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Progress Now has dubbed Republican Senate candidate Bob Schaffer "Backwards Bob", but today he looks a lot more like "Bob Magoo." Schaffer may very well end up as Colorado's next U.S. Senator, but if the last two weeks are any indication, it won't be because he knows where he's going.
Here's a quick rundown of the last two weeks of the Bob Schaffer Senatorial campaign.
Thursday, May 3: The Hill reports that Schaffer announced his candidacy for the Senate at a GOP gathering in Teller County the previous weekend.
Friday, May 4: Schaffer says that he did not, in fact, actually announce his candidacy in Teller County (even as local officials continue to insist that he did). Throughout the next week, Schaffer continually reiterates that Republicans in Teller County are full of manure and that he did not announce anything.
Wednesday, May 9: Schaffer formally files as a candidate for Senate, obviously concerned that he may have triggered the 15-day filing requirement by announcing (even though he didn't!) that he was running for Senate when he was in Teller County.
Thursday, May 10: Colorado Pols reports that Schaffer has hired Shari Williams has his General Consultant...the same Shari Williams who oversaw Bob Beauprez's campaign for governor last year, which most folks agree was one of the worst statewide campaigns in Colorado history.
Friday, May 11: The Fort Collins Coloradoan reports that Schaffer will, in fact, announce his candidacy for Senate on Saturday. In Boulder, of all places.
Saturday, May 12: Schaffer announces at a GOP gathering in Boulder that he is indeed going to run for Senate. The media doesn't bother to show up, since he already announced once before and since he had the brilliant idea to make the announcement on a Saturday night in BOULDER. The Denver media isn't driving to Boulder on a Saturday night. Getting good press for a Senate announcement isn't rocket surgery.
Monday, May 14: Schaffer gets a small story by the Associated Press about his official announcement. That's it.
Democrat Mark Udall hasn't exactly been lighting the political world on fire with his early fundraising, so there's certainly an opportunity here for Schaffer. But Republicans can't be pleased about the image of a bumbling Bob groping around in the dark for the last two weeks. He backtracked like crazy, all but calling local Republicans in Teller County a bunch of liars. To lead his campaign, he hired the person responsible for the biggest Republican collapse in decades, which won't endear him to conservative Republicans. Then he completely blew his chance to get good free press for his announcement.
It's not like Schaffer hasn't done this before; he was elected repeatedly to Congress and ran for Senate in 2004. But you couldn't have started off worse if you tried.
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