Tag: governor

Quote of the Day, This Is Amusingly Obvious About Wendy Davis edition.

Well, it’s certainly not painful. At least, for me:

“[Erstwhile Texas Democratic gubernatorial candidate Wendy Davis is] not doing as well as people had hoped, expected or wanted,” said Bill Miller, an Austin lobbyist who works with both Democrats and Republicans and who is a friend of Ms. Davis’s. “I think there were unrealistic expectations.”

Gee, you think? – Not that I mind national Democrats throwing 20 million down the money pit that is the Wendy Davis campaign.  It fuels economic activity – and better that it be spent on doomed Democratic campaigns than on viable Democratic ones.  But I do wonder if anybody on the Left is going to take a hit to their credibility for encouraging this wasted effort in the first place.  Probably not – and that’s not really a partisan slam; accountability for failure is rarely taken, and even more rarely offered.  Shoot, I have gotten it wrong on more than occasion.

I’ve also never set on fire 20 million of my own party’s money in the process, mind you.

Via Hot Air Headlines.

Moe Lane

The Democratic party’s biggest structural problem, in one ‘Senator vs. Governor’ chart.

It boils down to this: the American people are rapidly coming to the conclusion that you probably should be a governor of something before you become President.

Continue reading The Democratic party’s biggest structural problem, in one ‘Senator vs. Governor’ chart.

It is too early to say that Illinois Governor Pat Quinn (D) will be going to jail.

Time for another installment in my favorite personal conspiracy theory: to wit, that the Illinois Combine (the ‘bipartisan’ consensus that really runs the state*) has decided that it’s time for the GOP to have a turn getting blamed for everything that goes wrong. Real shame about Pat Quinn not getting a second term, but what can you do? It’s time to offer up another sacrificial lamb: “A criminal grand jury has launched a probe into Gov. Pat Quinn’s troubled anti-violence program —  once likened to “a political slush fund” — delivering a major blow to the Democrat as he seeks re-election this fall.” Basically, Gov. Quinn’s Neighborhood Recovery program more or less handed money willy-nilly, and quite a few people in government and the public-private sector** apparently decided to take undue advantage of that. The big question is, of course, is there a piece of paper that shows that the Governor was involved in any of that? Continue reading It is too early to say that Illinois Governor Pat Quinn (D) will be going to jail.

Mary Burke won’t throw *own* money down WI-GOV rathole.

Which is awkward, given that she’s the Democratic front-runner and everything:

Democrat Mary Burke says she won’t be able to self-fund her campaign for governor, saying she does not have that kind of wealth.

When Burke first floated the idea of running for governor, her personal wealth made her an appealing candidate to some Democrats and made others think twice about entering the race. The former Trek executive, whose father founded the company, has not disclosed her net worth, though she did donate more than $400,000 to her campaign in just its first few months.

But Burke says people should not expect her to spend as much as some of Wisconsin’s most famous self-funded candidates.

Continue reading Mary Burke won’t throw *own* money down WI-GOV rathole.

Some VERY interesting things in this Hawaii News Now/Star Advertiser poll.

And by ‘interesting’ I mean favorable:

  • The most obvious one is that Republican (and former Lt. Gov) Duke Aiona would in a rematch beat Neil Abercrombie 48-40 among registered voters.
  • Charles Djou (running for Senate) has a favorable/unfavorable rating of 58/30, which is fairly close to Colleen Hanabusa’s 62/27. Clearly, Hanabusa’s is better, but not nearly by as much as I would have expected.
  • And this is important because Colleen Hanabusa currently leads incumbent Senator Brian Schatz 48/40 in the Democratic Senate primary.

If the Hawaii News Now/Star Advertiser poll checked the Senate race, it wasn’t reported: based on the numbers, I’d guess that Hanabusa would be ahead of Djou and that Djou would be ahead of Schatz*. That is… remarkable news: particularly if the Hawaiian primaries turn nasty. After all, Djou won his Congressional race because Ed Case and… Colleen Hanabusa… both adamantly refused to accept the results of their primary race. Obviously, the Hawaiian Democratic party is as aware of this as I am: the question is, will they be able to keep whichever Democrat loses in line?

Interesting days ahead.

Moe Lane (crosspost)

*You might be forgiven for thinking that this poll suggests that hao… ahem, ‘Caucasians’… may end up having a somewhat thin time of it in Hawaii this election cycle.  Mostly because I’m thinking it, too.  I don’t know what to do about it, though.

Revealing Politics: Gov. John Hickenlooper (D) lied, lied, lied about Colorado job growth.

Which John Hickenlooper so totally did.

Executive summary: Gov. Hickenlooper bragged in his State of the State address that Colorado had gone from 40th in the nation in job creation to 4th. Which is impressive, yes? – Except that Colorado went from 40th in 2010 to 4th in 2012.  Also in 2012 was an election where the Colorado state legislature went fully under Democratic control… which means that 2013 was a year where Democrats ran amok through the legislative process.  The result? Colorado slipped from 4th place in 2012 to 10th place in 2013.

Oops.

Continue reading Revealing Politics: Gov. John Hickenlooper (D) lied, lied, lied about Colorado job growth.

Quinnipac predicts unprecedented Libertarian surge in Virginia governor’s race!

Well, that would have to be the alternative explanation to what’s apparently happening, which is that the governor’s race is tightening in Virginia again. Cuccinelli/McAuliffe went from 42/48 in August’s Q-Poll to 41/44 now.

The poll indicates McAuliffe, the former chairman of the Democratic National Committee, at 44% among likely commonwealth voters, with Cuccinelli at 41%. The three point margin for McAuliffe, who lost a bid for the 2009 Democratic gubernatorial nomination, is within the survey’s sampling error.

[snip]

The new poll suggests that Robert Sarvis, the Libertarian candidate who stands at 7%, could hold a key to the November election.

And that last factoid reminds me of the 2009 governor’s race, actually.  Only, the one in NJ. Continue reading Quinnipac predicts unprecedented Libertarian surge in Virginia governor’s race!

Bill Daley (D) quits Illinois Governor’s race.

This will make it slightly harder for the Democrats to keep the seat, by the way*.

Bill Daley abruptly ended his bid for the Democratic nomination for governor today, telling the Tribune that a lifetime in politics had not prepared him for the “enormity” of his first run for office and the challenge of leading the state through difficult times.

Bill Daley abruptly ended his bid for the Democratic nomination for governor today, telling the Tribune that a lifetime in politics had not prepared him for the “enormity” of his first run for office and the challenge of leading the state through difficult times.

[snip] Continue reading Bill Daley (D) quits Illinois Governor’s race.

Scott Brown, you *damned* well better be just making buzz for a MA-GOV run.

Seriously. This is not the time.

Former Massachusetts senator Scott Brown told Iowa State Fair visitors on Sunday that he is “exploring a possible run” for president in 2016, according to reports.

According to WBZ Channel 4, Brown, a Republican, told a CBS affiliate that he is measuring interest in his “brand of politics.” The Iowa State Fair is a frequent stop for possible Oval Office contenders.

Now, if he is just making buzz for his MA-GOV run, that’s cool. Good strategy, in fact. Gets his name in the local Massachusetts papers for free.  But this is not something that should happen for real.