Ace reporter Lynn Bartels asked each of the four Republican candidates to name a Democratic state legislator he admired. Scott Gessler and Bob Beauprez jumped right in. Gessler named Pat Steadman, a person with whom he almost never agrees. And Beauprez named Cheri Jahn, a person with whom he occasionally agrees. Mike Kopp, who resists every opportunity to move out of the Littwin cellar, stumbled before finally agreeing to name Lois Tochtrop.
Tancredo wouldn’t — or couldn’t — name anyone. Is it because he doesn’t play well with others? Or because he couldn’t come up with a single name?
In either case, Tancredo remains our leader in the clubhouse for the Littwin Weekly GOP Gov Rankings, even though he probably wouldn’t — or couldn’t — name a single Republican legislator he admires, either.
So, to the campaign’s penultimate rankings (last week’s ranking in parentheses):
(1) Tancredo. No one except the Tancredistas wants Tancredo to win. I doubt if Tancredo wants Tancredo to win. In fact, if he does win, it may be the greatest victory with the least effort on record. But if he gets 35 percent of the vote — a likely prospect – he will very likely be the Republican nominee. Making the Democrats very happy.
(2) Beauprez. I would put Gessler here, but this will be a low-attention, low-turnout affair, and Beauprez has greater name recognition. There’s no enthusiasm for Beauprez except from those in the Republican establishment who wanted him to run. But if Tancredo doesn’t win, someone has to.
(2) Gessler. To win, Gessler has to make himself the clear alternative. He hasn’t. He did call Tancredo and Beauprez losers, but he hasn’t really shown anyone why he would be a winner or why he has something different to say from the rest. For a guy who loves the spotlight, he has failed to figure out how to put himself there.
(4) Kopp. Remember when he won the top line at the state assembly and had all that momentum? Me neither. His campaign is based on the fact that he’s pro-freedom. Sorry, Mike, but, like, who isn’t?
