Cal Cunningham, once out, now in
Former state Sen. Cal Cunningham, of Lexington, officially entered the race for the U.S. Senate this morning.
Cunningham faces two already-announced candidates for the Democratic nomination to challenge U.S. Sen. Richard Burr, a Republican. Both Secretary of State Elaine Marshall and Durham lawyer Kenneth Lewis have been campaigning for weeks.
Today's announcement follows awkward juggling by the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, which tried to recruit bigger names into the race and took so long doing so that Cunningham, who had been exploring a bid, opted out last month.
Cunningham dispatched a mass email at 9:45 a.m. with the subject line, "We're in," writing:
I'm eager to work hard and to lead -- creating jobs, protecting our state's military communities, strengthening our schools, and lowering health care costs. I'll take the fight to the irresponsible Wall Street firms, the corporate interests, and the culture of recklessness that triggered our economic crisis -- and squandered billions while millions of Americans lost jobs and were pushed out of their homes.
Voters can expect to hear A LOT about Cunningham's time as a military lawyer in Iraq, which was the eighth word in the press release from his consultants and in the third paragraph of his own message, woven throughout both.
He hired veteran strategists Morgan Jackson and Scott Falmlen of Nexus Strategies, the team behind Lt. Gov. Walter Dalton and Attorney General Roy Cooper's campaigns.
Cal Cunningham names his team
Cal Cunningham, who announced his candidacy Monday, has lined up a consulting team that he hopes will help him get to the U.S. Senate next year.
He has agreed to hire Murphy Putnam Media of Washington to handle his media, Rob Christensen reports. The firm has handled advertising for such Senate campaigns as Mark Begich of Alaska, Bob Casey of Pennsylvania and Tom Udall of New Mexico as well as such local candidates as Attorney General Roy Cooper and Congressman Bob Etheridge. Murphy Putnam also produced the half hour bio ad for the presidential campaign of Barack Obama last year.
Cunningham's pollster will be Anzalone-Liszt Research of Montgomery Alabama which has extensive experience in North Carolina. The firm worked for Kay Hagan's Senate campaign in 2008, for Cooper, for state Treasurer Janet Cowell and for Congressmen Health Shuler and Larry Kissell.
Handling direct mail will be Pete Giangreco for the Strategy Group in Chicago. He has worked a number of presidential campaigns including Obama, John Kerry, John Edwards and Bill Clinton.
These firms are in addition to the general consultants at Nexus Strategies.
Elaine Marshall: Cunningham is DC, not NC
The Senate campaign of Elaine Marshall quickly portrayed her new opponent, Cal Cunningham, as the candidate of "Washington power brokers."
"He's kind of the hokey pokey candidate -- he's in one minute and out the next," said Thomas Mills, consultant for Marshall, the secretary of state. "He's in the race because Washington wants to choose who North Carolina's nominee is going to be. Elaine Marshall is running because she believes that is the job of North Carolina voters. If he was really committed to North Carolina voters he would have gotten in without waiting for a nod from Washington."
Cunningham has been exploring the race since last spring but last month announced he would not run, Rob Christensen reports. But after Congressman Bob Etheridge announced he would not be a candidate, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee courted Cunningham urging him to get back into the race.
"Secretary Marshall is in the race to win," Mills said. "She has given no thought or indication that she is getting out. We got into the race in September. She is not scared of a primary. Cal Cunningham apparently is scared of a primary or he would have gotten in earlier. The only we he got in was with the suppport of the Washington power brokers."
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Sources: McClatchy Newspapers, Under The Dome, MSNBC, NC Chamber of Commerce, Wikipedia, Youtube, Google Maps
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