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If the midterm elections were held today, top strategists of both parties say privately, the Republicans would probably lose the 15 seats they need to keep control of the House of Representatives Considering that Vice President Dick Cheney had come a long way to help Florida Congressman Ric Keller raise $250,000 last week, the reception he got in the Sunshine State could have been a bit warmer. After extolling Cheney as "one of the most effective Vice Presidents in the history of the U.S.," Keller launched into all the times he had recently opposed the Bush Administration, including the deal...

Washington defense contractor Mitchell J. Wade admitted yesterday in federal court that he attempted to illegally influence Defense Department contracting officials and tried to curry favor with two House members, in addition to lavishing more than $1 million in cash, cars, a boat, antiques and other bribes on convicted Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham (R-Calif.). The new admissions, including details that identify Reps. Virgil H. Goode Jr. (R-Va.) and Katherine Harris (R-Fla.) as recipients of illegal campaign contributions, are contained in Wade's agreement to plead guilty to four criminal charges stemming from his role in the Cunningham probe. The congressman resigned...

Kurita Makes a Stand in Memphis U.S. Senate candidate Kurita wants looked over, not overlooked By Oliver Staley, Memphis Commercial Appeal The quiet campaign of Rosalind Kurita for U.S. Senate came Friday to Memphis, where she repeated her message that she's very much in the race and that she, not U.S. Rep. Harold Ford Jr., is the Democrat best poised to beat a Republican opponent in the general election. While the national media, and much of the state media, have treated Ford as the presumptive nominee, Kurita, a state senator from Clarksville, is fighting to be heard. "If I can...

As Bob Casey, Jr. continues his campaign to win the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania, folks should begin to take note of his expanding partnership with left wing groups and individuals that are openly hostile to the Catholic Church's teachings on faith and morals. For instance, tomorrow night, Casey is headlining the annual Human Rights Campaign gala in Philadelphia. The Human Rights Campaign is a radical homosexual activist organization that has collected and donated $100,000 to his campaign. He has also received the endorsements and financial support from: People for the American Way ($10,000), George Soros ($4,200), Hillary...

In a wobbly November appearance on the "Imus in the Morning" radio program, U.S. Sen. Joseph Lieberman, recently returned from Baghdad, celebrated Iraq's "robust political life." And now Lieberman's about to have some excitement of his own at home. He's not as cheerful about that. Greenwich millionaire Ned Lamont is strongly considering a challenge against Lieberman for the Democratic nomination to the Senate. Lamont, whose active interest in politics has been limited to developing a dead-on JFK imitation, a run for the state Senate in 1990, service on the state's pension advisory board, raising money for Bill Clinton and working...

Burns Out/Rehberg In? Considering the fact that Sen. Conrad Burns from Montana was below 50% in the pre-Abramoff "I'm guilty" ballot question, word is now spreading like wildfire inside Washington, DC that Burns will soon announce his retirement. A source on Capitol Hill tells me that the National Republican Senatorial Committee is polling feverishly to see if the Senate seat is salvagable should Burns seek re-election. The prognosis, I am told, is not good. Enter Congressman Denny Rehberg, Montana's wildly popular At-Large member of Congress. Rehberg briefly flirted with the idea of running against Max Baucus in 2002, but decided...

Jeanine Pirro is expected to quit her bid to unseat Sen. Hillary Clinton as early as tomorrow, prematurely ending what had been billed as one of the nation's marquee races. Just a few months ago, the smart, aggressive and charming Westchester district attorney was the darling of a Republican Party convinced she was the right candidate who - even if she couldn't beat Clinton - could at least slice into her high approval ratings. But now, Pirro, 54, is being written off as the first political roadkill of the 2006 election season. And Clinton never even had to throw a...

Searing divisions among New York Republicans deepened yesterday as a growing number urged Jeanine F. Pirro to drop her bid to unseat Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton. Concerns also emerged that departing Gov. George E. Pataki was no longer able to unify the party. On a day of rapidly developing events, more Republicans joined what appeared to be a mounting effort, led in part by Joseph L. Bruno, the State Senate's majority leader, to press Ms. Pirro to run for state attorney general instead. But other Republicans warned that any switch by Ms. Pirro might alienate some county leaders who could...

GOP Chair Hits Dems' 'Bigoted Attacks' on Black Candidate By Randy Hall CNSNews.com Staff Writer/Editor November 03, 2005 (CNSNews.com) - The chairman of the Republican National Committee Thursday lashed out at Democrats for what he called their "bigoted attacks" directed at Maryland Lt. Gov. Michael Steele, a black conservative running for the U.S. Senate in 2006. "The party that was founded to eliminate slavery will not be whole again until we welcome more African Americans back home," said RNC Chairman Ken Mehlman during a prepared speech at a fund-raising event in Baltimore. "Unfortunately, the Democrats will stop at nothing to...

Maryland Lt. Gov. Michael S. Steele today formally announced he will run for the U.S. Senate, recasting the successful political partnership that enabled him to become the first African American elected to statewide office. With Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. sitting in the front row and a crowd of cheering supporters in a Prince George's Community College field house, Steele kicked off what promises to be a bruising 2006 campaign for the seat being vacated by six-term Sen. Paul S. Sarbanes (D). "It's time to heal our divisions. It's time to empower people, instead of empowering government It's time to...

Last week, Jeanine Pirro assembled the press corps in Albany to announce a statewide advertising campaign meant to draw attention to her criminal justice agenda, a pillar of her campaign to unseat Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton next year. But if Ms. Pirro, the Westchester County district attorney, hoped the event would give her flagging campaign the lift it needed, she might have been mistaken. Mrs. Clinton's political operation moved swiftly to undercut the announcement's significance and, more important, deprive her of any positive news coverage: a political operative from the state party was dispatched to the Pirro event to hand...

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...

Karl Rove, President Bush's top political adviser, plans to speak Saturday at a GOP fundraiser and meet with Gov. John Hoeven, whom Republicans hope to coax into running against Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D.

Below are the poll results based on telephone interviews with 1200 registered voters in Florida, aged 18+, and conducted September 16-20, 2005. The margin of sampling error is ±3 percentage points. 1. Do you approve or disapprove of President Bush's overall job performance? Approve 40% Disapprove 50% Undecided 10% 2. Do you approve or disapprove of President Bush's handling of the economy? Approve 43% Disapprove 48% Undecided 9% 3. Do you approve or disapprove of President Bush's handling of Iraq? Approve 46% Disapprove 44% Undecided 10% 4. Do you approve or disapprove of President Bush's handling of the response to...

The lack of support for Katherine Harris' Senate bid among some Republicans isn't being replicated by hard-core conservative groups like the Christian Coalition. That was apparent Saturday night in Orlando, where Harris was invited on stage at the Christian Coalition of Florida's annual banquet dinner. Harris shared a laugh with conservative talk show host Ann Coulter and was lauded publicly by Ralph Reed, former executive director of the national Christian Coalition. [...] The unwavering support from the Christian Coalition is hardly a surprise, based on Harris' voting record. In the group's latest scorecard ratings for Congress, Harris was one of...

Harris Needs Image Change to Win Seat By BRENDAN FARRINGTON, Associated Press Writer Sat Sep 17, 2005 TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - If Katherine Harris has any hope of beating U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson (news, bio, voting record), she may need an extreme makeover. The Republican congresswoman's poll numbers are poor; her appearance is a distracting issue; and many non-Republican voters see her as a flirty, vacant, beauty-queen wannabe who used her role in the 2000 presidential recount to get to Capitol Hill. Most political observers think that she can make the race competitive, though, as long as she can shed that...

Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) is losing ground to his Democratic challenger, state Treasurer Bob Casey, a GOP poll to be released today shows. The Strategic Vision survey, conducted Saturday through Monday, gives Casey a 14-point lead over the second-term senator, with the Democrat at 52 percent and the Republican at 38 percent. Seven percent of the 1,200 likely voters interviewed were undecided. A poll released in early August by the same firm showed Casey leading Santorum by 11 points. As more people have heard about Santorum’s book, It Takes a Family, and as the senator has come under attack for...

If the 2006 United States Senate election were held right now, incumbent Robert C. Byrd, D-W.Va., likely would win in a race against potential opponent U.S. Rep. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va. according to a poll recently released by Charleston-based RMS Strategies. Byrd, 87, was expected to announce his plans this week to run for a record ninth consecutive term, but he decided to delay his announcement because of recovery efforts from Hurricane Katrina, as well as the funeral for U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist, which was scheduled for Sept. 7. According to the poll, about 55 percent of...

Florida: Below are the poll results based on telephone interviews with 1200 registered voters in Florida, aged 18+, and conducted August 17-21, 2005. The margin of sampling error is ±3 percentage points. 1. Do you approve or disapprove of President Bush's overall job performance? Approve 47% Disapprove 43% Undecided 10% 2. Do you approve or disapprove of President Bush's handling of the economy? Approve 46% Disapprove 43% Undecided 11% 3. Do you approve or disapprove of President Bush's handling of Iraq? Approve 47% Disapprove 42% Undecided 11% 4. Do you approve or disapprove of Governor Jeb Bush's job performance? Approve...

August 31, 2005 - Nelson Leads Harris 57 - 33 % In Florida Senate Race, Quinnipiac University Poll Finds; President Bush Approval Falls To New Low In State Democratic incumbent Sen. Bill Nelson has widened his lead over U.S. Rep. Katherine Harris, the leading Republican challenger in the 2006 Florida U.S. Senate race, to 57 - 33 percent, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today. This compares to a 50 - 38 percent Nelson lead in a June 29 poll by the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN uh-pe-ack) University. Democrats back Sen. Nelson 87 - 9 percent, while Republicans back Rep....