NRCC Robocalling Skelton

The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) launched end-of-the-year robocalls Tuesday targeting 4th District Democrat Ike Skelton.

"Somehow, Ike Skelton still hasn’t gotten the message that Americans have had enough of his party’s agenda of higher taxes, more government takeovers and fewer jobs," said NRCC Communications Director Ken Spain.


The script of the call notes Missouri's 9.5 percent unemployment rate and Skelton's vote for the economic stimulus package.

FULL SCRIPT BELOW:
"Hello, I’m calling on behalf of the NRCC with an end of year action alert about Congressman Ike Skelton. Ike Skelton has been in congress for over 33 years and has lost touch with what Missouri workers are going through. Unemployment in Missouri is 9.5% but Ike Skelton spent 2009 helping liberal Speaker Nancy Pelosi push a massive $787 billion pork-laden spending bill he called a ‘stimulus’ but that has not helped the Missouri economy. To make matters worse Skelton voted for the liberal cap-and-trade bill that will increase energy costs for Missouri families at the worst time. Call Ike Skelton at 573-635-3499 and tell him your New Year’s resolution is to watch his votes in 2010 to make sure he is voting for Missouri workers, not the liberal agenda of the Democrat party leaders in Washington. Paid for by the National Republican Congressional Committee and not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee. 202-479-7000."

Sen. Bill Stouffer and Vicky Hartzler appear to be the two top Republicans vying to challenge Skelton.

Skelton "Greatly Troubled" By Problems with Combat Gear

House Armed Services Committee Chairman Ike Skelton has written top Pentagon leaders that he's "greatly troubled" by stories from soldiers in war zones about improper training and the lack of suitable combat gear.

The Associated Press writes: "Soldiers are being issued a rucksack made of plastic that is not comfortable or effective in combat situations, Skelton and Ortiz found during a recent trip to Germany and Italy where they met with members of the 503rd Infantry Regiment and the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team."

ALSO: "Skelton and Ortiz said many of the soldiers they talked to are using their own money to buy better packs from commercial suppliers."

AND: The lawmakers said they were told troops are being taken straight from boot camp and being sent to Afghanistan and Iraq without extensive training at stateside bases. "Is this a common practice now"? Skelton asks. "And will the upcoming surge into Afghanistan exacerbate this situation?"

***

MEANWHILE: Despite wishful thinking from Missouri Republicans, Skelton's spokesperson tells the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) the Democratic incumbent will seek another term.

PLUS: 4th District GOP candidate Vicky Hartzler sends a release criticizing Skelton's staff for "stonewalling" questions about about the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy.

"Now, gay rights champion Barney Frank of Massachusetts has said that next year’s defense authorizations bill, which Mr. Skelton will handle, will repeal ‘don’t ask/don’t tell.’ Our brave troops do not support this. When Barney Frank announced the deal, I challenged Mr. Skelton to tell us the facts. He stonewalled. Now, his taxpayer-financed staff refuses to answer media questions about Barney Frank’s statement on a bill that Ike Skelton will handle in the House," said Hartzler in a statement.

Blunt, Skelton Both Oppose Financial Rewrite

TARP WARS

Congressman Roy Blunt and Congressman Ike Skelton both voted against a sweeping rewrite of complex financial regulations.

Despite 27 Democrats peeling away, the legislation passed 223 to 202.

The legislation would force more control over the country's financial institutions. Blunt, who voted for the financial bailout last fall, said this plan would bankrupt new generations and kill jobs.

"End TARP and send all unspent funds to pay down the massive national debt," Blunt said in a statement. "Instead, national Democrats voted today to make the bailout permanent and spend even more taxpayer money."

The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee pounced on Blunt, a GOP candidate for U.S. Senate in 2010, calling him "a hypocrite": "Roy Blunt voted to bailout the banks, then opposes steps to keep them accountable,” said Democratic Senatorial Campaign Communications Director Eric Schultz. "Blunt pretends to be a friend of the taxpayer, but today’s proposal includes common-sense, pragmatic steps to protect consumers."

***

SKELTON VOTES 'NO' AGAIN

Congressman Ike Skelton said: "While the House bill is well-intentioned and I support much of it, the measure falls short in my goal to target Wall Street without disrupting Main Street banks and bank customers."

MORE SKELTON: "As important as these new regulations are to our country, Congress must be careful in writing them. We must focus tough regulations like a laser beam on Wall Street and other bad actors while not wrapping our home town banks into costly and complex sets of new rules. Community banks and credit unions have been playing by the rules for years. They are conservative with their money and did not cause last year’s economic mess. They and their customers ought not pay the price for Wall Street’s misdeeds any more than they, like all Americans, have already been asked to do."

GOPers Blast Dem Spending Bill, Skelton Peels Away

Congressman Ike Skelton joined a unanimous Republican caucus in opposing a $447 billion dollar spending bill passed by the House Thursday.

The A.P. notes: The 1,088-page, $1.1 trillion measure would provide $447 billion in operating budgets for 10 Cabinet departments, awarding increases averaging almost 10 percent.

"The Democrats on Capitol Hill today spent more good money on a bad fix for what is broken," Congressman Roy Blunt said. "Today they rolled six appropriations bills into one massive spending bill worth nearly $447 billion dollars and representing the largest single-year increase in spending in our nation’s history," he added.

Skelton joined the 202 "no" votes.
***
ALSO: GOPer Jeff Parnell tells The Notebook he's still weighing a bid against Skelton and is "getting closer" to a decision. "I have yet to see anyone as passionate about the issues and our country's predicament as myself and am disturbed that none of the current candidates sensed the import of Skelton's remarks," Parnell said, referring to Skelton's recent comments about President Obama's Afghanistan decision.

Parnell said he is "disappointed and troubled" that Skelton is allowing himself "to be used as a tool by the Obama administration when the lives of American troops are at stake."

"After the long delay in responding to General McChrystal's requests, the last thing we need is to further "lawyer" the subject to death by asking inane questions such as "What do we believe must be accomplished in the next 18 months?," Parnell said.

Skelton: Don't Compare Afghanistan to Iraq

"Measured Expectations"

House Armed Services Committee Chair Ike Skelton warned against comparing the president's decision to send more troops into Afghanistan to the infamous surge in Iraq.

"I do not think such comparisons are wise or fair," Skelton said as part of his opening statement before his committee Tuesday. "As a percentage of the forces on the ground, the increase ordered by President Obama is much larger than the increase in Iraq. And the fight in Afghanistan will be different in many important ways. Media articles citing General Petraeus yesterday suggested that he does not believe that progress in Afghanistan will not come as quickly as it did in Iraq. In the article, he suggested that we must be measured in our expectations. To me, this article highlights the need for commitment to accomplishing this mission, not just from the President, but from Congress and the American people. I hope that this hearing can help build that sense of support and commitment.

Skelton added that while he does not have any doubt about about the need to succeed in Afghanistan, he does have several questions about the strategy, including:

• What do we believe must be accomplished in the next 18 months?
• What risks are we accepting in the next 18 months and how can we mitigate them?
• How will we convince the Pakistanis that their interests lie with us?
• How will we measure progress over time?

***

During the hearing, Gen. Stanley McChrystal told the committee he believes the Taliban could be "rolled back." When asked directly by Skelton about the chances of success, McChrystal responded, "I believe we will absolutely be successful."

Skelton: 2011 Not An Exit Date

Rep. Ike Skelton told The Hill that President Obama's timetable to begin withdrawing from Afghanistan in the summer of 2011 "is not an exit date."

"It's not an exit date. It's a goal," said Skelton.

The House Armed Services Committee chair also scoffed at GOP charges that Obama has set a date for troop withdrawal in stone, adding, "did you hear what they said, 'situations may come up?'"

***

PLUS: Skelton challenger Bill Stouffer pounced on the vote to extend the estate tax, which was set to expire at the end of the year. The vote was 225 to 200. While some Democrats crossed over in opposition, Republicans were unanimously against the measure.

The legislation makes the 45 percent tax rate permanent -- for estates over $3.5 million for individuals and $7 million for couples.

"Ike voting with Nancy Pelosi is not a surprise since he has voted with her 95% of the time this year,” said Stouffer in a statement. "What is surprising, however, is that Ike would thumb his nose at so many farmers, small businessmen and families in rural Missouri by refusing to allow the tax to die in 2010 and voting to permanently extend the tax at a punishing rate of 45%," he added.

Missouri Pols React Cautiously to Obama Surge Plan

REPUBLICANS EMBRACE SURGE, CRITICIZE TIMETABLE

MCCASKILL: "THOUGHTFUL STRATEGY"

SKELTON HAS QUESTIONS

*GET MORE KEY QUOTES HERE*

Missouri's leading Republicans praised President Obama's call to infuse Afghanistan with 30,000 additional troops but contended a timetable for withdrawal could undermine the goal of the mission.

The president said the troops would deploy in early 2010, but also allow the United States "to begin the transfer of our forces out of Afghanistan in July of 2011."

"It will be clear to the Afghan government – and, more importantly, to the Afghan people – that they will ultimately be responsible for their own country," Obama said.

That's where Republicans are breaking with the president.

"I am encouraged that the President has renewed his commitment to the strategy he outlined in March, a strategy that will allow our troops to return on success and put Afghanistan on the road to stability," said Sen. Kit Bond, who was briefed before the president's speech.

In a separate statement obtained by the Associated Press, Bond said more troops would've been better, "but this is what the president has recommended and that's what we'll support."

But the chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee quickly added, "We need a success strategy, not an exit strategy." According to Foreign Policy's blog, Bond made his concerns clear to the president in their meeting.

Bond's concern, that emphasizing the exit strategy will send the wrong message to U.S. allies and enemies, was echoed by Congressman Roy Blunt.

"The president tonight tried to walk a line between the political views of those who are ready to give up on the war in Afghanistan, and the real-world needs of both our troops on the ground and the Afghan people, all of whom need to have confidence that the U.S. is there to get the job done," Blunt said.

"While I’m pleased that he will take steps toward adopting General McChrystal’s troop level recommendations, setting a published timetable while announcing a troop increase will satisfy neither of those groups," Blunt added.

Blunt's likely U.S. Senate candidate Robin Carnahan's spokesman did not immediately respond to an e-mail seeking reaction.

GOP Congressional candidate Ed Martin, who is waging a bid against Democrat Russ Carnahan, said Obama's "indecisiveness will be viewed by history as endangering our troops and for not furthering national security interests."

But the president is also facing opposition from the left, many who are skeptical that a troop surge will do much to solve the military and political problems on the ground. But that pressure is not coming from Missouri's prominent Democrats.

Several Senators, including Sen. Claire McCaskill, expressed skepticism about a proposed war surtax to pay for the military effort.

"I can't tell right now if it's a serious proposal, or just one that's been thrown out," McCaskill said to The Hill. "It's too early to judge whether it's serious."

In a carefully worded statement, McCaskill called Obama's approach "thoughtful" without fully endorsing it. She also said she would be looking closely at benchmarks for the new strategy.

"We cannot continue to allow the Taliban or Al Qaeda to gain ground in Afghanistan and therefore the Commander in Chief should be commended for establishing a thoughtful strategy that acknowledges that the war in Afghanistan is not a war of choice," McCaskill said.

"I will be looking closely at the benchmarks being set for this new strategy, including ensuring our allies and the Afghans are stepping up to do their part and that we are expending our nation’s resources responsibly," she added.

The chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, who repeatedly encouraged the president to embrace a strategy with new troops, said he still had questions.

"I have a number of questions to which I hope we can get answers--for example, the role of Pakistan, how specifically we will measure progress over time, what additional resources we will need on the civilian side of the effort, how we will manage strain on our forces, and how we expect the government of Afghanistan to be reformed," said Rep. Ike Skelton.

Skelton Not Happy With Terrorist Trial in NYC

IKE . . . TO THE RIGHT

House Armed Services Committee chair Ike Skelton broke with the Obama administration on trying the men accused of plotting terrorist attacks in U.S. criminal courts.

"As a former prosecutor, I am not yet convinced that the right decision was made in these cases, nor that the presumption in favor of federal criminal trials over military tribunals for these detainees should continue," Skelton wrote in a letter to Attorney General Eric Holder and Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates asking for a full briefing on the decision.

The Hill has posted Skelton's entire letter.

REUTERS notes: "It has been mostly Republicans who have been critical of Holder's decision, questioning whether it will be easier to get a conviction in a criminal court rather than a military one because some of the evidence was obtained through coercive interrogations and probably cannot be used."

Cook Pushes Skelton Seat From "Likely" to "Lean"

King political prognosticator Charlie Cook has switched his ranking for Missouri's 4th Congressional District race from "a likely Democratic seat" to "a lean Democratic seat" in 2010.

The move is minor, and still favors Rep. Ike Skelton. But it's also significant for Republicans who believe they're gaining momentum against a longtime incumbent who hasn't had a competitive race in years.

From THE COOK POLITICAL REPORT:

"Either Republican currently running, former state Rep. Vicky Hartzler or state Sen. Bill Stouffer, will be Skelton's best-funded opponent ever. Each of them possesses a six year state legislative record for Skelton to pick apart, but if voters here are angry at Obama, they will want to talk more about Skelton's votes for major Democratic initiatives," writes Cook.

"Skelton is an institution whose traditional overwhelming crossover appeal will make him tougher to beat than other senior Democrats. Plus, conservative voters here will be able to send Washington a message in the competitive Senate race if they choose. But the district's deep conservatism gives Republicans' "time for change" message room to grow," Cook concludes.

Republicans point to Skelton's recent opposition to the House healthcare bill as evidence he's worried about the turbulent political environment.

***

PLUS: SKELTON LAUNCHES NEW CAMPAIGN SITE

The Skelton campaign unveiled a new website Thursday that includes "new online organizing tools and social networking capabilities." CLICK HERE.

Skelton: No Congressional Inquiry on Ft. Hood Yet

Congressman Ike Skelton is balking at an immediate investigation by Congress into the shooting rampage at Ft. Hood until investigations by the Army and FBI progress.

"It is important that we get to the bottom of this incident, but we must be careful to proceed in a deliberate, studied manner that will not interfere with the ongoing criminal investigation by the FBI and the Army's criminal investigative service, said Skelton, according to Reuters. "Right now, we need to avoid jumping to any conclusions and give the Army and the FBI a chance to do their jobs."

On the U.S. Senate side, Homeland Security Chairman Joe Lieberman says his panel will open an investigation next week.

Missouri Republicans & Skelton Lament House Healthcare Vote

"This is history"
Democratic Congressman Ike Skelton joined Missouri Republicans in opposition to a massive healthcare overhaul that narrowly cleared the U.S. House late Saturday.

Excerpts of each statement in order of reception:

7th District Congressional candidate Jack Goodman: "Very disappointing" "This legislation is loaded with job-killing taxes, mandates that create over 100 new bureaucracies, slashes Medicare funding and will further strain state budgets around the country. This is not fixing the problem, but legislating new problems in search of a solution."

4th District Congressman Ike Skelton: "Not the right balance" "I am concerned about the impact the legislation could have on rural hospitals and doctors. The proposed reductions to Medicare reimbursement could further squeeze the budgets of rural health care providers. One solution might be for Congress to ensure that rural Missourians understand how any new legislation will affect them and their families."

7th District Congressman Roy Blunt: "Budget-busting" "It's families and patients who will suffer most under this government takeover of health care. This bill costs more than $1 trillion, increases premium costs, puts a bureaucrat between you and your doctor, and pays for most of it with Medicare cuts and job-killing tax hikes."

7th District Congressional candidate Billy Long: "Playing politics" "If you ask career politicians to come up with a solution to health care you shouldn't be surprised when their solution is simply more government, more taxes and more bureaucracy. This bill is at best bad policy and at worst unconstitutional. I would have voted against it."

4th District Congressional candidate Bill Stouffer: "People have had enough" "This bill is the wrong answer to the wrong question. Instead of growing government, we should have focused on common sense solutions like medical malpractice reform, Association Health Plans and getting rid of the state lines to create real competition."

7th District Congressional candidate Gary Nodler: "Dangerous bill" "The bill passed last night in the House by Pelosi and the liberal Democrats is a step towards single payer, government run health care. If passed by the Senate, the bill will mortgage our childrens' financial future via exploding deficits and ruin Americans' health care."

7th District Congressional candidate Michael Wardell: "Ridiculous . . . egregious" "Our current health care system is certainly not perfect, but it is far better than this socialist-inspired prescription. If this bill becomes law, it will be the greatest government debacle ever visited upon the American people, who in retribution will once again consign the Democratic Party to the minority in Congress."

Sunday Morning Skelton

Congressman Ike Skelton will appear on CBS' Face the Nation Sunday.

Other guests on FACE include: Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI), Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL) and Republican political consultant Ed Rollins.

Get the entire Sunday Morning Show line-up HERE.

***

Meanwhile: On Saturday -- 4th District GOP candidate Vicky Hartzler will appear at a "We The People" rally at the Livestock Pavillion next to the Mills Center in Lebanon, Mo. It runs from 2-7 p.m.

Speakers at the Saturday rally include Hartzler, U.S. Senate candidate Chuck Purgason, Rep. Darrell Pollock and others. Topics include cap & trade, healthcare, the economy and the 2nd amendment.

Hartlzer is running for the GOP nomination to take on Skelton next November.

Skelton Meets With Labor Secretary

Congressman Ike Skelton recently met with U.S. Labor Secretary Hilda Solis to discuss the unemployment rate in the 4th Congressional District.

"We talked about a number of matters during the meeting. But, I was particularly eager to share my concerns about the high unemployment rate in the Fourth District and to discuss how we can boost jobs and job training in rural Missouri. It is vital that we prepare our workforce to compete and succeed in the 21st century global economy," said Skelton in a statement.

"While last week’s report indicating 12,000 jobs were saved or created by the Recovery Act in the Fourth District is welcome news, more work remains. I am hopeful that the Secretary will take seriously my concerns and will share them with her colleagues in the Administration," he added, without getting into specifics.
***

MEANWHILE: The U.S. Senate voted to give the unemployed up to 20 weeks of additional unemployment benefits and expand the home buyers tax credit program.

Sen. Kit Bond's communications maestro notes that Sen. Kit Bond supports extending unemployment benefits but objected to the homebuyer tax credit extension.

"I object to including an expansion of the homebuyer tax credit program in the bill, which comes at a high cost to taxpayers, has been ripe with fraud and abuse, and runs the risk of recreating another housing crisis," Bond said.

Skelton: Flawed Afghan Election Shows Need For Reform

Congressman Ike Skelton continued to push President Obama to embrace General Stanley McChrystal's counter insurgency strategy in Afghanistan and said the recent flawed election reinforced the need for reforms in the unstable country.

FULL SKELTON STATEMENT:

"Although the election in Afghanistan was deeply flawed and filled with uncertainty, we now have an outcome and can begin to move forward. The legitimacy and efficacy of the Afghan government are critical for our efforts there as well as for their own future, and it is imperative that President Karzai work quickly to address these points. President Karzai should make a compact, with input from the Afghan people, about improving effective governance and eliminating corruption within the national government. Once the people of Afghanistan have decided what is important to them, the U.S. and international community should both help support those efforts and help hold the Karzai government accountable for his promises.

"I continue to believe that General McChrystal's counter insurgency plan is the right approach, including his call to build capability at the local level. The recent flawed election process has reinforced the need to also push for the reform of the national Afghan government, to increase legitimacy and help build a capable partner for our efforts in Afghanistan. Pursuing al Qaeda and ensuring that its members can't use Afghanistan as a safe haven is a vital national security interest for the U.S., and a minimally functioning and legitimate Afghan government is an important part of that effort."

MSNBC notes that Skelton's comments echoed the words of Republican Minority Leader John Boehner on the issue.

President Obama spoke with Hamid Karzai for about 10 minutes Monday and told the president he needs to improve his efforts towards reform.
***
ALSO: 7th District Candidate Wardell Weighs In
OBAMA 'EMBOLDENING' TERRORISTS

"The president's indecisiveness, ostensibly because he was awaiting the Afghan presidential election result, is only emboldening the terrorists and further endangering our young men and women in harm's way," said Michael Wardell in a statement. "Our soldiers and Marines have not wavered in places like Helmand province and the president should not waver in executing his duties as Commander-In-Chief. I am appalled at the manner in which this president chooses to lead."

One Year Away

COUNTDOWN TO 2010

One year from today Missourians will chose its 45th U.S. Senator, voters in the Ozarks will select a new 7th District Congressman and a handful of incumbents will be tested to see whether they can survive the typical midterm storm.

Both Democratic candidate Robin Carnahan and Republican Roy Blunt sent out e-mails to their U.S. Senate campaign supporters Monday marking the one year countdown.

CARNAHAN WANTS $45 DONATIONS: "Tonight, all across the state, Robin's supporters will be hosting House Parties to recruit a strong volunteer force and build the grassroots network we will need to win. But today, I'm asking you to join with so many others who are helping our campaign effort with a contribution of $45," writes Carnahan finance director Emily Ebert in an e-mail.

Ebert cites a polling advantage, but warns that Blunt has a financial advantage and that Team Carnahan needs to stay competitive: "We must stay competitive with Blunt on financial resources too. And two weeks ago the latest fundraising numbers were reported showing Congressman Blunt with an advantage of over $400,000 in cash reserves over our own campaign."

BLUNT WANTS $20.10: "Which way will "Bellwether Missouri" turn on November 2, 2010, only one short year from today?," writes Roy Blunt in an e-mail. "In only ten months, the Washington liberal way has sent the jobless rate soaring to nearly 10 percent with new national debt and budget deficits never imagined, at any time in our history. Now, the liberal one-party monopoly in Washington wants vast new taxes, huge cuts in Medicare for seniors, and unprecedented direct control over your health care. Enough is MORE than enough!"

"With the election only a year away, here are four things you can do right now to help. Recruit ten people in your network of family and friends to join the campaign. Third, consider making a generous contribution to our campaign by participating in our $20.10 challenge."

***

ROLL CALL LABELS SKELTON A "MCCAIN DEMOCRAT"

One of 49 districts that went for John McCain and a Democratic House member -- Skelton is one of the Democrats the GOP is targeting in an attempt to "expand the playing field"

HUMAN EVENTS JOHN GIZZI SAYS SKELTON is one of 25 seats the GOP can win next year.

Stouffer For Skelton

The brother of Sen. Bill Stouffer donated $200 to Congressman Ike Skelton's re-election campaign just last month, according to third quarter campaign finance reports published Thursday.

Saline County prosecutor Donald Stouffer of Marshall, Mo. donated $200 to Skelton on Sept. 4th, according to Skelton's campaign finance report. Don is the brother of Bill Stouffer, one of several candidates running for the GOP nomination to challenge Skelton in 2010.

Just three days ago, Skelton met with local law enforcement officials in Saline County, according to The Marshall-Democrat News.

The article states that Skelton spent most of his time listening to policing difficulties. Don Stouffer talked about one individual who was in America illegally, but served as a helpful interpreter to police.

"What really bothers me is that we had this individual who was helping law enforcement, serving free as an interpreter, . . . was a good citizen, had be been a citizen, and they went after him, but we have people that commit crimes, and they won't come get them. There's an inconsistency there that I can't begin to explain," Stouffer said in the piece.

Skelton Would Vote "No" On House Dem Healthcare

JEFFESON CITY, Mo. (AP) - Missouri Congressman Ike Skelton says he opposes a government option for health insurance and would vote against the current health care proposals of his fellow Democrats.

Skelton announced his opposition to the several health care overhaul plans pending in the House during a telephone conference call Thursday evening with constituents.

His comments came on the same day that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the case is growing stronger for allowing the government to sell health insurance in competition with private
companies.

Skelton says he fears that could drive private insurers out of business.

Skelton says he also is concerned that the House proposals could make large cuts to Medicare and hurt rural health care providers.

Ike Has $600K . . . And Ken Morley

Congressman Ike Skelton is reporting having more than $600,000 on hand to spend for his 2010 re-election bid.

His campaign said it has raised about $330,000 between July and September.

As of 4:25 p.m. his report was not available on the Federal Election Commission website.

ALSO BUZZWorthy: Gov. Jay Nixon's top political consultant Ken Morley is aiding Skelton's re-election bid.

"Missourians know Ike Skelton is an independent leader who is committed to creating jobs and delivering for the families of the 4th Congressional District. They trust Ike because he puts his neighbors before politics, and they know that he is always on their side,” said Ken Morley, a campaign advisor. “Missourians want to make sure they have Ike’s Missouri values and independent voice in Washington.”
***
Republicans Sen. Bill Stouffer and Vicky Hartzler are widely viewed as Skelton's main GOP challengers in 2010. Their campaign finance reports have not yet been posted as of this writing either.

Parnell Strikes Ike, But Not On Open Mic

Ike Skelton's 2008 GOP opponent said Saturday he's more troubled by the Congressman's recent votes than what he inadvertently muttered into an open microphone.

BUT Republican Jeff Parnell said he's not yet decided on whether he'll attempt to challenge Skelton again in 2010.

"While Congressman Skelton's recent problem with a live microphone is certainly amusing and makes a tempting target, particularly to his announced opponents, I am sorely troubled by his votes and actions that do violence to freedom, our economy and the U.S. Constitution," Parnell wrote in a statement.

Parnell instead took issue with Skelton's recent votes on a defense bill that addresses hate crimes, cap and trade legislation and his support for "the government takeover of our healthcare establishment." "None of this is news," wrote Parnell. "I have been speaking and writing about his chameleon-like stances on issues for many years."

Parnell then seemed to take a shot at the announced Republicans running against Skelton in 2010: "The American people want leaders who offer real-world solutions, not more carping about trivialities by politicians who would rather hold on to issues than solve problems," he said.

Contacted by The Notebook Saturday, Parnell said he's keeping his options at a 4th District run open: "I have not ruled out my involvement. I must weigh personal considerations, but knowing 4th District politics as I do, should I enter, I would expect to win the nomination."
***
In 2008, Skelton defeated Parnell handily in the general election 66%-34%.

Five Republicans have already announced candidacies in the 4th Congressional District.

Stick It In Your Ear

OPEN MIC NIGHT

Congressman Ike Skelton is the latest politico to be caught on an open mic, muttering a candid thought that wasn't meant for public consumption.

The Washington Times notes that after responding to Rep. Todd Akin's comments on defense legislation on the House floor, Skelton turned to an aide and suggested where Akin could "stick" his viewpoint. A live microphone caught it.

From The Times: "Mr. Skelton asked an aide for the vote tally in the Senate, then repeated the 87-7 Senate vote aloud to Mr. Akin. Then Mr. Skelton recognized a fellow Democrat to speak and turned to sit down, though not before saying audibly to the aide the offending phrase."

It took mere minutes for Sen. Bill Stouffer's campaign to forward the article to political reporters around the state -- HEADLINE BLARING: "Ike Skelton Caught Swearing On Floor of House."

*Sounds like IKE is now ready for his nationwide tour*

PLUS: POUNCE!

"Ike Skelton owes Todd Akin and the residents of the 4th district an apology for his insensitive and mean-spirited outburst on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives. Representative Akin was simply expressing a sentiment that many Missourians share, yet he was subject to a verbal assault from Skelton," said Missouri GOP Executive Director Lloyd Smith.

THIS AFTERNOON: Skelton told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch he woud apologize to Akin if he felt offended by the remark.

"During heated debate, unfortunate things are said. And that’s what happened. Period," Skelton said.