Tag: Senate 2006 (Page 3 of 3)

Joe Klein points out that Jim Webb presents a great litmus test for the Democrats. Will Democrats be willing to accept a former Republican Secretary of the Navy as their nominee for the Virginia Senate race?

Let’s hope they do. We need more men like Jim Webb to consider the Democratic Party. He’s a hawk on defense, yet he saw the folly of the Iraq War and had the guts to oppose it, unlike many Senators and Congressmen who were too worried about being labeled soft on defense.

He also gives a great answer when asked why he’s switching back to the Democratic Party:

“When I started studying Andrew Jackson, I realized that I was really a Jacksonian populist Democrat,” Webb tells the crowd. “Jackson believed that you don’t measure the health of a society at the apex but at the base. I believe that too, and that’s why I’m a Democrat.”

Klein ends his peice with the following:

Liberals hunt down heretics, Michael Kinsley once wrote, while conservatives happily chase converts. Webb is a convert in a party that mistrusts converts. His candidacy is a litmus test for a party that loves litmus tests.

Again, he nails it. Liberals have to stop being so dogmatic and realize that ideological purity is a recipe for electoral disaster. After six years of George Bush, maybe they’re ready to win again.

James Webb’s campaign to unseat George Allen in Virginia is starting to get the attention and support of many national Democrats, including Minority Leader Harry Reid:

Senate Democratic Leader Harry M. Reid and other top Democrats yesterday announced their support for Senate candidate James Webb, signaling the national party’s growing belief that the antiwar crusader and former Navy secretary is the party’s best bet against Republican incumbent George Allen in Virginia.

Webb is fighting for the Democratic nomination against former technology lobbyist Harris Miller in the June 13 primary, the kind of race that national party officials usually stay out of. But Webb, a former Republican and an early critic of the Iraq war, is attracting national attention as someone who could spoil Allen’s plans for an easy reelection in November and a presidential bid in 2008.

I don’t know a thing about Harris Miller. He’s probably a good candidate and would represent the Democratic party well if elected. But he won’t be elected. He probably doesn’t have much of a chance against George Allen.

Webb, on the other hand, has a chance. Webb has a strong military background and he came out against the Iraq War when most people in the country were blindly following the incompetent Bush administration. He has credibility on this issue, and he can make this a high-profile race. He should be the nominee.