When Senate Democrats selected Nevada Sen. Harry Reid to be their leader, journalists and political insiders noted his red-state credentials, opposition to abortion and soft-spoken style as perfect qualities for a party seeking to broaden its appeal. Almost immediately, a front-page New York Times story suggested that “Reid’s amiability might make it harder for the […]
With a potential political wave developing, Republicans should face the reality that it likely will only break one way – toward the Democrats. GOP leaders in Washington are trying to point out the “hypocrisy” of the Democratic attacks on ethics and corruption, but recent history shows that if a wave develops, it will disproportionately hurt […]
Democrats are poised to defeat Rep. John Hostettler (R-Ind.) in November. And they better succeed — because if they don’t, they might as well forget about ever defeating him. Hostettler, a six-term conservative from southwest Indiana, has been a Democratic target since he was first elected in 1994. But Democratic hype about beating him has […]
A potential challenge to Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) by Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman (D) is receiving increased attention in the media. Don’t take it too seriously. While, DSCC Chairman Chuck Schumer (NY), Sen. Barack Obama (IL), and Minority Leader Harry Reid (Ensign’s colleague) reportedly have spoken with Goodman about a run — Reid has […]
It’s true that I’m not, and have never been, a general manager of a Major League Baseball team. Those guys make much more money than I do, and these days you have to be under 35 to be hired for one of those jobs. But I have a trade that is just screaming to be […]
Some of the biggest battles in the fight for the House this year will be in open seats, vacated by members running for higher office or retiring. With the power of incumbency, open seats often provide better opportunities for takeover. And now that year-end Federal Election Commission reports are past due, we can get a […]
As political junkies across the country focus on November’s increasingly important midterm elections, friends and political allies of Louisiana 1st district Rep. Bobby Jindal (R) have something else on their mind: the Bayou State’s 2007 race for governor. Incumbent Gov. Kathleen Blanco (D) has already announced that she will run for re-election for the state’s […]
Despite of the difficulty of knocking off incumbent Members of Congress in primaries, a handful of potentially serious Congressional primaries are taking shape this cycle. Will the overall political environment, which favors change over the status quo, benefit these insurgents? The two high-profile primary challenges to Senators are on tap in Rhode Island and Hawaii. […]
Already looking past the 2006 midterm elections? Well, if you are, you don’t need to look all the way to 2008 to find a race that’s already starting to take shape. Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco (D) announced recently that she will seek reelection in 2007. But Blanco’s prospects are uncertain at best, both because of […]
When Mitt Romney spoke to a roomful of reporters at a lunch hosted by the Christian Science Monitor on Thursday, he said the right thing about his current position on abortion, but he said it in the wrong way. President George W. Bush, the master of speaking to evangelicals and socially conservative Republicans, would never […]