Dale Brown decides against Senate race Against Dorgan

Bismarck Tribune ^ | August 27, 2003 | DALE WETZEL

[Pubbie]

Former college basketball coach Dale Brown said Tuesday he will not seek the Republican endorsement to challenge Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., next year.

Brown had said in February he would not run, declaring that "my political career, for me, has ended." However, GOP activists asked him to reconsider, amid signs that their preferred candidate, former Gov. Ed Schafer, will refuse to run against the incumbent Democrat.

Brown said Tuesday he has mailed letters to supporters declaring that he will not run because of family considerations.

His daughter recently moved back to Louisiana with her husband and three children, and both she and his wife were cool to the idea of a Senate race, Brown said.

"My daughter said, 'To be honest, I'd like us just to stay out of the spotlight. We were in the spotlight for so many years. It would be nice to just close up with some quiet evenings and days,'" Brown said in a telephone interview. "I just had to put my family first."

Brown, who turns 68 in October, grew up in Minot, where he graduated from high school and college.

He eventually gained a national reputation as men's basketball coach at Louisiana State University. His teams appeared in the NCAA's Final Four in 1981 and 1986, and he won four Southeastern Conference championships. One of Brown's former players is Los Angeles Lakers star Shaquille O'Neal.

Brown retired from LSU six years ago. He lives in Baton Rouge, La., and travels frequently to give motivational speeches. Friends here say he has maintained close ties to North Dakota.

He suffered a stroke last April, but recovered quickly, in a process he calls a "miracle." His health did not influence his decision not to run, Brown said.

"Initially, I thought, 'Doggone it, I really wanted to do it,'" Brown said. "Not that it's an automatic win, obviously. It would be a tremendous hurdle to do. But odds have never meant anything to me in my life."

Dorgan, 61, is expected to run for his third Senate term next year. He has been a powerhouse on North Dakota's ballot since the 1970s, when he won two terms as state tax commissioner. He served in the U.S. House from 1981 until 1992, when he was elected to the Senate.

No North Dakota Republican has announced a Senate candidacy for 2004. GOP activists considered Brown an attractive possibility because of his skills at speaking and fund-raising, although they acknowledged his chances of winning were slim.

Two years ago, Brown flirted with the idea of running for North Dakota's U.S. House seat, saying that the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on New York City and Washington, D.C., had motivated him to consider running for office in his home state. He eventually decided against the race.

[Pubbie]

More bad news!

:(

[Kuksool]

We are on a roll! First Gibbons of NV, then Huckabee of AR, and now Brown of ND. Tom Daschle must be deeply pleased.

[GiveEmDubya]

How many people can jump out of Senate races in 1 day?

Apparently, plenty.

[AuH2ORepublican]

What's in the water today? Please, don't let Rudy Giuliani or Kevin Mannix near a microphone.

[Pubbie]

I think I'm going to puke.

:(

[Digger]

Maybe they don't want any part of this "Two-Party Cartel".

[OrioleFan]

More fallout from the Hillary FBI files????

[JohnnyZ]

His daughter recently moved back to Louisiana with her husband and three children, and both she and his wife were cool to the idea of a Senate race, Brown said.

Womenfolk.

[w_over_w]

More fallout from the Hillary FBI files????

Yeah, he once gave one of his players cash to buy a bus ticket so the kid could go to his mother's funeral. This violated a number of NCAA rules . . . just the kind of info Hitlary could use and turn into "a corrupt basketball coach".

[Pubbie]

Since I'm in Connecticut, I should be getting a phone call from Rove asking me to run Against Christopher Dudd - *Sigh*.

[alloysteel]

Can't beat somebody with nobody. There must be SOME solid, common-sensical conservative out there who may be talked into vocalizing his resentment at the misrepresentation of the home state, and mobilizing that resentment among his or her peers into a serious program to replace what is surely a total perversion of the will of the people.

[AuH2ORepublican]

"Since I'm in Connecticut, I should be getting a phone call from Rove asking me to run Against Christopher Dudd - *Sigh*."

---

Pubbie, what you need to do is convince Chris Shays to run against Dodd. That will allow us to elect a real Republican in his Stamford-based congressional district. And hey, maybe Rove will give you a call to run for Shays' seat. : )

[Kuksool]

***Pubbie, what you need to do is convince Chris Shays to run against Dodd. That will allow us to elect a real Republican in his Stamford-based congressional district.***

Perhaps, Ann Coulter could run for Shays's House seat. In 2000, Ann tried to run as a Libertarian against Chris Shays. However, the Libertarian PArty didn't want her as a candidate.

[Pubbie]

"Pubbie, what you need to do is convince Chris Shays to run against Dodd."

If Shays thought Dudd could be defeated he would already be running, Perhaps a primary challenge to Shays by yours truly is in order hmmm...

;)

[Paleo Conservative]

"More fallout from the Hillary FBI files???? "

Yeah, he once gave one of his players cash to buy a bus ticket so the kid could go to his mother's funeral. This violated a number of NCAA rules . . . just the kind of info Hitlary could use and turn into "a corrupt basketball coach".

Hillary probably had her bumped off.

[Coop]

Folks, this is standard sorting out of the candidates. Some good news, some bad news. Why do so many here insist on obsessing over the disappointments?

[fieldmarshaldj]

Because it seems there's such a large number of high-profile disappointments. Some cite the CA recall as an example of us being the "stupid" party, but I'd cite the decisions by Huckabee, Gibbons, et al, to rise to the occasion and run for the good of the party and their country to be examples of our stupidity. How many seats were needlessly lost in the past 20 years due to this ?

[fieldmarshaldj]

My concern about Brown was the same as with Specter (minus the liberal angle), age and health. I'd rather have a younger person pursuing these offices. As for Kevin Mannix, I wouldn't waste him on a contest with Sen. Cindy Brady that clearly isn't winnable for us (unless just to do it in order to force the 'Rats to dump their resources, but Mannix I consider to be a viable future Gubernatorial candidate, and he shouldn't be utilized in this way).

[Clintonfatigued]

Well, the only credible Republican left in North Dakota is state Tax Commissioner Rick Clayburgh, who ran for Congress last year and almost unseated Congressman Earl Pomeroy. Clayburgh is up for reelection next year, and will probably seek reelection.