Is Mitch Daniels About to Emulate Bob Dole?
Now that Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour is officially out of the running for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination, focus on the still-germinal GOP field is now turning to Barbour's friend and fellow governor Mitch Daniels, the Hoosier who many believed would stay out of the race if Barbour got in (if only to avoid a protracted, divisive Ricochet primary).
Daniels, of course, has been famously reticent about a White House bid, and that leads to doubts from Associated Press writers Philip Elliot and Thomas Beaumont, who write, in a piece published today:
Daniels is the first to acknowledge he's done little to lay the groundwork for a campaign, and his lack of planning has been striking to some who would support him if he ran.
"I don't know if he's got the fire in the belly, drive and desire to run for president of the United States. I haven't seen it," Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad told The Associated Press. "At this point, I don't think it's likely that he'll run."
Branstad, Republican governor of the first state to hold a leadoff nominating contest, got that impression last week when Daniels called to discuss education policy but made no mention of a presidential campaign.
Unlike many in the Ricochet family, I've never met Governor Daniels. But monitoring his public statements leads me to believe that our friends at the AP may have this one wrong. What they take for a lack of ambition may instead be a loyalty to the old-fashioned notion of republican virtue, something I wouldn't expect to be instantly recognizable to the mainstream press.
Governor Daniels has been clear all along that he would await the conclusion of this year's legislative session in Indiana before announcing his presidential plans or lack thereof. Given his past statements and his character, the reason for this seems disarmingly clear: he actually thinks he has a responsibility to the citizens of Indiana who elected him governor. And it may well be that he thinks that the time to govern is when he's his state's chief executive and the time to campaign is when he's a presidential candidate.
For this reason, I predict that if Mitch Daniels decides to run for president he may well resign his post as governor of Indiana. And if so, bully for him. One of the few decisions in the 1996 Bob Dole campaign that made sense to me was Dole's resignation from the Senate to focus on his presidential ambitions. The idea that one can discharge the duties of a lower office while simultaneously entering into the all-consuming world of presidential politics is either insulting to the lower office or to the presidential campaign. And -- for reasons I can't quite articulate -- the idea of holding on to the lower office as a safety net has always seemed a tad unseemly to me.
One wrinkle for the more politically astute among you: if Daniels resigns, Indiana's Republican Lieutenant Governor, Becky Skillman, will assume the governorship. You may be wondering how this would effect the probability of Congressman Mike Pence's all-but-announced 2012 gubernatorial bid. The answer is not much. Skillman has already begged off the 2012 race, citing health issues. In the final calculation, then, that's Daniels on the road to the White House and Pence on the road to Indianapolis. I don't know about you, but I could live with that.
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Comments :
Oct '10
Re: Is Mitch Daniels About to Emulate Bob Dole?
Bob Dole was good with the one-liners.
Mar '11
Re: Is Mitch Daniels About to Emulate Bob Dole?
Unfortunate headline - Bob Dole lost, didn't he?
Dec '10
Re: Is Mitch Daniels About to Emulate Bob Dole?
"Mitch Daniels disagrees with your analysis." -- Mitch Daniels
Aug '10
Re: Is Mitch Daniels About to Emulate Bob Dole?
Bob Dole is a great man but was a poor candidate.
If Mitch D decides to be Bob Dole then he deserves the defeat he has coming.
May '10
Re: Is Mitch Daniels About to Emulate Bob Dole?
He is my first choice among the likely contenders. His throwing his hat in the ring would provide us, alongside Pawlenty & Romney, with an experienced, competent group from which to choose.
Mar '11
Re: Is Mitch Daniels About to Emulate Bob Dole?
I like Mitch. He'd make a great domestic president, strong and principled. But I am not getting any warm and fuzzies about his foreign policy....
Dec '10
Re: Is Mitch Daniels About to Emulate Bob Dole?
The headline threw me! As a Daniels campaign volunteer (well - he's heard from me anyway) I hope you're right on all counts, except the Bob Dole outcome. Run Mitch! Your country needs you.
Jun '10
Re: Is Mitch Daniels About to Emulate Bob Dole?
I like Mitch, too. He's a competent executive with little or no baggage. He's no Ronald Reagan, or even a Fred Thompson, but he's solid if a bit boring. I'll settle for competence as the first prerequisite.
Edited on Apr 28, 2011 at 5:38amOct '10
Re: Is Mitch Daniels About to Emulate Bob Dole?
Troy... if you are correct, Mitch Daniels will disqualify himself for president. How can a Governor who resigns his office mid-term be an acceptable candidate for the presidency?
Jan '11
Re: Is Mitch Daniels About to Emulate Bob Dole?
"What they take for a lack of ambition may instead be a loyalty to the old-fashioned notion of republican virtue, something I wouldn't expect to be instantly recognizable to the mainstream press."
Unpredictability in a leader is a huge problem. Strategy is the art of deciding what to do, based on what you expect others to do. When you can't predict what others will do, you can't form a strategy. And so when your leader is unpredictable, you can't help him.
Barack Obama has a habit of throwing friends and allies under the nearest available bus. His assurances and promises last only until he comes across something more convenient. He lacks leadership precisely because no one trusts him to stick to a plan.
When we look for national leadership, we're looking for people who back up their promises. We're looking for people who don't take the easy way out, or zigzag when facing criticism. We don't have that in the White House now.