So Nevada Republican John Ensign suddenly resigns from the Senate — after having already said he wouldn't run for re-election next year?
Speculation is rampant. Either Ensign wants to avoid a decision by the Senate Ethics Committee — or the Republicans want Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval to appoint GOP Congressman Dean Heller to replace Ensign, thus giving Heller, who already said he'd leave Congress to run for the seat, the advantage of incumbency.
Or perhaps this is the Republican establishment's sneaky way of screwing over Sharron Angle, who announced that she'll run for Heller's seat. But if Heller moves to the Senate now and the Governor appoints a mainstream Republican to represent the 2nd District — well, there's that old incumbency advantage again. (Freepers, are you listening?)
Whatever is going on behind the scenes, one's thing's for sure: For Ensign to release his resignation statement at the close of business on Good Friday eve — on the cusp of a long weekend and when Congress is out of session— is the height of cowardice. In the words of Lenny Dykstra, we cats call BS on that.
UPDATE: We cats stand corrected. Nevada has a 2003 law, never yet put to actual use, that calls for a special election for the House seat. It's unclear whether it will involve a party nomination process and, therefore, whether Angle will benefit or not. We'll keep you posted.
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