While Brian is concentrating on the transportation session right now, some are starting to look ahead to what comes after the session. The News Virginian has a great profile of Brian in today's issue, looking at the broad experience that has made him such an effective leader in the Assembly.

One of seven children, including brother Jim, a U.S. congressman, Moran worked numerous odd jobs while earning degrees from Framingham State College in Massachusetts and Catholic University Law School in Washington, D.C.

He bagged groceries, worked construction, tended bar and was a gas station attendant.

“It’s the American dream. You can apply yourself and work hard and be all you want to be,” he said.

Elected to the state House in 1995 after being urged to run by friend Mark Warner, the former governor and U.S. Senate candidate, Moran was named Democratic Caucus chairman in 2001.

Since Moran took over that post, Democrats have picked up 12 state House seats.

And Brian's leadership has extended beyond political success as he's been a leader in the Assembly on a number of issues that are key to Virginians.

Moran said he is pleased to see such major companies as Northrop Grumman and CGI come to Southwest Virginia.

He also spoke about the federal government’s presence in Northern Virginia and the port of Hampton Roads.

“The port is an enormous natural asset which generates more and more export-import business,” he said.

Moran said education is still Virginia’s top issue.

“Education resonates in every area of the commonwealth,” he said. “Everyone wants their kids to receive the best education. Only with a first-class education will they be able to compete for jobs.”

He said Virginia’s transportation woes are keenly felt in traffic-clogged Northern Virginia.

“This hurts job creation,” he said.

Moran believes Virginia can be an attractive state to manufacturers because of its employment base.

“We have excellent product, hard-working Virginians,” he said. “China is producing products but they are unsafe. They don’t meet our standards of quality.”

Brian started off the week in green, as he joined the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in downtown Fredricksburg Sunday.

Del. Brian Moran, D-Alexandria, his wife and two children also put in an appearance in a bright green Mustang. He’d met beforehand with about 50 people at a reception in the Princess Anne Building that was sponsored by the Fredericksburg Democratic Committee and the University of Mary Washington Young Democrats.

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Moran told the group that he could talk about the current transportation stalemate in the General Assembly, but preferred instead to talk about how his Irish heritage instilled in him an intolerance for injustice.

“It’s incumbent upon us to remain vigilant,” he said, “and to fight for those who do not have the same opportunities.”

Early Monday morning, Brian joined local area law enforcement to announce a safe ride program to help prevent drunk driving in Virginia. You can watch him speak at the event in the video below.

Great news for Virginians yesterday as the state agreed to invest in protecting the safety of Virginia's children. The budget negotiators agreed to "Alicia's Law" to give law enforcement the resources they need to track down and prosecute online sex offenders that prey on kids by expanding the regional Internet Crimes Against Children Task Forces. Following a long and emotional fight, Brian was able to secure funding for the law. These funds will allow them to double the number of investigations and arrests.

The Washington Times reports today that,

The package grants $2.6 million for regional jail expansions in western Virginia and Rappahannock and $1.5 million for Alicia"s law, a program that targets adults who solicit children for sex over the Internet. The law is named for Alicia Kozkeiwicz, who was kidnapped and sexually assaulted by an online predator when she was 13.

The negotiators said they were flooded with calls from supporters across the country, including Alicia"s mother.

"Every time you bring a computer into your home, you provide online predators with access to your children," said Delegate Brian J. Moran of Alexandria, the leader of the House Democratic Caucus.

On Monday, he made an emotional plea for the funding. "Law-enforcement officers have not had the resources to combat these crimes, but today we have taken a major first step by expanding two regional task forces to investigate and arrest these offenders," Mr. Moran said.

The Examiner has more:

Del. Brian Moran, D-Alexandria, successfully fought for $1.5 million to crack down on Internet sex predators as part of his proposed “Alicia’s law.”

“Today is a tremendous step in our efforts to protect Virginia’s children from the most violent, vile online predators,” said Moran, a gubernatorial candidate.

You can read Brian's press release on the victory, by clicking here.

UPDATE:Protect recognizes Brian's leadership in securing the passage and funding for Alicia's Law

“First among the backers of the legislation was Delegate Brian Moran, who stood by the side of 19-year old Alicia Kozakiewicz throughout what became one of PROTECT's toughest state battles in recent years. From the trenches, it was clear Moran is the right stuff when it comes to fighting sexual predators.”

In ongoing efforts to secure the funding to protect Virginia’s children from sexual predators, Brian Moran sent a letter to conferees yesterday calling on them to fully fund “Alicia’s Law.”

As a result, the Richmond Times-Dispatch reported late last night that the funding for Alicia’s Law may be in the final version of the budget agreed to by the House and Senate.

The online predator measure, known as Alicia’s Law, is named for a Pennsylvania teen who was brought to Virginia by an online predator, raped and tortured. Its sponsor is Del. Brian J. Moran of Alexandria, chairman of the House Democratic Caucus.

The House insisted on $1.25 million, which the Senate had not included in its latest offer. Tuesday night, however, the Senate submitted a new proposal that included the funding to crack down on Internet sexual predators.

House negotiators plan to respond to that proposal Wednesday morning.

Raising Kaine has more.

Click here to read the full text of Brian’s letter to the House and Senate conferees.

As Brian continues to explore a run for Governor, he's meeting with Democrats across the state. Earlier this month, Brian met with Hanover Democrats at a pancake breakfast at Ashcreek Recreation Center. Speaking to 70 local Democrats, Brian talked about his optimism for continued Democratic victories at the polls and in the Assembly.

Moran, who has seen the number of Democratic delegates rise from 33 to 45 after the last election during his tenure as caucus chairman, blasted the GOP for their “abdication of responsibility.”

Moran called the recent Virginia Democratic presidential primary, in which almost a million votes were cast, historic. “We had two excellent candidates, and one will be the next president,” said Moran to cheers.

Moran commented on the General Assembly’s work, where House and Senate conferees will seek to reach a compromise between their two budgets this week.

He blasted the new methodology for funding teacher raises proposed by the Republican majority House, saying it shifted more of the burden to localities, calling it an “unfunded mandate.”

Moran also touted his role in the passage of “Alicia’s Law,” named after Alicia Kozakiewicz – a 13-year-old girl who was abducted by an Internet predator, held hostage and tortured. The House included more than $1 million in its budget for the VA Internet Crimes Against Children Task Forces (ICAC) to crack down on sexual predators, with support from both parties, Moran noted.

Brian continues to concentrate on the current Assembly session, and is excited by the enthusiasm of Democrats that he meets across Virginia.

Numerous Virginia blogs joined Brian's call for sufficient funding for Alicia's Law this week.

750 Volts:

Earlier in the General Assembly session, Delegate Brian Moran (D-Alexandria) sponsored a bill, Alicia’s Law (HB1189), that would have appropriated $32 million towards catching the worst child pornography offenders. Alicia’s Law, named for Alicia Kozkeiwicz, who at the age of 13 was abducted from her home and transported to Herndon, VA, where she was found four days later in the basement of a man who had repeatedly assaulted her while video was streamed online. Virginia already has stiff penalties for child pornography distributors and creators–but penalties are not enough. It takes funding to catch these predators.

Law enforcement knows where they are–they simply don’t have the bodies on the ground to catch them. Over 20,000 computers are estimated to contain child pornography in Virginia, and law enforcement can pinpoint their locations.

HB1189 did not make it out of House Appropriations in time for crossover. However, a budget amendment providing funding for anti-child pornography efforts was attached to the House budget in committee with the help of Delegate Phil Hamilton (R) and a bipartisan coalition. Amendment 397 #2h to the House Budget Bill provides over the next two years $1.25 million to the Southern and Northern Virginia divisions of Internet Crimes against Children, the leading organization fighting this crime. While a far cry from Moran’s original proposals, each dime counts. Law enforcement already knows the location of over 20,000 hard drives containing the worst child pornography, yet lacks the forensic lab space or funding to adequately build their case.

VB Dems, Raising Kaine, Fred2Blue and Not Larry Sabato also cover the story.

Brian Moran discusses funding education at the Assembly and the proposed changes to how the budget amendments are cutting funding for public education.

This issue has been getting some good coverage around the blogosphere as well. VB Dems, MyDD, and Leesburg Tomorrow all have pieces up .