Two months ago, the National Republican Senatorial Committee proudly announced that California banker Eric Hovde was going to be their guy to run for US Senate in Wisconsin against Senator Tammy Baldwin. But since then, nothing. Hovde has been too busy raking in the big bucks from his two California-based banks and hanging with his friends and family in sunny Laguna Beach to come to cold, snowy Wisconsin for any length of time.
However, Hovde hasn't been completely idle. Apparently, he hired a couple of people, including a spokesperson, who said that Hovde will formally announce his campaign next week. No seriously. They're really gonna do it, guys.
When and if Hovde ever formally enters the race, it won't be his first time. He ran in 2012 but didn't even make it out of the primary against former Wisconsin Governor Tommy Thompson. Thompson went on to lose to Baldwin.
Supposedly also weighing in on the race is Scott Mayer, a businessman from Franklin, Wisconsin. On Tuesday, Mayer announced that he had already hired 20 people, incuding top management. On Wednesday, he said, "Just kidding!"
Mayer, a Franklin Republican, walked back his claims to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that he was “finishing putting a team together” and he was "halfway" to his goal of hiring 40 people. Rather, he suggested, he has people ready to join a campaign.
Mayer's comments came as the Republican field to take on Democrat U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin in November is yet to take shape. Banker Eric Hovde is expected to announce his run soon.
“To clarify, nobody’s on my payroll because I don’t have a formal program yet,” Mayer said Wednesday morning, claiming he didn’t mean to mislead anyone with comments saying he hired staff. “I have not announced, I’m not going to start paying people until I announce.”
“But I have people lined up,” he added. “If I’m not actually doing anything, I don’t need to pay them. They are lined up and ready to go if we run.”
Well, all righty then!
Moving on, there has been a third potential candidate, former Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke. The last time anyone saw Clarke, he was on the side of a milk carton with a missing person alert. Apparently, he wasn't geting the grift he wanted.
Meanwhile, Baldwin has not been resting on her laurels. She's been out there, traveling the state and talking to people. In the last quarrter of last year, she raised about $3 million and is sitting on a war chest worth $8 million.
Hmm, maybe that's why the three Republican money grubbers have been hesitating so much about getting in. The know that they can't count on the Republican Party for much help, and with the overwhelming issues like abortion and the insurrection and Trump hanging over them, it's going to be very expensive for them to amount of their own money to mount any kind of challenge to Baldwin.
I almost feel bad for them. No, not really.
