Larry Sabato Quotations | Page 2

A dangerous thesis has taken hold among many in the GOP: that it might be better to lose the '06 election and re-group. In American history, when a faction in the majority party decides the party is tired and could benefit from some time in the wilderness, the voters usually oblige. Most recently, the latest issue of Washington Monthly includes a cover story [link] featuring seven such articles from prominent Republican strategists, insiders and commentators.

The presidential candidates are offering prescriptions for everything from Iraq to healthcare, but listen closely. Their fixes are situational and incremental. Meanwhile, the underlying structural problems in American politics and government are systemic and prevent us from solving our most intractable challenges.

I think it's a smart thing to do.

Absolutely. The Republican campaign in Virginia will tell you that, at least privately. The president chose to nationalize that election by showing up on election eve. You don't want to do that unless you want to be associated with the results. I think they thought genuinely Bush could pull him across the race. It wasn't close. The result: Bush has to take the spanking.

Absolutely, ... The Republican campaign in Virginia will tell you that, at least privately. The president chose to nationalize that election by showing up on election eve. You don't want to do that unless you want to be associated with the results. I think they thought genuinely Bush could pull him across the race. It wasn't close. The result: Bush has to take the spanking.

If the people of Louisiana are lucky, both the governor and the mayor will appoint personal representatives who will work with one another, ... In other words, they can get the bad blood out of the room by delegating it away.

He bottomed out on Iraq even before Cindy Sheehan's protest started. Look at the poll numbers, Americans have been increasingly disaffected.

The legislation might have passed if he had waited, but it would have been on Page 8 of the nation's newspapers.

Right now, more than 10 months before the mid-term election, Democrats have a good chance of gaining seats in both houses of Congress.

It's an important event. It's one of those moments in his presidency that people want to remember well and he has to give them an opportunity to do so.