How dead does Rep. Marlin Stutzman look ahead of Tuesday’s GOP primary for Indiana’s open Senate seat? Let’s put it this way: If this were a cop show, Stutzman would be that guy who we first see proudly proclaiming that he’s two days away from retirement. If this were an episode of Star Trek, Stutzman would be that redshirt who beamed down with Kirk, Spock, and McCoy. If someone made a movie about this Senate campaign, Stutzman would be played by Sean Bean. He’s that dead, Jim.
Marist takes a look at Tuesday’s GOP primary, and they find Rep. Todd Young blowing Stutzman out of the water by a 56-24 margin. A Public Opinion Strategies survey for two local media outlets gave Young a less cruel 43-31 edge last week. Of course, the Rains of Castamere was already blasting nonstop in Stutzman’s campaign headquarters before the polls started coming in. While establishment groups have been flooding the airwaves with ads supporting Young, Stutzman’s nominal allies at the Club for Growth and the Senate Conservatives Fund have stayed away, evidently deciding that Stutzman’s weak campaign would be a waste of money. Maybe when Stutzman started running those ads stressing his background as a farmer, tea party-friendly organizations listened to their sixth sense that told them he was about to buy the farm.