Bell: Focus should be on 'everyday' issues

It would seem a hard road to try to unseat a popular, 18-year House of Delegates incumbent, but John Bell certainly has a platform that’s easy to remember.

His main targets are three: “roads, jobs and schools.”

The Democrat faces Del. Robert G. “Bob” Marshall on Nov. 3 in the contest for the 13th District, which includes parts of Prince William and Loudoun counties.

Bell, a retired Air Force major, said the legislative district is changing from the conservative stronghold it used to be.

He said it’s now the most populous district in Virginia, and he noted that President Barack Obama carried the region last year.

So he’s banking on voters wanting someone who is focused on what he says are the matters that affect everyday life, not on the social issues with which Marshall is often associated.

“There are so many areas that have not been adequately addressed,” Bell said earlier this week, “and those are the areas that I talk about: roads, jobs and schools.”

The 46-year-old, who works for MITRE Corp., said he’s had several different commutes over the years so he understands the difficulties of gridlock.

He’s also lived in both counties in the district: his current abode is in South Riding in Loudoun, but he used to call Haymarket home.

Transportation fixes cost a lot, however. Bell said he would attack the road money issue by cutting waste in state government and employing cost-efficient maintenance efforts.

If those didn’t save enough money, then he would consider a tax increase, probably in the gas tax.

It would be the most reasonable option, he said, noting that sometimes states with higher gas taxes don’t have higher gas prices, meaning oil companies are just pocketing the difference.

“So we’re not seeing a lower gas price by not raising it,” Bell said.

In terms of jobs, Bell said he thinks Virginia — and the 13th District — could benefit by concentrating on the fields of alternative energy and automating medical records.

Jobs in such industries could allow highly skilled and educated commuters to ditch the drive and work here.

“I think that if we really want to do things to help families out,” said the husband and father of five, “if we give them an extra 15 minutes a day at home with their children and their spouse, that’ll help.”

On education, Bell, who coaches the tennis team at Freedom High School in Loudoun, said he’s against fees for after-school activities.

“I believe that some of our at-risk children will not have positive activities if they have to pay for after-school activities,” he said, noting that later costs could be worse if those youngsters commit crimes.

Though it’s unclear if Bell can defeat Marshall, he’s winning the money race, according to data from the State Board of Elections.

As of Aug. 31, the most recent date for which figures were available, Bell had raised more than twice as much money as Marshall: $224,596 to $94,617.

Staff writer Jonathan Hunley can be reached at 703-369-5738.