It's Critz V. Burns In PA-12
GOP delegates have tabbed businessman Tim Burns (R) to be their nominee in the special election to fill the remainder of late-Rep. John Murtha's (D) term. He'll face ex-Murtha staffer Mark Critz (D) in the 5/18 contest.
According to PA2010.com, Burns was the overwhelming choice of 132 delegates at a convo tonight, and he easily topped '08 nominee William Russell (R). Several other candidates spoke to delegates, but failed to be nominated and thus, didn't record any votes.
Despite losing the special election nomination tonight, Russell has filed to run in the primary, which is also scheduled to be held on 5/18.
Russell complained in the early stages of the race that party leaders favored Burns because of his ability to self-fund the short special election race. And believing the fix was in -- like ex-Treas. Barbara Hafer did on the Dem side -- Russell suspected that county party leaders would stack the convo deck with Burns' delegates.
But Burns' promise of personal cash must've been hard to ignore for GOPers. As of Dec. '09, he had already put $75K into the race. Still, in order to overcome the Dem registration advantage in the CD, and his lack of name ID, he'll need to make a much more significant investment.
Russell is no fundraising slouch, either. He has raised an astounding $2.9M, but because he pays top dollar for his fundraising, he has spent $2.6M, leaving him with just $211K in the bank. That's still a good enough base with which to start a healthy primary election campaign.
And he also has high name ID from his '08 race against Murtha, when he put a scare into the entrenched Dem. Murtha won with 58%, but not after having to rouse donors and the DCCC into sending him money at the last minute. Because of this, Russell starts with the early advantage in a primary against Burns. Polling, conducted for Russell's camp, shows him with a big 37-7% lead over the unknown Burns. He'll also try to turn the contest into an insider vs. independent contest, one that should resonate in this enviro.
Still, despite Russell's money and name ID, Burns also has a good profile for the CD. He uses every opportunity he gets to remind voters he's from the CD (Russell moved there in '08 after living in VA), and also touts his business background and history of creating jobs. With party backing and his own wallet, he should be able to catch up quickly.
Dems didn't waste any time attacking Burns, saying he sold his company, TechRx, in '02 knowing it'd lead to layoffs in Pittsburgh. "Tim Burns sold out the jobs of Western Pennsylvanians just so he could get rich quick," DCCC spokesperson Shripal Shah said.
Despite the fact the party has a candidate that can self-fund, DC GOPers downplay their chances in the special. They point to the Dem registration advantage, along with the fact that the special election will be held on the same day as a contentious Dem GOV and SEN primary that's liable to drive up turnout among Dems. GOPers at the top of their tickets are mostly running against also-rans.
Still, the GOP needs a win badly, and this CD that gave John McCain a slim victory in '08 would be a great place to start. A loss would continue the GOP's losing streak in competitive House special elections, and would allow Dems to claim they can compete in GOP-leaning CDs. We'll find out in a little over than two months whether Burns is up to the challenge.
Tim Burns is the real deal! He doesn't need the job of Congressman. He wants the job to make a better life for his children and all the next generations of Pennsylvanians and Americans.
Burns is just another rich guy who wants to play congressman. He's just the pawn of the corrupt party establishment which thinks they can use him to fund the party.
Bill Russell is up 30 points in the polls and has a huge base of donors and volunteers. Burns has put a paltry 75k into the race. He's been campaigning for 10 months and got 7% of the Republican primary vote in the Zogby Poll. If the fix weren't in Burns probably couldn't have gotten a second for his nomination
I walked away from tonight's conferee feeling much like a vast majority (65%) of the delegates did; Impressed with Tim Burns. This guy is the real deal and appears to have what it takes to take this seat back for the GOP.
Go Tim! http://www.timburnsforcongress.com/
Tim Burns supports a new national sales tax! He supports a national sales tax of 23 percent on everything we purchase. But the new tax would actually be 34 percent for the federal government to take in the same amount of taxes it does today.
Don't we pay enough in federal taxes. We can't afford Tim Burns plan to create a new national sales tax!
Wow, where do people get such wild ideas? Burns has never said he supports a national sales tax. He has said over and over, he is not running because he wants the job, rather because he feels an overwhelming responsibility to help the country.
Ted - The gov't currently takes 34% from 60% of the population and 40% pay NO taxes. A flat tax of 23% would be paid by 100% of the population. I'm not supporting or opposing, just pointing out why it would be lower.
Very unique point of view.. Loved reading your blog and I'll be back for updates.
Tim Burns is just another pawn and puppet for Rob Gleason and his progressive good ole boys who are ruining the republican party and adding to the massive problems in our country. The conferee was a big show, wrapped in false transparency.
It's an honour commenting on your blog