Former Democratic Sen. Jim Webb (Va.) announced his presidential campaign on Thursday, and took the opportunity to take a few veiled shots at Hillary Clinton over her bid to run the most expensive political campaign in U.S. history as well as her pro-war record.
After noting that he spent "many months of thought, deliberation, and discussion" before deciding to enter the race, the Virginia Democrat said he is aware of other candidates who plan "to raise at least a billion dollars" for their campaigns. He also criticized the Iraq war authorization and the intervention in Libya which were supported by Clinton:
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 – some estimates run as high as two billion dollars – in direct and indirect financial support. Highly paid political consultants are working to shape the "messaging" of every major candidate. […]
Let me assure you, as President I would not have urged an invasion of Iraq, nor as a Senator would I have voted to authorize it. I warned in writing five months before that invasion that we do not belong as an occupying power in that part of the world, and that this invasion would be a strategic blunder of historic proportions, empowering Iran and in the long run China, unleashing sectarian violence inside Iraq and turning our troops into terrorist targets.
I would not have been the President who used military force in Libya during the Arab Spring. I warned repeatedly that this use of our military did not meet the test of a grave national security interest, that it would have negative implications for the entire region, and that no such action should take place without the approval of the Congress. The leadership in the Congress at that time not only failed to give us a vote; they did not even allow a formal debate, and the President acted unilaterally. The attack in Benghazi was inevitable in some form or another, as was the continuing chaos and the dissemination of large numbers of weapons from Qaddafi’s armories to terrorist units throughout the region.
Webb has not fared well in recent polls of early primary states. A CNN poll of Democrats in New Hampshire found his support at less than 2 percent.
However, the growing wave of support for Democratic challenger Bernie Sanders indicates there is an appetite for an alternative to Hillary Clinton in the Democratic primary. Sanders trails Clinton by just 8 percent in New Hampshire, drew the largest crowd of the 2016 race so far at a rally in Wisconsin on Wednesday, and raised $15 million from 250,000 donors in the latest fundraising quarter. Clinton raised $45 million during the same time period.