Breaking: Bronze Star winner to lead Cleve Tidwell’s campaign
November 9th, 2009
Cleve Tidwell is a former Marine and highly successful businessman seeking the Republican nomination to the United States Senate.
The race to secure one of Colorado’s seats in the United States Senate has been an interesting one. Currently holding the seat is Michael Bennet, appointed by Governor Bill Ritter to replace Ken Salazar. On the Republican side, the sands have been – and continue – to shift.
The one candidate for Senate that has not gotten as much attention as the others but who has been the most consistent is businessman Cleve Tidwell. The Marine has a strong resume with more than solid conservative credentials. He has crisscrossed the state campaigning but his message has been overshadowed a bit by the drama with the other candidates in the race – that is until now.
The Tidwell campaign has just announced that John Wagner will be taking over campaign operations. Wagner has seen great success not only in the private sector working with Fortune 100 companies but also as a soldier. The combat veteran and Bronze Star winner has led an extraordinary career in service to the nation. This is a big move and signals that Cleve Tidwell is in the race for the long haul.
Early on, Aurora City Councilman Ryan Frazier held a great deal of fascination for some but there were serious doubts about his ability to actually capture the seat. The leap from councilman to senator seemed pretty big. His stance on social issues troubled many conservatives despite what some in the right-wing blogosphere might have said. Perhaps recognizing this, Frazier bailed on the Senate race last month and instead will vie for the 7th Congressional District.
The latecomer to the party is former Lieutenant Governor Jane Norton. Norton made a big splash but not in a good way when the National Republican Senatorial Committee jumped on board with her even before the primaries. This has not sat well with Colorado conservatives – including this writer. The NRSC needs to stay out of our affairs until we pick our candidate. Ken Buck, Larimer County District Attorney remains in the race although he suffered through a case of ‘should I stay or should I go’ after Norton announced her candidacy. How long he will stick around is unknown.
If Tidwell can get his message out he absolutely stands a chance against Buck and Norton. The appointment of Wagner to run the Tidwell campaign is a shot across the bow of the other two that the race isn’t over yet and the Marine is ready to go.
You raise some interesting points. Frazier was the darling of the online media and he bailed. Norton jumps in with the apparent backing of the NRSC – those who know nothing about us. Buck was in, then out, then back in. Tidwell is the only one who has been steady and consistent in his message. To me that speaks volumes as compared to the others.