It took him a couple days, but
Ben Tribbett, aka "Not Larry Sabato" (and author of the most popular political blog in Virginia) finally has
nailed the true story on this "controversy" over Jim Webb's TV ad. Ben writes, under the headline "NANCY NEVER SAW THE AD!!!!":
It was pointed out to me tonight that I was missing a huge part of the Nancy Reagan story.
Check out this quote from the letter her office sent to Jim Webb (emphasis mine):
"It has come to our attention that your Senatorial campaign in Virginia is using video footage of President Ronald Reagan, his photographs, and/or quotes in campaign materials and political advertisements, some of it very negative."
There is nothing negative in that commercial!!!
It's very clear from that sentence that the people writing Nancy's letter never saw the ad.
I was siding with Reagan's office on this before, because I think all due deference is due to Nancy after Ronald Reagan's death. However, if Nancy Reagan's office is going to mail out letters without even watching the ad, then nothing else they say can be taken seriously.
Now, I certainly don't always see things the same way as Ben, but I always respect his political judgement and this time I couldn't agree more with his analysis. Good work, Ben; you've NAILED it this time!
Oh, and by the way, does anyone really give a you-know-what about anything former Reagan Attorney General Ed "Iran Contra Scanda" Meese - who laughably claimed the other day that Webb's ad was "improper, unethical and very possibly illegal" (yeah, Meese would know about those things!!!) has to say? Can we say "ZERO credibility?" How about, "last person in the WORLD to talk about what's unethical and/or illegal?!?"
As someone who was studying political science, among other things, in college and grad school during the 1980s, I remember Ed Meese's tenure very well. And they are NOT fond memories, to put it mildly. Highlights include the Iran-Contra scandal and all the allegations of corruption against Meese. Frankly, Ed Meese almost makes George W. Bush's Attorneys General - John Ashcroft and Alberto Gonzales - look good. And that's NOT good!
P.S. By the way, I have little patience for complaints from a bunch of people who, as Frank Rich points out in today's New York Times, sold "9/11 photos of the president on Air Force One to [Republican] campaign donors" and "featur[ed] flag-draped remains of the 9/11 dead in political ads."
P.S. On a related noted, after seeing his son Jimmy off to war, Jim Webb is back on the trail, and back to tellin' it like it is. Go Jim!
Lowell Feld is Netroots Coordinator for the Jim Webb for US Senate Campaign. The ideas expressed here belong to Lowell Feld alone, and do not necessarily represent those of Jim Webb, his advisors, staff, or supporters.