A new Public Policy Polling survey in Florida finds Charlie Crist (D) leading Gov. Rick Scott (R) in the race for governor, 42% to 39%.
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Heidemann Abruptly Quits in Nebraska
Nebraska Lt. Gov. LaVon Heidemann (R) has resigned, the Omaha World-Herald reports.
Heidemann also quit as running mate for Pete Ricketts (R), just one day “after a court issued a protection order to his sister, who alleged that he grabbed her wrist and pushed her in a quarrel over their elderly mother.”
Kasich Discusses Possible White House Bid
Ohio Gov. John Kasich (R) was asked by the Columbus Dispatch if he would run for president if he wins re-election this year.
Said Kasich: “I have never really sat down with my great friends, with my close friends that I’ve known for 30 years, and said, ‘What do you think?’ Until you do that, you can’t even think about it, because I think most of ’em would probably say no.”
He added: “It’s a big, big commitment. It’s about the family … and the other thing is, I like the job I have. I like being governor. I think I can influence the national debate, perhaps, by what we do here. You know, I tried to run for president once… It was really brutal.”
Peters Widens Lead in Michigan
A new Public Policy Polling survey in Michigan finds Gary Peters (D) matching his largest lead ever over Terri Lynn Land (R) in the U.S. Senate race, 43% to 36%, with third party candidates combining for 7%.
Key finding: “The story of the race is Land’s continually declining favorability. She has dropped a net 28 points since December, from starting out at +11 (34/23) to falling all the way down now to -17 (32/49). Michigan is a Democratic state to begin with, and Peters is getting 12% of the Republican vote, while only 5% of Democrats say they’re going to vote for Land.”
In the race for governor, Gov. Rick Snyder (R) is barely ahead of Mark Schauer (D), 43% to 42%.
Kasich Holds Big Lead in Ohio
A new Akron Buckeye Poll in Ohio finds Gov. John Kasich (R) with a solid lead over challenger Ed Fitzgerald (D), 40% to 21%, with a large 39% still undecided.
Bonus Quote of the Day
“It’s an election year. A lot of Democrats don’t know how it would play in their party, and Republicans don’t want to change anything. We like the path we’re on now. We can denounce it if it goes bad, and praise it if it goes well and ask what took him so long.”
— Rep. Jack Kingston (R-GA), quoted by the New York Times, anticipating President Obama’s remarks tomorrow night on combating ISIS.
Cheney Says Obama Ignored Terror Threat
Dick Cheney told House Republicans that the United States took its eye off the terror threat during President Obama’s watch, The Hill reports.
“His appearance at the House GOP’s weekly conference meeting was notable in coming a day ahead of Obama’s address to the nation on the threat from the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.”
Human Mounts Bid in New Hampshire
A candidate who legally changed his name to “human” is running against New Hampshire state Rep. Rose Marie Rogers (D) in a primary today, the AP reports.
Quote of the Day
“First of all, I think she’s fantastic and incredibly strong. But the problem with inevitability is it’s sometimes interpreted as entitlement and I think that voters want competition and they want their candidates to have to work for it. We don’t have to really get too deep into that because she hasn’t declared yet, but it’s just a concern that I hope her campaign keeps in mind.”
— Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick (D), quoted by the Palm Beach Post, on Hillary Clinton.
An Ugly Election Ahead for Democrats
Charlie Cook: “The Democrats whom I have talked and emailed with in recent weeks seem increasingly resigned to an ugly midterm election. Of course, it’s not likely to be the wipeout that 2010 was–after all, in the House, the best news for Democrats is that you can’t lose seats you don’t have. After losing 63 seats in 2010 and getting only eight back in 2012, Democrats don’t have that many more they can lose.”
“While the contest for the majority in the Senate has many facets, none is more important than whether Democrats can hold onto any of their six most vulnerable seats: those that are up in states that Mitt Romney carried in 2012. Three of them–the open seats in Montana, South Dakota, and West Virginia–look pretty hopeless for Democrats. The remaining three incumbents–Mark Begich in Alaska, where Romney won by 14 points; Mark Pryor in Arkansas, which Romney carried by 24 points; and Mary Landrieu in Louisiana, where Romney won by 17 points–all look increasingly problematic for Democrats… If Democrats get wiped out in red states, that could be the whole ball game when it comes to Senate control.”
Republicans Move to the Middle
“With primary season over, the GOP is beginning to inch back to the center,” The Hill reports.
“Republican Senate and House candidates have begun to loudly embrace more moderate policies such as an increase in the minimum wage and over-the-counter birth control in an effort to win over swing voters and soften their image. GOP strategists say the battle between now and Election Day to decide control of the Senate and the size of Republicans’ House majority will focus on that sliver of voters in the middle.”
Most See Obama as a Divider
A new Washington Post-ABC News poll finds that Americans by a 17-point margin say President Obama “has done more to divide than to unite the country, a rating worse than George W. Bush’s early in his poorly rated second term – and one that’s deteriorated among Obama’s supporters as well as among his critics.”
Colbert Says Obama Stole Immigration Reform Idea from GOP
Stephen Colbert is angry with President Obama’s delay on immigration reform: “He stole that idea from the Republicans. They’ve had the idea of putting off doing something about immigration reform for over a decade.”
Obama’s Words Come Back to Haunt Him
New York Times: “When President Obama addresses the nation on Wednesday to explain his plan to defeat Islamic extremists in Iraq and Syria, it is a fair bet he will not call them the ‘JV team.’ Nor does he seem likely to describe Iraq as ‘sovereign, stable and self-reliant’ with a ‘representative government.’ And presumably he will not assert after more than a decade of conflict that ‘the tide of war is receding.'”
“As he seeks to rally Americans behind a new military campaign in the Middle East, Mr. Obama finds his own past statements coming back to haunt him. Time and again, he has expressed assessments of the world that in the harsh glare of hindsight look out of kilter with the changed reality he now confronts.”
Obama Ratings Hit New Lows
A new Washington Post-ABC News poll finds that only 43% of Americans say President Obama is a strong leader, the lowest reading since he entered the White House. Just over half the country says his presidency has been a failure, although partisanship colors that judgment.
“His overall foreign policy ratings are his lowest yet in a Post-ABC News poll. A majority says the president is too cautious when it comes to international problems and specifically in dealing with Islamic State militants. His handling of Russian aggression in Ukraine receives somewhat better marks, but more than 4 in 10 still say he is too cautious.”
Many Administration Jobs Not Filled
A Politico analysis “of the 15 Cabinet agencies plus several other departments with high-priority policy agendas found a recurring theme for the outgoing Obama administration: plentiful job openings and several slots where long-term vacancies could have real-world consequences for policies from national security to the economy and the environment.”
Orman Leads Roberts in Kansas
A new SurveyUSA poll in Kansas finds Greg Orman (I) leading Sen. Pat Roberts (R) in the U.S. Senate race, 37% to 36%.
Chad Taylor (D), who dropped out of the race but may remain on the ballot, would get 10%.
Staffer Accuses Top Republican of Ethics Violations
Roll Call: “A former communications director for House Republican Conference Chairwoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers sent reporters a 1,959-word email Monday accusing the Washington Republican of ‘retribution’ in connection with an ethics complaint against her office — a serious charge that is the latest alleged impropriety in an ongoing Ethics Committee investigation.”
