Virginia Democrats successfully press Gov. McDonnell to drop nominee

With no public announcement, McDonnell sent businessman James Cheng to be sworn in as secretary of commerce and trade Sunday at the Capitol in place of Robert Sledd, his original nominee who for weeks had been criticized for refusing to step down from three corporate boards.

McDonnell's concession shows the power Democrats still hold in Richmond because of their majority in a single chamber of the General Assembly. Even with a Republican sweep of statewide offices in November and an expansion of the GOP majority in the House of Delegates to 61 seats, the Democrats' thin control of the Senate gives them a veto power over McDonnell's agenda.

"I'm pleased that our new governor responded to the concerns of the Senate," said Sen. Janet D. Howell (D-Fairfax), chairwoman of a key committee that would have held hearings on Sledd's confirmation this week. "I think the lesson is that we're all learning how to deal with divided government. It's been divided for some time, but it's a different configuration now. Everybody is going to be learning how to adjust."

McDonnell enters office with an ambitious agenda to expand the number of charter schools in Virginia, craft tax credits for job-creating businesses, offer a merit-based pay scale for teachers and consolidate or privatize government services.

But many of his plans will require legislative approval and could be thwarted by determined opposition in the Senate. Still, McDonnell and senators have pledged to cooperate, and Democrats said their opposition to Sledd should not be read as an indication that they plan to block McDonnell at every turn.


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