The conservative Club For Growth has launched a new attack ad against Sen. Bob Bennett (R-UT), who has become a top target for them in their quest each cycle to take out a Republican incumbent they deem to be insufficiently conservative.
Bennett has been in the Club’s sights for quite some time. The new TV ad attacks Bennett for such big-spending programs as the TARP bailout and the “Bridge To Nowhere” in Alaska — and even accuses him of colluding with liberals on health care reform. The ad then exhorts viewers to attend their local Republican Party precinct caucuses on March 23 — a process that could potentially unseat Bennett, as explained below.
The Utah GOP nominations can actually be determined at the state party convention itself — if a candidate gets over 60% of the state delegate vote then there is no primary at all, whether it would involve a challenger or even an incumbent being shut out. Those delegates are chosen at the precinct caucuses, which typically have low turnout. If no candidate reaches 60%, the final two candidates go to a primary.
The Club is not supporting any specific anti-Bennett candidate, but they do exist. There is former Rep. Merrill Cook; attorney Mike Lee, who has been endorsed by FreedomWorks, businesswoman Cherilyn Eagar, and others. If there were a solid anti-Bennett bloc at the convention, the incumbent could seemingly lose the nomination.
If you’re shocked by this process, don’t worry — so is the Club. As they describe it: “The craziness of it all: There are only 3,500 Republican state delegates to be chosen this year; which means only 1,800 people (60 percent of the delegates) could end up picking your next U.S. Senator.”
And the Club would certainly like to have a big impact on picking those 1,800 people.
