thedrifter
09-05-06, 07:25 AM
Mark Warner, Kaine stand in for Webb (Seeing Marine son off to Iraq)
The Free Lance-Star ^ | 5 Sep 06 | CHELYEN DAVIS
Senate candidate misses event to visit son, who is being sent to Iraq; Allen campaigns on a horse.
BUENA VISTA--If you were in Buena Vista for yesterday's Labor Day parade, you couldn't miss George Allen and Mark Warner.
Allen was the sole person in the parade riding a horse, while Warner must have shaken every single hand along the parade route.
While both men are potential candidates for president in 2008, that wasn't the focus yesterday. Allen must first fend off a challenge for his U.S. Senate seat this fall, and Warner was putatively in Buena Vista as a surrogate for Allen's challenger, Jim Webb.
So the campaign signs were all about Allen and Webb, and both Warner and Gov. Tim Kaine--who shook his own share of hands--took care to praise Webb, who skipped the annual political event to spend time with his son, a Marine who is shipping out for Iraq this week.
Buena Vista is one of several traditional Labor Day stops for politicians in Virginia. Labor Day marks the kick-off of the fall campaign season, when voters tend to be done with summer vacations and more receptive to the campaigns' messages.
In Buena Vista, candidates put up hundreds of campaign signs, shake hands, kiss babies, and deliver their stump speeches at the end of the parade route.
It's a routine that Allen, Warner and Kaine have performed dozens of times in their political careers. The election changes, but the faces don't.
Kaine called his role in Buena Vista that of a pinch-hitter.
"It is so much more pleasant to be here campaigning for someone else," Kaine told reporters. "It's fun to be with Mark. We've done this parade a few times."
Kaine and Warner both praised Webb's military background, saying it would give him a unique perspective as a senator. They said his independence and willingness to work across party lines is needed, an oblique dig at Allen's high frequency of voting with President George Bush.
"When you know about his public service career, this race is a logical step," Kaine said during a speech that mostly centered on Webb. "He's got a record that really speaks for itself."
Both Kaine and Warner deflected questions about the "macaca" incident--Allen recently called a Webb campaign volunteer of Indian descent "macaca" and welcomed him to America, although the man was born in Fairfax. The incident seems to have driven up Webb's numbers, as recent polls show him statistically even with Allen.
Kaine called the incident "a legitimate issue," but said voters would have to make up their own minds about it. Warner said "character is always a critical issue," but declined further comment on the matter.
Allen brushed off questions about the recent tightening of the polls, saying that the key to winning the race is to "motivate and inspire people behind issues." He thinks voters will choose his stance on the issues and his record.
"Virginians, when you come to Election Day, are going to match up the candidates I think people are going to be much more comfortable with George Allen and my record," Allen said.
Allen paraded through Buena Vista on an umbrella-shy horse, waving at pockets of spectators who braved the chilly drizzle for the event.
He was initially behind Warner and Kaine and the enclave of Webb supporters. But Warner, while working himself into a sweat jogging along the route and frenetically shaking hands, appeared to stop to shake every single one. By the end of the route Allen and the other Republicans had passed Warner by, leaving the former governor jogging alongside floats plastered in Republican campaign posters. Dashing by Attorney General Bob McDonnell and Del. Chris Saxman, Warner shouted, "I'm getting in shape, man!"
"I never thought being unemployed was going to be this hard work," Warner joked to reporters after the parade.
Asked whether his political aspirations had been mentioned by parade-goers, Warner said some people had asked him about the 2008 presidential race. But he did not say whether he's officially running or not.
"I'll make my decision sometime after the election," he said.
Ellie
The Free Lance-Star ^ | 5 Sep 06 | CHELYEN DAVIS
Senate candidate misses event to visit son, who is being sent to Iraq; Allen campaigns on a horse.
BUENA VISTA--If you were in Buena Vista for yesterday's Labor Day parade, you couldn't miss George Allen and Mark Warner.
Allen was the sole person in the parade riding a horse, while Warner must have shaken every single hand along the parade route.
While both men are potential candidates for president in 2008, that wasn't the focus yesterday. Allen must first fend off a challenge for his U.S. Senate seat this fall, and Warner was putatively in Buena Vista as a surrogate for Allen's challenger, Jim Webb.
So the campaign signs were all about Allen and Webb, and both Warner and Gov. Tim Kaine--who shook his own share of hands--took care to praise Webb, who skipped the annual political event to spend time with his son, a Marine who is shipping out for Iraq this week.
Buena Vista is one of several traditional Labor Day stops for politicians in Virginia. Labor Day marks the kick-off of the fall campaign season, when voters tend to be done with summer vacations and more receptive to the campaigns' messages.
In Buena Vista, candidates put up hundreds of campaign signs, shake hands, kiss babies, and deliver their stump speeches at the end of the parade route.
It's a routine that Allen, Warner and Kaine have performed dozens of times in their political careers. The election changes, but the faces don't.
Kaine called his role in Buena Vista that of a pinch-hitter.
"It is so much more pleasant to be here campaigning for someone else," Kaine told reporters. "It's fun to be with Mark. We've done this parade a few times."
Kaine and Warner both praised Webb's military background, saying it would give him a unique perspective as a senator. They said his independence and willingness to work across party lines is needed, an oblique dig at Allen's high frequency of voting with President George Bush.
"When you know about his public service career, this race is a logical step," Kaine said during a speech that mostly centered on Webb. "He's got a record that really speaks for itself."
Both Kaine and Warner deflected questions about the "macaca" incident--Allen recently called a Webb campaign volunteer of Indian descent "macaca" and welcomed him to America, although the man was born in Fairfax. The incident seems to have driven up Webb's numbers, as recent polls show him statistically even with Allen.
Kaine called the incident "a legitimate issue," but said voters would have to make up their own minds about it. Warner said "character is always a critical issue," but declined further comment on the matter.
Allen brushed off questions about the recent tightening of the polls, saying that the key to winning the race is to "motivate and inspire people behind issues." He thinks voters will choose his stance on the issues and his record.
"Virginians, when you come to Election Day, are going to match up the candidates I think people are going to be much more comfortable with George Allen and my record," Allen said.
Allen paraded through Buena Vista on an umbrella-shy horse, waving at pockets of spectators who braved the chilly drizzle for the event.
He was initially behind Warner and Kaine and the enclave of Webb supporters. But Warner, while working himself into a sweat jogging along the route and frenetically shaking hands, appeared to stop to shake every single one. By the end of the route Allen and the other Republicans had passed Warner by, leaving the former governor jogging alongside floats plastered in Republican campaign posters. Dashing by Attorney General Bob McDonnell and Del. Chris Saxman, Warner shouted, "I'm getting in shape, man!"
"I never thought being unemployed was going to be this hard work," Warner joked to reporters after the parade.
Asked whether his political aspirations had been mentioned by parade-goers, Warner said some people had asked him about the 2008 presidential race. But he did not say whether he's officially running or not.
"I'll make my decision sometime after the election," he said.
Ellie