Though Seattle public relations consultant and former White House deputy press secretary is postponing any official decision to enter Washington’s U.S. Senate race against Sen. Maria Cantwell (D) until after his September wedding, support from Republican luminaries has already begun to coalesce around the mere mention of his potential candidacy.

Stanzel’s former boss, former White House press secretary Dana Perino, gave a glowing assessment of the man and his chances to The Daily Caller Tuesday, saying about a possible Stanzel for Senate campaign, “I’m in.”

Perino said that she has known Stanzel for 10 years and regards him highly — both personally and professionally.

“I think he could organize an excellent campaign, raise money, and give the incumbent a hell of a race,” Perino said.

“As a member of the White House Press Office team, he shined,” Perino added. “He is governed by a solid set of conservative principles, and he also understands how best to communicate ideas.”

Perino pointed to the tax initiative as one example of his electoral prowess. “He turned around the proposition to increase taxes on just a few in the state — the campaign wasn’t going that well until he kicked them into gear, and then the proposition failed big-time,” she said.

A spokesman for Cantwell’s office was not immediately available for comment. But Perino offered a word of caution to naysayers: “Sure, he may be a ‘dark horse’ candidate – but that’s what you want in an election year like this one. Beware Democrats at the DSCC before you scoff at the notion of a Stanzel candidacy.”

The news of Stanzel’s possible challenge to 10-year incumbent Democrat Cantwell was first broken by NW Daily Marker last Friday and confirmed by the Associated Press by Monday morning. Since the AP story, Stanzel’s ‘maybe’ has begun to sound more yes-ish:

“I have spoken with leaders in this state and my former White House colleagues about the idea of running for the United States Senate,” Stanzel told The Daily Caller Tuesday.

Even the left-wing response seems to admit that Stanzel’s local political work could form a good foundation with Washington State voters. Beyond the typical snark is an admission that Stanzel possesses a track record of sound fiscal guardianship that polling indicates Republicans and Democrats are longing for. From Horsesass.org Tuesday:

If you recognize the name Scott Stanzel at all, it is probably because he was the campaign manager for Defeat 1098, the group credited with defeating the Washington state high earner’s income tax initiative (I-1098). The up-side for Stanzel is that he has a track record on a “populist” issue in Washington state.

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