Saying he was now ready to “fight a different fight,” Chris Thieneman said today that he felt that we was under “heavy pressure” to back out of his run for the Republican nomination for the 3rd Congressional District.
Thieneman told me that “someone in Mitch McConnell’s inner circle” told him that the Senator had made it clear who his choice was in the race. He summarized what McConnell expressed to his aide this way:
“There is no way that Chris Thieneman is going to win this primary. Anne Northup is my pawn from now on.”
Thieneman added that McConnell aide Larry Cox had left him a message with instructions to talk with him before he went on WHAS Radio again. That may have been the straw that motivated Thieneman, who was born and raised a Democrat but switched parties, to announce on WHAS this morning that not only is he dropping out of the race, but that he’s leaving the Republican Party.
“It was like when you prepare for a football game and walk on the field ready to go, and then your own teammates start hitting you,” he said.
Thieneman said he was prepared to put $250,000 of his own money into the race. This experience has soured him on the Republican Party, but not politics in general.
“I will still fight any politician that I know is doing the community an injustice,” he said.
3 responses so far ↓
1 James R. // Feb 1, 2008 at 10:11 am
We need more people like Thienemann in politics. He seems to care about good government and good government only.
I welcome him to the democratic party. We need more people to question party leadership in the democratic party, just as much as we do in the republican party.
Democrats seem to have a governor who is trying to play McConnell in our party. (aka EKY senate race and US Senate race)
Its time we have more Thinemanns stand up to this type of tactics that we hate coming out of McConnell in the republican party and Beshear in the democratic party.
Welcome Chris!
2 Robert // Feb 1, 2008 at 9:36 pm
What we need are leaders who fight for noble causes. When the battle wages, the storms of life are surrounding you. The noble statesman never give up and is still standing when the storm of life passes by. I am that statesman Bob DeVore Jr.
3 Steve Bittenbender // Feb 2, 2008 at 2:20 pm
James,
Chris was in the Democratic Party just a few years ago. He jumped ship because he thought he could get elected as a Republican.
Thieneman is nothing but a political opportunist. He speaks about everything and stands for nothing.
Before you welcome him to the party, you might want to make sure he’ll stay for a while.
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