Bennett's future resembles a "hanging chad"

I suppose there are some people remaining in Utah who are standing gape-jawed at the spectre of eliminating Senator Bennett as a candidate for the 2010 senatorial race in November. 

To those who are still catching up to the political reality about to grip our fair state, the National Review published an article two days ago that just popped up on my radar.  It summarizes nicely the problem Senator Bennett will have in the upcoming state nominating convention on May 8th.

Absent a viable alternative to Senator Bennett, obviously there would be nothing to talk about going forward, but in Mike Lee we have that alternative who represents a freshman class of Senators that will capture their respective primary elections and go on to win in November. 

The fact there are SIX others besides Mike Lee vying for the nomination against Bennett speaks volumes about the anger being registered against the incumbent.

Senator Bennett will soon be in everyone's rear view mirror as we plan for a bright future without him.  Rest assured, this is not a Utah anomaly.  This year it is going to be a trend-setter.

Though he will likely avoid his primary, Senator Harry Reid (D-NV) is trailing badly behind the potential Republicans in Nevada, while Senator John McCain (R-AZ) is neck and neck with J.D. Hayworth in Arizona in his primary.  Florida is also staging a primary where Governor Crist (R-FL) is in trouble.  The Indiana seat vacated by Evan Bayh (D-IN) is looking more and more like a safe haven for a political upstart who's a fourth-generation farmer.  Even Barbara Boxer's (D-CA) political fortunes have eroded, that pompous liberal who insisted on a general calling her by her title "Senator" instead of the tradional military "m'am." 

The good old boy (and girl) network appears to finally be going down in flames.  Watch for Utah to set the example for the rest of the country.

I have never jumped on board with any of the right-wing movements that are abroad in the land.  The radio talk show hosts are too bombastic for my preferences.  The tea party movement, while laudable, is too extreme, as is the Club for Growth. 

The extremes, as I have noted before, are not where we should be looking for our guidance.  I prefer playing it down the middle of the fairway.  This year in my mind that means seeking and finding candidates who are solid in their Constitutional values and anchored in the proposition that limited government is best.  I know "limited government" seems oxymoronic, but it's still a goal worth pursuing and it's not extreme. 

It's always a good idea in golf to play from the middle, and it is certainly truer now in politics than ever before. 

Having said that, here's a good list (it's Mark Levin's) for a starting point to change things up in Washington D.C. and rid the planet now and forever of the "senioritis syndrome" that has so badly afflicted us in national politics for so long:

Marco Rubio (Florida) opposing Governor Crist for the seat vacated by Mel Martinez
J.D. Hayworth (Arizona) opposing John McCain
Sharron Angle (Nevada) opposing Harry Reid
Pat Toomey (Pennsylvania) opposing Arlen Specter
Marlin Stutzman (Indiana) opposing any Democrat for the vacated Evan Bayh seat (he leads by 10 points)
Mike Lee (Utah) opposing Bob Bennett
Chuck DeVore (California) opposing SENATOR Barbara Boxer

Imagine what a different and better world it would be if all seven were elected this fall.  You want change you can believe in?  That's a pretty good start in my judgment.

I for one am grateful that Mike Lee here in Utah is shunning a party label and has openly criticized the Bush administration that flouted big government solutions.  All that, of course, has been blasted into insignificance compared to the Obama administration's largesse at the taxpayers' expense.

The point is, this year's election phenomenon is not isolated to Utah.  As I predicted after our March 23rd caucus meetings, this tsunami is going to engulf the country.