Bayh, who despised representing Hoosiers so much he told them he would instead pursue an ‘honorable line of work,’ proceeded to launch his Washington lobbying career days after leaving the Senate. Judging from the response he received after yesterday’s rocky campaign rollout, Hoosier voters won’t be welcoming him back with open arms.
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The Indianapolis Star: "Evan Bayh…is reportedly coming back to Indiana for a few months to once again run for the Senate…How will Indiana voters react to a candidate who chose to stay in Washington D.C. after his days in the Senate, as opposed to coming home?"
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The Indianapolis Star: "Bayh, however, hasn’t been on the ballot since 2004. He also hasn’t lived full time in Indiana since being elected to the Senate, although he has maintained an apartment in Indianapolis and still votes in Indiana."
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Herald Bulletin: “Brian Howey of Howey Politics Indiana called Hill’s withdrawal and Bayh’s likely candidacy ‘bizarre.’…‘Baron (Hill) was having trouble raising money,’ Howey said. ‘I guess winning in the primary doesn’t mean as much as expediency and opportunity.’”
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WXIN: "Bayh has mostly been living in the Washington area since his time in Congress."
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Associated Press: "Republicans quickly declared they would hang onto the Indiana seat and signaled their lines of attack against Bayh. Ward Baker, executive director of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, said on Twitter: ‘Evan Bayh cast the deciding vote for Obamacare and then left Indiana to live full-time in DC. Todd Young will beat him this November.’"
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MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow: "This man on the other hand, he stopped being a U.S. Senator so he could become a lobbyist…Now, the first guy, Dan Coats, is retiring from the Senate, and the lobbyist, Evan Bayh, has decided he wants his old Senate seat back."
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The Huffington Post: "Corporate Lobbyist Jumps Into Senate Race To Replace Retiring Lobbyist"
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Politico: “This was done single-handedly by Chuck Schumer. I’d like to take a lot of credit for it, but Chuck’s worked on this,” Reid said in an interview on Monday afternoon.
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MSNBC: "As for what the former senator has been up to since leaving Capitol Hill, the Democratic Hoosier, now 60 years old, had talked about possibly returning to Indiana to teach. That didn’t exactly happen: Bayh put his political experience to use by going into lobbying."
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The New York Times: "…in a year when political insiders have struggled, Mr. Bayh would also bring some baggage. Since leaving the Senate, he has been a partner at McGuireWoods, a Washington law firm that, through a subsidiary, also provides lobbying and advocacy services."
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Politico: "…though his post-Senate legal career is sure to be an opposition-research minefield for him, especially in an election defined by anger at government and career politicians…now that Bayh is running once again, it will open him up to criticism that he cashed in on his status as a political insider."
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Politico: "Bayh has baggage as a Washington insider and Obamacare supporter in a red state…“This was done single-handedly by Chuck Schumer. I’d like to take a lot of credit for it, but Chuck’s worked on this,” Reid said in an interview on Monday afternoon."
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Slate: "Bayh announced his 2010 retirement by condemning Washington, D.C., as a city occupied by out-of-touch partisans who are unduly controlled by wealthy special interests. He then immediately joined a K Street lobbying firm and bought a house closer to the center of the city."
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Vox: "…Bayh’s choices post-retirement attracted considerable criticism, as he became a partner at the lobbying firm McGuire Woods — his current profile brags he helps companies "whose business goals are impacted by the actions of Congress" — and joined the private equity firm Apollo Global Management… He ultimately voted for the stimulus, Obamacare, and Dodd-Frank…"
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Washington Examiner: "National Republican Senatorial Committee chairman Ward Baker said the Democrats’ "bait-and-switch maneuver" to insert Bayh is a sign of desperation. "Hoosiers will have a very clear choice in November," Baker said in a statement. "Todd Young is a Marine who has fought to protect Indiana values, create jobs and stood up against dangerous policies like Obamacare, and cap-and-trade Evan Bayh is a lobbyist who backed the Obama agenda 96 percent of the time as he left the Senate in 2010, knowing he couldn’t win re-election thanks to his support for the toxic Democrat agenda. "His support for Obama’s job-killing policies disqualifies him from the opportunity to represent Indiana again."
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The Weekly Standard: "Hoosier Republicans Quick to Pile on Evan Bayh Candidacy"
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WEHT: "Rep. Todd Young Criticizes Evan Bayh for Being ‘Lifelong Politician,’ ‘Lobbyist’"
- WISH-TV: "Bayh lives in Washington,but he owns a condo on the north side of Indianapolis and voted here in the May Primary election. He is also a close friend of Hillary Clinton…"