Senate Democrats Hope for a Majority Not Seen in 30 Years: 60 Seats

[groovedaddy]

WASHINGTON — When Mark Begich, the popular 45-year-old mayor of Anchorage, came to town for a meeting of mayors in January, he was beckoned to the Capitol by the Senate majority leader, Harry Reid of Nevada. There was one agenda item: ousting Senator Ted Stevens of Alaska, the senior Republican in Congress.

For 45 minutes, Mr. Reid and Senator Charles E. Schumer of New York, the head of the Democrats' campaign efforts, pressed the mayor to run this year. Last week, they got him. Mr. Begich announced that he had formed a committee to start raising money. Effectively, the race is on.

For Democrats hoping the November elections set off a seismic shift in Washington, the dream scenario is not just capturing the White House, but also winning a filibuster-proof majority of 60 seats in the Senate - a luxury no president has enjoyed since Jimmy Carter 30 years ago.

As far-fetched as that might seem - Democrats now control the Senate by a razor-thin 51 to 49, thanks only to two independents who vote with them - some Democrats have started thinking aloud that such a scenario is within reach.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/07/us/politics/07senate.html?_r=1&ref=us&oref=slogin

[HereSince1628]

1. When hope is under attack? Two years of doing nothing isn't gonna get a lot more support

You left that dream like a wool sweater in an unattached garage. Now it's a moth-eaten nest for mice.

No one can stop you from dreaming,

but...well as far as I know... and I have no reason _not_ to trust what you've said,

"Accomplishing anything is off the table."

[fasttense]

2. With the economy shriveling like a rotting prune,

the republicans can bet that US citizens will vote like they did during the last republican great depression. Twenty years of Democratic rule might fix the mess.

[BridgeTheGap]

3. The judgement of the DSCC is severly lacking - i.e. pusing Bruce Lunsford to run against McConnell

Hard to believe this guy even donated to McConnell's '08 effort!?!
"Now it appears, after telling dozens of people including myself and Andrew Horne that he was not interested in the race, Bruce is definitely inching toward a candidacy. Of course he’s waited until after the Democratic Party has fielded a consensus candidate in Andrew Horne, after giving thousands of dollars to Republicans in recent years (including $250 to McConnell’s ‘08 Committee) and after so many dedicated individuals have started the fight against McConnell."
http://pageonekentucky.com/2007/12/24/breaking-bruce-lunsford-is-making-a-mistake/

Lt. Col. Andrew Horne (U.S.M.C.-retired - Iraq War vet) doesn't say that Chuck Schumer's call is what prompted him to drop out, but all the other Dem candidates did receive the call.

Lunsford also ran for governor in the '03 primary. In that race, current Congressman Ben Chandler ran ads highlighting a number of Lunsford's "bad decisions." After spending millions, Lunsford, who pledged to support the Dem nominee, drops out of the Dem primary and endorses Republican Ernie Fletcher. And the DSCC likes this guy because he has a ton of money? Unfortunately, McConnell will trounce this clown, using the same info Chandler used.

More:
http://www.uow.edu.au/arts/sts/bmartin/dissent/documents/health/vencor_lunsford.html

http://downwithtyranny.blogspot.com/2008/03/bruce-lunsford-more-baggage-than.html

http://www.bluegrassroots.org/showDiary.do?diaryId=752

[groovedaddy]

4. I don't know why the DSCC didn't consider Greg Fischer, who

also has his own money and while he has low name recognition, he doesn't have any baggage like Lunsford.

http://www.gregfischer.com/