Tuesday’s political round-up

October 10, 2006

Today’s installment of campaign-related news items that wouldn’t generate a post of their own, but may be of interest to political observers:

* In Pennsylvania, a new Morning Call/Muhlenberg College poll shows Sen. [tag]Rick Santorum[/tag]’s (R) attack ads may be having an effect on [tag]Bob Casey[/tag]’s (D) support. While Casey led by 11 in the last Muhlenberg poll, the new numbers, released today, show his lead down to just five points, 46% to 41%. Most other polls show Casey maintaining a double-digit lead, which suggests this one may be an outlier. Stay tuned.

* Speaking of Pennsylvania, the same Morning Call/Muhlenberg College poll may show the Senate race getting more competitive, but the same cannot be said for the gubernatorial race. The poll shows incumbent Gov. [tag]Ed Rendell[/tag] (D) leading retired football player [tag]Lynn Swann[/tag] by 21 points, 56% to 35%.

* In Minnesota, [tag]Amy Klobuchar[/tag] (D) continues to dominate the open Senate race against Rep. [tag]Mark Kennedy[/tag] (R). A new Rasmussen poll shows Klobuchar’s lead up to 17 points, 53% to 36%. It’s reached the point in which both parties’ Senate campaign committees are pulling out of Minnesota because it’s no longer considered competitive.

* Speaking of Minnesota, incumbent Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R) is having a very tough time against state Attorney General Mike Hatch (D). A new Rasmussen poll shows Hatch leading Pawlenty, 4% to 42%. Independence Party candidate Peter Hutchinson garners 9% support.

* In Iowa, the nation’s most competitive gubernatorial race remains as close as they get. A new Rasmussen poll shows Iowa Secretary of State [tag]Chet Culver[/tag] (D) and Rep. [tag]Jim Nussle[/tag] (R) tied at 42%. Nine months ago, the two were tied at 40%.

* And in Colorado’s 5th congressional district, which has never elected a Democrat, a new Mason-Dixon poll shows Air Force veteran [tag]Jay Fawcett[/tag] (D) tied with state lawmaker [tag]Doug Lamborn[/tag] (R), at 37% each.

***A new Rasmussen poll shows Hatch leading Pawlenty, 4% to 42%.***

CB—check your coffee for kool-aid, please….

  • If Casey blows that race against Sick Rick, I’m gonna be really, really upset. A lot of good progressives in PA held their noses and supported this guy; from what I read, though, he’s hardly even trying. Hopefully he has enough money left that he can return fire and win this thing with the help of a strong ground operation led by the unions.

  • Although there’s a possibility of a select, mini-Ohio scheme here in Pennsylvania (new voting devices), the election will be a true test of the Republicans’ GOTV and how the suburbs of Philadelphia and Pittsburgh are abandoning the GOP. The 6th, 7th and 8th Congressional districts are suburban Philadelphia, and they are very hot races. Those races and the Santorum-Casey battle will be a bellweather on election night for the whole country.

    Also: Note that down here in southeastern Pennsylvania Santorum is despised for his wing-nuttery, and poor little Ricky can’t understand why. Idiot Rick’s reaction to his negative standing here is disbelief and to blame the press.

  • Santorum sat down with the editors of the Richard Mellon Scafie owned Tribune-Review yesterday. What does he see as BushCo.’s biggest problem in its prosecution of the Iraq war? Why it is a failure of marketing.

    President Bush lacks broad support for the war in Iraq because he’s reluctant to depict it as part of a larger struggle against “Islamic fascism” — a major threat to the nation’s security — U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum said Monday.

    “He (Bush) is managing the public relations on this war very poorly,” Santorum, the third-ranking Republican in the Senate, said during a meeting with editors and reporters of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.

    Bush is more concerned about “making the State Department comfortable” than providing the American people with “a clear message and a clear understanding of what we are up against,” said Santorum, in his sharpest criticism of the president to date.

    Santorum, who faces an uphill battle for re-election against Democrat Bob Casey, said he discussed the issue with Bush several times and said the president “has given a few good speeches on it, but he does not continually do it.”

    Bush dropped references to Islamic fascists when the State Department “went ballistic because we are offending our allies in the Middle East,” Santorum said. “I don’t care if we offend our allies in the Middle East.

    Damn if it only weren’t for those softies in the State Department everything would be smooth sailing for BushCo in Iraq.

    Actually, from a purely cynical electoral view this makes some sense. The wing nut base wants to hear those red meat lines about Islamofascism. Dropping those reference doesn’t help Ricky in his GOTV efforts. So in essence, Ricky is saying damn our allies, I’m on the verge of loosing my Senate seat.

  • “Bush is more concerned about “making the State Department comfortable” than providing the American people with “a clear message and a clear understanding of what we are up against,” said Santorum, in his sharpest criticism of the president to date.”

    That might be because a clear declaration of whom we are fighting would mean a war with Saudi Arabia and $200 a barrel oil.

  • That might be because a clear declaration of whom we are fighting would mean a war with Saudi Arabia and $200 a barrel oil.

    100% accurate. The Saudi sponsored wahhabi indoctrination camps (read mosques) are the number one source for muslim terrorism (both human and financial resources). Other than weaning our economy off of cheap oil, I’m not sure what we can do about it, though.

  • rege, #4
    So, Santorum seems to be saying: “there’s no truth; it’s all in the sales pitch (spin)”? Having just driven forth and back through a large chunk of PA on I-81 (meals and one overnighter off the road), it seems to me that his sales-pitch doesn’t seem to be selling too well, judging by the posted signs.

    I just wish Allen’s spin wasn’t “selling” in VA…

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