Obama cuts radio ad for Lincoln

[Freddie Stubbs]

President Obama has cut a radio ad in the Arkansas Senate race for Sen. Blanche Lincoln that begins a run on Monday.

It will run in selective markets aimed at Obama surge voters.

Lincoln, a moderate senator, is facing a challenge from the left from Lt. Gov. Bill Halter.

more: http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2010/04/30/2291081.aspx

[msongs]

1. one conservative democrat supporting another. nt

[FrenchieCat]

3. The President supporting the Democratic incumbent......

That's how it works.

And although I have donated to Halter cause Lincoln pissed me off,
I don't consider Halter to be all that much more progressive,
and to think so is to set yourself up to be pissed off at him,
if he wins the election. But then, I think you are only comfortable
pissed off, so it wouldn't be any sweat off your back.

[Ken Burch]

5. The pres is supposed to be NEUTRAL in primaries.

And yes, just so you know, I am prepared to be let down by Halter.

Why SHOULD we accept that only right-wing Dems can win in Arkansas?

This was the state that elected Dale Bumpers, who was a solid left-populist on economic issues. I've always thought that Bumpers was the Arkansas politician Dems SHOULD have nominated for president.

[Freddie Stubbs]

7. Says who?

What rule or law requires the President to turn his back on a sitting Senator he supports?

[depakid]

11. Well, he surely wasn't "neutral" in the Lieberman Lamont race as a Senator

And that turned out so well for him that, hey- why not just keep on doing it!

:rofl:

[Ken Burch]

13. It's weird that he'd back a senator that doesn't support him

It's largely her fault that the HCR bill was basically something Boehner could have drafted. It's thanks to her kind of Dem that the public option AND cost controls(like the ability of the government to NEGOTIATE drug prices rather than just pay what Big Pharma demands) are gone.

What has Blanche Lincoln done to support this administration? She should just cross the aisle and be done with it. It's not like the disagrees with the right on much of anything. And the success of Dale Bumpers shows that she's not the ONLY kind of Dem who can win in Arkansas.

[Radical Activist]

41. No, just the opposite.

A President is expected to support any incumbent Senator of their party. Senators very rarely campaign against another incumbent Senator, even from the other party.
If Obama failed to support Lincoln he would have seriously pissed off many Senators in the Democratic caucus. Ones whose support he needs. I don't like it either, but let's be honest about the situation.

[depakid]

44. Hogwash!

Where on earth did you get that idea?

Made it up out of thin air, that where.

[Radical Activist]

45. Pretty well known.

You're projecting.

[depakid]

48. LOL- where'd you learn that bit?

AM radio?

Fact is that you're full of it.

No other way to say it-

[Radical Activist]

50. Fine. Produce a link.

Stop talking shit and back it up with something that supports your claim.

Why don't you give me a list of races where a Democratic President campaigned against incumbent Democratic Senator in a primary. You won't find more than one or two examples in the last 60 years if you find any at all. Go ahead. Name the Senators. Trash talk doesn't prove your point.

[Hippo_Tron]

53. The President can (and does) support whomever he wants in primaries

And its been that way pretty much ever since primaries existed. The President's endorsement is an incredibly powerful tool and he would be foolish to relinquish it and proclaim blanket neutrality.

In the era of modern campaigns, however, the President does usually support incumbents. Simply put, it's a numbers (money) game. Incumbents raise more money and that means Republicans have to spend more money to beat them. Lincoln and Halter will probably both lose in November but Republicans will have to spend more to beat Lincoln.

And if you're wondering at what point the President starts trying to "clean house" (or clean Senate in this case) instead of just trying to get more Democrats elected, it happens probably around 70+ seats. FDR did it in 1938 and he had 76 seats (keep in mind there were only 96 senators back then). But until you get to that point, parties are going to remain concerned almost entirely about maintaining their majority and not what kind of majority they have.

[Radical Activist]

54. There's a reason FDR is the most recent example.

It was extremely controversial when he did it, he pissed off a lot of people in the party, he was targeting strongly conservative Senators, and he largely failed. Other Presidents have chosen not to repeat FDR's mistake.

[Hippo_Tron]

55. There were also 76 (out of 96) Democratic Senators at the time

It makes a lot more sense to focus on cleaning house when pretty much the entire Senate is in your party.

[WCGreen]

8. You are exactly right....

[WI_DEM]

33. Anybody who isn't far left would be a conservative apparently to you.

[bluestateguy]

2. That seems to be the way it always works

Incumbents stick together.

Well, Obama has about as much influence in Arkansas as the UT Longhorns. Isn't that state still full of PUMA's?

[Enrique]

28. yep, Obama's just playing the game better n/t

[Ken Burch]

4. What possible good reason could there be for the president to back the renomination of a Dem

Who did as much as anybody else to cute HCR down to nothing?

Good God-will he do this for Lieberman in '12?

[Freddie Stubbs]

6. She is a better Democrat than Russ Feingold

[theophilus]

12. I don't think "Democrat" means what you think it means. n/t

[Ken Burch]

14. UH....say WHAT?

What has Russ done that could possibly be worse than demanding that HCR be pissed down to nothing?

[Freddie Stubbs]

37. Feingold supports Senate Democrats less often than Senator Lincoln

[Ken Burch]

15. This from someone who's idea of a "good Democrat" is Arne Duncan

(hint: in MOST of the country, Democrats aren't rabidly anti-union).

[Freddie Stubbs]

38. If he is good enough for President Obama, he is good enough for me

[spiritual_gunfighter]

52. is this a joke? n/t

[Freddie Stubbs]

58. Nope. I am not a member of the Obama basher club

[spiritual_gunfighter]

59. You obviously dont live in Chicago

and have seen first hand what Duncan did to Chicago Public Schools like I have.

[Freddie Stubbs]

61. The man who appointed Duncan lived in Chicago

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

25. You're kidding, right? n/t

[QC]

35. Sadly, no. n/t

[Freddie Stubbs]

39. Nope. Compare their records

[Sebastian Doyle]

46. Oh Jesus Christ on a nuclear powered pogo stick!!

April Fools day was over a month ago. :rofl:

[ClarkUSA]

17. No, he will support the Democratic primary winner. n/t

[AlinPA]

20. After this, I believe he will support the snake Lieberman. yuk.

[AtomicKitten]

23. That would definitely be puke-worthy. nt

[Enrique]

29. your question assumes Obama wanted stronger health care

I don't think it's obvious that he did want that. I personally don't believe he did.

[Arkana]

9. Dammit, Barack, she screwed you on HCR and she's screwing you on financial reform

and you're actively supporting her?

[Freddie Stubbs]

16. She voted to pass HCR. Who is Jane Hamsher backing?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jane-hamsher/accountability-now-announ_b_480766.html

Would Halter have voted against HCR as his patron Hamsher was urging?

[Arkana]

19. Let's be very clear--Lincoln fought reform every step of the way.

She was by no means an ally.

I'm no purist. I realize that it takes all kinds to keep a majority. But I think that "Democrats" like Blanche Lincoln and Ben Nelson should be kicked out of the goddamn party.

[Ken Burch]

36. She voted for HCR AFTER it was watered down to nothing.

She insisted that it be made conservative instead of progressive by taking out any constraints on corporate profit and by insisting on the death of the public option. There was almost nothing left after her wing of the party got done with the bill.

All Blanche Lincoln did was prove once against that there's no jusfication for the continued existence of the filibuster.

[freddie mertz]

56. And she voted AGAINST the final reconciliation bill.

She is the worst of the worst, even from the most Obama-centric of viewpoints.

Go HERE to donate to her opponent:

http://billhalter.com/

[depakid]

10. Circling the wagons around unpopular incumbants- in a decidedly anti-incumbant year

Is the height of political stupidity.

Considering that she's undercut the President's own agenda numerous times, makes it even more astonishing. Might as well put a big sign on his back saying "Senators, please kick me" as there won't be any consequences for it.

[AlinPA]

18. "a moderate senator"?! She is a conservative senator and it is hard to believe that

he would do this- after she stabbed him in the back on healthcare reform.

[mvd]

27. I understand the Specter thing. They had a deal

Obama wasn't going to back on the deal. But I don't understand the Lincoln thing. Do polls strongly favor Lincoln in the GE? Or does the party almost always back the incumbant? Those are the only reasons I can think of. Because Halter is much better.

[ClarkUSA]

21. I doubt he'll do much more than this pro forma obligation as head of the Party. n/t

[AtomicKitten]

22. So did Bill Clinton. Ewww to both.

audio: http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/05/bill-clinton-cuts-ads-for-blanche-lincoln-audio.php

[BlooInBloo]

24. More money to Halter it is!

[nyc 4 Biden]

26. You forgot the sarcasm thingy in your signature image. eom

[QC]

30. Obama is much kinder to his enemies than to his friends.

Bill Clinton was that way, too, but I think Obama's got it much worse.

[Name removed]

34. Deleted message

Sub-thread removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[BklnDem75]

31. Didn't we go through this before?

If you want to torpedo your own agenda, show support for the incumbent's opponent. For 7 months, Obama HAS to work with Lincoln. It's very important for people to use their brains here. And yes, a neutral stance is just as bad as no support towards the incumbent. If you want a guaranteed no vote from a Dem for the rest of the year, then please, continue being outraged.

[Radical Activist]

43. That's makes too much sense for people with a chip on their shoulder. n/t

[freddie mertz]

32. Likes attract.

Is anyone surprised?

[Radical Activist]

42. She opposed Obama's liberal bills so that makes them alike?

Are you having a problem with ideological blockage or is it just personal?

[Radical Activist]

40. Booo!

Yeah, it's standard courtesy for a President to support any incumbent Senator. Not helping Lincoln would have seriously pissed of many other Democratic Senators whose support he needs. But I wish he would have stayed out of this one or taught Lincoln a lesson and backer Halter.

[rasputinkhlyst]

47. Obama needs a progressive running a primary against him.

His words may sound good, but his actions, when examined closely, reveal a conservative corporate bent. Reality can be a bitch, face it!

[joe black]

49. + 1,000,000

[Radical Activist]

51. He has the most progressive record since LBJ.

You have to examine him closely because he doesn't scream at you about how progressive his actions are. He isn't an entertainer that panders to the left, but he's producing good results.

[pundaint]

60. Yeah, and smoking crack helps too. Examine him paying of the bankers, paying off pharma, paying off

health insurers, stepping up war, take a close look and you'll just see bark, and that nasty forest will just disappear.

[freddie mertz]

57. We can only hope.

Even if the challenger has no chance, it may be the only way to gain some leverage against this rightward turn.