With friends like these, who needs Steve Bannon?
Sen. Richard Shelby (R-AL) (pictured, right) gave a fairly candid assessment of the closely watched Alabama Senate GOP primary runoff on Tuesday afternoon, admitting his preferred candidate, appointed Sen. Luther Strange (R-AL) (pictured, left), was the underdog.
“Roy Moore is probably the favorite right now but it depends on turnout, the ground game,” Shelby told reporters in Washington on Tuesday. “If there’s a small turnout or an average turnout, a turnout like it was, Moore should win. A bigger turnout would probably favor Senator Strange.”
Shelby insisted high turnout would give Strange a “window to win,” and argued that it’s a “closer race than we think at the moment,” alluding to a spate of recent polls that show Strange, the establishment favorite, trailing firebrand former Alabama Supreme Court Justice Roy Moore by a double-digit margin.
Strange is trailing in spite of a hearty endorsement from President Trump and close to $10 million in outside spending from allies of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY). Many Trump allies, including former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon, are in Moore’s camp.
The race may be the first time that a Trump-endorsed candidate loses election since his nomination, and Republicans are widely concerned that it will pour fuel on the fire of the establishment-populist war already wracking the GOP.
Polls close at 8 p.m. ET in Alabama.
In the interest of influencing the legacy of Donald Trump as a failed politician and leader, I would endorse the use by the national media of the hoary cliche “full throated” to describe any and all endorsements by Donald Trump.
Both fingers crossed for Moore.
Its a win win. He upsets McConnell, either by winning (and tars other republicans with his views) or by loosing (in which case he claims he was kniffed by the “moneyed elites/swamp”), either way more primary challenges are in the offing. Corker’s retirement is directly related to how well Moore is doing.
Plus it puts this seat possibly in play…
One other note that may not be obvious, is that Moore really is a populist. It is possible that he would not vote for Trump’s huge tax cuts for the rich…
I am so flipping sick and tired of hearing about Republicans 24 seven constant noise white noise. Where the hell are the Democrats?
They both look strange, to me.
Being elected to the Senate from Alabama is essentially equivalent to winning in a Biggest Ignorant Anti-Science Racist A**hole Contest.
No way Strange can compete with Roy Moore in this department.