Sen. Patsy Ticer and 6 Other Virginia Dems Endorse Webb!

By: Lowell
Published On: 5/23/2006 1:53:46 PM

This is impressive, and a total repudiation of Harris Miller's despicable McCarthy-ite tactics.  Jim Webb's not a real Democrat?  Take THIS, Harris Miller!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Date: Tuesday, May 23, 2006
Contact: Jeff Pyatt: 703-778-4080
jeffpyatt@webbforsenate.com
www.webbforsenate.com

Seven Additional Northern Virginia Democratic Leaders Endorse Jim Webb

Webb Has Support From 25 State and Local Leaders

Support for Democratic Senate Candidate Jim Webb among Virginia+óGé¼Gäós Democratic leaders continues to grow. Today he received endorsements from seven Northern Virginia leaders:

  * Commonwealth Senator Patsy Ticer
  * Former Virginia Delegate David Brickley
  * Former Virginia Delegate Marian Van Landingham
  * Former Fairfax County Supervisor Rufus Phillips
  * Prince William County Democratic Committee Finance Chairman Harry Wiggins
  * Fairfax School Board Catherine Belter and her husband Len Belter
  * Arlington County Board Member Barbara Favola

With these endorsements, Webb has now received support from 25 state and local elected officials and over 50 local, state, military and national leaders and organizations.


"I am thankful for the support that I+óGé¼Gäóm receiving from these great Virginia leaders," said Webb. "They recognize that we need real leadership in Washington, and they won+óGé¼Gäót stand idly by as George Allen rubberstamps this administration+óGé¼Gäós failed agenda and lobbyists continue to write legislation."

"As a United States Senator, Jim Webb will be a champion for every Virginian," said David Brickley, who served as a VA delegate from Prince William County for 22 years. +óGé¼+ôAs a Vietnam veteran and a Secretary of the Navy, he has the expertise to change our failed foreign policy and the courage, confidence and determination to fight for America+óGé¼Gäós working families. He is the one Democrat who can win in Prince William county and all of Virginia in November."

+óGé¼+ôI am proud to be one of the dozens of Virginia+óGé¼Gäós Democratic leaders to rally behind Jim Webb. Jim passionately cares about the problems facing Virginia and our country,+óGé¼-¥ said Barbara Favola, Arlington County School Board Member. +óGé¼+ôI am confident that over the next six months he will expand the Democratic Party, unite all Virginians and work toward common sense solutions to get our country back on the right track."

"Jim Webb is a leader whose message will resonate with voters in November and he is the only Democrat who can defeat George Allen,+óGé¼-¥ said Harry Wiggins, Finance Chairman of the Prince William County Democratic Committee. +óGé¼+ôWith a Congress currently corrupted by the special interests of lobbyists, we need a courageous Senator who will fight for all Virginians. I believe that is Jim Webb."

"I+óGé¼Gäóm supporting Jim Webb because he is a leader with absolute integrity," said Rufus Phillips, who represented Fairfax County. +óGé¼+ôAt a time when much of Washington has been corrupted by the money-drenched political machine, we need a leader like Jim to restore a sense of honor to the Senate and the government."

Jim Webb is a decorated Marine, former Secretary of the Navy and Assistant Secretary of Defense, an award-winning author and widely respected journalist.  Webb was awarded, among other decorations, the Navy Cross and Silver Star for valor as a Marine.

Since beginning his campaign for Senate in March, Webb has won two straw polls sanctioned by local Democratic parties. He won 57% of the vote at a Prince William County Democratic event and won 58% of the vote at a Fairfax County Democratic event. He has also secured support from numerous Virginia elected officials, national elected officials, the Sheet Metal Workers International Association, the Vietnamese Veterans Coalition, and high-ranking military officials.

Virginia Elected Officials:
  * Former VA Congresswoman and +óGé¼-£05 Democratic Lt. Governor nominee Leslie Byrne
  * Retired VA Congressman Owen Pickett
  * Former Democratic Whip of the Virginia House of Delegates Chap Petersen
  * Commonwealth Senator Phil Puckett
  * Roanoke County Clerk of the Circuit Court Steve McGraw
  * Roanoke County Commissioner of Revenue Nancy Horn
  * Roanoke County Sheriff Gerald Holt
  * Page County Treasurer C.R. Suddith
  * Washington County Treasurer Fred Parker
  * Former Commonwealth Senator Emilie Miller
  * Arlington County Board Member Jay Fisette
  * Arlington County School Board Member Ed Fendley
  * Arlington County School Board Member Mary Hynes
  * Arlington County School Board Member Libby Garvey
  * Arlington County Treasurer Frank O+óGé¼GäóLeary
  * Arlington County Commissioner of Revenue Ingrid Morroy
  * Fairfax County School Board Member Janet Oleszek
  * Former Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Member Lilla Richards

National Elected Officials:
  * Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid
  * Former Senate Democratic Leader Tom Daschle
  * Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin
  * Senator Christopher Dodd, former Chairman of the Democratic National Committee
  * Senator Ken Salazar
  * Senator Tim Johnson
  * Former Senator Max Cleland
  * Former U.S. Senator and Member of 9/11 Commission Bob Kerrey
  * Congressman John Murtha

Retired United States Military Officials:
  * Retired Army General and +óGé¼-£04 Democratic Presidential candidate Wesley Clark
  * Retired USMC General and former Commander of U.S. Central Command Joseph Hoar
  * Retired USMC General and former Commander of U.S. Central Command Tony Zinni
  * Retired USMC Lt. General and former Commander of Operations, J-3 Staff
  * Gregory Newbold
  * Retired USMC Lt. General Frank Petersen, the highest-ranking African American in USMC history

Organizations:
  * Sheet Metal Workers International Association
  * Vietnamese Veterans Coalition

The Senior Staffers of Sen. Chuck Robb:
  * Tom Lehner +óGé¼GÇ£ Chief of Staff (1993-2001), Sen. Robb
  * Susan Platt +óGé¼GÇ£ Campaign Manager, Robb for Senate '94
  * Susan Albert Carr +óGé¼GÇ£ Scheduler, Gov. Robb; Legislative Aide and Communications Director, Sen. Robb
  * Ridge Schuyler +óGé¼GÇ£ Legislative Director, Sen. Robb
  * Peggy Wilhide +óGé¼GÇ£ Press Secretary and Communications Director, Sen. Robb
  * Julia Sutherland +óGé¼GÇ£ Gov. Robb Press office; Press Secretary, Robb for Senate '88; Press Secretary, Sen. Robb
  * Rhett Walker +óGé¼GÇ£ Deputy Campaign Manager, Robb for Senate '94
  * John DiBiase +óGé¼GÇ£ Advance Director, Robb for Senate '94
  * Bryson Monteleone +óGé¼GÇ£ Assistant to Campaign Manager, Robb for Senate, '94
  * C.R. Suddith +óGé¼GÇ£ Controller, Robb for Senate '88; Senate Aide, 89-90; Deputy Treasurer Robb for Senate '94
  * Louise Ware +óGé¼GÇ£ Campaign Staff, Gov. Robb; Campaign Staff, Sen. Robb

Straw Polls:
  * Won the Fairfax County Democratic Straw Poll 58%-42%
  * Won the Prince William County Democratic Straw Poll 57%-43%
  * Won the Newport News Democratic Straw Poll 77%-23%

Comments



Oh how SWEET it is!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! n/t (phriendlyjaime - 5/23/2006 2:00:21 PM)


Paul Hackett (thegools - 5/23/2006 2:17:49 PM)
They forgot to mention that Paul Hackett (D-OH) endorsed Webb too.


Good point, I just e-mailed the campaign (Lowell - 5/23/2006 2:22:34 PM)


Floodgates opening (Josh - 5/23/2006 2:43:21 PM)
I know there will a slew of additional Dems Endorsing our Mr. Webb from Virginia and nationwide.  Just as the well is running dry for Miller, the pump for Webb is primed.


At the risk of getting beaten on (Greg Bouchillon - 5/23/2006 2:47:00 PM)
Didn't Webb dismiss Miller's endorsement by an ex-lt gov that it was a long time ago? And now he's claming an endorsement from a guy like Brickley leave politics 8 or so years ago?

And who is Len Belter other than the husband of a member of the fairfax county school board.

I'm not trying to downplay the endorsements, I'm just asking why the Webb campaign is press releasing some of these endorsements.



Fair points (Delta Mike - 5/23/2006 2:52:43 PM)
I don't think he should have dismissed Miller in the debate when he said Beyer (I think it was Beyer he was talking about) supporting him by saying it was a long time ago. Does come back to bite you in the arse.

The husband thing is kind of weird though. Maybe it was one of those deals where Belter also wanted her husband to be listed.

All in all, however, I don't think either is a big deal. Both Miller and Webb have local endorsements, or at least Webb has enough to neutralize the "outside influence" line of attach, and Webb has all the national endorsements. Let's leave it at that.



That I do agree with (Greg Bouchillon - 5/23/2006 2:53:51 PM)
Miller was strong about how his endorsements voted in VA (of course, Webb's endorsements have a ton of money behind them). This does nuetralize that argument.


From Belter's law firm website (Lowell - 5/23/2006 2:57:44 PM)
According to Len Belter's bio on the Winston and Strawn LLP website, "He serves as president of the Colonial Ridge Civic Association and as a member of the Fairfax, Virginia, PTA."  Belter also was a Captain in the U.S. Marine Corps and Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia.


AHH (Greg Bouchillon - 5/23/2006 3:02:42 PM)
That makes sense then. I wish the Webb release would have said something about him, other than he's her husband.


Press release (Virginia Centrist - 5/23/2006 3:33:07 PM)
I think you press release all endorsements as a courtesy.


I hate to belittle these endorsements... (va.walter - 5/23/2006 3:08:09 PM)
But come on.  Endorsements from former county supervisors, committee members and school board members.  Is this really what this campaign has come to?  I'm getting more and more frustrated by our Party during this race.  I realize this is the game but its disappointed that we're all playing along.


Any support is good support. (thegools - 5/23/2006 3:13:22 PM)
Miller would do the same thing.  The only thing is it doesn't seem like Miller's getting that many.


I just wonder where the line is (va.walter - 5/23/2006 3:17:23 PM)
between an endorsement that gets publicized and one that doesn't.  I just can't imagine an endorsement from a former county supervisor has significance.  The headline is great but the specifics work the opposite effect on me.  If I'm an outsider and look at this I say "Webb is really excited about endorsements from former supervisors?"  I guess that's just the nature of the game.


That's a good point (Eric - 5/23/2006 4:15:41 PM)
about the average person laughing[my words] about an  endorsement by a former county supervisor and someone's husband who is on the PTA.  Sounds like fodder for the right wing blogs.  Hope they have fun.

Anyway, I don't think it'll hurt at all.  The average person may not be impressed but the average person doesn't read press releases.  And this isn't going to make the MSM.  So it's only for true political followers.

And to that end, the other points made here are dead on.  It serves to point out that Webb has endorsements from local to state to national - which counters Miller's attack very nicely.



I hate to tell ya (TurnVirginiaBlue - 5/23/2006 5:13:06 PM)
But due to the lack of information in local races before I became political active if I didn't know who someone was, I looked at the endorsements, looked for a labor endorsement and voted on that. 

=:0



This is so good!! (summercat - 5/23/2006 3:09:58 PM)
I hope the campaign starts hitting on some of the better known endorsers to make radio ads or go out as surrogates for Jim.  Before June 13. I haven't visited the campaign web site today, but I hope this is front and center there.


Imagine if Miller were getting them (Alicia - 5/23/2006 3:11:29 PM)
then everyone would be saying Webb wasn't a "real" democrat.
I think it's great!!


Better to Become a Dem........ (IsaacS - 5/23/2006 5:26:22 PM)
Unlike Reagan who was a Dem. and became a Rep., Webb's beliefs have evolved in the correct direction. 

Miller on the other hand is the selfish wolf poorly dressed as a sheep. 

Which do you like better??? 



Something about Webb (Greg Bouchillon - 5/23/2006 9:00:04 PM)
I like Jim Webb because he's an honest man and proven that he stands behind his principles and views. I think it was a mistake nailing him on his Rep affiliation, but I do think it will be a leverage point against him. Some democrats will never vote for a former Republican.


OK. (Kathy Gerber - 5/23/2006 9:47:03 PM)
Then those Democrats are unable to look beyond the label.  I know some life-long Republicans who think like that, too.  That is why they voted for Bush in 2004, and the Democrats you are talking about should not criticize them or call them Kool-aid drinkers. 


I concur. (phriendlyjaime - 5/23/2006 9:50:42 PM)
Pot, meet kettle.  Kettle, pot.


COMMENT HIDDEN (Thomas Paine - 5/24/2006 1:05:23 AM)


For the troll, Cream of Asparagus soup (Lowell - 5/24/2006 7:01:54 AM)
Enjoy!! :)

THE INN AT MONTROSS'S CREAM OF ASPARAGUS SOUP

This recipe makes the most of the Northern Neck's "impressive" asparagus.

4 tablespoons salted butter
1 pound Northern Neck asparagus, chopped (remove tips for garnish if desired)
1 (4-ounce) potato, coarsely chopped
¼ cup coarsely chopped yellow onion
1/3 cup coarsely chopped celery
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 sprig fresh thyme or ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons flour
2 tablespoons sherry
4 cups chicken broth (if not homemade, use low-sodium product)
½ cup heavy cream
salt, pepper, and cayenne to taste (optional)

Melt butter in a large stock pan and add asparagus, potato, onion, celery, garlic, thyme, and bay leaf. Sauté, stirring occasionally, for 10 to 15 minutes to release flavors. Add flour and stir constantly until incorporated; particles will stick to the bottom of the pan, just be careful not to burn it. Add sherry and deglaze (scrape ingredients from the bottom of the pan using the liquid). Add chicken stock and simmer 45 minutes. Remove from heat and purée until smooth, using an immersion blender, or cool slightly and purée in batches, using a food processor. Return soup to low heat and add cream. Add additional cream as desired. Season with salt, pepper, and cayenne to taste. Serve hot immediately with a garnish of asparagus tips. Soup can also be refrigerated 4 to 5 days. Makes 6 servings.