Home Paper Gives Coors a Cold One

It happened to President Bush.

Now Pete Coors, a Republican Senate candidate in Colorado, has been snubbed by his hometown newspaper. The Golden Transcript of Golden, Colo., gave the nod to his opponent, state Atty. Gen. Ken Salazar.

The weekly newspaper’s editorial, published Thursday, called Salazar “the right choice in the highly divided race for U.S. Senate in Colorado.” The endorsement praises Salazar’s plans for providing healthcare for children and revitalizing rural economies.

The Golden Transcript also had kind words for brewing magnate Coors, saying it appreciated his and his family’s contribution to the area and its economy.

But, the editorial board concluded, “Coors isn’t as ready as Salazar to take on the responsibilities of being a senator.”

Salazar’s campaign said it was “honored” by the Transcript’s support.

The Coors campaign said it was not worried about the newspaper’s slight.

Bush, too, lost the endorsement of his hometown paper, the Lone Star Iconoclast in Crawford, Texas.

“We felt like we’re in good company with President Bush,” said Coors campaign spokeswoman Cinamon Watson.

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Left Off GOP ‘Team’

Former White House hopeful Alan Keyes is running for Senate in Illinois, but the Republican candidate appeared to get the brush-off from his own party.

The Illinois GOP did not include Keyes in a recent deluge of hundreds of thousands of campaign mailers sent to voters. The political advertising plugged “Your 2004 Republican Team,” including President Bush and several congressional candidates, but contained no mention of Keyes.

Although a few Republicans have complained, the state party says the absence was no snub, but rather a logistical issue. “It was just a matter of they did theirs, we did ours,” said Illinois GOP spokesman Jason Gerwig. “They don’t have a problem with it, we don’t have a problem with it -- people seem to be making more out of it than it is.”

The Keyes campaign could not be reached for comment.

Keyes entered the race in August after GOP candidate Jack Ryan withdrew when his divorce files alleged that he took his wife to sex clubs. Recent polls in the state have shown Illinois state Sen. Barack Obama with a runaway lead of 40-plus points.

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The Heimlich Vote

John Eisenhower isn’t the only GOP progeny backing Sen. John F. Kerry.

Leslie Helmer, the daughter of former Sen. Chic Hecht (R-Nev.), considers the Democratic candidate a lifesaver. Kerry performed the Heimlich maneuver on Hecht in 1988 as he was choking on an apple slice in a Senate hallway. And Hecht’s family hasn’t forgotten.

Helmer, a registered Republican who voted for President Bush in 2000, has worked to raise about $50,000 for Kerry over the last year.

“I was just so appreciative to Sen. Kerry for what he had done for my father,” said Helmer, 41, a Los Angeles attorney. “As I got more involved in the campaign, I’ve grown to think he was the right one for the job.”

Helmer’s parents still call Kerry annually to thank him, and her mother plans to vote for him. Hecht, however, has not said whom he plans to support.

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Rock ‘n’ Politics

The results are in: Democrats rock.

At least according to the partisan-themed playlists offered by digital radio provider BlueBeat.com. The music service gives listeners a choice between Democratic or Republican artists such as Bruce Springsteen, the Flaming Lips and R.E.M. on the left, and Kid Rock, Hank Williams Jr. and Jessica Simpson on the right.

The Dem rockers are winning listeners 53.8% to 46.2%. The site also provided links to voter registration information.

Musicians have launched several politically themed tours this year, including the high-profile Vote for Change in swing states to help the Democrats.

What are the candidates’ favorite tunes? “Wake Up Little Susie” by the Everly Brothers for Bush, and The Boss’ “No Surrender” for Kerry, according to the site.

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Who’s Counting?

$3.9 billion: Total cost of 2004 presidential and congressional elections, according to projections by the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics.

57%: Sen. John F. Kerry’s share of the vote in Nickelodeon’s Kids Vote online survey of nearly 400,000 children; President Bush received 43%.

55%: Bush’s share of the vote in Channel One News’ online survey of 1.4 million teenagers; Kerry received 40% of the vote.

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Duly Quoted

On a bus tour of southern Ohio on Tuesday, a woman approached Vice President Dick Cheney, leaned forward, pointed to her cheek and said, “President Bush kissed me right here.”

His response: “Yeah, he does a lot of that.” Cheney shook her hand and moved on.

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Compiled from staff, Web and wire reports by Times staff researcher Susannah Rosenblatt.