respublica

Fox broadcasts alone

How bizarre.  Last night Fox News was the only cable station to air Nancy Pelosi's speech to the House of Representatives before the health care bill vote.

CNN decided to air a repeat of The Situation Room while MSNBC went with a real crime documentary.

As someone wrote on the TV Newser website:  As for MSNBC, They had to run their prison shows. So many prisons shows so little time!

Oh, and...they're still at it ...The Chicago Tribune writes:

"At least one Democratic political strategist has gotten a blunt warning from the White House to never appear on Fox News Channel.  he Democratic strategist said that shortly after an appearance on Fox, he got a phone call from a White House official telling him not to be a guest on the show again. The call had an intimidating tone, he said."

220-215

Close vote on the health care bill in the House.  Almost 2000 pages.

How did our local representatives vote?

Illinois

Costello      Yes

Shimkus      No

Missouri

Ike Skelton   No

Todd Akin    No

Russ Carnahan   Yes

Lacy Clay     Yes

Jo Ann Emerson   No

Blaine Leutkemeyer   No

Roy  Blunt   No

Election 09

The debriefing going on over yesterday's off year election has been intriguing.  It means nothing-some dem leaders and pundit say, the republicans are back-some repubs and pundits.

One thing is certain however, just like most past off year elections, many voters stay home.  It's the presidential year which brings out the numbers. 

There's a lot of talk this morning about the huge Obama coalition, the young, the African American and the Hispanic, who did not vote in big numbers in Virginia and New Jersey.

The Obama voters were cut in half this year, only 1 in 10 Obama voters 30 and under from last year voted yesterday.  Last year the under 30's voted 1 in 5.  Some pundits like Chuck Todd think these figures are a little scary when looking down the road at next year's congressional elections. 

This happens all the time, it's the presidential election which is the sexy one, numbers always fall off beyond that.

Here's a look at who voted in Virginia yesterday and last year and the percentage of who voted.

                                 2009               2008

30 and under               10                    22

30-44                          24                    30

45-64                          47                    38

65 and up                    18                    11

I wonder if having the big shots coming in to stump for state candidates are really worth the time they spend.  It didn't help in Virginia and New Jersey to have Obama there and it didn't help in upstate New York to have all manner of big whig republicans show up.

St. Louis County election results November 3

Update 9:15  The smoking ban is passing handily as is the sales tax increase for emergency communications.  Stacey Newman is also way ahead of Daniel F. O'Sullivan in the 73rd district representative race.

With a fairly low voter turnout and few candidates or propositions on the ballot, you'd think the County election board would be publishing the results much faster.  But no.

So far the only ballots counted seem to be the absentees and these results have support for a smoking ban ahead by a good margin-68-31 percent.

Absentee results for the sales tax increase in support of emergency communications have yes votes ahead 64-35 percent.

Absentee results for representative in the 73rd district-Stacy Newman leads Daniel F. O'Sullivan 53-45 percent.

More complete results as they become available

Baker's dozen in Illinois governor's race

13 candidates have filed with the Illinois board of elections to run for governor.

2-Green party candidates

7-Republicans

4-Democrats

All but one republican is from the Chicago area and two are actually from the same suburb, Hinsdale.

All demcrats are from the Chicago area

Do/don't make too much of these elections

The pundits are having a tough time deciding what today's elections will mean, especially the New York 23rd district vote, Virginia's governor's race, New Jersey's governor's race.

Will the results affirm Obama or a turning away from Obama?  It's all about Obama for some pundits.

Slate.com says, Don't read too much into today's results.  Republicans may win all the big races today but it means nothing in an off year election where local issues dominate.

Others believe republican victories may bring on an 'Obama's in trouble' state of political opinion.

Where oh where are all those young, first time voters in Virginia?  Everyone thought the youth vote for Obama would carry over to the average election.  Aren't they still filled voting enthusiasm?  How can they stay home in Virginia and let the republican win?  Naive pundits

Fun to watch.

Dede's revenge

New York's 23rd congressional race which generated lots of national interest.  It's a district which has elected a republican to congress for 100 years.

Dede Scozzafava was selected by local republican party leaders as their ballot candidate to run against democrat Bill Owens.  Then Doug Hoffman, a republican, unhappy with Scozzafava's social liberalism, got himself on the ballot as a member of the conservative party.  Lots of money was spent up there, lots of media attentions was spent up there, and lots of wrangling over Hoffman and Scozzafava's qualifications. 

Yesterday Scozzafava announced she was withdrawing.  And, she asked that her supporters go with democrat Owens. 

Many observors are now gleefully saying that, Ah Ha!  This just proves she really isn't a republican and shouldn't have been chosen in the first place.

I see this more as the reaction of a woman scorned.  I may get in trouble with other women on this, but it is so woman-ish to want to "get even" when you feel jilted.  And I say this as a woman. 

Another health bill? Ah, dither

I like the way everyone has been dropping the word 'dithering' into the political world lately.  Sometimes dithering is a good thing, sometimes it's an insult. 

Today Nancy Pelosi is all excited about the new House health care bill she unveiled today.  I'm not overly worked up over this news, after all, between the House and Senate there are quite a few of these bills languishing unread or having quietly disappeared into the ether. 

So, Dither away, Congress.  Take your time, read the entire 1900 page new edition of a health care bill.

Senator Coburn and Barney Frank agree

The democratic majority in Congress want to increase the role of government. 

Frank on MSNBC's Ed Martin show yesterday:  "We are trying on every front to increase the role of government."

Coburn on the 88 new bureaucracies coming out of the health care bill

Sun-Times critiques the White House

One of Obama's hometown papers, the Chicago Sun-Times finds the administration's excuses wearing thin.

"The White House trying to dictate who's a news organization. Democrats out to gut a business group. Obama media allies damning Americans as racist, unpatriotic and treasonous. Is this the America Obama promised when he campaigned to end the cynical and divisive politics of the past?"