RE-RUNS; KY FILINGS; OBAMA’S PLAN; BIDEN ANNOUNCES (AGAIN); FL TO SCRAP TOUCHSCREENS.
January 30th, 2007
WEDNESDAY NEWS UPDATE.RE-RUNS; KY FILINGS; OBAMA'S PLAN; BIDEN ANNOUNCES (AGAIN); FL TO SCRAP TOUCHSCREENS.
With recently defeated Congressman Jeb Bradley (R-NH), Jim Ryun (R-KS) and Richard Pombo (R-CA) all considering comeback races for 2008, National Journal's Hotline is out with an interesting stat. Of the "nearly 200" rematch attempts since 1998, only 10 were successful (and six of those ten were in 2006) ... Statewide candidate filing closed Tuesday in Kentucky. Embattled Governor Ernie Fletcher (R) will face a very tough primary challenge from former Congresswoman Anne Northup (R) and one other. On the Democratic side, seven candidates filed -- including five major contenders: former Lieutenant Governors Steve Beshear and Steve Henry, State Treasurer Jonathan Miller, State House Speaker Jody Richards, and wealthy businessman Bruce Lunsford. Attorney General Greg Stumbo filed as the Lieutenant Governor candidate on Lunsford's ticket, former Secretary of State John Y. Brown III is Richards' runningmate, '04 US Senate nominee Dan Mongiardo is running with Beshear, and State House Minority Leader Jeff Hoover is on Northup's ticket. Click here to see all the Kentucky statewide candidates ... US Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D) was finally able to force Senate Republicans to end their filibuster against the minimu wage increase. After threatening to table the wage increase entirely and move on to floor debate on the Iraq War if the delay tactics didn't end, GOP Senators caved. By a 87-10 vote, Senators invoked cloture and ended the filibuster ... US Senator Barack Obama (D) announced his detailed plan to end the Iraq War and redeploy American troops out of Iraq ... US Senator Joe Biden (D-DE) will announce his official, official, really really official candidacy for President on Wednesday and file FEC paperwork. By our count, that's like the 362nd time Biden has announced he's running in 2008 ... Florida Governor Charlie Crist (R) will announce a new plan this week to end the use of touchscreen voting machines in the state. According to the Sun-Sentinel, Crist will call for scrapping the machines used by 15 counties and spending at least $20 million in state funds to help the counties buy optical scanners that read paper ballots. Congressman Robert Wexler (D-FL) called Crist's plan "bold and comprehensive" and praised the Governor for showing "the highest form of bipartisan partnership." Wexler had fought with former Governor Jeb Bush (R) in Florida and federal courts for the past few years to end the use of touchscreen machines in the state.
Posted by Ron Gunzburger - 01.31.07 | Permalink | postCount('013107a');
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TUESDAY NEWS UPDATE.
NH NUMBERS; FRANKEN '08; MOORE, SCHILLING RESIST DRAFT; THE P2008 "OTHER GUYS."
A new WBZ-TV/SurveyUSA poll shows a close GOP race for President among likely New Hampshire Republican primary voters. The numbers: Rudy Giuliani - 33%, John McCain - 32%, Mitt Romney - 21%, Others - 11%. On the Democratic side, Hillary Clinton held a solid lead with 40%, followed by Barack Obama at 25%, John Edwards at 23% and other Dems with a combined total of 9% ... Liberal radio talk show host, comic and author Al Franken (D-MN) announced on his Air America show that he will give up his daily radio show in a few weeks to explore a run next year against US Senator Norm Coleman (R-MN). Congresswoman Betty McCollum and former State Senator Dean Johnson are also mentioned as possible Dem candidates against Coleman in 2008 ... Candidate filing for the 2007 statewide races in Kentucky closes on Tuesday ... Congresswoman Gwen Moore (D-WI) denied any interest in running this year against Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett (D), despite a buzz from those urging her to run. "She is proud of Mayor Barrett and the job he is doing for the city of Milwaukee ... The Congresswoman is delighted where she is right now. She's in the majority. She'll have more power to serve the interests of her district and bring more resources back to Milwaukee," said Moore's spokesperson ... Boston Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling (R) shot down any interest in running against US Senator John Kerry in 2008. Instead, he's seeking a contract extension through the 2008 season ... Who are Karl Krueger (D), Hugh Cort (R), Millie Howard (R), Sal Mohamed (D), Michael Smith (R), and Dan Francis (D)? They are among the many little-known but announced Presidential hopefuls who have already filed with the FEC to run in 2008. You can find all of them on our P2008 page.
Posted by Ron Gunzburger - 01.30.07 | Permalink | postCount('013007a');
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Posted by Ron Gunzburger - 01.30.07 | Permalink | postCount('013007B');
MONDAY NEWS UPDATE.
HUCKABEE IN; JOE ASSERTS INDEPENDENCE; CHARLIE IN CHARGE.
Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee (R) confirmed on the Sunday talk shows that he is filing Presidential exploratory committee paperwork on Monday. By Sunday evening, he launched his new campaign website ... Speaking on Fox News Sunday, US Senator Joe Lieberman (Ind.Dem-CT) said he may not support the Dem nominee for President in 2008. "I'm going to do what most independents and a lot of Democrats and Republicans in America do, which is to take a look at all the candidates and then in the end, regardless of party, decide who I think will be best for the future of our country. So I'm open to supporting a Democrat, Republican or even an Independent, if there's a strong one ... I am genuinely an independent. I agree more often than not with Democrats on domestic policy. I agree more often than not with Republicans on foreign and defense policy," he explained ... In Florida, Governor Charlie Crist (R) was able this weekend to wrest control of the Florida Republican Party away from Jeb Bush loyalists and into the hands of his close allies. Crist ran little-known Oviedo City Commissioner Jim Greer for state chair -- against two-term incumbent State Chair Carole Jean Jordan, a Bush loyalist -- and won by a 102-89 vote. "Change is good," said Crist. Since taking office a few weeks ago, Crist has replaced many conservative Bush loyalists with GOP centrists more aligned with Crist's outlook. One of those replaced was Allan Bense, the immediate past Florida House Speaker and a close Bush ally. The Miami Herald reported Crist's demand for storm insurance reform and state-mandated lower insurance rates "forced [GOP legislative leaders] to become more consumer-friendly and turn away from the business interests favored by" Bush. "Jeb Bush is probably not a happy camper right now. Charlie Crist led us to a place where none of us wanted to go ... but we're in a [insurance] crisis situation," said State Representative David Rivera (R). A leading State House Democrat -- who helped push Crist's insurance package to passage in last week's special session -- told Politics1 that "Charlie is the best Democratic Governor we've had since LeRoy Collins."
Posted by Ron Gunzburger - 01.29.07 | Permalink | postCount('012907a');
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Posted by Ron Gunzburger - 01.29.07 | Permalink | postCount('012907b');
WEEKEND OPEN THREAD.
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AP is reporting former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee (R) will file Presidential exploratory committee paperwork on Monday.
Posted by Ron Gunzburger - 01.27.07 | Permalink | postCount('012707B');
FRIDAY NEWS UPDATE.
NEW GORE BUZZ; EX-SEN CANDIDATES FIND NEW JOBS; TRACKIN' TESTER.
Democratic consultant Jim Carville believes former Vice President Al Gore will eventually jump into the 2008 White House race. "He's going to run, and he's going to be formidable. If he didn't run, I'd be shocked," he told Rolling Stone ... The Illinois Green Party is now an officially recognized party in the eyes of the state officials, meaning the party now has automatic ballot status for all races in the state. They owe this new status to the 2006 gubernatorial candidacy of attorney Rich Whitney, who finished with 10% ... Former Maryland Lieutenant Governor and '06 US Senate nominee Michael Steele (R) is the new head of GOPAC, the Republican PAC the gained prominence under Newt Gingrich's leadership in the 1980s. Also, former Congressman and '06 US Senate nominee Harold Ford Jr. (D-TN) was officially named the new leader of the DLC ... US Senator Jon Tester (D-MT) has kept an unusual promise he made on the campaign trail. As promised, Tester posts his complete daily schedules into an online archive on his Senate website so constituents will know of everyone he meets with. The schedule even has his personal information like dinners with the family and workout time in the Senate gym. He even listed a hallway "hello" he had with a group of beer industry lobbyists. Congresswoman Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) also posts her daily schedule on her government website, but unlike Tester she does not archive past days.
Posted by Ron Gunzburger - 01.26.07 | Permalink | postCount('012607a');
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Posted by Ron Gunzburger - 01.26.07 | Permalink | postCount('012607B');
THURSDAY NEWS UPDATE.
KERRY OUT; HOGWASH; DeLAY WEIGHS IN; MINIMUM WAGE HIKE HELD HOSTAGE IN SENATE.
US Senator John Kerry (D-MA) announced Wednesday he will not make a second run for President in 2008. "I've concluded this is not the time for me to mount a Presidential campaign, but to put my energy into working with the majority of the Senate ... [to] change the policy in Iraq that threatens all that I have fought for since I came home from Vietnam," said Kerry. Although he was sitting on millions in cash left unspent from the 2004 race, recent polls were not kind to Kerry. He lagged in the single digits and his awkward joke -- seen as anti-soldier -- on the eve the 2006 elections seemed to seal his fate. Instead, Kerry plans to seek re-election in 2008. With no significant opposition likely, Kerry is a safe bet to win another term ... In an appearance on CNN, Vice President Dick Cheney dismissed as "hogwash" the suggestion that Bush Administration blunders and failures in Iraq have caused Congressional Republicans to question the White House's credibility ... Former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-TX) was rather critical of former Speaker Denny Hastert (R-IL) for endorsing Mitt Romney for President this week. "I'm a little surprised that Hastert endorsed this early. It's not usually what Denny does -- he's usually very methodical and thinks through," said DeLay to The Hill. Part of DeLay's annoyance seems to be his distrust of Romney as a phony conservative. "Both [Huckabee] and Brownback are fiscal and cultural conservatives and they believe it down to the depths of their souls," he explained ... Senate Republicans are filibustering to block the Democratic bill to raise the minimum wage. The bill passed by a solid margin with bipartisan support in the House. The Republicans are holding the bill hostage in exchange for getting a tax cut for businesses. Dems attempted to invoke cloture to end the filibuster, but fell six votes short on the first try Wednesday.
Posted by Ron Gunzburger - 01.25.07 | Permalink | postCount('012507a');
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Posted by Ron Gunzburger - 01.25.07 | Permalink | postCount('012507b');
WEDNESDAY NEWS UPDATE.
EDWARDS, GIULIANI LEAD IN IOWA; MI CD-7 UPDATE; GAY MARRIAGE BAN AMENDMENT DEAD.
Strategic Vision (R) is out with a new independent poll of Iowa voters. On the Democratic side, former US Senator John Edwards leads the field with 25%, followed by US Senator Barack Obama at 17%, former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack at 15%, US Senator Hillary Clinton at 12%, US Senator Joe Biden at 4% and the rest even further behind. On the GOP side, former NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani was first with 25%, US Senator John McCain had 21%, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich was third with 13%, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney had 8%, US Senator Chuck Hagel had 7%, and all the others were at 2% or less apiece. When Republicans were asked if President Bush is "a conservative Republican in the mode of Ronald Reagan," only 11% agreed ... Former Vice President Al Gore said he was "thrilled" with the two Oscar nominations announced Tuesday for his Inconvenient Truth documentary on global warming ... According to the Detroit News, social conservative freshman Congressman Tim Walberg (R) may face a rematch in 2008 from the man he ousted in last year's primary. Former Congressman Joe Schwarz (R) promises to make a decision on the race within six months. "Tim Walberg will be an ineffective back bench-bencher," one close Schwarz political associate told the newspaper. It would be the third contest between the two men, as Schwartz defeated Walberg for the open seat in 2004. National Journal's Hotline, meanwhile, reports there is also a lot of buzz in Michigan that Schwarz may make the rematch run in '08 as a Democrat ... Primary sponsors US Senator Wayne Allard (R-CO) and Congresswoman Marilyn Musgrave (R-CO) told reporters this week they are giving up on their attempts to revive a proposed constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage. "If we thought there was a decent chance to bring it to the floor for debate, I would, but with the new Congress, I'm not sure we will ever have that opportunity," Allard told the Pueblo Colorado Chieftain. Musgrave's spokesperson said she does not even intend to reintroduce the amendment. It was voted down in 2004 and 2006 in politically motivated congressional floor votes planned by the Republican Leadership to occur in the lead-up to Election Day.
Posted by Ron Gunzburger - 01.24.07 | Permalink | postCount('012407a');
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Posted by Ron Gunzburger - 01.24.07 | Permalink | postCount('012407b');
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