In addition to speaking about the issues on her agenda, Byrne has stunned the establishment by candidly answering questions that many candidates would rather die than address on the record. She has expressed support for women's reproductive rights and civil unions without the shame or hesitancy that characterizes many Virginia Democrats' responses. Last month, she sent her opponent's spin machine into a tizzy when, in response to a question, she told the United Mine Workers that she opposes the so-called "right-to-work" law, adding that she calls it the "right to be poor" law.