23 January 2008 - Dropping out - in two parts
Part one.....
I think six months ago it would have been predicted that John McCain would drop out of the Presidential race and Fred Thompson would be the front runner.
Well, here we are and the opposite is happening. Fred Thompson was NEVER able to gain traction and has decided to call it quits.
Eight years ago the dirty politics inside the GOP handed a loss to John McCain in South Carolina. This year, South Carolina gives him a bump.
Eight years ago, Fred Thompson bucked the GOP establishment and supported John McCain. Right now, Thompson is taking no position.
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Dropping out part two....
Governor Matt Blunt is NOT seeking a second term and announced it via YouTube yesterday.
There will be a press conference today at 9:30am to explain further.
This announcement led to a very interesting evening last night. The annual Jefferson City Area Chamber of Commerce "Taste of Jefferson City" event to welcome the legislature back to Jefferson City was held at the Capital Plaza Hotel. And yes, the discussion around the room was all about Governor Blunt and why now, who now?
The questions were coming from both sides of the political aisle.
Why now? Good question and it seems that no one could come up with a good answer to fit it. A prominent Democrat told me that he had seen polling numbers from Attorney General Jay Nixon's campaign for Governor. He told me that the polling indicated that Nixon has a lead in those polls, but not a huge lead and that Blunt's numbers were not a bad as other Republicans, including President Bush.
So, is the move to NOT RUN being done to help the party maintain power? That seems to be the conventional wisdom, even if the numbers don't show it to necessarily be the case.
So, who now? Lieutenant Governor Peter Kinder was an obvious entry to the race. State Treasurer Sarah Steelman said yesterday that she was NOT running for Governor. Maybe she will change her mind.
Who else? Congressman Kenny Hulshof name was mentioned to me MANY times last night at "Taste of Jefferson City" as a possible front runner. I also heard, just once, the name of former U.S. Senator Jim Talent. I have read that name more this morning.
House Speaker Rod Jetton's name has been floated out as well.
We will see who.
NOW - the $64,000 question is this......Which Party Benefits?
Let me know what YOU think. I will share MY thoughts on this tomorrow.
