It is well after midnight on Primary Tuesday. Neither of "my guys" looks to be in the running anymore, so what can I say. I did not hear Pete Hoekstra's concession speech, but I'll wager it was gracious and grateful -- that's the kind of man he is. I did speak to Bill Cooper a few hours ago (when things were not looking too pretty for his bid.) I can only paraphrase, but I think he said he could handle the emotions if he loses better than if he wins. His reasoning was that everything he has ever achieved has been by his own sweat and tears; a political win would rest on the efforts of others than himself (I assume he meant staffers, volunteers, voters, etc.)
This seems to me to be a refreshing dash of humility in a field where such is seldom present. I missed my chance to tell Bill that in effect, a victory would still have been based on his own personality, policy choices and preferences, in other words, on who he is. He went on to say that he was glad he could do all the politicking the race required without having to become something he was not. Again, a win would have represented a personal accomplishment, in the sense that Bill Cooper (the real Bill Cooper) would have won the day.
It may be ironic that the man who appears to have taken the Republican primary for the 2nd District US House of Representatives seat is so much like Bill Cooper that a wolverine hair might stick if dragged between their positions. The only thing Bill Huizenga can say to differentiate himself is that he has political experience. I was in Cooper's camp precisely because he doesn't have political experience. This is not just throw-the-bums-out vitriol; I hate that both Huizenga and Kuipers voted for the Michigan Business Tax when in the legislature. Granted, Huizenga voted against the second version of the MBT (the only one that saw the light of day,) and he was stalwartly in favor of demolishing the Small Business Tax. Still, I would have preferred a man who could have said no to any business tax in the environment we currently suffer under.
Now if Riemersma slips past Huizenga in the wee hours, I will wonder what happened to common sense among West Michigan Republicans. Again, the same wolverine hair test would prove sticky; all three candidates make pretty much the same claims. I can support everything the man says he stands for, and I appreciate the professional way he promotes his cause, but Jay Riemersma was a football player and a non-profit runner, neither of which is exactly a resume rocket booster. A victory for Jay might just prove that you can still buy an election in this district.
So what do "my guys" do tomorrow? Pete can probably retire, although I suspect he still has too much energy and political inertia to slip completely off the grid. Bill Cooper will just go back to being Bill Cooper which is not a bad thing for anybody, as far as I know. The other losers will have stacks of receipts (and maybe bills) for ad space and yard signs, whereas Cooper, since a large share of the campaign time and energy went to Thanks a Million food distribution, will have thousands of people in the 2nd who can be truly grateful that he made the effort. That's not such a bad way to lose.
This seems to me to be a refreshing dash of humility in a field where such is seldom present. I missed my chance to tell Bill that in effect, a victory would still have been based on his own personality, policy choices and preferences, in other words, on who he is. He went on to say that he was glad he could do all the politicking the race required without having to become something he was not. Again, a win would have represented a personal accomplishment, in the sense that Bill Cooper (the real Bill Cooper) would have won the day.
It may be ironic that the man who appears to have taken the Republican primary for the 2nd District US House of Representatives seat is so much like Bill Cooper that a wolverine hair might stick if dragged between their positions. The only thing Bill Huizenga can say to differentiate himself is that he has political experience. I was in Cooper's camp precisely because he doesn't have political experience. This is not just throw-the-bums-out vitriol; I hate that both Huizenga and Kuipers voted for the Michigan Business Tax when in the legislature. Granted, Huizenga voted against the second version of the MBT (the only one that saw the light of day,) and he was stalwartly in favor of demolishing the Small Business Tax. Still, I would have preferred a man who could have said no to any business tax in the environment we currently suffer under.
Now if Riemersma slips past Huizenga in the wee hours, I will wonder what happened to common sense among West Michigan Republicans. Again, the same wolverine hair test would prove sticky; all three candidates make pretty much the same claims. I can support everything the man says he stands for, and I appreciate the professional way he promotes his cause, but Jay Riemersma was a football player and a non-profit runner, neither of which is exactly a resume rocket booster. A victory for Jay might just prove that you can still buy an election in this district.
So what do "my guys" do tomorrow? Pete can probably retire, although I suspect he still has too much energy and political inertia to slip completely off the grid. Bill Cooper will just go back to being Bill Cooper which is not a bad thing for anybody, as far as I know. The other losers will have stacks of receipts (and maybe bills) for ad space and yard signs, whereas Cooper, since a large share of the campaign time and energy went to Thanks a Million food distribution, will have thousands of people in the 2nd who can be truly grateful that he made the effort. That's not such a bad way to lose.
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