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Becoming U.S. Senate minority leader has hurt Sen. Harry Reid's popularity back home, according to a Review-Journal poll. Since he was re-elected in 2004 and took the party post, the percentage of Nevadans who view Reid favorably has dropped by 10 percentage points, while the number who view him unfavorably has increased 14 percentage points. snip In the new R-J poll, of the 625 regular voters surveyed, 43 percent had a favorable opinion of Reid, while 39 percent had an unfavorable view. A week before Reid was re-elected in 2004, an R-J poll had his favorable rating at 53 percent...

Rep. Mike Pence, candidate for House minority leader, delivered the following speech to the Republican Conference today. I know there are many traditions in this room but permit me begin by acknowledging God. He has given my family and my staff the health and strength to give our colleagues a choice: to endure this contest of worthy opponents with grace. I want to thank my supporters in this room, loyal friends who have stood at my side in this cause, wherever life takes my little family, I will always see you in this moment and admire your courage and your...

PEORIA - Former U.S. Rep. Bob Michel, the longest-serving minority leader in the nation's history, said Wednesday that Republicans in Congress will "rue the day" they shut Democrats out of the lawmaking process during the past 12 years of GOP control in the House. The former Peoria lawmaker criticized his fellow Republicans for running a Congress that he found to be "too autocratic" on too many occasions.

When the now-defeated Republican majority in the House of Representative was led astray on key issues by President Bush, House Speaker Dennis Hastert and former Majority Leader Tom DeLay, it was Rep. Mike Pence of Indiana who rallied backbenchers to fight back in defense of conservative principles. That is why Pence should be elected minority leader for the next Congress. Under Pence’s leadership over the next two years, we believe, House Republicans can put themselves in position to retake the majority in 2008. More importantly, they can be counted on to fight for what’s right—even when that means defying a...

1. Report: China Selling Prisoners' Body Parts Chinese doctors are "harvesting" kidneys, corneas and other organs from live concentration camp inmates and selling them for up to $100,000 apiece. That's the shocking report from a former employee at Liaoning Provincial Thrombosis Hospital of Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine, where the organ removal has allegedly been taking place. In an interview with The Epoch Times, the ex-employee said the Sujiatun Concentration Camp in Shenyang City is part of the hospital and since 2001 has secretly detained approximately 6,000 Falun Gong practitioners - none of whom has left the camp alive. "The...

WASHINGTON -- Sen. Harry Reid of Nevada began receiving campaign contributions from at least four American Indian tribes only after they hired Jack Abramoff, Republicans charged this week in an effort to tie the Senate Democratic leader to the disgraced lobbyist. On Thursday, Reid shrugged off questions about money he received from tribal clients of Abramoff, who pleaded guilty last month to three felonies after being accused of exchanging meals, travel and gifts for political favors. "I've said that I received money from Indians in the past and will continue to do so," Reid said. Asked what he would say...

Senator Joseph Biden (D-DE) failed today to address rumors that Nevada Senator Harry Reid will step down next month as Senate Minority Leader. Reid has been stung by revelations that his political action committee (PAC) accepted more than $60,000 in contributions from Indian tribes linked to convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Appearing on CNN's Late Edition, Biden avoided discussing either the Reid situation or any upcoming changes in Senate Democratic leadership. Reid is no stranger to scandal, having been the subject of a 1979 Justice Department probe into allegations that Reid — then Nevada Gaming Commission chairman — had received bribes...

Sen. Harry Reid, the leading candidate for Senate minority leader, plans to oppose vigorously President Bush's second-term agenda, especially on such issues as tort reform and Social Security partial privatization. "There's not going to be a lay-down," Mr. Reid said of congressional Democrats. "The president knows that he's not going to get anything done unless he works with us." In an interview Friday with Las Vegas One, a local cable news channel, the Nevada Democrat acknowledged that Mr. Bush could "jam a few things through" Congress without the Democrats. But Mr. Reid made clear that Democrats could derail the bulk...

SACRAMENTO (AP) - Assembly Republicans re-elected Assemblyman Kevin McCarthy of Bakersfield as their leader on Thursday. "I am honored to lead a diverse and talented group of legislators in the Assembly," McCarthy said in a statement. "I look forward to fresh ideas from an accomplished group of newly elected officials." There will be 32 Republicans, including nine freshmen, in the Assembly when lawmakers begin their 2005 session on Dec. 6. Democrats will hold 48 seats - the same number they have now. McCarthy, who won a second term in the Legislature on Tuesday, took over as Assembly minority leader last...

Kerry Plan: White House Run Hid True Ambition by Scott Ott (2004-11-03) -- Sen. John Forbes Kerry, who was also a presidential candidate until recently, today finally explained "the plan" to which he often referred during his White House bid. "You probably thought my plan involved sitting in the Oval Office," said Mr. Kerry, "But everything I have done this year was simply to lay the groundwork for my triumphal ascension to the post of Senate Minority Leader. Now that my coattails have carried Tom Daschle to defeat, I stand ready to lead the remainder of the senate Democrats with...

Pelosi here Tuesday U.S. House Democratic Leader Rep. NANCY PELOSI of California will be in Springfield for a fund-raising luncheon Tuesday honoring U.S. Rep. LANE EVANS, D-Rock Island. The event is from 11:30 to 1 p.m. at the Renaissance Springfield. Tickets start at $50. Evans represents the 17th Congressional District, which includes part of Springfield

U.S. Newswire 18 Nov 14:16 Nancy Pelosi is Not a 'Conservative Catholic'; Anti-life Stance Creates Scandal Within Church To: National Desk Contact: Erik Whittington of the American Life League, 703-690-2510, ewhittington@all.org WASHINGTON, Nov. 18 /U.S. Newswire/ -- "In recent media appearances, new House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi has been described as a conservative Catholic," said American Life League president Judie Brown. "This disturbs me. I want her bishop to know that her public opposition to Catholic teachings is creating scandal among faithful members of the Church. It is my prayer that he will respond accordingly." Mrs. Brown has written Archbishop...

<p>Given the unequivocal rout in the Nov. 5 election, there's been no shortage of friendly advice on how the Democratic Party can resuscitate itself.</p> <p>From Sen. Zell Miller, a Georgia Democrat, looking at the prospect that Rep. Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco will become the new public face of the party in the House of Representatives: "We've got the left-turn signal on, and we're headed down another rabbit hole to political oblivion."</p>

New Democractic Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi is even too liberal for the Democrats. Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi, positioned for House minority leader, may be too far left for the future good of the Democratic Party, some within the party assert. She has promised to "highlight those differences" between Democrats and the "extreme policies put forward by the Republicans." Voting with the liberals on numerous issues, from partial birth abortion to school vouchers to gun control, she voted against Bush’s homeland-security issues. Further, Pelosi belongs to the House "Progressive Caucus"—a "front" for the furtherance of Socialist principles. Vermont Socialist Bernie Sanders,...

New Democractic Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi is even too liberal for the Democrats.Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi, positioned for House minority leader, may be too far left for the future good of the Democratic Party, some within the party assert. She has promised to "highlight those differences" between Democrats and the "extreme policies put forward by the Republicans." Voting with the liberals on numerous issues, from partial birth abortion to school vouchers to gun control, she voted against Bush’s homeland-security issues. Further, Pelosi belongs to the House "Progressive Caucus"—a "front" for the furtherance of Socialist principles. Vermont Socialist Bernie Sanders, in...

Last Thursday, House Democrats elected Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) as House Minority Leader. Pelosi won the minority leader position on a 177-29 vote. That is, only 29 House Democrats voted against her. Clearly, 177 agree with her positions. This is a very important point. Because, now we can define, specifically, what the House Democrats are and what they stand for. Money is the life-blood of politics. Like Hillary in the Senate, Pelosi capitalized on that. In so doing, Pelosi bought her position within the Democratic Party. According to Opensecrets.org(1), Pelosi set up her own PAC and quickly became a major...

If, as expected, House Democrats elect Rep. Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco as their new minority leader on Thursday (Nov. 14), they will have given Republicans two major victories in less than 10 days. The first victory, on Election Day, gave Republicans control of Congress and the White House for the first time in half a century. The second will come with the election of Pelosi as minority leader. It will allow Republicans to again invoke the image of Democrats as the big-government, high-taxing, over-regulating, entitlement-establishing, unaccountable, irresponsible, gun-confiscating, totalitarian-coddling, peace-at-any-price, ACLU card-carrying, same-sex- marrying, unrestricted-aborting, anything-goes philosophy of the...

Saturday, November 9, 2002; Page A04 Rejecting critics' suggestions that Democrats lost the battle for Congress because they had the wrong message -- or no message at all, Senate Democratic Leader Thomas A. Daschle (S.D.) said yesterday it was really just a failure of communication. Democrats were effective in pointing out deficiencies in the Bush administration's economic policies but less successful when it came to selling their own strategies, Daschle said at his first press briefing since Democrats lost the Senate and the GOP solidified its hold on the House in Tuesday's elections. "It isn't for lack of a strategy,"...

The Suicide Queen The Democratic party was rocked recently by the success of Republicans in the midterm elections. But something much bigger just happened, something much worse for the party than a temporary defeat. Permanent damage is being done to the Democratic party. Democrats lost the midterm elections because the party leadership was disorganized and had no coherent agenda. There was no substance at the top. And the Democrats could have easily won these elections, with a different strategy. Terry McAuliffe, the head of the DNC--the Number One Democrat--is an excellent fundraiser. But that's all he is, he's just a...