Last month, the Post Bulletin's intrepid political reporter and blogger Heather Carlson dutifully reported on rumor floating by Rochester-area Republicans about the likelihood that Rochester Area Chamber of Commerce President John Wade would seek their endorsement.
The headline said it all: Local GOP: John Wade considering bid to unseat Walz. Apparently local media took it up, as did the usual gang of Republican Party of Minnesota office retweeters, but the rumor didn't get much national attention.
Now local ABC-TV affiliate KAAL-TV reports in Chamber of Commerce President Will Not Run for Congress:
Rochester Chamber of Commerce President John Wade says that he will not be running for Minnesota's 1st District congressional seat.
In a note that Wade sent out today, he says that he will “neither nor accept the Republican Party's endorsement.”
Wade goes on to say that the area should remain focused on growing and protecting jobs and further establishing Rochester as the world's premier medical community.
As I was complying this post, the PB's own story came in: Wade rules out run for Congress.
I suspect the trial balloon sent up by local Republicans received little serious attention because Wade wasn't ever really in the balloon.
Moreover, one can't blame media folks for having been a bit more skeptical last month about rumors the Republican party in Minnesota was trying to gin up. The Post Bulletin report on the Wade rumor did, after, hit on the heels of the Colin-Peterson-is-going-to-retire urban legend repeated by the NRCC and state GOP operatives.
Bluestem looked at this tall tale on December 20 in Bigfoot, Collin Peterson and the Republican party; the Post Bulletin blog post and story were up on December 22.
For now, the CD1 Republicans have Randy Demmer, Allen Quist, and Jim Hagedorn. How's that working out?
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