In the latest development in battle over the Virginia ballot for the Republican presidential primary, Texas Gov. Rick Perry filed a federal law suit challenging the state's ballot rules.
The suit claims the law requiring only registered voters to sign petitions to get candidates on the ballot violates his freedom of speech and association, reported NBC News.
But NBC12 reports that Perry didn't come close to the 10,000 required signatures, submitting only 6,000, according to a statement in the 18-page lawsuit.
Virginia's General Assembly Leader Kirk Cox told NBC12 that the chances of the state changing the rules to allow more candidates on the Republican presidential primary ballot before the March 6 primary are "zero to none."
An editorial in the Roanoke Times says that Virginia should consider changing its ballot rules -- but not now. "Rules are rules. Even if they are bad rules, a knee-jerk change midway through a volatile nomination contest is unlikely to result in better rules."
Meanwhile, a former chairman of the Democratic Party of Virginia and Citizens for the Republic, a conservative group, are teaming up to challenge the certification of two GOP candidates who were deemed qualified for the ballot: Mitt Romney and Ron Paul, reports the Washington Times.
“The problem here is not who was kept off the ballot, the problem here is who was put on the ballot and how it was determined that they should get on the ballot,” said Bill Pascoe, executive vice president of Citizens for the Republic.
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Romney is attempting to use another candidate's failure to get on the ballot against him, comparing Newt Gingrich's last-minute (and failed) scramble for qualification to an 'I Love Lucy' episode, not Pearl Harbor, reported The Hill.
* A activist in D.C.'s Ward 6 is ready to start the recall process against Mayor Vincent Gray, reports the Washington Times. But, Frederick Butler would face a long road ahead -- no citywide recall has made it to the ballot, the Times said.
* A handful of members of Maryland's General Assembly will be campaigning for seats in the U.S. House of Representatives while trying to maintain their positions at the state level, a situation that could impact the work of the Assembly, reports the Gazette. "If you’re out campaigning, then you’re not effectively representing your constituents back home,” Larry E. Haines, a former state senator, told the paper.
* Is there a hidden group behind legislation in Virginia? The Washington Post reports that the conservative American Legislative Exchange Council, which ghostwrites bills used across the country, has pushed more than 50 pieces of legislation in Virginia.
* The removal of an American flag that had been put up by the family of a U.S. soldier in a Woodbine, Md., traffic circle prompted a rally of flag-wavers, according to a piece in the Baltimore Sun. Rhonda Winkler said she'd first hung the flag three years ago when her nephew was being sent off to Afghanistan, and had continued to replace it with a new flag every few months. The State Highway Administration said it was removed for safety reasons.
* The Washington Post's Mike DeBonis has some New Year's resolutions for D.C. newsmakers and officials, from the UDC president, whom he says should resolve to "fly coach," to the mayor, who he tells to "look alive."
