Posted on 06/22/2006 2:46:39 PM PDT by Gothmog
Next week is a big one for Senator Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island: He must decide whether he's going to run for re-election as a Republican or as an independent. The deadline is 4 pm on Wednesday almost exactly a week from right now. If Chafee doesn't believe he can win the GOP primary against challenger Steven Laffey, he may decide to forgo the whole thing and create a three-way race between himself, Laffey, and presumptive Democratic nominee Sheldon Whitehouse. This would create an interesting dilemma for Elizabeth Dole and the NRSC, which has already pumped a lot of cash into Chafee's re-election: Would they still support a guy who doesn't want to compete for their own party's nod?Under Rhode Island law, Chafee wouldn't actually have to drop his formal Republican affiliation: He could still say that he's a member of the party, but that he's not seeking its nomination. This may not pass the smell test, but since when has Chafee ever been required by Washington's GOP establishment to pass the smell test?
The Rode Island Senate race is becoming like the CT Senate race. Incumbent Senators being seriously challenged by the "Red Meat Eaters" of the parties. If the incumbent Senators switch to Independents, those Senate races become tossups for all parties involved.
If Lieberman runs as an Independent I think that'll be a pure Toss Up, but if Chafee runs as an Independent I think that'll be Likely Dem. I just don't see how Chafee gets the math to work out as an Independent if he cannot win the GOP primary. In Lieberman's case, he'd get a lot of GOP votes, but for Chafee I don't see why any Dems who are now planning to vote for Whitehouse would switch to Chafee just because he ran as an Independent, and certainly no Laffey voters would switch to Chafee for that reason.
If Chafee cannot get a majority of the GOP leaning vote and also cannot get a majority of the Dem leaning vote then I see no way he can win as an Independent. The math just doesn't work out.
"Not harsh enough... if I may be so bold. ;)"
You may indeed!
"Now he's that really vacant stupid one right?"
You're gonna have to be a little more specific than that. Vacant and stupid describe 99.9% of the Democratic side of the aisle. But yes, he does look vacant and stupid. :)
It makes a huge amount of sense. It will mean that the Dem candidate has a good chance of winning in a divided field. Which means that Chafee can blackmail the pubs into making the Pub challenger drop out, or failing that, can secure a plum job from some big Dem doner in exchange for his treason to his party
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