The Courant's Perspective on Simmons

The latest Courant article on Rob Simmons is quite interesting. Simmons was one of the best members of Congress, and I think even Democrats are a little disappointed that such a well-respected representative will be leaving. Will he be coming back?

He might be the most upbeat beaten candidate in Washington. All this despite his loss, by less than 100 votes, to Democrat Joe Courtney last month.

Simmons makes it clear, above all, that he is ready for more political combat. Unlike most of his soon-to-be-former colleagues, he's not complaining. The Vietnam veteran and former CIA operations officer has been schooled to absorb the blows. He understands you suck it up when you're down and get ready for the next mission.

Simmons won't rule out another run in 2008; nor will he reject the idea that he could be Connecticut's Republican chairman, as was raised as a possibility last week. He'll continue to live in Stonington, hoping to find work "in the industry," meaning something to do with veterans' affairs, military strategy or intelligence work. Old soldiers never die, and they fight like crazy not to fade away.

I interpret that as a 'yes.' To me it's clear that Simmons has every right to run again after managing to lose in closest race for Congress in America, despite having run in a liberal district with a hostile national political environment. This will be a crucial term for Courtney, to see if he can establish himself enough before facing Simmons again. This time around, Courtney won't have national political trends to rely on.