Will Beth Coulson Soon Be As Famous As Dede Scozzafava?
>
Is Dold enough of a teabagger to work up the loons against Coulson?
Who are Glenn Beck, self-proclaimed new leader of the right, Sarah Palin, Jim DeMint, and the teababggers who look to them for political leadership likely to make their next target? They've been successfully chipping away at the once "insurmountable" lead Florida Gov. Charlie Crist had in his Senate run. DeMint was the first big name right-wing extremist to endorse Crist's opponent, fellow extremist Marco Rubio. DeMint has also endorsed Doug Hoffman-like California Assemblyman Chuck DeVore, over the better-known, squishy failed business executive, Carly Fiorina.
In Illinois, however, there's a race that has a lot more in common with the one in NY-23. IL-10 is the suburban North Shore district that has been represented by Mark Kirk, reputed "moderate" and will now be up for grabs as he pursues a whimsical run for an open U.S. Senate seat. Last year Obama took IL-10 61-38%. Kirk scraped by with 53% of the vote in an increasingly Democratic-leaning district. Although progressive state Rep, Democrat Julie Hamos is the clear favorite to follow Kirk into Congress, there is a vicious battle shaping up in the Republican Party.
Playing the role of Dede Scozzafava is moderate state Rep Beth Coulson who just met with RNC Chair Michael Steele last week. Although Coulson is an economic conservative, teabaggers hate her because she's pro-Choice, supports civil unions for gay couples and has received a perfect score from the state League of Conservation Voters while she's been in the legislature. She does say, however, that she would have voted against cap-and-trade and against healthcare reform. That isn't enough for teabaggers who are clamoring for her head. The problem, however, is that there's isn't a clear teabagger candidate.
Considerably to the right of Coulson are millionaires William Cadigan (a lawyer) and Dick Green (a stock analyst), both of Winnetka and Robert Dold (an exterminator, like Tom DeLay) of Kenilworth. Dold is probably the most extreme but are any extreme enough to cause the teabaggers to buck the GOP Establishment and dump Coulson? That's something we'll be watching over the next several months as the Illinois primary approaches in two short months.
Labels: 2010 congressional races, Illinois, teabaggers
posted by DownWithTyranny @ 6:00 PM
7 comments
|
Reddit
7 Comments:
Hamos is only the "clear favorite" to those not reading polls or paying much attention. In the only published poll, Seals leads her by 55%. Hamos hasn't published her poll results, and we all know what that means.
Seals' name ID is nearly 5x that of Hamos across the district, and his support is strong after spending much of the last 3 years getting to know the voters and the issues here. Hamos has the pols' endorsements, but the vast majority of active Democrats and voters appear to favor Seals.
Dold, extreme? He is pro-choice and supports civil unions. He has been gaining traction because he is charismatic and talks about issues that the base cares about right now like reigning in federal spending and creating jobs. Coulson is still giving speeches talking about how she expanded health care in Illinois. Not exactly the most popular thing to say to a room full of conservatives.
Explain to me why the Senate has to be a Millionaires Club? I don't remember ever reading that in the Constitution.
How we can have a branch of government so out of touch with working people is obscene.
Hamos is not the clear favorite as you say, at least, not in this district, where only 18% of the people know here, and those are all concentrated in the areas of WIlmette and Winnetka, which were part of her 18th district. Furthermore, of those that know her, fewer than half are willing to vote for her. In the past when she's had opposition in her race for state rep, she has lost, every time in the only part of this district that could vote for her.
What you say about Coulson is interesting too. Unlike Hamos, she doesn't get an automatic endorsement from the local republican officials just because she's one of them. She has the greatest name recognition in the group, but Dold received the nod from the New Trier Township Republicans. The candidates all appeared in a candidates forum but not one of them knew anything about any of the issues except in the most basicl way. All were extremely provincial, but Dold was the most glib and comfortable with an audience, which may explain the traction he is getting.
Dold is not pro-choice. he said he is "right down the middle" on abortion. HA! He is also supported by Penny Pullen, one of the most extreme fringe right wingers on the planet.
Given the fact that Seals published the poll immediately following Hamos' announcement, it should not be surprising that he posted such numbers. However, Hamos seems to have the $, field operation, and local support to make it past Feb 2. I hear a lot of people say that they are looking for someone who is not a "two-time loser". In fact, Hamos has never lost for any seat. I see a lot of Seals defectors leaning towards Julie....
What the hell is Dold wearing in that picture
Post a Comment
<< Home