An interesting story via The Hill. Considering the dire conditions facing Democratic challengers and incumbents across the country, I think the frustration is understandable:
Sen. Evan Bayh (D-Ind.), who is retiring at the end of the year, reported earlier this month having an eye-popping $10.8 million on hand. But he has given only $15,000 to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) to keep his seat in Democratic hands, according to his fundraising reports.
[...]
DSCC Chair Robert Menendez (NJ) declined to discuss his conversations with Bayh.
"It's up to Sen. Bayh what he does with his money," said Menendez.
A spokesman for Bayh noted the senator has helped in other ways, giving $1 million to the Indiana Democratic Party in March.
"Sen. Bayh has an open mind but hasn't made any final decisions on what to do with the remainder of his campaign account," his spokesman said in a statement.
Not exactly a warm-and-fuzzy embrace from Menendez, eh?
For what it's worth, Bayh has come under fire for this same issue just about every election cycle, and he's always been pretty stingy with his campaign cash. So, to a certain extent, there's precedent here which may go to explaining the reluctance to open the ol' purse strings.
On the other hand, if the cash is being held in reserve for a future bid for statewide office, one has to wonder if the coinage might be better spent now rather than later.
If this year turns out very badly -- an Ellsworth loss, a loss of the Indiana House, and the loss of at least one congressional seat -- you have to think that Bayh will be spending the money anyway when it comes time to convince Hoosier Democrats that he shouldn't be blamed for bailing during one of the toughest years on record.
Senator Evan Bayh joined with Senators Al Franken, Chuck Schumer, Russ Feingold, and Ron Wyden to introduce legislation that will partially rectify the damage done when the Supreme Court ruled in the Citizens United case.
From an emailed press release:
The legislation is a response to the Court’s ruling in the Citizens United case last January. That decision overturned a decades-old law banning political expenditures by corporate interests. The new Senate legislation would partly restore those limits – by barring foreign-controlled corporations, government contractors and companies that have received government assistance from making political expenditures – and also require corporations, unions, and other organizations that make political expenditures to disclose their donors and stand by their ads....
Under the senators’ proposal, the heads of any organization sponsoring an ad—including corporate CEOs—would be required to appear during the ad, as is currently required of candidates for federal office. In cases where special interests funnel their money into shell groups, the top five organizations that have donated to the group would have to be identified on screen during any ad sponsored by that group. The CEO of the group’s top funder for that particular advertisement would also be required to appear on screen to deliver a “stand by your ad” disclaimer.
Also, the bill would effectively require, for the first time, all corporations and advocacy groups that make political expenditures to establish easy-to-track campaign accounts. All donations to these accounts that exceed $1,000—as well as all expenditures funded through these accounts—would be reported within 24 hours to the Federal Election Commission once the money is spent, as well as to the public on the organization’s website, and to company shareholders in their corporate filing statements. If a company or organization did not wish to establish these transparent accounts, it would be required to disclose all its donors, not just those whose contributions are earmarked for political activities.
The legislation will also strengthen a candidate’s ability to respond to corporate attack ads by ensuring they can purchase air time at the lowest possible rate in the same media markets where these attacks ads are airing. The bill would also make sure that private corporations don’t coordinate their political activities with candidates.
This doesn't completely repair the damage done, in my opinion, but it is a good start and I, a frequent critic of Senator Bayh, applaud his support of this legislation.
Expect there to be roughly fifteen-thousand articles exactly like this one from The Hill over the next year or so as the elephant donkey in the room continues to generate speculative ink.
On Wednesday, Bayh said he still has no political plans and wouldn't rule a gubernatorial bid in or out.
"I loved being governor, but I've got no political plans," he said. "I literally have not decided what I'm going to be doing next year, political or otherwise. I'm going to serve out my term, and we've got important elections in November. But regarding my future plans, my deal with my wife is that she's going to be the first to know."
An interesting story out of Da Region, where the Times takes a look at the immediate effect that Senator Evan Bayh's retirement has had on the ever-evolving political landscape of northwest Indiana. Specifically, the way it has brought some subtlety to the previously boisterous fledgling gubernatorial bids of Hammond Mayor Tom McDermott and Lake County Sheriff Roy Dominguez.
Although Bayh has suggested he may go into business, education or charity, political observers speculate he might run for governor in 2012 and be the pre-emptive favorite thanks to his popularity among Indiana voters, many of whom fondly remember his years as governor from 1989 to 1996.
"I'm just running for re-election as mayor," McDermott said recently.
Dominguez said, "I have never been an officially announced candidate for governor. If Evan Bayh were to run for governor I would never run against Evan Bayh, and I would be honored to serve as his lieutenant governor -- if Evan Bayh were to run."
This quote jumped out at me in the first few grafs of an Eric Bradner story that ran yesterday in the Courier & Press:
As members of Congress transition into campaign season during their current two-week recess, Rep. Brad Ellsworth, D-Ind., is ready to sell voters on his support of the health care reform legislation.
"It's a huge piece of legislation," said Ellsworth, an Evansville native who is looking to succeed Sen. Evan Bayh, who is not seeking re-election. "Part of our job is to go out and explain the bill and what it's going to do immediately."
Last week brought real health care reform the likes of which hasn't been seen in generations. But with this much-needed and massive overhaul of our nation's broken insurance system came a lot of confusion, and the continuation of a Republican misinformation campaign that has been more successful than not over the last year.
Unfortunately, the immediate aftermath of the bill's passage and signing has seen more than a few national and semi-national figures step into the light -- very few of whom are carrying the banner of centrist Democrats facing an uphill electoral path this year.
I probably don't need to bring up such political opportunism in this state, though. Mitch Daniels has made a career out of sniping on fiscal issues while sweeping his own problems under the Governor Mansion's rug.
(A maneuver no doubt convenient for him, as he only sees the place occasionally as he's driven in from Hamilton County each morning.)
Another Bradner piece out yesterday underlined the danger of not having an effective front-line defense to the attacks being lobbed from the sidelines.
If Daniels is going to serve as a proxy for the national GOP, then Democratic U.S. Rep. Brad Ellsworth's campaign to replace retiring Democratic Sen. Evan Bayh will face a tougher roadblock than could be tossed up by any of the five Republican primary candidates.
If Daniels can convince Hoosiers that health care reform has come with untenable consequences, all that the eventual GOP Senate candidate will have to do is tie Ellsworth to that legislation.
Hoosier Democrats, really all Democrats, need to speak with one voice in the coming weeks.
Not only does our congressional team need to step up to the plate -- and I mean our entire team -- but we need our national leaders to spend the summer criss-crossing America with a message that is quite simple: You don't have to like the health care reform bill that was passed, but you at least owe it to yourself to understand what it actually does.
For most Americans, at the end of the day, nothing will change. Their taxes won't go up, their employer coverage will remain as it always has been, and they'll be offered consumer protections that they probably won't notice until they need them. Once this becomes clear, this year's election will no doubt be about who is doing the most to move the country forward.
And I don't think I need to tell you who will come out on top of that debate.
From a release issued by the Indiana Democratic Party just moments ago:
"This is a million dollar vote of confidence in Brad Ellsworth and Indiana Democrats," Bayh said. "Though I am leaving the Senate at the end of my term, I am determined to help Brad Ellsworth and the 2010 Democratic ticket with the financial resources they need to run a successful campaign."
"On behalf of Indiana Democrats, I thank Senator Bayh for his generosity and his commitment to the Indiana Democratic ticket in the 2010 election," said Indiana Democratic Party Chair Dan Parker. "This unprecedented contribution will be put to good use in electing Brad Ellsworth to the United States Senate and in helping Democrats from the top of the ticket on down."
Here's to hoping this is the beginning -- not the end -- of Senator Bayh's financial assistance to Hoosier Democrats.
Two other centrist Democrats, Mary Landrieu of Louisiana and Evan Bayh of Indiana, said Monday they are leaning toward supporting the reconciliation bill.
Bayh, who is retiring, said he hasn't entirely made up his mind.
"I haven't decided, but I'm inclined to support it," Bayh said. "I'm a likely 'yes' vote."
Senate Majority Leader, Harry Reid, is aiming for a Friday or Saturday vote on the bill.
Contact information for Senator Bayh, if you are inclined to let your preferences be known, is below the fold:
As a liberal Democrat who nevertheless voted for the guy every damn time, I finally grew to despise Evan Bayh's gutless and phony brand of politics. I'd already decided never again.
In front of Democrats, he'd always claim to be "fighting for" whatever it was he thought his audience wanted to hear at the time, or go on and on about his wonderful "Hoosier Values" everywhere. And then there was his very favorite pastime - lecturing Democrats and progressives from the pages of the Wall Street Journal or Fox News, endlessly preening for the cameras as he auditoned to "balance" somebody's ticket for vice-president. It was never about anything except that.
He wasted 12 years in the senate, not to mention the priceless legacy of his father's name, and the one he traded on to get his start in politics.
Birch Bayh really did "fight for" stuff, really did achieve things, and moreover, wasn't afraid to go down fighting when forced to choose between his seat or his principles. Evan, on the other hand, amassed 13 million dollars from his corporate donors, but had nothing to say with it except... Dan Coats is an even worse tool of his corporate paymasters? No wonder the guy quit.
This year, in this political environment, he would have had to answer for all of it. He couldn't face the people, but having played the game so long, he also knew the media would swoon over his "principled leaving" - so he bailed. He waited to the last minute, to make sure he got to call the shots as to a successor, and as always, chose the easy way out.
Which brings me to Brad Ellsworth. He seems to be under the illusion whereby he gets to vote NO on HCR, but still gets elected to the U.S. Senate as the nominee of the Democratic Party.
I guess he thinks those mean and noisy teabaggers might cut him some slack this November, and the base, well we're used to our politicians sticking it to us. After all, this is Indiana where just about any Democrat NOT named Andre Carson must always place political expediency before political principles.
Of course we wouldn't just sit on our hands this November and let Dan Coats, or even......... JOHN HOSTETLER take that seat now would we....
Well, I've got news for Brad Ellsworth - if he thinks the tea-baggers are pissed, wait till he sees what happens if he betrays the base of the party and the people of this state and this country on THIS ISSUE, THIS YEAR. He hasn't seen ANYTHING YET.
Democratic inboxes around the state just received a message from Senator Evan Bayh, and he had nothing but strong support for Congressman Brad Ellsworth as he begins his campaign for the US Senate.
I have known Brad for many years, first through his work as Sheriff in Vanderburgh County and then as a member of Indiana's U.S. House delegation. "Protecting and serving" Indiana communities is at the heart of everything he believes.
Brad will bring common sense Hoosier values to his work in the Senate. He will work to get the economy moving again, and he will make sure the Senate stays focused on progress not politics, solutions rather than slogans.
That is why I am urging you to support Brad Ellsworth for the United States Senate.
You can donate to the Ellsworth for Indiana campaign via his website.
Aside from the "why" -- as in why he retired -- and ignoring the "who" -- that would be who will replace him -- the "what" of Senator Evan Bayh's decision to step down is probably going to be the most interesting to watch, at least in terms of Bayh's own future plans.
The "what," of course, representing the question as to what he's planning on doing with the over $12 million in campaign funds he's currently sitting on.
Sylvia A. Smith of Journal Gazette fame turns her attention to the problem:
"He's a young man," [Democratic strategist Tad] Devine said of Bayh, who is 54. "He may want to do things politically in the future, whether it's run for governor or pursue another office or be involved in politics in some meaningful way where resources like that could make an enormous difference. Preserving it is a great option."
But even if he chooses that option, Devine said, Bayh could make substantial donations to Indiana congressional and state legislative candidates while still keeping at least $10 million in his campaign kitty.
"One of the real downsides to Evan Bayh not being at the top of the ballot this year is the impact it's likely to have on other races in Indiana. I know it's a very close legislative race there, for example. Not having his vote-drawing ability at the top of the ticket could affect these down-ballot races.
"So he may decide he wants to be involved in helping other Indiana Democrats win election. That's his political base. It would be a smart thing to nurture it," he said.
Bayh can't donate to the eventual candidate, but he could make a sizable contribution to the Indiana Democratic Party, the DSCC, or some other organization.
In prepared remarks, Bayh, 54, cited excessive partisanship that makes progress on public policy difficult to achieve as the motivation for his decision.
"After all these years, my passion for service to my fellow citizens is undiminished, but my desire to do so in Congress has waned," he said.
"My decision was not motivated by political concern," he added. "Even in the current challenging environment, I am confident in my prospects for re-election."
Bayh had never lost an election, from his first win in 1986 as secretary of state, his wins for governor in 1988 and 1992 and his election to the U.S. Senate in 1998 and 2004.
"But running for the sake of winning an election, just to remain in public office, is not good enough," Bayh said. "And it has never been what motivates me. At this time I simply believe I can best contribute to society in another way: creating jobs by helping grow a business, helping guide an institution of higher learning or helping run a worthy charitable endeavor."
Update: To provide a short answer to the question of the day -- no, there is little chance of anyone directly qualifying for the ballot per the 4,500 signature requirement. The result of this will be a vote by the State Central Committee as to a replacement on the ballot. No information is available yet as to a timeline for such things.
Tip o' the hat to Daily Activist in the comments. Research 2000, polling for DailyKos:
MoE 4%, 02/08-10
Bayh (D) 55
Coats (R) 35
Bayh (D) 53
Hostettler (R) 37
Not exactly encouraging for the Republican bigwigs who have been claiming for the last week that Coats has the statewide support to mount more of a challenge than the Land of Misfit Toys currently making up the field.
Ok, sit down while we try to explain this. It's getting complicated.
Dan Coats, the District of Columbia lobbyist who has lived in Virginia for ten years, but who really wants to be a North Carolinian, and was recruited by a Texan, is now hiring Kentuckians to get signatures from Hoosiers to get on the ballot in Indiana. Whew.
The fledgling candidacy of former Senator Dan Coats -- some have gone so far as to call it a belly flop -- hasn't exactly been a sterling example of how to manage a campaign kick-off. Whether the stories have revolved around Coats' out-of-state status, his lobbying connections, or his self-described preference for North Carolina over Indiana, the news cycle hasn't been all that kind to the guy.
But more than anything, it's beginning to look as if the biggest hurdle Coats will have to clear will be fending off attacks from within his own party. Recent days of have found his primary election opponents turning their guns away from Senator Bayh and pointing them squarely on the establishment candidate. Politico reports:
Former Indiana Rep. John Hostettler and state Sen. Marlin Stutzman, who have been in the race against Democratic Sen. Evan Bayh for months, both said they wouldn't stand down for Coats. Stutzman told POLITICO he's prepared to wage a "grassroots" campaign against the former senator, pointing to the tea party movement as a "huge" force that could be harnessed in the GOP primary.
"With all due respect to Sen. Coats, all the campaigning we've done and all the thousands of people that we've spoken to, people are tired of Washington. If there's one group people are more disenfranchised from than Washington politicians, it's lobbyists," said Stutzman, who represents a northeast Indiana district in the state legislature. "Sen. Coats has probably been back to Indiana fewer times than Sen. Bayh has and has those questionable relationships. If you're trying to contrast with Sen. Bayh, why would you go with Sen. Coats?"
Hostettler, too, told the Evansville Courier & Press last weekend that he's not concerned about Coats's possible entry.
"If I waited on the imprimatur of everybody that thought they knew how to run a political campaign, I probably would never have announced [for Congress] in 1994, either," he said.
Ouch. If you don't have enough anecdotal evidence already, one prominent Republican blog in the state features a poll right now showing the anti-Coats coalition squarely in the majority.
If conservatives don't do him in, the weather might. Coats has been forced to dispatch political operatives from Kentucky in his bid to earn the 4,500 signatures required to appear on the statewide ballot. In case you haven't gone outside in the last few days, Mother Nature hasn't exactly been cooperating.
On the bright side, it could be worse: Virginia has been worse off than us in recent days in terms of snowfall, which probably means Mr. Coats has had plenty of time to himself at home to question his decision to get into the race.
Call Indiana a "red" state or a "blue" state, there's one thing that most of the country has agreed on for a while: Dick Cheney was a terrifying presence in political process for far too long.
Which for an embattled Dan Coats, is worth remembering as he reads headlines like "Coats hires Cheney spokesman."
Republican Sen. Dan Coats - hoping to be the once-and-future Senator from Indiana - has hired a high-profile spokesman - Kevin Kellems, the former communications director for Vice-President Dick Cheney often tasked with defending the controversial Saddam Hussein-al Qaeda link.
Kellems has an unusually heavy-duty White House-national security resume, coupled with deep Hoosier connections. The Indiana native - who recently served as a spokesman for Secretary of State Todd Rokita who passed on a bid against incumbent Evan Bayh, and served as a spokesman for Richard Lugar (R-Ind.) before his White House stint and ran unsuccessfully for an Indiana House seat in '00.
For what it's worth, this makes day six or so in which we haven't heard from Coats, who appears content to drink his hot chocolate and cozy up next to his custom-made fireplace in Virginia while his pay-to-play workers trudge around the state collecting signatures.
Oh boy. Things just don't appear to be going well for our good friend Dan Coats. First, his GOP friends in Washington convinced him to put aside his lucrative lobbying job and float a senate candidacy. Then he quickly bumbled out of the gate as word of his financial dealings and ambivalence toward the Hoosier State trickled out.
Now? Well, there's video evidence that as of two years ago the guy didn't even plan on setting foot back in the state in any real meaningful way ever again.
But Coats said Friday afternoon that he's put aside his plans to retire and will sell that house.
"We do have a second home in North Carolina," he said in an e-mail, "and had plans to spend more time there after retiring. Obviously, I now have no plans to retire, so it's likely we will be selling our North Carolina second home."
In other words, he was going to abandon the state, but now he's totally committed to ol' Indiana.
Well, not so committed that he, you know, wants to actually own property here. But based on the fact that he is flippantly talking about selling a $1.8 million vacation home in the Carolinas, something tells me he'll have a decent hotel room once he gets around to visiting the state.
If there was any doubt that Dan Coats had cut all ties with his "home" state, this damning footage from a North Carolina event in September of 2008 makes it clear that he had no use for Hoosiers until he thought he might be able to win a senate seat.
Absolutely brutal - and spot on - email from the state party:
On behalf of Hoosiers everywhere, we'd like to welcome back Dan Coats to the State of Indiana.
After more than a decade working, living, and voting in Washington, D.C., it seems that Mr. Coats has decided to come back for a visit. The announcement that he is considering a run for the U.S. Senate has come as a surprise for those of us who haven't seen or heard from the Republican in a good many years.
No worries. Our welcome basket will soon be in the mail.
As soon as Mr. Coats lands, however, maybe he can find some spare time to talk to real Hoosiers about the issues that have been affecting this state while he was away. A lot has changed since Coats abandoned the Hoosier State for the posh life of a Washington insider.
While he's at it, perhaps Dan Coats can tell us about what he has been up to since he left town. He seems to have done well -- being a registered lobbyist for major financial institutions is a great job inside the Beltway from what we hear.
And with those banks receiving billions in TARP bailout money under his watch, it's hard to imagine Mr. Coats hasn't been reaping the benefits of that taxpayer money.
Between all of that lobbying, heading up the failed Supreme Court nomination of Harriet Miers, and championing Sarah Palin during the 2008 campaign, it's no wonder that Dan Coats was too busy to stop in and spend time in our state over the last decade.
Regardless, we wanted to extend our welcome -- if Mr. Coats would just let us know whether he wants the welcome basket to go to his Virginia address or his extended stay suite here in Indiana, that would be a great help.
If Coats is the hero the RNC is looking for, they must be really terrified of a Bayh vs. Hostettler race. And I'm not sure how Coats fits into the RNC's strategy against Bayh (as laid out by Greg Sargent):
NRSC spokesman Brian Walsh tells me the GOP response will be this: Target Bayh's wife, and the "Bayh family partnership."
GOP operatives point out that Evan and Susan Bayh have been criticized over her service on the boards of major insurers such as WellPoint, which reportedly earned her millions.
It's also interesting to note, as Chuck Todd did, that Coats' language on this has been very conditional: "allowing supporters to put his name on the ballot" and "as I test the waters for a potential challenge." Typical political posturing, or is there actually some hesitancy there?
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