After a whirlwind and not-a-little-embarrassing courtship, Orrin Hatch has refused Donald Trump's overtures and will retire from the Senate after all. We assume he'll do this without getting Congress to renew CHIP. (Screw all those kids with cancer!)
And of course the lazy media have proclaimed that Hatch's decision "opens the way" for Willard Mitt Romney to claim the seat. Now, we're not totally against Willard making the move, although Brian Fallon makes a good point about failed Presidential candidates and knitting. The GOP's 2012 nominee certainly has the potential to drive Trump even crazier than he already is — but none of us should assume that this race is Willard's for the taking.
Here's why:
1) Even with a Romney candidacy, there likely will be a Republican primary. No telling what will happen there.
2) The Democrats already have two credible candidates. In short, we're not ceding this seat just because it's Utah.
3) The Mitch McConnell-Steve Bannon war, kinda quiet since the Roy Moore debacle last month, will flame anew. Both will drop zillions of dollars into this race: Mitch because he can't afford to lose Utah the way he lost Alabama, and Bannon because he needs a win in one of the reddest red states.
So, bottom line: Assume nothing. It's 2018, with a blue wave on the way. And does the Hatch announcement portend more GOP retirements as members trudge back to Congress this week? We cats PURR.
P.S. Speaking of elections to watch, check out US House District 12 in Florida: Democrat Chris Hunter has declared he'll run against Republican six-termer Gus Bilirakis. What's so special? Hunter is a former FBI agent. Who'da thought that if a Bureau veteran ran, he'd be on the Democratic side? Could this have anything to do with Trump's Russia infatuation and his attacks on Comey, Mueller and Wray? We cats PURR again.
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