Editing Chuck Robb (section)

===United States Senator===
[[File:charles robb.jpg|thumb|left|An official Senate portrait of Robb]]

Robb later served as a [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] member of the [[United States Senate]] from 1989 until 2001. Robb was elected in 1988, defeating Maurice Dawkins with 71% of the vote. Robb ranked annually as one of the most ideologically centrist senators and often acted as a bridge between Democratic and [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] members, as he preferred background deal-making to legislative limelight. His fellow Democrats removed him from the Budget Committee for advocating deeper cuts in federal spending.

In 1991, he was one of a handful of Democratic senators to support authorizing the use of force to expel [[Iraq]]i forces from [[Kuwait]]. The same year, he was one of eleven Democrats who voted to confirm the nomination of [[Clarence Thomas]] to the U.S. Supreme Court in a 52 to 48 vote, the narrowest margin of approval in more than a century. In 1992, he was chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, and during his term, the DSCC raised record amounts of funding to elect seven new Democrats to the Senate. The Democratic victory included the election of four new female senators and the re-election of a fifth in what was called [[The Year of the Woman]].

Robb was more liberal on social issues.{{Citation needed|date=March 2022}} He voted for the [[Federal Assault Weapons Ban]]<ref>''The Second Amendment Controversy Explained''. Theodore L. Johnson. Page 516.</ref> and against the execution of minors.{{citation needed|date=June 2008}} He was opposed to a constitutional amendment to ban [[flag burning]]. In 1993, he supported [[Bill Clinton]]'s proposal to adopt the [[don't ask, don't tell]] policy on homosexuals in the armed forces. Three years later, Robb was the only senator from a Southern state to oppose the [[Defense of Marriage Act]].<ref>''American Civil Rights Policy from Truman to Clinton: The Role of Presidential Leadership''. Steven A. Shull.</ref> In stating his opposition to the bill, which his friends and supporters urged him to support, he said the following, "I feel very strongly that this legislation is wrong. Despite its name, the Defense of Marriage Act does not defend marriage against some imminent, crippling effect. Although we have made huge strides in the struggle against discrimination based on gender, race, and religion, it is more difficult to see beyond our differences regarding sexual orientation. The fact that our hearts don't speak in the same way is not cause or justification to discriminate."<ref>''Why Marriage Matters: America, Equality, and Gay People's Right to Marry''. Evan Wolfson. pp. 42-43.</ref> Some have speculated that his position on gay rights, along with his positions on other hot-button issues like abortion, alienated the generally conservative voters of Virginia and contributed to his eventual defeat.<ref>''More Than Money: Interest Group Action in Congressional Elections''. Richard M. Skinner. Page 70.</ref>

Despite being outspent 4-1, Robb narrowly defeated former [[Iran-Contra]] figure [[Oliver North]] in 1994, a poor year nationally for Democrats. Senator [[John Warner]] refused to support North and instead backed third-party candidate and former [[Attorney General of Virginia|Virginia Attorney General]] [[Marshall Coleman]], whom Robb had defeated in the 1981 gubernatorial contest. The 1994 Senate campaign was documented in the 1996 film ''[[A Perfect Candidate]]'' and [[Brett Morgen]]'s ''Ollie's Army'' (where Robb is seen being heckled on the campus of [[James Madison University]]). During the campaign, Robb won the endorsement of Reagan's [[United States Secretary of the Navy|Naval Secretary]] (and future Democratic senator) [[Jim Webb]], and high-profile Republicans such as [[Elliot Richardson]], [[William Ruckelshaus]], and [[William Colby]].{{citation needed|date=July 2008}}<!-- Need citations for 1994 U.S. Senate election, esp. endorsements. Colby publicly a Republican? -->

Following his re-election in 1994, Robb continued to promote fiscal responsibility and a strong national defense; he was the only Senate Democrat to vote for all items in the Republican Party's "[[Contract with America]]" when they reached the floor, including a [[Balanced Budget Amendment]] and a [[line item veto]]. He became the only senator to serve on all three national security committees: Armed Services, Foreign Relations, and Intelligence. After two terms in the Senate and 25 years in statewide politics, he was defeated in a close race in 2000 by Republican former governor, and former congressman [[George Allen (U.S. politician)|George Allen]], Robb was the only Democratic incumbent senator to be defeated in that election.