Pro-Liberty Republicans win across the U.S.

From Eric Dondero:

A quick look at some of the Governor's races around the country that Libertarian Republican has been following these past few months.

No doubt, those who were following the returns on Fox News or CNN last night are aware of these big Republican wins: Rick Perry easily re-elected in Texas, Susana Martinez historic win in New Mexico, Nikki Haley prevails in South Carolina, Tom Corbett with 55% in Pennsylvania, Rick Snyder the winner in Michigan, Jan Brewer wins overwhelmingly in Arizona, and Sean Parnell easily re-elected in Alaska.

Pro-Liberty Republicans however, suffered two heartbreaking losses in New England; Charlie Baker for Massachusetts Governor by 49% to 42%, and John Stephen for New Hampshire Gov. 52% to 46%.

Ohio: Kasich defeats Obama Dem Ted Strickland

Now, for the closer races.

Although they do not declare the race over, CNN has Tea Party Republican Paul LePage winning in Maine over Independent Elliot Culter, 38% to 37%. LePage is over Cutler by slightly more than 6,000 votes.

Ditto for Florida. CNN does not yet put FL in the Republican column. Yet Republican Rick Scott is over Democrat Alexis Sink 49% to 48%. The margin of the win is right at a significant 53,000 votes. This would appear comfortable enough where Sink should concede. (Jennifer Carroll, Scott's running mate, now becomes the highest elected African-American female officeholder in the Nation.)

John Kasich, and running-mate Mary Taylor, have been declared the winners in Ohio, with 49% to incumbent Ted Strickland's 47%. This was a bit tighter than many had expected. But still an enormous win for the Republican Party.

Shockers! Dudley up in Oregon, Foley wins Connecticut

In a heartbreaking loss for the GOP and the Tea Party, Tom Emmer was defeated in Minnesota 44% to 43%. There was a viable third-party candidate in the race. But in neighboring Wisconsin Republicans picked off a longheld Democrat Governorship, Scott Walker over Tom Barret 52% to 47%.

The Illinois Governors race really is still too close to call with incumbent Democrat Pat Quinn at 46%, and Republican Bill Brady at 46%. Quinn is ahead by some 9,000 votes out of a total of 3.2 million cast.

Another race too close to call, but increasingly looking like the biggest Governors race upset of the night: Oregon. Former NBA star Chris Dudley is at 50% over Democrat incumbent John Kitzhaber with 48%. Dudley is ahead by 21,000 votes with some 1.1 million cast. A win here for the GOP would be hugely devastating for the Democrats.

And perhaps the most shocking loss for the Democrats of the night, in any of the Governors races: Connecticut. Although the race has not yet been declared, Republican Tom Foley has 50% to Dan Malloy's 49%. Foley is up 11,000 votes out of approximately 1 million cast. Foley had been behind in all the polls until late last week.

From Eric Dondero:

A very interesting declaration late last night from the winner of the Barack Obama US Senate seat in Illinois:

"Tonight I stand before you as a fiscal conservative, a social moderate, and a national security hawk."

Has Mark Kirk been reading Libertarian Republican?

Congratulations to the new Republican Senator from the State of Illinois, from the fiscally conservative, socially moderate, national security hawk wing of the GOP.

Note - Kirk is a 20-year Veteran of the United States Military.

See - Breitbart Video of Kirk's victory speech.

RELATED NEWS: In another election night shocker, it appears that Republicans may have held Mark Kirk's House seat in IL CD-10 (north of Chicago). This was expected to be one of handful of Democrat pick-ups. GOPer Bob Dold leads the Dem 51% to 49%.

Chris Cristie values come to the House

From Eric Dondero:

Jon Runyon was heavily supported by this website, libertarian Republicans in the Garden State and across the country. He won election on Tuesday in one of the toughest fought battles in the Nation.

From Philly.com:

Former Eagle Jon Runyan, riding a national wave of voter frustration, defeated freshman Democratic U.S. Rep. John Adler on Tuesday, according to unofficial returns.

"I'll give you everything I have to really get this country back on track," Runyan, a Republican, said at his headquarters at the Westin Hotel in Mount Laurel.

Gov. Christie had stumped across the country for Republican candidates, but said this Third District race was the most important to him. He introduced Runyan to a roaring crowd of supporters Tuesday night.

"No candidate around the state has worked harder than Jon," Christie said. "Jon is going to go down to Washington as part of a Republican majority to take our country back."

Analysts said if the governor were to keep his star power with the national party, his candidate - Runyan - had to win the toughest House race on Christie's turf.

Runyon won with 51.2% to 47.1%. Over $5 million was spent on both sides in the race. NJ"s 3rd CD includes mostly working class to suburban areas of Camden and Ocean Counties, including Cherry Hill.

Democrat loser says Tea Partyers "greedy" and "ignorant"

From Eric Dondero:

The loss of Tea Party libertarian/conservative Sharron Angle to Harry Reid was very painful for pro-liberty Republicans. However, there was another race in Nevada - a big win for the GOP - that you're not hearing anything about.

Incumbent Democrat Congresswoman Dina Titus was defeated for reelection by hardline Tea Party Republican Joe Heck. Nevada's 3rd CD consists of Las Vegas suburbs south to the Arizona border. The election was very close. Heck prevailed with 48.2% to Titus at 47.4%.

This was one of the most targetted races in the entire country on both sides.

From Fox 5 News:

LAS VEGAS -- The race for Congressional District 3 was decided by less than 2,000 votes when Republican Joe Heck ousted freshman Rep. Dina Titus.

As Titus gets ready to return to Congress for the lame duck session, Heck prepares to take over the seat in January.

"We've been given the opportunity to govern," Heck said. "We're not going to squander that opportunity."

Heck said the first thing on his agenda is to focus on the economy and try to bring jobs back to Nevada.

"We've got to go through all the unreasonable regulations that have been passed over the last two years," he said. "Things that take away from the bottom line of small businesses, because every dollar from their bottom line is one less dollar for a pay raise or the next hire."

The incumbent though, is expressing nothing but sour grapes, even making derogatory statements to describe her Tea Party opponents. Continuing:

[Titus said] "there's a real tsunami across this country of greed and anger and ignorance, so we got to fight back."

Gaming the transient homeless vote

From Cliff Thies:

About those questionable Clark County results? Turns out there are thousands of people who live underground in Las Vegas, in storm drains. None of these people have landlines and, so, weren't surveyed by the poll-takers. All the union goons needed to do to GOTV was go down into the dark places. Offers of food and drugs were probably sufficient. Just had to be careful to provide dark sunglasses so as to prevent snow blindness.

From the UK Daily Mail:

Deep beneath Vegas’s glittering lights lies a sinister labyrinth inhabited by poisonous spiders and a man nicknamed The Troll who wields an iron bar.

But astonishingly, the 200 miles of flood tunnels are also home to 1,000 people who eke out a living in the strip’s dark underbelly.

Most of the people who live underground have fallen into destitution after struggling with drink, drugs or mental health problems

Living in underground hovels. The future of America???

Is this cool or what?

From Eric Dondero:

Carol and Dan McGuire may have just made history. They are the very first husband/wife Libertarian Republican team ever elected to a State Legislature anywhere in the United States. Carol won election first in 2008. Both Carol and Dan were easily (re)elected this cycle. They represent Epsom and Pittsfield (south-cental NH).

Carol and Dan are longtime members of the Republican Liberty Caucus. In fact, they serve on the RLC State Board. Dan served as State RLC Chair in 2007/08. They also served as delegates to the 2009 RLC National Convention in Jacksonville.

Now 81 members of the NH House Republican Liberty Caucus

From McGuire4House.com:

We're very grateful to you the voters of Allenstown, Epsom and Pittsfield for electing us as your State Representatives together with Tony Soltani and Jon Richardson. The amazing extent of the Republican wave that washed over both the House and Senate means that we can get to work right away on balancing the state's finances through responsible spending cuts and added efficiency. We also will concentrate on regulation reform to lessen the burdens on business and welcome back the New Hampshire Advantage.

Carol has already filed a dozen bills. The most important of which would bring administrative rules under more direct control of the legislature. Administrative rules have the force of law, but are not written by legislators. Her bill would require confirmation of all rules by a legislative committee before they take effect. It is bad enough when elected representatives add to the people's regulatory burdens, but when unelected bureaucrats do it that is a step too far.

Dan is still working on bills, but has a couple of important ones in mind that could result in large savings for the taxpayers. First, deregulation of the health insurance industry. We have some of the most onerous health insurance rules in the country and we pay for it with out of sight insurance rates. Dan estimates that a free market in health insurance would save consumers at least $250 million a year. Another large savings could come from eliminating turnpike tolls and funding those roads with a small increase in the gas tax ($40 million estimated annual savings).

Note - The RLC blog has an excellent wrap-up of New Hampshire election results by National Vice-Chair Aaron Biterman; "New Hampshire Chooses RLC Leaders, 81 Endorsed Candidates to Lead State Legislature." Two former NH RLC Chairs now serve in the NH House. In addition to McGuire, immediate past Chair Jim Forsythe won election.

How did the Libertarian Party, Other independent candidates do?

by Clifford F. Thies

This was not a good year for third parties, except perhaps for the progressive Liberty Union of Vermont. The once significant Independence and Reform parties have shriveled to near nothing status. The Libertarian Party continues at about 1 or 2 percent of the vote in statewide races. And, the Green Party continues to flounder as a nationwide organization, with only scattered displays of existence.

Georgia LP fails to gain "Balance of Power"

Minor parties attained the balance of power in only three Congressional races. These were NY23, where the Conservative Party candidate drew 6 percent of the vote and threw the election to the Democrat. CA11, assuming the razor thin margin of the current frontrunner holds up, where the American Independent Party got 5 percent of the vote and succeeded in re-electing the Democrat. And, IL8, where the Green Party candidate got 3 percent of the vote and enabled the Republican to turn the Democrat out of office.

If you noticed that, in all three instances, the minor party helped the opposite major party, this is what minor parties do. Hopefully, not too often. Just enough so that the major party doesn't get too comfortable moving toward the center of the political spectrum.

One somewhat bright spot for the Libertarian Party Scott Kohlhass, our Libertarian buddy in Alaska, who agree to "caucus" with the GOP if elected, scored 30 percent of the vote in his attempt to be elected to the lower house of his state's legislature. It was certainly dissapointing he didn't get elected though. Another downer for the LP, their best shot to pick up a state house seat in New Hampshire with Brenden Kelly was unsuccessful. He placed 5th in a field of 8, (first 4 won seats).

In Georgia, the Libertarian candidate for Governor looked as though he might keep the Republican below 50 percent and force a run-off between the Republican and the Democrat. However, the voters of that state decided that they had had enough of politics for one year, and put Nathan Deal over the 50 percent mark.

Even Libertarian Party website describes mediocre results

The Libertarian Party website describes an "about average" election year. Their candidates for US House received approximately the same percentages as usual. One decent showing; Edward Gonzalez running for Congress in a San Francisco Bay area, with only a nominal write-in option for the GOP on the ballot. Gonzalez polled over 7% as a Libertarian.

No significant offices were won by the LP. A handful of minor offices were won. From LP.org:

Kathy Woolsey for Charleston County (SC) Soil and Water Commission - 53%
Jim Culberson for Sebastian Inlet Tax District (FL) - 62%
Ron Skrutski for Lee County (FL) Soil and Water Conservation District - unopposed
Tom Clark for Lee County (FL) Soil and Water Conservation District - unopposed
Kim Hawk for Lee County (FL) Soil and Water Conservation District - unopposed

In Wayne County, Indiana, Cheryl Heacox was elected to the Clay Township Board. (It was a partisan "vote for 3" election, and she was one of the three candidates elected.)

In Arizona, Scott Stewart was re-elected to the Pima Community College Board for a six-year term. (Non-partisan race.)

Typically, the Libertarian Party elects at least 10 to 15 of its members to local offices each election cycle. So, this is a bit of a drop.

The buxom blonde Madam in NYC

In New York, our buxom buddy Kristin Davis, first with the Libertarian Party, later with the Anti-Prohibition Party, only pulled 20,000 votes, about one-half of 1 percent. And, this was in an election in which the Republican candidate was discombobulating.

We will also mention that in Colorado, the Republican candidate for Governor got 11 percent of the vote and, so, preserved ballot status for the Grand Old Party in that state. We presume the guy will now return to deep undercover status with the Kansas Bureau of Investigation. Of course, Tancredo got 38% of the vote for Colorado Gov. under the American Constitution ticket.

As to why the third parties did not play a more significant role, we can cite the decision by the Tea Party movement to act within the Republican Party, challenging the party establishment, infusing the party with new candidates, enthusiasm, volunteers and money. This strategy enabled the Republicans to make a dramatic comeback, although it also presented the party with a few rough edges.

In 2012, I think we can look to a strong Green Party or other progressive-socialist party attempt to discipline the Democrats for "selling them out" during the two years they had hegemonic control over Washington. Just be sure to sign their petitions when you are asked.

Thies is a former Libertarian National Committee member, fmr. LP National Treasurer fmr. Maryland LP State Chair and fmr. LP candidate for US House - Montana. Dondero contributed to this article.

Liberals just love to attack bright attractive Conservative Women

From Clifford Thies:

A last minute anonymous sex slander has been posted on the internet regarding Christine O'Donnell. Didn't we see this exact same thing in South Carolina, during the Republican primary?

The Christine O'Donnell Campaign has just released the following statement on Facebook this morning:

"This story is just another example of the sexism and slander that female candidates are forced to deal with. From Secretary Clinton, to Governor Palin, to soon-to-be Governor Haley, Christine's political opponents have been willing to engage in appalling and baseless attacks -- all with the aim of distracting the press from covering the real issues in this race.

Even the National Organization for Women gets it, but Christine’s opponent disturbingly does not. As Chris Coons said on September 16th he would not condone personal attacks against Christine. Classless Coons goons have proven yet again to have no sense of common decency or common sense with their desperate attacks to get another rubber stamp for the Obama-Pelosi-Reid agenda. Such attacks are truly shameful, but they will not distract us from making our case to Delaware voters -- and keeping the focus on Chris Coons’ record of higher taxes, increased spending, and as he has done again here, breaking his promises to the voters."

Story Developing...

New Ad by Sean Bielat for Congress

The most recent poll from a week ago, finds Bielat "within striking distance," of Barney Frank, down by 10 points.

Fed Employees now actively engaged in campaigns against the Tea Party

From Eric Dondero:

The Smokin' Gun blog has uncovered the identity of the author of the vicious attack piece on Gawker, "I had a one-night stand with Christine O'Donnell." The piece talks of a wild Halloween party that O'Donnell attended at his Philadelphia apartment a few years back. It describes how O'Donnell allegedly got drunk and spent the night in his bed, though he says the two never had sex.

Now Smokin' Gun, through exhaustive investigative work, has zeroed in on the Anonymous author. He's Dustin Dominiak. And it turns out he works for the Federal Government.

A college buddy of Donminiak's and oddly enough "a district executive with a Boy Scouts council in the Philadelphia area" named Brad Kurisko reluctantly revealed the details and name of the individual.

While Kurisko refused to out “Anonymous,” some online activity this evening may point to the author’s identity. Shortly after his last phone conversation with a TSG reporter, a single name disappeared from Kurisko's list of Facebook friends.

The man with whom electronic ties were abruptly cut is Dustin Dominiak, a 28-year-old buddy who attended Albion College with Kurisko. Records show that Dominiak has previously shared a Philadelphia address with Kurisko. One online posting reports that Dominiak, a Michigan native, has worked as an auditor at the Federal Reserve in Philadelphia...

It has also been revealed by Yahoo News that the anonymous author was paid in the "low four figures" by Gawker for the story.

Dr. Andy Harris, fiscal conservative

From Eric Dondero:

Republicans have their best shot to pick off a seat on Maryland's Eastern shore. Dr. Andy Harris is running for the second time against incumbent Democrat Rep. Frank Kratovil. Harris lost in 2008 by a few thousand votes. The very latest poll finds Harris ahead by 11 points.

See our article from last week on Andy Harris "Republicans set to gain one on Delmarva Peninsula."

But in a last ditch effort, the Democrats are boosting the candidacy of the Libertarian Party candidate.

A pattern across the country, Dems propping up LP candidates

Just breaking from the Baltimore Sun "Democrats promoting Libertarian to undermine Harris":

In what appears to be a national pattern, the Democratic Party is highlighting a longshot third-party candidate in an effort to undermine a Republican nominee--in this case, Andy Harris, the GOP challenger in Maryland's tightest House race.

The tactic is either a desperation move, or a sign of how close the contest is, or both. It has special resonance in Maryland's First District, where the Libertarian candidate's two percent of the vote arguably tipped the historically Republican seat to Democrat Frank Kratovil in '08.

The Democratic mailer, first reported by Eastern Shore blogger Michael Swartz, masquerades as an attack on Richard Davis, the third man in the race, running again this year on the Libertarian line, with no realistic chance of winning.

Paid for by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, the flier describes Davis, twice, as an outsider and Tea Party type.

Davis "plans to cut government spending, will drastically reduce the size of government across the board, is a complete outsider . . . Davis and the Tea Party think government is part of the problem, and want to make it as small as possible."

"Richard Davis: Is he too conservative?" asks the mail piece.

Libertarian candidate denies any role in the mailing

Later in the piece:

The audience for the flier appears to be conservative voters. The barely disguised ploy to pull votes away from the Republican is a tactic Democrats are using elsewhere, too.

In Illinois, Democrats are promoting another Libertarian candidate, Mike Labno, in an attempt to cut into Republican Senate nominee Mark Kirk's support in conservative southern Illinois, the Wall Street Journal reported this week.

A second mailer that portrays the Libertarian as more serious than Harris about deficit reduction also went out recently in the district, according to blogger Mark Newgent. The piece does not say who paid for it, but Davis has issued a statement saying that neither he nor the Libertarian Party had any involvement in the mailing.

From the press release:

"neither the Maryland Libertarian Party nor Dr. Davis' campaign had any involvement or prior knowledge of this mailing and both entities do not support, encourage or endorse this type of activity."

Ironically, Harris is considered to be a strong fiscal conservative, even libertarian-leaning candidate. He was backed heavily in 2008, and again this year, by the economic libertarian group Club for Growth.

Federal bureaucrats are "cool cats": They even listen to good music

From Eric Dondero:

There's a new website that has been launched to lift the spirits of Federal bureaucrats in these days of Tea Party rebellion. It's called GovLoop. (No link cause we don't encourage bureacracy here at LR.) It serves as a social networking site for Inside the Beltway hipsters. A photo at the site has white-shirted guys, and frompy looking gals holding up signs saying "Government doesn't Suck," and the emphathy-inducing "What if Governent was one of us."

There's also a march planned for Washington D.C. to coincide with ultra-leftist Jon Stewart's "Restore Sanity" rally this weekend.

The site and march are the brainchild of Jon Ressler, a Fed bureaucrat himself, who's on a mission to change the image of Red Tapers.

From WaPo, "Government doesn't suck march planned" Oct. 29:

"It's time to turn the tables and remind the world that government employees just happen to be people -- people that don't suck," Ressler said in a message sent to The Federal Eye on Sunday announcing the march. Government workers "are a lot of cool cats" who work hard, listen to good music and watch Stewart's "The Daily Show,"

Editor's comment - there's a longstanding rule about coolness dating way back to the doobie smokin', bongo pounding, J.D. Salinger reading, 1940s and 50s: If you have to say you're cool, you're probably not.

He's a fan of the hometown Colts

From Eric Dondero:

What's been a total snoozer of a race in Indiana just got a bit more interesting. Democratic Rep. Brad Ellsworth debated former Republican Senator Dan Coats in Indianapolis Tuesday night.

From TheRepublic.com (Ellsworth, IN):

Coats spokesman Pete Seat. "The campaign has shifted from desperate to sad."

Ellsworth and Coats are running to replace Democrat Sen. Evan Bayh...

When the Indianapolis Colts played the Washington Redskins recently, the Ellsworth campaign sent out an e-mail that said it would be no surprise if Coats wore burgundy and gold rather than Colts blue since he had lived in Virginia for years until renting a house this year in Indianapolis.

"We may make light of football allegiances, but the candidates' allegiance to Hoosiers is no laughing matter," campaign manager Cori Smith wrote in the e-mail to supporters before asking for contributions.

For the record, Seat said, Coats is a Colts fan.

From Eric Dondero:

Ruth McClung appears to be surging in her race to unseat incumbent Democrat and Progressive Caucus Chair Rep. Raul Grijalva. Latest polls indicate it's a dead heat. And some of the credit for her rise, particularly on the fundraising front, goes to a trio of top conservative ladies.

From The Hill "Rep. Grijalva fights for his political life against insurgent Republican" Oct. 28:

Four-term Progressive Caucus Co-Chairman Rep. Raul Grijalva (D) is locked in the fight of his political life against a 28-year-old rocket scientist.

Raytheon physicist Ruth McClung does not have the most sophisticated campaign operation this election cycle — it’s being managed by her mother, Gini Crawford — but the Republican nonetheless finds herself running neck and neck with an established Democrat.

McClung’s sudden rise has taken many — including Grijalva — by surprise...

In recent weeks, McClung’s campaign has benefited from an influx in outside cash and donor dollars spurred by endorsements from conservative heavyweights Sarah Palin, Michelle Malkin and Tammy Bruce.

Meanwhile, The Tucson Weekly reports that McClung is getting a "major assist" from another Republican biggie, of the male gender - John McCain. The news site suggests that McCain has "invest[ed] more than $90,000 of his Senate campaign's money to boost McClung's candidacy."

The 7th District encompasses the border region of southwest Arizona, including Yuma. There's still time to help: Ruth4AZ.com

By Clifford F. Thies

Things turn real ugly for House Democrats
Many races suddenly in play
Several Democrat incumbents distance themselves from Obama
Possibility of a Republican landslide of historic proportions
Maybe the largest ever
Rumor that Pelosi will resign her seat

No real change in Senate races
Republicans continue projected to pick-up six to ten seats

Double-digit gains in Governors and in control of state legislative chambers
Perhaps 4 to 600 seats in state legislatures

Electorate turns decidedly free-market
Majority of Democrats still committed socialists

This is the Year of the Republican Woman
Young voters turn against Democrats with a vengeance
Republicans look to win Hispanic and Asian vote
Twenty percent possible with African Americans

Newsweek has lost all credibility
Paul Krugman certifiable
Democrat pollsters strive to keep hope alive
Signs of low-level electoral fraud all over the country
Overseas military voters again disenfranchised by Democrat-dominated
electoral boards

Don’t forget to vote
Don’t give up on our country
Don’t give up on yourself
Yes, we can turn this thing around
Yes, you can find a job
We will never give in to the terrorists
We proclaim Liberty now and forever!

Editor's comment - Yes, we admit it. We are getting giddy here at LR. So much so, that Professor Thies is breaking into limericks.

San Diego to El Centro

From Eric Dondero:

Libertarian columnist for the Wall Street Journal John Fund, has picked five districts across the U.S. where he most expects an upset on Election night - "Read this before Joining the office pool." Four are Republican wins - MI 5, GA 12 and NC 2. Oddly, one is a possible Democrat pick-up, AZ 5 (Ben Quayle).

The first on the list is libertarian-leaning Iraq War hero Nick Popaditch. (Note - Popaditch lost an eye in battle in Iraq).
From the WSJ, Oct. 20:

California 51 -- Rep. Bob Filner hasn't had a tough race against a Republican in this majority Hispanic district in years. But in 2006, he won only 51% of the Democratic primary vote against then-San Diego City Councilman Juan Vargas. Wounds from that race haven't fully healed.

Mr. Filner is being challenged by Nick Popaditch, a former Marine officer who won a Silver Star in Iraq and was blinded in one eye by a grenade. Mr. Popaditch hasn't raised much money, but the district contains many military families who may be drawn to his compelling story. The district, which includes downtown San Diego, is Democratic but George W. Bush won 46% of the vote in 2004, and Arnold Schwarzenegger carried the district by nine percentage points in his 2006 re-election race. This area was the scene of another stunning upset of a Democratic incumbent in the 1980 Reagan landslide, when Republican Duncan Hunter won unexpectedly. His son currently serves in Congress from a different San Diego district.

Readers, please take note of John's line, "Mr. Popaditch hasn't raised much money..." There's still time to make an on-line contribution - PopaditchforCongress.com/donate

Photo - yes, that's Nick in the famous Time Magazine photo of American troops liberating Iraq.

Give him a fish treat already!

From Cliff Thies:

One of the funniest political ads of the year.

Note - Dold is the Republican candidate for Congress in the 10th CD - suburban Chicago district.

From Eric Dondero:

Scott Kohlhaas is Chairman of the Alaska Libertarian Party. He's also a candidate for State House, in District 23, northeast Anchorage (Russian Jack, Mountainview).

There is no Republican in the race.

Kohlhaas ran in 2008, similarly in a 2-way race with Democrat incumbent Max Gruenberg. He polled 20%.

However, this time he has the backing of the State Republican Party. In August, Kohlhaas secured the endorsement of the local GOP precinct chairman. And now the ARP is sending out a mailing to every Republican household in the district announcing Kohlhaas as their choice.

Kohlhaas, for his part, has agreed to "caucus" with the GOP if elected; not necessarily siding with Republicans on every vote, but supporting their choice for house speaker.

Kohlhaas has one of the best opportunities in the Nation of any Libertarian Party candidate to be elected to a State Legislature. A huge number of Republicans voted in the primary in August, in contrast to the Democrats, nearly 3-to-1. Republicans will have no other choice on the ballot, except liberal Gruenberg.

Kohlhaas is a well-known and well-liked community activist, as a leading member of the Mountainview Neighborhood Board, and the leader of the annual Mountainview Clean-up. He is running an aggressive campaign, with a massive yard-sign effort, precinct walking and radio ads.

You can help: ScottforHouse.org

Suddenly feeling more optimistic about the economy with Republican gains on the horizon

From WebCPA.com, "Small Business Owners Feeling More Optimistic and Republican," Oct. 27:

Small business economic confidence rebounded in October as more small business owners reported that economic conditions for their businesses and for the country have improved, according to a new poll that also found small business owners favoring a Republican-controlled Congress in the midterm elections.

"...in this politically charged atmosphere, small business owners are likely in a holding pattern with the rest of us to see how the economy responds after Election Day," said Ryan Scully, director of Discover's business card. "When we asked small business owners whether there would be a greater impact on the economy if Republicans win control of Congress or Democrats remain the majority, they leaned in the direction of having a change."

When it comes to the economy, small business owners believe a Republican-controlled Congress would have a greater impact: 51 percent of small business owners say it would be better for the GOP to control Congress, 39 percent said it's better for Democrats to remain in control, and 12 percent aren't sure.

Forty-nine percent of small business owners would choose the Republican candidate if the elections were held today, 38 percent would vote for the Democrat...

The Republican Party comes out on top when it comes to which political party is better at understanding the needs of small business owners, a gap that has widened in the past two years: In October, 45 percent of small business owners gave the nod to Republicans, 30 favored Democrats...

Note - National Fed. of Independent Businessmen (NFIB), has endorsed over 200 candidates nationwide. All of them, with one exception, are Republicans. See the full list at NFIB.com

by John Hawkins, Rightwingnews.com

Now, when I say these are longshots? I meant it. It's entirely possible that all five of the races I'm about to describe to you could go to the Democrats. That being said, the wind blowing at the back of the GOP is about as strong as it can get so if there's ever a year when we might manage to steal a race of two off the list, this would be it. So, if you want to be really aggressive and shoot for the moon on November 2nd, here are some candidates you can chip in a few bucks for or better yet, help out by making some GOTV phone calls.

Peter Corrigan (Ohio): Beat Dennis Kucinich in a +8 Democratic district? No way! Couldn't happen, right? Well, guess what? According to a sketchy private poll The Weekly Standard is pushing, Kucinich is only up by 4 points. Corrigan could just knock him off.

Karen Harrington (Florida): Harrington is an aggressive, active candidate up against Debbie Wasserman-Schultz in +13 Democrat district. An internal Harrington poll from earlier this month showed her only down by 8 points. Could she pull off an upset? Just maybe.

Fenn Little (Georgia): Knocking off John Lewis? In a D+26 district? It sounds impossible. It may be. But Little has certainly managed to attract some enthusiastic local support and a month ago, the rumor was that Little was polling north of 45% in an internal Lewis poll.

Charles Lollar (photo up top): Lollar is an outstanding candidate, but he's up against Steny Hoyer in a +11 Democratic district, (Maryland). Although there's no public polling, Hoyer has actually been campaigning which is an indication that he's seen something that indicates his job could be in real danger.

Star Parker (California): A conservative columnist knocking off a Democrat in a +26 Democratic district? It seems impossible, but her opponent Laura Richardson is scandal ridden and Erik Erickson predicted Parker would be the "surprise of the year."

Editor's Note - If they don't win this time, they'll most certainly be back for the Second Republican Wave in 2012. Look at Allen West. Lost barely in 2008; now in 2010 poised for a win in Florida.