WSLS profiles Mark Warner
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WSLS profiles Mark Warner
Jay Warren gives a more personal look at who Mark Warner is.At the annual Fiddler’s Convention in Galax, Mark Warner needed no introduction. One woman walked up to him and announced, “I’m meeting Mark Warner.“ Many more ran up asking for an autograph or picture.
Warner admits he loves working the crowd, as he happily goes up to people announcing, “I’m hear to harass you.“
That usually means a lesson on Mark Warner’s time as governor. He heard it over and over.
He told one man, “I just have remind you of one thing, remember who got the Hokies into the ACC.“ Another heard, “I’m for the second amendment and did I do that when I was governor?“ The man said yes.
Warner asked another man, “Did I forget you when I was governor?“
Warner has an ease about him, fitting in here as if he was raised in Southwest Virginia. But, that couldn’t be any further from the truth.
WARREN: “It seems like a weird connection to me. You’re from Connecticut originally, worth 200 million dollars, went to Harvard. Does that fit in around here?“
WARNER: “I also grew up in a small town in Illinois where I walked through a cornfield to go to school.“
That connection to Southwest Virginia began in 1996, following his first election. He lost to Senator John Warner (of no relation). But, Warner never stopped running and began focusing more and more on Southwest Virginia.
During his 2001 campaign for governor he sponsored a NASCAR truck driver and even had a television ad aimed directly at rural voters. It worked, as Warner won handily. He carried our end of the commonwealth which is a rare feat for a Democrat.
Governor Warner took office with a tone of bipartisanship telling Republicans he was ready to “reach across the aisle” during his inaugural address.
It’s a message he’s still preaching.
WARNER: “It’s time we have members of the Senate that will say let’s put the country first, not particular partisan interests.“
WARREN: “"And you’re ready to say no to a President Obama?“
WARNER: “I think at the end of the day, the people who hire me are the people of Virginia.“
That bipartisan appeal has helped Warner time and again. As governor, he faced a $6 billion dollar budget shortfall. To bridge it, he hauled a power point presentation across the commonwealth, convincing the Republican led General Assembly to pass the largest tax increase in Virginia history. Along the way, he broke a 2001 campaign pledge not to raise taxes.
Five years later, it’s a decision he’s still defending.
WARNER: “I’m proud of what we did.“
WARREN: “I get that you are comfortable with your decision, but was it tough to break your promise?“
WARNER: “I think the idea that after we cut the revenues, after we reformed, and we were looking at losing our Triple A rating or perhaps ruining our colleges and universities. If I would have allowed that to happen during my term as governor, I couldn’t have lived with myself. It was absolutely the right thing to do to get this budget fixed.“
And the public agreed. Warner left office with sky-high approval ratings. And it was obvious to everyone that he didn’t want to leave office.
WARREN: “You loved being governor.“
WARNER: “I loved being governor.“
WARREN: “You could read it on your face.“
WARNER: “I love the idea of getting stuff done.“
An example of that is the location of our interview. We met at the Crossroads Center in Galax, a facility built to retrain workers who had lost their jobs. It was a Warner initiative as governor and an issue he’s still fighting for.
“I’m passionate about the idea that everyone doesn’t have to move to NOVA to get a good job,“ he said.
Which brings us back to Warner’s appeal in Southwest Virginia, where we’ve lost more jobs than any other region in the commonwealth.
WARREN: “You seem to have a really special connection with Southwest Virginia.“
WARNER: “Well folks in Southwest Virginia took a real chance on me seven years ago. I was the high tech guy from NOVA. I said give me a chance and I wouldn’t forget Southwest Virginia and I hope people fell that I honored that.“
It appears they agree with him, at least around here.
As he was leaving the Fiddler’s Convention, Warner asked one man, “Who do you like for Senate”?
The guy said, “I’m going for that Warner guy.“
Warner smiled and said, “Oh good.“
Reader Reactions
Mark Warner cannot even control Virginia’s little Chicago, Danville.
His voice does give me goose pimples when he speaks because it is so sweet.
Mr. Warren: You need to do your homework. Mark Warner isn’t from Connecticut; he worked for Abraham Ribbicoff, a senator very instrumental in establishing federal welfare programs. Also for Chris Dodd, who as of late has all but disappeared since the nation’s financial crisis. Both senators are natives of Connecticut. Unless my reference is incorrect Warner is a native of Indiana.
Mark Warner is a tax and spend liberal anyway you you roll the dice. The man spent 10 MIL of personal money in an effort to unseat John Warner in ‘96 and another 5 MIL for election to Governor in Virginia. Why would an individual spend that amount of personal money for election to political office other than to make more money.
Warner’s reported worth is betweem 1 and 2 million dollars; mostly accumulated from inside information from a congressional friend relative to the cell phone industry. Incidently, use of such information today is illegal, but only questionable when Warner made use of it.
I’d trust Warner about as far as I can see him. He does a wonderful impersonation of a Virginian.
By the way, Joe Biden still hasn’t answered your question. Do you reckon the blood may not be getting to his brain? The real answer to your question as we all know is - NONE. Obama has never been tested on any crisis and especially the national media keeps letting the issues go.
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