Mid-term elections USA 2006

[akumabito]

Voor de huidige stand van zaken, zie de CNN Elections 2006 website.

Zoals jullie wellicht wel weten gaat het bij deze verkiezingen om drie zaken: de Senaat, het Huis van Afgevaardigden en de gouverneursverkieizing. Beide zijn op dit moment in handen van de Republikeinen, maar de Democraten hebben bij deze verkiezingen een redelijke kans om terrein terug te winnen. De stembussen zijn nog niet lang geleden geopend, dus op dit moment valt er nog weinig te zeggen, maar over een aantal uurtjes moeten de eerste resultaten binnenkomen...


...to be continued.

[T_ID]

Ik lees het morgen wel of nu de ene of de andere aap op het Amerikaanse pluche mag plaatsnemen.

Ik denk niet dat de democraten zelfs als ze de republikeinen zouden verpletteren opeens alle rotzooi zoals de martelwetgeving terug gaan draaien, dus wat kopen we er netto voor?

[Mark Almighty]

Ik ben echt heel, heel, heel benieuwd. Hopelijk gaan de oorlog in Irak en de recente schandalen rondom Allen, Foley en de zaak-Abramahoff voor de Republikeinen flink wat roet in het eten gooien.

[akumabito]

BRON

Democrats scoring gains in Senate, House

(CNN) -- Democratic challengers have picked up three seats in the Senate and three in the House in early results as the party attempts to end years of Republican domination in Congress, according to CNN projections.

Democratic challenger Sheldon Whitehouse will win the Rhode Island Senate race, defeating Republican incumbent Lincoln Chafee, CNN projects.

Democrat Sherrod Brown will defeat GOP Sen. Mike DeWine in Ohio, and Bob Casey Jr. will unseat two-term Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, the chamber's third-ranking Republican, CNN projects.

Polls have closed in 44 states and the District of Columbia, and many of the races that will decide the balance of power in the House and Congress are still too close to call.

Democrats need a net gain of 15 seats to take the House and a net gain of six seats to take the Senate. But even with the wind at their backs -- especially in the House -- one senior Democratic aide warned, "Don't underestimate our ability to blow it."

On the House side, CNN projects two Democratic pickups in Indiana and one in Kentucky.

The projections say Indiana GOP Rep. John Hostettler will lose his seat to Democrat Brad Ellsworth, Democrat John Yarmuth will unseat Kentucky Rep. Anne Northup, and Democrat Joe Donnelly will defeat Rep. Chris Chocola.

Democrats have retained two of their Senate seats that were considered competitive, with incumbent Bob Menendez winning in New Jersey and Ben Cardin taking Maryland, CNN projects.

Voting has ended in Georgia, where Republicans have targeted Democratic incumbents in two House districts redrawn by the GOP-controlled state Legislature to make them more Republican-friendly.

With more voters than ever using electronic voting machines, scattered glitches reported across the country have prompted officials to extend voting hours in some areas.

Early national exit polls also showed that voters had more than just local issues in mind, with 62 percent saying that national issues made the biggest difference with their votes and 33 percent citing local issues.

"They used to say that all politics was local. Not this time," said CNN political analyst Bill Schneider.

The exit polls showed that 42 percent of voters called corruption an extremely important issue in their choices at the polls, followed by terrorism at 40 percent, the economy at 39 percent and the war in Iraq at 37 percent.

Nationally, 57 percent of voters said they disapproved of the war in Iraq, while only 41 percent approved. Those figures mirror President Bush's job approval among voters, with 58 percent saying they disapprove of the president's performance and only 41 percent approve.

Asked if they approved of how Congress is handling its job, 62 percent said they did not, while just 36 percent said they did.

The exit polls -- by a consortium of broadcast networks and The Associated Press -- were conducted on Tuesday morning and afternoon long before polls were to close in the West.

A quarter of voters surveyed so far said they made up their minds within the past week, and 1 in 10 said they decided just Tuesday.

Democrats were battling accusations they are soft on national security and the economy. Some say they also are hindered by an uncanny propensity to blow elections over the past 12 years.

The entire House is up for election, and Republicans are trying to fend off their Democratic challengers and defy widespread expectations that the House is primed for a changing of the guard.

The GOP, which holds a 231-201 advantage in the House, is on the defense. Democrats are expected to hold the seats they have and, depending on the prognostication, take 20 to 36 seats from Republicans.

Recent polls asking Americans how they planned to vote indicate Republicans are trailing by double digits -- 53 percent to 41 percent, according to the polls' average -- but Republican officials said the gap was narrowing.

Polls also suggested the Republican grip on the Senate is safer. Thirty-three Senate seats are at stake, but only nine races are considered competitive, five held by Republicans in states Bush handily carried in 2004.

Democratic senator-turned-independent candidate Joe Lieberman will win the Connecticut Senate race, CNN projects. Both he and newly elected independent Bernie Sanders in Vermont have said they will caucus with the Democrats.

Among the other early winners in the Senate projected by CNN are Democrat Amy Klobuchar in Minnesota, former first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton in New York, and Democratic Sen. Debbie Stabenow in Michigan.

[Luminon]

Spannend. Bedankt voor de link.

[McCaine]

Nou iig meer dan 20 pickups in de House voor de Democrats, dus die is binnen. Nu de Senaat nog, dat zal wel op recounts aankomen.

[Levitating Nun]

Goed.

Dems take House as GOP clings to Senate, CNN projects.

(CNN) -- Democrats will take control of the House of Representatives for the first time since the 1994 Republican revolution, while control of the Senate hangs in the balance, CNN projects.

Democratic challengers have picked up four seats in the Senate, CNN projects. Republicans would need to take just one of the two remaining competitive races to keep control of the chamber. Results are still too close to call in Montana and Virginia.

In Montana, Republican Sen. Conrad Burns was running behind his Democratic challenger, state Sen. John Tester.

If Tester wins, Democrats could secure Senate control by winning in Virginia, where embattled Republican Sen. George Allen trailed his Democratic challenger, Jim Webb, by fewer than 6,000 votes out of more than 2.3 million counted. (Full Senate news)

Under Virginia law, the apparent loser can request a recount after the votes have been certified if the margin is less than 1 percent of the total votes cast. If that happens, the result may not be clear for weeks.

Webb declared victory early Wednesday, saying, "The votes are in, and we won."

But Allen wasn't backing down. "The election continues," he said.

If the parties split the Virginia and Montana races, that would create a 50-50 breakdown in the Senate. In that event, Vice President Dick Cheney would break tie votes.
Pelosi heralds 'new direction'

CNN projects Democrats will win between 230 and 234 House seats, with Republicans holding on to between 201 and 205 seats.

The final totals could change depending on recounts, absentee ballots and a runoff for one Texas district seat.

Those totals would have Democrats picking up at least 27 seats, more than the 15 they needed to capture a majority in the House. (Latest House news)

"Tonight is a great victory for the American people," said House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, who is poised to become the first female speaker of the House. "The American people voted for a new direction."

She vowed "civility and bipartisanship" but confronted the president over his Iraq policy: "Mr. President, we need a new direction in Iraq." (Watch Pelosi challenge the president -- 4:43 )

The projected result means that President Bush for the first time faces the prospect of working with a Democratic-controlled House.

Bush, whose anemic approval ratings proved a drag on Republican prospects, was described as "disappointed" with the House results. However, spokesman Tony Fratto said the president was "still optimistic about the Senate."

White House spokesman Tony Snow said the president would telephone Pelosi on Wednesday to offer congratulations.

"We're going to get a lot done," Snow said. "On energy, education, those are clearly things we can work on."

The Democratic pickups in the House included three seats vacated by Republicans amid controversy: Mark Foley's in Florida, Bob Ney's in Ohio and Tom DeLay's in Texas. Two incumbent Pennsylvania Republicans embroiled in controversy also lost their seats -- 10-term Rep. Curt Weldon and Rep. Don Sherwood.
'Steep mountain to climb'

Thirty-three Senate seats were at stake, but only nine races had been considered competitive.

Republican Sen. Jim Talent of Missouri early Wednesday conceded defeat to Democrat Claire McCaskill after a hard-fought race, telling supporters that "the headwind was just very, very strong this year."

McCaskill was backed by actor and stem-cell-research advocate Michael J. Fox.

Republican candidate Bob Corker will win the Tennessee Senate race, defeating Democratic Rep. Harold Ford Jr., CNN projects. He'll fill the open seat now held by retiring Republican Bill Frist, the Senate majority leader.

Democratic senator-turned-independent candidate Joe Lieberman will win the Connecticut Senate race, CNN projects. Both he and newly elected independent Bernie Sanders in Vermont have said they will caucus with the Democrats. (Watch Joe Lieberman become a "comeback kid" -- 1:58 )

Democratic challenger Sheldon Whitehouse will win the Rhode Island Senate race, defeating Republican incumbent Lincoln Chafee, CNN projects.

Two-term Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, the chamber's third-ranking Republican, has conceded to Bob Casey Jr. And Democrat Sherrod Brown will defeat GOP Sen. Mike DeWine in Ohio, CNN projects.

"This just was a little too steep of a mountain to climb," said Santorum, an outspoken opponent of abortion and same-sex marriage.

And DeWine, also a two-term senator, told supporters: "It just was not to be. This was not the year."

Democrats retained two of their Senate seats that were considered competitive, in New Jersey and Maryland, CNN projects.

Defying the traditional political maxim that "all politics is local," 62 percent of voters said in exit polls that national issues mattered more than local issues.

The exit polls showed that 42 percent of voters called corruption an extremely important issue in their choices at the polls, followed by terrorism at 40 percent, the economy at 39 percent and the war in Iraq at 37 percent.
===
Good enough for me.

[Outlaw]

interessant om al die statiestieken over de verkiezingen op die cnn site te bekijken. het grootste deel voldoet precies aan de vooroordelen; blanken, protestanten, rijken, redelijk hoog opgeleiden, mensen die op het platteland wonen en mensen in zuidelijke staten stemmen meer op republikeinen. Niet-blanken, katholieken en niet gelovigen, armen en zeer rijken, laag opgeleiden en zeer hoog opgeleiden, stedelingen en mensen in het oosten en midwesten stemmen weer meer voor democraten.

goede zaak dat de democraten op winst staan.

Laatste dat ik gezien heb is dat het in de Senaat 49-49 is.

[Rollo Tomasi]

T_ID schreef op 08-11-2006 @ 01:43 :

Ik denk niet dat de democraten zelfs als ze de republikeinen zouden verpletteren opeens alle rotzooi zoals de martelwetgeving terug gaan draaien, dus wat kopen we er netto voor?

De schade beperken voor het restant van Bush' ambtstermijn. Maar waarschijnlijk niet veel meer.

[Levitating Nun]

Rollo Tomasi schreef op 08-11-2006 @ 14:13 :
De schade beperken voor het restant van Bush' ambtstermijn. Maar waarschijnlijk niet veel meer.

Nou, er wordt gesproken over verschillende onderzoeken naar de schandalen van de afgelopen jaren. Daarnaast heeft het Congres budgetrecht, dus een flinke mangel voor het veranderen van het Irak-beleid.

[PGWR]

Levitating Nun schreef op 08-11-2006 @ 14:19 :
Nou, er wordt gesproken over verschillende onderzoeken naar de schandalen van de afgelopen jaren. Daarnaast heeft het Congres budgetrecht, dus een flinke mangel voor het veranderen van het Irak-beleid.

Het probleem is alleen dat ook de Democraten niet weten hoe het Irak-beleid veranderd moet worden.

[Rollo Tomasi]

Levitating Nun schreef op 08-11-2006 @ 14:19 :
Nou, er wordt gesproken over verschillende onderzoeken naar de schandalen van de afgelopen jaren. Daarnaast heeft het Congres budgetrecht, dus een flinke mangel voor het veranderen van het Irak-beleid.

Het zou mooi zijn als die onderzoeken er komen, maar ik heb niet de indruk dat er veel uitgericht gaat worden. Aan het systeem zal niet veel gesluiteld worden. Als de Republikeinen in de toekomst weer de macht veroveren dan begint het liedje weer van voren af aan, tenzij de huidige mentaliteit drastisch verandert.

Irak is een zooitje, maar ik heb de indruk dat zowel de democraten als de republikeinen geen duidelijke visie hebben op dat gebied.

[akumabito]

Bron

Dems take House; Senate hangs on 2 neck-to-neck races

(CNN) -- Democrats took control of the House of Representatives for the first time in a dozen years, but the crucial question of which party will run the Senate hung Wednesday morning on neck-to-neck contests in Montana and Virginia.

Democratic challengers have picked up four seats in the Senate, according to CNN projections. Republicans would need to take just one of the two remaining competitive races to keep control of the chamber.

Democratic Senate candidates won in Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Missouri and Ohio, as well as independent Senate candidates Bernie Sanders in Vermont and Joe Lieberman in Connecticut -- who are expected to vote with the Democrats.

But in Montana, the race between Republican Sen. Conrad Burns and state Sen. Jon Tester is too close to call, although Tester shows a razor-thin lead. With 99 percent of the ballots counted, Tester leads by fewer than 2,000 votes.

If Tester wins, Democrats could secure Senate control by winning in Virginia, where embattled Republican Sen. George Allen trailed his Democratic challenger, Jim Webb, by fewer than 6,000 votes out of more than 2.3 million counted.

Webb declared victory early Wednesday, saying, "The votes are in, and we won."

But Allen wasn't backing down. "The election continues," he said.

If the parties split the Virginia and Montana races, that would create a 50-50 breakdown in the Senate, assuming that Sanders and Lieberman will caucus with the Democrats. In that event, Vice President Dick Cheney's constitutional authority to break tie votes would keep the Senate under Republican leadership.

GOP: 'Deeply disappointed'

House Majority Leader Rep. John Boehner, R-Ohio, said Republicans were "deeply disappointed in the outcome."

"Our challenge as Republicans is to regain our confidence, our courage and our energy to address the big issues that matter," Boehner said in a statement.

Boehner's predecessor, former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, suggested Republicans were largely at fault for their losses.

"We took a whipping last night, and we understand that," DeLay told CNN's "American Morning." "The Democrats didn't win, the Republicans lost."

Democrats put together a sound coalition, and they voted against Republicans because "they hate this [Iraq] war, period. They don't want to fight this war," he said. There also are conservatives who oppose the war, stances that are a recipe for defeat, DeLay added.

President Bush Wednesday telephoned to congratulate House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, who is poised to become the first female speaker of the House.

But first, according to deputy White House press secretary Dana Perino, the president spoke to outgoing Speaker Dennis Hastert, thanking him for his hard work and leadership.

"While we came up short, we're committed to working with Democrats to get things done for the country," Perino quoted Bush as saying.

Pelosi heralds 'new direction'

Democrats picked up at least 28 seats; they needed 15 to capture a majority in the House.

"Tonight is a great victory for the American people," Pelosi said Tuesday night. "The American people voted for a new direction."

She vowed "civility and bipartisanship" but confronted the president over his Iraq policy: "Mr. President, we need a new direction in Iraq."

The result means President Bush for the first time faces the prospect of working with a Democratic-controlled House. Bush has scheduled a news conference Wednesday at 1 p.m. ET.

Bush, whose anemic approval ratings proved a drag on Republican prospects, was described as "disappointed" with the House results. However, spokesman Tony Fratto said the president was "still optimistic about the Senate."

The parties of presidents serving their sixth year in office historically have suffered substantial losses in midterm elections, with the recent exception of President Clinton in 1998.

This year's turnover in Congress is the largest since 1994.

The Democratic pickups in the House included three seats vacated by Republicans amid controversy: Mark Foley's in Florida, Bob Ney's in Ohio and Tom DeLay's in Texas. Two incumbent Pennsylvania Republicans embroiled in controversy also lost their seats -- 10-term Rep. Curt Weldon and Rep. Don Sherwood.

'Steep mountain to climb'

Thirty-three Senate seats were at stake, but only nine races had been considered competitive.

Republican Sen. Jim Talent of Missouri early Wednesday conceded defeat to Democrat Claire McCaskill after a hard-fought race, telling supporters that "the headwind was just very, very strong this year."

McCaskill was backed by actor and stem-cell-research advocate Michael J. Fox.

Republican candidate Bob Corker won the Tennessee Senate race, defeating Democratic Rep. Harold Ford Jr. He'll fill the open seat now held by retiring Republican Bill Frist, the Senate majority leader.

Democratic senator-turned-independent candidate Lieberman won the Connecticut Senate race. Both he and newly elected independent Sanders in Vermont have said they will caucus with the Democrats.

Democratic challenger Sheldon Whitehouse won the Rhode Island Senate race, defeating Republican incumbent Lincoln Chafee.

Two-term Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, the chamber's third-ranking Republican, conceded to Bob Casey Jr. And Democrat Sherrod Brown defeated GOP Sen. Mike DeWine in Ohio.

"This just was a little too steep of a mountain to climb," said Santorum, an outspoken opponent of abortion and same-sex marriage.

And DeWine, also a two-term senator, told supporters: "It just was not to be. This was not the year."

Democrats retained two of their Senate seats that were considered competitive, in New Jersey and Maryland.

Defying the traditional political maxim that "all politics is local," 62 percent of voters said in exit polls that national issues mattered more than local issues.

The exit polls showed that 42 percent of voters called corruption an extremely important issue in their choices at the polls, followed by terrorism at 40 percent, the economy at 39 percent and the war in Iraq at 37 percent.

PGWR schreef op 08-11-2006 @ 14:29 :
Het probleem is alleen dat ook de Democraten niet weten hoe het Irak-beleid veranderd moet worden.

Het zal er wel een zootje blijven, maar hopelijk pompen ze er in ieder geval wat minder geld in.

[Ir. de Narie]

U vraagt, wij draaien!

[akumabito]

Bron

Op het moment hebben de Republikeinen 49 zetels, de Democraten 50, en er is nog 1 stem te vergeven. Deze moet naar de Democraten gaan voor een meerderheid. Ze weten de spanning er wel in te houden..

Een meerderheid voor de Democraten in het Huis van Afgevaardigden én in de Senaat, wat een mooie dag voor de VS zou dat zijn.

Niet dat de Democraten zo geweldig zijn, maar het is nog altijd beter dan de Republikeinen.

[Magican]

Ik hoop dat de Democraten winnen, net als de rest hier denk ik.
Ik hoop dat als ze winnen, ze het begrotingstekort tegengaan, weglopen uit Irak, martelen en de doodstraf schrappen en het homohuwelijk legaal maken.
Maar goed, wishful thinking.

[akumabito]

Magican schreef op 08-11-2006 @ 20:21 :
Ik hoop dat de Democraten winnen, net als de rest hier denk ik.
Ik hoop dat als ze winnen, ze het begrotingstekort tegengaan, weglopen uit Irak, martelen en de doodstraf schrappen en het homohuwelijk legaal maken.
Maar goed, wishful thinking.

Allemaal zaken die door de president tegengehouden kunnen worden.

[Levitating Nun]

akumabito schreef op 08-11-2006 @ 20:34 :
Allemaal zaken die door de president tegengehouden kunnen worden.

Als-ie dat doet, heeft-ie een duidelijk probleem.

De nieuwe Speaker-elect heeft sowieso al eerder aangegeven dat de eerdere affaires "impeachable" waren dus als dat gebeurt, hangt-ie. Dus zo ver laat hij het niet komen.

[PGWR]

Mephostophilis schreef op 08-11-2006 @ 16:47 :
Het zal er wel een zootje blijven, maar hopelijk pompen ze er in ieder geval wat minder geld in.

Inderdaad. Momenteel spenderen de Amerikanen ruim $5 miljard per maand in Irak. De oorlog wordt daarmee onbetaalbaar.

[Escapism]

AP: Senate goes to Dems

A Democratic takeover of the Senate is appearing likely after an ongoing canvass of votes in Virginia produced no significant changes in the outcome of the race led by Democratic challenger Jim Webb, sources told CNN tonight. With Webb leading Republican Sen. George Allen by about 7,200 votes and the canvass about half complete, The Associated Press declared Webb the winner. A Webb win would put the new Senate lineup at 49 Democrats, 49 Republicans and two independents who have said they'll caucus with the Democrats.

http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/11/...ain/index.html

[Mark Almighty]

Bush: suggesties Irak zijn welkom

De Amerikaanse president Bush staat open voor suggesties voor zijn beleid in Irak. Hij zei dat in Washington na overleg met leden van zijn kabinet. Bush slaat daarmee een verzoenende toon aan na de verkiezingsnederlaag van zijn Republiekeinse partij.

Bush zei dat hij geïnteresseerd is in "alle ideeën". Voorwaarde is wel dat ze een bijdrage leveren aan het verslaan van de terroristen en het vestigen van een stabiele democratie in Irak.

Na de verkiezingen van dinsdag hebben de Democraten een meerderheid in het Huis van Afgevaardigden en volgens de laatste tellingen ook in de Senaat.

http://www.nos.nl/nos/artikelen/2006...706A88248.html

Ghe, beetje lullige kop zo.

Mja, hij moet wel met een verzoeningspolitiek komen om het nog de laatste jaren enigzins uit te kunnen houden als president. Moet een trieste dag voor hem zijn, het Huis van Afgevaardigden én de Senaat naar de 'demmies'.