we have to make sure roy barnes not getting his hands back on the state will be in the interest of all then georgias. >> i made dedicated republican as well. i don't think i have run a campaign in which i have been divisive. i don't think i have been the one that has caused this party to have divisions. and of -- i don't think i have attacked our fellow candidates. it will take some time for us to be able to heal some of the wounds that have been inflicted i look forward to the opportunity to be a part of what we will be doing going forward. i believe that i will be the and i believe i can beat roy barnes in november. >> why would anyone want to be governor of this state? we have a $613 million shortfall. what would you do specifically to get georgia back on track? >> why anybody would want to be governor, i believe that you have to believe that public service is an honorable undertaking and i believed that all my adult life. i have served at every level in government to make things better for the people for our state and nation. that is why i want to be governor because i believe toug

here in georgia, democratic nominee for governor roy barnes claimed scheduling conflicts and managed to avoid being photographed with his party's leader. >> this happens when presidents have become controversial, polarizing. their numbers dip and candidates want to keep a little bit of distance. >> reporter: further complicating the democratic party's efforts to stay in power are high profile ethics cases against two long-time democratic house members. charlie rangel of new york and maxine waters of california. waters was charged today by congressional colleagues for improper use of her office to aid her husband's bank during the financial crisis. she and rangel deny wrongdoing and have set the course for public trial in the fall. >> if mr. rangel feels that the party -- or more importantly that the country and the institution are being hurt, i think he'll do the right thing and work out some kind of an agreement. i feel the same thing about maxine. >> reporter: the president stopped short of saying "mission accomplished" in his description of the iraq drawdown and emphasized that he

georgia democrat roy barnes is currently seeking to reclaim the governorship.barnes claims scheduling conflicts during the president's georgia trip. now answering to voters, democrats in congress are now rethinking their once steadfast support of the president's legislative agenda which will be front and center when congress gets back to town in three short weeks. >> question, what do you want to pick out of that, mort, on the economy? >> the economy is weaker than anyone anticipated. we are 2 1/2 years into the stimulous and it is going to be at obama's doorstep because he's the president. the unemployment numbers are much worse that night 9.5%. the consumer is weak. housing is falling off the edge of the cliff. there is concern that we are going to head, if not into a double dip recession, we are not coming out of the recession and that means there's going to be a huge dissatisfaction. the economy and jobs. >> are you saying a double dip yourself? >> i think we will have a modest double dip. it will go down 1 or 2 percent. >> will the recovery begin before th

handel conceded the tight race today, clearing the way for deal to face democratic former governor roy barnes. in connecticut, republicans nominated linda mcmahon for the u.s. senate she's former head of world wrestling entertainment. >> linda mcmahon said she wouldn't take money from special interests either. well, how much did she take? not a dime! >> lehrer: in fact, mcmahon spent more than $20 million of her wrestling fortune in the primary. she'll take on long-time democratic attorney general richard blumenthal to fill the seat of retiring democrat chris dodd. and to "newshour" political editor david chalian. now there are themes to be read into these results, beginning with colorado. let's start there. >> yes, the democratic senate race in colorado, as you said there in the piece, jim, very welcome news at the white house today because they avoided the headlines of the obama political operation is out of sorts. they won one here and won it big by eight points. they backed michael bennet, and they needed a win here over andrew romanoff, the bill clinton-endorsed candidate. i do think the

in georgia, candidate for governor roy barnes did not attend a party fundraiser with mr. obama earlier this month. and in texas, bill white, who is running for governor, did not show up at either of the two events in his state. those democrats keeping the president at an arm's length were the subject of a humorous web video put out by the republican national committee yesterday. >> we're just about to depart d.c. and go on my national fundraising tour to your home states. that's right, i'm coming to your home towns! ( screams ) >> woodruff: some republican candidates have also run ads trying to put their democratic opponents on the defensive. in missouri, governor candidate roy blunt paid for a tv spot after president obama flew in to campaign for democrat robin carnahan, trying to use mr. obama's own words against carnahan. >> july 8, 2010. barack obama's raising money for robin carnahan. why? >> i need another vote. it'd be helpful. >> he knows robin carnahan will rubber stamp the pelosi-reid- obama liberal agenda: >> woodruff: which highlights the question some vulnera

race or within a few thousand votes, which means that you have a divided party with someone in roy barnes who has a track record that georgia can be proud of. you still have a very splintered party. i think you are hard pressed to see whether gubernatorial races in georgia, connecticut, colorado, and senate races in connecticut and colorado. democrats did not have an extraordinarily good night and are faced with candidates that i think are largely out of step with states and areas that they wish to ultimately represent. >> following up on sam's question, in your view, is a rock as success story -- is iraq a success story? [inaudible] >> i would say that there are -- as i enumerated, i think that there is progress that the iraqis leading and being responsible for their own country now are going to have to make. again, i think that what has never been in doubt, and the president said this in his announcement of opposition to the war in 2002, we all support our troops. we all recognize the tremendous sacrifice that they and their families and all of their loved ones make when a commander-in-