Allen: Webb's Books Show Bad Character
Webb Allies Defend Novels as Works of Imagination
By Michael D. Shear and Tim Craig
Washington Post Staff Writers
Friday, October 27, 2006; 3:36 PM
RICHMOND, Oct. 27 -- Virginia Sen. George Allen (R) has accused his Democratic opponent, James Webb, of using lurid sex scenes and demeaning descriptions of women in his novels, the latest character attack in a close campaign.
With 11 days remaining before election day, the allegations about sex-laced passages in Webb's writings injected a new question into a campaign that has largely centered on character issues: Should the author of a fictional work who runs for office be personally held to account for the scenes in his books?
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Allen campaign officials provided sentences from Webb's novels -- some of them depicting acts of incest and graphic sexuality -- to the Drudge Report Web site Thursday night. Matt Drudge's online report often breaks or promotes stories with a sensational angle, most recently the scandal involving former Rep. Mark Foley (R-Fla.)
Allen aides, who have been trying to get other news organizations to write about the excerpts for weeks, issued statements saying that the fictional scenes from Webb's novels reflect poorly on Webb's personal character and fitness for office.
"How can women trust Jim Webb to represent their views in the Senate when chauvinistic attitudes and sexually exploitative references run throughout his fiction and non-fiction writings?" said Kay James, an Allen campaign adviser. "More importantly, what type of mind commits these thoughts to paper -- in such graphic detail?"
Webb responded angrily on Washington Post Radio Friday morning, defending his novels as "serious" works and calling Allen's attack part of a "Karl Rove" campaign that is devoid of ideas. Rove is President Bush's top political strategist.
Webb's novels, such as "Lost Soldiers," "Something to Die For" and "Fields of Fire," are historical novels that describe wartime horrors in Vietnam and soldiers dealing with the aftermath of war. Webb is a decorated former Marine who served in the Vietnam War.
"To take these things out and pull excerpts out and force them on people . . . is just a classic example of the way this campaign is run," Webb said. "Literature is literature. I've made my career as a novelist. George Allen doesn't have a record to run on."
Webb said the graphic scenes in his novels, many of which are set in wartime, do not reflect the complete books. He said he has written about disturbing scenes that he has witnessed on the battlefield or as a journalist traveling throughout Southeast Asia. |
