Changing places

By Paul M. Weyrich
web posted August 20, 2001

Back in 1994 when Republicans won control of both Houses of
Congress for the first time in 40 years, they also elected
governors all across the land. Vice President Cheney's assistant,
Mary Matalin, then a spokesman for GOP causes, bragged that
you could drive almost all the way across America before you
would have to set foot in a state governed by a Democrat.
Virtually all of those governors who came into office in l994
were re-elected in l998.

But now the year 2002 is approaching. Some of those popular
governors, such as Frank Keating of Oklahoma and Tom Ridge
of Pennsylvania (both said to have been on President Bush's
short list for the vice presidential nomination) are term limited,
and in some cases, there is no obvious choice as a replacement.
Then, of course, President Bush ran and won the presidency, so
his former lieutenant governor, Rick Perry, is carrying the torch.
He is a much weaker candidate than Bush was. Bush himself
brought several Governors into his Administration. In each case,
the successor is not as strong as the incumbent. In New Jersey,
the successor to Christie Todd Whitman, Acting Governor
Donald T. DiFrancesco, did not even get nominated by the
Republicans. Various scandals knocked him out before the
primary was held.

In Massachusetts, the female Lt. Governor, Jane Swift, who
took the helm after the Governor was named the ambassador to
Canada, is in serious, serious trouble. Among other things, she
has taken off lots of time to give birth and care for twins. In
Wisconsin, Tommy Thompson was the longest serving Governor
in Wisconsin history and, at the time Bush tapped him to become
HHS Secretary, was the longest serving Governor in the nation.
He seemed unbeatable back home but, now that his lieutenant
governor, Scott McCallum, has taken over, the Democrats think
they will have an easy shot at capturing the governor's office in
November 2002.

And so it goes. Republicans are defending almost two thirds of
the governorships. Democrats have few vulnerable incumbents
next year.

So while most eyes in Washington are focused on whether or not
the Republicans can win back control of the U.S. Senate and
whether they can continue control of the House for an
unprecedented fifth straight Congress, the rest of the nation
appears to be ready to give the Democrats lots of victories in the
states.
Fortunately for the Republicans, most reapportionment of
congressional districts and state house districts takes place this
year and next while Republicans are still in control of all those
state houses, giving them a voice in the outcome.

Whatever happens in the Congress, it seems clear that Mary
Matalin won't be able to make the same claim after the voters
have their way in 2002.

Paul M. Weyrich is president of the Free Congress Foundation
(http://www.FreeCongress.org).

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