Shorter John Laird, editorial page editor for The Columbian: it’s all George W. Bush’s fault.
Still, if Clark County is red, how do we explain Barack Obama carrying the county by 6 percentage points? That question is easy to answer. This result doesn’t say nearly as much about Obama or about Clark County as it says about President George W. Bush. In fact, I suspect a lot of America’s breathless infatuation over Obama might actually be — deep down — an opinion about Bush.
If my theory is correct, then Bush’s drop in local popularity has been dramatic, almost pathetic. He carried the county by 5.4 percentage points in 2004 and by 4 points in 2000.
For what it’s worth, there is likely a kernel of truth there, as “Brand Republican” has been severely damaged, not only by Bush but by Republican extremism up and down the ticket. This is a hard blow for some Republicans, who seem to invest an inordinate amount of psychic energy in being perceived as the dominant tribe. A lot of the rash and uncivil statements emanating from the conservative noise machine are likely the product of this slightly strange fetishization.
For several cycles now a prominent local Republican Party activist has been repeatedly quoted in the newspaper saying, essentially, that Clark County is a Republican county. This was never all that true, as effective Democratic candidates like Brian Baird and Craig Pridemore, and many others, were elected to office. Candidates with good name ID (especially incumbents) always do well most places, especially here in a county dominated by media from another state. There’s a good reason the landscape is dominated by 4 x 8 political signs during election season.
Clark is a suburban swing county overall, with predictable party trends in the more urban and rural areas. Incumbents are hard to beat, meaning most of the big battles are over open seats. In that regard, the Democrats picked up a state House seat in the “swingy” 17th LD with the victory of Tim Probst, and might or might not pick up a county commissioner seat pending a likely recount. The more rural 18th LD is completely a lost cause as it is currently drawn, and the opposite is true in the urban 49th LD.
So the real issue for Democrats here is how to continue recruiting quality candidates who will be in position to take advantage of open seats.
Correction– Technically, Democrats would not be picking up a county commission seat in Clark County if Democrat Pam Brokaw defeats Republican Tom Mielke after a recount, as the retiring incumbent is Betty Sue Morris, D-BIAW. But in real world terms it would be a pickup for Democrats if Brokaw won.
Nowhere does Laird mention that George W. Bush is a Republican! Now that he’s been certified as a miserable failure is Bush no longer a Republican? Is Laird afraid to say that not only Bush, but the whole fucking GOP and its dimwitted supporters, are responsible for the unmitigated mess that Republicans created over the last 8 years? It seems so.
Nope, Laird won’t acknowledge that George W. Bush is a Republican. All he’s got to say is that the Electoral College, which in a few weeks will elect Barack Obama as President of the United States, is a “compost heap.”
Fuck you, Laird, you Constitution-hating, anti-American, dumb-as-a-rock twit!
I guess he thinks the Electoral College works only when it elects a rightwinger who lost the popular vote.
Roger Rabbit’s Tax Reform
The rich, who controlled our government for decades, have too good a deal. They’ve paid workers less, overcharged for their goods and services, given themselves special tax privileges workers don’t get, and helped themselves to endless treats at the government trough. Now, the working class is tapped out, and can no longer afford to support the rich in the style to which they’ve become accustomed. It’s time for those who have been taking to give a little back so the rest of us can live.
Every single part of the financial disaster is a result of failed LIBERAL ideas that everyone
should be equal. If it truly were the fault of
certain republicans, they would already be
sitting in a courtroom . The American people
just have to learn the hard way. I hope you stupid bastards get all your senate seats, this is gonna be good, REAL GOOD.
3 All those Democrats like Franklin Raines
all big financial supporters of Obama benefitted to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars in their failed liberal exersize.
Too bad the average American knows more about
soaps than their own goverment. Sad. Proof
of their intelligence was Howard Sterns little
show on the streets of New York when he asked Obama supporters questions using McCains positions and they all agreed with McCain.
Fucktards are awesome. Roger, you’re a fucktard
and don’t even know it.
@4 & 5 “Every single part of the financial disaster is a result of failed LIBERAL ideas that everyone should be equal.”
BWAAAA-HAAAAA-HAAA-HAA-HAR HAR HAR HAR HAR HAR HAR HAR HAR HAR HAR HAR HAR HAR HAR HAR HAR!!!
Keep pissing into the wind, mark! You look funny with your pants wet!!
On the subject of the Electoral College, one of the wackier dogmas of the wacky right is those red-and-blue maps. Some of these loonies actually think we should elect presidents by who wins the most [ ] counties [ ] acres (take your pick)! They don’t have much respect for the one “man, one vote” principle do they? That’s because no rational majority would ever elect these mentally challenged assholes! I say dump the Electoral College and elect presidents by popular vote! The EC was put in the Constitution to preserve slavery, and that’s what Republicans are still using it for.
@5 So you’re saying McCain now supports my tax reform? That’s awesome!!
What people forget is W was the “perfect” Republican. He preached less government, more tax cuts, more war and less regulation for business and this is what it has wrought. An economy teetering on the edge, two wars which will cost the US close to a trillion dollars and bailouts galore.
Now conservatives are complaining about the bill and whining about Bush’s affect on the election.
There is only one policy of conservatives universally embraced by everyone and that is paying less taxes. Time and time again conservatives have proved they can only cut taxes by outrageously increasing the deficit.
@9 Actually, they’re not interested in cutting taxes for everyone — only for themselves. They don’t want the capitalist class to pay any taxes at all; they think only workers should pay taxes.
The reason Bush’s popularity was down was because of his steadfast emulation of liberal tendencies.
CONSERVATIVISM is what people want. Less government intrusion, more personal freedom. Bush poured more money and made government bigger in every aspect of this administration. Plain and Simple.
@11 Yeah, you conservatives won a big election victory last Tuesday, didn’t you? Geez, I know you idiots live in a fantasy world, but can’t you invent anything better than this?
11 _
Yes, right, indeed.
– “People want conservatism,” which is why Democrats gained a Congressional majority in 2006.
– “People want conservatism,” which is why Democrats gained an even larger Congressional majority in 2008.
– “People want conservatism,” which is why Democratic governors are in power in the majority of states.
– “People want conservatism,” which is why a black Democrat was just elected president of the United States on a platform of ending the US occupation of Iraq, implementing universal health care, raising taxes on the rich, strengthening unions, raising the minimum wage, reducing America’s carbon footprint, and fully funding federal stem cell research.
“People want conservatism.” Uh huh. Sure.
I don’t worry at all about the trolls who claim that Obama’s choice of smart people with recent Congressional experience in his cabinet means that he is somehow not about “change.”
Carter, Clinton, and Bush all made the huge mistake of staffing the White House with cronies from their respective states and other insdiers close to the candidate but not to Congress.
What Obama is doing is staffing up with people who can help his agenda pass through Congress. Again and again, the Republicans underestimate how smart, methodical, and absolutely prepared this man is every step of the way (Hillary similiarly underestimated him).
I look forward to lots and lots of conservative unhappiness, anger, weeping, wailing, and gnashing of teeth, as “liberal” measure after “liberal” measure passes through the Congress to be signed by the president who is orchestrating it all.
Have a nice eight years, boys. It’s going to be a bumpy ride for you.
@11: Conservatives lie through their teeth. Bush was a great conservative until his popularity started going down with scandals, incompetence and cronyism.
Bush (like Reagan) created record budget deficits by spending huge amounts on unnecessary wars or weapons (think Iraq and Star Wars, that never has worked).
I didn’t hear the conservatives criticizing those moves!
Yup, with republicans like the dimwitted spews we may well gain a permanent majority – since the idiot trolls on here cannot accept defeat or even figure out how bankrupt the “deregulation” policies were. I love how they are trying to blame the subprime crisis on Jimmy Carter. I (and most other awake observers) noticed that the subprime loans started after Phil Gramm legalized the bundling of loans and reduced the transparency in his “deregulation” of the banking industry. Legislation that was FULLY supported by republican conservatives.
Republicans have only one trick – blame the democrats – and it ain’t gonna work for dubya – he had FULL republican support and made this mess in FULL cooperation with the republican congress (‘cept for he last two years where the republicans succesfully fillibustered (or threatened fillibuster) in the senate.
The corruption and unethical behaviour (Abramoff, Rove, Gonzalex, Cunningham, Ney, Steven, Craig, Vitter, DeLay, Foley, Safavian, the Justice dept. the FDA, the EPA, the GAO and on and on) is what ruined their credibility.
The two hallmarks of the republican party (Grover Norquist) of the Taxpayers (sic) union and Ralph Reed (religious right) both laundered money for Abramoff to support forced abortions, slave labor, the Marianas, Indian gambling casinos and russian oil tycoons.
Yup – those are the true “conservative” values. Greed and corruption….
@14: I agree.
Obama is hiring people who can get things done, but Obama will set the agenda.
No cronies from Texas or Bob Jones Law school – just hard working people who know how to get the job done.
No Brownies, Harriet Mieres or Gonzalez incompetents…just experienced people to carry out an agenda to fix this mess that Bush and republicans caused.
Republicans had complete control over the federal government from September 12, 2001 until after the election of 2006. If the financial crisis is the Democrat’s fault, Mark, what were the R’s doing all those years?
John Laird needs to keep better track of units of measurement in his statistics. If talking about percentage points, Gore won 2000. Bush won 2000 by 4 electoral votes which is hardly comparable to the 5.4 percentage points that he won 2004 by.
Daddy Love
“People want conservatism”
Before we simply ridicule this idea, let’s think about it just a bit.
When many folks think about small “c” “conservatism”, they think:
Ok, I can get onboard with most of that. Perhaps when the pundits claim that we’re a “center-right” nation, that’s what they’re talking about.
Of course, that also means that the Republican party isn’t “conservative” at all.
Oh, and for our resident righties that are about to pounce on that “promotes opportunity, not guarantees results” line. Seems that we have a bunch of big companies that have squandered their opportunities, and now want the government to guarantee that they can still have their obscenely high compensation packages and bonuses.
Republicans aren’t conservatives now, if they ever were. Republicans are socialists.
Get a clue twerps. Government won’t solve any problem. Name one social or economic problem government has solved. They can play the cup game all day long borrowing from social security or offsetting debt on paper, but they solve nothing. Government certainly won’t solve this financial crisis because in order to control the economy you have to control people.
I suppose after all that is what liberals want. Mind control and physical control by government (as long as they’re in control).
The bottom line is that government doesn’t help people, PEOPLE help people. Kids without healthcare aren’t people, they’re numbers. Children without passing grades aren’t children, they’re numbers bandied about for research polls and political statements. But the neighbors, pastors, and friends of these people are truly the ones that care.
End the financial and failing educational slavery imposed by liberal nazis and you will find answers.
@17…what were they doing? Why, saving Terri Schiavo’s life……….er, or not.
@20 claims: “Government won’t solve any problem.”
OK dumb ass. Here’s a question for ya’: Why have a government at all? We await your wisdom with bated breath.
@20- here’s a start
1- Interstate Highway system
2- Public health system, cholera, polio epidemics are no more
3- Clean drinking water (see also 2 above)
4- Wastewater treatment, ain’t it grand Lake Washington is no longer a sewer?
5- Air traffic control system
@20 The last 8 years have given us a pretty good look at what the government-haters want to give us. No thanks.
This moron incorrectandneverright just said another stupidism which even Pelletizer had to agree is not right.
Your problem incorrectandneverright is you forget who was running congress during Reagan’s years. And you seem to forget budgets are written by the house agreed to by the senate before Reagan got them. Since you guys controlled congress the “deficits” and “debt” was written into and agreed to by Sleazer of the House Thomas Old Tipper O’Neal, Jim Book Deal Wright, Dick Crying Gephardt and Tom Foley.
Which libtard on HA can tell me what is wrong with the IVY League educated moron’s statement:
“17. K spews: Republicans had complete control over the federal government from September 12, 2001 until after the election of 2006. If the financial crisis is the Democrat’s fault, Mark, what were the R’s doing all those years?”
Five Pelletizer pellets for explaining the truth for the fifth time here.
K- You are truly dangerous with a few facts.
Puddy,
Some would argue that being an idiot is not protected under the Constitution. Not a single one of the original provisions of the Constitution, nor of the Bill of Rights, nor of any amendment to our great Constitution, specifically states that being an idiot is a constitutional right. I will, nonetheless, stand up for your right to be an idiot. Freedom of expression, etc., protected under the First Amendment, augmented by the Fourteenth Amendment, gives idiots, I believe, the right to spew. So, Puddy, spew away, as far as I’m concerned.
Proud Leftist, apparently you’re the vocal idiot here. K@17 is dead wrong and you can’t figger it out. If you had a “brain” you’d be a Dangerous Leftist.
You too are truly dangerous with a few facts.
@25: Your problem Puddy (the excuser of Bush and the corrupt republicans) is that you forget that the President sets the agenda, proposes the budget and has veto power. Where were the budget vetoes?
Oh, there were none and in fact the republican congress and Bush agreed on most everything and p[ushed through supplemental appropriations OUTSIDE the regular budget for Iraq and then attacked any democrat who didn’t support the EXTRA spending as unpatriotic.
Yup, you have NO argument, as usual.
And Reagan mouthed the words “balanced budget” but if you look at the actual budgets Reagan proposed – they were NOT balanced. He lied – and suckers like you believed him. He spent billions that were wasted on Star Wars and got us nowhere. He paid money for Iran-contra. Yup, your hero was the biggest spender.
Bush came in with a surplus and left with a record deficit. ‘Nuff said.
Speaking of republican corruption, here is another in the anals of rising republican star turns out to be a crook:
Saint Louis Dispatch
http://www.stltoday.com/stltod.....enDocument
yup, republicans lie then lie some more and keep lying to cover up their lies. And Blunt was considered to be a “rising republican star”. Can’t wait to see what E-mails say about Bush – oh, they lost them too, right?
How is it that one party can attract so many liars and crooks? Could it be the defenders of the republican party are just used to serial lying?
19 JB
Aw, I was going to skip directly to the ridicule.
It was more of an anti-Bush vote than a pro-Obama vote. That’s their latest mantra..you hear it on all the pundit blab-fests from the righties. It’s strange that they need something clanging around the echo chamber, always. Now that the terrorist, socialist, marxist, elitist, no lapel pin wearing echos have sadly fallen limp, this is all they’re left with.
Remember McCain’s biggest line in the last debate was “I am not George Bush”, and of course, the minnions echoed this sentiment faithfully. But now I guess they’re saying that McCain was/is Bush?
It’s just sad and embarrassing, really.
@26
Your problem Puddybud is you think anyone reads your posts.
The Republicans have always had the same privilege to seek House and Senate seats like the Democrats. Repeatedly they have failed.
I have heard more John Bircher’s complain that Eisenhower, Nixon, Reagan, Bush I and Bush II were lilly livered liberals.
It’s time for conservatives like you to face facts, conservatism is just another ism. Just like communism it looks great on paper, but ignores mankind’s greed and desire of power.
Has there ever been a place or time in history when conservative principles actually were seen in the wild? When conservative principles actually created a functioning government?
I’m beginning to see it as a big BS fantasy.