Capitol View: September 27, 2008 Archive

The 3rd moves up in Fix ranking

Posted at 8:27 AM on September 27, 2008 by Tom Scheck

The Washington Post's The Fix moved the race for Minnesota's 3rd Congressional District up a notch. Here's what they wrote:

17. Minnesota's 3rd district (R): This suburban Twin Cities district is playing host to a great congressional race to replace retiring Rep. Jim Ramstad (R). The contest looks like a toss up but the DCCC is now up with a commercial casting state Sen. Erik Paulsen (R) as a career politician and Patriot Majority Midwest is also hammering Paulsen on TV. It could make the difference. (Previous ranking: 18)

Charlie Cook: 60 Senate seats for Dems is possible

Posted at 8:46 AM on September 27, 2008 by Tom Scheck

Political analyst Charlie Cook is now saying it's possible for the Democrats to reach sixty senate seats. He cites Minnesota's senate race as a reason:

Six other Republican seats are now basically toss-ups -- those held by Norm Coleman of Minnesota, Elizabeth Dole of North Carolina, Gordon Smith of Oregon, John Sununu of New Hampshire, and Roger Wicker of Mississippi, plus the seat that Wayne Allard is giving up in Colorado. The GOP's prospects in Minnesota, Oregon, and North Carolina have dimmed a bit in the past month or two. The GOP candidates are trailing by a little in New Hampshire and Colorado; running about even in Minnesota, Oregon, and North Carolina; and polling a bit ahead in Mississippi.

Meanwhile, Sen. Susan Collins of Maine and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky have solid leads but spirited challengers. Both are still favored, but McConnell's margin of victory could be much smaller than commonly expected. In the only contest where a Democratic seat is in jeopardy, incumbent Mary Landrieu of Louisiana is running the best Senate race of her career and so far appears to be on track to win a third term.

It seems farfetched that Republicans would lose Stevens, Sununu, Dole, Coleman, Smith, and Wicker, in addition to relinquishing the even more endangered open seats in Virginia, New Mexico, and Colorado, but a net loss of nine seats -- or eight if they topple Landrieu and keep Collins and McConnell in office -- is no longer implausible. In 2006, the odds against a six-seat Republican loss were equally strong, but it happened.

History shows, moreover, that close Senate races tend to break in the same direction, as they did two years ago.

The bottom line is that things have gotten worse for Senate Republicans over the past few weeks, so much worse that a magnitude of losses that seemed impossible just a few months ago now seems entirely possible.

Madia volunteer caught removing Paulsen signs

Posted at 10:09 PM on September 27, 2008 by Tom Scheck (8 Comments)

A volunteer for DFLer Ashwin Madia's campaign (and a spouse to a Madia staffer) is caught on video removing Erik Paulsen signs. Watch the video here (it was shot by a member of the Paulsen campaign and MDE's Michael Brodkorb who is consulting for the Paulsen campaign.

Madia and Paulsen are running in what has become a rough and tumble contest in Minnesota's 3rd District.

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Obama to campaign in La Crosse next week

Posted at 10:23 PM on September 27, 2008 by Tom Scheck

Barack Obama's campaign says Obama will be in La Crosse, WI on Wednesday (no time scheduled yet). Here's the release:

MADISON, Wis.--U.S. Sen. Barack Obama will return to Wisconsin Wednesday for the third time in the month of September. Coming off a commanding debate performance Friday, Obama will continue to make his case for the change we need at a rally in the La Crosse area. The event will be free and open to the public. No ticket is required, however an RSVP at www.barackobama.com is strongly encouraged. Further details of the event will be announced as they become available.

Senator Obama last visited Wisconsin on Monday, September 22, when he unveiled a plan to reform the greed and excesses of Washington in Green Bay. Other recent stops in the state include a Labor Day rally in Milwaukee along with a Sunday picnic style event in Eau Claire on August 24.

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