The Washington Independent

Elections 2008

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Tea Party Favorite O’Donnell Takes Delaware

By | 09.14.10 | 10:39 pm

On the question of whether Christine O’Donnell — a two-time failed candidate and one-time anti-masturbation crusader — was suitable for office, Democratic and Republican operatives wholeheartedly agreed. She would never win the Delaware Republican Senate primary, they said this summer.

[Congress1] But tonight, voters begged to differ. A little after More…

Reports Find Lack of Competition in State Legislative Races

By | 05.06.10 | 1:19 pm

Only 22 percent of state legislative candidates had a monetarily competitive race in the 2007-2008 cycle, according to a study released today by the National Institute on Money in State Politics, meaning that 78 percent of the leading fundraisers in a campaign raised more than twice the amount of More…

Out of the Bailout Bedlam, Obama Emerged on Top

By | 05.04.10 | 1:02 pm

I’m just starting to dig through an advance copy of “The Promise,” Jonathan Alter’s new book on President Obama’s first year in office, set for publication on May 18. But there are some great nuggets right at the start. Alter describes the chaotic scene at a Sept. 25, 2008, More…

Romney Tries to Fill GOP National Security Void

By | 03.05.10 | 6:00 am

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) effectively clinched the 2008 Republican presidential nomination in the 10 days between the South Carolina and Florida primaries. Up against a wall, with polls showing Mitt Romney moving up as Rudy Giuliani faded, McCain unleashed a new attack. Romney, he said, had given up on the More…

‘Birther’ Conspiracy Roils GOP Campaigns

By | 03.01.10 | 6:00 am

In the wake of Sen. Scott Brown’s (R-Ma.) upset victory in Massachusetts, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee issued a memo to campaign managers suggesting a few ways to prevent their candidates from becoming the next Martha Coakley.

“Create sufficient pressure for your More…

How Wall Street Spun the Press on Campaign Donations to Dems

By | 02.09.10 | 3:42 pm

If you read the stories in The Wall Street Journal last week or The New York Times this week about campaign contributions from financial companies, you might have the impression that financial PACs and executives are shifting their money from Democrats to Republicans en masse over More…

U.S. Attorney Scandal Figure Leads Big in Congressional Bid

By | 01.15.10 | 8:40 am

A Survey USA poll has Tim Griffin, the former U.S. attorney from Arkansas who resigned over the 2007 scandal over the politicization of appointments, up by 16 points over Rep. Vic Snyder (D-Ark.). The reason for Snyder’s trouble is, no surprise, the unpopularity of health care reform legislation More…

House GOP Still Pushing for New Black Panther Investigation

By | 01.11.10 | 2:04 pm

The now 14-month old case of members of the fringe New Black Panther Party being charged for voter intimidation outside of a heavily Democratic polling place in Philadelphia — the Justice Department has dropped the case — is getting a little more attention from Rep. Frank Wolf (R-Va.), who More…

McCain Double-Flip-Flops on FactCheck.org

By | 12.02.09 | 5:14 pm

One day after Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) hammered him for “flip-flopping” on Medicare cuts, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) fired back this morning on the Senate floor (starting at 0:16 in this clip). McCain cited a FactCheck.org analysis from the More…

McHenry Clarifies: I’m No Birther

By | 08.13.09 | 3:11 pm

In response to our earlier post indicating that Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) might harbor questions about President Obama’s citizenship, McHenry spokesman Brock McCleary sends over clarification: There are no doubts. McHenry is no birther.