by The Sheriff of Nottingham
The Sheriff of Nottingham in Prince William County

S.S. Corey Stewart Sinking Fast?

There is a new club forming in Prince William County — and a rather exclusive one at that.  To be a member of this new club you have to first be a supporter of Corey Stewart in his race to be Virginia’s Lt. Governor.  Second, you have to be kicking yourself in the arse knowing that Stewart is blowing the Lt. Governor race with his bizarre antics.

It is the “Stewart is Blowing It Club.”

The list of club members is growing every day.

To be fair, some of the holes in the boat’s hull are not really Stewart’s doing.  The decision by the state GOP to hold a convention rather than a primary election punched a big hole in the bottom of Stewart’s boat, but that decision was all about a power play by Ken Cuccinelli’s campaign to outflank Bill Bolling.

Money is now less important that motivating people to sign up as delegates and then be willing to trek down to Richmond for the day during the GOP Convention next year.

Core Developer Contributors Need Stewart to Stay as Chairman of PWC Board of County Supervisors

Stewart’s money is mostly from developers who would rather Stewart stay as Chairman of the PWC Board of County Supervisors.  They give the money because they have to show the flag for Stewart, but they all secretly are helping sink the Stewart ship.

When Stewart goes to that core group of contributors to get their help to put bodies into delegate slots in Richmond — well, that’s just not going to happen.

The prospect of having the likes of Jeanine Lawson as the new Chairman has struck fear into the hearts of developers.  Contingency plans are already underway to find an alternative, but the pickings are pretty slim.

Marty “Maytag” Nohe has emerged as a deeply-flawed political hack with little understanding of the credibility crisis that is swirling around him.  Marty’s friends acknowledge his ego and self-denial are huge impediments to any future moves up the ladder, and many fear he cannot even win re-election in his own district.

Former Supervisor John Stirrup is Stewart’s hand-picked successor (sorry Marty, Corey lies), but the developers have never viewed Stirrup as a friend.  Stirrup recently received a lucrative lobbying contract for PWC that was orchestrated by Stewart, and that damages Stirrup’s credibility as a Chairman candidate.  The only viable alternative is Pete Candland whose support among commoners is growing rapidly, but Stewart has told his developer friends that he blames Candland for torpedoing his Lt. Governor’s race to date.

The conclusion of the developer community:  Give lip service (and cash) to Stewart, but pray for his defeat at the GOP Convention.

Stewart Has Scuttled His Own Campaign

The first step to winning the race for Lt. Governor of Virginia is for Stewart to win the GOP nomination for that office.

Nine months ago, Stewart was viewed as a highly viable candidate with strong conservative credentials.

Today, Stewart is viewed as a weak candidate with a highly questionable conservative record.

The litmus test for conservatism among activist GOP delegates will be very tough.  Those are the kind of highly-motivated ardent conservative GOP’ers who will be attending the state GOP Convention.  Stewart’s campaign persona of being “one of Virginia’s grassroots conservative leaders” simply will not wash with the GOP Convention delegates.

Initially Stewart seemed on the right track on County spending early this year when he joined Candland’s call for a zero tax increase for the FY 2013 County Budget.  But then Stewart found out Candland was serious and was not just trying to score cheap political points.

Candland was unwilling to buy into the tortured jinguistics Stewart and Budget Dominatrix Peacor had devised to deceive the public about what the tax bill would be with the absurd claim that the tax increase was actually a tax cut, or something close to it.

Candland’s unwillingness to join the Stewart-Peacor Budget Cult was the seminal event that compelled Stewart to split the sheets with Candland.  (That’s a mouthful of metaphors that The Sheriff is most proud of — and the made up word “jinguistics”.)

Stewart believed that Candland owed him big-time for help in the developer community that Stewart pushed to Candland in his campaign in November.  Stewart assured his developer buddies that Candland was his “boy” and a solid Stewart vote on the Board.

When Candland stuck to his promises of cutting spending and taxes, and limiting the size of the government, Stewart punished Candland by stripping funding for Catharpin Park thinking that would knock Candland into line.

That tactic backfired big time, and left Stewart badly scarred.

The Gainesville commoners saw the brutal retaliation by Stewart for what it was:  Punishment for Candland for not increasing taxes.  The Gainesville District homeowners know that a tax increase set by the County forces them to pay disproportionately higher taxes because of typically higher home values.

Stewart’s Bad Play on the Jenkins’ Amendments to the Discretionary Fund Ban

When Pete Candland began his crusade to reform the corrupt practice of discretionary fund spending by the BOCS, there was no room for any of the Board Members to vote against Candland’s motion.

But Stewart conspired with John Jenkins, and cracked the whip on the rest of the Board, and enacted a set of goofy amendments that were intended to punish Candland again.  Aside from the obvious punitive purpose, the inept administration of the punishment rebounded against Stewart again.

Self-inflicted cuts, and deep ones at that, have made Stewart legitimately suspect as a leader.  How do you elect someone to higher office when they cannot manage a small sandbox?

Stewart’s Disastrous Handling of the Candland Conflict of Interest Motion

Pete Candland continued his efforts to clean up the corrupt practices of the BOCS with a proposal to strengthen the rules governing conflicts of interest by Board Members.

Stewart continued his self-destructive shenanigans by moving the portion of the BOCS meeting where the Candland motion was considered off camera, and then orchestrated a scenario where Candland’s motion died for a lack of a second.

Hardly the kind of leadership that inspires confidence in a commitment to good government.

Stewart’s BIG LIE about County spending

To listen to Stewart’s campaign propaganda, you would have thought he led a massive downsizing of PWC government during his term as Chairman.

The truth:  Stewart was FORCED to cut back on the projected rise in property taxes because of the GREAT RECESSION.

Stewart’s current budget, as imbedded in his 5-year plan that he has marshaled into the County Budget, calls for a massive 20%+ tax increase on homeowners over the next five years.

Stewart is rapidly growing the size of government in PWC.

So much for Corey Stewart being a good “conservative.”  He looks and sounds far more like a George Bush conservative — one who talks a good game and then goes out and spends taxpayer money like a drunken sailor.  Perhaps Stewart should run for the U.S. Congress where conservatism is defined in GOP circles as spending money as fast as you can.

The Secret Trip to China

Sneaking off to China on some purported economic development trip without any prior disclosure; getting caught by a two-bit blogger (that is a reference made by Chairman Stewart to The Sheriff); and then trying to slap lipstick on this big pig of a trip just showed the deep lack of understanding by Stewart about the responsibilities he has to the public.

Arrogance abounds, good sense is AWOL, and Stewart puts the engines at full speed without the slightest idea of what dangers lurk ahead.

Great strategy.

Can Corey Stewart Save his Lt. Governor Campaign?

Chances are slim, but it would actually require a major overhaul of his campaign strategy and campaign team that put his boat on the reef it is currently hung up on.

But PWC pundits claim the Stewart campaign team is Corey Stewart.

He is the one who put his campaign on this disastrous course.  Stewart is the one who ignored advice from advisors the he should work with Candland and bolster his conservative credentials.

It was Corey Stewart who threw one of his now infamous melt-down tantrums and said he would destroy Candland.

But Candland today is more popular, stronger, and is a growing force in PWC.

Stewart desperately needs the ENDORSEMENT of Pete Candland.

What are the chances of that happening?

Become a Sheriff of Nottingham Deputy or Birdie.  Just send the information you have to sheriffofnottinghampw@gmail.com and the Sheriff will check it out.

Your anonymity is guaranteed.  We must weed out the corruption and fraud that rules the land and punishes the common people.  We must hold the Board of County Supervisors and the School Board to account.

Birdies and Deputies need not fear.  The Sheriff will defend your identities at all costs.

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