Republican-elected officials and consultants are clucking around the clock—no longer ducking reporters—as the new decade gets under way, anticipating major gains in Congress after the midterm elections this November. Thomas Schaller, associate professor of political science, recently made the case for Newt Gingrich as the candidate Democrats would least like to face in 2012. He wrote: “Gingrich may be the one candidate who can appeal equally to both mainstream and Washington Republicans, as well as the outsider, conservative wing of the party. He has a track record for knowing how to beat Democrats. And whatever one thinks about some of his futuristic ideas, he’s at least a guy with a vision and some fresh thoughts about policy.”
The article, “John Thune is the GOP’s Future,” ran in Splice Today, on Monday, January 11.
In his column for Politico.com, Schaller wrote that a little more than a month ago, Harry Reid turned 70. Could his gaffe be the result of a generational difference? “The truth about Reid’s remarks — or, for that matter, Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele’s recent on-air “honest Injun” gaffe — is that these episodes today make news precisely because our inner geezers emerge publicly only in rare instances,” he wrote.
The article, “The geezer defense,” ran Wednesday, January 13.
In the wake of the back-to-back-to-back announced retirements of Sens. Byron Dorgan and Chris Dodd, and Gov. Bill Ritter of Colorado, all Democrats, Salon.com asked some of the country’s top electoral analysts to talk about what the political environment looks like 10 months out from the 2010 midterms. Schaller was the moderator. “There are certain things that you all mention that are largely beyond the control of any party, like what the employment rate’s going to be in 10 months. Policies do matter to a certain degree, but there are some things the parties can control, and Democrats are touting big numbers in fundraising…”
The article, “How Will the Democrats Fare in the 2010 Election?” ran Tuesday, January 12.
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