Hunter Out?
Michelle Malkin forwards a notice from the Duncan Hunter campaign that they plan a "major announcement" later this afternoon, likely when I'll be in motion and unable to follow it. With almost no traction in any of the national or state polls, Hunter will likely announce his withdrawal from the presidential race:
Presidential Candidate and California Congressman Duncan Hunter will be making a major announcement today at 2:00 p.m. (EST), regarding the future of his Presidential bid. All media are encouraged to attend or contact Bob Bevill, National Media Coordinator, to arrange alternate interviews.
If this is true, it will be a shame, although not unexpected. Congressmen running for President usually do so for the publicity rather than any real hope of actually winning a nomination. People talk about how difficult it is to get elected President from the Senate, but I'm unaware of anyone who did it directly from the House (I assume CapQ readers will correct me in the comments with any examples).
Hunter, though, seemed different, at least on his part. While Tom Tancredo ran mostly to highlight immigration as a campaign issue, and succeeded at it more than one might have expected, Hunter presented himself as a full-spectrum candidate, and maybe the most consistent conservative in the race. He also talked immigration, but also foreign policy, Islamic radical jihad, foreign trade, and entitlements. His broad experience and intelligent analysis remained at the forefront of his campaign -- and he never took a cheap shot at anyone in this race.
Hunter faced the same problem as anyone else running from the House: a small constituency. Hunter has never had to conduct a campaign outside of his Congressional district, and that makes a big difference when running for President. He couldn't carry California, which isn't as big of a handicap -- for instance, no one thinks Mitt Romney will carry Massachusetts in a general election -- but the lack of notoriety that comes from being one of 435 instead of 1 of 100 or one of 50 becomes a big burden to overcome.
I also have to mention that he is even more impressive in person than on television. He is warm, engaging, and sharp. Hunter needed no scripts at the CLC to chat with us over dinner about policy or electoral strategy. He has a personality and a sense of humor that gets shortchanged in the debate formats used in this cycle, and although it probably wouldn't have made a lot of difference in his traction, it would have been nice to see more people get to know Hunter better.;
If Hunter leaves, the rest of us should hope that a Republican winner will find room for Hunter in the next administration. He would make an excellent Secretary of Defense, or perhaps the head of Homeland Security, if he's crazy enough to take it. This man still has plenty of service left to give our nation; let's hope someone puts him to use.
Posted by Ed Morrissey on January 7, 2008 12:15 PM | Comments () | TrackBacks (1)
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