Deb Fischer, and what (political) money can’t buy
Only about one-tenth of the money spent in Tuesday’s Nebraska GOP Senate primary was spent on Deb Fischer’s behalf.
Yet the little-known state senator emerged victorious over both the establishment-favored candidate and a favorite of the tea party — both of whom, we should note, are statewide elected officials.
Who says candidates don’t matter and money is everything?
Don Stenberg, left, and Deb Fischer during a Nebraska Republican Senate candidate debate. (Jeff Beiermann, AP)
Fischer’s win in the primary Tuesday is a testament to the fact that politics is still about campaigns and that money isn’t the be-all, end-all.
While Fischer’s win wasn’t necessarily a tea party win, it was reminiscent of the insurgent GOP candidacies of 2010, in which a candidate’s character and politics often meant more than money and infrastructure.
State Sen. Deb Fischer pulls big upset in Nebraska GOP Senate primary
State Sen. Deb Fischer has won the Nebraska Republican Senate primary, setting up a matchup with former senator Bob Kerrey (D) for the seat being vacated by retiring Sen. Ben Nelson (D).
The result is a major upset; until last week, state Attorney General Jon Bruning was the overwhelming favorite in this primary. Throughout the race, he had the most money and establishment support.
National Democrats increase investment in Wisconsin recall
Democrats up their Wisconsin investment, Mitt Romney sees an Obama-Clinton feud, George W. Bush endorses and polls shed some light on gay marriage in swing states.
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GOP freshmen = weak tea
Surprise, surprise: The Republican freshman class isn’t as tea party-friendly as you might think.
We’ve written before on this blog about how the tea party label has been misappropriated to cover all kinds of Republicans who won in 2010. While many latched onto the label or simply let others define them as such, the label wasn’t a great fit for many of them.
Rep. Allen West (R-Fla.) may not be the tea partier you think he is. (Doug Murray/Reuters)
Suddenly, establishment Republicans who embraced conservative causes and opposed President Obama’s health-care legislation became known as tea partiers. John Boehner even called himself one.
Alas, most of them are not tea partiers. And supporters of the tea party movement are starting to take notice.
Case in point: the conservative Club for Growth issued a scorecard of the GOP freshmen class today and concluded that many of them haven’t lived up to their tea party billing.
Americans Elect: the third party’s latest death knell
The United States is still not ready for a third party.
Americans Elect, the group that has spent the last two years securing ballot access for a yet-to-be-named middle ground presidential candidate, wound up running into a significant problem: Finding a candidate.
The group announced late Monday that no candidate has attained the level of support he or she would need to even be considered at the group’s online convention next month, and the deadline for candidates to qualify has passed. That leaves the group with ballot access in more than half the states — including many swing states — but no candidate to actually put on the ballot.
Buddy Roemer took more votes than anybody in the Americans Elect nominating process, and he was still well shy of qualifying for the convention. (Sarah L. Voisin — The Washington Post)
The group says it will meet Thursday to decide whether to press on.
“We’re talking to our delegates and board on Thursday, and we’re going to make a decision once we confer with them,” Americans Elect spokeswoman Ileana Wachtel told The Washington Post.
The episode is just the latest proof that, while many Americans say they want a third party or independent candidate, the institutional and motivational barriers are often too much to overcome.
Ron Paul: I can’t win the nomination, but I’m not dropping out
Texas Rep. Ron Paul (R) has conceded that he cannot win the presidential nomination, but he is not dropping out of the race, his campaign announced Tuesday morning.
The announcement, following on the heels of Paul’s decision to stop campaigning in future primaries and caucuses, seems designed in part to lower the expectations of supporters going into the convention.
“Unfortunately, barring something very unforeseen, our delegate total will not be strong enough to win the nomination,” campaign chairman Jesse Benton wrote in a strategy memo. “However, our delegates can still make a major impact at the National Convention and beyond.”
Obama: ‘I’m going to win’
Updated at 11:40 a.m.
President Obama said in an interview airing Tuesday that he will win reelection this year.
“I’m going to win,” he said in an interview with ABC’s “The View,” which was taped Monday.
Obama acknowledged continued difficulties with the economy present a challenge for his campaign, but also said that the election should be a choice between candidates. He said he hopes American voters will make a decision between his and Mitt Romney’s visions for the country.
“Don’t compare me to the almighty; compare me to the alternative,” Obama said, quoting Vice President Joe Biden.
Super PAC launches Bain Capital attack ads
A super PAC supporting President Obama targets Mitt Romney’s Bain Capital record, echoing an official campaign ad released Monday.
In “Heads or Tails,” Priorities USA focuses on a Kansas City, Mo., steel mill bought by the private equity firm Romney co-founded. The mill went bankrupt under Bain, and workers were not given promised benefits.
Both establishment and tea party could lose in Nebraska
If state Sen. Deb Fischer pulls an upset in the Nebraska GOP Senate primary today, we will all be treated to a familiar storyline: The Republican Party establishment has been rebuked yet again, it will say, and could pay a price for it in the general election.
Don’t believe it.
Deb Fischer makes a point during a Nebraska Republican Senate candidate's debate on May 1. (Jeff Beiermann, AP)
Fischer’s win would certainly be an upset — she’s run a meagerly funded campaign and barely registered in the polls for most of the race — but it doesn’t exactly fit the tea party bill.
And the idea that Republicans are enduring a redux of the tea party-dominated 2010 primary season is unfounded at this point.
Romney campaign releases response ad on Bain
Mitt Romney’s campaign is already up with a response to an attack from President Obama’s campaign on Romney’s time at Bain Capital.
While the two-minute Obama ad, released this morning, focused on Bain Capital’s acquisition and handling off GS Technologies steel mill, the Romney campaign’s new ad, titled “American Dream,” focuses on another steel company Bain guided — Steel Dynamics.
“Steel Dynamics started with an empty field and a big dream,” the ad begins, before one employee labels the company “a perfect entrepreneurial story.”
Latest Tweets
RT @FixAaron: "Fischer's lead keeps growing, now up 2.7 percent with two-thirds of the vote in." Big upset brewing in NE Senate.
RT @KevinThomasKLIN: Four NE counties are done counting. All either in or adjacent to Fischer's district. All have Fischer by at least 25%.
Correction -- quote should be attributed to DeMint spox: "We were very proud to support Don Stenberg and we have no regrets." #NESEN
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