As anticipated for several weeks now, Harris Miller has declared as a candidate for the Democratic nomination for US Senate. His website is up here, and I've had a chance to look it over. Just a few quick thoughts.1) I'm glad to see the first Democrat enter the race against George Allen. Obviously, I am strongly hoping that there is at least one more candidate declares, and I hope that person is former Navy Secretary James Webb. Having said that, I am glad to see a serious Democratic candidate declare his candidacy against George Allen. This is very important; Allen has got to go!
2) Key words for Harris Miller: "future" and "change." On the front page of his website alone, he uses the word "change" four times, and the word "future" five times. Other popular words and phrases on the front page of his website include "Virginia" or "Virginians" (six times total), "American dream" (three times), "practical solutions" (two times), "together" (two times), and "my good friend Governor Mark Warner" (one time). These are all effective words and phrases, reminiscent of (the wildly popular) Mark Warner's "forward together" and "sensible centrist" language. Will they work for Miller as they worked for Warner? Time will tell.
3) On his Biography page, I found the phrases "hard work," "worked tirelessly," "long hours working," and "worker rights" sprinkled throughout the text. The word "community" is also used three times. I also found two paragraphs on his time with the Information Technology Association of America (ITAA), plus the phrase "internationally recognized high tech industry leader." Finally, Miller is obviously proud of his educational accomplishments (finished High School in three years; Summa Cum Laude from the University of Pittsburgh, etc.). In sum, what Miller is trying to emphasize is that he's a really smart guy and an extremely hard worker. Having met him and talked to him extensively, I can definitely say that these two facts are true. They are also appealing and non-controversial. The stint at ITAA, however, might prove to be a bit more problematic. We'll see.
4) I find it appropriate, possibly a bit ironic, and also amusing that Miller has a full page on privacy issues. I say "ironic" because of articles like this one, which highlights Miller's opposition to efforts by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) late in the Clinton administration to protect consumers' online data, his enthusiasm for "data mining," etc. Interesting.
5) Finally, my overall reaction to the website is that it needs to be fleshed out signfiicantly, as does the entire basis of the Harris Miller candidacy. What is this man's view on issues like abortion, the death penalty, the Iraq War, personal privacy protections, the "war on terror," Bush economic policies (e.g., tax cuts for the top 1%), trade, the environment, national health care, lobbying reform in the Age of Abramoff, etc., etc? Right now, there's nothing on his site about these or any other issues, except for lots of vague language about the "future" and "change," whatever that means. Without the details, it's very hard to make any judgments about Harris Miller as a Democratic candidate. I look forward to hearing more - a LOT more!