For those who have been hoping for some public movements by Congressman Brad Ellsworth as he launches his senate campaign, today is your lucky day. His campaign advised this weekend that an event has been planned for Monday in Indianapolis.
With the economy on the minds of Hoosiers, Brad Ellsworth will be in Indianapolis tomorrow to unveil legislation designed to encourage Indiana businesses to grow and create jobs. Ellsworth will tour Thomas & Skinner Inc, an Indianapolis-based maker of magnetic materials for the aerospace, defense, and medical industries. In addition, he will meet with workers and discuss the Jobs Momentum Act, legislation he introduced to create incentives for businesses that hire workers.
For his part, Republican Dan Coats has yet to travel much of anywhere in this state. And after a decade on the East Coast, one would think Coats would want to get out there and reconnect with the Hoosiers he abandoned back in the day.
Update below the fold: Courtesy of DA in the comments, here's a story from this weekend on the fledgling Ellsworth campaign.
Symbolic bid or not, it appears that Hammond Mayor Tom McDermott has had second thoughts about his decision to seek the Democratic senate nomination. From the Post-Tribune:
Hammond Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr. will no longer seek the state Democratic Party's nomination for the congressional seat after Bayh retires, said Keith Clock, chairman of the 5th District Central Committee, who spoke with McDermott on Saturday morning.
McDermott, also the chairman of the Lake County Democratic Party, could not be reached for comment as of press time.
While my delusional friends on the far-right have championed a recent Rasmussen poll showing some unavoidably insane numbers from the Hoosier State, I'll put more stock in this soon-to-be released Research 2000 survey. The Hill chimes in with the scoop on what we're likely to see later today from our friends over at the Big Orange Mothership.
The Daily Kos/Research 2000 poll was sent around Sunday by the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC). It showed Coats leading Ellsworth 37 percent to 36 percent with 27 percent undecided among all those surveyed, but the poll has a margin of error of 4 percentage points.
On the other hand, ex-Rep. John Hostettler (R), who is one of five GOPers seeking the nomination, leads Ellsworth 40 percent to 24 percent with 26 percent undecided.
The surveyed polled 600 likely voters in Indiana from Feb. 22-24. The party breakdown of the 600 likely voters is 41 percent Republican, 36 percent Democrat and 23 percent Independent.
Now, let's get one thing incredibly clear: Johnny Ho is no credible challenger in a general election. Brad Ellsworth has dismantled him once, and will no doubt do it again, but expect to see some pretty screwy numbers until the rest of the state gets to know the former congressman as well as his old district did before they unceremoniously kicked him to the curb.
I'm a little late to this particular party, but for those of you who missed the big development of the weekend, here's the skinny:
"My focus has been, and will remain, on fulfilling my job as the congressman from Southern Indiana and continuing to address the most pressing issues our nation and great state face, like deficit reduction, health care reform, energy independence and entitlement spending," Hill said in a statement.
Republicans, meanwhile, promised to give Hill a stiff challenge in the congressional race.
Hill's decision and endorsement likely clears the path for Ellsworth to get the Senate nomination, which will be decided after the primary by the Indiana Democratic Party's 32-member central committee.
Congressman Hill is in a strong position as he pursues reelection, and his two potential challengers have yet to do, well, much of anything to articulate why they'd like to replace him.
For what it's worth, Mike Sodrel appears to be more interested in selling books than anything else, and Todd Young doesn't even have the political chops necessary to see that folding on his debate challenge with Sodrel is just the latest in a long line of bad decisions.
Secretary of State Todd Rokita loves television advertisements. Well, more accurately, he loves television advertisements in which he is featured prominently.
Unfortunately for our buddy Todd, the Republican-dominated Senate wasn't feeling particularly charitable when Rokita's minions made the walk over to their chamber and asked that the General Assembly make it even easier for elected officials to earn some free ad time on the public dime.
The Senate voted 50-0 in a highly unusual roll call vote to reject a bid by Rokita's office to rewrite a banking bill to remove language that bars a state officeholder from using the fund to buy advertising that identifies the official.
Some lawmakers felt Rokita is using the fund he controls to build name recognition as he pursues another elective office. He's seeking the Republican nomination in the 4th District congressional race against 12 other candidates - including state Sens. Brandt Hershman of Lafayette and Mike Young of Indianapolis.
Hershman and Young joined the parade of senators from both parties to speak against the amendment that author Sen. Richard Bray, R-Martinsville, said was sought by a lobbyist for Rokita's office.
"We should not use the public's dime to let people advertise on TV, whether running for public office or not," Young said.
Hershman said Rokita was seeking a pass at a time when the state, to balance its budget, is making "painful cuts" to necessary programs.
You know it's a strange day when I find myself echoing the sentiments of Brandt Hershman, but there it is.
Remember when Ninth District Republican candidates Mike "Fifth Time's A Charm" Sodrel and Todd "I Swear Carmel Is Southern Indiana" Young pledged to debate one another every week until the primary election?
"I can assure you, when I am in D.C., I will not forget I represent people like you," Young said as the room exploded with cheers.
Young ended the night by challenging Sodrel to weekly debates until the primary elections. Sodrel quickly accepted. Details are still being worked out.
Sodrel said he was not sure about Young's experience, but he pointed out that he was loyal to President Ronald Reagan's 11th commandment.
"Thou shall not speak ill of any fellow Republican."
That was nearly a month ago.
Since then, details have been few and far between on these supposed debates. Anyone hearing anything out there? Who is afraid of whom?
Oh, Indiana General Assembly. You never cease to amaze.
To recap, last year the Republican-controlled Senate and the Democratic-controlled House passed a much-needed fix to Indiana's unemployment insurance fund. That fix consisted of a tax increase. The world did not end.
That is, until this year, when Election Mode kicked in and suddenly the only course of action that any logical legislator could take was to rail against the very bill passed by the General Assembly last year -- a bill, it's worth noting, that was signed by Governor Daniels.
The end result? A political stalemate that led Democrats in the House to push an amendment forcing the GOP's hand. Niki Kelly picks up the story:
Republicans in the House and Senate had been seeking a one-year delay of the tax increase, which was expected to cost Hoosier companies more than $300 million this year.
But in a surprising move, House Democrats proposed rejecting the increase altogether and going back to the drawing board.
[...]
House Speaker Patrick Bauer, D-South Bend, declined to call the move a political maneuver but said his caucus is tired of being demonized by House Republicans for having helped pass the bill last year with Republicans in the Senate. House GOP members never supported the measure in the first place, claiming it would cause employers to lay off more employees to cover their increased taxes.
Amidst the hustle and bustle of political posturing, I have yet to see a good discussion on the fiscal impact of this move. Stay tuned...
Dan Coats is really getting hit from all sides. As if the relentless opposition research from Democrats wasn't bad enough, he's facing increasingly scathing criticisms from those in his own party. Today, the DSCC fired up the blast machine once more, throwing four important questions into the mix:
1. Is Dan Coats still a federally registered lobbyist, with a client list that includes banks, private equity firms, oil and petroleum companies and defense contractors? If so, will he refrain from lobbying or taking an income from lobbying during the course of the campaign?
2. Has Dan Coats sold his lavish beach home in North Carolina? While still living in Virginia, Coats told a group of North Carolina delegates at the 2008 Republican National Convention, that he and his wife were planning on moving to North Carolina after he retired from lobbying but to keep it a secret from the people of Indiana.
3. Did lobbyist Dan Coats know that Bank of America was going to be the recipient of $15 billion in bailout funds in October of 2008? Coats has been murky with details on his lobbying work for the banking giant and should immediately disclose all he knew about bailout funds at the time of his departure from lobbying for Bank of America.
4. Did lobbyist Dan Coats know that Bank of America was trying to get a patent approved on a formula that made outsourcing of American jobs easier, while he was a patent lobbyist for Bank of America? If so, lobbyist Coats will have to explain to Hoosiers why he is fit to represent them in the Senate after putting the interests of foreign nations and big banks ahead of the people of Indiana.
Heavy stuff. Coats, for his part, has yet to really venture out of his month-to-month rental property in Indianapolis. Actually, by most accounts he has yet to venture in to that house for the first time...
Don't worry, folks. The Great Porn Dragon won't sleep easy tonight, because everyone's favorite Nazi-sympathizer is back on the case. As it turns out, this may be the only case he works on for a while.
Zirkle has been interested in the 2nd District seat for years. This is his fourth run for Congress.
He finished third in a three-person race for the Republican nomination in 2008 and second in two-person races for the nomination in 2006 and 2004.
Zirkle's law license was suspended for at least two years in August after a judge found him guilty of professional misconduct. He said he has been living in Lake County, which is not in the 2nd District, since closing his South Bend law office last summer.
As he has in the past, Zirkle said his platform will be based on the belief that Congress needs to crack down on pornography to make this a better nation.
State Rep. Jackie Walorski seized on Zirkle's candidacy as evidence that yes, indeed, there are people more out of touch with mainstream Hoosiers than her.
Governor Joe Kernan is a good man, and I refuse to pass up an opportunity to highlight a story of his going ons. Here's the latest:
WSBT-TV reports that Kernan and his wife Maggie on Monday visited the sites of two Hanoi prisons where he was held after his Navy reconnaissance plane was shot down in 1972.
Kernan spent most of his time as a POW in a prison once dubbed "The Zoo."
He became emotional during a visit to the site of that prison as he recalled the moment when he realized his family knew he was still alive after his plane was shot down.
Aside from the "why" -- as in why he retired -- and ignoring the "who" -- that would be who will replace him -- the "what" of Senator Evan Bayh's decision to step down is probably going to be the most interesting to watch, at least in terms of Bayh's own future plans.
The "what," of course, representing the question as to what he's planning on doing with the over $12 million in campaign funds he's currently sitting on.
Sylvia A. Smith of Journal Gazette fame turns her attention to the problem:
"He's a young man," [Democratic strategist Tad] Devine said of Bayh, who is 54. "He may want to do things politically in the future, whether it's run for governor or pursue another office or be involved in politics in some meaningful way where resources like that could make an enormous difference. Preserving it is a great option."
But even if he chooses that option, Devine said, Bayh could make substantial donations to Indiana congressional and state legislative candidates while still keeping at least $10 million in his campaign kitty.
"One of the real downsides to Evan Bayh not being at the top of the ballot this year is the impact it's likely to have on other races in Indiana. I know it's a very close legislative race there, for example. Not having his vote-drawing ability at the top of the ticket could affect these down-ballot races.
"So he may decide he wants to be involved in helping other Indiana Democrats win election. That's his political base. It would be a smart thing to nurture it," he said.
Bayh can't donate to the eventual candidate, but he could make a sizable contribution to the Indiana Democratic Party, the DSCC, or some other organization.
The latest, via all-around good guy Chris Cillizza of the Washington Post.
Indiana Rep. Brad Ellsworth has decided to seek the seat being vacated by Sen. Evan Bayh and will announce his intentions in a statement to be released shortly, according to a source briefed on the matter.
Ellsworth emerged as the favored candidate of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and the White House in the immediate aftermath of Bayh's stunning decision that he would not seek a third term.
Handsome, telegenic and with the sort of voting record during his two terms in the House that makes him a viable statewide candidate in conservative-minded Indiana, Ellsworth is rightly seen as a recruiting coup for a DSCC that was caught off guard by Bayh's decision (as was the rest of the Democratic political world) and had been badly bruised and battered by retirements and the special election victory of Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.) in recent weeks.
If friend-of-the-site Brian Howey is to be believed, rumored senate contender Congressman Brad Ellsworth is set to throw his hat into the ring later today, setting up a congressional run by State Rep. Trent Van Haaften.
Informed and reliable sources are telling Howey Politics Indiana that U.S. Rep. Brad Ellsworth will likely declare his candidacy for the U.S. Senate seat today, and that State Rep. Trent Van Haaften of Mount Vernon is preparing to file for the 8th CD in Ellsworth's place. St. Joseph County Democratic Chairman Butch Morgan told HPI, "If he makes his final decsion to do it shortly, there will be some things he'll need to do and others will need to do as far as filing for Congress. I think he'll withdraw from runing for Congress and another person will file." Asked if it had to happen by noon Friday, as HPI reported on Wednesday, Morgan said, "I think so." He identified Van Haaften as the likely successor to Ellsworth.
It appears we'll know sooner rather than later if at least one rumored Senate candidate is going to take the plunge. Eighth District Congressman Brad Ellsworth says he'll have an answer within a week.
Ellsworth said Tuesday he expects to decide within about a week whether to actively seek the nomination.
"I don't want to hold it to exactly a week, but I wouldn't think that kind of stuff takes much longer than that, and I know that (Indiana Democrats) are going to want to find somebody to get busy running," said Ellsworth, who is in his second two-year term in Congress.
Speaking outside the Sullivan County Courthouse after a meeting with constituents, Ellsworth said he had taken several calls from Indiana Democratic leaders since Bayh announced on Monday he would not seek another term.
If either Hill or Ellsworth throws their hat into the ring, expect the discussion to quickly turn to possible replacements for both on the November ballot.
Hammond Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr. says he will seek the Democratic nod to replace U.S. Sen. Evan Bayh on the November ballot.
He told the Post-Tribune of Merrillville on Tuesday that it's time for a fresh face and he would seek to be chosen by the state Democratic Party to be the one who replaces Bayh on the ballot. Bayh announced Monday that he was not seeking a third term this year.
Terry Burns at Marion County Voter Registration reports that just 2 signatures were certified for Tamyra d'Ippolito in the 7th Congressional district, 498 short of the requirement.
The noon deadline has passed and her name will not appear on the ballot. Democrats are now free to hand pick a candidate for the U.S. Senate seat now held by the retiring Evan Bayh.
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