Illinois candidate will appear on This Week with George Stephanopoulous

[Freddie Stubbs]

Duckworth Expected To Announce On 'This Week'
ABC News' George Stephanopoulous is traveling to IL 12/16 to interview for "This Week" Iraq war veteran Tammy Duckworth, who lost both her legs as a Black Hawk pilot in Iraq. She is expected to announce her candidacy on the show, which airs this Sunday -- a day before the IL filing deadline.

The race has national implications. DCCC Chmn. Rahm Emanuel (D), whose district borders IL 06, has been aggressively recruiting Duckworth for weeks as a plausible contender in Rep. Henry Hyde's (R) current IL 06 seat. But State Sen Peter Roskam (R), running unopposed for the GOP primary, is a polished candidate with strong ties to the district.

The district leans GOP, but Obama won easily here, and Bush only won with 53% of the vote in '04. Duckworth has been mum about her intentions to date because she's still on active military duty, and spokesperson Lori Goldberg said she couldn't comment about the race because she still was on active duty in the military.

more: http://hotlineblog.nationaljournal.com

[hedda_foil]

1. God damn that bastard Emanuel!

If he can find millions to fund Duckworth, he could have found the same millions for Cegelis, who had already done the hard work of making the race competitive. Duckworth could run in another district if she's so great, but that's not the point. The DLC will own Duckworth if she wins, just as they own Mellissa Bean a district or so over ... and they can continue to insist that only their "centrist" (aka corporate-friendly) candidates can win.

[Freddie Stubbs]

4. What makes you believe the Emanuel is going to give millions to Duckworth?

:shrug:

[mopinko]

8. how else is she going to run? get real.

after trashing cegalis as not raising enough money, he turns around and digs up a candidate with no money at all? guess what, this does not add up.
rahm is just going to tell his rich buddies to pony up. he is holding a meet and greet at the hilton and towers. those who are not from here are forgiven for not knowing exactly what that means, but trust me, there are no grassroots at one of the fanciest hiltons in the whole chain.

[Freddie Stubbs]

10. She has the potential to raise a lot of money

She is a double amputee war hero.

[mopinko]

12. pity, what a platform. nt

[Freddie Stubbs]

13. She is not permitted to speak out on issues as she is an officer

in the Army. Once she is discraged, she will be able to begin speaking out.

[minvis]

17. Why support her then?

What I don't understand is who then is willing to support her now (either voting wise or fund raising wise) when they don't know her views. If I'm giving money to a candidate, I'd like to know more than she is a double amputee "war hero" before I commit any money.

Obviously Rahm and others know her political views or else they wouldn't be pushing her so hard. Also, it's pretty clear that her platform will have to be substantially different than Cegalis because why would you run in a primary against someone who holds the same basic positions as yourself? It just doesn't make sense any other way.

Look, I think Rahm is looking at this in a politically calculated way. He sees a slightly leaning Republican district and he wants a candidate that co-opts some of the "Republican" issues in order to steal some moderate Republican votes away from Roskam. The old 'Clinton/Morris triangulation' method. Take some of the Republican issues and make them your own. I'm sure he looks at Cegalis and sees an progressive/indepedent thinking candidate and assumes it will scare away the "soccer moms" and it will stay a Republican seat.

Unfortunately, in my opinion, it is a strategy that will ultimately fail. More and more, I believe, people are tired of the Democrats not standing for anything other than saying the Republicans are worse. At least they know that Republicans have stands on the issues. They may agree on some and not on many others, but they at least have their "convictions". While Cegalis may not win this year, I believe in the long term she is better for the party because people will see someone, and the Democratic party as well, stand up for their values and convictions.

[mopinko]

18. if they can't get 6% plus one

then we really need to rethink this party. i mean, what the hell. i think she would win, if they just left her alone, let alone sent her some help. and she has done so much to build the party in a thug stronghold. but instead they are forming up the circular firing squad. :wtf:
imho, they must know that someone sent from chicago is not going to go down well. so, i say again :wtf: come on. there is more here than meets the eye. how stupid do they think we are?

[minvis]

19. Pretty stupid

I agree. I think they are making the wrong choice, but I think that's pretty clear from my post.

[Freddie Stubbs]

20. She will speak out on the issues before she asks for votes and $$$

Until she is discharged from active duty, she can do none of that.

[minvis]

23. I understand that, but....

there is no way that Rahm and the DCCC doesn't know where she stands on certain issues. Plus, there is no way the DCCC would push her if she had the same positions on the issues as Cegalis. What would be the point?

[Freddie Stubbs]

24. What makes you believe that the DCCC is issue driven?

Rather than trying to find the most competative candidates to take back the House?

[minvis]

25. I'm not saying they are issue driven, per se

just that they believe the "most competitive candidate" in the 6th District is not a progressive Democrat or they would be backing Cegalis financially and strategically.

So in this case, they are issue driven.

[Freddie Stubbs]

26. Wouldn't a moderate candidate be more competative in a GOP-leaning

district?

[wndycty]

27. That is what conventional wisdom would say. . .

. . .I would dare say a poll done in the 6th has said as much but don't quote me on that.

[mopinko]

32. more rumors

hmm...

[minvis]

29. You may be right

but what I find so objectionable is Rahm and the DCCC could have just let Cegalis know that the DCCC/Rahm Emanuel don't think you are the right fit ideologically for this district and we will not back you. Instead, he says that she isn't raising enough money so that's why we're supporting another candidate.

Just have the balls already to say we don't agree with your views and are therefore supporting another candidate in the primary.

You could also make the argument, as Mopinko has, that the district has at least 44% of the electorate that either does not like Henry Hyde or any Republican and/or likes Cegalis and all that is needed is to find an additional 6% of the electorate over to our side.

[wndycty]

30. You don't know that they disagree with her (Cegelis's) views. . .

. . .its paranoia that would make one say that.

[minvis]

31. I don't think so

Answer me this question. If you have Democratic candidate A who already has an organization up and running and has run in the previous election and a Democratic candidate B who has just begun to organize a campaign (little or no money, little or no volunteers) 4 months before the primary. They both have roughly the same views on the issues. If you are in charge of the overall campaign strategy of all Democrats in the country, why would you pick candidate B?

Now if candidate B has fairly different views on the issues than candidate A, then I can begin to see why one could possibly pick candidate B.

[mopinko]

33. and more

smearing of anyone that disagrees. hmm....

[mopinko]

35. i think that thinking is bull

and iirc, so does the chairman of the party. give people a choice between a fake republican and a real republican, and they will take the real one every time.
we are supposed to be out there standing up for what our party stands for. christine does.
and if all politics is local, this is an incredibly stupid move. nobody in the 6th wants someone that is sent by the boys in chicago.

[Freddie Stubbs]

5. dupe

[mopinko]

2. we will end up like the cloth coat republicans

shaking our heads, looking around, wondering where the ideals of our party went, if we let shit like this stand. they must really think that cegalis would win if they are pulling out this kind of guns against her.

[madrchsod]

3. all that money and not a drop for anyone to get rid of fat denny

oh well just a voice from the cornfields

[Freddie Stubbs]

6. Why waste money in a heavily Republican district?

:shrug:

[mopinko]

7. why have a party at all, i guess

especially if you are not going to listen to your chairman. who said fight for every seat. and just to be clear, rahm is not doling out dccc money, he is just asking fat cats to pony up for HIS candidate. who is running against another dem. she has not raised a penny on her own. i guess it is easier for rahm to oppose progressive dems than corrupt thugs.

[Freddie Stubbs]

9. If Dean is the Party Chairman, perhaps he should should have helped

Ms. Cegelis raise some money when she was the only one running for the seat.

[mopinko]

11. unfortunately, that's not his job.

it's rahm's job. and all he has to do is make a few calls. but his fat cat friends won't support a progressive, even if it looks like they will win. they don't want nobody nobody sent. so they trash them. like a bunch of freepers.

[Freddie Stubbs]

14. What is Dean's job then?

He can't set policy, that is the job os those in Congress. Is he just a figurehead?

[mopinko]

15. i sent him to reform the party

it'll be a tough job. it'll take time.

[Freddie Stubbs]

21. Has he made any progress yet?

:shrug:

[madrchsod]

28. oh well..i guess we are a waste of money

out here in the cornfields. i`m so glad that the guys in chicago got there big new airport and denny`s home town got millions for bridges...hell my stupid town got 2.5 million for a waterfront park that by august will smell like dead rotting fish..yup we democrats out here will just put our tails between our legs and accept a big pat on the head from from both parties so we don`t bite the hand that feeds us...yup i guess we`ll vote republican cause we just ain`t worth the money.....nah, we will raise money without the help of the big boys just like we did for zamora the last time. we will fight and may not win but at least we won`t waste anyones money or time but our own

[mopinko]

34. funny the candidates that got 30%

are running without opponents. i mean, i like rubin, but if you want to look for a district that needs a better candidate, you do not have to look far. there is a sacrificial lamb running against manzullo.
and still, after all this yakking, none of the rahm apologists has even attempted to explain why
there are unopposed republicans in illinois!

what happened to the 50 state plan in the dccc chairmans home state?

[mopinko]

16. freddie, if you have anything to say besides

the same old talking points, i will respond. but i am :puke:ing, and sick of this crap.

[Freddie Stubbs]

22. You had better get used to it

the Illinois primary election is only a little more than three months away.

[LSK]

36. Freddie Stubbs, what brings you to the IL section

And especially to comment on a race WHERE I LIVE?

[mopinko]

37. freddie is everywhere np