U.S. House Democratic Whip Hoyer Praises Chandler's Win in Kentucky

UPI ^ | 2-17-04

[Indy Pendance]

'A Big Win for Central Kentucky' WASHINGTON - PRNewswire - Feb. 17

WASHINGTON, Feb. 17 /PRNewswire/ -- U.S. House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer released the following statement in praise of Ben Chandler's win today in Kentucky's Sixth Congressional District special election:

"Ben Chandler's victory today is a big win for central Kentucky and a big win for Democrats across America. The people of Kentucky said today that Democrats are right on the issues and that bodes well for us as we head into a big election in November.

"This victory also gives lie to the Republican's favorite new talking point, that Democrats can't win in the South. Ben Chandler won because he is the better candidate with a centrist message that resonates with voters.

"When I traveled to Kentucky for two days in late January to support Ben's bid, it was clear to me that he is a hard working, experienced leader with immense integrity. I have been a big supporter of Ben from the beginning because of his outstanding record of achievement for the state of Kentucky and because I know he will do a tremendous job in Congress for central Kentucky.

"House Democrats look forward to working with Ben to ensure affordable quality health care for all Americans, help small businesses grow and the economy create jobs, protect our veterans and fulfill our commitment to provide our children with a quality education."

[Indy Pendance]

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[Clintonfatigued]

This sucks out loud. Clearly, Ben Chandler's name identification was near-universal, and Kerr didn't have time to overcome it. Of course, Bush's insistance on not campaigning didn't help.

[ambrose]

Who cares? Fletcher left this Rat-infested district to become governor. I'd that was a worthy tradeoff.

[TonyRo76]

Is this district some sort of fluke? Is it one of those blue (Algore 2000) enclaves in an otherwise red (Bush) state?

[BlackRazor]

Of course, Bush's insistance on not campaigning didn't help.

I think they realized that even if Bush campaigned for Forgy, it wouldn't have been enough to overcome Chandler's famous last name and name ID generated by last fall's gubernatorial race. It was a calculated risk and I'm OK with that. It would have been a major embarrassment for Bush, had he campaigned and Forgy still lost. Not that Chandler's win isn't already being called a repudiation of Bush in Democratic circles, but it'd be much worse if Bush had actually campaigned on Forgy's behalf.