A Night At The Congressional Races
Here's tonight's run-down on the Congressional races:
Hagan Files Lawsuit Against Dole Over Atheism Attack Ad, Launches Rebuttal Spot
Senate candidate Kay Hagan (D-NC) has announced that she is filing a defamation lawsuit against the campaign of GOP Sen. Elizabeth Dole, over an attack ad that accused Hagan of selling out to the Godless atheist agenda. Hagan also has this new rebuttal spot:
"I'm Kay Hagan, and Elizabeth Dole's attacks on my Christian faith are offensive. She even faked my voice in her TV ad to make you think I don't believe in God," Hagan says. "Well I believe in God. I taught Sunday school. My faith guides my life, and Senator Dole knows it. Sure,politics is a tough business, but I approve this message because my campaign is about creating jobs and fixing our economy -- not bearing false witness against fellow Christians."
Two More Polls Have Dole Losing
Meanwhile, two separate polls today show Hagan leading Dole by six points: Hagan is up 52%-46% in Rasmussen, with a ±4% margin of error, and Hagan is ahead 43%-37% in National Journal, with a ±4.9% margin of error.
NRSC Ad Quotes Franken: "It'd Be A Travesty" If People Voted For Me
This new NRSC ad against Al Franken uses an old quote from 1999, when he ridiculed the idea of himself ever running for public office:
"Franken said it best himself: 'If I put myself on the ballot and even 50 people voted for me, it'd be a travesty,'" the announcer says.
Another Poll Shows Franken Behind, Barkley Playing Spoiler
The new Mason-Dixon poll in Minnesota paints a gloomy picture for Al Franken: Sen. Norm Coleman (R) 42%, Franken 36%, and Independence Party candidate Dean Barkley 12%. This poll shows Barkley taking 17% of Democrats and only 4% of Republicans, suggesting that he's disproportionately hurting Franken and could potentially give the race to Coleman.
Coleman Campaign Suing Franken For Defamation
Sen. Norm Coleman (R-MN) is also filing a lawsuit against Al Franken's campaign, over ads that have called Coleman corrupt and alleging that he's received favors from special interests. "Al Franken has chosen to push the lines of believability far beyond the bounds of truth," said Coleman spokesman Mark Drake.
Bachmann: The Voters Don't Care About My Hardball Appearance
At a debate today, Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) declared that her McCarthyist rant on Hardball has not been an issue back in the district: "The only people who bring that up are the media. It's not the people." On the other hand, it's interesting to note that poll data taken after the appearance has shown her narrowly trailing her Democratic opponent El Tinklenberg, in a district that should be a walk for any decent Republican candidate.
Two New Polls Put McConnell Ahead
Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell is ahead of Democratic opponent Bruce Lunsford in two new polls. In Rasmussen: McConnell 51%, Lunsford 44%, with a --4.5% margin of error. And from Mason-Dixon: McConnell 47%, Lunsford 42%, with a ±3.4% margin of error.
Uncle Ted Can Still Vote For Himself
He may have been found guilty of a felony, but a legal loophole means Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK) can still vote for himself in next week's election. The trial will not be technically concluded until Stevens is sentenced, and under Alaska law this means Stevens has not yet been stripped of his right to vote.
Credit Crunch Directly Hurts Congressman's Campaign
The re-election campaign of Rep. Lee Terry (R-NE) has lost access to $100,000 in campaign funds that they had put in a seemingly safe money-market fund. Thanks to the financial crisis, the campaign has now had to take out a $100,000 loan to be repaid once the money-market fund becomes liquid again.
Keep whistling past that graveyard, Michelle. You're gonna live forever!
October 30, 2008 6:34 PM | Reply | Permalink
Kay your ad is great, slamming an opponent by biblical proportions-- nice.
October 31, 2008 2:08 PM | Reply | Permalink
A place where believability should never go.
I find it interesting from that article that the Coleman camp is simultaneously alleging in their lawsuit that Franken exaggerated a CREW finding to make it appear biased toward the Democrats, AND that CREW is a scurrilous Democrat-biased bunch of hacks. Isn't there kind of a contradiction there?
October 30, 2008 6:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
AT the risk of driving people nuts because I'm repeating something I posted below - you do know that Coleman uses this as a campaign tactic, don't you? He's done this in 4 election campaigns and right about the same time every time - near the end.
He's sued 4 opponents.
October 30, 2008 6:51 PM | Reply | Permalink
Coleman the adulterer and possible wife-beater is suing Franken? For what? Telling the truth about him?
Slimy Norman has been getting so many discounts and handouts during his Senate term that it really does prompt asking: If there's no such thing as a free lunch, what's your give-back, Norman?
October 30, 2008 6:58 PM | Reply | Permalink
So, when Dole loses next week, I guess she'll be off peddling hormone replacement therapy for some drug company. Or, perhaps she and Bob will do an ad together for Viagra. She'll need the money and will have plenty of free time.
October 30, 2008 7:01 PM | Reply | Permalink
Thanks for the mental imagery there. You've got the Doles, "hormones", "plenty of free time", and "Viagra" all in the same paragraph. Please don't.
October 30, 2008 7:17 PM | Reply | Permalink
I was glad when people defended Arabs after that crazy lady in MN, but what about defending Atheists as a group that aren't necessarily evil?
October 30, 2008 7:03 PM | Reply | Permalink
Polls that were wrong.
976Late July - Gallup
Jimmy Carter 62%
Gerald Ford 30%
Final Results
Carter 50.1%
Ford 48.0%
Average MOE - 14.95% This sort of shift would make it a blowout for either side of the aisle.
1980 (this one's for those of you who say - "polls shift over time") Nov 1980, Gallup Pre-Election Poll
Carter 44%
Reagan 41%
Final Results
Reagan 50.7%
Carter 41.0%
Average MOE - 5.85% = the margin of error in every GE poll this year. This really embarrassed the pollsters, so of course, they went ahead and did it again.
1988
5/17 - NYT/CBS
Michael Dukakis 49%
George Bush 39%
Final Results
Bush 53.4%
Dukakis 45.6%
Average MOE - 7.9% A shift like what occurred in 1988 would make any Democrat the winner or the loser by a healthy margin.
1992
June 1992 Time/CNN
Ross Perot 37%
George Bush 24%
Bill Clinton 24%
Final Results
Clinton 43.0%
Bush 37.4%
Perot 18.9%
Average MOE - 20.1%. Imagine if Bloomberg's runs, I foresee similar dynamics.
2000
Sept 2000 Newsweek
Al Gore 49%
George W. Bush 39%
Final Results
Bush 47.9%
Gore 48.4%
Average MOE - 4.8% So all the undecided went for Bush, eh? Polls are worthless in close races. Hmmm, sounds familiar, doesn't it?In conclusion, the only poll that matters is the one on election day.
October 30, 2008 7:04 PM | Reply | Permalink
And your point, Margie?
Are trying to up the paranoia quotient?
October 30, 2008 7:10 PM | Reply | Permalink
Your 'before' dates are all over the place. If you're trying to make a point, wouldn't it be good to choose a single point to compare to the final results?
October 30, 2008 7:10 PM | Reply | Permalink
I'm depressed enough about Obama's possibilties. I don't need to be absolutely sickened
October 30, 2008 10:45 PM | Reply | Permalink
Relax. BigO has got this one. It's in the bag.
October 30, 2008 11:15 PM | Reply | Permalink
So ol' Stevens can actually vote for himself. I hope the media mobs him when he does: "Convicted felon votes for himself, and McCain."
This whole story reeks of the absurd. When you are given a felony, you should be told to turn in your keys even before leaving the courthouse.
October 30, 2008 7:04 PM | Reply | Permalink
They really ought to ask him who he voted for for President.
October 30, 2008 7:08 PM | Reply | Permalink
...been a long day. Nothing like redundancy to confirm the sense of deja vu I'm getting as I scramble to catch up with all of the filth the folks at McCain-Palin spread while I was distracted at work.
October 30, 2008 7:15 PM | Reply | Permalink
Dole is toast for going trying to knee cap Hagan with religion, or lack of.
Chambliss, a classic smooth talkin southern lawyer (this translates into crooked greedy corporate type) is going to have to go into overtime to defend what may be the 60th seat for the democrats.
I hope there's a miracle turnout on Mississippi, and Kentucky sees the light as well.
And this morning Joe, not the plumber, Scarborough said Obama is a centrist at heart. Joes trying to be his own implementation of the fairness doctrine.
October 30, 2008 7:10 PM | Reply | Permalink
Good ad by Hagan, as much as Christian oneupmanship drives me batshit crazy.
October 30, 2008 7:12 PM | Reply | Permalink
Ya know, I think I'll go completely insane if I hear one more candidate try to out-christian another.
I know, the Hagan ad is essentially just her calling bullshit on Liddy, but enough with the Betty Bowers impersonations, OK? Why the hell should I care that she spends her Sundays perverting little children's minds?
October 30, 2008 7:39 PM | Reply | Permalink
LOL! Nice.
October 30, 2008 7:55 PM | Reply | Permalink
Seconded. I'm not crazy about religeon taking such a central part in a campaign (any campaign), but since Dole made it an issue, Hagan had no choice but to defend herself in the strongest terms. On that score, it was a great ad.
October 30, 2008 7:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yeah, she really had no choice but to respond and I agree w/ bvd-the "bearing false witness" line is a killer. So to speak...
October 30, 2008 7:58 PM | Reply | Permalink
Couldn't agree with you more on every point. But most of all, I like the fact that Hagan's got cojones and she ain't taking shit from Jesse Helms in drag.
October 30, 2008 8:21 PM | Reply | Permalink
"Not bearing false witness" - okay, that line was sort of brilliant.
October 30, 2008 7:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
Totally, I actually replayed the ad for myself after hearing her close with that line. "bearing false witness" is serious business.
October 31, 2008 6:10 AM | Reply | Permalink
I've now given a total of $100 (in $25 increments) to Al Franken through the course of 2008. I just gave Kay Hagan $25. Last week, I gave Elwyn Twinklenberg $25. I think I'm going to now dig a little deeper and go give Mark Begich $25 in his run against Ted Stevens. Take that, wingnuts!
With love, from Oakland, California, Terry Carroll
October 30, 2008 7:32 PM | Reply | Permalink
I've got no problem with Hagan's responsive ad. Suing Dole, however, is a bullshit tactic. No better for her to do than it is for Coleman. If they want to try and out God each other that their business, but they should really leave the courts out of it.
We've all seen how well courts do with election shit.
BTW, the economy doesn't look so bad if your Exxon-Mobile, does it?
October 30, 2008 8:00 PM | Reply | Permalink
Suing is a deterrent tactic: there is no point in letting an opponent get away with a provable lie. So Hagan is correct to sue. Suing as a tactic is another question -- does anyone know the outcome of Coleman's prior suits?
October 31, 2008 11:51 AM | Reply | Permalink
"McCain Voter Fraud" on youtube.com. Check it out, its important to know your present. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGF-HEd6XnA
October 30, 2008 8:31 PM | Reply | Permalink
So, It looks like Hagan didn't take my advice from the original thread and get Colin Powell to endorse, saying something like, "She believes in God, but so what if she didn't? I hope there's some 7 year old kid out there who doesn't believe in God who thinks that he or she could be president some day."
October 30, 2008 9:18 PM | Reply | Permalink
Not to defend Dole, but I find Hagan's defamation lawsuit insulting to atheists. How can you not get the impression that being thought an atheist is somehow sharing a slum with Nazis, Communists, terrorists, and pedophiles.
I'm sick of this attitude from the religious, no matter where on the political spectrum they reside.
October 30, 2008 10:06 PM | Reply | Permalink
Not to defend Dole, but I find Hagan's defamation lawsuit insulting to atheists. How can you not get the impression that being thought an atheist is somehow sharing a slum with Nazis, Communists, terrorists, and pedophiles.
I'm sick of this attitude from the religious, no matter where on the political spectrum they reside.
October 30, 2008 10:07 PM | Reply | Permalink
I can understand your remarks about terrorists, Nazis, and pedophiles, but now YOU have defamed Communists. Just sayin'.
October 31, 2008 8:55 AM | Reply | Permalink
The Hagan ad seems very effective in combating that total Dole sleaze. I even like the way she took a page out of Preacher Huckabee's book---when the camera pans in at the 0:12 mark and til just shy of the 0:20 mark when she most earnestly addresses and reaffirms her faith, etc., the close-up accentuates the edges of the shelf next to her to form a cross. Just like Mr. Huckabee's ad in the early primary season, just not as pronounced. And I don't think it's a mere coincidence...
Aside from the positive rapid response, good stagecraft. Kudos.
October 30, 2008 10:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
Oh, just noticed that you get the same angle re the cross during the last four seconds or so of the ad when Hagan talks about "bearing false witness against fellow Christians."
October 30, 2008 10:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
Ahem, kinda says it all, doesn't it?
October 30, 2008 11:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
As an atheist, if Hagan goes through with her lawsuit against Dole (she won't, this is just an initial filing and she has 20 days to follow up), I hope Hagan gets sued for defamation herself by an atheist.
She's full of crap and hypocritically posturing at the same time.
October 31, 2008 1:31 AM | Reply | Permalink
As an atheist, if Hagan goes through with her lawsuit against Dole (she won't, this is just an initial filing and she has 20 days to follow up), I hope Hagan gets sued for defamation herself by an atheist.
She's full of crap and hypocritically posturing at the same time.
Many Democrats, in talking about the various ethical challenges of the McCain-Palin campaign, like to use the line, “If Obama did this, what would the media say?”
Well, I’m going to turn that on its head.
If Dole ran a similar ad about Hagan associating with gays, what would the media say?
And, if Hagan filed a lawsuit over such an ad, what would the media say about that?
October 31, 2008 1:40 AM | Reply | Permalink
socraticgadfly - good point about the hypothetical gay ad - and shows how far gay acceptance has come and maybe how far atheist acceptance can come. I have no doubt that Obama will be atheist-friendly. I think we need to be careful, though, and not push too hard at the beginning of his (presumed) administration. Remember - "Gays in the military" was no help to Clinton as an opening salvo.
October 31, 2008 8:10 AM | Reply | Permalink
I understand your concerns, but Dole has not just suggested Hagan receives support from the Godless American PAC, which is untrue, but her ad suggests that Hagan actually said "There is no God". That accusation could be damaging to Hagan's campaign in the Bible belt, but it also is simply not true, as Hagan has been a leader in her church. So, to things on their head again, what if you were running for office, were running on a platform of separation of church and state, had acknowledged that you are an atheist, and your opponent accused you of being a devout albeit closet Christian? Would you have a case?
October 31, 2008 8:50 AM | Reply | Permalink
>
Now there's a scenario I'd love to see sometime real soon, because I would see it an indication that atheism had become as mainstream as Christianity.
October 31, 2008 9:11 AM | Reply | Permalink
Hagan's ad is THE BEST RESPONSE AD I HAVE EVER SEEN.
She completely understands the battlefield, and turns the language of faith into a total B-slap of Liddy Dole.
She stands in front of a bookcase - and in a close-up with the wood in the image of a cross - speaks of her faith. And then, in language that resonates to all Christians and Jews - directly accused Liddy of violating one of the Ten Commandments. Wow! Straight out of Ephysians. Defending herself with the armor of the Lord!
This may seem a bit corny, offensive, or over the top to some folks, but - trust me - it's the only way to defend yourself in Carolina. And it is a nuclear response that has destroyed any hope Mrs Dole had of haning on to her seat.
Stick a fork in her. She's done.
October 31, 2008 9:50 AM | Reply | Permalink