Battle Lines Are Drawn In Nebraska Senate Race

michael kors handbags Hours after state Sen. Deb Fischer's upset win in Nebraska's Republican Senate primary, the campaign battle lines were drawn, with Ms. Fischer stressing her deep roots as a rancher in the state and former Sen. Bob Kerrey, a Democrat, emphasizing his record of deviating from his party's orthodoxy. "We don't need the same type of person who's supposedly going to represent us in Washington," Ms. Fischer told supporters michael kors outlet Tuesday night. "We need somebody different, somebody who's tough, somebody who's effective, somebody who's a Nebraskan." That might have been a dig at Mr. Kerrey, who has lived in New York for a decade as president of the New School in Manhattan, though he's served as Nebraska governor and senator and owns restaurants and fitness michael kors clubs in the state. Mr. Kerrey, in an interview, said solving the country's biggest problems requires lawmakers willing to buck their parties, and he questioned whether Ms. Fischer would do that. "I do not think we will get the deficit behind us unless people are willing to break from their caucuses," Mr. Kerrey said. Following the victory of Ms. Fischer—a little-known state legislator—Democrats and Republicans were trying to determine what her candidacy would mean for a race seen by many as Republicans' best opportunity to pick up a Senate seat. Democrats depict Ms. Fischer, 61 years old, as an untested candidate, while Republicans stress her role as a mother and rancher from the small town of Valentine. Ms. Fischer was defined during the primary in part by what she wasn't—neither an establishment candidate like state Attorney General Jon Bruning nor the tea-party candidate like state Treasurer Don Stenberg. That ultimately worked in her favor. But Ms. Fischer, despite a low profile even in Nebraska, is comfortably within the state's political orbit. Her father worked for former GOP Gov. Kay Orr, and she chairs the transportation committee in the state legislature, where her signature initiative was a bill to accelerate road construction using a portion of the state's sales tax revenue. Sen. Mike Johanns (R., Neb.) noted that she has opposed Gov. Dave Heineman, a fellow Republican, on roads issues as well as supporting him on tax issues. "She would stand toe-to-toe with anybody," Mr. Johanns said. Democrats hope to turn Ms. Fischer's identity as a rancher against her, portraying her not only as a conservative ideologue who's in over her head but also as a hypocrite. They cited a report in the Omaha World-Herald that Ms. Fischer grazed her cattle on federal land for a reduced fee despite her support for government frugality. Ms. Fischer has said ranchers help manage the federal land and that she doesn't set the rates. Mr. Kerrey, 70, won't be a pushover. A former Navy SEAL and Medal of Honor winner, he had his right leg amputated after a war injury in Vietnam. He served as governor and two-term senator and gained a dash of glamour from dating actress Debra Winger. In an interview, he called Ms. Fischer a "very good opponent" and suggested that he faces a tough race. "All I can say is that I felt duty bound to get in the race.…As to whether the voters ask me to go back and represent them, that remains to be seen." http://www.michaelkorshandbagsoutletweb.com/