Vander Plaats: ‘I am not the voice of the tea party’

As GOP presidential prospects prepare to announce their candidacies and eye the Hawkeye State for supporters, members of Iowa’s tea party movement are vetting which candidates will best carry their message of regaining fiscal responsibility and limiting government.

Yet, a highly decentralized movement and diversity of political interests within Iowa’s More…

Republicans Targeting Two Seats in Massachusetts

More fallout from the Martha Coakley debacle comes, via Emily Cadei, in the form of the NRCC targeting two House seats in Massachusetts — in a state that has had an all-Democratic delegation since 1997.

Boehner: Voters ‘Don’t Trust Either Party’

Mixed messages coming today from Rep. John Boehner (R-Ohio), the House minority leader who is spinning last week’s GOP Senate win in Massachusetts as a repudiation of the Democratic majority, while at the same time conceding that voters don’t really trust anyone in Congress at the moment.

“I do think More…

The Republican Surge, of Sorts

Shira Toeplitz reports on the ego boost that Scott Brown’s victory in Massachusetts has given to Republican candidates and strategists. So far it’s been enough to nudge businessman Richard Hanna into a rematch with Rep. Michael Arcuri (D-N.Y.); from there, it’s giving a second wind to recruiters who are More…

What’s Plan B for Democrats?

It was meant to be a populist legislative victory that would usher Democrats straight through the 2010 midterm elections: a sweeping health care reform bill offering affordable coverage to tens of millions of uninsured Americans, while preventing insurance companies from denying coverage based on pre-existing conditions.

Then came Massachusetts.

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MA-Sen: The Coakley Difference

BOSTON — This, from the Boston Globe, provides a little evidence of how Democratic candidate Martha Coakley’s lackluster campaign (not even the people attacking national Democrats fro blaming this on her disagree about that) created the space for Republican Scott Brown’s 52-47 victory.

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Did Reid Get the Message?

For Democrats left dumbfounded over Republican Scott Brown’s shocking Senate win in Massachusetts yesterday, the short response statement from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) probably won’t offer much solace.

“Regardless of the size of their minority caucus, Senate Republicans have always had an obligation to join us More…

Conservative Grassroots Strategy Propels Brown to Senate

BOSTON — The volunteers, journalists, and donors who entered the ballroom of the Park Plaza Hotel on Tuesday were greeted by enthusiasm that didn’t usually belong to Republican campaigns in Massachusetts. The room was packed–no one else allowed in–only an hour after the polls closed. And among the throngs were More…

MA-Sen: Loyal Democrats Grouse About Coakley

BOSTON — A little while after noon, a steady crowd of Democratic voters streamed into the Cathedral High School Gymnasium to cast votes for their party’s embattled nominee, state Attorney General Martha Coakley. This was Boston’s third ward, which the Obama-Biden ticket carried with 74 percent of the vote in More…

Lieberman Calls for ‘Move to the Center,’ Doesn’t Rule Out Switch to GOP

Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.), who’s done plenty in recent months to alienate Democrats, won’t improve his standing with his comments today to Fox News. Asked by Neil Cavuto if he would switch to the Republican Party if the GOP somehow took over the Senate in this year’s elections, More…