Day: May 3, 2006

Moving Toward Midterms — Yesterday’s Primary Results

Buck Banks

Primary Results: Ohio, Indiana and North Carolina held primaries yesterday, several of which set up highly competitive general election contests. Here are the highlights, courtesy Congressional Quarterly:

  • Ohio 18: Republican Rep. Bob Ney won his primary, but ethics controversies appear to have cost him support.
  • Ohio 2: Republican Rep. Jean Schmidt narrowly avoided defeat in her primary, but remains favored for re-election.
  • Ohio 4: Jim Jordan is effectively on his way to Congress after winning the GOP primary in a conservative district.
  • Ohio 13: Betty Sutton’s Democratic primary win makes her a slight favorite in this open-seat race.
  • Ohio 6: State Sen. Charlie Wilson’s write-in campaign produced a Democratic primary victory.
  • North Carolina: Three competitive House races were set, though the challengers still face uphill battles.
  • Ohio Governor, Senate: Primaries in these races went as expected, though they serve only as a calm prelude to what should be two lively contests.
  • Indiana: Two of the year’s hottest House races are now officially on, with primaries producing the expected outcomes.

Bonus Quote du Jour

Buck Banks

“Some historian should really look at all of the proposals that have been put forth throughout the history of our country for possible constitutional amendments. Maybe at some point in time there was one that was sillier than this one, but I don’t know of one.”

— Former Sen. John Danforth (R-MO), in a speech on efforts to ban gay marriage

Poll: Politcal Scientists View Bush Presidency as a Failure

Jon Ponder

Ostroy Report:

With President Bush’s approval rating at 33 percent it comes as no surprise that his presidency, if it were to end today, would be viewed by political historians as a failure, according to a new survey by the Siena College Research Institute (SRI). In its expert opinion poll, SRI said 8 out of 10 history and political science professors put Bush’s ranking at “below average” or “failure,” with over two-thirds saying there’s little chance for him to improve his rating.

Faced with Ridicule, GOP Does 180 on $100 Gas Rebate

Jon Ponder

The incompetence of the Bush Administration echoes once again in the leadership of the man they installed as majority leader in the Senate, Bill Frist. Last week, Sen. Frist okayed a plan to issue a $100 rebate to citizens who buy gas. Now that plan has, well, back-fired:

At a news conference last week to unveil the idea, Sen. James M. Talent (R-Mo.) declared, “It will show people that Washington gets it.”

Many voters, however, concluded that Washington does not get it. Besieged with complaints about political pandering, GOP lawmakers now say the rebate idea is a non-starter. As Sen. Trent Lott (R-Miss.) explained yesterday, “When my own daughter harasses me, you know you’re in trouble.”

It wasn’t just Sen. Lott’s daughter who ridiculed the bill. The GOP senators even took a hit from the Republican Majority Leader in the House:

“I just think that trying to satisfy voters with a $100 voucher is insulting,” said Representative John A. Boehner of Ohio, the House majority leader. “Over the weekend, I heard about it from my constituents a few times. They thought it was stupid.”

Even one of the wingnuttiest wingnuts in the Senate trashed the idea:

“It was a silly idea,” said Senator Jon Kyl of Arizona, a member of the Republican leadership, who predicted that the rebate would not be in the final energy package when it reached the floor.

Conversely, there’s Sen. Rick Santorum, offering more proof that he is completely clueless:

“Every voter I’ve talked to has been excited of the fact that they get $100 tax relief,” said Senator Rick Santorum, the Pennsylvania Republican who is in a tough re-election fight. “It does give a temporary help to consumers who are faced with higher prices.”

Team Abramoff Visited the White House over 200 Times in Bush’s First 10 Months in Office

Jon Ponder

The Secret Service released logs showing the comings and goings of convicted Republican lobbyist Jack Abramoff and members of his staff at the White House that present a jaw-dropping level of access to the Bush Administration after the 2000 election:

Abramoff was a $100,000 fundraiser for Bush [in 2000] and lobbying records obtained by the AP show his lobbying team logged nearly 200 meetings with the administration during its first 10 months in office on behalf of one of his clients, the Northern Mariana Islands.

As Keith Olbermann pointed out last night, someone from Abramoff’s firm was at the White House every business day for 10 months through October 2001.

That’s a whole lotta access.