Nebraska
updated
10:41 p.m.
The big talk in Nebraska politics over the last thirty days has been speculation that former Senator Bob Kerrey may throw his hat in the ring and run for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Senator Ben Nelson. Kerrey has recently said that he expects to announce a decision sometime next week. Obviously, Kerrey's decision will have huge ramifications for Nebraska's political scene t...
New Nebraska Network - Jan 27 - 12 clicks 
Although the energy goals mentioned during his recent State of the Union address were laudable, President Obama must now turn attention to the improvement of our nation’s electric transmission system. Upgrading and expanding clean energy transmission will create jobs, spur new industries, and lead to a more-sustainable future for rural America. The President’s en...
Blog for Rural America - Jan 25
Eventually, if a person really stands for something, there comes a time to quit talking and lay it all on the line for that in which you believe. For close to seven years, I've been "talking" on NNN ( "computer-assisted pontificating" is probably more exact ). In my own little way, this series has been my attempt to take what I've learned from that experience ( so far ) and translate i...
New Nebraska Network - Jan 24
I'm going to comment upon a couple of important matters that have come up in the last few days that probably don't deserve a column of their own. As we've noted here before , there has been quite a bit of controversy over Nebraska Attorney General and GOP Senate candidate Jon Bruning awarding the politically influential Nebraska Farm Bureau a $100,000.00 grant late last year. Thanks t...
New Nebraska Network - Jan 21
Rep. Fred Upton, determine to make the GOP as unpopular as possible. It's never say die, for some Republicans . BALTIMORE – House Republicans, undaunted by the payroll tax holiday debacle that dinged their conference last month, said Friday that they were considering using the Keystone XL Pipeline as a chip in the next round of negotiations over the tax break, as part of their overall ...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Jan 20
At last! Someone realizes the turmoil is taking place in Nebraska over the TransCanada. And that it completely undercuts the political garbage that is getting spewed out of the Republicans in Washington. ...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Jan 19
Will Bob Kerrey run for the U.S. Senate? Will anyone listen to Karl Rove and the Koch brothers telling us this American hero who's devoted a lifetime to public service somehow isn't a Nebraskan? Sorry, no time to answer those questions at the moment - not when still completing our list of priorities for progressive Nebraskans. You should all know the drill by now. . . Legislat...
New Nebraska Network - Jan 18
by Paul Mansoor, Energy Policy Intern Determining where wind turbines are placed, or sited, is a major component of wind energy development, and clear communication within communities, and between communities, landowners and energy developers, is vital for project success. Before moving across the country recently, I made plans to lease an apartment. “Is the place clean?&rdq...
Blog for Rural America - Jan 18
The Nebraska political community has been buzzing today about a new Magellan Strategies poll on the 2012 Senate race in which for the first time Bob Kerrey's name was included. The Republicans were delighted by the purported results which indicated that Jon Bruning had a 51% to 40% lead over Bob Kerrey and that Don "Quixote" Stenberg had a 47% to 39% lead over Bob Kerrey. The poll wa...
New Nebraska Network - Jan 16
From the DNC's Protecting the Vote site. This week saw the war on voting carried to a ridiculous extreme. In order to prove the conservative case that conspiracies to commit voter fraud exist, James O'Keefe carried out a conspiracy to commit voter fraud. It's a stunt that turned the families of the recently deceased into victims, and opens O'Keefe and his minions to criminal prosecuti...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Jan 14
Gov. Dave Heineman cast himself as a champion of the middle class in Thursday's State of the State Address with his call for hundreds of millions of dollars in tax cuts. In fact, in a speech that ran no longer than 20 minutes, Heineman specifically referenced "middle class families" and "middle class taxpayers" eleven times. He referenced "hard-working" families and taxpayers eleven ...
New Nebraska Network - Jan 13
State Senator Charlie Janssen already admitted to the Nebraska Radio Network that "there have been no reports of voter fraud in Nebraska." So, why exactly is his bill requiring voters to present a valid photo ID ( LB239 ) even being debated by the Legislature? This legislation is part of a national campaign to suppress the youth and minority vote - as documented by a recent article...
New Nebraska Network - Jan 12 - 2 clicks
More than 170 bills have been introduced in the first three days of the Nebraska Legislature's 2012 session. At this link , you can keep track of all the legislation that will be introduced - which I'll then hope to review in some form for NNN readers as we have in years past . However, for now, I'm still focused on the more fundamental question of what it is Nebraska progressive...
New Nebraska Network - Jan 9 - 2 clicks
Senator Ben Nelson's retirement announcement has the potential to significantly change the Nebraska political landscape. One of the consequences of that decision is that we may have an open seat race in Nebraska CD-01 for the first time since 2004. This is because the Rothenberg Report is reporting that Congressman Jeff Fortenberry "is actively considering a bid for the U.S. Senate ...
New Nebraska Network - Jan 8
As we all know, incumbent Senator Ben Nelson recently announced that he won't be seeking a third term in the U.S. Senate and that he will be returning to the private sector. The conventional wisdom has been that the Democrats will field a weak set of candidates and that the general election will be a coronation for the Republican nominee. In the inestimable words of ESPN colleg...
New Nebraska Network - Jan 5
With the Nebraska Legislature's 2012 session kicking-off later today, NNN is glad to note that the body will be just a little bit more independent. Last week, the Lincoln Journal-Star reported: The nonpartisan Nebraska Legislature has a nonpartisan member once again. State Sen. Brad Ashford of Omaha changed his voter registration Thursday from Republican to non-partisan, or indep...
New Nebraska Network - Jan 4
A calling to all Kossaks who reside in or around the Kansas City area! I have begun a new group to act as a rally point for all news or activity in the KC area. It is my hope that the page can become a hub for discussion, calls to action, volunteerism, GOTV, news, and everything else relating to our little corner in the middle of nowhere! The groups name is Kansas City Kossaks, so if you are i...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Jan 3
Two months ago, I wrote an article proposing that tripling or even quadrupling State Senators' salaries would be a smart investment that would pay dividends for the people of Nebraska in the quality of our state government and of our representation in the Legislature. Now, with less than one week remaining before the Legislature's 2012 session, I've run out of time developing a more comprehensiv...
New Nebraska Network - Dec 29
Earlier today I posted my prediction that the Democrats would barely hold on to the Senate. Ben Nelson of Nebraska must have seen my analysis, because he's hanging it up . The 70-year-old conservative Democrat, whose seat is being heavily targeted by Republicans in 2012, said in a statement that “while I relish the opportunity to undertake the work that lies ahead, I also feel it’s time for m...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Dec 27
Sen. Ben Nelson (D) Via Politico : Democratic Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska will announce today that he is retiring after two terms, a serious blow to Democratic efforts to hold onto their majority in the chamber next November. Nelson is scheduled to hold a press conference back home in Nebraska as early as today to make his decision official, said several Democratic insiders close to t...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Dec 27
December 12, 2011 The Honorable Mike Johanns 404 Russell Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510-2705 Dear Senator Johanns, After a recent vote on the extension of the payroll tax cut, you said “…the Social Security trust fund is filled with IOUs to begin with, and moving money around [to pay for the extension] will only make it worse.” You went on to say that you would prefer ...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Dec 12
The recent news that the so-called "Super Committee" was unable to reach an agreement on large spending cuts may be the best outcome for rural health care access. Cuts being considered by the committee included deep reductions in rural health programs that make limited special payments to some rural hospitals to account for the challenges of delivering care in rural areas. ...
Blog for Rural America - Nov 29
TransCanada president Alex Pourbaix officially announced yesterday that the pipeline will not be routed through the Sandhills. “We will never live through this nightmare again,” said Mike Flood, Speaker of the Nebraska Legislature who first broke the announcement on the legislative floor. In an attempt to appeal to both proponents and opponents of the pipeli...
Blog for Rural America - Nov 29
Caught between a rock and a hard place, the Obama administration is expected to delay its decision on the proposed Keystone XL Pipeline. A statement was released today by the State Department stating that an “in-depth assessment of potential alternative routes” will be required before a national interest determination can be made. The input of folks in Nebraska and across th...
Blog for Rural America - Nov 29
This diary is of three maps I did of three small states, Nebraska, Maine, and New Hampshire, which did not warrant stand alone diaries. Since each state has 2-3 districts there is only so much you can do with each from a partisan perspective. Each state was gerrymandered from a different partisan perspective. ...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Nov 22
Amazing chart from the NY Times : For generations, the story of the small rural town of the Great Plains, including the dusty tabletop landscape of western Kansas, has been one of exodus — of businesses closing, classrooms shrinking and, year after year, communities withering as fewer people arrive than leave and as fewer are born than are buried. That flight continues, but another demo...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Nov 14
Cross-posted at Minnesota Progressive Project . A bit of this gets Minnesota-centric, but it's broadly applicable. I'm reposting this diary I wrote two years ago minus a month , because we're at that same point in the election cycle. Actually, it's a copying and pasting rather than a reposting since I want to open it up for comments. I offered a test of whether it made sense to try to defe...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Nov 2
From the New Nebraska Network : This spring, I attended a forum hosted by the Nebraska Department of Insurance on the state's implementation of the 2010 health care reform bill. Our Republican Governor Dave Heineman sat in the back of the UNL Student Union's ballroom throughout the presentation by two young policy analysts - Michael Sciullo and John Paul Sabby - who were hired by th...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Nov 1
Longtime lurker, first time diarist. I thought y'all might be interested to hear the latest news from out here in Husker country as we fight to stop (or at the very least re-route) the Keystone XL pipeline. ...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Oct 24
Want the scoop on hot races around the country? Get the digest emailed to you each weekday morning. Sign up here . Leading Off : • GA-14 : Now here's a blast from the past: Former Rep. Bob Barr, one of the most notorious of the 13 House impeachment managers from the dark days of the Monica Lewinsky scandal, is reportedly considering a comeback bid, according to Joe Galloway. Delightf...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Oct 17
Sorry, Herman, 9-9-9 isn't the key here (Scott Audette/Reuters) Abt-SRBI for Washington Post and ABC News. 9/29-10/2. Leaned Republicans (includes GOP leaning independents). MoE ±6%. (9/1 results): Mitt Romney: 25 (25) Herman Cain: 16 (4) Rick Perry: 16 (29) Ron Paul: 11 (10) Michele Bachmann: 7 (8) Newt Gingrich: 7 (6) Rick Santorum: 2 (3) Jon Huntsman:...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Oct 4
Or so I am told by Republicans and TEA Partiers. This is certainly not a new theme by the American Republican Party. They have been throwing this label at Liberals for years and it ramped up soon after 9/11. I have been extensively blogging on McCook Gazette's web page for years. I lived in McCook for four years and it became a home to me. So when the opportunity came t...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Sep 27
To receive the Daily Kos Elections Morning Digest via email each weekday, sign up here . Leading Off : • Pennsylvania : There seems to be a little bit of reluctance among some Republicans for the plan that first emerged on Tuesday , under which PA would award its electoral votes by congressional district rather than via winner-take-all — a nakedly partisan move which would give a b...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Sep 15
As top Pennsylvania Republicans openly explore splitting their state's electoral votes by congressional district in order to benefit Republican candidates for president, Nebraska Republicans are working to move to a winner-take-all distribution of their state's electoral votes in order to benefit Republican candidates for president: The Nebraska Republican Party is showing a startling ne...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Sep 14
Nebraska has already completed its redistricting and it ended up changing very little despite the Nebraska 2nd having an only marginally Republican PVI. There was some attempt to gerrymander precincts in Sarpy county so as to make the 2nd as Republican as possible given that it contained all of Douglas county (Omaha). That is the problem though. Douglas county is almost an entire congressional...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Sep 11 - 2 clicks
Another Nebraska Republican is joining the fight against the Keystone XL pipeline, the planned conduit from Canada's tar sands fields to refineries in Texas. Last week, Republican Gov. Dave Heineman wrote to President Obama and Sec. of State Hillary Clinton in opposition to the pipeline, which could potentially endanger the state's Ogallala Aquifer, a critical water source for the state's...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Sep 7
Tar Sands Action in front of the White House/Josh Lopez A new report from Oil Change International suggests that TransCanada’s Keystone XL pipeline would be of little economic benefit to the U.S., and wouldn't enhance our energy security . The project has been presented by oil industry and government sources as a way to improve American energy security through increased trade with Cana...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Sep 7
Every day I write a Letter to the Editor on some aspect of climate change, which nowadays is more and more likely to mean "some aspect of the tar sands nightmare." Unfortunately, there's no shortage of things to write letters about, or places to send them to. Because powerful people are actually considering the Keystone XL abomination seriously, we need to pitch in with everything we've ...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Sep 1
Gov. Dave Heineman This is big news for the large coalition of groups, and individuals, fighting the proposed Keystone XL pipeline. Nebraska's Republican governor has written a letter urging President Obama and Sec. of State Clinton to reject a pending permit application for the pipeline. Nebraska Gov. Dave Heineman (R) urged President Obama on Wednesday to reject a pending permit app...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Aug 31
..." CHICAGO -- The Republican governor of Nebraska on Wednesday urged President Barack Obama and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to deny a federal permit for the Keystone XL Pipeline, citing concerns for water supplies in his state. While Gov. Dave Heineman said in a letter to the pair that he is "not opposed to pipelines" in general, he is against this one "because it is directly...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Aug 31
From August 20th to September 2nd, I will be on the road on the Stop the Pipeline Tour , a group of landowners and individuals traveling from Texas to Washington, D.C. to take part in the Tar Sands Action, a campaign of civil disobedience at the White House to raise awareness on the Keystone XL pipeline issue and to call for President Obama to deny TransCanada's permit for the project. I am a...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Aug 30
From August 20th to September 2nd, I will be on the road on the Stop the Pipeline Tour , a group of landowners and individuals traveling from Texas to Washington, D.C. to take part in the Tar Sands Action, a campaign of civil disobedience at the White House to raise awareness on the Keystone XL pipeline issue and to call for President Obama to deny TransCanada's permit for the project. I am a...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Aug 25
We will begin with the Senator. The Weather/Dam info has been updated from last nights diary. Senator Ben Nelson is stressed about the two nuclear plants in his State of Nebraska. Dam Report. THE LETTER In a letter today , Senator Ben Nelson expressed his concern regarding a statement made by a representative of the US Army Corp of Engineers in charge of the Missouri River floodin...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Aug 22
The Fort Calhoun Nuclear Plant in Nebraska looked like this on Friday: Early Sunday morning, Ft. Calhoun's Protective Aqua Dam, installed on June 6th, 2011, collapsed. The aqua berm is also termed aqua dam. It's the donut looking thing surrounding the plant now. The 2,000-foot aqua berm collapsed about 1:30 a.m. Sunday, allowing the swollen river to surround two buildings at t...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Aug 22
I previously did a diary about what maps I thought we should have drawn for Illinois and Arkansas. Now, I'll critique the GOP's map-drawing in Indiana, Oklahoma, and Nebraska. Because the Obama-McCain numbers don't accurately reflect Oklahoma's political landscape, I calculated numbers from the 2004 Tom Coburn-Brad Carson Senate race, which Coburn won 53-41. For Nebraska, the...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Aug 22
BP secretly renegotiates contract, secures "stranglehold" over Iraq oilfields; Hayward oversees "environment, health and safety" (fox, henhouse, carnage) for Glencore in MN; Impatience on both sides of XL pipeline, and Upton tells Big Fat Lies; Environmental protester sentenced to two years; Health crisis worsens a year after spill; Russian refineries accused of "thousands" of violations; Missis...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Aug 22
As director of pipeline outreach for Bold Nebraska , I am often asked to give a summary of why the Keystone XL pipeline is a bad idea. I usually outline a list of concerns, including the threat to the Ogallala aquifer, the mistreatment of landowners by TransCanada, the illogical economics of oil-supply bottleneck-breaking and the lack of appropriate pipeline regulations. Finding rea...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Aug 18
Randy Thompson is a landowner fighting to protect his legacy, his heritage, his economic activity and his grandkids' clean drinking water. He is at the heart of our pipeline efforts in Nebraska and the man behind over 25 locally organized I Stand with Randy events that took place across our state, including one where we circled Gov. Heineman's mansion to " Shine a Light " on h...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Aug 15
The radicals, i.e. town meeting attendees, were out in force in Nebraska yesterday, asking one of their senators, Republican Mike Johanns, for just a little bit of sanity . It was not forthcoming. As the Lincoln Journal Star reported, “many of the loudest voices and waving fingers urged Johanns to include tax increases — particularly applied to the wealthiest Americans — as part of the sol...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Aug 10
Add metaphors to the list of things at which Republicans really, really suck : Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning, a frontrunner to win the GOP nomination against Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE), compared poor people to scavenging racoons in a speech this week. […] "The raccoons figured out the beetles are in the bucket," Bruning said. "And its like grapes in a jar. The raccoons - they're no...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Aug 9
I know that Nebraska Senator Ben Nelson isn't real popular around DKos, but - speaking as a Nebraskan - I'm hoping everyone will take a good, hard look at the dangerous extremism that's our only real alternative in the 2012 election. Earlier today, the blogger Ronaldo of New Nebraska Network posted a great diary featuring the following local TV news interview with state Attorney Genera...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Jul 30
Today, Crossroads GPS reached out to me through a Youtube Video , asking me to contact Sherrod Brown about the problem of reckless spending. It's not just Senator Brown being targeted. There are videos for Missouri , Florida , Montana , and Nebraska as well. So I did, below the fold. ...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Jul 30
I am surprised that nobody in Nebraska got shot during the winter of 1890-91. In fact, a few people may have; probably it just never made the papers. The cause of the potential violence was politics. On Tuesday November 4, 1890, the Republicans and Democrats spilt seven seats in the state senate and forty-six seats in the house. But every other seat, eighteen in the senate and fifty-four in the ...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Jul 24 - 4 clicks
This week we have the grand act of kabuki theater where as the republicans will make a fantasy showing of voting for their cut, cap and balance the budget amendment. And it is nothing more than grandstanding for political advantage on a grand scale. Since both the senate and house versions have no chance of passing. This is nothing more than the DC version of stick it to the other g...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Jul 19
So I was sitting in my front room catching up on my reading and I get a phone call to take part in a Town Hall with my House Representative(Jeff Fortenberry-Rep, 1st district,Nebraska). Except for the city of Lincoln, this is a pretty conservative district-the last time it went Democratic was 1964. I say this because these weren't liberals storming a town hall: we were called a...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Jul 13
What could go wrong? Nothing, they say, What went wrong? It's still raining , a neighborhood legally blew up a levee causing a 2 or 3 inch surge of water to flow into the Missouri River, and yet another levee failed . Omaha is pumping water back into the River. I wonder if you can still see the hammer. Anyone near there want to snap a photo? "Making money"? &nbs...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Jul 2
I love the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers. I was born and grew up in close proximity to both. When I went to public school the Missouri River was one of the school district boundaries. When I was a teenager, I rode my motorcycle for miles and miles up and down the river road for the sheer joy of it. When I went to college, my university competed in the Missouri Valley Conference. I love histo...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Jun 30
Senator Ben Nelson is stressed about the two nuclear plants in his State of Nebraska. Dam Report. THE LETTER In a letter today , Senator Ben Nelson expressed his concern regarding a statement made by a representative of the US Army Corp of Engineers in charge of the Missouri River flooding, specifically the Corps stated "Nebraska's two nuclear plants aren't being factored into the Army...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Jun 29
The newspaper in Omaha has been doing what it can to reassure Nebraskans that the Fort Calhoun nuclear plant remains safely in cold shut-down and under control, even though the facility now sits in the Missouri River, twenty miles upstream from the city. In a story this week, the paper identified "a few good cards to draw from" for public safety, during the flood danger at the plant becaus...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Jun 29
Today, forest fires forced evacuation of the town of Los Alamos and closure of the Los Alamos Nuclear Laboratory in New Mexico. With two Nebraska nuclear power plants threatened by Missouri River flooding, and the ongoing emergency at Japan's Fukushima nuclear plant, U.S. nuclear experts are now monitoring four concurrent nuclear crises. To my knowledge, this is unprecedented in U.S. history a...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Jun 27 - 3 clicks
Chris Bowers recently posted Think Big: Choosing the fights that build progressive power . He posited: We have to win elections in which people believe the outcome was determined by popular support for progressive policies, and a backlash against those who opposed them. …A wide array of pundits, candidates and political professionals must believe that opposition to progressi...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Jun 19
Back in the fall of 2009, I was looking for some metric to evaluate the risk posed to legislators by their vote on marriage equality the previous session. The result was the Vermont District Index, my first attempt at making any sort of metric for measuring partisanship in state legislatures. Two years later, that project has turned into the Legislative District Index. Becaus...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Jun 18 - 2 clicks
I live in a state with their own DOMA, a state with few protections for LGTB community. Imagine my surprise when I read this headline, Clergy Proclamation: Being Gay Not A Sin. ...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Jun 16
After tackling Washington on Sunday, today I look toward a neighboring state whose legislature is similar in structure to that of Washington, but where Democrats find themselves in much less fertile territory - Idaho. Idaho's 70 legislators are divided into 35 multi-member districts, with each district also elected one state senator. Because of the overlapping districts, I'm ...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - Jun 8
If you are to the east of these storms, please sleep with one ear open. I'm calling it a night-cross your fingers that the weather.com simulation is correct! Update 10:11pm Nothing new on the funnel cloud near Grand Forks. Radar indicates some weakening in that area. The most intense part of these storms is down in Nebraska, just passing through Hastings. Some reports of damage to farmsteads i...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - May 30
One of the more painful results from last fall was the election of Paul LePage in Maine, if only for its familiarity - in 2008 I watched Gaye Symington's gubernatorial campaign collapse over the fall, splitting the left vote, and leaving Governor Jim Douglas with a clear path to another term. In Maine, State Sen. Libby Mitchell's campaign was undoubtedly poor, leaving room for an ind...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - May 29
Nebraska was one of my original test states - I figured it would be a nice place to start, given that I knew virtually nothing about how the Unicameral (Nebraska's unique single-chambered legislature) functions, politically. An additional complicating factor is the fact that Nebraskan Senators are technically non-partisan, meaning that the party identifications I have assigned don't ...
DailyKos (Nebraska) - May 21 - 3 clicks
