Posted on 07/30/2009 9:00:24 PM PDT by St. Louis Conservative
Ed Martin, who made his name in Missouri as the Energizer Bunny chief of staff for Gov. Matt Blunt, said today he's considering a run for Congress next year.
His opponent would be Democratic incumbent Russ Carnahan of St. Louis.
Martin, who resigned as chief of staff in 2007 after months of controvery over the firing of a staff lawyer, Scott Eckersley, sounds serious. He's formed an exploratory committee that will let him start raising money.
"The people of the 3rd District are a critical economic engine for America,” said Martin. “These workers and families want leaders who will stand up for them for jobs, lower taxes, less spending and a government that lives within its means.
"What has become clear is that Congressman Carnahan is not listening to – or speaking for – the people he promised to represent.
"Examples include his voting record for the so-called ‘stimulus’ bill, for a massive national energy tax, and his public advocacy - in lockstep with Speaker Nancy Pelosi - for a disastrous government takeover of health care which will lead to rationing and endanger Medicare."
(Excerpt) Read more at primebuzz.kcstar.com ...
The problem here is that he was Matt Blunt's chief of staff. Blunt became quite unpopular towards the end of his term and declined to run again for reasons unknown. There was also a dust up involving some destroyed emails in which Ed Martin was at the center of.
Martin will have plenty of red meat ammo to go after Carnahan on. Carnahan has voted in lockstep with Nancy Pelosi, and he's not exactly the sharpest tool in the shed to say the least. However, I worry about Ed Martin being bogged down by bogus crap from his time working for Blunt.
Carnahan has an ACU rating of 4 for 2007 and 0 for 2008. Wish they would classify him a Blue Dog like Gordon and Space with similar records.
What kind of a district is this? I think we have been had with this Blue Dog label the Dems are peddling because they seem to be liberals just like Cong Ralph Hall (R-TX) said about the Blue Dogs. Conservative in Name Only and Liberal in Voting.
It’s a Dem-leaning district, although not overwhelmingly so. If the GOP had full control over redistricting, they could alter it enough by tipping it to us (by putting in its most Dem areas in with the St. Louis-based 1st). The last time we won it for Congress was in a 1951 special election when it was the 11th district. It’s only had 3 occupants since 1952 (Leonor Sullivan (the widow of the previous Dem occupant), Gephardt, and Rusty).
It encompasses south St. Louis and chunk of rural area below that. Demographically and culturally, you wouldn’t think of it as a Democrat district, but there is a HEAVY union presence there. This was Dick Gephardt’s old district. However, Bill Federer gave Gephardt a run for his money several years ago, and Carnahan only won with 53% of the vote in 2004. It’s only a D +8 district, so it’s winnable with a good candidate and a good environment for the GOP.
The Reps control both houses of the legislature, but with Nixon as governor, there won’t be any meaningful redistricting in Missouri (in either direction) in 2010.
Had Blunt actually stood up and fought for his reelection (gee whiz, I wonder where he inherited THAT from ?), we might’ve had a GOP Governor to preside over redistricting with the GOP legislature. We ought to be able to squeeze out a 7R-2D breakdown (and run out both Rusty and Ike Skelton, who IS in a Republican district, but yet hasn’t elected a Republican since 1952).
Thanks for the information. With the Carnahan voting record against the constituents this could be the year to take that seat.
Our candidates who will be taking on RAT incumbents need to start using those voting records and not let the RATs get away with calling themselves Conservative DemocRATs when the Blue Dogs I have checked (half) have ACU voting records for last year below 25 which means Pelosi is totally in charge and occasionally let’s them vote with the GOP to tell their constituents they are voting conservative. Yet, the media even calls them conservative DemocRATs which is not true. It is bait and switch IMHO!
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