Rightio. And how much money did the DNSC waste on Specter? And on Lincoln, now that she can’t win in November?

The democratic establishment just flushed 30 years of credibility down the toilet by supporting Specter. They successfully eeked out a primary battle for the first time in months. Let them have their tough words it just fires up union members even more to vote for real progressive. I hope it mobilizes people in other primaries and in November. I hope it gets some of you guys out to the phonebanks.

I hear union halls across the country are investing in new crock pots and cookie sheets! Get out there!

Politico:

Labor after Halter defeat: All bark, no bite?

Lincoln confounds pundits to win renomination in Arkansas.

@stuartstuart123 Its not Rahm.
about 5 hours ago via TweetDeck in reply to stuartstuart123

marcambinder

Weren’t there voting irregularities?

Like the halter districts had most of the voting places closed and the 3rd place was supposed to be open on the day AFTER the election which meant the 3rd voting place voters were turned away?

If Lincoln stole the election by keeping Halter supporters from running she should be thrown in prison…scratch that…Lincoln should be in prison anyway and this should add to her sentence

Voter turnout in CA.

That’s stretching it. I didn’t see any reports of Arkansans not being able to vote, even though there were the limited voting places. There may be more to come; we’ll see.

Given Blanche’s position on the public option, EFCA, and anything that benefits people instead of corporations, I would say the seat is already in Republican hands. There is no difference between a conservative, Blue Dog Democrat than a Republican. Or for that matter, the entire Democrat party establishment may as well be Republicans.

20% voter turnout in Orange County.

The fact that a Democratic official is sneering at a defeat for labor unions shows you just how screwed we are.

Yeah, in fact a “Senior White House official”.

It doesn’t matter whether it was Rahm or some other thug. The fact that this president appointed Rahm and others like him says it all.

Third party, bitches.

Markos says it brilliantly.

I can’t wait for the next suggestions box.

So may I suggest a “how-screwed-are-we?-o-meter”. It should be on a semi-circular pattern, with ‘not at all’ at the left extreme, and ‘no lube this time’ on the right extreme.

There is a unique social experiment taking place in the US. The US is a global outlier. Something is wrong there, across the board.

You are all decent people. But slightly deluded. You cannot and will not win in a country like the US. There are many other countries that would benefit from your talent and energy. Write the US off as the hopeless cause it is. Get out of there. Go somewhere better. There are many, many places.

I don’t agree with that– the problem is global.

Astonishing that anyone would spend her own personal fortune on getting elected, like Meg Whitman. Guess I enjoy my own life too much to want to spend it in office.

Good morning, pups. It’s Dowd and Friedman today. MoDo, in “Their Dangerous Swagger,” says teenage girls have enough to worry about without having to deal with a fantasy for boys gone wrong. This was enough to make my hair stand up on end. The Moustache of Wisdom, in “A Gift for Grads: Startups,” says in this job market, it’s not a good idea to ask new graduates what they’re doing next. A willingness from Washington to encourage entrepreneurs would help.

Here they are.

The coffee and tea are ready, and I’ve got a selection of bagels with cream cheese. I made the mistake of turning on Morning Joe Butthead and am regretting it mightily. Oh, and I get the bonus of that old Nazi lover Pat Buchanan… Have a splendid day.

I just got up and was treated to Mara Liasson (NPR), she of Faux Nooz All Stars fame, telling me how Blanche Lincoln’s victory was a huge defeat for progressives and labor and a huge victory for the White House.

Crappy way to wake up.

a “Senior White House Official” said:

That’s it. A couple of weeks ago I started volunteering for Jim Meffert the DFL challenger in MN03, although the last couple of times they called I had to beg off because of other commitments. The next time they call, however, I’m going to tell them not to bother calling again unless and until that “anonymous source” is publicly identified and fired.. And by the way it will take sworn affidavits from both parties if they try to sacrifice some scapegoat instead of Rahm. The rest of my political phone calling and door knocking this cycle will be for state and local candidates. Words from Obama won’t cut it any more.

I don’t get it how Blanch Lincoln can win this. Who votes for her? How can you vote for her? Are people that braindead? It’s a sad state of affairs that we have people wanting to live the 1984 ideal and prefer to be ruled by corporatist cporruption….

Everybody gets (or choses) the government it deserves. The US is on its way to become the largest banana republic ever (if we weren’t already)

I’m just dumbfounded and disappointed on decades of this unstoppable tragedy.

*shakes head*

Balancing budgets is one thing. Providing or not providing affordable health care for citizens, being generally in the pocket of mega-corporations and the gradual imposition of corporate serfdom are another. The US is indeed an outlier.

Of course. How dare the voters think they have any say in deciding who their candidate should be?

The tide is changing. Blue Dogs will face serious primary opposition from this point forward.

So it didn’t work this time in one of the original states of the Confederacy. Things are looking up, and one battle doesn’t make a war.

Fear is a great motivator for incumbents.

This is the most insightful part of Kos’s post-mortem:

How much do you think the Chamber of Commerce and its corporatist allies will spend on behalf of Blanche Lincoln through the fall? Zero. Suddenly, you’re going to see Lincoln quite friendless

Halter was asked about card check in the closing days of campaign and wouldn’t answer yes or no to support, but came up with some crap about negotiations are underway in the party to protect workers, but card check was not the answer.
The liberal wing was NOT enthusiastic about this guy, and who needs another Democrat “negotiating” with the crooks in the White House.

Hopelessly naive. The corporations control this country, the laws, the courts and so forth. This country is here for the benefit of the property class – capital. They’ve won and all this silly elections don’t change much. The corruption is so deep now and the people are so dumbed down and feeling that there is nothing that they can do and that their government is not there for them making their lives secure. Most people don’t vote because they know what scum politicians are. We have the liar and chief who sold everyone a bill of goods and his elections and administration has left even those who believed (naively) that we could get this fixed standing here dumbfounded. Screwed again.

Sadly the only real hope is the total breakdown and destruction of America as it now operates and perhaps something new can emerge. This system is broke and probably no longer fixable, especially with so many making out like bandits with how it is now. They are not going to walk away quietly.

I heard the accusations about Garland county so I took special note of the turnout and the voting there. Approx 7000 people voted (versus 12,000 last time) and Lincoln actually won by about 300 votes.

$80 Mil spent by Ms. Whitman….what will the general take? Govt. by and for the very wealthy.

Just heard on WashJournal that Boxer’s been raising funds like mad, should be a high expenditure race all around. and a political reporter on CSpan instead of Politico, what a relief. I hope my emails on the subject helped, and just thanked them.

Hey, good for you. Is it really wet up there? Here, yes.

Still dry here. we could use some wet stuff.

Good morning all.

Boo! Rahm is behind every corner and under your bed!!! God bless Rahm.

While I’m as disappointed as all of you, one thing needs to be said…I don’t think we were going to like Halter very much.

Get over yourself. Democracy is never perfect. You fight for what you believe in and then you have a beer. Get a grip.

I suspect that Lincoln got a lot of mileage out of her point that so much influence was coming from outside the state, that it riled up the locals.

Which is why I absented myself from that part of the project.

One thing bothered me about Halter. He was writing at DKos asking for help from Progressives without sharing progressive values. We’ve seen that before.

Until I stopped looking, I never saw a post on FDL about Halter’s positions or policies. It was all horse race stuff. There was a big message in what was missing.

‘Fraid so, it goes with the Devil You Know concept – tho it would have been nice to see the influence of Lincoln in killing public option go down.

Yea Maddow covered it.

She was reporting on how some were told a 3rd place was opened, then when they came they were told that there was no voting that day.

It seems like they pulled the usual vote rigging that lets conservative idiots suppress the opposition vote.

The only one I know is his position on EFCA and it wasn’t good. All that money from labor and he was going to stab them in the back. Or, at least, that’s how I viewed it.

I’m off. Work beckons.

Such white gloves on display here by some posters. This was not a race to elect a progressive, that goes without saying and should have been understood. Dilettantes need to open their eyes.

There is no magic unicorn that craps skittles.

None of us would be here this morning unless we felt there was hope for the American electorate, and that they were worth saving. Historically, there have been extended periods of teh stupid much worse than today (1950s, 1920s, 1870s and 1880s, and the Know-Nothings to name a few).

Consequences and pain may be the best ways to learn. Dixieland is currently in a teachable moment — they’re soaking in it.

Be of good cheer. Things will get better.

During none of the earlier periods that you mention was the U.S. involved in 2-1/2 unpopular hot wars and countless well known ‘covert’ military operations all over the globe, making enemies by the bucketload. In none of the earlier periods had the U.S. run out of monetary & fiscal policy tools. In none of the earlier periods had the environmental damage, actual & potential, been so severe.

It takes chutzpah to tell your political enemies how they should spend their money! Especially when the arrogant son of a bitch tells his enemies that they should give him control over this money, in exchange for which he will merrily spit in their face whenever he runs into them.

Let us hope that Rahm’s hubris calls forth a fair amount of nemesis.

No one has any illusions that Halter was a “unicorn that craps skittles.” No one expected to turn Arkansas into a progressive Mecca. The point was Halter was slightly better than Lincoln, and this challenge was about punishing Lincoln more than electing Halter. Beating her outright would have been the best punishment. But we spooked her. Obama was too scared to campaign for her. Despite the “unnamed” bluster from the White House that serves no other purpose but to fully expose the Obama administration as blatantly anti-labor, they know progressives can mount serious challenges. And in the case of PA this year (and ousting Lieberman in the Conn primary a while back), we have shown we can win as well.

What a maroon that Rahm is!

Because trash-talk and threats ALWAYS works with Organized Labor! Doesn’t he know anything?

Yup. I’m mystified that people still don’t understand the object here, or even didn’t from the beginning. First rule of fight club is you don’t talk about fight club, I guess.

Rahm and Obama have a problem in November. How do you smash the 2008 Democratic coalition and mandate. The political takeover by neo-cons now requires another war and a Republican victory in 2010. Which parts of the Coalition can be broken?

Labor unions are always a target of Pete Peterson and his neo-con bankster crowd. So labor unions participating in Democracy are CRITICIZED by the President. Do corporations get criticized when their corporate shills, such as Spector, lose?

But unions are tough, tougher than Rahm, and tougher than Obama. So what other part of the coalition to break. Young voters? They are impatient and perhaps prone to apathy when betrayed. But the Obama Adminstration does an excellent job of betrayal of their promises. So Rahm’s problem is, how do you alienate young voters? Basically by doing what they have been doing. Polluting the Gulf of Mexico, unending genocide with unmanned drones and torture, and giving banksters and Pete Peterson everything they and Pete Peterson want.

Obama will not be reelected. His job was to lie his way into office and then do everything in his power to impoverish and disenfranchise the people. The presidential election in 2012 will feature two corporate candidates. One Democrat and one Republican.

Boycott the legacy parties!

Please, Enough already with the voting “irregularities” nonsense. Voting in Garland County was consistent with all the other counties. It would not have mattered if all 40 polling places that were previously open were open or not. Lincoln won won by a substantial number of votes. Whatever “we” think really doesn’t matter, the people of Arkansas made “their” choice. It was a good effort and if it makes some other incumbents think twice then it was worth it.

I’m an aficionado of eleventeenth dimensional chess, and how did this apply to Lincoln versus Halter.

First, there is the conservative. And secondly, there is the “regressive” moderate. Consequently, the conservative and the ‘regressive’ teamed-up and done under the banner of ‘centrists’. Thus, the “aggressive” Moderate and which is the Center-Left, got a late start in this campaign, and given the overwhelming amounts of monies from the corporate sector, Halter did a fairly good effort despite the overwhelming odds facing him.

Now, I expect the news media outlets will be touting that the “centrists” beat back those villainous ‘radicals’ who are not satisfied with the political pittance the White House tosses down to America.

And that’s my ‘storyline’ and I’m ‘stickin’ with it’.

Jaango

That’s a very well developed formulation there, Frank, food for thought. Key would be preventing coalitions forming that they couldn’t influence. Thanks for the post!

I don’t know if it will be Labor’s fault that Boozman wins, but it will be partly mine. I will not support Lincoln and I am seriously considering sending some money to Boozeman. Better the wolf at your door than the cancerous corporatist traitor within.

Here’s hoping that Halter pulls a page from Joe “Palapatine” LIEberman’s playbook and runs as an independent, but I doubt he will as he will be cast from the party. That strategy seems to be only okay for CONservative Corpro-dems. It is interesting to see confirmed, once again, why Arkansas is one of the most dirt poor states with the greatest disparity of wealth in the union; they continually vote against their own best interests.

Is the White House forgetting the shenanigans that Lincoln pulled to eek out this victory. Did they forget she worked with the elections officials to eliminate all but two polling places in Garland and Miller counties, Halter’s strongholds, and she still barely eeked it out. Maybe they helped her pull this “republican” trick to win. Obama, Lincoln, and team had to steal this election to win their first primary election of the season, so who’s the absolute idiot. What Obama has done is to prove the conservatives right when they said he would Chicago style politics to the White House. Give republicans credit, they dance with the ones that brung em to the dance, Democrats just tell us to sit down and shut the hell up.

Rahm exhibits a character trait common to capos everywhere – the inability to read between the lines or see the handwriting on the wall.

Put your money where it belongs.

http://www.johngrayforussenate.com/

Whoever stated the “toilet” quote in an idiot. Rahm and team are going to need the progressive this fall. Not wise not wise at all. That is unless he wants the Republican to win

… and you think a Green Party candidate has a snowball’s chance in hell? Good luck with that?

As more morons wake the hell up and see there is not one bit of difference between the 2 partys, Green’s snowball gets bigger and bigger.

We have one corporate party w/2 wings. The disaster in the Gulf is about to engulf Florida. We have murdered over 2 million innocent people for oil.

Is there an end to the madness? Both wings of the corporate party are criminal enterprises. They should by all rights be outlawed, their leaders imprisoned.

We need to examine how we have been brainwashed for a century to believe the word “socialism” is evil. It is not. As a species and a planet it is our last best hope.

C’mon, folks…

You can’t blame Rahm for being a bit ebullient.

After all…a White House backed candidate finally won!

Stick with your beloved status quo. Cling to the idea that God created Democrats and Republicans and so they are holy and eternal. Continue to blindly believe that for all of eternity nothing will ever change. If your faith is strong enough the Fascists will rule for ever.

I thought you were off to another site to organize a new 3rd party??? Time’s a-wasting! Hadn’t you better get going and stop wasting your time here?

And Rahm is flushing our votes down the toilet. I’m sure he’ll be very happy in his cushy post-Chief of Staff corporate make-work position, after the Democrats get trounced in the next few elections.

It’s one thing to ignore your base. Something else entirely moronic about actively insulting them.

I am with you. I have had it. I am a MN Dem who has been active for 30 years in the twin cities area and I told my husband this morning that I am ready to get out of all of it. Obama ….what a disappointment. He needs to get rid of that worthless staff.

I don’t get those people down south. They are so poor they don’t have a pot to piss in and they keep voting for morons with conservative agendas. I guess this is what a primitive education gets you these days.

Markos wonders how much the DSCC will spend to help Lincoln in the General?

Obama, Rahm and the DSCC have supported Lieberman, Nelson of NE, Lincoln and Landrieu through thick and thin because they can all be bought. They support candidates that help them get what they want and likewise use their money to destroy those whom they know won’t play ball…like Halter.

It’s never been the liberals who’ve purged their party of weak Democrats. Rather it’s been party hacks like the DSCC and Rahm and now I include Obama, who will force down or out the more principled Dems.
Now that it’s Boozeman or Lincoln? The DSCC donors won’t object to either winning the seat.