McAuliffe, Cuccinelli Trade Jabs on Transportation

Democrat Terry McAuliffe is going after Republican Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli in Virginia’s race for governor over transportation.

The McAuliffe campaign announced a new online ad Monday that will appear on the Washington Post’s transportation blog and Virginia politics page, touting McAuliffe’s commitment to road projects and claiming that he’ll “implement projects designed to reduce gridlock” and “improve our roads, rail and bridges.”

The ad also includes a video spot (watch above) that has been airing on Virginia televisions for the last few weeks, highlighting McAuliffe’s support of Gov. Bob McDonnell’s bipartisan transportation bill and his role in encouraging legislators to push it through.

The new Web ad is the latest installment in the McAuliffe campaign’s effort to establish him as the best choice when it comes to transportation.

Cuccinelli was opposed to McDonnell’s transportation bill because it raised a number of taxes.

“While McAuliffe reached out to fellow Democrats to encourage support for the bill, his opponent, Ken Cuccinelli tried to derail the legislation at every step along the way,” read a release from the McAuliffe campaign.

McAuliffe appeared in Northern Virginia last week with Democratic attorney general candidate Mark Herring to tour one of the new stations on Metro’s new Silver Line, which will eventually take commuters to Dulles International Airport. During the visit, McAuliffe said Cuccinelli’s opposition to McDonnell’s bill would have prevented more projects like the Silver Line, which McAuliffe said would bolster Virginia’s economy.

But Cuccinelli’s campaign says McAuliffe had little to do with the passage of the transportation bill, and that the ad is McAuliffe taking credit where it isn’t deserved.

Anna Nix, spokeswoman for the Cuccinelli campaign, emailed Patch the following statement:

“Even after members of his own party said Terry McAuliffe had nothing to do with passing the transportation legislation, McAuliffe is still trying to take credit for a project in which he played no role.  In reality, Terry McAuliffe is indebted to Big Labor bosses who sought out project labor agreements, which would have cost Virginia $300 million for Phase Two of the Silver Line project.  Ken Cuccinelli's top priority for transportation is congestion relief in the most cost-effective way possible, this stands in stark contrast to Terry McAuliffe who takes credit when none is due, deliberately misleads about his business record and refuses to defend the Commonwealth’s right-to-work law.”