Jim Webb Touts ‘Actual Accomplishments’ In Presidential Candidacy Announcement

Jim Webb announced on Thursday morning that he will be joining an ever-growing list of politicians who are going to be running for President in 2016. Jim Webb, a former U.S. Senator from Virginia, does have the benefit of running as a Democrat, so his competition in the primary will be significantly less than if he were running as a Republican.

Jim Webb announced the move not through a lengthy press conference like Donald Trump did, but through a rather lengthy posting on his official website. That might benefit Webb, because Jim didn’t say anything about Mexicans and how they weren’t wanted here. That gives him the safety of knowing there won’t be any beauty pageants publicly distancing themselves from him. On a serious note, Jim Webb will try and give presumed front runner Hillary Clinton a real challenge, something it doesn’t appear the other Democrats currently in the race will be able to do.

While former Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley and U.S. Senator from Vermont Bernie Sanders both have their individual fan clubs in the Democratic party, neither are expected to have enough punch to give Clinton much of a fight. Jim Webb might be able to put up that fight thanks to being relatively young (compared to Sanders) and his military background.

In his announcement, Jim Webb had no qualms about going after Clinton. In fact, it appears the Democrat is borrowing a few barbs from Republican candidates who have claimed that most of Hillary’s accomplishments were based on perception more than reality. “We need a President who understands leadership, who has a proven record of actual accomplishments, who can bring about bipartisan solutions, who can bring people from both sides to the table to get things done,” Jim Webb said in the statement.

The former United States Senator, Vietnam veteran, and former Navy Secretary said that he believes the United States needs a fresh approach when it comes to dealing like issues like the turmoil in the Middle East. His entry into the race, as well as the recent announcement of Rhode Island governor Lincoln Chafee, puts the official tally of big time Democrats who have officially entered the race at five. That’s about half the number Republicans are able to boast when it comes to people running for the White House. Jim Webb will have to find a way to really separate himself from the other 15 people running if he wants to sit in the Oval Office.

[Photo by Mark Wilson / Getty Images]