by Ben DeGrow | 11:17 pm, September 2, 2010
Denver Post headline this evening: “Maes loses support from GOP, grassroots; vows to stay in race”: …Hank Brown, a former U.S. senator and former University of Colorado president, withdrew his endorsement, setting off a domino effect not only among prominent Republicans, but Maes’ core, grassroots base. Tea Party leaders across the state today said in [...]
Tancredo: I will probably not get out of the raceby Rossputin | 5:52 pm, September 2, 2010
Earlier this (Thursday) afternoon, while on the Caplis and Silverman radio show, Tom Tancredo said that his offer to get out of the governor’s race if Dan Maes gets out has expired and that he would likely stay in the race at this point even if Maes gets out. When asked if he’d exit the race if Maes gets out, Tancredo said “I can’t do it. That Rubicon has been crossed.”
In particular, Tancredo cited having raised a lot of money in a short time from many donors and the implicit and explicit verbal support accompanying the donations. Tancredo said he doesn’t see how he could drop out after the implied promise of a good-faith run for office which comes with accepting the donations.
While Tancredo didn’t absolutely rule out getting out of the race (as I hear him), when he was asked whether he would stay in if Maes got out even if it meant that a GOP replacement candidate such as Jane Norton would likely lose because of the split conservative vote, thus handing the election to John Hickenlooper, Tancredo said that “perhaps Jane should consider that” before deciding to get in the race, should the opening arise. Also, regarding the possibility of Jane being in the race, Tom said “let’s have at it.”
Tancredo was also feeling good after apparently doing well in the candidate debate at the Channel 12 studios earlier in the day. Talk show host Craig Silverman attended the debate and said on the air that he thought Tancredo won the debate and that Mayor Hickenlooper seemed like he didn’t really want to be there. Tancredo also said, when it came to explaining why he’s probably staying in the race no matter what, that “I kinda enjoy it.”
I surely hope that if Maes gets out, Tancredo will as well. If Maes gets out and Tancredo doesn’t, many Colorado Republicans will have a very difficult decision. I like Tom Tancredo, but if by some chain of minor miracles, we get Jane Norton as a replacement candidate for governor, I’ll certainly support Jane, believing she could possibly win even in a three-way race.
You can listen to the Tancredo interview HERE. (13.6 MB download) Start about 3:45 into the recording.
Open Thread: Should Dan Maes Withdraw?by Julian Dunraven | 3:11 pm, September 2, 2010
Do you think Dan Maes should step aside as the Republican nominee for governor?
Why or why not?
If he did step aside, who do you think the vacancy committee should consider in his stead and why?
by RMR | 1:53 pm, September 2, 2010
If Dan Maes’ angry declarations that he will stay in the race, constant claims that his ethical problems are non-issues, and insistence that we all need to stop focusing on his past and instead on his future plans all seems oddly familiar; that’s because we went through all of this very recently. Dan Maes has transformed into a mirror image of Scott McInnis as his campaign was unravelling.
It was exactly one month ago that Dan Maes savaged Scott McInnis in a debate: "You don’t have positions. You don’t stand for anything. You have no integrity. You have no character." (CBS 4)
Now, Dan Maes has revealed himself through his numerous lies and exaggerrations to be just as lacking in integrity and character as Scott McInnis. Maes’ attempts to dismiss the fact that he apparently misrepresented his entire background echoes of McInnis’ claims that his plagiarism scandal was a "non-issue."
Sadly, Maes will likely not step aside. He shows all the traits of running a self-centered, ego-driven campaign. Already, he is spinning the hemorrhaging of his support as an assault by insidious "power brokers" and casting himself as some sort of proletariat hero rising up against the oppressors. Make no mistake, Dan Maes has been abandoned by "party insiders" and grassroots alike. Tea Party group Hear Us Now has rescinded their endorsement of Maes. A group of 9.12 groups are set to meet with Maes this week over "concerns" about his campaign. This is the end of the line for Maes even if he refuses to accept it.
The race to unendorse Dan Maesby Rossputin | 1:43 pm, September 2, 2010
This probably won’t last long, one way or another, but just for fun let’s keep a running track of those calling for Dan Maes to get out of the race, particularly those who had endorsed him before. I’ll update the list as more people join the chorus:
Erick Erickson of RedState.com
“Party over person?” Not according to Brown, Beauprez and Andrews.
by David K. Williams, Jr. | 12:42 pm, September 2, 2010
Hopefully, Mike Rosen’s utterly absurd “party over person” mantra can be put to rest.
by Rossputin | 10:29 am, September 2, 2010
I just received this e-mail blast from John Andrews, as he joins what I expect to be a freight train of un-endorsements of Dan Maes by Republican heavy-hitters…
STATEMENT BY JOHN ANDREWS
Former President, Colorado Senate
This morning I called Dan Maes to withdraw my endorsement and urge him to end his candidacy, for the public good. As a conscientious Republican who earlier voted for Dan, I cannot support a manifestly unfit nominee. He has flunked his job interview with the people of Colorado in the weeks since Scott McInnis faded. The party should cut Maes loose if he does not resign the nomination. I intend to write in a vote for Jane Norton for Governor.
Dan Maes: The Checkby Rossputin | 6:43 am, September 2, 2010
It’s just the latest mini-scandal surrounding Dan Maes:
Former Greenwood Village Mayor Freda Poundstone claims to have given Dan Maes some amount over $300 as a personal gift because Maes was having trouble paying his mortgage. Maes claims the money, apparently paid to him in cash, was a campaign contribution.
Here’s my guess…and it’s only a guess: It was a gift but Maes thought that the political ramifications of needing a gift/loan to pay his mortgage would be politically damaging. So when the story came out, Maes said it was a campaign contribution.
If true, this carries a whole host of problems for Maes, including:
- The amount exceeds the maximum legal cash contribution to a campaign. (From the beginning, Ms. Poundstone said she was aware of that and would therefore never give a cash contribution to a campaign.)
- Ms. Poundstone is not listed as a campaign contributor, an error which could lead to yet another substantial fine against Maes’ campaign. (A caller to the Peter Boyles radio show on Wednesday morning said that he too donated to the Maes campaign and is not listed as a contributor.)
So, the story goes, at a Jefferson County Republican meeting at which Ms. Poundstone was speaking and Mr. Maes was in attendance, Maes dropped a check into Mrs. Poundstone’s purse. A picture of the check was obtained by Peter Boyles, and can be seen here:
The check has raised quite a bit of controversy, not least for:
- It’s not signed
- There is not (as yet) a known entity called “Dan Maes for Governor”, which is typed into the name section of this “counter” or “starter” check
- It’s written with two different pens
So here’s my theory:
1) The actual campaign must already have real checks and wouldn’t need this starter check. This is probably not campaign money, at least not directly. Maybe from money he “reimbursed” himself. Perhaps, he or someone with him, happened to have one of the original starter checks from the campaign account, but I think it’s more likely this is not a campaign account.
2) Given the fines he’s already paid, Maes probably knows that he must thread the needle on this.
3) Legally, he can’t say that Freda’s money was a campaign contribution without risking fines and worse. Politically, he doesn’t want to say he took a gift because he couldn’t pay his mortgage. That would make it look even more like he’s a guy running for governor because it’s his best chance at earning a decent living.
4) Therefore, I repeat, I think he’s set up a new account which is a personal account, not a campaign account, and wrote the check on that account. Someone, probably his daughter, put the “Dan Maes for Governor” on the check without any thought as to the ramifications of that name.
5) If the account name is not actually “Dan Maes for Governor”, and I bet it’s not, I don’t think there is any sort of violation of the law. What matters is whose money it is, not the name typed on the check. Again, I suspect it’s just a personal account which someone put “Dan Maes for Governor” on just to try to make Maes look like a bigshot.
6) Instead, the whole thing simply reinforces the appearance of the Maes campaign as the Keystone Cops, as a paradigm of incompetence, and as unfit to be governor of Colorado. (And I say that as a Republican.)
I’d also note that if he did use campaign funds to repay money which the original donor says was NOT a campaign contribution, one can only imagine the possible legal ramifications. While Maes is in sort of a no-win situation here, it strikes me that yet again he is making the situation look as bad as it could.
A lawyer who represents himself…by Rossputin | 2:58 pm, September 1, 2010
We’ve all heard the maxim that a lawyer who represents himself has a fool for a client.
I don’t know whether it’s a financial decision or an ego-based one, but Dan Maes has not yet hired a campaign manager.
It’s no wonder Maes’ reaction to the Freda Poundstone check mini-scandal has been so feckless. (More on this tomorrow.)
If it’s a financial decision not to hire a campaign manager, that’s a strong statement about Maes’ inability to raise money. If it’s an ego-based decision, i.e. Maes thinking that he’s perfectly capable of running his campaign – after all, that plan has gotten him this far, right? – it shows terrible judgment.
A guy who is perceived even by his supporters as having essentially zero relevant political experience, a guy who said as much when he announced the reasons for choosing his running mate: He asserted that Tambor Williams “will strengthen the weaknesses of my campaign without compromising its strengths.” Not sure just what those strengths are, but he sure did remind us that his candidacy has weaknesses.
And others said it as well. For example, from this Greeley Tribune article:
Former state legislator Dave Owen, who worked closely with Williams when she was in the House, said the choice is a good one.
“She was very meticulous and she had a good grasp of the issues,” he said. “She has a good knowledge of state government, which is not his long suit.”
Williams said she’s excited to join the Maes campaign.
“He is a tremendously quick learner. When I first spoke with Dan I was thinking, ‘Oh there’s so much he doesn’t know,’ ” she said. “He has really gotten a tremendous grasp on the issues in Colorado.”
My point is that Maes knows that he must surround himself with smart, experienced people not just because he’ll make better decisions with their advice but also because he must put forward the image of a guy who is getting such advice. Maes’ only chance of winning (and it’s not much of a chance) depends on people being impressed with his team; there’s no chance that Maes alone can be sold to a state which as much as anything else wants and needs competency in its governing team.
Dan Maes: Undercover superheroby Rossputin | 10:56 am, September 1, 2010
From the You Must Be Kidding Files – or is it the What Has Dan Maes Said This Time Files – comes the story that Dan Maes’ claims of having worked undercover for the Kansas Bureau of Investigation were, according to Maes, “taken too literally.”
The Denver Post does a good job explaining the story (in part of their apparently never-ending quest to bury Mr. Maes): http://www.denverpost.com/technology/ci_15955549
I love this part of the story:
So was he really working “undercover”?
“Those comments might have been incorrect comments,” Maes said.
Who wrote them on the website?
“Whoever typed it, typed it. That’s all I’ve got to say,” Maes said, before referring questions to his campaign spokesman.
Later, his spokesman, Nate Strauch, confirmed that Maes had written the comments.
And Airbus has gotten in on the fun as well with this image:
Maes has deleted the part of his web page where you can see his prior claims about serving undercover. But I’ve recovered the page for your viewing pleasure. (Click HERE for full page, or see embedded doc below.) See the fifth page of the document (which says Page 4 on it) for the item on working undercover, as well as Maes’ horrendous misspelling of Cory Voorhis’ name.
Dan Maes might be right when he says that he never claimed to be a very successful business man – though he sure didn’t correct anyone when Maes’ own words caused us to infer that. But he did claim to have worked under cover for the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, a claim which seems patently false.
Dan Maes remains Colorado’s Republican Walter Mitty – and Mr. Mitty will never be elected governor. The Wikipedia entry on Walter Mitty has this discussion of the use of the term when it comes to the military; it seems a propos to law enforcement as well: “Also, there is a military slang term, ‘Walt’, which is an abbreviation of the name ‘Walter Mitty’, which refers to someone who has aspirations to become a soldier, but none of the necessary personal qualities. This slang can also refer to someone who poses as an (ex-)soldier but who isn’t a soldier (serving or former), or who poses as something he isn’t or wasn’t; for example, regular army soldiers who pose as SAS troopers.” Or guys who served as cops for 2 years but claim to have been undercover agents, working in the Sopranos world of gambling and drugs, and being moved out of the job due to bravely posing a threat to people in power. It’s hard not to laugh out loud.
Dan Maes, please GET OUT of this race while there’s still a chance to replace you with someone who can win.
Open letter to Dan Maesby Rossputin | 8:38 am, September 1, 2010
[Although I haven’t considered this as something like a petition, please feel free as reader Jeremy did, to add your name via a comment to support of the thrust of my note to Dan Maes.]
I e-mailed the following to Dan Maes this morning…
Dan,
As much as it pains me to say this to a Republican, I want to strongly urge you to accept Tancredo’s offer for you both to exit the governor’s race at the same time.
While I believe your pro-liberty instincts are genuine, your candidacy is hopelessly damaged by one mini-scandal or gaffe after another. I, and I’m sure many others, would be interested in supporting you in a future race, perhaps for the state legislature. But, unfortunately, it is all too clear that this is not an appropriate time for you to be a candidate for the highest elected office in Colorado.
Particularly with redistricting on the horizon, Republicans cannot afford to lose this election. If you and Tom stay in the race, you will be ensuring that outcome.
Again, it gives me no pleasure to urge you to get out of the race but my interest in good government in our once-and-future great state leaves me no choice.
Most sincerely,
Ross Kaminsky
Magellan: Good to be Colo. Republican Not Named Maes; Reset Election Oddsby Ben DeGrow | 6:23 pm, August 31, 2010
The reliable in-state Magellan Strategies polling firm today released the results of last week’s voter interviews on Colorado statewide races. Taking the pulse of 954 likely voters, they found not surprisingly that John Hickenlooper has a wide lead over Republican Dan Maes (and an even wider lead over third-party Tom Tancredo) — though some small [...]
Rasmussen: Colorado Voters Saying ‘None of the Above’ for Governor?by Ben DeGrow | 12:24 pm, August 31, 2010
(H/T Complete Colorado) My jaw nearly dropped to the floor when I saw Curtis Hubbard’s coverage of the new Rasmussen poll on the Denver Post’s political blog. Likely Colorado voters seem to be demanding another option. Look at the breakdown: John Hickenlooper (D): 36 percent Dan Maes (R): 24 percent Tom Tancredo (AC): 14 percent [...]
WhoSaidYouSaid Nails Hickenlooper: Your Taxes “as Low as They Can Go”?by Ben DeGrow | 5:35 pm, August 26, 2010
Compliments of the creative team at WhoSaidYouSaid, here’s a great new video with a candid response from Denver mayor and Colorado Democrat gubernatorial candidate John Hickenlooper: According to a new Reuters/Ipsos poll, Hickenlooper currently leads Republican Dan Maes, 41-33, with 3rd-party candidate Tom Tancredo picking up 16 percent. In a hypothetical head-to-head matchup, Hickenlooper and [...]
Dan Maes Cuts Hickenlooper Lead to 8 Points in Latest Colo. Governor’s Pollby Laura Victoria | 4:34 pm, August 25, 2010
Republican candidate Dan Maes has gained on Democrat John Hickenlooper in the latest poll from Reuters/Ipsos, and now trails him by only 8 percentage points, 41-33 percent. Tom Tancredo is running a distant third at 16 percent. The poll has … Continue reading 
by Nikki | 1:33 pm, August 20, 2010
This open letter from Tanne Blackburn to the Republican Party is a great illustration of the sentiment that is being expressed from all quarters… activists, experienced Republicans, candidates and conservatives across our state. It is past time for our “leadership” to wake up, represent their constituency and do their job.
We are totally missing the [...]
by David K. Williams, Jr. | 8:40 am, August 20, 2010
According to the Denver Post, Dan Maes, GOP nominee for Colorado Governor, is defending Tambor Williams as his choice for Lt. Governor. (See “Maes tries to ease supporters’ anxiety over running mate“).
“… e-mail says Williams, as a Cabinet member under then-Gov. Bill Owens, privately opposed the referendums but had to support them publicly because her boss did.”
by Rossputin | 6:56 am, August 19, 2010
In yesterday’s blog note, I suggested that Dan Maes is trying to shore up his own weaknesses with his choice of an experienced running mate. I had never heard of his choice, Tambor Williams, before a few days ago (since almost all of her time in the state legislature was prior to my arrival in Colorado.)
The more I read about Ms. Williams, the more I think that Maes gets little benefit from her other than trying to capture some of the Weld County (and possibly Larimer County) voter enthusiasm generated by Ken Buck.
Williams positions herself – and Maes positions her – as a moderate conservative. While that is appealing to a segment of voters, Maes absolutely must get almost all Republicans to have a chance of winning; he must keep GOP voters from defecting to Tancredo in addition to trying to thread the needle in a way that keeps himself appealing to independent voters and maybe a few Dems.
I just cringed when reading this Maes statement in the Denver Post: “I have to be humble enough before God and say I know what I lack, and what I lack is Tambor Williams.”
What this statement does is turn off voters who, whether you like it or not, don’t want their politicians to be getting their answers from a non-terrestrial source, while telling conservatives who might appreciate Maes’ heavenly appeal that what he’s missing is a running mate perceived as not being a principled conservative.
I know Maes is trying to appear humble, as he says directly. Instead I think he appears unpalatable, like taking two foods such as garlic and chocolate, obviously delicious separately, and making something rather repugnant by mixing them together.
A friend – more conservative than I am, to be sure – sent me this opinion of Tambor Williams (written, I believe, by a third party):
She is pretty smart. Got into big issues at the legislature and generally handled them poorly. She supported Ref C (cabinet head so she had to). A friend sent me this: http://www.kdvr.com/news/politics/kdvr-maes-picks-tambor-williams-txt,0,3863703.story
This is a disaster for the GOP. Not only was Tambor the State’s top regulator after voting to allow Waren Hern to continue partial birth abortions (HB97-1136), she helped pass the largest tax hike in Colorado history (Ref C) and tried to cripple us with billions more in debt (Ref D).
Tambor Williams is the poster child for everything that caused voters to distrust the CO GOP in the first place.
So why on earth would Dan’s very first decision as our nominee be such an obviously ridiculous choice?
If like me you feared Dan Maes’s campaign was like the Titanic going down, he just pulled aboard the biggest anchor he could find making it sink faster.
Now the base will flee to Tancredo in droves.
And the Dems haven’t even layed a glove on Dan yet.
An amaesingly bad day for the CO GOP.
While this view somewhat overstates the magnitude of the impact of Mr. Maes’ selection of running mate, particularly given the potential positive of the appeal of a “moderate” woman among unaffiliated or moderate Republican women voters, it’s basically right in the sense that Maes needed a near miracle: he needed someone who would bring the energy that Sarah Palin brought, at least briefly, to the McCain presidential campaign.
It was a very tall order to begin with since elections are generally not about the running mate, and this one particularly not. So, I don’t think a great outcome was even possible for Mr. Maes. I don’t know whether Maes had a better choice available. I do have reason to believe that at least one other very credible person turned down the request to run as Maes’ running mate.
I don’t think Williams’ abortion views are a problem for any substantial number of voters. Pro-choice voters whose primary issue is abortion won’t choose Maes anyway. Her support of limited exceptions, i.e. rape, incest, life of the mother, are not wildly controversial among conservatives, at least not enough to cause most of them to abandon a candidate. (I know that Tom Tancredo had a perfect voting record in Congress with the National Right to Life Committee; I don’t know whether he would allow exceptions such as those Williams supports. Tancredo’s web site does not touch on the issue, which is quite rational given the bigger issues of economics, jobs, and immigration which the state is facing now and given a governor’s limited ability to have any impact on abortion other than making sure taxpayer money isn’t funding the procedure.)
I think her support of Referendum C is potentially a big problem, as the writer of the note above suggests. Maes cannot afford to lose very many Republican voters. But even though the deep wound caused by Bill Owens, State Senator Steve Johnson, Bruce Benson and other Republican supporters of Ref C in 2005 seems nearly healed, my recollection is that Tom Tancredo, while on the periphery of the debate, was against C & D, and is likely to pick at that scab in attacks against Maes. After all, if it was fair game in attacking Jane Norton, it will be fair game in attacking Tambor Williams. If anything, Jane Norton had much more plausible deniability in the sense that she doesn’t say she really supported the measures; rather she was supporting her boss. Williams has already said she really supported C & D with the rather weak caveat that she only supported them if both passed, not if only one passed as ended up being the case.
At the end of the day, Tambor Williams seems like a bland attorney who brings as much negative as positive to the ticket. She’s not the worst possible choice for Maes, but I doubt she helps him in any substantial way and she may be a slight net negative among conservative Republican voters.
It’s getting near too late for Dan Maes to get out of this race. I continue to believe he should, particularly given Tom Tancredo’s offer to get out simultaneously (which Maes rejected yesterday.) And I also believe I should win the Powerball lottery this week. At this point, it seems the chance of either is about the same.
p.s. I would add that Dan Maes’ trying to create some sort of “gotcha” moment on the radio by asking Peter Boyles if he had Tom Tancredo’s tax returns was weak, pathetic, and showed yet again his utter lack of experience. Did Maes really think that Tancredo would be as unprepared or unwilling to share the information as Maes was, particularly given that Tancredo has been a congressman? Tancredo had his tax returns to Boyles the next day, making Maes look that much worse both for asking the question and by reminding people that he took forever to show his own tax returns as well as the lack of success they showed. By calling for Tancredo’s tax returns in the way he did, Maes showed again that he’s just not ready for prime time.
by PerlStalker | 10:47 pm, August 18, 2010
The Denver Post is reporting that American Constitution party candidate tom Tancredo offered to drop out of the race for governor of Colorado of Republican candidate Dan Maes would drop out too. Maes refused.
Maes’ refusal ended the last hope for def…
Dan Maes tries to thread needle with running mateby Rossputin | 6:04 am, August 18, 2010
What is one to make of a political candidate who says out loud that his choice of running mate is designed to shore up his own weaknesses?
No doubt it’s true, as Tambor Williams, Dan Maes’ choice for running mate in his quest for the governor’s office, has far more experience in both legislative and executive branch aspects of state government than Mr. Maes has.
It reminds me a bit of my thinking when Barack Obama was choosing a running mate, namely that almost anyone he would choose would serve to reinforce his own lack of experience or qualifications for the office. With his choice of Joe Biden, Obama was able to pick one of the only politicians who was simultaneously experienced enough to shore up that aspect of the ticket but enough of an idiot to actually make Obama look smart in comparison.
I don’t think that’s what Maes has done; I have no reason to think that Tambor Williams is anything other than a smart and competent lady.
Therefore, Maes is in the unenviable position of having to acknowledge or even emphasize his own weaknesses as an explanation for and introduction to his running mate.
None of this is to criticize Maes. It takes a big man to admit weaknesses, especially important ones. But admitting weaknesses, especially important ones, is rarely a winning electoral strategy.
For perspective, has there ever been a presidential election where the choice of Vice President made a huge difference in the final outcome? The only one I can think that even had a chance was John McCain’s pick of Sarah Palin, but McCains’ poll number only received a temporary boost and I don’t think anyone believe’s Palin’s presence on the ticket ended up being a major net positive or negative in that specific race. Although Dick Cheney certainly had his fans, I doubt his presence on the ticket was the difference in either of Bush’s victories. And clearly Al Gore wasn’t a reason for Clinton’s wins. When a candidate has to try to sell his running mate as one of the major reasons to vote for him, you know he faces an extremely uphill battle.
Again, that’s not a criticism of Maes; it’s just an observation about the situation.
The good news for Maes, perhaps, is that Barack Obama proved that in the right circumstance anybody can win an election.
Dan Maes Racks Up Key Support; Tambor Williams as Running Mate?by Ben DeGrow | 5:41 pm, August 16, 2010
News this afternoon from the Dan Maes for Governor camp brings news of the Party core growing more united around his candidacy, with a couple of giant endorsements reported on Facebook: But all the speculation now is around tomorrow’s deadline for Maes to announce who his running mate will be. As Amy Oliver ably speculates, [...]
Tambor Williams for Lt. Gov?by amyoliver | 3:36 pm, August 16, 2010
On my radio show today GOP gubernatorial candidate Dan Maes said his “short list” for Lt. Governor includes someone from Weld County with both executive experience in the Governor’s mansion and legislative experience as an elected member of the Colorado General Assembly. Face the State has speculated that it might be either Senator Kevin Lundberg [...]
Maes pledges transparencyby amy | 2:56 pm, August 16, 2010
Republican gubernatorial candidate Dan Maes promised that if elected he would post online all his state credit card transactions down to the penny. He went further than that. During his appearance on Transparency Czarina Amy Oliver’s radio show, Maes pledged to post all state credit card transactions.
Maes pledge was a response to Amy’s question about [...]
by Rossputin | 6:45 am, August 16, 2010
Everyone knows what I think of Dan Maes.
But unless they find him in bed with a live boy or a dead girl, or some truly huge campaign self-destruction, I’m done talking about his faults.
The Denver Post, with fully three members of its editorial board who theoretically lean from moderate to conservative to libertarian seem to have made it their mission in life to go after Maes and at this point I’d just be piling on.
I’ve been asked by a few people whether I’d vote for Maes or Hickenlooper if those were my only choices. While I’d like to say I’m not sure, the truth is that I’d certainly vote for Maes if those were indeed my only options, knowing what I know now. While I don’t think much of Maes’ competence, I do think that as a guy who has had involvement in business (putting aside the level of financial success) he understands the importance of getting the best possible help and advice. I hope that he knows he’s not the sharpest knife in the drawer and is willing to get a really really good knife sharpener.
I think he has free-market instincts and would get good advice from people I could respect, whereas neither would be true of John Hickenlooper, a Van Jones-loving, Obama fawning, radical environmentalist leftist in moderate clothing – that is to say Colorado’s very own Barack Obama without the tan.
Thinking about the election, I think that short of a serious scandal, not the petty ones we’ve seen so far (which are more about competence than moral turpitude), Dan Maes doesn’t get less than 1/3 of the vote. I also think that it’s extremely unlikely that Tom Tancredo will get 30% of the vote or more, and probably more like 20%-25%. This means that John Hickenlooper is extremely likely to be our next governor, winning by something like 43% to 35% for Maes to 22% for Tancredo.
If Maes gets out, could Tancredo win? Maybe, but probably not. If Tancredo gets out, could Maes win? Maybe, but probably not. As surprised as I am to say it, Maes probably has a better chance than Tancredo in a head-to-head match-up if he can get professional campaign staff and stop putting his foot in his mouth and stop having former supporters come out bashing him and supporting someone else.
I am not a big Dan Maes fan, but I am not repulsed by him the way I was by John McCain who I not only didn’t vote for but also argued on the air against him.
I wish Maes and Tancredo would both get out. But I also wish for hundred dollar bills to start falling from the branches of my trees and that’s not exactly happening for me.
Beating John Hickenlooper should be our first priority and at this point I’m willing to do it with any candidate who seems to be of at-least-reasonably sound character and not completely incompetent. I’m not entirely certain about Maes on these scores yet, but he’s not disqualified the way Scott McInnis was. I still can’t believe that this is who the GOP ends up with; and I can’t believe how staunchly some of his supporters defend him, as if we’ve got the next Ronald Reagan in our midst when what we clearly have is a wannabe who’s bitten off way more than he can chew. Still, we have so much to lose with a Governor Hickenlooper that I may be forced into a very uncomfortable decision:
Support an unqualified and minimally competent person with decent fundamental principles or a clearly qualified and mostly competent person with horrible fundamental principles. I’ll go with the former, but not if the comparison gets any worse. I’m still angry with the Tea Partiers who are supporting their guy to the bitter end because they can’t admit they made a mistake in their collective rookie enthusiasm.
I’m willing to give Dan Maes a chance to convince me, even though I think he personally does not have the skill set to give me great comfort in his being in charge, that he’d surround himself by people who could give me such comfort.
I would not take such a “soft” position most of the time; normally I would, and would expect most of you, to demand a much higher quality candidate than we have in front of us today. But these are not normal times with upcoming redistricting and possibly replacing State Supreme Court Justices.
I am definitely not ruling out voting Libertarian; in fact that remains my most likely vote.
But, as we learn of Dan Maes’ Lt. Governor selection, his likely Chief of Staff, and other senior advisors, and as we hear him discuss policies and principles, when it comes to his fitness and electability for the highest elected position in Colorado I will keep an open mind. But not so open that my brain falls out.
New Innovative Data Colorado Poll Gives Reason for GOP Optimismby Ben DeGrow | 3:40 pm, August 15, 2010
Update, 8/19: Interestingly, party identification for the poll fits very closely with what would be expected based on national trends and turnout in the recent primary election: Republican (39%), Democrat (36%), Unaffiliated (25%). Since not all respondents answered every question, the actual percentages for individual questions may vary slightly. Thanks to Jim Pfaff for supplying [...]
Tancredo isn’t “stealing” any votes from anyone.by David K. Williams, Jr. | 11:36 am, August 15, 2010
According to the Denver Post’s Christopher Osher, who wrote a feature on GOP candidate for Governor Dan Maes,
Maes must work to beat Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper on the Democratic side as Tom Tancredo steals votes that would normally go to the Republican…
by Brian T. Schwartz | 1:38 pm, August 14, 2010
Colorado’s 2010 gubernatorial race reveals a major flaw in our plurality-based elections: vote splitting. It’s well-known that Dan Maes and Tom Tancredo will split the Republican vote. This makes it much easier for Democrat John Hickenlooper to win compared to if one candidate withdrew. In an August 11 Rasmussen poll, the combined Maes/Tancredo votes exceeded Hickenlooper [...]
Rasmussen: John Hickenlooper 43%, Dan Maes 31%, Tom Tancredo 18%by Donald E. L. Johnson | 10:11 am, August 13, 2010
Governor-elect Obama Democrat John Hickenlooper leads Republican Dan Maes 43% to 31% while American Constitution Party candidate, Tom Tancredo, comes in third with 18% in the latest Rasmussen poll of 750 likely voters in Colorado.
Rasmussen Reports now ranks Colorado “solid Democrat” for governor. Impact graph:
Just 59% of Republican voters in the state now support Maes, while Hickenlooper picks up 82% of voters in his own party. Tancredo, an outspoken opponent of illegal immigration, captures 25% of GOP voters. Among voters not affiliated with either party, Hickenlooper earns 35% of the vote, Maes 28% and Tancredo 24%.
Look for that 59% of Republican voters who are supporting Maes to shrink dramatically. Hickenlooper probably will gain among unaffiliateds while Tancredo will gain more support from Republicans as voters learn more about Maes’ fumbles and stumbles during his campaign and when he was in business. Tancredo should gain support as voters learn more about what he wants to do for Colorado. LINK: http://www.rasmussenreports.com.
by Donald E. L. Johnson | 9:10 am, August 13, 2010
Freda Poundstone was an early supporter of Dan Maes. And she tells the Denver Post that she gave her financially struggling candidate more than $300 in cash so that he could pay his $3,300 mortgage. But she became unhappy with Maes, voted for Scott McInnis and now supports Tom Tancredo for governor. Maes denies that the money was a gift and says it was a campaign contribution. Poundstone says he’s “a liar.” Now, Maes’ campaign is trying to trace the $300 and figure out why it failed to report it as a campaign contribution.
This story shows how a prominent defector can announce her unhappiness with a candidate and her support for his opponent in a way that makes Maes look both careless with money and record keeping and unfit to be governor. Poundstone is a former mayor of Greenwood Village and a long-time lobbyist. In other words, she’s been a political force in Colorado for a long time, and she still knows how insert a knife and twist it.
At the same time, when the Post gave Maes a chance to respond, he put his reputation up against Poundstone’s in a she said he said exchange he couldn’t win. Then Maes clumsily declared the conversation over. Christopher N. Osher shows how a good reporter gives each side their say and lets the reader decide who to believe.
In this story, Maes loses once again. Like most losers, he will show that he thinks readers are stupid. He will blame the “liberal, biased Denver Post” for his latest embarrassment.
LINK:
Ex-backer of Maes’ says she gave him cash for mortgage help. By Christopher N. Osher.
by Rossputin | 8:02 am, August 13, 2010
The Denver Post is reporting that a former supporter of Dan Maes, 83-year old former Greenwood Village mayor Freda Poundstone, is claiming that she gave Maes “more than $300″ to help the gubernatorial candidate with his personal finances. She claims that Maes said he was behind on his mortgage payment and that several of his friends were helping him financially.
Maes says the $300 was a campaign contribution, which leads to a different problem because Mrs. Poundstone is not listed as a contributor during that time period. Furthermore, Mrs. Poundstone says she would not make a campaign contribution in cash.
From the Denver Post article:
Poundstone challenged Maes to take a lie-detector test to prove her wrong.
“Anytime anyone wants to challenge my word, I’m willing to go anyplace to take a polygraph,” she said. “I wonder if he’d do the same.”
In case you wonder whether Poundstone supported Maes:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rlzUoobNU0I (start around 2:30…)
Here’s my take:
This news is another example of both why Maes should get out and why he won’t get out.
Maes’ reaction is stupid. People already know he’s not a successful businessman. He should have admitted what the money was (if it was indeed a gift to help with his personal expenses) and he should have said “I’m sacrificing a lot because I want to serve our state and prevent John Hickenlooper from continuing the anti-growth, big-spending, sanctuary state legacy of Bill Ritter.” Plenty of people would be OK with that, and the people like me who think he’s a weak candidate would just continue to think that. It doesn’t make him look much worse than he already does – except for people then having to wonder who he’ll owe favors to if he wins, a significant problem for a guy who’s running as not owing loyalty to anyone but the voters.
My reaction is essentially premised on the thought that Poundstone is telling the truth. If that’s the case, Maes’ denial (beyond just the issue of truthfulness) is one of the worst examples of rookie political naïveté which has already plagued the Maes campaign.
But by saying it was a campaign contribution, he opens himself to some much bigger issues, including another reporting violation and being called a liar by an old woman willing to take a lie detector test. Yeech.
Aside from the campaign, Dan Maes is broke and unemployed. This race is his chance to “be somebody”. Also, assuming he has political ambition, he’ll probably think that he would damage his chances of winning some other race in the future if he drops out…and he’d probably be right.
It’s not so much the issue of the money but the issue of Maes’ reaction to it which is yet the latest piece to drop into the puzzle showing that Dan Maes is not ready to be CEO of a state and that he should get out of this race. The fact that it’s believable that he needed the money is why he won’t get out.
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