Remarkably, a large number of folks in North Carolina have gotten big headlines, simply by announcing that each of them is NOT going to seek the Democratic nomination to run against US Senator Richard Burr, R-NC. Most recently, Rep. Bob Ethridge got big coverage for this staged non-announcement.
Well, okay, here goes. A press release.
RALEIGH: Dr. Michael Munger, Chair of Political Science at Duke and former (2008) candidate for North Carolina Governor, made an important announcement today.
"After thinking it over, and talking to my wife and family, I have decided NOT to seek the Democratic nomination for Senator. There were many considerations, not the least of which is that I am not a registered Democrat, and therefore am ineligible to run. But I am also hoping to spend more time at home now, and having to live in Washington as a Senator would get in the way of all that."
Munger has agreed that he will not endorse anyone in the Democratic primary, after thinking it over for about 3 seconds. "They are all crooks, why would I endorse one of them?" he asked.
(UPDATE: Note--the above was edited to acknowledge reader suggestions...)
6 comments:
This IS big news. It should go on the LPNC website. I will post it on Liberty Point
I for one am glad you made this decision, Mike.
Its a little bit embarrassing that you admit to taking 30 seconds
Maybe they are all kooks but I sure would have used the word crooks instead!
Well, at the risk of defending Ethridge, the reality is that he is in "lose/lose" position. Look at it from the prospective of a little king.
First way to lose- after all those years in the minority, wondering why he bothers even showing up for work, he has scored a seat on the best committee in the House -- where you get to give out taxpayer $ to name stuff after yourself. So why forgo having your name memorialized for eternity on a bridge or highway rest stop so that you can be elected to the Senate and start at the bottom - where he will end up on some committee no one ever heard of, such as the committee on aging. Oh, wait, that was Mrs. Dole.
Second way to lose- he actually loses the race for Senate. Now he does not have a seat on any committee - anywhere! No one will remember his name in six months, let alone for eternity...
I do agree with mungo on this point though. Having a press conference to say you are not running, but would have won if you did ("the seat is winnable"), is pretty funny.
- anonyman (not cynical, just lost my political virginity in DC)
Anonyman is quite right, actually.
The Bob Ethridge announcement was, in fact, newsworthy. Because he did have a shot at winning, if he ran, and many people thought he might run.
So, the announcement was NOT just balloon juice.
The best example of the "Listen! I'm not running!" genre is Senator Chuck Hagel. He had a big, BIG press conference to announce that there was no news.
Well last time, everyone wondered why Easley didn't try to challenge Dole. It seems he didn't want to move to DC because his wife had such a good job in Raleigh.
Post a Comment