With mixed record of success, Jim Webb eyes last Senate battles

Although Webb is a former Republican, he is not going to follow the path of neighboring Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), who has said he’s not sure whether he’ll vote for Obama in November.

“I’ll support President Obama,” Webb said.

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He does acknowledge that he has had “a lot of differences with the administration” on various issues. (He recently criticized the White House for delaying oil and gas exploration off Virginia’s coast).

In particular, Webb thinks Obama needs to do a better job of connecting with white working-class voters, a demographic Webb has analyzed in his book “Born Fighting” and in numerous op-ed pieces.

“I think this is a challenge for the entire Democratic Party and I’ve said it many, many times,” he said.

Webb thinks Obama can win Virginia again if he can replicate the historic turnout of 2008. He is more bullish about Kaine, predicting that he will defeat Allen by five percentage points in November and scoffing at GOP efforts to draw differences between the two Democrats.

“Tim Kaine and I have a great friendship and I’m really gonna do my best to help him get elected,” Webb said.

As for whether Allen has changed much since their hard-fought 2006 campaign, Webb said only: “I really haven’t watched him.”

Looking ahead

Has Webb enjoyed the Senate? That may be the wrong way to frame the question.

“It’s been very fulfilling,” he said. “I didn’t come here to have fun. I came here to try to serve in the same sense that I went into the military to try to serve. I think we’ve had a sense of purpose every day, and that’s what counts.”

Satisfying as the job has been, Webb has no regrets about his decision to leave.

“We thought about it really hard,” he said. “This is the fourth time I’ve been in public service, and each time after I’ve been in public service for a while, I’ve left and done other things. I think it’s healthy. I think it’s healthy intellectually, and I think there’s a synergism in it.”

Webb makes clear that he does not have his next step sketched out. “I don’t know. I didn’t even announce for the Senate until nine months before the election, so I don’t plan long-term,” he said.

Given his pronounced interest in Asia — and the fact that he speaks Vietnamese — a foreign policy post could be a fit. He has previously laughed off a question about whether he is interested in being secretary of state by noting, “The job is already filled.”

But will Webb return to government service — in or outside of Washington?

“I would hope he stays involved in public service,” said Sen. Charles E. Schumer (N.Y.), one of the chamber’s Democratic leaders. “He’s very passionate about a lot of things, and my guess is he will.”

In the meantime, the obvious immediate move is a return to writing. Webb has penned novels, nonfiction books, screenplays, newspaper articles and has said he will work on the same handful of issues that have fueled his Senate tenure.

“I think first and foremost he thinks of himself as an author,” Warner said. “You finish a chapter and you move on to a different chapter. I’m sure he’s got more chapters to write.”