Most folks will agree that the Democratic Party is in desperate need of some moderate leaders, and Warner fills that bill. Since his 2008 election to the Senate, Warner ranks as the 37th most liberal senator and the 62nd most conservative, according to the National Journal 2009 Senate vote ratings. Which moves one to ask, moderate compared to whom?

Obama, Biden, and Hillary of course! For in 2007 Obama claimed the #1 spot as the most liberal member of the Senate by this same National Journal vote rating, while Biden was ranked #3 and Hillary lagged behind at #17.

So by National Journal standards, Mark Warner at #37 is a Senate moderate.

In 2012, Obama will need to at least pretend to move to the middle in order win re-election, and Mark Warner could help Obama with that perception. He would help dissipate that “Obama is a socialist” battle cry, for it would be a stretch to call Senator Warner, a multi-millionaire former venture capitalist, a socialist.