Some of the readers of FA might know of Larry Elder. Known as “The Sage of South Central” he hosted a radio show on our local LA station KABC for close to 15 years when he ended it last December in hopes of starting a political career. No man would have been better to challenge Boxer in my opinion.
But something funny happened along the way. The state NRSC and Senator Cornyn told him not to because they really want to support someone sure to lose, Carly Fiorina.
You know Larry Elder: the African-American, Californian, libertarian, popular radio host and firebrand. He’s been around for a while, and he’s a solid presence on the California media-and-politics scene. Elder is a serious name and presence among California Republicans. He just wrapped up his radio show. “Why,” you might ask, “doesn’t Larry Elder run for the Senate?”
There is an answer accorinding to many of Elder’s friends at the Republican Convention — Senator Cornyn and the NRSC told him not to.
Here’s the story that is circulating at the convention: Back in the spring, Elder went to Washington to sit down with John Cornyn and the NRSC, and ask for their support for a bid for U.S. Senate against Barbara Boxer. Cornyn and the NRSC told him the following:
1. If Elder chose to run, they would not support him.
2. The NRSC was already committed to supporting Carly Fiorina
3. The NRSC expected Fiorina to lose against Boxer, but expected her to tie up Democrat resources in the meantime.So Larry Elder came back to California and did not run. You know the rest: he’s watched the Fiorina campaign move from crisis to crisis (failure to vote, Iran sales, revelation of no self-funding, no CRP attendance, this Rasmussen poll, that website, etc.), and feeling increasingly frustrated. It’s probably too late for him to enter and Larry is hot under the collar that Cornyn gave him such terrible advice. So he’s talking to his friends — and his friends are talking to us — and I’m talking to you.
How incompetent is this? The NRSC actually told a popular African-American with statewide name recognition to NOT run? Last I checked, our party isn’t overflowing with those.
Oh, and the NRSC expects Carly Fiorina to lose to Barbara Boxer — and they told a talk radio host this?
California Republicans are used to a parade of incompetence and self-defeating stupidity at the highest levels of our beloved party. But this goes beyond what we’re used to.
And we wonder why our party is in such shambles. Carly is an Obama prototype….lots of talk, not a whole lot of substance. And this is the one our leadership decided to run against Boxer!
Argh!
I’m not sure if it’s too late for him to enter or not. They say it is but with his name recognition in the state he may be able to get the funding needed.
Run Larry Run!
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