What the heck is going on with the Senate race?

[Wilms]

Can anyone in RI help? I live too far away (CA) to figure this out.

Is a pro-life position more in line with the will of RI people?

Did I read there was a Kennedy who declined interest in running?

Can you tell me about Chafee? I liked his trip to see Chavez despite what the WH thinks, and a few anecdotals (if that plural is a word).


The following piece is from a pro-life site saying the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee is pushing for pro-life candidates, and against pro-choicers.


Hope winter's near to loosening it's grip.


Abortion Advocates Still Upset by Pro-Life Democrat Senate Candidates

by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
March 11, 2005

Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- Abortion advocates are still upset with Democrat leaders who have coalesced behind two candidates for the U.S. Senate who oppose abortion. The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee has recruited Pennsylvania state Treasurer Bob Casey and Rhode Island Rep. Jim Langevin to run in Senate races in those states.

Not only have top Democrats recruited candidates who oppose abortion, they've attempted to clear the field and persuade other Democrats from declaring their candidacies.

-snip-

In Rhode Island, Democratic officials have unsuccessfully tried to persuade pro-abortion Secretary of State Matt Brown to exit the race.

-snip-

In Langevin and Casey are elected, they would join a small list of pro-life Democrats in the Senate. Only Nebraska Senator Ben Nelson has a consistent pro-life voting record.

http://www.lifenews.com/nat1226.html

[AndyTiedye]

1. Matching Chafee With an Anti-Choice Democrat

Will have my very Democratic sister and her whole family voting Republican.

The Democratic party is backing away from its longstanding support for reproductive freedom.
This is very bad.
They will cave in on Roe.

[IronLionZion]

2. What the fuck is this???

"pro-abortion"! "abortion advocates"! Who the hell is pro-abortion?!?!
:wtf:

[safi0]

3. Well the thing is called

Lifenews or ome fundie name like that. As much as that article is bullshit they constantly as Pro-Abortion instead of Pro-Choice, as bullshit as that is, that's a great job at framing the issue.

[bryanri]

4. Take back the Senate

Rhode Island & Sheldon Whitehouse needs your help to beat Senator Lincoln Chafee (R). We all know what is at stake in this upcoming election. Sheldon has a long and proven record of service to Rhode Island and he has the experience to be an effective and trusted U.S. Senator. Through his work as a US Attorney and Attorney General, Sheldon has a record of standing up for us, approaching problems head on and coming up with smart solutions. America will not be forced to wonder how Sheldon will vote on issues important to all of us such as efforts to oppose the privatization of Social Security, health care reform, fully funding public education and a woman's right to choose. His record proves that he will always side with the people of Rhode Island, providing us with a constant, reliable voice in Washington.

I have set up an Actblue fundraising page and I am trying to raise $1000 for Sheldon. I hate to ask but we need all your help to win back the Senate. New Brown University poll - Lincoln Chafee (R) 41% - 36% Sheldon Whitehouse (D). Chafee is only 5 points ahead. I know we can win this with your help!

Actblue page.. http://actblue.com/list/whitehouseforsenate

For more info on Sheldon Whitehouse go to..http://www.whitehouseforsenate.com/

Only $939.99 away from my goal!

[PVDMan]

9. Matt Brown is the man to beat Chafee

I'm going to have to support Matt Brown in this campaign for Senate. For those of you out there who are not from RI, Matt Brown (RI's current Sec. of State) and Sheldon Whitehouse are the 2 people running for the Democratic Ticket against Chafee in 2006.

The reason I support Brown because, simply, I'm tired of Chafee and want a man who can beat him! Whitehouse ran for gov. back in 2000 and lost in a major upset in the primary to Myrth York. She, in turn, lost to the jerk we have in office now. I have seen (and voted for) Whitehouse in the past and am just disappointed in him. He runs the same cookie cutter campaign as every other Democrat in Rhode Island which is not something one needs to beat a candidate who can run on being one of the few deliberative moderates in the Senate (even if he is an idiot). Since Carceri (the Republican Governor) is also up for reelection in '06, we are going to have a Republican incumbent name at the top of the ballot. Carceri, by all accounts, is going to be reelected which means any Democrat that wants to win in RI needs to do so with a significant number of voters who vote with a split ballot. I just don't believe that independents are going to vote for someone as traditionally RI Dem as Whitehouse while also voting for Carceri.

Brown, having worked in the nonprofit world for over 10 years seems to know what needs to be done on the ground. Since I work in the nonprofit community, I know he is changing the way people think and perceive politics in RI (especially after Buddy showed us exactly how corrupt we were). Although the Whitehouse name may help boost his poll numbers this early in the game, I think it would be a mistake to support him. That will just mean 6 more years of Chafee's incompetence and issue vacillations. I've been turned on by the Matt Brown campaign and anyone who hasn't checked it out should really do so!

[safi0]

10. You gave me some food

For thought. I've looked at both Brown and Whitehouse's websites and I think both are good democrats and I wouldn't have a problem supporting either. Because of this I'll save my money until after the primaries and a candidate has been chosen. But I think the cards are very much stacked against Brown winning the primary. In the same poll that showed Whitehouse trailing by only 5 showed Brown trailed by 15. Also more importantly both Kennedy and Langevin have thrown there support behind Whitehouse

[Hippo_Tron]

5. Langevin isn't going to run, here's the deal...

Congressman Langevin (a pro-life Democrat) would've actually been a shoe-in to defeat Chaffee. However, he decided not to run, arguably he was pushed out of the race by pro-choice forces. The dem frontrunner is Secretary of State Sheldon Whitehouse, a second tier candidate who is only polling close to Chaffee because this is a blue state.

Now, here's the KEY...

Chaffee is going to get a primary challenge from Mayor Laffey, a typical neocon who is supposedly a pretty skilled campaigner. Mayor Laffey will almost certainly be well funded from groups like the club for growth. Chaffee may survive the primary challenge, but it will be close, and it might be tempting to get Bush or Cheney to come down to campaign for him. However, Bush and Cheney might not come to down to campaign for him considering that he openly admitted that he didn't vote for Bush. However, if Bush and Cheney do come down to campaign for him and he survives the primary challenge, Sheldon Whitehouse will have images and video footage of him standing next to Bush and Cheney, something that won't play well at all in Rhode Island. Of course, assuming that Laffey outs Chaffee in the primary, Laffey will get his ass kicked by Whitehouse.

RI law might still allow Chaffee to run as an Independent if he loses the primary, but at that point I would think that if he runs as an Independent and wins, he'd probably end up caucusing with the Democrats.

[safi0]

6. Chaffee faces much

Of the same situation as Arlen Specter did last year. Problem is he won't have some of the advantages Specter did. Jack Reed won't be endorsing him anytime soon like Santorum did. Bush may come down and campaign for him because they know a Conservative Republican will never win in RI, but with Chaffee openly admitting he didn't vote for Bush I don't know if Bush will be willing do this

[V. Kid]

7. Which Democratic candidates would be considered liberal?

After all considering how good of a shot that the Democrats have in winning the seat, they may as well not waste it on a conservative candidate, which would be pretty much useless ala Joe Lieberman or (unfortunatley now) Hillary Clinton.

[safi0]

8. Both announced

Candidates Sheldon Whitehouse and Matt Brown seem to be uite progressive