McDonnell Unveils Plan; Dems Criticize Him

Republican Bob McDonnell unveiled a proposal today in Henry County (unemployment rate 15.4 percent) that he said would bring new jobs to rural Virginia.

The plan calls for designating a deputy secretary to focus solely on rural economic development, forming a rural Virginia taskforce and providing a $1,000 tax credit per job to businesses that create 50 jobs or 25 jobs in economically distressed areas, among other things. Read the full plan here.

"From manufacturing to dairy farms, I know that rural Virginia will be a key part of the economic resurgence that we will create in the Commonwealth,'' McDonnell said.

It didn't take long for the Democrats to criticize McDonnell.

In a conference call with reporters, House Minority Leader Ward Armstrong and Sen. Senator Roscoe Reynolds, who both represent the Martinsville area, said McDonnell's interest in the area comes after years of neglect as a legislator. They said McDonnell voted against help for workers who lost their jobs when Tultex Corp., one of the biggest employers in the area, closed and more money for the governor's opportunity fund, which helps lure new businesses to the state.

"My first reaction is 'What nerve,' '' Armstrong said. "It's almost insulting to me now....I have found it very disengious that Bob would come to town and all of sudden in the last 15 minutes he's very interested in the economic health of Virginia. Where you been Bob?"