Opinion: For Democrats, more good news on the Senate front
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Perhaps it’s time for Democrats to simply turn over the entire party apparatus, from the fight for the White House to the battle for county commission posts, to New York Sen. Chuck Schumer. Because for whatever reason--he always treated his mother well; he dutifully says his prayers; he has the world’s best collection of good-luck charms--his tenure as head of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee has been golden.
The latest bit of glad political tidings for him came this afternoon with the report that Republican Sen. Pete Domenici of New Mexico will announce Thursday that he has decided not to seek reelection next year to the seat he has held--for the most part, easily--since 1972. The Times’ Richard Simon has the story.
Domenici’s move will bring to five the number of GOP senators who have said they are stepping down rather than run again in ’08. The others are John Warner of Virginia, Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, Wayne Allard of Colorado and Larry Craig of Idaho (with the latter perhaps vacating his seat soon ... and then again, perhaps not).
The Democrats are not likely to win all these seats (a victory in Idaho, even given the shadow cast by the scandal surrounding Craig, would be proof positive that Schumer at some point sold his soul to the devil). But the races in each of the other states almost assuredly will be more competitive--and therefore require more Republican resources to defend--than if the incumbents were on the ballot. As a result, it will be that much harder for the GOP to help out its vulnerable senators who are running for reelection.
In the 2006 midterm vote, Schumer and the Democrats drew to an inside straight: Several hard-fought contests broke their way in the campaign’s waning days and enabled the party to take narrow--and unexpected--control of the Senate. In the 2008 election, Schumer and the Democrats may be dealt the political equivalent of a full house: As we noted in a recent item, the party appears positioned to significantly boost its majority.
Domenici’s decision also adds an interesting twist to the Democratic presidential race--i.e., will New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson ...
be at all tempted to make a run for the seat.
Richardson’s spokesman, Tom Reynolds, told The Times’ Mark Z. Barabak that a Domenici retirement ‘changes nothing. We are running for president and are confident about our chances of winning.’
Well, Reynolds may be, but not too many others are. And, according to the New Mexico secretary of state’s office, candidates have until Feb. 12 to file petitions for a Senate run--a week after the avalanche of primaries that most expect will make clear who is headed for the Democratic presidential nod.
Richardson and his staff will continue to scoff at any notion that he might end up a Senate candidate. But in New Mexico, it will be worth watching whether his allies hint to other state Democrats eyeing a Senate race that they had best hang loose for awhile.
Our guess is that Richardson will, indeed, take a pass. Even if his presidential hopes are squelched out of the gates in Iowa or New Hampshire, he should remain in contention for the second spot on the ticket. Schumer, meanwhile, riding his hot streak, will want the party to gear up quickly for a chance to claim the seat. And there should be plenty of pent-up ambition, in both parties--there hasn’t been a Senate contest in the Land of Enchantment that attracted top-drawer challengers since 1982, when Domenici’s colleague, Democrat Jeff Bingaman, first won his seat.
For political junkies, one other intriguing element could come into play in the fight for Domenici’s seat. That’s the prospect of the next Senate including two cousins who bear a surname revered by many older Democrats.
In New Mexico, Rep. Tom Udall is high on every list of Democratic Senate contenders. He’s the son of Stewart Udall, a onetime House member from Arizona who served as head of the Interior Department under Presidents John Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson (and under whose watch a plethora of environmental laws were enacted).
In Colorado, Rep. Mark Udall is expected to win the Democratic nomination for the Senate seat Allard is giving up (and he’s the early favorite to win the general election). He’s the son of Mo Udall, who in 1961 was elected to the House seat his brother, the above-mentioned Stewart, gave up for the Interior post and who in 1976 ran a presidential campaign remembered for the good humor and grace he displayed (as well as his inability to come close to winning the nomination).
-- Don Frederick