As the New Nebraska Network first reported last Monday, Republican Tony Raimondo is considering running for Senate as a Democrat. In today's Lincoln Journal Star, he openly considered the possibility in an interview with Don Walton.

Columbus industrialist Tony Raimondo said Monday he's considering entering the 2008 Senate race as a Democrat.

Raimondo, who stepped away from a possible Republican bid after Mike Johanns entered the contest, said he's been urged by national and state Democratic officials to consider making the race within their party.

"Those discussions are continuing to move on," Raimondo said.  "Obviously, there's some interest on both sides."

Raimondo, you may recall, was Bush's pick back in 2004 for "manufacturing czar," but his nomination was withdrawn after questions about his anti-labor practices as chairman of Behlen Manufacturing.

Straight from Raimondo, now, we have confirmation that the rumors we were hearing a week ago were true. Ben Nelson, the NDP, and the DSCC, are recruiting a Republican, who less than two months ago was running for Senate as a Republican, to run under the Democratic banner.

If we're serious about competing everywhere - in all fifty states - we cannot allow this to stand. The Democratic Party in Nebraska will become worse than a joke. Let's make sure we have a voice for Democrats in Nebraska. Let's get Scott Kleeb in this race.

On the web: Draft Kleeb

Ryan Anderson at the New Nebraska Network reported this morning on the increased chatter that Republican businessman Tony Raimondo was considering running for Senate... as a Democrat. This is a terrifying proposition, as I will explain in a moment, but worse than that is the information that we are hearing from several sources: the DSCC and the NDP are actively recruiting Raimondo to run for this Senate seat. Their logic? Money trumps all. Because it worked so well for 2006 Republican Senate candidate Pete Ricketts.

In 2004 Tony Raimondo was the Bush Administration's pick for the newly created position of "manufacturing czar", but after an outcry from the left (led
brilliantly by the John Kerry campaign) his name was withdrawn from consideration.  Why?

TONY RAIMONDO OUTSOURCED AMERICAN JOBS: When President Bush created
the position last year he said the nation had "lost thousands of jobs
in manufacturing...some of it because production moved overseas." And
some of the jobs moved overseas were moved by Tony Raimondo. In 2002,
just four months after laying off 75 U.S. workers, Raimondo announced
he planned to build "a $3 million factory in northwest
Beijing...employing 180." For his part, Raimondo was "unavailable for
comment" because he was on a "business trip to China."

TONY RAIMONDO IS HOSTILE TO WORKERS: Raimondo is "a longtime board
member of the National Association of Manufacturers," a group that is
notorious for opposing efforts to improve conditions for American
workers. NAM has lobbied to strip 8 million workers of federal
overtime protections, consistently opposed any effort to increase the
minimum wage to keep up with inflation and fought workplace safety
laws.

TONY RAIMONDO IS A UNION BUSTER: According to the business publication
Inc. Magazine, shortly after Raimondo took over Behlen in 1982 he
pushed hard to decertify the labor union operating at his company.
Raimondo coached management to sweet talk likely union supporters just
prior to the vote and, on a close vote, was able to bust the union.
Later, Raimondo said that had he not been able to get rid of the union
he was not sure he would "have had the courage or determination" to
continue operating the company.

TONY RAIMONDO FACED FINES FOR WORKPLACE VIOLATIONS: Under Raimondo's
leadership Behlen has been accused by the federal government of
maintaining unsafe working conditions. On 5/16/98 The Omaha
World-Herald reported "the Occupational Safety and Health
Administration has proposed a $123,000 fine against Behlen
Manufacturing Co. of Columbus for alleged safety violations that
resulted in an employee being injured."

TONY RAIMONDO SHILLED BUSH'S TAX CUTS FOR THE WEALTHY: On 2/7/01 the
Omaha World-Herald reported "Bush was meeting with Nebraskan Tony
Raimondo and dozens of other small business executives as part of his
weeklong effort to build momentum for his tax package." Raimondo was a
natural ally - he had twice given the maximum contribution to Bush's
presidential campaign. The tax cuts Raimondo supported will cut the
taxes of a middle class manufacturing worker (making about $35,000
year) $560 next year. Meanwhile the top 1% of earners (who make, on
average, about $1 million a year) will rake in over $41,000 because of
the tax cuts.

We need to fight this.  We have the opportunity to recruit a real
warrior in this race, Scott Kleeb, who will make Democrats stand up
and be proud.  But we are in danger of having Scott passed over in
favor of a George Bush Republican with a large bank account.  We need
to send the DSCC a strong message today: our party is not for sale.
Not to Tony Raimondo.  Not to George Bush.  Not to anyone.

Help Draft Kleeb and donate on Actblue today.

(Crossposted from UNO Democrats)

Since Nebraska has become the latest target of the guardians of Democratic orthodoxy at Open Left, I thought it only fair that a Nebraskan should respond.

It's helpful to actually learn the politics of a state before bashing its Democrats for not being sufficiently progressive. Or, in the height of ironies, bashing its Democrats for "bashing Democrats."

But regardless, a little context is necessary for those who seem hell bent on letting the perfect be the enemy of the good.

Don Walton confirms it:

Sen. Chuck Hagel will announce Monday he'll not seek re-election next year.

Hagel also will tell an Omaha news conference he does not intend to be a candidate for any office in 2008, clamping a lid on speculation he might be pondering a late-inning presidential bid.

In a prelude to Monday's announcement, he conferred Friday with Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky.

Later, Hagel gathered his Washington staff together to inform them of his decision, according to sources close to the senator.

Hagel's departure at the end of 2008 will bring an end to a meteoric 12-year Senate ride that propelled him to national prominence as the most outspoken Republican opponent of President Bush's Iraq war policies.

The table is set. Labor Day is upon us, and a number of political deadlines are approaching. Decisions ready to be made. Political heavyweights ready to enter the arena, and some apparently ready to exit.

I've devoted quite a bit of virtual ink to this race, repeating myself dozens of times, going over every single sign, detail, rumor, or press account to get a better picture of what I believe is the most important race in Nebraska - for Nebraska - in 2008.

The evolution of this race - from the initial rumors of Hagel's retirement, to Mike Fahey's potential entry into the race, Hagel's March "announcement," and Bruning's primary challenge, followed by Kerrey's interest in a potential candidacy, has been one of the most fascinating stories of this young election cycle.

In Don Walton's article in the Lincoln Journal Star today, this quote stands out:

If it's ultimately Kerrey versus Johanns after 2008 primary voters have spoken and all the smoke has cleared, Nebraska may play host to next year's premier Senate race.

So say Chris Cillizza and Shailagh Murray in The Washington Post.

"A Kerrey-Johanns matchup would be the early front-runner for the marquee race of the 2008 cycle," they wrote last week.

We wait in anticipation for Kerrey's decision. More after the jump...

"We did not abandon Chuck Hagel. He abandoned us."

And so it begins. The opening shots in the right-wing blogosphere's "Lieberman moment." I've spent a lot of time on the similarities between this race and Lieberman/Lamont (as well as some of the differences.) But you have to wonder if the right-wingers see it this way.

Well, maybe not. Venture with me into enemy territory, after the flip...

This race has been and will continue to be my singular political focus for the foreseeable future. It's a fascinating look into the mindset of the Republican Party, with all the ingredients of a really nasty primary battle the likes of which this state hasn't seen in some time.

Well... almost all of the ingredients. See, Nebraska Attorney General has announced a primary challenge to Chuck Hagel - without any real indication that Hagel is actually running. He's positioning himself as the anti-Hagel in a race that Hagel might not even participate in.

Where it goes from here is anyone's guess. I predicted shortly after Bruning's March announcement that he was establishing an exploratory committee that Bruning was not interested in waiting for Hagel's decision. He would challenge Hagel, when the time was right. And, by doing so, he would expose a major divide within the Republican Party between the Hagel wing of the party and the anti-Hagel wing.

It goes beyond Hagel's politics - though that is Bruning's opening to run. It really is about Hagel's hold on the Republican Party. He may have lost it, already, as more and more Nebraska Republicans are openly distancing themselves from Chuck Hagel. He's quite publicly positioning himself as an independent - something that clearly isn't going to sit well with Republican Primary voters. So, Bruning's strategy is clear: to beat Chuck Hagel, he's going to position himself as Hagel's primary challenger. If Hagel drops out, Bruning will declare victory - claiming that his challenge pushed Hagel out of the race.

The longer Hagel waits to get into the race, the weaker his position will be. Bruning's already starting out in a very strong position for a challenger - his internal polling shows him with a 9% lead. And it's doubtful that Hagel's actions over the last three months have done anything to win over Republican voters.

A lot can change in eleven months, but at this point it's likely that Jon Bruning will be the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate in Nebraska. That is, quite frankly, frightening. Many of you will recall Ben Nelson's opponent in the 2006 race, a self-funding candidate named Pete Ricketts. But while the odious amounts of money Ricketts poured into his own campaign were disturbing, the most troubling aspect of Ricketts' campaign was his total lack of political morals. His complete disconnect from reality. Ricketts suggested, with a straight face, that Ben Nelson was a liberal like Ted Kennedy and Hillary Clinton. Not surprisingly, the message of "I'm a Republican, vote for me!" didn't resonate very well among Nebraskans who had a good sense of the kind of Senator Ben Nelson was.

Jon Bruning running for Senate should be a joke. Just over a decade ago, Bruning was a young law student at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, writing articles praising Hillary Clinton and blasting conservatives for the Daily Nebraskan. (One particularly ironic article was titled "Conservatives, Come Out Of The Closet.") Now he's running as the champion of conservative values. This is a picture of a man with no political morals, no conviction other than the overwhelming desire to get elected.

He's also a political lightweight who has never been significantly challenged in any race he's ever been in. He's going to be in for a rude awakening when Hagel blasts him, but getting criticized by Chuck Hagel may actually help Bruning make his case. We need a Democrat who can make this a clear choice.

Omaha Mayor Mike Fahey has been a favorite of mine to run for Senate, but he seems more interested in running for a third term as mayor. I could still be wrong on this, but the entry of Kerrey into the discussion suggests that Fahey is losing interest in what would be a fierce battle, and Kerrey's stepping in to make sure we have a credible challenger. If Kerrey runs, Fahey won't. If Fahey runs, Kerrey won't. That much I know.

Scott Kleeb is a favorite of the netroots, but I've got to be honest, folks: we can't let Adrian Smith go unchallenged. He's an embarrassment to this state and his district. Kleeb is the only candidate who can beat Adrian Smith.

Bob Kerrey approached his former campaign manager (and the manager of both of Ben Nelson's and Mike Fahey's successful campaigns) to put some polling out in the field two months ago. Rumor has it the poll looked very good for Kerrey. Since then, he agreed to be the keynote speaker at the Nebraska Democratic Party's annual Morrison-Exon Dinner. Whatever his plans, it seems clear that Kerrey is not content to sit on the sidelines any longer. Though, like Fahey, he has promised to sit out if Hagel runs, a lot of the signs are pointing to Bob Kerrey being the Democratic candidate for Senate in '08.

Now, this isn't going to come as terrific news to many of you. We're still stinging from the recent supplemental bill, and Kerrey just recently penned an editorial blasting liberals on Iraq. But look past it for a moment. Bob Kerrey may be exactly what we need to take this seat back.

You'd be wrong to call Kerrey a "spineless" Democrat or a Lieberman clone. He speaks his mind quite freely, and he certainly has no love for the Bush administration. It'd be wrong to demand absolute party loyalty, especially from a Senator from Nebraska. I'm not a fan of the tone or the content of Kerrey's Iraq stance. But I'm not about to dismiss him as a candidate because of it.

Kerrey would school Jon Bruning, a political lightweight with no moral center and no beliefs. Bruning will haul out the charges of Kerrey being a "carpetbagger," which will be a joke by that point, as Bruning has already used that language to describe Chuck Hagel. Kerrey is one Nebraska Democrat who knows the art of a political smackdown, and that's precisely what we need against Jon Bruning.

In 2006, the choice was clear between a Democrat who had clearly and strongly represented the people of Nebraska, a Democrat who won 3 statewide elections; and a Republican who ran his campaign on the sole fact that he would be a Republican and Bush loyalist. Jon Bruning wishes to be the latter in this race. Bob Kerrey is the former. If we want to draw a clear distinction between the parties in this state, if we want to remind Nebraskans why the Democratic Party represents them better than the Republican Party, we need only to put Bob Kerrey up against Jon Bruning, and watch the rest fall into place.

Bob Kerrey for Senate? Jim Esch for Congress in NE-02? And Scott Kleeb for Congress in NE-03? That's a ticket I'd be proud to support.

Last week, David took a look at the "Swing States" for 2008, adding:

Now, as you know, I'm a big believer in the fifty-state strategy, but as you also know, these things take time. As much as I'd like to believe we'll see an expanded playing field in the next presidential race, I think we all realize that Howard Dean's plan is the work of many years.

I agree, and it's important to put our resources where they have the best chance of affecting the outcome, but at the same time, we don't know how the picture will look, who our nominee will be, who their nominee will be, etc. Speculation is fun, and I'm no stranger to it. But the question that came to me, a resident of a deep-red state, when looking at the playing field, and realizing that the playing field David put out there is probably broader than the playing field we'll see in 2008, was: What can we do to change it? How can the netroots do what we do best - making races competitive - in 2008? Can we do it in a Presidential race?