Free Republic

Charleston, W.Va. (AP) -- Eighty-seven-year-old Democrat Robert C. Byrd announced Tuesday he will seek a record ninth term in the Senate. Using the Capitol Rotunda as a stage, Byrd told supporters he was "ready to go. Another round." "I have the best job in America because I represent you, the people of West Virginia. And I want to keep this job," he said. Byrd has 47 years in the Senate and will become the longest-serving member in its history in June. He previously served six years in the U.S. House, and before that terms in both chambers of the West...

Voters have been forgiving Klan ties since 1952 election Readers know where I stand on Bob Byrd. I greeted with glee the independent poll that showed his vulnerability. But vulnerable ain't dead. The same poll that showed Shelley Moore Capito within three points of beating him also showed that 62 percent of voters view Byrd favorably. Byrd has been elected to federal office 11 out of 11 times. In May, he showed he could do it again. He began the month as the champion of the filibuster. By month's end, he was Monte Hall of "Let's Make A Deal" fame....

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Senate Democrats on Tuesday blocked a former Interior Department official who once worked for mining and cattle interests from becoming a federal appeals judge, using the debate to criticize President Bush's environmental record. The Senate's majority Republicans were unable to muster the 60 votes needed for the confirmation of William Myers for the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The final vote was 53-44, making Myers the seventh Bush judicial nominee to be stopped by Senate Democrats.