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As the end of July is tomorrow, I thought the best way to celebrate the beginning of August was to issue a new chapter of our Taking Back The House series. Plus with the Phillies’s season unraveling before my eyes, I need the distraction.
Before we look at our next incumbent Republican that we believe we can flip, I would like to offer a little disclaimer. We are a very small website, in fact there is no “we” and it’s just “me” who does everything. I would love it if you could help share our posts and maybe even like our page on Facebook or Twitter. Just click the links at the top of the post and you’ll find the redirects. A bunch of services on Twitter and a bunch of people on Facebook always talk about how we need to get the House back in 2014 but very few people do anything about it. We would love it if you could spread the word of Pollitics Today!
But enough with the advertising, I know why you are here. You want to meet our next Republican who we can force into retirement. We were last in Michigan in which I gave you an introduction on Tim Walberg but now, let’s go to Nebraska and meet Lee Terry of Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District.
Lee Terry has been serving in the 2nd Congressional District of Nebraska since he was elected in 1998. Since that time he has been a pretty reliable Republican but as the years have passed, his margin of victory has slowly shrank. There’s a reason we are highlighting him but let’s take a look at the voting record of Rep. Terry and why we feel like there’s a chance that we can make his seat blue.
Legislation & Voting Record:
- Originally was a cosponsor for the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA)
- Voted in favor of CISPA
- Voted against the fiscal cliff compromise
- Given a 0% by NARAL indicating an anti-choice record
- Voted yes on making the PATRIOT Act permanent
- Voted no on qualifying targeted violence against LGBT people a hate crime
Headlines:
- Found himself in the news for withdrawing his sponsorship of SOPA
- Placed on the NRCC’s “Patriot Program” designed to protect vulnerable Republicans
- Cursed at a guy who jaywalked in D.C.; yeah seriously.
Electoral History:
(Will only cover the last couple elections)
2006: Lee Terry (R): 54.7%, Jim Esch (D): 45.3%
2008: Terry (R): 51.9%, Esch (D): 48.1%
2010: Terry (R): 60.8%, Tom White (D): 39.2%
2012: Terry (R): 50.8%, John Ewing (D): 49.2%
PVI:
R+4
Potential Prospects:
Ewing seems pretty uneasy about launching a rematch in 2014, and might wait out until 2016 in which he’ll have a better shot.
Other potential challengers though include state senator Steve Lathrop who is mulling a gubernatorial run, Republican Bob Krist (who is apparently willing to switch parties to run in the primary) and also Omaha City councilman Pete Festersen. Festersen seems to be one of the best bets though as it is noted by DailyKos Elections that he has been in contact with the DCCC.
Why We Can Do This:
Well this seat is a bit more of a stretch than some of the other ones we have highlighted but I expect the DSCC to look more into this race than they did in 2012 as the highly underfunded Ewing nearly took down Terry. The 2nd congressional district gave an electoral vote to President Obama in 2008 and though he didn’t contest the district in 2012, he still pulled in a good amount due to Omaha’s blue hue.
But we can do this if we really drive up the numbers in Omaha thanks to a well-funded campaigner and it gets even more interesting if Terry makes a jump to run in the Senate race that has a vacancy now that Mike Johanns retired. Its at least worthy of keeping your eye on.
Links You Oughta Check Out:
- Steve Lathrop’s Twitter
- Steve Lathrop’s Official Site
- Pete Festersen’s Official Site
- Pete Festersen’s Facebook Page
- Pete Festersen’s Twitter
