In 2006, four environmental groups ganged up on House Resources Committee chairman Richard Pombo, a Republican from California, and sent him packing after spending millions attacking the incumbent. This year, the groups are targeting other states where they think they can have an impact, including Senate races in New Mexico, Colorado and New Hampshire, as we wrote in April.
Along with those Senate races, though, the groups -- Sierra Club, League of Conservation Voters, Defenders of Wildlife and Clean Water Action -- are expanding their reach, targeting other seats held by Republican incumbents they think can be replaced with more environmentally-friendly Democrats. Some of those targeted incumbents have taken notice and are determined not to become the next Pombo.
One of the most endangered incumbents is Pombo's predecessor, Alaska Rep. Don Young. A member of Congress since the early 1970s, Young has been the fiercest advocate for drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, among other pro-energy exploration stances he's taken. Now, his chief of staff worries Young will be next on the target list, a point he made in an email to lobbyists, the Anchorage Daily News reported.
"While each of you may have different opinions as to what may have contributed to [Pombo's defeat], at the strategic level, we will all agree it is a textbook case in how Outsiders [sic] can reach into a district with money, volunteers, and a well coordinated attack (to) defeat an incumbent not necessarily on his/her record, but on innuendo and perception," wrote Mike Anderson, Young's top aide, in an email obtained by the Daily News.
Outside groups have already gotten involved in Alaska. Defenders of Wildlife has made Young's defeat a top priority, running an advertisement already that highlighted Young's ties to Veco Corp., an oil services company that is the subject of a federal investigation that has already sent several state legislators to jail. A spokeswoman for Defenders of Wildlife confirms plans to get involved in the race to a greater extent in the future.
Republicans in Washington, too, are worried about Young's prospects. In November, the Republican nominee will face former State Rep. Ethan Berkowitz, who has run ahead of Young by double digits in several public polls. Still, the good news for the GOP is that Young may not be the nominee: He faces the state's Lieutenant Governor, Sean Parnell, in an August primary. Parnell's ticket beat a ticket with Berkowitz on it in 2006, and Parnell could prove a better candidate in the Fall.
Young has at least two chances of losing his re-election bid this year. In either case, Defenders of Wildlife and other organizations will do their best to see that he does so. Whether they claim credit for Young as the second round of Pombo, or if they save that distinction for another incumbent, remains to be seen.
Clarification: Young, or Parnell, will not necessarily face Berkowitz in November. Berkowitz has his own primary, in which he will face Diane Benson, who ran against Young in 2006 and ran for governor in 2002. Benson held Young to 57% in 2006, his lowest win percentage since 1994. National Democrats will privately admit they favor Berkowitz, but Benson has run before and could benefit from better name recognition.
