that's why she's meeting with some of the local districts next month.

No, it's not weird. The best way to support the efforts of Senators like Russ Feingold is to give him a Democratic majority in the Senate. And the best way for WA voters to help do this is to reelect Maria Cantwell.

Feingold ain't stupid.

Feingold's popular with some lefties who have been turned off by Cantwell. It shows that he supports her even though they have disagreements.

The state Dems are bringing in the Senator we wish we had to cheerlead for the Senator we've been stuck with for the last term. Instead of finding and supporting a better candidate they're trying to fake out their liberal base with celebrity lefty endorsements. That scares me.

The best way to support Senators like Feingold is to send him stronger allies. A majority Democratic Senate will accomplish nothing if it's made of such stuff as Nevada's Reid and our Cantwell. Just having more Democrats is not enough. We need Democrats that stand up and fight for what we believe in. I appreciate the need for us Democrats to start sticking together--it's worked frighteningly well for the Republicans--and come November I may well have to vote for a less than ideal Dem, but I'm seriously thinking of supporting Hong Tran in this race.

I think YOU are weird Josh. You are like totally OCD obsessed and blog on this topic like 3-4 times a day -- at least it seems that way.

3) Is Hong Tran going to be there?

Yeah, it's party politics. For party politicians, the party comes first, philosophy and practice come second.

Goldy,

OK, not weird...How about ironic.

Cantwell is having trouble getting volunteers thanks to her position on the war. So, she brings out someone with the exact opposite position to drum up volunteers on her behalf.

Feingold may not be stupid. But Cantwell sure seems to think anti-war voters are.

You're absolutely right, Josh. We were talking about this after the 43rd last night. And it's true.

But ... no way Bush gets another Senator.

WILL IN SEATTLE Wrote:
"But ... no way Bush gets another Senator."

With regard to Iraq, it looks like Bush already has one, Will. Perhaps you Demos ought to find someone who can replace Cantwell and defeat a Republican challenger too. Shouldn't be too difficult...

---Jensen

Which of the following is weirder and/or more stupid?

(A) Believing that people who disagree on one thing can still agree and work together on other things?

(B) Believing that people who disagree on one thing necessarily cannot agree and work together on any other thing?

C) Believing that anyone who acts as if (A) is true necessarily does so only because he/she assumes everybody else is stupid?

Feingold ain't stupid.

And BTW, Feingold ain't "super anti-war" either.

"... Americans understandably feel responsibility to not just leave the Iraqis high and dry, and I agree with that. That's not what I proposed. What I proposed was to have our military mission redeployed, to not have the 140,000 ground troops there. We could continue helping train the police and army, and we could have special operations forces in the regions, and continue to go after Al Qaeda and Al Zarqawi type operatives ..."

Ronk, here are the basics facts:

Feingold was one of 23 Senators who voted against the resolution authorizing President Bush to go to war in Iraq in 2002. Cantwell voted for it.
Last summer, he became the first senator to call for withdrawal and call for a specific withdrawal timetable. He suggested troops out by the end of this year. Cantwell's position on the war is unclear, but she does not support this postion. Nor has she laid out a plan for withdrawal.
Just last month, Feingold moved to amend a $106.5 billion appropriation bill for Iraq (and Katrina aid) to require a complete troop withdrawal. Cantwell didn't suppor this.

And Here's his speech in Oct. 2002 formally opposing Bush's war in Iraq.

Maria sucks on the war because she listens to way too many Beltway consultants who out of touch with the real people in this country. But on most progressive issues she votes well.

Democrats in this state can't be stupid enough to give up the power of a sitting senator on either hopeless challenger. McGavick will have big bucks and if you don't think a fake moderate Republican can win statewide take a look at Rob McKenna. He is as conservative as anyone in the state, but even the Stranger kinda liked him...

I am as sick of the mamby-pamby stands of the Democratic Party as anyone, especially on the war. But this is the wrong battle, at the wrong time. Job one has to be to take back the Senate and House so we can investigate and bring down the Bush administration. Don't be stupid and make Washington a swing state. This is a safe seat. Make Maria aware she is out of touch with her state, but support her by all means. That is what Russ Feingold decided. He gets it.

Josh -- Granted, Russ voted 'Nay' on the Iraq AUMF, where Maria voted 'Yea'. That is hardly in controversy.

I hope you will be gracious enough to acknowledge that, per last week's interview quoted above, that Feingold's "complete troop withdrawal" does not mean complete troop withdrawal (any more than Gale's asserted sixth deployment to Iraq meant a sixth deployment to Iraq).

The Kerry proposal, for that matter, specified full withdrawal (regional redeployment) of "combat troops" ... leaving room for training, logistics, engineering, security, and civil affairs, plus contract mercenaries and (presumably) special ops like Sgt. Brehm.

Kerry sends a sharp signal to the formative Iraqi government and to the Administration: "time's running out, get your house in order". So does Feingold, in his way ... and Cantwell in hers.

RONK Wrote:
"time's running out, get your house in order". So does Feingold, in his way ... and Cantwell in hers."

...and so does Bush, Ronk, which doesn't appear to be much different than Cantwell's. That's my perception, and I might suggest it's the perception of other folks in her district. Perhaps she should take the novel approach of actually representing her district's desires on the subject. Regardless, I am beginning to get the impression, Cantwell isn't the sharpest tool in the shed.

---Jensen

Jensen - Of course Feingold would have had to vote for the AUMF, if he took "the novel approach of actually representing [his] district's desires on the subject".

Cantwell and Feingold are two senators who notably don't just go with the flow.