The Candidates
Obama maintains his wide lead in the land of 10,000 lakes:
Rasmussen Reports Minnesota General Election
- Obama - 52% (53)
- McCain - 39% (38)
Favorable/Unfavorable
- Obama - 60/39
- McCain - 54/45
Obama captures the vote of 86% of Democrats; McCain gets 88% of Republicans; Unaffiliated voters broke 50-32 in favor of Barack.
There was never a time at any point in the 2004 election, going all the way back to March of ‘04 when polling for MN began, that Kerry led by more than nine points (and even that was a single outlier poll). For most of 2004, Kerry led in MN polls by 1-3 points.
Rasmussen Reports MN Senate Race
- Coleman - 48%
- Franken - 45%
- Coleman - 39%
- Franken - 32%
- Ventura - 24%
June 13th, 2008 at 9:21 am
The WI and MN polls are unsettling… if only because they may spell trouble on what may be going on in MI and OH.
June 13th, 2008 at 9:35 am
Sorry to be repetitious, but this is not rocket science folks on what is needed for GOP victory throughout the nation (including Minnesota and Wisconsin). It is THE game changer.
Palin as McCain’s Veep.
Beyond that, everything said is bla bla bla — and won’t amount to a hill of beans.
June 13th, 2008 at 9:41 am
Wisconsin and Minnesota are very different animals than Michigan and Ohio.
June 13th, 2008 at 9:49 am
Why would Palin bring Minnesota?
June 13th, 2008 at 9:50 am
Anyway, MN =/= OH
June 13th, 2008 at 9:50 am
Let’s put a positive spin on this. Despite Obama’s worshipful “press coverage”, and Hillary’s endorsement, his
lead shrunk. He is not expanding his margin at a time when he should be.
June 13th, 2008 at 9:50 am
As much as I love Palin and want her to be McCain’s VP, can we stop having her be inserted as the magical salve for EVERY GOP woe this election year?
June 13th, 2008 at 9:56 am
I honestly don’t get the Palin hype for 2008… in choosing her, John McCain - the 72 yo candidate - essentially takes the experience card out of his deck. It took Obama almost a year of campaigning (from Jan - Nov 2007) to get Democrats comfortable with the idea he had the mettle to be president. In just 3 months, the woman who was mayor of Watchamacallit, Alaska just a few months ago could never pass the laugh test as someone the country believes would the capability to serve as President, should the need arise.
She’s a star for the future. Let it go at that.
June 13th, 2008 at 10:02 am
This isn’t about a VP. McCain needs to find the energy and message within himself and his advisors. And if Pawlenty can’t pull MN, no one can.
June 13th, 2008 at 10:03 am
With respect David, the thing thing is, neither Mrs. Clinton nor Mr. Obama pass the laugh test.
June 13th, 2008 at 10:05 am
Yeah I don’t get the Palin hype either or the Jindal hype, let these people serve out full terms as governors in their respective states and then if their is a open Republican primary in 2012 they can throw their names in the mix.
June 13th, 2008 at 10:10 am
I don’t think anything helps MN flip red this year. It may be one of Obama’s best 3 or 4 states in margin of victory. The worst part of this is that the Obamamia will be an upward drag for Al Franken.
June 13th, 2008 at 10:14 am
Projection is that Rudy will be VP. He has the unique resume and ability to automatically step in as President if something happens to McCain.
June 13th, 2008 at 10:16 am
A McCain/Rudy ticket will show Obama’s extreme lack of substance & extreme lack of experience to be President, unless the U.S. wants a 2nd round of Jimmy Carter.
June 13th, 2008 at 10:16 am
A McCain/Rudy ticket will show Obama’s extreme lack of substance & extreme lack of experience to be President, unless the U.S. wants a 2nd round of Jimmy Carter.
June 13th, 2008 at 10:20 am
Palin’s got more actual experience, qualification and accomplishment than Obama times 2.
If the Dems are foolish enough to raise the experience card on Palin, that would be rich! I say, bring it on!!
Insofar as Palin for tomorrow, not today, the GOP depsparately needs a Palin right now (she’s already proven herself), or the party won’t be around or strong enough tomorrow.
Palin will singlehandedly change the dynamics of the race and create a media frenzy (read her bio) which will more than trump the Obama story.
June 13th, 2008 at 10:25 am
and Palin uniquely fits/matches perfectly with McCain (whereas she would not have, for example w/Romney — 2 beautiful people would be too much).
June 13th, 2008 at 10:26 am
You all are getting ahead of yourselves
1.) McCains camp has said that they will not announce a running mate until early August.
2.) August is politically, light years away from today. There is at least a month and a half before the
decision is going to be announced
3.) Remind me again of how Palin is going to help in Minnesota. MN and AK have only 2 things in common; it snows
and it gets damn cold
June 13th, 2008 at 10:29 am
Great white, if you want reminders on the merits of Palin, simply re-read past blogs. Everything’s been said, as well as the merits of an early pick of Palin (contrary to the punditocracy) rather than later toward the convention.
June 13th, 2008 at 10:33 am
A worry I have about Palin is that, while she has fought corruption in Alaska,will the stink that surrounds Don Young and Ted Stevens drag her down? That state is so full of corruption that McCain would probably want to avoid the headache.
June 13th, 2008 at 10:36 am
A worry I have about Palin is that, while she has fought corruption in Alaska,will the stink that surrounds Don Young and Ted Stevens drag her down?
June 13th, 2008 at 10:37 am
#18:
I know Palin’s merits. I know she would be a strong VP candidate (if not now then in 4-8 years), but don’t
see how that makes her tailor made to help in MN. Also, it was the McCain campaign that said they are going to
announce a running mate in August, not just the punditocracy.
June 13th, 2008 at 10:38 am
Sorry, first time I’ve ever quadrouple posted.
June 13th, 2008 at 10:52 am
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20080613.BCPOWELL13/TPStory/National
Powell said he may vote for Obama in the fall
June 13th, 2008 at 10:52 am
To anyone that knows MN better than I do, how realistic a chance does Franken stand of winning? I don’t think I could take that nasal, grating voice in the Senate…
June 13th, 2008 at 10:53 am
Which VP choice will give McCain the most media hype? We are living in a Britney Spears world. The more media exposure you can generate, the more people will gravitate towards you. I mean, why else would anyone vote for Obama?
June 13th, 2008 at 10:57 am
#26: Petraeus. Fiorina or (Meg) Whitman.
June 13th, 2008 at 11:01 am
#27 - Yeah, what happened to the Meg Whitman chatter? That flared up a couple weeks ago then vanished. I kinda liked the idea, despite some of its obvious drawbacks.
June 13th, 2008 at 11:03 am
Palin’s story — again read her personal bio & accomplishments in Alaska — will more than trump Petraeus, Fiorina and Whitman combined.
With all due respect, this is a no-brainer.
June 13th, 2008 at 11:09 am
Ted, you’re just in lust. The media is going to love her like a (young, male) conservative is.
They’d be focused on how little experience she has, mayor of a town of 8,000 just 2 years ago, when McCain has promised someone that nobody questioned could step into the Presidency at a moment’s notice given his age. THAT’s what the media would be focused on.
June 13th, 2008 at 11:10 am
Ted I will feel sorry for you if McCain does pick Palin and if she fails to deliver like you say she will.
June 13th, 2008 at 11:11 am
Win M — This state has recently reverted to its historic roots. It’s an economically moderate to liberal state but socially moderate to conservative. Amy Klobauchar was just a county attorney and she humiliated a suburban congressman in 06. This Senate race would be a blowout if the DFL would’ve recruited even a B level candidate. Basically, Franken can win but Coleman has a chance even in this Democratic year. Unfortunately, with this poll result, my guess is that Jesse will now run. No matter what Matthew may say, Pawlenty won’t carry this state. In a way, the Republicans were stupid to have their convention here. They should’ve had it in Denver.
Fiorina and Whitman might shore up McCain’s economic front, but many will see them as too rich. Better to take Palin and engender some excitement on our side.
June 13th, 2008 at 11:13 am
I think Ted and that Palin for VP person have jumped on the Palin bandwagon 4 years ahead of schedule. If there is a Republican primary 4 years from now she could be a very formiddable candidate. But I meanc come on now she was just elected governor in 06 and before that she was a mayor of city with 8,000 people.
June 13th, 2008 at 11:28 am
For all of you who say Palin doesn’t have enough experience, were you making the same arguments against Crist? Palin has been a governor a month longer than Crist, and when you throw in her 6 years as mayor (not sure on the number of years) she clearly has the upper hand in executive experience. Yet the media kept saying Crist was on the short list, blah, blah, blah, with no mention that he should sit this election out as a VP. DOUBLE STANDARD!
June 13th, 2008 at 11:35 am
A McCain/Rudy ticket would convince many Social Conservatives that they have better things to do on election day than vote.
June 13th, 2008 at 11:42 am
act, how come you are never in class?
June 13th, 2008 at 11:58 am
#29 - Thanks for the great synopsis. But with regards to Ventura, doesn’t he seem to hurt Franken more than Coleman?
June 13th, 2008 at 12:13 pm
Who in the blazes would even suggest Carly Fiorina as a good VP candidate? Her main accomplishment is burning HP to the ground. And Metro, she’s a prime example of someone who jumped out of her top-level corner office with a golden parachute. Seriously…
I still think the #1 thing someone like McCain needs to look for is economic expertise.
June 13th, 2008 at 12:23 pm
#34 - Seriously. I’ve been posting here that Fiorina was - and would be - a disaster, but there still are some hard-core fans. She was a joke as a CEO, who would rather make speeches at Davos than go fix what was wrong with her company. She presided over a huge destruction of shareholder value, and walked away with a fat paycheck.
Yeah, great candidate…
June 13th, 2008 at 12:55 pm
That’s why I’ve always held Meg Whitman would be a better choice.
June 13th, 2008 at 12:59 pm
ACT, I will not have better things to do on Election Day, but I might have better candidates to vote for.
June 13th, 2008 at 1:01 pm
Hearmeroar: I think you’re wrong on two points here. One is that there has been (on this site at least) very little support for Crist.
The other is that Crist’s resume is a bit more extensive than serving as governor (or a major state) for one month less than Palin has served as governor of a tiny state.
Prior to being governor, Crist had been Attorney General of Florida (four years) and before that was the state’s Education Commissioner (two years). Prior to that he had served six years in the state senate.
I would consider state executive offices like AG and education in a major state to trump mayor of a town of 8,000 people, just as I would say that Crist’s (limited) period as governor of a big state trumps Palin’s equally limited governance of a small state — therefore I would consider Crist’s executive resume to be better than Palin’s.
This is not to argue for Crist as VP (he would not be my choice) — my intent is simply to point out that it is not necessarily evidence of a double standard if one did support Crist.
June 13th, 2008 at 1:02 pm
Metro, I like Whitman - very sharp, and I think she’d hold up well under the spotlight. Yet, I worry she doesn’t have that sense of “gravitas” - where she becomes the center of attention in a room merely by walking into it - required of a major political figure. It’s an indefinable trait, but one that’s absolutely crucial.
June 13th, 2008 at 1:29 pm
#38. Point taken.
June 13th, 2008 at 2:59 pm
I like Whitman. Of the names that are commonly bandied about, she’s at or near the top of my list.
Every potential nominee has a negative — hers is that she’s never run for office and therefore no one has a clue how she’d do under campaign conditions.