Much as George Allen’s “macaca” comment made apparent, in his own words, just what a racist thug and bully Allen really was, the Washington Post reported today about a thesis McDonnell himself wrote in 1989 while a student at Pat Robertson’s Regent Law School, expressing his extreme and frankly nutty social views, on the role of women in society and attitudes toward homosexuality. Most frighteningly, McDonnell not only laid out a plan in this thesis for imposing these views on unwitting citizens, but apparently McDonnell has been pursuing this plan through a public career spanning 14 years in Virginia’s General Assembly and four as its Attorney General.

According to the WaPo:

Robert F. McDonnell submitted a master's thesis to the evangelical school he was attending in Virginia Beach in 1989 in which he described working women and feminists as "detrimental" to the family. He said government policy should favor married couples over "cohabitators, homosexuals or fornicators." He described as "illogical" a 1972 Supreme Court decision legalizing the use of contraception by unmarried couples. The 93-page document, which is publicly available at the Regent University library, culminates with a 15-point action plan that McDonnell said the Republican Party should follow to protect American families -- a vision that he started to put into action soon after he was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates. During his 14 years in the General Assembly, McDonnell pursued at least 10 of the policy goals he laid out in that research paper, including abortion restrictions, covenant marriage, school vouchers and tax policies to favor his view of the traditional family. In 2001, he voted against a resolution in support of ending wage discrimination between men and women. [snip] He argued for covenant marriage, a legally distinct type of marriage intended to make it more difficult to obtain a divorce. He advocated character education programs in public schools to teach "traditional Judeo-Christian values" and other principles that he thought many youths were not learning in their homes. He called for less government encroachment on parental authority, for example, redefining child abuse to "exclude parental spanking." He lamented the "purging of religious influence" from public schools. And he criticized federal tax credits for childcare expenditures because they encouraged women to enter the workforce. "Further expenditures would be used to subsidize a dynamic new trend of working women and feminists that is ultimately detrimental to the family by entrenching status-quo of nonparental primary nurture of children," he wrote. He went on to say feminism is among the "real enemies of the traditional family."

Even leaving aside the shock and revulsion resulting from the idea that an ostensibly intelligent person could actually believe crap like this in this day and age, the revelation of this thesis, combined with the apparent evidence that McDonnell has been actively seeking to implement these policies over the course of his career, could have a profound effect on the election.

McDonnell has been trying to recast himself, with some success, as a moderate in this election. Democrats have been pointing out that he is, in fact, an extreme Conservative, citing such facts as McDonnel's almost total opposition to legalized abortion. He would outlaw it in all cases except saving the life of the mother, even those involving rape and incest. As a legislator in the Virginia General Assembly for 14 years, McDonnell introduced some 35 different bills seeking to restrict a woman’s right to choose and control her own body.

McDonnell also has a long record of hostility toward gay people, including blocking the appointment of a judge in Newport News because she was allegedly gay, and as attorney general pursuing several legal strategies that amounted to justifying discrimination.

So far in the campaign, McDonnell has refused to discuss these issues. When asked about them, he simply changes the subject. And given the partisan nature of charges and counter charges, Democrats have made only limited advances in revealing the true Bob McDonnell to Virginia's voters.

But, of course, like Allen before him, no one could say it better or prove it more conclusively than Bob himself. Right off the bat, this should have the following consequences favoring Creigh:

I. McDonnell will, somehow, have to explain his BCPs (Batshit Crazy Positions).

Given the nature of some of the views he expressed in this thesis, McDonnell will have to convincingly explain not only how he could hold such offensive opinions, but also what he has been doing apparently implementing this plan. Good luck. I expect every attempt to explain will just lead to a slew of new questions.

II. McDonnell will finally have to answer questions about his record on social issues, which puts him on the horns of a dilemma.

Some Conservatives in the Commonwealth have been upset at McDonnell’s refusal to discuss and defend his conservative social views so far in the campaign. As another arch-Conservative and McDonnell supporter, Bob Marshall, put it to the Post, "If you duck something, that tells your opponents that you think your position is a liability, why else wouldn't you acknowledge it? But I'll tell you, I've got precinct captains who are annoyed that he's not answering these questions.”

Therein lies the core of McDonnell’s problem and the rationale behind his campaign strategy of cultivating a moderate image. Virginia is not totally Blue – yet -- but it is as Purple as could be, and McDonnell’s Neanderthal-like opinions will not play well. This is the reason McDonnell has studiously avoided talking about social issues – he is seriously out of step.

If he answers questions about social issues truthfully, it will satisfy his base, which is as nuts as he is, but the Virginia moderates McDonnell needs will be turned off. But if he disavows his Fundamentalist philosophy, he will most certainly tick-off his base and rekindle simmering conflicts with the Virginia Republican Party.

III. This could help energize Virginia Democrats, and demoralize Republicans.

There has been an enthusiasm gap here in Virginia. Without going into detail, between general elections and primaries, Democrats in the Old Dominion have been involved in non-stop, hard-nosed campaigning in highly consequential elections for almost three years. Many are simply exhausted. Furthermore, some Progressives in the state are not enthusiastic about some of Creigh’s more moderate policy positions.

Republicans, on the other hand, have unified around McDonnell, and early poll leads, combined with a perception that Creigh’s campaign has been disorganized, have left Conservatives enthusiastic and confident.

This could be the proverbial game changer.

This news has been flying around the Virginia blogosphere all day. I have lost count of the number of Retweets. Progressive websites around the state have been doing further research and analysis, uncovering more damaging revelations (See this post from Blue Virginia on McDonnell's mentors for an example).

Judging by the early reactions of some Conservative blogs, on the other hand, they seem a little shell-shocked. For example, a post on one, Bearing Drift, argued in McDonnell’s defense that Jim Webb wrote some bad stuff about women also, and anyway, criticizing McDonnell’s thesis is religious bigotry.

That is about as lame as it gets.

Finally, for Virginia’s low information voters, this kind of story, and the hubbub around it, can bring home on a visceral level that there are serious issues at stake in this election, and that Bob McDonnell is waaaaaaay out of the mainstream.

Bob, in case I forget later, let me thank you now for a gift that I predict will keep on giving for some time to come.