Democratic Candidate Drops Out Of Senate Race

While the Republicans have a crowded field of politicians wanting to win the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Kay Bailey Hutchison, the Democrats do not -- and now there is one less. The most widely known Democrat in the race was Lt. General Ricardo Sanchez. After his retirement from the Army, some Washington politicians had come down to Texas and talked him into running. They felt the Democrats needed a high-profile candidate, and since no Democrat currently holds statewide office in Texas, there just are too many of those around.

But Sanchez has now dropped out of the race. Here's how the Fort Worth Star-Telegram puts it:

Retired Lt. Gen. Ric Sanchez, the sole major Democratic candidate in the race to replace Republican U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, said Friday he is dropping out of the Texas race because of "pressing personal challenges" and a lack of funds.

In an email to supporters Friday afternoon, Sanchez thanked those who had encouraged him to run but said he needed to put his family first.

"I am very grateful for the strong support and encouragement I have received from supporters across the country and the wonderful Texans I have met in every part of our great state," Sanchez said. "However, pressing personal challenges, coupled with the recent loss of our home due to fire and lagging fundraising numbers make a statewide election campaign impractical for me at this time."

When Sanchez had first announced his candidacy, I had thought he might make a good candidate. He did have some name-recognition and a long military career (something that would go over well with Texas voters). But for a while now I have been having doubts about his candidacy. One of the first red flags was that he started sounding far too much like a Republican in the few speeches he gave -- and the last thing Texas (or the Democrats) need is another blue dog in Washington.

It also became clear that he had very little political charisma and would be unlikely to fire up either the party's base or the state's voters. The Democrats need a candidate that can excite people, and Sanchez was not that kind of person. He may have been a very good general, but it takes a different kind of leadership to be an effective politician.

I also think he was politically naive. He complained of "lagging fundraising numbers", but that was most likely because he hasn't been out on the stump and criss-crossing the state to ask Democratic voters for their help and money. If you want money in these hard times, you have to at least ask for it. I don't remember a single trip to this part of Texas (the Panhandle) by Sanchez, and I suspect other parts of the state were also wondering why he wasn't coming to them either.

So who is going to be the Democratic candidate? I honestly don't know, but I'll admit I'm glad it won't be Sanchez. Even a largely unknown candidate will be better than a bad candidate. Being unknown is something that can be fixed, but being a dull and uninspiring candidate with little drive is not fixable.

NOTE -- A few months ago there was a movement to draft actor Tommie Lee Jones as the Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate. I doubt he'd want to do it, but I have to admit the idea still excites me. Please Tommie Lee! Your state needs you!