McAuliffe Lends Ear to Leesburg Businesses

Terry McAuliffe, a McLean businessman running as a Democrat for Virginia governor, made a campaign stop in Leesburg Tuesday to hear from local businesses about their needs.

The visit came on the same day that Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling announced his decision not to run for governor as an Independent, which sets up a showdown between McAuliffe and Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, a conservative Republican who served parts of Northern Virginia before winning election to his current position.

According to the Virginia Public Access Project, McAuliffe has raised far more money than Cuccinelli so far.

Mayor Kristen Umstattd and Council member Kelly Burk joined McAuliffe on his tour, which included stops at La Lou Bistro, L Gifts & Home Furnishings, Palio’s and the business incubator in town.

“I’m worried not just for my business, but for my family,” JoAnn Schimmel, of L Gifts & Home Furnishings on Loudoun Street, told McAuliffe about the current state of the economy and the inability of legislators to compromise. “We’re expected to do at a very small level. Why can’t we do it at a large level?”

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