Month: June 2008

SurveyUSA (6/7-9, likely voters, 5/13 in parens):

Christine Gregoire (D-inc): 50 (49)

Dino Rossi (R): 47 (47)

(MoE: ±4%)

No surprises here: this one is tight, and will likely remain so for a while. I have confidence that Gregoire will pull through, especially with Obama’s strong performance in the state (he leads in this latest round of polling by 56-39 over McCain).

Here’s a “bonus finding” from the poll: Washington’s incumbent Republican Attorney General, Rob McKenna, leads Democrat John Ladenburg by 49-42 at this stage.

…everyone knows that.

But did you know that John Kline is more out of touch then any other Republican in Congress?

That’s right. An analysis done by Crisitunity of the website Swing State Project entitled the “Out-of-Whackness Index” showed that John Kline is more out of touch with his district then even Michelle Bachmann (who ranked 5th). You can read the whole thing here.

In a district where the majority of legislators are Democrats. Where Democrat Senator Amy Klobuchar won by double digits. In a district like that John Kline is one of the 50 most conservative Republicans and the most out of touch Republican in America.

Simply put, it’s time to Dump John Kline.

Thankfully we have a better choice. Steve Sarvi, a Iraq War vet and former mayor of the city of Watertown. Simply put, Steve Sarvi is the right choice. You can learn more about his impressive background here.

But the reason I am writing this is that it is Steve Sarvi Blog Day. Bloggers around Minnesota are writing about why we need to dump Kline and elect Steve Sarvi. The easiest way you can help is by donating via ActBlue. Kline is out of touch and Sarvi fits the district. We can win and it would make a huge difference.

Kline voted:

–Against a bill to establish a National Landscape Conservation System

– Against a bill to establish an Office of Congressional Ethics

– Against the Ensuring Continued Access to Student Loans Act

– Against the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act

– Against the Renewable Energy and Energy Conservation Tax Act

If you want change it’s time to step up and donate to Steve Sarvi.

Happy Sarvi Blog Day!

161 of 191 Precincts Reporting

Pingree	19,440	44%
Cote	12,674	29%
Strimling	4,752	11%
Brennan	4,923	11%
Lawrence	2,049	5%

RESULTS: Associated Press

11:24PM: It’s over. The AP calls it for Pingree.

11:05PM: Pingree is starting to pull away: 45-26.

10:41PM: 46% in and Pingree is still dominating the field, expanding her lead to 43-26 over Cote.

9:35PM: 15% of precincts are reporting, and Pingree is holding steady at 40-30 over Cote.

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Polls have just closed in Maine, and we’ll be using this thread to follow the returns for the Democratic nomination to succeed Rep. Tom Allen.

165 of 166 Precincts Reporting

Leslie Byrne	8,004	33.4%
Gerry Connolly	13,856	57.8%

Virginia Results: VA SBE | Associated Press

379 of 379 Precincts Reporting

Blaine Lotz	8,177	33%
Rob Miller	16,804	67%

South Carolina Results: SC SEC | Associated Press

9:18PM: The AP has called VA-11 for Gerry Connolly.

8:52PM: Linda Ketner wins the SC-01 Dem primary.

8:45PM: The AP has called the SC-02 primary for Rob Miller!

8:30PM: With 42% in, Ketner is starting to pull away at 63% to Frasier’s 37%, and Judy Feder wins the Dem nod in VA-10.

8:18PM: Miller is back up 60-40 with 37% reporting.

8:10PM: Lotz just opened up an 8 point lead on Miller with 23% reporting. Over in SC-01, Ketner has a 10 point lead with 10% reporting.

7:58PM: Something to keep an eye on: Linda Ketner, a fundraising powerhouse in SC-01, is only ahead of her primary opponent, Ben Frasier, by 56-44 with 4% in.

7:55PM: I’m back, and Connolly is blowing Byrne away.

7:32PM Eastern: I won’t be updating these numbers for a few minutes, as I’m just going to get a quick bite to eat. Please check the results links above for the latest updates. Thanks.

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Polls close in Virginia and South Carolina at 7pm Eastern. We’ll be using this thread to follow the returns in two key races: VA-11, where Leslie Byrne and Gerry Connolly are facing off, and SC-02, where voters are choosing between fighting Democrats Rob Miller and Blaine Lotz.

Several polls taken right over the weeks after the North Carolina primary show that the race for the senate has reached the top tier. now is as good a time as any to help me raise the maximum single donation for Kay Hagan on my Turn Carolina Blue page.

We have a chance to turn out Elizabeth Dole and turn North Carolina Blue. With Dole’s weakness, Hagan’s unexpected stregnth and Barack Obama at the top of the ticket and your help, we can make it happen. Help me raise $2,300, the equivalent of a maximum single donation, for Kay Hagan’s campaign and we can put and end to the legacy of Jesse Helms. Thank you very much for your help.

Most of us do not have $2,300 to throw around, but together we can. This year we can end the Jesse Helms legacy and Dole family dynasty in one shot. Please help and spread the word. Thanks!

From the Desk of those hard working folks at Netroots Nation:

We are thrilled to announce that Gov. Howard Dean will kick off the 2008 Netroots Nation convention as Thursday’s evening keynote speaker.

The chairman of the Democratic National Committee and governor of Vermont from 1991 to 2003 addressed the Netroots community at the 2006 and 2007 conventions. This year, we’re especially proud to recognize his efforts to create an active, effective movement by organizing in every precinct and in every state.

Dean has been one of the most influential forces in the progressive movement. As chairman of the DNC, he has worked to make Democrats competitive in every race, district and state, while integrating national and state party operations and standing up for Democrats’ core values.

His belief that every citizen matters, from California to Connecticut, from Alaska to Mississippi, echoes our belief that the voices of all Americans deserve to be heard.

Netroots Nation is July 17-20 in Austin, TX. So if you haven’t registered, now’s the time!

Click here to register now

Anyone who was fortunate enough to get to hear Dean at any of the previous conventions knows what a great time this will be, but this is more then just a speech – this is a celebration of the success of the 50-state strategy and the impact of the Netroots on supporting Dean’s vision.

We hope you can join us in Austin.  Every year this event seams to get bigger and better then the last, and I expect that this year will continue that trend!

Unfortunately, it looks like the vaunted match-up of Francis H. Powers (pere) vs. Francis M. Powers (fils) isn’t going to happen. Those pesky Libertarians nominated Susan Overeem last night as their candidate in NY-13 in the general election.

Jim Lesczynski, a spokesman for the Manhattan chapter of the Libertarian Party, said that the selection of Ms. Overeem had nothing to do with the prospect of a highly unusual campaign pitting son against father…. “But the general feeling was that Susan has the better grasp of what it meant to be a Libertarian.”

It remains to be seen whether Powers the Younger, and his large hair, will still seek the Anarchist Party line. (It’s unclear whether the fact that the Anarchist Party does not yet exist will stop him.)

Mike McMahon remains the expected Democratic candidate, although that is subject to an August primary. SSP rates this race as a Toss-Up.

Big news out of Oregon:

John Frohnmayer says he is dropping his bid for the U.S. Senate.

Frohnmayer had planned to run as the Independent Party’s candidate in a three-way race against Republican Senator Gordon Smith and Democrat Jeff Merkley.

But Frohnmayer said Tuesday he has had a tough time rounding up campaign money and grass-roots support.

This is great news for Democrat Jeff Merkley, as Frohnmayer was running a left-of-center campaign that included calls for the impeachment of President Bush and sharp criticism of his administration’s constitutional abuses.

Frohnmayer, who was chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts during the first Bush administration, might have been enough to tip the balance back to Smith in a close election.

(Hat-tip: Blue Oregon)

One of the jobs of the head of the NRSC, the GOP’s campaign committee in the Senate, is to constantly wear a brave face and reassure the troops that everything is going OK on the electoral battlefield.

In a jaw-dropping interview with the Savannah Morning News, NRSC chair John Ensign defined the new ‘OK:’ not losing so many seats that the Democrats obtain a filibuster-proof majority.

The chairman of the Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee predicts U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss will be part of the firewall the party wants to build against Democratic control of the White House and both chambers of Congress.

U.S. Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., set a minimum on the number of seats the party must control, 41. “The number that we get to is really, really important in the U.S. Senate,” he said. “That’s one of the reasons Saxby absolutely must hold his seat.”

In other words: the goal is to lose no more than eight seats (as they currently hold 49). And the GOP firewall contains Saxby Chambliss: a senator whose seat is universally defined as ‘safe’ by all major prognosticators.

In a move further calculated to disspirit Republican senators, Ensign also confessed the NRSC’s huge financial disadvantage:

“The Democratic Senatorial (Campaign) Committee will be able to take more risks. They’ll be able to take more shots in more places,” he said. “So we’ll have to target our money very carefully. What we won’t do is we won’t spend money in races that are going to win on their own, and we won’t spend money on races that can’t win.”

Hold on a second, Jim Gilmore and Steve Pearce… you don’t have to dig your own grave (and save!) yet, though. Ensign has some more helpful up-by-the-bootstraps advice:

He noted that he won his own Senate seat with less money than the incumbent he upset.

Now just because some of you might be saying, “Wait… the 2000 Senate race in Nevada was an open seat…” that doesn’t mean that imaginary lightning can’t strike twice. After all:

“It’s kind of like a sporting event. You play the game because the outcome is not assured,” he said.