Posted on 07/15/2010 10:40:54 AM PDT by onyx
Senior Senate Republicans are not optimistic about their chances of capturing the upper chamber in the midterms and have not put together a legislative strategy in case it happens.
While House Republican Leader John Boehner (Ohio) has started to plan how he would run the lower chamber if he became Speaker, Senate Republicans dismiss their ascendancy to power as a long shot.
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) would have his pick of chairing the Finance, Judiciary or Budget panels. But he has not given much thought to the legislative policies he would push as chairman, because he thinks the chance of Republicans winning control is almost zero.
“I haven’t thought about it,” Grassley said. “I think it’s a very slim possibility.”
Grassley hasn’t even thought about what committee he would chair if Republicans captured the Senate.
“I would wait until November to make a decision,” he said.
Senate Democrats will count 59 seats in their majority after West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin (D) appoints a successor to the late Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.). Republicans control 41 seats.
Sen. Richard Shelby (Ala.), the ranking Republican on the Banking Committee, has mused about how he might run the panel with jurisdiction over the financial-services industry. But those thoughts haven’t turned into any concrete plans.
“I have a lot of thoughts, but they’re not crystallized. We’ll have to wait and see what happens,” Shelby said. “The trends look good at the moment, but to take control of the Senate is a heavy lift.”
Shelby said taking back control of the Senate is more difficult than winning the House because only a third of the 100 senators face reelection in November. All 435 members of the House must face voters this year.
Republicans would have to pick up 10 seats, winning three times as many Senate races as Democrats, to become the majority party in the Senate. Thirty-seven Senate seats are up for reelection this year. Republicans would have to win 28 of the races to take control of the chamber.
If Republicans were to perform a minor miracle and flip control of the Senate, lawmakers would have to scramble to figure out what to do with their new power.
Shelby said he would use the Banking gavel to restrict the government regulations that are likely to be authorized by the Wall Street reform bill.
“I would first be looking at the oversight of this so-called financial reform package and see what’s wrong with it, which I think a lot of things are,” Shelby said. “That would be one thing we would really look at, but you can’t really plan an agenda yet.”
Shelby said he would also scrutinize the actions of the Federal Reserve, which many conservatives say has become emblematic of the power of unelected government officials to shape fiscal policy.
Shelby said he would discuss his concerns on Thursday when the Banking Committee considers three nominees to the Federal Reserve Board. They are Janet Yellen, who was tapped to serve as vice chairwoman, and Peter Diamond and Sarah Bloom Raskin, who were nominated to serve as members.
Republican political strategists acknowledge the chances for capturing the Senate are not as good as winning the House but say the possibility exists.
“Just as Robert Gibbs has looked at the math and made clear that the Democrats have a real possibility of losing the House, many others including ourselves have looked at the math and see it’s clear the Senate is very much in play for Republicans,” said Brian Walsh, spokesman for the National Republican Senatorial Committee. “It wasn’t at the start of the cycle.”
In March of 2009, the nonpartisan Cook Political Report rated only two Democratic-held seats as toss-ups between the parties. It rated the rest as “lean Democratic,” “likely Democratic” or “solid Democratic.”
This month, Cook updated its ratings and placed six Democratic seats in the toss-up column. It rated three others — in Indiana, Delaware and North Dakota — as more likely to be won by Republican candidates.
Jennifer Duffy, senior editor for the Cook Report, said Republicans could capture the Senate if the anti-Democratic wave turns into a tsunami.
“If the wave is big enough, they could carry all those states,” Duffy said.
She predicted a GOP gain of four to six seats is more likely.
“This is going to be one of those elections that sort of proves the old adage that candidates and campaigns matter,” she said. “If the wave is there and not huge then Republicans have the states where they didn’t get strong candidates.”
Duffy said these states, such as Nevada, could help Democrats keep control.
Sen. Kit Bond (Mo.), the senior Republican on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, said Republican voters are fired up in his home state. But he thinks it will likely take two elections to wrest control from Democrats.
“I hope by 2013 it happens, but I’m certainly not going to be on it for 2011,” said Bond, who will retire at the end of this year.
” The Senate is almost, if not literally a total write off.”
Exactly!
They don’t fear us. We need to make it clear to them that we are watching who they take money from and how they vote. They need to the get the message loud and clear that if they do not 100% fight to repeal the Obama agenda we will primary their sorry behinds out of DC.
You can’t get rid of them without BIG MONEY. These politicians have been bought with big money, and they will be KEPT in power with the same big money.
“You can’t get rid of them without BIG MONEY.”
We need to get in their faces A LOT. Next time Brown is out kissing babies someone who voted for him needs to stick a camera in his face and ask him why he is taking Wall Street money and selling his vote. Then put it on youtube. He is probably a lost of cause but these RINO’s from solid conservative states like Grahamnesty and McConell will get the message. They need to get the message that they need to choose between Wall Street and Main Street. These are historic times and the battle is being joined against all enemies foreign and domestic.
I’m with you but...
McCain money spent as of this morning = $12,500,000.00
Hayworth = $575,000.00
Do you think McCain would have been more conservative over the years if he knew he would have dog fight primaries? Hayworth has fumbled this badly and McCain’s POW history is saving his bacon. It’s not just about money in this case.
Look to Bennett in Utah as a positive example. If we can check out some more of these useless fossil R incumbents the younger ones will modify their behavior. The last thing these politicians want is hard primary campaigns that interfere with tee times at the club.
“I wish that we had Repubs especially in the Senate to be as hard ass & ideological as the socialist bastards.”
YES! This is why they are “winning” and we are losing right now. We have the facts on our side yet time and again Barry & Harry & Nan smash their agenda down our throats. The dims will actually use any weapon available and fight for their values. Nearly all Congressional Repubs sell their vote to the highest bidder and head to the club while Main Street burns.
What we need is multiple Senators to stand up and say not just no but HELL NO and filibuster. Show what a fool McConell has been and force these RINO’s to vote again and again with dims on cloture.
The problem here is that we MAY take control and these
fools will be unprepared to move and move quickly to
make the changes we need.
I think Snow and Collins are going to find themselves in hostile territory next time they are up. Brown has been kind of splitting the difference. I think he is making a mistake. He is very much killing his chances at ever running successfully for the Presidency which is stupid. The man could be leading MA to a more conservative end instead he is giving the Dems votes at exactly the time when the GOP should be using this as a time to stall the Dems in every way possible.
They have no plans to lead, and thus they will never get the opportunity. No vision, no spine, and no clue.
With “friends” like this, conservatives don’t need enemies.
Thank you for the list!
Cochran - 1973 of Mississippi is the biggest earmarking porker in the US Senate. He’s a disgrace.
I’m with you and that’s why I am hoping that Rand Paul wins in KY, because I doubt that he’d sit quiet for Kagan’s appointment or for a lot of the “reaching across the aisle” nonsense.
I have hopes that he’ll go to DC “NOT” to make Senate friends.
The fossil incumbents are beyond repair which is why they all need to be sent to pasture and the dour Grassley is one of them.
They’ve been in Washington too long. They’ve long forgotten why they were sent and they no longer care.
I think the only body that can fix the Senate is the House. If strong leadership in the House would put an end to pork the senate would fall apart. They couldn’t win a turf war with strong House leadership.
Like tet68 said, if by chance they do win the majority, then what?
Too many spineless RINOS to do wage the fight that has to be fought.
Would a stronger minority/majority leader on our side make a difference? One would certainly HOPE.
Those Northeastern “Republicans” are like herding cats.
“They’ve been in Washington too long. They’ve long forgotten why they were sent and they no longer care.”
They need removed from Washington back to the state they can vote then return. That club they have needs GONE.
I agree with you entotal.
We have a pretty excellent House. Hope to add greatly to it!!
Tou’re right. That club needs to be declared UNCONSTITUTIONAL.
TERM LIMITS.
If the Republicans won control if the Senate, would anyone notice, considering how ball-less they are?
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