Who would you like to see in Kohl's Senate seat in 2012?

[undeterred]

[goofticket]

1. A Democrat

a dem would be nice and practical.

[vireo]

2. I voted for Ben

Because it's time for a DUer in the US Senate!

[kb9vrg]

20. Ben got my vote too

I'm tired of the Lieberman-esque voting record of Herb Kohl. Wisconsin needs another Feingold. Can we just clone him? Or reincarnate Proxmire?

[RevCheesehead]

3. I confess.

I was the first to vote for Class Warrior.


But if you had Retro in there, he, like Al Gore, certainly would get my vote. :loveya:

[RetroLounge]

10. Oh, Please. With the skeletons in MY closet?

:rofl:

I voted for Class Warrior.

NGU

:hi:

RL

[ewagner]

4. What a dilema!

How am I to address him?

Senator Class?

or

Senator Warrior?

[undeterred]

5. That will probably depend on whether he's hosting a fancy function

or giving hellraising speeches on the Senate floor :evilgrin:

[ewagner]

6. A "rare" photo

of the future Senator at a listening session.

[AllyCat]

7. Anyone but Kathleen Falk?

I'd love to see Tammy Baldwin run, but she's on the Judiciary Committee now and I don't want to see her leave it, especially since she is pro-impeachment.

[undeterred]

8. Well, by 2012 I hope we won't be needing to impeach.

I'd like to see one of our progressive state senators like Miller, Erpenbach, Robson, or Vinehout make a run for US Senator.

[AllyCat]

9. Guess I had my hopes up that he was leaving NOW and I'd missed it n/t

[CarbonDate]

11. I gave some passing thought.....

...to throwing my own hat in the ring, but I figured I'd worry about that after I'm out of the Air Force, not before.

Mine would be a way long-shot candidacy anyway, seeing as I've never held elected office, will only be 34 in 2012, and have lived out of state since 2004. Still, I'm an Iraq War veteran, so it's not like I've been sitting around doing nothing this whole time.

I get out in 2010 and am looking at getting involved with politics or activism in a big way. Returning to Wisconsin is on my radar, but if I don't see anything where I could make a difference, then I'm going to set my eye on New Orleans at the activist level.

Anybody know of anything (campaigns, etc.) that might be able to find a use for a former Air Force Staff Sergeant with experience in personnel supervision and managing base-wide programs?

[kb9vrg]

21. Why not throw your hat in?

I'm thinking of it. Let's see. I'll also be 34 in 2012... But I've been in the state since early 1978.

Then I think... I can't really quit my job to campaign, how will I get health insurance, or for that matter, pay the rent? How would the fact that I have ADHD go over in an election? Better yet, what which I have posted on line in the past will come back to haunt me? And, who'd elect someone with an unpronounceable polish name to office?

Ordinary people like you and I running are the only way we can help take our party and our country back!

We need more veterans like you who want to actually defend veterans in office.

As far as knowing of any place, maybe go give a gander to votevets.org or IAVA?

[undeterred]

12. If we lose a seat after the census is taken in 2010 the seat would be

the 8th district, if I am not mistaken. Please correct me if you know differently. Then we would only have seven congresspeople.

In that event, I would love to see Dr. Kagen run for the open Senate seat. I think he is off to a great start in Congress and I would love to see him as the junior senator from Wisconsin.

[dragonlady]

13. Don't scare us like that!

According to this article (after a very brief search, so take it for what it's worth), this is the current projection:

Several states will lose House seats, possibly hurting Democrats as legislatures and courts decide new lines for a smaller delegation. The states that will see these changes include Louisiana (mainly due to population displacement from Hurricane Katrina), Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York. Each will lose one seat, except for Ohio and New York, each of which will lose two. Also on the list of states to watch are Massachusetts and New Jersey. Both are in danger of losing a seat if population losses are not stemmed in the next two years.

http://www.kiplinger.com/businessresource/forecast/archive/2010_Census_and_GOP_070914.html

The article repeats the standard line that this shift of seats to the southern and western states will help the Republicans. What I want to know is, do all these people who are moving west and south suddenly lose their liberal opinions when they cross the state line? It seems like they are helping to make up our new majorities in some of those states.

[dragonlady]

14. Addition: we already lost a seat after the 2000 census

The 9th (Sensenbrenner's) was eliminated but, unfortunately, instead of going away he took over the newly defined 5th. The former 5th (Tom Barrett's) had been roughly the north half of Milwaukee County, but most of the county became the 4th district all by itself and the other boundaries were shuffled around to make everything fit.

[undeterred]

15. I hope I'm wrong but I did hear it from a reliable source.

Will keep looking into it.

[MessiahRp]

16. If they eliminated the 8th, wouldn't they just expand the 6th to go from GB to FDL?

Then Kagen could take that seat from Petri...

Otherwise I don't see why a rural Republican area wouldn't be the first to lose a seat over an area with a larger city.

Rp

[dragonlady]

17. The remaining districts all have to have equal populations

It's hard to tell how the districts would be redrawn. The legislature gets first crack at trying to come up with a plan acceptable to both parties, but often the federal court has to step in. In 2000, I've heard, it was a deal made between Obey and Sensenbrenner to make four safe seats for each party. (Dr. Kagen and his voters upset that agreement, didn't they?)

[dragonlady]

18. Not too likely we lose a seat

I found this report based on Census Bureau population estimates from 2006, which were analyzed by two demographic experts. Here are their conclusions:

Redistricting consultant Kim Brace of Election Data Services ran the 2006 estimates through the apportionment formula and found that if the 2006 data were used, six states would gain seats in the U.S. House (and electoral votes), and seven states would lose a seat. The winners: Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Nevada, Texas (+2) and Utah. And the states losing seats: Iowa, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Missouri, New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Brace's full analysis is available here.

Redistricting consultant Clark Bensen of Polidata Incorporated took the 2006 estimates and projected them forward to 2010 and found even more change. Bensen projects these big gainers: Texas (+4), Florida (+2), and Arizona (+2) with Georgia, Nevada, Oregon, Washington and Utah each gaining one seat. Bensen's projected losers: Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, New York (-2), Ohio (-2) and Pennsylvania. Furthermore, Bensen predicts that the average number of people in each U.S, House district would be close to 725,000 after the 2010 round of redistricting.

http://ncsl.typepad.com/the_thicket/redistricting/index.html

[undeterred]

19. Thanks dragonlady

I will check a couple of other sources about what I heard regarding losing a seat. There will, of course, probably be redistricting (to even out demographic changes within the state and make sure each district has an equal number), but that doesn't mean gaining or losing a seat.

[Vet31203]

22. Any Dem!!!

Loving that large Majority in congress, not wanting to see it end

William J Meyers for House 2008