Senate News & Analysis

Senate Majority Leader’s Biography Badly Needs a Rewrite

by Stuart Rothenberg January 25, 2013 · 9:12 AM EST

“He has earned the trust of both Democrats and Republicans” and has a “reputation for integrity and fairness,” says the biography of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid on his official Senate website.

The self-congratulatory 1,566-word tribute, which includes praise from Sen. Orrin G. Hatch, R-Utah, and Parade magazine,…

West Virginia Senate: Democrats Look for Winner

by Nathan L. Gonzales January 15, 2013 · 11:01 AM EST

Not too long ago, Democrats would have panicked if they had to defend a Senate seat in a state where their presidential nominee received 36 percent of the vote. But victories in North Dakota and West Virginia last year, and a strong cycle overall, have emboldened Democrats in the…

Massachusetts Senate: Clear Eyes, Full Hearts, Won’t Lose

by Nathan L. Gonzales January 11, 2013 · 1:00 PM EST

Scott Brown’s 2010 special election victory to claim the late-Sen. Ted Kennedy’s Senate seat was one of the biggest political upsets of all-time. Now, just three years later, Democrats are rallying behind two words: never again.

Democrats succeeded in knocking off the Massachusetts Republican in November, when liberal…

Are Democratic Insiders Missing the Boat in Massachusetts as Special Election Draws Closer?

by Stuart Rothenberg January 9, 2013 · 8:30 AM EST

Democratic insiders are hoping to avoid a primary to pick the party’s nominee for the special election to fill Democrat John Kerry’s eventual open Senate seat later this year. So, they have jumped on the Rep. Edward J. Markey bandwagon, hoping to anoint him as their nominee without much…

Obama Wins First Round, With More Bouts to Come in 2013

by Stuart Rothenberg January 4, 2013 · 11:14 AM EST

We’ve just seen Round One in what amounts to a political heavyweight championship fight between Democrats and Republicans. Get ready for the next 11 rounds.

Though they were unhappy with a package that included more spending and higher taxes on the wealthy, Republican realists understood that defending tax…

The New Year Can’t Come Soon Enough for the GOP

by Stuart Rothenberg December 22, 2012 · 9:00 AM EST

As the end of the year approaches, it’s difficult not to see the two parties heading in very different directions.

Democrats have emerged from the 2012 elections stronger, while Republicans look poorly positioned and divided.

Politics, of course, is famous for its ups and downs, its unexpected…

Group DeMint Founded Has No Plans to Replace the Departing Senator

by Nathan L. Gonzales December 21, 2012 · 9:00 AM EST

Sen. Jim DeMint’s Senate successor has already been announced, but the influential political action committee he founded has no plans to replace him.

The Senate Conservatives Fund helped vault the junior senator from South Carolina to the national stage when he founded it in 2008. But while DeMint’s…

Looking Back on 2012 Cycle’s Long and Winding Road

by Stuart Rothenberg December 19, 2012 · 9:00 AM EST

Wow, what a political cycle. It was filled with twists, turns and surprises.

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney won the Iowa caucuses — until he didn’t (almost two weeks after the actual balloting, when former Sen. Rick Santorum was certified as the winner).

After finishing a distant…

South Carolina Senate: DeMint’s Surprise

by Jessica Taylor December 14, 2012 · 2:58 PM EST

Establishment Republicans in Washington breathed a sigh of relief with the surprise announcement last week by South Carolina Sen. Jim DeMint that he would resign at the beginning of the year to take the helm of the Heritage Foundation. 


But with GOP Gov. Nikki Haley set…

The Best and Worst of the 2012 Campaigns, Part II

by Stuart Rothenberg December 14, 2012 · 10:30 AM EST

My last column included awards for a number of 2012 campaign and candidate categories, including the luckiest candidate and the biggest upset. But those only scratched the surface in an election year during which candidate quality mattered a great deal. Part II of my guide of the best and…