Weak Linc

I'm sure we're all (1) shocked and (2) disheartened by this development:

PROVIDENCE, R.I. - Two days after losing a bid for a second term, Sen. Lincoln Chafee said he was unsure whether he would remain a Republican.

Chafee lost to Democrat Sheldon Whitehouse in a race seen as a referendum on President Bush and the GOP. On Thursday, he was asked whether he would stick with the Republican Party or become an independent or Democrat.

[. . .] Chafee said he has not decided what to do after leaving office, but he hoped to stay involved in public life. He said his loss may have helped the country by switching control of Congress.

Translation: "I'm going to be running again as the Democrat and my shadow campaign begins today."

Noteworthy is the fact that Linc was appointed to the Senate in 1999, essentially inheriting his father's seat of 23 years when Sen. John Chafee died. Had he been true to his own principles, Linc presumably would have run as a Democrat he has largely shown himself to be. But that would have meant breaking with his father's legacy, the only thing he had to run on in 2000. It seems that labels matter less to Linc than retaining power. Another example:

"There were times walking into my caucus room where it wasn't fun," he said, adding that he stayed with the GOP largely because it helped him bring federal dollars home to Rhode Island.

Such principle. The United States Senate is no poorer without this man.

Posted by JakeM at November 9, 2006 10:16 PM | TrackBack