A Lesson from Michael Steels

Former Maryland Lieutenant Gov. Michael Steele: "2006? Get over it. It's time to focus on winning... Here's what I learned in 2006: You can't please everyone... but you certainly can make everyone mad at you at the same time."

A very good lesson.

Hat Tip: Jim Geraghty

Maybe Those Congressional Endorsements Aren't Such a Good Idea

This is a little surprising.

While the average lead of Democratic House members stands at 19 percentage points in the 31 vulnerable districts -- all but two of which are part of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's incumbent-protection program known as Frontline -- that number sinks considerably when the lawmakers are linked to either front-runner.

"Some people say [your Democratic incumbent] is a strong supporter of Hillary Clinton and will support her liberal agenda of big government and higher taxes if she becomes president," the poll stated, before asking respondents whether they would still vote for their incumbent or choose a Republican candidate.

Whether the question named Clinton or Obama, the Democratic incumbent's lead shrank to an average of six points: 47 percent to 41 percent with Clinton leading the ticket, 44 percent to 38 percent with Obama as the nominee.

That is not what I predicted and is a bad sign for Democrats. Maybe some of those endangered incumbents are beginning to rethink their endorsement of Hillary, Obama or anyone for that matter.

I am beginning to wonder if the days of coattails are gone.