Wyoming Democrat Richard Grayson: Alan Simpson Is a Stupid Person #39;s Idea of a Smart Person
Wyoming Democrat Richard Grayson: Alan Simpson Is a Stupid Person #39;s Idea of a Smart Person.
By: Richard Grayson
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Wyoming Democrat Richard Grayson: Alan Simpson Is a Stupid Person's Idea of a Smart Person - Video
A week after he bowed out of Kansas' Senate race, Democrat Chad Taylor on Tuesday filed a petition with the state's Supreme Court to have his name removed from the November ballot.
Taylor filed the petition naming Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach as the defendant. Kobach, a Republican, is the state's top elections official and has refused to take Taylors name off the ballot even though he ended his campaign.
With little funding and statewide popularity, Taylor, a district attorney from the Topeka area, exited the race to elevateindependentGreg Orman, a self-funded management consultant who can wage a much more formidablechallenge againstincumbent Republican Sen. Pat Roberts.
Democrats have assailed Kobach as playing partisan politics by keeping Taylor's name on the ballot.
Pedro Irigonegaray, who is representing Taylor, said Tuesday he's also asked the state Supreme Court to issue a temporary restrainingorder on Kobach that denies him from printing and mailing ballots. Ballots are set to be sent to overseas voters early next month.
"There's no hearing set, but timing is of the essence," Irigonegaray said.
Roberts is widely viewed as vulnerable ascriticism has mounted that the third-term incumbent has become out of touch with voters, particularly after the New York Times reported he no longer owns a home in the state, but instead rents a room from a friend.
As Republicans look to net six seats and possibly gain control of the Senate after the November midterm election, they're forced to play defense to keep Roberts in office. Moreover, Republican Gov. Sam Brownback, who has been widely criticizedfortax cuts that have badly strained state finances, also faces a tough reelection in a down ticket race that could have implications on the Senate contest.
JoanWagnon, Kansas' Democratic Party chairwoman, said in a statement Tuesday the party will watch closely as this legal challenge proceeds through the courts.
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Kansas Democrat Chad Taylor asks court to remove his name from ballot
Louisianas U.S. Senator-elect Mary Landrieu gets a big hug from her father MoonLandrieu and mother Verna at a news conference in New Orleans Wednesday Nov. 6, 1996. (AP Photo/Bill Haber)
Several red-state Democratic Senate candidates share more than the pressure of helping Harry Reid keep his job title.
They are all heirs to the family business: politics.
Its difficult to be a Democrat in a conservative state, but it seems to help a whole lot if your name is also a brand. Sens. Mary Landrieu of Louisiana, Mark Pryor of Arkansas, and Mark Begich of Alaska are in difficult reelection fights, but are buoyed, in part, because of the legacy of their family names.
Then theres Michelle Nunn in Georgia, a newcomer to public office, but who likewise benefits from a well-regarded surname.
And even one of the few potential Democratic House pickups is the offspring of a famous political father Gwen Graham, running in a Florida swing district.
Its a coincidence that so many Democrats with family ties are in neck-and-neck fights this fall. But what is not a coincidence is the advantage it gives them in states that might otherwise be unwinnable for a Democrat today.
Mark Mellman, CEO of Mellman Group, the Democratic polling firm with big-league clients such asHarry Reid and Landrieu, said having a well-known last name helps give those politicians staying power.
Its true that in these red states, Democrats need every advantage they can get, he told the Loop. Having that strong brand name that is appealing to people, that has a real track record, its a real advantage.
John Anzalone, who runs another high-profile Democratic polling outfit and has poll-tested the impact of the candidates political dads in some of the aforementioned races, said it helps cut away at the Republican attack that Democrats are all rubber stamps for President Obama.
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In the Loop: What do these red-state Democratic Senate candidates have in common? Their dads.
Seth Moulton's opposition to another ground war in Iraq is rooted in firsthand experience acquired from four tours. As a young Marine, he saw how quickly a militant threat could transform U.S. military advisers into a force entangled in the months-long battle for control of Najaf, some 100 miles south of Baghdad.
These are not simply the doubts of a former platoon leader three years after combat forces left. Moulton is challenging nine-term Democratic Rep. John Tierney in Tuesday's bitter, crowded Massachusetts primary. His military service has drawn attention to his first-time candidacy and made him a formidable foe to Tierney.
"Americans have to realize that when the president says he's sending military advisers to Iraq, make no mistake, these are U.S. special forces or Marines or Rangers or other units that are American ground troops," Moulton said in an interview. It was true in Vietnam, he points out. It was true of Iraq.
Moulton's reservations reflect a war-weary nation's skepticism about the next U.S. steps to fulfill President Barack Obama's vow to destroy Islamic State militants and rising fear about mission creep as American forces in Iraq now exceed 1,000.
The race in the northeast corner of Massachusetts stands as one of the few where an incumbent House Democrat is fighting off members of his own party. In June, New York Democrats gave Rep. Charlie Rangel a clear shot at a 23rd term in his primary. In California, seven-term Rep. Mike Honda is in a tough race with fellow Democrat Ro Khanna after they finished one-two in the state's jungle primary.
Democrats will hold those two seats, but Massachusetts' 6th Congressional District is up for grabs in November's general election. The GOP is upbeat about the prospects for Richard Tisei, a former state senator and openly gay Republican who nearly knocked out Tierney in 2012, losing by just 4,330 votes.
Tierney is a political survivor who won re-election despite a gambling scandal involving family members, including his wife. The Democratic stalwart who has focused on education and jobs during his 17 years in the House proudly boasts of his office's constituent service. He argues that experience is what matters to voters even as Democrats are expected to remain in the minority in the House.
"They can have a backbencher who's just trying to get their feet on the ground, especially here in the minority, or you can have somebody who's been there, who's respected by people on both sides," the 62-year-old Tierney said of Moulton in an interview.
Tierney is facing four Democratic rivals in the primary, including Moulton, a 35-year-old businessman.
The Harvard graduate who enlisted in the Marines in 2001 was first on the air with a campaign ad in which he tells voters, "I'm a progressive Democrat who opposed the war in Iraq. But I also was a Marine serving my country. So I went, led my platoon and always ate last after my men."
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Marine, Iraq Vet Aims to Oust House Democrat
Published September 09, 2014
Aug. 13, 2014: Chad Taylor discusses his campaign during an interview on the Statehouse grounds in Topeka, Kan.AP
Democratic candidate Chad Taylor has filed a petition with the Kansas Supreme Court to get his name removed from the Nov. 4 ballot in the U.S. Senate race.
Taylor filed his petition Tuesday, naming Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach as the defendant. Kobach is the state's chief elections officer and has refused to take Taylor's name off the ballot even though Taylor has ended his campaign.
Taylor was a candidate against three-term Republican Sen. Pat Roberts, but he announced last week he was ending his campaign in a move that boosted the chances of independent candidate Greg Orman.
Kobach ruled that Taylor failed to comply with state election laws by not stating in his withdrawal letter that he was incapable of fulfilling the duties of the office.
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Democrat Chad Taylor sues to get name off Kansas Senate ballot