Schiff Raises More Than $500,000 for Connecticut Senate Bid

[ccharles000]

Backers of Republican Rep. Ron Paul's 2008 presidential bid are working their fundraising magic with prospective Connecticut Senate candidate Peter Schiff.

They've rallied around Schiff, a libertarian financier and former Paul presidential adviser, helping him raise $528,000 since announcing in mid-July that he was formally exploring a challenge to incumbent Democrat Christopher J. Dodd. And today they are launching a "money bomb" -- the type of one-day online fundraising push that helped Paul net more than $6 million in a 24-hour-period in December 2007 -- that Schiff organizers hope will bring in $200,000 more.

Schiff is considering entering the crowded Republican field to take on Dodd, one of the most vulnerable Democratic incumbents in 2010. He is using his fundraising efforts to test his viability as a candidate, telling backers last month that his decision "is largely dependent on the level of early support and contributions I receive from people like you."

This sort of response is bound to be encouraging. And it will put him within striking distance, resource-wise, of fellow Republican candidates former Rep. Rob Simmons, who raised $754,000 through June 30, and businessman Tom Foley, a former ambassador to Ireland, who has pulled in $573,000 since launching his campaign June 3. Dodd still leads all candidates with $2.3 million in total receipts.

Fundraising ability, however, is not the same as broad-based political support. A July poll by the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute found Schiff trailing Dodd by just 5 percentage points (38 percent for Schiff, 43 percent for Dodd), but not registering at all in a poll of registered Republicans.

http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/eyeon2010/2009/08/schiff-raises-more-than-500000.html

[Davis_X_Machina]

1. Schiff will win.

Dodd's mortgage problem will peel off enough Democrats -- the more progressive, the more likely to peel off -- for Schiff to win the general in a squeaker. Connecticut will have a senator too wealthy to be bought, and whose politics will be indistinguishable from John Barasso, but by god, they'll have taught Dodd a lesson.

The Democratic caucus in the new Senate will be less than 55 senators.

[Jennicut]

2. Simmons is more well known and moderate enough to attract more voters

Schiff is a conservative libertarian and not as well known here. My mother used to work for Schiff's father (we have lots of family stories about him but we don't really know much about the son). Very interesting if he does get in the race but I doubt the Rethugs here vote for him over Simmons.

I will vote for Dodd but he did no favors for himself here.

[grantcart]

3. Out of the top 5 races that are likely to change parties Nate Silverman

picks 4 Republican seats and Dodds.


The next class is much stronger for Democrats than Republicans with 4 Republican Senators retiring leaving open contests and no Democrats.

I haven't seen a single projection that would indicate a significant loss of Democratic seats. Silver shows that even with Dodd losing Democrats should gain Senate seats.

I would be interested in any link that supports your claim.

Here is Silver's seat by seat analysis:

http://www.fivethirtyeight.com/2009/07/senate-rankings-july-2009-edition.html

[Davis_X_Machina]

6. We lose...

..CT, DE, CO, and one shocker -- or there's a death somewhere lie HI or WV.

The hunt for scapegoats after Democratic failure on health care will be in full swing by then, and will greatly damage the standing of the Congressional Democratic party. I expect the House Majority to be trimmed to less than 25 seats also.

We'll be into the second V of a W-shaped recession, after an electorate fixated on the deficit, and incapable of distinguishing between the banking bailout and various stimulus programs -- in other words, a typical DU poster -- causes existing programs to be wrapped up early, and a second stimulus dies stillborn, all sacrificed on the altar of the balanced budget and the myth that just as small businesses and households have to balance their checkbooks monthly, so must the government

It's shaping up as a replay of '38. And it won't be the Republicans' fault. We'll do it to ourselves.

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

9. Dems may lose Illinois as well. n/t

[grantcart]

10. and your prediction is that we lose NH OH and MO as well I assume

Also the Republicans, in your scenario, would also have to prevent any shockers. Vittner, thought to be impervious even to a diaper scandal is down to 7 points.


A second stimulus package will not be sacrificed on any other altar but the the altar of resistant debt markets. The typical arm chair economist can always urge more massive debt but it actually takes somebody to pull out a check book and buy Treasury bonds. Given that China, Japan and Germany have all indicated that they do not agree with additional stimulus borrowing you have to ask yourself how many petro dollars are going to be willing to go it alone in purshasing further American debt.

[Davis_X_Machina]

11. You couldn't get a majority of DU members...

...never mind Congress, to pass a second stimulus. Bond markets don't enter into it -- it'd never get that far.

We'll go ten years before we see U6 in single digits again.

[grantcart]

12. lol right because bonds are a unilateral legislative action

We pass a law that raises our debt ceiling and someone somewhere is compelled to write a check for $ 100 billion.


BTW Davis at the last 3 treasury auctions who were the main buyers of T bills?

edited for egregious spelling correction

[Hawkeye-X]

16. CO here, we're primarying Bennett

Ritter made a VERY poor choice picking Bennett to replace Salazar. It'll be someone much more progressive than Bennett and appropriate for the state of Colorado. A number of Democratic names have came up to challenge Bennett.

Hawkeye-X

[DrToast]

4. God help us all. Schiff is a lunatic. n/t

[Jennicut]

5. Well per my Mom his Dad sure was, so its no surprise! LOL

[liskddksil]

7. Dodd does have a primary challenger in Merrick Alpert

although he doesn't need one for ideological reasons like Lieberman, Dodd's shaky prospects for re-election might be enough to give Alpert a chance.

[jasi2006]

8. Ron Paul was simply a racist in libertarian clothing. So are many of

his followers. I know quite a few.

[Robbins]

13. Senate

Dodd Is the only Democratic Senator In real danger.If Castle runs In Delaware then yes that has the chance to flip too.But,with
Burris gone Illinois should stay with a democrat.We should win the Missouri and Ohio seats,and also whoever ends up In NC has a good shot at winning.Remember this seat has a history of flipping party every 6 years.NH could go eather way.Republicans should keep the
Kentuckey seat.I would not be said to see Reid go down but Republicans can't find anyone to take him on.

Don't forget If thee conomy continues to Improve then things will be bad for Republicans.If Obama Is fairly popular that helps
Democrats.Bush's popularty In 2002 helped Republicans.A popular Obama Isn't going to help Republicans get elected when all they
do Is say no to everything he proposes.

[CTLawGuy]

14. if the election were tomorrow

Dodd would be in trouble. However, the election is next November when the economy will be MUCH improved. The consternation with Dodd is really consternation with the economy. Dodd will easily be relected. CT is a Democratic state.

[jeanmarc]

15. Schiff's answer for healthcare is absurd

1. Tax healthcare benefits
2. Let the 'free' market work

The free market will never work for healthcare. As Krugman explains:

http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/07/25/why-markets-cant-cure-healthcare/

The free market works for rich Americans like Schiff, so they don't give a crap when it doesn't work for anyone else.