AG Petro says GOP infighting hurting Bush reelection (you heard it here first)
According to the Cleveland Plain Dealer, a Nov. 26 letter from Attorney General Jim Petro, one of three Republicans vying to be governor in 2006, told 400 party leaders "I fear we are losing sight of our immediate goals and committing a mistake that could cost us everything during the next three years."
In the same letter, Petro announced that he would suspend major fundraising activities until after 2004, and called on two gubernatorial rivals, Secretary of State Ken Blackwell and State Auditor Betty Montgomery, to do the same.
The move raised immediate questions about Petro's motives, since some point out that Petro has likely raised far more that his rivals, and thus can more easily afford taking a year off. Petro will not reveal the size of his campaign kitty until he is required to do so in January.
"I'm not doing this because I've raised a sufficient amount," Petro said. "This is for the good of the party."
Although Ohio is expected to be pivotal in next year's presidential race, intra-party feuding among those interested in the 2006 governor's contest has dominated the political landscape.
In late October, Montgomery accused Petro's fund-raiser of threatening contributors with the loss of state business unless they raise or donate acceptable amounts to his campaign.
Petro, who succeeded Montgomery as attorney general, has criticized her management of the attorney general's office and disputed her charges of improper fund raising.
And Blackwell has confounded both of his rivals by trying to place a tax-repeal effort on the ballot next November - despite the state's persistent budget troubles.
Ohio Republican Party Chairman Bob Bennett welcomed Petro's announcement.
"I've said all along that I think this emphasis on '06 is doing a disservice to our candidates in 2004," he said.
Commentary:
The issues over which these candidates are fighting highlight the larger problem at work within the Ohio GOP.
A liberal vs. conservative tug of war has been at work for some time within Ohio's Republican party, and the early and frequently contentious debates between gubernatorial wanna-be's feed directly from this larger battle.
More than the battle itself, it the problems which are causing the battle which threaten to split the party on the eve of a Presidential race. And you heard it here first!
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