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Incumbent Governors Fear Wipeout

September 30, 2014 at 8:48 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“As many as a dozen incumbent governors are fighting for their political lives five weeks out from Election Day — a list that includes the chief executives of states as red as Kansas and as blue as Connecticut as well as several top presidential battlegrounds,” Politico reports.

“The unsettled gubernatorial landscape has drawn a fraction of the attention of the seesawing battle for the Senate. Yet the state of play is dramatic in its own right: The fate of big-name Republicans such as Wisconsin’s Scott Walker, Florida’s Rick Scott and Michigan’s Rick Snyder are all on the line, and Democrats such as Colorado’s John Hickenlooper and Illinois’ Pat Quinn are locked in tough reelection races that could go either way.”

Ugly Fight Awaits Obama’s Attorney General Nominee

September 30, 2014 at 8:45 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Byron York: “President Obama has a pretty obvious deadline for nominating a successor to departing Attorney General Eric Holder. If Democrats lose control of the Senate in November, they’ll still run things until newly-elected members arrive in January. So just to be safe, if the president wants guaranteed confirmation of a new attorney general, he’ll need to pick one soon. That way, even if Republicans win the Senate, and even if Obama’s choice is unpopular with the GOP, lame-duck Democrats will still be able to steamroll the opposition and confirm a new Attorney General.”

“But it could be very, very ugly.”

Assessing the Battle for the Senate

September 30, 2014 at 8:06 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Reid Wilson: “Here’s the rough consensus on Democratic seats (the higher the rank, the more likely a seat is to change control): Montana will flip by the widest margin. West Virginia. South Dakota. Louisiana. Arkansas. Alaska. Iowa. Colorado. Michigan. North Carolina. Minnesota. Oregon (Some Democrats say North Carolina should come before Iowa and Colorado). The consensus among Republican seats: Kansas is the most likely to change control. Then Georgia. Then Kentucky.”

“The shorthand takeaway: Alaska is the Republicans’ 51st seat. If Kansas flips, it’s all about Iowa.”

Charlie Cook: “My hunch is that this is not a year when Democrats are likely to get a disproportionate share of the breaks. I’m sticking with the 60 percent chance of a Senate turnover that I’ve held for several months.”


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Democrats Spend Big on Ground Game

September 30, 2014 at 8:04 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“With a strong possibility that Democrats could lose control of the Senate in the midterm elections, they are investing heavily in voter turnout efforts,” the New York Times reports.

“In states too close to call like Alaska, Colorado, Iowa and North Carolina, Democrats are making much greater investments in the ground game than Republicans.”

Bonus Quote of the Day

September 30, 2014 at 8:03 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“I was talking to one of my political advisers and I said: ‘If I had to do this again, I’d insist that you literally had a camera on me at all times. I want to be reminded that this is not off the cuff.”

— Mitt Romney, quoted by the New York Times, on running for president.

Is Huckabee Gearing Up for Presidential Bid?

September 30, 2014 at 7:57 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Longtime GOP consultant Ed Rollins told the Washington Post that former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee could be a formidable presidential candidate.

Said Rollins: “Mike has always thought 2016 would be his cycle. I think he’s getting ready to go. Every sign out there is that he’s thinking hard about it.”

Quote of the Day

September 30, 2014 at 7:43 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“As commander in chief, you’re accountable. You’re the one who is responsible whether the good ship of state is doing it right. The administration failed, and the president is the captain of the ship and should assume accountability.”

— Former Rep. Joe Sestak (D-PA), quoted by National Journal, on President Obama claiming the CIA had “underestimated what had been taking place in Syria.”

Race for Michigan Governor Deadlocked

September 30, 2014 at 7:36 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

A new Target Insyght Poll in Michigan shows Gov. Rick Snyder (R) barely ahead of challenger Mark Schauer (D) in the race for governor, 41% to 40%, with 16% still undecided.

In the U.S. Senate race, Gary Peters (D) holds a double-digit lead over Terri Lynn Land (R), 48% to 38%.

Louisiana Tilts Towards Democrats

September 30, 2014 at 7:22 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

A new Gallup poll finds more Louisianans identify themselves as or lean Democratic (45%) than Republican (41%), a shift from the slight edge Republicans have held for past three years. The shift is likely a welcome indicator for Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) as she attempts to win her fourth term in one of this year’s most highly watched U.S. Senate races.

Clinton Heads Home to Campaign

September 30, 2014 at 7:07 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Former President Bill Clinton will headline a series of rallies for Arkansas Democrats next week, lending a hand in the party’s efforts to fend off a Republican takeover of his home state’s top offices in the November election,” the Arkansas Democrat Gazette reports.

Five States to Watch for 2016

September 30, 2014 at 7:05 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“As the 2014 midterm campaigns enter the homestretch, the Republican Party needs a net gain of six seats in Senate to take back control — and of course, it doesn’t particularly matter which ones, as long as the party gets to 51. But looking down the road toward the White House race, the outcomes in specific states will be a strong indicator of the national political mood — and Republicans’ prospects — heading into 2016,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

“With that in mind, here are the five states that bear the most watching: Colorado, Iowa, Michigan, New Hampshire and North Carolina.”

Reid and Daschle Feud Over Senate Seat

September 30, 2014 at 6:32 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Simmering tensions between Harry Reid and Tom Daschle are erupting into an all-out feud,” The Hill reports.

“Daschle is expressing frustration with the Senate majority leader (D-Nev.) for refusing to endorse Rick Weiland, a former Daschle aide who is running for the South Dakota seat held by retiring Sen. Tim Johnson (D).”

Romney’s Campaign Memories

September 30, 2014 at 6:28 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

New York Times: “When you run for president twice, you tend to accumulate huge amounts of campaign souvenirs, gifts and other detritus. However elusive the ultimate prize, the trunkloads of consolation trophies endure: There are the plaques, the awards and the occasional engraved glass eagle (‘I got it for a speech or something’). Then there are the homemade portraits of the candidate, sent in by supporters. The Romneys have also saved 22 of each campaign T-shirt, button and poster — one for each of their grandchildren. From Ann’s $1,000-a-plate birthday luncheon in April 2012, they have saved the cake topping of her on horseback that was commissioned by Donald Trump.”

Supreme Court Blocks Extension of Ohio Early Voting

September 29, 2014 at 6:20 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“The Supreme Court’s conservatives cleared the way Monday for Ohio to restrict early voting in the state, on the eve of the day it was to start,” the Washington Post reports.

“The court granted the state’s request to stay decisions of lower courts that threw out the state’s new plan, passed by the Republican-led legislature. But the court’s four liberal justices said they would have stayed out of the case and left those decisions in place.”

Rick Hasen: “I think it was a mistake to bring this Ohio case. I am not convinced that it is a significant burden on voters to cut back a week off early voting including the last Sunday. Really, if 28 days is too little early voting, what does this say about New York, with NO period of early voting?”

No Ruling on Kansas Democrats Picking Candidate

September 29, 2014 at 6:04 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

A three-judge panel “did not decide Monday whether Kansas Democrats should be required to pick a replacement for Chad Taylor (D), who dropped out of the closely contested U.S. Senate campaign against longtime incumbent Sen. Pat Roberts (R-KS), the Topeka Capital Journal reports.

“The court challenge seeking to force Democrats to fill the vacancy hit a stumbling block Monday when the man who filed the suit failed to show up for his day in court.”

Intruder Made It Deeper Into White House

September 29, 2014 at 4:58 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Washington Post: “The man who jumped the White House fence this month and sprinted through the front door made it much farther into the building than previously known, overpowering one Secret Service officer and running through much of the main floor, according to three people familiar with the incident.”

New York Times: “It is unheard of in recent decades for an intruder to make it in the White House, even a few steps inside one of the most secure buildings in the world.”

Senate Race in Kansas is a Toss Up

September 29, 2014 at 4:36 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

The Cook Political Report has moved the U.S. Senate race in Kansas to a “toss up.”

“This contest has become the Rubik’s Cube of Senate races. At the end of the day, it will be solved, but no one really knows how long it will take or how many different ways to solve the puzzle there really are. As a result, this race defies traditional analyses. Given what has become a complicated two-way race, polling is of little use.”

Dead Heat for Massachusetts Governor

September 29, 2014 at 3:50 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

A new Suffolk University poll in Massachusetts finds the race for governor is a dead heat, with Martha Coakley (D)tied with Charlie Baker (R), 43% to 43%.

A new Western New England University poll finds Baker ahead 44% to 43%.

A forthcoming University of Massachusetts at Amherst poll is also expected to show a dead heat.

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About Political Wire

goddard-bw-snapshotTaegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.

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