Is/Was Representative Adam Schiff Auditioning for the Senate or the Governorship?

2018 will be a banner year in California politics. Governor Jerry Brown will be term limited out of office. Senator Dianne Feinstein will be 85, but says she intends to run for a fifth term. Potential candidates are lining up for both offices. Those mentioned for Governor are Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom, California Treasurer John Chiang, former Superintendent of Public Instruction Delaine Eastin, and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. Potential Senate candidates are Representatives Brad Sherman and Eric Swalwell, former Representative Loretta Sanchez, Mayor Eric Garcetti of Los Angeles, and Berkeley Professor Michael Eisen. Hanging over both races are hedge fund billionaire Tom Steyer, who has financed referenda campaigns featuring him. All Democrats; California is a one party state at the state level. It takes money and often public recognition to win statewide election in California. The state is too large with several distinct media markets. All of these announced and potential candidates should be able to raise money. Several are open to vicious character attacks. The question is who will emerge from the scrum? Representative Schiff had the potential throughout much of March. He was receiving daily media attention. As the soft spoken Democratic leader on the House Intelligence Committee, he has a factual basis for leading the Russian Connection campaign against President Trump. Representative Schiff was becoming a national figure in the Democratic Party. His soft-spokeness was an assets. He was not bombastic. He seemed reasonable eventhough he had to know that no factual basis existed for the Russian Connection. He also led the Democratic/media attack on Republican Devan Nunes, the Republican chair of the House Intelligence Committee. He demanded the resignation of Congressman Nunes for informing President Trump that he was being revealing to President Trump that his campaign and staff were surveilled, and then told the public. Congressman Schiff and his colleagues were in the cold. Congressman Schiff was in a tiff. Congressman Schiff was gaining increasing media time daily. His stock was rising. He could have his choice of the Governorship or the Senate. He’s been in the House since 2000. The nine term Congressman was unknown throughout California until the past few months. He was riding the Russian Connection to higher office. He was on a roll. He seized the moment. He led the chorus against Congressman Nunes. Governor or the Senate? The choice would be his. Then he saw the documents that Congressman Nunes talked about. He emerged chastened. Congressman Schiss is not stupid. His narrative was falling apart. He knows that former Obama Administration officials will have major legal problems. He stuck his neck out to far in what might become, despite the media, another Watergate. His argument was now we don’t know; that’s why we need a special prosecutor. And now back to the back bench. The audition is over. Congressman Nunes is looking better all the time.