In less than a week we have mounted a serious volunteer and contribution drive that has really brought out the best in Nebraska Democrats. Thanks to those who pledged to put this campaign on their shoulders.
Here is where the tally sits:
50 people have pledged…
Campaigns would kill for those kinds of numbers this early in a cycle. Let’s keep this momentum up!
PLEDGE for KLEEB is almost one week old people and we have already rallied the troops for this eventual Senate campaign. To those who have pledged, thank you very much. Here is where the current talley sits:
47 people have pledged…
But the work is not even close to done.
Help us reach 50 people by the end of today. That only takes three people to step forward for a better Nebraska. Pledge your time, energy, or contribution to helping change the face of Nebraska politics.
The Huffington Post wrote a great editorial about Draft Kleeb:
We’re still waiting to hear if Scott Kleeb will jump into this race. Scott the candidate supported by the grassrootsin Nebraska. He surprised everyone by running an incredibly competitive race in the uber-conservative Third Congressional of Nebraska. Widely considered to be gunning for a rematch in the Third District, Senator Hagel’s retirement has fueled speculation that Kleeb will enter the Senate race instead. This speculation has reached a fever pitch as former Senator Bob Kerry and Omaha Mayor Mike Fahey took passes on the race.
So far, Kleeb has played coy about his plans, but grassroots activists are working to build early support for him. There is a facebook group. There is a website. There are blog posts. And more blog posts.
No matter where you are, if you are interested in standing up to people who are willing to sell out our party for their rich Republican friends, then please take part in pledging to Scott Kleeb. Here, you can pledge money or volunteering time. Every dollar you pledge sends a big message to Ben Nelson that our party is not for sell. Every moment you pledge stands up to the politics of selling out our values.
The current tally sits at:
39 people have pledged…
…999 hours (125+ working days)
…$10,535 ($270.13 per person)
It’s time for the heart of the Democratic Party, the grassroots, to step forward and back a real Democrat in this race.
As the New Nebraska Network first reported last Monday, Republican Tony Raimondo is considering running for Senate as a Democrat. In today’s Lincoln Journal Star, he openly considered the possibility in an interview with Don Walton.
Columbus industrialist Tony Raimondo said Monday he’s considering entering the 2008 Senate race as a Democrat.Raimondo, who stepped away from a possible Republican bid after Mike Johanns entered the contest, said he’s been urged by national and state Democratic officials to consider making the race within their party.
“Those discussions are continuing to move on,” Raimondo said. “Obviously, there’s some interest on both sides.”
Raimondo, you may recall, was Bush’s pick back in 2004 for “manufacturing czar,” but his nomination was withdrawn after questions about his anti-labor practices as chairman of Behlen Manufacturing.
Straight from Raimondo, now, we have confirmation that the rumors we were hearing a week ago were true. Ben Nelson, the NDP, and the DSCC, are recruiting a Republican, who less than two months ago was running for Senate as a Republican, to run under the Democratic banner.
If we’re serious about competing everywhere – in all fifty states – we cannot allow this to stand. The Democratic Party in Nebraska will become worse than a joke. Let’s make sure we have a voice for Democrats in Nebraska. Let’s get Scott Kleeb in this race.
On the web: Draft Kleeb
PLEDGE for KLEEB tally…
37 people have pledged…
Show Scott your support by going to stepforward.draftkleeb.com and pledge your support!
“Scott has a personality that can build consensus. He’s not full of himself, and he’s not one of those people unwilling to take risks.”
– Former Republican State Senator David Bernard
Scott is our best chance to take back Nebraska. This is real people powered politics! Washington insider want to tell us who our candidate is – well I say no way!
Sent out this morning to local media:
Draft Scott Kleeb for U.S. Senate
October 26, 2007: Draft Scott Kleeb for U.S. Senate launches Pledge Drive
Allows Kleeb supporters to show early support
OMAHA – On Friday November 23rd, 2007 Draft Scott Kleeb for U.S. Senate will launch PLEDGE for KLEEB, a program that will allow voters to pledge support for Scott Kleeb should he enter the 2008 Senate race. Interested parties will be able to pledge either volunteer hours (with a recommendation of 8 hours or one working day) or a donation of various amounts.
“We understand how difficult it is to support a candidate who is not in the race,” said Mike Nellis, editor of Draft Kleeb, “but that does not mean we can not show our support. The 2008 Senate race will be an uphill battle for Scott Kleeb, but if we stand up in this race, than we can expect Kleeb to do the same. I urge anyone who wants to see a real debate in this election to pledge one working day to Scott Kleeb. Canvassing, phone banking, databasing for Kleeb will truely make all the difference in this race.”
The site name is stepforward.draftkleeb.com and was created in house by Mike Nellis. It’s name is a take off of Scott Kleeb’s recent quotation, “It’s time for a new generation to step forward.”
Draft Kleeb is an independent organization hoping to convince Scott Kleeb to run for Senate in Nebraska. It is not authorized by Scott Kleeb, his campaign, any campaign committee, or any political party.
Our hopes for a nasty Republican primary are officially dead:
Republican Jon Bruning has ended his U.S. Senate campaign, deferring to the candidate many consider a prohibitive front-runner, former governor and U.S. Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns.Nebraska’s attorney general ends his five-month campaign after raising more than $1 million for his bid to replace outgoing Republican Chuck Hagel.
Ryan Anderson at the New Nebraska Network reported this morning on the increased chatter that Republican businessman Tony Raimondo was considering running for Senate… as a Democrat. This is a terrifying proposition, as I will explain in a moment, but worse than that is the information that we are hearing from several sources: the DSCC and the NDP are actively recruiting Raimondo to run for this Senate seat. Their logic? Money trumps all. Because it worked so well for 2006 Republican Senate candidate Pete Ricketts.
In 2004 Tony Raimondo was the Bush Administration’s pick for the newly created position of “manufacturing czar”, but after an outcry from the left (led
brilliantly by the John Kerry campaign) his name was withdrawn from consideration. Why?
TONY RAIMONDO OUTSOURCED AMERICAN JOBS: When President Bush created
the position last year he said the nation had “lost thousands of jobs
in manufacturing…some of it because production moved overseas.” And
some of the jobs moved overseas were moved by Tony Raimondo. In 2002,
just four months after laying off 75 U.S. workers, Raimondo announced
he planned to build “a $3 million factory in northwest
Beijing…employing 180.” For his part, Raimondo was “unavailable for
comment” because he was on a “business trip to China.”TONY RAIMONDO IS HOSTILE TO WORKERS: Raimondo is “a longtime board
member of the National Association of Manufacturers,” a group that is
notorious for opposing efforts to improve conditions for American
workers. NAM has lobbied to strip 8 million workers of federal
overtime protections, consistently opposed any effort to increase the
minimum wage to keep up with inflation and fought workplace safety
laws.TONY RAIMONDO IS A UNION BUSTER: According to the business publication
Inc. Magazine, shortly after Raimondo took over Behlen in 1982 he
pushed hard to decertify the labor union operating at his company.
Raimondo coached management to sweet talk likely union supporters just
prior to the vote and, on a close vote, was able to bust the union.
Later, Raimondo said that had he not been able to get rid of the union
he was not sure he would “have had the courage or determination” to
continue operating the company.TONY RAIMONDO FACED FINES FOR WORKPLACE VIOLATIONS: Under Raimondo’s
leadership Behlen has been accused by the federal government of
maintaining unsafe working conditions. On 5/16/98 The Omaha
World-Herald reported “the Occupational Safety and Health
Administration has proposed a $123,000 fine against Behlen
Manufacturing Co. of Columbus for alleged safety violations that
resulted in an employee being injured.”TONY RAIMONDO SHILLED BUSH’S TAX CUTS FOR THE WEALTHY: On 2/7/01 the
Omaha World-Herald reported “Bush was meeting with Nebraskan Tony
Raimondo and dozens of other small business executives as part of his
weeklong effort to build momentum for his tax package.” Raimondo was a
natural ally – he had twice given the maximum contribution to Bush’s
presidential campaign. The tax cuts Raimondo supported will cut the
taxes of a middle class manufacturing worker (making about $35,000
year) $560 next year. Meanwhile the top 1% of earners (who make, on
average, about $1 million a year) will rake in over $41,000 because of
the tax cuts.
Will the next item on this list be: TONY RAIMONDO IS YOUR NOMINEE FOR SENATE?
We need to fight this. We have the opportunity to recruit a real
warrior in this race, Scott Kleeb, who will make Democrats stand up
and be proud. But we are in danger of having Scott passed over in
favor of a George Bush Republican with a large bank account. We need
to send the DSCC a strong message today: our party is not for sale.
Not to Tony Raimondo. Not to George Bush. Not to anyone.
Help Draft Kleeb and donate on Actblue today.
(Crossposted from UNO Democrats)
(From the diaries – promoted by James L.)
Crossposted at DraftKleeb.com
Omaha Mayor Mike Fahey shut the door on a U.S. Senate bid Tuesday, but kept his options open for a possible run for a third term as mayor.
In deciding against a Senate run, Fahey said he was committed to getting several things accomplished as Omaha mayor, such as securing a long-term contract to keep the College World Series in Omaha.
“All the things I have on my plate, at this time, there are large items that need to be completed,” Fahey said. “And, I didnt think it would be fair to the people who elected me, if I left in midstream to go campaign.”
Fahey said he would decide sometime next year whether to run for re-election.”
This opens the door for Scott Kleeb to throw his hat into the ring. Make sure to head over to DraftKleeb.com and show your support by signing the petition or donating to his potential campaign.
I want to thank Mayor Fahey for making a quick decision. Scott Kleeb said he would wait until Fahey announced.
September was an awful month for the GOP: John Warner and Hagel retired, Shaheen and Mark Warner jumped in for Democrats… October started much the same way, as New Mexico’s Pete Domenici announced he would not run for re-election, opening up yet another very vulnerable seat. But Democrats then ran into a bad patch of their own that culminated in the disastrous news that Bob Kerrey would not run in Nebraska. That by itself made a race that was leaning towards Democrats become a likely hold for Republicans. Meanwhile, the shuffle in New Mexico has still not been resolved, with Democrats scrambling to find a strong candidate.
That Nebraska and New Mexico have dominated Senate news in the past month is obvious in these new rankings: New Mexico rose from the 11th to 4th, while Nebraska collapsed from 4th to 13th (Reminder: Races are organized in order of vulnerability, so that the first ranked race is the most likely to turn-over). But there was some other movement: The departure of Tom Davis from the Virginia Senate race solidified the contest’s number one ranking, while Democrats are significantly more upbeat this month about their chances in Kentucky and even in North Carolina. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (KY) should be worried at the Democratic determination to avenge Tom Dashle’s 2004 loss and target him for defeat.
The Senate situation is still very fluid with more retirement and recruitment rumors floating around, so that a lot of things could still change in the coming months. But an increasing number of races are settling down, so that we are starting to get a clearer idea of which states are likely to be hotly contested.
Outlook: Democratic pick-up 4-7 Senate seats.
Prediction: Democrats pick-up a net 5 seats, for a 56-41 majority.
Full rankings are available here, on Campaign Diaries. The lean take-over and toss-up seats are listed here.
Likely Takeover (1 Republican seat, 0 Democratic seats)
1. Virginia (Open seat; Previous Ranking: 1)
A month after Virginia rose to the top of these rankings, it appears to have permanently secured its place as the most vulnerable seat of the 2008 cycle. The Republicans shot themselves in the foot when their Central Committee voted to choose the party’s nominee at a party convention rather than in a primary. As a result, Rep. Tom Davis, who had been preparing to run for Senate for years, decided to stay out of the race. His moderate profile would have made a win in a party convention very difficult considering the more conservative candidacy of former Governor Jim Gilmore. And if the Republicans had one hope to make this race competitive next year, it was that Davis would be able to pick-up votes in his base of Northern Virginia, thus cutting the margins in the bluest region of the state. Polls continue to show Warner has a strong edge against Gilmore, and that cannot be accounted by name recognition as both men are well-known statewide.
Lean Takeover (2 Republican Seats, 0 Democratic Seats)
2. New Hampshire (Incumbent: John Sununu; Previous ranking: 2)
Former Governor Shaheen continues to be the worst nightmare for Senator John Sununu. Polls this past month confirmed that Shaheen was looking strong and was favored against the man who beat her five years ago. Sununu is certainly not out of it though; he mounted a very strong campaign in 2002, defeating the incumbent senator in the primary and the incumbent governor in the general election. Republicans will at least try to defend the seat, and they could definitely narrow the margin. But New Hampshire’s Democratic turn in 2006 was so strong that the GOP is unlikely to easily overcome it. They might choose to focus their attention to reclaiming at least one of the House seats.
3. Colorado (Open; Previous ranking: 3)
Colorado is one of the quietest top-tier races, mostly of how early Senator Allard announced his retirement. Both parties settled on a candidate early, and primaries will not be particularly contested. Democrats are running Rep. Udall, and Republicans are running former Rep. Shaffer. In the past month, the second poll of the race was released and showed a tie between the two candidates — though it had a very high undecided rate. And middle-of-the-road voters are precisely those that broke Democratic in 2004 and 2006. Democrats picked up a Senator’s seat, the governorship and two House seats in two cycles, and there is no reason to think that Colorado independents are moving back in the Republican column. Udall is favored to pull away ride this blue trend across the finish line, though the race could certainly remain tight to the end.
Toss-up (4 R, 1 D)
4. New Mexico (Incumbent: Pete Domenici; Last Ranking: 11)
New Mexico has been the big story of October. Pete Domenici announced a surprise retirement at the beginning of the month, setting off much movement among state officials. New Mexico is a swing state in most elections, and politicians from both parties see this as a major opening. On the Republican side, the two major candidates are Heather Wilson and Steve Pearce, two of the three House representatives from New Mexico. Wilson is supposed to be more moderate than Pearce, which has enabled her to survive cycle after cycle in her Democratic-leaning district (she won by 800 votes in 2006). Wilson is lining up more institutional support, but polls have shown Pearce is running stronger in the general election. The main factor against Wilson is her involvement in the attorney firing scandal — that could hurt her in the primary, but especially in the general election.
On the Democratic side, the big question is whether Rep. Tom Udall will run after all. He ruled it out very quickly weeks ago, but he has been reconsidering in recent days, likely due to intense lobbying from the DSCC. All indications are that he will indeed jump in. If he does, he will start off slightly favored in the general election against either Wilson or Pearce. He has been elected statewide before (he was a two-term Attorney General), and he is a very popular figure. But he would first have to overcome a primary. Albuquerque Mayor Martin Chavez, very much disliked by progressives, is also running. Chavez would stay very competitive in the general election, though he would certainly not start off favored.
5. Louisiana (Incumbent: Mary Landrieu; Last Ranking: 6)
Republicans are feeling better about this race after Bobby Jindal’s blowout victory in the governor’s race last month. Granted, Jindal was not facing any significant opposition from Democrats, but his first-round triumph with 54% was nonetheless impressive. Louisiana was trending Republican even before Katrina hit, but Republicans are quite confident that Landrieu has lost much of her base because of hurricane migrations and that newly-turned-Republican state Treasurer John Kennedy will end up the victor.
However, the Republican case should not be overstated. Mitch Landrieu, Senator Landrieu’s brother, overwhelmingly won his re-election race as Lieutenant Governor the same day as Jindal’s victory. Granted, he was not facing much opposition either, but Democrats are not out in the state, and the Landrieu family name still carries some weight in the state.
6. Minnesota (Incumbent: Norm Coleman; Last Ranking: 5)
Just like in Colorado, the field has been set long ago in Minnesotta, which means that the race has been mostly quiet. Coleman and his challengers Al Franken and Mike Ciresi are all busy raising money — lots of it. Coleman also made news recently by endorsing Giuliani in the presidential primary, not that that will have a major impact on his senatorial race. Some Democrats still worry that Franken will not be very strong in the general election, though much stranger things have happened in American politics and many reports have emphasized how well Franken has been able to transition from comedian to politician. It is strange, however, that the DSCC has not pressured more politically experienced Democrats who could potentially be stronger into running.
7. Oregon (Incumbent: Gordon Smith; Last Ranking: 8)
Democrats are confident that Gordon Smith is vulnerable, though they did not convince their top-tier candidates to jump in the race. Ducking it out in the primary are House Speaker Jeff Merkley and Steve Novick, with the former favored by the establishment. Democrats they have to weaken Smith early on, especially considering the large amounts of money the incumbent has been raising. Smith’s main vulnerability is the national anti-GOP environment, and Dems are trying to challenge the image of Smith as a moderate politician. Merkley recently blasted Smith for voting to confirm federal Court of Appeals nominee Leslie Southwick whose nomination was very controversial, especially on the basis of Soultwick’s racial insensitivity.