Now back home long enough to weather a couple of snowstorms, the Associated Press reports that Dick Wadhams is ready to tackle a doozy of a project – running the state Republican Party.
Last month Wadhams – the Colorado native who coordinated wins for Gov. Bill Owens back in 1998 before going on to coordinate elections for Montana Sen. Conrad Burns and South Dakota Sen. John Thune – announced he was coming home. The news was delivered shortly after a failed effort to re-elect Sen. George Allen in Virginia, and after Democrats seized control of the governor’s office, along with both the House and Senate in Colorado.
This week, AP reported that Wadhams “believes he can help the (Republican) party get past its internal differences.”
Wadhams could not immediately be reached for further comment, but in a December Q&A with Colorado Confidential, the pol, whose successes have resulted in the moniker “Karl Rove’s heir apparent,” was coy about his plans. Then he claimed, “I really don’t know what I’m going to do” – beyond planning to be home by Christmas. At the time, a few possibilities were bantered about: Would he run Sen. Wayne Allard’s 2008 bid for reelection? (ANSWER: “I honestly don’t know what I’m going to do. I don’t know if Senator Allard is going to run again, He’s said he’ll announce his plans in January. I think the world of him.”)
Was he going to run Bill Owens’ campaign? (ANSWER: “I think the world of him too. I think he’s the most successful governor Colorado’s ever had. I was honored to have run his ’98 campaign, and I’m having fond memories of that. I don’t know that he’s going to run for anything.”)
Was he going to make the Republicans get along again? (ANSWER: “Yes, I’m the voice of unity.”)
After delivering that last line, Wadhams laughed out loud. Turns out it was no joke.
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