U.S. Rep. Andre Carson, an Indiana Democrat who is one of two Muslims serving in Congress, cautioned against focusing on the alleged shooter's religion and instead said the discussion should be about mental health issues.
"This is no way a reflection of Islam any more than Timothy McVeigh's actions are a reflection of Christianity," said Carson, who supervised an anti-terrorism unit in Indiana's Department of Homeland Security and comes from a family of Marines.
It looks as if our days of being a political backwater are behind us, as President Barack Obama has announced he will make his first fundraising trip to the Hoosier State next month on behalf of four quality Indiana Democrats.
President Obama plans to cap his cap-and-gown commencement address at the University of Notre Dame later this month with an Indianapolis fundraising event for four Indiana House Democrats, according to the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette's Sylvia Smith.
The president, with his sky-high approval ratings, could hardly be a better draw right now.
[...]
Among the four, only Carson's Indianapolis-based 7th District is a Democratic stronghold. Even as Obama in 2008 became the first Democrat to carry Indiana for president since 1964, Ellsworth's 8th District and Hill's 9th leaned to Republican John McCain, though by much smaller margins that those usually enjoyed by GOP presidential nominees.
Between this and the rumors that President Bill Clinton is likely to pop up in the state as well during May, it looks as if Indiana will stay on the national radar for at least a little while.
Wilson must have slept in late today, because he hasn't yet plastered the site with references to this morning's Tully column on Congressman Andre Carson reaching one year in office, a mile marker that the Star political writer saw as an opportunity to check in with the 7th District's busy representative.
When Carson returned my phone call from D.C., I asked what he was up to.
"Working, working, working, working," he said.
Then I asked how things were going after a year in Congress.
"Great, great, great, great."
That's Andre Carson.
During his short stint in public office, he's proved himself to be relentlessly positive and seriously hardworking. He's constantly in motion and constantly smiling. He's frustrated his grandmother's fiercest critics by emerging as a solid U.S. representative -- one who has worked hard to expand the base of support he inherited.
The greatest testament to Congressman Carson coming into his own is probably the least easy to notice: Silence.
As in, you haven't heard a substantial peep out of anyone concerning a 2010 primary challenge.
It's never too early to start pontificating on the next election cycle, especially if you make your money, uh, pontificating on the next election cycle. And thus, with little fanfare, the Cook Political Report released their initial race ratings for the 2010 cycle. Indiana is, at least at the moment, a real snoozer.
IN-1 -- Solid D IN-2 -- Likely D IN-3 -- Likely R IN-4 -- Solid R IN-5 -- Solid R IN-6 -- Solid R IN-7 -- Solid D IN-8 -- Solid D IN-9 -- Likely D
The only real things of note here are that Brad Ellsworth is now recognized as beyond mere mortals in an Eighth District that he has quickly made his own, and Baron Hill has effectively consolidated his political strength in the historically tight Ninth District. Oh, and Mark Souder is a really, really lazy campaigner, but somehow keeps winning.
Chris Cillizza, aside from his love of all things Drudge, is a pretty smart guy. Time and time again during the oh-eight election season, he showed that he "got it" when it came to the national political landscape. And I think he hits the nail on the head once more this morning with his discussion of the rhetorical importance of President Obama's visit to Elkhart, Indiana -- a city of 50,000 that has lost roughly 8,000 jobs in the last year.
Obama and his team demonstrated time and time again during the campaign that they grasped the importance of symbolism when choosing event locations -- witness the coming-together of Obama and his one-time rival in Unity, N.H. (get it?), a town in which they each won 107 votes -- and heading to a traditionally Republican state in the middle of America that Obama won last fall is not an accident. It's meant to reinforce the message that the economic crisis that catapulted Obama into office is not a partisan issue and woe to politicians who view in through that lens.
Just in case anyone misses that message, Obama is bringing along a bipartisan group of lawmakers that includes Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, a former Illinois congressman, and Michigan Republican Rep. Fred Upton as well as Sen. Evan Bayh and Donnelly among others.
As Wilson would no doubt like me to point out, Congressman André Carson will also be in attendance.
A new poll done by Research 2000 for CBS shows both Congressman Andre Carson and Governor Mitch Daniels cruising to large victories in their respective races next Tuesday.
Democratic Congressman Andre Carson is posting a 15 point margin against Republican social worker Gabrielle Campo, leading 53% to 38%. Carson is buoyed by near-universal support among black voters and a strong lead with independent voters. The only category Campo is leading other than Republicans is with white voters, where she has a 20-point edge.
Likewise, Governor Mitch Daniels leads former Democratic Congresswoman Jill Long-Thompson by 14 points, 54%-40%. Daniels leads among men and women, Republicans, Independents, and even takes 12% of Democratic voters. Most concerning for the Democrat are the numbers from Marion County, which show Daniels leading Long-Thompson by 8 in a county essential for a statewide Democratic victory. That's a 12 point swing downward for Long-Thompson since the last CBS poll in September. Of course we have to remember that during the last half of September and first half of October, JLT didn't even have ads on the air so it isn't shocking that her numbers cratered in Marion County. Daniels has run a positive campaign and has run some truly great advertisements. Jill was never able to cut through the clutter. To the right is one of MMM's more memorable campaign ads.
On the presidential front, the numbers tell the same story they did a month ago. Indiana is tight as a tick on a deer's behind. Democratic Senator Barack Obama and Republican Senator John McCain are tied with 47% each. This is fueled in part by Obama's performance in Marion County, where he is leading McCain by 8 points in a county that was split 50/50 between Bush and Kerry four years ago.
Interestingly, the number of ticket splitters is the key to this. Back in May, I think most observers would have said the most likely ticket split is the one that usually happens in Indiana. People will vote for the Republican presidential nominee and the Democratic candidate for governor. This year, the anecdotal evidence points to the reverse. I can't count the number of Daniels/Obama yard sign combinations I've seen here on Indy's north side.
The economy is the issue that dominates. And Obama's latest ad reminds voters of what McCain has to offer on that front:
That is probably one of my favorite Obama ads of the season.
For you junkies out there, Sarah Palin is the only candidate who has a negative favorability rating. She is seen favorably by 45% and unfavorably by 48%. The other Pres/VP candidates have a favorability of +10 or more.
Whatever the final numbers on Tuesday, Indiana will be deep purple rather than crimson.
Back by popular demand, I bring you this quarter's congressional fundraising totals from across the state.
Incumbent
Total Q3 Fundraising
Cash on Hand
Challenger
Total Q3 Fundraising
Cash on Hand
IN-1
Rep. Pete Visclosky
$63,335.00
$1,123,798.49
---
---
---
IN-2
Rep. Joe Donnelly
$142,887.86
$559,233.97
Luke Puckett
$53,708.39
$17,509.71
IN-3
Rep. Mark Souder
$216,987.38
$451,756.49
Mike Montagano
$152,485.49
$31,255.90
IN-4
Rep. Steve Buyer
$270,674.86
$806,324.83
Nels Ackerson
$128,782.53
$100,632.78
IN-5
Rep. Dan Burton
$199,774.70
$359,866.96
Mary Etta Ruley
TBA
TBA
IN-6
Rep. Mike Pence
$142,557.48
$417,601.56
Barry Welsh
$3,233.21
$9,380.03
IN-7
Rep. Andre Carson
$245,415.79
$186,951.99
Gabrielle Campo
$20,720
$11,836
IN-8
Rep. Brad Ellsworth
$267,651.31
$735,413.07
Greg Goode
$48,802.93
$43,860.25
IN-9
Rep. Baron Hill
$206,928.26
$684,909.30
Mike Sodrel
$177,387.86
$263,642.79
There's really nothing but good news for us in these numbers. Here are a few things of note:
The first thing you should notice is the absolutely piss-poor job the formerly-celebrated GOP challengers have done this cycle. Greg Goode and Luke Puckett (when he bothers to file reports) can't raise a dime to save their political lives, which were likely dead before those contests even started.
Congressman Baron Hill continues to kick ass in the 9th District, and Mike Sodrel posts another lackluster set of figures that will undoubtedly dishearten Republicans who were depending on Millionaire Mike to sustain his own effort. Keep fighting until the finish on this one, folks, but things are looking great right now.
Mike Montagano gave us another impressive effort in the 3rd District, and keep in mind when looking at his CoH number that he was able to spend out a lot more due to the dedicated funds he'll be receiving from the DCCC. We're right where we need to be in this contest.
Although the CoH figure will be a huge hurdle in the final weeks, kudos to Nels Ackerson in the 4th for outperforming any and all expectations for a Democrat in this decidedly difficult district. Great stuff.
I'm reading in several places that Andre Carson's campaign has refused to organize a debate with the Republican nominee, Gabrielle Campo. Why is this? We know Andre is on the right side of the issues, but the voters of the 7th District deserve to at least compare the two candidates.
We certainly don't want Andre to become the Democratic Steve Buyer, do we?
I wanted the good folks at Blue Indiana to here about a Community Forum Congressman Carson is hosting this weekend. I'm glad that Andre has been willing to step out on be a leader on this topic, so I'm trying to get as many people as possible to show up to support this.
He pushed this yesterday and Amos Brown's show and he'll be on WIBC tomorrow to promote it further.
Congressman André Carson
"Green Jobs- Reviving our Economy and Restoring our Environment"
Community Forum
Saturday, September 13, 2008
10:00- 11:30 AM
Keep Indianapolis Beautiful Headquarters
1029 Fletcher Avenue
Please join Congressman André Carson for a panel discussion and Question and Answer session with representatives from the Indianapolis Chamber of Commerce, the Building Trades, Environmental Defense Fund and the Sierra Club.
Joined by current and future Social Security recipients, Congressman André Carson spoke this morning on the efforts he and other Democrats will make in order to protect this critical federal program from Republican privatization plans.
Citing a new report released by the Campaign for America's Future, Carson urged Hoosiers to join Democrats across the state and around the country in fighting against proposals to dismantle the current Social Security system.
Our popular new progressive Democratic Congressman for Indianapolis, André Carson, finally has a Republican opponent for the fall election again! As most know by now, after losing to Carson in the Special Election, Jon Elrod wisely decided to quit the IN-7 race this summer to jump off to another illusory electoral opportunity.
On Friday, July 18, the Marion County Republicans held a caucus to nominate their "sacrificial lamb" for the IN-7 Congressional race. The District has been solidly Democratic since 1974. Out of over 400 precincts, only 77 committeepeople showed up to vote. It took two ballots for the 6-person field to be winnowed down to 27-year-old Gabrielle Campo.
Who is she? She scrubbed her previous website but Google cache revealed:
At Campo's position at a non-profit organization she researched and analysed data and performed Geographical Information System (GIS) mapping. Campo's analyst position allowed her the opportunity to recognize the critical areas of need in her community.
Previously, Campo's experiences ranged from teaching in Jiangmen, China and Immokalee, Florida, case-management at the Illinois Department of Children and Families, research work with Loyola of Chicago's Policy Research and Action group, to coordinating immunization clinics through Visiting Nurses, Inc. She completed her master degree at Indiana University School of Social work and her bachelor degree at Saint Mary's College, Notre Dame.
Her biography at the Indiana Youth Institute (her employer in January) was also scrubbed.
She seemingly has no electoral or political experience whatsoever. She's from the Irvington neighborhood - her family has strong Italian-American roots.
On her scrubbed issues pages, she listed "pro-life" alongside a routine boilerplate laundry list of issues.
Back by popular demand, here's your handy chart based on the latest campaign finance filings for our congressional contests.
Incumbent
2Q Fundraising
Cash on Hand
Challenger
2Q Fundraising
Cash on Hand
IN-1
Rep. Pete Visclosky
$212,045.00
$1,585,193.21
---
---
---
IN-2
Rep. Joe Donnelly
$248,481.82
$993,045.67
Luke Puckett
TBA
TBA
IN-3
Rep. Mark Souder
$89,873.46
$323,339.38
Mike Montagano
$141,407.00
$351,701.69
IN-4
Rep. Steve Buyer
$182,269.08
$628,854.91
Nels Ackerson
$87,989.00
$177,536.88
IN-5
Rep. Dan Burton
$128,176.69
$336,537.54
Mary Etta Ruley
TBA
TBA
IN-6
Rep. Mike Pence
$231,772.01
$739,104.21
Barry Welsh
$3,878.61
$8,093.40
IN-7
Rep. Andre Carson
$434,765.31
$82,934.89
---
---
---
IN-8
Rep. Brad Ellsworth
$168,173.79
$779,312.64
Greg Goode
$24,651.37
$9,029.45
IN-9
Rep. Baron Hill
$294,587.47
$1,160,436.64
Mike Sodrel
$193,349.05
$379,358.76
A few things of note:
The big surprise is obviously the strong showing of Mike Montagano in CD 3. Rep. Mark Souder continues to disappoint in his ability to muster a respectable warchest, and with Montagano showing a $30k CoH advantage heading into the summer, this race looks increasingly likely to jump from the DCCC's "emerging races" list to the big time.
If there were any people left who thought the "Bloody 8th" would make a reappearance this year, Greg Goode's numbers should put that to rest rather quickly.
Speaking of disappointment, it looks like Millionaire Mike Sodrel is having a hard time finding support for his Bush-loving brand this year. He pledged to not dip into his personal finances this cycle, but I wouldn't be surprised to see it happen based on this performance.
I'm still waiting on Luke Puckett's numbers, who apparently didn't get his report turned in on time. I'll update the chart when I can give you those figures.
While Republican Jon Elrod makes his latest leap to a different political campaign, the Marion County GOP is once again back to the drawing board in terms of finding a sacrificial lamb candidate for the 7th CD race. WISH reports on the struggle and spin:
Former city-county councillor Ray Irvin hopes a run for Congress is in his immediate future.
"I don't think it was anything I planned but it does fit into the things I've done. I think I still have a lot to contribute to our city," said Irvin.
When Jon Elrod dropped his bid for Congress last week it left the Republican Party at loose ends with no candidate running for a seat where they have little chance to win.
[...]
But former city-county councillor Scott Keller is also interested and so is newcomer Gabrielle Campo. She challenged Elrod for the Seventh District nomination prior to the March Special Election. Campo still has a Web site up and running and key party leaders in her corner.
Meanwhile, Congressman Carson continues to serve (and serve well) in Washington, and has been moonlighting as a damn good Obama surrogate in recent days.
Yesterday the U.S. House of Representatives had a series of interesting votes about ending the War in Iraq - the Indiana delegation had some interesting splits.
Our new Indianapolis Congressman André Carson proved himself to be the "un-Bluest Dog" by being the sole Hoosier to vote Nay on "blank check funding" of the war. Surprisingly to most, the Nays won: 149 to 141. Hill, Donnelly and Ellsworth all voted with the GOP as did even Pete Visclosky!
Our Democrats voted more like Democrats in the next vote over accountability measures. The Indiana Republicans united against it.
A GI Education Bill etc also produced interesting results: Carson, Hill & Visclosky voted right. Ellsworth and Donnelly voted with the GOP. Oddly, Steve Buyer voted for this - but it should be remembered he's the ranking Republican on the Veterans Committee.
On behalf of the Dr. Woody Myers campaign I would like to take this opportunity to extend an apology to the bloggers involved in the threatened legal action at the end of last week initiated by our attorney Justin Leverton. There was a miscommunication between the campaign and our attorney relating to the television ad run by David Orentlicher which he was authorized to threaten legal action against the David O campaign for running.
Mr. Leverton chose to pursue the course of action against the bloggers involved on his own. When we discovered what had happened we immediately asked him to drop the matter, but by then the damage had been done with letters issued to Bil Browning, Tyrion and Sheila Kennedy. We regret this took place and would like to extend a personal apology to each of those bloggers.
I would also like to extend my own apology to any members of the Blue Indiana community who may feel slighted in any way by my recent comments here. Emotionalism got the best of me a few times and I may have said some things recently which reflected poorly on me and my candidate. For that I am very sorry and can only offer that I am guilty of zealous partisanship on behalf of my candidate, which I would hope each and every one of you who clashed with me in comments here would be honest enough to agree we are all guilty of from this cycle. I had no ill intentions going into this campaign and harbor no ill will towards any members of the Blue Indiana community at this time either.
I am so proud of my father today, Dr. Woody Myers! We ran a great race, and I'm so proud of all of his team for everything they've done.
I'd like to send a hearty congratulations to Congressman André Carson. He's a great guy, and I know he'll continue to serve us well, and will absolutely crush Jon Elrod this fall along with victorious Democrats all over the country.
Congratulations to all of my friends on the Carson team, especially Melissa Fisher, Erin Rosenberg, Brad Lorton, and yes even Wilson Allen (it'll be nice to be on the same team again).
Now that the silly season is over, we can once again come together as a party and focus again on our goal of making this an even better city, state and country.
Marion County, Indiana and all American Democrats have a long road ahead in the next six months, but that road leads to victory, and to a better America. Let's get to work!
Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton squeaked out a critical razor-thin victory in Indiana's presidential primary Tuesday but lost North Carolina's primary, a split decision that left her no closer to overcoming Sen. Barack Obama in the race for the Democratic nomination.
With 99 percent of the votes counted, Clinton was clinging to a narrow 51 percent to 49.percent lead. Only about 22,000 votes out of about 1.2.million cast separated her and Obama.
U.S. Rep. Andre Carson said it's time to reunite the party after winning a hard-fought Democratic nomination in the 7th Congressional District, where the race featured record spending and multiple candidates who split the majority of the votes.
With most of the precincts reporting, Carson led with 41 percent of the vote, according to unofficial tallies. The three top voter getters who trailed Carson together had 52 percent of the vote.
Carson said it won't be difficult to unite the party for the general election in November, when he will have a rematch with Jon Elrod, who easily won the Republican nomination. Carson beat Elrod by 9,000 votes in a March special election to complete the term of his grandmother, Julia Carson, who died while in office.
Jill Long Thompson captured a slim victory early today in a fierce battle for the Democratic nomination for governor.
With just 26 of the state's 5,230 precincts left to report at 1:30 a.m., Long Thompson led Schellinger by just 5,400 votes.
She had won 50.25 percent of the vote statewide compared to his 49.75, largely thanks to winning 54 percent of the Lake County vote, which did not release most of its results until early this morning.
Of course, the Long Thompson victory is still subject to scrutiny and recounts, and there are some still making noise about the race still having a little life left in it. More on that later after I have a few hundred cups of coffee.
If you haven't already made your prediction, now is the time. We're an hour out from the first results starting to trickle in, and two hours from the first races being called.
In terms of turnout, I'm hearing that counties across the state are running out of Democratic ballots. Tippecanoe County has surpassed 35,000 total votes for the day, Vigo is reporting a shortage of ballots, and Lake County has turned out in full force. Others mentioned in the rumor mill are Porter, Howard and even Hamilton.
The question remains, of course, as to who will benefit the most from these historic numbers.
The first exit polls will be hitting the streets shortly, and I'll bring you information as I receive it.
Update: I'm hearing that Lake, Marion, and Monroe Counties have experienced huge turnout today -- a definite plus for Obama. In the 7th, evidence seems to be pointing to big cross-over voting from Republicans -- a big plus for Dr. Woody Myers, if conventional wisdom is to be believed.
For weeks now we have been getting phone calls with supportive messages of encouragement. Below you will find a video from Tony Edwards, a local radio DJ, and here is a link to a collection of voicemail messages left at headquarters supporting Dr. Myers set to music.
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