Of course I'm talking about John Cougar Mellencamp
Today's retirement announcement by Evan Bayh leaves a big opportunity in 2010. Bayh waited until the last minute to Brett Farve, so we're going to have to scramble to get the 500 4500 signatures necessary to get a Dem on the ballot in Indiana.
You can join the draft Mellencamp movement on Facebook
Matt Sledge over at HuffPo has a good article on why Bayh is abandoning his seat.
It's safe to say, now that he's confirmed his impending retirement, that 2009 was a terrible year for Evan Bayh. Pummeled by both the left and the right, Bayh evidently decided he didn't need to endure any more abuse. That didn't stop him from taking his time -- he waited until just a few days before the filing deadline to let the news slip. Indiana Democrats, already facing a very tough electoral climate, now have little time to collect the necessary 500 signatures from each of state's Congressional districts to qualify a new contender.
As Chris Cillizza pointed out two months ago, Bayh's future in the Democratic Party was over long before this announcement (perhaps not coincidentally, Cillizza was also the first to report Bayh's decision). But more than Bayh's dimming political prospects, my guess is that what got to Bayh was the distinctly personal tone attacks on him had taken -- particularly those on his wife, Susan, who serves on the board of WellPoint, one of the nation's largest health insurers.
Bayh started tacking to the right almost immediately after Obama's election, long before it became apparent to most that the coalition which had turned Indiana blue for the first time in 40 years would evaporate. Just weeks after Obama's stunning victory in the state, Bayh was trying to put together a Senate Blue Dog coalition.
In his prepared remarks Bayh's greatest concern is one that we learned painfully in 2009 it's too difficult to get basic stuff done in the Senate.
"Two weeks ago, the Senate voted down a bipartisan commission to deal with one of the greatest threats facing our nation: our exploding deficits and debt. The measure would have passed, but seven members who had endorsed the idea instead voted ‘no’ for short-term political reasons," he said.
"Just last week, a major piece of legislation to create jobs — the public’s top priority — fell apart amid complaints from both the left and right. All of this and much more has led me to believe that there are better ways to serve my fellow citizens, my beloved state and our nation than continued service in Congress."
Johnny Cougar is one of the founders of a fantastic organization that is close to my heart, Farm Aid.
The Farm Aid concerts have remained an annual event over the past 25 years, and as of 2010 the organization has raised over $36 million to promote a strong and resilient family farm system of agriculture
If he were in the Senate his strong voice could help shape a better farm bill in 2012.
More on Mellencamp's politics here
So what do you think? Is John Cougar Mellencamp a good candidate? Do we have any other prospects in Indiana?
Crossposted at the Progressive Electorate and linked to on my new facebook group Supporting Democrats in 2010
UPDATE: It appears that we may not need to get a candidate the 4500 votes. If there's no Dem primary a state committee chooses the nominee. From TPM
But in a message tailored for his audience of local party officials, Bayh said the timing of his announcement could be a positive for Democrats. The source said that Bayh told the call that the lack of a primary would mean that the Republican party candidates would attack each other on their own, with no Democrats to get in the way. At the end of the process, according to the source, Bayh said Democrats would choose a strong nominee from their "deep bench."
"He said, 'if this goes to the state committee then we'll have selected a candidate without a divisive primary,'" the source told me this evening.