On Pat Meehan and the political winds

When Senator Arlen Specter defected to the Democrats, a political adviser to likely gubernatorial candidate Tom Corbett showed a little savvy by “suggesting” to The Inquirer that Pat Meehan should run for Senate instead of running for Governor against his boss.

I talked to Meehan spokeswoman Virgina Davis the day The Inquirer story came out, and she made clear Meehan was singularly focused on the gubernatorial race.

But obviously the plant by Corbett aide John Brabender got some legs, because Meehan’s office kept getting calls from reporters about a possible switch to the Senate race. As she kept sending out statements affirming his interest in the race, there was a slight but noticeable change in tone. While previous statements contained no equivocation, her recent statement adds this caveat: “However, he is always open to doing what he believes is best for Pennsylvania.”

At first glance, I thought this might demonstrated a change in position. The more I thought about it though, the more I began to suspect it’s nothing more than an acknowledgment of how fast the political winds are shifting. Just like Congressman Jim Gerlach (R-6) is receiving calls encouraging him to run for Senate, there’s no doubt Meehan is too.

GOP insiders know their best bet of making a comeback in 2010 win is in the gubernatorial race. Corbett has the early lead in name recognition based on his recent statewide election wins, and some party officials would like nothing more than for him to walk into the nomination unscathed and with all his attention—and money—focused on the Democrats. Even some Democrats I talk to quietly lament that Corbett will probably be the next Governor.

But everyone I speak to tells me Meehan really wants to be Governor. And after working for Specter, I doubt he’ll try and go up against his old boss.

So in the end, Brabender’s “suggestion” provided a welcome distraction for us reporters. Beyond that, I don’t think it’ll do much.