"Campaign 2.0" Comes to Virginia: Is the Southeast Next?

With James Webb’s entry into the race for the US Senate seat from Virginia currently held by George Allen, a movement is afoot to leverage the power of the Internet to transform Virginia politics and send Webb to Washington. Seizing an opportunity to shift the political paradigm, a significant number of Virginia’s progressive and Democratic bloggers – the so-called “netroots” - are throwing their support behind the former Reagan Navy Secretary and best-selling author who is now a Democrat. According to Raising Kaine, a leading progressive blog,

“For the Democratic and Progressive blogosphere, Jim Webb represents Campaign 2.0...Jim is very interested in the netroots, and in running a different kind of campaign. This is a chance for the Democratic/progressive netroots community to really take things up a notch.”

Lowell Feld, political director of Raising Kaine’s PAC and a leading figure in the move to “draft” Mr. Webb, says, “So far, the Webb campaign and its grassroots supporters have worked together extremely well, and this cooperation is almost certain to improve as time goes by. This combination of 'top-down' and 'bottom-up' has the potential to be an unstoppable combination both in the primary and also in the general election.”

With a fundraising campaign designed to raise $300,000 for Webb in 3 weeks, this movement is going to change the complexion of the genteel politics of the Commonwealth. Regardless of the ultimate outcome, this band of tech-savvy activists plans to “shake up the stale Democratic establishment with a huge gust of fresh air.” If successful, “Campaign 2.0” could serve as a model for expanding traditional notions of politicking throughout the Southeast. With blogs becoming a fixture of political life in Dixie, the sky’s the limit as to where such efforts will lead.