Happy Independence Day 2010!

INDEPENDENT VOTERS

• Rougher Road for Democrats Without Obama Atop Ticket (By JEFF ZELENY, NY Times) If Republicans are to win control of the House, party leaders are relying on candidates like Mr. Chabot to whittle away the 39-seat Democratic majority. Their strategy is rooted in the belief that the Republican base is significantly more energized than it was two years ago, particularly because of the influence of Tea Party activists and at least a share of independent voters who have soured on the leadership of Democrats.
• Tea partiers ascend in many states - With help from Palin and Tea Party Express, anti-government rhetoricians threaten incumbents (BY MICHAEL R. BLOOD, ASSOCIATED PRESS, Salon)
• The Unsung (And Unintended) Genius Of GOP Class Clown Michael Steele (by Frances Martel, MediaITE)
• Senator Feingold continues to oppose financial reform bill as too weak (Boston Business Commentary Examiner, Wagner Rios) Liberal and independent voters in Massachusetts disgusted with Obama's betrayal of campaign promises abstained from voting in the special election to replace Ted Kennedy and send the wrong person to Washington.
• Cook’s Polling Predictions for “Hurricane GOP” and the Dreaded Enthusiasm Gap (By Elise, Blue Wave News)
• Tea Party candidates, Joe Miller, Clint Didier, Jane Norton try to knock off Republicans across U.S. (BY ALIYAH SHAHID, DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER) The real challenge of the Tea Party candidates is if they can garner enough support from moderate and independent voters to win in November. 
• Americans say Obama's 'change' makes nation worse (By Bob Unruh, WorldNetDaily) 
• The (Opposite) Tea Party Effect, Pt. 2 (By Josh Feit, PubliCola - Seattle's News Elixer)
• Surprise, surprise: Tea Partyers are Republicans (EJ Dionne, Washington Post/Post Partisan) For some months now, I have been battling against the idea that the Tea Party movement is some brand-new thing in American politics, an independent movement akin to the rebellion led by Ross Perot in the 1990s. Tea Party people, I have been arguing, are simply right-wing Republicans organized under a new banner.
• Tea Party Supporters Overlap Republican Base -  Eight out of 10 Tea Party supporters are Republicans (by Frank Newport, Gallup)
• Democrats shaping battle plan against Republicans for November (By Dan Balz, Washington Post Staff Writer ) Obama's strategists have been analyzing the state of the electorate and have concluded that the path for Democrats is treacherous but that there is room for improvement before November. They must woo back some independent voters who have defected since 2008 while boosting turnout beyond historical patterns for midterm elections among the millions of new or irregular voters who were energized by Obama's campaign.
• Voting Intentions Even, Turnout Indicators Favor GOP (Pew Research) More than half of independent voters (55%) who back the Republican candidate in their district are more enthusiastic than usual about voting this year; that compares with 36% of independents who prefer the Democratic candidate. While 63% of independent voters who favor the GOP candidate are closely following news about the election, just 48% of independents who support the Democratic candidate say the same. And 77% of independent voters who support a Republican say they are absolutely certain to vote, compared with 62% of independents who back Democrat.
• Zogby finds most Indys want new president, Gallup data also points to dissatisfaction with Obama (By: Mark Tapscott, Editorial Page Editor, Washington Examiner)
• Independents move toward Republicans, away from Obama (Chris Cillizza, Washington Post/The Fix)
• Marist poll: Half of voters say Obama a disappointment (Poughkeepsie Journal) While there has been little change among Democrats and Republicans, dissatisfaction has grown among independent voters. Nearly six in ten — 58 percent — say Obama has disappointed them, and 34 percent view the president as meeting their expectations or going above them and 8 percent are unsure.
• The Grand Old Unaffiliated (News Observer NC)
• Is the Democratic Majority Still Emerging or Slipping Away? (Ari Berman, The Nation) Yet that theory was once again challenged in 2009 and early 2010, as Republicans won major gubenatorial and Senate elections in three states—Virginia, New Jersey and Massachusetts—that Obama won handily. In these elections, Obama’s “coalition of the ascendant” either failed to turn out in sufficient numbers or key blocs, like independent voters and younger professionals, defected to the GOP. 

OPEN PRIMARIES

• Open primaries worth exploring (LETTER NorthJersey.com) 
• Guest Post: Fix America? Fix the Politicians (Submitted by Dylan Ratigan, Investing contrarian)
• GOP loyalty oath draws some Idaho lawmakers' ire (By John Miller, Associated Press, Rochester ID Post Bulliten) BOISE, Idaho — Some Republican lawmakers won't pledge loyalty to Idaho's new state party platform, despite a candidate disclosure measure approved at the 2010 state convention last weekend asking them to do so.
• Eternal vigilance is the price of Liberty II (By JOHN EYSTER, Janesville Gazette Extre - OH)
• Oregon’s Older Voters Rule: Phil Keisling’s Take on the May Primary Turnout  (Willamette Week)
• Open the primaries to unaffiliated (By Paul Choiniere, LETTER TheDay.com)

GOV/ STATE/ MIDTERM RACES

• Outreach to Democrats gives Charlie Crist a balancing act (BY ADAM SMITH, ST. PETERSBURG TIMES, Miami Herald) Crist is counting on overwhelming support from independent voters and strong support from Democrats, but also he can't afford to alienate too many Republicans. Independents are expected to make up no more than 15 percent of the electorate, after all, while Republicans consistently have the strongest turnout in nonpresidential election years.

INDEPENDENT PARTIES

• MD: Independent party no longer qualified for party status - Voters are given two weeks to change affiliation to a recognized political party or to specify a party (By DON AINES, The Herald Mail - MD)

NEW YORK

• Kennedy gets Independence Party nod (By Robert J. McCarthy, Buffalo News)

NYC CHARTER REVISION

• Navigating Independence From Bloomberg, Goodman And Staff Shape Charter Revision (By Chris Bragg, City Hall News)
• Watchdog Says Save Public Advocate, Beeps - The Citizen Union's recommendations to the city's charter revision commission go well beyond the good-government group's reversal on nonpartisan elections. (By Jarrett Murphy, City Hall News)
• Report Says City Elections Should Be Nonpartisan (By JAVIER C. HERNANDEZ, NY Times)