Democrats positioned to widen majority in Senate

This Reuters story (http://www.reuters.com/article/politicsNews/idUSN0544310120071008?pageNumber=3&sp=true) is encouraging even though the 2008 election is still 13 months away. Personally, I hope the trend continues because the GOP needs to be severely punished for (1) the manner in which it has allowed Chimperator Bush and Darth Vader Cheney to continue a disastrous war and dismantle many constitutional protections, and (2) allowing the Christianist base to try to turn the country into a theocracy where one's civil legal rights are determined based on your compliance with the Christianists' religious beliefs. A changed political atmosphere is terribly in need in this country so that politicians (and some judges) do not feel free to inflict their religious beliefs on others. Here are some highlights from Reuters:

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democrats are positioned to bolster their Senate majority in next year's elections, which would give them more clout regardless who succeeds President George W. Bush in the White House. With Republicans dogged by retirements, scandals and the Iraq war, there's an outside chance Democrats will gain as many as nine seats in the 100-member Senate in the November 2008 elections, which would give them a pivotal 60. That is the number of votes needed to clear Republican procedural roadblocks, which have been used to thwart the Democrats' efforts to force a change in Bush's policy on the Iraq war, particularly plans to withdraw U.S. troops.

The last time Democrats had an overriding majority in the Senate was in the 1977-1979 congressional session, when they held 61 seats. "Sixty is not outside the realm of possibility," said Jennifer Duffy, who tracks Senate races for the nonpartisan Cook Political Report.

With the elections a year away, many Republicans are distancing themselves from Bush, whose approval rating was around 33 percent in recent polls. But they remain largely tied to his unpopular stance on the Iraq war, now in its fifth year. Many are concerned about their future and Senate Democrats have raised more in campaign contributions than Republicans.