Jamming at the Jamboree with Jim Webb
It was “standing room only” at Floyd’s Country Store, home of the Friday Night Jamboree, when Democratic Senatorial Candidate Jim Webb and former Governor Mark Warner came to visit on Thursday. By the look of the line of young people waiting outside for their arrival, I figured that a high school field trip was underway. Inside, the turnout reminded me of the one that gathered to hear author Barbara Kingsolver in September.
Passing through the upbeat mix of familiar and unfamiliar faces, I found an available seat up near the front, next to a white-haired man from Shawsville. A lone girl flat-footed on the dance floor to the Bluegrass band’s fast paced fiddle tempo. Looking around, it didn’t take long for me to discover that my friend, retired Lutheran minister, Dick Giessler, was sitting two seats away. “I can’t count how many times I’ve driven to Blacksburg to hear someone notable speak. This is the second time in two months Montgomery Countians have come to us,” I leaned over and said to him.
Dick, who I’ve always admired for his activism during the civil rights movement, introduced me to the man sitting between us, Mr. Slusher, a 4th generation Floydian. “I’m a registered Independent, fiscally conservative who votes Democratic because they represent my interests in labor rights, civil rights, women’s rights, and environmental protections better than the counterparts,” I explained at one point during our back and forth conversations.
Like a school girl watching the clock for school to let out, I kept checking the door, waiting for Webb and Warner to arrive. When they finally did, the crowd gave them a rock star reception. 
People stood and cheered; some waved “Webb for Senate” signs. A few shouted encouraging remarks to Warner. Many had thought that he would run for President in 2008, but he recently announced that he would not. Former Virginia State Senator and World War II Vet, Madison Mayre, took to the stage to warm the crowd up, and boy, did he ever. With his stories about Uncle Billy, whose ashes are supposedly kept in a mason jar, just like the one that held the moonshine he enjoyed while he was living, Mayre had the crowd hooting and laughing out loud. He introduced Warner by reminding the crowd that Warner was the first in his family to go to college. “And I’m the first in my family not to,” he joked.
Taking the mic, Warner made some jokes about being unemployed, “but not ready for the political mason jar,” before getting serious and explaining the urgent need for change. “Our standing in the world has never been lower and our own agencies have determined that we are creating more terrorists faster than we can capture or kill them,” he emphasized before introducing Webb.
At this point, all I wanted was for Webb to explain why he was wearing dusty work boots with a suit and necktie. With family ties to the area, Webb had been to Floyd before, but “It’s my first time being dressed like this,” he said, referring to his less than casual attire. “The real question is: why is he wearing a tie?” he joked. About the boots, he said it had to do with a promise he made to his son.
It wasn’t until later, while researching Webb’s background online, that I discovered the full reason for the boots. Apparently, they’re his son’s combat boots. 
Following in the family’s military tradition, his son is a Marine Lance Corporal serving in Iraq. Webb didn’t mention that fact, but he did say this about his son: “When I was 24 corporate CEOs made 20 times more than the company workers. Now my son is 24 and they make 400 times more.” He made other references to corporation tax loopholes and the growing large gap between the rich and the struggling working and middle classes.
Webb, a decorated Vietnam Vet, NRA member, and former journalist who has Democratic roots but was a Republican for some of his adult life, was against the war in Iraq from the start. No weapons of mass destruction. No exit strategy. Although he spoke of his personal religious beliefs about marriage being between a man and a woman, he believes in equality for all, he said. He doesn’t support the marriage amendment because “anyone who is not in a traditional marriage will have rights taken away.”
The red-haired Webb made reference to his Scotch-Irish heritage, a heritage that is known for its warriors and fiercely independent thinkers. Online, I discovered that his Scotch-Irish background is the reason for his campaign logo “Born Fighting.” Born Fighting is also the title of one of Webb’s books, of which the subtitle is, How the Scots-Irish Shaped America. Not only has he had 6 best selling books, mostly war novels, but according to the Richmond Times Dispatch, he won an Emmy for his PBS coverage of the U.S. Marines in Beirut and wrote the screenplay for the movie “Rules of Engagement.”
An interesting man by any standards, Webb is not your typical Democratic candidate, but he is one suited to the people of Southwestern Virginia. He has a good chance of coming out ahead in the general election. He may even do well in the mostly Republican County of Floyd.
Photos: 1. The Country Store. 2. The crowd inside. 3. Jim Webb with the mic as Warner looks on.
October 28th, 2006 11:31 am
Colleen, I have tried to not let my passion carry me away this election cycle as my wife doesn’t like me screaming at the television when the President speaks. This is another of the reasons I have been light on my posting.
October 28th, 2006 11:41 am
Colleen, I admire your interest in and willingness to attend events like this. I have become so cynical about politicians, I can’t bring myself to believe any of them. If they are ethical and sincere when they run, they soon get ruined by power.
I also fit your description of your political self.
October 28th, 2006 11:42 am
Great points, Gary. I registered Independent when I was 18 because I didn’t want to choose one party or the other. (In Massachusetts then you had to specify). After a few presidential elections, I realized…”Hey, I only ever vote Democrat.” That’s how I discovered my political roots as an member of the working class. I was on my own in my discovery because my parents would never say who they voted for. My dad only ever said he voted “for the best man.”
I still consider myself indpendent because I like to keep my options open and I hate being put in a labled box designed to divide (Must be the Irish in me). And I appreciate candidates like Webb who are not easily pigeon-holed.
Yes, you can use my quote.
Kenju, I don’t seek these things out. You know, my latest motto is “let them come to Floyd.” If they do I almost feel obligated to attend.
October 28th, 2006 1:57 pm
Webb seems like a good guy despite suspect leanings toward wealth redistribution. He is also towing party line regarding “our standing in the world”, whatever that means. If our standing in the world is inversely related to our security and America’s interests, then I say we’re doing pretty well. I sometimes have to remember the fact that the world admires our standard of living and human rights to cut through the propaganda.
Webb may have a point with the “winner take all” compensation that is occurring in our businesses; however, it may also be true that the financial rewards for everyone from successful businesses today are much larger than when he was 24, which justifies some increase in CEO compensation.
Similar to American’s loss of idealistic views toward war after WWI, like Edith Wharton’s book on the loss of the age of innocence, I bet that the term “exit strategy” never existed prior to Vietnam. I would wager that in the past the majority simply did what they thought was best for our country, rather than looked for a way out before an objective was accomplished. I would also wager that southwest VA has more of these old school nationalistic values than not.
Anyway, you have to like the politicians trying to appeal to their specific audience with tales of eccentric people and moonshine. Who knows, maybe it works? The polls will tell.
PS If you always vote Democratic, then you may want to register as such because you can then have a say in the Democratic nomination. This is what bothered me about being independent.
October 28th, 2006 2:24 pm
colleen- even though we’re in wv, our network affiliates are from va, so we’ve had to endure the constant barrage of campaign commercials from both jim webb and george allen. i’m just glad i don’t have to vote for either one of them- neither seems like a good choice! you’ve got very racist remarks on one side and very chauvenistic(sp?) remarks on the other. but it’s good that you make an informed vote. a lot of people just vote along party lines or make their decisions based solely on the campaign ads- very scary!!! i have to disagree that dems represent the working class, though. i think that’s how they started, but i think 99% of politicians today are so far removed from the working class that they can’t relate to them at all, though they might claim to. we are a one income family, and have benefited greatly from W’s tax cuts and abolishment of the marriage tax penalty. my hubby and i have both worked for non-profits(that dems poured lots of tax-payer money into) and seen the reckless spending that goes on there.
October 28th, 2006 3:55 pm
Exit strategy is just a buzz term for having no plan. Not only did they have no plan, the Bush administration ignored the counsel of those who predicted exactly what has happened, many from the first Bush administration. Some of those more experienced people who knew that Saddam’s dictatorship was holding all hell from breaking lose within the warring fractions of Iraq are just now being called on to help.
As a once single mother with no child support who could not afford health care, and as someone from a long line of working class people, I can tell you which party I experience being better represented by. It’s not an accident that Labor has traditionally supported Democrats. What I see is the Republicans giving tax cuts to the corporations and the richest among us who already have huge tax shelters and loopholes while refusing to raise the minimum wage.
October 28th, 2006 4:47 pm
I was born in WV in 1963, and if you know your Presidential election history, you know this means not only was being a Democrat my birthright, it was bred into my genes.
I have been a political wonk as long as I can remember, a dedicated campaign volunteer and all the rest. Somewhere toward the end of Clinton’s first term, I got disgusted, changed my voter’s registration to Independent, and raged against the disillusionment I’d begun to feel.
Only recently, as in over the past two years, have I felt the stirring of passionate inspiration again begin the process of overtaking the apathy and cynicism. I credit one man for bringing me back to the fold, and if the opportunity presented itself, it is not an overstatement to say I would quit my cushy, well paying corporate job to go to work for him in one instant flat.
October 28th, 2006 6:34 pm
You’re not going to tell us who it is?
October 28th, 2006 6:58 pm
Colleen,
Thanks for the great job of reporting the facts and your impressions.
Webb seems to be a good man. We need more of them in government.
October 28th, 2006 7:23 pm
Oh, sorry. I posted about him today, so I guess I thought ya’ll could read my mind.
It’s the Junior Senator from Illinois, Barack Obama. I haven’t been this inspired in nearly twelve years.
October 28th, 2006 7:33 pm
I’m with you. Let’s go! (I was guessing you meant him. I’ll be over soon).
October 28th, 2006 9:07 pm
Clearly wealth redistribution, taxes, and government entitlements harm the economic engine that gives us a high standard of living. These are undoubtedly major cornerstones of Democrat policy. Let’s look at the effects of unions and minimum wages, shall we?
http://www.capmag.com/article.asp?ID=4472
Consider that France and Germany currently have double digit unemployment while the more competitive labor market, exemplified by Republican views, in the US currently has an unemployment rate of 4.6%. Remember this when you go to the polls.
In addition to these outcomes of more socialistic leanings, corruption is another major result of increased government, another problem with Democrat party ideals.
Personally, I’m really worried about the kind of world my children have to deal with. There seems to be less hope and solidarity in a country without patriotic values, personal responsibility, and fiscal discipline. I’ll just have to instill it at home and take it to the polls.
October 28th, 2006 10:16 pm
Another great post. Coming here is better than turning on NPR. I saw the Born Fighting signs as I drove across Patrick County on 58 and was curious what it was referring to.
October 29th, 2006 7:07 am
Well said, Colleen. Thanks for covering the rally, I wish I could have been there.
Just for the record – I think this election is one of those rare events where party labels won’t matter all that much. We can argue over social issues like welfare and tax policy later – right now we need to rally together and wrest power from the thugs and crooks currently seated on Pennsylvania Avenue. Jim Webb isn’t perfect, but at least he is willing to fight.
October 29th, 2006 7:31 am
Hi Col, Excellent post.
I posted a bit about Webb yesterday having read about the ugly campaign going on there (and everywhere for that matter).
The psychic tension that our country is feeling seems to me to be because people know they can no longer practice avoidance, although they still want to. Deep down, many are finally beginning to see where this approach has taken them. In my view it has allowed those in power to get away with mass-produced propaganda – WMD and all that goes with it (too much to go into here) but mainly how we are enslaving other nations now instead of liberating them and losing our rights as we go along (pun intended).
Negative ads are taking center stage while the war keeps raging. I’m hoping it backfires in time to save our disintegrating nation. I’m hoping for a lot.
If the voting machines don’t fail us again; the Republicans might just lose control of this country and they know it. They know the tension is building and what’d they do? They sling more mud and it gets dirtier and dirtier. This kind of distraction works so that we can’t keep our eyes on what is really happening. This is not new, I know, but at least people are beginning to see it for what it is…I hope.
We can’t keep hiding behind America’s past greatness. We (collectively speaking) must open our eyes to this fact and go forward with genuine sharing of ideas and real discussions…the kind that made our country great.
May the best man win. Not a simple job.
October 29th, 2006 9:29 am
i definately side more with jim on this one. regarding jennifer’s comments- wv is a perfect example of a democrat run state- probably one of the biggest welfare states in the nation. throw money at a problem and set up all kinds of social programs with money from taxing the working class. what has decades of this produced? a continuous cycle of poverty, teen pregnancy, poor schools,reliance on government assistance, and the list goes on and on. we live in wv and the schools are so bad i’m dreading sending my child there. there is a place for social programs, but so much money is misspent and no real solutions are brought to the table. also what i don’t understand about wv and blue-collar workers voting dem is that democrats, in general, don’t line up with any other of their beliefs and values as many are uber-conservative. about senator obama- he seems like a great guy, but again, people put all their hopes into a man, a politician, and almost see them as God- who’s gonna come fix all our problems. that’s the problem with america- we give all our power to the politicians- it’s not “we the people” and government by the people anymore. we need to start doing things ourselves instead of relying on the government for it. no man can do it all, for after all, he is still just a man. maybe when we do that, we’ll stop attacking presidents for not fixing every single thing on our political agendas and stop blaming them for every bad thing that happens. yes- there needs to be accountability, but it’s easy to judge when sometimes the biggest decisions we have to make each day is what to make for dinner and which show to watch on tv. president bush had to deal with the worst attack on americal soil in his first year of presidency and and the biggest natural disaster in american history and has somehow managed to keep our economy stable, have the biggest housing boom on record, kept america safe from ongoing terror plots for 5 years, held corrupt corporations such as enron accountable, given tax cuts to all americans, given funding to organizations that are there, in the trenches, helping the poor and needy- who couldn’t get funding before just because they were associated with a religious organization, etc.
October 29th, 2006 12:51 pm
Oh! I would have loved to have been there! Mark Warner really would be a great presidential candidate and I will be voting for Webb!
October 29th, 2006 1:51 pm
For a private guy, he sure ended up with a lot on public record. He sounds like a compelling person to listen to.
October 29th, 2006 2:38 pm
I supported welfare reform but thought the over emphasis on it pitted people against poeple. Welfare only accounted for less than 1% of the federal budget. I’m much more concerned about government waste, inflated military spending, and corprate welfare in the form of bail-out, subsidies, and tax loopholes.
AS far as Bush goes, what can I say. I think he’s the worst presdient in modern times, and I think the damage he’s done will take decades to recover from. I don’t think he had anything to do with holding Enron etc accountable. Under his presidency FEMA fell to ruins and his own initial response to Katrina was lame. I think his foreign policy has created more terrorists and has ultimately made us less safe.
October 29th, 2006 5:00 pm
I am not particularly overwhelmed by Webb, but hope he truly does connect with a constituancy that seems neglected. Also, I do not trust the numbers the government tosses about (regardless of party), particularly unemployment, because people fall off the rolls after a while, whether they have a job or not, and kind of disappear from the percentage numbers when the unemployment checks stop coming. I fear the unemployment figure is under-reported for this reason.
I also think the ranks of the under-employed are great and misunderstood. A job as a greeter might pay some of the bills and count as employment but it isn’t going to get a person ahead.
We need lots of solutions to a myriad of problems, and unfortunately neither party seems particularly keen to solve anything.
October 29th, 2006 7:52 pm
Great post…and I’m a registered Democrat. Always have been and always will be. They represent fully what I believe in.
So I hope Webb wins!
As for the remark above from a “Jim”….His comment “whatever that means” leads me to think I guess some American’s have totally missed the past six years…due to the Bush Adm. other countries won’t even consider the diplomatic means of talking….and I can’t say as I blame them.
So here’s hoping Webb grabs that seat!
October 29th, 2006 8:24 pm
Just to clarify, regarding amy f.’s comment, I haven’t lived in WV for fourteen years, although I still have family there. The state’s problems run so much deeper than being led by Democrats, although that surely has not been much of an up by the bootstraps leadership initiative, to be sure. WV is like a country unto its own, in many ways, and even moreso now that 90% of its economic engine no longer exists.
October 30th, 2006 3:54 pm
I’ve been watching this as an outsider, listening to the hype and accusations from both sides. It’s good to hear the honest and fair opinion of someone I trust.
August 12th, 2012 9:11 am
[…] Holton, a former Richmond judge and daughter of a governor, is the dancer in the family (pictured in the above video dancing with the man in the overalls and felt hat), but Kaine can play harmonica. He proved it on stage with the Jugbusters, who played a song about a VA Tech Hokie. More photos to come. If the clips are slow to upload, click on the upper left of the box and it will take you directly to youtube. You can read a past post about Jim Webb and Mark Warner at the Country Store HERE. […]
August 15th, 2012 11:17 pm
[…] Country Store, Vice President Joe Biden also came. I guess he had heard from Kaine and Senators Webb and Warner what a cool town Floyd is. I missed seeing him, having learned about his visit just after the fact. […]