him. Today, Wilder issued a statement announcing his refusal to endorse either candidate for Governor. In explaining his reasons for his first neutral stance in 12 years (Wilder has never endorsed a Republican for statewide office), he pointedly blew a gaping hole in the elite conventional wisdom about the need for “new revenue.”

His clarity was breathtaking (Virginia Tomorrow, emphasis in original):

Throughout my entire involvement with public service, I have tried to be a voice for those most often left out when decisions are being made which affect them in their everyday lives. As a state senator, I fought to get rid of the sales tax on food. As Lt. Governor, I fought to get rid of the sales tax on non-prescription drugs and opposed the increased sales taxes for transportation, because they are regressive taxes, meaning the poor pay at the same rate as the rich. I have lived long enough not to assume that these voiceless people can always count on someone articulating for them.

This is not the time in our Commonwealth to talk about any kind of tax increase, especially those that are fundamentally regressive and will hit hardest those who are struggling.

Rather, it is the time to put our fiscal house in order, strengthening the Commonwealth for the future.

Now is the time to replenish the “Rainy Day” fund which has bailed several administrations out of deficits, but will be all but depleted for future administrations to have at their avail. It is a time to do everything possible to let the public know that we are serious about getting a handle on spending and controlling it better. Re-examine the efficiency and effectiveness reports, previously administratively commissioned, draw from them, and make this reform agenda further known to the public. It is a time to return to the funding of “necessities” rather than “niceties”.

This is nothing less than a shout heard round the state for efficient government, coming from the only Democrat in the last forty years to serve as Governor of Virginia without demanding a tax increase during his tenure.

You can almost hear the walls of the Washington Post shaking as a result of the shockwave. With these four paragraphs, Wilder turned opposition to a tax increase from a popular yet largely Republican position into a bipartisan stand that any candidate would and should be proud to hold.

After this, the following was practically a formality, but still (same link):

The requests, made of me, have been to endorse Mr. Deeds, the Democratic Candidate, for Governor. I refrain from doing so and will leave that choice to the voters.

Keep in mind, said “requests” have come from Deeds himself, Kaine, and even the president. Wilder effectively told them all that none of them are as important as his principles.

Simply put, those of us (OK, OK, maybe it was just I) who still had faith in Wilder’s determination to keep government small and taxes low just had it rewarded, and then some.

Cross-posted to Virginia Virtucon