There's still plenty of time before the U.S. Senate race between Democrat Mark Warner and Republican Jim Gilmore is over. But why wait: This one is such a one-sided affair that it should be over before it begins.
As a result, the Sun Gazette comes out of the gate early in endorsing Mark Warner for the seat. And, while we reserve the right to amend our opinion if facts change, we see little that would suggest we will need to do so.
Warner is far superior to Gilmore both in competence and temperament. As governor, despite a rocky first two years, he learned from his mistakes and emphasized an agenda that did not leave out the most needy in the commonwealth while it still pushed for economic growth.
Gilmore, by contrast, is a polarizing figure whose political career since being elected governor has been marked by a lack of coherence, the desire to pick fights and an unwillingness to accept that Virginia is evolving and needs bipartisanship on key issues.
This one is a no-brainer. Mark Warner gets our endorsement for U.S. Senate.
Puzzled wrote on Jul 6, 2008 9:24 AM:
On the same page, the Paper endorses Mark Warner who told voters that he would not raise taxes, but then once in office, he runs from his promise and raises them. The largest tax increase in Virginia history.
Mark Warner had a choice. He did not need to spend milions on campaign commericals telling voters that he woud not seek tax increases. If he was concerned about Virginia's growing deficit, he should not have made the promise. He could also have conditioned his promise or flat out said he seek tax increases. But Mark Warner did not do those things. Rather, he lied. Why do we need a liar in the US Senate? Aren't there enough of them already? "