TODAY'S NEWS HEADLINES for INDEPENDENT VOTERS - Health Care and Charter Revision

INDEPENDENT VOTERS

• Romney, Huckabee Beat Obama Among Independents (The Atlantic)  Public Policy Polling survey pdf
• Obama Needs a Gergen (Charles Kolb, Huffington Post) Obama's White House suffers not because of Emanuel but from overly parochial and partisan instincts that are driving Independent voters almost two-to-one into the Republican camp.

ARIZONA

• Hayworth Closes in on McCain (PAUL CRAFT, Frum Forum) Among liberal and moderate Republicans, however, McCain has a wide lead. If the Arizona GOP primary is closed off from independent voters, as state party officials hope, the primary might be dominated by the anti-McCain conservative party base.

COLORADO

• Curry bumped off House Appropriations (By TIM HOOVER, State Bill News/Denver Post)

LOUISIANA

• Hebert drops party tag (Mike Hasten, The Advertiser) 

PENNSYLVANIA

• Bring independents into the primary mix (by Stephen Bouikidis, PA2010)

• READY TO SOAR-Independents could decide key Congressional races, but few have confidence in Republicans or Democrats to get the job done (By Scott Kraus, The Morning Call) Right now, though -- according to a new Morning Call/Muhlenberg College poll -- they're not jazzed about either the Republicans or Democrats.
• Christopher Borick -- Pennsylvania's independents see need for third party, but likely to keep voting for Republicans, Dems (Morning Call/Opinion)

NYC CHARTER REVISION COMMISSION

• Commission's First Meeting -- With Cheesecake (Gotham Gazette/Wonkster)
• NYC Charter Revision Commission Meeting 3.18.10 VIDEO (HanksterTube) Statement by NYC Independence Party chief organizer Cathy Stewart
• Borough's rep on Charter panel backs boosting BPs' powers (By Tom Wrobleski, SI Advance)
• Charter Commission Holds Inaugural Meeting, Outlines Agenda (By: Grace Rauh, NY1) WITH VIDEO INCLUDING LEAFLETING BY YOUTH
• Charter Commission Kick-off: Cheesecake and Undercurrents (City Pragmatist blog) In the audience, leaders of the city’s Independence Party sat quietly and considered the testimony they will deliver when the commission conducts public hearings in April. One of them, NY County Chair Cathy L. Stewart, told us that her party’s goal will be to convince the charter commission to recommend non-partisan City elections: not an unlikely target with a commission appointed by Michael R. Bloomberg, whose 2003 appointees did the same thing, but were rejected by voters.

NY LABOR and the HEALTH CARE VOTE

• 1199 Pulls Support From Arcuri (BY ELIZABETH BENJAMIN, Daily News/Daily Politics)Can New York's Working Families Party Impact the 2010 Elections? (by DavidNYC, Daily Kos)
• Schaffer Going Shopping For 2011 (BY ELIZABETH BENJAMIN, Daily News/Daily Politics)
• 1199 Targets McMahon And Arcuri, Supports Maffei (BY ELIZABETH BENJAMIN, Daily News/Daily Politics)
• With third party threat, Republican take another look at NYC seat (Ben Smith, Politico)
• Citizens Union watchdog group struggles with cozy government relationships (ADAM LISBERG, Daily News)

LAST WORD

• The Left Never Left Obama (by ARI MELBER, The Nation)