Mike Pence, Not Your Next Senator from Indiana
If conservatives were superheroes, Mike Pence, the Congressman from Indiana and head of the House Republican Conference, would be one of the core members of the Justice League of America (Jim DeMint gets to be Superman. Maybe Pence would be Batman or the Martian Manhunter). His name has been tossed around by hopeful conservatives as a possible challenger to sitting Democratic Senator Evan Bayh and early polls had him leading Bayh by as many as three points.
Unfortunately for conservatives, Penco won’t be putting on his fancy cape quite yet. He announced, first to Eric Erickson at RedState then to the rest of the world, he isn’t going to go after the Senate seat in Indiana. Pence wants to concentrate on leading the Republicans back into a majority in the House, which is a good enough goal. I think the Senate is where the real power lies in government these days and Pence could do a lot of good there, but he’s been very effective as a leader in the House and an energetic conservative core there could push quite a bit of good limited-government legislation to the Senate. Obviously he knows his strengths and weaknesses so I won’t gainsay his decision but I admit to being disappointed that we won’t get to see him in the Senate.
I found it interesting that he hasn’t ruled out a run for President in 2012. I would gainsay that decision, at least right now. Though he’s a conservative rock-star, I don’t think he has the public visibility he needs to make a good run at the White House. He has three years to build a bigger public presence (for instance, he can lead the charge for a much smaller Federal government and taxes that let small businesses use their money to hire people instead of enrich the Washington machine) but he really does need to get started right now. Conservatives know who he is, but that’s not going to get him out of the Republican primaries at this point.
Other Posts of Interest:
- It’s Time for John McCain to Put Up or Shut Up on Earmarks
- Can Conservatives Conflict with the Republican Party? Yes, We Can!
- Conservatives Strike Back?
Category: Conservatism, The Republican Minority
I just saw this idiot talking about "the death of democracy" in the United States, when he's apparently one of the leaders of the thugs who seem bent on destroying it with his spewing of hate and obstructionist tactics. People are hurting in this country. Pence needs to get off his high horse and work with Congress to help out or get the hell out of politics and into the KKK where he belongs (if he's not already a member).
My, oh my!