Feisty and I had a nice walk. Ran into Knute Berger at Seward Park. We both think Patty Murray will win.
Speaking of which, predictions. Nothing scientific here, and I don’t have access to any inside information, just the same polling data everybody else has plus my gut reaction that there’s just something wrong with it.
Patty Murray beats Dino Rossi by five-plus points, Dems lose WA-03, but incumbents hold on in all the other WA congressional districts. Meanwhile Dems hold control of both houses of the Washington state legislature, though R’s make a game of it with the state Senate. Initiatives 1053 and 1107 win, all others lose, but 1100 staggers around in a drunken daze for a week before we know the final outcome.
Nationally, Dems hold Senate with 52 or 53 seats, but lose control of the House, giving up about 50.
And no, I don’t see a mandate in any of this, except that folks really don’t like the economy.
Pyrite…
Just the start…
EXIT POLLS:
Arkansas: Boozman (R) defeats Lincoln (D)
Ohio: Portman (R) defeats Fisher (D)
North Dakota: Hoeven (R) defeats Potter (D)
Wisconsin: Johnson (R) defeats Feingold (D
1100 passes in every county of the state.
Sorry Goldy.
An economy based on cheap oil and perpetual growth and exploitation of working people by a rich oligarchy? No, I don’t like it at all.
Or to paraphrase the KLOWN, “a bunch of hippie low-lifes”.
http://www.publicola.net/2010/.....n-seattle/
rand paul..fuck you goldberg
dan coates…fuck you goldberg
and counting
@3
Yep!
Cheap oil, cheap labor, polute the planet, & buy shit you don’t need with money you don’t have at the local big box stores that are strip mining our local communities of capital.
Voting for the wing nuts is akin to handing the controls of a 747 over to a gang of drunk frat boys and I was tempted to do it. Part of me would like to watch them crash the whole fucking thing into the sea.
You’d better give me my mandate!
I’m warning you!
If I don’t get my mandate, you’ll be sorry!
I’m not kidding this time!
Mandate!
Now!
Or else.
But, I did the responsible and boring thing and voted for our timid Democrats. We’re probably fucked either way, but we’re info a softer landing with Dems at the helm.
Take off the rose colored glasses Goldy…
Ok I’m calling Jim DeMint over Alvin Greene right now!
If the Republicans only picked up one seat in the House, they would still claim it was a “mandate” and a “stinging repuidation of Obama”.
You know they would say it, I know they would say it, and even Clinical (oops, Cynical) not only knows they will say it, but he would say it himself.
Despite the fact that the party of a first-term president ALWAYS picks up seats in the next mid-term election.
I still think the Democrats could have done a better job getting their message out. They assumed that the facts would speak for themselves. I remember lots of commentators wondering how Republicans are going to explain away their obstructionism and their votes, which were clearly against the interests of the average American. The answer was simple. They would lie through their teeth. And the Democrats didn’t do a good enough job of calling them on it.
It used to be a bit different, when an independent news media would skewer a politician who told a bald-faced lie. But in the new media world, the mainstream media is too timid, refusing to call a lie a lie in the face of wingnut threats, and Fox News just repeats the lie.
We’ve got to do a lot better at getting the word out, starting with a consistent message as of Nov. 3rd, and keep pounding away at it all the way through the next two years.
I thought this was a great comment on huffpost
11. rhp6033 spews:
No I wouldn’t. The only way it is a “mandate” is if Republicans earn control.
Some good news for you KLOWNS.
FoxNews just reported that early exit polling for Skeletor Reid is favorable.
He brought in lots of support.. outside money & stormtroopers from the Unions.
He may pull it out after all.
From a Rural R point of view, I pretty much agree with Goldy; Rossi only loses by 2-3, agree with him on local congress races. Nationally R’s pick up 52 in house, 6 in Senate (unfortunately, not Boxer), and a hell of a lot of governorships. Both of our states house’s stay under democrat control.
1098 loses, 1082 passes (slightly), 1053 passes, and both the liquor initiatives lose.
2012 (why not go on a limb?) State goes R in Gov. and senate by very slight margin, D’s keep statehouse. BO loses by a slight margin, R’s gain 2 Senate seats, 7 House seats. Palin crumbles; if BO has approval ratings below 30-35%, Hillary mounts a run (I would give her odds to win).
2 years ago I posted (on this blog, I think) that once the pendulum swings to far (be it left or right), the initial backswing can be dramatic. Liberals, enjoy your rewards!
Independents win elections!
Have a nice day (meltdown for most of you),
Farmer Fred
@13
I’m kinda hoping he loses. Reid’s not a very good leader and since the Dems aren’t going to do anything about him replacing him with an idiot with an R next to her name is the next best thing.
Have you ever taken a farm subsidy check Fred?
How about your neighbors? (Excepting Clint Didier)
Who do they vote for?
Okay Jim Orb, settle down man.
By the way, I’m kind of excited to see how warm Rand Paul keeps the back bench. All talk until they win, then it’s play or pay.
Enjoy, and see you back here in ~2 years curmudgeoning about over steeped tea
Note: on the bright side, Paul now has a Senatorial security detail and will no longer need head-stomping brown-shirts
Say hello to Senator Rand Paul.
one thing i have to admit that sucks about fox’s stratospheric ratings, their fucking commercial breaks last forever.
The question of the day is, will Obama get it?
With the country telling him that they’re wary of his ardent push to the left, will he work with a Republican House, and slim majority of Democrats in the Senate?
My bet? Nope. He’s too tied to his ideology to understand what the people he represents, United States citizens, want from him. Were he a natural leader he might have passed sufficient legislation and communicated a compelling enough narrative about his ideas that voters would follow him anyway. He isn’t and they won’t, as tonight will show. The ball is in his court now.
@16 yep, but not as often as what you think. About 1/2 of my neighbors did.
Does Seattle benefit from the large Defense contracts given to Boeing? Subsidized hydropower? Do you use a ferry?
Not many people voted for Didier (I didn’t), he was somewhat of a nutcase in his speeches (I would have chosen PM over Clint). Most probably voted for Rossi. Murray was OK for ag, but Gorton was better. Almost all will trade over-regulation for government income.
How long have the Dems controlled our state? Our state is facing massive spending problems, hence debt. How is our states unemployment situation? My area, due to ag, has been quite even as far as the economy goes (mostly R representation, must be Bush’s fault). How is your area? Who did you vote for? Looking forward to another 2 years of Christine?
YLB, have a great day,
Farmer Fred
@6 “Voting for the wing nuts is akin to handing the controls of a 747 over to a gang of drunk frat boys and I was tempted to do it. Part of me would like to watch them crash the whole fucking thing into the sea.”
Seems to me we’ve already been there and done that. Emblematic of this year’s voter mood is the fact many people are pissed off at Obama for bailing out the banks even though (1) the bank bailout cost taxpayers nothing, (2) saved us from another Great Depression, and (3) was initiated by Bush, not Obama. Clearly, what’s going on in this election year is blind irrational rage against destruction of the American Dream — which people are acting out by casting ballots for the very party that destroyed their hopes and dreams.
@13 Control of what? Even if you guys win both houses of Congress tonight, you won’t have control of anything except a veto over Obama’s agenda — because he’ll have a veto over every piece of legislation you enact (see, e.g., health reform repeal).
Republicans aren’t going to control anything tomorrow morning. But they’re going to own what happens in the next two years. Which will be NOTHING while unemployment stays high and people are still hurting.
Which makes me think that Republicans taking control of Congress for 2011-2012 is the best thing that could happen to Obama’s re-election chances.
re 23: Do you mean to say that you don’t think Rand Paul is a philosopher king?
@20 Gee thanks for your incisive analysis, lost-up-your-own-ass. Obama’s problems stem from timidity. If he loses in 2012 it will be because progressives give up on him. Most reputable economists say his stimulus package was too small. He has a bunch of fed-up angry voters on his hands now because he allowed the GOPers to stymie his legislative agenda instead of getting tough with their obstructionist tactics. Obama is a marshmallow and Democrats are abandoning him in droves. That’s why Republicans, whose approval ratings are even lower than Democrats’, are getting the fed-up vote.
re 21: Maybe your blabbering passes for political analysis around the cracker barrel — but I’d be surprised if you ever beat anyone even at a good gan=me of checkers.
Fred what’s wrong with debt? There’s hardly a farmer alive who can survive if he can’t sleep well with debt.
All your Rossi supporting brethren who pollute the threads here seem to have a problem with “gubmint handouts”. Just sayin’.
Sounds about right to me.
I think things will get worse, before they get better (like a few large cities in flames worse) but that when they do get better what’s coming next will be better than what we’ve had for the last 30 or 40 years.
re 20: “The ball is in his court now.”
No. It’s in yours. Any ideas on your end besides cutting taxes on the rich?
Don’t worry. The free market of ideas will just magically provide you with them.
Re 25
“Obama’s problems stem from timidity. If he loses in 2012 it will be because progressives give up on him.”
Right. Which is what I meant when saying he was no natural leader. He seems a nice guy. He seems a good father and husband. He seems sincere in the beliefs that he thinks will garner enough support from the left to push his agenda. He just can’t get the nation behind him, or even those disposed to agree with him.
Having said that he likely will win in 2012. The economy will likely have gathered sufficient steam to ease voter fears, and he will get the credit for it. Under those circumstances historically a sitting president does well.
well, that inbred jewboy grayson lost…thank my christian god
re 30: Did you write that comment yourself.
Sure doesn’t sound like the nitwit maunderings we’ve come to expect from you.
re 31: “well, that inbred jewboy grayson lost…thank my christian goat”
Say, what??
Re 29
I hope that repeal of the health care law gets dropped, for a start. It’s bad legislation, but not the most pressing of our problems right now. At any rate, mandatory insurance has been over-ruled in several states, with one more on the ballot tonight. Americans will reject this themselves, Congress should leave it alone.
I hope that fiscal responsibility becomes the rule of the day. If we don’t have it, we ought not to be spending it. Bills that pass ought to be fully funded before becoming law.
I hope that Bush era tax cuts are allowed to expire. At this point revenue collection in record deficit environment trumps the manifest injustice of progressive taxation.
Social programs which promote indolence and lack of initiative ought to be cut. There is a need for a social safety net, but the incentives to poor choices and laziness our current one provides is ridiculous, and ridiculously expensive.
I hope that a thorough review of the defense budget is undertaken. Maybe it’s time for Europe to defend itself, or at least to shoulder its share of the NATO burden. Maybe the far east should be left to solve its own problems, rather than have us meddle in things we clearly don’t understand. The middle east, I’d love to say the same. But despite the immature perceptions of liberals, economic security is important and oil is important to that security.
I don’t honestly believe any of this will happen. At a guess, Washington will grind to a near halt for the next couple of years. At least a halt is better than continuing down the wrong road, though. A bunch of power mad corrupt politicians mired in partisan wrangling is better than a bunch of ideologues pushing the nation in a direction it neither should, nor wants to, go.
Re 32
I didn’t say that I agreed with most of Obamas beliefs. I don’t. Just that he seemed to be a decent enough man in private life.
@25 – That’s pretty much it in a nutshell (or a carrot stick).
@33
re 31: “well, that inbred jewboy grayson lost…thank my christian goat”
i didn’t know goats went to church
Well, O’Donnell can now add to her list of what she’s not: a senator.
we’re just 5 hours away from fundamentaly transforming america
well, the dems will hold on to the senate. so my conundrum now is, do i want the creatin harry reid to lose and have the jewboy schumer be maj leader, or let the creatin stay and make me sick for the next 6 years. hmmm
i cant wait to not watch brian williams crooked jaw lie his nonballs off tonite.
Oh for Christsakes Michelle Bachman’s on right now. She’s every bit as annoying as Sarah Palin.
In my 40+ years I’ve never seen more nasty anti-black/jew/gay spewing hatred than on this blog from Republicans. The only thing close is some folks I used to know when I lived back in Macon GA. But in this state! It’s amazing to see the just HORRIBLE black hearted hatred spewing from the right on this blog. Dirty Jew this, faggot that, nigger this. The first few months I followed this I ASSUMED it was some long standing sarcastic ‘thing’…it took a while to realize folks like manoftruth are just the horrible ignorant klans-man I used to know in Macon. You’re the “bad guys” in this story you know that right? No one EXCEPT the KKK thinks they’re really the good guys stopping the Jewish menace. Everyone not in the KKK thinks they’re crazy ignorant nut jobs…like you guys. I’m SO ashamed of you and SHAME on your parents for raising hateful ignorant people like you. Shame on them.
It’s just an election idiots. In my lifetime I’ve seen Congress controlled by Republicans and Democrats. I’ve seen the White House controlled by Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush, Clinton, Bush, Obama. No one has taken my guns or “destroyed America”. They’re JUST politicians all working for Wall Street and the corporations. You folks are just gullible silly children believing them. No Republican in my lifetime has ever decreased the size of government or it’s spending. Never. Not one. Ever. Not one. Even Saint Reagan. They’re JUST politicians. Grow up.