I just received this from the Webb campaign. Can we say, "body slam?" Uh, feeling a bit bruised, Harris? Well, that's too bad, but it will teach you to take on a former Marine, implying that Webb's a racist, misogynist, and whatever other lies you can come up with. Utterly, absolutely disgraceful. You know, you always like to talk about how "brilliant" you are, but your attack on Webb yesterday - after you cynically (and possibly illegally) polled on the issue - was "too clever by half," if you know what I mean. But, then again, you've been unremittingly negative from Day #1, so it's obvious that you've concluded the only way you win is to tear down Jim Webb. Utterly pathetic.Anyway, here's the letter from the Webb campaign, with my bolding added for emphasis.
Dear Friend,Politicians have used cynical attempts to divide Americans and Virginians by race for too long. Lack of access to affordable health care, education and too few well-paying jobs are issues that Americans of every race must deal with on a daily basis. It is time for real leaders to propose real solutions to the real problems working families face.
Recently, Jim Webb?s primary opponent seriously distorted his views about race relations in this country, and about affirmative action. Jim fully supports affirmative action for African Americans. He has a long history of supporting and fighting for minority rights. During his first year of law school he began representing, pro bono, an African American who had been wrongly convicted of war crimes in Vietnam. Jim fought for six years to clear Sam Green?s name, finally winning in 1978, three years after his suicide. Jim also proposed the idea, and led the fight, to include an African American soldier in the statue at the Vietnam War Memorial on the National Mall.
This is Jim, and this is what Jim stands for. Playing racial politics by misleading the public does not lift us up, it only serves to further divide Americans. In fact ? as Jim himself wrote in 2004 ? "the greatest realignment in modern politics would take place rather quickly if the right national leader found a way to bring Americans of every race to the same table, and so to redefine a formula that has consciously set them apart for the past two centuries."
The point is, Jim believes strongly that Americans have more in common than they have differences. For example, poverty does not discriminate based on skin color. And in the modern era we are divided more and more along class lines than by race. There are 37 million Americans of all races living in poverty. Nearly one-quarter of all African Americans still live in poverty. To create a program that gives assistance to some poor Americans while excluding millions of other people in poverty can only further exacerbate racial tension in America. This is an issue of fairness, and these programs must be fair across society.
If you are looking for a leader who has thoughtful solutions to help Virginians, Jim Webb is this kind of leader. Jim has lived the life that many Americans are living now and he knows the struggles that Americans of every race confront everyday. We need real and honest conversation about race and poverty, not more accusations and race baiting. Only then can we heal the wounds of 200 plus years of division and move forward together to solve the problem of poverty that confronts our entire society.
Sincerely,
Jessica Vanden Berg
Campaign Manager
Webb for Senate
So what do you think of THAT, Miller supporters? Looks like your man just got called on "race baiting," "playing racial politics," and engaging in "cynical attempts to divide Americans and Virginians by race." Just thought I'd point out those phrases in case you all missed them. You too, Mr. "I'm a loyal Democrat but I strongly supported Dennis Hastert and Spencer Abraham." What a joke.