Republicans Fret as Angle Slips
Republicans are growing increasingly frustrated with Sharron Angle and her lackluster campaign to unseat Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), fearing she is jeopardizing what they had long viewed as a sure pickup and costing them a chance to reclaim the majority.
Senate Republicans quietly acknowledge that Angle's controversial views on some issues remain a political liability. But the former Nevada Assemblywoman's larger problems are a progression of unforced errors stemming from a lack of campaign experience and an amateurish staff incapable of offering her the necessary guidance. However, Angle has proved to be adept at fundraising, corralling $2.6 million in the second quarter.
Republicans are reluctant to openly criticize Angle, not wanting to cause their nominee more problems. The most recent polling shows Reid ahead in his bid for a fifth term for the first time this campaign cycle. But privately, they concede Angle could lose if she doesn't learn campaign discipline and overhaul her core team to include advisers with experience running a top-tier, statewide race.
Last week, the Republican National Committee dispatched an operative to Nevada to assist Angle, something the National Republican Senatorial Committee has been trying to do for weeks via telephone from Washington, D.C. NRSC Chairman John Cornyn (Texas) indicated that it has been a slow, sometimes difficult task, although he insisted he remains confident in Angle's ability to beat Reid.
"We've had conference calls, including me personally, with her and the campaign, and we continue to work with them. But it's a work in progress," Cornyn said Thursday. "While running for election is not rocket science, it does require knowledgeable people, it does require some discipline, and that's always a struggle for every first-time candidate."
"It's dysfunctional," a Nevada Republican added, when asked to give an assessment of the Angle campaign. "She can still win, but the operation seems odd at best."
Jordan Gehrke, Angle's deputy campaign manager, said Friday he understands that some Republicans are concerned about the race. But he said Angle is putting together a professional team of experienced political operatives.
"In just a few weeks, the Angle campaign has raised over two million dollars, assembled a top flight team, and put a significant ad buy on TV that introduces Sharron Angle to the people of Nevada and exposes Harry Reid's disastrous economic record," Gehrke said. "Reid's in for a long couple months."
A favorite of tea party activists, Angle spent most of the Republican primary campaign deep in third place until surging ahead in the closing weeks. She won the June 8 contest comfortably and immediately bolted to 50 percent voter support and an 11-point lead over Reid, according to a Rasmussen Reports poll.
Since then, thanks partly to several verbal gaffes, including, according to a Washington Post report, telling potential voters that it wasn't her job as a Senator to create jobs, but rather the responsibility of Lt. Gov. Brian Krolicki (R), Reid has taken the lead. Nevada's unemployment rate is 14.2 percent, the nation's highest, and job creation is the top issue in the race. The NRSC has hammered Reid on the issue more than any other.
"It gets down to pure message discipline, and she doesn't have it," a second Nevada Republican said. "There's no one in the campaign to enforce it."
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