Talk Elections

Johnson: 53%
Feingold: 44%

I've officially given up even the slightest hope that this race will flip. Thanks for your service Russ; you'll be missed.

Do you want for me to enter the poll?

I can't, so yes.

It really shouldn't be that way, imo, but don't know how to change it.

Btw, PPP needs to learn that less voters saying that they actually voted for Obama is not necessarily evidence of a huge "enthusiasm gap", and it is almost assuredly not in a state like Wisconsin.

Why would Wisconsin be special in that statistic

I'll probably have a tribute to Feingold in my sig November 3.

Thanks for your 18 years of service Senator, far better ones than anyone else in that chamber can claim to.

Abnormally large number of real swing voters - in other words, during normal times they break pretty even, but during bad times they can all move together.  I'm really just repeating Al in an different sort of way...

I think that's all she wrote in this one, folks.

:(  hope everyone is wrong on this.

Feingold for Governor in 2014?

Honestly, I actually did have that thought. Given that he's fought for this race until the very end, he doesn't really seem like the type to up and quit.

Preferably Kohl retires in 2012 and Feingold wins that seat in what will hopefully be a more favorable environment.

Maybe?

Especially since it looks like the whole Wisconsin Democratic Party is going to be annihilated this election cycle.

:(

Yeah, this is a done deal... no doubt about it now. The man has been one of the best Senators ever. Period. I just hope he can keep the margin respectable (within single digits).

Very sad.

I'm not a fan of Feingold, and think the whole "maverick" schtick is a bunch of crap, but he would be a much better Senator than Herb Kohl.  He wanted that seat basically as a hobby, just "something  to do."  Maybe if he wakes up from his nap, he'll decide to retire.

As far as Feingold running for Governor, Scott Walker will be very tough to beat.  A Democrat in Wisconsin needs about 60% out of Milwaukee County to win statewide.  Walker has won Milwaukee County as County Executive (in blowouts), and it would be tough for any Democrat to get the necessary votes there to beat him statewide.  

Feingold didn't hit Johnson hard enough or soon enough. He should have asked for funds, although in the end that might have been futile. Still, his approval ratings aren't awful and Johnson's favorable ratings are great. I guess that goes to show that being perceived as the empty suit is good.

Wouldn't have helped.  These are classic wave election-type numbers. 

I would be surprised if my only question in Wisconsin really is whether Kind survives or not.

I'm so depressed I decided to just put my tribute in now. :(

I'm really curious.  Why do you (and others not from WI) think Feingold was a great Senator?  I'm not sure if you would still hold that opinion if you saw the footage from his town halls in 09, when he would roll his eyes and sigh at his constituents concerns about the upcoming passage of Obamacare.  That didn't work for Al Gore and it began the slide of Russ Feingold in the polls.  He was arrogant smug to the extreme, an he's paying for it now.  

The whole Feingold phenomenon is fascinating to me.  The national press loves him.  The local press adores him.  I can't recall a single critical story, or even semi-critical, in his entire tenure in Washington.  But he's never been that popular locally.  He ran a great underdog campaign to beat Kasten, but was fortunate to beat Mark Neumann in 98 when Neumann had the lead (around 2pts) with a few weeks to go but ran out of money and nearly went black and didn't make up for it by campaigning harder and lost by 2.  Then he beat the underfunded Tim Michels (who ran a non-existent race) by spending him into oblivion.  But I never sensed the affection that Herb Kohl gets (God knows why...probably because he saved the Bucks).  

I think it's because he's probably one of the only Democrats who has liberal convictions - and has continued to stand by them.

Very sad. Having integrity doesn't get you many friends in American politics. Well, sh**tty Wisconsin can have fun with their pedophile supporter who married into his money.

I'm not going to write an essay on the guy right now (although maybe that wouldn't be the worst idea) but he's a solid liberal and has always stood for what he believed in, popular or not. He was the only man to vote against the PATRIOT Act in the Senate and of the few to vote against the Iraq War Resolution. As for that footage, I've seen it and I probably would have reacted in a worse fashion to those right-wingers. His reaction seemed fine to me.

As I've said before, Democrats should get behind Ron Kind for the next Senate opening, because he would actually have a chance at entrenching himself, unlike Feingold (who I like, but come on, he's never made anything easy for himself).

:(
 
Obama should appoint him Ambassador to somewhere warm and sunny. He deserves a holiday.

This sucks so much. I hope Wisconsin enjoys their pedophileophile Senator.

()

Please go away, Lief. Please. The forum would thank you. PLEASE.

Maybe I need to rethink this one. 

Hope it's true and Feingold's gone. In 2014 if Kohl retires Paul Ryan will be running for his seat and he won't be easy to beat. So you could possibly have 2 Republicans in the Senate from Wisconsin in 4 years.

It would be in 2012 and im not sure its a sure thing ryan runs, he may be more interested in making speaker someday.

Word I've heard is that Ryan has had a bit of a falling out with the GOP leadership team as of late (Boehner/Cantor/McCarthy).

I actually like the guy and wouldn't mind him as a Senator if we had to have a Republican in the seat.

Heard similar rumors. I think Cantor or Pence would be the most likely to succeed Boehner as Speaker, with Cantor probably becoming Majority Leader next year. With Ryan being the ranking member on the Budget Committee, we all know what that means.


Really? That's a bit of a surprise.

I can see WI become a GOP bastion in the next few years. The WI Democratic scene will be weak. Feingold and Obey will be gone in January and Kohl is likely on his way out in 2012.

Of course like hinted in succeeding posts, there is a strong chance Kohl will retire in 2012, and depending on the environment the Democrats stand a shot at holding that seat. However, like also said that also depends on the candidate the Democrat's run as their bench in Wisconsin at the moment seems awfully thin.

Really?  I consider Ryan the most Conservative member of Congress from an Obama district right now.

I don't agree with Ryan on any policy matters but I feel he's a good guy with his heart in the right place. I'd prefer to have a Democrat but I if I had to have a Republican I wouldn't mind it being him.

The fact that he was in my fraternity back in college also helps.