Wampum

A few weeks ago, when the Agura fire put South Lake Tahoe at risk, I mentioned to MB that Charlie Brown's CM should be prepared for a snap election, not just a leasurely stroll up to an uncontested 06/08 primary and a run against an electoral corpse in 11/08, in a 10+ margin red district.

Mike Holmes just announced an exploratory committee for another run. He lost a primary challenge against John Doolittle in the last cycle by a 1 to 2 margin. He positioned himself as the "ethically sound Republican" in yesterday's presser in Sacramento.

Eric Egland hasn't announced, but he'd be an idiot to pass up the chance that there will be a snap election and Doolittle's name won't be on the primary ballot. He's not a "political newcomer", but he is a talking head who hasn't (yet) done doors.

The day Doolittle is indicted, Charlie Brown will need CA-04 money, CDP money, netroots money, DTRIP money, Indian money, Democratic primary national campaign(s) monies, and DNC money, because (a) its 10+ red, and (b) it will fall before the rest of the calendar, and (c) if Maj. Egland (R-Freeper) beats the councilman from a town of 12,500 that lives on Gold Rush ephemera and the last Denny's before chains-manditory on I-80 in the Republican primary, it will be a referendum on the Iraq War, and (d) if not (c), then it will be a referendum on "clean" Republicans vs " clean" Democrats,

With Bush polling at 25%, losing a race that only has a 10+ red margin, for whatever reason, before the '08 cycle's general calendar, would really sting. It would be like losing the Hackett race again.