King Plum to cut higher education

Thirty years into the reign of "King" Ken Plum, he finally has been chosen as the Democratic Caucus Chair for the Virginia House of Delegates. This means that King Ken Plum will be making even more poignent attacks against the other party and will continue his streak of supporting party endeavors over the more localized needs of Reston residents. Plum has proven this time and again when siding with Democratic king-makers as opposed to civic groups in Reston.

But the real news to come out of the Virginia House is that King Ken Plum is scrambling to make up for that severe budget shortfall. Guess where this former educator looked for his budget proposal? Yes, you got it... King Ken Plum is going to make significant cuts in higher education. Take that "future of America!" Apparently, when one is in the statehouse for 30 years, they get completely shortsighted.

Of course the monarch of Reston wasn't finished. He also supports cutting support staff in Virginia schools. Along with that, he already has expressed support for cutting police funding and Commonwealth's Attorneys by 7 percent.

And as any 30-year monarch would, he plans on raising taxes.

King Ken Plum has absolutely no vision and no sense of ingenuity. Reston has many lofty plans for development that, sadly, will be hampered by this person. But hey, at least he was chosen to a seat that nobody outside of politics cares about!

King Ken Plum's 2009 agenda

According to published reports, Virginia delegate "King" Ken Plum of Reston has acknowledged support for the following initiatives.

1) Reduce the police force by 7%

2) Raise taxes (he said it)

3) Eliminate a significant number of Commonwealth's Attorneys

Holding the same elected office for 30 years obviously has provided King Ken Plum with a mentality that he is untouchable.

King Plum advocating 7% cuts in police forces

The national embarrasment that is "King" Ken Plum is gaining more traction. This comes as Plum, the 30-year Virginia delegate from Reston, offers support for cutting 7 percent of police funding. According to Fairfax County newspapers, King Plum wants to make these cuts to tackle the billion dollars in budget shortfalls that had been miscalculated. In addition, the 30-year monarch of Reston wants to cut funding for our commonwealth's attorneys, also known as prosecutors. Moreover, King Plum is an advocate for raising taxes.

Meanwhile, King Plum supports continued funding for nature buildings and building high-toll HOV lanes in Fairfax County that really are not proper answers to anything at this point.

Police protection and education are two areas that should be off-limits to out-of-touch politicians like King Ken Plum. Unfortunately, King Ken Plum has remained in this one position for 30 years and has lost touch with the facts on the ground.

King Plum admits dropping ball on his watch

King Ken Plum continues to be a disaster for Reston and Virginia as a whole. His 30-year reign has been marked with indecision and an abhorrent lack of leadership as a delegate. Now, even King Plum acknowledges that he did not foresee the tanking of the Virginia budget. This of course comes as no surprise as in the last few years, King Ken Plum has merely been going through the motions as a partisan pariah in the statehouse. As more and more people in Reston and Northern Virginia come to learn about this 30-year monarch, more and more people keep asking how they could have let such a person stay in one elected position for three decades.

If past precedent is a guide, King Ken Plum will propose new taxes. this also is not a surprise since King Ken Plum is not exactly known as a forward thinker.

Here's the latest quote from the king himself:

"The economic crisis being felt by most households and certainly by the business community as a whole is wreaking havoc on the state budget as well. What appeared initially to be a couple of billion dollars shortfall will certainly exceed 3 billion dollars and the only remaining question is by how much. No areas of the state budget will escape reductions. The challenge will be to keep minimally funded programs alive when they provide vital services."

All I want for Christmas...

Received this email a few weeks back but felt it was more appropriate to post now:

Dear King Plum Must Go,

All I want for Christmas is a new start. All I want for Christmas is a change in Washington AND Richmond. All I want for Christmas is for political leaders that actually are in touch with their community -- not just people they know and need to pander to but us regular people.

ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS FOR KEN PLUM TO GO!

Del. Plum has become a pariah to us regular people and with blogs like this and elsewhere, he is becoming a national symbol of shame. 30 years IS way too long!

KING PLUM MUST GO!

Best to you and yours,

Stephen H.
Reston

* to post an email, please contact vincent.endres (at) yahoo.com

I was at a bar in DC's Chinatown last night, talking to some people who happen to live in King Plum's district in Virginia. After talking about politics for a why, the topic eventually rolled around to their state rep. To say that they were displeased with his ridiculously long tenure and ineffective policies would be a misnomer. A more appropriate term for their ideas and thoughts on KP was outrage, anger and hunger for change. Virginia needs a new rep to represent the modern needs of the constituents. Last night proved that this desire reaches across all demographics. It's definitely time for change.

Every time I read the newspaper or a new book about a politician I keep remembering that politics is a game of advancement and it's much the better for that. You do the best you possibly can by your constituents to make a name for yourself and move on to bigger and better things. That way, your constituents get the best possible attention and service and you are constantly challenging yourself to new goals, tasks and missions. What kind of a person stays in a political position for 30 years? The kind of individual who is resistant to and afraid of change.

Obama won in November on a platform of change. Why? Because it's the only way we forward. Tenure is all well and good but it doesn't work in universities and it doesn't work on politics. King Plum has got to go.