(Cross-posted at Students for a New American Politics)
On Thursday, Vermont Auditor of Accounts Tom Salmon announced that he is forming an exploratory committee to consider a campaign against incumbent Senator Bernie Sanders in 2012. Ever since last November's elections, Salmon has been making rumblings about a run, and after wavering over the issue for the past few weeks, he is now one step closer to joining the field.
Salmon is an interesting case - as one of the few Republicans holding statewide office in Vermont, few potential challenger have the immediate name recognition that Salmon brings to the race. Unfortunately for Vermont Republicans, the story isn't that simple.
Salmon was first elected to the Auditor post in 2004 as a Democrat, beating incumbent Randy Brock in what was the first ever statewide election in Vermont in which the outcome was overturned by a recount. At the time, his only real claim in Vermont politics was that his father served as governor in the 70's. The recount process, which gave Salmon a final margin of 137 votes, required significant energy on behalf of the state party - the kind of dedication to a candidate that you would hope that candidate would display to the party in return.
Salmon never returned the favor. Instead, his time in the State Auditor's office has been marred by harsh confrontation with local media, grandstanding on issues the Auditor has no place playing a role in, and most recently, a DUI arrest, video of which didn't place Salmon under the best lighting.
Senator Bernie Sanders, a member of the inaugural SNAP class of 2006, on the other hand, has done a great deal of service to the Democratic party, even though he does not call it his own. Since his election to Congress in 1990, Sanders has been one of the strongest voices for the middle class in Washington, always prioritizing the needs of veterans, blue collar workers, and those in poverty.
In Sanders first election for U.S. Senate, he defeated businessman Rich Tarrant 65% - 32%, despite being outspent $7.3 million to $5.5. Yet this time around, while everyone recognizes the uphill battle ahead of Tom Salmon, there seems to be a growing online consensus that with the exception of ex-Governor Jim Douglas, there are few Republicans who could pose a greater threat to Senator Sanders.
That couldn't be further from the truth. Tom Salmon, despite his Democrat-turned-Republican label, is no moderate, Rockefeller Republican, and his motives for entering this race are seemingly any thing but political. One look at Salmon's campaign website shows a man whose political career is driven by personal scores. His Auditor campaign page includes a rather unusual section titled "Bernie and Me" that is home to a personal diary in which he re-posts news articles and then adds his own personal musings regarding the junior Senator. It would be one thing if this was Salmon's only bizarre departure from candidate protocol, but his record and rhetoric could not be any more erratic if he tried.
These are the kind of candidates the Republican Party is putting their stock in. In 2012, voting booths across the country are going to be filled with candidates who throw out words like "liberty" and "freedom" without understanding their meaning. Politicians like Salmon don't bring new ideas to the table - instead, they believe that by throwing their arms up, grabbing everyone's attention, and halting progress, they have achieved some sort of political victory, and the media is often incredible quick to accept this as a viable political doctrine.
The task for the Sanders campaign, and that of every other progressive candidate this cycle, will be not just getting people excited, but drawing the contrast between those who will come to Washington with ideas and those who won't. The American people need solutions from their lawmakers, and when it comes to putting this country back on the right track, it is progressives who understand where change must occur, and how it can be done. It's easy to throw up a red flag and say "no", it takes a lot more strength to work towards solutions on problems others refuse to touch.