September 8th, 2010 by Emily DeRose
Alex Sink has pulled ahead of Medicare fraudster Rick Scott and is beating him substantially among independents. Scott, the Madoff of Medicare, spent more than $50 million to win his primary by 3 points but has failed to win the endorsement of his primary opponent, who is concerned about his character and integrity.
And according to a CNN/Time/Opinion Research Corporation survey of registered voters in Florida, the Democrat holds a seven point advantage in the gubernatorial fight…
The poll indicates that Florida Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink, the Democratic nominee, has an edge over GOP nominee Rick Scott 49 to 42 percent.
“Sink is doing well among independents and moderate voters. She pulls two-thirds of the vote among moderates, and beats Scott among independents by a 50 to 37 percent margin,” says Holland.
Scott, a multi-millionaire former health care executive, spent around $50 million to top Florida Attorney General and former Rep. Bill McCollum in what turned into a bitter primary.
Bud Chiles, the son of former Florida Democratic governor and senator Lawton Chiles, recently dropped his independent bid for governor.
The CNN/Time/Opinion Research Corporation poll was conducted September 2-7, with 899 registered voters in Florida questioned by telephone. The survey’s overall sampling error is plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.
Tags: 2010, alex sink, Florida, poll, Rick Scott
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
September 8th, 2010 by Emily DeRose
A PPP survey released today is just the latest poll this week to show Mayor Bill White in striking distance of the Texas governorship, joining Zogby and Republican firm Hill Research. The race is one of the cycle’s marquee contests and a Democratic pickup opportunity. While the polling is still close, White is walloping Gov. Rick Perry among independents 53-34 and he has a 44/29 fav/unfav rating.
With part-time Perry hiding from the state’s $18 billion budget gap in his luxury mansion, White’s brand of no-nonsense leadership is attracting independents and building the best favorability numbers of any candidate in the country, according to the poll. In the past week alone, White has demonstrated his serious plan for border security and called on Perry to release information about the state’s finances.
TX Gov remains competitive
Rick Perry has miserable approval numbers. Bill White, along with John Hickenlooper in Colorado, is one of the two strongest new Democratic candidates in the country this year. That would usually be the formula for a Democratic pick up but Texas is still a Republican state in a Republican year, and Perry holds a 48-42 lead over White with 8 weeks left to go until election day.
The race is confounding the major trends we’re seeing in most contests across the country. White is winning independents 53-34. Republicans have the lead with them most everywhere else. White’s winning 82% of Democrats while Perry’s getting 77% of Republicans. Republican voters are more unified than Democrats most everywhere else. But there are a lot more GOP voters than Dems in Texas so Perry’s still ahead anyway.
At 50% a majority of Texans disapprove of the job Perry’s doing with only 39% giving him good marks. Democrats dislike him (85%) a whole lot more than Republicans like him (63%) and independents split against him by a 25/64 margin.
Continue reading…
Tags: 2010, Bill White, poll, Rick Perry, Texas
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
September 7th, 2010 by Emily DeRose
Part-time Governor and full-time self-promoter Rick Perry is now tied in polling against Mayor Bill White, as the state’s $18 billion budget hole and high school dropout crisis remain unsolved, according to Republican polling firm Hill Research Consultants. White’s optimistic problem-solving approach to governing is catching on with Texas voters, according to the poll.
Texas Watch Foundation—September 7th, 2010
A statewide public opinion survey conducted by Republican polling firm Hill Research Consultants on behalf of the Texas Watch Foundation reveals an electorate divided between incumbent Republican Governor Rick Perry (42%) and Democratic challenger Bill White (41%), with a significant bloc of voters (14%) still uncommitted to either candidate. Additionally, across partisan, ideological and geographic lines, broad support is expressed for homeowners’ insurance reform proposals.
Tags: 2010, Bill White, poll, Rick Perry, Texas
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
August 31st, 2010 by Emily DeRose
Nathan Daschle, executive director of the Democratic Governors Association, today wrote members of the GOP establishment who opposed Rick Scott in the Florida primary, urging them not to support Scott or publicly appear with him during the general election campaign. Scott’s company paid $1.7 billion, the largest fine for Medicare fraud in U.S. history.
A copy of the letter is below and attached.
Dear Gov. Barbour:
Republicans and Democrats disagree a lot about policy and how to best lead this country forward. But there are a few issues that transcend partisanship and politics as usual. One of those issues is our commitment – regardless of party – to do what is right and make sure we punish those who victimize seniors or steal from taxpayers. No matter what else divides us, I would hope that all Democrats and Republicans can agree that the public trust is irreparably eroded when we ignore egregious abuses of the citizens we serve.
To that point, before you hit the campaign trail today, I’m respectfully asking for you not to endorse, support or appear with Rick Scott, the Republican gubernatorial nominee in Florida. As you all know, Rick Scott made millions leading the company that paid $1.7 billion in fines, the most ever for Medicare fraud. He is the type of person who is comfortable with pleading the fifth 75 times in a deposition. In effect, he funded his campaign with money that was stolen from the pockets of taxpayers and seniors who depend on Medicare and has refused to answer questions about his business dealings.
During the Republican primary, you and many of your peers lined up against Rick Scott for just those reasons. His theft and deception in business were so egregious that these are just some of the public statements against him:
- Opponent Bill McCollum has too many questions to support Scott, unlike previous primaries in which he was defeated. “But I never had any questions raised either before or after the election about Mel [Martinez]’s integrity or honesty or character, and I’ve had those questions raised about Rick Scott and they were raised very seriously. And it’s not something that would just idle in the campaign. There are still questions that are out there, I think unanswered questions that trouble me a great deal from his past, particularly at Columbia/HCA, so I’m not going to involve myself in the race. (Bill McCollum, Aug. 29, 2010)
- Rick Scott’s campaign was excoriated in an email to the entire email list of the Republican Party of Florida. “Mr. Scott’s false rhetoric about the state of the Party’s finances and our ability to support our candidates demonstrates a disturbing lack of understanding of federal and state election law,” wrote party chair John Thrasher. (John Thrasher, Aug. 22, 2010)
- Scott failed to explain his “criminal acts.” That was graphically demonstrated in an ad in which his name was transformed into a set of handcuffs. (Florida First Initiative)
Since Scott’s “victory” – if that word can be used to describe a race to the bottom where he failed to win even 50 percent of the vote – some of you have pledged your “full resources” to elect a man whose company pleaded guilty to bilking taxpayers and seniors and paid the largest Medicare fraud settlement in U.S. history. We are asking you to reconsider. We are asking Republicans who have yet to endorse to Scott to oppose his candidacy.
While some of you may question our motives, as we clearly support Alex Sink for governor, this is the first time in our history that we have reached across the aisle to make this request. The unique circumstances in Florida demand this overture. Rick Scott represents the worst of American politics; he’s a multimillionaire who became rich from a firm that stole money from taxpayers and seniors. If this doesn’t disqualify Rick Scott from being governor, you must ask yourselves: What would?
Again, we hope you join us in sending a message to Rick Scott and any candidate – Republican or Democrat – that if you steal millions from taxpayers and seniors, you do not deserve to run for office, let alone the highest office in the state of Florida.
Sincerely,
Nathan Daschle
CC: Jeb Bush
Newt Gingrich
Mike Huckabee
Mitt Romney
John Thrasher
Tags: 2010, alex sink, Florida, Haley Barbour, Jeb Bush, John Thrasher, Mike Huckabee, Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich, Rick Scott, RPOF
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
August 27th, 2010 by Emily DeRose
Bill McCollum, the GOP establishment pick in Florida, still won’t get behind nominee Rick Scott after their brutal Civil War left serious wounds. Says McCollum: “I still have serious questions … about issues of his character, his integrity, his honesty — things that go back to Columbia/HCA,” McCollum said, referring to Scott’s former hospital chain, which paid a $1.7 billion fine after a federal criminal investigation. “As other voters will do, I will judge him throughout this campaign.”
By John Frank, Times/Herald Tallahassee Bureau
In Print: Friday, August 27, 2010
TALLAHASSEE — Bill McCollum doesn’t forget easily.
Two days after he lost the Republican nomination for governor, McCollum still refuses to support winner Rick Scott and continues to raise questions about his former rival’s character.
In his first public appearance since conceding the race, McCollum said Thursday that he called Scott to “congratulate him and wish him well.” But he didn’t bury the hatchet in one of the nastiest primaries in state history.
“I still have serious questions … about issues of his character, his integrity, his honesty — things that go back to Columbia/HCA,” McCollum said, referring to Scott’s former hospital chain, which paid a $1.7 billion fine after a federal criminal investigation. “As other voters will do, I will judge him throughout this campaign.”
The attorney general’s remarks put a serious dent in the message of party unity and reopened a vulnerability Democratic candidate Alex Sink is likely to exploit in the general election.
“I have never been associated with any whiff of a scandal or corruption or cheating the government,” Sink said Thursday, referring to Scott.
Continue reading…
Tags: 2010, alex sink, Bill McCollum, Florida, GOP Civil War, Rick Scott
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
August 27th, 2010 by Emily DeRose
The GOP Civil War in Colorado produced one of the most unappealing candidates in the country. And now Tea Partier/Tin Foil hat standard-bearer Dan Maes is pleading for cash and “teetering on the brink.” POLITICO uncovers some priceless emails exchanged in Colorado over Maes’ dire straits.
| |
|
|
| Colorado gubernatorial nominee Dan Maes has already overcome a significant cash dearth to win once this election cycle, but now Republican leaders are warning that without a fast injection of cash, his campaign might be doomed.In a recent e-mail to grassroots Republicans forwarded to POLITICO, the president of Denver’s Coalition for a Conservative Majority said Maes’s campaign was teetering on the brink due to anemic cash flow.
“Dick Wadhams informed us that the Maes campaign is on the verge of collapse due to lack of campaign funding. If you are a Dan Maes supporter, be aware that his campaign desperately needs donations even more than it needs volunteers to work,” wrote coalition president Jack Ott, referencing comments made by state party chair Dick Wadhams at recent meeting.
In a separate e-mail to a conservative listserv, Colorado 9-12 Project leader Lu Busse wrote that Maes “in particular needs money,” and suggested that a big cash infusion from grassroots members could help spur rank-and-file establishment Republicans and “big money” players to get off the sidelines. |
Tags: Colorado, Dan Maes, John Hickenlooper, Tancredo, Tom
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
August 25th, 2010 by Emily DeRose
Not only does Alex Sink have a 7-point lead in the latest PPP poll, but Republican Rick Scott’s unfavorable numbers – especially among independents – are some of the worst in the country.
The brutal GOP Civil War drove Scott’s numbers into the ground as he spent the race attacking his opponent instead of attacking Florida’s problems.
A major unanswered question: With national Republicans “reeling” from Scott’s victory, a planned unity rally scrapped, will the millionaire fraudster even be able to unite his party?
Rick Scott’s an unpopular candidate with a divided party and because of that Alex Sink begins the general election for Governor in Florida with a 7 point lead. Sink has 41% to 34% for Scott and 8% for Bud Chiles.
Sink is doing well because she has a higher degree of party unity than Scott does and because she’s the favorite with independents. 72% of Democrats say they’ll vote for Sink while only 57% of Republicans are committed to voting for Scott. Sink also has a 37-28 advantage with independents.
Scott has dreadful personal favorability numbers with 49% of voters holding an unfavorable opinion of him while only 28% see him favorably. His numbers are even worse with independents than they are with the population at large- a 54% majority of them see him in a negative light.
Sink is still largely unknown but she has good numbers with the people who do know her. 35% have a favorable opinion to 23% with a negative one. Scott’s chances in the general election may rest on his ability to define her with the 42% of folks who have no opinion right now before she gets the chance to define herself.
Republicans hope that Bud Chiles will play a spoiler role for Sink’s chances this fall but at this point he’s actually getting 8% of GOP votes and only 6% of Democratic votes, suggesting that for now his presence in the race is hurting Scott.
Continue reading results here
Tags: 2010, alex sink, Bill McCollum, Florida, GOP Civil War, poll, Rick Scott
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
August 19th, 2010 by Emily DeRose
For the first time, CFO Alex Sink has pulled ahead of both Republicans in the Quinnipiac poll released today. Sink is effectively capitalizing on the vicious civil war battle being played out on the GOP side with this ad demonstrating that she is the alternative to politics as usual.
Meanwhile, negatives for both Rick Scott and Bill McCollum are jumping as their escalating battle on the airwaves is turning off Florida voters.
Apparently bolstered by the civil war for the Republican nomination for Governor in Florida, State Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink, the Democrat, is on the plus side of very close races over either Republican candidate, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today. She gets 31 percent to State Attorney General Bill McCollum’s 29 percent. Sink gets 33 percent to businessman Rick Scott’s 29 percent. In either matchup, independent candidate Bud Chiles gets 12 percent and about 20 percent of voters are undecided.
Scott was at 29 percent to Sink’s 27 percent in a July 30 poll by the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University and McCollum had 27 percent to Sink’s 26 percent.
In the U.S. Senate race, Gov. Charlie Crist, running as an independent, leads Republican Marco Rubio 39 – 32 percent, with U.S. Rep. Kendrick Meek getting 16 percent, if he wins the Democratic nomination. If Jeff Greene gets the Democratic nod, he gets 15 percent to Crist’s 40 percent and Rubio’s 32 percent.
President Barack Obama has a split 47 – 47 percent job approval rating, compared to a negative 46 – 50 percent approval July 30 and the President’s best score in Florida since April.
“Watching television must have been an enjoyable experience for Florida CFO Alex Sink over the last few months, as she watched Attorney General Bill McCollum and Rick Scott tear into each other with attack ads. Although she trailed either GOP competitor by eight or nine points in June, she has been the unintended beneficiary of the heavy volume of negative television ads her potential November opponents launched against each other,” said Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute.
“She has been able to sit back and save her money for the November election, while whoever wins the Republican primary will have substantial work to do healing wounds within his own party and cleaning up his image,” Brown added.
Continue reading…
Tags: 2010, alex sink, Bill McCollum, Florida, GOP Civil War, poll, Quinnipiac University, Rick Scott
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
August 19th, 2010 by Emily DeRose
Despite News Corp.’s public protestations that their unprecedented $1 million gift to elect Republican governors is legitimate, Michael Wolff rips apart their defense. The money is really from news division head Roger Ailes, he explains.
No wonder Ailes doesn’t have the courage to use a disclaimer for his coverage of governors races, or invite DGA Executive Director Nathan Daschle to appear on any of his programming to discuss the contribution.
Aug 19, 10 | 8:05 AM by Michael Wolff
The notable thing about Rupert Murdoch donating a million bucks to the Republican Governors Association is not that he’s risking general censure and opprobrium with this donation, but that he’s donating money at all. Murdoch hates the idea of giving away money for nothing. The simple public relations idea of courting goodwill by donating an infinitesimal part of your wealth to a charity of your choice is anathema to Murdoch. He thinks the rich guys who do it are phonies. He’s always irritated with his 102-year-old mother for supporting Australian charities—in this regard he rather thinks she’s a phony.
Nor does he like giving money to politicians. He thinks they’re greedy, believes the money is never well spent, and, to boot, that he supports them enough already.
So WTF?
Just say a little bird told me … the money doesn’t come from Rupert.
The company is claiming the donation has nothing to do with its news side, going so far as to audaciously say, “There is a strict wall between business and editorial.” The “corporate side” made the donation, News Corp.’s hapless spokesman insists. But the central advocate for giving the dough has been none other than Fox Chief Roger Ailes.
Continue reading…
Tags: 2010, Democratic Governors Association, DGA, Fox, Fox News, Haley Barbour, Republican Governors Assocation, RGA, Roger Ailes
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
August 18th, 2010 by Emily DeRose
By Logan B. Anderson
Delaware State News DOVER — To be a better leader, Gov. Jack A. Markell believes it’s important to listen to every mem ber of his team — not just his 16 cabinet secretaries, but the people that actually do the work of state government.
This week Gov. Markell contin ued the practice he started last year of going out, meeting and talking with state employees.
“I am so convinced that many of the best answers about state government reside in the brains of the people that do the work every day,” Gov. Markell said. “Anything I can do to encourage them to speak up or to e-mail or submit some thing on the Web, I think is impor tant. I think that is why I think these meetings are productive.”
On Monday, Gov. Markell made stops at the Department of Labor and the Department of Safety and Homeland Security. On Tuesday he visited with workers from the Office of Management and Budget’s Division of Facilities Management and the Division of Revenue, among others.
“I try to spend a lot of my time doing three things — I try and visit schools when they are in session, I visit businesses and I visit state agencies,” Gov. Markell said. “I think it is important that I continually get out, meet as many state employees as I can meet and hear what is on their minds.”
Continue reading…
Tags: 2010, Delaware, Democratic Governors Association, DGA, Jack Markell
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
