George Allen pushed no parole; Jim Gilmore, no car tax. Mark Warner's bipartisan appeal paved the way for later Democratic Party success.
Tim Kaine has spent the past 3½ years struggling to carve out his defining legacy as governor. But with the creation this week of a task force to reduce poverty in Virginia, he may be on to something.
How about the no-poverty governor?
Yes, this comes way late in his term, though his early-term prekindergarten initiative is widely viewed as an anti-poverty effort. But the fact that Kaine is getting around to poverty at all is noteworthy.
John V. Moeser of the Bonner Center for Civic Engagement at the University of Richmond said he is unaware of a previous study of poverty "throughout the state and in all its dimensions."
"This is a state that has not been known for really focusing, resourcewise, on human needs," Moeser said. "Our elected leaders usually come from wealth, they're elected from wealth, and once they get there, they protect wealth."
Frankly, the amelioration of poverty has not been a priority associated with Virginia's governors or legislators. But with the economy in crisis, the politicians can no longer ignore the poor. Neither can the rest of us.
About one in 10 Virginians, or 739,000 people, live below the federal poverty level. More than 17 percent of the residents in the state's Southwest and Southside fall below that line. The federal poverty level guideline for a family of four in 2009 is $22,050.
Virginia failed to gain a toehold against poverty in the best of times. These clearly are not the best of times.
"Our commonwealth is becoming increasingly divided between haveand have-not jurisdictions," Moeser said. Virginia locales are either overwhelmed by growth or starved for growth.
Jill A. Hanken, a staff attorney with the Virginia Poverty Law Center, said the state has made incremental progress but continues to fall behind other states in addressing the needs of low-income residents.
The constituency that needs services is not well-organized, and the General Assembly has been reluctant to dedicate revenue or raise taxes to address poverty-related issues, said Hanken, a member of Kaine's task force. "The state has made progress in some areas, but we have a very long way to go in other areas."
She has no doubt the task force will come up with sound recommendations to address the problem. "But as always -- and the governor reminded us [Thursday] -- to actually implement those recommendations will require an even greater effort and will likely take a long time."
Kaine -- by virtue of experience as a civil-rights lawyer, a missionary in Central America and an urban mayor -- is more attuned to poverty than previous Virginia governors.
This anti-poverty panel looms in stark contrast to GOP opposition to extended unemployment benefits. Kaine and his party may do well by doing good. But the truth is, Democrats and Republicans have long fallen short when it comes to Virginia's impoverished residents.
If changing that sad history is Kaine's legacy, he could do far worse.
Contact Michael Paul Williams at (804) 649-6815 or mwilliams@timesdispatch.com.
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