ONCE AGAIN, Kansas has a horse in the presidential stakes, but the odds that Sam Brownback will win — or even place — are extremely long.
Right now, Brownback is considered by many in the Republican Party to be in the “others” column in the list of possible candidates. Rudolph Giuliani, John McCain and Mitt Romney are leading candidates, but none of the three is anywhere near having a lock on the nomination.
Nationally, both McCain and Giuliani are much better known than Brownback and get more media attention. Brownback had the misfortune to announce his candidacy the same day that Hillary Clinton announced her candidacy for the Democratic nomination. Clinton’s announcement drowned out Brownback’s in the national media.
Brownback is hoping that his conservative social credentials — anti-abortion, anti-stem cell research, anti-gay marriage — will win him the votes of the conservative base that has been so important to the GOP in recent elections. But he will have to fight others for that voting bloc. McCain has been courting the conservatives for months (an effort that has earned him the nickname “Pander Bear”). Giuliani and Romney have been toning down their more moderate views in preparation for the 2008 primaries.
But Brownback faces a bigger task than courting voters in the year before those primaries. His greatest challenge is raising enough money to run a real presidential campaign. Lack of money will kill a candidacy more quickly than a few early primary defeats. Right now, most of the Republican money is flowing to Brownback’s rivals.
Brownback faces a rocky road to the nomination, but he thinks he can win. He is a smart politician and he has beaten the odds before. It is always possible that when the balloons drop at the GOP convention, Sam Brownback will be smiling and waving from the podium.
The smart money says that’s not the way to bet. But — sometimes — longshots win.
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joetho (anonymous) says...
Sam Brownback's candidacy for our nation's highest office deserves closer Kansas press scrutiny. I would like to see a LOT more information about this man and his history, but since he is married to a Stauffer...
Well, maybe CNN will have something someday.
January 23, 2007 at 3:29 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )