Posted on 09/16/2011 5:43:42 PM PDT by randita
Exclusive: Burns Likely to Run for U.S. Senate
By Keegan Gibson, Managing Editor
Only an hour in to Republican State Committee, and already the battle for establishment support has begun among 2012 Senate hopefuls.
Tim Burns, the businessman who ran for Congress against Mark Critz in a 2010 special election and again in the general election, confirmed that he is seriously considering a bid for U.S. Senate.
“Well, I’m here. So obviously I’m pretty serious about it. I’ve gotten a lot of folks who have encouraged me to take a look at it so I have,” Burns told PoliticsPA. “I don’t have any of the current slate of candidates are by any means running away with or have gotten a whole lot of traction so I think it’s anybody’s race at this point.”
He said that his final decision was likely within the month.
“Within the next week to two weeks max, I would say I would make a decision. I need to make sure that I am going to be able to get the necessary support both here and fundraising.”
“I think that based on the campaign I ran here last cycle and the support base I got both volunteer and fundraising, I’m getting a lot of positive response. I’m probably leaning towards getting into this race.”
Burns joins a suddenly crowded field of primary contenders. Harrisburg-area attorney Marc Scaringi and U.S. Army veteran John Vernon have booths set up for the weekend. Businessman Steve Welch and Bucks County veterans’ advocate David Christian are also expected to attend tonight’s dinner, featuring keynote speaker RNC Chairman Reince Priebus.
He was speaking with coal industry veteran and Tea Party leader Tom Smith in the lobby of the Harrisburg Hilton. Smith hosted several fundraisers for Burns during his 2010 campaigns and two have maintained a relationship.
Smith could be overheard encouraging Burns not to get in the race, a mix of joviality and seriousness in his tone.
Burns founded a pharmaceutical company, TechRx, in 1992. The business grew to 400 employees before he sold it in 2003. He lost to Critz in the May 2010 special election by 9 points, but came within 1 percent of a victory that fall’s rematch.
Sari Heidenreich contributed to this report.
I’m glad to see some action here. Obama is losing support in PA and that should put Casey at risk.
I found this on another website about a month ago & posted it, but at that time it was just a rumor.
If this douchebag gets the senate nomination I’ll be upset. Burns is an empty suit. And a Gleason hack. Bad news.
Hmmm...missed that. Thanks for posting it. Burns lost twice. Granted, it was Murtha’s seat and Critz ran as a staunch conservative. But losing twice is not a good resume to build on.
We’re dying here for a conservative of stature to take on Casey. This is a prime opportunity which won’t likely won’t present itself again for a while.
I met Tim Burns when he was running for Murtha's old seat. He is a good businessman and a nice enough fellow, but he is still an amateur at campaigning. Casey may be a dopey empty suit, but he's backed by union machine thugs who know exactly how to run campaigns and control the government lackeys which they come to own.
Tim Burns would at least put this race on the map.
Anybody but Burns. He lost twice in a Republican landslide year. Plus he’s Gleason’s boy, an instant disqualifier in my book.
I don’t think Burns would stand much of a chance against Casey. We need a heavyweight to run, such as Lou Barletta or Jim Gerlach. Casey can be defeated, but not by someone who couldn’t beat Critz in a great GOP year in a district that is pretty typical of PA as a whole.
A two time House seat loser. And now he wants to go bigger.
Ego.
Where’s Lenny Dykstra living these days? He at least has some name recognition.
Samrorum will run, I bet. Once he drops out of pres race, he could slide right over, perfect timing.
His campaigning and debating skills will be sharp coming off presidential beat.
Lynn Swann?
In May 2011, Dykstra was sentenced to house arrest after a bankruptcy fraud indictment.
I say thumbs down on Burns. There’s a lot of bad blood between him and Russell. He was never a good enough pol to work through it and lost because of it.
RINOs out of the woodwork Ping
My personal favorite would be Tim Murphy, 18th district congressman. He's well-known in the Pittsburgh area from his years on television. It is a decent base from which to start.
I’d throw Dent in there as well. He has managed to run well in a district that’s fairly typical of PA as a whole (maybe a little more conservative than most, but not by a lot).
Of Barletta, Gerlach, and Dent, I’d say Barletta is the most conservative.
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