Road to the Final Five

First, just becuase we've been hanging onto these for a while now, a little NCAA Final Four-season SABs for ya:

Lieutenant Governor Rick Sheehy and Kansas Coach Bill Self!

Senator Ben Nelson ('s hair) and former Louisville Coach Denny Crum ('s hair)!

State Senator Tom White and Kansas State Coach Frank Martin!

Omaha Mayor Jim Suttle and former Missouri Coach Norm Stewart!

And, last, but not least...

Former all-around Democrat candidate Scott Kleeb and the Wichita State Shocker!

(If you have any better ones, please feel free to send in a completed photo and we'll post it here, today, if it's good.)

***

As you may have heard there are five finalist for the Omaha City Council spot vacated by the ill Chuck Sigerson.

(Hey, what happened to Kris Pierce, after he dumped the Secretary of State candidacy to be a City Council candidate?)

A quick run-down (essentially summarized from this good KPTM report -- that maybe went overboard on the B-roll) of the five:

We had expressed the other day that it looked like Gary Kudym was pretty much a lock for the gig.

However, after yesterday's Omaha Chamber of Commerce candidate forum, many have expressed that two others have out-shined Kudym, who may have other issues in any case.

For the Democrats, it was Jeri Regan -- who would add a little more gender balance to the Council, and make a possibly "more rounded" choice for the Dems.

And then there was Tom Mulligan, who apparently greatly impressed all present.

Unfortunately, the odds of Mulligan getting the nod have to be thin, with the Democrats controlling the Council. We can't imagine they could see beyond the party affiliation on this choice, and frankly likely just added the GOPers just to look balanced. But hey, prove us wrong.

The Council will interview the finalists at a public meeting on April 6th, and then make their selection on April 13th.

Real American Blogger

First a Monday morning Separated at "Birth" for ya (sent in by a loyal reader):

Nebraska state Senator (and former Air Force Lieutenant Colonel) Bob Krist...

And G.I. Joe:

(real American...logos)

***

After our last post about the protesters at Senator Ben Nelson's west Omaha office, we received lots of comments about who could park where and when and why.

We received this fairly detailed response from one of the protesters, and thought we'd let you see the whole thing:

I am a member of the Omaha Chapter of Americans for Prosperity.


It is our group who has been sponsoring the weekly protests at Ben Nelson's office every Tuesday for the past six months. I just wanted to clear up some misinformation generated by the bloggers.


No matter how bad the weather we were there. Most Tuesdays we met with his staff. Right after his final cloture vote he kicked us out of his parking lot on 76th and Pacific. We then parked across the street and continued to protest. In January we found out that he was moving his office. Right up to the move he refused to tell us where.We found out anyway.


He moved from a highly visible location with plenty of public parking to a off-the-beaten-path location with no public parking within several blocks.


The first Tuesday at the new location, we went into his office and asked what the "rules of engagement" would be. His staff told us we couldn't park in the parking lot because we were protesting. We argued that we were constituents, petitioning our elected official. (We had requested a meeting with Nelson several times but he wouldn't meet with us.) We asked if MoveOn or Organizing for America came would they let them park in the parking lot and they said yes. The staff had let them use their private parking lot in January for a protest. They also told us that the other tenants, all doctors, wouldn't want us parking there.


The following week we got permission from one of the doctors to park in the back parking lot, as it was a large lot and hardly anyone parked there. We also found out that the doctors were not opposed to our protests.


Next week, during our protest, the building management came out and told us if we didn't leave in five minutes, she would have our cars towed. We told her we had permission from a tenant and she said that didn't matter. A couple of days later, all the doctors got an email from management saying that all "unauthorized" cars would be towed. So what's "unauthorized?" They have patients who park there.


Last week we parked our cars off-site and either walked or shuttled to Nelson's office. We had the best turnout yet. They called a tow truck but there were no cars to tow. I wonder if the management got stuck with the bill. I think the truck driver was amused.


We will continue to park off site. They can't kick us off the sidewalk. We won't protest this week in honor of Holy Week. This week we will pray that Nelson finally sees the light.


No phony self-deprecating ditty like Nelson's last night at the Press Club nor $500.000 in commercials defending his vote or another whiny op-ed in the Omaha World Herald will deny the fact that two-thirds of Nebraskans opposed the government-run health care bill. He did not listen to us. We will continue to protest until he does.


We are asking him to admit his vote for the Health Care Bill was a mistake and to work with us to have it declared unconstitutional or repealed.


By the way, Nelson knows this bill is designed to bankrupt insurance companies and replace them with a public option. All of his explanations for voting for the bill are all over the map and even contradictoy. He simply sold us out.

So there you have it kids. Interesting, no?

Funny that Nelson's office thought they could keep the new location a secret and that a tow-truck was called when there was nothing to tow. Why would someone call a tow-truck if there were no illegally parked cars? Hmmm.

In any case, remember all those cars back in 2008 with the Obama bumper stickers right next to the "Dissent is Patriotic" sticker?

Don't see those so much anymore...

***

The gang over at the Objective Conservative believes Democrat Gary Kudym will be the selected to fill Chuck Sigerson's spot on the Omaha City Council.

We have no reason to disagree. Feel free to discuss.

(And while you're at it, be sure check out some of the other Nebraska political blogs: the always great Uncle Wiggly's Heartland Notebook , Right Wing Professor, and Plains Feeder, amongst others.)

Honk if you love the First Amendment!

Much talk these days about the Health Care LAW stomping constitutional rights. (No choice, you HAVE to have health insurance.) Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning, and other states' AGs have filed a lawsuit based on said stomping.

But we have to look no further than 118th & Miracle Hills Drive in Omaha to see a Nebraska Senator strong-arming those who wish to exercise their First Amendment Rights.

Members of the Americans for Prosperity - Nebraska had protested along 78th & Pacific Street a number of times, generally against the Health Care re-form bill. You may have seen them (or some of the other groups set up there).

Nebraska Senator Ben Nelson's office is there, you see.

They hold signs. Wave at passing cars. Ask you to honk.

They're on the curb, and not in anyone's way.

Well, recently Senator Nelson picked up sticks and moved out to 118th and Miracle Hills Dr. It's a ways back from anything, and frankly, they're not getting much drive-by traffic.

But AFP chose to move their protest in front of that office anyway. Well, until The Man came down on them, that is.

Seems SOMEONE called the local towing company, and requested the protesters' cars be towed. Facing the impound lot prospect, the lovers of freedom moved on. (Could have sworn that those parking spaces were paid for with taxpayer funds...)

Since we know how much the Dems love to protest, we're sure they will be outraged by this act and will leap to AFP's defense.

(Leap. Right outta your chair. Go ahead. Come on now...)

***

Senator Nelson recently issued a press release that he is shocked (shocked!) that politics are intruding on the people's business on Capitol Hill. ("Your Cornhusker Kickback, sir.")

Who could imagine such a thing happening.

This is Nelson who facilitated the current Health Care bill, based upon a bribe to Nebraska.

This is Nelson who yesterday said he couldn't vote for the Reconciliation Bill, because it was too expensive and changed student lending laws. (Wait...what...student loans...health care bill...screwing who...?)

Of course, Nelson's vote doesn't make a bit of difference here since reconciliation only takes a 50 vote majority. Think he'd be on the other side if it made a difference?

As the Wall Street Journal says today in their scathing editorial against Nelson:

"...hold a special place in your memory for Mr. Nelson, without whom none of this would be possible."

(And heck, even the NEGOP's Mark Fahleson points to the Daily Kos's smackdown of Nellie.)

***

And lest we forget, let us please put State Senator and Congressional candidate Tom White on record for the Health Care re-form bill:

• For!
• Aye!
• Yes!
• Si!
• Oui!
• Two thumbs-up!
• Nodding head vigorously!

We're not positive, but this maybe, possibly, could be an issue come November...

Trillion Dollar Tragedy

The Health Care Re-form bill passed the House with only Democrat support.

A bi-partisan group of Republicans and Democrats opposed it.

Nebraska's Republican Congressmen:

Lee Terry (NE-2):

"This trillion-dollar tragedy is just bad medicine.

"...There are some in this chamber who may consider this a momentous day. And that it will be if the House of Representatives votes to spend trillions of dollars and forwards the bill to future generations. While we ramp up spending, we have not dealt with the exploding costs of Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid. We are on a path of fiscal recklessness that threatens the future economic growth of America. So for me, this is a sad day."

Jeff Fortenberry (NE-1):

"America needs the right kind of health care reform that lowers costs, improves health outcomes, and protects vulnerable persons. This bill, however, substantially shifts costs to more unsustainable government spending, erodes health care liberties, and increases health care expenses for many Americans."

Adrian Smith (NE-3):

“This Congress has not listened to the American people. They don’t want Washington to push through this bill, which hides its true cost behind partisan tactics and rhetoric. Today, Democrats passed a bill which includes billions of dollars in new taxes and more than a trillion dollars in new government spending which will cause millions of employers to cancel the health care they offer their employees and force these individuals into a government-run health care plan.

“No dollar figure can represent the true cost of the legislation – not only for our country’s economic future but also for our personal freedoms.”

Senator Mike Johanns:

"I am disappointed the House voted to pass the Senate health care legislation. I have numerous concerns with this bill, both on its substance and the process being used to pass it. A bill that raises taxes by more than $500 billion, cuts Medicare by more than $500 billion, increases insurance premiums in the individual market, and spends about $2.5 trillion is simply the wrong prescription for a struggling economy."

And Senator Ben Nelson?

Says he's still reading it. The Senate still has to pass the House's Reconciliation, which can pass the Senate by a simple majority. This means Nelson now likely has the cover to vote against the final bill. Though no matter what, he is of course complicit in the entire deal.

And Lee Terry's Democrat opponent, Tom White? Well, he said he'd have voted "Yeah" back on the original House bill. Count him in with Nelson.

**UPDATE 8:45AM Monday**

By the way folks, it's now Monday morning, and we STILL haven't heard from a single Nebraska Democrat in the local news.  Not Ben Nelson.  Not Tom White.  Not Vic Covalt.  Not Mark Lakers.  Not even Jim freaking Suttle.

You know who the local news had to go to for comment from a local Democrat?  Anne Boyle.  "Longtime Nebraska Democrat", she's called by KETV.

There's your Nebraska Democrat leadership on the biggest issue of the decade folks.

Suck it in.

Or just suck it.

** 

This seems to be a done deal at this point (though some Senators say there will be roadblocks to get around).

Of course the big question left is, Now where will Canadians go to get the quality health care they desire?

Erin Go Blaugh

As per tradition (sort of) here on Leavenworth Street, see a few entrants in last Saturday's Saint Patrick's Day Parade in O'Maha.

First, Rob Butler for School Board. (Yeah, that's right! We cover ALL the races here on L. St!)

Then Representative Lee Terry for Congress.

And finally, State Senator Tom White for Congress.

There may have been others there, but frankly they didn't send us any pics.  Thanks to the camps who did!

***

We heard a rumor of late (that will likely be confirmed or denied in the comments section) that a resident of Hastings, Nebraska will be running to be the new Chair-person of the Nebraska Democrats.

None other than Jane Fleming Kleeb.

Some of you may know that Mrs. Kleeb -- she of the Scott Kleebs and former employee of the SEIU offshoot "Change that Works", that recently closed shop in Nebraska -- is also running for School Board in Hastings (no word on what her St. Paddy's Day float looked like).

On the one hand she's good for the Dems: (relatively) young and energetic; a good speaker; has organized efforts in the past.

Then again, she has only lived in the state for, what, three years? Not exactly a long time to have been in state to jump to be the head of all the Dems. She seems like more of the Executive Director type, than Chair. But maybe that involves too much work. Who knows.

And then there is the question of her politics. Jane isn't exactly in the mold of a Ben Nelson "conservative Democrat". To say that she is a Beltway Liberal would be credit to all of her talking head appearances on MSNBC and FOX. Would she be the face of the party in Nebraska?

Well hey, beats us. Maybe this is just a trial balloon anyway. But one would think the Dems are looking for something different.

***

Finally, apropos of nothing, we came across this item on eBay:

It's a Key to the City of Omaha (unlocking the city gates) from former Mayor Hal Daub to someone...in England?

Anywho, in can be yours for a starting bid of two quid. (Shipping Royal Mail 2nd Class Standard.) Bidding closes March 20th!

Chatting with Don

Welcome Lincoln Journal Star readers!  We hope you take a look around now and come back to Leavenworth Street in the future,

We thank the Lincoln Journal Star's Don Walton for his interview with Leavenworth Street (which you can read in full, here).

Don intro-ed his piece, in part, with:

Ah, the mystery. Who is Street Sweeper?...

Street Sweeper sounds like the name of a Dickens character. Imagine some guy in black wearing a stovetop lid and carrying a broom.
Get on the case, Holmes.

After that, he pretty much copied and pasted our email interview from what I wrote.

He did trim a few parts, but here is what I wrote back to Don in response to his questions:

1) When did Leavenworth Street debut?

Our first posts were on January 17, 2006.

2) How did you choose your name? What came in second?

We decided we wanted something with an Omaha identifier; Dodge Street was too trite; Howard Street was a bar; we came down with Leavenworth Street because we grew up going to places like Broncos and LaCasa, and eventually graduated to the Barretts and Paulis and Marelybones pubs. I don't think it was happenstance that ESPN chose Pauli's on Leavenworth Street as their home away from home. Sure it was the Cubs bar, but also, other than probably South Omaha, that stretch of Leavenworth Street has a feeling of the heart of Omaha (well, to us anyway).

Second place was Mike Fahey Street.

3) How did it all come about? A conversation over coffee or a beer, an event, an idea, a challenge, a dare?

After an evening of too many Dr. Peppers, a morning discussion led to mutual disdain for the political bent of many so called news stories in an unnamed daily newspaper HQ'd in Omaha. We were tired of the fact that the paper had no checks or balances for opposing political views. They were unchallenged. So, our first suggestion was an underground newspaper -- but we realized we weren't in a 1970's high school. So the concept of a blog came to place.

4) What is the purpose or goal of Leavenworth Street? Has it evolved?

The idea was always to discuss politics, and create an alternative to the local main stream media. And to add some entertainment, irreverence and fun to the discussion.

Every once in a while we hit policy issues where appropriate, but otherwise the goal is to discuss politics.

5) Who are you? are you one or more? What do you do at work and play?  Age range? Gender? Presumably, you live in Omaha? Have the players (if plural) changed?

As I responded recently on Twitter: I'm Batman.

Here's my response to those who want to know who writes Leavenworth Street, etc. You want to know who Street Sweeper is, read the blog. We have been doing it for over four years now -- having at least one new post every week since we began (a small point of pride). If you read someone for four years, I would hope you could get to know what that person is like, what they think, where they are coming from. Would knowing that the person's name is Jamie McChavezski really help you to know more? Maybe a little, but then what would you do with that information?

I would rather be judged on the merits (or demerits) of what I write.

6) Do I know you?

Does anyone really "know" anyone?

7) Why the anonymity? How many people know who you are? Who is most likely to give you up?

Basically, because we would be unable to continue with the blog if our employers knew we did it.

8) If you were trying to discover who you are, what clues would you pursue?

Professor Plum. In the conservatory. With the lead pipe.

Seriously, I don't know what there is to gain by discovering who writes the blog. It's ALL right there in front of you.

9) Do you try to score first with news online? you posted mark lakers online first other recent firsts? has that become more of a goal?

While we mainly comment on the news and the associated politics, it is fun to occasionally get a scoop. The Lakers thing was fairly random, though probably wasn't that big of a deal. We were happy to be able to provide an open forum for Jim Esch's full explanation of why he decided to quit the Democrats. And our discovery of Jesse Jackson Jr.'s karate prowess after his spat on the House floor with Lee Terry was copied nationally. (Still very proud of the scoop that the City of Omaha was taking over the local newspaper.)

One regret was when we "outed" KPTM's Calvert Collins Facebook photo supporting Jim Esch -- which eventually led to her getting fired. We certainly didn't intend that, and hope that it didn't cause too much pain for her. Though she has a new gig in Las Vegas, so maybe we helped.

Our goal is still to discuss politics. If that entails the occasional scoop, hopefully that brings in more readers.

10) How do you hear or discover this stuff? Conversation when socializing? Work contacts? Networking? Sources? Got some moles?

We follow the money. Or, it's just plain old contacts. It's rare that we take something we learned in a social situation and discuss it publicly.

11) How many readers do you have? Has that number been growing?

We certainly don't have the numbers of the big national blogs. Our readership is still mainly Nebraska, and we have no problem with that. It has been steadily growing over the years.

12) So, is this political passion or internet passion? Goal-oriented or recreation? Work or play? Are you having fun?

All of the above? Really a political passion. A goal would be a better informed public. There are times when it feels like work, but in the end, if it wasn't a little fun, we would absolutely stop. That's why we toss in the occasional political Separated at Birth. It's politics and it's government, but occasionally you gotta lighten up, right?

Flip flops and robots

Longtime Leavenworth Street readers know that while we address political issues like illegal immigration and health care, we're also not afraid to tackle the hard-hitting political news as well.

Case in point: Democrat Gubernatorial candidate Mark Lakers has already flip-flopped on his website.

See below:

At left is Lakers's "official" press photo and at right is his new campaign website header.

Does Lakers part that hair on the left, or the right?
Did he put this website together while looking in the mirror?
And moreover, what brand of razor is the guy using (because it doesn't seem to be getting the job done)?

Here, we're going to fix this right now:

OK, much better. Now back to your regularly scheduled blog.

***

2nd District Congressman Lee Terry's Democratic opponent has been put on the Democrat Congressional Campaign Committee's "Red to Blue" campaign kick.

Under the program, the DCCC will provide "access to financial, communications, and strategic support from the national party."

Oh wait, we copied that quote from the wrong source. That was from 2008 Democrat candidate Jim Esch's campaign when the DCCC put him on Red to Blue and spent a million dollars on attack ads.

Well, we're sure that Tom White will have the same success with it that Esch had.

***

And as the left-wing forces continue to come after Lee Terry, you may have heard that they are employing robocalls to tell you that Terry is against the Obamacare health care re-form plan.

Robocalls. Yup.

No, it's not 1983. We checked the calendar.

Believe it or not, there are still politicians who believe that interrupting you during dinner to give you recorded message about politics is just what will sway you over to their side.

And the funny thing is, the robocall script from "Americans United for Change" (hopefully they'll collect enough to make a dollar), failed to follow the rules of the Nebraska Public Service Commission.  They were supposed to provide the telephone number and address of their outfit during the call. Oh, but don't worry, after their screw-up, they promised to fix all future calls.

They should be required to call everyone back and tell them what they did wrong.

 At 3am.

Governor Dave's choice

In a recent story regarding the bill in the Nebraska legislature that would provide prenatal health services for pregnant illegal immigrants, Governor Dave Heineman said

...he arrived at his position for “policy” rather than political reasons...

While we understand the statement, it is of course not true. Because not considering politics in your decision, is a political decision in itself -- when you're in politics.

In other words, every decision the Governor makes in his job has political implications, whether he wants them to or not. Same goes with nearly every elected spot there is. That's just the way it works.

So let's examine the Governor's stance on LB 1110 (did KFAB sponsor this bill?) and what it means.

***

The Governor has said his view of the bill is based on the following reasons:
(Btw, this was in an OWH article that is no longer up on their site. Wth?)

1) A year ago, the Legislature gave 44-0 approval to LB 403, which bars giving state-funded benefits to illegal immigrants. Granting prenatal benefits to illegal immigrants turns that law upside down, he said. “Did you mean it last year?” he asked of lawmakers. 

2) Thirty-five states don't provide such aid to mothers. 

3) Spending between $6 million and $7 million over the next 2¼ years to cover prenatal services for illegal immigrants takes money from other state priorities, such as K-12 education. 

4) He is skeptical of claims that spending money on prenatal services will save money later. One group estimated that $800 in prenatal services would save $2,300 in health care costs during a child's first year. Heineman said he hasn't heard one doctor say that the state could reduce services if the bill were passed.

Of these, it's really number 1, that we believe hits the issue for him.

Number 2 doesn't matter. Number 3, while maybe true, doesn't really hit it either. This isn't a budget issue. And number 4 addresses the other side's argument, which isn't really his argument.

So for Governor Dave it gets down to: Nebraska taxpayers should not give further services to illegal immigrants.

The Pro sides states, "well, the kid born is going to be a citizen, so why not?" (By the way, it always kills us when the Pro-Choice people make this argument, but it mysteriously disappears when the actual abortion issue surfaces...but we digress.)

While this is true, it begs the raises another question though, right? Why is the illegal immigrant mother in the U.S. in the first place? If she goes back to her home in Sweden before the baby is born, then the baby isn't an American because he received prenatal care in the U.S.

So Heineman's standpoint is, again, Nebraska should not knowingly give illegal immigrants tax payer services, which would be an incentive for more illegal immigrants to come to Nebraska.  (And we add the "knowingly" to toss away the argument that "they are already using other services -- roads, police protection, water fountains -- so why not one more?")

***

The argument for the bill (opposing Heineman) is: The mother is going to have a baby here. If it helps the baby why not give it essentially the same assistance before it is born that you will give it after it is born? If the baby would be a citizen, and therefore qualify for public assistance post natal, then providing the same assistance prenatal shouldn't be that big of a leap.

That argument is almost immediately followed by the one that says if you provide prenatal care now, you will save money down the road for future problems after birth. Nearly every group is stating this, though Heineman seems to be asking for the proof. (This would seem to be pretty easy to chart since there are states on both sides of this law.)

The full-on Pro Life position is that care for the unborn should be given, no matter the immigrant status. They are essentially saying that it doesn't matter if the unborn baby is an illegal immigrant (and for argument's sake, you would have to say that an UNborn child is an illegal, right?). You should support life and providing prenatal care does that.

***

So now the politics of it all.

Heineman has a bit of a sticky situation on this almost automatically. Many say that he beat Tom Osborne back in the 2006 Republican Primary based on the immigration issue.

Osborne was in favor of giving in-state college tuition rates to the children of illegal immigrants. Heineman was against it, essentially saying that illegal immigrants shouldn't be rewarded for the unlawful act of border jumping. Osborne said that those children shouldn't be "hurt" because of the sins of their parents. Arguably Osborne lost the Primary based on this position.

And when you look at it, the questions on LB1110 are very similar at the core.

Should (unborn) children who didn't make the choice of where to "live", get the benefits of living in Nebraska as if they had been there legally?

Let's go back to the assumption that an UNborn child (in this situation) is an illegal immigrant, until they are born. So the argument that you can either pay now or pay later is really an economics issue. It was the same issue on the college tuition argument, i.e., "Wouldn't you rather have an educated illegal immigrant, than a non-educated one?" (One facet of that argument anyway.)

But that, again, jumped the gun of, "Are you OK with illegal immigrants being here, or the concept that such a law may attract more illegal immigrants?"

Of course, the strictly Pro Life position of Nebraska Right to Life and others is that this can be a life or death issue so screw the issue of where they're from.

This is the most compelling argument, and anti-LB1110 response seems to be that illegal immigrants can get the aid elsewhere if they have to. In the end they say, Nebraska taxes shouldn't be paying for this, no matter how noble it may be.

***

And Heineman? Well, this pits him against one of his main constituencies, the Pro Life groups. Does Heineman lose their support over this? Hmm.

As far as their support goes -- if he is considering this -- he could estimate that Pro Lifers are generally more conservative, and those who are more conservative are generally against providing services to illegal immigrants. So he may figure that where those groups have a split of opinion, they will give him a pass.

He also may figure that his opponent in the 2010 Governor's race isn't going to topple him on this issue, so he should stick to his guns on the basic principle of no additional services to illegals.

But...what about 2012? If he is up against Ben Nelson -- could Nebraska Right to Life sit it out over their beef with both Heineman and Nelson? Could that cost Heineman the election at that point? Maybe, maybe not. (Frankly 2012 is too far away to read, but it could in theory become an interesting question.)

***

So would Heineman have had anything to lose politically by going the other way on this issue?  Couldn't he have been pro-LB 1110?

He could have made a conservative argument that it is a Pro Life issue and an economics issue and then hoped that the illegal immigration forces couldn't stir up too much dust on it anyway.

Sure he could have then been labeled a hypocrite by the anti-illegal groups, but would their denial of support have affected Heineman? Who are they going to go with? Lakers? Nelson? And would it matter?

Of course Heineman may get to have his cake and eat it too. He may have a whip count that says the bill is going to pass over his veto.  In that case he can say that he is against providing incentives for illegal immigrants to come to Nebraska, but as Governor will carry out his duties to direct those to provide prenatal care as per the law. And then hope that the issue subsides.

Don't know how that would sit with the Right to Life folks, but it's an interesting side note.

***

So does Heineman win or lose?

Well, he can easily say he is being consistent with his previous positions on illegal immigration. And he can point to his other Pro Life stances as well as argue that the Pro Life position isn't the overarching one here. Or he can count on the fact that this is a bill that splits conservatives, but in the end, he is the only conservative around for the next two big elections.

Make no mistake, this is a bit of a hairy political decision for Dave Heineman.

The question is, does this spider have legs?

***

As the comment board rages on this one, here is what we ask:

1) While you will no doubt want to argue the merits of the bill, please also try to give your opinion of the political ramifications involved. That is still the gist of this blog.

2) As always, try to keep it clean, not personal, don't copy and paste from other sources, and no links please.

3) And to steal from Jim Rome, please, Have a take and don't suck.

Nebraskans hate the Health Care bill

In our previous post on the Nebraska Governor's race, we referenced the Rasmussen Reports poll which took a snapshot of Nebraska on a few issues.

The one we didn't address (because, frankly, it was Saturday afternoon) was the poll numbers on Nebraskans' view on the Health Care Re-form bill rolling through Congress. It looks like this:

Nebraska's view on the current Congressional Health Care Reform Plan
In favor: 32%
Oppose: 64%


And more...
Strongly favor: 12%
Strongly oppose: 51%

Compare this to the 52% of Americans as a whole who oppose the Health Care bill and you get an idea where Nebraskans stand.

And beyond the numbers, we juxtapose this poll with the random statements of Nebraska's Senior U.S. Senator.

He will say that he is "listening" to Nebraskans.
He will tell you that he has heard from Nebraskans.
He will tell you that Nebraskans want hope and change and a chicken in every pot.

But if he votes for it (again), he won't be representing the majority of Nebraskans. But then maybe he just doesn't care about that.

***

And while we would like to see the breakdown by Congressional district, Rasmussen reports that 61% of Nebraskans disapprove of President Obama's performance. 47% strongly disapprove (compared to 41% strongly disapproving nationally).

And just in case any is wondering, Tom White and Mark Lakers are both Obama guys.

Wonder if anyone will mention that during the campaigns?

Heineman 61 - Lakers 23

No that's not a bizarro NBA score up above (but don't think that's the last time we'll make such a joke.)

A new Rassmussen Reports poll out today on the Nebraska Governor's race. Looks like this:

Dave Heineman (R): 61%
Mark Lakers (D): 23%
Other: 2%
Undecided: 14%

Recall that back in 2006, after taking out Tom Osborne in the Primary, Heineman ended up defeating David Hahn with 73% of the vote. Those Undecideds tend to come around.

Rasmussen also says that Heineman gets 24% of Democrats, while Lakers only gets 54% of those from his own party.  Chalk much of that to the fact that Lakers has come out of political Nowhere Land, and many, if not just about all, Democrats have never heard of the guy. (Still, DH gets 24%. Not bad.)

Heineman also has a 69% approval rating (29% disapprove).

Nonetheless, it's early kids. Lakers will have some ads and his numbers will go up. Heineman will have a few more and then his will go up. (Then Heineman will saturate the market, the President will pull down the rest of the Dems, and, well...)

Note this first poll.

Primary Plans

A quick Separated at Birth for ye:

1st Congressional District Democrat candidate Ivy Harper and SNL star Kristen Wiig.

***

The other day Congressman Lee Terry, State state Senator Tom White and others joined at a candidate forum to talk about issues and such and such.

You can see a news report on it here (and feel free to debate the various candidates' positions).



But our main point here is, of course, just how in the heck Dewey went from Malcolm in the Middle to reporting for KPTM!

***

Some interesting battles coming Primary Day May 11th.


Note that there are FOUR Democrats running for the nomination in the 1st Congressional District. That's a serious battle to see who is going to get wiped out by Jeff Fortenberry. It's either Jessica, Stanley, Ivy or Sherman. Our money's on Ivy.

Then there's perpetual candidate Steven Laird added to the mix in the 2nd District. Like it or not, that's going to hurt the MattSak float wagon, as voters look to the name they've heard and seen before when they look for an alt-candidate.

Then after you see the few Dems that are competing in the races for Treasurer and Secretary of State, did you note that there is no competition against Jon Bruning for AG or Mike Foley for Auditor? Arguably the second and third most high profile positions in the state government these days, and once again the Dems took a "pass".

Not that they would have likely had a prayer, but just something to note in any case.

***

And just to note, that once again, Senator Ben Nelson is a fan of Reconciliation for the Health Care re-from bill.

Just remember the Triple Lindy Nelson has been pulling on this issue for over a year now.

You can read the news that the President once hated this maneuver as well.

But the end result is whenever Nelson -- and we're going to focus on him here -- promises anything, states anything, declares anything, just assume he may say the exact opposite in a couple of days.

And then decide if you're into that.

Filing Deadline Day

**UPDATE**
See all of the 2010 Nebraska Primary Candidates here!

***

Jim Geraghty's Campaign Spot blog at the National Review Online features analysis of the various Nebraska races.

After Geraghty's analysis of NE-2, a reader piped in with their own analysis of Terry v White:

The Nebraska Second is NOT a competitive race.

First of all, the Democrat brand is currently dead in Nebraska. Thank you, Ben Nelson, thank you, Omaha mayor/cranky-old-man Jim Suttle, thank you Nancy Pelosi. 

Second, Obama’s superb campaign organization won the NE-2 but was not able to carry their guy across the finish line. As we have seen in races around the rest of the country, Obama’s organization was a one-hit-wonder. Will it be around in 2012? Maybe, but it won’t be operative in 2010. 

Third, Lee Terry is a decent enough Congressman. 

Fourth, Tom White is [what Mr. Bumble called the law]. Nobody likes him in the legislature. He is currently ticking off the local Democrats by trying to knock down a double taxation issue that is worth millions of dollars to Omaha. He is also one of the lead idiots in the Safe Haven law that made Nebraska the laughingstock of the nation. I happen to agree with him on the double taxation issue, but I think the issue is technical enough that it won’t help him with most Independents. 

I think Lee Terry wins by 10 this year.

We don't think this came from the Terry campaign. Because, when you think about it, they want the national readers to think it's close so they can keep the donations coming.

Maybe it was a White supporter?

***

Speaking of the Nebraska deadline, you can go to the Nebraska Secretary of State's website for the updates on who has filed and who hasn't -- though we would guess they may wait until tomorrow for the final tally?

As we have noted in our Tweets, Jeff Fortenberry gained a third Democrat opponent late last week in one Ivy Harper -- a former Hill staffer who has also penned a Bob Kerrey bio. You can see her very green website here.

And then there's the Democrats favorite Democrat (haw!), Kris Pierce.

Pierce, the former ED of the Douglas County Democrats had filed for Secretary of State. Then as of yesterday, he sent out a letter to supporters telling them he was dropping out of the SoS race, and instead putting all his efforts into replacing Chuck Sigerson on the Omaha City Council. In particular he said:

My full attention will be to seek and fill the vacant seat on the Omaha City Council...

Uh, which is swell and all, but his "full attention" is basically on convincing four Council members to place him. That's it. It's not as if he's out campaigning. He's not going door to door -- or if he is, he only has six to visit.

Just sort of a strange message to send out -- and many Democrats tell us they aren't surprised by said message.  But the note he sent makes it sound like he has the votes locked up...

***

A nice article in praise of Senator Mike Johanns today in the National Journal Congress Daily (subscription).

While Sen. Scott Brown, R-Mass., is getting much of the attention, freshman Sen. Mike Johanns, R-Neb., has quickly and quietly become a rising star within his caucus.

As a former mayor, Nebraska governor and Agriculture secretary under President George W. Bush, Johanns said he arrived in the Senate familiar with his state and Washington. And with an experienced staff, he recorded some notable legislative successes last year, including passage of an amendment preventing the use of reconciliation on cap-and-trade legislation and amendments to appropriations bills cutting off federal funding for the embattled community group ACORN.

Using a soft-spoken Plains manner to deliver a firmly conservative message, Johanns is a frequent participant in news conferences with Senate GOP leaders on health care and other issues. Colleagues said he also has become a respected voice in his caucus.

"It didn't take him long to figure out what was going on," Senate Minority Leader McConnell said in an interview. "I'd be hard pressed to remember a freshman senator who so quickly got into the flow. He's been extraordinarily effective when you consider he just got here."

McConnell called Johanns knowledgeable on a number of policy fronts, but noted he built support for his positions quietly. "He doesn't just jump up and pound his views all time," McConnell said.

...

McConnell noted Johanns worked with Sen. Robert Byrd, D-W.Va., on a letter, eventually co-signed by about 30 senators, laying the foundation for the reconciliation vote.

"What Mike did was to show there was bipartisan opposition," McConnell said.

...

McConnell called Johanns "one of our members who can deal with and talk to Democrats."

...

But the early success doesn't appear to be going to his head.

"We had a good first year and want to work hard to make sure there's a good second year and a third year and fourth year and fifth year and sixth," (Johanns) said.

He described his ambitions as solving real problems and "treating people decently."