The Nation’s John Nichols notes that North Carolina’s Elizabeth Dole was one of the minority of Senate Republicans not voting to block — on a cloture vote — the $14 billion auto industry rescue package this week. In other words, Dole might not have liked the auto bailout, but she was at least willing to let a majority of the Senate decide in an up-or-down vote. (Our other Republican senator, Richard Burr, was with the blockers.) Continue reading »
But we’re in a good mood, so let’s forget Alaska. Instead, we’ll contemplate the fact that North Carolina tossed Elizabeth Dole out of office despite her ad campaign aimed at convincing the state that her opponent, Kay Hagan, was an atheist. This was accomplished, you may remember, through the creative strategy of showing Hagan’s picture along with another woman’s voice saying: “There is no God!” If Dole had won, by the next election we would have been bombarded with ads that appeared to show candidates saying “I support adultery!” or “Let’s kill the puppies!” Now that won’t happen. Thank you, North Carolina.
Democrats successfully tied U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole to her buddy President George W. Bush, which explains in part why challenger Kay Hagan sent her packing. Public Policy Polling has further analysis.
MSNBC just had a report from N.C. in which the reporter quoted an unnamed senior Republican strategist as saying he predicts Kay Hagan will beat incumbent U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole.
Incumbent U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole has rarely visited North Carolina since she took office in 2002, and if yesterday’s polls are any indication, she may want to leave the state permanently.
According to Public Policy Polling, challenger Kay Hagan has a seven-point lead—51-44—going into Election Day, possibly due in part to the backlash over Dole’s “Godless” ad attacking her opponent. CNN had Hagan up by nine late last week.
fivethirtyeight.com is reporting today that the lead, coupled with the strong Democratic turnout in early voting, “Dole will need a miracle to retain her seat.”
A new CNN poll shows Kay Hagan opening up a lead over Sen. Elizabeth Dole. Poll tracking sites such as Pollster.com and Talkingpointsmemo.com have changed their assessment of the race from “toss-up” to reflect the trend.
However, this data doesn’t seem to reflect the fallout from Dole’s widely reviled “godless” ads. The poll was conducted Oct. 23-28, from 667 likely voters.
The Boston fundraiser was not a “godless” event. (See here and here.) The host (the guy who lived in the house) was an atheist. You’re not allowed to be an atheist in America any more?
The N.C. Council of Churches stands by Kay Hagan, who is after all an elder of one of its biggest member churches. Its letter to Sen. Dole:
The North Carolina Council of Churches does not endorse or oppose candidates for political office, and neither you nor Sen. Hagan should construe this letter as taking a position about the outcome of your race. The Council has, however, called for greater civility in political discourse, and we cannot remain silent when you challenge the beliefs of faithful fellow Christians and suggest that a leader in one of the state’s oldest and largest denominations doesn’t believe in God.
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From what I hear, the Energy Task Force meeting has been changed to South Building, room 105. Just a heads up.
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Steven Storch
Magistrate, Durham, NC
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