OH-02 Holy Schmidt! Republicans eating one of their own...
Submitted by modernesquire on Wed, 05/09/2007 - 5:37pm.
Couldn't happen to a nicer lady.
Former Hamilton County Commissioner Phil Heimlich (from the family of the most notorious "choke" artist fame) announced today that he's running against Congressman Jean Schmidt. Interesting choice of words from his e-mail announcement:
Our party is yearning for a return to the principles established by Abraham Lincoln, the leadership and dignity demonstrated by Ronald Reagan, and the common sense conservative values shared by all Republicans.
The honest and hardworking families of Hamilton, Warren, Clermont, Brown, Adams, Pike and Scioto counties deserve to be represented with dignity and respect.
Geez, right out of the gate and he's saying that Jean Schmidt is a disrespectful disgrace who lacks common sense and has failed to show true leadership (exactly what we've been saying for awhile now; welcome to the club, Mr. Heimlich)!
But perhaps the most interesting note is this nugget:
I am pleased to tell you that we begin this quest with nearly $120,000 on hand, thanks to the generous help of loyal supporters.
In the latest FEC report, Congresswoman Schmidt reported having over $170,000 on hand, so she's got a $50k fundraising advantage right? Well, no, because Schmidt also reported that she's actually got over $300k in unpaid campaign debts, too. Deeply in debt, a marginal backbencher in the minority caucus, facing a strong primary challenger followed by a likely Democratic challenger... Dare I dream that the Second Congressional District could be liberated from Schmidt's power scrunchy grasp?
Jean Schmidt's Debt
Submitted by No Vested Interest on Thu, 05/10/2007 - 12:51am.
Her Meanness's debt is mostly to herself. - She lent her campaign her own money. As vapid as she is, I believe Heimlich will look worse in the rural counties of OH-02. He is a city slicker type.
Big Picture
Submitted by domestic goddess on Thu, 05/10/2007 - 8:21am.
What I remember most about Heimlich came from David Pepper during the campaign. Ask Pepper about the big picture (I think that's the phrase Heimlich used) quote from Heimlich. Priceless. Heimlich is not a mental giant It was one of Heimlich's macaca moments..
Heimlich is a jerk
Submitted by Muffet on Thu, 05/10/2007 - 8:41am.
with a lot of very wealthy friends. Dignity and respect? His confidante and campaign person (Chris Finney) is the one who raised his coat tails and asked a woman from Pepper's campaign to kiss his a**.
$170,000
Submitted by Ohio2nd on Thu, 05/10/2007 - 10:10am.
Where are you getting that number? The FEC website has her at $17,117 through March.
BTW, the real winner in this primary is the Democratic primary winner. This will be an ugly, expensive primary by two of the most unlikeable people you could think of.
C'mon now
Submitted by saggitarius on Thu, 05/10/2007 - 10:36am.
Its a red district and the only reason people get close is everyone hates Mean Jean. If she loses in the primary the second won't be close... all you Dems out there Vote Jean Schmidt in the next primary.
2nd
Submitted by domestic goddess on Thu, 05/10/2007 - 11:10am.
Saggitarius - things are changing. Look at the state races in the 2nd. Everyone's numbers were signigicantly up. It's not a 75% red district anymore. For example, look at the 35th house race. Look at what Adams spent and the 35th is the most republican conservative district in the state. we need to stop throwing up our hands and saying it's hopeless. It's not but it does take a lot of GOTV work. Hopefully, the local, state and national Democratic parties have learned their lesson.
Hope you're right . . .
Submitted by TheCablinasianRam on Thu, 05/10/2007 - 11:52am.
Since it's my home away from school. But remeber, it's going to be much more difficult in '08 than it was in '06 and '05 because it's a presidential year and thats when the district comes out en masse. We're going to have to cope with the batshits which vote every four years for the GOP and we haven't had that test yet.
In a sick way, this is my greatest concern with having Clinton as the nominess; she's not going to help us on OH-02 in making it any easier for a Dem to get elected on coattails.
If it's Vic v Schmidt round two following an abortion of a Republican primary, Vic wins. Heimlich is a tool, but he's also a rich tool and we're going to need all the help we can get.
97X . . . BAM
i'll be curious to see
Submitted by 2010 Buckeye on Thu, 05/10/2007 - 12:12pm.
where the DCCC puts its resources. we're potentially looking at oh-1, oh-2, oh-14, oh-15, oh-16, and oh-18 as competitive races. obviously they'll place defense for space if he needs it, and i think oh-15 is a pretty safe bet to see some serious national money. beyond that who knows if the dccc will play ball in every district. finite resources mean tough choices, especially if incumbents need defense.
Given past actions
Submitted by Ohio2nd on Thu, 05/10/2007 - 10:14pm.
I would bet that the 2nd gets the least amount of resources even though it is the most competitive.
support
Submitted by domestic goddess on Thu, 05/10/2007 - 5:08pm.
I think Wulsin has lined up some big support early. I wish those who don't have a realistic chance would not run in the Democratic primary. Let's be smart this time. We'll need our resources for this race and we could have some good candidates for the state races if these people would be sensible and run for those. And please, I am not suggesting that we don't have contested primaries. But plueeeze, we have an experienced candidate with name recognition who did extremely well. Let's not reinvent the wheel for a change.
Go Vic!