Deeds Takes Va. Governor's Race to Twitter

He's got musical taste ... or so he says (in 140 characters)

While in the midst of his Virginia gubernatorial campaign, Creigh Deeds will often stop what he's doing to give his followers an update -- on Twitter.

Is he throwing out his ideas on health care or employment? No, he's talking music.

Deeds apparently wants people to see he's much hipper and cooler than his opponents, Brian Moran and Terry McAuliffe. So he tweets what he's listening to. It's truly engaging. Here's how he spent March 31:

A cool morning, and a busy day ahead; this is the end of the quater. I begin witj Derek and the Dominoes
2:20 AM Mar 31st from TwitterBerry

Still dialing. A few hours left. Will work on my typing. This morning the Band and the Cranberries have kept me going. Feat on the way
8:13 AM Mar 31st from TwitterBerry

Heading out to an event soon. My daughter Rebecca will be there! Spiced up afternoon calltime with the great Joe Cocker
1:24 PM Mar 31st from TwitterBerry


What event did he go to? Did his daughter recognize him? What band came after Joe Cocker? These are questions we're just not going to get answered. He didn't tweet again until 2:53 a.m. the next day...

On the road. Will start off with the greatest show on earth, the Rolling Stones

Oh the drama... Oh the suspense...

Local

Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia local news, events and information

Here's what's expected to change in DC under new deal with Capitals, Wizards

How DC managed to keep the Caps and Wizards

Deeds told the Washington Post he wants to help younger people "understand their musical heritage, educate them a little bit."

"I just want them to understand that punk rock-and-roll didn't start with NOFX," he told the paper.

OK, OK ... if he starts tweeting about Bad Brains or Operation Ivy, then we might be impressed.

But this got us thinking. Maybe all politicians should be forced to campaign by only using Twitter. The 140-character limit would be a blessing.

No more long-winded speeches about how great they are. Just put them on a stage. Put his followers in the audience. If they like his tweet, they retweet it to their friends. Instant gratification!

Debates between candidates would also be much more palpable. One hour of direct messages back and forth. No hours-long fact-checking sessions will be required to see which candidate lied. With just 140 characters, sorting the facts from the fiction will be a breeze.

So maybe Deeds is just way ahead of his time. Nevermind the CNN-YouTube partnership. Will the next presidential debate several years from now be a joint venture between Facebook and Twitter?

Contact Us