A Chat with Lieutenant Governor Bill Bolling

As he looks to retain the office of lieutenant governor in November's general election, Mechanicsville resident Bill Bolling said his office has accomplished much, but there are "a lot of things to be done."

"I've enjoyed being lieutenant governor through the last four years. I've worked hard to get things done in Richmond. I've worked with Republicans and Democrats to get things done in Richmond."

Bolling, a Republican, said "that's why I decided to run for re-election; I just don't think the work is done. I thought about running for governor, but it wasn't the right time for me to do that," citing personal and business obligations.

He said his party has "a good candidate in Bob McDonnell," that he and the gubernatorial candidate are "good friends" and he is "comfortable with him running."

Bolling's attention is focused on getting re-elected. "I made my decision in March of '08 to not run for governor," opting instead to pursue the office he now holds. "I called Bob over to my office one day and told him that I had made that decision. I think he was as surprised as most other people."

"It was the right decision for my family and me and my party," Bolling said, and "it enabled Bob and me to work together as a team."

Pointing to the Democrats' primary election that had three candidates vying for the governor's office, he said he and McDonnell have been able to present "a united team for the past year" and it "has given us a really good head start on the other side. That would not have been possible if we had been fighting for the past year."

"It was the right decision for me and the party."

He campaigned with McDonnell in 2005 in his bid for the Commonwealth's second highest office. McDonnell was seeking the attorney general's office. "The closeness of the affiliation with Bob is closer simply because we campaigned across the state together in 2005. We've worked together for the past four years."

On Nov. 3, they are joined on the ballot by Ken Cuccinelli for attorney general. "Ken is an important part of the ticket because he is the candidate for attorney general and we want them to vote for all three of us."

Bolling said he has a background in business that gives him an advantage "in these challenging economic times. It is important to have more business people in government."

"We need to get the economy moving again and protect jobs for Virginia's financial security. I have a detailed plan on how we want to go about that."

He tackles issues and presents proposals on his campaign Web site: http://www.billbolling.com. Included are: pro-business policies in Virginia, investing in proven economic development programs, an energy program, investing in changing the direction of the educational system, and protecting the right to work law.

"What we're talking about in the campaign is new ideas for a better Virginia. Our campaign has a detailed set of policy proposals on exactly what I want to do to help address the challenges facing the state if the voters give me the opportunity over the next four years."

In 2007, Bolling kicked off a program of 100 ideas for the future of Virginia with a series of 53 town hall "idearaisers," bringing together "government officials, business leaders, civic leaders, citizens of all ilks, together in rooms just talking about what we need to do to get the economy moving again. Out of that came a list of 100 ideas for the future of Virginia. That now has become the platform for our ideas for a better Virginia campaign." He said he continues to welcome input.

Two significant issues he is "hammering on" in this campaign are "getting the economy moving again and the need to restore fiscal integrity to government."

He said "overly optimistic administrations" may possibly lead to $4 billion and $5 billion in shortfalls in the next two to three years.

"I think we're on a course to fiscal disaster-if we don't restore it, we're going to regret it for a long time to come. We've got to get spending under control. We've got to eliminate the budget gimmicks that this administration has used over the last four years."

Without changes, Bolling said the state's AAA bond rating may be jeopardized. "We must restore fiscal integrity."