Our Views: A GOP lead in key race

With national politicos already looking ahead to the 2014 races for U.S. House and Senate, some of the speculation includes the several states carried handsomely by GOP nominee Mitt Romney last year, and now where Democratic senators face the voters.

One of them, of course, is Louisiana, where U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., seeks re-election. But there are states, surprisingly enough, where President Barack Obama did even worse.

The president barely cracked 40 percent in Louisiana last time, but he didn’t even do that well in West Virginia.

And there, Democrats don’t even have the power of incumbency in 2014, as five-term Sen. Jay Rockefeller steps down. Shelley Moore Capito, a member of the House, is widely favored, even if some of her fellow Republicans believe her to be too much a part of the “establishment” wing of the party.

She is from a prominent political family, and she has brought home the bacon; ideological purists in the party object to her votes on several major spending issues. But West Virginia groans beneath the public works bestowed on it during the reign of its two long-serving senators, Rockefeller and the late — but legendary — Robert Byrd. Capito’s popularity does not seem likely to be damaged by that issue.

The GOP has seen strong Senate candidates damaged by party primary battles, leading to weaker nominees losing to Democrats in states from Delaware to Indiana to Missouri. The Capito race, should she face a primary challenge, might be another but at this point there is reason to call West Virginia a very likely GOP pickup in the Senate in 2014.

Comments

1) Comment by agagent - 14/02/2013

Aside from a few short years in real estate, Landrieu has been a “public servant”/career politician most of her life. She has been in the US Senate since 1996. This so-called moderate often votes against what a majority of Louisiana voters support. Hasn’t she been in Washington long enough? Maybe we can send someone to Washington who would support what the majority of Louisianans want.

2) Comment by Whatnow - 14/02/2013

Twinkie1cat, how many West Virginia miners have you met? You sound like such an authority. My mother family came from the coal mines of West Virginia. I still have uncles and cousins working in those coal mines. Heck, DMJ, they don't care what color his skin is. Theirs is usually darker most of the time. But, I can tell you what my family there is saying. They don't care about a union when the President is against their business. They would give up their union cards and vote Republican because Obama wants to shut the coal industry down. I mean how can you fight Herr Obama? They said would rather eat and take care of their families instead of a union. The unions there have no more control. And Mary sure was liberal when she sold her vote for $300 million for Obamacare. Maybe the Republicans should have counter offered.

3) Comment by slye753 - 14/02/2013

Mary is not a liberal? when they need her vote to pass some liberal agenda, she will vote like a liberal. when they dont need her vote, she rants about being a conservative. she should get obamas 40%. time for a change and what better change could this be.

4) Comment by DMJ - 14/02/2013

Plus another 15- 20%, according to recent polls.

5) Comment by agagent - 14/02/2013

Landrieu is a dependable vote for the Obama agenda, and she repeats his talking points. She says Washington does not have a spending problem. The 40% of Louisiana voters who voted for Obama will vote for her.

6) Comment by ex-louisianian - 14/02/2013

"... You want to keep the federal spending and debt going ... " from the party whose last vice president declared "Deficits don't matter." "... Obama’s gun control ... " which the GOP favored for decades until it sold itself to the gun manufacturers' lobby called the NRA. "... Obamacare ... ", test-driven by your last presidential candidate in his third home state. "... Abortion 'rights' ... " that have nothing to do at the federal level, and that the Supreme Court will terminate in a legal decision that will rival Dred Scott in ineffectiveness. "... Legalizing illegal immigrants ... ", as favored by your 2008 GOP nominee and a certain senator from Florida. "... Higher taxes ... " on incomes that the GOP house speaker agreed to just last month. "... Federal bailouts to states and cities, more federal stimulus, and more bailouts like TARP," that were all initiated in September of 2008 and placed on a budget that extended well into Obama's first term. Do you have any more reaction and dimwit you wish to share?

7) Comment by Protean - 14/02/2013

Agagent, you'd save yourself many keystrokes if you'd simply post a link to Fox News. Readers would then get to enjoy the full menu of republican boilerplate and banalities, and with all the bright colors and things moving in the background to hold viewers' attention.

8) Comment by agagent - 14/02/2013

Vote for Landrieu if you want to keep the federal spending and debt going, Obama’s gun control, Obamacare, abortion “rights,” legalizing illegal immigrants, higher taxes, federal bailouts to states and cities, more federal stimulus, and more bailouts like TARP, to name a few issues.

9) Comment by twinkie1cat - 14/02/2013

Union members do not vote Republican because the Republicans are the ones trying to destroy the unions. Despite their overall redneckery, West Virginians are union members. Many are still miners and without the unions they would not survive. They would soon be making minimum wage and watching their safety regulations as well as their mountains torn to shreds. Louisiana is different and votes anti-abortion as a primary issue because of the dominance of the Catholic church. None of the industries here are as dependent on the unions as West Virginia is.

10) Comment by twinkie1cat - 14/02/2013

You said it well, DMJ. One senator is productive. The other votes Republican. Mary Landrieu is a centrist who always looks out for the good of Louisiana. She is no liberal and would not survive in this state if she were. David Vitter votes the party line even when it is not in our best interest because he is a prime example of what the GOP has become, a bunch of blind idiots lead by a seeing eye dog who is getting cataracts.

11) Comment by simbatigercat - 14/02/2013

The more obstructionist and racist the Republicans get, the fewer votes they will get in states where the voters are struggling to elect officials who are more centrist and who care more about America than about the party line. They are not going to put up with the teaparty buffoons much longer. An example of how divided the GOP is was demonstrated in their perceived need for 2 spokespeople to complain about the State of the Union address, one from the moderates and the other from the extremists. It is time for Louisiana to at least begin looking at catching up and become a state that is, if not blue, at least purple outside of New Orleans and North Baton Rouge, which are already blue. Our dictatorial governor and our amoral teaparty Senator, David Vitter as well as some of the congresspeople from the rural areas are examples of exactly what we don't need if Louisiana is to avoid being written off as as hopeless as Mississippi. It should be considered a great embarrassment that neither President Obama nor the Republican candidate visited Louisiana during the presidential campaign and it should not happen again. Cedric Richmond and Mary Landrieu are what we do need. Unfortunately, many Louisianians will vote for whoever is white, male, and claims to be pro-life although really just anti-abortion, even if his name is Adolph Hitler.

12) Comment by gary - 14/02/2013

tradewinns:" refusal to be fiscally responsible" u gotta be kidding! Two unfunded wars - unpaid drug plan for medicare - I will by pass reading the comics today - u already have me - LOL!By the way, several of the money folks on the right are supporting Senator Landrieu - AGAIN.

13) Comment by tradewinns - 14/02/2013

dmj, spoken like a true democrat. the dems currently control the senate so landrieu is "productive" while vitter is a stooge of the republican party. after the 2014 elections, which i hope will reverse the control of the senate,those positions will be reversed. the democrats, IMHO (which ain't so humble), is destroying america through their refusal to fiscally responsible. our nat'l government is no different than your household. we all have a credit limit, or ability to borrow money. if you maximize that limit you will have a hard time just making the minimum payments much less improving one's position. our government is nearing it's limit and refuses to recognize there is even a problem. the democrats have blown it, let's give the republicans a try. if they blow it then we'll all have to find a new party or a new nation, whichever is more hardy.

14) Comment by DMJ - 14/02/2013

W. Virginia has active labor unions, which won't simply roll over and let a Republican be elected. And besides, Obama doing poorly in WV had more to do with the color of his skin than his party affiliation. And Mary Landrieu, like her or not, is NO liberal. I recently received a fundraising email from her in which she bragged about her opposition to an assault weapons ban. Besides, she gets $$ for Louisiana. She's very good at it. And, being an actual moderate Democrat, she has power in the Senate. She won't rubber stamp anything, unlike Vitter. She has the power to make those authoring bills insert concessions. Some hoopleheaded Republican like Landry would be assumed, correctly, to always vote the party line, so his vote would never be courted. He would be taken for granted. Think about it. Oddly enough, considering the political leanings of most Louisianians, we have the two perfect senators - one that does her job well and the other that votes Republican.

15) Comment by [e-mail] - 14/02/2013

Our Democratic senator is never so dedicated, hardworking, and sturdy as at election time; this is the season in which a toadying partisan hack and sell out artist becomes a caring representative of the interests of "the people". Ah, yes, this is the renewing, refreshing season. Don't be cynical and doubtful of our DC reps; they are really just down-home folks, not DC hacks.

16) Comment by gary - 14/02/2013

ScotB, didn't the political pundits predict defeat for our Democratic senator in 2008? I bet you and brother Karl felt the same way about the POTUS election back in Nov of last year.

17) Comment by ScotB - 14/02/2013

Louisiana and West Virginia are predicted to be GOP pickups in 2014 by almost every political pundit except die hard Democrats (who believe it in private, but won't say it in public).