re: Off-Topic: Governor’s Race

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Would love to see 1/2 the energy everyone is putting into this Senate race directed towards the Governor’s race.

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That's not going to happen for a couple of reasons. First is that in the overall scheme of things, the Senate seat is far and away the more powerful and attractive office. It's a six year term that (sadly) isn't term limited. In a non-competitive state like Alabama, (Doug Jones excluded) once you're elected pretty much nothing short of getting caught in bed with a dead girl or live boy will get you out of office.

The second reason is that while you don't have to like it (and I don't) simple poll numbers tell any serious candidate that running against Ivey is a waste of resources. As recently as November she was polling at a 62% approval rating. You aren't beating that with campaign ads alone. She'd have to stumble massively and multiple times. Ivey's advisors know better than to let her go out and debate unscripted so that isn't going to happen. End result is keep your powder dry and wait until 2026 when it will be an open seat.

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The sad thing is that this is all shaping up for Ainsworth to take all of that establishment money from Ivey and run with little opposition in 2026.

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I disagree on Ainsworth. He's got baggage. For example, now he's tooting the 'let people live their lives, keep government out' horn, when Covid first got rolling he was all on board the "lock it all down or we're all going to die" train. He's going to be a pretty easy guy to hammer.

There are a lot of potential high name recognition candidates out there that could make a serious push. Steve Marshall will be term-limited in 2026. I've got no idea what his plans might be post-AG but he's an incredibly likeable guy personally and would be a formidable candidate. Arthur Orr or even Del Marsh (depending on how he spends the next 4 years_out) are high profile legislators with long records to run on. There's also always the chance one of the US House members will decide to take a shot at it. If Mo Brooks loses (fingers crossed that it happens) the senate race, he'll be looking for something to do in 2026 for sure. I don't think it's going to be a cakewalk for Ainsworth at all.

If Alabama ends up with Mo Brooks and Tommy Tuberville as their senators, they deserve ANYTHING that happens to the state!
Britt, with Shelby's backing, would have a huge advantage in the Senate halls, and would end up on some very important committees, and that means money for the state. Look at what all Shelby got for Alabama!

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For example, now he's tooting the 'let people live their lives, keep government out' horn, when Covid first got rolling he was all on board the "lock it all down or we're all going to die" train.

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I am not reading this in that article you linked. Where does he say we should lockdown in that memo they're talking about?

Honestly though, if you really think Kay Ivey has 62% of Republicans in this state then I'm not sure how being in favor of lockdowns would be viewed as a negative.

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Honestly though, if you really think Kay Ivey has 62% of Republicans in this state then I'm not sure how being in favor of lockdowns would be viewed as a negative.

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Ivey’s support is a mile wide but an inch deep. I think everyone “approves” of her because she plays the role of ribbon cutter and doesn’t make any waves. For someone that has such high approval rating, it’s weird how there are very few Kay Ivey “fans.” People aren’t rushing to her campaign HQ to get a yard sign or bumper sticker. She’ll probably win, but something tells me she could be in trouble if the race starts to tighten and she has to turn off cruise control.

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I totally agree. A strong candidate could absolutely take her down, and there's still time for one to materialize.

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I think Ainsworth would’ve rolled her and they have a handshake deal. So I don’t have a problem with him per se but it just seems like we could be set up again for the Lt. Gov to just shuffle into the office.

It’s telling that nobody in here has mentioned Lindy Blanchard. For all of the money she’s pouring into the race, she just isn’t really that impressive. You can call yourself the Trump candidate and then be kind of a low energy poser.

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It generally doesn’t bode well when a candidate switches the race he/she is running in midstream. Her senate campaign wasn’t going anywhere, and her gubernatorial one won’t go anywhere either.

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Even if I had the money to do it, I could never imagine blowing $5 million of my own money to run for Governor of Alabama.

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Do you have a clue about how the Senate works?

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Yes.

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Do you have a clue how Alabama has benefited as a result of Shelby's chairmanships and seniority?

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None of these candidates will have "chairmanships and seniority," and those things are a horrible reason to vote someone into office.

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There isn’t a single elected office I’d spend a dime of my money to run for.

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In which case you'd just become a puppet for one of the two parties. Candidate independence is predicated on financial independence, but the people capable of essentially buying an elected office tend to spend their whole time in that office exploiting it for their own financial gain. 98% of statewide or federal politicians serve their party or themselves. The other 2% serve the voters who put them there. The obvious solution is to outlaw private campaign funding entirely and provide the same amount of public funding to all candidates who meet certain qualifications, but at an absolute minimum Citizens United needs to be overturned with one of the most scathing opinions ever committed to writing in the SCOTUS.

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I think Ainsworth would’ve rolled her and they have a handshake deal.

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100%. Wish he would have run against her.