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Wednesday, August 16, 2006

VA-Sen: Webb Snags the Big Dog

From the Richmond-Times Dispatch:

Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Jim Webb has snared the big guy -- former President Bill Clinton -- to help him raise money for his Senate race.

A spokeswoman said the time and place for Clinton's visit have yet to be worked out.

Webb is running against U.S. Sen. George Allen, a Republican, who ended the June 30 fundraising period with a $6 million edge over Webb.

But Webb just completed what his aides say was a successful fundraising trip to Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles.

Money, so far, has been Webb's biggest hurdle that he has yet to clear. A visit from the Big Dog will not only rake in a significant dollar sum for Webb's campaign, but it will also send the signal to national donors that Webb may well be worth the investment. Furthermore--and we saw this attempted by Joe Lieberman a few weeks ago--a Clinton visit will hopefully help boost Jim Webb's appeal among African-Americans (a group that Webb's primary opponent, Harris Miller, sought to carve away from his camp). Now that Sen. Allen is knee-deep in macaca, you've got to believe that minority communities all across Virginia are shopping around for someone a bit more respectable.

Posted at 09:03 PM in 2006 Elections - Senate, Virginia | Technorati

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Comments

I'm actually surprised by Webb's anemic fundraising. He's a strong candidate with tremendous crossover appeal and his opponent has made a number of gaffes even before his recent racial slur ("I'm bored with the Senate...but vote for me!"). I would have thought the bucks would've come pouring in after that primary victory. The race seems to me a far more likely option for that elusive "sixth seat" than longshots in Tennessee, Arizona, and Nevada which tend to get more buzz.

Hopefully, Clinton can help Webb turn a corner and regain some momentum at the same time as Allen is stuck on defense. The only bad part about a George Allen Senate defeat this year is that he would no longer be likely to rein in the 2008 Presidential nomination. If the guy is this gaffe-prone, I want to run up against him in '08!

Posted by: Mark at August 16, 2006 10:40 PM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment

Allen probably did Webb's job for him regarding turning out the African-American vote.

Posted by: dpinzow at August 17, 2006 08:03 PM | Permalink | Edit Comment | Delete Comment