Terry McAuliffe has been Virginia’s governor for less than two months and things are beginning to shape up predictably.
McAuliffe, a legendary fundraiser for the Democratic Party, built himself a reputation as a big partier with a special knack for finding himself in the middle of scandals.
Here are the five most McAuliffe moves pulled off by the governor so far:
1. Valiantly attempting to cut some rug, and failing
McAuliffe got off to a hot start at his inaugural ball, attempting to shred the dance floor to pieces.
2. Appointing a commerce secretary who is under federal investigation
It didn’t take long for one of McAuliffe’s appointments to join him as the target of a federal investigation.
Maurice Jones, McAuliffe’s commerce secretary, was the target of a federal probe launched by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The investigation found that Jones had improperly lobbied Congress as a member of the Obama administration last year.
3. Making a GreenTech exec with no experience his first cabinet appointment
McAuliffe’s first cabinet appointment was to name his deputy campaign manager, who had never before held a government post, secretary of the commonwealth.
Levar Stoney, a veteran of Democratic campaigns, more recently served as director of public and government affairs for GreenTech, McAuliffe’s former failing and scandal-tainted electric car company.
Stoney admitted to being part of a group of Democratic operatives that slashed the tires of 25 Republican Party vans on Election Day in 2004.
4. Throwing "Sixty parties in 60 days!" during legislative session
McAuliffe’s most notable renovation to the governor's mansion was to its bar.
McAuliffe used his personal funds to upgrade the bar with top-shelf liquor and a variety of craft brews in an attempt to bring Virginia lawmakers together for "Sixty parties in 60 days!" during the state’s two-month legislation session.
5. Sending Virginians running to the gun store
Virginia broke records for firearm sales in anticipation of McAuliffe taking the reigns.
Following McAuliffe’s November election, Virginia totaled 3,902 gun transactions on Black Friday alone, breaking previous records for sales that day.
McAuliffe received an "F" rating from the National Rifle Association and appointed the Virginia state director of the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence to his transition team.
McAuliffe’s gubernatorial victory was bankrolled in part by gun-control groups, such as Michael Bloomberg’s Mayors Against Illegal Guns, which spent $1.1 million on the race.
Experts say that the gun-buying frenzy that fueled Virginia’s record sales of nearly 480,000 firearms in 2013 was driven by fears of McAuliffe imposing state-level gun legislation this year.