Shelly Moore Capito has announced that she will not seek the Senate seat held by Robert Byrd. The filing deadline to declare a candidacy is this friday and the Republicans may have a primary. Ken Hechler and John Raese may enter the race.
To read a related Wall Street Journal article, please click here:
http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2010/07/21/rep-capito-wont-run-for-senate-in-wva/
Jim Sutliff
Democrats are expected to offer a plan to keep the Bush tax cuts for the middle class. Tax cuts for higher incomes will be allowed to expire. An estate tax of 45% for the next two years will also be proposed. The estate tax proposal is expected to be modified during debate.
To read a related Time article, please click here:
http://www.time.com/time/politics/article/0,8599,2005389,00.html
Jim Sutliff
West Virginia Governor Joe Manchin has announced that he will run for the U.S. Senate seat. The primary for the Byrd seat will be held on August 28th and the general election is on November 2nd. Shelley Moore Capito is the likely Republican candidate and it should be a very competitive race. The West Virginia election gives the Republicans a better chance to pick up enough seats to regain control of the Senate.
To read a related Wall Street Journal article, please click here:
http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2010/07/20/gov-manchin-to-seek-wva-senate-seat/
Jim Sutliff
Republicans have a strong chance to take control of the U.S. Senate this November. The Wall Street Journal has an article that provides a breakdown of key races and how they are shaping up. Republicans would need to have 51 seats to control the Senate because a 50-50 tie would be broken by Democratic Vice President Joe Biden. One race that may take insiders by surprise is in Washington with Dino Rossi challenging Patty Murray.
To read a the Wall Street Journal article, please click here:
Jim Sutliff
The chairman of the Republican campaign committee, Pete Sessions, made some bold predictions on Meet The Press. One prediction is that the Republicans may win 40 seats and take back control of the House. There is a strong possibility of a Republican victory in November even though the Republicans will be outspent by the Democrats. The U.S. Senate is also capable of moving into Republican hands in November. There are enough seats that are a toss-up to make the Democrats play defense this year.
To read a related Bloomberg article, please click here:
Jim Sutliff
West Virginia Governor Joe Manchin has named Carte Goodwin to the Robert Byrd Senate seat. Goodwin will temprorarily fill the seat until a special election in November. The winner of the special election will fill the remainder of the Senate seat. Manchin has indicated that he is interested in running in the special election. West Virginia is likely to be a hotly contested Senate race with Republicans trying to pick up another seat.
To read a related Bloomberg article, please click here:
Jim Sutliff
The Senate passed the financial bill today with a 60-39 vote with three Republicans suppoting the measure. Earlier in the day, the Senate voted 60-38 to end debate on the bill and move it to a final vote. The financial bill is expected to be signed into law next week.
To read a related Wall Street Journal article, please click here:
Jim Sutliff
Nebraska Senator Ben Nelson has indicated that he would support the financial reform bill and that should provide the 60 votes needed to pass. Previously, Nelson was undecided and that fueled speculation that four Republicans would be needed to pass the measure. The bill could be passed by the end of the week.
To read a related Bloomberg article, please click here:
James Sutliff
Republican Senator Judd Gregg and Congressman Eric Cantor are asking for the extension of the tax cuts set to expire at the end of the year. The goal is to stimulate the economy by keeping the Bush tax cuts on income and dividends for at least one more year. Their efforts are likely to have some level of success with Democratic Senators stating that some tax cuts will be extended.
To read a related article in The Hill, please click here:
http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/108133-top-republicans-want-all-tax-cuts-extended
Jim Sutliff
The West Virginia Attorney General Darrell McGraw has issued an advisory opinion that Governor Manchin can call a special election. The special election would be for the unexpired term of the seat held by Senator Byrd. A special election is likely to be called for this November and would prevent an election in November 2012. Republicans would have a better chance of taking the Senate seat in 2012 than in 2010. If the West Virginia seat falls in to Republican hands it could be the deciding vote for majority leader after the 2012 election cycle.
To read a Congressional Quarterly Politics article, please click here:
http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/eyeon2010/2010/07/west-virginia-ag-says-governor.html
Jim Sutliff
The New Jersey State Assembly is expected to support the annual property tax increase cap backed by Christie and the State Senate. The State Assembly is in Democratic hands with Democrats having a 47-33 advantage. Tax increase will be capped at 2% with some exemptions for health costs, pension costs, natural disasters, and bond payments.
To read a related Bloomberg article, please click here:
Jim Sutliff
The Justice Department sued the state of Arizona relating to an immigration law that will take effect later in the month. The Justice Department challenge to the law has been expected.
To read a related Wall Street Journal article, please click here:
To read a related Bloomberg article, please click here:
Jim Sutliff
Political Wire reports that a recent Magellan Strategies Survey indicates that Ehrlich has taken a small lead in the Gubernatorial race in Maryland. Ehrlich currently leads O’Malley 46% to 43% in the race.
To visit Political Wire, please click here:
http://politicalwire.com/archives/2010/07/02/ehrlich_has_edge_in_maryland.html
Jim Sutliff
The Wall Street Journal has built a headquarters for political news in this election cycle. Campaign 2010, covers news on House and Senate races at the same time as providing coverage of state specific issues. The page provides interactive maps detailing all the races and also shows polls for hotly contested districts. Campaign 2010 should be on the short list of sites to visit for the political junkie.
To visit the Wall Street Journal Campaign 2010 page, please click here:
http://online.wsj.com/public/page/news-politics-campaign.html?mod=quicklinks_campaign
Jim Sutliff
The Finance Reform bill has been delayed until after the 4th of July recess. This may cause further changes to the bill as swing votes consider all options. There has already been the elimination of $19 billion in fees assessed on financial institutions. On Wednesday, the bill was approved by the House with a 237-192 vote.
To read a related Bloomberg article, please click here:
Jim Sutliff
