Wishing and Hoping(McAuliffe's Carolina Bluster/Dean's Iowaclass act/Kerry supersizes Superfund.)

The American Prowler ^ | 10/22/2003 | The Prowler

[nickcarraway]

ON THE FRITZ

DNC Chairman Terry McAuliffe was telling people on Tuesday that the Democrats would absolutely hold the Senate seat of retiring Fritz Hollings, after Columbia Mayor Bob Coble dropped out of the 2004 Democratic U.S. Senate primary race. That leaves the Palmetto State's Education Superintendent Inez Tenenbaum as the likely Democratic nominee.

Coble, who was viewed as more of a moderate compared to the far-left views of Tenenbaum, wasn't raising enough money to keep up with the state official, and even trailed businessman Marcus Belk. Belk is a businessman virtually unknown in Democratic Party circles, who is partially financing his campaign with his own money.

Perhaps McAuliffe was so happy because Coble's decision to step aside may have solved a second problem for the party in the state. Coble can take his war chest and donate it to the state party, which in turn would use the money to finance its primary. As it stands, the Democratic Party in South Carolina doesn't have the money to hold its primary in February.

"It would be great if Coble helped, but he didn't do conservative Democrats any favors by stepping down," says a Democratic activist in Charleston. "Tenenbaum is not a candidate many Democrats here would want to see in Washington. She's way too liberal."

CLASS ACT

The newspapers on Sunday and Monday were filled with punditry saying the presidential campaign of Howie Dean that had captured the imagination of Democrats far and wide was running out of steam.

Poll numbers in Iowa showed Dick Gephardt catching up to the Vermont wunderkind, and Dean's numbers in New Hampshire appeared to be plateauing months before a vote will be cast.

Beyond the competition saying Dean is done, though, there isn't much evidence of Dean decline. Money is still pouring in via the Internet, and the media still seem fascinated with the man who seems incapable of not spouting off on any subject put forward to him.

That said, Dean's campaign did find difficulties during his tour of rural northwestern Iowa on Sunday and Monday. If there is a Republican stronghold in the state, that is where it can be found, but Dean ventured there anyway in an attempt to match Gephardt's 1988 feat of visiting all 99 counties in the state (such an effort pales in comparison to the Herculean effort of political genius Michael Barone, who visited every congressional district in the nation several years ago).

Nevertheless, Dean is trying to act like a national political figure. So he shows up in Iowa Lakes Community College for a speech. His advance team promises more than 100 people. "It was clear we weren't going to get even 75 people for the speech," says an Iowa Dean hand. "We needed bodies."

So a sympathetic instructor offered her class extra credit to attend the speech (this, after all, is junior college). "The left-leaning world of academia comes to a Democrat's rescue once again," the Dean volunteer crowed.

BABE IN THE WOODS

Given Sen. John Kerry's supposed grounding in all things environmental, you'd think he'd have his facts straight. This week, Kerry spent time in New Hampshire, attempting to play the "Green" card with voters looking for a pro-environment candidate.

Kerry and his staff chose to hold an event at the University of New Hampshire, where he would lay out his plan to clean up the environment. Key among his goals was to "leverage Superfund cleanup dollars," he told an enthusiastic crowd of granola munchers.

Only problem is, there is little money in the Superfund account. Instead, cleanups today are being financed by fines and civil penalties imposed by prosecution of polluters. And Kerry failed to mention that the Bush administration has collected more fines and civil penalties in the past two years than the Clinton administration did in the final four years of its time in control of the Justice Department and EPA.

[Semper Paratus]

Terry McAuliffe was telling people on Tuesday that the Democrats would absolutely hold the Senate seat of retiring Fritz Hollings

The challenge will be to find a prediction of Terry that came true.

[Tacis]

There is only one way Kerry is going to be able to make a race of this, to catch up with Deam and Gephardt, and that is by massive expenditures on advertising and phone calls. But, alas, I doubt that his wife, Terry Kerry, will give him the cash that would allow him to move forward.

[Tacis]

There is only one way Kerry is going to be able to make a race of this, to catch up with Deam and Gephardt, and that is by massive expenditures on advertising and phone calls. But, alas, I doubt that his wife, Terry Kerry, will give him the cash that would allow him to move forward.

[Verginius Rufus]

In 1960 Nixon foolishly promised to campaign in all 50 states. That may have made the difference in the election--if he had skipped a few of the small states that he was going to carry anyway and put more time into larger, more closely divided states, he might have won.

[WHBates]

I would think that if there were a real chance of a Democrate winning the SC seat then John Sprat would be running.

[nickcarraway]

Who is Sprat?

[WHBates]

Congressman from the northern part of the state. Near Charlotte NC. A real jerk IMHO but is popular in the north counties.

The fellow running in the south is from Charleston and with the state leaning Republican I think he will get the seat. But hey I could be wrong?

[nickcarraway]

Does Tenenbaum have a lock on the nomination? I assume she has very little chance of winning.

[WHBates]

Maybe on the Democrat side but I know I'm not happy how the schools are run and don't know too many people who are happy.

You have to remember that on a lot of levels this is still a democrat state.

[WHBates]

To make it more clear lots of folks that vote Republican on a state wide and national level vote Democrat on a local level.

[WHBates]

Also the fact that the Dems held a the SC presidential primary debate in NC can't help much for anyone seeking the senate seat on the Dems side.

[nickcarraway]

Is Sprat the congressman who can eat no fat?

[WHBates]

To look at him I think he eats plenty but who am I to talk.

[nickcarraway]

You have to remember that on a lot of levels this is still a democrat state.

Are Republicans taking steps to take over. It sounds like the state doesn't have much in common with Democrats anymore.

[WHBates]

This very much a rual state an there isn't much local Organization on a local level for either party is thin. The Dems can't even pay for the state wide primary that is coming up soon after the first of the year.

On a local level people vote the way Mom and Dad voted. There are just ID labels at the local level, in fact most of these guys would change parties based on the wind direction. They are not (either side) ideological. The Blacks are an exception however, they listen to what their leaders tell them and vote, as a block, that way.

[WHBates]

Sorry I screwed up the wording of the previous post, but I hope you got the point.

[gunnedah]

You are probably correct.That was the first Presidential Election I voted in and in hindsight I am ashamed. I voted for JFK and I think he won by around 118,000 votes in the popular vote.
I also refused to vote for Humphrey and McGovern the Democrats were headed left even then but ashamedly I let a
peanut farmer con me.
It took a while but I have come a long way baby.

[Verginius Rufus]

They report the popular vote from 1960 as if JFK had 118,000 more votes than Nixon, but in doing so they are counting all the Democrat votes in Alabama as votes for Kennedy. In fact, of the 11 electors from Alabama, only 5 voted for Kennedy (the other 6 for Sen. Byrd of Virginia). If they were to divide the popular vote in Alabama in the same proportion, Nixon's national total would be higher than Kennedy's.

I don't know whether it would be possible, at this date, to determine what the general attitude was in Alabama among Democrat voters--it might be possible to determine from newspapers or from interviewing people old enough to remember the election, whether most Democrats were really supporting Kennedy or really were backing Byrd.

In any case, the number of votes fraudulently cast, or legally cast and not counted, was probably much higher than 118,000 in the 1960 election.

[gunnedah]

These figures I got from a web site.I would dare say that any National Election that is decided by so few votes could have been stolen and that is in any case.
My biggest concern however is illegals being able to vote and immigration taking away the opinion of Americans that are born here.
To me people coming into this country as immigrants are able to change America so drastically and our elected officials really vote local rather than national concerns.
We need to put a halt on illegals and on immigration and get it in hand if possible but I am affraid it is already out of control and with the country being so evenly devided we are caring more about where people came from than those of us who were born and raised here.