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More GOP losses
Since losing seven, and maybe eight seats in the 2008 election in the Senate, depending on the outcome of the Minnesota race, Republicans are reeling. But they face more losses soon, with four Republican senators announcing they will retire in 2010, most recently George Voinovich of Ohio. Sens. Sam Brownback of Kansas, Mel Martinez of Florida, and Chris Bond of Missouri also plan to leave the Senate.
The problem facing Republican strategists, The Washington Post reports, is that they have no guarantee of keeping these seats in the party.
President-elect Barack Obama carried both Florida and Ohio last fall and came close to winning Missouri. In Kansas, a Republican stronghold, popular Democratic Gov. Kathleen Sebelius is weighing a Senate bid, in which she would be the front-runner.
Also, no Senate Democrats have announced plans to retire. If Democrats take just two seats in 2010, they will have a filibuster-proof majority under a Democrat president – and with that in mind the GOP strategists for Senate races are recruiting new talent, sensing their impending irrelevance.
back to top8 Comments to “More GOP losses”
If Republicans lose the Senate that will mean people like what the Democrats are doing. Majority rules. Acorn forever! Maranatha.
This is entirely possible. Look at how the Democrats have run the Golden State completely into the ground. The state is going to shut down and Democrats keep getting elected. It doesn’t seem to matter that the few Republicans who are elected are the only thing that keeps the Democrats from even more profligate spending, the population keeps sending the same politicians back for more.
As Forrest Gump said, “Stupid is as stupid does.” And yes, I am calling Californians who vote for Democrats stupid.
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Brownback is running for governor of Kansas. This will be Republicans’ easiest gubernatorial pickup. Voinovich is old (72) and facing a tough reelection campaign. Martinez is the most unpopular senator, at least of those who will be up for reelection, and is retiring rather than fighting. I think Bond is around 70, so he’s getting up there in years. He isn’t hugely popular, but his seat likely would have been relatively safe. He just decided it was time to quit.
Arlen Specter will be 80 but it looks like he’s running again – and Chris Matthews won’t be challenging him. So that’s good. The Dems might find some other decent challenger but Specter would be favored. Charles Grassley of Iowa, on the other hand, might retire. I think he’ll be about 77. Luckily, Tom Vilsack, the Dems’ strongest candidate, will be in Obama’s Cabinet.
Republican Jim Bunning of Kentucky will run for reelection. He’s highly vulnerable. So far, the only Democrat to announce his/her candidacy is Diane Fitzgerald, a former U.S. Customs Agent. He could beat her. Pray she’s the best they can get.
Judd Gregg in New Hampshire could be taken down by a decent Democratic challenger, perhaps Rep. Paul Hodes.
David Vitter in Louisiana may be vulnerable due to the prostitution scandal that he was involved in. On the other hand, polls show that he remains popular with voters.
Tom Coburn (Oklahoma) will be vulnerable if and only if popular governor Brad Henry runs against him, but Henry does not seem interested.
Richard Burr will likely face a close race in North Carolina. However, Burr has been a much better Senator than Elizabeth Dole was.
The rest of the GOP seats will be safe.
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Is it possible to vote all of them out of office and select 100 people from the phone directory?
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Rising star Rob Portman is the most likely Republican nominee to replace Voinovich. There are several possibilities on the Democratic side of the aisle, including Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner and pro-life Rep. Tim Ryan.
Jeb Bush has announced that he won’t be running for the Florida open seat (JEB NOOOO!!! JEEEEB! WHY???? [sob]), but while he would have made this seat virtually safe, there are other intriguing candidates, including Cuban-American Marco Rubio, the former Speaker of the state House of Representatives and another rising star. Former Atty. Gen. Bill McCollum also might run.
Sebelius is popular, sure, but remember, it’s Kansas. She’s no sure thing against GOP Representatives Todd Tiahrt and Jerry Moran, who will fight it out against each other in the primary first.
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As gratifying as it is to me to see the continued repudiation of the Republican’s stupendous failure over the last eight years, I am not happy at the thought of a filibuster-proof Democratic Congress under a Democratic president who will likely tip the right-leaning court to the left.
I’m all in favor of gridlock, actually.
We’ll see where the next
foureight years takes us. Anywhere’s up from here, so apprehensive as I am, I’ll still say I’m cautiously optimistic.Report comment to moderator
I don’t see us being blessed with gridlock at this point. Those who block “change” will be punished by voters, not thanked. The pols know this, and will blow about with the winds–I mean, polls.
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When I heard Bond announce his retirement, I was glad. Perhaps now we Missourians can get a senator who is more interested in the whole country instead of bringing home the bacon. His home town of Mexico, MO has been well treated financially since he became a senator. It seemed he was more of a congressional rep. We only saw him when he was running for reelection or when a new highway opened (one that he secured money for). “Hey, big spender, spend a little time with me” takes on new meaning here in MO.
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Bob #1:
You can complain about California, but the few times I’ve been there it seemed alright to me. Actually, it seemed generally “better maintained” (nicer streets, highways, etc.) than my own very “red” state of Texas.
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