Dennis Kucinich - arguably one of the nuttiest Democrats in Congress - may be considering a Congressional run in the State of Washington.
According to Roll Call, the Ohio Democrat spent last weekend in Seattle visiting with area Democrats and participating in local fundraising events.
Why Washington? According to Roll Call, Democrat Jay Inslee - who represents Washington's first Congressional District - may run for governor if Christine Gregoire decides not to run for a third term.
Washington is also gaining a congressional seat through reapportionment.
Roll Call reports:
Kucinich, who could be drawn out of his Cleveland-area district, is considering looking outside Ohio for his next election to Congress, and he has visited Washington state in recent weeks. Inslee is not expected to announce his plans until after Gov. Christine Gregoire (D) says whether she will run for a third term.
In an email to supporters, Kucinich wrote:
“We are going to have to prepare for a different kind of election, possibly in a different place because my district may be eliminated. We are going to have to organize in a different way, now. The question will remain: Where? This discussion is consequential. Please participate by providing your insight and advice.”
But a Survey USA poll commissioned by KING-5 suggests that a Kucinich run in the western Washington district could hand it over to Republicans - despite a heavy Democratic advantage:
Dennis Kucinich, longtime Ohio Congressman and occasional Presidential aspirant, is one Democrat who might move to Washington State specifically to seek Inslee's seat, if Inslee vacates. Today, 18 months from the next Congressional election:
* Inslee has a Plus 24 Favorability rating in the 1st District (56% Favorable, 32% Unfavorable).
* Kucinich has a Minus 25 Favorability rating in the 1st District (21% Favorable, 46% Unfavorable).
* Inslee starts with 40% entrenched support (voters who would support him no matter the opponent).
* Kucinich starts with 15% entrenched support (voters who would support him no matter the opponent).
* Kucinich starts with 38% entrenched opposition (voters who would oppose him no matter the opponent).Given the choice between having a representative in Congress who shares one's values or who has roots in the community, shared values is 3:1 preferred to roots. Yet at the time time, voters by 6:1 tell SurveyUSA that Kucinich would do a worse job representing them in Congress than someone who has lived in the District longer, indicative of the headwinds that an outsider, transplanted into the District for the purpose of running, would encounter.
Kucinich - who once sued a House cafeteria after an unfortunate run-in with an olive pit - introduced legislation in 2009 to create a Cabinet-level Department of Peace and Nonviolencethat "would serve to promote non-violence as an organizing principle in our society, and help to create the conditions for a more peaceful world." The 2009 bill was essentially the same as another he introduced in 2001.
Among other things, the bill would "create and establish a Peace Academy, modeled after the military service academies, which will provide a 4 year concentration in peace education. Graduates will be required to serve 5 years in public service in programs dedicated to domestic or international nonviolent conflict resolution."
The bill also established January 1 as "Peace Day."
According to Kucinich's Congressional website:
On September 22, 2005, Senator Mark Dayton introduced a Senate companion bill to Rep. Kucinich’s Department of Peace and Nonviolence legislation, S. 1756. This is the first time that this bill has been introduced in the Senate.
But Survey USA shows the plan is supported by only 34 percent of registered voters in the district.
Ed Morrissey of Hot Air writes:
Kucinich’s attempt to carpetbag into a district 2000 miles away is a desperate attempt to justify his grip on power in Washington DC, a transparent effort that will get soundly rejected by WA-01. If Democrats want to hand this seat to a Republican, they could hardly do better than putting a lifelong Cleveland politician on the ballot.
Maybe Kucinich could get some illegal immigrants to canvass neighborhoods for him since it worked so well for Patty Murray.
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