While Jane Cunningham’s decision to bypass a chance at Missouri’s open 2nd Congressional District makes the race less entertaining, the contrast in the GOP primary between Ed Martin and Ann Wagner will still make for a fascinating intraparty battle.

Read more at

Yesterday the debt rating service Standard & Poors (S&P) issued a change in their outlook for U.S. Government debt, downgrading the Treasury’s rating from AAA Stable to AAA Negative.

This means that they beleive our finances are heading in the wrong direction and unless corrective measures are taken, their next move will be to lower our ratingg to AA+, which is still very good, but it will be historic .  In modern times, the U.S. Government has enjoyed the pristine AAA rating thru two World Wars, several police actions and the Great Depression.  That rating means that we have had the advantage of paying the lowest interest rates in the world on our debt because, up until now, there was zero perceived risk in holding our bills, notes and bonds.  That was before the dark night of the Obama administration descended upon the United States.  Now we are faced with the imminent prospect of paying higher interest rates on our $14 trillion in debt.  If you think the budget deficits are bad now, wait until that new pressure is brought to bear.

We have come to beleive that we can tax, spend and borrow our way to prosperity.  There was another empire long ago that had the same wrong headed idea….The Roman Empire.  That empire faded into the mists of time centuries ago and is now the stuff of legends.  Unless we come to grips with reality and realize that this feckless, incompetent, naive and financially dangerous President has got to be stopped, we are headed in the same direction.

We are still a great nation and our future is bright if we regain control of our government and our finances.  The 2010 Mid-Term Election was a good first step, returning control of Congress to the Republican Party and tapping the brake pedal on the runaway freight train that is the Obama administration, but obviously much, much more needs to be done.  We must score a major victory in 2012 and return the worst President in U.S. history to the Chicago streets from whence he came.  Then, when he no longer has the power to ruin the country, he can deficit spend his own money with glee and abandon.

~~John Cronin~~

Virginia Democratic Senator Jim Webb plans to announce today that he won’t seek reelection, the Senator confirmed Wednesday.

Webb appeared likely to face a rematch with former Senator George Allen, whom he beat in a bruising 2006 contest. He had expressed ambivalence about the prospect of another run, and has said he never planned a life in politics.

Keeping Webb — a Vietnam veteran, former Reagan defense official, and author — in the Senate had been a top priority for the Democratic leadership, with no Democrat of Webb’s prominence, and his centrist politics, openly exploring the race. Senate Democratic leaders view Democratic National Committee Chairman Tim Kaine, the former Virginia governor, as a top prospect to replace him, despite Kaine’s disavowals that he’s looking at the race. Kaine, the source said, hasn’t shut the door on the possibility. Former Congressman Tom Perriello, who is close to the White House, could also be a candidate.

Webb’s departure isn’t entirely a surprise. He recalled in a recent interview that he’d told President Obama in the fall of 2009 that his push for health care legislation would end in “disaster.”

“The healthcare issue really took away a lot of the credibility of the new leadership–Obama particularly–the Reid-Pelosi-Obama trio,” he said.

Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Chairwoman Patty Murray said in a statement:

Jim Webb has been a strong Senator and a true advocate for Virginia. I am grateful for his decades of service to our country. The people of Virginia have been well represented in the United States by two Democratic Senators who are fierce advocates for their state. As Republicans face a brutal primary between a flawed Washington establishment candidate and a right-wing extremist who is raising money at a good clip, Democrats will field a strong candidate. The 2012 Virginia Senate race will be competitive but Democrats will prevail there just like we did in 2006 and 2008.

http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0211/Source_Webb_wont_seek_reelection.html

By Nile Gardiner

gnore the revisionist hype in sections of the liberal media about President Obama staging a (mythical) political comeback – this is a presidency with an approval rating of 45 percent (according to the RealClear Politics poll of polls), that presides over a nation where just 27 percent of voters think the country is moving in the right direction, and which just 29 percent of Americans think will be returned to power in 2012. The White House may be claiming a couple of political wins in the dying embers of the lame duck Congress after expending a great deal of political capital in the Senate over the reckless ratification of the Moscow-friendly START Treaty and the repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, but these are issues barely on the radar screens of most American voters in the lead-up to 2012, an election which will be dominated by the economy and health care reform.

The political landscape still looks strikingly bleak for the “transformational president” as he goes into 2011. 2010 was a stunningly bad year for Barack Obama, no matter how much the likes of The New York Times or The Washington Post might try to sugar coat it. Here are four key reasons why it was a year Obama will want to forget:

1. The midterm elections were a defeat of epic proportions for the Obama Presidency

When Barack Obama spoke of a “shellacking” at the midterms, it was a huge understatement. The Republicans scored a significantly bigger win than they did in 1994, with their biggest gain in the House of Representatives in 62 years – since 1948. Fortunately for the Democrats, just 37 Senate seats were up for election, preventing what would have been an almost certain handover of power in the upper house too. Republicans also made huge gains at the gubernatorial level, with the GOP now holding 29 governorships to the Democrats’ 20. Republicans also picked up 680 seats in state legislatures, the highest figure in the modern era.

2. Conservatism grew increasingly dominant in America

The midterms were certainly no flash in the pan, but part of a broader conservative revolution that swept America in 2010. As a recent Gallup survey showed, 48 percent of Americans now describe themselves as “conservative”, compared to 32 percent who call themselves “moderate”, and just 20 percent who call themselves “liberal”. Conservatives now outnumber liberals by nearly 2.5 to 1, a ratio that is likely to increase in 2011. The percentage of Americans who are conservative has risen six points since 2006 and eight points since 1994. Barack Obama, the most liberal US president of the modern era, has a natural liberal constituency comprised of just one in five Americans, which certainly does not bode well for 2012.

Read more @……http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/nilegardiner/100070107/forget-the-liberal-hype-about-a-comeback-2010-was-a-stunningly-bad-year-for-barack-obama-and-2011-could-be-even-worse/

SENATE 2012 – “GOP candidates rush to get into Senate races,” by AP’s Philip Elliott: “Less than two months after voters gave Republicans six more Senate seats and control of the House, the GOP is lining up candidates for 2012, well ahead of the pace of previous election cycles. Looking to ride what they hope will be a continuing Republican wave, nine potential challengers, including two each in Missouri and Virginia, already have said they are weighing bids for the U.S. Senate. … ‘I want to do my part in fighting for America’s future. That’s why I have decided to run for the United States Senate,’ Republican Sarah Steelman said in announcing her challenge to Missouri Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill. Former Sen. Jim Talent, too, is weighing a rematch against McCaskill. The two faced off in 2006 and McCaskill won in that Democratic wave.

“Florida Senate President Mike Haridopolos has visited Washington to talk about his expected Senate bid against Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson, who won a second term with 60 percent of the vote in 2006. George LeMieux, who filled the last 15 months of Republican Mel Martinez’ term through an appointment, might also seek Nelson’s seat. … Democratic Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska, who won by 28 percentage points four years ago, drew an early challenger in state attorney general Jon Bruning just days after last month’s election.

In Montana, first-term Democratic Sen. Jon Tester has drawn GOP businessman Steve Daines as a challenger. Republican Marc Scaringi has announced a campaign against Democratic Sen. Bob Casey of Pennsylvania, another 2006 winner expected to face a tough re-election bid. … In Virginia, Democratic Sen. Jim Webb could face a rematch against former Sen. George Allen. Webb inched out Allen in 2006, but Allen has been building buzz for a return to Washington with speeches to tea party groups and less-than-subtle hints he is weighing another campaign.” http://bit.ly/fc4LNh