Jeff Woods thinks the Democrats have given themselves a chance in the race for governor by falling in behind Mike McWherter:
But by quitting, Kyle strengthened his party’s chances to keep the governor’s office in November. In fact, anointing a nominee, which is essentially what the party has done, might have been the only way for Democrats to make themselves competitive.
Republicans in the race have outraised Democrats by a 5-to-1 margin so far. McWherter now can save his campaign cash for the general election. He also avoids the difficult primary fight that likely will weaken the eventual Republican nominee.
Instead of fending off Democratic attacks, McWherter is free to throw knives directly at the Republicans. He did just that last week, blithely ignoring McMillan at a Tennessee Chamber of Commerce forum to call out Bill Haslam for refusing to disclose all his income or to agree to put his Pilot Corp. holdings into a blind trust if he’s elected governor.