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July 01, 2007 10:23 AM UTC

Cat's out. Will Perkins reported as recruiting Rayburn to run in Col. 5th CD for 3 man primary.

  • 26 Comments
  • by: CD-5 Line

That’s the rumor.  I was holding off passing that along until I had more information and now that I do, I must say that I personally believe this to be true.  Rayburn is waiting to declare and reportedly will use Will Perkins’ recruiting him as the “excuse” for so doing.

What Rayburn apparently doesn’t know, probably because of his Air Force career’s moving him all around the country and world, is that Will Perkins and Chuck Gosnell, the latter serving as president of the Christian Coalition of Colorado, have been close personal friends since at least the days of “Amendment Two” back in 1992 and they remain so to this very day, from my information.

Thus, the plot thickens. And, the general is being marionetted around, it would seem–far more than any private in the U.S. Air Force. Ah! To be Lamborn’s tool–and not know it!

Lamborn and Chuck Gosnell are in fear of a two man primary where the only two candidates are Jeff Crank and Lamborn. Rayburn’s ego seems easily enough appealed to and Perkins is reported to have been able to do it.  “We need you to run, General.”

The best political strategy for Lamborn is to triangulate the Republican primary with Rayburn and Crank. Lamborn is desperately afraid of a two man race but only against Crank. Otherwise, I have a hard time believing he would be so openly willing to accept the July 11, 2007 meet and greet to be held for him by a firm with historical ties to Jack Abramoff.  Lamborn appears in dire need of money to stoop to those levels.

In any event, Gosnell can’t recruit Rayburn to run, and for obvious reasons, but Chuck Gosnell’s close friend, Will Perkins can.  Be poised.  Rayburn will officially declare, is the hearsay, but the timing is not known.  If Crank doesn’t primary Lamborn, then Lamborn’s picking off Rayburn is a far easier proposition to Lamborn than picking off Crank.  Smart political thinking, just like when Lamborn triangulated the 2006 primary, then using Rivera  against Crank.  The old play book is often the best play book. 

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26 thoughts on “Cat’s out. Will Perkins reported as recruiting Rayburn to run in Col. 5th CD for 3 man primary.”

  1. ….the definition of insanity.  Or the El Paso County GOP strategy. 
      Now all they need is Rivera and Anderson to set up exploratory committees, and they can replay the ’06 primary.
      Still-born may yet beat all of the odds and be re-elected in ’08!

    1. But, Lamborn’s handlers are hoping, I am confident, to engender as much support for other candidates to enter again hoping to dilute the vote enough for Lamborn’s hardcore supporters to carry the day for him in 08.  It worked in 06.  And, I don’t think there is anyone who seriously thinks Lamborn is going to get by in 08 in a 2 man race if it’s Lamborn against Crank. 

      The interesting story will be how the handicap players are looking at Lamborn for funding for re-election.  If his end of June fundraising is as anemic as his success in getting his people elected to bonus member positions, and as measured by Wayne Williams’ pulling out of the race against Bob Balink for chair of 5th CD Committee, then they handicapped him as being a probable loser in 2008.  My prediction is that Lamborn has lousy 2nd quarter fundraising stats.  We’ll see.

      1. ….not to mention his limp record of legislative accomplishments!  Keep in mind, C.D. 5 voters, your Congressman is only a heart beat away from a minority party seat on the Armed Services Committee. 

  2. The truth be told, no one cares anymore about Will Perkins (or his friend Paul Prentice who will echo whatever Perkins says).  He is a political has-been, even more so than Tom Minery.  Gosnell is still a player only because he controls the evil CCC and their money, but people outside the Lamborn camp dont like him and dont listen to him.

    But Rayburn is driven by raw ego, not political savvy like Crank.  Rayburn probably thinks that Perkins is still influential and might use that as an excuse to run.  My impression of Rayburn both from talking to him and people who know him is that he has an enormously high opinion of himself and does not feel that he should have to stoop to playing the political games that actually win elections.  Crank is probably not as booksmart as Rayburn, but he is way more street smart in politics.

    In reality, Lamborn is both too stupid and too lazy to actually calculate organizing a two headed campaign against himself.  While common sense says that is probably the only way for him to win, I dont think he has the aptitude to do anything about it.  Nothing in his past has shown that he has any initiative or ability to do anything but vote down a pre-punched ticket of issues.

    I dearly hope that Rayburn can control his ego and not run.  Honestly, he might make a better Congressman than Crank; I dont know.  But Lamborn needs to go and I think Crank is the man to do it.  He did not endorse Lamborn after the primary (which Rayburn did and now must own up to), and I think he will destroy Lamborn in a head to head race.  Rayburn has not proven to be savvy in the political arena yet and may not be able to run a campaign against the hate machine of CFG, CCC, and the Hotling Sleaze. 

    2. But, it’s not his intellect but those who control him that have what he doesn’t.  For example, Pat Toomey of the Club for Growth is considerably above and beyond Lamborn’s limited thinking and speaking skills.  It’s those people who have intellect, not sloths like Lamborn, who strategize best. 

      But, you can bank on Rayburn’s running.  I believe smarter money than his past backers have laid his failure curve out for him but his ego is his problem.  He fulfills the classic stereotype, as a matter of personal opinion on my part, of a man with narcissistic personality disorder.  He’s the best, better than all the rest, in his own mind, and no one else will do.  His error may once again cost the 5th CD.  He didn’t learn the first time and he may simply not be trainable.  Maybe that’s why he’s no longer in the air force. 

    1.   We should ship a boatload of fundies as well as LDS missionaries over to Iraq to save the Iraqi people. 
        Where ae Rev. Pat Robertson, Bentley Rayburn, Rev. Ted Haggard, Jim Dobson and Mitt Romney when there is so much work to be done bringing the Word of Jesus to these poor suffering souls.

        1.   But I do think that some of our Christian fanatics may be able to bond and communicate on a cross cultural level with Islamic fanatics better than those of us who are too secular.

    2. I know your candidate, Fawcett, didn’t win.  If I hadn’t had a write-in Republican for whom to vote, I would have voted for Fawcett myself.  But, the funny thing is that both of the two in the one link you gave–both of the two who were “called by God” to run in the 5th CD, effectively resulted in taking the votes away from Crank that left all of us stuck with Doug Lamborn. That’s Bremer and Fawcett.  The measure of either of them would be if they would be so candid as to admit it.  If they argue they cost Lamborn more votes than they did Crank, they’re not only self-deceived, but, fools.  We don’t need either of Bremer or Rayburn mucking up the waters again.  Crank is a FAR FAR better outcome in the 5th CD as our Congressman than Lamborn will ever be, even if he’s not the man the Democrats would want him to be.  I would surmise that if the top elected Democrats were candid–and not subject to being quoted–they’d give off the record comments that Lamborn is the disaster Republicans think he is and the same for the Democrats as well.  I would surmise they would want any Republican elected in the 5th CD, except Doug Lamborn, if it is the case that only a Republican will be elected.  Even Coloradopol’s Big Line lays it out.  Jay Fawcett has no future in the 5th CD and encourages him–but I don’t know how seriously–to run in the 6th.

      1. and they overwhelmingly retire here in the Springs. I don’t think he’ll leave. But he won’t run again either.

        He’s also got plenty of energy, great ideas, and a mind like a steel trap. He’s started up Western Strategies here to work on real solutions in a truly bipartisan way.

        Are there enough non-crazy Republicans out here to work with someone of his background? I guess we’ll see.

  4. I’m no “ultimate insider” but as a pundit with personal and close relationships to Crank, Rayburn and El Paso County Republican leadership I can say without hesitation that Rayburn MUST not run… He will be forever tarnished beyond hope if he does and that would be a real shame. It’s Crank’s race… The numbers just don’t work any other way.

    More later on this.

  5. Hey look, it’s Dustin Olsen and his army of sockpuppets at it again.

    Sometimes I wonder if you guys are so narcissist that you actually believe Lamborn is courting someone to RUN AGAINST HIM, just so he doesn’t have to face Crank mano a mano. But then I just figure you guys think we’re all idiots.

    Do you really think that Rayburn needs someone to tell him to run? Seriously, you all know he has his feelers out for the past few months, because you guys have too. And you know as well as I do that there’s not a whole lot of love out there for Crank these days. He’s been calling everyone in the county, and from what I hear, he’s getting a lot of “thanks, but no thanks.” I even got a call, and I’m a nobody.

    We all know Crank wants to run. That’s why you guys are out here trying to tear Lamborn down, but posting ever more ludicrous complaints and conspiracy theories on leftist blogs isn’t going to raise Crank one red cent. And we all know that money (and how he can’t get any real donors lined up) is the biggest hurdle for Crank to run again. Well, that and losing all the weight he put on after the election.

    1. Blah is back! As I have stated many times before (and I’m clean because I have not yet posted here), I just can not stand Lamborn. No I am not whiny, and yes I have had and continue to have conversations with what seems like all of the 5th CD and nobody is satisfied with Lamborn. IMO Lamborn or Rayburn, ego in tow, would do a much better job.

    2. Blah and friend (I am guessing that there might only be one other Lamborn supporter in the 5th these days) actually think that Lamborn is popular and people dont like Crank.  It’s absolutely hilarious.  Look at what happened a few months ago during the selection of bonus members.  Cranks got virtually an entire slate elected while Lamborn was floundering around trying to not look like a total ass.  By my count, Crank must have stacked close to 15 supporters into the bonus member group at that meeting.  And yet Lamborn supporters think that Crank is not popular with the Republican base???

      I’ll agree with you that Rayburn does not need someone to tell him to run, but you have to admit that if Lamborn has half a brain (debatable) that he would realize that Crank will annihilate him in a head to head race.  But neither Crank nor Rayburn can win a 3 way so Lamborn would need both of them to run to retain his seat. 

      Please keep posting because I get a good laugh every time I hear someone try to defend Lamborn… and so I dont get to laugh very often!!!

      1. The exact opposite occurred this year.  Gosnell’s living on borrowed time politically.  The question is how badly does he accelerate the demise of the CCC by undertaking the same sleazy campaigning in 2008 as he did in 2006. 

  6. I remember one of the rumors about why Lamborn wasn’t doing much campaigning against Fawcett was that he was running into some debt issues. Never heard any firm facts behind it though. Where would, if existent, those facts be found? I thought it was probably just a rumor, but it did seem weird that Lamborn had no real counter to Fawcett’s campaigning.

    An honest question, and I would love an answer from Zapp, Blah, Robert, or anyone. Glad to know everyone’s still alive and kickin in the 5th CD.

    1. This will probably not answer your question entirely, but it might shed some more light on it.  Someone else might be able to fill in more blanks.

      Lamborn himself has no money.  Despite going to law school, which costs a pretty penny, he has never practiced law.  His salaries from the state level jobs were pretty low (30K as a rep and somewhere around 50K as senator I think).  Despite this, he had a $600K house built for himself while earning so little money.  His take home salary would not cover the mortgage on that much house.  Obviously his wife is loaded and that is where he gets his money from.  From what I can tell Lamborn himself has never earned a buck outside of the government since moving to Colorado.  Interestingly enough, the house is solely in his wife’s name.  (On a side note, I discovered that the Lamborns have crossed financial paths with Edward and Elizabeth Tickel several times.  I dont know if there is coincidence or if there is a connection.  Does anyone know who these folks are?)

      Typically a loan would have to be secured by an asset.  The only asset of any value that Lamborn could possible have would be his house.  Given that he does not own his own house, he has no way to secure a substantial debt.  His wife would have been very limited in lending money to his political campaign because of this as well. 

      You could probably find out more about campaign financing and loans by checking out the FEC website.  I know that it is all public information, so you should be able to find out if he has any loans to his campaign. 

      1.   But Lamborn may have taken the per diem (although probably not as much as Joe Stengel did), and I presume he also collected his mileage.
          Still, isn’t the speculation that Doug is a “kept man” living off of the kindness of his “Sugar Mama” (i.e., Jeanie Lamborn)?

        1. Sheds some light on the matter.

          At the end of the ’06 cycle his campaign was $104,000 in debt, as were most campaigns where the candidate loaned himself money. Lamborn made a $100,000 loan, while Crank made something like a 60,000 loan and Rayburn made a $120,000 loan. The interesting thing to me is that even though he won he has not, as of 3-31-07, paid off his debt.

          Lamborn has 50k cash and 67k debt. Save Mark Baisley, Lamborn has the most debt of any Republican in the state.

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