Former Virginia Sen. Jim Webb jumped into the Democratic presidential contest Thursday, acknowledging he faces long odds in challenging front-runner Hillary Rodham Clinton but vowing to stand out as a leader who is both battle-honed and idealistic.
Mr. Webb, a decorated Vietnam War veteran who staunchly opposed the Iraq War, said he was running for president because America needed a “fresh approach to solving problems.”
In keeping with his low-key style and his aversion to the trapping of modern presidential campaigning, Mr. Webb made the announcement without fanfare in an email to supporters and a post on his websites.
“I understand the odds, particularly in today’s political climate where fair debate is so often drowned out by huge sums of money. I know that more than one candidate in this process intends to raise at least a billion dollars,” he said, referring to candidates that include Mrs. Clinton, who has already broken fundraising records.
Mr. Webb said that he felt an obligation to provide the leadership necessary to keep the U.S. out of foreign entanglements and to fight for working-class Americas.
“We need to shake the hold of these shadow elites on our political process,” he wrote. “Our elected officials need to get back to the basics of good governance and to remember that their principal obligations are to protect our national interests abroad and to ensure a level playing field here at home, especially for those who otherwise have no voice in the corridors of power.”
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Mr. Webb, who also is a successful war novelist and served as secretary of Navy during the Reagan administration, faces an uphill battle for nomination.
Despite being the first Democrat to launch an exploratory committee and making frequent visits to early-voting states, he has never finished above low single digits in any poll.
In a A Quinnipiac University poll of released Thursday, he remained near the bottom of the pack among likely Democratic caucus-goers in Iowa, tied at 1 percent with former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley.
Only former Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee did worse, garbing zero support.
Mrs. Clinton lead in the poll with 52 percent, followed by Sen. Bernard Sanders with 33 precent and Vice President Joseph R. Biden with 7 percent.
He doesn’t fare much better in national polls of Democratic voters.
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It will be a struggle for Mr. Webb to just get noticed, said Democratic campaign strategist Brad Bannon.
“When I talk to other Democrats about the presidential race, the discussion always is about the three: Clinton, Sanders and O’Malley,” he said. “Webb needs to get into the conversation. Chaffee has the same problem.”
“Few Democratic primary voters even know he exists. So he needs to do something dramatic that will attract media attention,” said Mr. Bannon.
Mr. Webb’s call for restoring fairness to the economy sounded similar to the campaign pitch made by all the candidates.
“We all want the American dream — unending opportunity at the top if you put things together and you make it, absolute fairness along the way, and a safety net underneath you if you fall on hard times or suffer disability or as you reach your retirement years,” he said. “That’s the American Trifecta — opportunity, fairness, and security. It’s why people from all over the world do whatever they can to come here. And it’s why the rest of us love this country and our way of life.”
“More than anything else, Americans want their leaders to preserve that dream, for all of us and not for just a few,” he said.
Mr. Webb likely presents the most formidable challenge to Mrs. Clinton on foreign policy.
A former Republican, he became a Democrat to oppose the Iraq war and won a Senate seat in 2006 over Republican Sen. George Allen in Virginia.
Mrs. Clinton voted for the Iraq invasion but called that vote a mistake during her unsuccessful 2008 White House run.
As he entered the race, Mr. Webb jabbed Mrs. Clinton’s foreign policy record as senator and secretary of state.
Without naming her, Mr. Webb pointed to her Iraq War vote in the Senate and her strong advocacy at the State Department for U.S. military support of rebels who overthrew Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, which destabilized the county and helped give rise to the terrorist army known as Islamic State.
Mr. Webb opposed both.
He also slammed President Obama’s negotiations for a nuclear deal with Iran.
“I would not be the President to sign an executive order establishing a long-tem relationship with Iran if it accepts Iran’s acquisition of nuclear weapons,” he said.
Larry J. Sabato, director of the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics, said Mr. Webb has the same problem as Mr. O’Malley: They need to find a way to supplant Mr. Sanders, a Vermont independent and avowed socialist who has emerged as the chief rival to Mrs. Clinton.
“Webb is an interesting and accomplished guy, and as he proved in 2006, you underestimate him at your peril,” said Mr. Sabato. “But can lightning strike twice in the same place? Possibly but not likely.”
• S.A. Miller can be reached at smiller@washingtontimes.com.
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