Has Todd Courser set his sights on Candice Miller?

Todd Courser is an interesting character within the inner circle of Michigan Republican politics.

A tea party loyalist, the Lapeer lawyer unsuccessfully ran for state House, state Senate and State Board of Education within a 2-year span, 2008-10.

Yet, he shook the GOP establishment to its core by nearly defeating party Chairman Bobby Schostak in his bid for re-election at the 2013 state convention.

Now, Courser is mentioned as a possible tea party candidate to run for governor, lieutenant governor, Congress or to make another bid for the Legislature or Board of Education.
But in an email he sent on Thursday to party activists, it sounded like Courser may have his eye on challenging Macomb County’s own Candice Miller in the 2014 House races.

Courser was so harsh in his Sept. 11 email criticism of Miller, a Harrison Township Republican, that he later had to backpedal and make some corrections to his portrayal of the congresswoman’s voting record. Blowback from Miller's staff and supporters sparked the clarifications.

Courser conceded that he wrongly stated that Miller supported the TARP and economic stimulus bills. Without much of an apology, he shifted gears and said Miller supported a 2009 bill that essentially blocked big bonuses for CEOs of banks that received taxpayer-funded bailouts. And the congresswoman, Courser added, supported supplemental funding for highway construction projects that were being threatened with shutdown in numerous states.

“To me the argument is one of semantics, but when one is in a primary for Congress, semantics become really important,” he wrote in a follow-up email. “She voted for a stimulus bill and a TARP bill, but not ‘the’ stimulus bill or ‘the’ TARP bill.  I should have sourced it in the original email so any confusion could have been avoided.  Despite the confusion, my original point stands.  There are plenty of examples of a lack of fiscal conservatism in our Republican Party from our governor to Congress.”

Miller's team is essentially laughing off the clumsy Courser attack. They dismiss him as a four-time loser.

It’s hard to imagine Candice Miller, with her long track record, losing a Republican primary in a district that is essentially dominated by Macomb County voters. But the 10^thDistrict spans from Sterling Heights to the tip of the Thumb Area.

Perhaps Courser’s Lapeer County base offers an opportunity to rally the northern and rural sections of the district to his side.

Stay tuned.

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UPDATE: Miller may have no fear of a Courser challenge but, perhaps just as added insurance, within a couple of days of Courser's criticisms the congresswoman made an announcement that pleased the tea party.
Miller's press release said that she is now backing a House GOP resolution that is viewed as the best chance to defund Obamacare.
Here's the Romeo Area Tea Party's reaction:
"We applaud her courage to do the right thing, by supporting this resolution! It's not often we get to provide positive feedback.  Please make sure to thank Rep. Miller, for her support in fighting the implementation of Obamacare."