Eighteen months ago it looked like Democrats were going to profit from redistricting. An optimistic scenario for Democrats, extrapolating from the 2008 election results, was that if they could gain three governorships and three state senates and otherwise hold what they had, they would control redistricting in 14 states with more than five districts, including California, New York, Illinois, Michigan, North Carolina and New Jersey.
Those states are projected to have 195 districts in the House elected in 2012. Clever redistricting could move between one and two dozen into the Democratic column. That would have been the Democrats' best redistricting cycle since the one following the 1980 census.
But that scenario now is the stuff of dreams. Democrats are threatened with losing many governorships and legislative chambers, and their chances of taking over many from the Republicans look dismal.
President Obama will use a major address next Tuesday to tout the end of combat operations in Iraq and the start of a new phase of diplomacy and complete withdrawal.
It was not clear whether Obama would deliver his speech from Baghdad, Washington, or some other setting. The White House said the venue was uncertain although the Aug. 31 date was chosen to underscore the administration's success in bringing the mission to a close on deadline.
Democrats are facing all sorts of bad news lately but will no doubt take solace in learning that the nation’s two largest and most-powerful unions are teaming up to defend their interests in the 2010 elections.
House Minority Leader John Boehner on Tuesday called on President Obama to fire his economics team, including Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and adviser Lawrence Summers, warning that the policies put in place by the Democratically led Congress and White House have left businesses "scared to death" of investing in the economy or hiring new employees.
Waste, fraud and abuse in the stimulus package? No way, says Joe.
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