Nation
WASHINGTON — Jim Webb, a decorated Vietnam veteran and accomplished novelist who became a fierce critic of the Iraq war in the Senate, announced Thursday that he's challenging Hillary Rodham Clinton and other rivals for the Democratic presidential nomination.
Webb, in a statement posted on his campaign website, acknowledged he would face major hurdles but vowed to bring an outsider's voice to the race.
“I understand the odds, particularly in today's political climate, where fair debate is so often drowned out by huge sums of money,” Webb wrote. “I know that more than one candidate in this process intends to raise at least a billion dollars.”
Webb, 69, was a Navy secretary under Republican President Ronald Reagan who became a Democrat in response to the Iraq war that he opposed, and Clinton supported.
IVANPAH, Calif. — Jay Rutherford and his friends were mesmerized by the billowing smoke and small “psychedelic explosions” emanating from the van on the side of the road.“We had the fantasy it was filled with fireworks because it was exploding,” Rutherford told a reporter by phone while still on the road from Las Vegas to Los Angeles. A minute later, he was incredulous — “It was? Are you serious?”The Chevrolet box van was packed with fireworks and had ignited along southbound Interstate 15 Thursday near the Nevada border shortly before 1:30 p.m., burning to the ground on the side of a Southern California freeway and clogging the main artery between Los Angeles and Las Vegas for hours.No one was injured. The van driver fled before authorities arrived.
