Jolt
Tuesday Jolt: Watch Out Sen. Cantwell
Today's Loser: US Sen. Maria Canwell
As of this morning, US Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA) was a winner for her heavy lift on Wall Street reform—check out today's Fizz writeup on her hero status. But the news cycle is fast these days, and as of this afternoon, we're making her today's loser.
Here's why. The New York Times reports that the Republicans are sharpening up a speaking point for the 2012 presidential campaign that frames the Wall Street bill as a job killer.
From today's NYT analysis:
If the issue helps define 2012—and the recession is still on—this could be trouble for Sen. Cantwell, given that the legislation is her signature issue. Even more complicated for her, she pushed the legislation leftward, fighting for even more regulations.
Certainly, there's a sharp rejoinder—an unregulated Wall Street, which caused the recession in the first palce, is the biggest job killer of all. But if harking back to 2008 didn't work in 2010 (and it didn't), it sure isn't going to work in 2012.
Today's Winner: Drew Hansen
Bainbridge Island environmental lawyer Drew Hansen has been appointed to fill a vacant seat in the state legislature. Hansen will replace Rep. Christine Rolfes (D-22, Bainbridge Island), who has been appointed to the state Senate. Hansen has some big shoes to fill. Rolfes was the sponsor of PubliCola's 2011 Best Legislation, passing a law that made oil companies update their spill contingency plans and cleanup equipment. Rolfes will replace Phil Rockefeller, who is leaving his seat for a spot on the Northwest Power and Conservation Council.
Hansen lobbied hard for the vacant seat and managed to win the approval of the Kitsap County Democrats. He's a heavy in local Democratic politics—he served as Cantwell's policy adviser during her first Senate campaign in 2000 and has been a member of Obama's National Finance Committee since 2008.
As of this morning, US Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA) was a winner for her heavy lift on Wall Street reform—check out today's Fizz writeup on her hero status. But the news cycle is fast these days, and as of this afternoon, we're making her today's loser.
Here's why. The New York Times reports that the Republicans are sharpening up a speaking point for the 2012 presidential campaign that frames the Wall Street bill as a job killer.
From today's NYT analysis:
Republicans have repeatedly invoked the law’s 848-page girth — and its rules on, among other things, trading derivatives and swaps — as a symbol of government overreach that is killing jobs.
Republicans say Dodd-Frank is the root of some of today’s economic problems. It has stopped banks from lending to “job creators,” they contend, and is a direct cause of high unemployment. “It created such uncertainty that the bankers, instead of making loans, pulled back,” said Mitt Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, speaking at a South Carolina rally over Labor Day weekend where he again called for the law’s repeal.
Rick Perry, the governor of Texas, has also called for the repeal of Dodd-Frank. “We have to end it right now,” he said, on the same weekend in the same state as Mr. Romney. Newt Gingrich said it is “a devastatingly bad bill” that is “killing small banks, killing small business, killing the housing industry.” Representative Michele Bachmann regularly reminds voters that she introduced the first Dodd-Frank repeal bill this year
If the issue helps define 2012—and the recession is still on—this could be trouble for Sen. Cantwell, given that the legislation is her signature issue. Even more complicated for her, she pushed the legislation leftward, fighting for even more regulations.
Certainly, there's a sharp rejoinder—an unregulated Wall Street, which caused the recession in the first palce, is the biggest job killer of all. But if harking back to 2008 didn't work in 2010 (and it didn't), it sure isn't going to work in 2012.
Today's Winner: Drew Hansen
Bainbridge Island environmental lawyer Drew Hansen has been appointed to fill a vacant seat in the state legislature. Hansen will replace Rep. Christine Rolfes (D-22, Bainbridge Island), who has been appointed to the state Senate. Hansen has some big shoes to fill. Rolfes was the sponsor of PubliCola's 2011 Best Legislation, passing a law that made oil companies update their spill contingency plans and cleanup equipment. Rolfes will replace Phil Rockefeller, who is leaving his seat for a spot on the Northwest Power and Conservation Council.
Hansen lobbied hard for the vacant seat and managed to win the approval of the Kitsap County Democrats. He's a heavy in local Democratic politics—he served as Cantwell's policy adviser during her first Senate campaign in 2000 and has been a member of Obama's National Finance Committee since 2008.
