Sen. Allard Reaffirms Post-New Year Election Decision

Sen. Wayne Allard offered no hints on a potential 2008 reelection (or retirement):

Colorado Sen. Wayne Allard won't make a decision until early next year whether he will run for a third term or honor a pledge to retire after two. But Allard says Republican Party leaders are pressing him to run.

GOP leaders "have expressed concern about me not running," Allard told The Associated Press in an interview Thursday. "They've been encouraging me to go ahead and run. We're giving it some thought."

In Colorado political circles, all eyes are on the unassuming senator from Loveland as he mulls his next eight years. Some Republicans fear they won't be able to hold onto the seat if he retires. Even if he doesn't retire, his 2008 re-election contest likely will be one of the most competitive races in the country.

Allard says he isn't giving any hints about which way he's leaning. Instead, he said he is weighing the advantages of staying in office -- including building seniority and clout -- against his belief that lawmakers should not become professional politicians.

Ultimately, he said, "It's going to be a personal decision. It's going to be my family and myself."

Even if Allard agrees to campaign once again, many have listed his seat as one of the most vulnerable, and Time even named him one of the "worst" senators and dubbed him "The Invisible Man". Funny, should all senators be egotistical, attention-seeking blowhards like McCain, Kerry, Kennedy, Clinton, Reid et al.?

A senator that works for his constituents rather than for himself. He must be defeated!

Political pundits named Allard one of the most-vulnerable and least-effective senators and have compared him unfavorably with Colorado's flashier Democratic senator, Ken Salazar.

Salazar made a splash in his first two years in office by jumping into high-profile debates on subjects from immigration to Supreme Court judge nominations. Allard and his staff say the claims and comparison to Salazar are unfair and inaccurate. They defend Allard as a "workhorse" not a "showhorse," who gets things done for his state behind the scenes.

On the campaign trail, Allard has a quiet demeanor that disguises an ability to infuriate opponents (Democratic candidate Tom Strickland was flustered in many debates) while aggressively touting his own record without showboating. Unlike Sen. Ken Salazar, who apparently seeks to insert himself into the news at every opportunity, Allard prefers being low-key, and Colorado is better served by him--indeed the entire country would be in a better state if other politicians took a page from his book, whether or not he seeks difficult reeelection or blissful retirement.

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