Obama Challenges Baby Boomers

The author of The Pentagon's New Map and Bluepring For Action, Thomas P.M. Barnett, argues that Senator Barack Obama should run for president. Barnett takes a unique view on a possible candidacy. He writes "Barack Obama should run for president in 2008 for all the tactical reasons cited by pundits, but primarily because the baby boomers need serious competition from "below" on the vision thing. It's unhealthy to have so much of our political and strategic discourse dominated by the '60s generation...Looking ahead to the prospective field of 2008 presidential candidates, we see it chock full of that '60s mindset, and that's just not good enough given our current strategic situation - namely, too many new enemies and not enough new friends. Iraq is not Vietnam, and the Long War against extremism is not a rerun of the Cold War against communism." For the full article and more information on Barnett visit his weblog: http://www.thomaspmbarnett.com/weblog/

Richardson: A Blue Guy In A Red State

Add New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson to your list of potential Democrats for President. On Fox News, Bill Richardson said "I'm going to make a decision in January, but I was encouraged. I got a good victory -- 69% ... in a red state. We won a majority of governorships. ... I personally invested a lot of time and resources in leading the Democratic Governors' Association." Unlike the RGA, which Romney headed-up, the DGA won races and now have a majority of the governorships in the nation. Richardson's victory in New Mexico and ability to lead the DGA to victory, could increase his reputation in Democratic circles.

Presidential Primary Project

The Presidential Primary Project will be launched at the Democracy in Action 2006 conference on Saturday, November 18 at the New Hampshire Technical Institute in Concord , New Hampshire from 8:30 am - 5:30 pm. The conference will include workshops on ten key issues, plus training on how to "bird-dog" the candidates and other skills. The keynote speaker will be long-time activist and former California State Senator Tom Hayden. For more information go to www.prioritiesnh.org This would be a good time for anyone who wants to learn more abour grassroots activism.

Draft Gilmore For President

A "Draft Jim Gilmore For President" group that has formed. Jim Gilmore is the former Republican governor of Virginia and RNC Chairman. The group e-mailed the following statement:

On November 7, 2006 Republicans suffered their largest setback in years. Despite the jubilant declarations of Nancy Pelosi and Co., this is not the result of a wave of Democratic support. This is the American people voicing their opposition to the Republicans who have turned away from their principles.

Already, armchair-pundits have crowned Republican presidential frontrunners as those responsible for the increasing deficits, pork-barrel spending, and Republican loses across the nation. Republican Party faithfuls have also joined in the finger pointing. It is time for the Republican Party to nominate someone detached from the catastrophe. It is time we nominate someone who can unite the Party under conservative ideals once again.

Governor James S. Gilmore of Virginia is the sole candidate who can step up to the plate and lead the Republican Party back to their core principles. Governor Gilmore will stand strong against pork-barrel spending, higher taxes, and government corruption. Governor Gilmore will enact true immigration reform and secure our borders.

Please join us in our call for Governor James S. Gilmore to run for President.

McCain To Set Up Exploratory Committee

According to ABC News, Senator John McCain decided last Wednesday to procede with a presidential candidancy. McCain would set up a presidential exploratory committee next week. However, no formal announcement will be made until after the Christmas Holidays.

Triumph of Arrogance Over Democracy

Yesterday, the Massachusetts legislature blocked an amendment to allow for a statewide ballot question in 2008. In response to the legislature's action, Romney said that "there are hundreds of thousands of our citizens that hope something can be done to protect their constitutional right to vote on a matter of this significance. Of course, the only sure redress is through the ballot box. TodayÂ’s action was cynically timed to fall two days after they were safely re-elected." Romney will undoubtedlyy use this as another way to gain favor with social conservatives.

Obama's Numero Uno

Recently, Illinois Senator Barack Obama has been promoting his new book, The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream. It appears that all of the presidential speculation and Oprah's praise has made an impact. Obama's book will debut at the top of the New York Times bestseller list. He is now considered to be Clinton's main rival for the Democrat presidential nomination.

Bayh Planning Trips To NH

In a memo entitled "Moderate Heartland Democrats Gave Democrats Their Victory in 2006," Evan Bayh laid out his future plans. He told the AP that he would wait until after the holidays to announce his presidential intentions. However, he then said that he would "continue to aggressively travel the country and with visits to Iowa and New Hampshire planned before the end of the year."

Brownback Considering Run

Kansas Republican Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS) said "'We'll be making the mechanical steps within the next few weeks to move forward." Brownback was referring to a possible presidential run.

Hirshberg Supports Vilsack

A day after announcing his presidential candidancy, Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack, has gained an important endorsement. Gary Hirshberg, CEO of the Londonderry based Stonyfield Farms said "I am absolutely a supporter and I've already written my check for $2,100. We need to move this country back toward the middle and we need a two-party system. This is a guy who has governed in a Republican state for eight years after being elected the first Democratic governor in his state in 30 years." Hirshberg is a progressive Democrat with ties to business community in the state. His endorsement should help Vilsack with fundraising and making in-roads with New Hampshire business leaders.

Cox Plans NH Visit

Republican presidential underdog John Cox will be in the state this weekend. On Friday, Cox will speak at Café 324 in Manchester. Then on Saturday, Cox will greet patrons at Robie’s Country Store in Hooksett. Free food will be offered at both events.

Todd's Warning

Chuck Todd of The National Journal wrote the following "Is anyone aware of how liberal Iowa and New Hampshire have apparently become? The four new members of Congress from these two very important '08 states indicate that a moderate Democrat may have a tougher time in the primaries than in years past." Could this spell trouble for moderate Dems who might be contemplating a White House run?

Vilsack Staff

Below is a list of major staff for Gov. Vilsack's presidential campaign.

Craig Varoga, National Campaign Manager
Shari Yost-Gold, National Finance Advisor
Michael Hayden, National Finance Director
Cheryl Parker Rose, Senior Policy Advisor
Jeff Link, Senior Communications Strategist
Alice Parker, Director of Scheduling
Dusky Terry, Iowa State Director
Roy Behr, Behr Communications will serve as media consultant
Teresa Vilmain, Advisor (statement)

Bayh Staffers

Thanks to Rob from "Confessions of a Hoosier Democrat." Here is a list of all the Bayh staffers who worked in New Hampshire. Torey Collins was the only staffer who worked on an actual campaign.

Torey Collins – Paul Hodes – NH-2 Won
Nicole Miller - NH Democratic Coordinated Campaign
Seren Orgel - NH Senate Democratic Caucus
Aliza Pain - NH Senate Democratic Caucus
Nina Kauffman - NH Senate Democratic Caucus
Morgan Pinnell - NH Senate Democratic Caucus
Steven Randazzo - NH Senate Democratic Caucus
Lori Bryant - Committee to Elect House Democrats
Sarah Seipelt - Committee to Elect House Democrats
Danielle Serratore - New Hampshire Democratic Coordinated Campaign
Chester DiBari - Manchester City Democratic Committee
Maggie Leuzarder - Manchester City Democratic Committee
Scott Stephanou - Franklin City Democratic Committee
Beth Swickard - Nashua City Democratic Committee

Rudy on Mehlman

In response to speculation that RNC Chairman Ken Mehlman might be joining Rudy's team, Rudy said "Right now, we haven’t talked to anybody about that. Now Ken Mehlman is the best, so I think anybody would love to have him working with them. I mean, Ken has done a great job, both in getting the President re-elected. And however this all turns out, Ken Mehlman and Karl Rove, and…they’ve done an absolutely great job." Rumors have it that Mehlman might make the announcement as early as this morning. Michael Steele is contemplating a run for RNC Chairman.

Vilsack First To Join The Fight

Iowa Governor is expected to announce that he is running for President. In a statement received by the AP, Vilsack is expected to say "Americans sent a clear message on Tuesday. They want leaders who share their values, understand their needs and respect their intelligence. That's what I've done as governor of Iowa and that's what I intend to do as president."

Romney Crunches The Numbers

Gov. Mitt Romney PAC send out the an e-mail with the following numbers.

-Romney has raised $8.75 million and distributed nearly $1.4million, across 36 states.
-Romney campaigned for more than 55 attended over 75 different campaign events for federal and gubernatorial candidates alone. In addition, Romney participated in 23 state and county GOP events.
-Romney sent out more than 400,000 mail pieces to help support the Republican effort.
-Romney helped the RGA raise $26 million and distributed $24million.

Someone Buy Scala A Beer

St. Anselm College professor Dante Scala was almost exact, with his election predictions. Scala predicted:

GOV: Lynch wins, Coburn 25-27%
Congress: Bradley wins, 8-10%
Hodes wins, 3-4%
NH Legislature:
Dems gain 40 seats in House
Dems end the night with 11-13 seats in Senate

Hodes ended up winning by 12 and Shea-Porter pulled out the upset by 2%. Kudos to Scala. Visit his site at: http://graniteprof.typepad.com/

Just The Facts

According to The Straight Talk American PAC, Senator John McCain has made the following contributions to Republicans.

Senator McCain's Totals for the 2006 Election Cycle

Total money raised: Approximately $10,506,866
Total money donated to campaigns: $1,448,848
Total events attended: 346
Total miles flown : 137,747 - enough miles to fly 5.29 times around the globe
Total direct mail pieces sent: 610,500
Total phone calls made: Approximately 11,864,581
Total emails sent : 792,377

"I have done what I can to promote the conservative cause and help hard-working candidates earn victories across our nation," Senator McCain said.

Biden: I Respect Rummy

Delaware Senator Joe Biden issued the following statement on Rumsfeld's resignation. "Secretary Rumsfeld did the right thing in stepping down. Despite our differences, I have profound respect for him and his public service. A change in leadership at the Pentagon matters substantively and symbolically. We need a fresh pair of eyes looking at Iraq. And we needed to send a message to the American people, to the Iraqis and to the world that we are serious about changing course."

Biden also said that, "“Yesterday, the American people rejected the Bush administration’s failed policy in Iraq...I urge my colleagues in the Senate and House to join me in putting the election year rhetoric aside and working towards a bipartisan consensus on a way forward in Iraq.”

Bayh's Influence In Iowa

Indiana Senator Evan Bayh's PAC paid 25 staffers to help in Iowa state legislature races. The GOP credits those staffers with helping the Dems victory. No word yet on how much Bayh's staffers helped in New Hampshire.

The Indiana Senator also released the following statement, “Tonight, the American people sent a strong message to Washington that they are sick of the partisanship, the ideological extremism, and the corruption that has impeded our path to national greatness. The results give us hope for a better direction for the country and a better future for the Democratic Party."

Obama Increases Speculation

In an e-mail to supporters, Senator Barack Obama wrote, "...we now have to work even harder to turn last night's results into tomorrow's progress. I'll be asking you to help me do this in the days and months to come, and I can't wait to get to work." I'm sure these comments will only increase speculation on Obama's plans

08'ers Batting Average

Here is a list of potential presidential candidates batting averages. It lists the number of candidates who the presidential wannabe campaigned with. These numbers were on assembled by The Hotline.

GOP:
FRIST: 15 Wins, 31 Losses
GIULIANI: 7 Wins, 26 Losses
MCCAIN: 11 Wins, 27 Losses
PATAKI: 17 Wins, 18 Losses
ROMNEY: 13 Wins, 21 Losses

Dems:
BAYH: 13 Wins, 11 Losses
BIDEN: 20 Wins, 6 Losses
CLARK: 12 Wins, 16 Losses
HILLARY: 28 Wins, 12 Losses
DODD: 17 Wins, 8 Losses
EDWARDS: 44 Wins, 14 Losses
FEINGOLD: 11 Wins, 5 Losses
KERRY: 58 Wins, 23 Losses
OBAMA: 37 Wins, 9 Losses
RICHARDSON: 24 Wins, 18 Losses
VILSACK: 14 Wins, 10 Losses

Clark Influence in NH

Former General Wes Clark served as a key to the Dems wave in NH. Clark was the first to give Shea-Porter money and Shea-Porter was a volunteer for Clark in '04. Dana Houle, former Clark state director in Minnesota, was Hodes campaign manager.

Romney, Edwards on Election

Romney on the 2006 election: Americans spoke last night and Republicans are listening. Americans have not become less conservative, but they believe some Republicans have. As a party, we need to remember who we are and the principles that have always led our party and our country to success.

John Edwards: This election was about nothing less than the future of the world, and the American people spoke loud and clear: America is better than what we've seen under George Bush and his Republican allies. It's time to clean up the mess in Iraq; restore our moral authority to lead in the world; put the needs of ordinary families ahead of wealthy special interests; and begin to address the issues that George Bush has ignored or made worse during his six years in office.

Let The Games Begin!!

Enought about the 2006 elections, let the presidential games begin!!

NH Turns Blue

Jeb Bradley and Charlie Bass both lost their Congressional seats. Also, the Dems now control the Governorship, State Senate and Executive Council. This election shows that a party can not have a candidate on the top of the ticket that only garners 25% of the vote. A stronger candidate might not have saved Bass, but it would have saved Bradley and a couple of the state senators. The NH GOP is in disarray and in shock. Let the finger pointing begin!

Dems Sweep NH

Bass has conceded to Paul Hodes and it looks like Bradley will also lose. McCain was just on the air saying that the GOP needs to return to it's conservative values: fiscal discipline. Although, it appears that the conservatives in the GOP got exactly what they wanted: to rid the party of any moderates.

Election Day

Election Day

Remember To VOTE!!!

There will be plenty of posts tomorrow

Dante's Crystal Ball

Dante Scala, professor at St. Anselm College, has come out with his predictions for the New Hampshire elections.

GOV: Lynch wins, Coburn 25-27%
Congress: Bradley wins, 8-10%
Hodes wins, 3-4%
NH Legislature:
Dems gain 40 seats in House
Dems end the night with 11-13 seats in Senate

In other words, Scala is predicting a Democrat sweep throughout New Hampshire and the country.

Rocking Out With Newt

Here are some more details for the Manchester Christmas party with Newt. For $200 you can attend a VIP event with the former House Speaker. This $200 ticket will get you personal time, and a photo, with the speaker. However, there will be no photo opportunities at the dinner. I hope for that amount Newt will also give tips on how you can avoid getting caught with your mistress.

Clinton, McCain still lead field

A poll conducted for the Concord Monitor, found that 31 percent of likely voters named Clinton from potential Democratic candidates and 26 percent name McCain from possible Republican candidates. It also showed that in the GOP field Rudy had 18% and Romney had 12%. Also, for the Dems it went Edwards with 19%, Gore at 12%, Obama 8% and finally Kerry with 7 percent.

Election Predictions

For whatever it is worth, here are my election predictions:

-Dems win House, 225-210
-GOP keeps Senate, 52-48
-Chafee, Santorum, Dewine and Talent all lose
-Steele, Allen, Corker and Burns win
-Bass and Bradley win in close races:
-Bass, 52-48
-Bradley, 55-45
-Romney or Bayh will announce they are running for President on either Thursday or Friday.

Rudy Hearts Alito, Roberts

Rudy Giuliani was a guest blogger at Real Clear Politics. The former Mayor of New York City wrote, "Finally, let's look at the Republican record on judges. Supreme Court Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Alito are models of what judges should be in this country. They are principled individuals who can be trusted to defend the original intent of the Constitution rather than trying to legislate their own political beliefs from the bench. The successful appointments of Justices Roberts and Alito are signs of promises kept." It appears that Rudy is getting closer to saying that he would appoint judges like Alito and Roberts to the Supreme Court. This might help him in calming down social conservatives who are worried about his pro-choice positions.