Creigh Deeds
The Washington Post has shown the importance, not of itself as itself, but of the power of persuasive reasoning when it reaches thousands upon thousands of people.
How so?
Well, the story ends with today’s front page of the Post and began many, many years ago for Creigh Deeds. But, the inflection point for the rural Virginia state senator — the just elected Democratic nominee for Virginia’s gubernatorial race this fall — appears to have been the editorial published May 22 in The Washington Post. It is persuasive without being pushy, biting without being nasty. It makes an argument rather than forcing a position:
In 18 years in the General Assembly, Mr. Deeds has time and again supported measures that might be unpopular with his rural constituency but that are the right thing to do, for Northern Virginia and the state as a whole. He has demonstrated an understanding of the problems that matter most, the commitment to solve them and the capacity to get things done. Mr. Deeds may not be the obvious choice in the June 9 primary, but he’s the right one.
It is what good editorial writing, opinion writing, blogging, conversation . . . should be.
Before you think too much about what Creigh Deeds’ win means for Obama, for the Democrats or Republicans, or even for Virginia, if you’ve not yet done so, read this editorial.
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MORE: Creigh Deeds for Virginia Governor — campaign Web site
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Chris Geidner is the senior political writer at D.C.'s Metro Weekly and has written for The Atlantic Online, Advocate.com, Salon and other publications, as well as at his blog, Law Dork. Prior to moving to D.C. in 2009, he served as an attorney on the senior staff at the Ohio Attorney General's Office and had earlier worked for a leading Columbus law firm. An extended biography can be found