Non-presidential election day thread

cmon becky vaughn!

Yay Barbara Boxer again out here. Frankly, just bring on the Obama coronation.

Like, for instance, the weirdly bi-polar nature of Iowa's senate seats, held down by apparently un-budging imcumbents Tom Harkin (liberal Democrat) and Chuck Grassley (conservative Republican).

The situation is especially unfortunate this year, because Grassley's quixotic opponent is this guy, Art Small:

http://www.artsmallforsenate.com/images/stories/whoisartsmall_portrait_colo.jpg

Art believes that there is such a thing as "society", and that government can and in some circumstances should play an affirmative role in creating opportunities for the less privileged in the legitimate pursuit of social justice. In personal style, anti-slick is his chic (he thinks Good Will shops offer excellent sartorial value). In substance, he is thoughtful, articulate, funny, interesting.

Plus, dig that Trotskyite beard!

The Senate may be most important, but I'm really rooting for Richard Morrison and Jerry McNerney in the House to end the reign of Tom Delay and send back to the ranch the abomination that is Richard Pombo

xp: there's much worse in Congress than Grassley

It's sorta weird and fun to think that Hilary is up for reelection again in two years time. Should she win and carry through on that, she'll have served in a national office four years longer than Bill.

xp: To be sure, Grassley has bucked the party line much more than his liberal counterpart Harkin.

C'mon Tony Knowles and Erskin Bowles and Jim Bob Dowles and Hank Snowles.

Or at least the first two.

As is often the case in Oregon the ballot measures are the most compelling, once the presidential race is set aside.

One measure in particular is worrisome; it would compel the state to compensate property owners for any regulation that decreases the value of their property. It sounds all very nice and fair until you examine it for, oh, about ten seconds. For example, suppose the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) ruled that used motor oil could not be dumped into unlined pits dug into the ground, then the state of Oregon might have to pay everyone for taking away that 'property right'.

I'm a-feared this monstrosity of a bone-headed law will pass.

Whew, how could it not? "Compensation from the State? I'm for that!"

I wish I had registered absentee in Illinois, just to be a part of the historically hilarious Obama/Keyes race. But no, here in NY it's just Schumer and Rangel coasting comfortably back.

Here's to Dr. Dan Mongiardo taking out Jim "November 11th", "I don't watch the tv news, and I don't read the newspapers" Bunning.

Here's to BEING ABLE TO WATCH AN HOUR OF CRAPPY TELEVISION WITHOUT SOME DOUCHEBAG TELLING US THEY APPROVE OF THIS MESSAGE once again.

Here's to never hearing "Conn!e Bash@m owns 57 million dollars in property and wants to eliminate property taxes? What the fuck is she thinking? " again.

Will the Republican get 51% in tonight's senate race, or can Louisiana look foreward to more campaign nuttiness through December?

And Oklahoma! Do Will Rogers proud!

Supposedly Daschle is losing? Or at least one rumor goes.

i'm thinking there isn't a lot of exit polling on the Pine Ridge

"I'm really rooting for Richard Morrison...in the House to end the reign of Tom Delay"

I'm soooooo with you on that one, but sadly it ain't gonna happen. DeLay has been carpetbombing the airwaves in my area with negative/positive (i.e.Morrison=Satan/DeLay=Saint) ads for the past few weeks. The funny thing is, some of Delay's ads reference negative ads from Morrison. I have yet to see or hear a single negative ad from Morrison, aside for some general yard signs from the Democratic Party with slogans like "Dump DeLay!" and "Advancing America Without DELAY!"

BTW, perhaps one of my happiest recent memories was discovering that--due to redistricting or something--DeLay isn't my congressman. Go Al Green!

it's looking like Dems get a Senate pickup in Kentucky

I had to vote for whether I bought a McCain or White Wings frozen dinner. I chose McCain because the White Wings box is blue, implying a lean toward conservative values.

I heard from a Dem on another board that Phil Crane is losing. I don't know if you know who he is, but he's awful.

Jeez, Keyes still hasn't conceded.

joe hoeffel is only 1% behind arlen spector ...

spoke too soon ... they're calling it for spector now

Meanwhile, out in California -- only 18% precincts reporting, but Boxer in a walkover so far for Senate reelection, leading a comfortable 15% over Jones. Not surprising, and now it's her third term, good job!

In my neck of the woods, the usual Republican candidates won for the Congress (Rohrbacher) and both State Senate and Assembly. Ah well, no surprise.

The propositions are an interesting bunch. Right now Prop 66, a long needed revision of the 'three strikes' law, is winning but not yet decisively. 1A, the local government revenue proposition, is storming to a victory -- another feather for Arnold's cap. 63 (soak the rich for mental health care -- really!) is winning but not yet clearly, while somewhat to my surprise 71, the stem cell funding bond, is decisively winning. That I really don't get.

A hammering in the congressionals for the dems. Obama and Salazar the only point of hope.

Hm, 45% precincts in and 66 is only barely winning. Bah.

I almost voted republican for freeholders in Middlesex County New Jersey, just to stick it to machine politics. I ended up going D down the line though.

fuckin utah is full of a bunch of sub-human bigots, but you all knew that.

anti-gay-marriage-and-civil-unions passes by like 70%.

FUCK EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU FUCKING PIECES OF SHIT, PATHETIC EXCUSES OF THE MAMMALIAN KINGDOM... PLEASE GO BACK TO THE PRE-HISTORIC WATERS OF PANGEA WHERE YOU CAME FROM

hey, chill out!

I hate to say it, but I sort of feel like the gay union issue hurt the democrats a lot, and I wonder if it would have been better to hold off on it with so much else at stake.

gay marriage is as currently crucial as it gets -- to leave it off would be a betrayal of hundreds of millions of supporters.

Well, here in the Isle of Sanity, we threw out another Republican congressman - Crane is gone.

the young, semi-qualified, family-name republican won the governor's race here in missouri over an incredibly well-qualified democrat running on a fiscal responsibility platform. Unless it's just blatant sexism or pro-life whatnot, I just don't know what to think.

coattails