One Politician Doesn’t Seem Excited About the 21st Senate District Race
By Jason Johnson | Monday, August 29th, 2011 | PoliticsJust three days after 21st Senate District Republicans selected Del. Dave Nutter to challenge incumbent Democrat Sen. John Edwards, Sen. Edwards formally launched his reelection campaign in downtown Roanoke. Everyone was there–the candidate, his staff, party activists and local elected Democrats–except the one headliner touted by the Edwards campaign: U.S. Senator Mark Warner (Radical Centrist-VA).
It appears that after having been hyped as a special guest, Virginia’s junior senator instead attended a naturalization ceremony elsewhere in the city (Warner did attend a fundraiser for Sen. Edwards later that evening). The case of the missing headliner prompted Roanoke Times political reporter Mason Adams to wonder if the Edwards campaign started their reelection effort with a gaffe (an auspicious way to begin when you’re facing your most serious opponent in over a decade).
Considering the swirling rumors that Sen. Warner is considering running for a second term as Virginia governor in 2013, could the politician who has succeeded in winning statewide office (twice) by convincing downstate conservatives that he is not a liberal, and who is eying 2013 be afraid to be associated with a “progressive” that Not Larry Sabato considers “one of the best” in the state senate; “someone who isn’t a Blue Dog or a Salslaw puppet”? Could it also be a prelude to the Warner for Governor campaign’s strategy? By not lending his star-power to Sen. Edwards’ reelection bid, he will be able to run for governor under the banner of: “Gov. Warner: counter-weight to the ‘far right,’ Republican-controlled General Assembly?”
Of course, other possible–and more probable–theories include: Sen. Warner did not attend because he thinks Sen. Edwards is a lock for reelection or because this was a genuine scheduling conflict. All the same, it’s fun to consider alternative explanations of the missing headliner…especially on a slow Monday.
Tags:
Contribute for Conservatism!
Share this post
About the author
A lifelong political junkie, Jason caught the political bug as a fifth grader after meeting George Allen in 1993. Since then he has studied political science at both the undergraduate and graduate level. When not perusing the blogs or volunteering for conservative Republicans, Jason enjoys cheering on his beloved Virginia Tech Hokies and spending time at his Bedford County home.
Comments
One Response to "One Politician Doesn’t Seem Excited About the 21st Senate District Race"
perhaps Sen Mark Warner was on the phone with the SEIU, Chuckie Schumer or Obama.
oh wait. Sen Warner is supposed to be all moderate & stuff, right?
Leave your response
The comments section is for meaningful discussion. Readers are reminded to post comments that are germane to the article and write in a common language that steers clear of personal attacks and/or vulgarities.
Please take a moment to review our comment policy.