Archive for the ‘Mike Sodrel’ Category

In an October 7 Seymour Tribune Article, Baron Hill agreed with a DCCC ad that took Sodrel’s comments about the economy out of context. Hill said, “To say, or even suggest, that the fundamentals of our economy are strong is a complete affront to Hoosier families who are struggling day in and day out.”

This is rather interesting because one day later at a meeting with business and financial leaders in Seymour Congressman Hill said, “The general sense I’m getting is that the local economy here is not that bad, but there are some worries and concerns” and “By and large, I’m hearing things are good here in southern Indiana.” (As quoted in the Seymour Tribune on October 9)

Then to top it all off, Hill sends out a letter to supporters dated October 9 that states “Our country is in dire straights” [shouldn't that be "dire straits"? - ed.] and “Due to our country’s current financial crisis, it has never been more important to elect leaders committed to getting America back on the right track.”

Republican Challenger and former Congressman Mike Sodrel retorted: “Baron cannot have it both ways. To agree with a DCCC attack ad against me that took my comments completely out of context, and then to say virtually the same thing a day later is hypocritical, and to return to the first position is a flip-flop.”

Now here’s a different concept.

9th District Republican Party Chairman Larry Shickles has really an interesting idea. He sent a letter today to Mike Jones, 9th District Democrat Party Chairman proposing a debate between Congressman Sodrel and Congressman Hill and Eric Schansberg.

Not that much a big idea right?

Wrong.

Shickles is proposing a debate where the candidates are hooked to a lie detector. Now there’s a concept.

An excerpt of that letter follows:

“As you know this is the fourth matchup between Baron Hill and Mike Sodrel. Voters that I have talked to are tired of the same negative ads, the annoying phone calls, and having their mailboxes stuffed with mail pieces saying the candidates want to actually raise the price of gas or cut veterans’ benefits. Voters deserve the truth in order to make an informed decision on election day.

Therefore, I propose that we as 9th District Chairmen organize one debate in which Hill, Sodrel and Libertarian Candidate Eric Schansberg are allowed to ask a pre-determined number of questions of the other two candidates while connected to a polygraph lie detector. I will contact Sodrel’s and Schansberg’s campaign and I ask that you contact Hill’s campaign. If the candidates agree to this format, the 9th District Republican Party will pay all the costs associated with securing and running the lie detectors.

While this format may be unusual, I feel strongly that voters need to be able to make a clear decision without all the usual spin. If the candidates agree to this we can look forward to a fun and informative debate. In the event that scheduling another debate is an issue, I propose we use the lie detector equipment during the Jasper debate on October 21 and release the results afterwards.”

I’d watch this one.

But… I can hear Eric Schansberg (and Eric this is only because you are a Libertrian…) say that lie detectors are not 100% accurate… and Baron Hill will say something along the lines of being afraid of needles…

C’mon Eric… try something different. I think this debate would do you ALL some good. Plus imagine the press you could get…

Anyone want to put money down on that Mike Jones will NOT reply to this invite/request?

Too bad. This might be the only way to actually get some truths out of Baron Hill for a change.

As I noted on Sunday, the gloves have come off. Mike Sodrel’s surge in recent polling has terrified Baron Hill and his liberal allies in Washington, and has spurred them to return to the same old negative campaigning we saw in 2006.

Mike Sodrel, as I noted before, made a proposal to avoid such unpleasantness, but was rudely rebuffed by Baron Hill. A positive campaign wouldn’t suit Baron it seems; he says that negative ads work.

Following their opening salvo of negative mail containing lies about the Fair Tax, Baron’s allies in the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee have put forward this ad:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjQLVECRXZA[/youtube]

Let’s fact check this, shall we?

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It was reported all over today on the cable news channels that Nancy Pelosi “allowed” certain congressmen who were in tight re-election races to vote against the bailout bill (apparently there were more tight races than she thought).  The Sodrel campaign release the following presser questioning whether Baron actually voted in good faith or because he got a pass from the General.

SODREL SAYS HILL GOT A PASS TO VOTE AGAINST BAILOUT

(Jeffersonville, IN) – Congressional Candidate Mike Sodrel today made the following statement regarding the bailout vote:

“Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi does not want to lose her position as Speaker of the House. She has allowed vulnerable Democrat members like Baron Hill to vote against the $700 billion bailout. Apparently she believes House Members Brad Ellsworth and Joe Donnelly are safe as they voted for the bailout.

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Posted in Baron Hill, Congress, Economy, Mike Sodrel | 2 Comments » | Read more..

It’s a tight race, and much closer than some might have thought, according to a new poll from Wilson Research. The executive summary is available here.

SurveyUSA, which commissioned a poll over the same time frame indicating a dramatically different result, has never polled accurately in the 9th District. In 2004, when Sodrel won, their polling indicated a margin for Hill outside of the margin of error. In 2006, when Hill won by 5%, their polling indicated a narrow margin in favor of Sodrel.

So where do the two divergent polls leave the race, beyond it being another down-to-the-wire battle in the bloody 9th? My own guess is that, if Sodrel was running a more vigorous campaign beyond his existing grassroots efforts and below-the-radar campaigning (something with significant air time buys and so forth), he would hold a lead right now.

It’s amazing that he has run a campaign this low-profile and it is this close. He’s almost channeling John Hostettler or something.

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An anonymous source has leaked to me results of a poll that was taken in the 9th Congressional district that looked at the Presidential race, the Gubernatorial race and the 9th CD race.  I was only leaked the Executive summary, so I do not have the cross tabs, but below are the results that have been passed on to me.  The poll was taken by Wilson Research Strategies and commissioned by the Mike Sodrel Campaign.  It took place on September 8-9, 2008, the Monday and Tuesday after the Republican Convention in Minnesota and polled 500 likely voters.

Here is are the pertinent numbers:

The district is decidedly more Republican this cycle than last.

• The number of voters identifying themselves as Republican is now surpassing the total of those saying they are Democratic for the first time since May 2005.

• Likewise, when voters are asked who they would vote for in the upcoming November election for Congress – the Republican candidate or the Democratic candidate, 46% say that they prefer the Republican candidate and only 39% say they would vote for the Democratic candidate. The Republican candidate never led on the generic ballot in all of 2006. In fact, support for the Democratic candidate is at the lowest point since 2005.

• Both John McCain and Mitch Daniels are leading their Democratic opponents by significant margins, both scoring double-digit leads.

McCain 56%
Obama 36%

Daniels 55%
Thompson 35%

The race for Congress is a dead-heat.

• The race is inside the margin of error (±4.38) – closer than it was at the same time last election cycle:

Sodrel 41%
Hill 44%
Schansberg 4%

• Schansberg pulls nearly even support from Republicans (26%) and Democrats (21%), giving neither Sodrel nor Hill an advantage by having Schansberg in the race.

• Considering the Republican advantage in identification (+4) and on the generic ballot (+7), Hill is looking at an uphill battle to be re-elected in this district. McCain (+20) and Daniels (+20) have strong support here, attracting a significant number of Independent and less frequent voters to the polls for Republicans.

Read the rest of the executive summary below the fold. (more…)

First, let me say I like Eric Schansberg. If he were representing Indiana’s Ninth District, he would represent us well in Congress. I agree with him on limited government, and he is pro-life. I have met him several times and he is a good person. However, I will not be voting for him in November. I will vote for Mike Sodrel.

Schansberg’s run for Congress as a Libertarian is actually an impediment to implementing a libertarian legislative agenda. The votes that Schansberg drains from Sodrel will help Baron Hill in his efforts to return to Congress. That would be destructive to efforts to limit government and protect the unborn, two issues where Schansberg and Sodrel are, for the most part, in agreement. Schansberg’s run for Congress is unwise and counterproductive.

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Congressman Baron Hill (D-San Francisco Seymour) just sent me an e-mail inviting me to the 2008 Southern Indiana Economic Forum. To be more precise, I was actually one of the dozen or so people who actually subscribe to Baron’s official Congressional e-mail list, “Baron’s Briefings”, and bother to read it when it comes.

The event is to take place on September 5th in New Albany and the second session is a panel discussion entitled “Gas Prices 101″. That one looks interesting. You see, Gas Prices 101 is much like Economics 101. In Economics 101 you learn that the fundamental process behind prices is supply and demand. When the supply of something stays the same while the demand rises, then prices go up. As applied to Gas Prices 101 this lesson means that when the supply of gas stays the same and the demand goes up, then gas prices go up. Politics 101 says that when your congressman votes against drilling for domestic oil he is effectively voting for high gas prices. After these three lessons, you, the voter, get to do a practical exercise in Government 101 by throwing the aforementioned congressman (who voted against domestic drilling) out of office.

Of course, you need to be voting for something, not just against something. Mike Sodrel and Luke Puckett both provide voters in the 9th and 2nd Districts respectively with something to vote for. In addition to being the only candidates in each race who have not voted against domestic drilling, the two of them have met first hand with energy experts to discuss what needs to be done to lower gas prices. Both men will be strong advocates for domestic drilling-and thus lower gas prices-when they get to Washington.

It wasn’t that long ago that candidates for Congress, Luke Puckett and Mike Sodrel, were up in Alaska checking out ANWR and Pruhoe Bay and campaigning on the need for independence from foreign oil.  While up there, they had a chance to meet with the Governor, now Vice Presidential running mate to John McCain, Sarah Palin.  This is what they had to say upon hearing she became Senator McCain’s choice for VP today.

Luke Puckett:

“Today I extend my congratulations to Governor Sarah Palin on this momentous day for her, and for our party. She is an excellent pick for this position and I believe that her dedication, work-ethic, and ability to persuasively advocate for common-sense policies will be an asset to the nation. Governor Palin knows first-hand how important it is for us to increase our nation’s use of domestic oil reserves and her selection to be Senator McCain’s Vice Presidential nominee illustrates the importance of the energy issue in our national discussion.”

Mike Sodrel:

“I had the opportunity to meet with Gov. Sarah Palin on my recent trip to ANWR. I found her to be very down-to-earth and personable.

She is a person who would feel at home in Southern Indiana. She hunts and fishes, and is pro-life.

I’m proud to be on the ballot with the McCain/Palin ticket at the top. There is a clear contrast between McCain/Palin/Sodrel and Obama/Biden/Hill when it comes to the future for our children and grandchildren.”

(Below is an op-ed written by Mike Sodrel on the issue of energy and recent his trip to ANWR.)

I want to commend Congressman Mike Pence and my former Republican colleagues for taking a stand on energy independence for America. We are currently importing over 60% of our energy and exporting over $700 billion U.S. dollars a year.

Like most Americans, I’m tired of hearing what won’t work. “We can’t drill our way out of this problem” isn’t a solution. The fact is, we can’t resolve this problem without drilling either. It is going to take an “all of the above” energy policy to reach energy independence.

Our economy and our national security depend on America becoming energy independent. Energy independence is necessary to lower our trade deficit and our budget deficit. We must have American energy to grow our food and grow our economy.

Drilling is not the only solution to energy independence. In order to become energy independent, it will take an “All of the Above” energy policy. We need more wind energy, solar energy, water energy, and other renewable sources of energy.

Selling oil from our strategic oil reserve is the wrong thing to do. That oil reserve was created for our national security, not to manipulate the price of oil. We will need this oil to provide for our defense and essential services if foreign oil shipments were interrupted.

We can’t keep putting food in our gas tanks either. Using corn and soy beans for ethanol and bio diesel won’t work in the long term. It is driving up our cost of food. This hurts the people who can afford it the least.

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It seems our co-conspirator Dan Turkette - the Angry White Boy of Fort Wayne - has stirred the pot with regards to Baron “Don’t Tape Me, Bro” Hill’s “Town Hall Meetings”. It appears Baron Hill doesn’t like answer questions when he is not already aware. Would Baron Hill’s campaign stoop so low as to provide cue cards for those attending?

Maybe. This from a handout provided to AWB:
“Only credentialed media will be permitted to record– audibly and visually– at Congressman Baron Hill’s official events. Credentialed media are those members of the media associated with major news outlets, their affiliates or recognized television, radio or print sources”

In other words - f*** off bloggers, these events are for the uber-liberal MSM only. Unless you’re a moonbat blogger on the State Dem party payroll then its OK.

From The Hill Blog comes this post by Mike Sodrel:

It’s amazing what people will use in a political campaign. My opponent used “Millionaire Mike” pretty successfully in the last campaign (he won). Isn’t that interesting?

If a person buys a lottery ticket, and wins a million or more, people think it’s great. If a person answers all the questions correctly on the game show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, people cheer and applaud. But if a person works 50, 60, 70 hours a week (and more), and he or she makes hundreds of other Americans middle class in the process, that person is not fit for public service. What happened to the American dream?

I guess that’s human nature and probably the reason God gave Moses the 10th Commandment – “Thou shalt not covet.” Modern politicians encourage people to covet. They want to be used as the people’s instrument to punish success, and confiscate property. The “Millionaire Mike” moniker has already resurfaced in this race. Time will tell if it can work twice.

Mike Sodrel has put hundreds of Hoosiers to work.

The only people Baron Hill has ever put to work are the cronies on his staff, and he has a tendency to pad their salaries quite a bit as a reward for failure.