Taking out republican NC Senator Richard Burr was one of our good chances at flipping a Senate seat to the Dems but it looks like that is less certain than before. Burr now holds John Edwards' old senate seat. Early this afternoon the Associated Press Reports that NC Atty General Roy Cooper, a Democrat, will not challenge Burr's senate seat.
Story here
North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper said he will not run for the Democratic nomination to unseat Republican U.S. Sen. Richard Burr in 2010.
Cooper's announcement Friday eliminates what likely would have been a serious challenge to the single-term incumbent.
Public Policy Polling back in March showed Burr with a 35% approval rating with 32% disapproving.
An April PPP poll also shows Cooper beating Burr in a hypothetical match-up.
Burr has to go. Remember when he encouraged a run on the banks.
And he also temporarily blocked Tammy Duckworth's nomination to a VA post.
At this point it is difficult to say why Cooper would not want a chance at being a U.S. Senator. He says he likes his current job so that's a good enough reason. It's quite possible not all politicians are in government just for the sake of accumulating status and power.
I guess we Democrats shouldn't be too greedy, we've kicked the republicans' asses two federal cycles in a row. Was it too much to ask for two Democratic Senators from North Carolina and to continue the republican whooping? With Burr's weak approval ratings, there has to be a Democratic politician in NC who wants the seat. We still have plenty of time.
***UPDATE***
Cooper's decision came days after a judge allowed a further delay in a protracted personal defamation lawsuit brought by his Republican opponent in the 2000 attorney general race. At issue is a 2000 campaign ad that Cooper aired tying his rival, Dan Boyce, to a lucrative contingency fee his father and other lawyers requested after winning a judgment on behalf of taxpayers.
Experts have watched the Boyce-Cooper dispute as a potentially landmark case that could set new boundaries for what candidates can say in political ads
Perhaps Cooper is tired of politics and the increased scrutiny a senate run would bring.