A few days ago, Sen. Evan Bayh (D-Ind.) was on This Week with George Stephanopoulos when he was asked if he was planning to run for president. “I’m not ruling anything out or in,” he said.
The question was hardly a surprise. Bayh has been playing a behind-the-scenes role in the DNC race, he took a bold stand against Condoleezza Rice’s nomination, and speculation about his future has been rampant.
Today, Roll Call reported that Bayh is not only considering the race, he’s actually taken initial steps to put together a campaign team.
…Bayh has been maneuvering behind the scenes for months to put the framework for a White House bid in place.
The Indiana Senator hired several key advisers to beef up his campaign team and is doing outreach in the donor community to lay the financial foundation for a candidacy. Last week he met with a group of roughly 50 financial supporters in Washington, D.C., to discuss his future plans.
“He hasn’t made the firm decision [to run for president] yet but he is doing everything he needs to do to get him there,” said one source close to Bayh.
Bayh may be more moderate than the typical Dem grassroots activist, but if he runs, he’ll be a very credible candidate. A popular Dem from a very “Red” state, Bayh will have one thing the other likely candidates won’t — experience as a two-term senator and a two-term governor.
Someone else to keep an eye on.