Profile: Bob McDonnell

Bob McDonnell's campaign: Family man with a focus on job creation

Bob McDonnell, the 55-year-old governor of Virginia, has been delivering the Republican response to US President Barack Obama's State of the Union speech.

He is seen as a key figure in the resurgence of the Republican Party since wresting the post of governor of Virginia from the Democrats, who had held it for eight years.

Mr McDonnell may be a social and fiscal conservative who opposes abortion rights, gun control and increased taxes, but he campaigned on a centrist platform aimed at appealing to moderates and independents.

In his campaign, the former state attorney general focused on local issues dear to white suburban voters' hearts, such as the need to improve public education, ease traffic and bring jobs to Virginia. He rarely touched upon socially divisive issues such as abortion and off-shore oil drilling.

Divisive thesis

His opponents say his true beliefs were revealed in a master's thesis he wrote at age 34, describing working women and feminists as "detrimental" to the family and questioning the logic of a 1972 Supreme Court decision legalising the use of contraception by unmarried couples.

Bob McDonnell's MA thesis caused a stir during the campaign

But Mr McDonnell argued voters should judge him on his record as a legislator "not on a decades-old academic paper I wrote as a student during the Reagan era and haven't thought about in years."

He has been keen to stress his bipartisan track record, saying that throughout his time as Virginia's attorney general, 90% of the legislation he proposed enjoyed the support of both Republicans and Democrats.

Mr McDonnell has also been careful to separate his criticism of President Obama's policies from any personal misgivings he may have about the president.

When Barack Obama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, Bob McDonnell was one of the few Republicans to welcome the choice. "I'm delighted to see the President of the United States bring honor to our country by receiving the Nobel Peace Prize," he said.

'Common sense'

Republican Party leaders like Mr McDonnell's focus on the economy, the issue dominating both the mid-term elections and President Obama's State of the Union address.

House Minority Leader John Boehner and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell - the two men who chose him for the job of delivering the Republican response - have praised his "common-sense economic policies" which they say are "in stark contrast to Washington Democrats' job-killing agenda."

In his inauguration address as governor on 16 January 2010, Bob McDonnell promised Virginians a "commonwealth of opportunity" based on small government, job creation and broadening access to education - topics he echoed in his response to the State of the Union.

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