There has been speculation on various websites, and in huddled water-cooler conversation about whether Assembly Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy will be running for Congress this year, and if he does run, who would replace him, presuming that it wouldn’t be practical to campaign for Congress and toil statewide for Assembly Republicans.
I haven’t spoken with Kevin about this yet (he’s hosting a retreat for his colleagues, so I’ll call him on this when that is over). But I think he has made it clear that he has an interest in running for Congress. So this debate is less centered around what will Kevin do, and is more about what will Bill Thomas do? Thomas, who has been representing the Kern County area in Congress for decades, is now 65 and was rumored to be strongly considering retirement this year. Thomas is the Chairman of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee (a position he used last year to earmark a massive amount of money for his district last year, earning him the nickname "The King of Pork") however after this session, he will encounter the 3-term limit on Chairmanships. This fueled fire to the rumor of his retirement. Also fueling that fire was the idea that he would want very much for his protégé, Assemblyman Kevin McCarthy, to run for his seat. The main match up against McCarthy would be local State Senator Roy Ashburn. Right now, though, Ashburn is up for reelection in the State Senate, and would have to choose between an additional four years in the Senate, or a bruising primary against McCarthy, who is a very tough campaigner.* We shall see.
The main story on the home page today is from The Hill (the alternative to Roll Call in DC) and it looks at the future of Bill Thomas, especially in light of the seemingly-pivotal last minute support that Thomas gave to John Boehner, who was narrowly elected to the #2 leadership post in Congress.
* – I keep getting conflicting info on when Roy’s State Senate seat is up. I think the current version of this post has it right.
**There is more – click the link**
February 12th, 2006 at 12:00 am
Jon,
I was out of the area when this posted last week. However, as a Bakersfield resident, I do have some comments.
1. Roy Ashburn is eligible for one more term to the state senate. He was elected to the state assembly in 1996 and first elected to the state senate in 2002.
2. If Bill Thomas pulls a last minute retirement on the 10th of March, I would expect a Roy Ashburn Kevin McCarthy showdown. If Senator Ashburn doesn’t run for congress (and seeks re-election instead), I think Chad Vegas, Kern High Trustee, might run against Kevin or pursue AD 32. You can go to http://www.chadvegas.com to learn more about him.
Believe me, the last thing Kevin McCarthy wants to find himself in is in a debate with Vegas.
3. With SD 18 open Assemblyman Maize or former legislator Phil Wyman would be formidible candidates.
4. Beyond that I don’t know what that would do in AD 32 and AD 34.