Judy Feder Fundraiser

As you probably all know by now, I'm working for Judy Feder this cycle, running the blog Farewell Frank, and doing whatever I can to make sure that Judy beats Frank Wolf next year. Tonight, I attended a fundraiser for Judy in McLean, attended by around 40 people including Del. Brian Moran, Supervisor-elect John Foust, former U.S. Senate candidate Harris Miller, FCDC chairwoman Ginny Peters, and numerous others.

I'll have a lot better photos later, thanks to my good friend CW Dean, but for now, here's an account of the event.

First, Brian Moran noted that Delegate-elect Margi Vanderhye wanted to be at the Feder event, but she was in Richmond for freshman orientation (or whatever it's formally called). Moran praised Judy as "intelligent," "independent," "articulate," and someone with the "courage of her convictions." He also noted that Judy, unlike Frank Wolf, would not be a rubber stamp for whoever's in the White House.

Next, John Foust talked about how excited he was about Judy's candidacy, how she was "by far the better candidate," and how the Dranesville district of Fairfax is "turning blue." He predicted that "Judy's gonna be great." He noted that he's a "big tunnel guy," and that Frank Wolf has been "a major impediment" in this area. Finally, Foust mentioned the importance of health care, and how it was so important to elect Judy Feder next year.

Finally, Judy Feder spoke about the need to bring change to Washington, DC. She described meeting a 10th district resident who was desperately hoping for cures from embryonic stem cell research; a freelance writer who was scared because she couldn't find health insurance due to a pre-existing condition; and a couple in Manassas whose son is on his second tour of duty in Iraq (they told Judy that their son's wife and kids needed him home now).

Judy promised to fight for affordable health care, to "bring our troops home," and to once again "make the United States symbol of hope not fear around the world." We can only do that, Judy said, if we bring change to Washington. And, she asked rhetorically, does anyone think that after 27 years in Congress, Frank Wolf's going to bring that change? (hint: no!)

Judy talked about her new sense of urgency, having become the grandmother of "beautiful twin girls" on August 28. She said she had promised her granddaughters that she would do whatever needs to be done to make their world a better place. She looked forward to a Democrat in the White House, Mark Warner in the U.S. Senate, and Judy Feder in Congress.

With regard to Frank Wolf, Judy said that he's "feeling the heat," already sending out "panicky letters mentioning Judy Feder by name." Wolf has good reason to feel panicky. In the last quarter, the Feder campaign outraised Wolf 3:1, and now has more cash on hand than Wolf (something the Feder campaign was never quite able to accomplish last time around). In 2008, Judy said she will build on what she accomplished last time around, including the name recognition she gained. She noted that Wolf is demoralized being in the minority, hated the fact that he had to run a serious race last time around, and declared, "if he didn't like that race, he's really gonna hate this one!"

On the Tysons tunnel issue, Judy said that Wolf "got away with murder" last time around, and that she hopes to work much more closely with the Tysons Tunnel people this time. On climate change, she said she agreed with Al Gore that this is one of the most critical questions facing the world.

P.S. Someone in the audience got a big laugh by relating how he received a letter from Wolf that in one paragraph bragged about all the earmarks Wolf supposedly had gotten for his district, and in another paragraph talked about all of Wolf's efforts to get rid of earmarks! Ha. :)