NBC article on Moderate Republicans. Raises interesting points for Dems...

[ztn]

Using the rating system devised by the non-partisan National Journal, (based on 63 key roll call votes in 2004) Chafee is the Senate’s most liberal Republican, more liberal than 52 percent of all his colleagues in both parties.

National Journal gave Snowe a 50.8 liberal rating, Voinovich a 42 and Hagel a 41.5.

Voinovich has tended to join the liberals on gun issues and gay rights.

snip...

Not-so-conservative Republicans enable the party to hold seats the GOP might otherwise lose. If there were no Voinovich in Ohio, no Chafee in Rhode Island and no similar GOP senators in other states, then there would no be Republican majority.

One mystery is why Democrats do not come up with more credible opponents to challenge Voinovich, Chafee and other centrist GOP senators.

Voinovich, for example, crushed Democrat Eric Fingerhut last November, winning with 64 percent of the vote. Voinovich raised $10 million, to Fingerhut’s $1 million.

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/7818730/ for whole article
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Very true. Makes the republican majority in the senate look a little more tainted. As does the fact that the 44 Dems are in the senate on the strength of some 4 to 6 million more votes than the 55 GOP senators....including the "not-so-conservative senators".

I'm counting on Casey to knock out Santorum in my state of PA. Then we'll have a pro-choice RINO in Specter and a anti-choice Dem in Casey. Bizarre but I'll take it for now to get Santorum out.

The Dems could really wind up with a decent majority for most social issues (at least) if things go well in '06....

[coloradodem2005]

1. I hope so.

There is no senate race in Colorado in 2006 though. If Udall can pull it out in 2008, that would be something.

[ztn]

2. Makes you wonder though....

why can't the dems find strong people and fund them properly so they can knock off these RINO's....

though they're not really a problem when it comes to certain important issues, they're still a liability on these recent matters like the nulcear option, Gonsalez and Bolton.

[FreedomAngel82]

3. My question is

if you vote more along the line of democratic why stay republican? Unless the majority of republicans are so extreme...

[ztn]

4. I think these RINO's and other "blue state" republicans....

like in my state, are holding onto what the GOP means for them and reinforcing it with what they need to believe Democratic Party is.

Sure, their was a time I could have been more sympathetic to the GOP...like post-war thru vietnam.( If I'd been around or old enough)

But as the 90's wound down and Bush came into office, what little I had to reconcile any sympathy for the GOP just faded.

This is not the party of Eisenhower or even the party of Nixon and definitely not the party of Lincoln.

I used to consider myself a progressive centrist with varying opinions. now I'm solidly center-left because my views have been made to be Left by a center line that's pushing to the right.

[Atman]

5. One word...

Diebold

[ztn]

6. giggle giggle n/t

[ProudToBeLiberal]

7. two words...

conspiracy theory

[Atman]

9. "gravity" is a theory, too.

Since so many of us believe it, I guess we're co-conspirators!

[ClassWarrior]

8. We need to attack this on two fronts...

1) Finding strong Dems who can challenge the RINOs, as mentioned before, and

2) Sowing seeds of dissent with the wingnuts about how "liburl" these folks are.

NGU.

[ztn]

10. ahhh...divide and conquer...sounds very GOP-like! hahaha