Aren't we all Senator ;)

Who's the first pundit to mention Jim Webb in connection with Veepstakes?

http://hotlineblog.n...

See? I'm not delusional!

talked to the grocery clerk near my house, proudly displayed his bumper stickers and yard signs and would talk anyone's ear off that would listen (and even some who wouldn't) about him.

he's the best!

Best damned Democratic response I have EVER heard!!!

David Brooks declared it "confrontational", but also said that the the old adage saying "freshmen should be seen and not heard has been set aside", and agreed with Shields that a star is born.  Brooks snarked something about Webb not being able to be civil to Bush and Shields leaped to Webb's defense and said he would be happy to give Brooks Webb's side of the story.  Brooks noted that Webb has been very consistent on both the economy and the war since his campaign and said that he didn't see any signs of bipartisanship, at least on Iraq. 

Both commentators agree that Webb will be a major influence in moving the Democratic party toward a more populist economic stance.

In watching Webb's speech I was struck by the intensity which overcame him when he began to talk about the war.  At no point did he lack intensity, but he was compelling and charismatic on a totally different level when he spoke of the Iraq.

I'm curious to see if E.J. Dionne writes an Op-Ed about the Democratic rebuttal over the next day or two.

"When comes the end?" asked the General [Eisenhower] who had commanded our forces in Europe during World War Two. And as soon as he became President, he brought the Korean War to an end.

These Presidents [Theodore Roosevelt, Dwight Eisenhower] took the right kind of action, for the benefit of the American people and for the health of our relations around the world. Tonight we are calling on this President to take similar action, in both areas. If he does, we will join him. If he does not, we will be showing him the way.

That, for the benefit of those not familiar, was a glove hitting the floor.  President Bush, you are on notice. Thank you James Webb.

Thanks, tg, and thanks in advance to Lowell or tk.

People forgot that the only reason he was seriouly considering a run was because of the pressure of the draft effort.  He was thrust into this to a great degree. 

I remember being crestfallen when you released the news that he would not run, but then was cheered when Webb responded to my email saying he was still considering it.

Boy, i am glad he made the plunge!!  Thank you to him and his family for giving him to Virginia instead of keeping him quietly for themselves.  Webb and his family have given up a lot that we could have him as our Senator.

tho if and when he runs again (whether for senate, vp, pres) i will be there in spirit to support him!!!

Thank you, Senator Webb!

Imagine if Jim Webb had been President after 9/11.  Not only would Osama have pissed his pants after a Webb Speech, but Secretary of State Bob Kerrey would've had to physically hold Webb back from grabbing an assualt rifle and heading over to Afghanistan himself!

But not our junior Senator, he has work to do for the Commonwealth.  We drafted him, let Dean find his own!

It was a great night, and a great speech by Sen. Webb.

Our "Bush Bingo" victor was none other than 11th District Chairman George Burke.  Congrats George!

The place went nuts with applause on Jim's last line of his rebuttal.  What a speech and what a night! 

http://www.latimes.c...

I would say it was -- to be trite, I guess, a star was born. I think that the old line that freshmen should be seen and not heard was totally repealed and revoked. He spoke forcefully. He spoke from his own credentials.

[...]

I think that Jim Webb -- we don't separate the message from the messenger in American politics. And he is, as David said it, because of his own credentials, his own history, he's a very effective messenger, a strong messenger. So I think the message is reinforced. And I think he made it.

From what I hear, the White House staff was searching high and low for the best proctologist in DC after Webb spoke. Apparently Bush had a large military boot shoved someplace uncomfortable that needed removal.

hehe :)

As a true and proud liberal, Webb speaks my language better and more sincerely than any of the Democratic candidates in the field primarily because he calls it like he sees it - not based on political polls.  He's not slick and he's not fake.  Could you imagine him asking Hillary what it was like being a Wal-Mart board of directors member? DRAFT WEBB '08.

He is the best person in the Senate since the late-great Wellstone and I'm so happy he's from Virginia (the Minnesota of the South!!).

I challenge any one to tell me who is better qualified than Webb for our country in '08.

-Matt Harris

i bet everyone over at the DLC was squirming in their seats listening to that stuff (including some of our "K Street" boys like Rahm and Steny)! 

i loved every minute of it! 

  I think we have to go out of our way to congratulate Jim Webb, tonight. Webb's response was the best Democratic SOTU response I've seen during the Bush administration. I have to wonder what effect that comparison -- both visually and rhetorically -- will have on Americans that tuned in to watch both.

I've been lurking and very infrequently postng on RK since I found it a few weeks before Gov. Kaine's historic victory.  I think--like most reasonable folks--blogs are just one part of the full spectrum of political activism in terms of getting people elected or policy influenced, but there is no question that the main reason in the space of one year Jim Webb went from medium-famous author and historian to a national political figure is due to the efforts both in the air (blogs) and on the ground (campaigning) of Lowell and the legions of posters and activists on this site.  I moved to Virginia in Oct. 1994 and promptly watched the GOP ascend to power in the Commonwealth unseen in a century.  All of us worked and worked on the local level to push them back, and now one could argue that despite our lack of majorities in the legislature, the Democratic party in Virginia has never been stronger, more vibrant, more dynamic, more relevant, and more reflective of the values of Virginians than ever before.  The fact that Leslie Byrne and Jim Webb both represent the Virginia Democratic Party on a statewide level truly shows how far we've come in a short time.  Sure, there's always more work to be done and 2007 is another in a long line of pivotal elections for our party and state, but every now and then we can watch someone like our junior senator on TV last night and allow a little smile of satisfaction of a job well done.

We did it in 2005 with Tim Kaine.  We did it in 2006 with Jim Webb.  Now, let's keep the momentum going in 2007 as we take back the State Senate and make significant gains in the House of Delegates!

"Let the blood of the infantry flow through your veins,or the blood of the infantry will be on your hands." -GEN John A. Wickham, Jr (US Army Chief of Staff)

Is anyone else getting (re)thanked for being part of this historic movement?

He blew out of the water the rubber-stamping Dems who helped bring us to this point in Iraq.  And he implicitly staked the definition of credibility for the upcoming presidential campaign: Pushovers and three-year-late apologists need not apply.

It really makes me glad I went door-to-door for Webb.  Would do it again, but only for the right candidate.

Earlier in the evening I heard one of Bush's speech writers in a radio interview. He said Bush was busy rehearsing to make sure he puts on a good show. He said it not once, but three times. So we finally learn that Bush is as he once said "a media creation". I'm sure his time in the Drama Club in college is really paying off. However that's about all his speech was. His policies are bankrupt and, except his war policies and his congratulations to a few lucky millionaires and a few people with far nore courage than he, he seemed to have borrowed the majority of his speech from Nancy Pelosi's playbook.

On the other hand Webb is a leader who was drafted by the grassroots. In that sense Webb illustrates Tolstoy's theory of how leaders arise. Tolstoy believed that leaders arise because society has a specific need at a specific time. The leaders who arise fulfill unspoken yearings of their supporters. That's certainly the case with Webb who was reluctant to run at first. Certainly Webb is more representative of this than Bush who was thrust upon us by the Supreme Count in a political vote.

Webb speaks the thoughts of Democrats and many Republicans. I think he will have a great future as long as he sticks to his principles.

It's a proud day for all of us.