Earlier this morning, Jim Webb conducted a conference call with about a half dozen Virginia Democratic bloggers, myself included. The call lasted a half hour, but pesky little bloggers that we are, we asked a lot of questions and covered a lot of ground. Here are a few highlights, in no particular order (note that the the call was ON THE RECORD):1) On Richmond Mayor (and former Virginia governor) L. Douglas Wilder, Webb expressed great admiration for his service in Korea, where Wilder won the Bronze Star for valor. According to Webb, "that wasn't easy," especially as an African American in that day and age. Webb added, "I have a gut level respect for [Wilder], I would like to sit down and talk to him."
2) On African Americans, Webb spoke once again of his inspiring vision - bringing "African Americans and mountain folk...to the same table" together. Webb also said he thought he could do well politically in the Richmond area.
3) On labor issues, Webb spoke of his strong opposition to outsourcing ("I have very strong feelings about that"). Webb added that he felt the country was "breaking into three pieces," and that we are "creating a different kind of aristocracy." Webb discussed his belief that when executive compensation is based "on corporate efficiencies and the value of stock," it is "easy to trade away jobs and not care what happens in this country." Webb concluded that the United States is "starting to look like the Philippines," and that "outsourcing is a big part of that." The answer? "There's got to be a formula that protects American workers."
4) On earmarks and lobbying reform, Webb spoke of his service as chief minority counsel for the Veterans Affairs Committee in the late 1970s. At that time, "we had one party government" and "Congressional leaders [who] were very protective of their Constitutional prerogatives." Yet "the committee structure used to work back then." Webb noted that he couldn't "remember many earmarks" in those days. In contrast, Webb believes that "Congress is in total disarray" today, with an "incredible increase in the number of lobbyists" and the incessant need to raise money. The bottom line, in Webb's view, is that "the system is going to break" if it's not fixed, adding "I really don't like earmarks."
5) On debating Harris Miller, Webb talked about how they are "running two different campaigns." On the one hand, Harris Miller is running a "very traditional campaign" which is all about "party endorsements and fealty to party structure." On the other hand, Jim Webb is "trying to demonstrate that I can bring people back to the Democratic Party." Webb added that he's "certainly not averse to [a debate with Miller]," while adding that "Harris and I don't need to be bickering."
6) On the importance of being an "optimistic" candidate, Webb noted that "when I talk about serious issues, I do get serious." Webb noted that the first words of advice from his good friend, former Senator Bob Kerrey (D-NE), about Webb's run for the Senate were "smile more." On a serious note, Webb pointed out that "people look for affirmative leaders," not just "vague optimism." Webb added that "people don't just want [their leaders] to say everything is wrong," but instead want "real, strong leadership that's affirmative." Webb noted that this is exactly what he's done in his life. In contrast, Webb asserted that "ultra-conservatives talk about God, guns, gays, abortion and the flag to get everybody riled up" instead of "sitting down and saying, this is where it's broke and this is what we can do [to fix it]."
7) On oil dependency, Webb spoke of investing in alternative energy sources like solar power. He added his support for "properly constructed nuclear power" as they've got in Japan. Webb also added that part of the increase in oil prices in recent years is a direct consquence of "instablity in the [Middle East] region" in large part due to the U.S. invasion of Iraq.
Interesting interview, and we certainly covered a lot of ground in just 30 minutes. Thanks to Jim Webb for spending the time with Virginia Democratic bloggers this morning.