Citizens of Evansville, Indiana stood out in front of Congressman Ellsworth's office to protest his signing of the bailout bill, saying that the legislation is unethical and robs the taxpayers. Though Ellsworth insists that his vote for the second draft of the legislation was a vote for a necessary evil, voters liberal and conservative alike have united against the $700 billion out-of-pocket charge that Congress has made on their behalf.

Ellsworth says that the act is expected to help struggling businessmen and homeowners and hopes that his constituents will accept it in time, but many are wary of Congressional and Presidential promises made over the past decade that have been broken. Could this vote mean the end of Ellsworth's career?

With Red states turning Blue as the public becomes aware of McCain's economic policy which favors the wealthy and fear for the next steps abroad in Iran with regard to foreign policy, Idahoan Republicans are beginning to take a closer look at Sali and see the failed policies of the current administration reflected in him at home.

His recent confrontations in Washington with his colleagues and iffy spending habits are starting to turn many Republicans off. Five such members have turned to Minnick to make their voices heard, choosing to do what they feel is right for the betterment of the nation instead of following party lines.

Recently, the Republican party both at the congressional and presidential levels has come under fire for negative ads misleading voters with biased information against their opponents.

A recent ad by Sali featuring negative information and false attacks on Minnick was recently pulled by the Sali campaign after the FCC acknowledged it's violation of the regulations. Because the ad made a direct reference to Minnick and did not feature Sali's image for the appropriated four seconds required to make a political ad legitimate, Sali's campaign managers pulled the ad to avoid further reprimands.

The spokesperson for Minnick's campaign released the following statement:

“This is yet another part of the pattern of Bill Sali’s ineffectiveness and incompetence. He is not following the simple laws governing his congressional office and his campaign. He spends almost $4,000 per month in taxpayer dollars to keep a swanky campaign office outside his district, he knowingly files false campaign finance reports and he refuses to pay off more than $125,000 in debt from his last campaign. Bill Sali must be held accountable for his violations of the law.”

Diaz-Balart's smear campaign targeting Garcia released an ad last month which made supposed links between Garcia and Enron's disgraced founder, Ken Lay. Diaz-Balart blatantly said that Garcia went to Lay to gain favors and win himself the position of a federal energy regulator.

However, Garcia has responded to his opponents insinuations, with a simple "do your homework" response. Garcia said that he did indeed answer some calls from Lay and a dozen other energy providers and traders who were interested in his policies and stance on energy policy. Garcia said that at no point was he attempting to gain favors from Lay. In fact, it was quite the opposite.

Garcia: "The last thing on earth you want being a regulator is owing this guy [Lay] anything."

Last week, Murphy responded to an outcry from the physically disabled patrons who are disappointed with the dirty inconvenient public transportation system in New Britain, CT. Accepting an invite from one of his constituents, Murphy rode a New Britain Transportation Co. bus from Bank Street to Farmington and concluded that the bus's age and lack of amenities were indeed problems, which require federal amending.

Murphy: “It’s great to have firsthand experience, seeing the problems we have with local buses. This way I can press the case for more federal funding.”

Murphy insists that since the economic stimulus package will not go into effect for another few weeks, emphasis should also be put on transportation renewal. The buses should be replaced every ten years, but the 12 year state mandate freezes funding until the buses are almost completely run down. Murphy has vowed to do what he can in Congress to shorten the cycle to ten years, but is concerned that the limited funds provided by the stimulus package ($38.9 million is available only to “urbanized areas” – those with more than 50,000 people) will keep the seriously underfunded transportation system from receiving adequate attention.

Recently, Himes addressed the issue of expensive health care premiums for the self-employed and the small businessman by citing one example of a mother who was forced to choose between paying for her personal health care and Little League for her child. Christine McCarthy, a PhD in psychiatry with her own practice, recently stood up with Himes to support his campaign and bring down health insurance rates for at-home professionals.

Himes, who is an avid supporter of shifting the health coverage system away from one which provides incentives to curing illness to one that instead strives to prevent health problems in the first place, says that it is Congress's duty to stand up for the health needs of America's private business person.

Himes: "If you have a good plan, you keep it, but somebody like Christy can buy into the government pool. Christy is a professional, she's a psychiatrist with a PhD. It just shows this is a problem that effects everybody."

An advocate for pro-choice, Blythe believes that giving women the right to choose is a basic right. However, he does want to eventually limit the number of abortions in Brevard County and nationwide, not by revoking a woman's right to choose, but by "making every pregnancy a wanted pregnancy."

Blythe: "I feel strongly that we should reduce the number of abortions - and the way to do that is to make every child a wanted child and every pregnancy a wanted pregnancy. For this reason I have worked with other parents in Brevard County to make objective birth control information more accessible to our young women through the Brevard County School District."

Given the grassroots initiative by county residents to revise the sex-ed program in public schools to make them more accurate and detailed, it seems that Blythe is on the right path to pleasing his progressive constituency.

Recently, Diaz-Balart aired an ad featuring Martinez during his 1990 indictment for bribery and real estate development extortion that essentially made Martinez appear to be political convict. The 30-second spot focuses on Martinez's past conviction, but does not portray the trial in an entirely truthful light.

Martinez was indeed tried and convicted, but later filed an appeal, won, and his 1996 acquittal from previous charges. Diaz-Balart is saying the purpose behind the ad is to stir up public opinion regarding where Martinez comes up with the funds to furnish his back pay and legal fees, implying that Martinez illegally used city funds granted to him as Mayor by the city council. So what is Diaz-Balart really trying to do? Is he digging through Martinez's already reconciled past because he's out of attack points?

As a member of four unions himself, Franken is proud to endorse the Employee Free Choice Act which allows Union members to vote without authoritarian pressure from their employers. Coleman openly opposes the Act, saying that the bill is a misnomer and that union employees actually prefer the secret ballot. Franken states the opposite.

Franken: "The National Labor Relations Board is responsible for preventing intimidation of workers whether is be by unions or by employers."

When it comes to a change in transportation methods in Illinois, Roskam and Morgenthaler both agree that a railway merger will play some point in easing congestion for Illinois commuters, but Roskam does not favor property buy-ups in order to expand O'Hare.

If the airport, which is the second busiest airport in the US according to a poll taken by the FAA last year, is to be expanded in order to accommodate all of the extra traffic, then, says Roskam, the face of Basenville will completely change. The expansion may jeopardize local businesses.

At such an uncertain moment for our nation's economy, is it prudent of Morgenthaler to want to further foreclosure risks for homeowners and small businesses?