Jim Webb's Writings

Tim Russert is still positively giddy over the Dems' House and Senate victories.

On yesterday's Meet the Press, he interviewed Senator-elect Jim Webb of Virginia and Senator-elect Jon Tester of Montana.

This wasn't a Russert "gotcha" interview. I wouldn't call it a softball interview. It was a Nerf Ball interview.

Did Russert ask Webb about his career as a novelist and the content of his writings?

No.

Read a sampling of Webb's work.

Russert completely dodged the matter.

The only time Russert touched on Webb's sleazy books was when he joked about them, and very vaguely at that.

Transcript excerpt

MR. RUSSERT: Jim Webb, you had this comment in The Washington Post which caught my attention. “Webb said he will model himself after former New York senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan (D), whom he described as someone ‘who had government experience that was shaped by the intellectual world.’” A man I knew well, described as independent, maverick, iconoclastic. Do you see yourself along those lines?

SEN.-ELECT WEBB: You know, when this campaign started and people were saying I didn’t know how to do soundbites and debates and this sort of thing. And I sat down one day and I said, “Well, who is my prototype here?” And it would be Daniel Patrick Moynihan. Someone who had government experience, but who was shaped through the intellectual world and who cared about where you measure society, which is at the base, rather than at the top. Where is the health of society. And yeah, very much look forward to, in many ways, following in his footsteps.

MR. RUSSERT: And sometimes got in trouble for his writings.

SEN.-ELECT WEBB: And I, you know, it’s—I—I’m really looking forward to, to trying to do the—some of the same things that he did in terms of putting, putting my experience in the intellectual world onto the problems, the practical problems of today.

MR. RUSSERT: Jim Webb and Jon Tester, congratulations to both and we look forward to covering your tenures in the Senate.

You could tell that Webb was really uncomfortable at the mere mention of his writings. He started stuttering and stumbling.

I don't know why he lost his composure. He should have known that Russert wasn't going to put up any of Webb's pornographic passages on the screen and expect him to respond.

I do think it's odd that Russert drew a parallel between what Moynihan wrote and the sort of trash that Webb has peddled.

Clearly, Russert is thrilled that Webb defeated George Allen. He wouldn't embarrass him like that.

Maybe I'm misinterpreting him.

Maybe it isn't the Dems' victory that has brought a new sparkle to Russert eyes. Maybe he's been enjoying one of Webb's novels.