Every state
November 19th, 2009 by Derrick DePledgeGov. Linda Lingle, who is on the Mainland this week for the Republican Governors Association annual meeting in Texas, is talking pretty confidently about the GOP’s chances in gubernatorial races next year.
The RGA released new poll numbers that showed just 42 percent of voters in states with competitive governor’s races would re-elect President Obama. The Zogby International/O'Leary Report Poll poll determined the competitive races based on the Cook Political Report, which has Hawaii as a toss up.
Local political analysts give Democrats -- either U.S. Rep. Neil Abercrombie or Honolulu Mayor Mufi Hannemann -- the edge over Lt. Gov. James “Duke” Aiona in traditionally blue Hawaii, Obama’s birth state.
Lingle, however, believes Republicans can win everywhere.
From a dispatch by Mike Madden, our former colleague at Gannett in Washington, D.C., who is now with liberal Salon:
And (Mississippi Gov. Haley) Barbour came armed with a new poll by Zogby International that showed Obama's approval ratings and reelection numbers were perilously low in states with competitive gubernatorial races on tap for next year.
Hawaii Gov. Linda Lingle said there was no reason the GOP shouldn't aim to win every single state. "There's no state that we can't win," she said.
"Talking to a Republican from Hawaii -- the first Republican elected in 40 years -- I'm telling you, we could win in every state."
November 19th, 2009 at 9:29 pm
Believe Lingle is not quite correct about another republican governor for Hawaii. The reason another republican will not be elected is because of her, not Obama. After what she did to the state (or not do) in 8 years, the astute citizens of Hawaii have had enough of talk, they want action and a dynamic leader, not someone who stubbornly follows the republican platform, even though it is the wrong thing to do. Her reign of terror was "promises, promises (only)."
November 19th, 2009 at 10:55 pm
Actually....in this economy, if they truly stuck to their fiscally conservative roots, Republicans would probably fare better than their current reality. Their problem has been, and will continue to be, that they align their 'base' with the bible-zombies. If they stepped away from that 'base', and moved towards trying to actually court the 'independent' fiscal conservatives, then Lingle would be totally right.
But the collective Rs wont do that. Amen.
November 20th, 2009 at 6:43 am
Lingle got a taste of life in the national spotlight at the 2008 GOP Convention and she LIKES it. She has no chance of winning election from Hawaii to the US Senate, so she is taking her show on the road. (In this, she is similar to Sarah Palin.)
It used to be said that politics is "show business for ugly people." The GOP has embraced that wisdom and raised it to a new level. Rather than having office holders lead their party, they have inflatable "public figures", part political hack, part "entertainer." And there's a lot of money to be made and fame to be attained without having to actually accomplish anything beyond stoking the fires of partisan anger.
Lingle has a particular schtick in search of a niche market. She's a (semi) moderate, Jewish Republican woman, though her moderation seems to have shifted according to the needs of the market. She has long been used to travel the country, speaking to Republican Jewish donors, working to convince them that despite the obvious embrace of the intolerant Christian Right by the national GOP, there is still a place for Jews in the GOP.
Whether she will retain her "pro-choice" and "pro-environment" views will depend on how good a fit such views are for the demands of the marketplace. She has certainly de-emphasized them lately. Her previous support for gay equality? Not likely to survive.
Nice how the "free market" has such a marvelous, nurturing effect on "free speech."
November 20th, 2009 at 7:57 am
Aloha ~
Although I rarely agree with Ms. Lingle, on this point she is correct, "Republicans can win everywhere."
As long as Democrats continue their strategy to govern Republican Lite there is great possibility they will lose in massive restructuring in the 2010 elections.
WaPost today captured some of the growing frustration across the nation, "a wave of criticism and outright anger directed at the Obama administration ... episodes in both houses of Congress exposed the raw nerves of lawmakers flooded with stories of unemployment and economic hardship back home."
Election 2008 focused on change. The Bush admin bankrupted the nation and locked us into two failed wars. Democrats were given a mandate by voters in historic form. Yet revitalization and reform is moving too slowly - Just Do It
Democrats champion the middle class; Republicans represent the rich. And the middle class continues to collapse. The BLS released today that Hawai'i's unemployment (U3) is now above 7.2 percent; U6 underemployment nears 20 percent. We have no more patience!
Majority voter sentiment is ... "if Democrats cannot provide livable wages and conditions for the middle class then we have no other choice but to try the other party again." We cannot afford to be patience!
Uncle Barack has been far too cautious with the stimulus. While I respect his efforts to reach across the isle and build consensus, when Republican leaders declare Holy War then it's time to use brute force.
Power is fleeting ... use it or lose it. End these furloughs; stop cutting worker pay; and begin the process of healing a very sick economy. If not we're putting you ALL back on the bench.
A*L*O*H*A
November 20th, 2009 at 9:32 am
Aloha ~
I have been ranting about saving public sector jobs and pay levels although few have taken this public educated economist seriously ... please see the report today from the Economic Policy Institute.
A couple key points:
"... for every dollar of [state government] budget cuts, more than half the jobs and economic activity lost will be in the private sector."
"... nearly one-third of state spending goes to public provisions such as infrastructure, which is usually awarded to private contractors ..."
Contracting is down 20 percent so far and must be increased to revitalize the private sector.
Please see:
State, local budget cuts a "time bomb" for U.S. jobs
A*L*O*H*A