Allen Gives Webb's Novels A Bad Review

Republican Senator George Allen said Friday the sexually graphic fiction of Democratic challenger Jim Webb is demeaning to women and fair game for criticism in their campaign.

Allen's campaign released several sexually explicit sections of Webb's novels, which they labeled "disturbing."

Allen told reporters after a campaign stop in Harrisonburg that Webb ... quote ... "talks about the books he's written and his creative writing and his novels. Those are some of his writings."

Allen said the excerpts ... quote ... "certainly are demeaning to women."

Earlier Friday, Webb reacted angrily when the host of a WTWP radio program raised the issue of sexually explicit passages, and read one on the air.

Webb said he didn't think it was "appropriate" to read the excerpt from the book "Something to Die For" on the air. But he defended the passage, calling it ... quote ... "an observation about how the human species lives."

Webb said the Allen campaign has been one of "smear after smear."

He also rejected the Allen campaign's claim that his novels consistently portray women as servile, inept and promiscuous.