Will Obama Get Independent Voters Figured Out In Time?

Lots of advice coming in for the President.

OBAMA

• Mr. President, Please Read This Before Thursday (By Ed Koch, RealClearPolitics) Jobs, jobs, jobs, is the nation’s cry. I suggest, as I’m sure your advisers have, that you look to what FDR did in the depression of the 1930s. Again, you can propose, but the Congress will dispose. You should propose work programs comparable to the WPA, PWA, CCC and a host of others.
• Fineman & Wolffe Offer Obama Advice: Paint GOP As "Embracing Bush" (RealClearPolitics) "And indeed, Rick Perry is very popular in the Tea Party. But, the Tea Party is anathema and toxic to independent voters. So the White House is going to go after independent voters by pointing to the Tea Party and try to turn out the Democratic base by painting a scary picture of the Republicans in Congress," Fineman said....
• A Campaign Challenge: Defining Obama (By JEFF ZELENY, NY Times) The outcome of the presidential race over the next 14 months could well hinge to a large degree on which side prevails in the minds of moderate and independent voters.

Gary Allen: Idaho Could Move to "Top Two" Primary Like Washington or California

IDAHO CLOSED PRIMARY SNAFU

• Closed primary legislation hits snag in Idaho House (Betsy Z. Russell The Spokesman-Review) Allen said there are plenty of other options for complying with the court decision without requiring party registration. Idaho could move to a “top two” primary, like Washington. Or it could let parties that want to close their process hold conventions or caucuses at their own expense.
• One major bill that still needs to be heard in the House is the closed primary bill (By KATHERINE WUTZ, Idaho Mountain Express) Sen. Michelle Stennett, D-Ketchum, said she voted against the bill when it came before the Senate on the grounds that it undermines the political process.

LOCAL INDEPENDENT RUNS

• Independent Ogilvie is surprise aldermanic victor in St.Louis (By DAVID HUNN, St. Louis Dispatch) Ogilvie, a freelance graphic designer and Big Shark bike shop worker, promised change, responsiveness and transparency, voters said Tuesday. He is one of a few independents ever elected in the city.
• Jesse Ventura To Run For Vice President? (contactmusic.com) Jesse Ventura's publicist has confirmed that the 59-year-old former professional wrestler is considering entering the race for the 2012 Presidential elections as Ron Paul's running mate, reports Fox News.

REDISTRICTING

• Asian Immigrants In Queens Prepare For Redistricting Battle (By Cristina DC Pastor, Feet in 2 Worlds - Telling the Stories of Today's Immigrants) In New York’s case, redistricting is conducted by the state legislature, though Governor Andrew Cuomo and former New York City Mayor Ed Koch are among those trying to change the rules and establish a non-partisan independent redistricting commission. Mollenkopf noted how in the borough of Queens — specifically the Jackson Heights/Corona area — Asians tend to be juxtaposed between white and black neighborhoods and other ethnic communities. In an arrangement like this, he warned, Asians will be “manipulated by the [redistricting] process and played off against each other.”
• Advocates bring out the snakes to slam Va. politicians’ redistricting plans (By Rosalind S. Helderman, Washington Post/Virginia Politics) “If we look at the lines, we’re seeing donkeys and elephants, drawing dragons and snakes,” said Doug Smith, head of the Redistricting Coalition that is urging a bipartisan redistricting commission.
• Koch Expands On Senate Republicans’ “Dishonorable Act” With Redistricting Reform (By Allen Houston, City Hall News) “After the Republicans win a majority, they decide that they’re going to renege on the promise. I went to Albany and Skelos saw me and I said, ‘Are you walking away from this bill?’ He said, ‘Yes.’ He was honest. He said, ‘We’re going to do a constitutional amendment instead.’ A constitutional amendment is ridiculous.”