To the readers of the Swamp:

Labor Day traditionally marks a ramping up of the election campaign, and we at Tribune are doing the same as we cover the exciting 2010 midterms. Starting today, the content you are accustomed to seeing here will be part of our new Politics Now page.

We're teaming up with our partners at the Los Angeles Times to bring you more breaking political news and analysis as we enter the final eight weeks before Election Day.

As we transition, we'd also like to thank you for your loyal readership of this blog over the past few years. We hope you'll continue following us and bookmark our new home here.

We'd also like to welcome your feedback on the new venture. You can e-mail us here or post comments below.

Thanks again.

by Colby Itkowitz

President Barack Obama is scheduled to headline a fundraiser for U.S. Senate candidate Joe Sestak in Philadelphia on Sept. 20.

First reported by Politicspa, Obama will be at several events in Pennsylvania that same day. (John Callahan, perhaps?)

This will be the first time Obama has campaigned for/with Sestak this election cycle. Obama did not hide his support for Sen. Arlen Specter in the Democratic primary and his administration not so slyly tried to convince Sestak to drop his bid against Specter.

"We're honored that the President would do an event with Joe during his trip to Pennsylvania," Sestak spokesman Jonathon Dworkin told Politicspa. "He and Joe may have had their differences, but they can agree that it is critical to elect a Senator who will put Pennsylvania's working families first."

(Cross posted from Pennsylvania Ave.)

by Mike Memoli

It would seem quite the turnabout.

When President Obama came to Wisconsin just weeks ago, Sen. Russ Feingold (D) expressed no hesitation about appearing with his party leader.

"I'm pleased to stand with this president anytime and anywhere and defend what we've done and what we're doing," he told reporters August 16.

Fast forward to this headline in today's Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: "Feingold to miss Obama Labor Day visit."

Feingold is one of a handful of veteran Democratic senators suddenly finding themselves in tough races as voters nationwide, even in blue states, sour on the record of Obama and his party. But Feingold's campaign explains in a new statement why he won't be joining the president at Monday's "Labor Fest" in Milwaukee.

by Mike Memoli

Spinning this month's jobs report, President Obama announced he would detail a package of new measures aimed at stimulating the economy next week.

"We are confident we are moving in the right direction but we want to keep this recovery moving stronger and accelerate the job growth that is need so desperately all across the country," he said.

But a staple of Republican reaction to the stream of economic indicators in the past month has been to lampoon the administration for what they had advertised as "Recovery Summer."

"President Obama's agenda represented 'change' once, but now it is time for him to change course, abandon his job-killing policies, and find himself a new economic team," House Minority Leader John Boehner said in a statement this morning.

"President Obama's 'Recovery Summer' has ended right where it began, with Americans continuing to lose their jobs and unable to find new ones," RNC chair Michael Steele added.

The private sector added 67,000 new jobs while government employment fell by 114,000, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports this morning. Overall, the monthly jobs report finds the unemployment rate ticking up to 9.6 percent, with 14.9 million still unemployed.

From May through August, the release points out, the jobless rate remained in the range of 9.5 to 9.7 percent.

The private sector added 67,000 new jobs while government employment fell by 114,000, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports this morning. Overall, the monthly jobs report finds the unemployment rate ticking up to 9.6 percent, with 14.9 million still unemployed.

From May through August, the release points out, the jobless rate remained in the range of 9.5 to 9.7 percent.

by Mike Memoli

The White House has announced that President Obama will hold a formal news conference on Friday, Sept. 10, his first in nearly four months.

According to CBS Radio's Mark Knoller, the in-house record keeper of the White House press corps, it will be the president's eighth solo Q-and-A session. His last was May 27, when he fielded questions about the BP oil spill.

Also next week, the president will mark Labor Day in Wisconsin, and speak on the economy in Ohio on Wednesday.

by Mike Memoli

The Cook Political Report has revised some of its race ratings in contests for House, Senate and governor, and none of them are good for Democrats.

Most significantly, the non-partisan political handicapper now says Republicans are poised to gain a net of 7-9 seats in the Senate, a result that would put them on track potentially to forcing a 50-50 split in the upper chamber (Vice President Biden might be a busy man for two years). That's revised up from a 4-6 seat gain.

Among the changes: the West Virginia Senate race, a special election to fill Robert Byrd's former seat, moves from Likely to Lean Democratic. Joe Manchin (D) still has strong approval ratings for his job as governor, but one poll this week showed state voters aren't necessarily sold on the idea of sending him to Washington.

The Ohio and Arkansas Senate races both moved from the Toss Up category to Lean Republican. Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) has not led in a single poll for some time, and in fact trails by as many as 30 points in some surveys. The Ohio contest seems to be slipping away as well, though both President Obama and Vice President Biden will be in the state next week.

More race ratings are available after the jump:

by Mike Memoli

Fox News host Glenn Beck did not mention President Obama at his "Restoring Honor" rally Saturday. But on his show this week he has been discussing what he calls the president's belief in "liberation theology," which he considers "Marxist."

"People aren't recognizing his version of Christianity," Beck said in an interview with "Fox News Sunday" this weekend, in which he also criticized Obama for his alleged belief in "collective salvation."

Asked about Beck's comments today, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs questioned what evidence the conservative icon would have as to "what the president does or does not believe."

"The president is a committed, mainstream Christian," he said.

Paraphrasing the late New York Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan, he said: "People are entitled to their own opinion, as ill-informed as it may be. But they're not entitled to their own facts."

by Mike Memoli

Kathleen Hennessey and I reported for today's papers on Tea Party Express, a group credited in part for Joe Miller's upset win in Alaska's Republican Senate primary, and active in a number of other 2010 contests.

No other group has so been so ambitious in targeting high-profile races and pulling off primary victories. The Tea Party Express' success has come the old-fashioned way: with hundreds of thousands of dollars in political attack ads. That strategy has made it a divisive player within a movement that some believe should represent a new people-powered politics. But it's also made Tea Party Express a considerable opponent for establishment politicians.

The group has now turned its attention to the Delaware Republican Senate primary on September 14, a race featuring Mike Castle, the state's 9-term Congressman and former governor, against Christine O'Donnell, the 2008 nominee against Joe Biden.

Castle has been considered a heavy favorite, but the group is targeting him for his centrist positions.

"Castle is Republican in name only. He's not conservative," said Amy Kremer, director of coalitions with Tea Party Express. "We're going to give voters there a chance to compare and contrast their records. I think you'll see how liberal he is."

by Mike Memoli

The first television ad of the cycle from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee signaled what the party hopes can be a life-preserver of an issue this year: Social Security.

It's an offensive that President Obama himself led several weeks ago as the party marked the 75th anniversary of the program's creation.

"Some Republican leaders in Congress don't seem to have learned any lessons from the past few years. They're pushing to make privatizing Social Security a key part of their legislative agenda if they win a majority in Congress this fall," he said in his weekly address August 14.

In several races where the Democrats are playing defense, they say Republican candidates have gone too far with rhetoric on the program. In Indiana's 9th district, candidate Todd Young (R) appears in a TV ad for Rep. Baron Hill (D) saying Social Security is a "ponzi scheme."

by Michael Muskal

Neophyte Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York is running far ahead of any possible challenger, a bright spot for Democrats trying to prevent Republicans from seizing control of Congress in the midterm election year.

According to a Quinnipiac University poll released on Wednesday, Gillibrand, who is running for her first term after being appointed to the seat vacated by Hillary Rodham Clinton, easily outdistanced all three possible GOP challengers. Former Rep. Joe DioGuardi gives Gillibrand the toughest fight but still loses by 43% to 28%, according to the poll.

Gillbrand was a two-term congresswoman from a district near the state capital of Albany when she was appointed to the Senate by beleagured Gov. David Paterson in a surprise move on Jan. 23, 2009. Paterson -- who replaced Gov. Eliot Spitzer who was forced to resign amid a sex scandal -- saw his political base quickly evaporate and was not seeking election. Gillibrand is seeking election to a term that ends 2013.

Gillibrand should have long been a target for Republicans, who need a net gain of 10 seats to wrest control of the U.S. Senate. She is an upstate Democrat, more conservative than most of the party still centered on New York City. Even now, after more than a year and a half in office, the poll found that 39% of those surveyed said they didn't know enough about her to form an opinion.

Her ace in the hole, however, has turned out to be the GOP, facing internal splits in a year when New York and national politics should have given Republicans a boost.

Continue reading at D.C. Now

by Mike Memoli

In his Oval Office address last night, President Obama pivoted from remarks on the war in Iraq to the economy, saying that because of our involvement abroad "we've not done what's necessary to shore up the foundations of our own prosperity."

"And so at this moment, as we wind down the war in Iraq, we must tackle those challenges at home with as much energy, and grit, and sense of common purpose as our men and women in uniform who have served abroad," he said.

In a series of interviews this morning, Vice President Biden echoed the president's message, arguing in one that America's ability to maintain its national security "is in fact dependent upon the economy."

"Just as we turned the page and are cooperating as Democrats and Republicans on the issue of Iraq, we should be doing the same thing on the economy," he said on CBS' "The Early Show."

Asked what the administration could do further to help the economy, Biden said it would be "a continuation of what we're doing now."

President Obama's speech from the Oval Office, as prepared for delivery, is available after the jump.

by Mike Memoli

The common theme as Republicans comment ahead of President Obama's Iraq speech tonight is that he should acknowledge the surge strategy he opposed as a U.S. senator is what made tonight's announcement possible.

From a speech given today in Wisconsin by House Minority Leader John Boehner:

Some leaders who opposed, criticized, and fought tooth-and-nail to stop the surge strategy now proudly claim credit for the results. ... I want to thank President Obama for setting aside his past political rhetoric and recognizing the importance of the surge and the diplomatic agreement signed by President Bush and Prime Minister Maliki.

From Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, speaking today in Kentucky:

"I think we should also be thankful that another President had the determination and the will to carry out the plan that made tonight's announcement possible. You might recall that the surge wasn't very popular when it was announced. You might also recall that one of its biggest critics was the current President. One of his colleagues said the war was already a lost cause, implying, of course, that any further efforts on the part of our troops would be in vain.

"So it makes it easier to talk about fulfilling a campaign promise to wind down our operations in Iraq when the previous administration signs the security agreement with Iraq to end our overall presence there.

And Sen. John McCain, Obama's 2008 rival, wrote in the Wall Street Journal today about lessons learned from Iraq that could be applied to Afghanistan:

by Mike Memoli

While President Obama was on vacation, his West Wing office got a bit of a face lift, complete with a new rug, fresh wallpaper and paint, and new furniture -- all done at no taxpayer expense, the White House says.

Details of the renovation were released to the pool reporter this morning. The White House, it seems, took pains to ensure that new additions were American made -- including New York wallpaper and a Michigan-made rug.

That wheat, cream and blue colored oval-shaped rug has the presidential seal in the center, and is encircled by five quotes chosen by the president. Four of the quotes are from former presidents -- Kennedy, Lincoln and both Roosevelts -- with the fifth quote from Martin Luther King.

It replaces the rug designed by former First Lady Laura Bush for her husband (one that former President Clinton had seemed particularly fond of).

In an interview on MSNBC this morning, press secretary Robert Gibbs described the renovations as "very modest."

"Each president puts his stamp on the office," he said. "None of the modest changes that were done inside the Oval Office were done at any taxpayer expense, much like they've been done by previous presidents."

The changes were paid for by the White House Historical Association, which received a donation from Obama's Presidential Inaugural Committee.

We may get a brief glimpse of some of the changes tonight when the president addresses the nation from the room. You can see the full details from the pool after the jump.

by Mike Memoli

President Obama addresses the nation from the Oval Office tonight, marking the fulfillment of a campaign pledge to wind down the war in Iraq. But his remarks will be carefully calibrated, officials say, to avoid any definitive declaration of victory - or "Mission Accomplished."

"You won't hear those words coming from us," press secretary Robert Gibbs told reporters Monday. "Obviously tomorrow marks a change in our mission. It marks a milestone that we have achieved in removing our combat troops. That is not to say that violence is going to end tomorrow. We understand that those that would foment violence will still continue to try to do so."

In advance of his speech, Obama is now en route to Texas, where he will meet with servicemen at Fort Bliss to thank them for their service. On Monday, the president spent more than two hours at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, where he awarded 11 purple hearts.

Though the president's speech marks the end of America's combat mission in Iraq, approximately 50,000 troops will remain in a support role, assisting Iraq's security forces. Those forces will also be capable of responding in the event of escalated attacks.

by Mike Memoli

For the first time in history, Gallup finds that Republicans have a double-digit advantage in its generic ballot test.

If the election were held today, 51 percent of respondents surveyed from August 23-29 say they'd vote for the Republican Congressional candidate, while 41 percent say they'd choose the Democratic candidate.

Gallup has conducted this generic ballot test since 1942, and until this year Republicans never had an advantage of more than 5 points.

The poll also finds that Republicans are twice as likely to be "very enthusiastic" about voting -- 50 percent say so, compared to 25 percent of Democrats.

"The last Gallup weekly generic ballot average before Labor Day underscores the fast-evolving conventional wisdom that the GOP is poised to make significant gains in this fall's midterm congressional elections," the pollster says in its release.

by Mike Memoli

The possibility of a real three-way race for Alaska's U.S. Senate seat disappeared this morning as the state's Libertarian party has ruled out replacing their current nominee with Sen. Lisa Murkowski.

"Let's put this to rest: it's not happening," state chairman Scott Kohlhaas told the Anchorage Daily News after a unanimous vote of the Libertarian Party executive committee.

Murkowski, who trailed Joe Miller by nearly 1,700 votes after last Tuesday's Republican primary election, had not ruled out staying in the race as a third party candidate. Another of the state's minor parties, the Alaskan Independence Party, has flatly ruled out nominating Murkowski as well, leaving a difficult write-in candidacy as her only option if she fails to win the GOP nomination.

The state Division of Elections says that through Sunday, 15,730 absentee ballots have been returned; another 9,117 disputed or questioned ballots remain as well to be considered; and there were 663 uncounted early votes. Officials will begin sifting through those 25,510 ballots Tuesday.