It’s been a little short of two years since I started Common Sense back in June of 2010.  We went from a start-up blog written by me alone to a solid fixture in the Northern Virginia political landscape, and we’re routinely ranked in the top 25 conservative blogs in Virginia. We’ve been linked to and quoted by multiple news outlets, from NBC4 to the Washington Post, and in the short time we’ve been around, we’ve received 124,000 visits and over 240,000 page views.

When I decided to run for office, I expected that things would change, but I told myself that I would still do my best to continue to present my opinion and my analysis in the same thoughtful, even-handed way that I had been since I started blogging.  Unfortunately, I’ve found that I can’t do that. While I began my campaign as a blogger, I ended it as a former candidate. I can’t go back to just being a blogger, even though I want to, because public perception of me has altered.

And because of that change, I recognized that I couldn’t maintain Common Sense on my own. I can’t provide the kinds of insight or news on local Republican issues because no one treats me as just a blogger anymore. And, unlike Ben Tribbett, Lowell or others, I’m not going to publicly attack members of my own party, even if I disagree with what they may be doing. One of the character traits that defines me is loyalty, and I would rather work to change things I don’t like from the inside, rather than take potshots from the outside. I’ve found I can be more effective that way.

So instead of hanging around at Common Sense, writing a bunch of boring, bland posts that don’t step on anyone’s toes, I decided to take a step back and hand the reins of the site over to someone else.

During the campaign season, I relied heavily on Phil Tran to keep the site going and provide us with the content that I couldn’t post. He was the one contributor that I could rely on the most to get new content on the site consistently during the campaign season.  So when I decided to step back from Common Sense, he was the logical person to turn to.  Phil has graciously agreed to take over editorial control on the site, and I’m sure that he’ll keep things running well.  He has my full confidence.

As many of you know, I’m also a contributor over at Bearing Drift.  Bearing Drift has been working to expand its reach to cover all areas of the Commonwealth, and we’ve branched out from just a website to include a print magazine and a radio show that’s syndicated around Virginia.  In order to handle the increased revenue and increased responsibility having multiple formats created, Jim Hoeft, Bearing Drift’s owner and publisher, merged the site in with Virginia Line Media, LLC.  When that was done, he asked me, along with Shaun Kenney, Norm Leahy and Scott Lee, to join him on the Board of Directors.  In addition, I was named General Counsel for Virginia Line Media as well.  So while you may not be seeing me in print over here at Common Sense, you’ll still get my views and commentary – usually over statewide and national issues rather than Northern Virginia focused – over at Bearing Drift.  I invite you all to come over and visit with us.

I want to thank all of our readers and fans for their support over the last year and a half, and I hope you had as much fun reading what we’ve written as I did publishing it. Come visit me over on Bearing Drift and I hope you enjoy Phil Tran’s Common Sense as much as you enjoyed mine!

http://www2.baylor.edu/baylorproud/2011/09/baylor-pride-swells-following-epic-football-win-over-14-tcu-in-front-of-national-audience/

http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/recap?gameId=312450239

It is Labor Day weekend. That means one thing. No, it does not mean that political campaigns begin the sprint to Election Day, although that is true for politicos. For most normal folks, including me (as politically involved as I am, I am shockingly normal), it means the start of the football season. Labor Day weekend marks the traditional beginning of the high school, college, and, until about ten seasons ago, NFL football. (The NFL moved its first weekend of games to the weekend after Labor Day for marketing and revenue purposes.)

As my friend and client Brian Schoeneman can attest firsthand, when it comes to football, I am very stoic. I watch the game from a cerebral vantage point in dead silence (this is where I am no longer normal!), even when an epic battle is on display with one of my favorite players involved. I’ve been watching the game like this since I was a little kid. As a player, I never was much of a vocal person on the field. It is not my style and it takes too much energy to yell. I celebrate with my body language, but I don’t whoop and holler. I just quietly wreck. It is business.

This fact may be looked down upon by my friends from strictly academic schools*, but the reality is that in many parts of the United States, especially way down south where I grew up, the value of a person’s college degree is directly correlated with the strength and prestige of the respective football program. (* Fact: The Ivy League is nothing more than an athletic conference that happens to include some of the best schools in the world.) People who have no ability to play football apply to schools with strong football programs because the performance of the football team affects the college experience. Football fans display unparalleled dedication to their team and a spring intra-squad game (team playing itself) can attract 90,000+ fans.

It is what it is. I have a love/hate relationship with the “football is religion” attitude. On one hand, I deeply appreciate the unbridled spirit and passion that unites a community through good times and bad times and attracts nearly 100,000 people to watch what is essentially, spring practice. On the other hand, I am amused by the obsession and vicarious living of the fans through their football team.

Alumni from other schools who want to talk smack and banter with me about college football will realize that I don’t reciprocate. A candidate for public office tried doing this with me on first impression once. He came off to me as behaving quite impolitely. I do not live my life vicariously through others. The success of my alma mater’s sports programs do not affect my self esteem, perceived value of my degree and affiliations, or my inherent pride in my school for the experiences I had and the lessons I have learned.

Regardless of how well the football team currently performs, I will always be proud to be a Baylor football letterman and graduate.

When my alma mater defeated #14 TCU Friday night in epic fashion, I was certainly pleased, but I showed little outward enthusiasm. For all of Baylor Nation, it was a monumental accomplishment of great magnitude. It was a statement to Texas, Texas A&M, Oklahoma, and others of that ilk that Baylor is no longer a whipping post. Alumni can now show up to work the next week and talk smack to alumni of other schools. Alumni will get congratulatory remarks from others as if they actually played on the team, even though the vast majority of them never suited up to play ball for the school.

Baylor’s victory does not come as a surprise to me. I know firsthand the enormous sacrifices college athletes make to play their sport at the highest level. I expect Baylor to be mentioned in the same sentence with LSU, Florida, and other perennial contenders for the National Championship. I expect to win. I expect greatness. That is the standard.

There is a world of policy surrounding high school, collegiate, and professional sports that I hope to expound on in future articles. Some may view athletics as an intellectually inferior pursuit, but the reality is that sports business is big business in America and across the world. Sports affect a wide gamut of public policy including jobs, education, social justice, and even foreign affairs.

Everything I do in politics, I first learned on the gridiron and in the front office. I spent a rewarding year working in the front office of the Baylor Athletic Department during graduate school several years ago where we pioneered much of the new media and community outreach strategies elected officials and candidates are employing today with great success. Want to be a quality political and legislative staffer? Work in sports first!

In summation,

- Expect to win in everything you do.
- Do not give in to the “soft bigotry of low expectations”. It hurts the individual as much as it hurts a sports team.
- Articles by me analyzing the world where sports and public policy intersect are on the docket.

Finally…

Sic ‘em Bears.

Today was my first’s Father’s Day as a father, and between enjoying time with my son and my wife (recently returned from a business trip), I paused a moment to reflect on how much has changed in the last year.

A year ago this June, I was celebrating my first wedding anniversary and beginning yet another summer of law school classes.  KayAnn was eight months pregnant and we were definitely in nesting mode.  My pre-father’s day gift (along with my anniversary and birthday present) was an iPad.  I was still running my small business, which was stressful, but did allow me the flexibility to help KayAnn out around the house when she was on bed rest at the end.  Common Sense was an infant too – just a few weeks old and I was still wondering if starting my own blog was a good idea.

Fast forwarding to today, things are much different, and it’s amazing the difference a single year can make in someone’s life.  I’ve got a new job, wound up the small business, and graduated law school magna cum laude – a feat I didn’t expect when I started school, considering I was working full time and knew I wouldn’t have the kind of time to put into studying that my colleagues had.  The iPad has been attached to me pretty much all the time, Common Sense is one of the top conservative blogs in Virginia and I’m the Republican nominee for House of Delegates in the 37th House District.  But what’s most important is that I’m the father to the cutest kid I’ve ever seen. Nick and I had a lot of fun over the last week together and I look forward to many more Father’s Days in the future.

He got me an Orioles tie, which proves that I’ve been raising him right.

It’s very easy for all of us to get caught up in the drama and nonsense that are fundamental to daily life.  And for those of us in politics, it’s easy to lose sight of the things that matter.  In the whirlwind of door knocking, speeches, fundraising, events, meetings and parades, it can be hard to prioritize and to put things in their proper perspective.

As I say in my stump speech, I’ve worn a lot of hats, but the three I’m proudest of are father, a husband. and Virginian.

Today is one of those days that reminds me that no matter what things I do in life to put bread on the table, no matter what titles or offices I may hold, and even if I have the honor of representing the 37th House District in the oldest legislative body in the western hemisphere, the most important job I’ll ever have is being a Dad.

Happy Father’s Day everybody!

Resolved, That the flag of the United States be made of thirteen stripes, alternate red and white; that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new Constellation.

Flag Act of 1777, Second Continental Congress, June 14, 1777

President Woodrow Wilson issued a proclamation naming June 14 Flag Day. On August 3, 1949, President Harry Truman signed a resolution passed by Congress that officially created June 14 as National Flag Day.

It’s easy to forget Flag Day in the hustle and bustle of the summer.  But with the weather being so great, I hope many of you will get a chance to go outside and see the Stars and Stripes flying in your neighborhoods.  No matter which side of the aisle we are on, no matter what our views are on a particular issue, we are all Americans and our flag is a symbol of that unity.

Happy Flag Day from Common Sense!