Jim Amann Still Gaining Steam
Per CT News Junkie, Former Speaker Jim Amann picked up another legislator endorsement yesterday from State Rep. Ryan Barry of Manchester. The money quote:
“This is the kind of guy who grabs you by the lapels in the middle of a budget crisis and says, ‘Just be thankful we’re here to help people’,” Barry said describing Amann’s character.
Merrick Alpert
One of the surprises in the Quinnipiac Poll was that Merrick Alpert, the man described by Real Clear Politics as having “virtually no name recognition”, polled at 22% against Sen. Dodd in the Democratic primary. As I noted earlier, that’s up nine points since September 17, the last time Q was in the field.
Without a major flub from Dodd and nothing particularly new from Alpert – no tv commercials, direct mail, etc. – the question becomes this: what, if anything, is Merrick Alpert doing beneath the radar that is gaining him so much traction?
Peter Schiff
They hit some bumps in the road at launch, but the Schiff campaign really has a very nice website these days. With a small uptick in their polling numbers and 33% of Q respondents saying that the economy is the most important issue in an open ended question, the Schiff campaign has to be encouraged today.
CT Capitol Report
Yes, it throws you off because it looks so much like Drudge, and yes, Genghis highlighted the site a couple weeks ago, but it’s a great resource. Put it in your favorites if you haven’t done so already: http://www.ctcapitolreport.com
Veteran’s Day
We failed to do a post on Veteran’s Day yesterday to our great discredit. The Simmons campaign commemorated the day with a compelling web video that highlights Simmons’ military experience. Well worth a look.
17 responses so far ↓
The answer is obvious re:Alpert: Dodd is losing 20 percentage points in a Democratic primary to Anybody-But-Dodd. He’s probably losing twice that in a General Election.
Those numbers have nothing at all whatsoever to do with the non-campaign of Merrick Alpert and his 1% name recognition.
Or, equally plausible theory here, perhaps Merrick Alpert has acquired the five fabled Sankara stones and is using them to gain control over Democratic primary voters.
Politico has an article on Nader weighing a challenge in Dodd in 2010.
Politico has an article on Ralph Nader weighing a challenge to Dodd in 2010.
Eff Nader. I hope to god nobody gives him any air time, as the egomaniac doesn’t deserve any.
Anyway, Merrick Alpert came through New Haven today as part of his 117 mile, across-the-state walk in favor of ending the war in Afghanistan. I can’t say that many of my anti-war friends showed up, but my dog and I did escort Merrick from the New Haven Green, through the Hill neighborhood, and safely into West Haven. (and no, I’m not a supporter, but I do admire Merrick’s grit.)
In terms of Schiff, I hope everyone realize that if Connecticut did elect him, and if he did fix the economy, Peter and all his investors would lose a lot of $$$$.
And don’t forget http://www.amann2010.com
Scoopy, is your dog registered to vote in New Haven?
Just figure it would be nice to have ONE informed voter in the People’s Republic …
You can disparage Alpert all you want, but he’s is showing determination and his hard work is paying off. He’s not the only other Dem running besides Dodd. He’s a veteran and he’s got the guts to stand up for his beliefs on Afghanistan.
Hey, Merrick is a nice guy, he’s got an incredible resume, a beautiful family, and the determination of a marathon runner.
I just don’t believe he has any chance of winning. Also he did a good job of making himself radioactive with the way he began his campaign, — in full attack mode, and with a FoxNews appearance.
Today, as a New Havener, I just wanted to make sure he got through the Hill safely, and yeah, I was also a bit curious.
And you never know. Maybe next summer Merrick gets lucky and earns a trip to the United States Senate!
PS — Today we saw the numbers of what Dodd vs. generic Republican looks like. Have we seen what a poll showing a generic Democrat vs. Simmons or McMahon would show?
“PS Today we saw the numbers of what Dodd vs. generic Republican looks like. Have we seen what a poll showing a generic Democrat vs. Simmons or McMahon would show?”
God love ya for your desperate, throwin’-my-fat-ass-on-the-grenade efforts, PoopyScoopy, but we did NOT see Dodd vs. any generic Republicans.
We saw Duddly against specific, in the race to win Republicans … And he’s gettin’ his ass kicked.
What you’re terrified of — and it shows — is that Duddly doesn’t have the sense to quit.
I think you’re right … And it’s the funniest thing I’ve seen since Derek Slaphappy insisted Egghead Johnny was still in the race in October 2006 …
The laugh is on you Red5.
But first let me back up my assertion about Dodd vs. “generic Republican”.
http://www.quinnipiac.edu/x1296.xml?ReleaseID=1395
From the Q-poll: Is your opinion of [insert candidate] favorable, unfavorable or haven’t you heard enough about him?
# of people responding “haven’t heard enough”:
88% — Schiff
87% — Caligiuri
74% — Foley
66% — McMahon
49% — Simmons
6% — Dodd
Do Schiff and Caligiuri qualify as “generic Republicans”, when 7 out of 8 voters don’t know enough to have a favorable or unfavorable opinion of them? Of course they do.
Again, I would like to see exactly how much of the problem is Dodd, and if there is any real love for Simmons or McMahon. I’d also like to see how great a lead Blumenthal would start off with. (probably enough to slide the media coverage over to the gubernatorial contest.)
In terms of Dodd quitting or not, I’m completely at peace, because I don’t think it matters what Dodd wants. All Blumenthal has to do is flex, and that U.S. Senate seat is his. And if he has any sense, he won’t wait for 2012.
Well as for Alpert’s “Fox” appearances I think your being a little naive. This isn’t like going on O’Reilly or Hannity, it’s a local news channel, I mean let’s not get ridiculous here. The guy is going against a 30 year incumbent with millions in his war chest, I don’t think it would be wise to turn down the chance to get his name out there on one of the three major channels in CT. Besides even Obama went on Fox during his campaign. I’ll agree with you that maybe he came on a little strong in some of his initial statements, but I like what I here lately. I think he’s hitting his stride. At it’s not like Dodd didn’t open himself up for attack. AIG bonuses, the infamous CNN interviews, friends of Angelo etc….you’d be without a pulse if you weren’t mad at Dodd for this stuff.
OldStateHouse, if you want to disagree with my assertions, please watch Merrrick’s announcement speech:
http://www.myleftnutmeg.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=11385
Alpert went straight negative, and made himself, as an alternative, completely radioactive .
Yes Merrick is a nice guy, with an absolutely incredible resume/biography, but when he launched in DumpDodd mode, he rendered himself an also-ran.
Plenty of Democrats want an alternative. But no one wants to play a part in abusing Dodd on his way out.
Scooper, I didn’t disagree (the part where I said “I’ll agree…” lol). He’s a first time candidate and made the mistake of showing he was mad at Dodd when it wasn’t necessary, as everyone is already mad at Dodd (no need to preach to the choir so to speak). Anyway let’s be realistic, Dodd is radioactive right now against Simmons, even McMahon. There is a lot at stake and if your a progressive it doesn’t make sense to dismiss somebody as an also ran who is already getting 22%. A lot of people dismissed Lamont at this stage as well, but his campaign picked up steam as more people heard his message. I think we are seeing the same thing here with Merrick Alpert. I admire that you went to walk with him in New Haven, shows you have an open mind. Definitely more than the machine at state central who are just trying to protect their own turf! Kudos!
I’ll repeat it again: Dodd is losing about 20% of the Democratic vote to anybody not named Chris Dodd. When Alpert announced back in May he received 24% of the support in a Q poll, and those numbers have fluctuated around that since, as has Alpert’s name recognition, which is still essentially zero.
Merrick Alpert is not Ned Lamont, either in terms of grassroots support of in his ability to self-finance. In six months Alpert has raised $60k and contributed about $100k of his own money. As of 9/30/09 his campaign had only $17k cash on hand, with declining contributions.
http://query.nictusa.com/cgi-bin/cancomsrs/?_10+S0CT00110
Hey Bill, I’m not sure if you noticed but Merrick Alpert is not the only dem who’s announced…but he is the only one who has remained on the radar despite the dem state central throwing everything but the kitchen sink at him. They keep hammering him (maybe you are part of “they”, kind of sounds like it), yet he still remains in the picture. And since he is the only candidate to come out with a strong position on w.a.r. he owns that issue, and that’s not a small issue to own. Take a look in the mirror and ask yourself: can you look the mother of one of our soldiers in the eye and tell her that her son is risking his life on a mission with clear goals and a concrete mission? If you can’t there is only one candidate who you can support and still stay true to yourself. It’s that simple. “i prefer the people who say ‘it can’t be done’ get out of the way of the people who are doing it”.- a wise old man
Alpert is a fringe candidate trying to make a name for himself on the current unpopularity of Chris Dodd. Until a real challenger comes along or Dodd announces his retirement the Democrats will have him as their nominee. And I expect that would suit Republicans just fine.
As for issues, there’s really only one and that’s the economy
What a shocker!!!!
Yesterday, the Courant has a front page in-depth story on hospital ‘mistakes’ (a good if not scary read).
Today, our reactionary AG Dick proposed hospital reporting legislation.
http://www.ctnewsjunkie.com/health_care/blumenthal_proposes_health_rep.php
Kind of like when the chimp attacked… the next day he calls for legislation banning exotic animals.
Kind of like… well, the list is lengthy.
He has been AG for like what, 30 years? Has he read the statutes? Can he propose something before disaster strikes??
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