What happens next?

What we can expect after November 2nd


I thought we might want to look at this. It is apparent the MSM and the DEMOCRATS ARE GETTING TO BLAME AN IGNORANT ELECTORATE FOR THEIR COMING DEFEAT. Obama has already said that we don’t think well when we are scared. The old clinging to their guns and religion seems to have reappeared after being dispelled by “the One” in 2008. I guess we are more scared now.

The following is a column talking about this. It points out that somehow the PEOPLE WHO AGREE WITH THE LEFT ARE EXPERTS WHILE THOSE WHO DISAGREE ARE IGNORANT. But over and over I see people on leftist boards rail against Bush and Reagan for overspending. Now a BASIC UNDERSTANDING OF THE CONSTITUTION should tell you that it is the congress that controls the purse strings and that all spending bills must originate in the House of Representatives. If you want to look at who you should blame for the deficits, you need to look not at the President, but who controlled the congress.

FROM 1995 THROUGH 2006 THE REPUBLICANS CONTROLLED THE HOUSE. During that time they had some surplus years in the budgets, but by and large they were the biggest deficit spenders in history. THEY RAN UP A DEFICIT OF $3.81 TRILLION IN JUST 12 YEARS. That was shameful, but the Democrats not to be outdone, have created a larger DEFICIT IN LESS THAN FOUR YEARS since they retook control. THEIR DEFICIT SINCE JANUARY 2007 IS $5 TRILLION.

The voting public has been chastised for being unappreciative of the good the expert elites of the ruling class have done to them. The experts are expert in all things except realizing that they are not experts.

Perhaps by accident, Joe Klein, "TIME's political columnist and author of six books," made an interesting comment:

“There is something PROFOUNDLY DISEASED about a society that idolizes its ignoramuses and disdains its experts. It is a society that no longer takes itself seriously.”

http://www.americanthinker.com/2010/10/expert_fools.html


I would opine that there is something profoundly diseased about a columnist that idolizes his experts when they continually do the wrong thing and end up making things worse. I DON’T THINK THAT COLUMNIST SHOULD BE TAKEN SERIOUSLY.



Canada is already going through denial

Here’s an interesting piece. It seems the liberals in Canada have just suffered a defeat and the press and the politicians are going through what I anticipate we will see after next Tuesday. Here is the final paragraph and it says a lot.

Although Canada is far more blessed, even we won’t entirely escape the massive restructuring that faces almost every country in the Western world. The problem is simple. PEOPLE HAVE A LOT MORE GOVERNMENT THAN THEY CAN OR WILL PAY FOR. Mr. Ford and Tea Partiers know that. Scaling down the scope of government is the political challenge of the next generation. AND IF MAINSTREAM POLITICIANS STAY IN DENIAL, THEY’LL BE TOAST.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/opinion/theres-good-reason-the-masses-are-revolting/article1778869/




Obama in 2012?

Here’s an interesting piece on the division in the Democrat Party on whether Obama should be the nominee in 2012. The question is, should this be Hillary’s time?

Democratic voters are closely divided over whether President Barack Obama should be challenged within the party for a second term in 2012, an Associated Press-Knowledge Networks Poll finds.


That glum assessment carries over into the nation at large, which is equally divided over whether Obama should be a one-term president.


A real Democratic challenge to Obama seems unlikely at this stage and his re-election bid is a long way off. But the findings underscore how disenchanted his party has grown heading into the congressional elections Tuesday.


The AP-KN poll has tracked a group of people and their views since the beginning of the 2008 presidential campaign. Among all 2008 voters, 51 percent say he deserves to be defeated in November 2012 while 47 percent support his re-election — essentially a tie.


Among Democrats, 47 percent say Obama should be challenged for the 2012 nomination and 51 percent say he should not be opposed. Those favoring a contest include most who backed Hillary Rodham Clinton's unsuccessful faceoff against Obama for the 2008 nomination. The poll did not ask if Democrats would support particular challengers.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101030/ap_on_el_pr/us_ap_poll_obama;_ylt=A0LEaohLKsxM.EwA_Zas0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTNrdWw4aDg3BGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMTAxMDMwL3VzX2FwX3BvbGxfb2JhbWEEY2NvZGUDbW9zdHBvcHVsYXIEY3BvcwM0BHBvcwMxBHB0A2hvbWVfY29rZQRzZWMDeW5faGVhZGxpbmVfbGlzdARzbGsDcG9sbGRlbXNzcGxp




GOP leads Dems in turnout among early voters

On the last day of early voting, Republicans in Colorado solidified their preliminary turnout advantage over Democrats.


In numbers released by the secretary of state's office Friday afternoon, REPUBLICANS HAD CAST NEARLY 53,000 MORE BALLOTS THAN DEMOCRATS. Republicans' turnout rate also continued pulling slightly ahead of Democrats'. In Friday's figures, about 35 percent of registered Republicans had cast a ballot, compared with about 30 percent of registered Democrats.

This is why I see a big victory for the Republicans in Colorado. Buck wins, Tancredo wins, and three formerly Democrat seats (Salazar, Markey, and Perlmutter) go Republican.


http://www.denverpost.com/election2010/ci_16473073#ixzz13rAtUStK



Obama: Post Partisan or Most Partisan?

President Obama's post-partisan America has disappeared, replaced by THE POLITICS OF POLARIZATION, RESENTMENT AND DIVISION.


In a Univision interview on Monday, the president, who campaigned in 2008 by referring not to a "Red America" or a "Blue America" but a United States of America, urged Hispanic listeners to vote in this spirit: "WE'RE GONNA PUNISH OUR ENEMIES and we're gonna reward our friends who stand with us on issues that are important to us."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/10/29/AR2010102905966.html?hpid=opinionsbox1


This really isn’t that surprising. Remember his response on January 23, 2009 when Jon Kyle questioned the tax credits for people not paying income tax. He said then “I WON. SO I THINK ON THAT ONE, I TRUMP YOU.”


Where’s the Momentum?

IT CONTINUES TO LIE WITH THE REPUBLICANS. RCP’s Battle for the House in the last three days has had 15 changes. FOURTEEN OF THE CHANGES FAVOR THE GOP AND ONE FAVORS THE DEMOCRATS. Republicans continue of have 163 safe seats out of the 179 seats they now occupy. Democrats have lost two safe seats and are down to 121. If the toss ups are divided equally, the Republicans should pick up 65 seats-- up from 62 three days ago.

This is a wave election and the WAVE IS GETTING BIGGER.



Saturday Musings: 70? Seventy!!

Back over Labor Day at the APSA, I told everyone that I was calling for the GOP to pick up 60 seats in the House, mostly as a way of baiting folks to get the hyper-optimistic and the hyper-pessimistic range. I started to believe the number was possible when Norm Ornstein told me three weeks ago he thought 60 was entirely plausible. Well, this morning I READ THAT STU ROTHENBERG, ONE OF THE STRAIGHT-SHOOTING FORECASTERS ALONG WITH CHARLIE COOK, THINKS THE NUMBER COULD BE 70 OR MORE. Seventy. I'm tempted to make that my new over-under line, but I'll go out on a limb here and suggest that if THE GOP GETS TO 70 IN THE HOUSE, THEY'LL GET THE SENATE, TOO. I still say there is going to be a surprise Democrat loser in the Senate right now that no one is watching, like Gillibrand in New York or Wyden in Oregon (go Jim Huffman!!), though Blumenthal remains my favorite pick for a mediocrity who deserves to lose.

http://nlt.ashbrook.org/2010/10/saturday-musings-70-seventy.php

Last Saturday before the election

Democrats outspending Republicans in Midterm

To hear top Democrats tell it, the party is being wildly outgunned this year in the fight for campaign cash as Republicans rely on outside groups to funnel money to GOP contenders.


But the numbers tell a different story.


So far, the latest figures show that the Democratic Party machinery has OUTRAISED ITS REPUBLICAN COUNTERPART IN THIS CAMPAIGN CYCLE BY ALMOST $270 MILLION.


The money race totals come to $856 million for the Democratic committees and their aligned outside groups, compared to $677 for their Republican adversaries, based on figures compiled by the Center for Responsive Politics.

 http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1010/44216.html#ixzz13kX7Y1FJ


Is this the Nastiest Campaign season ever in the USA?

Not by a long shot. If you study history you would know it. Here is a fun video illustrating the point.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y_zTN4BXvYI&feature=player_embedded


Apparently Politics is a Contact Sport

Former President Bill Clinton tried to persuade Florida Democratic Rep. Kendrick Meek to drop out of his U.S. Senate race and support Gov. Charlie Crist's independent candidacy in HOPES OF THWARTING A VICTORY BY REPUBLICAN MARCO RUBIO.


People familiar with the matter said the former president and other top national Democrats WORRY A WIN BY THE CHARISMATIC MR. RUBIO, A 39-YEAR-OLD CUBAN-AMERICAN, WOULD MAKE HIM A POLITICAL PHENOMENON CAPABLE OF BOOSTING THE GOP'S CHANCES WITH HISPANIC VOTERS. These people said the conversation occurred during Mr. Clinton's Florida visit on Oct. 19. Mr. Meek wavered for several days—suggesting to some that he could leave the race—but decided against it.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304786904575580972651181824.html?mod=WSJ_hp_MIDDLENexttoWhatsNewsThird


That’s the problem with a virgin sacrifice. The virgin (Meek) doesn’t come out well in it. But I’ve found that nothing the Democrats do surprises me. They will lie, cheat, and steal to win elections.

I thought I had heard everything, but I hadn’t

A firm handshake is usually seen as a good thing in business and even in politics.


Not so much in South Florida. A candidate for the Broward County School Board WANTS THE COPS TO LOCK UP HER OPPONENT after what she claims was akin to battery after a recent debate.

Jaemi Levine filed a complaint with the Broward Sheriff’s Office claiming David Thomas squeezed her hand so hard during a post-debate handshake Tuesday that it now hurts.

Once again we learn that politics is a contact sport.

http://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local-beat/Candidate-Files-Criminal-Complaint-Over-Handshake-106128614.html?dr



Obama’s Presidency—What happened?

Here's a pretty good review of the specifics of what happened to get us to where we are today. 

WASHINGTON -- It wasn't so long ago that the Republican Party was in shambles, and Barack Obama's throngs filled the November air with chants of "Yes we can!"


"Change has come to America," he proclaimed on a night of triumph in Chicago in 2008, then set out with large Democratic majorities in Congress to make it so.


Cut forward two years and 4.8 million lost jobs. Now it's the Republicans on the brink of victory. Obama maneuvers in cramped political confines, undertaking one political salvage mission after another in the final hours of a campaign utterly unlike the last.


It has been a tumultuous journey from Obama's "Yes we can" to House Republican Leader John Boehner's "Hell no" rant against the giant health care bill.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/10/29/AR2010102904182.html



Independents are going to the GOP

There is no change in sight for the trajectory that will take democrats down to a stunning defeat on Tuesday.  Here's the latest.

Independents, a crucial swing bloc, seem to be breaking sharply for Republicans in the final days of the campaign.


One nonpartisan prognosticator, Stuart Rothenberg, said Friday he thought the REPUBLICANS COULD PICK UP AS MANY AS 70 HOUSE SEATS—something no party has achieved since 1948. The Republicans need 39 seats to take the majority. Fading Democratic support among independents is also keeping alive the GOP's longer-shot hopes of taking the Senate.

Things that won’t work for the Democrats this election

Blame Bush

Blame Rove

Blame the Supreme Court

Blame Cheney

Blame Boehner

Blame Slurpees (I just put this one in for fun)

People against this are a) racists, b) sexists, c) homophobes, d) bigots

The Republicans are the party of no

The Republicans drove us into the ditch

It took them 8 years to mess things up this bad, you’ve got to give us more (time or money—things seldom work as the democrats promise they will and they always blame it on not enough time or not enough money).

The Republicans/Tea Party candidates are too extreme

“I'd like to see her do this ad in the south Bronx. Come here, b%&*h! Come to New York and do it.”



What does seem to be working for the Democrats

I “voted against Nancy Pelosi’s energy tax on Hoosier families.”

I’m “the most independent member of Congress”

"I sued the EPA and I'll take dead aim at the cap and trade."

I voted against the health care bill and am willing to go "against my own party."



What does the Senate look like in 2012
I think the Republicans will take the Senate this year, but even if they don’t, 2012 should provide what they need to do it.  The Democrats will be defending twice the number of seats as the Republicans will as well as the 2 independents who caucus with the Democrats.  And if the Republicans win 9 seats this year (tie with the Democrats 50-50, Ben Nelson of Nebraska may want to change parties before his reelection bid in 2012).

If Senate Democrats think 2010 is a tough cycle, just wait two more years.

They’ll probably hold the Senate majority Tuesday — with a couple of seats to spare, most analysts believe. But 2012 is a different story

By then, Republicans will be poised to take control of the Senate — with pickup possibilities scattered across the map and a much narrower base of their own to defend.  


It’s not simply the lopsided mathematics — with at least 21 DEMOCRATIC SEATS ON THE TABLE in 2012, including two independents who sit with the Democrats, COMPARED WITH 10 REPUBLICANS. It’s where the seats are located.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304879604575582472322281134.html?mod=WSJ_WSJ_US_News_5

Polling in the final days

Shock poll: Americans think Bush doing a better job than Obama (and more)

Despite voters feelings toward Obama personally, 56% say he does not deserve to be reelected, while 38% say he does deserve to be reelected President.


– 43% say that Barack Obama has been a better president than George W. Bush, while 48% SAY BUSH WAS A BETTER PRESIDENT THAN OBAMA HAS BEEN.

http://blogs.reuters.com/james-pethokoukis/2010/10/28/shock-poll-americans-think-bush-doing-a-better-job-than-obama-and-more/


Just in time for Bush’s new book and the election. Bummer if you are a Democrat.


How accurate are the Polls?
It’s all about your Likely Voter profile. Here’s an article looking at the Likely Voter profile for the Senate races.

Such examples abound. IN COLORADO, THE MOST RECENT POLLS SUGGEST THAT THE DEMOCRATS WILL ENJOY A 1-POINT ADVANTAGE IN TURNOUT, just like in 2008. And these polls say that only 29 percent of Colorado voters this time around will be independents, even though 39 percent of Colorado voters were independents in 2008, and even though that percentage, by all accounts, is growing.


The expectation that Democrats will come anywhere close to matching their 2008 turnout, while independent turnout will suffer, is not rooted in reality. In truth, turnout should look very much like it did in 2004, except that independents will make up a higher percentage of the voters.


Fortunately, many of the polls show each candidate’s level of support by party. So we can see, for example, that the latest CNN/Time poll for Colorado shows Republican challenger Ken Buck with 89 percent support among Republicans, to 6 percent for Democratic incumbent Michael Bennet; 6 percent support among Democrats, to Bennet’s 90; and 49 percent support among independents, to Bennet’s 36. Using the projected turnout figures explained herein (and more or less mirroring 2004), these tallies WOULD MEAN AN 11-POINT LEAD FOR BUCK. Because of its radically different turnout projections, CNN/Time calls it a 1-point lead for Buck.

http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/polls-dont-reflect-gops-real-chance-taking-senate_513142.html



Effect of the Polls
Polls are important not only for what they tell us, but how they affect us. In this story it talks about some of the issues and what it means for the candidates.

WASHINGTON – When a widely publicized poll showed Republican John Kasich with a commanding, 10-point advantage in Ohio's governor's race, aides to Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland fought back hard. Against the poll.


"With just two weeks until Election Day, it is our opinion that the Quinnipiac polls are irresponsible, inaccurate and completely removed from the reality of the Ohio governor's race," the campaign said in a statement that noted other private and public surveys were showing a much closer contest.


The Quinnipiac University Polling Institute, an organization with an unchallenged reputation for nonpartisanship, responded mildly. "We stand by our numbers and our overall record for reliability," said Doug Schwartz, the organization's polling director…..


"THEY CAN AFFECT CONTRIBUTIONS. They do affect news coverage in a substantial way. They can affect volunteers. They can affect (voter) interest, and through all those things can affect the outcome" of a race said Mark Mellman, a Democratic pollster not involved in the Ohio governor's contest.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101029/ap_on_el_ge/us_polls_gone_wild;_ylt=AtMLbyP7Zx86GBgpJiZlq22s0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTNtdGlsYmMzBGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMTAxMDI5L3VzX3BvbGxzX2dvbmVfd2lsZARjY29kZQNtb3N0cG9wdWxhcgRjcG9zAzUEcG9zAzIEcHQDaG9tZV9jb2tlBHNlYwN5bl9oZWFkbGluZV9saXN0BHNsawNwb2xsc2dvbmV3aWw

Update of RCP House Race

In the past three days the race for the House has seen 15 changes.  Of those 10 have gone toward the Republicans and 5 toward the Democrats.  The current numbers have the Republicans at 222, the Democrats at 173 with 40 toss ups.  This would give the Republicans between 43 and 83 pick ups for an average of 63. 

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2010/house/2010_elections_house_map.html

Krauthammer on the 2010 Midterms
Krauthammer zeros in on the real issue of this election. Is it that “it is the economy stupid,” or is it something more?

This from a president who won't even use "enemies" to describe an Iranian regime that is helping kill U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan. This from a man who rose to prominence thunderously declaring that we were not blue states or red states, not black America or white America or Latino America - but the United States of America.


This is how the great post-partisan, post-racial, New Politics presidency ends - not with a bang, not with a whimper, but with a DESPERATE ELECTION-EVE PLEA FOR ETHNIC RETRIBUTION……


this is a deeply serious campaign about a profoundly serious political question…..


He wants to be a consequential president on the order of Ronald Reagan. His forthright attempt to undo the Reagan revolution with a burst of EXPANSIVE LIBERAL GOVERNANCE IS THE THEME ANIMATING THIS ENTIRE ELECTION.


Democratic apologists would prefer to pretend otherwise - that it's all about the economy and the electorate's anger over its parlous condition. Nice try. The most recent CBS/New York Times poll shows that only one in 12 Americans blames the economy on Obama, and seven in 10 think the downturn is temporary. And yet, THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY IS FALLING APART. Democrats are four points behind among women, a constituency Democrats had owned for decades; a staggering 20 points behind among independents (a 28-point swing since 2008); and 20 points behind among college graduates, giving lie to the ubiquitous liberal conceit that the Republican surge is the revenge of lumpen know-nothings.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/10/28/AR2010102806270.html



We have to pass the bill to find out what’s in it
This is an important and thought provoking column. 

For all its sweeping and scary provisions, ObamaCare is NOT NEARLY AS IMPORTANT AS THE WAY IT WAS PASSED. If legislation can become laws passed without either the public or the Congress knowing what is in those laws, THEN THE FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLE OF A FREE, SELF-GOVERNING PEOPLE IS COMPLETELY UNDERMINED.


Some members of Congress who voted for ObamaCare, and who are now telling us that they realize this legislation has flaws which they intend to correct, are missing the point…..


Rushing ObamaCare into law too fast for anyone to have read it served no other purpose than to prevent this very process from taking place. THE RUSH TO PASS THIS LAW THAT WOULD NOT TAKE EFFECT UNTIL AFTER THE NEXT TWO ELECTIONS SIMPLY CUT THE VOTERS OUT OF THE LOOP-- AND THAT IS PAINFULLY CLOSE TO RULING BY DECREE.

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2010/10/29/a_crossroads_election_107769.html


This is what this administration intends on doing, that is, to rule by decree. With the takeover of the congress by the Republicans, watch for the Obama Administration to use bureaucratic rules to “rule.”



 -

Midterms

Obama voting--See the Excitement!

Midterm blowout: 50 or more Dem seats set to fall in the election


Republicans are headed for a blowout election win that seems certain to seize more than enough seats to knock out the Democrats and take control of the House.

The Hill 2010 Midterm Election poll, surveying nearly 17,000 likely voters in 42 toss-up districts over four weeks, points to a massive Republican wave that, barring an extraordinary turnaround, will deliver crushing nationwide defeats for President Obama’s party


THE DATA SUGGEST A GOP PICKUP THAT COULD EASILY TOP 50 SEATS (THE PARTY NEEDS 39 FOR CONTROL OF THE HOUSE).


Of the 42 districts polled for The Hill, all but two of which are currently Democratic, 31 had Republicans in the lead. Democrats were up in just seven, and four were tied. In addition, there are some 15 Democratic districts that are so far into the GOP win column that they weren’t polled. That would suggest at least 46 GOP pickups, plus whatever the party gets out of another 40 or 50 seats that some experts believe are in play.

http://thehill.com/house-polls/thehill-poll-week-4/126001-blowout-50-or-more-dem-seats-set-to-fall

Bookie pays off bettors who bet the Republicans will take the House

 Saying THERE'S NO WAY DEMOCRATS CAN KEEP CONTROL OF THE HOUSE, Ireland's largest bookie on Wednesday said it has already paid off all bettors who wagered the GOP would capture the chamber.

“In our opinion this race is well and truly over with nothing short of a miracle stopping the Republicans taking down the House," said Ken Robertson, communications manager for Paddy Power, the Irish bookmaker.

Mr. Robertson said the odds had tipped so much in Republicans' favor it made no sense to continue taking bets. IN JULY DEMOCRATS WERE FAVORED 8-11 TO KEEP CONTROL, BUT BY WEDNESDAY THE GOP WAS FAVORED 1-50, meaning it would take a bet of $50 would win just an addition $1.

Some Good Economic News

FORD MOTOR COMPANY’S PLAN TO ADD MORE THAN 1,000 JOBS AT SEVEN MICHIGAN PLANTS is proof that the Motor City, so hammered by this economy, is finally seeing early glimmers of a comeback.


Ford, the only U.S. automaker not to take federal bailout money, is leading the way. This morning, the company announced their record third quarter profits.


The company's net income rose 68 percent to $1.7 billion in the third quarter, the company's best third quarter performance since 1990.


Chad Maks, who left to find work in Texas, is back now that Ford is hiring again.


I think everyone's pretty excited, the mood here is great!" Maks said.

http://abcnews.go.com/WN/motor-city-growing-big-automakers-ford-gm-chrysler/story?id=11973039


Have you driven a Ford? Lately?


Obamacare and unemployment

Congressional Budget Office (CBO) Director Douglas Elmendorf recently spoke at the University of Southern California about the economic impact of Obamacare. He predicts that OBAMACARE WILL FURTHER DEPRESS THE NATION’S EMPLOYMENT PICTURE.


CBO’s analysis of Obamacare predicts that it will reduce the amount of labor being used in the economy by roughly half a percent. Elmendorf states that this impact will be small, but in reality the impact is small only in relative terms. For instance, a half-percent loss in jobs in the American economy today would translate into about 750,000 additional Americans losing work…..


Elmendorf’s recent remarks focus on the impact Obamacare will have on lowering the amount of unnecessary spending on health care. The answer appears to be no as CBO PROJECTS THAT HEALTH CARE SPENDING WILL BE AT LEAST 25 PERCENT OF GDP BY 2035, UP FROM 17 PERCENT TODAY.

http://blog.heritage.org/2010/10/26/even-cbo-is-skeptical-of-obamacare/#more-45618



If the Republicans don’t win the Senate does that mean the Democrats aren’t really being rejected?

Republicans would likely obtain a filibuster proof majority if the entire Senate were up for grabs in November, according to a little-noticed post by Nate Silver, one of the nation's premier polling experts.

Silver, writing on his blog at The New York Times, said the reason that Democrats are poised to lose the House and not the Senate is THAT ONLY A THIRD OF THE SENATE IS UP FOR RE-ELECTION AT ANY GIVEN TIME. His musing reflects just how bad the election season is for Democrats this year.


"The reason that Democrats are likely to hold the Senate but not the House — the necessary and sufficient reason — is because only one-third of the Senate is up for re-election every year," Silver wrote. "If the whole Senate were up for re-election, Democrats would lose it and lose it badly."


SILVER SAYS THAT REPUBLICANS MIGHT EVEN HAVE ACHIEVED A VETO-PROOF MAJORITY (67 SENATORS) IF ALL OF THE SENATE WAS IN PLAY.

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2010/10/full-senate-grabs-gop-win-filibusterproof-majority-polls-show/



MSM: Fair and Balanced?

MRC analysts reviewed the ABC, CBS and NBC evening newscasts from September 1 through October 25. Key findings:


■ Only conservative/Tea Party candidates cast as “extreme.” Congressional Democrats and President Obama are facing voters’ wrath because of their extreme agenda over the past two years: government-run health care; massive unsupportable spending; a proposed “cap-and-trade” tax on energy, higher income taxes, etc. But MRC analysts found 35 evening news stories which conveyed the Democratic spin point that conservative and TEA PARTY CANDIDATES ARE “EXTREME,” “FRINGE,” OR “OUT OF THE MAINSTREAM,” VS. ZERO STORIES CONVEYING THE CHARGE THAT LEFT-WING DEMOCRATS ARE “OUT OF THE MAINSTREAM.”


■ Three times more “conservative” labels than “liberal” tags. Out of 62 ideological labels assigned by reporters, three-fourths (48, or 77%) were aimed at conservatives, vs. just 14 (23%) for liberals. ONLY REPUBLICANS FACED EXTREME LABELS — both Joe Miller and Christine O’Donnell were tagged as “ultra-conservatives” — with no Democrat ever branded an “ultra-liberal.”


CBS called Pennsylvania Republican Pat Toomey “conservative,” but Democrat Joe Sestak was not labeled as “liberal.” All of the networks called Christine O’Donnell a “conservative,” but none said her opponent, Chris Coons, was “liberal.” Most comically, CBS WOULD NOT CALL LOUD-MOUTHED FLORIDA REP. ALAN GRAYSON A “LIBERAL,” BUT TAGGED HIS OPPONENT DANIEL WEBSTER AS “CONSERVATIVE.”

http://newsbusters.org/blogs/rich-noyes/2010/10/27/mrc-study-news-media-aid-democrats-tea-party-trashing#ixzz13ZK5UIIp



A Civil War in the Democrat Party?

We constantly hear about division in the Republican Party, but rarely hear anything about a division in the Democrat Party. This is an interesting read.

I’m still registered as a Democrat here in Chicago but I CAN’T IMAGINE EVER VOTING FOR ANOTHER DEMOCRAT AGAIN, AS LONG AS I LIVE. To Hell with Democrats. This was solidified for me on Christmas Eve of last year, when Democrats rushed Obamacare through the Senate in the dead of night, through various secret channels, and every single Democrat voted for its passage (even supposed moderates like Evan Bayh in Indiana, who quickly realized his vote would cost him re-election…so the coward retired rather then face angry voters over what he did). I just don’t believe Democrats should be given elected office by voters because they cannot be trusted to even read bills before they vote on them, not even when said bills seek to permanently alter the entire American economy. This is reckless and reprehensible to the point of treason.


I was a Democrat for 32 years before the heavy-handed push for Obama alienated me from the party…and I borrow what Hillary Clinton said about Republicans once, back when she was a Goldwater Girl, and will paraphrase by saying that I didn’t leave the Democrat Party, the Democrat Party left me.


After it beat me to a pulp, CALLED ME A RACIST, BERATED AND INSULTED ME, and used Alinsky Rules to hit me with everything it had. Not just me, but all Hillary supporters

http://hillbuzz.org/2010/10/27/an-open-letter-to-rush-limbaugh-and-his-listeners/






.http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/oct/27/bookie-says-gop-cant-lose-house-pays-bets-early/

The Final Stretch

Something we are all asking

President Obama Heads into Midterms at Lowest Approval Rating of Presidency


Two-thirds of Americans believe country going off on the wrong track

NEW YORK , N.Y. - October 25, 2010 - President Obama is spending the next week crisscrossing the country in support of Democratic candidates before this year's midterm elections. While the president may do a great job of energizing the base, he may not be able to convert any Independents who have yet to decide for whom they will vote. Currently, TWO-THIRDS OF AMERICANS (67%) HAVE A NEGATIVE OPINION OF THE JOB PRESIDENT OBAMA IS DOING WHILE JUST OVER ONE-THIRD (37%) HAVE A POSITIVE OPINION. This continues the president's downward trend and he is now at the lowest job approval rating of his presidency.


These are some of the results of The Harris Poll of 3,084 adults surveyed online between October 11 and 18, 2010 by Harris Interactive.


It's perhaps not surprising that nine in ten Republicans (90%) and Conservatives (89%) give the job the president is doing negative ratings. WHAT MAY BE SURPRISING IS THAT ONE-THIRD OF DEMOCRATS (34%) AND LIBERALS (33%) ALSO GIVE HIM NEGATIVE RATINGS, AS DO SEVEN IN TEN INDEPENDENTS (70%) AND SIX IN TEN MODERATES (60%).

Obama is now in George Bush territory.

http://www.harrisinteractive.com/Hi_assets/TopHitPageNews.html


RCP Battle for the House


Latest numbers from RCP shows that the Republicans continue to gain in the area of safe, likely and leans Republicans which now stands at 225 (7 more than needed for control of the House). The Democrats stand at 178 and there are 32 toss ups.

IF REPUBLICANS WOULD WIN HALF OF THE TOSS UPS THEY WOULD END UP WITH 241 SEATS A PICKUP OF 62 SEATS. 


Military Tribunals begin

Three thousand, three hundred and thirty-two days after the attacks of 9/11, a Guantanamo Bay detainee yesterday proved military tribunals are the way to go in bringing accused Al Qaeda terrorists to justice.


OMAR KHADR, CAPTURED IN AFGHANISTAN IN 2002, PLEADED GUILTY TO LOBBING A GRENADE AT U.S. SOLDIERS, KILLING ONE, AS WELL AS TO PLANTING 10 ROADSIDE BOMBS. Although there was no doubt that Khadr had committed the acts, he became a cause célèbre among self-styled human rights activists.


A hue and cry went up because Khadr was 15 when he killed Army Sgt. Christopher Speer outside an Al Qaeda compound near the Afghan city of Khost. It was said, nonsensically, that Khadr was too young to be tried as an enemy combatant……..


A deal has been reached and he will be sentenced with the maximum he can get is 8 more years. It isn’t enough for what he did, but at least it is a start.

I wonder what is the current status of trying the ringleaders of 9/11 in civilian trials in NYC?

http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2010/10/26/2010-10-26_enough_with_the_little_fish.html#ixzz13SUbwISI


What PBS is really up to

Last week, National Public Radio CEO Vivian Schiller took a break from her crusade for a government takeover of the media to swat a fly. With now-former NPR analyst Juan Williams suitably splattered across the evening news after politically incorrect comments he made on Fox News, Schiller can return to her real passion – THE CREATION OF A NATIONAL NETWORK TO ENSURE THAT IN THE FUTURE, YOU GET YOUR NEWS FROM THE GOVERNMENT in general and NPR in particular…..


They are beefing up their staffs in local news markets with herds of public news reporters to “take over” coverage as commercial media fails. Nationwide, this will cost $40 billion to $60 billion over a decade, they believe. Their plans, according to the FCC’s Future of Media report, are to raise this money BY TAXING FOR-PROFIT NEWS ORGANIZATIONS – the ones whose reporting Schiller is supposedly trying to “save.” They want to charge “spectrum fees” of five percent of broadcast station revenues for use of the public spectrum and airwaves, which the government controls. They figure that could bring in $1.8 billion a year. A one percent tax on all electronic devices like cell phones, televisions and laptops could bring in billions more. So would a monthly fee on internet subscriptions.

This is absolutely ridiculous. In an age with multiple sources of news, Shiller is proposing a taxpayer sponsored mega-giant news organizations similar to the BBC. JUST ANOTHER REASON TO VOTE FOR REPUBLICANS AND DEFUND NPR.

http://townhall.com/columnists/TaraServatius/2010/10/25/npr_ceo_vivian_schiller_key_architect_of_fcc_govt_takeover_of_the _news/page/full/


Grayson headed for the dumpster

Here’s a story that renews your faith in the American public. Alan Grayson a Neanderthal of a politician is significantly behind his Republican opponent, Daniel Webster.

Holding a steady 7-point lead over a controversial and increasingly malodorous incumbent, Republican Daniel Webster is poised to knock out U.S. Rep. Alan Grayson, a new Sunshine State News Poll shows.

WEBSTER, A FORMER STATE SENATOR, LEADS GRAYSON, D-ORLANDO, 48-41. Florida TEA Party candidate Peg Dunmire garnered 4 percent, No Party Affiliation candidate George Metcalfe got 1 percent, and 5 percent of respondents were undecided.


In a previous poll, conducted Sept. 25, Webster led Grayson 43-36, an identical 7-point margin.

http://www.sunshinestatenews.com/story/poll-daniel-webster-beats-down-angry-alan-grayson



Enthusiasm gap

Despite across-the-country rallies by President Obama and get-out-the-vote efforts by his allies, ONLY 37% OF DEMOCRATS AND DEMOCRATIC -LEANING REGISTERED VOTERS REPORT MORE ENTHUSIASM THAN USUAL ABOUT VOTING, a decline from early in the year.


Meanwhile, 63% OF REPUBLICANS AND REPUBLICAN-LEANING REGISTERED VOTERS SAY THEY ARE MORE ENTHUSIASTIC THAN USUAL, the biggest advantage for either party on this key measure in any midterm election since Gallup began asking the question in 1994. Then, Republicans had a 9-point enthusiasm advantage in a year Democrats lost control of the U.S. House and Senate.


Now, the enthusiasm gap is 26 points.

Two points. First the enthusiasm gap is almost 3 times what it was in 1994. Second, Obama is out there trying to get the Democrats pumped up and their level of enthusiasm has declined.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/politics/2010-10-26-1Apoll26_ST_N.htm


Voter fraud

Ever wonder what voter fraud can look like.? This was very interesting

A new video by conservative activist James O’Keefe appears to show a New Jersey union official describing voter fraud during a Jersey City mayor’s race several years ago.


O’Keefe would not tell The Daily Caller how he obtained what appears to be audio of Wayne Dibofsky, the associate director of the New Jersey Education Association, admitting that voter fraud took place inside the union’s Jersey City office in 1997.


The incident Dibofsky seems to describe took place during a race that pitted conservative Republican Bret Schundler, the incumbent, against Democrat


Jaime Vazquez. On O’Keefe’s video, a man identified as Dibofsky recalls that on election day 1997, a man arrived at the Jersey City union office and dropped off two voting machines.


“I said, ‘we’re not a voting precinct,’” Dibofsky explains. “And the guy says, ‘I don’t care, I was told to deliver them here.’ I said, ‘nobody is going to come and vote,’ and he winks at me and he says ‘doesn’t matter,’ which meant the machines were already loaded, locked and voted, vote tallies were added.”

http://dailycaller.com/2010/10/26/o%E2%80%99keefe-video-appears-to-show-new-jersey-union-official-describing-voter-fraud/#ixzz13UwVWS7o


Race and Obama

Recently the President of the United States of America said in a radio interview that aired on Univision.

“If Latinos sit out the election instead of saying, ‘WE’RE GONNA PUNISH OUR ENEMIES and we’re gonna reward our friends who stand with us on issues that are important to us,’ if they don’t see that kind of upsurge in voting in this election, then I think it’s gonna be harder and that’s why I think it’s so important that people focus on voting on November 2.”


This is an obvious racial call to action. It is completely unacceptable to use this kind of language in 2010 by any mainstream politician. This is not a post racial President, but someone appealing to the worst in us all.

In Search of Racism in Middle America

Rich Benjamin embarked on a treacherous journey into the heart of enemy territory. No, he wasn't a soldier stationed in Afghanistan. And, no, he didn't masquerade as a veiled woman in Saudi Arabia.


A black man, Benjamin lived for three months at a time in these lily-white communities: St. George, Utah; Coeur d'Alene, Idaho; and Forsyth County, Georgia. HE ANTICIPATED A GAUNTLET OF RACIAL HATE. And yet he describes his journey this way, in his book, Searching for Whitopia.


In St. George, I fell in with a hospitable, if rowdy, poker crew, gathering for Texas hold 'em at least twice a week. Being a proud Episcopal, I regularly attended the Sunday services at Grace Church. ... I hiked up Taylor Creek in Zion National Park with the Episcopalian Seniors social group ... In Coeur d'Alene, I fraternized with retired LAP cops, attending their annual charity golf tournament to support wounded brethren. ... Finally, in Forsyth County, I got to know IgNite, the youth ministry of First Redeemer, and attended the Baptist mega-church's main service every Sunday morning. This drew me into a whirlwind: lunch with the youth after service, Friday night socials, volleyball and pickup basketball in the church's gleaming indoor gym ...

I hosted about ten dinner parties and luncheons, some spontaneous, some formal ... Ben, a twenty-six-year-old cobbler who arrived with Kina, his longtime girlfriend, teased me because they felt the meal was "fancy." TO THIS DAY, I WEAR A HANDSOME PAIR OF SANDALS THAT BEN COBBLED FOR ME ...

Sorry, libs, your bigotry of assuming racism in fly over country and with tea party activists just doesn’t hold true.

http://www.americanthinker.com/2010/10/looking_for_racism_in_all_the.html

One Week From Today!

In Wash., illegal immigrants canvassing for votes

SEATTLE -- When Maria Gianni is knocking on voters' doors, she's not bashful about telling people she is in the country illegally. She knows it's a risk to advertise to strangers that she's here illegally - but one worth taking in what she sees as a crucial election.


The 42-year-old is one of dozens of volunteers - many of them illegal immigrants - canvassing neighborhoods in the Seattle area trying to get naturalized citizens to cast a ballot for candidates like Democratic Senator Patty Murray, who is in a neck-to-neck race with Republican Dino Rossi.


Pramila Jayapal, head of OneAmerica Votes, says the campaign is about empowering immigrants who may not feel like they can contribute to a campaign because they can't vote.


"Immigrants really do matter," Jayapal said. "If we can't vote ourselves, we're gonna knock on doors, or get family members to vote."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/10/22/AR2010102201280.html


Kind of makes you wonder if this was why Obama quit asking about illegal foreign contributions to the Chamber of Commerce.


Anti-Incumbent or Anti-Democrat?

One of the question swirling around this election, is this an anti-incumbent election (throw the bums out) or is it an anti-democrat election (throw out the Democrats). Looking at the House of Representatives we see 81 SEATS THE DEMOCRATS HOLD AS EITHER TOSS UPS OR LIKELY REPUBLICAN PICKUPS. On the other side, WE SEE 4 REPUBLICAN SEATS as either toss ups or likely Democrat.



The early vote: Signs of GOP passion

Just over a week before Election Day, signs of widespread Republican enthusiasm are apparent in the early-voter data, including in some places with highly competitive statewide races. Yet at the same time, for Democrats there are promising data in numerous states suggesting that the idea of a devastating turnout gap may be overblown.


POLITICO surveyed early voting through Saturday in 20 states, and IN 14 OF THE 15 THAT HAVE VOTER REGISTRATION BY PARTY, THE GOP'S EARLY TURNOUT PERCENTAGE IS RUNNING AHEAD OF THE PARTY'S SHARE OF STATEWIDE VOTER REGISTRATION — whether measured against 2006 or 2008, when President Barack Obama's campaign led to a surge in Democratic voter registration. As a result, Republicans say they're turning the tables on the Democratic dominance of early voting that paved the way for Obama's victory in 2008 — and that INDEPENDENTS' LEAN TOWARD THE GOP THIS YEAR WILL DO THE REST.

http://dyn.politico.com/printstory.cfm?uuid=DF3D938C-C3C9-92EB-6E99C5B626F1D9B9


President Sarah Palin?

PRESIDENT PALIN” is cover of New York mag. (Cover image http://politi.co/cqmtht) John Heilemann teases out the “Morning Joe” theory/dream: SARAH PALIN AS THE REPUBLICAN NOMINEE, PLUS MAYOR BLOOMBERG AS A THIRD-PARTY CANDIDATE, COULD THROW THE RACE INTO THE HOUSE (AND JOHN GOES BEYOND “JOE” TO SAY SHE WOULD WIN): “Among two dozen senior strategists and operatives with whom I’ve spoken in recent day -- including many of those responsible for securing the nomination for the party’s last three standard-bearers -- there is a growing consensus that Palin is running or setting herself up to run.

And interesting scenario. Could it happen?

http://www.politico.com/playbook/


Debt Has Increased $5 Trillion Since Speaker Pelosi Vowed, ‘No New Deficit Spending’

(CNSNews.com) - When Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) gave her inaugural address as speaker of the House in 2007, she vowed there would be “no new deficit spending.” Since that day, the national debt has increased by $5 trillion, according to the U.S. Treasury Department.


"After years of historic deficits, this 110th Congress will commit itself to a higher standard: Pay as you go, no new deficit spending,” Pelosi said in her speech from the speaker’s podium. “Our new America will provide unlimited opportunity for future generations, not burden them with mountains of debt."

Even if we give speaker Pelosi the benefit of the debt doubt, we know that the deficit was 164 Billion dollars in 2007. Multiply that by 4 (4 years) and we have the debt rising $656 billion. In fact the actual increase was $5 trillion or 762% of what she had when she arrived.

http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/debt-has-increased-5-trillion-speaker-pe


Why the Democrats will lose next week.

And interesting write up of the difficulties the Democrats face. Are the Democrats coming home? Some of them are, but a number of them aren’t.

But my main thought while reading her rant was—why isn't she an Obama voter?


I'm serious. Was it really necessary to piss people like her off? Tucker's almost a perfect Obama voter. She's a single grandmom. Not rich. Famously worked at Wal-Mart (after being a rock star) and complained about it. A lifelong Democrat—until now. Was what Obama felt he had to do—save Detroit, save Wall Street, jumpstart the economy, pass health care reform—inevitably incompatible with her world view?

Read the rest. She went from a Democrat for Obama to a TEA Party member.

http://www.newsweek.com/blogs/kausfiles/2010/10/24/how-did-obama-lose-velvet-underground-drummer-moe-tucker.html


Ed Koch: The Coming Political Tsunami

I predict a Republican victory of tsunami proportions on November 2nd.


For the last six months in various public forums, I have said that Republicans will take both the House and Senate. Most political observers, citing statistics from various states, continue to say that, while it appears certain that the House will go Republican, there are too few Senate seats in play for a Republican takeover

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2010/10/26/the_coming_political_tsunami_107726.html




.

Mistakes have been made

RCP and the HOUSE

In looking at the election you want to watch what overall is happening. I’m using the RCP number in the House of Representatives. Are the Democrats making inroads? So far the answer is no.

Over the last 4 days, RCP has reassigned 15 seats. 2 of them took races in the Democrats favor while 13 of the moves went for the Republicans. The average gain for the REPUBLICANS IN THE HOUSE HAS GONE FROM 56 TO 61 A NET GAIN OF 5 SEATS.

I’ve also watch the Sunday morning shows. Getting guesses from their pundits, the liberal leaning Meet the Press had a number saying the House will go Republican but the Senate won’t while a couple of pundits said they thought the Democrats would just barely hang on to the House and the Senate. They reminded me of 1994 when Eleanor Clift said the Republicans would take the Senate but there was no way they could take the House. I’m seeing the same thing from Left wing pundits. They can’t bring themselves to even imagine the Democrats will be fired a week from Tuesday.

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2010/house/2010_elections_house_map.html


Is Obama a Socialist?

Now a new book by Stanley Kurtz -- a senior fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center and a Harvard PhD -- reveals why we should have probed the disconnect when we had a chance. Americans increasingly sense we were sold a bill of goods, and Kurtz explains why in "Radical-in-Chief: Barack Obama and the Untold Story of American Socialism." OUR PRESIDENT ISN'T WHAT HE CLAIMS TO BE, says Kurtz. Obama's plummeting approval ratings, and the electoral tsunami about to hit Democrats, reflect voters' sense of betrayal.


In fact, Kurtz goes further, and makes an electrifying charge: Obama has purposely disguised what he believes, and is actively seeking to mislead the American people about his agenda. OBAMA, SAYS KURTZ, IS A SOCIALIST. He believes -- not in state ownership -- but in a savvier version of socialism that seeks to transform and undermine American capitalism through ever-expanding government control; irreversible entitlements; and a metastasizing public sector.

http://www.startribune.com/opinion/commentary/105550623.html?page=1&c=y


Leftists views of The TEA Party

Here’s an interesting article on a leftist academics conference trying to understand the TEA Party. These folks seem angry and confused and you may need to read it a couple of times to get an insight into what these folks believe.

"If you look across the board here, true skeptics of the Tea Party, 49 percent agreed with the proposition that blacks ought to work their way up without any special favors," says Parker. "But if you look at the true believers, that goes to 92 percent. THIS IS ANOTHER INDICATOR OF RACISM, RIGHT: Over the past few years, blacks have gotten less than they deserve. Forty-five percent of true skeptics disagree with this; almost 80 percent of true believers disagree with this."

http://www.slate.com/id/2272097/pagenum/all/



Big Labor’s Big Mistake

It’s Big Labor’s Big Mistake going into the Big Midterms. The union’s mistake was that IT HAS GOTTEN OUT IN FRONT OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE WHEN IT COMES TO SPENDING ON THE ELECTION. If you take a look at the top five outside spenders on candidates running in the midterms, you’ll see that the National Education Association (the teachers union) and the Service Employees International Union (second largest after AFSCME in terms of public employees, also has a lot of healthcare workers) have spent a combined total with AFSCME of $171.5 million. Big Labor has now outspent the two biggest boogeymen on the right--the Chamber of Commerce and American Crossroads, who have spent a combined total of $140 million.

http://politics.usnews.com/opinion/blogs/mary-kate-cary/2010/10/22/big-labors-big-mistake-in-the-2010-elections.html


So as Obama and the Democrats decry the big money spent against them, we are finding out that even more money is being spent for them. And this money at least indirectly comes from the Tax Payers through public employee unions.



Where did the Democrats go wrong?

The liberal journalist Peter Beinart noted that for decades Democratic leaders had treated the American public’s latent conservatism as a sleeping bear: THE CHIEF IMPERATIVE WAS TO AVOID SUDDEN MOVES THAT WOULD ROUSE IT. But the Reagan era was now over, and Democrats no longer needed to live in fear. THAT’S WHAT OBAMA’S “YES WE CAN” SLOGAN MEANT TO LIBERALS: Yes we can move past both conservatism and Clintonian triangulation. Liberalism was living in its favored political tense: the future perfect.

Democrats could look at the political landscape with confidence, assured of three things. The country had decisively rejected conservatism and moved leftward. The idea of small government had been discredited by the financial crisis. And the president’s persuasive powers could get the Democrats through any remaining difficulties.

http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/250736/bender-over-rich-lowry


The article is an interesting look at the hubris of the Democrats after the 2008 election. It is apparent they didn’t hear what the American people were actually saying because they were too busy telling each other what they wanted to hear.



It’s the economy, stupid

Democrats are perplexed. Here is a case that should be bringing a Republican Senator down and it doesn’t seem to be doing what the Democrats expected. In any other time it probably would, but in this election social issues are a non sequitur. It’s all about the economy.

NEW ORLEANS -- In July 2007, when Sen. David Vitter acknowledged a "very serious sin" in his past during the D.C. Madam prostitution scandal, many pundits wrote the Louisiana Republican's political obituary.


After all, Vitter was one of the country's fiercest social conservatives who was elected to Congress in 1999 after former Rep. Bob Livingston (R-La.) was forced to step down as the result of his own adultery scandal.


No one, including most Republicans, believed Vitter could survive charges of hypocrisy that would surely come as part of a re-election campaign


But with only nine days left before Election Day -- and despite the best efforts of his Democratic opponent, Rep. Charlie Melancon, to make Vitter's personal problems a defining issue -- the first-term Senator appears headed to a relatively comfortable re-election victory.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/cq/20101024/pl_cq_politics/politics000003755122

 

The Best of the Election Campaign so Far

Best Political Ad


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJ36H9lkeRc


It appears SHARRON ANGLE UNDERSTANDS WHO SHE IS REALLY RUNNING AGAINST.

Best Commentary on why to vote Republican

http://www.weeklystandard.com/print/articles/they-hate-our-guts_511739.html

THIS IS NOT AN ELECTION ON NOVEMBER 2. THIS IS A RESTRAINING ORDER. Power has been trapped, abused and exploited by Democrats. Go to the ballot box and put an end to this abusive relationship. And let’s not hear any nonsense about letting the Democrats off if they promise to get counseling.

NPR—Nonpartisan?

Washington-based NPR said the firing was the culmination of a long series of run-ins with Williams in which he was warned to stick to news analysis and not veer into personal opinions or inflammatory commentary. NPR executives have also said they have been concerned that Fox News has used Williams, an avowedly liberal analyst, to paint NPR itself as a liberal news organization rather than a nonpartisan one.

Two points here. DOES ANYONE REALLY CONSIDER NPR NONPARTISAN especially after this firing? Second, does NPR really consider Williams saying that he gets “nervous” when he sees people in full muslim garb on a plane “inflammatory.”

Here’s column from Jonathon Alder at Newsweek. HOPE AND CHANGE SEEMS TO HAVE MORPHED INTO FEAR AND LOATHING.

Let’s say you’re an independent voter who wants to send Obama a message on Nov. 2. Have the media told you what that would say? Here’s a clue: MODERATE REPUBLICANS ARE EXTINCT. With big wins, the TEA Party will transform itself from an insurgency into the driving force within the GOP. Gains in statehouses and legislatures will allow right-wingers to use the 2010 census to redraw district lines that will entrench them in power until 2020. Back in charge in Washington, THEY WILL LIKELY BLOCK EVEN CENTRIST CHOICES FOR COURTS. Extremist senators like Jim DeMint and Tom Coburn will move from being irritants on the fringe to players at the center of our politics.


A question for Democrats disinclined to work on congressional campaigns: do you know the GOP agenda? In brief: repeal health-care reform, so if you lose your job and your kid gets sick, YOU MAY HAVE TO SELL THE HOUSE;

http://www.newsweek.com/2010/10/23/alter-midterms-matter.html



RCP and the HOUSE
Latest change at RCP and the battle for the House of Representatives include FOUR DISTRICTS THAT HAVE ALL CHANGED FOR THE BETTER FOR REPUBLICANS. All of these have gone from toss ups to leans Republicans.

Overall the RCP has 220 Republican seats that are safe, likely or leaning to the GOP, 178 Democrat seats in those categories and 37 toss ups. If these stay as they are now, the GOP wins the House without having to take even one of the 37 toss up seats. If the Republicans would take all the toss up seats (not likely, but it will give you an idea of the magnitude of their victory) they would take a net 78 seats from the Democrats. If they would take half the seats, they would net 60 to 61 seats.

NYTimes—G.O.P. poised to seize the House if not the Senate

After months of every sign signaling a huge change in the coming election, we are seeing even liberal media starting to admit the truth; goodbye Speaker Pelosi.


President Obama campaigned for a fourth consecutive day on Saturday as THE DEMOCRAT PARTY THREW ITS FULL WEIGHT INTO PREVENTING A DEFEAT OF HISTORIC PROPORTIONS in an election shaped by a sour economy, intense debate over the White House’s far-reaching domestic agenda and the rise of a highly energized grass-roots conservative movement.


But Republicans have placed enough seats into play that Democrats now seem likely to give up many of the gains they made in the last two election cycles, leaving Washington on the brink of a substantial shift in the balance of power.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/24/us/politics/24campaign.html?_r=1


Even Obama is losing hope

There is no doubt that this is going to be a difficult election,” Obama told a crowd of roughly 8,000 enthusiastic supporters at the University of Minnesota.


At a fundraising dinner after the rally in Minneapolis, Obama was frank with the 100 attendees who paid between $2,500 and $50,000 to attend.


“I’ve got to admit, Mr. President, sometimes over the last couple of years, with all the negative ads and all the money that’s been pouring in, all the filibustering and obstruction in Congress, sometimes I JUST START LOSING ALTITUDE, START LOSING HOPE,” Obama said. “It just seems like change is so hard to bring about.”

Reminds me of a skit that was on Saturday Night Live during the democrat primaries in 2008.


http://dailycaller.com/2010/10/24/president-obama-this-is-going-to-be-a-difficult-election/#ixzz13Gu5cYIR



James Carville Contests View Anger At Obama Is Racist

When I see this, I BECOME MORE AND MORE CONVINCED, HILLARY IS PLANNING ON RUNNING AGAINST OBAMA. The technique is called inoculation and Carville appears to be inoculating Hillary against charges of racism for her run.

For well over a year, the media have been unashamedly claiming the anti-Obama sentiments sweeping the nation are all because the President is black.


According to Howard Kurtz, former Clinton adviser James Carville told Saturday's Innovators Summit in New Orleans that this is all nonsense:


The onetime Clinton strategist SCOFFED AT SUGGESTIONS THAT THERE'S AN UNUSUALLY FIERCE ANGER AT OBAMA in the country, and that some of it is race-related. In 1998, when Bill Clinton was in the process of getting himself impeached, Carville says people would come over and yell at him in airports.

http://newsbusters.org/blogs/noel-sheppard/2010/10/23/james-carville-contests-view-anger-obama-racist#ixzz13FON35oS


How the Press handles Democrat mistakes
Does the MSM have a liberal bias? Is the Pope Catholic?

When a Democrat or leftist makes an ill-advised remark, it seems that there's a three-stage process at the Associated Press, and perhaps in most other establishment press outlets, for handling it. It goes roughly like this:


• Stage 1 - Ignore it as long as you can. If there isn't much outcry, keep ignoring it.


• Stage 2 - If there ends up being enough of an outcry from conservatives or Republicans to warrant coverage, make sure that the story is about the criticism at least as much as the remark.


• Stage 3 - In the ensuing coverage, leave out what was originally said.

http://newsbusters.org/blogs/tom-blumer/2010/10/23/reid-depression-remark-ignored-ap-until-gop-responds-tarp-2008-deception#ixzz13FOqyUbb


 http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/10/22/AR2010102206616.html?hpid=topnews



Who’s pitching Fear in the 2010 elections?

Two, four, six, eight who do we underappreciate?



The second most underappreciated politician

 The Obama Underappreciating syndrome


Yesterday Obama pronounced that we have a pretty good president so if you disagree, you obviously don't appreciate all he has done.

But of course. Here Obama has spent two years bestowing upon the peasantry the “New Foundation” of a more regulated, socially engineered and therefore more humane society, and they repay him with recalcitrance and outright opposition. Here he gave them Obamacare, the stimulus, financial regulation and a shot at cap-and-trade -- and the electorate remains not just unmoved but ungrateful.


Faced with this truly puzzling conundrum, Dr. Obama diagnoses a heretofore undiscovered psychological derangement: ANXIETY-INDUCED OBAMA UNDERAPPRECIATION SYNDROME, wherein an entire population is so addled by its economic anxieties as to be neurologically incapable of appreciating the "facts and science" undergirding Obamacare and the other blessings their president has bestowed upon them from on high.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/10/21/AR2010102104856.html



President Obama: 'I take some responsibility' for distortions of record

This is the equivalent of telling an interviewer when s/he asks you about your biggest fault, “I tend to be so engrossed in my work, I will forget about my personal life and work to all hours of the evening.” Well with all the golfing he does we know that isn’t the case here, but that doesn’t mean he can’t spin it anyway.

Asked about media “distortions” of his record, President Barack Obama told voters in a small backyard gathering here that HE’S PARTLY TO BLAME FOR THE COMMUNICATIONS DILEMMA he faces ahead of the Nov. 2 midterm elections.


When he took office in January 2009, the president said, his ADMINISTRATION WAS SO CONSUMED BY THE ECONOMIC CRISIS THAT IT WAS HARD TO TELL THE PUBLIC ABOUT THEIR SUCCESSES — and claim the credit. Obama added that he could have done a better job of publicly selling his accomplishments and protecting them against unfounded attacks.


“I think that one of the challenges we had two years ago is that we had to move so fast,” Obama said. “We were in such emergency mode that it was very difficult for us to spend a lot of time doing victory laps and advertising what we were doing because we were moving on to the next thing.”

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1010/43974.html#ixzz136QWgTXH


RCP and the HOUSE

Latest change at RCP and the battle for the House of Representatives include FIVE DISTRICTS THAT HAVE ALL CHANGED FOR THE BETTER FOR REPUBLICANS.

KS3 has gone from Leans GOP to likely GOP. SDAL has gone from Toss Up to Leans GOP. NM2 and TN4 have gone from leans Dem to Toss up, and MN8 has gone from likely Dem to leans Dem. (note: the abbreviation KS3 means the third congressional district Kansas).  For the Democrats the only good news is PA17 has gone from Leans Dem to Likely Dem. 

Overall the RCP has 216 Republican seats that are safe, likely or leaning to the GOP, 178 Democrat seats in those categories and 41 toss ups.  If these stay as they are now, the GOP needs to win 2 of the 41 toss ups to take control of the House while the Democrats must win 40 of the 41 seats to maintain control 

Politics has changed

Here’s a fun BARNEY FRANK VIRAL VIDEO by his opponent for Congress. Could BF be in trouble. I think the answer is yes.

http://www.bostonherald.com/news/politics/view.bg?articleid=1290675

Here’s another funny video. Spoof on Senator Boxer’s run in with the military.

http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/dzucker/2010/10/22/call-me-madam-let-this-video-be-my-apology-for-once-supporting-sen-boxer/


And I just wanted to say "I worked so hard to bring these to you."

Campaign's Big Spender

Public-Employees Union Now Leads All Groups in Independent Election OutlaysIn never ceases to amaze me that money for politics is bad if it is from conservative sources, but is somehow washed cleaned if it comes from liberal sources. Hence the KOCH BROTHERS ARE MANIPULATING THE SYSTEM WHILE GEORGE SOROS IS A PARTICIPATING IN DEMOCRACY. Go figure.

The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees is now the biggest outside spender of the 2010 elections, thanks to an 11th-hour effort to boost Democrats that has vaulted the public-sector union ahead of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the AFL-CIO and a flock of new Republican groups in campaign spending.


The 1.6 million-member AFSCME is spending a total of $87.5 million on the elections after tapping into a $16 million emergency account to help fortify the Democrats' hold on Congress. Last week, AFSCME dug deeper, taking out a $2 million loan to fund its push. The group is spending money on television advertisements, phone calls, campaign mailings and other political efforts, helped by a Supreme Court decision that loosened restrictions on campaign spending

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303339504575566481761790288.html


Kind of makes you wonder when Obama is going to check out to see if any foreign money is involved.


Did the Republicans peak too early?


Republicans are looking for a wave election while the Democrats claim they are getting some momentum.

A new survey out Friday finds that they’re both right. The national survey of 2,251 adults (1,797 of them registered voters and 1,354 of them likely voters) from Oct. 13-18 by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press confirms much of what has been speculated for months now about the election: More voters favor Republican candidates and conservative voters are far more energized and likely to vote than liberal voters.


But in the current environment, 10 days out from election day, each side is trying to project confidence, trying to shake the other party’s confidence, and races are naturally getting closer as more voters engage — a poll confirming the conventional wisdom is news.


That is especially true in that the survey shows that Democrats are indeed gaining momentum, but puts that fact in context. In essence, the poll says, the efforts of President Obama and Democrats to energize their own base have served to erect a modest undertow that will mitigate the size of the Republican wave that is in the process of crashing on shore.


But the wave is still coming.

http://dailycaller.com/2010/10/22/democratic-momentum-looks-to-be-only-a-slight-drag-on-gop-wave-new-poll-finds/#ixzz138tuv2I1

Who will vote this year?

Who will vote in 2010?

Who's Going to Vote This Year?


Confused by the widely varying polls this year. Here’s a pretty good article explaining some of the technique and problems pollsters have.

The most difficult job a pollster has is trying to figure out who the actual voters are going to be in a given election year. This is easier said than done, because we know that (a) almost all survey participants say they will vote in the midterm election and (b) historically, only about 40 percent will.


Pollsters do their best to solve this problem by screening out those who are unlikely to vote using a question or series of questions probing interest in the election and/or prior voting behavior. These techniques vary widely from pollster to pollster. Some pollsters use especially "loose" voter screens: asking only, for example, if someone is certain to vote, without probing any deeper.

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2010/10/22/whos_going_to_vote_this_year_107686.html


Ohio Democrat Threatens Pro-Life Leader with Jail

Here’s was desperation looks like.

Rep. Steve Driehaus (D-Ohio) got himself into deep water when he took a principled stand to defend life earlier this year -- then buckled to his pro-abortion leadership to vote in favor of passing Obamacare.


The legislation passed by Democrats allows the use of taxpayer dollars to fund abortion on demand through government-run insurance plans.


Marjorie Dannenfelser, President of the Susan B. Anthony List (SBA List), IS BEING THREATENED WITH POSSIBLE JAIL TIME FOR INFORMING VOTERS THAT DRIEHAUS VOTED IN FAVOR OF TAXPAYER-FUNDED ABORTION with his vote for Obamacare.

“Ironically, ours is the position that so-called ‘pro-life’ Democrats themselves held before they changed their minds. It is also the position held by the National Right to Life Committee, Americans United for Life, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Ohio Right to Life and numerous other organizations and policy experts,” Dannenfelser said.


SBA List sought to purchase four billboards across Driehaus’ Congressional district informing voters that his vote in favor of Obamacare was a vote for taxpayer funding of abortion. Driehaus filed a complaint with the Ohio Elections Commission on Tuesday, October 6th alleging the SBA List was making false accusations, citing a criminal statute in the complaint.

http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=39498&page=1



White House's Valerie Jarrett Drops "Foreign Money" Accusation

It appears the brouhaha over foreign money and the Chamber of Commerce is over. As one more attempt by the Democrats to smear the Republicans has failed, Valeria Jarrett is now talking about transparency rather than illegal activities.

Over the past several weeks numerous members of the Obama administration and various Democrats have claimed groups such as the Chamber of Commerce and GOP advocacy campaigns, such as Karl Rove's Crossroads GPS have taken "foreign money."

However, on MSNBC's "Morning Joe," White House senior adviser Valerie Jarrett did not accuse these groups of taking foreign money. Instead, she claimed President Obama has been an "advocate for disclosure and transparency in campaign finance."

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2010/10/21/white_houses_valerie_jarrett_drops_foreign_money_accusation.html


How low will he go? Obama approval hits yet another bottom and 54% now say, 'No second term'

It's too late to back out now because President Obama is already racking up frequent flier miles on his Western campaign swing, allegedly to help out embattled Democratic senators.


But a new Gallup Poll out this morning puts the top Democrat himself at his lowest approval rating ever and finds most Americans do not want the Real Good Talker to have a second term....


The new survey reveals that the more Americans get to know this guy, the less they like him. His ...


... approval rating has gone down every single quarter since that sunny promising inauguration on Jan. 20, 2009.


For the third quarter of 2010, the seventh of his presidency, Obama's approval fell 2 more points, from 47.3% to 44.7%. These results are based on daily tracking polls involving some 90,000 Americans.


His highest favorable rating was just before he took office, 78%. Since then it's been a plummet of 31 points.


According to Gallup's results, 39% of Americans now believe Obama deserves a second term.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2010/10/obama-approval-record-low.html


Can Democrats Pull Off a 'Dewey Defeats Truman' Feat? Not Likely, Polls Say

The Dewey fiasco is something the Democrats can only dream of. In fact, even as some races have tightened, they have tightened against democrats as much as they have against Republicans. In the RCP Battle for the House, the Democrats have seen one more seat switched from lean Democrat to Toss Up. So with 42 toss ups the Republicans need to win 4 to gain control while the Democrats need to win 39 to keep control.

Facing grim news in one major national poll after another, some Democrats may be hoping for a "Dewey Defeats Truman" moment. That was the headline in 150,000 copies of the Chicago Daily Tribune on election night in 1948 after a campaign in which a series of polls showed New York's Republican governor, Tom Dewey, way ahead of incumbent President Harry Truman.

Now, the Pew Research Center joins the queue of major surveys showing the Republicans headed for a big day on Nov. 2. While the unexpected could happen in a year of surprises, it is a lot less likely that today's pollsters are repeating the mistake that Gallup made 62 years ago when it quit doing surveys two weeks before the election even though 14 percent of voters were still undecided.
The Pew poll, conducted Oct. 13-18, has Republicans leading on the generic congressional ballot by 50 percent to 40 percent. In September's survey, the lead had been 50 percent to 43 percenthttp://www.politicsdaily.com/2010/10/21/can-democrats-pull-off-a-dewey-defeats-truman-feat-not-likely/

Update:  And speaking of "Dewey beats Truman" it seems AP on said as of 10/21 Democrats had a BIG turnout in early voting in Maryland.  The problem is, early voting in Maryland didn't start until today.

Here is an interesting question that I have for the Associated Press. The AP has a story from October 21 that features the news that Democrats in Maryland are turning out in bigger numbers for early voting than Republicans. But according to the Maryland State Board of Elections, early voting in the Old Line State isn’t supposed to start until October 22.


http://canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/29052



How the GOP was saved from Bush and the establishment.

Peggy Noonan comes through explaining how the Republicans have risen from the dead and why the Democrats refuse to see it.

Two central facts give shape to the historic 2010 election. The first is not understood by Republicans, and the second not admitted by Democrats.


The first: the tea party is not a "threat" to the Republican Party; the tea party saved the Republican Party. In a broad sense, the tea party rescued it from being the fat, unhappy, querulous creature it had become, a party that didn't remember anymore why it existed, or what its historical purpose was. The tea party, with its energy and earnestness, restored the GOP to itself. ….


Because of this, because they did not go third-party, Nov. 2 is not going to be a disaster for the Republicans, but a triumph.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304023804575566503565327356.html