Nevertheless, perhaps some of you may be interested?
"Democrat in House switches to GOP
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. - Representative Parker Griffith, a first-term Democrat from Alabama, said yesterday that he is switching to the Republican Party, another blow to Democrats facing a potentially tough midterm election next year.
Yeah, they blew it with all their pork projects, pet spending, and failures to do what we wanted: END the WARS!
“I believe our nation is at a crossroads and I can no longer align myself with a party that continues to pursue legislation that is bad for our country, hurts our economy, and drives us further and further into debt,’’ Griffith said as his wife, Virginia, stood by his side.
Sounds principled.
Griffith, a 67-year-old radiation oncologist, was narrowly elected last year from a region of northern Alabama that includes Huntsville and Decatur and that President Obama lost badly to Republican John McCain.
Of course, the "liberal" MSM would spin it as political. Maybe he is just doing what is right for the country, because this Democrat control thing has been a disaster (Repug control no picnic either, but a shade better).
Griffith had accumulated one of the most conservative voting records of any House Democrat. He was one of seven Democrats to oppose Obama’s economic stimulus measure early this year and one of 39 House Democrats who voted against a major health care bill that narrowly passed. He also voted against an anti-global warming bill pushed strongly by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Related: Pelsoi Says Stimuloot a Success
Democrats will hold 257 House seats to the GOP’s 178 after Griffith’s switch.
And they will be losing more in November.
"Ala. congressman’s staff quits after switch to GOP
WASHINGTON - All but one of the Washington staffers for Representative Parker Griffith resigned yesterday in protest of the Alabama congressman’s decision to switch from the Democratic to the Republican Party....
SO WHAT? I'm sure he will FIND OTHER STAFFERS who NEED JOBS!!
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"Dorgan - and maybe Dodd - won’t run
WASHINGTON - North Dakota’s Byron Dorgan said yesterday that he would not run this fall. The announcements dealt another blow to Democrats already struggling to protect their Senate majority.
Well, their filibuster-proof majority, MSM. Big difference.
Dorgan, a moderate who was first elected to the Senate in 1992 after serving a dozen years in the House, said he reached the decision after discussing his future with family over the holidays. Dorgan, 67, said he “began to wrestle with the question of whether making a commitment to serve in the Senate seven more years was the right thing to do.’’
And he read the anti-incumbent, anti-Democrat writing on the blogs.
Who gives up the exclusivity and trappings of power so easily?
Dorgan’s decision stunned members of his party, who control the Senate but face spirited challenges from Republicans in several states. Democrats were confident heading into the new year that Dorgan would run for reelection even as rumors intensified that Republican Governor John Hoeven would challenge him in November. Early polling showed Dorgan trailing Hoeven in a hypothetical contest, and Democrats expected a competitive race if the matchup materialized.
Ever notice Democrats NEVER FIGHT for ANYTHING -- not even their own careers?
Democrats insist they will field a strong candidate to run in Dorgan’s place... Dorgan’s announcement could complicate efforts by Democrats to maintain their advantage in the Senate, where they hold an effective 60-40 majority, including two independents who align themselves with Democrats. That is just enough to break Republican filibusters if the Democrats and independents stick together.
Yeah, making JOE LIEBERMAN the GATEKEEPER of the Senate!
Many Democratic incumbents could face challenges amid high unemployment rates and concerns about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Yeah, the FACT that they HAVEN'T ENDED THEM -- and in fact, have escalated them -- has REALLY PISSED US OFF!
We gave you THREE YEARS and YOU BLEW IT, Dems!!
At least three, including majority leader Harry Reid of Nevada, are in serious trouble....
Yeah, people don't like have s*** shoved up their a**.
Senator Chris Dodd of Connecticut, a leading Democrat whose political star fell along with the nation’s economy, is expected to announce today that he has decided against running for reelection this November, sources briefed on the decision told The Washington Post. Dodd, in his fifth term, chairs the Senate Banking Committee. His retirement would be the second such announcement by a Senate Democrat in 24 hours....
Like rats deserting a sinking ship.
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"Tough year was clincher for Dodd; Conn. senator won’t run for a 6th term" by Susan Milligan, Globe Staff | January 7, 2010
WASHINGTON - Christmas Eve should have been the kickoff to a victorious season for Senator Chris Dodd of Connecticut, who had just helped broker the passage of a historic health care overhaul bill and was heading into a reelection campaign as a powerful Democrat in one of the bluest states in the nation.
Instead.... the past year had been hard on the 65-year-old Dodd. He was dogged by ethics questions, including allegations he had benefited from a sweetheart real estate deal. His own state had turned on him, unhappy with him for moving his family to Iowa for the presidential caucuses and for getting too close to Wall Street during the financial meltdown....
Yeah, POOR, CORRUPT Chris!
Pffft!
Dodd.... with meager approval ratings, a sharp contrast to the high marks and easy reelection campaigns the veteran lawmaker once enjoyed.... Republicans have been salivating at the prospect of expanding their numbers with the possible defeat of a weakened incumbent, a pillar of the New England Democratic power in the Senate. Instead, with Dodd announcing his retirement yesterday, Republicans saw their chances of flipping the seat diminish with the quick announcement by a popular Democrat, Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, that he will run....
During the campaign, Dodd would have been hammered daily for his dealings with mortgage lender Countrywide Financial Corp. Dodd, whose committee oversees financial and banking institutions, was on Countrywide’s “VIP’’ list of mortgage borrowers critics said may have gotten him a lower rate, leading to allegations of a “sweetheart’’ mortgage deal. Dodd denied wrongdoing, and was cleared by the Senate Ethics Committee. But the issue is still politically powerful in the aftermath of the mortgage lending meltdown.
Related: Lying Looters Large and Small: Countrywide Corruption
The Healthy and Hearty Voice of the Healthcare Lobbyists
Oh, Dodd's wife is a lobbyist for the pharmaceutical industry, huh?
Aaaaah, the incestuousness of it all.
His retirement marks a looming loss of power for the New England delegation.... since seniority largely determines committee leadership, the region will begin the next Congress with at least two fewer committee chairmen among its ranks.
Yeah, and NOW JOE the JEW will be Connecticut's SENIOR SENATOR -- with HIS CHOICE of COMMITTEE CHAIRMANSHIPS!!
How much you wanna bet he gets ARMED SERVICES!?
Fellow Democrats were stunned.
Been a LOT of that LATELY!
Dodd had been aggressively campaigning and fund-raising, and both President Obama and Vice President Joe Biden traveled to Connecticut in recent months to help Dodd raise cash....
So WHAT HAPPENED?
Republicans celebrated the downfall of a prominent Democrat, which came as two other Democrats, Senator Byron Dorgan of North Dakota and Governor Bill Ritter of Colorado, said they would not run again. “There’s a Democratic anti-incumbent sentiment’’ among voters that could slash Democratic majorities in Congress, said Ron Bonjean, a GOP consultant and former Senate staffer. Republicans are not expected to take control of the Senate in November, however.....
Hey, I'd take half the seats they need there -- and the House!
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I knew back then.
Before moving on, let's look at the replacement:
"Conn. AG quickly surfaces as potential Dodd successor; Blumenthal improves odds for Democrats" by Michael Levenson, Globe Staff | January 7, 2010
Richard Blumenthal, the popular five-term attorney general of Connecticut, yesterday emerged as the front-runner to succeed fellow Democrat Chris Dodd, transforming a potentially tough reelection fight for the embattled incumbent senator into a campaign that analysts said would be more favorable for Democrats.
Blumenthal, the state’s attorney general since 1990, jumped into the race two hours after Dodd announced that he would not seek reelection to the Senate seat he has held for 30 years....
Analysts said Blumenthal would help the Democrats hold onto a seat that has been in the party for 47 years. The Connecticut race was one of several Republicans had targeted as they seek to erode the Democrats’ 60-vote majority in the Senate.
“The election now moves from being a competitive race to one that is more in the Democratic Party’s column, although I do want to emphasize that this is not a foregone conclusion, even though Blumenthal is wildly popular here in the state of Connecticut,’’ said Gary L. Rose, chairman of the department of government and politics at Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, Conn....
Blumenthal’s more serious competition is likely to come from the winner of the Republican primary. That race pits Linda McMahon, the former chief executive of
We don't need a CIA senator, that's for sure!
I'd rather the wrestler won!
Peter Schiff, a former adviser to Ron Paul, is also running in the Republican primary....
Now THAT is the GUY who would make a GREAT SENATOR!!!
Still, some political observers said, Blumenthal will be tough to beat in November.
“Dick Blumenthal will obviously get the nomination and he’ll win the seat,’’ said Lowell P. Weicker Jr., the former Republican senator and governor of Connecticut who is now an independent. “He’s a very popular figure in Connecticut politics, and there’s nothing on the Republican side that can match up with his name recognition, never mind his accomplishments.’’
And Donald W. Greenberg, a political scientist at Fairfield University, said many Democrats were “delighted’’ that Dodd had cleared the way for Blumenthal, whom he called “without question the most popular Democrat in the state.’’ “It’s not to say they don’t want Dodd back in the Senate,’’ Greenberg said. “He’s powerful. But they saw a lot of vulnerability. This gives them a strong chance of winning the seat.’’
And dropping to the BOTTOM of the SENIORITY LIST!
Democrats had been worried about Dodd’s prospects. Many voters were angry about his role in crafting legislation that allowed bailout money to be used for bonuses for executives of AIG, the troubled insurance giant, and about low-rate mortgage loans he took from Countrywide Financial, another company embroiled in the financial crisis.
Yeah, the CORRUPT STINK could not be erased.
Some were also unhappy that Dodd moved with his family to Iowa for two months before a woeful showing in that state’s caucuses drove him from the 2008 presidential race. In his announcement, Dodd acknowledged he was in “the toughest political shape of my career,’’ although he insisted he could have won reelection.
Delusional to the end.
Or were the machines rigged?
He said he realized no one “is irreplaceable’’ and “those who think otherwise are dangerous.’’
That's the first thing he said with which I agreed.
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"Governor of Colorado ends bid for reelection" by Steven K. Paulson, Associated Press | January 7, 2010
DENVER - Governor Bill Ritter of Colorado, a rising star in the Democratic Party who basked in the limelight of Barack Obama’s presidential nomination in Denver but faced a tough reelection campaign, announced yesterday that he is abandoning this year’s race.
????????
Ritter’s decision caught party leaders off guard and boosted Republican hopes that former representative Scott McInnis can recapture the governorship of a key Western swing state. McInnis had outpolled Ritter in recent months and raised more money.
And he was one of their rising stars?
DemocraPs are REALLY on the OUTS, huh?
The move also worsened the national political landscape for Democrats, who are seeking to maintain their 26-to-24 majority among governors in a year when those elected will oversee the redrawing of congressional and legislative districts for the next decade.
Say goodbye to that slim advantage right now! All tied up at least!
Ritter, 53, said he needed to spend more time with his family, and he insisted the move will free him politically to make “tough and unpopular decisions’’ in the months ahead, especially in balancing Colorado’s budget....
Those are CRAP REASONS, folks!
So WTF is going on? Losing so he quit?
Colorado Democrats canceled a summit to discuss finding a new candidate.... In Washington, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, a former US senator from Colorado - refused to comment when asked whether he’d be interested in being governor.
Democrats are concerned that a state once firmly in the GOP column could return to the opposition. Since 2000, Colorado became friendly ground for Democrats, thanks to population growth, especially among Latinos. Democrats picked up control of the governor’s mansion, both chambers of the state Legislature, both US Senate seats, and five of seven seats in Congress.
Elected in 2006, Ritter championed building a renewable-energy economy and is banking on federal stimulus dollars to propel that initiative. He surprised many, however, when he vetoed a measure to make it easier to set up all-union workplaces. One of his biggest - and most criticized - decisions was to appoint a little-known associate, Michael Bennet, Denver Public Schools superintendent, to replace Salazar in the Senate.
Ritter insisted fellow Democrats didn’t ask him to consider leaving office....
Well, if they were caught off guard I would say not.
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"Baltimore mayor resigns as part of plea agreement; Embattled official accused of not disclosing gifts" by Ben Nuckols, Associated Press | January 7, 2010
BALTIMORE - Mayor Sheila Dixon resigned yesterday as part of a deal with prosecutors, ending a three-year tenure that began with promise but unraveled amid embarrassing allegations that she stole from the poor.
A DEMOCRAT? A WOMAN? An African-American?
Say it it isn't so!!!
Dixon, 56, was convicted last month of misappropriating about $500 in gift cards donated to the city for distribution to needy families during her time as City Council president.
SCUM!!!!!
Had she not agreed to step down, she could have been thrown out of office.
She's lucky she didn't get tarred-and-feathered!!!
Yesterday, she entered an Alford plea to a charge of perjury, meaning she admits there is enough evidence to convict her on that charge but does not acknowledge guilt. Her resignation will take effect Feb. 4, her sentencing date. Dixon’s voice wavered as she announced that she would step down and thanked her staff for their support, but she did not apologize for the actions that led to her conviction.
That is what I was looking for!
“I take responsibility for some of the choices that I made,’’ Dixon said. “I think I’ve disappointed myself to some degree, and I think I’ve disappointed citizens.’’
Well, APPARENTLY NOT!!!
WTF is it with POLITICIANS, anyway!!!
In exchange, prosecutors and Judge Dennis M. Sweeney agreed that Dixon will receive probation before judgment on both counts, meaning the convictions will be wiped off her record if she complies with several conditions, including a $45,000 charitable contribution and 500 hours of community service. Dixon will also be barred from seeking employment with the city or state for four years. However, she would be free to run for public office again after that time, as long as she complies with the terms of her probation. The deal also allows her to keep her city pension, which she would have had to forfeit with a conviction on her record.
Pfffft!
“This is a result that makes a lot of sense for Miss Dixon and the city of Baltimore,’’ said Arnold M. Weiner, the mayor’s lead attorney....
HOW?
She KEPT her PILFERED PENSION!!!
Oh, it is the DEFENSE ATTORNEY saying that!
In pleading guilty to one of the perjury counts, she acknowledged that prosecutors would present evidence that she received thousands of dollars in cash, fur coats, travel, and other gifts from Ronald H. Lipscomb, a prominent developer who received tax breaks from the city. Dixon and Lipscomb dated in 2003 and 2004. But she didn’t report any gifts from him despite a requirement that she do so.
Sigh.
As Deputy State Prosecutor Thomas M. McDonough read from a statement of facts detailing how Lipscomb gave her cash to pay her
Yes, I KNOW the TRUTH is right here in front of us, but WE AIN'T SEEING IT!!!!
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Looking into the Crystal Ball:
"Chairman says Republicans ‘screwed up’ over the years
Which means Bush was a total disaster, huh?
And, he adds in an interview on the heels of his new book’s release, Republicans won’t win back the House in fall elections and might not be ready to lead even if they do. That forecast of failure sparked a pushback yesterday at the National Republican Congressional Committee and delight at its counterpart, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. Asked Monday by talk-show host Sean Hannity if Republicans can regain the House in November, Steele said, “Not this year.’’
NRCC spokesman Ken Spain said that recapturing the majority remains a GOP goal, while the DCCC pointed to Steele’s comments as further evidence of a civil war within the GOP and party disarray. Steele’s new book, “Right Now: A 12-Step Program for Defeating the Obama Agenda,’’ released Monday by Regnery Publishing, offers his blueprint for the party’s resurgence....
Oh, this is a BOOK PROMOTION, not a news article!!!
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Yeah, they don't like listening to the Ron Paul wing so I don't like listening to them.
