LOUISIANA HAYRIDE – AT 8:55 A.M. ET:  The Louisiana Senate runoff is Saturday, pitting incumbent Dem Senator Mary Landrieu against Republican Congressman Bill Cassidy.  Unless something goes very wrong, Republicans will have a new senator.  From the Washington Examiner: 

Louisiana Sen. Mary Landrieu’s bid for reelection “appears doomed,” according to a new and gloomy forecast for Saturday’s runoff between the Democrat and Republican Rep. Bill Cassidy.

In University of Virginia analyst Larry Sabato’s latest political “Crystal Ball” to be posted online Thursday, the Senate seat for the first time is being parked in the “safe Republican” slot, a sign that Landrieu has little or no chance of a comeback.

Crystal Ball Managing Editor Kyle Kondik wrote, “It’s rare for us to completely write off an incumbent. In fact, we only did so in one race this cycle, when we moved Gov. Tom Corbett’s (R) reelection bid in Pennsylvania to Safe Democratic a month before the election. Sure enough, Corbett lost by nearly 10 points.

“Landrieu is basically in the same boat, and it would be an absolute shock if she won. So we’re moving the Louisiana Senate runoff from ‘Likely Republican’ to ‘Safe Republican.’ ”

COMMENT:  Republicans in Congress are in their strongest position since the 1940s, and in some respects since the 1920s.  The question is what they'll do with their majorities in both houses.  The first signs are not all that positive, as Speaker Boehner, a decent man with little backbone, seems all too willing to make premature compromises with Obama on major issues.  But after swearing in occurs in January, there will be a new brigade of strong Republicans in both houses who will demand some strong stands.  We will wait before making assessments.

December 4,  2014