Posted on 12/26/2008 5:22:24 PM PST by NormsRevenge
WASHINGTON -- Sen. Harry Reid will command the biggest party majority of any Senate leader in a quarter century when the new Congress convenes in January. But the Nevada Democrat is already worried about his own re-election fight in 2010.
Sen. Reid, perhaps the most-vulnerable Democrat who will face re-election in a midterm race that is likely to favor his party once again, began interviewing campaign managers last week. The Senate majority leader also recently stepped up fund-raising.
Starting early could help Sen. Reid avoid the fate of his predecessor, Tom Daschle, who was Democratic leader for a decade before losing his re-election bid in South Dakota in 2004. The current Republican leader in the Senate, Mitch McConnell, narrowly won re-election in Kentucky this year.
Sen. Reid "saw what happened to Tom Daschle and Mitch McConnell," said Republican Sen. John Ensign, Nevada's the other senator. "He saw the consequences of being the majority leader or the leader of one of the parties."
...
Democrats have picked up a combined 13 seats in the past two election cycles. In 2010, more Republicans than Democrats are up for re-election, and Democratic incumbents appear to be well-positioned overall.
Sen. Reid, however, faces a potentially tough fight. A recent Research 2000 poll of likely voters put his approval rating at 38% and his disapproval rating at 54%, a possible reflection of voters' displeasure with gridlock and partisanship in Washington. ...
"Republicans are going after Harry Reid's Senate seat in 2010, and we can't afford to lose a great Democratic leader," Senator-elect Merkley wrote in his email.
(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...
Yeah, Rush humiliated Reid. In Reid’s twisted, petty mind that is reason enough to pass some sort of variation of the fairness doctrine. For the rats to pass their radical agenda, stifling dissent will be essential.
I think you all should listen to Galactic and 4integrity. Harry Reid will win in 2010. He beat Ensign by 400 votes in a red state and 6 years later look what happened. Look at the newspaper article in June 2004 that stated Republican business interests were in favor of Reid. The deck is stacked. The GOP didn’t put up it’s best candidate in 2004 when it was winnable so why should we(the foot-soldiers) give money now that it’s a blue state?
Who says it’s uphill? He has been on the NV ballot for some 44 years now, on and off. People there at least know who he is, and that is a big step toward reelection. People won’t vote for politicians whose name they are unable to recognize. Many feel a real sense of accomplishment when they go vote and see a few names they recognize. That being said, I wish NV would retire Harry, but the results of 2008 give no indication at all that we could expect Reid’s defeat.
People in NV probably can’t understand all the dirty deeds their lawmakers do. A lot of them are newcomers to the state and don’t take part in politics. If they do, they are often Democrat exiles from CA. Apparently the Republican exiles from CA just vanish into thin air.
“Harry reminds me of a small town undertaker.”
Me, too!! Digger Reid!
I think a lot of the Republicans came to Arizona — at least we are still leaning GOP here, but a lot of people changed to independent over the immigration bill last year and it certainly cost Kyl a lot of his political capital in this state.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.