Shades Of '06 For Shell-Shocked Dems
Embattled incumbents with ethics problems. Allegations of sexual harassment leading to a competitive open seat. Dems have seen this movie before -- only last time, it happened to the other guys.
Now, a beleaguered Dem majority has to hope their party can withstand a building wave that favors the GOP, and that effort isn't made any easier by countless, and mounting, self-inflicted errors.
4 years ago, it was GOPers who found themselves on the receiving end of jolt after jolt of bad news. This time around, Dem strategists are beginning to accept the inevitability of big losses, and a sort of morbid gallows humor has settled over Congressional and political aides.
Then, an unpopular war in Iraq and a failed attempt to privatize social security put the GOP on the mat, but behavior of several GOPers in Congress knocked them out cold. This year, an ongoing war in Afghanistan has some in the Dem base deflated, while efforts to reform health care have sent Dem approval ratings -- and those of Pres. Obama -- plummeting.
During the '06 cycle, Reps. Tom DeLay (R-TX), Duke Cunningham (R-CA) and Bob Ney (R-OH) both resigned from office after ethics allegations landed them in hot water.
Cunningham was sentenced to 100 months in jail for tax evasion, conspiracy and other charges. Ney served a 30-month sentence for his role in the Jack Abramoff scandal. Ney resigned on Nov. 3, just 4 days before the GOP lost control of the House. DeLay was never convicted, though he resigned in late '05.
GOPers knew their efforts to keep control would fail, however, in late Sept. of '06, when Rep. Mark Foley (R-FL) resigned amid allegations he had inappropriate contact with House pages.
Dems now face 2 of their own unforced errors on the same day. Today, Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-NY) said he will temporarily step down as chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee after an ethics panel found he violated the chamber's rules.
And Rep. Eric Massa (D-NY) said he would retire after a single term in office; Capitol Hill buzzed with rumors that the ethics committee is investigating alleged harrassment of a male staffer, though Massa denied those reports and said a recurrence of cancer had forced him to step aside.
Dems are also dealing with a wave of retirements, many of which come in districts the GOP has its eye on. Of the 15 Dems who will not seek another term in the House, the GOP has a strong chance in at least 11, including Massa's.
In '06, Dems won DeLay's, Ney's and Foley's seats, along with seats held by retiring Reps. Sherwood Boehlert (R-NY), Jim Kolbe (R-AZ), Bob Beauprez (R-CO), Mark Green (R-WI) and Jim Nussle (R-IA). This time, seats left vacant by Reps. Charlie Melancon (D-LA), Dennis Moore (D-KS), Vic Snyder (D-AR), Bart Gordon (D-TN), John Tanner (D-TN) and others are at the top of the NRCC's target list.
At the moment, it seems, GOPers are most worried that the expectations bar is being set too high; both House Min. Whip Eric Cantor and House GOP Conference chair Mike Pence have predicted the party will take back the lower chamber.
As Dems will tell their friends across the aisle, their worries could be much, much worse. Dems benefitted 4 years ago when the GOP's mistakes compounded an already-terrible political environment. This year, after Rangel's ethics troubles, retirements in vulnerable districts and rumors flying that Massa's story isn't finished breaking yet, Dems fear the tables are about to be turned.
I thought only Republicans resigned after homosexual encounters. Is hypocrisy losing steam in Washington?
Score one for Banjo!
I'm sorry, Hotline, but it took a national media feeding frenzy to make a back bencher like Mark Foley into a household name. I guarantee you one thing... nobody by Fox is going to touch this story. Just ain't gonna happen.
That just "the rules" in Washington. Dems and Repubs live in entirely different universes.
I'm in favor of throwing ALL the bums out and starting from scratch.
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Earl Pomeroy of North Dakota is a class act and smoeone who wil undoubtedly be voted out this year. North Dakota is running a strong fiscal conservative in Kevin Cramer who I feel will beat Earl and save this state and this country a lot of money. Pomeroy is one of the guys who voted for Obamacare even though about 75% of the state told him not to. He then avoid the town halls. He votes with Nancy Pelosi 97% of the time. North Dakota needs Kevin Cramer in a big way.
But, but, I thought Mrs. Pelosi was going to preside over the most ethical Congress in history! Apparently she was so distracted by her own perceptions of royalty that she forgot to pass on the memo to her troops!
Let's be very realistic here - nay cynical - and admit that there will always be ethical violations in the U.S. Congress and that both parties,will have members that don't quite hit the high marks we'd expect from members of Congress. They're human beings after all!
Anyone shallow, narcissistic, and arrogant enough to believe that they know what's best for all of the American people has no business in any sort of position of power. That encompasses the vast majority of the left party in this REPUBLIC.
The only real liberals left are on the right, and they are outnumbered by light versions of the leftists.
We need to start over on healthcare? We need to start over on Congress, and reintroduce liberal, limited government by demanding that we adhere to our Constitution and correct the mistakes that have led us to this untenable place.
Vote them all out. Politicians should not be "professional."
To be fair, both Parties always have a certain percentage of crooks, and typically each Party is hypocritical in pointing at the other side while covering for their own. However, there are two things that are unique here. First, this should put to rest the nonsense that Obama was going to fundamentally change govt (a "new" kind of politics). He can't and he hasn't. Second, it should be increasingly clear that there's a relationship between time spent in congress and the probablity of being corrupt. For example, I always thought Rangle was basically a decent guy...who became hubristic after 40 years on the throne. Power corrupts and too much (or too long) power make the probability of corruption higher. It's time for congressional term limits!
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I agree with JohnR22 about the correlation between tenure in congress and the probability of becoming enmeshed in scandal. I'm not so sure term limits are the answer. We tried that in California and it didn't help. It just sends scores of high name-recognition pols scurrying to other elected positions every four years. This often prevent new, relatively untainted blood from coming in to these positions. Because despite screaming about lifetime politicians about half the voters will always go with the person they have heard of before.
Meanwhile, at the legislative level term limits have mostly increased the influence of lobbyists and the general paralysis of state government in California. Same way with the 2/3rd's majority rule for a budget here. It hasn't stopped the explosion of government. It has only amplified legislative incompetence - an astonishingly difficult accomplishment.
Ultimately none of these strictures will correct the fundamental problem in America which is that most voters want to have their cake and eat it too. They want everything from government except the bill. But the bill is already in the mail and if Obamacare is passed it will arrive by special delivery. The question is whether, even then, the voters will come out of denial and submit to fiscal discipline.
A Pox on both of their houses every damn Corrupt/Worthless politician in Wash. DC should be frog hopped out of office & rode out of town on a rail!
Typical GOP character assassination. Tail-gunner Joe rules National Journal smear&lie media.
San Fran Nan has found the Swamp and it is the Dem Party. But not for morals. For their huge socialist pacifist anti-free enterprise wish lists. Care, Cap and Tax, amnesty, climate, Death Panels, bankruptcy of our govt. , Fannie and Freddie Frank and Dodd deals , then we have the Rangel, Murtha, Mesa, Paterson, et al so called scandals in Fed and State govs. Then the 9 pro-Muslim lawyers that Holder and Obama put into Justice recently. Of course, the MSM will cover for these thugs. And now the rumor is that Rahm will run for the Senate in Ill. to make sure that seat stays in the corrupt Dem Ill. delegation. Ah the smell of the Swamp.
To what character assassination are you referring, Mr Madrigal? The allegations against Charlie Rangel? The Louisiana Purchase, the Cornhusker Kickback, the Florida Fleece? The Utah judgeship buyoff? The sudden revelation against Eric Massa that Steny Hoyer knew about all along that just came out now in time undermine his previous "no" vote on the bill?
Madrigal's Dictionary: "GOP Character Assassination (n) - Anytime a Republican points out Democrat wrongdoing or hypocrisy."
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