ICYMI: The conservative Manchin challenger who won’t get out of the way [POLITICO]

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT 

POLITICO: The conservative Manchin challenger who won’t get out of the way
“The governor has got a lot of health issues and is not very mobile. There’s a question of how he’ll be able to serve given his health,” [Rand] Paul said.
By Burgess Everett 
August 4, 2023

Key Points: 

• The Republican establishment wants nothing to do with Alex Mooney. Frankly, he’s a bit miffed about it.
  
  
• Any hope of Mooney exiting quietly is now meeting reality. And surprisingly, the 52-year-old Freedom Caucus stalwart argues he should have been the party’s guy all along.
  
  
• Which makes Mooney a major obstacle to his own party leaders, with backing from pugnacious conservative groups and senators. …he could force the GOP to spend money on [the] race.
  
  
• “There is no scenario by which I won’t be on the ballot on May 14,” Mooney vowed, referring to the date of the state’s GOP primary.
  
  
• While Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell started wooing Justice for a Senate bid last fall, Mooney got in just a week after the midterms and landed financial backing from the conservative Club for Growth.
  
  
• “Alex Mooney is the only RINO in this race for taking $13.5 million from the Trump-hating Club for NO Growth. But unsurprising for someone so insignificant and ineffective representing West Virginia in Congress,” Justice campaign manager Roman Stauffer said.

• In response, Club for Growth president David McIntosh called Justice “a big government RINO, McConnell’s hand-picked candidate, and he only changed his party identification because it was politically advantageous.”

• Mooney is fresh off defeating former Rep. David McKinley (R-W.Va.) in a tough member-versus-member race last year. ​​In addition to the Club for Growth, Mooney has backing from more than two dozen state legislators, some of whom tangled with Justice in the statehouse over policy. 

• Mooney’s fan club of senators is smaller but includes influential conservatives: Sens. Mike Lee of Utah, Ted Cruz of Texas and Rand Paul of Kentucky all support him.

• Paul is even willing to throw haymakers at Justice, whose nickname is “Big Jim,” on Mooney’s behalf. “The governor has got a lot of health issues and is not very mobile. There’s a question of how he’ll be able to serve given his health,” [Rand] Paul said.

• Meanwhile, Manchin is enjoying a GOP primary slugfest that could ultimately benefit him.

###