The Club for Growth is well known to be willing to fight for the real fiscal conservative in Republican primaries including former U.S. Rep Pat Toomey who ran against now Democrat Arlen Specter and Stephen Laffey against RINO Lincoln Chafee in Rhode Island.
The Club's involvement in the first district is the most significant endorsement to date for several reasons. First, the Club has shown an aptitude in the past at raising large amounts of money for their chosen candidate. Even though Sen. Huelskamp has been more than competitive in fund raising, the Club's support will put the Huelskamp campaign over the top against self funded Jim Barnett.
Further, the first district is almost the perfect place for the fiscally conservative group to get involved. As each day passes, it looks as though the primary will be the only election, with no Democratic candidate to show any interest. The Club for Growth has shown a keen eye in picking primary winners, or in the case of the Big First, probably the winner.
The Club's endorsement hit the national news sites quickly, (much quicker than I was able to post here), so here is a round up.
Townhall.com
"Huelskamp has previously received a ton of endorsements from individuals and groups like Kansans for Life, Concerned Women PAC, and the Gun Owners of America Political Victory Fund. The Club for Growth endorsement is, without a doubt, the largest and most significant endorsement a conservative Congressional candidate can receive."CQ Politics
My guess is that this Club for Growth endorsement will finally push national conservatives to fully coalesce around Huelskamp, just as Kansas conservatives already have. You see, while Huelskamp has received overwhelming backing from a diverse collection of conservative groups, ranging from Kansans for Life and the Club for Growth, a few DC conservative 'insiders' have been working against him.
The political action committee for the conservative Club for Growth on Monday endorsed two 2010 House candidates who are each competing against multiple Republicans in open seat races: State Sen. Tim Huelskamp in Kansas' 1st District; and state Rep. Tom Graves in Georgia's 9th District.RollCall
The political action committee for the anti-tax group Club for Growth on Monday endorsed two fiscally conservative state legislators in a pair of open-seat House races.American Spectator
State Sen. Tim Huelskamp is one of several prominent Republicans hoping to replace Rep. Jerry Moran (R) in Kansas’ conservative 1st district. Moran is running for Senate this cycle.
"Tim Huelskamp stands out as a champion of limited government and economic freedom,” Club for Growth President Chris Chocola said in a release. “Unlike some of the other Republicans in this race, Tim has compiled an impressive record and demonstrated the leadership skills necessary to fight for free-market policies in Congress."
Kudos to the Club for Growth for endorsing conservative leader Tim Huelskamp for Congress in KS-1. The Club for Growth is the most effective organization on the right when it comes to winning GOP primaries. Hence the Club for Growth endorsement is arguably the most important one a conservative candidate can receive. If there was any doubt before, Tim Huelskamp is now the clear front runner in this important race.The lines have been clearly drawn and Jim Barnett can no longer hide behind a fiscal converative lie. And now with the Club for Growth in the race, the cash will most certainly be there to expose him for the tax and spender he really is.
More on Barnett's previous fiscal ideas and votes later...