If I may say so, the Salazar brothers are the two most infernally infuriating people that the Colorado GOP have ever encountered. Colorado has been trending a little bluer the last few years – but even in years when we were going hard-red, now-Secretary Ken Salazar was winning statewide. And then his brother Johnny picked off a rural GOP house seat (CO-3) in 2004 when most Dems were getting plowed under. At this point, saying “Salazar” in my presence is a bit like waving a red flag at a very angry bull. So, while I am generally very pleased with the way things are going in most Colorado races for 2010, the one thing that sticks in my craw is that we’re not seriously trying to take out Secretary Kenny’s big brother - because the climate in 2010 is going to make this our best (and maybe only) shot at actually getting rid of the guy.

We’ve got a very competitive candidate against Rep. Perlmutter in Distict 7 (CVI D+4) and we’re charging hard against Betsy Markey in District 4 (R+6) but apparently we’re too intimidated by little Johnny to put up a solid challenge in District 3 – which has a Cook Voting Index score of R+5 and by all rights should be a targeted seat! In fairness, we do have Scott Tipton, who took the GOP’s last legitimate shot at Rep. Salazar in 2006 and is now back for seconds. Tipton seems like a stand-up guy in my estimation – but he got pummeled 61%-34% last time, and I really don’t want to see that movie again.

In my mind, part of the reason we can’t compete is that we keep throwing suit-and-tie politicians (often lacking charisma) at the Salazars - who have perfected cowboy populism right down to the white hats, shiny boots, and ever-present bolo ties. So, I have to admit that I was mildly intrigued when I read that some guy who referred to himself as “The Cowboy Colonel” had jumped in the race on the GOP side. Of course, our snarky liberal friends at ColoradoPols.com lambasted Bob McConnell’s strongly worded announcement editorial and odd nickname - but frankly he sounded to me like the type of  bull-in-the -china-shop guy who might be able to steal Salazar’s thunder.  I figured I’d see how serious he  was.

What I found was a a relatively low-budget campaign website with enough aw-shucks, all-American, cowboy straight talk to make Sarah Palin look like a latte-sipping urban liberal - and I liked it. The issue positions were mostly spot on, the candidate seems very well read, and at the same time he comes across as hard-core rural Coloradoan who takes no bull from anybody. With health care on the front-burner, I like the fact that he has been an EMT for ten years, and as someone who cares about our troops and the wars they fight, I like the idea of electing a retired Colonel in the Army Rangers.

 ”He may not have a lot of money”, I said to myself, “but if he could get it, we may have finally found the one guy on the planet who can out-cowboy John Salazar.”  

Am I saying that McConnell is in a position to win right now? No, I’m not. From what I’ve seen so far, he would need a lot more money and a much more professional campaign machine to compete with Scott Tipton, let alone John Salazar. What I will say is that Bob McConnell is the type of candidate who could compete with John Salazar given the resources – and the type of guy we should be looking at recruiting to take on people like Salazar (for any readers at the NRCC – that jab was addressed at you).

We can play against entrenched Blue Dogs in GOP-leaning districts if we recruit common sense Americans who tell it like it is, don’t mince words, and hence can get the attention of the electorate. If the national party (or the conservative movement) decides to give such people a megaphone and stand them up as legit candidates, I think we could pick off a few Dems that we would otherwise have missed. And its not like we’re any worse off if we take a chance and lose. 

As for McConnell himself – I do have a few questions before I get fully on board. First I would want to see some video to prove that he is as articulate on the stump as he is in his writing. Second, I would like to see if he can get a little grassroots support behind him or if this is going to be a one-man show. Third, he needs to hone the message a little bit because he has a bit an advertising problem – “The Cowboy Colonel” is a bit of a hokey nickname to run on, but at the same time the candidate’s name may confuse conservatives who recently spent a lot of time tracking Bob McDonnell in Virginia. So – if there’s a legitimately good story about how/why people started calling you “The Cowboy Colonel”, get it out in the media so that you can use it effectively (if you just made it up yourself - drop it like a hot potato).  

What are the chances that we get a Cowboy Colonel in Congress? I don’t know. But I do know that Bob McConnell has my attention, and I hope that he can catch the attention of Republicans in the 3rd district who are interested in putting forward more than just a sacrificial lamb.

Bob – the jury is still out – but I like what I see so far and I figure the least I can do is steer a little blog traffic your way.