Tuesday Night Tidbits

Sen. Gillibrand gets a 28 - 10 percent job approval rating, with 62 percent undecided. Similarly, she gets a 24 - 9 percent favorability with 65 percent who haven't heard enough.

A possible challenger in the 2010 Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate, U.S. Rep. Carolyn McCarthy, has a 24 - 9 percent favorability with 66 percent who haven't heard enough.

And U.S. Rep. Peter King, a possible 2010 Republican challenger for the Senate seat, has a 21 - 10 percent favorability, with 68 percent who don't know enough to decide.

In a possible primary, Congresswoman McCarthy leads Senator Gillibrand 34-24, numbers that will encourage those serious about backing a primary challenger to Senator Gillibrand, but numbers that could likely change considerably over time as Senator Gillibrand adjusts to her broader, statewide constituency and increases her name recognition.  Senator Gillibrand soundly leads Republican Rep. King 42-26 in the poll.  Also, when looking at how Governor David Paterson and state Attorney General Andrew Cuomo match up against Republican former NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani, it may electorally benefit Senator Gillibrand to have Cuomo challenge and defeat Paterson in a primary.

A veteran Republican political consultant who requested anonymity called it a "done deal."

Of a dozen Republican consultants, political scientists, fundraisers and GOP leaders contacted, only one said Crist would not run. They all say Crist is acting more like a national figure than a governor.

It could be a lot of posturing to spook Democrats, given Crist's strength in the polls.  Or Crist's plan to expand his national profile could include a Senate seat.  We'll know later in the year.  Many expect Crist to run for President in 2012, which would only give Crist two years of service in a hypothetical Senate term, all of which he would spend on the Presidential campaign trail.  But maybe Crist expects President Obama to win a second term (which could be why Crist was happy to stand by President Obama's side on the President's recent Florida visit) and is instead preparing for a 2016 run.  Crist will be 60-years-old on Election Day 2016, certainly not too old for a Presidential run.  In other news, the St. Petersburg Times offers reasons why Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio should and should not run for Senate in 2010.  The reasons why she should run (including geography, timing, Mayoral term limits, and a solid profile) very much outweigh the reasons why she shouldn't (the difficulty of a campaign and her being better suited as an executive over a legislator).

It is now clear that Senate Republicans have a strategy for maintaining their ability to stall -- or, at the least, dramatically alter -- Obama administration initiatives.

Individual GOP senators are paying big bucks to keep the Senate's 100th seat -- representing Minnesota -- vacant for as long as possible.

In effect, key Republicans such as Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell are paying $10,000 a piece to maintain their power to obstruct Congress. ...

So Republican senators are pouring money into the dead-end recount fight of former Senator Norm Coleman.

Coleman -- now the better part of two months out of office -- continues to mount an exceptionally expensive legal battle to "win" the Minnesota seat that all evidence suggests he has lost. ...

Bottom line: It looks like we will have a 99-seat Senate for a good bit longer.

That's fine by Senate Republicans, who are dead set against seating a 59th Democrat -- especially if its Franken, who has emerged as a savvy and politically-potent spokesman on economic issues -- in a chamber where they are barely clinging to their ability to filibuster Obama administration initiatives.

Texas Senator John Cornyn, who chairs the National Republican Senatorial Committee, says he is glad that Coleman understands he "owes it to... his colleagues here" to keep the seat vacant.

"He realizes how important retaining that seat is to us," says Cornyn, who has been busy organizing NRSC fund-raising events at which his colleagues and special-interest donors who want to influence them -- or the congressional process -- can write checks to maintain the Coleman recount fight.

These "Country First" Republican hypocrites' goal is to make sure Minnesotans remain underrepresented in the U.S. Senate for as long as possible.  Simple as that.  Along those lines, Coleman's lawyers, apparently agreeing that Coleman has lost, are already preparing the appeal in order to prolong the contest further still.

Georgia: Kudos to the Georgia Democratic Party for not wasting any time.  As soon as Republican Johnny Isakson announced for re-election, the GA-Dems have a YouTube video ready to go explaining why Georgians would be wise to hire someone else for a six-year term.  Video at right. (HT: Tondee's) Colorado: Dear Colorado Republicans considering a 2010 Senate run, I have some good news.  Even when you lose, you can still have a career ahead of you selling booze.  Maybe Backwards Bob Schaffer lost last year to "Boulder liberal" Mark Udall because Schaffer drank too many margaritas. Republicans in Congress are, yet again, guilty of copyright infringement.  No respect for the rule of law, those Congressional Republicans.