Bagels & Ballots: Now With Kosher Meat
By the Numbers: Senatorial polls have been looking dismal for Democrats as they’ve slid downwards. But, as Nate Silver writes, recent numbers show a slight uptick. For example: In Illinois, “a Rasmussen Reports poll now shows the Democrat, Alexi Giannoulias, with a 1-point lead; he had trailed by 4 points in their previous survey of the race.” On the other hand, Wisconsin is trending Republican, with Ron Johnson’s eight-point lead over incumbent Russ Feingold. (FiveThirtyEight on the New York Times)
Cuomo’s Kosher Salami: While New York Republican gubernatorial candidate Carl Paladino’s Williamsburg (now unsupportive) fixer Rabbi Yehuda Levin has gotten lots of attention — for helping craft Paladino’s controversial speech about homosexuality and, later, almost choking on kosher salami, we decode the man in the hat on the other side. Democrat Andrew Cuomo’s Brooklyn fixer, writes the Forward’s Josh Nathan-Kazis, is Abraham Eisner, a former no-docs mortgage promoter (MitzVote)
Michelle’s Cameo: Yesterday, we told you about the negative bent of the senatorial contest in Illinois. That continued, as Republican Mark Kirk released yet another ad, this time on the radio. It stresses Kirk’s fiscal conservative values and Democrat Giannoulias’s support of the “wasteful stimulus.” On the other hand, though, Michelle Obama showed restraint: while campaigning for the first time since 2008, she praised the “handsome young man” for his “grace and dignity” — without even mentioning Kirk or his party. (The Chicago Tribune)
A Rahmbo Reflection: Rahm Emanuel has been busy calculating his prospects in Chicago’s mayoral race — but Politico writes that his hard work in 2006 may come crashing down this November: “Democrats in 2006 picked up 30 seats that had been occupied by Republicans, toppling 22 incumbents and winning eight open seats vacated by GOP lawmakers. … Of those 30 Emanuel Democrats who arrived in 2006, there is exactly one — Rep. Joe Courtney of Connecticut — who is regarded by political handicapper Charlie Cook as unambiguously safe for reelection.” (Politico)
“Me? A Nazi?” Ohio congressional Republican candidate Rich Iott says those photos of him dressed as a Nazi — particularly in the 5th SS Wiking Panzer Division, a group of Ohio World War II reenactors — says more about his detractors than himself. “You have coordinated an attack on me that’s tried to brand me a Nazi. A Nazi? Because I participated in some historical reenactments?” At the same time, it’s not like he has much negative to say about the SS men whose wartime role he is reenacting (while passing over the war crimes in which the unit was implicated). “I don’t think we can sit here and judge that today,” he told Anderson Cooper. “We weren’t there at the time that they made those decisions.” (Talking Points Memo)
Who Obama Really Wants to Meet: If you’ve ever put your email address down on any Barack Obama or DNC-related listserv, chances are you received an email yesterday from “Barack Obama” about how much he wants to meet you. But guess who else was on the other end? None other than Karl Rove. His inbox received the Obama email titled, “I want to meet Karl.” His response, in an email to Mike Allen: “sure he does … sure.” Mike Allen’s Playbook
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