Democrats suit up a warrior

Posted by David Lerman of The Daily Press in Newport News, Va., at 6:05 am CDT

Virginia Democrats nominated a Republican war hero from Ronald Reagan’s Pentagon Tuesday night in hopes of ousting conservative Republican Sen. George Allen this fall.

Former Navy Secretary and author James Webb won about 53 percent of the vote in a Democratic primary, beating former telecommunications lobbyist Harris Miller, according to preliminary returns.

Webb, 60, is a celebrated novelist and Vietnam war hero who had the backing of national Democratic Party leaders.

His nomination sets the stage for a potentially combative Senate race against Allen, a first-term senator and former governor whose re-election was considered a virtual shoo-in until Webb’s entry.

The chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, breaking with tradition, intervened in the party primary to endorse Webb over Miller. And Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts, the party's nominee for president in 2004, had campaigned and raised money for Webb.

The party's move signaled a clear calculation by party leaders that Webb has the potential to appeal to independents, military personnel, veterans and rural voters in a conservative state that leans Republican in federal races.

Allen said he was prepared for the contest, but was not giving up his exploration of a 2008 presidential campaign. The first-term senator and former governor is scheduled to speak to the Iowa Republican Convention this weekend and hold a fundraiser for his Senate re-election campaign in Des Moines.

Read more coverage of Webb's victory and its implications for the party in The Daily Press.