Run, Paul, Run...For Something Else

Tim Burke, the Democratic party chairman in Hamilton County, home base for U.S. Senate candidate Paul Hackett, very much likes the idea of Hackett taking a seat in the new Congress when it convenes at the Capitol building a year from now.

He'd just like to see him on the House side of the building.

"I'd love to see Paul come back and try the 2nd District again,'' said Burke. "He could win this time.''

Hackett, a lawyer and Marine Corps veteran of the Iraq war, came out of nowhere last spring to win the special Democratic primary election after Republican Rob Portman quit the House to become U.S. trade representative.

In a special general election campaign last summer both national political parties poured millions into what was, then, the only congressional campaign in the country - the contest between Hackett and Republican Jean Schmidt.

Improbably, in a district where President Bush got 65 percent of the vote in Nov. 2004 (and where Portman racked up 72 percent), Hackett took 48 percent of the vote, winning four of the district's seven counties.

But instead of gearing up for a rematch with Schmidt, Hackett set his sights higher. Last fall, he launched a campaign to unseat Sen. Mike DeWine.

Hackett's task became more complicated a few days later when a popular northern Ohio Democrat, U.S. Rep. Sherrod Brown, jumped into the Senate race - setting up what could be a very nasty, very costly Democratic primary campaign.

Burke said he has asked Hackett to consider getting out of the Senate race and into the House race, but said Hackett has shown no inclination to do so.

In the meantime, Burke and the Hamilton County Democratic Executive Committee will meet Monday night for their first session of the new year. On the agenda will be setting up a Cincinnati debate between Brown and Hackett for sometime in late February.

"What I'm hoping,'' Burke said, "is that we don't have to have that debate.''