Posted: Saturday, February 18, 2006 6:00 pm
It’s getting a little more pointed now.
Almost three months before the May 9 primary election, Dave Heineman and Tom Osborne are beginning to target one another.
At a Republican event in Lincoln a week ago, the governor signaled his intention to highlight his differences with the congressman over school consolidation issues.
Heineman clearly believes that will work to his political advantage.
The next day, Osborne held a news conference to declare he’d move aggressively to control state spending whereas Heineman had the chance and did not.
That’s an issue where the Osborne camp believes it can score points in the Republican gubernatorial primary.
Nothing personal yet, but this ain’t gonna be touch football. Too much at stake.
Once all the maneuvering over debates has ended and a schedule is in place, Dave Nabity will get his opportunity to share the spotlight.
Nabity, the third man in the race, has been offering specific plans and proposals to deal with a number of issues. He’s getting some media attention, but it’s difficult to compete for equal time and space with the two big guns.
Especially when the big guns are trained on each other.
Nabity, who is likely to be a skilled debater, may win some converts when the trio gathers together.
And he may help one of the big guns — and hurt the other.
Although it hasn’t gotten much attention, Lee Terry is helping lead an effort to ensure access to Internet broadband service in rural areas.
Together with Rep. Rick Boucher, D-Va., Omaha’s Republican congressman has introduced legislation to reform the 1996 telecommunications act to help fund rural broadband service in the same manner rural telephone service was assured.
The bill would broaden the base of telecommunications contributions to the universal service fund and expand its reach to include broadband services.
“Significant parts of our country are being left without access to broadband technology,” Terry says. “Broadband is necessary to the economic viability of our country as a whole.”
Terry and Boucher, members of the House Energy Committee, took their proposal to the Congressional Rural Caucus last week.
Finishing up:
* In an effort to provide a framework for management of the Republican River’s scarce resources, Osborne has introduced a bill to authorize a federal study of water use in the Republican Basin.
* “What is in the water in Nebraska?” asks the latest (Capitol) Hill Hair Watch. Chuck Hagel “looks like he’s got a pair of rolled-up dirty sweat sox on his forehead,” the hair police declared. Lee Terry “looks like Harry Potter fronting for Flock of Seagulls.” And Jeff Fortenberry has the look of “Kirk Cameron goes to Washington.” Ben Nelson already was cited for flaunting some of the best hair on the Hill.
* “What’s Chuck Hagel up to?” Hotline asked last week after Hagel took a poke at Dick Cheney — “if he had been in the military, he would have learned gun safety” —and told Condoleezza Rice he believes “things are getting worse” in Iraq and Iran.
* Hagel made the cut of 10 Republican presidential prospects recently targeted by the Democratic national committee with opposition research reports, according to the Drudge Report.
* “If there is one lesson I have learned on the campaign trail,” David Kramer says, “it’s not to hold up the food line.”
* SurveyUSA’s February job approval rating for President Bush in Nebraska: 52 percent approval, 44 percent disapproval. Bush scored higher only in Utah, Idaho, Alabama and Wyoming.
* OK, here we go. School improvements get green light. Mayor Seng points to the sky. Downtown civic plaza on its way; arena and convention hotel on the drawing board. Now, would some local philanthropist with a legacy in mind like his or her name forever enshrined on a repaired, improved and beautified Centennial Mall?
* Barry Switzer will headline a fund-raiser for Tom Osborne in Lincoln on Wednesday. Better hide the money with about a minute to go; Barry used to steal from Osborne in Lincoln in the final seconds.
Reach Don Walton at 473-7248 or at dwalton@journalstar.com.