IMPLICATIONS OF BAYH – AT 9:53 A.M. ET:  As a matter of principle, we refuse to use such constructions as "Bye Bayh" at Urgent Agenda.  We have pride.  We have standards. 

But the story itself, Evan Bayh's decision not to seek reelection to the Senate from Indiana, has major implications.  The Washington Post's "The Fix" reports:

The national implications of Bayh's retirement are considerable. Political handicapper Charlie Cook now carries 10 Democratic-held seats in his most competitive categories, meaning that if Republicans run the table and don't lose any of their own vulnerable seats they could take back the Senate. With so little room for error, however, it's still a long shot for Republicans to take over the upper chamber. To expand their chances, the GOP must continue to expand the playing field, with Senate races in Wisconsin and Washington State the most likely possibilities.

COMMENT:  The key is good candidates, always good candidates.  And not all of the GOP bench is glowing.  There are some great ones, and some real clunkers, like John Hostettler, the extremist former congressman, thrown out of office by his own conservative voters in Indiana, and now vying for the Senate nomination, in an apparent bid to fail upward.  So this will be hard work.

February 16, 2010