Anne Northup On John McCain And Sarah Palin:"Right Now, It Does Not Look Like He's Going To Be Successful" [&] "She Doesn't Have A Lot Of Experience".

Let the truth be told, and read more from her C-J interview below:

election 2008 3rd congressional district
Northup faces uphill battle to regain House seat
Return to Congress proving an uphill race
By Deborah Yetter

On a recent sunny afternoon, as she promoted herself as the best advocate for a new veterans' hospital in Louisville, Republican Anne Northup had a receptive, supportive audience.

"I've always liked her," said Vietnam veteran Thomas Kennedy, among a handful of former service people who attended a Northup news conference outside Louisville's aging Veterans Affairs Medical Center. "I'm a Democrat, but I support her."

But Northup, who is trying to recapture the Third District congressional seat she lost to Democrat John Yarmuth in 2006, may be facing a tougher audience elsewhere.

Northup credits the unpopularity of the Iraq war with costing her the election two years ago — a conflict that remains unpopular with many voters.

Throw in the current economic crisis — with the Republican administration taking much of the heat — and her prospects look even worse this time, said Stuart Rothenberg, who publishes the national, nonpartisan Rothenberg Political Report.

"Why would she think they'd be any different?" said Rothenberg, whose Web site predicts Yarmuth will win. "I don't know what Anne is thinking now. There aren't many vulnerable Democratic incumbents."

The most recent WHAS-11 Survey USA poll, released Oct. 23, shows Yarmuth leading the race 57 percent-41 percent. Yarmuth said recently he feels confident, but "we aren't taking anything for granted."

Still, Northup, 60, said in an interview she believes she can win back the seat in the U.S. House that she held for five terms, from 1997 to 2007.

"It's a tough time for Republicans," she said. "It doesn't mean it's impossible. It's gone my way five times out of six."

Despite the optimism, Northup acknowledged other Republicans may not fare as well — starting with the top of the ticket, presidential nominee John McCain, who is currently trailing in most polls to Democratic nominee Barack Obama.

"Right now, it does not look like he's going to be successful," she said of McCain in an Oct. 16 interview.

As for McCain's running mate, Sarah Palin, Northup said the Alaska governor "is very smart and very articulate" but "doesn't have a lot of experience on the national front."

However, Northup said she's not dwelling on other races or how those outcomes might affect her.

"I'm not involved with any campaign but my own," she said.

Happiest in Congress


Longtime friend Catherine Smith said she thinks Northup would be happiest back in Congress. "I think the drive she has is so incredible she doesn't need to slow down," Smith said.

Terry Carmack, Northup's former chief of staff in Washington, said he believes Northup is running again because she is driven to continue the initiatives she worked for during 10 years in Congress.

Married to her college sweetheart, businessman Robert "Woody" Northup, the mother of six, who is a former teacher and state legislator, could have settled in her comfortable Lexington Road home and taken life easy, Carmack said.

"It's always easier to sit on the sidelines, but that's not who Anne Northup has been her entire life," said Carmack, now political director for the National Republican Congressional Committee. "She wanted to give voters a choice and give her community a choice."

Yarmuth supporters, including John Timmons, owner of Ear X-Tacy music store in the Highlands, say he will be hard to unseat.

"John Yarmuth has always been a good supporter of small, independent businesses,'' said Timmons, who allowed supporters to hold a recent "Keep Louisville Yarmuth'' rally at Ear X-Tacy — a takeoff on the slogan "Keep Louisville Weird'' supporting local stores.

Yarmuth said he's running on his record of support for community projects such as the Ohio River bridges, and VA hospital funding, but also is concerned about broader issues such as developing a universal system of health coverage for all Americans and better job opportunities.

Race wasn't foremost


Northup said she initially hadn't considered another run against Yarmuth.

She suffered a bruising defeat in the Republican primary last year to former Gov. Ernie Fletcher, who was considered badly damaged by his administration's hiring scandal. Fletcher subsequently lost to Democrat Steve Beshear in the general election.

At the time of her loss to Fletcher, Northup was still grieving the loss of her son, Joshua, 30, who died in 2006 of a heart ailment.

And in early 2008, the Republican Party already had a promising potential candidate in Erwin Roberts, an attorney and former federal prosecutor. But he announced he was dropping out of the race when he learned his Army Reserve unit was expected to be called to active duty.

Afterward, Northup announced she would enter the race. "I hadn't planned on it," she said.

After easily defeating two lesser-known Republicans in the primary, she faced a rematch with Yarmuth.

Now, Northup said she is running hard in a campaign based on her desire to renew work on projects she focused on in Congress, including two proposed Ohio River bridges — one in far eastern Jefferson County and one downtown — and funding for a new VA hospital,

She's campaigned on the philosophical differences between herself and Yarmuth.

"I'm a Republican — I'm a conservative Republican," Northup said in a meeting with The Courier-Journal's editorial board, adding that includes less government spending and lower taxes.

Breaks with leaders


But in defining herself, she also has broken on some issues with Republican leaders, including Kentucky's senior senator, Mitch McConnell, the Senate minority leader.

McConnell was one of the primary supporters of the $700billion bailout bill Congress recently approved for the financial industry.

But Northup has attacked Yarmuth for voting for the measure — in a TV ad and in several public debates.

"I am completely against the bailout," Northup said in an Oct. 10 debate with Yarmuth at the Louisville Forum. "I think it is the worst thing we could have done."

Afterward, she said she is willing to stand up to McConnell, Kentucky's top Republican, on that issue.

"I think he's wrong," she said. "I think the bailout is wrong."

Northup, who voted for the Iraq war based on claims of the Bush administration that the country had weapons of mass destruction, now criticizes Bush for refusing to change strategies after that theory was discredited.

"That stubbornness is a concern to me,'' she said.

But Northup said she is not seeking to distance herself from top Republicans through such comments.

"I'm not trying to do anything," she said. "I'm trying to say where I am on this. I don't try to figure out where Mitch McConnell is and where George Bush is and how that helps me."

Differ on issues


Other issues where she differs with Yarmuth include health insurance — he favors a universal system to insure everyone, while Northup proposes building on the private insurance industry and offering consumers Health Savings Accounts to save money for medical expenses.

Northup, a longtime supporter of two new Ohio River bridges, is urging immediate construction of the East End bridge and then one downtown, as funds are available. Yarmuth has said the community needs the downtown bridge first — along with a plan to redesign Spaghetti Junction — to ease traffic downtown.

Northup said she thinks the difference between her and Yarmuth is clear.

"I think John is smart. I think he is well-liked," she said. "I feel like I'm sort of perceived the same way. But we have two very, very different philosophies of what's good for this country and what's good for this community."

Reporter Deborah Yetter can be reached at (502) 582-4228.

Editor's comment: I commend Anne for speaking the TRUTH -- when others won't -- and for NOT spewing ANY party's talking points here.