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February 20, 2006 09:00 AM UTC

More CD-5 News: Crank In, Williams Out

  • 34 Comments
  • by: Colorado Pols

Is Rep. Joel Hefley’s endorsement for Jeff Crank on the way? From The Colorado Springs Gazette:

Jeff Crank, a former administrative director for Congressman Joel Hefley, this morning jumped into the race to succeed Hefley.

Crank confirmed his candidacy after a news conference where El Paso County Commissioner Wayne Williams said that he would not run for Congress. Cranks official announcement will be on March 6. The 39-year-old former vice president of the Greater Colorado Springs Chamber of Commerce becomes the second Republican in the race, following former El Paso County Sheriff John Anderson. Democrat Jay Fawcett, a former Air Force Academy professor, is also looking to succeed Hefley, who announced he wouldnt seek an 11th term Thursday.

Crank has never held elected office. He served on Hefleys staff from 1991-98 and was responsible for writing most of the Republicans military-related legislation  a quality he emphasized Monday. I think our founding fathers intended a country where average citizens got elected, Crank said in an impromptu interview. There are different degrees of experience. Im very comfortable with the experience Ive had.

Crank also sought to define himself as a social conservative in a race expected to be crowded with candidates of similar thought. His campaign manager, Jim Banks, rolled out endorsements Monday from Focus on the Family president Jim Daly and Colorado Club for Growth president Bill Miller.

Several political insiders said too that they believe Hefleys endorsement of Crank will be coming soon. Hefley is out of the country and unavailable for comment.

Comments

34 thoughts on “More CD-5 News: Crank In, Williams Out

  1. I have heard from a couple people that Duncan Bremer is considering a run.  Does anyone know if that is true?  I have not seen his name mentioned anywhere in the papers, but rumor is the guy is starting to make calls and showing up at some events.

  2. Did the Colorado Springs Chamber of Commerce support C&D? 

    Does the Springs’ CoC take the same stand as other chapters with regard to illegal immigration and amnesty?

  3. I’ve heard Duncan Bremer is out trying to sell his brother’s book (former Ambassador Paul Bremer) and his book signing in the Springs in the next week.  Could be why he’s out at political happenings but I can’t see him running.  The article in the Gazette does not mention Wayne Williams endorsing anyone – yet.  I still think once the dust settles, John Anderson will carry this one out of the primary.  Crank is just too much of a butt-kisser for my likes and Doug Lamborn is well, boring.

  4. Ah, that makes sense, and that would explain why Bremer has been at a lot of events lately.  I still think there will be more people than Crank, Lamborn, and Anderson in the race so we will have to wait and see who comes out in the next couple weeks.

  5. Iron Mike,

    Your so funny.  you criticize josh for saying that Bill Miller and Jim Daly are impressive.  Then you ask if Wayne Williams made an endorsement.  Who care what Wayne thinks?

    Mike, your pathethic.

  6. In defense of Iron Mike:

    It matters more in El Paso County who Wayne Williams endorses.  Wayne is an elected official, unlike the others, and is the former GOP chairman there.  He is very influential, and in a primary, his endorsement would mean more (except, or course, for the money) than the others.

    Too bad Wayne Williams is not running.  He would have been a great candidate.  Sounds like Crank will be the winner.  Lamborn hasn’t done a thing except posture in 12 years in the legislature.

  7. Oh, really?,

    I do not agree with your ascertation about Wayne.  Granted he is an elected official, but he doesn’t have as much clout as is percieved. As an example, look at his endorsement of Dan May in the DA race.  It didn’t help. 

    The reality is that John Newsome’s team was not supposed to win because of all the endorsements that Dan May lined up, but May was outworked and out organized.

  8. Why thank you “Oh Really?”…

    All I know “a” is that last summer I had a conversation with Bob Schaffer at his breakfast and he said that Wayne Williams was going to be the next Congressman for the 5th. This is not to say that Bob has a crappy crystal ball, but rather, Colorado’s rep to the GOP thought Wayne had what it took and was the chosen one amongst the “powers that be”.

    So IMHO, Wayne’s endorsement may carry quite a bit of weight, not just in the 5th, but also with the passive to active observers around the state.

    Besides, of course the folks at Focus are endorsing Crank, Jim Banks worked at Focus for years and has been priming that pump since last fall.

    Lamborn has always had a closer affiliation with Christian Coalition actually. CC is a joke in every other state but Colorado, but here I think they have more influence in the political arena than Focus… FOF is kinda a church, kinda a media company, kinda a bible sales organization, kinda a lot of things and they also dabble in politics.

    CC is a political organisation, period. If the rumors I have heard are true, Christian Coalition’s involvement in this race will be very apparent when Lamborn formally throws his hat in the ring.

  9. Aluminum Foil Mike,

    Well it looks like Bob Schaffer was wrong; Wayne will not be the next 5th CD Rep.  Don’t get me wrong, I think Wayne is a super guy, but I don’t think his endorsement out weighs Jim Daly’s, Bill Miller, etc. 

    As for Jim Banks, I was under the impression that he only worked for Focus for about a year before leaving, hardly enough time to make them do his bidding.  Sure he worked for the policy side, but if you know the inside players they were not all for Jeff Crank.  Is it hard to believe that Jim Daly met with Jeff Crank and liked what he had to say?

    And last time I checked, the folks inside the 5th CD could care less what the folks outside the 5th CD think about who should represent them (for the most part). 

    Lamborn does have close ties to the Christian Coalition, but what does that get him, especially when Daly is in Crank’s corner?  I don’t think that the Christian Coalition has near the influence you seem to think it does.

    By the way, Mike, if that is your impression of Focus, then you may want to look at their website and see what they actually do because you are way off.

  10. Ah my monosyllabic friend “a”… I think you’re naive. When talking about a Cong District, support around the state is almost as important as support within the district itself. How else to explain how Peggy Lamm is still alive in her campaign for the 7th… Beauprez moving into the 7th in 2002 and beating native son ROD… Tancredo winning the GOP Primary for the 6th after just getting trounced at Assembly… Even to a smaller extent, Musgrave beating Bettingfield (sp?).

    It’s not that Wayne is a kingmaker, it’s that there are many others around the state waiting to see who he gets behind, before they offer to help or even just write a check.

    Now getting back to the original comments where Josh had to wipe his chin… I knew Jim Banks was with Crank, so the announcement of a couple of the Focus guys getting behind him wasn’t much of a surprise, certainly not worth Josh’s “Wow” comments. When the Congressional Delegation starts pitching in, I’ll be impressed.

  11. Ah my monosyllabic friend “a”… I think you’re naive. When talking about a Cong District, support around the state is almost as important as support within the district itself. How else to explain how Peggy Lamm is still alive in her campaign for the 7th… Beauprez moving into the 7th in 2002 and beating native son ROD… Tancredo winning the GOP Primary for the 6th after just getting trounced at Assembly… Even to a smaller extent, Musgrave beating Bettingfield (sp?).

    It’s not that Wayne is a kingmaker, it’s that there are many others around the state waiting to see who he gets behind, before they offer to help or even just write a check.

    Now getting back to the original comments where Josh had to wipe his chin… I knew Jim Banks was with Crank, so the announcement of a couple of the Focus guys getting behind him wasn’t much of a surprise, certainly not worth Josh’s “Wow” comments. When the Congressional Delegation starts pitching in, I’ll be impressed.

  12. Aluminum Foil Mike,

    Thanks for taking pity on me and explaining how politics work.  Unfortunately I don’t think you understand Republican politics in El Paso County. 

    If you read my post I said that people outside the district could care less, for the most part, about what people outside the district say.  Sure some people may support Lamborn because of his Musgrave endorsement, but overall I think it is not nearly as important as a good ground game.  Again, in the DA’s race Dan May had a ton of endorsement, but it didn’t get him anywhere in the end.  He got outworked by Newsome and Co.

    Please name 5 politically influential people around the state who are waiting on Wayne Williams to make an endorsement.  I have a sneaky suspision that more people care about Steve Schuck’s opinion than Wayne’s.

    Also, will you please answer the question, do you think that the only reason that Jim Daly is supporting Jeff Crank is because of Jim Banks?  After all Tom Minnery is supporting Doug Lamborn.  Wouldn’t you think that Tom Minnery would havea greater influence on Daly than Jim Banks does?

    Besides this race will cost lots of money and I don’t see where Lamborn will get it.  Sure Musgrave will get him some, but overall I think having Miller and Schuck on board and with his DC connection and lobbying, Crank will have a better shot at getting the money needed.

  13. Crank is a butt kissing hack who says all the right things because he has been practicing for this for years. I for one want someone who his own ideas. Lamborn while proven is just too far to the right. Anderson has the ability to capture the disillusioned votes that are disgusted with politics and politicians. I think he might take it and upset the central committee who thinks they run all of politics in CO.

  14. Crank is a butt kissing hack who says all the right things because he has been practicing for this for years. I for one want someone who his own ideas. Lamborn while proven is just too far to the right. Anderson has the ability to capture the disillusioned votes that are disgusted with politics and politicians. I think he might take it and upset the central committee who thinks they run all of politics in CO.

  15. I don?t think Banks has much pull at Focus, but Crank is very conservative so he has no problem appealing to the Focus crowd.  Regardless, I don?t see Focus playing a big role until the candidates get more on their feet.  They will probably never throw their full weight behind a single candidate since a number of the candidates will be similar.  They will not want to see Anderson win, so there will be pressure to unite behind a conservative.  What will really throw the Focus group into disarray is if Bremer is getting into the race.  I have heard several people say that it is a done deal that he will announce and the Gazette mentioned it in one of the articles.  If he gets in the race, that could rock both Lamborn and Crank?s boat.  I don?t see him taking a lot from Anderson at first.

  16. Tidesturning,

    More likely the tide will sweep Anderson out to sea.  Who is managing the Anderson campaign?  What political activists in El Paso County are supporting Anderson?  What organization does Anderson have? When was the last time a moderate Republican running for Congress carried El Paso County, even in a Primary?

    Have you seen Anderson’s website, by the way?

    It’s amature hour over in the Anderson campaign.

  17. I hadn’t seen Anderson’s website before, but it?s not very well done.  Does he have a family?  Unless I missed something, he didn’t mention them.  Lamborn just launched his website.  It is not too good either, but at least he has the excuse that he only put it up today!

  18. Robert,

    While Banks doesn’t have a ton of pull here in El Paso or at Focus, but he will do good managing the Crank campaign. 

    I think you are right about Focus, with Minnery supporting Lamborn and Daly supporting Crank I don’t think they will take a position and I don’t think Dobson will get involved. 

    As for Bremer, he is a wild card that not many people have thought of.  If he did get in I think a lot of people who like Crank and Lamborn would have second thoughts and would throw support his way.

  19. John Galt,

    Hotaling may be decent in Colorado, with the Christian crowd, but what are his connections in DC and elsewhere?

    Jeff Has Patrick Davis, the former Political Director for the NRSC to help him.  He also has Bill Miller and Steve Schuck.  My guess is that Benson will do a fundraiser for him too before it is all over, just to stick it to Lamborn.

  20. Bremmer – Interesting… I knew the Bremmer clan supported Schaffer in 2004, like Lamborn, but I didn’t know his ambitions went to CD-5. It’s kinda out of right field, but the biggest impact I can see is just marginalizing Anderson even more.

  21. I don?t know much about Banks except for that he had only a short stint at Focus and I understand he is really young and ambitious.  Does he have campaign experience somewhere else?  Until this election, I had not heard his name, so I am guessing he is a move in. 

    I think both Crank and Lamborn have thought they would control Focus, but no one seems to think it will go that way.  I am not really sure that endorsements mean anything from Focus because the conservative credentials of the candidates are not in question.  The only candidate who it would help to get Focus support is Anderson and I don?t see that happening.

    I think that if Bremer is going to get into the race, it will drastically change the dynamics of this one and one of two things will happen.  Either people will be pissed because it could be perceived that he will crowd a field of conservative candidates, or they will defect from Crank and Lamborn because he has what each of those does not have (Crank does not have elected experience and Lamborn does not have private experience).  If Bremer is getting in and he picks up momentum, I think he potentially could have a drastic impact on Lamborn and Crank.

    As for the Schaffer thing posted by Rock 5, I am pretty sure that Lamborn and Bremer were both in Schaffer?s camp.  Did Crank take a position on it.? Hefley came out for Coors if I remember right.  Regardless, are those wounds really that open that anyone would use that campaign in CD5?  That is a real question because maybe they are, I don?t know.

  22. See I think Bremmer would just suck the life blood out of Crank and Anderson’s campaigns.

    Not sure about the effect on Lamborn though… I might be too far away, but my impression was that Lamborn had a lot of the “true blue” grassroots Republicans who usually wondered who Lamborn was endorsing before throwing their support to a person.

  23. Aluminum Foil Mike,

    You must be too far away.  Lamborn has not worked to build his base, especially in the other four counties in the district. 

    Crank has been to each of those counties every year for the last four years.  Lamborn has only been to each this last year and I don’t think Anderson has been to them ever. 

    I know that Bremer has kept going to most events and has a lot of support in the Northern part of the county, much of which is in Lamborn’s Senate District.  Being a popular former county commissioner he would keep some people from supporting Lamborn openly.

    By the way, can you answer my question that I asked earlier:

    Can you name 5 politically influential people around the state who are waiting on Wayne Williams to make an endorsement?

  24. You can’t compare Hotaling to Jim Banks… How many years was Hotaling the Executive Director of the Colorado Christian Coalition? He only left that to work Musgrave’s 2004 election, which turned out to be pretty hard fought given all the money that got thrown at it. The guy is in his 30s, he’s been working politics for over a decade.
    Banks? Jim Banks? So he worked at Focus for less than a year right? What else has he done?
    Patrick Davis is good, but I don’t see how he could hope to shepherd a Banks run race past a tiger like Hotaling.

  25. your right, you can’t compare Banks and Hotaling.  I give Banks more credit than Hotaling.  You may want to check his resume, I am not positive but I think he has run a couple of congressional races. 

    The reason Musgrave raised $3 million last year was because of the Marriage Amendment, not Hotaling. 

    And fortunately for Jim, it is talent that matters, not age. 

    Patrick Davis is not just good, he is great.

  26. Thanks Mom. I love you bunch… You got to stop posting on this site though.
    …and quit insulting Iron Mike, he’s the President you know. Hugs and kisses, wish me luck!

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