The Washington Independent had an interesting article today about how two Ron Paul-backed GOP candidates — one of them Paul’s son — are causing headaches for mainstream Republican operatives who favor other candidates in what promise to be important Senate races next year.
That’s because the Ron Paul army injects energy, cash and support into any campaign Paul backs, creating credible candidates out of people who might otherwise have little ability to gain any traction. Their candidacies mean Republicans are likely to spend a great deal of money on primary battles in those two Senate races next year before they can focus on Democratic opponents.
Left out of the article by the Washington Independent, which is a sister site to the New Mexico Independent (a site I write for), is any mention of the third federal candidate Paul’s army has been mobilized behind — Republican Adam Kokesh, who is running for the seat held by U.S. Rep. Ben Ray Luján, D-N.M.
Certainly, Kokesh is running in a less high-profile race. He hasn’t received as much media attention. Unlike the others Paul’s army is supporting, he may not have a primary race. And, perhaps most noteworthy, Kokesh may be less likely to win than the other Paul-backed candidates.
That’s because he is running in a heavily Democratic district for a seat held by a Hispanic whose father is the speaker of the state House. Kokesh certainly has his work cut out for him.
But I thought it was worth mentioning that there is another Paul-backed candidate, and he’s right here in New Mexico. As I’ve written before, Paul’s support of Kokesh promises to make the race interesting.