Rumor has it that former Virginia governor Mark Warner will be announcing his candidacy for the Virginia Senate race this week. I’ve written about Warner before, when he announced that he would not be seeking the Democratic Presidential nomination, and I believe that Warner would be a formidable Senatorial candidate in Virginia against any Republican seeking to capture retiring Senator John Warner’s seat. The thought of two Democratic Senators from the Old Dominion — Webb and Warner — is just amazing to contemplate. There could be a genuine political realignment at work in the Commonwealth.
But that’s not the interesting news, at least for me.
Grier Martin appears to be considering a run in North Carolina against Senator Liddy Dole.
When I lived in Raleigh, Martin was my state representative. He’s a veteran of the Afghan War &mash; the real Global War on Terror, not the fake quagmire one that the President seems to think is the real deal. I’d dealt with Martin a number of times, and I found his constituent service to be top-notch. Indeed, to this day I continue to receive e-mails from the Representative’s office, even though I’ve moved to Baltimore. I never met Representative Martin, but based on my experience, he would be a vast improvement for the state.
I find it interesting that in early polls Martin, who has no name recognition outside of Raleigh, is polling only six points behind Dole. Dole, of course, has been a pathetic failure as a Senator, not even bothering to visit the state she ostensibly represents.
North Carolina deserves a better Senator than Liddy Dole. Had Erskine Bowles run a more competant campaign in 2002, I wouldn’t be writing this. Dole is vulnerable. Representative Grier Martin could be the guy. He could be the Dole-Slayer. For North Carolina’s sake, for the country‘s sake, I hope so. 🙂