Daily Troika: Showing Some Leg
Sen. Maj. Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) sent his VolPAC e-mail list an election post-mortem, calling Tuesday a "rough night" for all. Frist is "up off the canvass" and wants conservatives to "get back to work." TN's election of Bob Corker "was a breakwater against the tide." Corker is a "genuine article" -- a "conservative Tennessean, a family man" and a "man of principles." Frist urges the party to take "a closer look" at the "success in Tennessee." In re, the election, Frist says that the "one glaring data point" is "the need for a clearly defined strategy in Iraq." And Frist is "confident that" incoming Sec/Def Gates will "bring a need, fresh perspective" to the situation. Frist says that the "accomplishments of the 109th Congress could simply not break through" and "we were not able to communicate clearly the principles for which we stand: smaller federal government, fiscal discipline, lower taxes and a strong and vigorous national defense." Frist says he'll send his VolPAC list "a detailed survey which I ask that you complete. Your answers to this survey are important and I promise to share your insights with my Republican colleagues. Republicans at every level of government need to reconnect with voters and we need to listen. So please share your thoughts on my blog today and when I send you the survey I ask that you also take the time to complete it."
Pfeiffer: "The lesson of this election is clear -- we won by turning the Red states of the Heartland Blue. Indiana, which has voted for the Republicans in 16 of the last 17 presidential elections, sent three new Democrats to Congress. This is not an accident. Evan Bayh has developed a formula for winning under the most difficult of circumstances. He is fiscally responsible, tough on national security, shares the values of middle class families, and values progress over partisanship." More Pfeiffer: "Of the 29 House seats that the Democrats picked up, 10 came from the Midwest.
Pfeiffer notes that Bayh contributed $270K to 350 candidates and committees this cycle and deployed 50 trained staff members to IN, IA, NH, NV and SC.
Pfeiffer quotes Bayh's interview to the AP, where Bayh said he would "wait until after the holidays to make an announcement" about the presidential race. In the meantime, he'll travel to NH and IA before end of the year (e-mail, 11/10)