Indiana's Evan Bayh Retires. Won't Run in 2010.

• Gobuckeyes1

  I hope this means that Bayh will make a Presidential run eventually. Maybe he steps away for a few years to clear his head and preps for a 2016 run?
  
  He is probably the only candidate that I would actively campaign for if he decided to run. He seems to be a good man and we are very similar in political ideologies.
  
  Any two term Democrat governor of a traditionally red state like Indiana that leaves office with 70% approval is OK in my book.
• IggyPride00

  

  I read that part of why he was walking away is that the GOP made it known his wife was going to be made campaign issue number 1 in response to Democrat attacks on Dan Coats recent lobbying background. Bayh's wife has made millions sitting on the board of various financial institutions and insurance companies, and in a Tea Party world that is a political liability as he would have had to deal with guilt by association.
  
  He would have won re-election, but if you weren't happy in the job to begin with and you knew your wife was going to be dragged through the mud during campaign season, it is not hard to see how he decided to just walk away.
  
  It's a shame to see another moderate leave, as that just amps up the partisan rancor even more than it already is as the fringe of each party keeps running off moderates.
  
  Maybe one day the American people will wise up and fight back.
• gibby08

  

  CenterBHSFan wrote:

  derek bomar wrote: who's gonna beat him?

  
  Look around. Even the most die-hard Obama fans are disgusted with this government health insurance bill they got going on right now.
  
  

  
  I'm not
  

  Gobuckeyes1 wrote: I hope this means that Bayh will make a Presidential run eventually. Maybe he steps away for a few years to clear his head and preps for a 2016 run?
  

  
  That would make me seriously reconsider my support for Bobby Jindal in 2016
• Writerbuckeye

  

  Sad to see another moderate Dem leave. There are so few left.
  
  The party has been taken over by loons and thugs.
• IggyPride00

  

  Writerbuckeye wrote: Sad to see another moderate Dem leave. There are so few left.
  
  The party has been taken over by loons and thugs.

  That goes for both parties. It is impossible to cut deals or govern in the center anymore, because your reward is a primary challenge from a fringe member of the respective party be it Republican or Democrat (liberal or conservative).
• ptown_trojans_1

  

  Footwedge wrote: Chuck Hagel? Wow...talk about reaching across the aisle. LOL. I don't think a D has ever asked an R to be a running mate or vise versa. I would love to see it though. Hagel would tell Obama to bring the boys home from both Iraq and Afghanistan...as in right now.
  
  Hagel does need to have a high position at least...he's a great man, IMO.

  Hagel for SECSTATE. Yeah, VP would be quite a stretch.
  
  But, I'm a huge Hagel fan. I read his book that came out in 08 and it was pretty good.
  He also spoke at a conference I attended on arms control and nuclear proliferation. After a presentation by Stobe Talbott, Hagel, without notes, spoke for 20 minutes on the dangers of nuclear proliferation and the urgent need to work with the Russians on reducing the total number of nuclear weapons in the world.
• ptown_trojans_1

  

  Writerbuckeye wrote: Sad to see another moderate Dem leave. There are so few left.
  
  The party has been taken over by loons and thugs.

  Yeah, cuts both ways. Moderates are being squeezed out. Sad really.
• Gobuckeyes1

  ptown_trojans_1 wrote:

  Writerbuckeye wrote: Sad to see another moderate Dem leave. There are so few left.
  
  The party has been taken over by loons and thugs.

  Yeah, cuts both ways. Moderates are being squeezed out. Sad really.

  Agreed. It totally amazes me that there are people out there that think this is only happening in one of the parties. It's that kind of partisanship that makes these moderates want to quit, and I can't say I totally blame them. I get pissed off just reading about it, let alone if I had to participate in it.
• fish82

  

  Writerbuckeye wrote: Sad to see another moderate Dem leave. There are so few left.
  
  The party has been taken over by loons and thugs.

  I think so far I'm the only one to see the sarcasm here.
• CenterBHSFan

  

  Gobuckeyes1 wrote:

  ptown_trojans_1 wrote:

  Writerbuckeye wrote: Sad to see another moderate Dem leave. There are so few left.
  
  The party has been taken over by loons and thugs.

  Yeah, cuts both ways. Moderates are being squeezed out. Sad really.

  Agreed. It totally amazes me that there are people out there that think this is only happening in one of the parties. It's that kind of partisanship that makes these moderates want to quit, and I can't say I totally blame them.

  
  OR, it could be people like me who are democrat, but conservative, really sick and tired of how our political affiliation is being handled and directed. I could care less about how the republican party wants to structure itself because that is not where my concerns lie.
  
  So, for me, it's partisan only in the fact that I am very critical of my own party for the past several years. Not every single damn thing needs to be a progressive movement, which really means that alot more spending is going to happen. Government doesn't have to be involved in every single thing either. That goes for the republicans too, but like I said; I'm more critical of my own party than any other.
  As a dem, I expect and demand more than what I'm getting/seeing from my government, which is currently controlled by a majority of dems.
  
  So yeah, I guess people might mistake me and others like me, being favorable to the republicans because I'm critical of the democrats, but that is not the case.
• Gobuckeyes1

  CenterBHSFan wrote:

  Gobuckeyes1 wrote:

  ptown_trojans_1 wrote:

  Writerbuckeye wrote: Sad to see another moderate Dem leave. There are so few left.
  
  The party has been taken over by loons and thugs.

  Yeah, cuts both ways. Moderates are being squeezed out. Sad really.

  Agreed. It totally amazes me that there are people out there that think this is only happening in one of the parties. It's that kind of partisanship that makes these moderates want to quit, and I can't say I totally blame them.

  
  OR, it could be people like me who are democrat, but conservative, really sick and tired of how our political affiliation is being handled and directed. I could care less about how the republican party wants to structure itself because that is not where my concerns lie.
  
  So, for me, it's partisan only in the fact that I am very critical of my own party for the past several years. Not every single damn thing needs to be a progressive movement, which really means that alot more spending is going to happen. Government doesn't have to be involved in every single thing either. That goes for the republicans too, but like I said; I'm more critical of my own party than any other.
  As a dem, I expect and demand more than what I'm getting/seeing from my government, which is currently controlled by a majority of dems.
  
  So yeah, I guess people might mistake me and others like me, being favorable to the republicans because I'm critical of the democrats, but that is not the case.

  I think we agree more than we disagree. I'm a moderate Dem who is fairly conservative in some respects. I don't like a lot of what the Democrats are doing right now either. I was merely arguing the assertion that the "thugs and loons" are endemic only to the Democrats.
  
  We have pretty much reached a point in our political discourse that the really good, intelligent people that could help our country want nothing to do with politics. They don't want their entire personal and family history dissected and publicized in the media. I don't blame them one bit for that.
• Writerbuckeye

  

  By the way, my "thugs" comment was in reference to "the Chicago way" and little else. Besides, it was too easy to insert thugs into what I wrote (and fun, too).
• Belly35

  

  Evan Bayh and other Democrats to follow with display the true meaning of .......bail-out
• Swamp Fox

  I must admit that Evan Bayh's action has been a major loss for the Democrats in the upcoming Elections. It does appear that things are in need of shoring up politically and electorally if the Democrats hope to enact the programs they had talked about in the last Presidential Campaign. I still think that action needs to be taken to correct the economic situation and health care, like it or not, needs to be made available to the literal millions out there without it and I think that for their sake, we need to forget partisanship and come together with some plan that meets the needs of those Americans who are either seriously underinsured or totally uninsured against health problems that could wipe a family out in just days.
• Gobuckeyes1

  In doing some more reading about this situation, a couple of things come to mind:
  
  1) Why would Evan Bayh wait until now to make this announcement? He's really putting the Democratic party in a tough spot to find a replacement to run for his seat. This is essentially a big "F--- you" to the congressional Democratic leadership. If he cared about the Democratic party, there are a thousand other ways and times he could have done this so as to be less problematic for them.
  
  2) Given his moderate/centrist views and frustration with the bipartisan bickering, would it be possible that he could be gearing up to run as a third party candidate in 2012? Maybe even teaming up with a moderate Republican to do so?
• majorspark

  

  Gobuckeyes1 wrote: In doing some more reading about this situation, a couple of things come to mind:
  
  1) Why would Evan Bayh wait until now to make this announcement? He's really putting the Democratic party in a tough spot to find a replacement to run for his seat. This is essentially a big "F--- you" to the congressional Democratic leadership. If he cared about the Democratic party, there are a thousand other ways and times he could have done this so as to be less problematic for them.

  
  
  Yes I agree. His trust in the current democratic leadership is gone. Bayh clearly wants no part of it.
  

  Gobuckeyes1 wrote: 2) Given his moderate/centrist views and frustration with the bipartisan bickering, would it be possible that he could be gearing up to run as a third party candidate in 2012? Maybe even teaming up with a moderate Republican to do so?

  
  
  Bayh says no way.
  

  Bayh denied an interest in running for president in 2012 either as a Democrat or independent. Asked on MSNBC if there were any chance he would run, Bayh said, "None, whatsoever."

  http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35406833/ns/politics-capitol_hill/
• Gobuckeyes1

  2) Given his moderate/centrist views and frustration with the bipartisan bickering, would it be possible that he could be gearing up to run as a third party candidate in 2012? Maybe even teaming up with a moderate Republican to do so?

  
  
  Bayh says no way.
  

  Bayh denied an interest in running for president in 2012 either as a Democrat or independent. Asked on MSNBC if there were any chance he would run, Bayh said, "None, whatsoever."

  http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35406833/ns/politics-capitol_hill/
  [/quote]
  
  Bummer. He is one of the few politicians that I think could pull off something like that. Thanks for the link.
• CenterBHSFan

  

  I find it interesting that many people think that the republican party has lost its sense of direction and principle.
  
  Yet, just look at the mess that the democratic party is in right now.
  
  Very interesting, indeed!
• Gobuckeyes1

  CenterBHSFan wrote: I find it interesting that many people think that the republican party has lost its sense of direction and principle.
  
  Yet, just look at the mess that the democratic party is in right now.
  
  Very interesting, indeed!

  Both parties have lost their sense of direction and principle.
  
  Both parties have also forgotten who they work for, and we have done nothing to remind them.
  
  We need to vote out the incumbents this fall, regardless of party.
• ou1980

  Gobuckeyes1 wrote:

  CenterBHSFan wrote: I find it interesting that many people think that the republican party has lost its sense of direction and principle.
  
  Yet, just look at the mess that the democratic party is in right now.
  
  Very interesting, indeed!

  Both parties have lost their sense of direction and principle.
  
  Both parties have also forgotten who they work for, and we have done nothing to remind them.
  
  We need to vote out the incumbents this fall, regardless of party.

  I agree!
  
  I dont care if its a Republican or Democrat, if the candidate will be honest and tell me the voter that he stands firmly on A B C D, and will stand by those principles once he/she is in D.C., and will stand up for there voting record during their re-election attempt, then yeah I will vote for said candidate.
• I Wear Pants

  2quik4u wrote:

  gibby08 wrote: ^^^
  
  As you know...Biden has had a history of brain issues and his wife was hesitant about letting him become the VP in 2008. The rumors I've been hearing is that a deal was made where Biden argeed to be the vP for the first term,then Hilliary will step in as VP and a new SOS will be named

  your saying this like Obama is going to get elected again lol

  I was sure that Bush wasn't going to get reelected too. Shit happens. Stop acting like the 2012 election has happened already.
• ou1980

  I Wear Pants wrote:

  2quik4u wrote:

  gibby08 wrote: ^^^
  
  As you know...Biden has had a history of brain issues and his wife was hesitant about letting him become the VP in 2008. The rumors I've been hearing is that a deal was made where Biden argeed to be the vP for the first term,then Hilliary will step in as VP and a new SOS will be named

  your saying this like Obama is going to get elected again lol

  I was sure that Bush wasn't going to get reelected too. Shit happens. Stop acting like the 2012 election has happened already.

  At this time in Bush's first term, February 2002, he had an approval rating of 70% +
  
  Now this was due to his handling of post 9/11 response, but still.
• Footwedge

  I don't think Obama will get re-elected. I think that way because of the economy. A president can't fix the economy, but he always takes the credit or the blame for it. The private industry both large and small need to rethink what the hell they're doing to the American people.
• sjmvsfscs08

  Shhhhhhh, do you guys hear that?
  
  
  
  ...that's the sound of the Democratic political machine crumbling.
• fish82

  

  Footwedge wrote: I don't think Obama will get re-elected. I think that way because of the economy. A president can't fix the economy, but he always takes the credit or the blame for it. The private industry both large and small need to rethink what the hell they're doing to the American people.

  I think the economy will have turned around enough by 2012 to pull him across the finish line. And if by that time the GOP controls congress, I'm fine with that scenario.