What If Tom Carper Doesn’t Run?
I’ve been thinking about this lately. You have a clearly diminished incumbent, one who will be forced to display that diminished capacity publicly this year. He has more pensions than Trump has women suing him. I can see him taking the money and not running. He probably can still remember Bill Roth’s campaign literally crashing to the ground…along with Bill Roth.
What happens then? I think that Kerri Harris has established herself as the progressive alternative and is well on the way to putting a strong grassroots team in place. I hope/think that all progressives will/would rally around her candidacy.
However, the corporate Democratic Party loyalists, those who embrace the Third Way and the Concord Coalition, won’t go gently into that good night. So, who will they rally around?
My guess? Jack Markell. The guy who wrote this article. Just read that screed. Not only can’t we afford to keep Carper in the Senate, we can’t afford Markell sliding into that seat.
So, you know what to do.
OK, with that out of the way, what do you think will happen if Carper retires? Or, do you think that there is no chance that Carper hangs it up?
Wasn’t there some kind of senate vote to limit our terrorism in Yemen? Wonder how our 2 senators voted
Media whore Chris Coons (he was once again on Morning Joe today) voted to table the resolution along with the blue dogs. Meaning, the bipartisan resolution was tabled:
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2018/3/20/1750679/-10-Democratic-Senators-who-today-voted-Yes-to-table-S-J-Res-54-must-justify-their-vote
Mike Castle is tanned and rested.
So, presumably, is Charles ‘Bouvier de Flanders’ Copeland.
We simply cannot take a chance on Kinder Morgan Markell taking
this seat. We know his position on literally everything. Lets work to get the progressive elected its our only hope of electing a candidate who will work for us not corporations, big banks et all.
I don’t think Carper quits. But if he does, it will be part of a deal with Markell or a Republican to slide into the Senate. Our best shot is for Carper to underestimate Kerri Harris and stay in.
All for a progressive candidate, but also ready to retain the seat. As noted they will immediately haul out Markell The Magnificent who will have instant name recognition in his favor. As for Castle he’s tanned and ready for the grave, they might try it but I suspect not, hyper annuated politicians just don’t have the cache they once did.
Actually, our best shot is to get involved in her campaign and leave nothing to chance. Harris’ positions are far more popular with the voting public than either Carper’s or Markell’s. If she’s the nominee, she wins.
I made a contribution to Kerri Harris, and intend to make more.
Actually, “they” will not “haul out” Markell. Y’all have apparently forgotten that Carney is, was and will remain the party’s man.
Beyond that, Markell, whom I stay in touch with second-hand, gives no indication he is interested in a further career in politics.
The campaign is shaping up to be a well-organized grassroots campaign. Meaning, it’s gonna be a lot of fun for volunteers.
Whether or not you’ve been involved in such a campaign, I highly recommend getting involved. It can be a cathartic experience.
Alby- You don’t think Carney would run for the seat if Carper steps aside, do you?
No, but the “they” you’re talking about have no love for Jack Markell, and “they” wouldn’t turn to him.
If they had someone lined up to run, they wouldn’t have run Carper in his dotage.
Markell BECAME what we feared Carney would be. Carney’s performance as governor has only confirmed that they’re basically one and the same.
Carper, even in his dotage, chooses whether he runs or not. I mean, it’s not as if he’s betrayed his patrons. He’s doubled down on representing them instead of Delaware voters.
They’re not one and the same to Ed Freel.
I think you overestimate Freel’s animus towards Markell. I remember being at Dem HQ back in 2008 (I was still working for the General Assembly) and lamenting the total institutional support for Carney and asking why. Freel’s response, and it’s pretty close to verbatim: “Because we have to.”
Carper was driving the Carney train. Freel, not so much.
Why do you think we referred to Carper, Carney and Coons as the three blind mice. Blind to the citizens of Delaware needs, but eyes wide open and palms up to the lobbyists hucksters.
Maybe Markell has his sights set on the White House in 2020.
El Som: Markell for President…if he thinks he could be, then he is as delusional as Trump. What the hell could Jack run on. Everything that could go wrong went wrong under his leadership in Delaware…ie. Prison Industrial Complex, Kinder Morgan…Education? Bring it Jack.
Not until/unless Biden decides not to run.
If he was, would he have gone on his cross-country bicycle trip, or would he have gone to Iowa and New Hampshire? Sheesh.
So you think he’s exploring a presidential run?
Biden couldn’t win either…his time came and went. This is the year of the woman, young folk and progressive politics…not politricks.
@El Som: As I said, would he have gone on a cross-country bike trip, or would he have set up an exploratory committee and gone to Iowa and New Hampshire? Don’t encourage the trolls.
@spktruth: Your track record on such predictions is long and undistinguished. Stick to things you know. How other people will vote is not one of those things.
“This is the year of the woman, young folk and progressive politics…not politricks.”
Bullshit. Dan Lipinski just defeated a young, progressive woman. And that was just against other Democrats.
With Gillibrand likely in, I see him as an also-ran among the Third Way crowd. But it’s not as if delusional politicians haven’t run for President before. Some end up winning.
Has any of you ever been right about what Markell will do? Because I can’t think of a time you have.
I predicted he’d beat Carney. That’s something.
But did you predict he’d run against him in the first place?
That was before my pundit years. Once he did, I was all in. Volunteered on his campaign, door-knocking, even phone calling, which I hate.
Didn’t turn out the way I would’ve, um, predicted how his time as governor would go…