Question for everyone (Senate)

[Rob]

Democrats: who is your least favorite Democratic challenger? Your least favorite Democratic incumbent?

Republicans: who is your least favorite Republican challenger? Your least favorite Republican incumbent?

Independents and members of other parties: name your least favorite challengers and incumbents, regardless of their party affiliation.

And, obviously, the thread only relates to candidates running in 2006. This could be interesting.

[Rob]

Least favorite challenger

Bob Casey, Jr. His social conservatism irritates me, and he goes out of his way to be an ass (as when he declared his support for Alito). It doesn't help that he seems to be a bit of a dullard.

He's a complete joke compared to Tester, or Brown, or Whitehouse. The party couldn't find anyone better than this loser to run in PA?

Least favorite incumbent

Lieberman is obvious, but I've decided not to choose him. Why? Because he's not running as a Democrat; he represents the Connecticut for Lieberman Party.

With Holy Joe out of the running, I have to go with... Maria Cantwell. There are incumbent Democrats with horrible positions across the board (Ben Nelson comes to mind), but none of them annoy me as much as Cantwell does.

Her strident support for the war in Iraq is obnoxious, and she's one of those DLC creeps that are wrecking the party. She's actually got a lot in common with Lieberman. I only wish that she had faced a strong primary challenge...

[Adlai Stevenson]

Least Favourite Challenger:
Ben Cardin (D-MD) - He may have a sound liberal record but Cardin going to Washington isn't going to make a difference; there are enough people like him there already.  I also blame him for allowing Steele and the GOP to bash the Democratic ticket in Maryland this year as all-white.  His primary opponent Kweisi Mfume was a passionate and eloquent liberal African American with an interesting backstory.  I wish Mfume had won.

Least Favourite Incumbent:
Joe Lieberman (D-CT) - I wish he would just go away; I feel embarassed by him and fear that his antics in the next six years will cause the Democrats trouble.  Plus I have a sneeking suspicion he's going to join the GOP in the Senate; I really don't want him to win. 

[Keystone Phil]

Least favorite challenger

Need I answer?

(Corker)

Least favorite incumbent

Need I answer?

(Chafee)

[adam]

Least Favorite Challenger: Michael Steele. He campaigns on his race and pretends to be a Democrat. Complete joke.

Least Favorite Incumbent: Rick Santorum. Ultra-conservative nutcase...he's the kind of guy that gives the Christian religion a bad name via his humiliating statements on gay marriage and things of the nature.

Favorite Challenger: I have a lot of respect for Alan Schlesinger. Even after the party abandoned for Joe Loserman, he kept on going. Its a shame that there are more like him

Favorite Incumbent: Olympia Snowe. A REAL moderate who can reach across party lines. I will always have a lot of respect for her.

[Deano963]

Casey and Lieberman

[ian]

My least favorite challenger is a three-way tie between Lamont, Webb, and Brown.
My least favorite incumbent is Byrd or Kennedy; both have serious downsides.

[J.G.H.]

Least Favorite Challenger:  Katherine Harris.  Good for comedic value, but terrible as a candidate.  We really missed an opportunity to pick up a seat- of course, given today's environment, we probably wouldn't unless it was Governor Bush, but still.

Least Favorite Incumbent:  Politically Lincoln Chaffee is horrible, but I've got to go with Conrad Burns on this one.  He's a corrupt, mean man (Virginia firefighters anyone?) that should have retired.

[TeePee4Prez]

Challenger:  Yeah, I'd say Bob Casey.  It's embarassing we had to put this up to beat Santorum.  The way he got his ass handed to him in a debate was stunning.  His social conservatism and indecisiveness irriates me as well.  He is not his father- least he was decisive.  We could have put Joe Hoeffel, Allyson Schwartz, or Mark Singel in his place and got the same, if not better results.  Putting this clown up proves we have no backbone and I've said this many times before.

Incumbent:  Joe Lieberman.  His domestic views are fine with me, but to be so arrogant and not lose gracefully means he's full of himself and deserves to lose in the general.

[Jake]

We could have put Joe Hoeffel, Allyson Schwartz, or Mark Singel in his place and got the same, if not better results.

No. You would not be leading if anyone but Casey was the nominee.

Challenger: Bob Corker. Probably the biggest reason I'll never again support a primary candidate solely because he's said to be more "electable".

Incumbent: I'm not a George Allen fan at all.

[○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└]

Challenger: Casey of course. I don't think I could vote for someone who said they'd support Alito.

Incumbent: Ben Nelson, he's a right-winger, and far to the right of Senator Kerrey (who won the 1994 election there). He's terrible on almost every issue: Iraq, Alito, estate tax, stem cell research.

[Keystone Phil]

We could have put Joe Hoeffel, Allyson Schwartz, or Mark Singel in his place and got the same, if not better results. 

You would definetley not get better results and you wouldn't be leading by much now either.

Oh, I like how PA would fall in love with the low profile former Lt. Governor Mark Singel if he suddenly decided to run...  

[nclib]

Challenger: Bob Casey Jr. - I understand the need for social conservatives in the South and Plains states, but for a state that voted for Gore, Kerry, and Rendell, couldn't Penn. have put up somebody better, especially against a right-wing extremist?
Honorable mention: James Webb, whose anti-woman statements concern me.

Incumbent: Ben Nelson - Moderate Dems are fine, but I can't think of a single major vote where Nelson voted with the majority of Dems against the majority of Reps.
Honorable mention: Robert Byrd, who is liberal on some issues but often makes offensive statements.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Least favourite challenger: the rich guy from CT called Ned (what's "Ned" short for anyway?)

Least favourite incumbent: the crooked guy from NJ called Robert

[Nym90]

Least favourite challenger: the rich guy from CT called Ned (what's "Ned" short for anyway?)

Least favourite incumbent: the crooked guy from NJ called Robert

I'd agree on both of those.

However, Menendez is still preferable to a Republican majority in the Senate. Overall I like Lieberman, though I do have to admit the (admittedly tiny) possibility of him caucusing with the GOP does scare me a bit. Lamont definitely isn't my kind of Democrat at all however (too economically conservative for one).

[TeePee4Prez]

We could have put Joe Hoeffel, Allyson Schwartz, or Mark Singel in his place and got the same, if not better results. 

You would definetley not get better results and you wouldn't be leading by much now either.

Oh, I like how PA would fall in love with the low profile former Lt. Governor Mark Singel if he suddenly decided to run...  

We'd still be leading.  If Sherrod Brown is winning in Ohio, surely Hoeffel or Schwartz would be leading in more liberal PA.  You even have to admit Hoeffel or Schwartz would not get embarassed in the debate as bad as Casey.

[© tweed]

who is your least favorite Democratic challenger?

Ashdown

Your least favorite Democratic incumbent?

Menendez or Ben Nelson

[Keystone Phil]

We could have put Joe Hoeffel, Allyson Schwartz, or Mark Singel in his place and got the same, if not better results. 

You would definetley not get better results and you wouldn't be leading by much now either.

Oh, I like how PA would fall in love with the low profile former Lt. Governor Mark Singel if he suddenly decided to run...  

We'd still be leading.  If Sherrod Brown is winning in Ohio, surely Hoeffel or Schwartz would be leading in more liberal PA.  You even have to admit Hoeffel or Schwartz would not get embarassed in the debate as bad as Casey.

No, but they are more out of touch or atleast would be seen as being more extreme (though I know you disagree with that). Sorry, Flyers, but this is how it is:

Hoeffel - a nobody from SE PA who got nothing done while he was in the House (Remember Specter's post office ad?)

Schwartz - a liberal Jewish woman from Philadelphia - not connecting with voters as well as Casey does on the issues outside of SE PA.

The Sherrod Brown situation is totally different. A main reason why he is up is because of the mess known as the Ohio Republican party and the strong candidate they have in Ted Strickland (coattail impact).

The only reason Schwartz or Hoeffel would be up is because of the national climate and even still their lead would be within the margin of error. Santorum would beat either of them.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

who is your least favorite Democratic challenger?

Webb. He's a political opportunist and had some disturbing positions in the past. Despite that he is infinitely superior to George Allen and has my full support.

Your least favorite Democratic incumbent?

Menendez, he's not liberal enough for his state. I can deal with Ben Nelson because we're not getting anything better from Nebraska, but we could've done way better with someone like Rush Holt from here.

Lieberman would win hands down if he counts as a Democrat, but he's not running as one, so he doesn't.

[Boris]

Challenger: I'm not the hugest fan of Lamont, although in recent weeks, I've come to prefer him over Lieberman. Overall, I kinda like all of our major challengers/future senators. Casey is probably the dullest of the bunch, but he's infinitely superior than Santorum.

Senate: Bob Menendez, easily. I have no problem with Ben Nelson due to the state he represents.

[TeePee4Prez]

We could have put Joe Hoeffel, Allyson Schwartz, or Mark Singel in his place and got the same, if not better results. 

You would definetley not get better results and you wouldn't be leading by much now either.

Oh, I like how PA would fall in love with the low profile former Lt. Governor Mark Singel if he suddenly decided to run...  

We'd still be leading.  If Sherrod Brown is winning in Ohio, surely Hoeffel or Schwartz would be leading in more liberal PA.  You even have to admit Hoeffel or Schwartz would not get embarassed in the debate as bad as Casey.

No, but they are more out of touch or atleast would be seen as being more extreme (though I know you disagree with that). Sorry, Flyers, but this is how it is:

Hoeffel - a nobody from SE PA who got nothing done while he was in the House (Remember Specter's post office ad?)

Schwartz - a liberal Jewish woman from Philadelphia - not connecting with voters as well as Casey does on the issues outside of SE PA.

The Sherrod Brown situation is totally different. A main reason why he is up is because of the mess known as the Ohio Republican party and the strong candidate they have in Ted Strickland (coattail impact).

The only reason Schwartz or Hoeffel would be up is because of the national climate and even still their lead would be within the margin of error. Santorum would beat either of them.

A liberal Jew can win statewide-  see Ed Rendell and Milton Shapp.

[Keystone Phil]

A liberal Jew can win statewide-  see Ed Rendell and Milton Shapp.

She's a liberal Jewish woman and remember that Rendell ran against weak opposition.

[TeePee4Prez]

A liberal Jew can win statewide-  see Ed Rendell and Milton Shapp.

She's a liberal Jewish woman and remember that Rendell ran against weak opposition.

Wow, just wow.  Like that would make a difference?  You called me immature, now you're being a mysoginist. 

[Keystone Phil]

A liberal Jew can win statewide-  see Ed Rendell and Milton Shapp.

She's a liberal Jewish woman and remember that Rendell ran against weak opposition.

Wow, just wow.  Like that would make a difference?  You called me immature, now you're being a mysoginist. 

I knew it would be only a matter of time before you pulled that. I was saying how it would be perceived, Flyers, and you know it. Guess what? People would back me up on that.

AMAZING how you can harp on the fact that a black running statewide can't pickup votes in areas that would refuse to vote for a minority but I can't point out that people won't vote for a Jewish woman. Hypocrite!

[TeePee4Prez]

A liberal Jew can win statewide-  see Ed Rendell and Milton Shapp.

She's a liberal Jewish woman and remember that Rendell ran against weak opposition.

Wow, just wow.  Like that would make a difference?  You called me immature, now you're being a mysoginist. 

I knew it would be only a matter of time before you pulled that. I was saying how it would be perceived, Flyers, and you know it. Guess what? People would back me up on that.

AMAZING how you can harp on the fact that a black running statewide can't pickup votes in areas that would refuse to vote for a minority but I can't point out that people won't vote for a Jewish woman. Hypocrite!

There are HUGE differences between black and Jewish candidates statewide Phil.  Schwartz is a formidable fundraiser and would win in most scenarios barring an Arlen Specter or Tom Ridge.