Posted on 12/18/2013 3:15:28 PM PST by AuH2ORepublican
The White House is set to select outgoing Sen. Max Baucus (D-Mont.) as its pick for ambassador to China, Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and a Baucus ally confirmed Wednesday.
Baucus, 72, previously announced that he won't seek reelection to the Senate in 2014.
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Assuming Baucus is confirmed sometime in 2014, it means there will be a vacancy in his seat. Gov. Steve Bullock (D) will get to make the appointment for the final year of Baucus's term.
Bullock could pick his lieutenant governor, John Walsh, who is already running for the seat in 2014. But Walsh faces a primary against former lieutenant governor John Bohlinger, and governors sometimes opt to pick placeholders who don't intend to run for the seat in order to avoid allegations of favoritism.
Rep. Steve Daines is the leading candidate on the GOP side. Republicans have been favored to win the seat in a state that President Obama lost by 13 points in 2012.
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(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
Hmmm. Maybe Ms. Cheney should move over a state and quit attacking the old guard (gop-elite) currently holding the seat she’s looking at in WY.
Max Baucus to leave the Senate early. It remains to be seen whether the Democrat governor appoints his Lt. Gov. (who is running for the Senate seat in 2014 against a former Dem Lt. Gov.) or a placeholder.
Just what we needed: a fresher turd.
is this a payoff for something?
(i suppose so)
This is clearly designed to help the Dims hold the seat so I suspect Bullock will not appoint a place holder...
kind of odd considering he is the guy who labeled OCare a “train wreck”..
Baucus is not an anti-communist. Look for the Yellow Flag over our Embassy to continue flying.
The only problem with a revolving door is that there is no knob.
Wasn’t Baucus suppose to lead the ‘Tax Reform’ effort? I guess that’s over as well ...
Smart move. The guy can then campaign that he already has experience as a senator and is essentially an incumbent. He can also pick and choose on how he votes on issues hoping to defuse the anticipated attacks made by his GOP opponent.
Obama’s gun control supporters aren’t going to be happy.
Daines will win hands down.
Where have we heard that before? Oh, it was just a year ago, 2012, we were supposedly "favored" to win Tester's seat in MT. But the combination of the lousy Libertarian taking away votes plus the usual 'Pub ability to lose winnable races left us with yet another defeat.
They better not blow it this time. If things keep going like they are the 2014 elections should be fat pickings for the 'Pubs. But I have a sneaking suspicion they'll find a way to blow it. No more Akins and Mourdocks, please!
Sweitzer is the only politician in Montana who would win hands down. After he decided not to run the Dims were left with a bunch of unknown, nobody, candidates.
Daines has name recognition but this is potentially going to close that gap.
An astute move by the rat faction of the uniparty.
Daines currently leads by 17 points, and the Lt. Gov. is not exactly an unknown like the dim’s candidate in South Dakota. Being a sitting interim senator won’t put many points on the board. Jeff Chiesa’s name recognition in New Jersey didn’t really change when he was made a senator.
Obamacare will sink the dem’s in Montana, and I predict they lose this race by double digits. Their track record of holding onto red state seats when some dynastic tool dies or retires, is poor. They’ve had some good luck in North Dakota and West Virginia in the past, but beyond that, once a dinosaur like Baucus goes, the seat will usually go to the ideological leaning of the state.
Besides, Daines for all his faults, is not Denny Rehberg. He won’t be taking anything for granted, and he’s a pretty savvy politician.
There was a news story last week that Governor Bullock had an important job for Lieutenant Governor Walsh to do......decorate the Christmas tree. I’m not joking.
John Walsh was in charge of a department that “lost” $23,000,000 of federal stimulus money. I haven’t seen any stories saying they found that money.
No Republican has ever held this seat, it has been in Democrat hands since senator's have been popularly elected.
Montana is a state that is heavily dependent on Federal dollars for schools, hospitals, highways, agricultural subsidies, plus the 40% of the folks who depend on Social Security, Military and Federal Retirement benefits.
The voters in Montana are going to vote for a Senator who keeps the Federal Dollars coming into the state...
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