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LA-Sen: Baker Declines to Challenge Landrieu

by: James L.

Fri Aug 10, 2007 at 1:50 AM EDT

Rep. Richard Baker, a Republican representing the Baton Rouge-based 6th District of Louisiana, has decided not to challenge Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu next year. From PoliticsLA:

Baker says he has been taking meetings with party leaders to discuss the idea, and has left the possibility open in press interviews. But now he reveals that he is happy in the House, where a Democratic majority has managed to put only small dent in his seniority - he originally took the lead on Louisiana's housing woes in the wake of Katrina and brokered a deal on a water-resources bill last month that had been stalled in Congress for seven years. "The Republicans, state and federal, see the Landrieu race as a competitive one and, at the moment, I'm not so sure there's a candidate out there," Baker says. "But I can tell you it is nothing I intend to take on.

Not too surprising, given Baker's sluggish fundraising this year. The full court press by national Republicans returns to "Democratic" State Treasurer John Kennedy, who, as you may recall, ran to succeed retiring Sen. John Breaux in 2004 and earned only 15% of the vote. I hope he doesn't run, because you could just imagine all those gleeful Republican talking heads squealing in delight about how they managed to get someone named "John Kennedy" to abandon the Democratic Party.

UPDATE: John Kennedy also announced today that he will seek re-election for his State Treasurer post this fall. However, I do not see how such a move could prevent him from starting up a Senate campaign after November, and I have not seen any statements ruling that possibility out as of yet.

James L. :: LA-Sen: Baker Declines to Challenge Landrieu

Tags: Senate, 2008 Elections, Louisiana, LA-Sen, (All Tags)

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LA-Sen: Baker Declines to Challenge Landrieu | 17 comments

Agreed

Nothing in Kennedy's statement says anything that would preclude him from running for Senate after his 2007 re-election race.

by: zac @ Fri Aug 10, 2007 at 12:10:49 PM CDT

by: you @ soon

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told you

been saying it's uter bullshit all the stuff Repubicans were saying about their having a strong candidate to seriously challenge Landrieu. Kennedy is a Democrat, he's not going to challenge Landrieu, who's now the most powerful Democrat in Louisiana, he has some loyalty, even if he is conservative. Republicans last chance is Boustany, and I don't see him running unless Chris John or Hunter Lundy jump in the race against and make him nervous.

Call no man happy until he is dead-Aeschylus

by: ArkDem the Ragin Cajin @ Fri Aug 10, 2007 at 14:36:00 PM CDT

by: you @ soon

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boustany already

stated he would not challenge her. this leaves jay dardenne, who was in an auto collission near the I-10 I-12 split.

by: pointecoupeedemocrat @ Fri Aug 10, 2007 at 18:25:17 PM CDT

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by: you @ soon

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Really?

There's a Governor's race going on and its only August of the year before. Are you really going to count out all Republican chances 15 months before the Election?

Come on, now.

by: Unabridged @ Fri Aug 10, 2007 at 18:42:48 PM CDT

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by: you @ soon

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we louisianas understand the following:

1. Jim McCrery declined.

2. Charles Boustany declined.

3. Baker declined.

4. Tony Perkins conducted a poll, and the results were never released.

5. Jay Dardenne also conducted a poll, and Landrieu beat him 53-36. Dardenne is presently in the hospital recovering from an auto collision.

6. Kennedy may run, even if he is running for reelection for state Treasurer. Unlike others who are ready to write him off as a candidate, one must remember that 2008 races in Louisiana will not take any discernable shape until December, or after the November 2007 runoffs. Kennedy, in other words, may still wrong, making all the pronouncements at MyDD and Kos a bit premature.

7. The last approval ratings poll I saw for Landrieu had her in the upper 50s.

8. Even though Louisianans are focused on state races, not federal races, candidates are already declining.

9. L'Affaire Vitter has seriously complicated any Republican's bid against Landrieu.

take care

by: pointecoupeedemocrat @ Fri Aug 10, 2007 at 18:57:30 PM CDT

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by: you @ soon

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wrong should read run

and i am happy james updated his posting. the impetuous pronouncements at other national sites about john kennedy are a bit annoying. he can still run, and he can still switch parties before the qualifying period in early september for his race for state treasurer. nowhere in his email to supporters that i received did he mention the word democratic.

by: pointecoupeedemocrat @ Fri Aug 10, 2007 at 19:05:26 PM CDT

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by: you @ soon

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I understand all of those things as well

Dardenne will recover fully, and if he's even challenged in 2007, will win it easily. And as everybody has mentioned, Kennedy is still an option.

Second, Dardenne himself didn't commission the poll that had him down; someone else did. But despite what a poll 20 months out says, Dardenne is a top-tier challenger, and would give Landrieu an extremely tough race.

Since Dardenne and Kennedy are both running for office in 2007, any mention of a 2008 Senate run won't happen until after October (barring a run-off). However, even in the event that they decide not to run, there is always a chance for Landrieu to face a tough challenge, even if it isn't from the top-tier. Gordon Smith is facing a third-tier challenger, and everybody seems to like his chances. And Jim Webb didn't appear on anybody's radar screen until February 2006.

by: Unabridged @ Fri Aug 10, 2007 at 20:58:02 PM CDT

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by: you @ soon

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no, you do not understand

these factors, as you compare a democrat in louisiana to a republican in oregon. and perhaps the poll on dardenne should be trusted if it was commissioned by someone other than himself.

but i also do not agree with the arguments made by out of state bloggers in the national blogosphere. i posted my reaction to what i have read at daily kingfish.

by: pointecoupeedemocrat @ Fri Aug 10, 2007 at 22:25:35 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

Thank you.

Whenever I need someone to tell me what I do and do not understand, I'll try and find you as soon as possible.

by: Unabridged @ Sat Aug 11, 2007 at 00:52:55 AM CDT

[ Parent ]

good

educating those who choose to remain ignorant remains one of my goals.

by: pointecoupeedemocrat @ Sat Aug 11, 2007 at 05:35:05 AM CDT

[ Parent ]

this comment is for

unabridged.

by: pointecoupeedemocrat @ Sat Aug 11, 2007 at 05:35:33 AM CDT

[ Parent ]

You do realize

that Unabridged is a troll, right?

by: Sean @ Sat Aug 11, 2007 at 22:58:01 PM CDT

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by: you @ soon

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I don't think

he makes that part hidden that he's a Republican offering his opinion on these races. Of course, he's probably in the crowd that would have said that Dems would have only picked up 1-2 seats in '06 and maybe 5 house seats, so we'll see just how wrong he is this time.

by: KainIIIC @ Sun Aug 12, 2007 at 03:13:59 AM CDT

[ Parent ]

Here are the things I do not do:

1) Hide my beliefs
2) Post in every, or even most, threads
3) Post the same thing multiple times
4) Engage in ad hominem attacks on other posters

So all I do is provide an alternative way of looking at things. If that offends you, I don't know what to tell you.

by: Unabridged @ Sun Aug 12, 2007 at 07:51:08 AM CDT

[ Parent ]

Unabridged are you VaBlogger

Haven't seen him around in a long time and that "I don't know what to tell you" is classic VaBlogger.

by: Johnny C @ Sun Aug 12, 2007 at 09:50:12 AM CDT

[ Parent ]

Yes.

Its wonderful that my posting style has become so iconic.

My Va Blogger account was banned when pointecoupeedemocrat said that I lacked anything resembling a shred of intelligence, then complained to the mods that I made personal attacks against him.

by: Unabridged @ Sun Aug 12, 2007 at 10:31:24 AM CDT

[ Parent ]

Jay Dardenne's not running, regardless

he just won a SoS position, and I think he'll be quite busy with that, and also unwilling to have to give up for a difficult campaign against Landrieu. Who does that leave? Jim Donelon? You don't seem to understand that a significant loss of Democratic voters doesn't automatically spell death to every Democratic statewide office holder. Landrieu, Katrina or no Katrina, has never been this popular before in here entire career. Even people who don't like her are beginning to fall in line to vote for her, like my Grandmother, a Republican who's about as conservative as conservative can be. And, i think it's becuase of Landrieu's growing incumbency.

Call no man happy until he is dead-Aeschylus

by: ArkDem the Ragin Cajin @ Mon Aug 13, 2007 at 19:22:15 PM CDT

[ Parent ]