Greetings, loyal minions. Your Maximum Leader mentioned yesterday that he recently attended a debate amongst the various candidates for the Republican nomination for the 28th District Virginia Senate seat. He noted that on the basis of what he heard there, he was choosing to vote for Richard Stuart in the primary election.

Now… Your Maximum Leader chanced to be visiting his local coffee shop when he was on the receiving end of a stare from another patron of the establishment. While your Maximum Leader was sipping his chai in the shop for a moment the person giving him the stare approached him. The stranger looked vaugely familiar. The stranger had a face your Maximum Leader had seen - but couldn’t place.

The stranger asked your Maximum Leader if he (your Maximum Leader that is) was in the audience at the Republican debate the other night. Your Maximum Leader said that he was. Then we established that we had, in fact, been sitting a few seats away from one another during the debate. The stranger asked your Maximum Leader if he was going to vote for Mr. Myers. Your Maximum Leader said that he was not. The stranger asked if your Maximum Leader was going to support Mr. Van Hoy. Your Maximum Leader stated that while he was impressed with Mr. Van Hoy, he was going to vote for Mr. Stuart.

Well… That didn’t seem to go over too well with the stranger. Didn’t your Maximum Leader know that Mr. Stuart wasn’t a “real” conservative? Didn’t your Maximum Leader know that Mr. Stuart was “squishy?” Didn’t your Maximum Leader know that Mr. Stuart was a dreaded RINO?

Since your Maxmium Leader had a moment he decided to play along. He admitted to the stranger that he did not know these things. The stranger then announced that Mr. Stuart had, in the past, given a political donation to Andrew Pollard? (Mr Pollard is the Democratic nominee for the same position that Mr Stuart seeks.) Didn’t your Maximum Leader know that Mr. Stuart had bought tickets to the inaugural ball for (now former - Democrat) Governor Mark Warner?

Your Maximum Leader asked the stranger how exactly these items were proof that Mr. Stuart wasn’t a conservative. The stranger announced that the very act of making a political donation to “the enemy” was proof positive that someone couldn’t be trusted. Your Maximum Leader speculated that Mr. Stuart, a lawyer, may have just wanted to be on good terms with the elected representatives in the Commonwealth with whom he might have to interact? It is not uncommon for lawyers and businessmen to donate to both political parties afterall… Well… That didn’t go over too well…

Then the stranger said that Mr. Stuart wasn’t Pro-life enough. Your Maximum Leader said that what he heard Mr. Stuart say was that he was Pro-life, but that he recognizes that the Virginia Senate isn’t empowered to overturn the law of the land as decreed by the Supreme Court of the United States. That wasn’t the point said the stranger. The point was that he didn’t come out and say he would do all he could to outlaw abortions. Your Maximum Leader followed up by saying that Mr. Stuart didn’t say that at all. He just stated that he acknowledged that he knew what the law of the land was, and that as a Virginia Senator there wasn’t much he could do to change the Federal law. Your Maximum Leader added that no one asked what Mr. Stuart might consider reasonable restrictions to abortion that might withstand a federal challenge.

Well… That didn’t seem to sit well with the stranger either. The final point appeared to be that Mr. Stuart lives in Montross, VA. Montross is a rural town in the eastern area of the district. To the stranger, your Maximum Leader ought to support a candidate who lived in Stafford or Fredericksburg (more densely populated areas on the western area of the district). To the stranger it was obvious that no one in Montross could know what the problems of Stafford and Fredericksburg were.

Your Maximum Leader asked the stanger if it was possible for someone outside our area to read a newspaper, or a blog, or make friends in different areas so as to learn more about what is going on somewhere else?

It was about that point that the stranger excused himself saying that he needed to get on with his errands…

So did your Maximum Leader…

And your Maximum Leader is still voting for Mr. Stuart.

Carry on.