Opinion: Alan Keyes joins the GOP fray

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‘Have campaign, will run.’

Clearly, that’s Alan Keyes’ mantra.

Keyes -- whose pull-no-punches, give-no-quarter conservatism livened up the 1996 and 2000 Republican primary presidential campaigns -- is at it again. He’s entered the 2008 GOP race (you can read all about it at his website here) and is to participate tonight in a ‘Values Voter’ forum in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.

That forum already promised a lively discussion of issues near and dear to social conservatives. A recent release promoting it said questions would come ‘not only from national pro-family leaders’ but from ‘an abortion survivor, victims of the homosexual agenda, parents whose children were once frozen embryos and a former slave in Sudan!’

Although invitations went out to all presidential candidates, no Democrats accepted (no surprise there). Nor did any of the major GOP contenders. But Keyes will join several other Republicans running for the White House on a wing and a prayer: Sam Brownback, Mike Huckabee, Duncan Hunter, Ron Paul and Tom Tancredo.

Keyes announced his candidacy Friday during an interview with religious radio broadcaster Janet Parshall. He acknowledged that he took the step with some reluctance. He told Parshall’s listeners: ‘You all know I’ve been out on the hustings a number of times and been pretty well beaten up. It has an effect on you ... and it did on me, to be sure.’

But he said ‘the more I thought about it and prayed over it, the more it seemed to me that the one thing I’ve always been called to do is just raise the standard -- not to worry about anything else, but to make sure that, clearly articulated, there is the sense of this national standard of our allegiance to God and His authority that has been the foundation stone of our nation’s life.’

Sounds like he’s still in fighting form.

Along with his third presidential bid, Keyes has run for the Senate three times -- twice in Maryland (1988 and 1992) and once in Illinois (2004). In the latter race, he got swamped by a fellow named Barack Obama.

Keyes’ decision to hit the campaign trail brings to mind the patron saint of perennial candidates, Republican Harold Stassen. Keyes, 57, is going to have to stay in good shape to approach the standard set by that legend -- Stassen, who lived to be 93, ran for president nine times.

-- Don Frederick