US Senate Races 2012 … GOP Poised to Take Back the Senate, Up in FL, WI, MT, NE and MA

Every one has their eye on the GOP Presidential primary and which Republican hopeful, Romney, Santorum, Gingrich, Paul, or a player to be named later will run against Barack Obama in the 2012 election. However, do not forget the all important US Senate elections. The GOP is poised to take back control from Harry Reid and the Democrats in 2012.

Republicans nearly took back control of the Senate in the 2012 midterm elections; however, because of the mere number of seats that Democrats will have to defend and the number of retirements, it is hard to imagine that Harry Reid will be Senate Majority Leader following the 2012 elections. Republicans look poised to pick up seats in Florida, Wisconsin, Montana, Nebraska and holding Massachusetts.

Election 2012: Florida Senate – Florida Senate: Mack (R) 43%, Nelson (D) 36%. Incumbent Bill Nelson finds himself in serious trouble in the battleground state of Florida. This would be a huge pick up for the GOP. Look for Senator Marco Rubio (FL-R) to be the difference for Mack.

Republican Congressman Connie Mack now posts a seven-point lead over Democratic Senator Bill Nelson in Florida’s U.S. Senate race, and the incumbent remains just ahead of his other two potential GOP rivals.

Election 2012: Nebraska Senate – Nebraska Senate: Bruning (R) 55%, Kerrey (D) 33%. Nebraska is all but lost to Democrats as Ben “the Corn Husker Kickback” Nelson is getting out of Dodge in lie of being on the wrong side of a landslide GOP victory in 2012.

Democrats hoped to give themselves a shot at holding onto a U.S. Senate seat in Nebraska by talking retired Senator Bob Kerrey into running, but the first Rasmussen Reports survey of the race finds Kerrey trailing all three of his leading Republican opponents. A new telephone survey of Likely Nebraska Voters finds state Attorney General Jon Bruning earning 55% support to Kerrey’s 33%. Four percent (4%) like another candidate in the race, and seven percent (7%) remain undecided.  (To see survey question wording, click here.)

Election 2012: Wisconsin Senate – Wisconsin Senate: Thompson (R) 50%, Baldwin (D) 36%.

Former Governor Tommy Thompson continues to be the strongest Republican contender for Wisconsin’s open U.S. Senate seat, now posting a double-digit lead over Democratic Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin.

The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of Likely Voters in Wisconsin shows Thompson with 50% support to Baldwin’s 36%. Four percent (4%) like some other candidate, and 10% are undecided. (To see survey question wording, click here.)

Election 2012: Montana Senate – Montana Senate: Rehberg (R) 47%, Tester (D) 44%. Incumbent Democrat Jon Tester finds himself below the 50% threshold and in trouble for reelection in 2012.

Democratic incumbent Jon Tester runs slightly behind his leading Republican challenger in his bid for reelection in Montana’s U.S. Senate race.

A new telephone survey of Likely Voters in the state finds Republican Congressman Denny Rehberg earning 47% support to Tester’s 44% in Rasmussen Reports’ first look at this contest.  Four percent (4%) prefers some other candidate, while five percent (5%) are undecided.  (To see survey question wording, click here.)

Election 2012: Massachusetts Senate – Massachusetts Senate: Brown (R) 49%, Warren (D) 44%.

Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown, who won the 2010 special election to finish the term of the late Ted Kennedy, holds a modest lead over his expected Democrat challenger Elizabeth Warren in the first Rasmussen Reports’ look at his 2012 reelection bid in the Bay State.

More to follow …

Barack Obama Lobbying Democrats to Reject GOP Amendment for Construction of Keystone XL Pipeline (Dems in Senate Vote Down Bill)

So much for President Barack Obama’s so-called all of the above approach to energy. Obama nixed the XL Keystone Oil pipeline and all of the jobs that would be created from his project, now “The One” is looking to lobby Democrats to reject the GOP amendment that would build it. Obama actually had the audacity to accused Republicans of playing politics with the issue. Actually Mr. President, playing politics would be pandering to the LEFT-wing enviro’s rather than crate jobs for Americans.

President Barack Obama is intervening in a Senate fight over the Keystone XL oil pipeline and personally lobbying Democrats to reject an amendment calling for its construction, according to several sources familiar with the talks.

The White House lobbying effort, including phone calls from the president to Democrats, signals that the vote could be close when it heads to the floor Thursday. The president is trying to defeat an amendment that would give election-year fodder to his Republican critics who have accused him of blocking a job-creating energy project at a time of high gas prices.

The amendment, proposed by Sen. John Hoeven (R-N.D.), states that Obama would have no role in such cross-border permitting decisions since, in this case, the pipeline would originate in Canada.

Right Wing News reminds us that Obama’s “all the above” approach rally is just about tax subsidies and credits for “green” and alternative energy. Great Barack, but how do we get to an alternative energy solution? I would think that some one so smart as Obama would understand that to get from point A to point C, one has to go to B first. Unless one just hates fossil fuels and will do anything to destroy it. But of course Obama is not playing politics or have any agenda here.

Meanwhile, he announced he’s pushing for $1 billion in tax credits and grants for alternative energy cars and trucks, as he said in that same speech in North Carolina at a Daimler truck plant, because “We can’t just keep on relying on the old ways of doing business. We can’t just rely on fossil fuels from the last century. We’ve got to continually develop new sources of energy.”

UPDATE I: Democrats reject amendment in US Senate that would have started construction of XL Keystone pipeline 56-42. The bill needed 60 votes to pass. All who voted nay were Democrats or Independents who caucus with Donkeys. Eleven Democrats crossed party lines in a bipartisan effort to pass the bill that would have created thousand’s of jobs. However, Obama’s direct lobbying against the measure was too much in the end for partisan Dems to follow the party line no matter how high gas prices are.

Despite Obama’s efforts, 11 Democrats brushed off Obama on the vote and sided with Republicans.

The 11 Democratic defections were Sens. Max Baucus (Mont.), Mark Begich (Alaska), Bob Casey (Pa.), Kent Conrad (N.D.), Kay Hagan (N.C.), Mary Landrieu (La.), Joe Manchin (W.Va.), Claire McCaskill (Mo.), Mark Pryor (Ark.), Jon Tester (Mont.) and Jim Webb (Va.).

Obama’s Chief of Staff Jack Lew Lied on CNN in Misleading Comments about Blaming Republicans fior the Democrat Controlled Senate’s Failure to Pass a Budget Resolution

YOU LIE!!!  Now you know what Barack Obama’s strategy will be for reelection … he and his minions are going to lie through their teeth.

Obama and the MSM, perfect together. White House Chief of Staff Jack Lew, stated on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Feb. 12. 2012 that the GOP Senate was to blame for no budget being passed in the Senate and it would never get 60 votes. One would think that  Jack Lew who was the recent budget director for President Obama and also the budget director for former President Bill Clinton would be an expert on the budget and rules. So with all that experience one can only surmise that he flat out lied and tried to mislead the American people on CNN …

But we also need to be honest. You can’t pass a budget in the Senate of the United States without 60 votes and you can’t get 60 votes without bipartisan support. So unless Republicans are willing to work with Democrats in the Senate, Harry Reid is not going to be able to get a budget passed. And I think he was reflecting the reality of that that could be a challenge.”

There is just one problem with Jack Lew’s comments. They are 100% false.60 votes are not needed in a budget reconciliation. They actually only require 51 votes or a simple majority. However, the WH did not dispute Lew’s misrepresentations but instead stated that he was only referencing the gridlock. REALLY? Last time I checked the Democrats held the Senate. You mean that Obama and Reid can’t get 51 votes in a Democrat controlled US Senate? Maybe Obama needs to look at his own party first when it comes to obstruction.

But the congressional budget resolution can be important because of a process known as reconciliation. If language is included in the budget resolution that directs a Congressional committee to meet certain spending or tax targets, then the resulting bill cannot be subject to filibuster (ie, needing 60 votes to end debate) and can pass with only a majority vote. (For more information on the budget process, see this excellent primer by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.)

More from Michelle Malkin and the lack of truth from the Obama administration.

Judge Michael Malihi Orders Barack Obama Eligible to be on Georgia Presidential Ballot … Good News for Obama, Even Better for Marco Rubio

Barack Obama wins the battle, but Democrats may have lost the war …

President Barack Obama has won the court battle in Georgia that questioned his right to be on the 2012 Presidential ballot due to his citizenship. Judge Michael Malihi dismissed the challenges that contended Obama has a fake Hawaiian birth certificate, a fraudulent Social Security number and invalid US  identification papers. The Judge also dismissed the the claim that Obama was ineligible to be a candidate because his father was not a United States citizen at the time of Obama’s birth.

President Barack Obama’s name will remain on the Georgia primary ballot after a state law judge flatly rejected legal challenges that contend he can not be a candidate.

In a 10-page order, Judge Michael Malihi dismissed one challenge that contended Obama has a computer-generated Hawaiian birth certificate, a fraudulent Social Security number and invalid U.S. identification papers. He also turned back another that claimed the president is ineligible to be a candidate because his father was not a U.S. citizen at the time of Obama’s birth.

The findings by Malihi, a judge for the State Office of Administrative Hearings, go to Secretary of State Brian Kemp, who will make the final determination. Last month, at a hearing boycotted by Obama’s lawyer, Malihi considered complaints brought by members of the so-called “birther” movement.

Read more

TSA Defending Us from Terrorism … Detain US Senator (KY-R) Rand Paul at Nashville Airport

UNREAL, the TSA has done it again. They can’t seem to prevent guns from making it through security, but they can certainly detain a US Senator. Nice job folks.

Senator Rand Paul (KY-R) was detained by the TSA at Nashville International Airport. Not only did they detain Rand Paul, the TSA also told him he was not allowed to use his cell phone when he tried to contact his office. Really. since when does the TSA have the right to tell you that you are not allowed to make calls? So much for Liberty America.

Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul told The Daily Caller that being “detained” by the Transportation Security Administration at the Nashville airport Monday was a major ordeal that underscores flaws in TSA’s procedures that affect tens of millions of passengers every year.

“It was a big headache,” Paul said in a phone interview. “I missed my speech here. I was supposed to speak to the Right to Life March, probably the biggest audience I’ll get to speak to, and I missed it.”

The White House, through spokesman Jay Carney, defended the TSA’s actions during Monday’s press briefing by arguing that Paul wasn’t technically “detained.”

“Let’s be clear,” Carney said. “The passenger was not detained. He was escorted out of the area by local law-enforcement.”

Really, what would the story be if Michelle Obama was detained by the TSA?

UPDATE I: Nice, The Obama White House sides with the TSA police state. This is what is required for safe travel, really? Honestly, if this kind of nonsense is required for safe travel where the TSA cannot differentiate between a US Senator and a terrorist, we have already lost the war on terrorism.

White House press secretary Jay Carney said Monday that he didn’t have any reaction to Paul’s “police state” comments.

But Carney sided with the TSA saying, “I think it is absolutely essential that we take necessary actions to ensure that air travel is safe.”

Internet Censorship: SOPA Shelved Until ‘consensus’ is Found … PIPA still Has Vote on January 24th

It’s a start, but none of us should get a warm fuzzy until a stake is put through the heart of SOPA and PIPA.

The Internet can claim a victory, but do not get out the champagne and party favors just yet. As reported at The Hill, House Oversight Chairman Darrell Issa (R-CA) said early Saturday that Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) promised him the House will not vote on the controversial Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) unless there is consensus on the bill.

“While I remain concerned about Senate action on the Protect IP Act, I am confident that flawed legislation will not be taken up by this House,” Issa said in a statement.  “Majority Leader Cantor has assured me that we will continue to work to address outstanding concerns and work to build consensus prior to any anti-piracy legislation coming before the House for a vote.”

The announcement comes just hours after Judiciary Chairman Lamar Smith (R-Texas), SOPA’s sponsor, made a major concession to the bill’s critics by agreeing to drop a controversial provision that would have required Internet service providers to block infringing websites.

However, Issa said that even without the site-blocking provision, the bill is “fundamentally flawed.”

All should watch the following VIDEO from the Cynical Brit … makes a lot of sense and should scare the Hell out of you!

Six Republican Senators have come forward to ask Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to postpone the vote on PIPA; however, Independent socialist Senator has responded that the vote should go ahead as planned.

Late today came word that six Republican senators have asked Majority Leader Harry Reid to postpone a vote on Pro IP, also known as PIPA. The senators wrote: “Prior to committee action, some members expressed substantive concerns about the bill, and there was a commitment to resolve them prior to floor consideration.”

For those of you who do not know what SOPA and PIPA is, please familiarize yourself. It impacts all that use the Internet from bloggers to Facebook, from Google to YouTube.  These two bills are supposed to prevent on-line piracy; however, like ever poorly written bill, its the law of unintended circumstances that all that currently use the Internet can already see. Do we really want Congress to pass another bill into law where it has to be passed so that we can see whats in it? Bad legislation is bad legislation. It should cause pause for all, no matter if they are on the LEFT, RIGHT or CENTER, when a government looks to restrict Freedom of Speech under the guise of a piracy bill.  This is one issue where we can all come together and “JUST SAY NO” to SOPA and PIPA!

Did Congress actually think they were going to slip such a bill that would affect so many under the cloak of darkness? Shame on all of you who backed, supported and sponsored this bill. Many of which who are in complete retreat due to the backlash of “We the People”.

Reddit and maybe Wikipedia was supposed to go “dark” for 12 hours on January 18 to protest SOPA.  Maybe they will still do so to protest PIPA.  Imagine if YouTube, Facebook and Google went dark to protest as well? Maybe that is what it will take for law makers to realize that writing BS bills will not be tolerated.

Senator Marco Rubio (FL-R) to Obama … You are Turning America into a “Deadbeat Nation”

Is this the “Hope & Change” America was promised … a deadbeat nation?

US Senator Marco Rubio (FL-R) fired off a scathing yet accurate letter to President Obama stating that during his first term and the lack of leadership from The One,  Obama is turning America into a “deadbeat nation”. With record number of Americans on food stamps, millions unemployed and a record federal national debt, Obama answer is to continue his reckless spending and European-like nanny state policies.

The entire letter can be read HERE.

In a scathing letter sent to Barack Obama this morning, Senator Marco Rubio said that under the President’s first term in office, “more and more people have come to believe that America is becoming a deadbeat nation.”

Rubio went on to pledge that he would challenge any further increase in the debt ceiling, arguing that “we [Congress] need to make it routine to actually spend no more than we take in.” In the letter obtained by HUMAN EVENTS, the Florida Senator said that President Obama’s upcoming request to increase the debt ceiling by a whopping $1.2 trillion will cause the nation’s public debt to surpass the $16 trillion mark.

“I will oppose your request to continue borrowing and spending recklessly.”

[...]

If President Obama led the charge to reduce the country’s unsustainable debt in mid 2011 rather than punt the enterprise to a “Super Committee,” asserted Rubio, we’d already be on a pathway toward economic growth and prosperity. “Unfortunately, the first three years of your presidency have been a profile in leadership failure.”

America cannot afford another four more years of Obama, let alone the damage he might cause in the next year prior to the 2012 election.

Barack Obama & Eric Holder Make Judicial Watch’s 2011 List of 10 Most Corrupt Washington, DC Politicians

KUDOS to President Barack Obama and Attorney General Eric Holder, they made the list of most corrupt Inside the Beltway DC politicians. Where have all the Statesmen gone?

Judicial Watch has their 2011 list of top 10 most corrupt Washington, DC politicians. Among those on the list were President Barack Obama and Attorney General Eric Holder. For the GOP, former US Senator John Ensign of Nevada and US Rep. Bachus if Alabama. Do any of “We the People” think that we would be able to get away as private citizens what these politicians get away with every day?

TOP 10 LIST that One Does Not Want to be On

•Rep. Spencer Bachus (R-AL)
•Former Senator John Ensign (R-NV)
•Rep. Alcee Hastings (D-FL)
•Attorney General Eric Holder
•Rep. Jesse Jackson, Jr. (D-IL)
•President Barack Obama
•Rep. Laura Richardson (D-CA)
•Rep. David Rivera (R-FL)
•Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA)
•Rep. Don Young (R-AK)

AG Eric Holder:

The Fast and Furious operation by itself should have resulted in Holder’s resignation, but it is the cover-up that has prompted serious calls for Holder’s ouster.

On May 3, 2011, in a House Judiciary Committee hearing chaired by Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX), Holder testified: “I’m not sure of the exact date, but I probably heard about Fast and Furious for the first time over the last few weeks.” Newly released documents show he was receiving weekly briefings on Fast and Furious as far back as July 5, 2010. It appears Holder lied to Congress. (Judicial Watch sued the DOJ and the ATF to obtain Fast and Furious records. The Judicial Watch investigation continues.)

Unfortunately, when it comes to Holder corruption and abuse of office, Fast and Furious is just the tip of the iceberg.

President Barack Obama:

President Barack Obama: President Obama makes Judicial Watch’s “Ten Most Wanted” list for a fifth consecutive year. (The former Illinois Senator was also a “Dishonorable Mention” in 2006.) And when it comes to Obama corruption, it may not get any bigger than Solyndra. Solyndra was once known as the poster child for the Obama administration’s massive “green energy” initiative, but it has become the poster child for the corruption that ensues when the government meddles in the private sector. Solyndra filed for bankruptcy in September 2011, leaving 1,100 workers without jobs and the American taxpayers on the hook for $535 million thanks to an Obama administration stimulus loan guarantee.

Former Senator Arlen Specter New Job … Philly Night Club Comedian (VIDEO) … Obama’s Next Gig after 2012 Election

For those who are concerned what Barack Obama will do next after the 2012 elections, he need to look no further than former Pennsylvania’s US Senator Arlen Specter . After all, for the past three years the joke has been on America.

Former Senator Arlen Specter (PA-D-R-D) actually performed in a Philly night club as a comedian last night. Honestly, some of this stuff was rather funny, although his delivery had a lot to be worked on.  As a politicians who switched parties depending on which way the wind blew rather than any core conviction, the joke was usually always on us.

From The Blaze:

The longtime Pennsylvania senator performed at an open-mic night at the Helium Comedy Club in Philadelphia on Tuesday, continuing a post-politics foray into standup.

Specter told the crowd he’s “been in comedy now for 30 years” and took shots at former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, and others in his act. Former President Bill Clinton and current Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich were also targets of Specter quips. Former candidate Herman Cain wasn’t exempt either.

For example, he said he didn’t vote to impeach Clinton because they were friends, despite the “body of evidence.” He even worked in a joke about Clinton and Viagra.

So do not fret Barack Obama, there is a job for you after 2012. Its not like you have not been the Comedian in Chief while you have been President as the World burned.

Another Dem Bites the Dust Due to Obamacare … Nebraska Democrat US Senator Ben Nelson Retiring … Abandons the Sinking Democrats Senate Ship

CORN HUSKER KICKBACK AS PREDICTED COMES BACK TO HAUNT BEN NELSON …

According to the Politico, Democratic Senator Ben Nelson of Nebraska will announce today that he is retiring after two terms. Does this really come as a shock to any one? Ben Nelson, who went against the will of the Nebraska voters and took the “Corn Husker” kick back and then voted in favor of Obamacare was a “politically” dead man walking.  The rats are leaving the sinking ship. They followed Obama against the will of the people and now those that did not pay the price in the 2012 election will do so in 2012.

Pic Tip: Dodocanspell

Democratic Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska will announce today that he is retiring after two terms, a serious blow to Democratic efforts to hold onto their majority in the chamber next November.

Nelson is scheduled to hold a press conference back home in Nebraska as early as today to make his decision official, said several Democratic insiders close to the leadership.

The 70-year-old Nelson was considered one of the most endangered Democratic incumbents this cycle. GOP-affiliated outside groups have already dumped hundreds of thousands of dollars into TV ads bashing Nelson, while the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee spent over $1 million on their own ad blitz to bolster his image.

Obviously Nelson read the hand writing on the wall and did not want to go out with a loss. Instead, Harry Reid will.

After committing political suicide and voting for Obamacare, Nelson then tried to save face with the “RED” state of Nebraska and told fellow Cornhuskers that, “I think it was a mistake to take health care on as opposed to continuing to spend the time on the economy”. Ben Nelson has no one to blame but himself and President Barack Obama for his early retirement.  There is no doubt that Democrats are in trouble in 2012 holding on to the US Senate. whether Ben Nelson was running for reelection or not, there was no way that Democrats were going to win in the Corn husker state.

Chalk up another casualty to Barack Obama and Obamacare. Democrats actually thought that WE THE PEOPLE would forget what they did. Hardly. Presently, 53% want Obamacare repealed, 39% oppose repealing it.

Democrats have a slim advantage in the US Senate; however, it will be almost impossible for them to retain power following the 2012 elections. They could have easily lost control in 2010 had it not been for a couple of Senate races and incumbent GOP Senators resisting the wave of change. Democrats are far too vulnerable to regain control.

Other vulnerable Democrats like Sen. Claire McCaskill (Mo.) and Jon Tester (Mont.) also face difficult – although winnable – reelection fights.

There will also be costly races in Ohio, Florida and Pennsylvania, featuring Democratic incumbents Sherrod Brown, Bill Nelson and Bob Casey. President Barack Obama’s reelection campaign is expected to spend heavily in those states, potentially giving a boost to Democratic incumbents.

What did not occur in 2010, the GOP looked good in 2012 to regain control. Democrats have to defend far too many seats, many of which are in “RED” states or ones trending red. Between Democrat retirements and a backlash against Obama and his policies, it would take a miracle for Harry Reid to remain Senate Majority Leader. A miracle or voter fraud.

The WAPO has a list of potential GOP and Democrats who might run for the open seat.