It's official: Mike Castle (R) will run for the open senate seat in Delaware

[LynneSin]

http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20091006/NEWS/91006015/Castle+to+run+for+U.S.+Senate

Castle to run for U.S. Senate
The News Journal • October 6, 2009

He is expected to officially announce his plans at a noon press conference.

The two-term former governor, who is 70, has served as the state's lone U.S. House member since 1993.

Democrat John Carney, former lieutenant governor, has already announced that he will be running for the House seat currently held by Castle.

Sen. Ted Kaufman, D-Del., appointed to replace Vice President Joe Biden after his 36-year tenure in the Senate, has said he won't run for election, leaving the senate seat open.

Some Democrats hope Biden's son, Beau, Delaware's attorney general, will enter the race, and Republicans see Castle as their best chance for winning a seat that's been reliably Democratic for decades.

___________________________________________________

The bad news: This is one of the republican's best chances of picking up a senate seat in 2010. The seat is open (Biden's former seat) and Castle is probably the ONLY republican that can win statewide in Delaware

The good news: Castle is a moderate pro-choice, pro-environment republican that may not find the senate as friendly as the house.

[Captain Hilts]

1. He'll be tough to beat. nt

[Davis_X_Machina]

2. New Senate:

52-2-46.

CT, CO, DE, NV, AR, and a player to be named later (WV due to health?) all flip, and the GOP holds all their open seats.

[derby378]

3. And TX flips one senator to the D column

I don't see a single Republican candidate as of yet who can stand toe-to-toe with either John Sharp or Bill White. KBH should have stayed put instead of picking a fight with Rick Perry.

[ananda]

13. I like Bill White for the TX Senate.

I already donated.

[LynneSin]

5. I hate to see us lose the senate but they do need a wake up call

it should be interesting.

I think Christopher Dodd can hold on to Connecticut and what have we lost in Arkansas except replacing our fundie nutjob (who lives at the same building where Ensign and Colburn reside with "The Family") with their fundie nut job.

[sharp_stick]

15. CT won't flip

The pukes are going to have one hell of a bloodletting in the primary and none of them are going to come out of that remotely clean. With at least two nutjobs (Schiff and McMahon) already in the race it's going to be an entertaining brawl.

The only puke with a shot at Dodd is the very very boring Simmons and outside of SE Connecticut I don't think anyone has ever heard of him. Schiff and McMahon are going to tear the poor guy apart and then start to feed on each other.

[Jennicut]

27. Simmons is the only one with a good shot. Everyone in my family, liberals

and conservatives alike think McMahon is a joke and there are so many wrestling scandals about the workers of WWE it is not funny. And Schiff is a nutjob. The moderate Simmons is the real worry. I hate to loose a liberal like Dodd...hope he pulls it out here.

[Hawkeye-X]

19. I disagree with some of your thoughts

Bennet is primaried out and replaced with the Colorado Democratic Party's original choice - Andrew Romanoff - he'll win very easily. He's extremely popular with the Democrats and the independents and some moderate Repubs.

If Dodd cleans up his messes and act like a real Dem Senator, I don't think he'll have any trouble getting re-elected.

DE - Anybody but Mike Castle. I don't care if he's a moderate. He's still got a R next to his name, and I view R's as our enemies and they must be defeated.

NV - Harry'll survive whatever challenge the R's throw in - because of the Ensign scandal, but remove him from Majority Leader. Let someone with true cojones do the job.

AR - This is one state that'll probably flip. Lincoln is virtually useless.

WV - probably another conservadem, but the seat will remain a D.

GOP loses all of their open seats - giving us the necessary increases, and the GOP's irrelevancy continues. Grassley is not going to survive the 2010 elections. He'll be soundly defeated, thanks to long memories of his turd-like behavior over the summer in regards to HCR.

Ohio will finally be true-blue, thanks to Voinovich's open seat. Brunner will win this.

Florida will get tired of their R's and return to voting for D's, pining for someone better than Bill Nelson.

Illinois will retain their open seat.

Kentucky can have their R's. But I'm hoping that AG Conway makes it through the primaries, then maybe KY can finally get a D.

Louisiana - Diaper Dave Vitter will probably retain his seat, but he needs to resign due to his diaper fetish, honestly.

Missouri - it'll be Blunt vs. Caranhan - I'll go with Caranhan. I'm sure the Blunt dynasty has left a VERY bad taste.

New Hampshire - Ayotte vs Hodes - I'm thinking Hodes might pull it off, due to Ayotte's inexperience.

North Carolina - it'll remain a R, but it is a cursed seat, will probably flip to a D.

[rockymountaindem]

23. I don't know why people are writing us off in Colorado

Both our candidates are more formidable than anybody is giving them credit for, and it doesn't sound like the CO Republicans have done anything to get their whacked-out operations in order. They've still got Dick Whadhams there to shoot them in the foot at every opportunity.

[Davis_X_Machina]

32. Appointees have a dreadful record holding their Senate seats. n/t

[rd_kent]

4. Just what we need! ANOTHER old white guy......

More of the same.......

[skipos]

6. "Castle is a moderate pro-choice, pro-environment republican..."

who will do whatever the GOP wants after he is elected.

[LynneSin]

7. I know

I just hope he has enough balls to hold on to some of his values

[MNDemNY]

10. Unfortunately, his "values" also include the ubber-pro corporation mentality that is Delaware.

(A moral hazard, for sure)

[LynneSin]

17. You can't walk 5 feet without running into someone who works for those companies

or is related to someone who benefits from all those companies.

Sure there are plenty of issues but they pretty much keep our state afloat.

[MNDemNY]

25. I would not argue that, but a moral hazard, just the same

:hi:

[MNDemNY]

8. He's damn near a cadaver now.

Certainly not the worst of the "'pubs" but sheesh, he's gotta be near 80.

[LynneSin]

9. 70

he's got at least a term in him.

[MNDemNY]

12. LOL, Maybe the Campano(sp?) Bros. can help him.

[iceman66]

11. Does Biden's son even have a chance?

Delaware is a pretty blue state, and you would think Obama AND Biden would have some pull there.

[MNDemNY]

14. Delaware is not as blue as it looks, at first blush.

South of the "canal" it's damn near Mississippi.

[LynneSin]

16. You'd think but it's not that obvious

There was alot of grieviance that the seat was given to Joe Biden's former Chief of Staff Ted Kaufman so that Beau could run when he returned home from Iraq. Many people thought the seat was going to former Lt. Gov. John Carney (who is running for the house seat instead). Even Biden Jr. is seriously considering just running a 2nd term for Attorney General and then make his run for a bigger office.

Beau Biden is young and I think he has what it takes to win the White House that his father just missed out on winning. Castle is 70 and Carper is 62, so one of those seats should be opening up in the next 10 years. Also Beau could consider running for Governor too if the senate seats aren't available.

What's worse is this means we're pretty much stuck with Carper. All the effort is going to be put into the seat we could lose and no one will bother challenging Carper since he's pretty much a guarentee for re-election.

[BeyondGeography]

18. On optics alone, Beau would have a chance

If Obama has any momentum at all next November, all the moreso.

[thatsrightimirish]

20. What's with all the negativity?

Beau Biden is an excellent candidate and I know we can win this seat! Just because there is a strong competitor doesn't mean defeat come on people!

[Stinky The Clown]

21. I find this worrisome

Lynne, do you think Beau will jump in?

[LynneSin]

22. I think if Beau is smart he waits

There's alot of negativity around Beau - people see him being handed the seat on a silver platter and aren't keen on a legacy like that. If Beau had a full term of AG under his belt even with the year off for a tour of duty in Iraq, he would be a much more solid candidate that could run on his record and not his dad's name. Oh and unlike Dad, Beau can't run for AG and the Senate seat - he has to pick one. If he loses the Senate seat then he's out of politics for a minimun of 2 years and that could be bad.

Don't underestminate Castle, he's the ONLY popular and beloved Republican in the entire state. The guy has never lost a statewide race (which btw, those house races were statewide since we only have one) and just about everyone can tell you a nice store about a guy that reminds you of your grandfather. Hell, I've met the guy a couple of times and I'd vote for him if he didn't have that big "R" slapped after his name. He really is one of the nicest guys you'll ever meet.

I mean I'll be out there campaigning hard for whomever runs against Castle, which will be the first time I campaign in Delaware. But to assume Beau is a 'shoo-in' pretty much means that the person posting it probably isn't from Delaware.

[Stinky The Clown]

24. Thanks for that insight

All very understandable

I look at Cuomo in NY for a model of the benefit of a child serving on his own/her own right.

I look to Maryland for an example of a child running on the family name (Kathleen Kennedy Townsend).

[LynneSin]

26. Beau is currently sitting on the fence bteween a Cuomo vs. a Kennedy Townsend.

I think if he runs now he's a Kennedy-Townsend but if he waits for years he's gonna be a Cuomo

[Jennicut]

28. Yeah, I think he should wait too.

Maybe Carper will be gone in few years (yuck).

[CreekDog]

29. That's ironic that Delawareans think that

Considering that all their incumbent higher ups have handshake agreements not to run against each other. And I mean Democrats and Republicans.

[LynneSin]

31. Just 3 are like that not everyone

I mean Jim Carney was suppose to be the heir apparent to the Governorship after serving as Ruth Ann Minner's Lt. Gov. for 8 years. But the Treasurer, Jack Markell, ran against him and won.

You eliminate Castle there just isn't any other republican strong enough to run and win a statewide office. Repubicans ran candidates against Biden & Carper but rarely would you see Castle out there campaigning for them just like, unfortunately, you'd see Carper or Biden campaigning for the dem running against Castle.

The bright side to all of this is after Castle there is a major void of nothingness in the Republican party. Sure there are a few low level state elected officials but no one who could feasibly win statewide.

[SteveG]

30. spot on analysis

You are absolutely correct. I have voted for him a couple of times, because the Dems put up someone completely unqualified to run against him. However the last two times, the Dems have run good candidates, and I was able to vote for a Dem.

There is some good news out of this however, it is most likely that John Carney will be our next Representative to Congress, which means a Dem pickup of 1 in the House. I don't see a republican that can beat Carney.

If Castle wins the Senate seat, he will come close to having held as many statewide elected offices as Tom Carper. Carper was State Treasurer, Rep to Congress, Governor, and now Senator. Castle will have been Lt. Gov. (voted for separately from the Gov. in DE),Governor, Representative and then Senator.