Video: Jim Webb Says Not Interested in Running VA; Not Ruling Out Run for President

Several people have asked me in recent days whether I thought Jim Webb would be interested in heading up the Veterans Administration in the light of the problems there, Eric Shinseki’s resignation, etc. Based on my read of Jim Webb, I definitely didn’t think he’d be interested, and this morning on CNN he confirmed that one – “I’m always happy to give advice, but I’m really not interested in being in the administration right now.” As for a possible run for president, I think the key line is that he’s “very happy to be back in the discussion – that’s the main thing.” The bottom line is that Jim Webb has a lot of strong views, whether on economic inequality or national security policy or criminal justice reform, and he obviously must feel that the issues he cares about most strongly are not being adequately addressed right now. Plus, of course, he has a “healthy ego,” like many politicians, so it’s not surprising he wants to be part of the national “discussion.”  On the other hand, he truly does hate running for office, and I simply can’t imagine that he’d put himself through that again. I also find it hard to believe that Webb would have a snowball’s chance in you-know-where of winning the Democratic nomination against Hillary Clinton. Heck, even if Clinton weren’t in the field, it’s still hard to see Jim Webb doing well among the liberal Democratic primary and caucus electorates. Not sure how he – or Mark Warner, for that matter – would ever get around that obstacle.