Joe Schwarz (RINO-MI) is going to be facing a challenge from Tim Walberg, who the Club for Growth has now endorsed, which will hopefully keep other solid conservatives out of race. I liked Brad Smith for this seat in ‘04, but at this point we need to get the best guy to knock Schwarz out and it looks like that guy might be Walberg. Definitely a race to keep an eye on. Also note the comment of the MI state chair:

But Michigan Republican Party Chairman Saul Anuzis said he won’t discourage anyone from running.

“I believe primaries are healthy,” he said. “They’re good for the party, they draw people who believe in issues and generate a lot of early activity.”

Man, can I get Anuzis to come to PA and be our state chair. We need more folks who think like him.

I can’t say it enough times, but thank God for Tom Coburn. From today’s Wall Street Journal

Amid the carnage, however, there was one small triumph last week: Senate Appropriations powerhouse Ted Stevens decided to pull funding for the infamous $320 million “Bridge to Nowhere” in his home state of Alaska. For those joining this story in progress, the proposed project would have connected Ketchikan, Alaska with remote Gravina Island (population 50)…………

The one hero of this episode is Senator Tom Coburn (R., Okla.), who sponsored an amendment to block funding for the bridge and use the money to repair vital bridges on the Gulf Coast destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. Mr. Stevens erupted on the Senate floor and threatened to quit if the measure passed. The vote failed. However, Mr. Stevens threw in the towel last Tuesday, announcing that he was taking this “drastic action” because his state had been “so unfairly maligned in the national press” in recent weeks.

I particularly remember this night. I was in DC and I was supposed to meet a friend of mine for dinner who works for Senator Coburn. He called me on my cell while I was at the restaurant bar and told me he would not be able to make it because he was on the Senate floor waiting for Senator Coburn to introduce a spending amendment that would give Senator Stevens a heart attack. I wished him well, hung up the phone, looked up at the bar TV, and there was Stevens, whining and wimpering. It was sweet bliss.

While Coburn definitely put Stevens in his place, this part kind of bothers me.

In any case, Mr. Stevens isn’t redirecting the bridge’s $320 million to New Orleans. The deal is that the money stays in Alaska but will be spent on other road projects.

Destroying the waste going towards such an absurd cause was part of the fight, but the other part was to have that money go towards New Orleans so we don’t incur any more debt in the rebuilding. Pressure should be put on Stevens to return that money back to the Federal budget. Alaska is one of the smallest states population wise; how much money can they possibly need up there?

This is just another reminder of the work that still needs to be done within the GOP. Alaska is a solidly red state and very conservative. There is no reason why it should be represented by the Murkowskis and Stevens. They can do so much better.

YellowJacket was born in Tampa, Florida in 1986. Due to his father’s job he lived all around the county during his illustrious childhood. Only a few months after being born, YellowJacket’s family moved to Minneapolis for two years, followed by Dallas, Texas for a year and a half, followed by Tampa (again) for five years, followed by Minneapolis (yet again) for two more years, until finally settling down in Atlanta amidst the 1996 Olympics. YellowJacket’s family has lived in Sandy Springs, Georgia ever since, and one of YellowJacket’s first voting experiences was voting in the recent referendum to incorporate Sandy Springs as a city to keep more local tax dollars in the region.

YellowJacket is currently in his second year attending the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he is majoring in Mechanical Engineering and trying to get out alive. He is a brother of Chi Psi Fraternity, along with Mike, and is also involved in several other campus organizations.

Though an engineering major, YellowJacket also has a passion for politics and current affairs. He applies his political knowledge (what little there may be) and opinions through journalism, which he developed a talent for while writing for the North Springs Oracle; as Editor in Chief he lead the high school paper to win many statewide awards. Due to this journalism background, he isn’t a typical number-crunching engineering student and in the political arena, has a particular interest in journalism and bias in the media.

Though a young college student with idealistic ideas and a keen interest in beer, not to mention very little direct political experience, YellowJacket has a firm belief in the Constitutional ideals of our Republic as intended by our Founding Fathers. His favorite historical figures are George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Robert E. Lee. His favorite beer is Corona, and he enjoys long walks on the beach.

UPDATE: [Feb. 4, 2008] I’m now in my 4th year at Georgia Tech, and am getting my degree in Economics and International Affairs. Go Jackets.

“Do your duty in all things. You cannot do more, you should never wish to do less.” – Robert E. Lee