Although donors don't have any idea, it's widely known Inside-the-Beltway, that the party committees often make spending decisions based on shady practices that line the pockets of staffers rather than on accomplishing anything for the Democratic or Republican parties. It's a revolving door world between the DCCC, for example, and the consultants and vendors who get rich off campaign donations regardless of which candidates win or lose.Although Steve Israel's second wife-- and the second one to have thrown him out for adultery-- has been threatening to go to the House Ethics Committee over his own sticky-fingered relation to campaign contributions, this is a different question entirely. This is about the staffers he's supposed to be supervising who waste DCCC money on unwinnable races while sabotaging races that could help win back the House for Democrats. Some of the most winnable districts in the country-- districts with lots of Democratic voters and with unpopular incumbents, Boehner cronies and committee chairmen like Fred Upton, Buck McKeon, Mike Rogers, maybe even Darrell Issa, and Ed Royce-- are studiously ignored by the DCCC. It's almost as if Steve Israel made a deal too give free reelection passes to these galoots in return for an easy time of his own.None of those Republicans were targeted in the new flight of ads the DCCC announced Tuesday.
Wondering what this Republican Congress has planned for the country in 2014-- after the least productive Congress in history?Reports have now revealed the agenda that House Republicans are pushing for 2014: a blank piece of paper. In order to help the American people see their plan in action, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee is launching a Google ad campaign in more than 30 districts to encourage people to visit 2014RepublicanAgenda.com.Americans looking for solutions on the following issues will find nothing:• A plan to create jobs? No.• Comprehensive immigration reform? Nope.• A balanced approach to the budget that doesn’t take advantage of seniors and the middle class? No, again.• An end to employment discrimination or a plan to ensure equal pay? No and no.• A farm bill that doesn’t take food out of the mouths of poor children? You guessed it-- no!But don’t take our word for it-- see House Republicans’ agenda in their own words right here.The ads are running in the following districts:Congressman Jeff Denham (CA-10)Congressman David Valadao (CA-21)Congressman Gary Miller (CA-31)Congressman Mike Coffman (CO-06)Congressman Steve Southerland (FL-02)Congressman Tom Latham (IA-03)Congressman Steve King (IA-04)Congressman Rodney Davis (IL-13)Congresswoman Jackie Walorski (IN-02)Congressman Andy Barr (KY-06)Congressman Dan Benishek (MI-01)Congressman Tim Walberg (MI-07)Congressman Kerry Bentivolio (MI-11)Congressman John Kline (MN-02)Congressman Erik Paulsen (MN-03)Congressman Kevin Cramer (ND-AL)Congressman Lee Terry (NE-02)Congressman Frank LoBiondo (NJ-02)Congressman Scott Garrett (NJ-05)Congressman Joe Heck (NV-03)Congressman Michael Grimm (NY-11)Congressman Tom Reed (NY-23)Congressman Bill Johnson (OH-06)Congressman David Joyce (OH-14)Congressman G.T. Thompson (PA-05)Congressman Jim Gerlach (PA-06)Congressman Pat Meehan (PA-07)Congressman Mike Fitzpatrick (PA-08)Congressman Scott Rigell (VA-02)Congressman Frank Wolf (VA-10)Congressman Dave Reichert (WA-08)Congressman David McKinley (WV-01)
Thirty-two districts, pretty much all with DCCC candidates, some decent (like Martha Robertson in NY-23 and Erin Bilbray in NV-03), some in reasonable districts (like CA-10, CA-21, CA-31, CO-06, NY-11, PA-06, PA-07, PA-08 and VA-08), but also some with dreadful candidates (like Jennifer Garrison, Jerry Cannon, Domenic Recchia, Pete Aguilar, John Lewis, and Suzanne Patrick_ and some in totally unwinnable districts. Look, for example, at these with their very tough PVIs:
• FL-02- R+6- Gwen Graham• IN-02- R+6- Joe Bock• IA-04- R+5- Jim Mowrer• KY-06- R+9- Elisabeth Jensen• MI-01- R+5- Jerry Cannon• ND-AL- R+10- ?• NE-02- R+4- Pete Festersen• NJ-05- R+4- Roy Cho and Bob Gordon• OH-06- R+8- Jennifer Garrison• PA-05- R+8- Thomas Tarantella and Jay Paterno• WV-01- R+14 Glen Gainer
These don't seem as likely targets as the ones mentioned above held by the chairmen/Boehner cronies. But to a staffer who gets a cut of the media buys… what's the difference? Waste a million dollars in an R+8 district where there's no chance to win and someone gets rich placing TV ads anyway.But when I was calling around today and talking with the candidates and campaign staffers, something else came up-- namely PA-05. That was a safe Republican district even before the legislature added all of blood red Warren and Venango counties and part of equally red Huntingdon County. Romney beat Obama in PA-05 57-41%. And on the same day, GOP incumbent Glenn Thompson beat Democrat Charles Dumas 63-37%. He won every one of the 16 counties in the district, even the blue-leaning parts of Erie that are now part of PA-05. But now, apparently, Steve Israel thinks he can beat Thompson-- with one of Joe Paterno's coaches… Jay Paterno, Joe's son.There's an actual working class, highly decorated veteran running as well, Thomas Tarantella. The DCCC refuses to even return his calls. They're trying to teach Paterno to be a candidate and are placing DCCC staffers into his campaign. Rumors about Paterno running started circulating late last month, although Paterno refuses to talk with the press about the campaign.
Though Paterno did not respond to an interview request, prominent Democratic figures in Centre County and Pennsylvania say they have had conversations with the former Penn State assistant coach in which he indicated an interest in the race and an intention to make a decision in about a month.Rumors of a Paterno congressional campaign began swirling over the summer amid reports of an automated phone poll asking voters who they'd prefer in a general election race between Paterno and Thompson.And state Treasurer Rob McCord rekindled speculation during a speech at the Oct. 6 Centre County Democratic Dinner.McCord, who is campaigning for governor, stunned attendees when he vigorously urged Paterno-- who was at the dinner-- to enter the race.…Centre County-based party operative Dianne Gregg said Paterno's possible candidacy has excited Democrats in the county.“Are there a lot of people interested in him running? Yes,” Gregg said. “He'd be a good sound candidate. And there is interest.”Although Paterno's father was a high profile Republican, Jay Paterno has been an active Democrat since Barack Obama's first presidential campaign, Gregg said.“He came into the [county party] headquarters when Obama first ran and made phone calls like any other volunteer,” she said. “He worked hard, made a lot of friends, and demonstrated that he'll do the work. There are a lot of people in this county that would be very happy to see him run for it.”Though turnout is typically low in midterm election elections, Paterno's potential candidacy next year could be boosted by a strong anti-Gov. Tom Corbett sentiment among commonwealth Democrats.Corbett, who has anemic approval numbers, will be on the 2014 ballot for re-election.“It'd probably be a good thing to be a Democrat on the opposition side of the ticket from an unpopular governor running for re-election,” said Michael Federici, a political scientist at Erie's Mercyhurst University.…“In politics, when you're a novice, the thing you need more than anything else is name recognition,” he said. “And in the state of Pennsylvania there aren't many names that grab people's attention more than Paterno.”