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You are here: Home / Archives for Elections / Local races 2019/2020

Local races 2019/2020

Credit Where Due Open Thread: Not All GOP Michiganders

by Anne Laurie|  January 10, 202111:04 am| 323 Comments

This post is in: Excellent Links, Local races 2019/2020, Open Threads

Yesterday’s assault on the Capitol didn’t have to happen. Politicians who spread the lies that incited this violence bear responsibility. Politicians who continue to lie in order to shift blame and falsely claim this was Antifa or BLM, are contemptible. More thoughts: pic.twitter.com/ZbMPfPXEi5

— Rep. Peter Meijer (@RepMeijer) January 7, 2021

It ain’t all kakistocrats, even in Betsy deVos’s back yard. Peter Meijer (grandson of the man who founded the deservedly beloved Meijers chain) brings the truth:

show full post on front page

We can’t paper over the assault on the Capitol with empty calls for ‘unity.’ Unless my party faces the truth of what happened and holds those responsible to account, we will never regain the public’s trust and earn the honor of leading the nation forward. https://t.co/QudmjFEZ8o

— Rep. Peter Meijer (@RepMeijer) January 10, 2021

On Wednesday afternoon in the House Chamber, I assured a colleague we were in the most secure possible place as we unpacked gas masks.

Tear gas had been deployed after violent protestors stormed the rotunda, but as we took cover under bulletproof chairs I assured my colleague we would be fine. After all, there had been incidents in the past, but Capitol Police had maintained control over the seat of our democracy since 1814.

The mob then rushed the barricaded doors to the chamber, trying to break them down. The illusion of security, of the sanctity of our constitutional order, collapsed. With guns drawn, police ordered us to evacuate, leading to chaos as we fled down corridors and into the tunnels beneath Capitol Hill. Several times our group of lawmakers found ourselves alone, with no police escort, fearful of what threats might lie around the next corner…

My colleague told me that efforts to overturn the election were wrong, and that voting to certify was a constitutional duty. But my colleague feared for family members, and the danger the vote would put them in. Profoundly shaken, my colleague voted to overturn.

An angry mob succeeded in threatening at least one member of Congress from performing what that member understood was a constitutional responsibility…

Worse yet, while a dead woman’s blood dried mere feet from our chamber, other Republican colleagues doubled down, repeating lies of a stolen election, baselessly deflecting blame for the Capitol assault from Trump loyalists to Antifa, doing whatever they could to justify, equivocate, rationalize or otherwise avoid taking responsibility for the consequences of their actions.

Blood has been spilled, and those who encouraged this insurrection are in too deep.

Those of us who refused to cower, who have told the truth, have suffered the consequences. Republican colleagues who have spoken out have been accosted on the street, received death threats, and even assigned armed security…

It didn’t have to end like this, with five people dead, including a Capitol Police officer. This should be a moment of reckoning for the country as a whole, and the conservative movement in particular.

If the Republican party ever hopes to regain the public’s trust and lead the country forward after this heinous assault, it must first be honest with itself.

I personally think Rep. Meijer is too optimistic about his comrades’ ability to face the truth, but I give him points for speaking up.

While I don’t doubt they said this to Meijer, I think they just felt more comfortable saying that instead of saying they were simply lying for political advantage. https://t.co/cKxN3HpxKB

— Josh Barro (@jbarro) January 10, 2021


(It’s actually a pretty good interview, even if it is Reason magazine.)

Credit Where Due Open Thread: Not All GOP MichigandersPost + Comments (323)

One Little Story

by @heymistermix.com|  November 8, 202010:32 am| 62 Comments

This post is in: Local races 2019/2020

I want to talk about a local election that’s an interesting reflection of the change we’re seeing in blue states. It’s my New York State Senate seat, District 55. The Republican holding the seat is your average white man, Rich Funke, who retired rather than face the living hell of being in the minority now that the NY Senate is majority Democrat. Funke is anti-choice and a bit of a tool, but he’s popular due to being a former TV sportscaster. This is a very white (77%) suburban district and Funke won in 2018 52/48 against a good candidate, Jen Lunsford. In 2016 he ran unopposed, and in 2014 he soundly beat the Democratic incumbent, Ted O’Brien (59/41).

After Funke’s retirement, the Republican party ran a 39 year-old male, white lawyer and Army vet, and the Democrats ran Samra Brouk, a 34 year-old black woman whose previous qualifications include doing fundraising for a non-profit. I listened to a debate between the two and she’s razor sharp and quite progressive. Still, I was doubting that she could win a district that recently rejected a couple of good Democrats.

I was wrong: it was 52/48 Brouk, a result that I would not have predicted even in my more optimistic moments.

I would chalk this one up to suburban moms, just as I’ve chalked up other recent Democratic wins in my town, which was formerly a Republican stronghold for the town, county and state legislative offices (even though it consistently voted for Democratic federal and statewide candidates.) Trump has turned the letter “R” after someone’s name in any election into a poison pill, and those moms have a solid turnout operation.

I’ll also add that Brouk won despite some of the most ugly, racist TV ads I’ve seen in a long time. They showed pictures from some rioting in Rochester side-by-side with her face and basically insinuated that she supported the riots. These ads, like most New York Republican ratfucking, aired a few days before the election and have disappeared from sight.

Here’s a thread to report on local races in your area.

One Little StoryPost + Comments (62)

Open Thread: Colorado From Cherry Red to Midnight Blue

by TaMara|  October 9, 202012:31 pm| 145 Comments

This post is in: Biden-Harris 2020, Election 2020, Local races 2019/2020, Open Threads, Politics, Take Back The Senate 2020

Okay, it’s more deep purple to blue, but I needed an excuse to listen to Lou Gramm.  Although when I moved back here in the early 90’s it was a cherry red state. But we fixed that.

I know we are not Texas-level electoral college numbers (and you keep on moving that needle Texas) but I was pleased to see the latest polls for Colorado:

 

 

Colorado President Poll

There have actually been a few ads for the orange disease on television that I’ve seen. One directed at the Latino community that is just awful. Fear-mongering, intimating that they are afraid to say they’ll vote for the Orange one out loud, so they are part of the “silent majority.”

The entire ad is done in silence with a terrified looking woman sitting on a bed flipping poster board notes (seriously it looked like they were holding her hostage and making her flip these cards or they’d kill her dog), and telling us her silent vote was “for the children.” I refrained from throwing something at the television.

Biden has had very few ads as well. Much different than 2008 and 2012 when we were quite the prize for the DNC. I prefer being ignored. Though the Doug Emhoff was in town last night!

Gearing up for tonight’s car rally with @DouglasEmhoff! #BidenHarris pic.twitter.com/xvydYVRiA4

— Joe For Colorado (@JoeForCO) October 8, 2020

Looks like we’ll flip that Senate seat:

Senate race Colorado

show full post on front page

Cory Gardner has run the WORST campaign against one of the most popular Governors in recent history. His final salvo has been, “hey it’s better to have a Democratic Senator AND a Republican Senator to get things done, showing sunny photos with him and Sen. Michael Bennett. Bennett quickly came out and reminded everyone he was supporting Hickenlooper.

Colorado Senate 2

Finally:

Supreme Court Colorado

Despite having a poorly worded and confusing abortion ban proposition on the ballot that is polling tooclose for comfort, support for pushing through a new justice is lower than the actual abortion proposition. So I guess that’s good news.

Lots of good video and more details about the polling at this link: 9News

That’s probably more than you wanted to know about Colorado politics! But would love to hear what your state looks like 25 days out from the election.

Otherwise, open thread

Open Thread: Colorado From Cherry Red to Midnight BluePost + Comments (145)

Après Moi Le Déluge

by Tom Levenson|  October 6, 20204:28 pm| 265 Comments

This post is in: Dolt 45, Election 2020, Local races 2019/2020, Open Threads, Politics, Republican Stupidity

As a bunch of jackals have noted in the comments, Trump’s entered his burn it down phase:

President Donald Trump has ordered his negotiators to halt talks over a new stimulus package, after the two sides have struggled for months to reach a deal.

“I have instructed my representatives to stop negotiating until after the election when, immediately after I win, we will pass a major Stimulus Bill that focuses on hardworking Americans and Small Business,” Trump wrote in a series of tweets Tuesday afternoon.
So that’s everyone working for a living and every small (and large!) business person…and Wall Street’s MOTUs too! who now knows exactly who to blame for every lost job, (and house), venture, next Ferrari or whatever.

Après Moi Le Déluge

Add that to the fact that older Americans are, seemingly, starting to conclude that it’s a bad idea to vote for a man and a party that sees their deaths as a useful response to the coronavirus epidemic and it’s pretty clear that Trump–or at least anyone around him possessed of greater sentience than Barney Frank’s dining room table–doesn’t think he’s going to win.

 

So why not tank the economy? Leave Joe and Kamala with the most ginormous steaming heap of Republican ordure to clean up and hope they choke on it.

 

Also too: the grift will be in ludicrous mode from now to January 20. I’m beginning to suspect that the reason Trump is cancelling ad buys is because he wants to hang on to every dime of campaign cash until the last dog dies.

 

Over the next weeks/months the only thing worse than Trump losing is Trump winning–and that’s waaaaaaaaaaay worse.

 

Image: Albrecht Dürer, The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, 1498.

Après Moi Le DélugePost + Comments (265)

Friday Morning Open Thread: Go Local

by Anne Laurie|  March 6, 20208:10 am| 237 Comments

This post is in: Election 2020, Local races 2019/2020, Open Threads

ByeDon 2020 - Mike Luckovich

(Mike Luckovich via GoComics.com)

 
Murphy the Trickster God willing, by March 18th we’ll be able to focus on fighting Trump — and also on giving the new Democratic president a Senate that will back (sigh) him up.

Any bets on when Biden will announce his VP choice?

If you're upset about @ewarren dropping out, let's get her some new friends in the senate.

Even if the top of our ticket doesn't excite you, just keep telling yourself "SCOTUS" https://t.co/gapwTDniDF

— i'm that trigger (@luckybastard77) March 5, 2020

Of course! We picked 8 races—North Carolina, Texas, Maine, Arizona, Iowa, Colorado and both seats in Georgia—just to be sure. #FLIPTHESENATE https://t.co/BaAhWrLNjp

— Swing Left (@swingleft) March 5, 2020

Add South Carolina. Jaime is two points down to Lindsey Graham https://t.co/1bfstORJnQ

— Howard Dean (@GovHowardDean) March 5, 2020

I'M GOING FOR ALL OF 'EM: #FlipTheSenatehttps://t.co/VrlvgR8jjr
(I know some of these are pipe dreams but what the heck)

— Charles Gaba (@charles_gaba) March 5, 2020

Friday Morning Open Thread: Go LocalPost + Comments (237)

When There’s Nothing Left to Burn You Have To Set Yourself on Fire

by @heymistermix.com|  February 16, 202011:26 am| 56 Comments

This post is in: Local races 2019/2020

Elise Stefanik is 35 years old. As a representative from one of the most rural, but certainly not the most conservative (R+4), districts in New York, NY-21, she would have had a long career as a Republican when Republicans were a little bit more sane. Unfortunately for her and the country, Republicans are insane, so she faced a choice: go crazy with them, or kiss your seat goodbye. We all know what happened next: her actions on the Intelligence committee were essentially indistinguishable from Gym Jordan’s, and her antics made her a Fox News star.

This is old news, but I thought those of you who enjoy old school (read: good) small town newspapering might enjoy today’s commentary from the editor of the Glen Falls, NY Post-Star, Ken Tingley. I don’t want to ruin it by giving an excerpt, but here’s the background in a pair of tweets from Stefanik’s opponent, Tedra Cobb:

#ICYMI: In the fall @RepStefanik worked to pack a town hall with a right-wing group, who’s leader threatened a #NY21 reporter on more than one occasion.

Members of the media shouldn’t fear for their safety. Particularly due to the actions of a MOC.https://t.co/HuYL4UeFNL

— Tedra Cobb for Congress (@TedraCobb) February 16, 2020

You’ll need to answer an annoying question from Google to read the piece, but why not put 1/10 of a cent into their kitty? I think they need it. More on local news from Margaret Sullivan at the Post if the subject interests you.

When There’s Nothing Left to Burn You Have To Set Yourself on FirePost + Comments (56)

Election Year Open Thread: I Just Donated to Sara Gideon…

by Anne Laurie|  February 10, 20208:43 pm| 48 Comments

This post is in: Election 2020, Local races 2019/2020, Open Threads, Take Back The Senate 2020, Cosplay Socialists

… because if *this* person is her opponent in November, Susan Collins will win reelection handily:

As a Maine resident, I can personally testify that more guillotine jokes are what redneck lobstermen and retirees want to see in politics https://t.co/FypRpccuTl

— Sneer Review (@TheSneerReview) February 9, 2020

According to the local Press-Herald, Kidman is an attorney who’s running in the Democratic primary, hoping to garner the existing $4million ‘Susan Collin’s opponent’ pot. I guess it’s not easy, getting legal work in Portland — ‘earned media’ is cheaper than buying tv ads.

Of course they have only the very best intentions…

We’ll be giving these shirts (& patches & buttons) to folks who talk with Mainers about our campaign to #StopElectingTheRich and #ShowUpForME.

More details on how to get your GuilloTee tomorrow! In the meantime, remember: there is not going to be a more convenient revolution.

— bre?️‍?kidman??for?Maine?(D) (@BeeKay4ME) February 5, 2020

Show Up for ME… Irresistable as a hashtag, I guess, but SRSLY?

I’m aware of the French Revolution, and how the story ends. A guillotine t-shirt reminds others about it in hopes that we’ll all be motivated to address the very serious problems with our government before a similarly violent uprising becomes inevitable.

— bre?️‍?kidman??for?Maine?(D) (@BeeKay4ME) February 8, 2020

Obvious question, answered:

Thanks for asking! AFAIK, I’m the only candidate in the race who‘s endorsed Bernie. I identify as a democratic socialist and I believe no industry which derives profit from denying us healthcare has a right to exist. Also support public-owned utilities. Happy to chat more!

— bre?️‍?kidman??for?Maine?(D) (@BeeKay4ME) February 7, 2020

Not helping. Well, not helping Democrats. Which is, I suppose, on brand for the Rose Emoji gang.

I think you need to take the L here

— AMMac (@BaklavaFairy) February 9, 2020

Election Year Open Thread: I Just Donated to Sara Gideon…Post + Comments (48)

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