A Few Overall Thoughts on My Trip with Mark Warner

First, as a blogger, I was honored to be invited on this trip along with real journalists like Bob Lewis of AP, Warren Fiske of the Virginia Pilot, and Anita Kumar of the Washington Post.  According to Mark Warner's communications director Kevin Hall, this was the first time an independent blogger has traveled with a statewide Virginia political candidate on a tour like this.  One of the highlights of this trip for me was getting a chance to talk to these people, particularly Bob Lewis, and watching how they do their job.  One thing's for sure, it's hard work, even grueling at times, to be a top-notch reporter.

Second, sticking with the reporters for a moment, I definitely enjoyed Washington Post reporter Anita Kumar's description of what it was like covering crazy Katherine Harris' 2007 run for US Senate in Florida. I also enjoyed hearing the story about several reporters (including Warren Fiske) being ditched by George Allen and left in the pouring rain (in a car, I believe) for 4 hours, incommunicado, apparently because Allen didn't want to get tripped up by a reporters' question in the closing days of the campaign.  On a more serious note, there seems to be genuine concern and anxiety among the reporters about the future of their business, which is currently in the process of being downsized and sold to the highest bidder. No question, things are changing fast in the traditional/corporate media, and it's got to be disconcerting to the reporters.

Third, with regard to the trip itself, probably the best part from my perspective was meeting friends -- most of whom I've made through blogging since 2005 -- in all different parts of the state.  In Abingdon, I saw old friend Brian Patton...
...,newer friend Joe Puckett, even newer friend Jon Bowerbank (probable candidate for LG in 2009), and many others (including bloggers "Neal 2028" and Justin Fleenor).  In Roanoke, I ran into Mudcat Saunders for the first time since the Webb campaign -- a special treat, as Mudcat was in true, colorful form, talking about a book he's writing (at least I think he's writing it) about "Jesus H. Christ" and about being a "heathen," or something like that.  Don't ask. :)  In Norfolk, I was really happy to see Susan Mariner of "Webb wagon" fame, plus Danae Jones, Dan Sullivan, and numerous others (including Glenn Nye, Democratic nominee vs. Thelma Drake).  In Richmond, it was awesome to see "Phriendly Jaime" and "Thaddeus Toad", Abbi Easter, and a whole bunch more people.  I also had a chance to talk to Anita Hartke, the Democratic candidate in the 7th district against Eric "Abramoff special sandwich" Cantor.

Fourth, it was a lot of fun to do a "fly around" tour of this beautiful state of ours, from bustling northern Virginia to mountainous southwestern Virginia, to the beautiful waterfront town of Norfolk, to the "Star City" of Roanoke to the cutting edge Virginia Biotechnology Research Park in Richmond.  This is a fascinating, diverse, vibrant state, and you really get a feel for that on a fly around with the former governor of the state and a bunch of knowledgeable reporters.

Fifth, listening to the same speech four times in 24 hours had me really focused on the themes Mark Warner's emphasizing this campaign.  In no particular order, I'd rank them: working across party lines to get things done, making sure that everyone in America gets a fair shot, "Virginia independence," "common sense solutions," "the country's at a historic inflection point," "it's time for a change in Washington," "radical centrism," the election's about "past vs. future" much more than right/left or even Democrat/Republican; praise for John Warner's "bipartisan leadership;" "the contrast between Washington and Virginia could not be more clear;" the need to get off of foreign oil; the need to get out of Iraq -- but only in a responsible manner, without timelines and without "leav[ing] Iraq a haven for terrorists;" and that although we face great challenges, "this is America," where we can meet those challenges if we pull together.

Sixth, on the plane ride to Richmond, Mark Warner joined the reporters (and me) for some questions and answers.  A number of questions attempted to gain greater clarity on what "radical centrist" means, and to the best that I can gather it's all about facing big challenges in ways that get the job done, even if those are NOT the ways things have traditionally been done in Washington.  It also means governing from the "center out," as opposed to the "extremes."  Asked to identify a few senators who might be part of his group of 10-12 "radical centrists," Warner demurred for now, even when Jim Webb's name was mentioned specifically as the prototypical "radical centrist."  Overall, Warner strikes me as very disciplined in terms of his message, but the specifics remain to be fully fleshed out (or maybe they HAVE been fleshed out but he's saving them for later?). I was also very struck by how seriously he's taking this race, NOT underestimating Jim Gilmore one bit, and seemingly a bit concerned that people might just take a win for granted here.  Warner pointed out that the best a Democrat has performed statewide in Virginia was actually his own 52.2% victory over Mark Earley in 2001.  In other words, people shouldn't assume in the least bit that this year will be any different.

Seventh, as the only blogger on the trip, I kept thinking about how Warner's comments would play in the "leftosphere," as my friend Jon Henke calls it.  My conclusion was mixed. On the one hand, netroots activists and bloggers like to win, and Mark Warner gives us the best shot to do that here in Virginia this year.  On the other hand, I doubt that many in the feisty, progressive blogs (especially the national ones) will get a warm and fuzzy feeling about "centrism" (radical or not), about no timelines in Iraq (and also about fighting "terrorists" in Iraq and Afghanistan), about de facto running as an independent (although saying he's proud to be a Democrat), and about avoiding the extremes of BOTH right and left (most progressive bloggers would argue, as Jim Webb did in 2006, that it's the REPUBLICAN Party that lurched to the right, while the Democratic Party is the centrist party in America right now). My guess is that Warner doesn't believe the way to win in Virginia in the year 2008 is to appeal to the liberal activist base and progressive blogosphere, and he's very possibly correct about that from a strategic point of view.  I also think it's more natural to who he is -- a true centrist, in the sense of working across party lines to get things done and not looking at whether a good idea has a 'D' or 'R' after it.  In sum, Mark Warner appears to be a perfect fit for Virginia, but not at all for the national liberal blogosphere.  I kept thinking, "what would the Matt Stollers of the world think if they were here listening to Mark Warner's speech."  My guess is that, at best, they'd have mixed feelings.

Finally, my overall impression is that Mark Warner is extremely popular across this state, and certainly not just among Democrats. The reception Warner received across the state was highly enthusiastic, even gushing at times, including Rick Boucher's declaration that Mark Warner had been the best governor of Virginia since Thomas Jefferson.  There's no doubt that Virginians are  ready for change in Washington. And there's no doubt that they love Mark Warner, part of the reason being is that he seems to love them, diving into crowds and shaking every hand in site -- a superb retail politician if I've ever seen one.

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