Obama coattails turning into albatrosses?

[red states rule]

We know Obama's re-election bid is in serous trouble, but now the chances of the Dems keeping the US Senate are in question as well

2012 could be more devastatingfor the Dems then the 2010 mid-term election was

We can only hope





In 2008, President Barack Obama swept into the White House, and Senate Democrats eventually picked up nine seats, giving the new commander in chief the biggest Senate majority in decades.

But as Obama heads into his 2012 reelection campaign, keeping that Senate majority will be a major challenge — and Obama’s weakness at the top of the ticket may be partly to blame.

In every major race next year featuring a Senate Democratic incumbent, Obama is polling worse than the incumbent — in some cases, by a substantial margin — according to publicly released surveys.

So rather than running for reelection on Obama’s coattails, these Senate Democrats may end up facing questions over whether they can win with the president on the ballot.

“That means Montanans have good taste,” Democratic Sen. Jon Tester said with a laugh, referring to his approval ratings, which are far better than the president’s in the Big Sky State. “I’m a nicer guy.”

In Nebraska, Obama’s poll numbers are tanking while Sen. Ben Nelson, one of the country’s most endangered Democratic incumbents, is doing marginally better.

Nelson made clear in an interview that he won’t tie himself to Obama or the Democratic Party.

“All races will still be local, and the media will be talking about it nationally since it’s a national race — when, in fact, it will be local races at the state level,” Nelson insisted.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1011/66518.html#ixzz1bUkSUNRD (http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1011/66518.html#ixzz1bUkSUNRD)

[fj1200]

It's going to be tough for them to hold just because they have so many more seats to defend.

[red states rule]

It's going to be tough for them to hold just because they have so many more seats to defend.

True, but what is tougher is having to defend their agenda, the results of that agenda, and their constant attempts to pass the buck

In 2012 voters will have a long memory of all the promises of hope and change that were made, then told not to expect much change for another couple of years

[red states rule]

Here is a followup story. It is not looking good for the Hope and Change Kid





Despite President Barack Obama’s sagging poll ratings (http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1011/66436.html), top Democratic leaders from around the country insist they’d love for him to visit. From state party chairmen to House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (http://topics.politico.com/index.cfm/topic/nancypelosi), the message remains remarkably consistent: No one views the president as a political liability.

Roughly a year out from the 2012 presidential election, that may be true. But already, as Obama’s most recent forays (http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1011/66110.html) into battleground states indicate, there are growing signs that many Democratic politicians don’t want to get too close (http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1011/66518.html) to him, either.

In trips to Michigan (http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1011/65993.html), North Carolina (http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1011/66208.html) and Pennsylvania — all states that he carried in 2008 — members of Congress were notably missing from the president’s side. Though none came out and said they were deliberately avoiding him, they didn’t have to: Dodging a presidential candidate who’s riding low in the polls is a time-honored political practice.

The past three elections — the Sept. 13 House special elections in New York and Nevada and the Oct. 4 West Virginia gubernatorial special election (http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1011/65172.html) — haven’t done much to inspire confidence about Obama’s ability to help the entire ticket: The president was unquestionably an anchor on the Democratic nominees in each race.

For Obama, who has led a charmed political life since bursting onto the national stage in 2004 — he was in high demand on the campaign trail even before he won his Senate seat that year — it’s a harbinger of a humbling election year to come.

In North Carolina, only Sen. Kay Hagan (http://topics.politico.com/index.cfm/topic/kayhagan), who isn’t up for reelection until 2014, and veteran Rep. Mel Watt, who represents a majority black district, appeared with the president. The state’s six other Democratic House members took a pass, offering a variety of excuses.

“[Obama] may end up being Walter Mondale of 1984,” said Raleigh-based Democratic strategist Brad Crone, recalling that the only elected official who risked being seen with the party’s nominee that year was the longtime agriculture commissioner.


http://dyn.politico.com/printstory.cfm?uuid=D1D55930-F285-4DE4-8449-B63DDF9E5EE4