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Take one senate seat off the table. "The officials haven’t lost all hope – Mr. Kerrey is headed back to Nebraska for a quick weekend trip, perhaps the Midwestern air will influence his thinking – but they are all but certain he will not enter the race to fill the seat of retiring Senator Chuck Hagel." http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/09/21/kerrey-is-still-mulling-a-... According to Kos, Kerrey was supposed to announce today, so Johanns probably announced just in time to scare Bob Kerrey out of it. http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2007/9/21/1462/71700 Turns out, Kerrey may be more interested in running for Mayor of New York City than running for Nebraska's...

Shown on the crawler of FNC. The GOP is getting understandably antsy about a possible looming debacle in the Senate in '08, and at least they're pulling out the stops in NB. Comments?

Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns has decided to resign from President Bush’s cabinet to return to Nebraska and enter the 2008 Senate race. Johanns, the former two-term Republican governor, began placing phone calls to a number of friends and supporters in the state Tuesday night to inform them of his decision. A formal announcement is expected in Nebraska next week after Johanns has submitted his resignation to the White House, according to a source close to Johanns. Johanns and his wife, Stephanie, went house-hunting over the weekend when he was in Lincoln to attend a Saturday event at which...

A possible title bout between political heavyweights Mike Johanns and Bob Kerrey for the U.S. Senate has the makings of a marquee matchup. The clash of past champions would offer voters a choice between two distinctly different personalities, each with a lengthy public record to defend. It would be a fight with national implications: Democrats would view it as a chance to widen their Senate majority; Republicans would be forced to defend a seat in a red state. The only thing missing? The fighters themselves. Neither man has entered the ring, despite being heavily recruited by his party. Democrat Kerrey...

The man who many Republicans want to run for the U.S. Senate next year, will be in town Thursday afternoon. Secretary of Agriculture (and former Governor) Mike Johanns is coming in, just three days after Senator Chuck Hagel (R-Nebraska) announced his retirement from the Senate after next year. Behind the scenes it looks more and more like Johanns is running, but don't expect him to announce anything on Thursday. Johanns is here wearing his Secretary hat, and it appears that federal campaign laws, specifically the Hatch Act, keep Johanns from becoming an official candidate. But at least one top Republican,...

The political winds are picking up in Nebraska, but determining which direction they'll go has become a game of speculation swirling around the intentions of Republican Sen. Chuck Hagel. The air of uncertainty began when Hagel, 60, promised to discuss his political future at an Omaha news conference in March, and many expected the second-term senator to announce a bid for the Republican presidential nomination. Instead, Hagel simply said he was leaving his options open, raising a number of questions and the possibility that he might not run for re-election. The lack of certainty foreshadowed a possible showdown that could...

U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Michael O. Johanns, left, and Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Salam al-Zawbai sign an agreement Tuesday August 1, 2006 to keep working together to help Iraq's agricultural future. BAGHDAD -- U.S. Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns arrived in Iraq Tuesday to meet with high-level Iraqi officials, as well as Iraqi agricultural producers. Johanns was joined by representatives from the private sector, academia and the press. "Many people are surprised to learn how important the agriculture sector is in Iraq and how much potential it holds," said Johanns. "I am eager to meet face to face with Iraqi...

BUSH'S OPEN-BORDERS NOMINEES  By Michelle Malkin   ·   January 17, 2005 04:40 AM  We all know about Bernard Kerik's withdrawal in the wake of his disclosure that he had hired an illegal alien nanny. But two other Bush choices--AG nominee Al Gonzales and Agriculture Secretary nominee Mike Johanns --have far worse records on immigration enforcement.Gonzales was (and may still be) a member of the National Council of La Raza, the nation's leading anti-immigration enforcement lobbying group. Gonazles revealed his soft-on-enforcement perspective at his confirmation hearing in a little-noticed exchange with Sen. Edward Kennedy (links to transcript here and here): SEN....

As a symbol of American farming, it is hard to beat Gov. Mike Johanns of Nebraska, whom President Bush has nominated as secretary of agriculture. Mr. Johanns was raised on a dairy farm outside Osage, Iowa, so farmers know that Mr. Johanns is one of their own. But heading the Department of Agriculture is not a symbolic job. Mr. Johanns governs a state that prohibits packers from owning livestock - which would be a good idea nationally - and has one of the strongest laws against corporate farming in the country. Unfortunately, Mr. Johanns took an aggressive stand against the...

Today’s Action President George W. Bush announced his intention to nominate Nebraska Governor Mike Johanns to serve as Secretary of Agriculture. Governor Johanns is the son of Iowa dairy farmers, and he has a lifetime of involvement in agriculture and a long record of support for farmers and ranchers. As Governor of Nebraska, the Nation’s fourth-largest agricultural exporting state, he has real-world experience and insight into the needs of America’s agriculture community – and a proven record of promoting rural economic development. Governor Johanns is deeply committed to a strong farm economy. He has been a leader on drought relief...

WASHINGTON — President Bush on Thursday announced that he has chosen Nebraska Gov. Mike Johanns to be the new secretary of agriculture to oversee the nation's farm and food programs. "As a son of Iowa dairy farmers, he grew up close to the land," Bush said in the Roosevelt Room at the White House in announcing his nomination. "He will bring to this position a lifetime of involvement in agriculture and a long record as a faithful friend to America's farmers and ranchers." A Republican, Johanns, 54, also took the podium crediting his farm experience. "I'm very proud of my...

Interesting to see if Nelson switches parties now....

WASHINGTON - President Bush (news - web sites) on Thursday selected Nebraska Gov. Mike Johanns, a Republican attorney who grew up on an Iowa dairy farm, as secretary of Agriculture to oversee the nation's farm and food programs. Bush said Johanns was "an experienced public servant from America's agricultural heartland" with a long record of being "a faithful friend to America's farmers." Johanns, 54, would succeed Ann M. Veneman, who recently announced her resignation despite saying earlier that she wanted to stay. So far, seven of Bush's 15-member Cabinet have announced they won't be part of the second term. More...

Maybe you've had your fill of politics for a while, but take a peek at 2006: Ben Nelson, 41 percent Mike Johanns, 38 percent Those are the findings of a World-Herald Poll on a possible U.S. Senate showdown that Nebraskans could see in two years. As the numbers suggest - within the poll's margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points - the potential race pitting two political powerhouses already is shaping up as a titanic struggle. Johanns, the state's two-term Republican governor, and Nelson, the Democratic U.S. senator and former two-term governor, both say they don't make...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Christine Iverson(202) 863-8614 LAS VEGAS – Victory 2004 announced today the schedule for the “Leadership Matters” tour in which 20 Republican Governors will crisscross the country touting President Bush’s strong and steady leadership. The Governors will meet President Bush in Las Vegas, NV, this Thursday, October 14th to launch the two-day tour. The Governors, traveling in 7 teams, will rally support for the President by highlighting that leadership matters when choosing a President. The tour will stress the President’s steady resolve and clear, consistent vision on today’s critical issues. The Governors’ schedule is as follows. Cities...

LINCOLN, Neb. -- Gov. Mike Johanns strongly supports a bill removing a requirement for Nebraska schools to give students information about how to obtain an abortion without parental consent. The governor's spokeswoman Terri Teuber said Johanns will sign the bill into law if it passes. Tuesday the measure moved one step closer to passage. Lawmakers voted 35-to-four to advance the proposal from the second of three rounds of debate. Opponents of the measure had lodged a filibuster to try to block the bill's progress. Bill sponsor Sen. Mike Foley of Lincoln said he expects more attacks against the bill when...

LINCOLN -- The day after Republican Gov. Mike Johanns said he wasn't exactly keen on making a Senate bid in 2006, Democratic Sen. Ben Nelson wasn't biting. "I still think he's running," Nelson said Tuesday in Lincoln. "He didn't say he wasn't." Johanns said Monday that he wished a strong GOP candidate would step forward to challenge Nelson. "The ideal situation for me would be if a Chuck Hagel-type person ... said 'I want to run for the United States Senate,' " Johanns said. "It would take a tremendous burden away from me." "It seems likes he's pulled back," Nelson...