ADDED: I'm watching the press conference streaming at C-SPAN.
AND: He's saying Congress is too partisan and can't get things done. "I do not love Congress." The qualities he has are "not highly valued in Congress." He, we're to believe, is a leader, and so, he does not belong in Congress. He's positioning himself to run for President, right?
ALSO: "If Washington could be more like Indiana, it would be a better place." I agree! We were just in Indiana over the weekend, and I love Hoosiers.
IN THE COMMENTS: Deirdre Mundy said:
Hmmm.. Althouse and Meade take a whirlwind trip to Indiana, and the following day, Bayh retires.....Ha ha. And while we were in Indiana, we talked about Evan Bayh in the shadow of a mural depicting a U.S. President. I am seeing Bayh lying in wait to take down Obama in 2012. Someone serious needs to be ready to do that if Obama's failure becomes too horribly conspicuous or if — remember my long-shot prediction? — Obama chooses not to run.
Coincidence? Doubtful....
Posts
74 comments:
Prob'ly needs to spend more time his family.
Nothing to do with Obama and the Democratic Congress at all.
Nope. Nuh-uh.
One of the funnest parts of being a Congress critter is you got to spend a lot of govt money on all kinds of stuff.
Now that the country is broke, that fun part is diminishing. I think this is a big cause of the retirements.
wv= bught = Congress critters = bought & paid for
Coats chased him out of the race? Coats!?!?!
One less incumbent. Good.
He'd like to spend more time with his wife's money.
Coats chased him out of the race? Coats!?!?!
He would have easily beaten Coates. Must be something else.
Easily? I don't think anything is certain in a year where a young Republican "upstart" wins Teddy's seat and yet another Kennedy announces his retirement.
I just mentioned Bayh Dole in the Amy Bishop thread and emerge to find this!
Coats chased him out of the race? Coats!?!?!
I lawled so hard.
You know the funny thing is, most of the true Democrats in Indiana can't stand the guy. Then again he was generally a fiscal conservative and moderate on social issues which meant he just wasn't good enough for the workers of the world unite section of the Democrats.
He'd like to spend more time with his wife's money.
LOL! Maybe he was hanging around John Kerry too much eh? Run off now garage, I'm sure there is some poor lumpen proletariat that needs saving.
He would have easily beaten Coates. Must be something else.
I think you're right garage. I mean Dodd is quitting. So's the baby Kennedy in the House and now Evan is tucktailing. When one looks at the 2010 fights that your precious party has coming up, it is interesting since President Hope and Change came on the scene.
Hmmm.. Althouse and Meade take a whirlwind trip to Indiana, and the following day, Bayh retires.....
Coincidence? Doubtful....
Coincidence? Doubtful....
LOL!
No elected official should be allowed to walk away scot-free. Every one of them was/is complicit in the intentional destruction of this country.
And, Senator Bayh, exactly how yellow is your belly.
I think you're right garage. I mean Dodd is quitting. So's the baby Kennedy in the House and now Evan is tucktailing. When one looks at the 2010 fights that your precious party has coming up, it is interesting since President Hope and Change came on the scene.
10% of Republicans are retiring from the House. What does your secret right wing decoder ring decipher from that?
10% of Republicans are retiring from the House. What does your secret right wing decoder ring decipher from that?
The other 90% aren't worth spit, either.
Nice work in Indiana, Ann!
NSynch called it years ago:
Bye, Bye, Bayh!
(the other kev)
This is at about the point in Titanic where the water hit the boilers.
"10% of Republicans are retiring from the House."
I'm hoping for 50%.
WF Buckley's plan to seat random folks out of the phone book seems preferable.
WF Buckley's plan to seat random folks out of the phone book seems preferable.
The Madison phone book no longer has white pages. So I'm not sure how that would work.
10% of Republicans are retiring from the House. What does your secret right wing decoder ring decipher from that?
Nothing actually. I mean I just think it's funny how since Mr. Hope & Change came on the scene, your side is either retreating or otherwise facing some firece re-election fights.
But hey don't take my word for it.
Cardoza said in an interview, "The president isn't welcome to campaign with me right now. He is welcome to come to my district and help me do my job, which is providing relief to my constituents."
Hope and Change!
garage -
"10% of Republicans are retiring from the House. What does your secret right wing decoder ring decipher from that?"
Nice way to attempt deception. A large percentage of those "retiring" Republicans are actually seeking Senate seats or governorships, etc.
In case it escaped your attention, trying to reach higher office isn't exactly "retirement." It's a sign of extreme Democratic vulnerability that so many Republicans are willing to give up safe House seats to go after vulnerable Democratic office holders.
In the majority of others, they are safe Republican seats which they are using a good electoral year to keep their seat in Republican hands after long service.
There are a small handful of actual retirements in seats which may actually be competitive.
But hey, don't let the facts get in the way of a good argument today any more than you do any other day, garage.
What color is the sky in your world this morning?
"10% of Republicans are retiring from the House."
Yeah; to run for higher office, not to go home before they're sent home.
WV- Chiese; What Wisconsinites call a milk product made anywhere else
This is at about the point in Titanic where the water hit the boilers.
By definition, boilers always meet water.
Fixed
This is at about the point in Titanic where the water hit the firebox.
Not being an expert in Indiana politics, I would assume that there are few first-string Dems in Indiana ready to jump into this race.
I never saw Bayh as much in danger and perhaps there are other reasons, but leaving this late in the game really reduces a candidate the ability to set up a run both from an organizational and financial standpoint, especially when this announcement seems to come from left field.
If I were an IN Dem or Harry Reid (or the one who desires to replace him), I would be cursing under my breath right about Bayh right now
Oy gevalt!! They're falling like Zeros from the skies over the Marianas. The Bayh family been the closest thing to a dynasty Indiana's had, but the people are that ticked at him for some of his votes in support of The Zero and Dingy Harry.
This is Barry's growing unpopularity combined with a certain amount of generational shift and it could represent the biggest change in Congress since FDR, depending on how grass roots candidates do in the Republican primaries. Replace the Assistant Democrats with real Republicans and they just may really throw all the bums out this year.
Among the 10% retirees on the R side, some haven't been up for re-election since the '06 and '08 massacres and reading the handwriting on the wall is going to be inevitable in some cases, so there's a little of that, but Jim's point is very well-taken.
Deirdre Mundy said...
Hmmm.. Althouse and Meade take a whirlwind trip to Indiana, and the following day, Bayh retires.....
Coincidence? Doubtful....
How did they register in W Lafayette??
Mr. & Mrs. Smith? Nick and Nora? James and Jane (did you know Miss Moneypenny's first name)???
I never saw Bayh as much in danger and perhaps there are other reasons, but leaving this late in the game really reduces a candidate the ability to set up a run both from an organizational and financial standpoint, especially when this announcement seems to come from left field.
Actually his numbers were starting to poll pretty bad and that was against a non-contender. Bayh was fairly popular among independents and as I said, the more liberal Democrats couldn't stand him mainly because he wasn't your typical tax and spend Democrat.
Personally I don't think Coates posed much danger for him but I also think he saw what happened in MA with Brown and possibly being identified with The Won meant that no Dem seat is safe. Just for the record, Obamamania has long worn off in the Hoosier state and Bayh being about as centrist as you could get perhaps wasn't all that comfortable voting with the Pelosi/Reid wing of the party.
Seems to be catching.
I think it's entirely possible that Evan Bayh might mount a primary challenge to Obama in 2012. "Possible" doesn't mean "likely," but if the Obama presidency turns into the perfect storm and there is a leadership vacuum in the Democrat party, he could have a shot at it.
I think it's entirely possible that Evan Bayh might mount a primary challenge to Obama in 2012. "Possible" doesn't mean "likely," but if the Obama presidency turns into the perfect storm and there is a leadership vacuum in the Democrat party, he could have a shot at it.
Well he did an exploratory look into the 2008 race and decided against it. Then he was on the short list as a VP pick and then The Won decided to go with the dim bulb from Delaware. I think he'd like a shot at it but I just don't think he has the chops for it. Plus, I still contend that Hillary! will be resigning within the next year or so to begin her campaign to return the White House to it's rightful owner.
And when Hillary! announces her candidacy, that loud boom you'll hear will be garage mahal's head exploding.
There are Democrats in Indiana?
I apologize if I read this here, but in other Indiana news, Danny Quayle's son is running for Congress from Arizona.
I agree that it didn't seem as if Sen. Bayh was in great danger of losing. And I don't think his political career is over. Perhaps he wants to go back to an executive position; you often hear about how ex-governors chafe at being in the Senate.
One of the horrible things about being a Democratic member of the Senate this year was that there was nowhere to hide from passing legislation that turned out to poll badly.
I don't need to dig into house.gov to find out how my Democratic member of the Senate voted on things like the Stimulus, health care reform, raising spending, etc.. All those 60-40 votes mean I know who to blame. That kind of stain isn't going to wash off anytime soon, and I can see where Sen. Bayh who might have presidential ambitions could see that every day he spends carrying his party's water was another day of diminished ambitions.
So quit now, start a new movement within the Democratic party to promote centrism, and run for President in 2012 or 2016. Staying around the Senate and voting for increasing the debt ceiling was not going to get him into the oval office.
Oops, meant senate.gov
There are Democrats in Indiana?
Yes, quite a few as a matter of fact. Granted most are your moderate Blue Dog Democrats who don't believe in turning the country into the United Soviet States of America but you can always look to the coasts for your inspiration.
It's being reported that they won't have enough time for another Dem to get in the race unless they caucus, which is always a mess.
He really screwed the Dems doing it this late.
Nothing actually. I mean I just think it's funny how since Mr. Hope & Change came on the scene, your side is either retreating or otherwise facing some firece re-election fights.
So Republicans are retreating then too? If not, what do you call it.
So Republicans are retreating then too? If not, what do you call it.
The GOP has been in retreat since 2006. Out in the wilderness and all that. Where you been garage?
Was Rielle Hunter seen in Indianapolis lately? She likes to help the pretty boy Democrats who are in need of a spiritual help to navigate the fantasy world of Democrat nonsense. Or did the Palin's mere presence smash the that fantasy world until Bayh woke up to find handwriting on the wall reading mene mene tekel, which still translates "Thou have been weighed in the balances and found wanting"?
I may mean nothing more than your basic reasons for not wanting to run. Like sex tapes, or something.
I think that garage is right. (Did I just type that!?!?!) This is an anti-incumbency year, and life is going to be as tough for incumbent Republicans as for Democrats.
That said, my impression is that the bulk of the Democrat retirements are coming from "red" or "purple" areas, and I think maybe that does say something.
@Hoosier, I agree with your sentiments. I just wish that Michael Steele, whom I supported and of whom I had higher hopes, was as effect as Howard Dean.
(Not that I much like Dean, not as a person nor his politics, but he certainly has been effective.)
Well one of the things Bayh said that puzzled me was he was discouraged by the partisanship in Congress.
Again help me out here. Didn't the Democrats overwhelmingly take both the House and Senate? Does partisanship now mean that the massive Congressional majority is pissed that the party completely out of power won't give them political cover for passing legislation people don't want?
Bye bye Bayh-bee bye bye?
Now if Illinois can get rid of Durbin! He decided to spend his snow vacation touring Tanzania and the Congo- fun and sun. Supposedly he is researching social problems there- and trying to find a way to send more US tax money into those pits.
I guess Africa has a direct impact on Illinois. Of course, if he came home to face the people, they would shriek, scream, and go nuclear on him.
BTW, garage is wrong in one minor respect. Dan Coats spells his name without an 'e'. I just checked.
garage probably had Massachusettes on his mind.
Another example of the ever widening "hole in the middle"
Here's the American Conservative Union's 2008 rating of US Senators. When looking for a "middle" you can look for those Senator who's rating is lower than 75 and higher than 25. There are 16. But note that several are no longer in the Senate (Stevens, Coleman, Domenici, Dole, Hagel and John Warner) and McCain got a lower rating due to many missed votes. In '07 he had an 80 rating.
Now on the flip side looking for the "middle" here's the ADA rating of US Senators for 2008. (I've excluded Kennedy and Byrd because they were both absent a fair amount. In 2007 they were both rated over 75) We find 11 Senators "in the middle". But once again we see 5 are no longer in the Senate (Stevens, Coleman, Clinton, Dole and Warner.)
And only two Senators hit the middle (over 25 and less than 75) in both surveys. One has now switched parties, Specter. And the other one.....(wait for it...) Bayh
(Several just missed)
I'm sure these facts will simply re-enforce the contempt that those on the wings have for the middle (Certainly having Specter as an example doesn't help.) But I believe it does say something more about the empty middle and the process of getting elected.
And of course it says a lot about "bipartisanship".
And finally I assume that as the country moves a little to the right or a little to the left (depending on that year's "issue") We'll see a moderate Democrat or a moderate Republican get elected. And ironically either party will use that as evidence of their growing influence. Neither party "knows" the middle
I'm forgetting my manners. Welcome back, Edjamikated Redneck. Long time, no see.
Bayh is so tired of partisanship that he screws the Dems and hands the seat to a Republican. How fitting.
Hoosier Daddy said...
So Republicans are retreating then too? If not, what do you call it.
The GOP has been in retreat since 2006. Out in the wilderness and all that. Where you been garage?
garage, as usual, is talking Rockefeller/McCain Republicans here and expects everybody to think that's the whole party. The real ones are starting to come back via the Tea Party route, it would seem.
Rush says Bayh is just saying bye to run for president.
"This is an anti-incumbency year, and life is going to be as tough for incumbent Republicans as for Democrats."
The polls do not reflect this. No incumbent GOPer that I know of is behind.
For instance, David Vitter is 20+ points ahead. With his "troubles", if anyone should be in a tough race, it is him.
Hoosier - You should collect as many friends as possible and sign the election papers for Tamyra D’Ippolito. Hurry, time is of the essense!
http://www.brendanloy.com/lrt/2010/02/15/post-bayh-procedural-fireworks-in-indiana/
I don't get it. Teddy Kennedy stayed in the senate when he ran against Carter. Why leave?
Hoosier - You should collect as many friends as possible and sign the election papers for Tamyra D’Ippolito.
Heh, mebbe. I'm waiting to see what other GOP folks decide to go in. I'm hardly excited about Coats and I would have liked to see Mike Pence (wish he was my congressman) run for it but he won't. I think Hostettler may make a move for it and he'd be my choice over Coats.
Rush says Bayh is just saying bye to run for president.
I think Bayh still wants a political career and honestly, I think he sees being affiliated by party to this administration is not helping him one bit. Yes he was up by 20 points but so was Coakley.
I think he's probably looking to be governor again although My Man Mitch won't be easy to get out.
(the other kev)
Thanks for the correction Sarge. You are of course correct about the firebox.
If the rumor about Mikulski is true, we'll be closer to the stern going under. Maryland should be safe Democratic, but will take more resources to seat a newcomer.
"The Madison phone book no longer has white pages. So I'm not sure how that would work."
Well, given that a majority of the people in the businesses you find in the yellowpages that would be eligible via residency are either small business people or employees of small businesses, I tend to think that would work out even better.
Yeah, Bayh a leader:
I remember all those impassioned speeches he gave decrying partisanship in Congress, fighting his party when it over-reached...
I remember how he publicly fought his party on Health Care Reform because it busts the budget...
I remember his calls for a spending freeze....
What???? I guess I was thinking of somebody else.
Does partisanship now mean that the massive Congressional majority is pissed that the party completely out of power won't give them political cover for passing legislation people don't want?
LOL. Not only the congressional majority but the MSM as well. You can almost smell their desperation as they try to find some way to spread the Obama blame.
The poor guy needs a spine transplant. If he had not provided one of the 60 votes for ReidCare against his own purported principles, he would still be enjoying taxpayers subsidized health care. Now he really has to look hard into what the Democrats are cooking. He and his family's lives and health depend on that.
I wonder whether Reid/Pelosi et al. might have caused some of the Dem retirements by threatening moderates who didn't want to go along with the reconciliation plan for the health care bill. An official who believed that the choice was between (gender-neutral) castration by the Party or termination by the electorate might well look for a third option.
Anybody else think Michael Steele would make a better Senate candidate than a GOP chair?
"There are Democrats in Indiana?"
What color do you think 95% of the population of Gary is? Not to mention a lot of union factories throughout the state.
Hmmm.. Althouse and Meade take a whirlwind trip to Indiana
Oh and none of us Hoosiers are disappointed we weren't notified of a potential Althouse meetup at some swanky cafe or bourgeoise coffe shop.
I on the other hand was inconsolable for about 10 seconds.
They have swanky cafes and bourgeois coffee shops in Indiana?
He's saying Congress is too partisan and can't get things done.
Good. He said it's broken, but sounds fixed to me.
What color do you think 95% of the population of Gary is?
Democrat is a color?
65% of Gary is 1% of the population of Indiana. Doubtful that anyone can get statewide office with 1% of the electorate.
Not to mention a lot of union factories throughout the state.
I agree that the number of union factories left in Indiana is hardly worth mentioning.
The dude's bailing with $13 million. That's a lot of retirement money.
I don't care for Evan Bayh. He has made a political career out of never making a tough decision. However, I don't think he is such a big jerk that he would put his party in a difficult position by dropping out of the race at the last second. Rather, I think the timing was an attempt to allow the party leadership to pick the candidate. If he had dropped out sooner, many would have come forward and sought the signatures required to get on the ballot. I believe there is a good reason for his last second withdrawal, and I doubt it is a looming scandal. Of course, when politicians make surprising decisions about running for office, we often find out that they wanted to quit before they were humiliated.
I think he just wants to have a bigger forum and more influence than his present job affords: Facebook.
WV: typlea. Online advocacy?
I think he just wants to have a bigger forum and more influence than his present job affords: Facebook.
Palin's the Pacesetter!
I wonder who else will position themselves for 2012 by pulling a Palin.
You do realize how well off a Congress critter or Senator is when he or she "retires" don't you?
Cry me a river. He's set for life.
Congress being unable to get things done is a feature not a bug. As New York lawyer, newspaper editor, and politician Gideon Tucker put it back in 1866: “No man's life, liberty, or property are safe while the legislature is in session.”
Me, I'd add yet another house to the national legislature organized on another basis than by population or by state, and require its acquiescence before anything could become law. (And add a wing making the Capitol an isoceles triangle.)
If the white pages are disappearing, perhaps census workers could carry a true random number generator, and if they hit the jackpot while visiting somebody, he or she would be immediately proclaimed delegate to the “third body” of Congress for the next decade.
Bayh is about to pull a Frist here. He has all the charisma of cauliflower, C-list name recognition outside of Indiana and the beltway, and in every way that he's better than Obama, your generic RINO is better than Bayh.
If this is for a primary challenge, the only effect it will have will be to further reduce Obama.
Hmmm, I question the timing of the trip. Perhaps they are really outside agitators?
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