Former Va. Governors Come Out Swinging

Warner was unavailable to comment last week. But Sen. R. Edward Houck (D-Spotsylvania) called Gilmore's assertion "laughable."

"It simply will not hold water," Houck said. "The record is too clear."

Although he is prepared to battle it out with Warner over their respective records, Gilmore said his campaign will also focus on the need to fight terrorism and crack down on illegal immigration. "This is not a gubernatorial race," Gilmore said. "This is about the national security of the country."

But there is mounting concern within GOP ranks about whether Gilmore is the best Republican to face Warner. In recent days, some GOP leaders and activists have stepped up efforts to lure another candidate into the race. Republican Dels. Christopher B. Saxman (Staunton) and Robert G. Marshall (Prince William) are considering a run, and there is talk that a candidate with a more national profile could emerge.

"I think it would be good to have someone else in the race," said Jason Gray, chairman of the 4th District Republican Committee, which covers a region from part of Hampton Roads to the central part of the state. "In my opinion, [Gilmore] can't beat Warner as it stands right now."

Gilmore countered that he is "focused on Mark Warner," not on a potential nomination challenge.

Likewise, Warner is gearing up to face Gilmore in the general election. Democratic operatives already have begun digging into Gilmore's record as governor. And Warner has hired Will Payne, who had been an adviser to Sen. Kenneth W. Stolle (R-Virginia Beach), to head up an effort to win support from Republicans disenchanted with Gilmore.

Elected governor in 1997 on a simple platform -- that he would eliminate the tax local governments impose on personal vehicles -- Gilmore pushed the cut through the General Assembly during his first year in office.

Gilmore and legislative leaders agreed to phase out the tax over five years. To make sure the state could afford it, they agreed to suspend the plan if revenue growth fell below 5 percent.

In 2001, Senate Republicans said the economy had slowed enough that they could not enact the fourth phase of the tax cut. But Gilmore, whose efforts to cut taxes made him a rising star in the national Republican Party, pushed the program forward that year despite its $1 billion cost.

"What do you want to do in a recession?" asked John W. Forbes, who had been Gilmore's secretary of finance. "Do you want to increase taxes and programs, or do you want to give money back to the people who need it?"

By the end of 2001, as the state was dealing with the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, state finances had continued to worsen.