Celia Cohen is back from vacation with her latest rankings of Delaware’s races this fall. I agree with her that Biden and Castle are nearly guaranteed to be reelected. But let’s see what she has to say on the Governor’s race (Markell v. Carney v. Lee v. Protack):
For the first time in a generation since Republican Pete du Pont won in 1976, there is no clear frontrunner for governor. (Not you, Protack). Tilts Democrat(ic).
I suppose she means there is no individual frontfunner for Governor, for obviously either Democrat would have to be favored to defeat Bill Lee in the general. Yeah, it might be a more competitive race with John Carney as the nominee, but come on. It is not like Carney is going to lose to Lee. As to there being no individual frontrunner, I agree. As to her use of the term “tilts Democrat,” obviously she is trying to avoid the word “leans Democratic” for some reason. Perhaps she fears a copyright lawsuit from Larry Sabato or Charlie Cook. Also, note her improper use of “Democrat,” which further reveals her right wing tendencies.
On to Lt. Governor (Denn v. Copeland):
Ambition alert! Watch out for the intensity of this one. It is not really for lieutenant governor but for next governor. Tilts Democrat(ic).
For as much as Celia Cohen represents the conventional wisdom and the establishment point of view, she really does reveal her dislike, if not hatred, of politicians with quotes like these. Ambition can be a positive or a negative thing, depending on the circumstance. But I sense that Celia views it as a negative always. But she is correct that this is a race for the political future. If Copeland wins, he is the GOP nominee for Governor in 2012, no matter if Lee wins or not. If Copeland loses, he is the GOP nominee for Governor in 2012, no matter if Lee wins or not. Since the Democrats have a deep bench of rising political starts, if Matt Denn wins, he stakes his claim on the Governor’s job in either 2012 or 2016, but he is by no means the future of the party, not with Carney, Markell, and Beau Biden around.
As for the Insurance Commissionr Race (Reed v. Stewart v. Savage v. Brady):
A muddled Democratic field gives Republicans a rare shot to take back a statewide office. Too early to call.
Too early to call is a term for election night. You not calling races, Celia; you are handicapping the race at this moment of the campaign. So it is not too early to call. In fact, right now, given progressive hostility to Reed, who is the strongest candidate on the Democratic side, I say that John Brady should be favored to be our next insurance commissioner. And then the Progressives of this state can sit back and be surprised that a Republican never governs progressively, no matter the campaign promises.