Free Republic

With President Obama’s announcement of a commission to study and recommend ways to reduce gun violence, the two most important Democrats in government — Obama and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid — have both indicated a desire to slow the momentum toward gun control in the wake of the Newtown, Connecticut school shootings. The president’s decision to appoint a blue-ribbon panel — the classic Washington ploy to defuse and delay consideration of an issue — along with Reid’s inaction on the gun question will undoubtedly frustrate many in their party who want immediate action. Obama seemed to anticipate that frustration...

Democrats across the country rallied to support Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chairman Terry McAuliffe yesterday, a day after the party lost governorships in Kentucky and Mississippi and less than four weeks after losing the gubernatorial race in California. But on a morning of bitter misgivings for Democrats there were also rumblings in Mississippi, California, New York, Washington, D.C., and elsewhere, with many party rank- and-file members complaining that the DNC has written off the South, taken black voters for granted and picked a poor 2004 convention site in Boston. “Terry McAuliffe is out there on his own agenda, which does...

WASHINGTON, Nov. 5 (UPI) -- The Tuesday election brought a lot of good news to the Republicans and a lot of bad news for the Democrats. Kentucky Gov.-elect Ernie Fletcher is the first Republican in 32 years to win the governor's mansion. The GOP also captured the lieutenant governorship, the office of secretary of the commonwealth and the post of state agriculture commissioner. The GOP already held the majority in the state Senate going into Tuesday's elections, which did not feature state legislative seats on the ballot. In addition, both U.S. senators and five out of the six members of...

GOP Adds Two Governors, Gain Supporters Thu Nov 6, 3:49 AM ET   ! By WILL LESTER, Associated Press WriterWASHINGTON - Republicans, who got two reasons to celebrate this week with victories in governors' races in Kentucky and Mississippi, have a shot at increasing their winning ways. AP Photo     The good news for the GOP includes a wave of retirements of Democratic senators from the South, Texas redistricting that could pad the Republican lead in the House of Representatives and an increase in the number of voters in swing states who call themselves Republicans. The trend that...

Gains of two governorships in region adds to a Republican realignment. WASHINGTON – Republicans and Democrats may disagree over the national significance of this week's GOP gubernatorial gains in Kentucky and Mississippi. But on a practical level, the effect of these off-year elections is clear: The Republican Party has further expanded its power base in the South - a region that seems increasingly likely to pose significant challenges for Democrats in 2004. The Democratic Party's Southern woes have been underscored lately on several fronts: Earlier in the week, Florida Sen. Bob Graham announced that he would not seek reelection next...

With a presidential campaign only months away, Republicans picked up two governorships in the South, ousting Mississippi's Democratic incumbent and seizing Kentucky's top job for the first time in 32 years. AP Photo   GOP Washington lobbyist Haley Barbour unseated one-term Democratic Gov. Ronnie Musgrove, while in Kentucky, three-term Republican Rep. Ernie Fletcher defeated Democratic Attorney General Ben Chandler. President Bush (news - web sites) loomed large in both campaigns, and he's sure to claim a boost from the victories. He stumped for both GOP candidates, while Democrats in Kentucky tied their opponent to Bush's economic policies and Musgrove...

WHEN WE HEAR that old saw about how local issues prevailed on Election Day, you can be sure of one thing: Republicans won. And of course Republicans did on Tuesday, capturing the governor's races in Kentucky and Mississippi. In both contests, there are important national implications that favor Republicans. So forget the "it's-all-local" line, which was the media's early take on Tuesday's election, just as it was after the California recall on October 7, in which a Democratic governor was ousted and 62 percent of Californians voted for a Republican replacement. Sure, local issues matter. But they aren't the whole...

WASHINGTON (AP) — A year before the 2004 elections, the news is grim for Democrats, losers of statehouses in Kentucky and Mississippi in off-year balloting, victims of a wave of retirements by Senate Southerners and petitioners in court hoping to block a Texas House redistricting massacre. Yet despite the recent Republican run — Arnold Schwarzenegger's victory in last month's California recall election included — President Bush's poll numbers have sagged lately, and surveys consistently reflect concern about an economy that is finally showing signs of a recovery and the aftermath of the war in Iraq. "I don't want to overstate...

<p>Washington lobbyist Haley Barbour unseated Mississippi Democratic Gov. Ronnie Musgrove as the GOP swept both governors' races at stake Tuesday and consolidated party gains in the South. Rep. Ernie Fletcher decisively won in Kentucky, ousting Democrats from power after 32 years.</p>

The top Texas stories in 2002 12/29/2002 The story of Texas, chapter 2002. A brief plot summary: The Democrats' "dream team" was only a dream, and Republicans were swept into power in almost every corner of the state during November elections. But it was the story of Texas' most infamous mother, sentenced to life in prison in March after drowning her children, that easily topped an informal reader poll of the most memorable stories of the year. The Andrea Yates trial captured about 38 percent of the vote. The Arthur Andersen obstruction of justice saga was a distant second...