MT-Sen: If Con-man Burns Retires...

[illflem]

First, Hotline speculated that Connie Burns might be holding on to his Abramoff-tainted cash because he's going to step down. I didn't think that theory made much sense - sure, ol' Conrad could find some way to launder his cash-on-hand for his own personal use, but $130Gs seems like chump change for a guy who would make tons more as a lobbyist.

Now, Hotline claims he's gonna give the money back. I'll be watching that one closely to see just how good Hotline's sources are.

But back to the general idea of Burns retiring. I don't see that as being outside the realm of possibility at all - especially if prosecutors' guns wind up trained on him. And after all, he's about to turn 71. So what happens if he bails? You're gonna like this:


13-25-202. Vacancy in office of United States senator.

(1) If a vacancy occurs in the office of United States senator, an election to fill the vacancy shall be held at the next general election. If the election is invalid or not held at that time, the election to fill the vacancy shall be held at the next succeeding general election.

(2) The governor may make a temporary appointment to fill the vacancy until the election.


As is the practice in many if not most states, the governor - in this case Democrat Brian Schweitzer - gets to appoint a replacement. Now that sure would be interesting. Whom would he pick? Would he tap Jon Tester or John Morrison, the two top candidates already running to replace Burns? Does anyone know what kind of relationship he has with either man? Or would Schweitzer seek to avoid controversy and name a "caretaker" for the duration? What are your thoughts?

[havocmom]

1. From what I am hearing in my VERY GOP county, the man is toast.

He would be to not even come home for Christmas. The locals are livid.

[John Q. Citizen]

2. if Conrad bails before the end of his term, Schweitzer would

most likely appoint either Testor or Morrison, unless he found a suitable caretaker who didn't plan to run in '06.

My bet is Conrad will try to soldier on, though. He's got a ton of loot in his campaign chest.

Conrad's aid was on the morning show "Focal Point" KNS Missoula this morning and said Conrad is giving the money to charity.

[DCal]

3. If Burns doesn't run for re-election ...

it would allow the Republicans to run another candidate (such as former Governor Racicot). The filing deadline is March 23rd, so we will know fairly soon.