Barbara Comstock Named to NRCC Young Guns Program

The National Republican Campaign Committee earlier today named 10th Congressional District nominee Barbara Comstock to a coveted spot in its Young Guns program.

Del. Barbara Comstock

[UPDATED with additional information regarding the “Leans Republican” rating for the 10th District race.]

Back in March we reported that Comstock had been tagged as being “on the radar” for the NRCC’s “Young Guns” program, and today she has formally been added to their roster. From the NRCC press release:

The National Republican Congressional Committee announced today that 10 Republican candidates have reached ‘Young Gun’ status, the top tier of the Committee’s three-level recruitment program. These candidates have reached the third and final level by establishing a clear path to victory through their ability to build a formidable campaign structure and achieve important goals and benchmarks.

“Candidates that reach ‘Young Gun’ status have met a series of rigorous goals that will put them in a position to win on Election Day,” said NRCC Chairman Greg Walden. “Our job as a committee is to help elect Republicans to office that will serve as a check and balance on the Obama Administration. These 10 candidates have outlined conservative principles that will grow jobs, stop the harmful effects of ObamaCare, and get Washington’s spending under control. I am confident that these candidates will continue to advocate for hardworking families in their respective districts through the November Elections.”

This program has been a very successful candidate recruitment and development program over the years, and lots of candidates do their best to get picked. It means they have a competitive race, but that they’re very attractive candidates in terms of messaging, polish, organization, etc. This imprimatur is a signal to national donors that these candidates are viable, and likely to be good investments for campaign cash.

This is great news, and a real boost to our ability to hold that seat, and comes on the heels of the Cook Political Report’s having rated the 10th District contest between Comstock and Democrat John Foust as “Leans Republican.”  From Cook’s (subscription required):

Lean Republican. This is exactly the kind of open seat Democrats would need to capture to win the House, but with six months to go, Democratic Fairfax County Supervisor John Foust is an underdog against GOP state Del. Barbara Comstock. Democrats badly want to cast Comstock as a far-right extremist out of step with the Northern Virginia suburbs. But given how artfully Republicans have drawn the lines here and the nature of the year, they will need to catch a few breaks to win. . . .

[R]aising Comstock’s negatives won’t be easy, considering the 10th CD’s location. Democrats will need several million dollars to effectively define Comstock in the pricey DC market, and given that Comstock has gone on DC broadcast in past delegate races, there’s no doubt she will have the resources to paint herself in a positive light and, if need be, attack Foust as a tax-and-spend liberal.

This is a candidate who is going to win, folks.

Important note, given some of the other political news these days: Although the Young Guns program was originally started by Rep. Eric Cantor, Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) and Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) (the original “Young Guns” of the House), it is wholly within the NRCC today. Don’t confuse it with YG Network (and its side project, YG Virginia), which is the Cantor-affiliated 501(c)(4) organization that has assisted in the delegate disenfranchisement debacle in Virginia this past winter and early spring. That organization is completely distinct and separate from the NRCC.

Congratulations to Del. Comstock!