Updated Jan 2, 2011
Apparently BN didn't have time for Nebraskans but he did with reporters. Take a look at some of his comments and note the arrogance and blame game he must have picked up from BO. I'll have to paraphrase: Ben Nelson is no fan of the Teaparty...I will not capitulate to the "new minority"....They were prepared to put this country at risk and they did..."..."you have five people who are fighting for the Tea Party support and that's hardly centrist..." Nelson said he isn't running against any one person, they have to earn that right.."
www.omaha.com article:
Sen. Ben Nelson is no fan of the tea party movement "They were prepared to put this country at risk, and they did," said Nelson, referring to Republicans who pushed for deep budget cuts while opposing any changes in the tax code or tax increases........He said he was not going to "capitulate" to the "new minority."The
Lincoln Journal-Star reports Sen. Ben Nelson's re-election campaign will dispatch 10,000 fundraising letters Tuesday describing Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning as "a verbal bully" and urging a contribution to organizations that serve the needy before considering writing a check to Nelson.the
Scottsbluff Star-Herald interview reported Nelson as saying "......(voters) have to look at all of it and not just a single vote".... "...There will be an awful lot of independents and moderates who are not going to support someone with the Tea Party endorsement. Period. "....you have five people fighting for the Tea Party support and that's hardly centrist," Nelson said.... ...Nelson isn't running against any one person yet, he said they have to earn that right.This weekend, the Scottsbluff Star-Herald published the most revealing interview with Sen. Ben Nelson in quite some time. Between the recitation of Nelson's strong bipartisan credentials and a familiar but disappointing justification for his supporting the health care reform bill (to prevent Medicare-for-all), Nelson shows a growing commitment to the 2012 election and a growing confidence about his chances:
"There will always be some reason somebody won't vote for you," Nelson said. "You don't have to run against yourself, but look at your opponent and let the voter make a decision about you. Particularly when you have 20 years of public service, (voters) have to look at all of it and not just a single vote"....
"From my standpoint I was elected in '06 for a six-year term and what I do today is still based on the fact of what I got elected to do," Nelson said. "I don't focus today on what I need to do to get re-elected. I'm also of the opinion after having been governor two terms and now serving in the Senate for a second term that good government is still the best politics"....
Nelson isn't running against any one person yet, he said they have to earn that right. It's the person people vote for in Nebraska, he insists, not the party. "I don't have to stand for retention - Yes or No. It will be vote for me or someone else, unless someone else enters the picture on the other side, you have five people fighting for the Tea Party support and that's hardly centrist," Nelson said....
Nelson said he's not against the Tea Party and that he happens to share a lot of their views. He merely points out that the behavior of people has changed and that many aren't looking for solutions. "The way in which we go about conducting ourselves and try to find solutions means you can't stand and insist, 'it's my way or no way,' in Washington and get a lot done for this country. There will be an awful lot of independents and moderates who are not going to support someone with the Tea Party endorsement. Period. The question is will I be a suitable alternative? I have been in the past. I think I will be in the future."
As for whom Nelson will be an alternative to in the 2012 election, Attorney General Jon Bruning is the clear frontrunner for the Republican nomination. And, a new letter from the Nelson campaign is already pointing out just how unacceptable a choice that would be for the people of Nebraska.
The Lincoln Journal-Star reports:
Sen. Ben Nelson's re-election campaign will dispatch 10,000 fundraising letters Tuesday describing Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning as "a verbal bully" and urging a contribution to organizations that serve the needy before considering writing a check to Nelson. The fundraising appeal, signed by Nelson campaign manager Paul Johnson, points to Bruning's recent remark associating welfare recipients with raccoons.
"The verbal equivalent of a 'knee to the groin' to people already down and out will undoubtedly raise [Bruning] a chunk of change for his campaign and put him in good standing with a certain element of primary voters," Johnson writes. "But his comments do not reflect Nebraska values. He has let blind ambition get in the way of judgment, civility and doing the job he was hired to do."
A few commenters around NNN have made clear they plan to skip voting in the Senate race rather than voting for Nelson or his Republican opponent. I'm sure they think that's the right thing to do, and I'm not going to spend the next fifteen months trying to convince them otherwise. There's plenty of time for everyone to come to their senses and realize the stakes of this election - voting proudly for Ben Nelson in defense of the future of our state and our nation. Discuss :: (3 Comments)
Sen. Nelson: Tea party put U.S. at risk
By Robynn Tysver
WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER
Sen. Ben Nelson is no fan of the tea party movement.
The Nebraska Democrat said the new class of House Republican conservatives appeared — at times — to want this nation to default on its debt. He also blamed last weekend's dramatic debt deal for this week's downturn in the stock market.
Nelson said that under the debt agreement many of the nation's tough budget decisions were "kicked down the road," leaving uncertainty in the business world.
"They were prepared to put this country at risk, and they did," said Nelson, referring to Republicans who pushed for deep budget cuts while opposing any changes in the tax code or tax increases.
Nelson voted against the debt ceiling deal. He said he believes it is a "first step" in a GOP-led effort to balance the budget while rolling back the Medicare and Social Security programs.
He also said he opposes the creation of a super committee that under the agreement was given the task of finding further cuts in the budget by the end of this year. If the committee of 12 House and Senate members deadlocks, the law calls for across-the-board cuts that could hit the nation's senior citizens the hardest, Nelson said Thursday at a press conference at his west Omaha office.
Nelson declined to talk about his future, but he has said he is leaning toward running for a third term. If he runs, he will have a fight. Nelson is considered by some to be the Senate's most vulnerable Democrat after his deciding vote in favor of President Barack Obama's health care overhaul.
Nelson already has several Republican opponents, including State Treasurer Don Stenberg, Attorney General Jon Bruning and State Sen. Deb Fisher.
Stenberg called Nelson a "hypocrite" this week for criticizing Republicans who want changes in Medicare, when he voted for Obama's health-care plan.
The plan, Stenberg said, called for $500 billion in cuts to Medicare. "Can we trust a man who voted to cut $500 billion from Medicare to protect Medicare in the future?"
Nelson has noted that Medicare would not be cut under the health-care plan, but that the $500 billion reflects savings the nation would reap through improved efficiencies in the system.
Nelson also disputed the notion that his vote against the debt deal was a vote in favor of the nation defaulting on its debt.
He said he was not going to "capitulate" to the "new minority."
Chris Cilliza of the Washington Post blog, The Fix, says that former Nebraska Governor Kay Orr has been approached to run for Senate in 2012. http://leavenworthstreet.blogspot.com/
A new ad slamming Nelson about Card Check: http://www.righttoworkcommittee.org/nelsondonate.aspx?pid=s02
Rat Rally Petition to Resign or Remove from Office by Expulsion http://michellemalkin.com/2010/01/25/rat-rally-backlash-against-ben-nelson-still-growing/
PETITION
I, the undersigned citizen of the United States request the resignation of United States Senator Benjamin E. Nelson (NE-D) OR pursuant to the United States Constitution Article 1, Section 5, Clause 2 request a United States Senator enter a Resolution to Remove Senator Nelson by Expulsion.
While there are no specific grounds for an expulsion expressed in the Constitution the undersigned believe he has subverted or denied the majority voice of his constituents which is taxation without representation; has voted on legislation which may cause financial ruin to the State of Nebraska and the United States; and that he may have either conspired or succumbed to bribery or extortion in exchange for his vote(s).
Nelson Damage Control Ad Campaign - Dem party provides $450,000+ Ad showed Omaha Catholic Priest supporting Nelson's vote for Healthcare.
Nelson announces his run for re-election to senate
Other Groups Efforts - backlash against Nelson: There is an electronic billboard at 72nd & Pacific (just down from Sen Ben Nelson's office) that reads "Harry, Thanks for the bribe, Ben" also a www.GiveBenTheBoot.com and a "Bennochio" Watch.....another group has protested once a week in front of his office for the past five months. The moral of the story is....don't take our money and then NOT represent the majority!
bravenet.com