Posted on 09/28/2014 9:32:57 AM PDT by centurion316
For years, three House Democrats — West Virginia’s Nick Rahall, Georgia’s John Barrow and Minnesota’s Collin Peterson — have been survivors, defying political calculus to win term after term in solidly red Republican districts.
They paddled through the 2010 GOP wave. They even overcame the flood of Mitt Romney’s double-digit margins of victory in each district in 2012.
But 2014 could be their ultimate survival test.
In an era of increasing polarization, Rahall, Peterson and Barrow are the three Democrats running for reelection who represent the most Republican districts in Congress. They’ve managed to hang on to their seats, even as most moderate Democrats have lost in the past two cycles. The three incumbents also represent districts more Republican than any GOP-held seat is Democratic, according to The Cook Political Report.
With touted recruits and a highly unpopular president, Republicans have their next best shot at taking down the perennial targets and are investing millions in winning these seats.
“The case against them is reasonably simple. A strong national environment, the deep red makeup of the districts, strong GOP challengers and Barack Obama’s policies have made them truly vulnerable, and these races enticing,” said Dan Conston, spokesman for the Congressional Leadership Fund, the outside group with close to ties Speaker John Boehner.
Because of their partisan makeup, these seats could be off the map permanently — or at least until the next redistricting cycle — if Democrats lose them this time around.
“If we win, we’ll never have to compete for these seats again,” Conston said.
Democrats argue that Republicans are fighting a losing battle because each of these incumbents has built a personal brand that transcends their party affiliation, and Republicans have run the same playbook over and over against these incumbents and failed.
Rahall, who is running against Democrat-turned-Republican Evan Jenkins, is also the only one of the three who voted for the Affordable Care Act.
They needed his vote and they got it, when it counted. That's why they have to go.
There is no such thing as a good Democrat.....
No good Democrat? That’s not what the American people think at all, true though it be.
For the first time in a really long time, the GOP has a first-tier challenger to Collin Peterson here in Minnesota.
His name is Torrey Westrom, a member of the state senate and the first blind (visually, not intellectually) legislator in state history.
He is doing quite well and is forcing Peterson to have to work hard and defend many of his bad votes. if any of you are interested in learning more, go to his website:
Nice.. might have to send him $$$$.
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