Playing The Maes Of Spayed

Colorado Republican Dan Maes is finding that one is the loneliest number these days as he has popular Denver mayor John Hickenlooper running for Governor on his left, and perennial crackpot and virulent anti-immigration nutjob Tom Tancredo running as an independent on his right.  Stuck in the middle with him?  Nobody.

Now, some of the GOPers who once backed him are starting to abandon ship. In a highly unusual move, Republican Senate nominee Ken Buck -- who, like Maes, attracted much of his support from Tea Party activists -- has recanted his endorsement of Maes. "I have decided that I can no longer support his candidacy for governor of Colorado," Buck said in a statement last week. "[Maes] is struggling to determine the best path for his campaign, his family and for Colorado." The Tea Party base is turning against him, too, with numerous Tea Party organizers telling Maes that it's time to get out of the race.

And now even Gov. Haley Barbour (R-MS), chairman of the Republican Governors Association and a potential candidate for president, is writing it off. "We have put some money in Colorado," Barbour told reporters. "Past tense."

Now more shoes are dropping. Tancredo has rolled out endorsements from 20 elected and formerly elected Republicans, the Denver Post reported. "The narrative has been written about Dan Maes and the weakness of his campaign. He can't overcome it and beat Hickenlooper," said Republican state Sen. Ted Harvey. "We've worked very hard in the conservative trenches to have an opportunity like this ... and Tom Tancredo is the only strong conservative in the race who can raise money and put on a credible campaign."

Another Tancredo-backer is former Rep. Bob Beauprez -- who was previously the Republican nominee for governor back in 2006: "I think Maes' support will continue to evaporate rather dramatically, and I expect a coalescing of Republicans around Tom."

If Republicans are waiting for a coalescing of support for Tancredo, it better come quickly -- the TPM Poll Average shows the Democrat Hickenlooper in first place with 44.6%, then Maes in second with 28.1%, and Tancredo way behind at 12.7%.

So the question becomes "Will the GOP throw its own candidate under the bus and give the state to a total whackjob like Tom Tancredo in order to deny the Dems an easy win?"  It certainly seems that way.  So, just so Colorado knows what it's in for, let's review some of Tom Tancredo's greatest hits:

– Said he “didn’t know” if Obama “hates white people.”
– Argued Justice Sonia Sotomayor is a member of the “Latino KKK without the hoods or the nooses” and that she “appears to be a racist.”
– Claiming Obama may “indeed” be “a racist” because he nominated “Sonia Mayer” for the Supreme Court.

After Tancredo resigned from Congress, he told the press that he regretted being known for being anti-immigrant. A few months later, the proud nativist told a young Republicans gathering that he’d be open to halting all immigration to the United States.

What a guy, huh?  And apparently the Colorado GOP is willing to toss their actual candidate to get behind this asshole, just to win an election.  Good luck with this one, fellas.