Gov in the money
Today's Times has a piece about how Gov. Gregoire is already vacuuming up as much dough as she can in preparation for what will probably be a difficult reelection campaign. She already has raised over $1 million, over half of which was done in the past several months. Partisan talking heads differ as to why she has raised so much, but I tend to believe the Republican view that she's preparing for a Rossi rematch and it's never too early to start a warchest. If it happens, that election will set fundraising records that will stand for years to come.
posted by TMW @ 6:08 AM
6 Comments:
If voters look at her record and her effectiveness in office it shouldn't be a difficult re-election.
When 2008 roles around, should Rossi end up being her opponent, one need ask what the two had accomplished in the 4 years. While Gregoire was busy helping bridge party lines to produce effective and often landmark legislation, Rossi was touring the state on a book tour.
No contest.
I don't think that's a fair comparison. Rossi has not been in office so comparing "records" is invalid. Gregoire is going to have to prove to voters that she's worth another tour, and she should start that next legislative session by governing in a more bipartisan fashion (which will probably be more difficult than ever since Democrats currently look to gain seats). Otherwise, Rossi has great attack ad fodder in contrasting her actions in office with her campaign promises.
I'm fairly certain a rematch would begin with a Rossi advantage, but whether that stays or changes will depend on how Gregoire can spin her performance with independent voters. Regardless, I suspect another barnburner.
TWM, you're not paying attention to Gregoire's achievements if you believe that Rossi will go into a race with an advantage. Gregoire is not only being effective and a uniter, but she also gaining in popularity in the polls.
As to your other comment, "I don't think that's a fair comparison. Rossi has not been in office so comparing "records" is invalid." if that is the case then I'm sure you'll agree that doing so in the Reichert/Burner race is equally invalid - yet that is of course what people are doing when they go after Burner's rookie standing.
That's a double standard pure and simple.
On the contrary, I call this coming from the viewpoint of an Independent, not a partisan Democrat. Gregoire's performance in office has been heavy on using her party's legislative majorities to push through laws favourable to the Democratic Party, often times over united but weak Republican opposition. The GOP has made much of her unwillingness to govern in a bipartisan fashion following both the regular legislative session of 2005 and the 2006 short session. I don't completely trust Strategic Vision for obvious reasons, but to my knowledge they are the only pollster who has continually polled a 2008 rematch and Rossi has consistently led by large enough margins to cover partisan margin of error. Rossi will not win because of sympathy, but he is his party's biggest star and popular with Independents -- something Gregoire has only recently begun catching up on. If she continues to gain popularity outside the party then I'll have to rethink my assessment, but at the moment I maintain a rematch would begin with a GOP lean.
As for the comparison to the 8th district race, I agree that it would be foolish to attack Burner for not matching Reichert's performance. Being an incumbent has its advantages, and being able to spin one's accomplishments in office is a big part of that.
Being an incumbent has its advantages, and being able to spin one's accomplishments in office is a big part of that.
Which doesn't bode well for the incumbent in this case as his accomplishments in office are next to non-existent.
Perhaps. I think the amount and type of accomplishments an incumbent needs to properly spin them is far different for a legislative office than an executive one, based solely on the job description and responsibilities. Reichert will go out of his way to point out his independent votes, and that's about all he can do since the seniority system makes it so difficult for freshman legislators to shine.
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