Warner Faces The Nation.

The Governor was on CBS' Face The Nation today, and acquitted himself well. You can read a transcript of his session here (note that this is a PDF document), and see video excerpts from his appearance here (on the right of the page).

He did dodge the question of whether he would have voted for the Iraq war, a bit maddening but probably the right political move at the moment. He did make a point of advising Democrats not to re-fight why we got into the war but to instead press Bush on what he's going to do now. I don't necessarily agree with him on that point, but that is the "centrist" position. Otherwise, it was a recap of many things anyone reading this blog has likely heard before from him (the "Virginia miracle" - although he doesn't call it that, Democrats have to compete in more than 16 states, etc).

And so the grooming begins...

Although the national media is paying greater attention to Warner's 2008 chances now, most of which is being reported is old hat to us Warner watchers. However, there are some interesting new bits of information coming out, and the most interesting one is this one from a Bloomberg News story (hat tip to The Note for pointing this out):

Warner has been trying to expand his network of Democratic Party and national heavyweights. In May, Democratic elder statesman Vernon Jordan took Warner to the annual Bilderberg Conference, which brings together some of Europe's and North America's leading bankers, economists and government officials. ``He did very well,'' Jordan said.

Fourteen years ago Jordan took another young southern governor to his first Bilderberg Conference. His name was Bill Clinton.

Very interesting.

Now as it turns out, this story was reported by the AP back in May when it occurred. And given the international political and economic elite that gathered, it caught the attention of those obsessed with the Free Masons, who apparently received "leaks" from the conference. Warner's name comes up here:

Jim Tucker said as much in his Bilderberg report in the American Free Press (May 23) when he wrote: "There was some informal discussion of timing for a vote in the United Nations on establishing a direct global tax by imposing a 10-cents-a-barrel levy on oil at the well-head. This is important to the Bilderberg goal of establishing the UN as a formal world government. Such a direct tax on individuals is symbolically important. Bilderberg's global tax proposal has been pending before the UN for three years but the issue has been blacked out by the Bilderberg-controlled US media."

Mark R. Warner, governor of Virginia and a first-time Bilderberg invitee, expressed concern about how much additional financial responsibility the United States would take on as a result. At this point, Jose M. Durao Barroso, president of the European Commission, expressed a view held by many within Bilderberg that the United States does not provide a fair share of economic aid to poor countries. My sources confirm Jim Tucker's report that "Kissinger and David Rockefeller, among other Americans, beamed and nodded approval."

I tell you, Googling Bilderberg takes you through the looking glass into paranoid politics on the Web - I guess it ranks up there with the dread Trilateral Commission. For what it's worth, if you want to buy into the conspiracies, perhaps this means Warner is the Chosen One.

Kaine proves Warner is able.

Tim Kaine's convincing, resounding victory yesterday (do I dare say "landslide"? - after all, the Republicans were claiming Bush's 2-point win last November was a "clear mandate") has propelled the Warner-for-2008 talk into high gear. So much so that Kos' wife has come out for Warner. If you haven't read that Kos post (and the comments), make sure you do so. The comments are especially interesting, with most of the usual anti-Warner complaints (too DLC-ish, not "liberal" enough) being shot down fairly effectively. Warner will never appeal to the far left of the party, but yesterday's results have put him on the map as the clear #2 behind Hillary. Kos himself made the best point of the day:

In short, Warner gave the voters of his state a reason to vote Democratic, rather than vote against Republicans.

All of the things that we've touted about Warner are now reaching a wider (and now more receptive) audience. Warner's been on the radar of the Beltway class for quite a while now, but yesterday's vote has brought him onto the radar of rank-and-file Democrats. Let's not kid ourselves, though - he still has a long way to go to achieve the name recognition of Edwards, Clark, and others who have a national profile, but things could not be going any better for him at this moment.

ADMINISTRATIVE NOTE: I'm going to try and make an effort to start posting a bit more regularly (i.e., not every 5 months or so). However, since my last post I have a new addition to the family (a baby boy), to go with two brothers ages 6 and 3. So it's going to be hit-and-miss. But, to paraphase George H.W. Bush, Message: I'm Alive. And with the Kaine victory serving as rocket fuel to Warner's hopes, things are going to get interesting in the next couple of weeks, media and blogosphere-wise.