That takes us a few months back when we originally heard this rumor about Emanuel -- and that Chuck Hagel was asked by the White House to be Rahm's successor.
Unclear, should this whole scenario play out, whether Hagel would be up to the task. Or whether he has already turned them down.
In any case, watch for his name if Rahm heads back to Chi-town.
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No Dems running for Nebraska State Auditor?
Here is the funny thing (we think anyway) about this race and several others across Nebraska. When there is an open seat for an office, you generally get a number of people to run. But when it's a seat, such as Congress, held by an incumbent, it's usually a little more reserved, or often unopposed.
So look at the Democrats running to challenge 1st District Congressman Jeff Fortenberry. FOUR (count 'em, four!) Democrats are vying for that nomination. Now after that battle royal, one will be left in the ring to be pinned by Fort (coming off the top rope).
So our thought is, why didn't one of them, who would figure they'd lose anyway, try running for say, State Auditor? It's not like the job is Attorney General, where it's pretty specialized. In theory anyone could do the Auditor job.
If you're going to take the time to run for office, why not try one where your odds of winning are a little higher? If Foley gets busted for running an illegal iguana-fighting ring, then boom! You're the new Auditor (probably).
Oh well...
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We're getting word that Jane Fleming Kleeb is inching ever closer to Chairing the Democratic Party in Nebraska. She may have support from the highest pinnacle of Nebraska Democrats, which would allow her to replace current Chair Vic Covalt (and maybe even add Exec. Dir. to the title as well?).
Of course the winds can change quickly in party politics, but it would take someone else to step up to the challenge right?
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If there is something else you're dying to comment about today, dive right in. Note that we're going to wait until next week to hit the State Treasurer's race. But feel free to give your thoughts on that, if you'd like.
Posts
48 comments:
i like chuck hagel. he's kind of a black sheep of senators, but overall, a good man with strong principles.
Sweeper, are you going to examine some of the more interesting state legislative races this year?
Word has it, liberal trial lawyer Steve Lathrop could have a real fight on his hands. Labor union robot Norm Wallman appears to have been already written off by state Dem types. Kent Rogert is battling the lingering speedboat scandal, among other ethical charges in his personal life. Farmers Union pawn Annete Dubas is getting a credible challenge from a strong conservative. Snowplow Danielle Nantkes (Conrad) has been clean for the past year since getting married, but can she keep it that way?
Lots of fun races to talk about at the state level besides the treasurer position.
chuck hagel isn't aligned enough with the obama agenda to be his chief of staff. i'm guessing this won't happen. plus it would be too much of a contrast between rahm and chuck. rahm is a politician, a vocal and bad-ass one at that. chuck is an ideal senator the founding fathers had in mind. he was never interested in the dirty or fame seeking type of politics that are here now.
That picture reminds me of when Michael Scott was doing a local talk show in Texas and the lizard was running around on him...
I must be dreaming because I actually agree with Jamie. Rahm's replacement will have to be like him - a ball-busting, power-brokering politician that never stops. Hagel comes off as a respectful, mild-mannered statesman that would be better suited for a diplomacy-oriented gig. It doesn't seem like a good fit for either side.
How about the HUGE budget shortfall the state is going to be dealing with next session? 700 million is a lot of money. How much can be cut? How much can be raised through new taxes?
I'm so over politics, this site is boring.
A=6:25, And we won't miss you, Kyle.
Iguana fighting is illegal? What the ?!?!?
I think Chameleon fights would be even more interesting. You'd have a hard time telling which team they were on because they'd keep changing colors on you.
Sounds like Senator Ben would fit right in :)
Chameleon fighting is magnificent, my friend. There is nothing like the glacial moves of an adult male chameleon, his eye casting about for a suitable opponent, while he camouflages himself for the dreaded tongue ambush. Going to a chameleon fight should be on every man's bucket list.
StephX- Wow is it that bleak for those Senators? I would think incumbancy would help them out. Didn't Lathrop beat Stothert in a very expensive race to boot? Got to wonder why more than $100K is spent on a job that pays only $12K. Such is politics.
Of all the ones you mentioned I suspect Wallman is the one who is most likely not to return to Lincon. Heck I say Conrad flyers all over the district last weekend. Rogert may be in trouble with all the "Partying" he was in charge of. Not to mention the fact he was in that accident durring session, what the heck was he doing out and about when there were hearings and such going on? Must have been a real important lobbyist meeting.
I would think Dubas is safe as she didn't make the paper for anything harsh.
What about McGill?
just 2 cents here
Who would you rather see the beautiful Jane Kleeb, the beautiful Amanda McGill or the tired old boring Dave Hieneman, Terry Lee, Mike Johanns-- yawn, zzzzzz
While Hagel might have the skill set to perform the duties of WH COS, I seriously doubt he would accept the position because Chuck isn't the type of person who thugs around naked in the congressional gym shower.
pepe boomer= lee terry's campaign manager
east coast bomb thrower
will take opponents knees out
Amanda McGill and Jane Kleeb, Nebraska democrat's answer to Sarah Palin and Michele Bachman. Jane says she can see Washington, D.C. from her back porch.
I think McGill's going to be shocked come general election. Tom Dierks is very well respected & a breath of fresh air compared to McGill! Yes McGill is much better to look at, but she's too much of a liberal tool!!
if he's a possible candidate he needs to have one of his great press conferences like he did when we almost ran for president
Clever tactic by Danielle, changing her last name & all, but when her dirty laundry is aired, which I will ensure occurs, she can kiss her legislative seat goodbye!! Why should we tolerate a senator who doesn't uphold the law nor does she maintain the integrity of the office.
I wouldn't be surprised if Danielle is a distant relative of the late Foster Brooks.
I think Janie baby's been whispering sweetly in SS's ear.
danielle nantkes-conrad looks like jack nicholson's joke.
Boooo Carpetbaggers!!!!!!!
Jane Kleeb doesn't have the view of Washington DC she thinks she does! But I would agree with the comparision to Sarah Palin..fabrication of facts to make them look good, name droppers and both symbols (ask Adrian)of women from the 3rd district, but really never "lived" there!
Next thing you know BTO will be supporting Palin too!
state senators who are officially sweating bullets...
X Bill Avery
X Steve Lathrop
X Bob Krist
X Amanda McGill
X Danielle Conrad/Nantkes
X Kent Rogert
X Norm Wallman
anon 9:51- you have got to be kidding on Bill Avery sweating bullets. He is about as sure as it gets in that district. Only thing running against him is his health issues, what with the heart surgery last year and all.
As far as looking at McGill, now that is sexist!
Ian--aka 10:40.
Yes, you'll see the response when you launch attacks on Terry.
Before you do, maybe you should check w/Congresswoman Nancy T. and Congressman Jim E.--as to how well theirs worked...
Iguana fighting is way too overrated. I prefer having Jane's SEIU lady protestors mud wrestling over a free month of Union Dues. Thank god they can't pull hair with those flattops of theirs.
Sen. Dubas is a great Senator. She studies issues, she contacts lots of people in her district about issues, asks questions, and respects your opinion. Her family farms, and she is conservative. What more can you ask for?
Her greatest attribute? She is one of the few legislators that dares to question Gov. Dave. Gov. Dave has worked very hard to circle himself with "Yes, boss" Senators.
Next time he brings his traveling road show to promote another of his puppets, ask who is paying for this party. State car, fuel, staff members, extra State Patrol security, and other expenses. Let him explain that to the state employees who are getting laid off because we can't afford to pay them.
If anyone needs to be gone from the Unicam, it is the RINO known as Ashford. Can't believe he is running un-opposed. He's off his freak'n rocker.
Are you joking? Heineman needs a staff and a security detail because he's the head of state of Nebraska. Jesus.
32 Times!
Golf Magazine says Pres. Obama has already played more rounds of golf (32) than GWB did in his entire first term.
Unemployment rate is, what, 9.7% hmmm
Jamie. Not when he is campaigning on behalf of others, on the taxpayer's dollar. The candidate should have to pay the state the estimated cost of the visit. It is only right.
I'm beginning to understand. It is not hypocritical to waste $400 to $500 at a pop, but it would be hypocritical to waste millions. Great concept.
The payback rule would apply to both parties.
Better yet, Jamie. Reach into you pocket and pay for this waste, and tell me it's just change. Wait a minute, you already are.
GWB probably took as many strokes, so they are even. But, President Ford hit less greens, but more spectators.
Pip ought to read State Law on the issue of how the Governor moves about the state.
Now, if they were driving Sally around, that would be different. They aren't, though. She drives herself, in her own car, at her own expense when she attends events or goes out to speak.
Now, do you think she would be coming up to Omaha to address the teachers at OPS if she were not the First Lady? And yet, she still doesn't get driven there in the State vehicle.
Things have change since the Bush Cheney years. Obama has to take his frustrations out spending a couple hours on the golf course. He doesn't have a "ranch" he can go to while leaving the country in the VP's evil hands.
Maybve GWB could go down to Texas since he didn't have to worry about 9.7% unemployment.
That's what the Dem policies have brought.
Please open an economics book, Anon 6:12. You won't find a competent economist putting the blame on Obama. Was all due to Bush's actions (or inactions I should say). Be thankful we didn't have Great Depression II.
GWB didn't force banks like Citibank to get into subprime mortgages big-time--it was Robert Rubin, Clinton's Treas Sec.
Most economists I've read are saying Obama's plan--with $9 trillion in NEW debt this decade--is unsustainable.
Stimulus was sold as keeping unemployment at 8%. It's now 9.7%--totally on the Dems watch. Obama got his economic program enacted--we'll see what the voters think of it this Nov...
No, the Obamas don't have a ranch-THEY HAVE A GATED FRIGGIN' MANSION IN CHICAGO ON A DOUBLE LOT!!! And a sweet getaway in Hawaii to frequent.
BTW, a President has to leave the country or be otherwise incapacitated to turn the reigns over to his VP. Last I checked, Texas is still part of the United States.
I hear even the Dems in the unicam want Avery gone.
The Pip...Dubas' strength is all smoke and mirrors and she is about to be exposed. Big time!
Nebraska voters have had enough of Democrats pretending to be conservative when they really support liberal big spending that favors unions.
LD34 is heavily Republican and they see right through her Ben Nelson ways.
Hunnicutt is going to have to work awfully hard if he plans to be annette dubas, even if she is a closet liberal. i don't know if it can be done.
Anon 9:28 PM,
Have you ever been to the big city? There are thousands of homes similar to the one Obama lives in. The gates were put up by the Secret Service. It cost the tax payers a lot less to fence Obama's small yard in Chicago than it did to fence Shrub's brush farm.
As for those Hawaiian digs, Obama rented that. He doesn't own it.
And the VP thing, Shrub never abdicated, he just let Cheney handle the tiller of the ship of state for most of his first four years. Not necessarily a bad thing. At least Cheney had some idea of how to steer. He just didn't know how to read a road map.
Real Rancher? I doubt it, I suspect you're a "Kleb-style" Rancher.
I dont's have a gate and it was a gated community when they built in it. The extra security is necessary and I would rather pay for a fence around a President's property than see a President or any member of his detail injured due to a nut job wanting to "camp out" on their property just to make a point-or worse.
Quit trying to play the Obama's as regular folk. THEY AREN'T. They made over 5 mill last year alone. Did either of them have student loans? And I don't know many people that get to vacation in Hawaii more than once or twice in their lives.
BTW, how much did the Christmas holiday cost and who paid for all the staffers that went along for the ride?
Anon 9:51 AM,
Where do you get your bad information? Did it come from the travel brochure you picked up on your trip to an alternative reality?
Obama's house was built in 1910. It's in a neighborhood, not a gated community. If you ever make it to the big city, you'll find hundreds of similar places in Omaha in the neighborhoods on either side of Dodge St. and east of UNO.
As for Obama's trips to Hawaii, you must have learned all about that in another travel brochure. He was born in Hawaii. He spent most of his childhood in Hawaii. He graduated from high school in Hawaii. I've known other people who were born and raised in Hawaii who moved to what they commonly refer to as "the mainland," and some of them made more than one trip back home a year and most of them went back at least once a year. It's kind of like when someone grows up in Nebraska and ends up living in California. Sometimes they come home for vacations, weddings and funerals. The ones that don't are the ones I'd consider suspect.
Both Obama and his wife had to take out student loans to pay for their educations. They just paid them off a few years ago.
And how about the "lot for sale" that was semi divided by the developer in order to get the Obama's more privacy at a bargain price which then left the other 2/3 unbuildable? You mean to tell me that there are lots for sale next to 100 year old mansions in Chicago?
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