Tuesday, August 01, 2006

UPDATE: '06 Hawaii Democratic Senate Primary

AKA the "reverse Lieberman/Lamont" Race...

While most of the progressive blogosphere is watching Lieberman and Lamont's every move ahead of the August 8 Connecticut Democratic Primary, Akaka is fighting hard to fend off Democrat-In-Name-Only (DINO) Ed Case's primary election challenge. Here is a quick update on some of the more important developments in the race for the September 23 Hawaii Democratic Primary. While each of these subjects deserve their own post, here's a quick litany for your comprehensive reading pleasure:

Case Going For His Base: Republicans
This is a must read article from the Honolulu Advertiser about DINO Case's strategy to get out his base of Republican voters. Hawaii has an open primary, after all, where voters can choose whichever primary ballot they wish, regardless of party registration.

The Air War
Senator Dan Inouye appears in TV ad for Akaka. It's my understanding that this isn't the sort of thing Inouye usually does. He's never been in a primary ad for any Democratic candidate in Hawai'i, but he's supported Akaka since Ed Case announced. You can see the ad here. Also check out the TV ad featuring Akaka's eloquent call for peace and an end Bush's failed war in Iraq.

Endorsements
Akaka gets the endorsements representing pro-worker, pro-peace and pro-environment organizations like Hawaii Government Employees Association. Proving his DINO credentials, Case gets business endorsements from the Realtors and Restaurant Associations.
UPDATE: Because of their differing views on Iraq and Bush, it's my understanding that Akaka received the endorsement of Peace Action's national PAC.

Akaka Campaign Manager Blogs From The Inside
Andy Winer, Akaka's Campaign Manager, is now a diarist on dailykos. His first post challenges Ed Case for not stating his positions regarding the Iraq war, Patriot Act, and Bush Administration tax policies on his website and to Democratic groups who request them. He's posted this last Friday about Case's flipflop on PBS funding, which includes his insider views about Case's votes:
Some pundits have compared Case to Lieberman, but to my knowledge even Lieberman didn't vote to kill Big Bird and Elmo.

Iraq Continues As Central Theme In Race
This must read Op Ed by Senators Feingold & Kerry support Akaka's troop withdrawal vote on Iraq:
It is true that Sens. Akaka and Inouye were two of only 13 senators to support this timetable. However, when Rep. Jack Murtha (D-Pa.) first stepped up to the challenge of leadership in the House on Iraq, he was alone. Then, recently, 140 House members voted to support his leadership. Congressman Ed Case was not one of them. When we in the Senate began the fight to change course in Iraq, we, too, were almost alone. Ending the Bush administration's disastrous approach to this war isn't about counting votes.

It isn't about legislative strategy or electoral calculation. It's about applying constant pressure to change a broken course

The Lieberman/Lamont = Case/Akaka Connection Continues
Pachacutec crossposted a great comparison of President Clinton's stumping for Lieberman with the potential of stumping for Akaka to firedoglake and huffingtonpost.
Will Bill Clinton Stump for Akaka? Or will he only place his foot on the scale in favor of conservative, pro-war incumbent Democrats who blamed and shamed him during the RepublicansÂ’ impeachment overreach?


Coffee Enters Race for Republican Nomination
Look at a portion of the quite candid to-do list disclosure from Coffee:
10. Interview with Senator Elizabeth Dole, Chair of National Republican Senatorial Committee. (All of the above were very enthusiastic about my candidacy, but the money depends on our own ability to fund raise and poll numbers.)...

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