Senator Jim Webb and the Populist Pitch

[DeepModem Mom]

WP: Jim Webb and the Populist Pitch
By David Ignatius
Thursday, June 28, 2007; Page A25

....the freshman senator from Virginia begins quoting some lyrics from "Song of the South," recorded by the country rock group Alabama:

"Well somebody told us Wall Street fell,

But we were so poor that we couldn't tell.

Cotton was short and the weeds were tall.

But Mr. Roosevelt's a-gonna save us all."

That kind of populist anger is part of the Democrats' past, and Webb argues that it's the party's future as well. But he worries that "the people at the top of the party don't comprehend the power of that message" and that as a result the Democrats may miss their best chance in a generation to reconnect with the American middle class.

"The Democrats need to embrace the fact that the greatest issue in America today is economic fairness," he says. He argues that if the Democrats construct a "fairness agenda" that tilts toward workers and away from corporations and the rich, "they will win big." John Edwards hasn't had much luck so far with the issue, which he has made the centerpiece of his presidential campaign. But some influential Democrats, including former Treasury secretary Lawrence Summers, share the focus on fairness.

Webb is a quirky, sometimes cranky ex-Marine who is just settling into his new digs in the Russell Senate Office Building, where we met for a conversation last week. He takes positions that set other Democrats' teeth on edge -- proclaiming his support for gun ownership and criticizing liberal "interest groups" that he says have come to dominate the party. Some might question whether he's really a Democrat at all, since he served in the Reagan administration. But that didn't stop the party leadership from choosing Webb to deliver a stinging Democratic response to President Bush's 2007 State of the Union address.

Webb articulates what may be the wild-card issue of the 2008 campaign. There is a deep anger these days among middle-class Americans who feel abandoned by the elites in both parties. That anger surfaces on pocketbook issues that affect working people -- immigration, outsourcing of jobs, and the trade and tax boondoggles that broadcaster Lou Dobbs rages against each night on CNN....

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/27/AR2007062701824.html?nav=most_emailed

[Stinky The Clown]

1. I like Jim Webb and am glad he's with us.

Period.

No qualifiers.

No total agreement with him, but that's okay.

[Virginia Dare]

2. A true populist...

I don't agree with him on everything, but I'm glad he's my Senator...:kick:

[ShortnFiery]

3. Between his support of War Veterans and the good people of Virginia ...

I'm liking our Senator Webb more and more all the time. I haven't even taken off my bumper sticker for him for last years election. If he keeps up the good work, I won't take it off until it's in shatters. :-) :patriot:

[kaygore]

4. One of the distinctions that separates Republicans from Democrats

is that Republicans tend to hold that you are either 100% with them or you are the enemy.

Democrats have a larger tent as a whole. This sometimes gets us into trouble because we appear to not agree and to be going in a dozen different directions; however, the core values that most Democrats fold are the same. And those values do emphasize fairness and compassion. However, over the past couple of decades or so, the Party leadership has drifted from those core values.

Webb accepts no money from lobbyists or special interests.

I may disagree with him sometimes but then we should all disagree sometimes in a democracy, shouldn't we. But the issues we disagree on are not core issues.

Many in the Democratic leadership today are no better than Republicans. We need to start weeding them out. It will be hard as they hold powerful positions through long tenures. Yet, at some point the tipping point comes and even the people in Connecticut will see that reelecting the likes of Joe Liberman is not in their best interests in the long run.

One of the most important aspects of the 2006 election has not been noted by MSM or talked about much in general as if silence will relegate it to an illusion rather than the fact that it is: Feet on the street in most cases trumped big, special-interest money in this last election. Feet won Webb his seat and ousted many incumbents.

As hard as it may have been to make the telephone calls and to canvass, these things and the small sums coming in from "the little people" made a huge difference.

[RedEarth]

5. Really like Webb..... thanks for posting

[Adelante]

6. Good man

:patriot:

[StudentsMustUniteNow]

7. I like him but I don't see why he should even bother

It's obvious that Hillary Clinton will get the nomination and she'll take the party down with her to suit her corporate puppeteers.

From the party of Roosevelt, to the party of Carrie Bradshaw.

[OHdem10]

8. Having accepted Capitalism as our Economic System

it is the duty of Liberal Democrats create fairness
in the system for the greater society. Capitalism
will by its nature reward those at the top. Liberals
must look out for the rest.(Middle Class, Working Poor
and Poor.