Cuccinelli defends positions in stop at UVa

Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli visited the University of Virginia on Wednesday and defended some of his most controversial actions, including his lawsuit against federal health care reform, his legal opinion that state universities may not forbid discrimination based on sexual orientation and his fraud investigation of a former UVa climate change scientist that has led to a legal showdown with the university.

Cuccinelli, a Republican from Fairfax County and UVa graduate, spoke in the new Nau Hall auditorium in a lecture sponsored by the College Republicans and the Law and Graduate Republicans of UVa.

Cuccinelli’s appearance drew more than two dozen environmental science graduate students who stood in the back and held up signs such as “Stop Attacking Academic Freedom,” “Science: Not Determined by a Popular Vote” and “Hey Cuccinelli, Leave Us Scientists Alone.”

Cuccinelli spent much of his hourlong lecture describing his efforts to challenge the constitutionality of the federal health care reform legislation, a key component of which requires citizens to purchase health insurance or pay a penalty. In Cuccinelli’s view, this “individual mandate” in the federal law runs afoul of a Virginia law passed in March stipulating that no Virginian may be required to buy unwanted health insurance.

“Those two are in conflict,” Cuccinelli said “The supremacy clause says federal laws trump state laws, but not when federal laws are unconstitutional. So our position in defense of the Virginia statute is that the Virginia statute is constitutional and the federal statute is not.”

Cuccinelli’s argument against the health care reform law’s constitutionality goes back to the pre-Revolution era. The First Continental Congress of 1774, he noted, wrote to King George III and Parliament to notify them that the colonists would be boycotting British goods until the Stamp Act and the Intolerable Acts were repealed. Both the king’s solicitor general and Parliament decided that the boycott was legal under British law and that Americans could not be forced to buy British goods.

“Now fast forward to 2010 and we have a Congress and a president who enacted a law that compels Americans to buy a product when King George III and the Parliament of Great Britain had acknowledged that they couldn’t compel the colonists to buy products. And of course we prevailed against them,”

Cuccinelli said. “And it is part of our position that the reason there is no law like this in the last 234 years is because everybody up until now knew this wasn’t constitutional.”

Several students asked pointed questions about Cuccinelli’s advisory opinion to UVa that colleges and universities may not include sexual orientation in their nondiscrimination policies.

Cuccinelli defended his opinion, saying it was based on Virginia law and that it was in line with previous attorney general opinions, both Republican and Democrat.

“I didn’t make anything [in the opinion up],” Cuccinelli said. “Twenty seven bills entered into the General Assembly have sought to add protections for the groups you’ve cited to the state’s nondiscrimination policy. All 27 have failed. It is the General Assembly’s authority to make that decision.”

One student, Seth Kaye, questioned Cuccinelli’s past statements saying that homosexuality is “intrinsically wrong” and “unnatural” and asked if he believes such sentiments have contributed to the environment in which six gay teenagers recently committed suicide after facing discrimination because of their sexual orientation.

Cuccinelli said he stands by his statements, but that he also believes his office should prosecute offenders who commit crimes committed against anyone, gay or straight.

One student asked Cuccinelli about another recent official opinion in which Cuccinelli said that Virginia has the authority to regulate abortion clinics in the same manner as hospitals, a move that abortion rights activists say would lead to the closing of many abortion clinics in the state. The student pointed out that Cuccinelli has sought for eight years in the state legislature to pass a bill that would have accomplished the same objective but the measure failed every time.

“Do you feel as though [your recent legal opinion] circumvented the General Assembly?” the student asked.

Cuccinelli replied that his opinion does not mean that the tougher regulations on abortion clinics will necessarily go into effect. Rather, he said, his opinion was based on existing state law and the decision of whether to regulate will be up to Gov. Bob McDonnell, a Republican from Virginia Beach.

“When I get a question from a legislator, I have an obligation to give a legal opinion based on what the law is, whether or not I or anyone else like what the law says,” he said.

The major concern of the protesters was Cuccinelli’s investigation of Michael Mann, a leading climate change researcher who was employed by UVa from 1999 to 2005. Cuccinelli, a global warming skeptic, has demanded that UVa turn over reams of documents related to Mann’s research material in an attempt to determine if Mann defrauded Virginia taxpayers while seeking research grants.

UVa has been fighting Cuccinelli’s efforts in Albemarle County Circuit Court. A judge tossed out much of Cuccinelli’s original demands, but the attorney general recently filed a narrower subpoena for records related to a state grant Mann received while at UVa.

Carol Wood, UVa’s spokeswoman, said the university is planning to fight Cuccinelli’s latest subpoena as well. So far, the university has spent more than $352,000 in legal fees to fight Cuccinelli’s demands. The money comes from private sources, she said.

The environmental science protesters said Cuccinelli is using his office to investigate a scientist because he does not like the scientist’s conclusions, thereby damaging the scientific process and causing a chilling effect on all scientists.

“He’s got nothing to go on,” said David Seekall, a Ph.D. student in environmental sciences. “Multiple investigations have exonerated Michael Mann of any wrongdoing. Cuccinelli’s new [civil investigative demand] is just going to get thrown out again, and cost the taxpayers a lot of money. He’s dragging our reputation through the mud for nothing. It’s silly.”

Cuccinelli did not speak about his Mann investigation much, but likened it to his office’s announcement Wednesday that it was launching an investigation into foreclosures in Virginia. He does not know, he said, if there was any wrongdoing, but it is his job to investigate.

He did, as he wrapped up, reference the protesters in the back of the auditorium.

“I notice there’s no lack of lively discussion [at UVa],” he said. “Some things haven’t changed. I thank you for welcoming me civilly and politely, even if you disagree.”