This is going to be one hell of a task for state Auditor Tom Salmon:
“I do need to take the next step, and that step will be to, beginning tonight, I’m declaring that I’m entering an exploratory phase for U.S. Senate,” the Republican told WCAX-TV in Vermont on Wednesday. He had already announced that he would not seek re-election as state auditor, a statewide elected position he has won three times.
Unseating Sanders is a “daunting task,” Salmon said.
“I think at this point, there are probably three people who think I can win, and the good news is I’m one of them. ... The idea here is to make a smart decision before fully declaring myself as a full-time committed candidate for U.S. Senate,” he said.
In 2008, Vermont was the second-bluest state in the nation, giving Obama a 37-point victory. Only Hawaii, the president's birthplace, saw a bigger margin. Salmon, who was a Democrat until 2009, is probably as good a get as the GOP can hope for, but Sen. Bernie Sanders is no slouch. In his first senate campaign in 2006, he raised an impressive $5.5 million - a huge sum for a tiny state - and crushed his wealthy Republican opponent Rich Tarrant 65-33, despite Tarrant spending over $7 million of his own money on the race.
Anyhow, Salmon, who once told Dave Catanese that he's "65% in" but now seems less certain, sounds like a cross between Charlie Sheen and L. Ron Hubbard here:
"I am not attached to the 2012 outcome, my odds, or my political career. I don't need to be senator, or governor, or stay put as state auditor — I need to be an authentic self-utilizing power along the lines of excellence," he said. "I am deeply concerned that we address risks of economic, political and spiritual significance through a new brand of leaders that communicate effectively from the sincere center."
Tom Salmon will destroy you in the air. Right after he's done purging his body thetans.