He used to be a Democrat and switched to the Republicans  during the Clinton impeachment fiasco.  When he was in Virginia state politics he first got elected campaigning for the Equal Rights Amendment, and supporting Doug Wilder.  He ran against Robb in the Senate primary in 94 and lost, which I think is where his feud with the Democrats started.  Very much another Zell Miller type who went batshit insane for some reason and swung from being a decently moderate Democrat to the worst caricature of hard right Republican when he saw where he thought the winds were shifting.  Defeating this party-switcher is long overdue - Virginia deserves better.