MLB legend Curt Schilling once again wants to enter the political realm, and he appears to have the backing of President Trump.
On Sunday, the conservative firebrand told Armed American Radio he is considering moving back to Arizona to run for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. Schilling did not say which district he wanted to run in, but that he would want to flip one of the five districts currently held by Democrats to a Republican seat. Schilling was raised in Arizona and was a star pitcher for the 2001 Arizona Diamondbacks World Series championship team.
Schilling, a former Breitbart host and frequent guest for BlazeTV, even got a supportive tweet from Trump on Tuesday morning, indicating the president could endorse him.
Trump wrote on Twitter, “Curt Schilling, a great pitcher and patriot, is considering a run for Congress in Arizona. Terrific!”
Curt Schilling, a great pitcher and patriot, is considering a run for Congress in Arizona. Terrific! @foxandfriends
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 13, 2019
Although Schilling should absolutely be in the National Baseball Hall of Fame, being a congressional candidate in a key battleground state is a different question. This time around, Schilling would be best sitting this one out.
There are currently two Republican-leaning congressional districts in Arizona held by Democrats, according to the Cook PVI, so Schilling would likely run in one of those two spots. One is Arizona’s first congressional district, an R+2 district that Trump barely won in 2016 (48% to 47%). The other is Arizona’s second congressional district, an R+1 district which Hillary Clinton won by 4.8% in 2016.
These will be tough seats for Republicans to flip in the House. Democrats have controlled the first district since 2013 and Ann Kirkpatrick of second district served two of those terms before her failed 2016 Senate run and move to the second district.
It will take strong candidates to flip these seats. Unfortunately, a lot of Schilling’s past rhetoric would make him a liability in a battleground district. He has given his opponents plenty of fodder.
Schilling has shown support for conspiracy theories on social media — like Parkland’s David Hogg being an actor, Clinton involvement with Jeffrey Epstein’s suicide, and even QAnon.
His rhetoric in recent years has also been clumsy at times. He was fired from ESPN for sharing a meme mocking transgender bathroom policies, compared the threat of radical Islam to Nazi Germany, and liked a shirt that joked about lynching journalists (which he later apologized for).
On national TV, he’s also asked CNN’s Jake Tapper why Jewish Americans vote overwhelmingly Democrat and awkwardly tried to defend Trump’s 1992 comments about wanting to date a young girl in 10 years when she was an adult, making Fox Business host Trish Regan quite uncomfortable.
Not to mention, Schilling hasn’t lived in Arizona in 15 years. He currently lives in Massachusetts’ fourth congressional district, so Schilling’s perception as an out-of-state carpetbagger would not be helpful. After all, former Massachusetts Sen. Scott Brown’s reputation as a carpetbagger in the 2014 New Hampshire Senate election is partly why Jeanne Shaheen is still in Washington.
Despite his missteps, Schilling has done plenty of good in the world. He disavowed failed Republican congressional candidate turned neo-Nazi Paul Nehlen, disinviting Nehlen from his show when he revealed himself to be a bigot. However, previously endorsing a man who now advocates far-right terrorism would certainly hurt Schilling’s prospects.
Also on the positive side, Schilling raised more than $9 million for ALS research during his MLB career and earned the 2001 Roberto Clemente Award for his good character. He was actively involved with Operation Bullpen and helped deliver 1.5 million pounds of supplies to Puerto Rico, Florida, and Texas in hurricane relief two years ago. In his personal life, he appears to be a caring father and loving husband. Plus, he is a big supporter of the military and has visited active duty troops in the Middle East as a part of a USO Tour.
The 20-year MLB veteran probably could have won an Arizona congressional seat in 2010 given his strong relationship with the late Sen. John McCain, who encouraged Schilling to run for Senate in Massachusetts when Ted Kennedy died. Back then, Schilling hadn’t made as many controversial statements and was quite moderate by the standards of the day. He described himself as effectively pro-choice (but personally pro-life), fine with gay marriage (but personally opposed), and an independent conservative. He also called taxes “the cost of being able to live in this country” and voted for Bill Clinton. If that’s any indication, he sounded far more like a Rockefeller Republican than a Tea Partier who felt as though he was “taxed enough already.”
However, the circumstances are not the same as they were a decade ago. Republicans will need a squeaky clean candidate to flip suburban Arizona districts, not someone the media can have a field day with.
If Schilling wants to throw his name on the ballot for the Massachusetts fourth congressional district to prevent Rep. Joseph Kennedy III from running unopposed again, that’s one thing. But Schilling running in a swing district would only help Democrats keep the House in 2020.
Tom Joyce (@TomJoyceSports) is a freelance writer who has been published with USA Today, the Boston Globe, Newsday, ESPN, the Detroit Free Press, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, The Federalist, and a number of other media outlets.
