I'm with you there. I really like Schweitzer and he has been a "hmmm what if?" candidate for me so far, but yeah, much better to build his cred as governor for a FULL term.

I got the response back from Survey USA. They say it was just a cut & paste error, that the approval percentages are correct but the racial breakdown percentages were not.  

"The data has been corrected, and the web page should now be refreshed.

There was a problem with the DISPLAY of our data, but not with the
underlying data itself.

It was (to slightly over-simplify it, but not misstate it) a cut and
paste problem on our end.

The correct % of African Americans were interviewed and were reflected
in our original results, and now are displayed correctly.

Many thanks for your careful scrutiny."

Now the data shows
89% White
7% African America
3% Hispanic
1% Other

a reply from SurveyUSA that they are "looking into the problem" with the Indiana poll. I'd suggest you all look at your own state's internals for oddness like 0% African Americans in the sample.

I'm hoping they inform me when they get an answer.

I have a problem with the Indiana poll. I posted a comment on Kos about this and have emailed Survey USA hoping to get an answer. Maybe someone here can help...

read the Indiana internals... is it just me or does that say that the poll was 97% white in indiana, 0% African American?

That would explain how Indianapolis is shown at 50% (no way) and could mean the numbers are better (for us) than 48/48...

but maybe I'm reading something wrong.
Also posted about this on the Indiana Democratic Club blog
http://www.indianademclub.org/blog/2005/06/29/national-politics/111/

Indiana: Ranked #2 in bankruptcies per capita and #5 in bankruptcies per household.

Our Democratic Senator? Voted for the bankruptcy bill.

That was the final straw. I know I'm repeating myself here, but no way in hell will I work for that spineless DINO. Oh he talks big now and then but show me something he's DONE. Show me a bill he's pushed and taken the lead on that was a truly Democratic Party bill. I'd really like to see one if there is one.

Hope you're right about that. As much as I'm not a fan of Roemer's politics (far to moderate formy tastes, like Bayh) it'd be another D in the senate to fight off extremist judges.

Roemer was certainly wrong for DNC chair but could be right for Senate from Indiana.

probably, but what to make of this rumor?

"Informed and reliable Democratic sources" tell the Howey Political Report that former Rep. Tim Roemer (D-IN) "is seriously considering a 2006 challenge to U.S. Sen. Richard Lugar... Roemer confidants tell HPR that a statewide head-to-head poll taken by Garin-Yang last week had Lugar leading Roemer by 41-39 percent. It also revealed that 36 percent felt the country was on the right track and 53 percent felt the country was on the wrong track. Previous published polls in Indiana have had Senator Lugar with approval ratings in the 70th percentile."

I posted this on the Indiana Democratic Club but foudn it via Political Wire & Kos

Is Lugar really vulnerable, was that just a super partisan poll, or was it just a response to the filibuster stuff going on at the time? A sort of temporary "throw the bums out" feeling?

I'm really tired of the "let's worried about what people think about us when we tell the truth."

Our past strategy of bowing down to the GOP and begging "please don't hurt us" while trying to appease Christianists who will never be appeased hasn't been working.

IMHO showing some spine is a winning strategy. it's unfortuante that you beleive telling the truth is a public statement that will turn off voters.

Could you outline why you think Dean is awful and what sort of Chairman you would prefer? I'm not doing this to attack but because I'm truly curious what could be better than someone who as:

a) drawn fire away from Pelosi and Reid
b) raised mroe money in an off-election year than any other Democratic Chairman
c) replaced big corporate money donations with small donations at the same time.
d) pumped up the base more than any previous chairman in recent history (i.e. recent Democratic failure history)

just the things a chairman should be doing. He's not a publicly elected official so the GOP's attacks on him are wasting their energy better spent on going after actual elected officials (not that I'm complaining)

I hope you aren't taking this as attacking you for your unpopular view. Just my own take on it.

There's a differencce between your assertation of "worship or bust" and "attacking the Party Chair for just telling the truth."

Is anything Dean said wrong? No. But attacking him for telling the truth (the GOP leadership HAS, for the most part, never done a day's honest work. and the GOP IS the party of right white Christians) plays right into Fox news' hands when it looks for Democrats to attack Democrats. Then they can pretend to be "fair and balanced" by saying "see, we had a Democrat saying that stuff!"

Constructive criticsm? sure. Other party leader Dems whow ant to criticize Dean's wordign should first take it behind closed doors, not to Fox News.

No way to Bayh.  I'ma Hoosier. I've had to deal with him and his non-responsiveness from his office when I write them. I've had to deal with him being my Senator while he attacked dean back durign the primaries.  I had to deal with his vote for the war (and his subsequent fence straddling about it now).

The man has no spine. He has no loyalty to core Democratic principles.

But most of all, his vote FOR the bankruptcy bill is inexcuseable! Indiana ranks FIFTH in the nation in bankruptcies per household and he voted FOR the bankruptcy bill. FOR IT! He had NO EXCUSE to vote for that yet he did anyway to please his corporate masters.

When I got a letter back from his office as to why, it basically said "yeah, I know there are alot of other factors that lead to bankruptcy and we need to fix them, but I wanted to fix this now." without even a THOUGHT as to how none of those other problems will get fixed with this current congress and that bill threw many of his constituents under the bus.

If Evan Bayh gets the nomination, I will nto work for him. I will do NOTHING for his campaign and I know many other Hoosiers who feel the same way. I will find a deserving congressional candidate or local office candidate to work for.

I will do NOTHING for that DINO Bayh.

Ritchie Mitch Daniels not looking so hot either.

42 approve / 49 disapprove. A horrendous showing among independants too (39/52).

For a guy who swept in as a "people's governor" and who's party controls both houses of the state house, a 42% approval is atrocious this early in the game.

For any Hoosiers reading this, I posted on this over at the Indiana Democratic Club blog.
http://www.indianademclub.org/blog/2005/05/11/indiana-politics/79/

It's not JUST "inner city" indianapolis. Her district covers the old city limits as well as stretches into most of the county townships. True it is a very urban district, but it's hardly all "inner city" which implies minorities and poor.

One of the bright spots of living in Indiana (as mucha s I defend it we do have many problems) is being represented by Julia Carson. Good to see her as loyal as I perceived her to be.

defensive much?

blaming people wasn't the point of this post. the point was that Nader's ego and his sabotaging of the 2000 election (whether true or not, it's viewed that way by many of the very people the Green party wanted to attract) killed the viability of the Green Party just as it was reachign a point where it could have been working and winning more local races (and maybe even state races in some areas).

the point wasn't blame about the 2000 election - the point was a "how the Green Party was killed by Ralph Nader's ego".

"having an adversarial state legislature that is actively opposed to investing in the city is not exactly a way to help your city grow,"

Amen! The Indiana State LEgisalture, now under control of the GOP for the first time in 16 years, is taking out its frustrations on Marion COunty/Indianapolis.  They're doing this because

a) the rural Republicans don't seem to like big city Indianapolis just like rural republicans don't seem to like the coasts

b) Marion COunty is turning solid blue, so they are doing things like trying to make Marion County (and Marion County only) judges appointed by the governor instead of elected, kill Mayor Peterson's (a good Democrat) initiatives to expand the convention center and built a stadium for the Colts, do things to the property tax burden in Marion County, etc etc.

SO basically we have the traiditional rural vs. city combined with the GOP trying to keep Marion County Down and Mayor Peterson down (because rumors have him running for Governor against My Bitch Mitch Daniels in 2008)