Posted on 10/14/2004 4:37:09 PM PDT by Clintonfatigued
Poll shows Bunning lead at 51% to 40%
(Excerpt) Read more at surveyusa.com ...
I live in Lexington, and have only seen a few Kerry/Edwards bumper stickers or yard signs. Kentucky has a pretty solid track record voting for the repubs and it will stay that way.
It's interesting that you brought up the House races. Congresswoman Anne Northrup (R-Louisville) was endorsed by ex-state Attorney General Chris Gorman, who ran against her in 1998. And the latest poll shows her lead over Tony Miller expanding to 54% to 41%.
Anne Northrup is savvy and tough. I just wish Bunning had retired and Northrup was the nominee to succeed him.
I've got a really bad feeling. But that may be because I'm a Bengals fan, and it's football season.
Miller has run probably one of the worst campaigns I have seen. He is appearing in ads attacking Northup himself -- a very bad political move.
He was potentially one of the most formidable opponents she would have faced -- he has been winning elections in that district far longer than she has. He blew it.
(It is Northup, not Northrup)
An 11% lead is "narrowing"? More likely their latest poll had a few more Democrats than the previous one.
The previous poll by Survey USA gave Bunning a 24-point lead. now it's down to 11.
Though I don't live in Kentucky, I get Kentucky news. Bunning has committed some gaffes and the media there has given it extensive coverage. And ads attacking Bunning and plugging Mongiardo are on the air, the first time this year this has happened.
This race is no longer a sure thing.
This poll, if you look at the dates, was also taken before the gaffes that got the extensive media coverage.
"Here's the rumor: Bunning has dementia, and if he wins, he will resign and Fletcher will appoint himself to the Senate seat."
There has been a number of them since the founding of our nation (even when the legislature was electing Senators). The confusion tends to be whether they were "technically" appointed by themselves or whether they resigned and "instructed" the next person in line to the Governorship to "do the deed." Folks like NM Gov Edwin Mechem come to mind (appointed himself in '62), but he lost in the following election. SC Gov Donald Russell did the same in 1965, but lost renomination to Ernest Hollings the following year. In the case of Russell & Mechem, both sounded the death knell on their political careers (however both would be rewarded with judicial appointments later). I can't imagine why Fletcher would want to bail out so quickly if Bunning resigned, has he grown so weary of the job after not even a year ?
Thanks for the info. I knew if anyone knew, it would be you.
More recently, Minnesota Governor Wendell Anderson got himself appointed to the Senate in 1977, when Walter Mondale became Vice President. Technically, his Lieutenant Governor (Rudy Perpich) appointed him, but everyone knew that Perpich was doing Anderson's bidding. It was thought that Anderson was popular enough to withstand any backlash. He wasn't--he lost to plywood magnate Rudy Boschwitz in 1978.
Ah, yes, that one slipped my mind. The MN 'Rats were bitch-slapped across the board in '78, losing both Senate seats that were up and Perpich losing the Governorship to longtime GOP Congressman Al Quie (though Perpich would have the last laugh reclaiming the office 4 years later). Not until here in TN in '94 was there a similar complete sweep.
What is your sense about the Bunning/Mongiardo Senate race? Bunning seems to be slipping.
You noticed that, eh?
They can't go after Fletcher, they can't defeat Northup, and it's not McConnell's turn. So they have to beat up on Bunning. And Bunning is giving them all the ammo they need.
I no longer convinced that GWB will carry this state. The unions have poured too much firepower into KY. They want a return on their investment, and they want it now.
>>>> Mongiardo is a very slick and sleazy individual
I haven't lived in KY for a few years now and I am not very familiar with him. I was a lib until 9/11 and did know some WELL connected people up there.
If this guy loses and runs against McConnell next go 'round ... you may wish he had beaten Bunning.
I'm looking at this race from a long-distance prespective and I wonder if this race could be the equivalent of the Boschwitz-Wellstone race in 1990.
Boschwitz raced wads of cash and ran an uncaring race against Wellstone. By the time Boschwitz realized there was a problem, they paniced and made bad last-minute decisions that cost them the election.
Trust me, I remember visiting Boschwitz's HQ several times in 1990 and I've never before (or since) met a group of more arrogant, over-confident asses.
I hope none of those people ever found jobs on a political campaign again.
if you're a Minnesota GOP'er, you know who I'm talking about.
McConnell will never be defeated, you can take that to the bank. Mongiardo is only doing as well as he is against Bunning because of his mean-spirited attacks.
This is definitely not the KY version of Boschwitz-Wellstone. Mongiardo doesn't have a fraction of the charm and likeability of the late Sen. Wellstone, he's an arrogant ass.
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