WASHINGTON -- This is crunchtime for members of Congress who must decide whether to seek reelection next year or leave office, and so far Republicans seem to be lunging for the exits. While 16 GOP lawmakers have decided to throw in the towel on their Capitol Hill careers, only two Democrats so far have called it quits -- and they both are seeking higher office.

The disparity underscores the sharply different moods in the two parties: Democrats, still heady from winning control of Congress last year, are enjoying the fruits of power. Republicans, their party in disarray and reduced to minority status in the House and Senate, see more allure in retirement or private life.

"I don't like being in the minority," said Rep. Ray LaHood (R-Ill.), who was first elected in the 1994 GOP landslide and will retire after this term. "It's not that much fun, and the pros- pects for the future don't look that good."

The wave of retirements compounds the challenge facing the GOP in the 2008 congressional election, because the party is significantly trailing Democrats in fundraising. That means Republicans will apparently be defending more House and Senate seats with less money, and they will be fighting battles in places that otherwise might have been secure.

What is more, many of the Republicans choosing to retire are older, more pragmatic lawmakers, such as Rep. Ralph Regula of Ohio; moderates like Rep. Deborah Pryce of Ohio and Sen. John W. Warner of Virginia; and mavericks like Sen. Chuck Hagel of Nebraska. These departures reflect the generational and ideological changes that have pushed the Republican contingent in Congress steadily to the right over the last decade.

Eddie Mahe, a former GOP official, says it is no surprise that many Republicans are thinking about quitting politics at a time when President Bush's popularity is low, Iraq is in turmoil and the U.S. economy may be going soft.

"If I was talking to my favorite brother-in-law and he was thinking about running for Congress, I would say, 'Why would you want to do that now?' " Mahe said. "If anybody's not smart enough to figure that out, I don't want them around anyway."

Democrats have their own political vulnerabilities: Despite disillusionment with the GOP, many voters are not satisfied with Democratic control of Congress. A recent poll conducted for National Public Radio found that Congress' approval rating has slipped to 25%, down from 36% in April.

Still, against that backdrop, more Republicans than Democrats are abandoning the institution. So far in the GOP, five senators and 12 House members have announced they will retire. Among Democrats, no one in the Senate is retiring, and two have said they will leave the House -- to run for the Senate.

Retirements are crucial to congressional election strategy because, in most cases, it is easier for a party to hold on to a seat when its incumbent runs for reelection than to retain a seat opened by retirement.

That is why Rep. Tom Cole of Oklahoma, chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee, has been laboring to persuade his party's incumbents to run for reelection. He is urging at least one -- Rep. Jim Ramstad of Minnesota -- to reconsider his decision to retire.

Cole says it is always difficult to dissuade lawmakers who leave for personal reasons. Pryce, for example, said she was retiring from the Ohio seat that she nearly lost in 2006 to spend more time with her daughter, who is entering kindergarten.

"It's hard to say no to that," Cole said. "But that was one that hurts, because we fully expected her to run."

The fact that at this early stage, 11 House Republicans have announced retirement -- and one is leaving the chamber to run for Senate -- is not out of line with past years. What is more unusual is that almost all Democrats are staying put.

Cole takes heart in the fact that several of the GOP retirees, such as Rep. David L. Hobson of Ohio, are from districts that Republicans will probably be able to hold with little trouble. But others will give the GOP a fight it might otherwise not have had to wage. Of the 12 seats opening, eight are ranked as potentially competitive by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report -- including five it identifies as tossups.

Republicans will probably be fighting on that turf with less money: As of the end of August, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee had $22.1 million on hand, compared with $1.6 million held by the GOP House committee.

There is a similar imbalance in fundraising for Senate races: As of the end of August, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee had $20.6 million in the bank; its Republican counterpart had $7.1 million.

That financial disadvantage is especially problematic for Republicans because next year the party must defend 22 of its 49 Senate seats, compared with 12 Senate seats to be defended by Democrats.

For the GOP, the climb to recapture the Senate majority it lost in 2006 has gotten steadily steeper, as one veteran senator after another announced retirement. Warner cited his advancing age. Hagel and Sen. Wayne Allard of Colorado each said he was abiding by his promise to serve only two terms. Sen. Pete V. Domenici of New Mexico is leaving due to illness.

Those announcements were a big blow to the GOP, because Democrats would have had little hope of being competitive in Virginia, Nebraska and New Mexico against those popular incumbents. They have a good shot at those states now -- especially in Virginia, where Republicans are divided over whom to nominate for the seat and the leading Democratic candidate, Mark R. Warner, is a popular former governor.

Sen. Larry E. Craig (R-Idaho) announced last month that he would resign after his arrest and guilty plea to disorderly conduct in a men's restroom. He has since indicated he intends to serve out his term, to the dismay of some fellow Republicans.

Democrats cannot help but gloat that none of their incumbent senators -- not even Tim Johnson of South Dakota, who is recovering from a brain hemorrhage -- is retiring.

"It's another sign that the enthusiasm and the energy is on the Democratic side this year," said Sen. Charles E. Schumer of New York, chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.

I saw this in The O today. Let me make this clear for scrollers:

GOP: 17 OPEN seats up for grabs (in House and Senate)

Democrats: 2 OPEN seats up for grabs.

When the going gets tough, the GOP quits!

Vitalogy, rather than gobbling up bandwidth and posting an unattributed and copyrighted Los Angeles Times article, why not just provide a link?

LMAO. YEAH! Because THEN the situation would be better!

Happy you had a good laugh, Juggler. But, seriously, you can use a snippet to generate interest and then provide a link. Wholesale use of copyrighted materials places Website owners in jeopardy.

I posted the entire story because sometimes Oregonlive requires some minimal information before viewing.

Any other advice you have for me?

Hastert to vacate seat.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21360857/

Magic eye, does this meet your requirements?? Now I expect you to click on the link and comment on the material.

"Any other advice you have for me?"

Yes, try some Metamucil or prunes.

As a Republican, I'm saddened by what has happened to my party. Hopefully, better days will come again but certainly not before some ugliness.

Magic_eye - IMHO, the best thing that probably can happen to the GOP is for the far-right to weed itself out. Bush and his ilk will be out of the White House on Jan. 20th, and even if a Republican somehow gets elected it'll be someone moderate. The pending loss of so many GOP seats in the Senate means that, hopefully, the party will steer to the left a little bit, and get much of the GOP base back.

Until then, I'll be on the outside looking in.

This just means we will have a lot of young, fresh faces, people that can serve for a lot of years.

" We "? As in Republicans?

Yes, as in Republican, the party of Lincoln.

Right. So you expect all the vacancies to be filled with Republicans?

Nwokie - that would be ideal, but where are those fresh young faces of the Republican party? The ones willing to steer a bit left of the current Neo-Con direction of the party?

It's going to be the Democrats taking a stronger foothold. Maybe THIS is what gets some moderate Republicans in the fold.

I suggest you read "Team of Rivals" by Doris Kearns Goodwin, and see if you recognize "The Party of Lincoln".

http://www.amazon.com/Team-Rivals-Political-Abraham-Lincoln/dp/0743270754/ref=pd _bbs_sr_1/103-3932226-1656613?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1192744982&sr=8-1

Another revisionist bio on President Lincoln. People forget that Licoln first of all was the ultimate politician. Not a great debator, he lost most of the debates he had.

He was for a strong military, even recognized the military talents of Col. Robert E. Lee. Felt that the use of force was justifiable, and the loss of many lifes in a good cause, was worth it.

Lincoln was a pragmatic, if letting the south keep slaves would help keep the union together, he was for it. If giving the slaves their freedom, would speed the end of the war, he was for it. If letting a few states keep their slaves and reducing the power of the confideracy he was ok with that too.

Lincoln ignored the constitution when it suited him.

So is Lincoln running again? No. So just because you have a leader in name only, doesn't mean you have any leadership for people. I mean, just invoking the name of Lincoln gets you absolutely nowhere. You've got to have someone that will actually LEAD.

So which Republicans ( you know, the fresh faced ones that inspire you) are really hot and bothered to give it all they've got to replace the outgoing Republicans?

When one is scraping at the bottom of the barrel, "Lincoln" is all you can see.

Comparing today's GOP to the GOP of Lincoln's era is like comparing today's Yankees to the Yankees of Babe Ruth's era. No relation other than name.

"Lincoln was a pragmatic, if letting the south keep slaves would help keep the union together, he was for it. If giving the slaves their freedom, would speed the end of the war, he was for it. If letting a few states keep their slaves and reducing the power of the confideracy he was ok with that too."

This is an accurate portrayal of Lincoln. But, his pragmatism waned as the war dragged on, as evidenced by the Gettysburg Address. By that time, he realized that simply preserving the Union (by any means) was not enough; that the one and only way the Union could survive, without being a parody of itself, was if it was all free. Lincoln clearly learned from the experiences of war, grew during his tenure as President, and adjusted his vision and leadership to the reality on the ground.

Can we say the same of the current president?

The Eye said>>>
As a Republican, I'm saddened by what has happened to my party. Hopefully, better days will come again but certainly not before some ugliness.

We are in the same boat here. If we could just drop the Evangelical EXTREME RIGHTIES from our side and return to what made Republicans great we might have a shot next year. I'm soooo afraid of what Hillary and Bill are going to do to America in 8 years it makes me sick to my stomach. But it can't be any worse than what DUHbya and Co. have done.....

Why sould the Republicans want to lean left, and become demos-lite?

Its not like the demos really stand for anything, heck the demo house cant even decide on a simple resolution condeming genocide in Turkey.
If the demos tried to vote on an amendment condeming Nazi's, they'd probably couldn't come up with a consesus. Nancy Pelosi couldn't lead a starving man to dinner.

How about the battle between the EXTREME RIGHTIES and TRUE Republicans in the house and senate... They can't make their minds up for shit on ANYTHING! Half want to stand behind DUHbya and half can't figure out if their a foot or horseback. When all the EXTREMEIES are gone and free thinking Americans are making decisions then maybe just maybe True Republicans can work with EVERYONE and bring America together instead of constantly pushing EVERYONE apart!

"Why sould the Republicans want to lean left, and become demos-lite?"

I'm not saying become "demos-lite" ... but don't you think it MIGHT be wise to, at least socially, turn to the left a little bit? The Neo-Con crowd is simply losing touch with mainstream America, who has shifted to the left (especially the last seven years). If you want to try and get by and serve the majority, don't you think that maybe as a Party that your views and ideas should fit somewhat in line with them?

Nope, not at all. As long as we stay loyal to our base, we can keep on winning the south, midwest and mountain states, which gives control of the house, senate and Presidency.Don't you just love the electoral colllege!

Well we shall certainly see. Nice hedge though, Nwokie; " If we lose, it's because we didn't stay true to our base." Good one. There couldn't possibly be any other reason why some states lose seats. Oh gosh no. People actually changing their minds couldn't possibly factor into decision making for the future. Nope. Republicans have a patent on what is best. If Democrats win, it's because Republicans didn't feel pandered to enough. Got it.

Oh wait, you used the word " can." I forget that with you, you always leave yourself an out in case you are asked to explain anything. So then you can just say " Hey - I didn't say that it WOULD happen. Just that it COULD. I like to give equal weight to everything and imply that it's all part of my plan."

Plan on losing seats. Not picking them up. How's that for a plan?

I like the fact that the next president will be able to win the electoral college without one single electoral vote from the south. F the south!!

Keep it up.

NASCAR and gun owners will help elect our next President, a Republican...thanks in part to our southern friends.

Herb

Do you think Giuliani can win those southerners? It will be very interesting if he gets the nomination and then watch the religious right back way off in their support.

The generation X crowd of evangelicals are not holding to just a two issue agenda. They may be against abortion and gay marriage but they are even more concerned by the war, poverty, sex trafficking, and environmental issues.

Herb the old conservative guard is simply getting old. Today’s younger generation even on the conservative side is swinging away from your two issue stance. I think you maybe very distraught come Jan of 2009.

"I think you maybe very distraught come Jan of 2009."

Fortunately he has come up with over 100 different ways to cook up crow. I'm sure he'll be up and boasting again in no time at all.

Chris said>>>>
Do you think Giuliani can win those southerners?

Pro choice and Pro homosexual??? Herb will run screaming from camp Giuliani like an EXTREME RIGHT Bible thumper at an evolution convention.

Keep your rants up Herb, and Hillary will be running this country! And I'm moving to Switzerland! Thanks EXTREME RIGHTIES like Herb and DJ!!!
Now you've done it! America is really screwed now.... It's your MY WAY OR THE HIGHWAY attitude that America can't stand. That's the reason the next 8 years is going to be PURE HELL! Keep it up and it will be 16!

"NASCAR and gun owners will help elect our next President, a Republican...thanks in part to our southern friends."

Sorry to break the news to you, but the south won't matter in this election. All the Demorcrat needs to do is win the states Kerry won plus Ohio. Your Nascar and gun voters will be left out in the cold.

Except you won't win Ohio, and will probably lose a couple of Kerry states.

Dream on. Ohio is absolutely trending Democrat right now, and there's no way that any of the states that Kerry won in 2004 would vote GOP today.

"...the south won't matter in this election."

I don't blame you for spinning, as Mr. Gore COULDN'T EVEN WIN HIS HOME STATE OF TENNESSEE...and Hillary is FAR too polarizing for the South.

And throughout the entire country, not a single republican candidate has the high negatives of Mrs. Clinton.

If you think the AMA, large and small business owners, insurance companies and religious conservatives are going to hold back from exposing Mrs. Clinton's socialist schemes, keep dreaming.

They'll shine a little light on her duplicitous positions and we'll see the liberals scatter like rats.

The Herbster

"...the south won't matter in this election."

I don't blame you for spinning, as Mr. Gore COULDN'T EVEN WIN HIS HOME STATE OF TENNESSEE...and Hillary is FAR too polarizing for the South.

And throughout the entire country, not a single republican candidate has the high negatives of Mrs. Clinton.

If you think the AMA, large and small business owners, insurance companies and religious conservatives are going to hold back from exposing Mrs. Clinton's socialist schemes, keep dreaming.

They'll shine a little light on her leftist positions and we'll see liberals scatter like rats.

The Herbster

Keep it up Herb! You and YOUR EXTREME base will have Hillary sitting pretty in the White House very soon....
KEEP IT UP!!!!

Herb, the candidate doesn't matter. People vote their party, Just like you will vote for Giuliani and hold your nose, Democrats will do the same and vote for their guy (or gal). There are a lot of dissatisfied people right now, and if you think those dissatisfied people are going to vote for "more of the same" rather than "something new", as Judas Priest sings, "You've got another thing comin'."

More importantly, look at the electoral map for 2004: http://www.electoral-vote.com/

I can tell you that Ohio, New Mexico, Florida, Virginia, and Nevada are all states in play for the Democrats, and all of those states voted Bush in 2004. I don't see ONE Democrat state that the GOP has any possibility winning. This is why the south won't matter in 2008, and why the Democrat will be elected, regardless of who it is.

Electorial map, Schmalectorial map.

If we have even a squeak of sabre rattling from terrorists, the demos lose even bigger.

If you guys were strong on defense you might have a prayer....that is, if you actually believed in prayer and hadn't been hijacked by atheists, nambla, the aclu and abortionists.

Naw, your goose is cooked. In this post-9/11 world, NO American...except moveon.commie 'Bush-bashing' leftists...want a weak on terror president.

Besides, the chickens have come home to roost from Mr. Clintons 'strip the military' strategy. You actually think for one minute that the American electorate will give his wife the opportunity to make us even WEAKER?

Once voters get in the election booth, they'll vote republican.

Herbaceae

I don't think there is a really good Republican candidate in the bunch and I KNOW there is no good Democrat candidate in that bunch.

I truly believe that this will be the first election where we don't vote for the candidate that is best for America but the one that is least bad.

Herb, I admire your optimism, but you're in denial. The GOP is heading for an asswhoopin'. I'll lay money on it right now.

Democrat President and seats gained in both the House and Senate. Name your offer.

Your right, we don't have a great candidate now, so we're going to nominate Reagon, now, I know what your gonna say, he's dead, we'll we can deal with that. We will make an agreement with the Hilary and Obama camps, we won't mention Hllary being a woman, or Obama being black, if they don't mention Reagon being dead.

With President Bush 1 as VP, he can run day to day things, while Mr Reagon continues his extended "nap".

I don't think we need to "mention" anything, since it's fairly obvious to most people.

I can't believe Reagan doesn't look so awful anymore. He'd be an improvement dead or alive.

"Herb, I admire your optimism..."

Why thank you. Watching highlights of the Nixon administration, with popcorn of course, is what got me through the Carter years.

Herb

"COULDN'T EVEN WIN HIS HOME STATE OF TENNESSEE"

More barrel scraping. Its been 7 years, Bush hadn't shown he's a major F-up, Gore isn't running, and Tennessee doesn't matter in 2008. Scrape a little more and you'll find "Lincoln" in there somewhere.

Herb said>>>
Watching highlights of the Nixon administration.

What about flashlights??? When Tricky DICK had his men go through that now famous Hotel??? I'm sure the LOWlights of DICK's administration are a little larger. Kind like DUHbya's.....
So if DICK's highlights got you through Carter's bumblings then what's going to get ALL OF US through Hillary's 8??? You had better come up with something good! It's going to be torture!
When your sitting here in July of 09' pissing and moaning about what an Fed up job Wonder Witch is doing in office just think back to WHY O WHY she is there..... Just go look in the mirror and say to yourself... America wasn't and NEVER will be ready for the EXTREME RIGHT! Your "MY WAY OR THE HIGHWAY" attitude doesn't sit well with MOST Americans! And they will show you by putting in the one person besides Bill that YOU LOATH so much.
Thanks alot Herb to YOU and your hundreds of thousands of minions!
KEEP IT UP!
Can YOU last 8 years with WONDER WITCH at the helm??? You've created this MONSTER! Maybe Insannity and Bimbo along with FAUXNews can slay the dragon before her 8 years is up??? Oh, that's right..... That's what you did to Slick Willy..... Do it again and pay the price......
YOUR nightmare is about to come to....
Your going to have to live it!!!!
Have fun....

"When Tricky DICK had his men go through that now famous Hotel???"

Please prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, that Mr. Nixon was aware of Watergate prior to it occuring.

I didn't think so. That's because you can't.
Nice try at revisionist history, though.

Case closed.
Game...Set...Match.
Advantage: The HerbMeister.

Herbert Milhous Nixon IV

So why did he RESIGN IN DISGRACE????

Game set and MATCH!

Actually, Mr. Nixon saw that he had lost all confidence in the house and senate, and said as much. Unlike the impeached Mr. Clinton, the UNIMPEACHED Mr. Nixon did the valiant thing and resigned:

"I gave 'em a sword. And they stuck it in, and they twisted it with relish. And I guess if I had been in their position, I'd have done the same thing." Richard Milhous Nixon

Herb

KEEP IT UP Herb!!!!
YOUR NIGHTMARE is going to come true!
Just keep it up....
You EXTREMEISTS want HISTORY to be the way you paint it. Well.... If Watergate didn't happen then DICK wouldn't have RESIGNED plain and simple.
When you come to terms with that and YOUR actions with American politics you will understand that it will be YOUR fault for putting WONDER WITCH in power and Bill back in the White House. Then will you be happpy???

Look.

I simply happen to be pro-life and anti-terror.

If voting for the candidate that lines up closest to those views makes me the boogey-man, then I think you might have a problem, Trixter...not Ol' Herb.

Ol' Herb

NOPE...
WRONG AGAIN!!!!!!!!!!

Keep it up buddy and YOUR BOOGY-MAN (HILLARY) will be in the White House faster than YOU can target abortion doctors for crimes against humanity.
I got no problem with YOUR side pushing Americans into electing Hillary. I'm just going to hold YOU EXTREMEIES responsible for what comes of America after WONDER WITCH is done with it.

"after WONDER WITCH is done with it"

A witch perhaps, but we'll have another 8 golden Clinton economy years, and with any luck at all, another Clinton sex scandal in the midst of it to keep the GOP frothing at the mouth.

"A witch perhaps, but we'll have another 8 golden Clinton economy years, and with any luck at all, another Clinton sex scandal in the midst of it to keep the GOP frothing at the mouth."

I don't know even of any interns, male OR female, that would touch Hillary with a 10-foot Cattle Prod.

Now if her HUSBAND gets in trouble again ... hah

WONDER WITCH? Good term, covers it all!

WONDER: There is no "wonder" about how screwed up it'll be if it is elected. Although if there are enough stupid people to elect her, they deserve her. It's the rest of us that will have to suffer until the stupid people come to their senses.

WITCH: I'm sure she has a broom parked somewhere!

We just have to make sure that doesn't happen.

Skybill, how exactly will you personally suffer if Hillary is elected? Think of it this way, you'll be getting a taste of what we've put up with for the last 7 years. And you're right about the stupid people, as we elected the chimp not once but twice.

If the Wonder Witch is elected, there will be untold number of attacks on our 2nd amendment rights.

They will repeal the tax cuts that Bush has instituted. That will cost everyone $1000 per child they have at home.

Socialized medicine will tried to be shoved down our throats and could very well become a reality nightmare.

Government sponsored socialism programs will run rampant.

The list could go on and on for a long time.

1. You will still be able to own guns.
2. The repeal of tax cuts will not affect middle class families. Remember, those tax cuts have been funded by borrowing money overseas and the borrowing must end and those at the top should pay more. If you're not at the top, you have nothing to worry about.
3. Socialized medicine is our future, get used to it.

1. Not if Wonder Witch has her way. Pelosi is of the same mindset. Maybe, maybe not on owning guns. But certainly there will be more restrictions and registration of gun owners. It's none of their damn business if I own a gun or a whole arsenal of guns.

2. I'm middle class. It WILL affect me. Why should those at the top pay more? Because they worked hard and saved and invested their money wisely? Why should someone have to pay more taxes just because they are wealthy?

Why should it cost someone who has money more for the same Police, fire, ambulance and other government services that you and I get for the tax dollars we pay?

Robin Hood’s way is not a good way to run the government.

Just because you have more money is no reason to have to pay more taxes. I'm talking about percentage wise not overall dollar amount. The wealthy already pay more taxes than we do because of the graduated tax scale.

3. If you think healthcare is expensive now. Wait till it's free.

Please let me know why you feel "those at the top" should pay more.

Skybill, there's a simple formula on how taxes work. If the rich don't pay more, then the middle class gets to make that up, because the government needs the money. This is what's happening right now under Bush. He has slashed taxes for the rich while running up deficits and cuttting social programs, which affect the middle class more so than the wealthy. Borrowed money today = money paid back with interest tomorrow, and how will that money get raised? Tax increases or services cut, both of which affect the middle class more than the wealthy.

"Please let me know why you feel "those at the top" should pay more."

Because that's what it takes to fund our government, and those that have benefited the most from our tax supported society have a moral obligation to pay up, and have the means to do so. Lowering taxes for the weathly raises them for everyone else.

The rich should not pay any more percentage in taxes than you or I. It does work out to be more dollars, but the percentage should be the same.

Remember that many of the wealthy are independent business owners and the more the government steals from them the less they have to reinvest in their businesses.

The less they reinvest, they more job cuts and layoffs there are which isn't good for anyone.

"The rich should not pay any more percentage in taxes than you or I. It does work out to be more dollars, but the percentage should be the same."

You must have missed class on the flat tax scenario I worked out a week or two ago. If you believe the weathly should pay the same percentage as you or I, then be prepared for a humongous tax increase on your middle income family.

Not necessarily, if you taxed wealth increase, instead of income. An example, Mr Gates has made approx 50 billion on a 100,000 investment. Almost none of that will ever be taxed.

You should be taxed for what you make. EVERYONE should pay something! That how we pay for stuff in America! If you make $150,000 a year plus you SHOULD NOT get special treatment! The HIGHER the wage the HIGHER the tax plain and simple.

"Because they worked hard"

Heh. Do you realize that a lot of the wealth in the USA is held by relatives (wives, children and grandchildren) of the person who actually "worked hard"?

Super wealthy people like Warren Buffet actually pay a lower tax rate than most of us since his earnings are mostly dividends and capital gains, which is 15%.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21530209/

Chalk up another GOP retirement: Tom Tancredo the xenophobe is calling it quits and won't run for another term in the House. Good riddance!

Well he is going to give the big house on the hill a shot don't ya know. You know the White One. He actually looks interesting as a candidate. I have a lot of research to do before I make a decision on who drives this country for sure! But in that pick your candidate thread he did match up with more of my issues than the others did. If it comes down to him or HRC, well it won't be her! Not just because she is a woman, I just don't think she has the Cahone's to do the job. Well, she has Bill's but that don't count.

She might have her own too. You never know!

Yes, as in Republican, the party of Lincoln.

Lincoln would be a Democrat today, with the South controlled by Republicans who would like nothing better than to secede from the blue states.

Let the south secede, they're a drag on the rest of the nation.