Allen: Don’t Give Up The Ship, and Other Lession from the Navy

National Journal: The Hotline

Though “faced with a newly named” Dem challenger, Sen. George Allen (R-VA) “wasn’t about to waste precious time.” With his Senate seat “suddenly considered threatened by” ex-Navy sec. Jim Webb (D), “Allen held a private fundraiser” 6/17 “and headlined a lunch for the” GOP “faithful that drew several hundred admirers.” But this “campaigning took place far from” VA. Allen “was a star attraction at the” IA GOP Convo, where some 2K “party activists gathered.” Though he insisted “his focus this year would be on” VA SEN, Allen “said he felt obliged to come to Des Moines after accepting an invitation months ago.”

The “awkward timing” of the trip “underscored the delicate juggling act that Allen must perform this year as he seeks re-election while continuing to explore a” WH’08 run. Dems “chided” Allen before he even arrived in IA. DSCC spokesperson Karl Frisch said “it’s time for Allen to stop playing presidential candidate and start explaining to” VAans “why he’s voted with” Pres. Bush and “against their interests at every turn.” Allen said he knew the DSCC “had no love for me,” and that their job is “to snipe and whine and carp.”

There’s “little doubt” Allen’s “work has become more complicated as he effectively tries to run for two jobs at the same time.” His potential WH’08 competitors “were keenly aware that” Allen’s “fate would rise or fall with” the 11/06 election. Sen. Sam Brownback (R-KS), on Allen’s ‘08 chances: “He’s got a campaign to go through in Virginia.” However, “there was little sign in Des Moines that Allen’s complicated political task was hurting him among the GOP faithful.” Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA): “I get the impression that conservative activists kind of see George Allen as a real possibility. He does have a conservative voting record” (Lerman, Newport News Daily Press, 6/18).

June 19, 2006 | Filed Under DSCC, News Mentions 

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