ND-SEN: But you are, Blanche, you are

[Coraxion]

Btw: This thread is really hilarious in hindsight.

Omg. That thread is priceless.

[_]

ND loved Trump, Cramer seems right up their alley.

They have to choose between Heitkamp and Trump, MT seems to be betting that they side with Heitkamp.  I'm going to wait and hope the Candidate isn't Cramer, he seems like Todd Akin's North Dakotan cousin.

Also the ND 2012 thread is pretty funny, so many people thinking OH WE AUTOMATICALLY WIN BEACUSE ITS GOP IN PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS!

[PragmaticPopulist]

Sure, we had a fully Democratic congressional delegation, but it's not because we were a swing state...

The margins by which Dorgan and Conrad managed to win their elections are quite astounding, though. Dorgan nearly got 70% of the vote in 2004, but I'm sure someone on Atlas would have considered him vulnerable because of Bush coattails and how the state votes in presidential races. In SD, the GOP couldn't even beat Johnson in 2002 despite the fact that Bush had like a 70%+ approval rating in the state. They threw everything but the kitchen sink at Daschle only to eke out a 1-point win (Thune ran an impressive campaign, obviously).

The Dakotas have been incredibly loyal to the Democrats at the Congressional level... well, until 2010, at least. Now the only bright spot for you is Heitkamp's seat. I think she'll win by a surprisingly wide margin, though - maybe not by as much as Dorgan or Conrad, but a 15- to 20-point win is definitely possible, especially if the ND GOP nominates a joke candidate. I'd be really shocked if she lost, in all honesty.

Btw: This thread is really hilarious in hindsight. Shows you why the GOP can't take any open seat for granted, especially in a state like ND. So before anyone assumes that this will be the easiest pickup opportunity for the GOP...

Before Republicans start counting chickens, let's at least see how the race shapes up. This things can turn out surprising. If Heidi Heitkamp gets in, she can actually make it a race.

I never quite understood how Conrad and Dorgan would win reelection by such large margins. Maybe it's that its hard now to see so many downballot crossover votes there were back then. I realize the plains states have a relatively recent history of supporting democrats at the congressional level, but that seemed to end after Obama was elected. The only Democrat to win in North Dakota (or any plains state) after 2008 was Heitkamp, who was well-known, and had a weak opponent.

[Indy Texas]

Ye gods, how is it possible that such a Republican state could have such an overwhelmingly terrible Republican bench?

It hasn't been Republican for terribly long. People have to remember that the upper plains only started turning blood-red in the 1990s, and that's taken pretty long to filter up to the federal level.

Isn't the whole reason there are two Dakotas that the Republican-controlled US Congress of the late 19th century wanted to add two Republican-leaning states to the union (and four Republican senators to the Senate)?

[Indy Texas]

Apparently the politics surrounding the division of the Dakota Territory and its admission into the United States were Disney-fied into a musical film called The One and Only, Genuine, Original Family Band in the 1960s.

[Vosem]

Ye gods, how is it possible that such a Republican state could have such an overwhelmingly terrible Republican bench?

It hasn't been Republican for terribly long. People have to remember that the upper plains only started turning blood-red in the 1990s, and that's taken pretty long to filter up to the federal level.

Isn't the whole reason there are two Dakotas that the Republican-controlled US Congress of the late 19th century wanted to add two Republican-leaning states to the union (and four Republican senators to the Senate)?

Yes, but this was a bit of a miscalculation right before the rise of (the original) Populism -- both states were competitive in their first two elections, 1892/1896.

[Kingpoleon]

He's not wrong...

[publicunofficial]

Democrats would be making a mistake to think anyone outside of the most out-of-touch people imaginable care about Mika Brzezinski.

[Co-Chair Bagel23]

[Badger]

Democrats would be making a mistake to think anyone outside of the most out-of-touch people imaginable care about Mika Brzezinski.

So would Republicans.

[Devout Centrist]

Cramer's got a huge ego. I think he's going to run and lose.

[Kamala]

More evidence Republicans are scared of Heidi.

[publicunofficial]

Democrats would be making a mistake to think anyone outside of the most out-of-touch people imaginable care about Mika Brzezinski.

So would Republicans.

Making fun of the most elite of media elites fires up the Republican base more than defending them fires up the Democrats.

[Cactus Jack]

Democrats would be making a mistake to think anyone outside of the most out-of-touch people imaginable care about Mika Brzezinski.

So would Republicans.

Making fun of the most elite of media elites fires up the Republican base more than defending them fires up the Democrats.

I'm not sure if it would play quite as well in North Dakota as it would in more inherently Trumpist states. He may have won the state by a colossal margin, but I suspect that had more to do with Clinton's unpopularity in the state than it did with North Dakotans fervently agreeing with his positions or antagonism toward the media.

Of course, I can't say for sure. I don't even live in the region, let alone the state.

[BuckeyeNut]

More evidence Republicans are scared of Heidi.

That story is hilarious.

[Ye We Can]

To echo most of the replies in this thread I don't think attacking certain talk show hosts as elitists is going to hurt in North Dakota, considering it's trends last year.

[Kamala]

"Dakota Nice" is a thing, guys. It's not as famous as Minnesota Nice, but we're decent people too.

[Shameless Lefty Hack]

"Dakota Nice" is a thing, guys. It's not as famous as Minnesota Nice, but we're decent people too.

I think it has a multiplier effect - once when I was travelling in Minnesota I stayed with a couple who had been in St. Paul for some time but were born and raised in East River. It was truly overwhelming.

[Coraxion]

Democratic Hold

[BuckeyeNut]

NDGOP Recruiting SBHE President Kathy Neset for Possible Senate Run

Sigh.

I know we've disagreed, but this seems like the next GOP recruitment failure.

[Heisenberg]

NDGOP Recruiting SBHE President Kathy Neset for Possible Senate Run

Sigh.

I know we've disagreed, but this seems like the next GOP recruitment failure.

I don't think recruitment failure is even the word, this was a lost cause from day one.

[TheSaint250]

Why is she bad? I'm not familiar with her

[Kamala]

Why is she bad? I'm not familiar with her

Neither are North Dakotans.

[_]

You must be logged in to read this quote.

You must be logged in to read this quote.

If Cramer not running is a recruitment failure then we don't even have a dead dog on our ND Bench.  Here's how I see Cramer's senate run going, he gets into his little clown car, turns on the ignition, starts driving and after 2 minutes the car explodes.

[publicunofficial]

This is a race where the GOP should've been able to go to the North Dakota State Senate, grab the first warm body they can, and say "You're the candidate". Neset seems like a Plan D or E type candidate.