Did the tea party and anti-incumbent sentiment peak just a few months too early?
President Barack Obama and the Democratic Party, who have been starved for good news through much of 2010, finally received a generous helping Tuesday night.
Republicans, meanwhile, were left with several new reasons to wonder whether all the favorable national trends showing in the polls are enough to overcome local candidates who are inspiring little confidence about their readiness for the general election 12 weeks from now.
Contiue Reading Text Size
-+resetVideo
POLITICO 44
In each of the four states that held primaries Tuesday, the GOP either nominated or gave an overnight lead to candidates tarnished by scandal, gaffes or some other significant vulnerability.
The headline victory belonged to Sen. Michael Bennet, the Colorado Democrat who, with extensive help from Obama and the party establishment in Washington, galloped to a surprisingly wide 9-point victory over challenger Andrew Romanoff. A former state House speaker, Romanoff once looked well-positioned to rally liberal discontent and give the White House a very visible black eye.
But the party establishment showed it still has some fight, even in an anti-establishment year. And Democrats, in an assessment that many independent analysts tend to agree with, said the most favorable news for them may have come from the results on the Republican side.
The GOP nominee will be Ken Buck, a county prosecutor and insurgent conservative who Democrats will try to paint as a Colorado version of Sharron Angle — the Nevada Republican whose rhetorical stubbed toes and strident ideological profile have weakened GOP prospects there.
The Colorado results, combined with Tuesday's returns in Connecticut, Georgia and Minnesota and other recent primaries, suggest it may be time to scrutinize a treasured 2010 story line — about an angry electorate, determined to punish insiders and professional pols of all stripes, rushing to embrace ideological insurgents.
It’s not that this narrative is all wrong. But it appears to be significantly more true among Republicans than Democrats.
Buck, for instance, was favored by some tea party activists but opposed by much of the state and national party leadership. Buck’s caught-on-tape remark that he ought to be elected because he didn’t wear high heels wasn’t enough for Lt. Gov Jane Norton to close the gap in their primary, but it will certainly be used against the Republican nominee in the general election.
Republicans also didn’t do themselves any favors in Colorado’s gubernatorial contest by narrowly nominating Dan Maes. GOP leaders had hoped former Rep. Scott McInnis, who has become embroiled in a plagiarism scandal, would win the nomination and then agree to drop out — allowing the party to tap a new nominee who would give them a better chance against former Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper.
Read more:
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0810/40941.html#ixzz0wJEcKIBh
