Think you are too busy to make a few GOTV phone calls? Think again. If Al Gore makes time to pick up a phone and get out the vote, what is your excuse? You can call from home. You can attend a GOTV calling party. You can volunteer for a local campaign or Democratic office. Just do something…don't be sorry that you didn't do more on election night. It is crunch time, gang.
Think you don't have anything to say to potential voters about why we need a change in leadership from the rubber stamp Republicans who currently control Congress? Think again:
Yesterday, on CNN, House Majority Leader John Boehner blamed the US military for losing the war in Iraq:
House Majority Leader John Boehner: Wolf, I understand that, but let's not blame what's happening in Iraq on Rumsfeld.
Wolf Blitzer: But he's in charge of the military.
House Majority Leader John Boehner: But the fact is the generals on the ground are in charge and he works closely with them and the president. [CNN, 11/1/06]
Given an opportunity to take back that comment, Boehner elected instead to stay the course.
A Boehner spokesman later insisted that blaming the military for losing the war is not criticizing the military. (emphasis mine)
Yesterday, when asked about some accountability in his Administration, George Bush also guaranteed that Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld had full job security. In the Bush Administration, apparently you cannot screw up enough to get fired.
Who is to blame for the mess that is Iraq? According to the Republican Majority Leader of the House of Representatives, American soldiers are to blame. That's right — a man who had a hand in covering up the Mark Foley mess, but passed the buck to Denny Hastert would now like you to blame the soldiers on the ground in Iraq, risking life and limb, rather than holding George Bush, their Commander in Chief and Donald Rumsfeld, the Defense Secretary, accountable for their piss poor planning and failures of leadership.
Does anyone in the Republican party leadership ever stand up and take responsibility for any of their failures? Ever? Where is Osama? Escalating chaos in Iraq? Katrina? Undermining our Constitutional rights in order to seize more executive power and privilege? War profiteering? Criminal corruption investigations, guilty pleas and indictments throughout the Republican-controlled Congress and members of the Bush Administration? Anyone?
Had enough? Vote for Democrats. And get everyone you know to do the same. The time for accountability for George Bush and his enabling rubber stamp Republican cronies is now. If you need a further kick in the pants on this, watch this YouTube and tell me it isn't high time for a change in Washington.
And then take a peek at this, and tell me you don't hunger for something better than what we are getting from George Bush and the Republican leadership. We deserve better, we deserve leadership and accountability — and we have to do the work if we want to win. Five days and counting gang — let's get to work!
Related posts:
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- Two New York Dems Vote to Give Republicans Majority in State Senate: So, Who Will Primary Defector Hiram Monserrate?
- Jim McGovern Catches #RahmFlu, Flips His Vote
- Jeb Bush: Stop Blaming My Brother for Driving the Country Off a Cliff
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g’ morning
Gooooood mornin’!
FITZ! Yeah my first!!
One week from today, I want to see weeping wingnuts on every front page in this country!
God bless Al Gore and Moveon.org
and you too Christy :)
The MSGOP talking heads were just comparing the republican GOTV and Dem GOTV phone scripts. The republican script was short and to the point (”If they win, terrorists will kill you”) and the Dem script had talking points with annotations, footnotes, bibliography cites (okay, a slight exaggeration), point being the Dem script was a bit over-done.
In the last few days, simple is better especially when dealing with possible voters who think in sound bites.
IMHO.
EvilDrPuma @
4
There’s one way to make the odds of that better . . . GOTV!
don’t these people realize that a vote of confidence from the boss is supposed to be followed up by being fired?
Bushie keeps giving them votes of confidence without firing them? It’s driving me nuts.
They followed the playbook on Brownie. Vote of confidence….fired. Georgie used to own a baseball team. He knows how this works.
Oy. Two cups of coffee, and I’m still feeling out of it this morning.
EPU’d – more or less:
Diane Benson’s TV Ads – which egregious’s ActBlue contributors helped get onto the air all around Alaska since late Tuesday – are up at a link from her campaign page to YouTube:
http://www.bensonforcongress.com/YouTubeSpots
We need more help to keep them on the air through the weekend:
http://www.actblue.com/page/egregious
Remember – these TV spots were made for free by a professional in Anchorage, as were here straightforward radio spots.
Thanks, everyone, for helping Diane Benson!
Also – THANKS, Angie!
Jerry 101 @ 8
Thing is, Bush can’t fire Cheney. Remember, Dick Cheney was put in charge of finding Bush a running mate, and he picked Dick Cheney. He’s the one wearing the pants in this White House, and he ain’t going nowhere.
And that’s probably why Cheney’s old pal Don ain’t going nowhere, neither.
Frank Probst @ 9
Sounds like it’s time for a third cup!
“owned a baseball team”
Well- 5% of a baseball team. He was allowed to sit in the dugout if he wanted to. As far as makin decisions- them texas goopers aren’t CRAZY- they knew that Clusterfuck had lost money in every enterprise he ever invested in.
Clusterfuck was once on the board of a subsidiary of the Carlyle group.
After a year or so- the CEO took him aside and said: “You’ve been with us for a year- and you have made NO effort to learn ANYTHING about what we are or what we do. All you do is sit at the meetings and tell dirty jokes- you should resign” and Clusterfuck did.
We need that CEO to come and give Clusterfuck the same speech now.
When I read this:
I literally laughed out loud.
“Support the troops. They deserve the blame.”
These guys treat the war like a football game. Who are they gonna blame when their team loses?
It sure won’t be the team “owner”, Rummy, the coaches and the players will take the fall.
Woke up feeling very optimistic this morning. We are going to do this! Keep up the good work folks. Those polls are not moving back to the GOP. Here, the Dems are pulling out their best GOTV effort in memory. Lots of phone calls being made, lots of effort and momentum! Bring it on home…
Santorum melting down with Mrs. Greenspan and flinging major poo at JK.
I so want him shut up.
There should be LOTS of poll dumps today and tomorrow. They are the most important polls of the election- not so much because they will tell us who will win (although they may) but because they will establish the mindset for voting day- Who’s ahead? Which races are “out of reach”? Is there a bandwagon out there that I should get on?
We’re gettin down to it- by friday evening the public part of this will be about over and it will come down to the robocalls and other get out the vote activities.
I thought this was interesting in this week’s New Yorker:
Makes me feel a little better about the people in this country. Explains why it is so hard for the Democrats to gain control. It does not speak well of our Democratic representatives who agreed to this out of their own self-interest.
Santorum- dead dog man walking.
If anyone needs motivation to get out and work for change they should look at the powerful commentary delivered by Keith Olbermann last night. Here is the link to a Raw Story page which has the link to the You Tube video…
http://www.rawstory.com/news/2….._1102.html
Jo Fish @
6
Because in the MSM meta argument the Republicans do everything better, except of course govern.
-GSD
GSD @ 22
I figure that, if “They’re overdrawing the national bank account to kill people for no good reason” isn’t enough of a talking point, nothing will be.
Uh. Mah. GAWD! On MSNBC, Andrea Mitchell is doing the Lynn Cheney Propoganda Hour, Part II this morning. Arrrrrrrrgh!
People are sick of this rhetoric to nowhere. There are some other very interesting goings on out there too. Has anyone caught Jim Condit’s message? He is up against Mean Jean “Coward calling” Schimdt. Whatcha think about this one??
Finally, someone in the press gets deeper into Torturemans petty cash problem:
Mary O’Leary at New Haven Register “Lamont Files Complaint…”
Looks like there might be substantive violations after all!
liz at 25 — Dr. Victoria Wulsin is running against Mean Jean in the OH-2. And I think she is awesome — she’s one of our Blue America candidates this year. And, there are several polls that show her even or ahead. That is one race I would LUV to see us win.
Spartacus–Looks like there’s something there- but now it’s too late. No way this becomes an election turning issue at this late date. Ned needed to raise it publicly during the debates and force Ol Joe to respond.
Redd- ditto on the mean jean race. One can only hope!
Sparcatus @ 26
It’s hard to imagine $387K in “petty cash” not concealing some substantive violation. However, as the old saw goes, it ain’t illegal until you get caught.
rwcole @ 14
I agree. The election is shaping up more and more as a referendum on Bush and his regime. The polls are telling us we should expect a huge and quite angry vote of “no confidence” if it were shaped that way. Whatever the outcome in individual House/Senate races, this election should be read as a powerful message that the American people have had enough of these clowns, and it is time for the Bush regime to go.
rat bastahd @ 16
That’s the spirit! I don’t know why some people at this site don’t want to hear good news about how the races are going. I think it is motivational to know you are part of a history-making election that will throw out these sorry SOBs and instill some checks and balances where they are sorely needed.
More good news (via TPM Cafe): Sabato is predicting a pretty big win, both House and Senate.
Most people want to be a part of a winning team. The apolitical people we are trying to get out to vote will be more likely to do so if they know they will be part of that team. So let’s get out there and motivate them!
Oh yeah, let’s not forget the MSM will immediately begin the calls, on 11/8 for a “less partisan tone” in Washington. They will lament at how divisive politics have become and will focus on the need for cross aisle cooperation and an end to the partisan politics of personal destruction.
Oh yeah, also Americablog is running a story about a winger Christian minister who’s been having an affair with a gay hustler….
Who would have known.
-GSD
P.S. Any “October Surprise” window is effectively closed. Rove has nothing, nothing, nothing. That is why the spin about the margins of loss have begun and spin about how the Republicans didn’t follow the Rove playbook close enough. Remember, Rove 101 NEVER admit fault and NEVER take blame….We’ll see if that works or if Rove is the first one chased up the hill into the burning windmill by Republicans with torches and pitchforks.
If Clusterfuck manages to squeak this thing out and hold both houses of congress- he will represent it as a big victory and a “mandate” for his policies and for the privatization of social security and every other sick gooper brain fart that has ever rattled a Washington window.
On the other hand (and here’s the GOOD part– if he loses- particularly if he loses both houses- he stands rebuked by the american public. He will have been given a public thrashing. He will be a loser. He will not see one speck of any gooper wet dreams turned into law. He will be humiliated publicly.
Frankly, I can’t wait!
Andrea Mitchell still shilling…Republican infomercial points as she talks to Sherrod Brown. And he’s doing a terrific job of deflecting and getting back on point. Real issues, facts. Not are you going to ask Kerry to “come out of hiding.”
Shame on Mitchell. She’s a textbook case of what Frank Rich is referring to when he says one of the three things people are angry and frustrated about is the media. And why TV media in particular are worthless.
[sorry I didn’t save the link, it’s Radar? I got there via HuffPost’s Eat the Press. a worthy read.]
Morning Firedogs!
President Clinton was here in Stockton last night to rally the GOTV for McNerney. He was an amazing speaker and the support for him was loud and enthusiastic. I couldn’t help but compare his speaking style with the current Preznit. He spoke to us as if we were smart enough to understand complex issues like Iraq, Middle East policy, jobs, the economy, alternative energy, etc., etc., while the current Preznit reduces his campaign speeches to one-liners delivered just like Jon Stewart’s impression of him, with the heh, heh, heh, chuckle, as if we are all too stupid to understand big words.
Read about it here
with pictures, and here
And help us Get Out the Vote for Jerry McNerney here
As an added extra for me and for Mr SJVG, the campaign, as a way of thanking us for volunteering so many hours, picked us to stand on the stage behind the speakers. I was the first one on stage that greeted Mr. Clinton as he walked up the steps. I shook his hand, as well as Jerry McNerney’s. It was a good night and we here in Stockton really are grateful that President Clinton added CA-11 to his campaign swing.
Go Blue America Candidates!
GSD @ 33
It’s also why the MSM jumped on the Kerry-bashing hay ride. That’s as close as they’re going to get to a Rovian slip this year. Pretty pathetic performance from Karl the All-Knowing, innit?
I second the Olberman recommendation. It is also at CrooksandLiars. The Kerry remarks were totally taken out of context. It is a total pisser, the way the media just goes along with it instead of listening to the run up to the line. “Bush is stupid. Don’t be stupid like him.” That is the gist of it, not the troops.
Olberman rocks.
More fun with You Tube as per the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette – Rick Santorumns I’m not happy to the Partridge Family’s “Come on get happy”. Definitely a must view.
Rick Santorum – I am not happy
Also the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Early Returns is a nice link on the state of the PA races.
[My previous comment was responding to rwcole @28, sorry for lack of context]
rwcole @28:
Agreed that it’s too late to swing the election in any degree. I didn’t post in the thought that it would, but rather to note that it’s finally out in the press.
It also allows me to return to thinking of myself as suspicious and cynical, but nontinhatwearing. And to renew energy behind my personal GOTV efforts.
GSD at 33 — I saw that — if you want some background on Haggard, take a peek at this article from Harpers. If this turns out to be something solid, it is going to be huge news among a lot of evangelicals (not that they are a monolithic group or anything, but Haggard is a huge name in the movement…).
Here’s the link to the Q&A with Frank Rich:
http://radaronline.com/feature…..s_rich.php
October surprise window
Not closed yet- TODAY is the best date on the election calendar to drop a stink bomb that you don’t want the opposition to have time to respond to. I’d say the window closes tomorrow late.
Fargo FDL rally at 1.
B there or B square.
David Horsey says all that needs to be said about Kerry’s botched joke.
Andrea should go out ta pasture with her favorite Stallion Alan.
CHS,
I am old enough to remember the meltdown of the big TV evangelicals back in the 80’s. Swaggart, Oral Roberts, Jim Bakker…it was ugly–also prompted me to rent Elmer Gantry on video.
There is an editorial from a Colorado paper calling Rev. Spongebob Dobson “another political hack”….
The media is stuck in passive aggressive mode when it comes to the Republicans and the right wing. They don’t know how to sue for divorce, but they see a break-up coming.
The Republican civil war is heating up……watch the fur fly.
Also, that Santorum video is a real hoot.. He really is unhinged.
-GSD
GSD
Yep– If they lose- they’re gonna have a big dinner and eat each other. Can’t wait!
GSD — oh man, the Tammy Faye Bakker mascara meltdowns. Those were the days… *g* Let alone the Swaggart on-air live “I have sinned” sob-a-thon. hehehehe Thanks for the memories.
lisadawn82 @ 39
Thank you, that video made my day.
The media tend to go where the power is. If dems win- the networks will need to lay off some money at the track- they need shit from congress!
If dems win- yer gonna see some major changes on the tube!
oh look! and Shooter STILL won’t release his visitor logs for the energy stuff… apparently it might endanger “national security”…
via Muckracker
and he thinks he’s fooling who again?
UptownNYChick @ 50
If you go to the Post-Gazette link and scroll down they have other links to You Tube. I can’t believe I just found out about this section of my old hometown news paper. They’re very snarky. They would fit in well here.
Slightly O/T but tremendously important – from Lamont’s blog:
In fact- some will have already noticed some slight changes in attitude among the teevee talkin heads.
NBC is trying to appear “balanced”. CNN is actually attacking goopers. What’s the world comin to? Networks are realizing that dems are likely to control the house after the dust settles and may hold some grudges.
From Tbogg:
We’d like to buy some more body armor
but we blew our budget on casket flags
We take time out from discussing flubbed jokes to remind everyomne about the flubbed war:
The U.S. Air Force is asking the Pentagon’s leadership for a staggering $50 billion in emergency funding for fiscal 2007 — an amount equal to nearly half its annual budget, defense analyst Loren Thompson of the Lexington Institute said on Tuesday.
The request is expected to draw criticism on Capitol Hill, where lawmakers are increasingly worried about the huge sums being sought “off budget” to fund wars, escaping the more rigorous congressional oversight of regular budgets.
Another source familiar with the Air Force plans said the extra funds would help pay to transport growing numbers of U.S. soldiers being killed and wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Thompson, who has close ties to U.S. military officials, said the big funding request was fueled by Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England. England told the services in a October 25 memo to include the “longer war on terror,” not just the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, in their emergency requests.
“This amount of money is so much bigger than the Air Force would normally request … it hints at a basic breakdown in the process for planning and funding war costs,” said Thompson.
Hey look! Over there! John Kerry goofed up a knock-knock joke. Attack! Attack!
Christy Hardin Smith @ 49
Old Jimmy Swaggart was the most repellent of the bunch. As skeevy as Jim Bakker was, he wasn’t really a hate monger like Swaggart..so I actually had some sympathy for Bakker..though the thought of him prancing around in his terricloth shorts was a bit too much for me.
The Swaggart meltdown was pure justice…
RWCole,
Another part of the election is going to be the margins of victory in some of the races…. Spitzer with 30 points….here in NH the last poll had NH Governor (D) John Lynch leading 71% to 18% over his R challenger….(D) Patrick in Mass is still looking at landslide numbers…so is (D) Rendell in PA…..
Rove, Bush, Mrs. Greenspan, and Hannity are going to have a tough time dealing with some of those numbers. We think their assessment of Iraq is fantasy…just wait.
-GSD
OldSchool @ 52
Speaking of Shooter, did anything ever come of the photos of the shredding company van up at the V-P’s residence last week?
IfWhen we win next week, I expect a lot of computer hard-drives to “accidentally” run into sledgehammers. GOTV!http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11…..r=homepage
link to a really powerful front-page story in the NYTimes about a sniper shooting of a single Marine in Anbar Province and the corpsman who treats him.
Speaks volumes of the courage of our military. One of their own goes down and they don’t exact retribution. They just do their job. How ugly that they men leading them are Bush, Cheney and Rumsfeld. We are the only people–through the ballot–that can save them.
GSD
It’s gonna be ugly if it happens. GW Clusterfuck can meet the press who will say “Mr. President- you said that there was no way you could lose the house or the senate- and now you have- so why should be believe you about anything else?” (and that’s just for starters.)
Rw, whats with there being no House exit polling? That sure does make me nervous.
lisadawn: I LOVE this nugget from that blog
Santorum AND Zell Miller. Now we gots a real bonafide Freak Show!!!!!
Peterboy @ 59
Not according to Boehner, remember. That would be the generals on the ground, the same ones that evidently made a mess of Iraq. This is one of those points I don’t understand the media not covering: the Codpiece can’t both be Commander in Chief *and* not be responsible for his administration’s actions, at least not in the land of reality. Consider this yet another piece of tinder on the growing anti-military woodpile against the GOP.
Tuned in late to Mrs Greenspan’s segment on the Tenn race. The Newsweek guy (Meachum?) said Ford has fallen behind due to the racial ads. Of course Andrea was all giddy about this race, calling it the repug firewall.
Any truth here? Could this be an outlier?
Back to the topic of Get Out The Vote:
This is from my maternal great-great-grandmother’s diary entry for November 2, 1920.
“Tuesday. Pleasant. Voted for President of the United States, the first year a woman has had the power in this state.”
She was 74 years of age, exercising her 19th Amendment rights the moment they were available (she voted in the gubernatorial primary earlier that fall).
Note the word she uses: “power”. She knew exactly what voting meant.
And so do we. Let’s make my great-great-grandmother proud!
UptownNYChick @ 62
“I’m Zell Miller, and I’m not just the head of Democrats for Santorum…I’m also the only member.”
First Lady gives us lecture on what we can say and how:
Guess her husband, who has been going around the country saying that if the Democrats win, the terrorists win, didn’t get the memo.
First Lady: Be Careful talking about Iraq.
Dear Mrs. Bush:
Thank you for reminding us of our duties as citizens in times of war. I will try to be polite, but there is something you should hear.
Your husband and his closest advisers lied to the American people and fraudulently led the country into a war against a country that posed no threat to us. Then he and his Sec of Defense mismanaged the occupation, allowed the country to slide into chaos and horric killings. To this day, he has no coherent plan to fix the terrible mess he created. In fact, conditions are so bad, that the situation is probably not fixable without untold thousands being killed no matter what we do. Yet your husband claims we are winning!
He failed to support our soldiers, either with enough force to maintain order and security, or with the right weapons or sufficient armor, or with adequate support when they returned home.
He allowed private contractors to waste/steal billions of dollars of taxpayer monies, while stifling Congressional oversight and firing and defaming whistle-blowers. And he even allowed contractors to provide our soldiers with dirty water. He lost tens of thousands of lethal weapons, which likely wound up in the hands of those shooting at our troops.
He has lied every step of the way, and is still lying, and is now claiming that anyone who criticizes his blunders is supporting the terrorists — you know, the folks who actually attacked America but whom the President stopped pursuing vigorously because he focused instead on Iraq. He orderED our soldiers and agents to torture people, shaming them and our country and putting our own troops at risk by the examples he approved, and still approves. Then he lied that he did this, and is still lying about it. There is an American soldier being held hostage today; what do you think is happening to him?
Now your husband is losing the Iraq war, a war we never had to begin in the first place, and entered only because he lied us into it. His policy will be regarded by historians as possibly the stupidest, most strategic blunder in American history. And yesterday, he told the country that he thought the two strongest advocates and architects of this historic blunder were doing a terrific job and should stay on.
Your husband has lost the confidence and trust of the American people. I could go on, but I thought you should know, in the politest words I can muster under these conditions, in which hundreds of thousands of innocent people have needlessly died because of his policies (including nearly 3000 of our own soldiers), that your husband is an complete idiot; a moral leper, a coward, a bully, a liar and — in a fair world under the rule of law, a war criminal.
If you think I am being disrepectful, you should hear some of my friends. They’re really angry about what your husband has done to our country.
Sincerely,
The American people
Swordswoman @ 65
Wow. Speaking of powerful.
To hell with Zell.
-GSD
Vote for the Democrats.
Some thing that has been too quiet. I have not really heard anything publicly said about the goopers imminent demise from power from top level goopers themselves.From all appearances, there is going to be a lot of desk cleaning coming up.yet no word about future plans for the departing elephants. Could there possibly be that many lobbying positions for all of them? Or,perhaps, there is a nine BILLION dollar retirement fund set up in the Cayman Islands?
( I just love my new tinfoil hat, it’s soooo shiny.)
kemo @ 64
Sabato has the Dems winning 6 seats (therefore control of the Senate) without Tennessee. He has McCaskill winning in MO and Webb in VA. It does appear that Corker may pull this out.
Democrats measure drapes, Republicans measure their pages weenies.
Had enough?
-GSD
Kongressional Kandidate Korker?
-GSD
Spazeboy’s website indicated that Lieberman had until noon today to decide whether he wanted to participate in tonight’s debate.
I haven’t heard anything.
No news is good news.
rwcole @ 51
I’d like to think that. But, after watching them kiss Reagan’s and Poppy’s asses, spend eight years trying to destroy Clinton (even the NYT was quite helpful toward that end), I have very little doubt that the media will immediately begin hammering a Dem Congress for not making life wonderful and beautiful instantly–probably before that Congress is sworn in….
SURPRISE!!! Republicans are creating news here in Royal Oak MI, have launched a protest rally on what may be entirely trumped up campaign finance “irregularities” (the same kinds of irregularities that Repugs have reported on their books).
Keep doing that GOTV work; it’s scaring them badly, so badly that they have to go out and make news to counteract the Democratic wave.
And be prepared for this kind of stuff in your neck of the woods; it’s going to get very ugly over the next handful of days as the Repugs find themselves backed into a corner.
So, John Kerry has now made — what? — perhaps three memorable lamentable political gaffes during the past few years? For George W. Bushlexic, that’s what’s known as a very slow week.
_
MayDaze @ 71
I see. Confusing, because yesterday there was this, that had Ford up by 5%, outside of MOE.
Bustednuckles @ 70
Yes. Many of them will go to work for the very lobbyists that supported their failed reelection bids. No worries for them – they’ll get the higher-paying jobs for which they have already sold themselves.
http://www.rawstory.com/showou…..higan.html
Kid Rock should help turn out the Evangelicals! :)
gee, if i had as much money as gore and didn’t have to friggin make a living, i would have a lot of time to pick up a phone. it’s his business[read: ‘way of staying relevant’] to do this and it certainly provides a lovely photo-op. don’t get me wrong, i’m all for it and support gore’s efforts on global warming– but i’m absolutely irritated by your opening remarks. i do what i can for ned when i have time, thank you very much.
Charlie Cook’s got a new lengthy analysis up- you can find it at MSNBC. Here’s a snippet from the end:
“Perhaps the most remarkable thing about this election is that Republicans are having to fight and spend money in states and districts where few Democrats have dared tread in recent years, like in Idaho-01 (Butch Otter), Nebraska-03 (Tom Osborne) and Nevada-02 (Jim Gibbons). While this election started out as largely a fight in Northeastern and Midwestern suburban districts, the more recent additions to the competitive race lists have been disproportionately small town, rural and small cities, though not as many in the South but many in the West. These are districts that may have sent large numbers of their sons and daughters into Iraq, take a dimmer view of immigration, don’t believe in deficits and are most disheartened by scandals. Out west, some Republican-voting conservatives who have a strong libertarian streak have grown uncomfortable with the direction of their party of late, with their “government should stay out of our lives” philosophy applying to social and cultural issues as well.
North, south, east or west, suburban, small town or rural, different voters are responding to different stimuli. And none of them good for the party in power.
For those who were not paying close attention to politics in 1994 or whose focus was on a single state or district, the concept of a ‘wave election’ is foreign and is radically different from the “all politics is local” elections of 1996-2004. For others whose sympathies lie with Republicans, it is difficult to deal with the possibility, or growing probability, of a profound rejection of their party — that Karl Rove and Ken Mehlman could actually lose an election. For diehard Democrats, who are s so used to snatching defeat from the jaws of victory, they are having a hard time seeing their party actually win a majority in the House for the first time in five elections.
The bottom line is that at this stage, Republicans should consider themselves lucky if their net losses stay in the 20-25 range in the House, four or five seats in the Senate, and between five and eight governorships. It would be a tough election, losing their majorities in the House and governorships, but it would fall short of the devastating losses that are possible. But the chances of this thing going bigger — far bigger — still exist, and there are quite a few veteran Republican strategists, people who have done tons of races in all kinds of states and districts for many years, who are bracing themselves for that distinct possibility.”
There’s an interesting thought buried in there. Goopers- in order to pander to the religious right- have jettisoned the Libertarian wing of their party- that dominates much of the west. Great opportunity for dems if they decide to play “don’t rub my nose in yer fuckin religion.”
EvilDrPuma -
Powerful indeed. Her diaries span 20 years, ending at her death in 1926, and are fascinating to read. Her church declared its opposition to segregation in the nineteen-teens. The family car was used as an ambulance during the great flu epidemic. She reports that at 4 AM on Armistice Day (11 AM in France), all the bells in town were rung to celebrate the end of the war.
All this in 3 or 4 sentences a day, with weather almost invariably “pleasant”. There’s a 19th-century New Englander for you. :-)
That Kid Rock link was for you Rayne.
For those of you who haven’t yet read the Cook Report: “Still Ugly for the GOP” – http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15527799/
pat lang just deleted my comment on his blog for being “too nasty.”
guess I’ll keep my venom over here. what’s too nasty over there is de rigeur over here.
power to the people!
GOTV!
On Tennessee- Yeah the latest poll is an outlier- but there has been a little movement toward the gooper lately. Race is undoubtedly playing a role in this race- how could it not?
kemo @ 64
Of course, this is the same Andrea Mitchell who in her memoir (Talking Back to Presidents, Dictators, and Assorted Scoundrels)conveniently left out the fact that her first husband was an African-American, Gil Jackson, whom she married in 1970 and divorced in 1975:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrea_Mitchell
kemo @ 78
Yeah, this one (along with a number of others) has been back and forth in the polling. Sometimes you have to look at other factors. I just don’t see a state that was part of the Confederacy electing a black to the Senate, at least not this time. I hope I’m wrong.
Here’s the trouble about goopers becoming lobbyists. If dems take over congress- K street won’t want any fuckin goopers.
joe’s a schmo at 81 — well, gee, aren’t you a cheery one? Considering Gore has been consulting with the British government lately on the document they just put out on global warming and climate change, he’s been a tad on the busy side as well. But thanks for showing off that lovely chip you have on your shoulder. Now, if you’ll pardon me, I have to get back to my laundry, getting dinner started and writing another article for the blog…that is, if my phone will stop ringing today for a little while.
My point? We’ve all got shit going on, including working our asses off to put food on the table and try and squeeze in time for political work on the side. People who do the work help us win. People who want to pull an Eeyore? Not so much.
rat bastahd — yeah, I’d seen that info about the last minute million dollar cash infusion into MI to attack Stabenow.
I don’t know what they’re thinking, what with Stabenow polling 52 to 38 over her Repug opponent Bouchard. What I suspect is really happening is that the NRSC is trying to promote straight Repug ticket voting, and the money is intended to indirectly help Dem Gov. Granholm’s icky opponent, DeVos.
I also suspect this was a chit called in by DeVos, since DeVos (company and family combined) is among the top 20 Bush/Cheney donors.
Please go read
Billmon.
I have been thinking about Solzhenitsyn’s “Gulag Archipelago” quite a bit recently. This is great writing.
Margot @ 92
He may stretch the analogy a bit far (saying that Hewitt looks like the prosecutor), but the portrait of Halperin groveling for acceptance, despite his family background, is most apt.
May- I think that plus 5 for Ford was one of his internal polls that he chose to release for obvious reasons.
The internal polls released by candidates are always self serving.
…left out the fact that her first husband was an African-American, Gil Jackson, whom she married in 1970 and divorced in 1975.
Before FDL, my only only question watching Mitchell would be: How is it so many people with lisps get speaking gigs on TV?
I’m a bit more informed these days.
I wish we could take control of the senate WITHOUT Ford. He is despicable and a loser.
That is my hope…. Dem control of the senate with NO FORD….then start recruiting a candidate to run against Landrieu Queen of the Bush apologists and uber FAKE Democrat..
rwcole @ 89
But they have to follow through on the payback for support by the goopers. If they don’t, they won’t have any credibility trying get favors (for subsequent jobs) from the Dems.
Franco @ 96
just win:
Virginia
Rhode Island
Pennsylvania
Ohio
Montana
Missouri
and throw in AZ for good measure.
Eeyore? …or Marvin!
p.s., and don’t lose NJ
Lina from your lip to…………………
Ford’s doin what ya need to do to win in Tennessee- it’s ugly but it’s necessary. I suspect that he won’t pull it off- which means dems need Mo and Va- fortunately- they have microscopic leads in both.
From Kos
Furthermore, our latest tracking poll shows that Jim Pederson’s margin among early voters is growing as we get closer to the election and as this bloc of early voters expands to virtually one-third of the electorate.
http://www.dailykos.com/storyo…..121149/469
Lot’s of people voting early in NJ. When I cast my ballot earlier this week the folks at the county election board were amazed at the volume. They told me they had never seen anything like it.
I voted early so I can go to CT and work for Lamont on Mon & Tues.
Menendez will win NJ, and I’m comfortable with my effort that got 15 people signed up to GOTV on Tuesday on his behalf.
Charlie Cook quoted a gooper today as sayin:
“The good news is that the velocity of the bad news is decelerating”
That’s quite consistent with Rove being content to let Kerry’s gaff dominate the news for two days- drowning out anything that Rove might want to say to save his sorry ass.
It looks to me as if the goopers are mostly tryin to guard against a party destroying catastrophe tuesday- one that could wash Rover and Clusterfuck far out to sea without life preservers.
rwcole @ 102
I disagree….Ford is being FORD that is who that troll has ALWAYS been. I want us to win the Senate, but WITHOUT that corrupt Ford.
lina (85), Pat Lang told me my comment was “too political” so I haven’t gone back. I think my politics were leaning the wrong way, but so be it.
Yesterday I became a concern troll here, advising a commenter to hold comments about
The Siege of GazagradIsraeli-Palestinian issues until after the elections next week. But I’m obligated to recommend the courageous reporting today from Gaza by my good friend Jennifer Loewenstein. Amy Goodman interviews her on today’s Democracy Now edition. Her segment begins at 16 minutes.Jennifer is a visiting research fellow at the Refugee Studies Centre at Oxford. An American Jewish peace activist from Wisconsin, she’s been trying to get into Gaza since April and finally got in a few days ago. Her descriptions are vivid.
Clusterfuck with a 34% JAR in latest NYT poll. Dems with an 18 point advantage in the generic ballot.
Them’s bad numbers if ya have the misfortune of bein a fuckin gooper.
well that’s my point. we’re all doing what we can and all your efforts at fdl are invaluable– really, greatly appreciated. i read your posts daily and use whatever information i can to inform. because daily i’m apoplectic with frustration at the government and media and let it be known via a steady barrage of emails, calling them on their bullshit. daily calling joe on his bullshit. but don’t use gore as some sort of righteous example, taking time out of his schedule to make a phone call or two to endear himself with the blogosphere — the added remarks seem an almost ’shame-inducing’ way to get people to get involved. and although i acknowledged his efforts, i do have a chip with the gores, and clintons — but compared to this administration they look like absolute heros. i have no choice but to ally myself, although i’m also furious with the dnc dlc and whoever else that didn’t step up to the plate the past couple of days and denounce the smear tactics against kerry…okay, i’m over it. time to give cnn some shit…
OT
Christy … I’m about to put up a shoutout on Olbermann in the book salon on Sunday … But I want to make sure the time is right. Your ad says Daylight time, I assume it’s really 5 p.m. EST. Drop me a confirmation :
http://thank-you-keith-olbermann.blogspot.com/
Ed*ard Teller @ 107
streaming DN now! Thanks for the heads up.
Actually, I agree with Boehner, just not in a way he would probably like.
These are the generals who have been most responsible for the mess in Iraq. They are those whose appointments are the most political. They have also been the least questioning of Bush and Rumsfeld’s policies.
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
General Richard Myers October 1, 2001-September 30, 2005
General Peter Pace October 1, 2005 to present
Commander of the United States Central Command (CENTCOM)
General Tommy Franks (ret.) July 6, 2000-July 6, 2003
General John Abizaid July 7, 2003 to present
Commander of Multi-National Force-Iraq
Lieutenant General Ricardo S. Sanchez (ret.) June 2003-July 2004
General George Casey July 2004 to present
Sally @ 106
he’s a touchy old geezer, but he knows the middle east and is a walking encyclopedia of military history.
A little reality leaks into Gwen Ifill’s WaPo chat today (over now):
I hope Gwen reads comments after she ends the chat, as I corrected her misapprehension about the assault on Mike Stark — she thinks Mike’s shouted “did you spit on your first wife” preceded the assault. Watching the tape, anyone can tell that the question “why are your divorce and arrest records sealed, Senator?” (paraphrase) precipitated the assault. What I want to see is another camera angle (hopefully) showing Allen’s “git ‘im, boys” whether verbal or hand gesture. You know it happened!
OT, but another voting machine scandal, one that seems so over the top that the mind boggles.
Bradblog has the lowdown here.
millineryman @ 103
Do any political pundits have any idea what results early voting may for-tell? Is it better for the Dems or the Republicans?
I early voted two weeks ago here in Illinois so I could work that Tuesday.
TeddySanFran @ 114
She took my question on the assault, but not my follow up.
this was my f/u:
thanks for trying, she is one scarey broad.
Boehner said he does not believe he said anything that required an apology.
“I like Rummy,” he said Thursday on Fox News. “If you think about the transformation that’s occurred over at the Pentagon, it would never have occurred without him. And so because I’m out supporting Rumsfeld and believe he’s the right guy for this job at this time, they want to criticize me.
“I can take it. I’ve learned to take it and dish it right back out.”
Run, Gore, Run!!!
I don’t know if I’d vote for you *yet,* but I REALLY want that choice. He’d only help if he ran in the primary and really make it a contest and not just a Hillary steamrole.
early voting traditionally favors goopers- more of them tend to use absentee ballots- but the pattern seems to be changing rapidly and now pundits aren’t sure who it favors.
The 2008 election season doesn’t begin for six more days.
Is it normal for a 43 year old woman to have a crush on the ex vice-president? Just asking.
rwcole @
55
I think a rewrite of the cocktail weenie invite list is in order if the Dems win. Can you imagine the HORROR?
Speakout @ 122
LOL – you have lots of company Ms. Speakout including this ole newspaperbrat – and heaven knows Tipper need not worry one whit!
and even more strange news… according to Bradblog and via Booman, here in CA we are using Sequoia voting machines in many counties… these machines apparently have the additional feature that you can vote as many times as you like!
Wow!
well, well, well– lookee here and I guess it explains a lot about Gwen:
http://www.democracynow.org/ar…..amp;tid=25
angie @ 126
why am i wondering whether cocktail weenies might NOT be on the menu when these ladies lunch?
Speakout @ 122
Yes. Even if she is gay.
heh, Teddy!
Teddy at 127 — you and I are going to have to be bad together, because I had that same thought…muffins, anyone? *g* (Sorry, it was just too easy a line. Couldn’t help myself…)
Mike Stark has just put up My Side on DKos.
TeddySanFran @ 127 – So do you think that there were any private Piano Recitals?
I almost forgot for dishonorable mention Major General Geoffrey Miller (ret.), Commander of Joint Task Force Guantanamo Bay November 2002,
Deputy commanding general for detainee operations for Multinational Forces in Iraq April 30, 2004. He is largely credited with the aggressive interrogation techniques which when exported from Guantanamo to Iraq precipitated the abuse which led to the Abu Ghraib scandal. In what was essentially unheard of conduct for a general officer, he asserted his 5th Amendment protections in refusing to testify at a court martial (not his).
Perhaps the increase is due to fears that the voting machines are compromised? Dems seem to be the most worried about that issue.
pdf
from dade countyLots of stuff here.
Some discussion here.
Above links from this Google search.
newspaperbrat @ 124
That’s a relief. It’s something about brilliant, if not slightly nerdy types that gets right under my skin. :)
Hugh at 133 — I was trying to find some current info on Miller the other day. Where is he career-wise? Has he been…erm…retired yet, or did that promised promotion end up going through for him after all — do you know?
rwcole @
121
Actually, I think Hillary’s Kerrybashing yesterday might qualify as an event in that season.
LindaR @
137
… with every step she takes,
… with every move she makes,
…. takes her farther from her base!
I’ll be watching her
TeddySanFran @ 138
If you’re chasing a story this thing is pretty cool :
http://www.technorati.com/mini/
I tuned in briefly to CNN yesterday during a discussion of Bush giving the vote of confidence to Shooter and Rummy just in time to hear Christopher Hitchens say (and I paraphrase) that Bush is living in a fantasyland and Andrew Sullivan trump him by saying that he’s (Bush) become unhinged.
What a lovely moment that was.
mc @ 141
Apparently Bush has lost his drunk and self-loathing homosexual base.
RBG @
131
The video he links to is awesome~ Mike Stark totally rocks!
Thanks, RBG. He’s gonna be on Tucker today! Woohoo!
UptownNYChick @ 142
Good god, what’s left, the dog?
UptownNYChick @ 142
And that was the amazing thing-they both looked happy AND sober.
Christy,
Here’s a link to a breakdown of the big game tonight.
Christy at 136
From General Miller’s wiki article:
He also had a deputy at Guantanamo, a woman who may be a brigadier by now. She seems to have been heavily involved with the Gitmo stuff but largely escaped any fallout. I can not remember her name.
BTW General Sanchez I think just retired on November 1. He too retired without an extra star.
rwcole @
120
Absolutely. Here in CA, more and more working folks with hefty commutes are using absentee ballots, to avoid hassles on election day – about all that the parties have to go on is checking to see WHO requested absentee ballots. If the balance favors one party or the other, then someone starts to smile. The simple “lots of absentee ballots out there must favor the GOP” idea is fast fading away.
This is another wrinkle that makes polling and figuring out “likely voters” such a delicate operation. In CT, when you add in the very odd dynamics of the JoeForJoe party – plus some very competitive House races, just setting up the constructs for the poll is almost a crapshoot.
I expect surprises on Tuesday – I just don’t know what they’ll be.
Christy Hardin Smith @ 136
Wikipedia has some links to news accounts.
He has retired, now, with a DSM.
So many investigations needed, so little time.
And here’s a link to Mike Stark’s awesome article at HuffPo:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/…..33088.html
Seeing this about Grandma on Media Matters, I am reminded of how gentlemanly both Punkinhead and Nelson (D-SpaceShuttle) comported themselves when faced with the disaster that is Kat Harris last night:
http://mediamatters.org/items/200611010007
Disaster with the facts, disaster on the religion, disaster with the talking points. Let alone the fact that no makeup professional will any longer touch her face or advise her. I am going to miss Ms. Harris, although sometimes I wonder if she and Jebby have some magic up their sleeves.
Hugh at 147 — thanks. I heard an NPR report on Sanchez this morning, saying that he was retiring, but bitter about being passed over for promotion and feeling like he’d been scapegoated for Abu Ghraib, or something along those lines. Pot, this is kettle…pretty much the line of the year for the GOP and their surrogates, isn’t it?
Peterr
That’s why they call em “surprises”.
Tom Oliphant on franken talking about the Allen manhandling.
Oh, and if anyone’s wondering why Tony Snow decided to “forgive” John Kerry last night on The Factor and drop the whole thing, check this out: Do you think Kerry’s comments will affect the outcome of the midterm election for Dems? 26% Yes, 74% No. Yeah, it’s an interactive MSNBC poll. But since Republicans tend to swarm (or as they say, “Freep” — from the GOP website “Free Republic”, which touts such tactics) these polls, the very high pro-Democratic response is even more amazing.
I LOVE the Allen n’ his thugs” story- just perfect- and captured on video too.
Fits right into the way an opponent would love to define him- and he walked right into it with both eyes wide open- even as his handlers were tryin to make certain that he never opened his mouth again. Fuckin priceless!
rwcole @ 156
Franken is putting it in the context of the whole allen campaign — rom Macca to bully.
If there’s an american who says- “well I was gonna vote for Webb for senator- but since Kerry made that statement- I’m votin for Allen”
he’s a lyin sack of shit. He was gonna vote for Allen all along.
This is a fuckin stupid issue.
TRex’ non-friend, Andrew Sullivan, may have given the best line of the campaign, with Paula Zahn on CNN’s Situation Room:
Sullivan and Hitchens on CNN with Zahn
OT: From GroovyGreen via Blah3, Lee Raymond appointed to develop energy policy.
Unfuckingbelievable (or as others here might contend “Unbefuckinglievable”)
Whatever.
Both McCain and that Clinton woman should apologize for besmirching their elected office by verbally waterboarding Senator Kerry, their colleague, by twisting the facts. We’ve had far too much of that these past years and need to throw this type overboard, the sooner the better. Being a politician is one thing, being a liar is another.
scarecrow
Now that’s funny
Paula “But he just made ONE mistake”
any word on Liarman joining tonight’s debate?
OldSchool @ 163
He’s not, per MSNBC earlier.
If Joe shows up at a debate tonight it only shows that his great love of hearing his own voice has overcome any grain of common sense left in his pea brain.
He’s up by double digits with five days to go. It would be unbelievably stupid for him to show up- which doesn’t mean he won’t.
rwcole @ 162
A minor misstep that only cost a half million lives, or so, and counting — but, whatever! Paula must be getting ready to interview Lieberman, who makes the same argument, without saying even that was a mistake.
Sally @ 161
Well Hillary has finally put the final nail in her coffin. She will NEVER get the nomination…GOOD RIDDANCE to Queen Triangulator. We need to build our progressive movement, Big Dog can be used to rally troops when WE need him.
I don’t know about anyone else, but my call from Al came in the form of an electronic recording. Too bad! I’ve been doing my own calls live and in person. Much more risky.
New thread from Swopa!
Why is MSM ignoring Iraq or the Stark/ Allen Wrench fiasco or Hasterts predatory favoritism or has Bob Ney resigned?
Aside from Iraq the elephant in the room…
In Arkansas we already have major problems with early voting on electronic machines. Predictions of final election results could be delayed into Jan ‘07. How many other states are having similar problems?
snip
snip
rwcole @
43
Isn’t the result of Saddam’s trial still to be anounced any day? Also, I had heard on the news that the day after the anouncement Saddam will be executed. Is W flying in with Saddam’s gun to shoot him?
scarecrow @ 159
It made me a little uncomfortable to be talking about an intervention and seeing Hitchens on the screen, but that’s just me. Come to think of it he makes me uncomfortable no matter WHAT the topic is.
jinny @ 171
Or beat him to death with the plastic turkey?
jinny @ 171
Nope, LauraBot’s gonna execute him with her car.
jinny @ 171
WHA??? That can’t be right.
Saddam Hussein cannot be executed immediately after the verdict. There are procedures in place for appeal, plus he is currently on trial for other alleged crimes in the case about the gassing of the Kurds, among other things. Deep breath, people. It’s a verdict that was put off for two months to bring it closer to the US elections. Saddam will likely be found guilty — and Iraq will still be a chaotic mess and Osama will still be at large. Next?
Christy,
I’ll be rooting for your team tonight.
I still like ‘em. Spread went down to 1 point. Everbody is loading up on them.
Kerry’s joke may have failed, but from Iraq, WMD, Dubai ports, the class war and even the Cheney hunting accident, President Bush’s sick sense of humor shows the joke is on us.
For the details, see:
“Kerry’s Failed Joke, Bush’s Sick Humor.”
dubya could always “find” Saddam again… TA DA!
(some of the backwash dopes would believe it too!)
montag @
93
i dunno…… those eyes. cold. really cold. hugh looks like he needs a bit of the old discipline. lynn the dominatrix could wield the whip.
scarecrow @
159
Andrew hit one out of the park ……..
and to mix metaphors : case closed..
Christy – I just wanted to say “thank you” for the great post from this morning. Truly an inspiration. My wife asked me last night why I was so passionate about politics and such a true-blue Democrat. One word immediately blurted from my mouth: JFK. Your post summed up what I tried to explain to her last night. I just forwarded it to her.
Here is what I posted as a comment:
Again, thanks Christy.
Hugh @ 147
From Wikipedia
Brig. General Janis Karpinski, commanding officer at the prison was demoted to colonel on May 5, 2005, which also effectively ends her chances for future career advancement. In a BBC interview, Janis Karpinski said she is being made a scapegoat, and that the top U.S. commander for Iraq, Gen Ricardo Sanchez, should be asked what he knew about the abuse, as according to her, he said that prisoners are “like dogs”.[30] However, a spokesman for Geoffrey Miller, who commanded the Guantanamo camp and now commands Abu Ghraib, called Karpinski’s allegations “categorically false,” and said no directive to treat detainees “like dogs” was made at either Guantanamo or Abu Ghraib
introducing the….
3 pooges…
rummy
dummy
and chummy
vote!
peas!
Hi Christy (or other FPs): I was wondering if you could create a tag “Al Gore” and file this story and future Gore related stories under that tag for easier and ready access to them. Thanks. -NL