Jim Webb’s squeaker win over incumbent Sen. George Allen gave Democrats their 51st seat in the Senate, an astonishing turnabout at the hands of voters unhappy with Republican scandal and unabated violence in Iraq
Allen was the sixth Republican incumbent senator defeated in Tuesday’s elections.
The Senate had teetered at 50 Democrats, 49 Republicans for most of Wednesday, with Virginia hanging in the balance. Webb’s victory ended Republican hopes of eking out a 50-50 split, with Vice President Dick Cheney wielding tie-breaking authority.
You know, if cosmic justice had a sense of comedic irony, the recently elected independent candidate for the US Senate from Connecticut – “Rape Gurney” Joe Lieberman – could give many of his worst critics a terminal case of the hives by dithering even for a moment over which party he will caucus with in January. If he sighed aloud, and thought sadly about the need to throw in with the Republicans, Dick Cheney would get his tie-breaker back. He certainly doesn’t owe very much the national party, and netroots folks would have it coming to them in spades after they way they went after him.
The problem is that the guy’s too fundamentally decent a human being (as well as a life-long, committed Democrat) to play those kinds of games.
Pity.
Whoa. AP?
1700 votes is
I’ve been truncated!!! NOT.
———————
Whoa. AP?
1700 votes is
OK adios. I can take a hint.
Just read, too, that both Sanders and Lieberman will caucus with the Democrats.
Lieberman will vote with the Republicans enough to make it worth their while. They are probably putting together a slush fund for him even as we speak…………..
I’m very happy Webb won though. He represents the types of Democrats that are needed in the future. He was / is prescient, knows the issues, and is far and above superior to Allen. Virginia really won on this one. Too bad the conservatives in Va Beach and in the west will never understand that.
I wonder how many people voted the way I did – I voted for Allen, even though I think Webb is smarter, more dynamic, has demonstrated leadership skills, and has actually done something in his life, simply because Democrats in charge is something that is for me hard to stomach.
I voted for our incubant, high school dropout, realtor (and when I say realtor it is NEVER in a complimentory tone) party hack representative Thelma Drake for the simple fact that she is a party hack and I can trust her to vote the way I would on most issues.
Seems like lately there is no question about where my vote will be cast, even if the candidate is simply palatable.
And now I get Nancy Pelosi to save the day…
sigh.
oops,
incumbent
complimentary
Nose (
This was an intersting race to watch as a student of politics. Of particularly telling note is to compare the vote for the same sex marriage ban with the sentarotial race county-by-county. Take Prince William (in occupied territory, aka NoVA) — forever, it seems, the country bumpkin Republican stronghold to the wine/brie lovers up in Fairfax who usually go democratic (forget the Free Republic of Arlington). The measure carried in PWC by 67-33% (57-43 statewide) and by all rights, as conventional wisdom held, should have provided the necessary coattails for an Allen win (close, but a win). Yet Allen lost by over 2,000 votes (51/49%) in a county that traditionally had been favorable to him.
The race was Allen’s to lose — and he performed masterfully in executing his near and long-term political future. He displayed all the hubris, arrogance, and “who else you gonna vote for?”-type attitude imaginable. He was his own walking attack ad — from the maccaca incident to how he handled his (hidden and unbeknownst to him) Jewish heritage. Here was a chance to turn the tables on a media ambush and show some gravitas. Instead he just tossed the football and joked “Oh yeah, I enjoy a ham sandwich like anyone else” –> might play well down state in coal country, but in other parts of the state kinda fell flat. Someone who claims to “know” Va, especially someone who was a former governor, and presumptive frontrunner for ’08 shuold have run a taughter campaign – and didn’t.
Webb is going to be interesting to watch — Dem leadership will likely find their hands full as he will be something of a loose cannon. Toss in the Joe Lieberman factor and a few other interesting characters in the mix and this could be quite the Congressional watching season.
-SJS
Wish I could have had a chance to box Webb is all….
The Old Dominion is no longer part of the south..The PDR of MD has crept into and taken the northern suburbs!
But that’s OK. It also looks like they even did a “combat jump for change” into Montana!
Hubris SJS? Well, whatever it is I got it too.
B2
Robert,
Northern Virginia is really southern Md/DC.
Arlington/Alexandria are about as southern as Miami Beach!
Vote Lex in2008!
Nose
…and that’s why we call NoVA “occupied territory”
- SJS