Marshall

Marshall to run for GOP nomination for Senate

Date published: 1/8/2008

By Chelyen Davis

RICHMOND--Jim Gilmore is too liberal on abortion issues, says Del. Bob Marshall, who is running against the former Virginia governor for the U.S. Senate.

Marshall, R-Manassas, yesterday announced he will challenge Gilmore for the Republican nomination for the seat that will be open when Sen. John Warner retirees.

Republicans will choose their nominee in a convention in June.

Marshall is one of the most outspoken abortion opponents in the General Assembly, annually introducing numerous bills to restrict abortion.

In a news conference, Marshall said Gilmore has ignored the right-to-life contingent of the state Republican Party, in part by supporting abortions up to eight weeks into a pregnancy and accepting a health exception for late-term abortions.

Those positions alienate abortion opponents, Marshall said.

"The stance he's taken, not wanting to have the right-to-lifers behind him" will lose Gilmore those votes, Marshall said. He said the votes are critical to beating Democrat Mark Warner, who is also running for the Senate seat.

He pointed to recent losses by Republican statewide candidates as proof that a Republican must have the support of social conservatives to win.

"It's clear the consultants who've handled these races don't know how to handle social issues," Marshall said. "They betray that at their own risk."

Gilmore spokeswoman Ana Gamonal said the Gilmore campaign is focused on defeating Warner in November, but that Marshall's accusations are "a good time to remind voters that Governor Gilmore has always opposed abortion in most instances" and was "one of the most pro-active pro-life governors Virginia has had."

Marshall said he wasn't thinking about the U.S. Senate race until last fall, when constituents began asking him to consider it. Calls from local Republican unit chairmen who agree with his assessment of the abortion issue followed, he said, and he was persuaded to run.

"Home-school people are very active in this," said Marshall, who with his wife, Cathy, home-schooled their five children. "Right-to-life people are very active in this."

Marshall also said he has won elections in parts of Northern Virginia where Republicans usually lose, and he thinks he has an edge over Gilmore in that way.

He doesn't believe Gilmore can beat Warner, but he thinks he can--he said Warner, also a former governor, broke campaign promises by not implementing government efficiency recom- mendations from a commission led by former Gov. Doug Wilder; by not fixing transportation; by raising taxes; and by vetoing partial-birth abortion bans.

"The voters of Virginia have rejected Mark Warner's positions. " Marshall said. "Yes, I think I can beat him."

Marshall has also long been an opponent of higher taxes--his campaign Web site includes a section on opposing taxation of the Internet--and has filed lawsuits challenging different tax legislation as unconstitutional. He is known in the General Assembly for his nearly encyclopedic knowledge of the House procedural rules, and for his ever-present camera; he takes thousands of pictures during legislative sessions.

Date published: 1/8/2008

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