(UPDATE:
Yesterday Salmon spoke at Sen. Bill Doyle’s class on
>Vermont politics at Johnson State. Among other things
he said:
(1) He has not decided which statewide office he will
seek;
(2) He has not decided which party he will run in;
(3) Vermont Yankee must be re-licensed. – promoted by odum)
UPDATE 2 From a source close to Salmon: “The leading source of (the party-switching rumor) is clearly some Republican operatives who are trying to move Dubie off the dime… I can confirm that no one has a legitimate basis for these rumors.” Interesting – this merits continued watching, especially given Salmon’s comments in Doyle’s class. /update
UPDATE 3 The Rutland Herald has a piece about this. –julie.
He’s been dropping hints for a while, and has certainly been doing all he can to alienate many of the same people who worked so hard during his historic recount to get him where he is today, but is Auditor Tom Salmon Jr. planning to drop the Democratic Party and run for Governor as a Republican (most likely going up against popular Lieutenant Governor and presumed Douglas heir apparent Brian Dubie)?
That’s the rumor – one I’m told by a reliable source is a “90%,” – all but confirmed (but again – not yet confirmed… apply grain of salt).
Currently, Salmon has had Democratic consultants Jake Perkinson and Selene Hofer-Shall working on his re-election. One assumes he would lose their assistance if he makes the move.
We’ll see. Hopefully we can get more on this soon. It’ll be refreshing to see some truth-in-advertising on his ballot line, if this turns out to be true, and not just a wacky rumor. It could also simply be a trial balloon being floated among insiders. Time will tell.
Quick Update: More than one source close to the Salmon campaign say this is “nuts,” and that is a direct quote… others say its for real. Time to let the real reporters have at it, I suppose.
that changing parties will in any way diminish his ability to be on the wrong side of any issue that comes before him… He seems to have developed a good eye for sticking himself into situations he has no clout or clue on.. There is only so much traction in a name, and Tom seems to have one wheel spinning at this point. Going up against MR Niceguy, which Brian really IS, could be a real wakeup call for Tom. You don’t vote against the guy who showed up at your father, mother, neighbor’s funeral, and with Douglas in “charge”, what else has Brian had to do??
Give em Hell Tom… watch out for that swinging door on the way out..
Beat up on Salmon in an election campaign, AND get an Auditor who wouldn’t mind being part of the party?
Sounds like a good move to me…
Tom Salmon contains some of the highest levels of Omega-3 fatty acids of all Vermont politicians.
The PCB levels in ocean-farmed Tom Salmon are not a cause for concern.
The mercury levels in Tom Salmon are often so low as to be undetectable
Unlike most Vermont politicians, there are absolutely no hormones used in the production of Tom Salmon.
Tom Salmon: Spawning New Ground In 2009
That’s a classic non-denial denial.
the Republican party needs yet another asshole…
With a (D) next to his name, he wins because of party registration.
But if Salmon’s even contemplating a party switch, who is he bringing over.
I think there’s only two scenarios in which a candidate can switch parties and be successful.
1. The new party’s presumptive nominee represents an extreme side of the party
or
2. He has enough of a repoir with voters that not only will he draw some of his new party’s support, but he will have old supporters willing to register to vote for him in a primary.
I expect this is going to be a campaign on two key issues: the economy, and energy.
When it comes to economics, it’s safe to say Dubie is fairly conservative (even though he doesn’t have much of a record). But with energy, I believe Dubie is noted for being better than Douglas. If social issues were at stake, that certainly showcase Dubie to be far to the right, but it won’t be a factor, and so the Lt. Governor doesn’t come out looking that much different than Douglas. Salmon wouldn’t win by offering himself as the “moderate” option.
Who are his “supporters”? The Hinda Miller crowd? I don’t know what kind of democrats could possibly find his style so appealing that they’d be willing to pick up a Republican ballot in the primary.
Salmon has a better chance of putting his name in the Democratic primary and hoping to come out on top of the jungle heap than he does slaying a sitting Lt. Governor who conservatives, particularly religious ones, relish.
My bad on that one, I know we don’t register by party.
What I was trying to get at was, I don’t see what kind of voters who traditionally vote in the Democratic primary are going to pick up a Republican ballot in a year when there would be contested primaries for both parties.
Once again, we see the pattern of politicians denying the facts to GMD, then telling the truth when talking to the MSM.
And remember, what Salmon calls “The financial stability that Jim Douglas brought” is what saner heads would call an ideologically driven, starve-the-beast approach to slashing government.