Clinton Endorsement

As the election is getting closer, both candidates are looking for endorsements to help get them votes in November. Patty Murray has recently got support from a few major representatives of the Democratic party, including Barrack Obama, Joe Biden, and Bill Clinton. In fact, Bill Clinton was in Everett, Wa at a political rally with Murray on Monday, October 18th. The focus of Clinton's speech involved creating jobs and decreasing the deficit. Clinton said, "I am pleading with you, folks. I'm not running for anything. I just look at the facts". Bill Clinton was trying to persuade the people that the Democrats have a history of doing a much better job with creating jobs and lowering the deficit. These two issues are a major concern in this Senate election. One of Dino Rossi's main claims is that he will do better job reducing the debt than Murray has. Clinton also simply urged voters to not stay home and go vote on election day, and to not be remember that change takes time.

I think this visit by Clinton helped Murray get votes from liberals who were losing faith in Patty Murray. Clinton said he supports her and gave the people reasons why they should continue to vote for the democrats.




Martin, Jonathan. "Bill Clinton Presses Case for Re-electing Patty Murray." The Seattle Times. Web.21 Oct. 2010. <http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2013196850_clinton19m.html>.

Schrader, Jordan. "Dino Rossi: Self-made Millionaire Hopes to Take Experience to D.C. - Elections."  The Olympian. 17 Oct. 2010. Web. 21 Oct. 2010. <http://www.theolympian.com/2010/10/17/1406445/missing-headline-for-17orossis.html>.

De-bate or not debate? That is the question...

Incumbent Senator Patty Murray has agreed to only two debates with Dino Rossi, her Republican challenger.  A spokesperson for Murray said more than two would not be possible, with her busy Senate schedule, yet Murray has a history of "limiting debates."  This is typical of incumbents for the House and Senate, and Murray has continued in style, with agreeing to only one debate 1998 with her challenger, Linda Smith.  However, Dino Rossi is pushing his point across to the public: "Sen. Murray is shortchanging you and the other voters of our state by denying them the chance to hear directly from her about her votes which have jeopardized the economy and put our fellow citizens out of work." 

Brunner, Jim. "Rossi accuses Murray of "shortchanging" voters on debates." Seattle Times (2010): n. pag. Web. 18 Oct 2010. <http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/politicsnorthwest/2012908623_rossipressesmurrayondebates.html?prmid=obinsource>.

October 14 was the first of the two debates between our Senate candidates.  The two focal points were the economy and the war in the Middle East.  Dino Rossi believes that health care and stimulus spending are destroying our economy, and he supports tax cuts for those earning $200, 000.  Patty Murray, on the other hand, feels tax cuts for the wealthy will "destabilize Social Security and halt the cleanup of the Hanford Nuclear Reservation and hurt student loan and construction projects that repair dams and other infrastructure."  She supports tax cuts for those earning less than $200, 000.  As for America's military controversies, Patty Murray feels the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy should be thrown out, and that sexual orientation should not be a means for dismissal in the military.  She also supports a withdrawal timetable of our military from Iraq and Afghanistan.  Dino Rossi says he is, "waiting for a study that is under way before deciding whether gays should be allowed to serve openly in the military."  He feels that a withdrawal timetable of our armed forces will aid terrorists by allowing them to manipulate attacks pending our departure. After this first debate of the 2010 Senate race, not much has changed. Both candidates are well known around the state, and so are their position's on many topics. Critics say that there was no clear winner to this first debate. A Spokane news reporter states that this is because both candidates were, "keeping it fairly safe." With both candidates avoiding getting into the most controversial topics in whatever way they could, it places more importance on the second and final debate.

Brunt, Jonathan. "Economy the focus of Murray-Rossi debate." Spokesman Review (2010): n. pag. Web. 18 Oct 2010. http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2010/oct/14/economy-focus-murray-rossi-debate/.


Allen, M. (2010, Oct 15). Murray - rossi debate ends in a draw. Retrieved from http://www.kxly.com/news/25408719/detail.html 

The second debate between Rossi and Murray occurred on October 17, and focused once more on the economy.  However, other important issues were healthcare, immigration, and the ever present "earmark."  Whilst Dino Rossi contends that earmarks are wrong and mentions how cutting them would improve the economy, Patty Murray feels they are "allocations" from the federal government, and often provide solutions to local projects.  Border control politics also raised disagreements.  Rossi was vague in his answer on whether children of illegal immigrants could embark on a path to citizenship, saying instead that the United States needs, "a high fence and a tall gate."  Murray, however, feels these children should be given the opportunity for citizenship, especially if they are going to college or joining the military.  Last, but not least, the highly contended health care bill sparked a great debate among the candidates.
Rossi: "Was that the part that calls for fines for people who don’t buy health insurance, tax increases to pay for it or more bureaucrats to administer it?"
Murray: "Glad you asked," Murray replied, saying she wrote the section to expand programs for family doctors in medical schools.

Camden, Jim. "Murray, Rossi debate taxes, earmarks, stimulus." Spokesman Review (2010): n. pag. Web. 18 Oct 2010. <http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2010/oct/18/senate-rivals-spar-again/>.

Dino Rossi for the Senate

Dino Rossi is a member of the Republican party, and is challenging incumbent Patty Murray for the United States Senate.  In a historically liberal state like Washington, he has had great success in convincing voters he is the best choice.  Rossi served in the Washington State Senate, 5th Legislative District, from 1997 to 2003, where he  served as chairman of the Senate Ways and Means Committee.  While in charge, he drew acclaim for writing his bipartisan balanced budget proposal, which would reduce the deficit without raising taxes.  Although highly popular among Republicans, his run for Washington governor in both 2004 and 2008 ended in disappointment.  However, the 2004 election was a close race, as Rossi lost by only 129 votes.  In 2008, Dino Rossi ran eleven points ahead of John McCain, the Republican presidential nominee, and experienced record breaking donations to his cause.  He is an experienced businessman, a graduate of Seattle University, and a successful real estate partner.  Rossi currently serves on the Board of the Special Olympics for the state of WA and as a member of the Dean's Advisory Board for the School of Business at his alma mater.  As a candidate he supports:

• Ending illegal immigration by opposing amnesty and finishing the border fence
• Expanding domestic energy resources and exploring alternative fuels
• Reduce national debt by canceling unspent bailout cash and reducing government employment
• Lower taxes to promote businesses and job creation
• Replace the recently passed healthcare bill

As a successful businessman and expert on fiscal matters, Dino Rossi poses quite a threat to incumbent Patty Murray for the U.S. Senate.

Patty Murray

Patty Murray is a member of the Democratic Party, and the party's 4th ranking member in the Senate. The 18-year incumbent is campaigning to keep her job as a Washington State Senator for a 4th term. She was also the first women to be elected as a Senator in Washington State. During Murray's time in the Senate, she hasn't produced many major pieces of legislation, but she has done a lot for Washington State. Some of her accomplishments include creating the Wild Sky Wilderness Area, and directing Federal money towards Washington's light rail, ferries, and roads. She has also helped increase border and port security in our state. Patty Murray is recognized as strong advocate for veterans across the country. Also, Murray is a strong advocate for education. Her support for education extends back to before congress when she severed on her local school board. In past campaigns, Murray has played the role as the representative for the average working family. Murray has a reputation as hard worker behind the scenes in Congress. She claims to be serving her state the best she knows how.

Test Post

I'm hoping this post will work!  That way, my group is on the right track for our assignment!