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Tag: terri lynn land

Senate Races 2014: Why Michigan Never Became Iowa

By Alexis Levinson, CQ Roll Call (MCT)

WASHINGTON — Earlier this cycle, Republicans viewed the Michigan Senate race as a potential pick-up opportunity, much like the seat in Iowa.

But it didn’t turn out that way — not even close.

Both Iowa and Michigan featured open-seat races. In these states, Democrats had cleared the field to nominate a House member with partisan voting records. Meanwhile, the GOP’s top candidate picks took a pass on these Senate races, forcing the party to settle for second-tier recruits. To be sure, Michigan was a slightly more favorable battleground for Democrats — but Republicans were bullish about it.

Now, with two weeks until Election Day, the Iowa race is a dead heat with both parties spending massively to win the seat. Nearly 500 miles away, Rep. Gary Peters (D-MI) solidly leads former Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land in every public poll. Earlier this month, the National Republican Senatorial Committee pulled more than $850,000 out of the state, canceling its final two weeks of television for Land and indicating the race was over.

“I’d rather be on Gary Peters’ campaign than on Terri Lynn Land’s,” said Michigan Republican consultant Dennis Darnoi.

So what happened?

The Iowa race had distinct events that changed the trajectory of the race: a television ad about castrating hogs that propelled Republican Joni Ernst to an overwhelming primary win; a video showing Rep. Bruce Braley (D-IA) denigrating Sen. Charles E. Grassley (R-IA) as “a farmer from Iowa who never went to law school.”

By contrast, the Michigan race has been “sort of boring,” in the words of state Democratic consultant Mark Grebner.

There has been no game-changing remark. There were no debates (the two campaigns could not agree on a format), so there was “no zinger moment,” said Darnoi. Republicans were never able to get off a clean, clear hit on Peters the way they did on Braley.

In Michigan, Republicans have attacked Peters on immigration, health care and for owning stock in a company that produces petroleum coke, or petcoke — a gross manufacturing byproduct the congressman has condemned. The Land campaign maintains this is an example of Peters’ hypocrisy. But political observers said they discern no single, clear line of attack with which to define the opposition — on either side of the aisle.

“The messages have been all over the place,” said Michigan GOP consultant Dan Pero.

“Our message is simple: You can’t believe anything Gary Peters says,” Land campaign spokeswoman Heather Swift pushed back. “He says he supports women, meanwhile he pays women in his office 67 cents on the dollar. He says he’s against petcoke, meanwhile he owns petcoke stock. He marched with Occupy Wall Street, meanwhile he was a Wall Street broker. The guy will say literally anything to get elected. You always know where Terri Lynn Land stands — she has a record of putting Michigan first. She’s made government work before, she’ll do it again.”

But unlike Ernst, Land never had a breakout moment like the “castrating hogs” spot. Her most memorable ad tried to rebut “war on women” attacks by pointing out that she is a woman. For about 11 seconds of the ad, she sat there drinking coffee, looking at her watch, and not saying anything. It was widely panned.

Instead, Land’s most memorable moment on the campaign trail was in May, when she burst out in a scrum of reporters, “I can’t do this. I talk with my hands,” as they asked her questions. Since then, story after story has portrayed Land as hiding from the media, with national reporters traveling to Michigan to find unannounced campaign events.

Darnoi pointed out Republicans had not been sold on Land’s candidacy since the beginning. Like Ernst, Land was not the top choice: There were early efforts to recruit Rep. Mike Rogers (R-MI) to run. He passed.

Meanwhile, Ernst exceeded expectations as a candidate, proving one of the best retail politicians this cycle.

What’s more, Peters had experience with tough races. In 2002, he lost a bid for state attorney general by 5,200 votes. In 2008, he challenged an established Republican and won handily. In 2010, Peters fought a Republican wave but survived by fewer than three points — becoming just one of a few Democrats in competitive districts who voted for President Barack Obama’s health care law.

In 2012, Republicans targeted Peters when they redrew the state’s congressional map, effectively eliminating his district. He took on another member in strong Democratic, majority-minority district and won by a double-digit margin.

Compare that to Braley: Since he won his first term in 2006, he’s had relatively easy re-election challenges with one exception. In 2010, he won re-election by a couple points.

Of course, Michigan and Iowa are different states politically. Both states have GOP governors, but Michigan is more favorable statewide for Democrats. Obama won Michigan by ten points in 2012; he won Iowa by six.

Perhaps the most obvious manifestation of that difference comes next week, when Obama will campaign for Peters. First lady Michelle Obama has campaigned for Braley instead.

Regardless, it’s hard to see how Land recovers in the final weeks.

Public polling heavily favors the Democrat. A Detroit News poll from early October found Peters ahead by nine points, 44 percent to 35 percent. It follows a string of polls that found him leading Land anywhere from five to 11 points. Since April, Land has led in only two polls — one in July and one in late August.

Still, Republicans argue the race is not over in Michigan.

Even with the NRSC no longer spending there, there is a huge amount of money flowing into the state to help Land. Much of it is coming from Ending Spending Action Fund, which, as of Tuesday, had spent $4.8 million to boost Land and attack Peters since the beginning of August. A source tracking media buys says the group has not reserved air time for the final week.

“Land is down, but I think that race is going to close,” said NRSC executive director Rob Collins.

The Republican ground game had reached 3.5 million voters as of Monday, said Michigan GOP spokesman Darren Littell.

“I think that’s premature in a state like Michigan, and particularly if you look at the national environment,” said GOP consultant Stu Standler.

The Michigan race is rated Favored Democratic by the Rothenberg Political Report/Roll Call.

Screenshot: YouTube

6 GOP Candidates Who Have No Idea What They Want To Do About Health Care

Although many conservatives are becoming desperate to distance themselves – and their party – from the “repeal or replace” war they have waged on the Affordable Care Act, several Republican candidates running in 2014 have proven unwilling or unable to cut the cord.

With Election Day just months away, many GOP candidates now find themselves on the defensive, as hopes of repealing the law slowly die, and they struggle to introduce their own “replace” plans.

Read on to learn which six Republicans cannot actually explain what “replacing” Obamacare would entail, but are nonetheless vowing to do so.

AFP Photo/Karen Bleier

Mitch McConnell

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) is a longtime foe of Obamacare, which he described in the past as a “reform that denies, delays or rations health care.”

As an alternative, McConnell says, “What I would have done instead is first of all tear down the walls, the 50 separate silos in which health insurance is controlled, and pit all the health insurance companies against each other in a national competitive market. Competition almost always works to keep prices down and quality up.”

As TheWashington Post points out, this simple idea already has holes: Namely, the hundreds of thousands of Kentucky residents who cannot afford to buy health insurance, and depend on Medicaid. Approximately 300,000 Kentuckians have obtained coverage through the state’s Medicaid expansion, and an additional 300,000 residents are not yet covered.

To deal with this issue, McConnell suggests allowing Kentucky to keep expanded Medicaid up to 133 percent of cost if it is what residents want. Of course, the senator did not elaborate on how Kentucky would pay for that expansion without the Affordable Care Act (the bill would run approximately $584 million per year). He also did not acknowledge that his “replacement” model is more of a pick-and-choose repeal effort.

Photo: Gage Skidmore via Flickr

Tom Cotton

A staunch opponent of Obamacare, freshman U.S. representative Tom Cotton (R-AR) maintains that he wants “every Arkansan” and “every American” to have “quality, affordable access to health care.”

However, when asked to actually specify an alternative to Obamacare that would ensure this, Cotton did the usual GOP dance. “Once we repeal Obamacare, Arkansas, like every state, will address its own needs, hopefully with a Medicaid system that has been returned to them and lets them address their needs for the entire state,” he answered.

Cotton also refused to take a stance on Arkansas’ “private option” plan — which uses Medicaid funds to purchase health insurance for low-income residents – calling it a “state-based issue.” Meanwhile, he failed to acknowledge that the private option — which has allowed 100,000 Arkansas residents to obtain coverage, and is expected to help an additional 100,000 do the same — exists only if Obamacare does, too.

Photo: Gage Skidmore via Flickr

Scott Brown

New Hampshire Senate candidate Scott Brown — who, as a Massachusetts state senator, helped pass the “Romneycare” law on which the Affordable Care Act is largely based — despises Obamacare and wants it fully repealed. According to Brown, the Affordable Care Act is the “biggest issue in New Hampshire,” which is now asking for federal approval to implement its own private option alternative to Medicaid expansion that would use Obamacare funds to provide 50,000 poor residents with private health insurance. He is shy about elaborating on an alternative plan, however.

“I’m not going to get into any particulars,” he told reporters in May. “I know you want the details on a plan, but I think I’ve made a general concept as to what has been done.”

Oddly, the only thing Brown has made clear is that if he could fully repeal Obamacare, he would still want to ensure that beneficiaries get “grandfathered in,” so they do not lose coverage. Brown has still not explained how that could work.

Photo: Talk Radio News Service via Flickr

Terri Lynn Land

“The fact remains that Obamacare is driving up costs, causing people to lose their doctors and their plans, and it’s cutting Medicare,” Republican Senate candidate Terri Lynn Land (MI) said in a press call marking the four-year anniversary of the president’s signing of the Affordable Care Act in March.

Still, Land — who supports a full repeal of the law — has not introduced an alternative to the reform. Nor has she taken a stance on Michigan’s Medicaid expansion, through which 270,000 low-income people — half of the 477,000 uninsured and eligible residents — have already gained coverage. Land only says that she “applauds” Michigan governor Rick Snyder – who is opting to expand Medicaid in the state — for “doing what he believes is best for Michigan families, while complying with mandates from Congress brought down in Obamacare.”

Photo: Terri Land via YouTube

Shelley Moore Capito

Representative Shelley Moore Capito’s (R-WV) senatorial campaign wants very little to do with the Affordable Care Act, which she acknowledges will be probably not be repealed despite her own wishes.

Yet, she still finds the law flawed and argues that “there are changes that need to be made,” and “we’ve got to reform it and make it work for children, families, and businesses.”

However, Capito has not elaborated on these “changes” or “reforms.” She also ignores the fact that West Virginia’s rate of Medicaid enrollments is second in the United States since it expanded the program under the Affordable Care Act, and she refuses to answer whether or not the state should continue with the expansion.

Photo: House GOP via YouTube

Thom Tillis

North Carolina House Speaker Thom Tillis, the Republican candidate for Senate in North Carolina — where the fight for Medicaid expansion continues — wants a full repeal of Obamacare, but does not have his own replacement plan.

When asked if he agrees with Senator Richard Burr’s (R-NC) alternative plan — which does not involve a full repeal of the ACA — Tillis answered that the “outline” is worthy of consideration, but refused to give a firm answer.

Tillis’ own vision is similarly vague and again turns into just old Obamacare-bashing rhetoric. “I think there’s a lot of things we can do if we focus on a systematic approach to eliminating the bad,” he said in February. “Let’s focus on the [safety] net problem versus a policy that’s creating as many problems as it fixes in terms of health care, and then it’s also creating the most devastating problem of a deficit and debt that we can’t afford.”

Photo: AndrewMurray4DA via Flickr

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WATCH: Republican Candidate Mocks War On Women In New Ad

Terri Lynn Land, the Republican candidate for U.S. Senate in Michigan, released a new ad on Tuesday pushing back against Democrats’ accusation that she is complicit in the “war on women.”

“Congressman Gary Peters and his buddies want you to believe I’m waging a war on women. Really? Think about that for a moment,” Land says in the ad. She then pauses to sip from a cup of coffee, check her watch, and shake her head, before declaring “I’m Terri Lynn Land and I approve this message, because as a woman I might know a little more about women than Gary Peters.”

Land, who served as Michigan’s secretary of state from 2003-2011, is the latest in a long series of Republicans to take issue with Democrats’ “war on women” rhetoric. Land has a particularly urgent incentive to neutralize the attacks; her likely Democratic opponent, U.S. Rep. Gary Peters, has repeatedly criticized her on the topic.

Land has taken particular heat for refusing to take a position on Michigan’s controversial “rape insurance” law, and for claiming that women prioritize job flexibility over making a good salary.

“Well, we all like to be paid more and that’s great, but the reality is that women have a different lifestyle,” Land said in a 2010 speech. “They have kids, they have to take them to get dentist appointments, doctors’ appointments, all those kinds of things, and they’re more interested in flexibility in a job than pay.”

Those comments, which a Democratic SuperPAC revealed on Equal Pay Day, drew condemnation from both Peters and President Obama.

Polls suggest that Michigan’s Senate race is one of the closest in the nation; Peters leads Land by just over 1 percent, according to the Huffington Post’spolling average.