Political Bulletin

WASHINGTON NEWS

Court To Hear "Partial-Birth" Abortion Case.

The Supreme Court today will hear a case on the "Partial-Birth Abortion" law, which was struck down by a Federal court because it contained no exception for the "life of the mother." The Administration is appealing that decision. The Washington Post reports, "As the Supreme Court prepares for today's oral arguments...both sides are focusing on the same question: 'What will Kennedy do?' ... The pivotal figure in the biggest Supreme Court abortion battle in half a decade is Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, the 70-year-old centrist with an 18-year record of eclecticism on abortion and other social issues." The Christian Science Monitor notes that "in their confirmation hearings last year, John Roberts and Samuel Alito sidestepped pointed questions about whether they would overturn abortion precedents. Now, a year later, the country is about to get some answers."

Feds Try To Fix Drug Benefit Billing Errors.

USA Today reports this morning that Federal agencies are "still trying to fix a long-running billing problem" with the Medicare prescription drug plan "that at its peak this summer ensnared about half a million people. Despite those efforts, about 50,000 people who chose to have their monthly Medicare drug premiums taken out of their Social Security checks are still having incorrect amounts withheld." Medicare "fixed about 100,000 cases last month, leaving about 50,000 unresolved, says Jim Kerr, an acting deputy director at Medicare." But he added, "It has taken a great deal of time to resolve some of them, unfortunately."

Ortega Declared Victor In Nicaragua.

In Nicaragua, old US nemesis Daniel Ortega has reclaimed the presidency. The New York Times says Ortega, whose win was made official yesterday, "maintains that both he and the country have changed since the 1980s," but as the Chicago Tribune reports, US officials "fear" Ortega's come-back will give them "a new left-wing antagonist in Latin America."

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POLITICAL NEWS

Senate Control Hinges On Tight VA, MT Races.

The AP reports Democrats "captured four of the six Republican-held seats they needed to take control of the Senate, winning critical contests in Ohio, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania and Missouri, and inched closer Wednesday to erasing the GOP's majority." Democrats also "mounted challenges for two remaining Republican-held seats in Virginia and Montana -- and were ahead in both. But in Virginia, Democratic challenger James Webb's lead over Republican incumbent George Allen was razor thin and a recount was likely." Republicans and Democrats both "dispatched lawyers to Virginia to tally uncounted absentee ballots Wednesday, as well as canvass votes counted on Election Day."

According to the Virginia State Board of Elections Web site, with 99.75% of precincts reporting, Webb held 49.58 percent of the vote to Allen's 49.22 percent. The margin represented a difference of about 8,350 votes. The Washington Times that Webb declared victory at 2:30 am, saying "I would like to say the votes are in and we won." Allen, however, "had no plans to concede, and reminded supporters gathered for him here in Richmond that he has won close elections before. 'The first time I ever won an election...it was 18 votes. We had to have a recount,' Mr. Allen said, to huge cheers from those who were still left in the room at about 12:30 a.m. 'So, the point of the matter is, we're still counting votes.'" The Richmond Times-Dispatch reports, "Most of the uncounted ballots are absentee. The Republican Party mounted a strong absentee ballot effort. Many absentee ballots are cast by business people, who tend to be Republicans."

In Montana, election results provided by the AP showed challenger Jon Tester (D) leading Sen. Conrad Burns (R) 49.12% to 48.33% with 90% of precincts reporting. The Billings Gazette reports that Tester "clung to a lead over" Burns, "but vote-counting delays prevented a winner from being named." The Gazette adds, "Despite his lead, Tester was not declaring victory shortly before midnight." In a brief report, the Great Falls Tribune reports that with 81 percent of the precincts reporting, Burns was "making a late push."

Four GOP Incumbents Lose. In Missouri, first-term Sen. Jim Talent (R) fell to Claire McCaskill (D) 49.4% to 47.4%. The St Louis Post Dispatch reports that Talent "called McCaskill about 1 this morning to concede. 'It just looked like we couldn't do it,' he said. 'The headwind was very strong this year.' Credit for McCaskill's victory goes in part to her success in garnering more votes from Republican-rich rural turf." In Ohio, Rep. Sherrod Brown (D) defeated Sen. Mike DeWine (R) 56%-44%. The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports on its weblog that Brown "ran a disciplined campaign that hammered relentlessly on DeWine's support for President Bush's policies in Iraq and at home. In Rhode Island, Sheldon Whitehouse (D) defeated Lincoln Chafee (R) 53.5% to 46.5%. The Providence Journal reports that Whitehouse's win ended "the Chafee family's 30-year lock on the seat on a day when voters across the Northeast rose up against President Bush and the Republican leadership that has run Washington, D.C., for six years." Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum (R), who had trailed by large margins throughout the campaign, fell easily to state Auditor Bob Casey Jr. (D), who defeated him 59%-41%, according to the AP.

GOP Efforts To Take Democratic Seats Thwarted. Republicans had hoped to take a pair of Democratic-held seats: the open seat in Maryland, and the seat held by appointed Sen. Bob Menendez (D) in New Jersey. The AP reports Menendez defeated GOP candidate Tom Kean Jr. 53%-45% with 97 percent of precincts reporting. Menendez "successfully linked" Kean to President Bush and the Iraq War. In Maryland, Rep. Ben Cardin (D) defeated Lt. Gov. Michael Steele (R) 54%-44%. The Baltimore Sun reports Cardin "rode widespread voter dissatisfaction with President Bush and the national GOP to apparent victory" over Steele. Cardin declared victory, but Steele has not conceded, "pinning his hopes on closing the gap when 192,000 absentee ballots are counted beginning tomorrow."

Democrats Take Control Of House.

The AP reports this morning that Democrats "won control of the House early Wednesday after a dozen years of Republican rule in a resounding repudiation of a war, a president and a scandal-scarred Congress. ... By early Wednesday, Democrats had won 227 seats, enough for control, and were leading for another 6, which would give them 233. Republicans, who hold 229 seats in the current House, won 186 and were leading in another 16, which would give them 202."

The Washington Post reports, "By early this morning, Democrats had picked up more than two dozen Republican-held House seats without losing any of their own, putting Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) into position to become the nation's first female speaker."

The New York Times reports that the Democrats' "victory in the House - overcoming a legendarily efficient White House political machine - represented a dramatic turnaround in the fortunes of the party and signaled a sea change in the political dynamics in Washington after a dozen years in which Republicans controlled Congress for all but a brief period."

The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that voters "slammed the symbolic brakes on" Bush's presidency yesterday, "guaranteeing a more assertive Congress as they turned the midterm elections into a referendum on Republican rule."

Numerous GOP Veterans Defeated. USA Today reports that "Arizona's J.D. Hayworth, Indiana's John Hostettler and New Hampshire's Charlie Bass, in the class of 'Republican revolutionaries'...were among Republican casualties." In addition, "longtime Republican incumbents Nancy Johnson of Connecticut, Anne Northup of Kentucky, Charles Taylor of North Carolina, Jim Ryun of Kansas and Clay Shaw of Florida lost their seats. So did New Hampshire's Republican congressmen, Bass and Jeb Bradley."

Democrats Take Majority Of Governorships.

The AP reports this morning that Democrats took a majority of the governorships in the nation for the first time in 12 years, taking six seats away from Republicans. Democrats knocked off one incumbent Republican, where Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley defeated Maryland Gov. Bob Ehrlich (R) 53%-46%, and took five open seats from the Republicans. In New York, Attorney General Eliot Spitzer (D) defeated John Faso (R) 69%-29%, taking a seat long held by Republican George Pataki. In Ohio, Rep. Ted Strickland (D) easily defeated Secretary of State Kenneth Blackwell (R), winning 60%-37%. In Massachusetts, Deval Patrick (D) defeated Lt. Gov. Kerry Healey (R) 56%-35% to capture the job being vacated by Gov. Mitt Romney (R), who has presidential aspirations. In Arkansas, Attorney General Mike Beebe (D) defeated Asa Hutchinson (R), a former Congressman and Bush administration official, 55%-41%. In Colorado, Bill Ritter (D) defeated Rep. Bob Beauprez (R) to capture the governor's mansion for the Democrats, 56%-41%.

Republican Attempts To Capture Democratic Governorships Come Up Short. The GOP had gone into the election cycle hoping to capture several governorships currently held by Democrats, but came up short in each race. In Iowa, Secretary of State Chet Culver (D) defeated Rep. Jim Nussle (R) 54%-44%, where Culver "will become just the second Democrat elected Iowa governor in more than 40 years," the Des Moines Register reports. In Oregon, Gov. Ted Kulongoski (D) saw off challenger Ron Saxton (R) 51%-43%, while in Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle (D) defeated challenger Mark Green (R) 53%-45%. Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm (D), buffeted by a poor economy, held off a well-financed challenger from Dick DeVos (R), defeating him 56%-42%.

GOP Holds Florida, Minnesota, California. The Republicans did score a few successes last night. The GOP narrowly held onto the Minnesota governor's mansion, with Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R) defeating challenger Mike Hatch (D) 47%-46%. The Minneapolis Star-Tribune notes, "As one of the few statewide Republican victors in a Democratic state in the midst of an overwhelming Democratic tide, Pawlenty may have enhanced his national image as an up-and-coming star with a future in national office." In Florida, Attorney General Charlie Crist (R) defeated Rep. Jim Davis (D) 52%-47% in the race to replace outgoing Gov. Jeb Bush (R). In California, the LA Times reports that a "year after his crushing defeat in the special election" California Gov. Arnold Schwarnegger (R) defeated challenger Phil Angelides (D) in a "landslide," winning 56%-39%.

Bush To Address Election Results Today.

President Bush will hold a news conference this afternoon in which he's expected to address his party's losses in the midterm elections. The New York Times reports White House spokesman Tony Fratto said the President will call Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi this morning. Karl Rove, says USA Today, was the one tasked with informing Bush "around 11:15 p.m. ET that the House was lost," according to White House spokeswoman Dana Perino. Later in the evening, as the AP reports, White House press secretary Tony Snow talked to reporters about the President's reaction to the results. Said Snow, "The president's not the kind of guy who is going to be somber about things." Asked if the President "was surprised that the House was shifting to the Democrats, Snow said it wasn't 'a slap-on-the-forehead kind of shock.'"

Bush Blamed For GOP Losses. Bush may not have been on the ballot yesterday, but most analysts are blaming the GOP results on his low popularity ratings. One key phrase in a lot of the election night commentary: the midterms were "a referendum on Bush." Conservative columnist George Will, on ABC News, said the election was "absolutely" a referendum on Bush and the Iraq war. On CBS News, former Bill Clinton spokesman Mike McCurry said, "This is really a referendum on George Bush." On NBC News, Campbell Brown echoed those themes, saying, "Even though he wasn't on the ballot, George Bush was a big factor today. President Bush and anger over the war in Iraq." In the Los Angeles Times, Ronald Brownstein writes that "the results raise fundamental questions about the viability of the strategy Bush and his chief political advisor, Karl Rove, have pursued to build a lasting Republican political majority." On its front-page, the Washington Post runs an analysis piece titled "A Voter Rebuke For Bush, the War And the Right," while the New York Times headlines its own front-page analysis "A Loud Message for Bush," and says voters have put "a proudly unyielding president on notice that the voters want change, especially on the war in Iraq." National Review's Editor in Chief Rich Lowry said on Fox News said, "I think people have the sense that George Bush doesn't listen. That's always a deadly sin for...a leader."

After Midterms, McCain Touting GOP Bona Fides.

Sen. John McCain is eager to show his Republican bona fides. The Arizona Republican is widely considered a maverick in GOP circles but as he gears up to run for president in 2008, McCain wants to demonstrate that he is actually a loyal party man. To that end, his political organization, Straight Talk America, issued a summary of McCain's political activities in the 2006 election cycle. McCain, it turns out, has attended 346 events and raised more than $10.5 million for Republican candidates and party organizations across the country. The senator flew 137,747 miles, "enough miles to fly 5.29 times around the globe," according to his spokesman. One point was not mentioned by the senator's staff, however: Yesterday, Florida GOP gubernatorial candidate Charlie Crist skipped a joint appearance with President Bush in Pensacola in favor of attending a separate event with McCain in Jacksonville. The snub embarrassed the President and his aides, and it miffed Karl Rove, Bush's chief political counselor.

Last night, on NBC News, McCain said Republicans lost because "we haven't adhered to the conservative principles, which I think still the majority of Americans feel it's in their priorities. But on the war in Iraq, of course, it's frustrating. It's frustrating to all of us. ... We know that it's not going well." But particularly, he reiterated, "I think it's spending, I think it's not keeping to our conservative principles, and I think that the scandals have something to do with it as well."

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POLITICAL HUMOR

The Latest From Late Night Comedians.

Jay Leno: "You know where Vice President Dick Cheney went today? You know what he did today? Yeah, he went hunting. He went hunting. Isn't that hard to believe? It's lawyer season already!"

Jay Leno: "As you know, a court in Iraq has found Saddam Hussein guilty, sentenced him to death. ... Many Democrats believe the timing of the verdict was manipulated by the White House. Which of course, the White House says that's ridiculous. They were so busy manipulating the price of oil before the election, they didn't have time to work on that."

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