Ensign sees opportunity to ascend

By Lisa Mascaro

Sunday, April 26, 2009 | 2 a.m.

Anyone who says there are no second acts in politics clearly hasn’t been paying attention to the rise this year of Nevada Republican Sen. John Ensign.

Ensign led the party’s campaign arm in the Senate during the last electoral cycle, when Republicans endured landslide-like losses. It was a tough year for the party. The mood of the nation was trending against them.

Seven Senate seats switched under Ensign’s leadership to Democratic control (and the Minnesota race remains undecided). In many quarters, that could have been a career killer.

Yet Ensign’s colleagues cut him slack, understanding their fortunes were not his fault.

In the first few months since, Ensign has emerged as a national political figure, positioning himself as a very capable spokesman for a party desperately in need of one.

Republicans are looking for their next national leader.

The old story goes that after a few visits to the White House, politicians suddenly start entertaining the inevitable thought: If that guy can be president, why not me?

So it may come as no shock that Ensign did not dismiss a possible presidential run during an interview last week with Washington Post political guru Chris Cillizza.

According to the Post, Ensign replied it was “not something I would ever rule out.”

He is heading to Iowa, that testing ground of future presidents, for a speech.

Just a few years ago, the prospect of Ensign being considered presidential or vice-presidential material would often be dismissed over the Nevada problem. The country, observers would sometimes say, is not ready for a national leader from a state that allows gaming and prostitution.

These days, those qualifiers come less quickly.

Times are changing, and perhaps even more telling, the Republican Party is in greater need of a leader.

Perhaps the more interesting question is: Would the country be interested in the brand of politics Ensign is offering?

Ensign, as Cillizza rightly notes, is ranked as one of the most conservative members of the Senate.

During Ensign’s frequent turns in the spotlight here, he is often flanked at news conferences by fellow conservative senators and those from the South.

Studies show that after last year’s election, the Republican Party has increasingly become a party of older and Southern voters — which is not a hopeful prospect as the nation’s voters become more diverse.

Consider some of Ensign’s recent positions that have made national news.

Ensign appeared on CNN a week ago reiterating his opposition to gay marriage — a position that even some in his party believe should be reconsidered.

Days earlier, a top Republican adviser to Sen. John McCain’s presidential campaign said he believes the party should soften its stance on gay marriage. Polls show most Americans support either legal marriage or civil unions for gay couples.

Ensign sparked a national debate when he called President Barack Obama “irresponsible” for being seen as friendly to Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez during the recent Summit of the Americas.

Democratic Rep. Shelley Berkley was among those who came to Obama’s defense, saying the president acted as she hoped any president would do when greeting a foreign leader.

The mood of the country has shifted since Ensign came to Washington with the Republican takeover of Congress in 1994 under Newt Gingrich, who became speaker of the House. The country is optimistic about the Obama era and hopeful for a new direction, polls show.

But in politics, never say never.

If two years is a generation in politics, four years is a lifetime.

Obama is barely capping his first 100 days in office.

Ensign will have plenty of time to continue burnishing his resume before the next campaign or two.