links for 2010-01-29

In what is becoming a familiar refrain for Dems, Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) could be facing a tough re-election fight, according to a new poll released today by a GOP survey firm.

The poll, conducted by OR-based Moore Information (R), shows Murray trailing two-time GOV nominee Dino Rossi (R) in a hypothetical matchup. Rossi, Moore Information pollsters Bob Moore and Hans Kaiser note, is the state's best-known GOPer, though he has not been mentioned as a potential candidate against Murray. Rossi has lost two close elections to Gov. Chris Gregiore (D); he notably declined to run in '06 against Sen. Maria Cantwell (D) to challenge a second time Gregoire in '08.

Moore Information surveyed 500 WA registered voters on Jan. 23 and 24, with a margin of error of +/- 4.4%.

General Election Matchup

Rossi 45%
Murray 43
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Oh My!

Barack Obama has allocated £4.3billion to spend on maintaining the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile – £370million more than what was budgeted by George Bush.

The budget will also be increased by more than £3.1billion over the next five years.

The announcement comes despite the American President declaring nuclear weapons were the ‘greatest danger’ to U.S. people during in his State of the Union address on Wednesday.
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Why, of course.

PLUS CA CHANGE

But, Poizner said, that's because few people who will vote in the June 8 primary are paying attention to the race. He noted that nearly half the voters are still undecided and argued that they really know little about Whitman other than what they hear on her ubiquitous radio ads.

Poizner, a former Silicon Valley entrepreneur, said when he begins spending his $17.5 million war chest on 30-second TV spots — which he promised will be "soon" — California will learn more about Whitman and, more important, about him.

Although Whitman and Poizner are widely perceived as moderates, Poizner hinted that the ads will draw a clear distinction between their philosophies and skill sets.

Voters will get to know him as "Steve Poizner the tax-cut guy," said Poizner, who dismissed Whitman as someone who "didn't vote for most of her life."

"Voters have had it with celebrities, had it with career politicians and had it with rookies," Poizner said.
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But, will it be too late?

Four months after it sailed through the Democratic-led House, legislation to overhaul federal student lending and channel about $80 billion in savings toward an array of education initiatives has stalled in the Senate.

In his State of the Union address Wednesday, President Obama exhorted the Senate to pass the bill, which he said would revitalize community colleges and make college more affordable. But the bill faces unified opposition from the Republican minority and sharp questions from at least some Democrats, according to congressional aides from both parties, and the Democratic majority has put it on hold during the drawn-out health-care deliberations.

The assumption on Capitol Hill is that Democrats will attempt to move the student loan bill through a special procedure that requires a simple majority rather than the usual 60 votes out of 100 needed to stop a filibuster
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Reconciliation is a bad idea for THIS bad idea.

The race for California attorney general just keeps getting more and more crowded.

On Wednesday, Rep. Jackie Speier (D-Hillsborough) was spotted at a Capitol watering hole as word spread that she's entering the race.

Today, Republican John Eastman announced that he's resigning as dean of Chapman University School of Law as of Feb. 1 to seek the GOP nomination to become California’s next top cop.

Eastman first took out paperwork to run for attorney general last week. He issued a statement today saying that he has “decided to move forward with that endeavor.”

He will be competing for the GOP nomination with Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Steve Cooley, who also jumped into the race this month, and state Sen. Tom Harman (R-Huntington Beach).
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Steve Cooley will be a tough opponent for the little known (outside conservative legal circles) Eastman