Posted on 06/27/2006 6:33:29 PM PDT by ncountylee
RICHMOND, Va. -- Republican Sen. George Allen attacked Democrat James Webb for opposing a constitutional flag-burning ban and Webb fired back Tuesday, calling Allen a coward who sat out the Vietnam War "playing cowboy at a dude ranch in Nevada."
In a searing press statement, a senior adviser to Webb, a decorated Vietnam veteran, went to extraordinary lengths to question Allen's fortitude, even repeatedly using the middle name the senator detests and never uses, Felix.
"While Jim Webb and others of George Felix Allen Jr.'s generation were fighting for our freedoms and for our symbols of freedom in Vietnam, George Felix Allen Jr. was playing cowboy at a dude ranch in Nevada," said Webb strategist Steve Jarding.
Allen adviser Dick Wadhams called Jarding's comments pathetic and said they raise questions about Webb's fitness for office.
"They're saying we questioned (Webb's) patriotism, and that's a lie," Wadhams said. "We just raised a legitimate question about whether he supports a flag amendment or not. How is that questioning his patriotism?"
And besides, Allen's name does not include the suffix Jr., a campaign aide added.
The rhetorical crossfire began after an Allen news release noted Webb's opposition to a proposed constitutional amendment that would allow Congress to ban desecration of the U.S. flag. Allen, who is seeking a second term even as he explores a 2008 presidential bid, supports the measure, which the Senate rejected in a 66-34 roll call vote Tuesday evening.
In Allen's release, Wadhams said Webb's opposition shows Webb is "beholden to liberal Washington senators" John Kerry and Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts and Charles Schumer of New York, all Democrats who oppose the flag-burning ban.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailypress.com ...
Looks like Webb has a short fuse and a very nasty side too.
Still, Webb finally "went over" to the NLF ~ well after the war, of course, but he definitely started carrying their water.
I hear he's behind in the polling too...nothing worse than a "R" gone over to the darkside.
What a freakin child.
If this is an example of Webb's professional demeanor and staff expertise, I'd say George Felix Allen doesn't have a thing to worry about.
If this costs Allen the presidency, we will have to blame his mother. And it goes to support my rule for baby names:
NEVER PICK A NAME THAT YOU DON'T WANT READ OUT LOUD BY THE GYM TEACHER
I'm very surprised that Webb was so stupid as to oppose the flag burning amendment when it's irrelevant to his candidacy. It's coming up now. It probably won't come up again, so he will have no occasion to vote one way or the other. You'd think that with that situation, he'd see no downside to taking the popular position.
On the other hand, this is the guy who ran an anti-Semitic commercial against his Democratic opponent. He obviously has a tin-ear.
That short fuse won't play well in Virginia.
"Born Fighting" might sell books. But it won't win elections.
FWIW
1) George Allen's draft number was 229.
2) He was eligible for the 1971 draft for 1972 induction.
3) Nixon was already withdrawing troops in 1971.
Well, his mother ~is~ French...
It seems a lot of Dems in the last few years are using the words liar and coward pretty loosely. Not too many years ago a person could get flattened in a hurry for such behavior.
"....Webb, a decorated Vietnam veteran...."
oh man.....here we go again. Did this one toss his "decorations" over the fence, too?
Because it's the only way they can drag the issue of his having served into the campaign. They are sitting there, waiting for an opportunity to portray him or any democrat as a Victim (which they love and can get behind with much more gusto than they can get behind a veteran). That way they can pound their chests about military service without supporting the WOT AND it lets them say "Here's a guy with military experience and even he is against the war."
Webb's temper makes McCain look like Gandhi. I would say he has a short fuse, but I don't think he has any fuse at all. He's going to meltdown in this campaign, again and again and again. If he makes it to the debates, Allen just has to tweak him slightly and Webb will cover the TV cameras in spittle.
Any veteran who served a day in, over or offshore Vietnam gets a foreign service ribbon. Yeah? So what? This guy, like thousands of others who think military service excuses their assholism, should have stayed home. He's probably another Murtha or Kerry.
Webb's service was fine, he turned rotten recently and became a Sandy Berger butt boy.
3) Nixon was already withdrawing troops in 1971.
true.....he began withdrawal before the end of 1969.
for instance, the First Infantry Division was completely out by Apr, 1970
Sounds more like a sociopath.
Virginia voters will see through this and re-elect Allen handily. Allen shouldn't respond to this third-grade tripe. Webb is just trying to make him lose his cool so the MSM can go "GOP Presidential candidate loses his temper to political newcomer."
right now I can't remember exactly how Webbs name got in the 2004 kerry/medal/discharge saga, but it seems like he didn't tell what he knew
1) Is it OK to burn a worn and tattered flag?
2)Is it OK to desecrate the US flag by burning, urination, dragging?
These people no longer have a clue......
ROFL!!!!
Well in that case, he should be lucky. He could have been named FuFu, and his sister, FiFi.
I hate to say it and I have all the respect in the world for people who fought in Vietnam, but our (American) freedoms were not at stake and basically all you had there was a geopolitical game in which two American administrations had overextended themselves by using draftees and huge sums of treasure in something which a demokkkrat congress had officially declared to be unwinnable.
Reagan's big achievement was in discovering that you play geopolitical games with petty cash and a few handsfull of professional soldiers and soldiers of fortune, and not with vast sums of national treasure and hundreds of thousands of draftees.
Moreover I do not see any basic shame or dishonor in the people who like Allen did not feel any particular need to get involved.
This sounds like Webb has gone to the Howard Dean School of Politics...
Scream loud, call people names, slam the other person...BUT, never say anything worthwhile...
AND, what is up with Larry Sabato?? sheesh
Ping
See, if Webb has to go right to those kind of lines you know his internal polls don't look good.
See ya, Webb.
I saw a debate between Webb and the guy he beat in the primary...on Hairball...
Webb is a frickin' A-----e!!
I bet he is going to mess his self up...
For one thing, he sounds like he is going to try to out-Murtha, Murtha...and out-Kerry, Kerry.
IOW...he is going to flash his Vietnam credentials, while blasting this whole war..and the idea of going to war.
HE just doesn't have a VOTE to have to defend..so he can make anything up along the way.
AND, I HATE the way these libs, especially the veterans, are acting like unless a person has served in the military...they are WORTHY of election.
This isn't quite what you're looking for, but it's getting closer...
Veterans face conundrum: Kerry or Bush?
By James Webb
USAToday Editorial
But make sure you read this response...
A Vietnam Veteran Against the War
Billmon at Whiskey Bar (blog)
No, Webb is the real deal. He is an authentic war hero.
First in his class of 243 at the Marine Corps Officer's Basic School in Quantico, Virginia, Jim served with the Fifth Marine Regiment in Vietnam, where as a rifle platoon and company commander in the infamous An Hoa Basin west of Danang he was awarded the Navy Cross, the Silver Star Medal, two Bronze Star Medals, and two Purple Hearts. He later served as a platoon commander and as an instructor in tactics and weapons at Marine Corps Officer Candidates School, and then as a member of the Secretary of the Navy's immediate staff, before leaving the Marine Corps in 1972.
Jim has written six best-selling novels: Fields of Fire (1978), considered by many to be the classic novel of the Vietnam war, A Sense of Honor (l981), A Country Such As This (1983), Something To Die For (1991), The Emperor's General (1999) and Lost Soldiers (2001).
He taught literature at the Naval Academy as their first visiting writer, has traveled worldwide as a journalist, and his PBS coverage of the U.S. Marines in Beirut earned him an Emmy Award from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. Jim has traveled extensively, particularly in Asia, as a journalist, business consultant and screenwriter-producer. He speaks Vietnamese and has done extensive pro bono work with the Vietnamese community dating from the late l970's.
In 1989 he met with key Japanese government and industrial officials as a featured guest of the Japanese Foreign Ministry. He has worked on feature film projects with many of Hollywood's top producers. His original story “Rules of Engagement”, which he also executive-produced, was released in April 2000 and starred Tommy Lee Jones and Samuel L. Jackson. It was the number one film in the US for two weeks. His fifth novel The Emperor's General was purchased by Paramount pictures as the largest book-to-film deal of 1998. His book Born Fighting, which is his first commercial non-fiction effort, was published in October 2004 by Broadway Books.
In government, Jim served in the U.S. Congress as counsel to the House Committee on Veterans Affairs from l977 to l98l, becoming the first Vietnam veteran to serve as a full committee counsel in the Congress. In 1982 he first proposed, then led the fight for, including an African American soldier in the memorial statue that now graces the Vietnam Veterans memorial on the National Mall.
In 1984 he was appointed the inaugural Assistant Secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs, where he traveled extensively in, and worked closely with, our NATO allies. As the Assistant Secretary he directed considerable research and analysis of the U.S. military's mobilization capabilities. In 1987 he became the first Naval Academy graduate in history to serve in the military and later be appointed Secretary of the Navy. He resigned as Naval Secretary in 1988 after refusing to agree to a reduction of the Navy's force structure during congressionally-mandated budget cutting.
Among Jim's many other awards for community service and professional excellence are the Department of Defense Distinguished Public Service Medal, the Medal of Honor Society's Patriot Award, the American Legion National Commander's Public Service Award, the VFW's Media Service Award, the Marine Corps League's Military Order of the Iron Mike Award, the John Russell Leader-ship Award, and the Robert L. Denig Distinguished Service Award. He was a Fall 1992 Fellow at Harvard's Institute of Politics.
Webb is going to be a tough opponent. Allen can't take him lightly.
No one is questioning Webb's military service.
However, his public policy views, his temper and his opportunism are fair play.
Vietnam was part of our containment policy against the spread of communism. Korea was the precursor. We didn't want to permit the North (Communsists) from taking over the South. We were aiding the South and the Soviets and Chinese were aiding the North. Initally, support for the war was strong in the US and in Congress.
If you want to learn the real story of Vietnam, check out this primer written by the veterans of the war. As a Vietnam veteran, I found it to be accurate and illuminating.
Webb is a nasty piece of work, since he has moved over to the RAT side, he has lost his self respect as well.
Thank you for that info
I agree that his temper, demeanor, and judgment can and should be questioned. He is a volatile guy who wears his Scot-Irish heritage on his sleeve.
Ah, Viet Nam. Lived through it. Learned a lot. Moving on.
You know...people tolerate, even celebrate, when Grandpa, Dad, Brother, Son, Husband..or even, Sister, Mom, Wife,
reminisce about their time in the military...some of them talk about the "bad times", some don't (like my husband)...but most will talk about the good times..the men they bunked with, fought beside...maybe lost.
And that is great...and even if you hear the same story told, over and over, you still listen because you love them..and they love to tell the tales.
HOWEVER...when veterans USE their military service for political gain in a way that is insulting to the ones that didn't (for whatever reason, except running, perhaps), and INSIST on being "respected"...and won't accept any criticism for anything..without pulling out the WAR card...
it begins to colors people's views of veterans...to a certain extent. I don't have nearly as much respect as I should, for a lot of the politicians that are veterans...because they have a tendency, some of them, Webb, Murtha, Kerry ---as a hammer to keep the debate on a level where "THEY" are the superior ones..regardless of the other person's qualifications.
sleuth, you said it better than I have heard it said, by anyone.
Thank you...that means a lot coming from you, Bah.
Excellent Post!
Just what are James Webbs qualifications?
Congress? Senate? Governor?
Im going to declare Webb a one trick pony.
He has a service record beyond reproach and thats all
Wow, does this sudden shift in liking Viet Nam Vets mean they think bragging about their exploits will fool the American Public?
Did they not learn anything from sKerry last time?
Heh Heh Heh
This is only June and the guy is in total meltdown!
What a juvenile moronic response Webb and his boy wonder gave!
I can't believe it!
Miller wouldn't have been half so much fun.
Thanks, my first inclination was to panic. But this is good, the guy has a short fuse and he wants to debate Allen 4 times, I think I heard. Prior to this I would have said NO WAY, now Allen has to debate this guy. :)
The book is a very eloquent history of the Scots-Irish, and goes into detail about the customs and attitudes of this group, of which Webb is one.
He is very sensitive to the attacks on his people," and I believe is carrying this attitude into the campaign.
Webb feels like the Scots-Irish are misunderstood and undervalued, denigrated as "rednecks" and "trailer trash." Webb makes the case that above all, the Scots-Irish are a warrior people, and fighting is what they value more than anything else.
Now, an interesting thing will be how many of this group are Virginia voters and identify with Webb (a demographic which normally has gone to Republicans in the last few years).
Webb is apparently trying to atract this demographic, and his contempt for Allen is probably real.
I do not understand why he became a democrat. It's puzzling.
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