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Politics : PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: DuckTapeSunroof who wrote (749893)	9/22/2006 2:15:16 PM
From: pompsander	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 769670

It's not who they are voting for...its who they are voting against.... __________________ Unhappy voters imperil heartland Republicans By Andrea Hopkins Fri Sep 22, 10:53 AM ET MONROE CITY, Indiana (Reuters) - In a dozen districts across the U.S. heartland, voter unhappiness has imperiled Republicans, setting the stage for what could be the biggest anti-incumbent midterm election since 1994. Pat Wilkerson says U.S. troops and veterans are her first priority, believes family values are important and voted Republican in 2004. But in November she'll switch parties -- though not because Democrats have won her over. "When I vote now, it's not who I'm voting for, it's who I'm voting against," said the 59-year-old administrator, adding she is fed up with the war in Iraq and wants troops home. "I think a lot of Republicans who are in office are at risk," Wilkerson said as she watched sweating politicians work the crowd at a town festival in Monroe City in southwest Indiana. Polls show U.S. voters are overwhelmingly unhappy with the direction of the country. In a New York Times/CBS poll released on Thursday, 77 percent of respondents said most members of Congress did not deserve re-election. Fifty percent said they would support a Democrat in November, when control of Congress is at stake, compared with 35 percent who said they would vote Republican. That discontent has convinced some that control of Congress could change hands for the first time since 1994, when Republicans gained 54 seats amid a wave of voter anger. Democrats need to gain 15 seats in the House of Representatives and six Senate seats in November to win a majority. While all 435 House seats and a third of the Senate's 100 seats are up for grabs on November 7, gerrymandered districts means only a fraction are really in play. HEARTLAND REPUBLICANS "We need a change. It's time for different opinions," said maintenance worker Wayne Brashear, 57, as he waited for the start of Monroe City's anniversary parade -- which featured plenty of campaigning politicians. In the two massive congressional districts sprawling across the southern half of Indiana, that call for change has imperiled both of the sitting Republicans, six-term veteran John Hostettler, 45, and freshman Mike Sodrel, 60. Separate polls shows Hostettler trailing Democratic county Sheriff Brad Ellsworth, 48, by 4 points, while Sodrel is 6 points behind Democrat Baron Hill, 53, who'd held the seat for three terms before being ousted by Sodrel in 2004. While Hill lost by a razor-thin 1,425 votes last time, he believes a backlash against the status quo will put him over the top in November. "I've got a rock solid base of support right around 49 percent -- the trick is to get over the magical 50, and I think people are in a different mood this time around," Hill said in an interview. Nathan Gonzales, political editor at the Rothenberg Political Report in Washington, said it's actually wrong to call this election an "anti-incumbent" race -- since only Republican incumbents are truly endangered. Heartland districts held by Republicans are among the most at risk. Seven Republican seats now lean Democratic, including three in Indiana and one each in Iowa, Texas, Colorado and Arizona. Another 10 Republican seats nationwide are considered pure toss-ups, according to the Rothenberg Report. No Democrat seat is considered at risk. While voters in middle America tend to be more conservative than in other parts of the country, Gonzales said heartland voters angry with Republican incumbents are willing to vote for "the right Democrat." Hill and Ellsworth oppose abortion, gay marriage, embryonic stem cell research and campaign as fiscal conservatives. "These are very Republican districts, so it's still a challenge for Democrats," said Gonzales. "But this time Republican incumbents are dealing with the baggage of being Republican."