An interesting wrinkle has appeared in Virignia, where the name of former
Joint Cheif's Chairman Peter Pace is being thrown around for a bid for the US
Senate.
...
the
Washington Post blog then picked up the thought. There is now a Draft Peter Pace blog, and a Facebook page as
well. Not sure wheere I come down on this. I'm a Tom Davis supporter right now,
but its hard. Some of his votes are easier to take so long as he represents a
majority Democrat distirct, I get that. But Peter Pace would be formidable, and
very hard to attack. Could he be the Republican Jim Webb, a veteran who comes
out of knowhere to defeat the most popular member of the opposition
party?
Mark Warner, former Governor, is running on the Democratic side, and he will be formidable no matter who the candidate is. There is only one viable candidate to take on Warner (other than Pace) and that is Congressman Eric Cantor. It is this diarist's opinion that Cantor's political future is unlimited. He has shown leadership on a plethora of issues from Iran, to fiscal responsibility, to border security. He is charismatic, in tune with voters, and, to the delight of someone like me, even bloggers (catch his thoughts on Redstate.com). Still, Cantor may not want to run and it may not be politically advantageous for him to do so. Cantor is angling for and soon should have the Republican leadership and ultimately the Speaker's chair in the House. While he enjoys significant popularity in not only his district but the entire state of Virginia, not only is he no shoe in against Warner, he would probably be an underdog. Thus, a run would not only stop any House plans but frankly expose to a political loss that he doesn't need.
That is why Pace makes a lot of sense for the Senate. He was of course summarily fired by Bush because the administration felt that a confirmation fight would become too contentious. Pace has a long track record of distinguished public service, leadership and integrity. Of course, he also understands that there is no other option but victory in Iraq.
He has several pieces of political baggage which he will have to overcome. First, he is tied to the failed Iraqi policy of Donald Rumsfeld. Second, he made overly personal anti gay comments a few years ago as well. It remains to be seen if Pace can be as proficient a politician as he was a military man because he will need to be to deal with the baggage he carries. That said, it will take someone like Pace, one that can't be attacked conventionally, with universal respect, to beat the incredibly popular Warner.
If you would like to find out more, please visit the new blog started on his behalf and also the new facebook site.
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