This will be quick. After steadfastly refusing to any debates, Rep. Melissa Hart will finally debate - well, sort of - her Democratic opponent Jason Altmire this morning on
KDKA radio.
Those not in Western Pa. can stream the debate from the KDKA site. KDKA is home to some wingnuts, including Fred Honsberger, kind of a poor man's Hugh Hewitt, from what I can tell.
Some of the recent developments in this race on the flip...
The two independent polls done on this race show Altmire within the margin of error (48-44 and 46-42, respectively).
Hart released her own poll showing a 12-point lead, but that hardly seems credible given two indy polls (one paid for by the Tribune Review, the Moonie Times of western Pa.).
Hart has more money and has been up on the air more, but Altmire has a strong volunteer ground team and my own phone banking experience strogly suggests that, if the Democratic voters turn out in this 55 v. 39 registered Ds to Rs district, Altmire has a very good chance of pulling this thing off.
Altmire's a self-described "conservative Democrat," so he's pro-life, pro-gun, and opposed to gay marriage, but doesn't support a constitutional amendment outlawing it.
Altmire's big gun is health care, which is very big in thiis area.
I'll be curious to see how this thing goes. Hart has accused Altmire of running a "negative" campaign, leaving most of the slimy ads to the NRCC.
Okay, gotta get the kids to preschool. Happy listening.