[Dan from Michigan]

Nick Smith was a maverick congressman. He got on my nerves with his unpredictable gun votes at times. He DID however vote for getting out of the UN, and was the only one in Michigan to do so. I give him a lot of credit for that.

So far we have declared:
Paul DeWeese - Formerly a State Rep from Williamston, but moved to Eaton Rapids where he has his medical practice. He has a bit of an independent streak in him. Solidly pro-life and pro-2nd Amendment. Real nice guy too.

Tim Walberg - Former State rep. I'm unfamiliar with him. I think he was term limited in 96 or 98. He's from Tipton in Lenawaee County. Sounds conservative.

Brad Smith - Nick Smith's son. I don't know where he stands on issues.

Anne Norlander - Calhoun County Clerk, ran for Sec of State in 02 - Seems like a nice lady from when I met her. I don't know where she stands on the issue, but I've heard she's conservativer.

Clark Bisbee - State Rep from Jackson. Very pro-business, but he's anti-gun. He voted against Shall Issue Concealed Carry.

Gene DeRossett - State Rep from Western Washtenaw County. He's pro-2a and pro-life, and is most known for writing the law repealing the helmet law. Good guy.

Three others(haven't declared) I'm watching on the GOP side is Mickey Mortimer who is a real good guy, Frank Fitzgerald, who is anti-gun, and the UBERRINO Joe Schwarz. Schwarz is pro-abort, pro-tax, a McCainiac, and makes Jenny Granholm look pro-gun. That's bad. I would hate to see either Fitz or Joe win.

On the dem side, Mark Schauer scares the hell out of me. He's slick and is a veteran of tough campaigns. Doug Spade is the other dem. Spade voted for CCW. Schauer voted for CCW, but voted for all the bad amendments, and also cosponsored a gun grab. He wants it both ways and would likely vote 100% anti in the house. He's..well, a RAT!

By the numbers

Eaton County - 49272 voters - Bush won by 1592, 50%(Granholm won it)
Jackson County - 61946 - Bush won by 3906 - 52%
Calhoun County - 55080 - Gore won by 1021 - 50%
Branch County - 15783 - Bush won by 2052 - 55%
Hillsdale County - 17473 - Bush won by 3988 - 60%
Lenawaee County - 40093 - Bush by 2316(dem state rep) - 52%

Washtenaw County(approx) - 42548 - Bush by 2214 - 51% (The real bad areas are in Dingell's district - only dem areas here are Scio(Next to Ann Arbor) and Sylvan townships(maybe).)

Bush won the district by about 15047 votes. This is not a gimmee, especially since Schauer has a 'moderate image', a lot of money, and is a ruthless campaigner, combined with a major GOP primary. I saw his commercials on Lansing TV(30 miles from Jackson) almost as often as the Mike Rogers ads. This was for state senate, not congress.

[Dan from Michigan]

The latest.

[Dan from Michigan]

Areas Gore won(Bush won all the rest)
Eaton:
Lansing(part) by 1004 - 78%
Eaton Rapids by 326 - 50%

Jackson:
Jackson City by 2172 - 58%
Leoni Township by 229 - 51%

Calhoun:
Albion by 1238 - 70%
Battle Creek by 1718 - 53%
Bedford Township by 328 - 53%
Springfield by 280 - 57%

Lenawee:
Adrian City by 821 - 54%
Clinton Township by 25 - 49%

It's mostly a city vs suburb vs Country.

[AuH2ORepublican]

Actually, only part of Scio is included in the 7th district, the rest is in Dingell's 15th. I have to assume that the portion of Scio in the 15th is the more heavily RAT part of town, so perhaps Bush's margin in the 7th's portion of Washtenaw was a bit higher than you indicated. But you're correct in pointing out that, except for Scio and Sylvan, all the other Washtenaw townships in the 7th voted for Bush.

But the Gore margin must have been higher than 1,021 in Calhoun County, since a couple of Republican townships were added to Upton's 6th CD. All told, the 6th CD gave Bush 51% of the vote, not quite enough to make it a safe district. As I've stated before, the much-vaulted GOP redistricting plan was not truly optimal.

That being said, I hope we get a candidate who can appeal to voters throughout the district, not just in one candidate. The minister sounds promnising in that regard.

[Impy]

How come Granholm, Levin and Stabenow have favorable ratings with Republicans?

[Dan from Michigan]

I met Tim Walberg yesterday. Seems like a nice guy. He was talking about his experience in the legislature(term limited as state rep in 98) and his conservative record. He said he was pro-2a and has an A+ NRA record when I asked him.

I asked a couple of insiders. Joe Schwarz may or may not run. Same with Mark Schauer or Doug Spade. Those aren't finalized, but I expect the dems to try and run someone strong for this spot. Al Widner I never heard of.

[LoveMyCountry]

Best of luck to the candidates. I think this is a pretty safe district. Smith has held that seat for many many years, and he is well liked in the district. I think the voters will elect a candidate who thinks like Nick.