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Last week, the Rothenberg Political Report http://rothenbergpoliticalrepo... came out and listed our race as having moved from last year's "Solid Republican" ranking to now "Leaning Republican".
With that new ranking, we've been told we're one of the three top races in the country to watch.
As encouraging as that is, I am also being told that I now need to immediately raise huge sums of money if I want to remain competitive.
I didn't get within 2% last cycle by raising millions of dollars and sending out flashy ads. Instead, I did it the old fashioned way. I walked the district and I actually talked to voters one-on-one. I was able to connect with thousands of families who have watched their jobs disappear and their homes lost to foreclosure - even though they always played by the rules. In 2008, I did what I do best: connect with voters one-on-one and discuss issues to explain exactly how I would be different than their current representative. At the heart of each issue (the economy, health care, the environment), we all share the same basic beliefs that we want our children to grow up in a safe, secure, thriving community and to do better than we did.
Unfortunately, I know that this race will be different and that strategy alone won't work in 2010 because the other side is so desperate to retain the seat.
The NRCC now realizes this seat is vulnerable and have made it clear they don't want to lose it. They've already set up a donation page for Calvert and Newt Gingrich is hosting a fundraiser tonight to help raise money for him. |
