Chet Edwards For Congress

February 3, 2008

Waco Trib: Edwards' campaign war chest swamps challenger's

Waco Tribune
By David Doerr

U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards, D-Waco, reported last week having more than $1 million to spend on his re-election campaign as of the end of 2007, while his opponent acknowledged having less than $5,000.

Edwards, a nine-term congressman, had $1,016,900 in the bank, according to federal campaign reports filed Thursday. Rob Curnock, who signed up to run for office as a Republican on the last day of filing, Jan. 2, did not file a campaign finance report because he had not raised the $5,000 that would require him to complete a report.

Edwards, whose war chest totaled $101,900 more than at the same point during his 2006 campaign, is off to a strong start, said Elizabeth Connor, his campaign manager.

"With a proven record of effectiveness for our district, broad-based bipartisan support and over $1 million in the bank, Chet is strongly positioned for the 2008 election," Connor said in a statement.

Despite the overwhelming disparity in campaign cash between the two, Curnock said he is a serious candidate. He said he will likely lose the money race but is going after "voters, not dollars."

"Yeah, that is a lot of money. I guess I should just concede now and quit the race," Curnock quipped. "He's an incumbent that has access to a lot of money that he has built up over the years. When you are a Democrat voting like a Democrat in a conservative district, you need to have a lot of money to sell your voting record or to cover it over."

Edwards said in a statement, "My first priority this year is to continue fighting for jobs, economic growth and improved quality of life for the hardworking families of our district, but we intend to run a solid grass-roots campaign."

Curnock, a Waco-based video production company owner and former local television reporter, said he is going to focus on raising enough money to get out his message about the need for "a consistent, conservative Central Texas mind-set" representing Texas' 17th Congressional District.

However, dollars are often what it takes to get candidates' messages to voters in the advertising battles leading up to Election Day. In Edwards' 2006 battle against Iraq war veteran Van Taylor, total fundraising for both candidates topped $5 million, more than $1 million of which was spent on TV advertising.

Prominent political handicapper Charlie Cook rated the 17th Congressional a "Solid D" (Democratic) in January after Curnock entered the race. Edwards' campaign staff said it was the first time the 17th District has received that rating in its current form.

Curnock also lacks support from the National Republican Congressional Committee, which has thrown its resources into races it deems more competitive. Despite the financial challenges ahead, Curnock said he was undeterred.

"I'm not going to disappear in this race," he said. "I'm in it to win it. ... I think a lot of people are going to be surprised."