Remember Paul Hackett? He's the Iraq War veteran who got backing from the Democrats and a good chunk of the liberal blogosphere to run in a special election for a Congressional seat and made a respectable showing in a strong Republican district. He announced his candidacy for the Senate race and expected to make a hard run against Mike DeWine in a state that has had its share of GOP scandals. However, Hackett finds himself out of the race and out of politics, the victim of a Democratic campaign to push him out in favor of Sherrod Brown:

Paul Hackett, an Iraq war veteran and popular Democratic candidate in Ohio's closely watched Senate contest, said yesterday that he was dropping out of the race and leaving politics altogether as a result of pressure from party leaders.

Mr. Hackett said Senators Charles E. Schumer of New York and Harry Reid of Nevada, the same party leaders who he said persuaded him last August to enter the Senate race, had pushed him to step aside so that Representative Sherrod Brown, a longtime member of Congress, could take on Senator Mike DeWine, the Republican incumbent.

Mr. Hackett staged a surprisingly strong Congressional run last year in an overwhelmingly Republican district and gained national prominence for his scathing criticism of the Bush administration's handling of the Iraq War. It was his performance in the Congressional race that led party leaders to recruit him for the Senate race.

But for the last two weeks, he said, state and national Democratic Party leaders have urged him to drop his Senate campaign and again run for Congress.

Hackett, who once said that GOP leaders had a lot in common with Osama bin Laden, now finds out that Democratic leaders have a lot in common with Machiavelli. He told the New York Times that Reid, Schumer, and others undermined his campaign by convincing donors to withhold contributions to his campaign. When he objected, the same leaders pressed him to break his pledge not to run for the House race, which he refused to do.

Democrats actively sought out Iraq war veterans to run for office in an apparent attempt to bolster their national-security credentials. Once again, they show the superficial concern they have for both national security and the veterans they courted in their clumsy attempt to cut Hackett off at the knees, especially considering the high profile he gave their program last November. Hackett found out a little late that Democrats only pay lip service to veterans and the concerns of national security. I wonder how many of these veterans will stand by and watch their peer get pushed under the bus.

Sherrod Brown, who capitalizes on the torpedoing of Hackett's campaign, had nothing to say about the interference run on his behalf by Reid and Schumer.

UPDATE: The take at DailyKos, which supported Hackett in last year's special election? It's Hackett's fault for not deciding to run until after Labor Day. Of course, he had just worked all year for the Dems running for OH-02, and the election itself took place at the beginning of August. I guess if you can't make up your mind 30 days after an election about your future plans for office, the Dems feel free to walk all over you.

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» Dems Making Friends from Weapons of Mass Destruction
Wasn't it just a few months ago that the MSM was a goggle over the prospects of Iraq veterans returning home from their time at war and taking on the Bush administration as Democrat candidates for elected office? USA Today [Read More]

Tracked on February 14, 2006 11:18 AM

» Dems Making Friends from Weapons of Mass Destruction
Wasn't it just a few months ago that the MSM was a goggle over the prospects of Iraq veterans returning home from their time at war and taking on the Bush administration as Democrat candidates for elected office? USA Today [Read More]

Tracked on February 14, 2006 11:24 AM