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The Spectacle Blog
I once compared Jim Webb to Daniel Patrick Moynihan: fairly conservative in their writing, reliably liberal in their voting records. But Moynihan was a senator from New York, where he had to worry about liberal primary challengers and left-wing third parties. Webb represented Virginia, which even in its blue phase was never a very liberal state. A more conventional Democrat, like Webb’s primary opponent Harris Miller probably would have lost even in 2006.
It was understandable that he was a dependable vote against George W. Bush, but when the Barack Obama was elected Webb had an opportunity to become an influential senator by compiling a more independent voting record. He didn’t take it. Instead he entered this year between a rock and a hard place: Virginia is inching back to the right but Webb, a lousy fundraiser, was going to need the liberal netroots to raise campaign cash for him. So tacking to the right, even in a too little, too late fashion, became impossible for him.
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More Blog Posts by W. James Antle, III
http://spectator.org/blog/2011/02/09/webbs-missed-opportunity
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WB| 2.9.11 @ 2:01PM
Yes, well all political calculations aside -- good riddance!
Occam's Tool| 2.9.11 @ 2:06PM
He was a good Navy Secretary, but somewhere along the way he lost his spine.
Red Phillips | 2.9.11 @ 2:29PM
Webb wrote like (and about) a flyover country Scots-Irish but voted like an urban elitist "ruling class" snob. He made neither side happy in so doing.
NVA Patriot| 2.9.11 @ 3:16PM
Bottom line - Tea Party sentiment in the VA electorate made Webb's voting record a non-starter. Combine that with lousy constiuent out-reach and you have an opportunity to sing....
"...And another one bites the dust & another one gone and another one gone...."
glenny| 2.9.11 @ 3:41PM
One Dem senator down, 22 to go ! glenny
Alix| 2.9.11 @ 4:06PM
I worked with Jim Webb back in the mid 90's when he was writing a screenplay based on one of his books for a producer/director I worked for. Webb was a wonderful person -- and so very conservative at the time. When he ran as a Dem I was surprised -- but even more surprised and disappointment in his voting rec0rd -- especially Obamacare. I don't know what happened to him over the years!
PattyMor| 2.9.11 @ 4:21PM
To chicken to defend his Obamacare vote, so he bails out. Good riddance, now we have to concentrate on the rest of the Demons who voted it in.
Pelligrino| 2.10.11 @ 1:05AM
Good riddance to Webb. Don't need him; never wanted him. The Virginia citizenry will be delighted with his passing.
Among his MANY skewed decisions that have damaged the nation was his splineless party-line support for ending DADT. His personal background should have directly informed his voting mind of the folly of his Senate December 2010 vote.
He honked off a large group that might have aided him -- the military community both present and the sizable vet community -- ignoring their words/guidance. He thus severed all ties.
So that I can be "fair & balanced," toward him, I must say I applaud an article he penned about 4-5 months ago that lamented the continued practices of affirmative action in the US. He called for rolling back the practices of affirmative action decisions. Wow! Where did that come from Webb? But he was right on that. (Did he really author that article?)
The problem is that a lousy batting average means you are always dumped prematurely and forgotten very quickly. Good. It is a continued travesty that America must put up with such louts.