Jason Riley writing in the Wall Street Journal’s Political Diary today has an irritating comment about the decision by Steve King not to seek the Senate Seat being vacated by Tom Harkin.
“national Republican figures such as Karl Rove were wary of his ability to run a disciplined campaign that would win over enough moderate Democrats and independents to prevail in the general election.”
Riley goes on to Todd Akinize King with this delight:
It is one thing to oppose unlawful immigration. It is quite another to compare illegal aliens to dogs and livestock, as Mr. King has done on occasion.
That is typical of the likes of the New York – DC corridor or those in its gravitational orbit. Presume the validity of what liberals say and help serve as a megaphone for it. Insist a Tea Party favorite can’t raise money and tell everyone not to waste money on the campaign. They become tools of liberals, useful idiots who maintain their bonafides by mixing their denigrations with faint praise.
Yours truly wrote the following as a comment to the article:
So Rove was wary of Steve King’s ability to run a disciplined campaign, which translated means “do everything and only what Karl Rove thinks is electable.”
This from the guy who but for Swift Boat Veterans for Truth would have been justifiably the goat for a blown reelection effort by G W Bush. And Rove’s brand of winning candidate – the inauthentic appearing or the unwilling or unable to articulately fight back, the kind that depend on his advice.
Straight talk and authenticity can win. Chuck Grassley is a case in point. Something Rove has lost touch with in his orbit.
I will add herein that while King has disappointed us on a few things (we do not anticipate the eventual nominee to be any better), he is feisty and that is precisely what is needed against Braley. He is equal to or more articulate on issues, in his occasional pithy way, than any candidate we have put up against the Harkinistas of which Braley is one.
Harkin, Braley, Democrats in general — are mud fighters and anyone who thinks they can win by out niceing them will be a loser. Our candidate will need to have the skills and tenacity to peel the bark off of Braley. King does not have to rise to the occasion, he is already there.
King probably thinks he is safe where he is and can run those elections on autopilot. He certainly is useful in the House. But the attitude I sense from the CLEC boys and girls is that they are probably cheering King’s decision for the wrong reasons. They think that seat actually belongs to Democrats. Will they be there to support a candidate as conservative as King? Well we will see. R Mall
