It’s been an interesting couple of days, hasn’t it? I keep reading stories from the pundit class, trying to give their spin on why “Democrats did so well.” All the ones I’ve read missed the point entirely. Democrats won big because the Republicans in general – and the Bush Administration specifically – are the most corrupt, disgusting, and inept bunch of demons to be set loose on our government at least in my lifetime, and most probably the history of the United States. And that’s saying a lot.
The question they really ought to be asking is, “why the fuck did it take so long for Americans to figure it out?” That’s what the rest of the world must be thinking. So, anyway, I vote we take a couple of days to enjoy this (it’s been a long time since we’ve had an election to be happy about) before we start in with “the Democrats suck” stuff. In fact, maybe we can give ’em until they actually take over. We all have a lot of work to come January, so we ought to rest up a bit. Speaking of which, I think I’ll go back to bed, and hopefully wake up again some time tomorrow afternoon.
Oh, and if you’re out there in LA, go see Marc at the Ex-Druggie Show at the UCB Theater.
:yippee::yippee::yippee::dancers::dancers::dancers:
:rant1::rant1: whatever :sheep: le
WASHINGTON – Activist Cindy Sheehan was arrested Wednesday as she led about 50 protesters to a White House gate Wednesday to deliver anti-war petitions she said were signed by 80,000 Americans.
http://tinyurl.com/ych4jr
==============================
Some one apparently forgot to tell the Bush admin there had been a change in direction:bf:
A burst of GLEE: :yippee::cool::yippee::cool::yippee::cool:
You can always escape from CO Fred, but I feel better with someone like you “watching” those mega-monster-fake churches.
And I like your “Words of Wisdom” :rofl2::lol::rofl2: = More Tea:joe:
:pup: and let Danu inside. :pup: Whatever :omg: :rofl2:
Payback Time: Who the Democrats Will Target
Halliburton, the CIA and big tobacco companies are among the early targets identified by top Democratic staff to ABC News as likely targets for investigation once the Democrats take control of the House at the beginning of next year.
http://tinyurl.com/yhq7zb
=============================
Note Bush, big oil , and big pharma were not mentioned.:yuck:
Democrats ask Bush to hold summit on Iraq
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Triumphant U.S. congressional Democratic leaders began to flex their new political muscle on Wednesday by urging President George W. Bush to host a bipartisan summit on the Iraq war and find common ground with them on such domestic issues as education and health care.
http://tinyurl.com/y5ykvm
==============================
If you don’t like what the first expert said ask another one.:paranoid:
WASHINGTON, Nov 8 (Reuters) – The Michigan Democrat who will head the House Energy and Commerce Committee next year previewed on Wednesday his energy priorities: cleaner cars powered by diesel and electricity, storing waste from U.S. nuclear reactors and probing offshore federal lease deals.
Rep. John Dingell, who has been a U.S. lawmaker since 1955, also gave a strong indication of what he did not plan to do: raise fuel-efficiency standards for U.S. automobiles.
http://tinyurl.com/unz27
============================
Democrats like to go many directions at once thus appearing to be doing something in between cocktail parties.:eek::rant1:
I haven’t seen RAGING Granny post lately. I wonder is she “raising the roof” for taking Congress :pup: :rofl2: 😉
NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. stocks rallied on Tuesday, pushing the Dow Jones industrial average to an all-time high as investors bet midterm elections would leave U.S. government gridlocked, maintaining business-friendly policies.
http://tinyurl.com/y7xd9z
===========================
The crap shoot didn’t do much yesterday but that was before the news about the dems taking over the senate was released.:rant1:
Maybe granny was out celebrating to much Tuesday night.:alc::eek::tongue:
I took Sodium Pentothal when I was 14 so I believe we just make the President and Administration and Congress take Sodium Pentothal … to restore TRUST:!:
NEW YORK (AP) – Shares in military contractors plunged Wednesday after Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld resigned midday, causing uncertainty about the future of some Pentagon programs ahead of the fiscal 2008 defense budget.
The country’s largest military contractor, Lockheed Martin Corp. was one of the biggest losers, shedding $2.30, or 2.6 percent, to $85.19 on the New York Stock Exchange.
But the decline was broad, with armaments maker General Dynamics Corp., combat communications systems maker Raytheon Co., and government services company Halliburton Co. all falling into negative territory.
http://tinyurl.com/yyp56a
==============================
This is good in that it shows the fascist relationship but bad in that the jobs that will be lost will not be picked by the private sector since it all moved to China. :crap::paranoid:
Fred, re 11 YEA :yippee: but :nod: re jobs lost, sadly
CARSON CITY, Nev. (AP) – Nevada’s unique “none of these candidates” option didn’t outpoll any of Tuesday’s statewide race winners, but still managed to be the choice of tens of thousands of voters in many races.
snip….
The “none of these candidates” option was approved by the 1975 Legislature as a way for voters to express dissatisfaction with candidates in statewide races.
“None” can’t actually win a race, but did come in first in primary congressional contests in 1976 and 1978. It also finished ahead of both George Bush and Edward Kennedy in Nevada’s 1980 presidential primaries. “None” has never finished first in a general election contest.
Periodic attempts since 1975 to get rid of “None” have failed. No other state has such a voting option.
more…
http://tinyurl.com/y46s54
===============================
More states need to do this :rofl2::rofl2:
HARTFORD, Nov 8 — The morning after a six-month roller coaster of an election season, Senator Joseph I. Lieberman stood victorious, again promising to burnish his independence in the narrowly divided Senate.
Mr. Lieberman said he spoke Wednesday morning to Senator Harry Reid of Nevada, the Democratic leader, and that Mr. Reid assured him that he would retain his seniority despite having bolted the party after losing its primary in August to run on his own party line.
That means that if a Democratic victory is confirmed in Virginia, to give the party control of the Senate, Mr. Lieberman will be in line to become chairman of the Homeland Security Committee.
There were no calls from the White House, Mr. Lieberman said, or offers to court him away from the Democratic caucus in the Senate. And even if there were, Mr. Lieberman said, he would not accept.
http://tinyurl.com/y8jrfa
==============================
Sure Joe Sure :paranoid:
C-spans video stream does not not have any sound ..
In the case you had torn your computer apart already trying to fix the problem.:paranoid:
Bunny pants is on so it doesn’t really matter.:yuck:
Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), who will become the Majority Leader in January, released the following statement in light of the Democratic victory in the Senate:
The American people have spoken clearly and decisively in favor of Democrats leading this country in a new direction. In Iraq and here at home, Americans have made clear they are tired of the failures of the last six years. The days of the Do Nothing Congress are over. From changing course in Iraq to raising the minimum wage to fixing the health care crisis to making this country energy independent, we’re ready to get to work. Now it is time for Democrats and Republicans to join together and make Congress work for every American.
http://tinyurl.com/y89e88
===============================
This will be interesting to see especially the join together part.:bf:
:rofl2: :yippee::rofl2: 😉
17 was re 15
re 16 and Reid :barf: I think children have been taught to LIE by bush long enough and an Impeachment is due … :spank:
or :growl::fist: HaaaYaaa
A Lesson Learned
Back to work. Bummer.
Although events of the last few days have served to raise my spirits.
WE GOT VIRGINIA!!! MACACA IS TOAST!!!
:banana::banana::banana:
Stephanie Miller’s show should be a three-hour Schadenfreude festival today. I can’t wait. 🙂
French troops serving in Lebanon have been only seconds away from firing on Israeli aircraft, the French defence minister says.
Michele Alliot-Marie told parliament the jets dived towards UN positions in October and were perceived as a threat.
“Two seconds later there would have been a shot against the aircraft which were directly menacing our forces,” the defence minister said.
France has previously complained about Israel violating Lebanese air space.
Ms Alliot-Marie last month called the intrusions “extremely dangerous”.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6131458.stm
=============================
At 200 million a pop for an F16 Israel would learn really fast.:eek::paranoid:
loserman head of
homeland security committee? gaaak,
retch, hairball time…
LOS ANGELES (AP) – Mercury’s brief trip Wednesday between Earth and the sun treated sky watchers to a celestial event most people get to see less than once a decade.
The minuscule planet appeared as a tiny dot passing from left to right across the face of the sun. The five-hour passing, called a transit, was viewable only with specially outfitted telescopes and online telescope cameras.
The crossing, which occurs about 13 times a century, last occurred in 2003 and will not happen again until 2016, according to NASA.
http://tinyurl.com/sssm6
=============================
I saw a time lapse picture of this someplace yesterday but I can’t find it this morning.
About the only thing Loserman can do well would be lavatory monitor duty,:yuck::reaper:
good morning sheeple….hey Fred :peace::sheep::pent::joe:
:yippee::yippee: Hey Susan :yippee::yippee:
still trying to figure out why Lieberman won – considering there were enough people to vote somebody else onto the Democratic ticket you’d think the only thing that would make them favor Lieberman would be a scandal about Lamont…unless people were just confused about Lamont’s stance on the war… it’s still confusing to me. Anyway…oh well
Thursday, November 9, 2006 : 1310 Hrs
Delhi
Outsourcing is good for US economy: Ballmer
New Delhi, Nov. 9 (PTI): Favouring large-scale outsourcing of software services and R&D works to countries such as India, Steve Ballmer, CEO of the world’s largest software company Microsoft, has said the US stands to benefit out of this.
“We will have to increasingly bank on India for scaling up our operations to rise on the next wave of innovation. So, outsourcing is here to stay. I have always stated that the so-called outsourcing is good for the US economy,” he said while delivering the fifth Madhav Rao Scindia Memorial lecture yesterday night.
“With the US government making it more difficult for people to come into the US from outside, it puts in pressure on companies like ours to relatively grow our talent pool in India even faster. About 18 per cent of our engineers in Seattle are Indians,” he said.
Ballmer, however, felt the attitude (against outsourcing) has improved over the last year.
http://tinyurl.com/szcly
==============================
:growl::growl:Globalist capitalists are 👿
Well my print job didn’t so I have have to run upstairs and see why then get ready to get ready for the :yuck::yuck: Thursday morning meeting :yuck::yuck:
Blog with ya all later:doh:
ok, have a good day, Fred
hey fred:
don’t worry, be happy…
Be Well and Warm Fred :hot: :hubba: 😉
:pup: :cat: 😉 oh and :parrot: and :nuts: (4 my rats) 😉
Cleaner diesel? No such thing. The AMA research says there are more carcinogens in combusted diesel than in cigarette smoke. Why do you think juvenile asthma cases are up 500% in the last 20 years. Could it have something to do with diesel school buses or states like NC that do NOT test diesel emissions?
Hi RoxieSeattle and Susan Joy :banana::dancers: :yippee:
Bechtel * needs to be investigated. They’re a privately held company so people hardly ever mention them, but they are huge war profiteers and I hope the new congress investigates their no-bid contracts.
:joe:
Morning all!
KP, hope you’re ok and things only sounded bad.
have a good day guys!
* “The company earned record revenue of $18.1 billion in 2005, and the value of new projects landed in 2005 rose to $18.5 billion from $15.7 billion.” http://tinyurl.com/ttrha
Outsourcing good for stock holders and CEOs who grant themselves huge bonuses. Outsourcing bad for workers and the economy. With a service-only economy the United States is more vulnerable than ever before in our history. We don’t even manufacture the shorts we get all bunched up at the wrong time. Heck, we import more food than we produce now. Most of the California farmland is fallow or a sub-division these days.
nc, not sure what you’re listening to, but my understanding is that the diesel burning engines in Europe are very different than the asthma-producing diesel burning engines in the US.
NC Blue , And Tea:joe: Cheers to you, too. 😉
:pup:And Famerkat, Tea:joe: Cheers to you also :parrot::nuts::cat: (symbolize You and The Farm) 😉 :rofl2:
Morning All. :yawn: :joe:
So I hear Allen is going to finally concede. ’bout f’ing time.
Roxie, has the rain “mellowed” yet:?: ? I watched some of the flooding … 😮 :omg: 😮
Hawkins Says Anti-War Stance Propels Him to Highest Vote
for Green Party Candidate for US Senate in New York To Date
Calls for Lawsuit to Win Green Party a Ballot Line
Laments Lack of Discussion of Real Issues in Senate Race
November 7th, 2006
Howie Hawkins, the Green Party candidate for US Senate, said today that his anti-war “troops home now” position helped propel him to the highest vote total for a Green Party candidate for US Senator since the Greens began fielding candidates for the position in 1998.
The initial canvass of votes reported Tuesday night had Hawkins at over 50,000 votes, despite the lowest statewide voter turnout in modern history. The previous Green votes for US Senate were 14,785 for Joel Kovel in 1998, 40,991 for Mark Dunau in 2000, and 36,942 for David McReynolds in 2004.
The Green candidate for Attorney General, Rachel Treichler, received well over 50,000, while the Green candidate for Comptroller, Julia Willebrand, received well over 100,000 votes. However, the top of the Green ticket, Malachy McCourt for Governor and Alison Duncan for Lieutenant Governor, were reported be the low 40,000s. It takes 50,000 votes for a party’s gubernatorial ticket to establishes a party’s right to a ballot line for the next four years, according to the New York Election Law.
Hawkins said that Tuesday nights Greens around the state were already talking about filing a lawsuit to win a ballot line based on the fact that three of its statewide candidates passed the 50,000 vote threshold. A lawsuit by the Green Party of Alaska won that party a ballot line in similar circumstances earlier this year. Four years ago, the Green Party of New York won a lawsuit that established the right of members of non-ballot qualified parties that qualified gubernatorial candidates by petition to enroll in those parties for the next four years with boards of elections.
“The Democratic victories on Tuesday were a vote of no confidence in the Bush administration and opposition to the war in Iraq, not a vote for the Democratic alternative, because they didn’t present one. Americans want change in Albany and in Washington. It is time for the victors to pay attention to the American people and bring our troops home. Too often politicians and parties turn a deaf ear to the voters once Election Day is over. We need Clinton, the Democrats, and other victors in this election to remember that the voters want good, secure jobs and quality health care for all Americans, not more tax cuts and corporate welfare for their rich contributors,” stated Hawkins in conceding the race for US Senator to Hillary Clinton.
Hawkins lamented that “the Greens did offer an alternative program but received only token media coverage. The majority of New Yorkers agree with Greens on most issues, from opposing the war in Iraq, supporting single-payer health insurance for all, and supporting massive public investment in renewable energy instead of wars for oil. But these life and death issues were ignored during this campaign. Instead, the media buzz in my race for the US Senate seat was about whether or not Spencer said Clinton had plastic surgery and about her looming presidential run,” observed Hawkins.
“Corporations, especially in the oil, military, finance, and insurance industries, are continuing to centralize their power in America. Elections are now primarily about whether candidates can pony up enough money to get into the game, either by selling their souls to corporate contributors or because of their own wealth. The media is concentrating into fewer and fewer corporate giants, who cover elections as horse races and beauty contests and neglect serious candidates from upstart parties who raise real issues and policy alternatives,” noted Hawkins.
“Many voters told me they were disgusted with all the negative advertising,” Hawkins said. “We saw little more than celebrity endorsements and mudslinging from the major party candidates. A significant part of the problem is that the Democrats and Republicans largely agree about corporate power, economic inequality, regressive taxes, aggressive militarism, and diminished civil liberties. They don’t have real issues to debate. They won’t take positions that might alienate their corporate funders.”
“Voters across America said today that they wanted change. But real change is not on the Democratic agenda. Even Bush has adopted Clinton’s ‘change course in Iraq’ slogan. Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean calls for a ‘new strategy in Iraq.’ The operative words are ‘in Iraq.’ Likely House leader Nancy Pelosi has assured voters that impeachment is off the table. Just as Clinton did in 1993, health care reform will primarily end up channeling more money and power to the insurance companies. It’s all about money and power, not about building peace, protecting the environment, and meeting the needs of middle class, working class, and poor people,” added Hawkins.
Kat, I am reading the California Journal of Medicine as quoted in the SF Chronicle and JAMA. I am talking to my personal physician and a couple physicians I went to high school with. European diesel engines burn cleaner when it comes to greenhouse gases and the soot output, but combusted diesel still produces the same toxic compounds regardless of the engine used. This is information the rethugs and oil industry is suppressing, just like they did MTBE and lead.
Did you know if an oil company imports refined petroleum products they do not have to follow the same guidelines established in this country. Some South American refineries still use lead. Eurpoeans still use MTBE. Why do you think the oil companies don’t build new refineries in this country?
andy aka Aquaman tea:joe: Cheers:alc: ,
How’s the Water, Ice (snow) and Fire(chopping wood) ?
We had a bunch of rain, and the creek about 30 yards in front of my house was quite swollen, but never broke its’ banks.
you’re joking? :bf: thanks, nc, will have to read more and not listen to the rhetoric – not surprising.
that’s good, andy!
Ciao!
Bill Maher outs Ken “Fancy Pants” Melhman on Larry King. Video here
Hey Farmerkat :joe:
Susan Joy, Or as I believe, we need to take over the reins of we Dems., but I do vote sometimes with Greens (and meet with them); however, I am beginning to “stand” by my belief in what I Preach — Ni Neart Go Cur …… Book of Kells … In Unity There Is Strength.
NC Blue Re 42, :nod: but we hardly ever “clean-up” our gass. :growl: And CA is suppose to have best regulations. LIES. :barf:
Susan Joy, but I am glad although :fustrate: ed that you and NickiRose send forth your beliefs also, since it KEEPS reminding me to call forth certain meetings again — where many like minded souls or Atmans 😉 meet :wink:.
Good Morning :joe:
Haven’t heard anything about last nights’ gunshots. I’ll call later.
hey everyone…..greetings from hell…..
Morning Krista, morning Melina
Druid, I’m used to blogs/mailing lists/groups of people who all have very diverse opinions on politics or anything else…I’d be really uncomfortable in a place where everybody thought the same way, even if it was “just like me”… I don’t really know that I’m so different from you or anyone here at all except that I’m just not beholden to a certain party…I hang out with people of all stripes and I’ve gotten along with people with very divergent views
How’s Joe doing? Is he being magnanimous?
Yeah Melina, what’s up?
He could just about demand to be elected Senate Majority Leader at this point.
PJ, shouldn’t one be a member of the majority party to be elected leader? I see Liberman as a party of one looking for someone to sell his vote to.
Susan Joy, I felt that you worked with and have also had meetings with a wide variety of people. Although “some of my friends” who are Greens, I just believe that to stand as we individualists we must at first stand as one.
Hmmmm similar: “All hang together…” ya know.
I want a Party best suited for me, but it is only Dems or Greens. Big Boat or Small Analogy — a bit of a Buddhist joke — I made a funny teehee :rofl2: 😎 (Or one just had to be there :-))
Joe Courtney won the 2nd district in CT. Another Dem to the house. 😀
PJ, If I follow :yawn: does this answer 55 and 57?
HARTFORD, Nov 8 — The morning after a six-month roller coaster of an election season, Senator Joseph I. Lieberman stood victorious, again promising to burnish his independence in the narrowly divided Senate.
Mr. Lieberman said he spoke Wednesday morning to Senator Harry Reid of Nevada, the Democratic leader, and that Mr. Reid assured him that he would retain his seniority despite having bolted the party after losing its primary in August to run on his own party line.
That means that if a Democratic victory is confirmed in Virginia, to give the party control of the Senate, Mr. Lieberman will be in line to become chairman of the Homeland Security Committee.
There were no calls from the White House, Mr. Lieberman said, or offers to court him away from the Democratic caucus in the Senate. And even if there were, Mr. Lieberman said, he would not accept.
http://tinyurl.com/y8jrfa
==============================
Sure Joe Sure
Comment by fred — November 9, 2006 @ 6:08 am
I’m not sure if any member can be elected Majority leader, and it’s just that the party with the most seats elects one of their own or not. But, Lieberman is still a member of the Democratic Party (as far as I know), even though he ran as a Lieberman for Lieberman candidate.
I dunno Druid. I knew the Democrats would have to kiss his ass, at least to some extent. I just don’t trust the guy. But maybe they can make a deal with him not to push an investigation into the $387,000 in petty cash his campaign dispersed in the primary w/o keeping a prper journal as required by law.
+Saint of the Day+
Pabo of Brittany (SPEARS)
Nicknamed Post-War Pabo for peace making efforts, was the son of a chieftain on the Scottish border and at first a spear bearing soldier. Later he came to Wales and founded the monastery called after him Llallaballallaballoon, in Anglesey. Although Britain and Brittany are often confused in old hagiographical records, Brittany can now be found in Arcadia.
:priest:
pjsauter, LieLieberman = :barf: 😆
Little Twit of the Day, yay!!! :alc:
Hey Kat- is Mr at Fr Meyers Co waiting for some soldiers to come home? I think Im seeing him in the background of the shot of the base there…or someone who looks like him…on MSNBC
that was Ft Meyers
Ah, I wondered what the Father Meyers Company was.
Stuck in Ft Myers in the Sunshine State
Living in a trailer park is my fate…
:omg:
NickiRose, :rofl2: Your Saints make me miss being a Catholic (NOT) 😉 Still haven’t chanced upon my namesake, yet :nana:
I will give you a hint. It is a girls name hehehehe :cool::rofl2::cool:
Okay, 😮 it has now become apparent that it is PAST my bedtime.
What ever you’re looking for
You’ll find just what you need
at Fred Myer’s store.
Yay Mr. Myers! (no yay to trailer parks, though)
there was someone on my voting ballot running for governor on the “The rent is too damned high” ticket. Seriously. I had a moment of supressed giggling in the voting booth.
Okay, so I guess everything next door to my friend is fine. Boy, that sure looked bad, 3 loud shots, a girl screaming and 3 or 4 young guys roaming around the house next door. I couldn’t drive away and not have it checked out.
Yeah, I saw that.
I was thinking about voting for the Socialist Worker’s Party candidate for Senate, instead of Howie Hawkins, but I didn’t wanna throw my vote away. :rofl2:
Kristapea, :yippee: and it is better to be aware of what is around one, than with blinders on.
:cool::yippee::cool::yippee::cool: (not blinders, but COOL:wink:)
Kristapea, Do you have 3 dogs? :pup:
Our Long National Nightmare Has Just Begun: Like Cornered Rats, GOP Losers More Dangerous Than Ever
I have 1 dog and my landlord has 3. :pup:
Kristapea Ohhhhh, :pup: 😉
Interesting thread at FDL, Kieth Olbermann is the gueast blogger along with an appearance by Joe Wilson. Here
His Kiethness. :bow:
I just read through that whole blog and Olbermann is just a riot.
:rofl2:
morning everyone!
:banana:
Yeah, my favorite:
All these years we thought that terrible smell was Cayuga’s waters, only to find out it was Ann Coulter.
Quietgirl! 😀
87. :rofl2:
andy aka Aquaman, Great article re 80 😮 :growl:
but then brain went to, “…but I have the saved “Dead Rats Walking”:!: Rats, rats are made to always look Evil. And I had full wolves, at one time — and good & bad folk always make WOLVES out as Evil. Then I was born in the Year of the Snake. Snake is feared (a-fear’d):eek: and we won’t even mentioned 666:omg::rofl2:
then watched half of the video with A Baldwin 🙁 (will watch rest later(but am aware of this IMPORTANT type video).). But great article (and page) 😮
hi Aquaman!!…….i mean Andy:yippee:
Thank You D6^3. Quietgirl, hey are you guys going to be on the Nick Thomas show this weekend? Huh? Huh?
don’t i have to be connected to something?:paranoid:
Ed Bradley died of Leukemia. He was 65.
Franken just mentioned that Sen. Macaca is going to be throwing in the towel at a press conference this afternoon.
:banana::banana::banana:
haha!! bye Macaca!!!
i gotta watch that:reaper:
ED Bradley just died! What?:smack:
BTW, Maureen Dowd’s interview with Stephen Colbert and Jon Stewart (this month’s cover story, proudly at the front of the magazine rack in my bathroom) is pretty good (online here), although the first paragraph seems kinda, oh, I don’t know, conceited and arrogant on Dowd’s part.
Good for them. You “real” news commentators don’t impress me much, either, Maureen. Except for maybe Ivins, Krugman, Rich, and Olbermann.
Ed lives in Hi’s apartment building and Ive been seeing alot of his family and talking to them….I knew he was sick but thought it was his heart again….very sad..
and, of course Hi outlived him! He was always asking Hi to leave him the first refusal on his apartment so he could break through and make it one big apartment on that elevator line. But he instead bought one above and made a duplex…because Hi wasnt dying all so fast…ha!
Hi is gonna outlive us all!
Ed Bradley
Maybe Hi can buy Ed’s place, and let me stay there.
Quietgirl you need to download and install Skype, and have at least a microphone a nd speakers.
Sorry for the delay.
Who is Hi?
Wish I had some $ in a shredder stock right now.
Melina’s grandfather, Andy.
Ahh.
Taking Turd Blossom Down a Peg or Two
It’s largely faded from memory, but it’s worth noting that Karl Rove was demoted from his job as White House chief of staff back in April for one reason: the GOP establishment wanted him to focus exclusively on the midterm elections. He’d been given all kinds of policy responsibilities — including heading up the administration’s reconstruction effort after Katrina — but in April, he was freed up to devote his time and attention to the campaign cycle. Indeed, he had nearly seven months to figure out exactly how to keep the Republicans in the majority. Plenty of time to craft a killer plan.
How’d that work out?
For years, many of us on the left (and I include myself in this category) seem to have struggled with Rove-envy. He’s the “genius” mastermind; the “architect;” the strategist without which the GOP would crumble. Except, as we’re finally beginning to realize, he’s not really any of those things. Rove is more snake-oil salesman than Svengali.
Yesterday, during his press conference, the president was asked how his book-reading competition was going with Rove. Bush said he was losing. “I obviously was working harder on the campaign than he was,” the president said. After reporters responded with surprised laughter, Rove “wore a sheepish grin and stared at his lap.”
And with good reason. Rove crafted a can’t-miss gameplan, told everyone that there was no way Dems could reclaim Congress, and made key decisions that helped dictate the outcome. Except, as Matt Yglesias noted, those decisions were rather foolish: “It’s worth pointing out that this election ought to demolish the Myth of Karl Rove.”
From the GOP perspective, while losing five senate seats is worse than losing four, losing six is much worse than losing five. Since the 2006 climate clearly wasn’t favorable to the Republicans, the obvious thing to do would have been to concentrate resources on Republican incumbents running in red states — Virginia, Montana, Missouri, and Tennessee. I feel like there’s good reason to think the GOP could have won two out of those four had they focused. Instead, they tried an ambitious strategy of picking off Democratic seats in New Jersey and Maryland, two solidly blue states.
Interestingly, Rove made the exact same error in 2000, engaging in an absurd late-game effort to campaign in California. He then lost the election, only to wind up with Bush securing the White House through a series of incredibly unlikely events plus a partisan Supreme Court. Then in 2004, he did something similar with weird last minute gambits in Hawaii and New Jersey that put his candidates perilously close to losing Ohio (and with it the presidency) not withstanding a decent-sized popular majority. Learning nothing from his good fortune except an unhealthy sense of infallibility, he proceeded to do it again and then, finally, have things genuinely blow up in his face.
I’m also reminded of the time Rove had a sure-fire strategy to help Bush win the New Hampshire primary in 2000 and seal-up the nomination after the Iowa caucuses. It was a great plan, right up until McCain won by 16 points.
For that matter, Rove has managed to convince a surprisingly large swath of the political world into believing a party can win by doing nothing but turn out its base.
For six tumultuous years President Bush has provoked intense opposition while mobilizing passionate support for an ambitious conservative agenda. On Tuesday, that perilous strategy crumbled — and triggered his party’s abrupt fall from power.
Republicans lost control of the House, and teetered on the edge of losing the Senate as well. The widespread losses will present Bush and the GOP with a sharpened challenge from congressional Democrats eager to command attention for their policy priorities, such as raising the national minimum wage, and to investigate the administration’s performance on Iraq, global warming and other issues.
In the long run, the reversals raise fundamental questions about the viability of the strategy Bush and his chief political advisor, Karl Rove, have pursued to build a lasting Republican political majority.
Bush and Rove placed their main emphasis on unifying and energizing Republicans and right-leaning independents with an agenda that focused squarely on the goals of conservatives.
But Tuesday’s broad Democratic advance underscored the risks in that approach: In many races, Republicans were overwhelmed by an energized Democratic base and a sharp turn toward the Democrats by moderate swing voters unhappy with the president’s performance.
One almost gets the sense Rove believes he can win tough races by sheer force of will, which allows him to make foolish gambles.
May every GOP strategist be this much of a “genius.”
just a drive by y’all
i stopped at the library to pay my bills online on a grownup machine, so i can actually use the emoticons for once.
:banana::banana::dancers::dancers::dancers::banana::banana:
gee that was fun.
druid: wolves and bears and cougars and coyotes are all mythologized as evil because they compete with us for food.
prey animals like deer and sheep and bunnies are mythologized as good because they taste good and they don’t fight back. it’s something psychological to do with projection and sublimation and a bunch of other freudian stuff.
later winners!
YEP! He’s writing a story for tonight’s show as I type. He’s been in four cities in three days with little sleep. The soldiers coming home is a group he was with at the start of the war, I believe. This was their second tour. It’s nice he’s doing stories ’round these parts.
Allen concedes!
Guess that makes Cowboy George a Lame Dork President. A Cheney just a bitter old man.
What does that make Karl Rove, other than gay, which I don’t think he is happy about. Must be hell having to hate yourself.
Did Guckert go to the
whorehousewhitehouse all those times to be be with Rove?:nod:
sad news about ed bradley.
Iraqi’s cheer Rummy resignation
George Allen just conceded. We have the Senate!!
:yippee: :banana: :yippee: :banana:
From huffingtonpost:
Word has just reached me from a well-placed source that the White House has continued to push John Bolton’s confirmation prospects as US Ambassador to the United Nations despite the election outcome.
Another highly placed source has informed me that in just a few minutes Senator Lincoln Chafee is calling a press conference to state categorically that he will not support John Bolton’s confirmation in the upcoming lame duck session.
The Bolton confirmation will be officially dead in a few minutes.
— Steve Clemons is Senior Fellow and Director of the American Strategy Program at the New America Foundation and publishes the popular political blog, The Washington Note
Chafee deserved better; its one of Rove’s crimes that guys like this have to be voted against. The next Dem president should put him in the cabinet. :sammy:
Chafee is a good guy but he hs been free to leave the Rethugs for a long time.
Not this time…maybe next time…
http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?SectionID=90&ItemID=11372
(The corrupted system is still in place.)
Still pushing Bolton? Jeez, I wonder what the attraction is…
117. I’d like to hear his take on the phenomenal win.
Palast’s message on this has always been to counter the vote thievery is by bringing overwhelming numbers of voters to the polls. BIG TURNOUT!
Researchers will probably find that voter suppression did cost the Dems a few races, and that the close races (.i e. Webb and Allen) were not really that close.
We knew this already. Create your democracy!
:omg:
:banana::hot::roll:
Even though “democrats” won in this election a closer examination will show that the voter elected what amounts to a bunch of 80s style moderate Republicans to office.:bf:
Empty what? :omg:
:rofl2:
empty rewerwkskdkfjrekdkdg
Sherrod Brown is pretty much a dyed in the wool progressive. There’s more of a mix, some conservative some liberal.
I some what doubt that you will see the “democrats” do much to help the American worker. There are to many people in the “investor class” that would be ticked off when there 401k’s ( aka mini crap shoots) crap out if the congress enacted barriers to keep corporations from continuing to consolidate and move off shore to increase profits .. Time will tell… If something does not happen relatively soon something else will happen.:gate::omg:
Fred killed the blog!:jason:
that’s weird, i’m the one that usually kills the blog:fustrate::doh:
So, did you download skype yet?
Mehlman is stepping down in January…..
wow! they’re dropping like flies!!!!:yippee::banana::nana:
not yet, should i download it now?
:paranoid:
hmmmm….perhaps i will.
see….i told you!
i killed the blog:cry:
okay, i have skype, but alas no headset yet:neutral:
Hey QG, you can get away with just a microphone as long as you have speakers so you can hear.
Isn’t there a delay when you do that?
I saw headsets at fry’s ranging from 9.99 to 299.00. I spent about $30.00
Nope, Headphones simply take the place of computer speakers. You can’t stream the show at the same time you call in because of the feedback. You can’t do that with headphones either.
Hey Krista.
Malloy slammed Franken.
:slap:
malloy!:pup:
:barf::yuck:crazy rethugs!!!!
1. Mandatory homosexuality
2. Drug-filled condoms in schools
3. Introduce the new Destruction of Marriage Act
4. Border fence replaced with free shuttle buses
5. Osama Bin Laden to be Secretary of State
6. Withdraw from Iraq, apologize, reinstate Hussein
7. English language banned from all Federal buildings
8. Math classes replaced by encounter groups
9. All taxes to be tripled
10. All fortunes over $250,000 to be confiscated
11. On-demand welfare
12. Tofurkey to be named official Thanksgiving dish
13. Freeways to be removed, replaced with light rail systems
14. Pledge of Allegiance in schools replaced with morning flag-burning
15. Stem cells allowed to be harvested from any child under the age of 8
16. Comatose people to be ground up and fed to poor
17. Quarterly mandatory abortion lottery
18. God to be mocked roundly
19. Dissolve Executive Branch: reassign responsibilities to UN
20. Jane Fonda to be appointed Secretary of Appeasement
21. Outlaw all firearms: previous owners assigned to anger management therapy
22. Texas returned to Mexico
23. Ban Christmas: replace with Celebrate our Monkey Ancestors Day
24. Carter added to Mount Rushmore
25. Modify USA’s motto to “Land of the French and the home of the brave”
re 134 and the headsets:
well, i don’t even have a mic!! i have a broken down one, but i don’t think it even works with my new computer.
but you know what, i’ve been thinking about getting a headset for a while to record dialogue for animations.:nod:
guess it’s time to invest in one….but i have to wait to get money.:fustrate:
SEAN!
excellent list but there’s lots more…
sex education with mandatory applications labs from 7th grade on (5th & 6th graders in accelerated programs). Head Start programs for younger children with special creditation programs for polymorphous perverse teachers.