Posted on 07/30/2003 8:52:39 AM PDT by Publius
Republican Congressman George Nethercutt will announce today that he's running against Democratic Sen. Patty Murray in 2004, pitting the man who ousted a House speaker against an incumbent who entered politics as "the mom in tennis shoes."
A Republican source close to Nethercutt said he will file papers today with the Federal Election Commission. Two other Republican sources, also speaking on condition of anonymity, said he'll be in the race.
The decision ends weeks of courting by the White House and the National Republican Senatorial Committee to get Nethercutt to run — and has both parties gearing up for a 15-month campaign.
"We believe that George Nethercutt would make a tremendous candidate and excellent senator and, if he gets into this race, it will make it very competitive for us," said Dan Allen, a spokesman for the Republican committee.
In Nethercutt, Republicans see a credible voice on the economy and foreign policy. They also have confidence in his ability to handle a tough contest, pointing to his win over House Speaker Tom Foley, D-Spokane, in 1994, the first time a sitting speaker was sent home since 1860.
Democrats view Nethercutt as too conservative for Washington state. They view him as a candidate who broke his term-limits pledge in 2000 and who lacks Murray's name recognition. They note he's the Republican Party's second choice after Rep. Jennifer Dunn, R-Bellevue, who decided in April not to challenge Murray.
When asked yesterday if she considered Nethercutt a formidable opponent, Murray, who has served as senator since 1993, said: "I am not worried. I am focused on what I am doing now."
The 52-year-old former preschool teacher will be running for her third term. She said her priorities will continue to be children, education, health care and a better quality of life for Washington residents.
"Everyone has to decide for themselves why they want to run for office," Murray said. "I know why I'm running. I know I care deeply about my state. I care deeply about the priorities I have always had here in the United States Senate."
Nethercutt, a 58-year-old attorney from Spokane, was elected in 1994, part of the "Republican Revolution." He has spent much of his time working on agriculture, defense and funding for diabetes research.
In 2000, he bucked Republican party leaders on the issue of trade sanctions against Cuba by successfully pushing legislation to allow American farmers and companies to sell food and medicine there.
But he has also drawn state and national attention for breaking his pledge in 1994 to stay no more than six years in the House. Today Nethercutt says the issue is behind him because voters in the 5th District have re-elected him.
The prospect of a Nethercutt Senate campaign has energized state Republicans for the first time in years, as they consider a 2004 ticket with President Bush, Nethercutt and possibly a gubernatorial candidate such as former Microsoft executive Bob Herbold.
Republicans say the more races they have, the better for their candidates. With the competition generated by local and statewide races comes "air support" from the White House and other national party leaders who will visit the state.
A Nethercutt win in the Senate race would mark a first in decades. Washington state hasn't had a U.S. senator from Eastern Washington since Lewis Schwellenbach from Neppel, Grant County, won in 1934. He was a Democrat.
Dunn, however, doesn't see Nethercutt as a long shot.
"There weren't a lot of people saying he could defeat Tom Foley, but I was saying it. I think he will be a surprisingly powerful candidate against Patty Murray," she said recently.
GOP officials believe Nethercutt can use the Republican momentum to overcome the financial disadvantage he faces. As of June 30, he had slightly more than $400,000 in his campaign account. Murray had more than $2.37 million.
Reed Davis, a Seattle Pacific University political science professor and former chairman of the King County Republican Party, has also filed to run for the Senate.
But Chris Vance, state Republican Party chairman, said the state GOP would put its resources and support behind Nethercutt.
"If George Nethercutt runs, Patty Murray is going to be in a world of trouble," Vance said, pointing to his experience in Congress, his national Republican support and Vance's belief that Nethercutt is a good fit for the state.
Washington state Democratic Party Chairman Paul Berendt questions whether Nethercutt will be able to excite moderate voters and respond to criticism about his record on term limits.
Voters may have decided the term-limits issue in a regional congressional race, Berendt said. "But there's going to be another opportunity to have it decided again in a U.S. Senate race."
Berendt said he's relieved Murray has an opponent, because it will inspire voters to go to the polls.
"Whenever Patty Murray has been on the ballot and run an active race, Democrats have had a huge turnout in the state and we have elected Democrats," he said.
In recent months, Nethercutt has been on the offensive, foreshadowing his entry into the race.
In December, he attacked Murray for statements she made to high-school students about Osama bin Laden, in which she said he has been building day-care centers, schools and other infrastructure in poverty-stricken countries.
Murray later called her statements "off-the-cuff" remarks, meant to start a dialogue about an evil man.
Last week, during an appropriations committee meeting, Nethercutt also questioned whether Sound Transit's light-rail project in Seattle is right for the city and the state. Murray is one of its strongest proponents in Congress.
Brett Bader, a GOP political consultant in Bellevue, said Nethercutt has done well getting to know the Republican grass-roots organizers and donors in Western Washington, but the public at large needs to see him more.
"It does seem like he could have been here more frequently in the last year as he considered this, but I think there is plenty of time to make that up," Bader said.
The city elite consider Republicans worse-than-Ayatollah's, people who will hamper them in the pursuit of free "love", homosexuality and abortions. The rest are hard-core unionists, who think businesses are nothing but slave-shops who oppress the "working" people.
Washington elected Murray with the knowledge of how stupid she is well-known and documented. It didn't matter. This population center elected JIM MCDERMOTT!!! And they still love him and think he is a hero.
Nethercutt could run an outstanding race (and he probably will, he's a good candidate) and still lose big here. The state is very gone, South Texan, and, yes, communism (actually a melded form of fascism/communism is far more popular up here than free enterprise, and certainly far more popular than the almost non-existant GOP.
Yah!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.