by Stuart Rothenberg

This year, once again, there is buzz that 2008 might be an anti-incumbent election that will sweep out sitting House Members of both parties. National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Tom Cole (Okla.) has been making that case for months, and more than a few journalists and talking heads have picked it up as well.

A little more than a year ago in this space ("An Anti-Incumbent Election? This Year? Of Course Not," Sept. 14, 2006), I argued that 2006 would be an anti-Republican, not an anti-incumbent, year. I never thought that we'd be hearing the same anti-incumbent argument so soon. It's like a bad penny that keeps turning up.

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By CARL HULSE

Republicans are also conversant with what might be known as political wave theory. After Democrat Niki Tsongas won a special election in Massachusetts last Tuesday by a 51-45 percent spread, the National Republican Congressional Committee heralded the result with this headline: “The Democratic Wave Breaks.”

Republicans contended that the single-digit victory by the widow of Paul Tsongas in ultra-Democratic Massachusetts showed that Democrats can be had in 2008.

“In a race that should have been won in a walk, Democrats were forced to funnel a massive amount of resources and dispatch an all-star cast of liberal icons at the 11th hour in order to ensure victory,” said Representative Tom Cole of Oklahoma, chairman of the Republican campaign group. Read more...

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Labels: Cong. Frank Lucas, Cong. John Sullivan, Cong. Tom Cole, Mary Fallin, SCHIP

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By David S. Broder

The day had been full of ominous warnings. Polls showed the Republicans on the losing side of almost every issue and the 2008 presidential race -- and now they're forced to defend a controversial veto of a popular children's health bill.

But Tom Cole, the 58-year-old Oklahoma representative who this year took on the responsibility for running the GOP's congressional campaign, was remarkably sanguine -- considering.

He had been reading about the Post-ABC News poll showing that Hillary Rodham Clinton had established a commanding lead for the Democratic presidential nomination and was beating Rudy Giuliani, the current Republican front-runner, 51 percent to 43 percent in a hypothetical matchup.

The same poll showed President Bush's approval rating at 33 percent, equaling his historic low, and congressional Republicans' even lower, at 29 percent, the lowest ever recorded for them. Democrats are trusted more than Republicans when it comes to handling Iraq, health care, the economy and the federal budget, the poll said, and the two parties are tied on terrorism -- supposedly the Republicans' strong suit.

So how could he be reasonably satisfied with his party's prospects? The answer: The Democrats are also looking like dogs. Read more...

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By Josh Kraushaar

It seems every day brings more bad news for Republicans. As Politico first reported Friday, House Minority Leader John Boehner and his campaign chief, Oklahoma Rep. Tom Cole, are at war over campaign tactics and operations. Boehner is demanding a major shake-up at the National Republican Congressional Committee.

The dust-up might be the least of the GOP’s problems. Three House Republicans in very competitive districts recently announced their retirements — and several more senior GOP members have hinted they may do the same.

Put simply, Republicans lack the money to fight seriously for many of these seats. The NRCC is essentially broke, with more debt than money in the bank. “When you look at what’s going on in the House, the prospects for getting back on track are pretty dim at the moment,” said Rep. Ray LaHood (R-Ill.). Read more...

Labels: Cong. Tom Cole, Decision '08

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“It is bad enough that MoveOn.org has been trying to bully Members of Congress into a course of action that most experts believe would lead to catastrophe in Iraq and the death of tens of thousands in a regional sectarian war. But comparing an American general, who has spent his life serving and defending our country, to traitors like Adam Gadahn, Jose Padilla and John Walker Lindh goes too far.

“Moveon.org owes General Petraeus and every American in uniform an apology.

“This is a critical time for the future of our country and we ought to be working together to find a real solution, instead of turning the Iraq war into a political, partisan game. Democrats ought to reflect on whether or not they want their party associated with the tactics of an organization that spends its time, resources and credibility attacking the character of the men and women who defend its right to engage in such egregious activities.”

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Rep. Tom Cole (R-OK) interviewed by Sean Lengell, Washington Times & David Drucker, Roll Call.

CSPAN Video



Related:

U.S. News & World Report's "Washington Whispers":

"Know Thy Enemy" Is the GOP Motto

Rising House Democratic leader Rep. Rahm Emanuel is one tough political battler, and now the Republican leading the charge to return the GOP to power in the House wants his side to know just how formidable the opposition can be. We hear that Rep. Tom Cole, head of the National Republican Congressional Committee, has purchased a couple dozen copies of the Chicago Tribune bio on Emanuel: The Thumpin<': How Rahm Emanuel and the Democrats Learned to Be Ruthless and Ended the Republican Revolution. The reason is simple. Cole wants his staff to learn about the guy who orchestrated the 2006 House Democratic takeover. Read more...

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NRCC Chairman Tom Cole spoke with Ed Morrissey on BlogTalkRadio on July 30, 2007 about the YouTube debate.

Related:

National Journal: "GOP Campaign Chief Touts YouTube Debate"

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Video courtesy of John R. Angier II

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From Bloomberg News:

Pelosi has "lost some confidence on the left,'' costing "energy, money and enthusiasm,'' said Representative Tom Cole of Oklahoma, chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee. "At the same time, she's put her own members on the right, who our targets are, in a very precarious position.'' Read more...

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As NRCC Chief, Cole Has Plan to Win Back House in 2008

By Juliet Eilperin and Michael Grunwald
Washington Post Staff Writers


One day back when Republicans controlled Congress, Reps. Tom Cole (R-Okla.) and Rahm Emanuel (D-Ill.) found themselves talking politics, something both men tend to do when they happen to be awake.

Cole, who has worked behind the scenes for just about every prominent Republican politician in Oklahoma as well as the national party, suggested that House Democrats would need a political pro to win back the majority in 2006, and he predicted they'd choose Emanuel to chair their campaign committee. Emanuel, who was once President Clinton's top political adviser, said he doubted it; he'd clashed too many times with party leaders.

"You don't have to like George Patton to know you need George Patton," Cole replied.

Cole was right, and Emanuel ultimately led the Democrats back to the majority. That's why Republicans wanted their own Patton -- their own Rahm -- to take back the House in 2008. And that's why they've elected Cole to chair the National Republican Congressional Committee, where he once served as executive director.

"A guy with that kind of résumé, we'd be paying millions of dollars for him as a consultant," said Rep. Candice S. Miller (Mich.), the head of recruiting for the NRCC.

It's true; Cole has run the Republican National Committee, the Oklahoma GOP and a lucrative consulting business. He has also been a state senator, congressional staff member and Oklahoma's secretary of state. He loves to read cross tabs, and he's a consummate insider. "His Rolodex," says former aide John Woods, "is like all of MySpace plus all of Facebook." Read more...

Labels: Cong. Tom Cole, Decision '08

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Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), who led the Senate Indian Affairs Committee investigation into the Jack Abramoff scandal, has sworn off taking tribal money in his presidential campaign but continues to accept donations from lobbyists whose firms represent tribal clients.

McCain spokesman Danny Diaz said the senator believes that tribes can spend their money in other ways. He added that McCain implemented the ban on tribal money when he became chairman of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee in the midst of the Abramoff scandal, before the panel began probing the tens of millions of dollars the tribes paid the former lobbyist.

Diaz, however, would not explain why McCain would not extend that policy to lobbyists representing tribes.

Other members, such as Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.), who chairs the National Republican Congressional Committee and is the only registered member of an Indian tribe in Congress, say they believe that tribes should not be punished for the Abramoff scandal and should be free to be as active in the political process as possible — including in the political fundraising arena.

Cole said he respects McCain’s decision not to accept money from tribes, stressing that any member is free to establish his or her own policy about fundraising. But Cole argues that the Abramoff scandal is a lobbying scandal, not an Indian scandal.

“I don’t know one tribe that was found to have done anything wrong — in fact, they were the victims,” Cole said last month in an interview. “But what Abramoff and others were doing was clearly criminal. Tribes have the right to participate in the system because if they are not looking out for their interests, nobody else will.” Read more...

Labels: Cong. Tom Cole, Decision '08, Ethics Reforms

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By George F. Will

Tom Cole earned a Ph.D. in British history from the University of Oklahoma, intending to become a college professor, but he came to his senses and to a zest for politics and now, in just his third term in the House of Representatives, he is chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee. As such, he is charged with recruiting the candidates and honing the tactics that will transform Speaker Nancy Pelosi back to House minority leader. "We are looking," says Cole, speaking unminced words about the Republican Party, "like a beaten down stock." Nevertheless, he is sanguine regarding 2008: "The positioning is good for us" because "we don't have to conquer new territory, we have to reclaim old territory." That is, 61 Democrats represent districts that George W. Bush carried in 2004. A 16-seat gain in 2008 would restore Republican control to the House. Read more...

Labels: Cong. Tom Cole, Decision '08

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By Susan Crabtree

Tribes have historically donated overwhelmingly to Democrats, a trend that NRCC Chairman Tom Cole (R-Okla.) wants to change. Cole makes no apologies for leading a fundraising drive aimed at tapping into tribal money. As he puts it, Native Americans should be involved in politics, and for him the issue is personal.

A Chickasaw, Cole is the only registered member of a tribe in Congress, and he maintains close ties to the tribal gambling community, which has donated heavily to his personal campaigns in the past. His mother was a member of the Chickasaw Nation’s Hall of Fame, his great-grandfather served as the tribe’s treasurer, and his great-great-grandfather was clerk of the tribe’s Supreme Court. The Chickasaw tribe owns 12 casinos in Oklahoma, just one piece of a business portfolio that includes ownership of several banks, a chocolate factory and seven tobacco outlets.

Cole’s ties to the Indian gaming industry are so close that he was interviewed for the position of assistant interior secretary in charge of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, which oversees the National Indian Gaming Commission, early in 2001. The future Oklahoma congressman said he was not interested and suggested that then-Interior Secretary Gale Norton instead offer the job to his longtime friend, Neal McCaleb, who was hired. McCaleb resigned in 2002 after becoming embroiled in a long-running lawsuit involving the government’s handling of Indian trust funds and now works for the Chickasaw Nation’s business arm, which runs the casinos and other businesses.

Now that Cole is charged with pulling the House GOP reelection committee out of its deep debt, he is tapping into his background and extensive knowledge of Native American issues to educate fellow GOP lawmakers and reach out to the tribal community in the hope that they will reach back with donations to the NRCC.

Cole says only that the NRCC is doing “pretty well” so far in its Native American donor drive. Federal Election Commission (FEC) records show that in the first two months of this year, three tribes donated a total of $82,000 to the NRCC, including the Chickasaw Nation, the Mississippi Band of Choctaws (a former Abramoff client), and the Soboba Band of Leisene Indians.

“Tribes have every right to participate in the political process,” Cole said in an interview with The Hill. “I don’t think other people should make that decision for them. The most dangerous time for tribes is when they’re not participating in the political process.”

Cole is not alone in his efforts. Even though the Abramoff scandal was a liability for Republicans and spawned a flurry of ethics reforms, it has done little to dampen both parties’ appetite for Indian gambling largesse. Earlier this year, Senate Democrats held a fundraising event during a national gathering of Native Americans in Washington. The reception was hosted by lobbyists and the political action committee for tribal casinos. Read more...

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