The Palm Springs Desert Sun poses whether the Palm Springs area congressman Raul Ruiz will run for the state's open senate seat. I don't know what's in his decision making process, but the reasons they give for Ruiz not to run are weak. Yes, he's young, but it's not like he can just run in 10 years. He'd wait for the seat to open and Kamala Harris could serve in office for 30 years. Would he really want to wait for 2046 when he's 72?
They also offer that he can just run in two years if Dianne Feinstein retires. This argument completely negates the "he's young" argument. He'll still be young in 2018. It also negates the idea that he shouldn't give up the seat for the good of the Democratic party. It'd be better for Democrats for him to do it in a Presidential year, not a mid-term. The electorate should be more favorable for Democrats next year. If he wants to run in 2018, why not run in 2016 to build fundraising contacts and develop name recognition for that run? That'd position him well for a 2018 run. If the feeling is that the path is tough this year due to Harris being in the race, there's no guarantee 2018 will be easier. Tom Steyer, John Chiang, Loretta Sanchez, et al. could run then then. Maybe Condi Rice is targeting 2018, figuring that a Republican could win a mid-term instead of a Presidential year. People who wait for the perfect right moment to do something often find that right moment has passed.
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