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Friday, November 17, 2006
Kingston loses a squeaker
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The hardest-fought of the elections for the new U.S. House Republican leaders Friday – really, the only one that was even close – was one in which Rep. Jack Kingston came just a few votes short.
After three ballots, Rep. Adam H. Putnam of Florida was elected Republican conference chairman, edging out Kingston by a vote of 100-91. In earlier voting, Rep. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee and Rep. Dan Lungren of California were eliminated, we learn from Rep. Tom Price.
What this means, for one thing, is that the Republican establishment won, just as the Democratic establishment in the person of Rep. Steny Hoyer won out earlier this week. Kingston was identified by some with Rep. Mike Pence of Indiana, who lost the race for minority leader to Rep. John Boehner of Ohio, and Rep. John Shadegg of Arizona, who lost the race for whip to Rep. Roy Blunt of Missouri.
But Pence and Shadegg lost by landslides, while Kingston gained votes in each ballot and lost by only nine. In the unsettled days ahead, that may not be a bad position to be in.
