In a report last week, we announced that Renard Johnson is running for Mayor of El Paso and that he will represent the interests of our local business elite.
We also revealed that he is a solid Democratic voter and that his Campaign Treasurer is Elisa Samaniego, a Kemp Smith partner and daughter of County Judge Ricardo Samaniego, a Democrat.
No we have learned that Democratic Congresswoman Veronica Escobar has “lent” her Campaign Manager, Lauren Zimmerman, to Johnson’s campaign. We know this because Zimmerman emailed a solicitation for his fundraiser tomorrow to potential donors and signed it “Lauren Zimmerman, Campaign Manager.”
Lending Zimmerman to Johnson is like the President sending an aircraft carrier group to defend a trusted ally. It is not something that happens every day. It is a powerful expression of support and solidarity.
Thus, Mr. Johnson is plugged into the local progressive Democratic machine, with ties to both Escobar and the Samaniegos, and he is also backed by key Republican donors, as we shall see when we review his first campaign finance report.
He will certainly raise a mountain of money, well in excess of $500,000, but his problem is that he is no Oscar Leeser. He may be as accomplished in business, but no one knows who he is and the election is in nine months.
Our local Bolshevik Party will no doubt put up a competitor, who will hold extreme positions and cannot possible win.
But will there be a candidate for Mayor who is fiscally conservative, able to resist high taxation and pork spending, intelligent and well-informed, and capable of raising a small fortune?
For the sake of our community, let’s hope so.