Category: Elections

9 August 2011, 10:59 PM

Wisconsin Recall Update

As it stands right now, 2 Republicans were recalled, and 3 survived the vote, and one race, the race between Alberta Darling (R) and Sandy Pasch (D), is too close to call.

I’m not going to be up late enough to call this, but considering the fact that part of the district is in Waukesha County, where Waukesha County Clerk Kathy Nickolaus mysteriously found a few thousand votes for Supreme Court Justice David Prosser in April, I’m going to say that a surprisingly robust turnout from Waukesha County county will likely have ‘Phant winning.

Nicklaus is either incompetent or corrupt, but each time something comes up, the irregularities cut in favor or Republicans, so I’ll go with corrupt.

This means that the Republicans will maintain control of the Senate, which is a bummer.

Yes, recalls are hard, and the performance was historically good, these were Republican leaning districts, and the elections were close, but this is going to be spun as a Republican victory by the media and the conventional wisdom.

I will bet heavy odds that in the next few weeks, a senior administration official will be anonymously quoted excoriating the grass roots over wasting all that money and effort, just like they did over the Blanche Lincoln primary challenge.

In any case, I am turning off the teevee and going to bed.

(Morning update via mobile)
Confirmed. Only two pickups. Damn.

2 August 2011, 9:08 PM

And the Debt Deal Keeps On Giving

There are now serious concerns that Obama’s debt capitulation, which is rather similar to much of the Republican agenda passed in Wisconsin in the last two months, is likely to demoralize potential voters and volunteers.

It’s bad enough that the Republicans are once again corruptly trying to misinform voters and suppress voting, but now the we’ve got Obama’s cave to further discourage the Democratic party grass roots.

He’s the Manchurian Democrat. Cuel Tom Tomorrow:

26 July 2011, 9:58 PM

The Koch Suckers are Flooding the Zone in Wisconsin

No, I do not mean boots on the ground, the Kochs don’t work that way.

I mean money, and lots of it:

If you want to get a good sense of what’s really happening in the Wisconsin recall wars, keep an eye on the right wing money that’s now flooding into the races, in a last ditch effort to keep the state senate in Republican hands.

Club for Growth Wisconsin has dumped at least $1.5 million into the recall races, according to the progressive group One Wisconsin Now, which tells me it got the information from its ad tracker.

Even more tellingly, the Club has poured a surprising $400,000 into the battle to recall state senator Alberta Darling, who was once viewed as safe, One Wisconsin Now’s executive director Scot Ross tells me. Ross adds that his media tracker found that the Club sank the money into the race right after a Dem poll found that Darling is getting edged by her Dem recall challenger, Rep. Sandy Pasch.

If true, this is significant. If labor and Dems can knock off Darling, it would be a major coup: She is the co-chair of the legislative committee that passed Scott Walker’s union-busting proposals. Of all the GOP state senators targeted for recall, she’s been in office the longest. And Dems privately admit that they think the chances are slim that she can be defeated. But if the Club is pouring massive cash into an effort to prop her up, this could mean Dems have succeeded in widening the playing field beyond the most vulnerable GOP recall targets, meaning that cash being spent on Darling could have otherwise been spent elsewhere.

Obviously, the fact that they have lots of money to throw around is not good, but the fact that they feel compelled to throw it at what should be slam dunks is good.

If the Democrats want to win this, they need to focus on boots on the ground, and I mean locals, not hired guns, because the ‘Phants will have more money for the foreseeable future.

25 July 2011, 7:01 PM

Good Riddance to Bad Rubbish

“Democratic” Congressman Mike Ross (AR-4), has announced that he will not seek reelection in 2012:

The only Democratic congressman in Arkansas, Mike Ross, said on Monday that he will not seek a seventh term in the U.S. House of Representatives, saying he wants to spend more time with his family.

The announcement sent a shock through Arkansas political circles, and opened the possibility of a Republican replacement for the popular congressman. The redistricting process has left Ross’s district heavily GOP, with an uphill battle for Democrats there next cycle.

Note that he’s not only a member of the phoney Democrat “Blue Dog” Caucus, he is one of their co-chairs, and it’s these folks, who seem to value holding office above any hint of real political values, and they were the ones hardest hit by the 2010 sweep, because people do not like voting for weasels.

Unfortunately, this means that the DCCC will doubtless find yet another phony Dem, and throw enormous sums of money at him, in the hope that he can make it to Washington, and vote against the party.

24 July 2011, 8:45 PM

Bernie Sanders Calls for a Primary Challenge to Barack Obama

Roll tape

Yes, he did say that, on the Thom Hartmann radio show:

SANDERS: Brian, believe me, I wish I had the answer to your question. Let me just suggest this. I think there are millions of Americans who are deeply disappointed in the president; who believe that, with regard to Social Security and a number of other issues, he said one thing as a candidate and is doing something very much else as a president; who cannot believe how weak he has been, for whatever reason, in negotiating with Republicans and there’s deep disappointment. So my suggestion is, I think one of the reasons the president has been able to move so far to the right is that there is no primary opposition to him and I think it would do this country a good deal of service if people started thinking about candidates out there to begin contrasting what is a progressive agenda as opposed to what Obama is doing. […] So I would say to Ryan [sic] discouragement is not an option. I think it would be a good idea if President Obama faced some primary opposition.

Admittedly, Sanders is not technically a Democrat, he’s a Socialist (really, JFGI) but he does caucus with the Democrats, and he is a sitting US Senator, so the idea that Obama needs a primary challenge is starting to gain a bit of mainstream traction.

If someone credible announces, they go on my Act Blue page.

H/t Think Progress.

24 July 2011, 6:31 PM

Let’s Be Clear On This: Republicans Are Not the Patriotic Opposition, They are the Treasonous Enemy

Why do I say this?

Because at the core of our system of government is the idea that people should be denied the right to vote, nor have excessive roadblocks placed in their way, and that the vote and vote counting should be free and fair.

Well, we are now seeing evidence that the system set up to tabulate vote in Ohio in 2004 was constructed in a manner which appears to specifically designed to facilitate a man-in the middle attack:

A new filing in the King Lincoln Bronzeville v. Blackwell case includes a copy of the Ohio Secretary of State election production system configuration that was in use in Ohio’s 2004 presidential election when there was a sudden and unexpected shift in votes for George W. Bush.

The filing also includes the revealing deposition of the late Michael Connell. Connell served as the IT guru for the Bush family and Karl Rove. Connell ran the private IT firm GovTech that created the controversial system that transferred Ohio’s vote count late on election night 2004 to a partisan Republican server site in Chattanooga, Tennessee owned by SmarTech. That is when the vote shift happened, not predicted by the exit polls, that led to Bush’s unexpected victory. Connell died a month and a half after giving this deposition in a suspicious small plane crash.

Additionally, the filing contains the contract signed between then-Ohio Secretary of State J. Kenneth Blackwell and Connell’s company, GovTech Solutions. Also included that contract a graphic architectural map of the Secretary of State’s election night server layout system.

Cliff Arnebeck, lead attorney in the King Lincoln case, exchanged emails with IT security expert Stephen Spoonamore. Arnebeck asked Spoonamore whether or not SmarTech had the capability to “input data” and thus alter the results of Ohio’s 2004 election. Spoonamore responded: “Yes. They would have had data input capacities. The system might have been set up to log which source generated the data but probably did not.”

Spoonamore explained that “they [SmarTech] have full access and could change things when and if they want.”

(emphasis mine)

The Republicans constantly accuse the Democrats of voter fraud, the sort where some people who should not vote, but do. Retail voting irregularities.

This is wholesale voting irregularities, and, unsurprisingly, the Republicans take their lead from “Uncle Joe” Stalin, who said, “I consider it completely unimportant who in the party will vote, or how; but what is extraordinarily important is this—who will count the votes, and how.”

Seriously, watching the Republicans is like watching the Soviets: You know that they are doing something because they accuse the other side of this.

And then we have Wisconsin, where the Republicans are requiring a DMV supplied voter ID while closing DMVs in Democratic districts:

Michael Shatz, a Wisconsin blogger:

This story shows just how stupid neoconservatives think the public really is. Walker and his ilk pass a bill requiring voters to present valid photo identification at the polls. Then, in the same breath, Walker and his ilk propose a bill to close the identification issuing centers (the DMV’s) in the Democratic districts, making ID’s more difficult for low-income voters to obtain.

And the reaction when they were called on it was just classic:

A high-ranking DOT official rejected that claim, saying the changes were based on economics, not politics.

Rep. Andy Jorgensen, D-Fort Atkinson, called on the state Department of Transportation to reconsider its plants to close the Fort Atkinson DMV center. The department plans to expand by four hours a week the hours of a center about 30 minutes away in Watertown.

Jorgensen said he was concerned doing that would discourage people from Fort Atkinson from participating in elections.

“What the heck is going on here?” Jorgensen said. “Is politics at play here?”

Transportation Department executive assistant Reggie Newson denied that politics was behind the office closure plan, saying the decisions were being made based on what made the most economic sense.

“This has nothing to do with politics,” he said. “We’re trying to make sure that we can provide service in each county statewide efficiently.”

How conveeenient.

This is not the opposition.

These are people who are determined to destroy our government in order to achieve power.

I believe that the term “Seditious Conspiracy” applies here.

21 July 2011, 9:29 PM

It’s On Bitch

And by Bitch, I mean Ohio Governor John Kasich, who passed an even wider ranging assault on union rights, because the referendum to repeal the bill is on the ballot:

Ohio residents will be voting this fall on whether to allow a controversial collective bargaining law to go into effect, officials said Thursday.

Backers of the effort to repeal the law have successfully collected almost four times as many signatures needed to put the issue on the statewide ballot.

Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted said opponents of the newly passed law collected 915,456 valid petition signatures. A total of 231,147 were needed.

“We Are Ohio has collected and validated more signatures than any other campaign in Ohio history,” said Melissa Fazekas, a spokeswoman for the group collecting the signatures. She expects voters will repeal the new law in November.

According to Maddow it’s gotten so bad that Kasich is polling behind Rick Scott of Florida. He’s down to 35% approval, which means that not only is he less popular than a case of hemorrhoids, he’s probably less popular than Dick Cheney pole dancing.

I expect that a lot of this vote will be about Kasich in addition to the union busting law.

I just hope that the Koch suckers and their corporate money don’t turn this around.

16 July 2011, 8:03 PM

Can We Please Primary the Bastard Now?

So it appears that Barack Obama is removing Elizabeth Warren as head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau:

President Barack Obama has chosen a candidate other than Elizabeth Warren as director of the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, according to a person briefed on the matter.

The president’s choice is a person who already works at the consumer agency, the person said yesterday. Obama may make the nomination as soon as next week, another person briefed on the administration’s plans said.

The people, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the process isn’t public, didn’t name Obama’s choice.

Elizabeth Warren, a Harvard professor, was appointed last fall by Obama to set up the consumer bureau until a director was named. Warren previously was head of the congressional watchdog panel overseeing the bank bailout.

And here is the kicker:

Raj Date, a top deputy to Warren at the consumer bureau, was on a short list of candidates to become director ………

………He was senior vice president for corporate strategy and development at Capital One and a managing director in the financial institutions group at Deutsche Bank. During the debate over Dodd-Frank, Date headed the Cambridge Winter Center for Financial Institutions Policy, a research group he founded.

So he’s replacing Elizabeth Warren with a f%$#ing banker.

But in classic fashion, he’s floating out a payoff for her to keep her mouth shut until after the 2012 election, the Democratic nomination for Senate, where she would run against Scott Brown:

Elizabeth Warren’s calendar sure looks like the schedule of a woman considering a Senate bid, or at least someone being courted by power players in Massachusetts and the Senate Democrats’ campaign operation in Washington.

In recent weeks, Warren has met in person or spoke on the phone with Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Chairwoman Patty Murray, David Axelrod, Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and Massachusetts Democratic Reps. Barney Frank, Stephen Lynch and John Tierney. The phone call with Murray took place in early June, Roll Call has learned. Warren attended a community banking event with Tierney in the Bay State and dined with Schumer, a former DSCC chairman and an aggressive recruiter who remains involved in DSCC activities.

Warren’s May calendar, the most recently available public schedule, shows the Schumer dinner along with the other meetings and discussions.

Given that Warren is leading the creation of a new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, CFPB business could, of course, have been the lone agenda item during these meetings. But for a woman some national Democrats and liberal activists are hoping will take on Massachusetts Sen. Scott Brown (R) — a prime target in 2012 — her calendar alludes that she has at least been examining the possibility of a run.

So he’s putting her up to run against Scott Brown, which is a win-win for Obama.

Basically, she’s about the only person who appears to have a possibility to beat him right now, though it’s a tough row to hoe, because Brown is the consummate politician, and she isn’t.

If she wins, it’s easier to hold onto the Senate, and she gets buried as a low seniority Senator, where the old boys’ network keeps her far away from any meaningful banking regulation

If she loses, then no one could have won, and he keeps her inconvenient truths out of the press until his reelection.

13 July 2011, 11:39 PM

Oh, Right, There Were Elections Last Night

And the real Democrats won the primaries in the recall election against the ‘Phant’s false candidates:

Six fake Democratic candidates put up by the Republican Party to buy time for Republican state senators subject to recalls accomplished that job Tuesday, but none of them did the unexpected and knocked off a real Democrat.

Candidates backed by the Democratic Party won all six Senate primary elections, all but one of them by substantial amounts. They’ll all go on to face the Republican incumbents on Aug. 9, in an attempt by Democrats to regain control of the state Senate and put the brakes on Gov. Scott Walker’s agenda.

The full up recall vote should be interesting.

Also, Janice Hahn defeated a teabagger in the special election for the special election in California’s 36^th Congressional District:

In a hard-fought special congressional election marked by sharp divisions in ideology and even sharper personal attacks, Democrat Janice Hahn defeated underdog Republican Craig Huey on Tuesday.

Unofficial election night returns showed Hahn won 54.6% to 45.4%.

Hahn opened with an early lead and held on to it throughout the night. Before even half the ballots were tallied, congratulatory messages began pouring into Hahn’s election night party at a San Pedro waterfront restaurant, and one of the would-be successors to her Los Angeles City Council seat declared himself a candidate.

Turnout was just more than 23% but still higher than in the May 17 primary, when less than 13.8% of voters cast ballots to put Hahn and Huey in first and second place, respectively, in a 16-candidate field.

Democrats hold an 18-point registration edge in California’s largely coastal 36th Congressional District, based in the South Bay. Jane Harman, a Venice Democrat, gave up the seat in February to run a Washington think tank.

I would note here that though Hahn won, it was a pretty piss poor showing in this district.

I think it might have something to do with the fact that Americans are sick and tired of the idea of electing the “scion of a political family”.

George W. Bush might have something to do with that.

10 July 2011, 9:47 PM

A Non-Wisconsin Wingnut Recalled

In this case, it’s the wingnut Arizona state Senate president, Russell Pearce, one of the main architects of the radical right wing agenda in that state:

A citizens’ group that opposes the Arizona senate president because of his stance on illegal immigration and other issues has collected enough signatures to force a recall election for him, officials said on Friday.

Republican state Senator Russell Pearce rose to national attention as the chief architect of the state’s tough anti-immigration law that was signed into law last year, but has been blocked by the courts.

Maricopa County elections officials certified the group Citizens for a Better Arizona has collected over 10,300 signatures in their effort to force a recall election for Pearce, said Yvonne Reed, a county elections spokeswoman.

The group only was required to collect 7,756 valid signatures under state law, Reed said.

Barring any successful legal challenges, officials said the recall election for Pearce, who represents Mesa, Arizona, could be called for November or March.

I think that this is actually a long shot, unlike other states, there is no separate ballot for the recall and the election, just a new election, and if no serious Republican runs against him, it’s unlikely that a Democrat, even a ConservaDem, would prevail, but it’s nice to put the fear of the electorate into this ratf%$#’s heart.

8 July 2011, 7:20 PM

Wisc ‘Phants Try to Redistrict Ahead of Recall

Now here’s a surprise.

Facing the possibility of the control of the Senate flipping back to the Democrats with the recall elections, the Republicans are calling a special session to get it done before the August elections/:

Republican leaders released their plan Friday to redraw districts for the Legislature, setting up possible votes on them over the next two weeks and more controversy at the Capitol.

A quick vote would allow GOP lawmakers to approve the maps before recall elections are held this summer that could shift control of the Senate from Republicans to Democrats. That would let Republicans lock down advantages at the ballot box for the next 10 years by drawing maps in their favor.

Democrats in the Legislature won’t necessarily have a say in what the maps look like. But a lawsuit has already been filed, meaning a federal court could still weigh in on the process.

A hearing on the new maps is scheduled for Wednesday, and the Legislature could act on it as early as July 19 in extraordinary session.

Somehow, I don’t think that they are particularly sanguine regarding their chances during the recall elections.

The interesting thing here is that redistricting is supposed to be a sort of bottom up activity in Wisconsin, with local authorities drawing up wards before the legislature draws districts, but they are rushing the process.

I’d love to see their internal polling data, because they are so scared that they are willing to allow a vote on emergency unemployment benefits too.

1 July 2011, 6:50 PM

I’m Calling a Political Hit By Sarko

As you may have heard, Dominique Strauss-Kahn has been released on his own recognizance for the rape charges against him:

The sexual assault case against Dominique Strauss-Kahn is on the verge of collapse as investigators have uncovered major holes in the credibility of the housekeeper who charged that he attacked her in his Manhattan hotel suite in May, according to two well-placed law enforcement officials.

Although forensic tests found unambiguous evidence of a sexual encounter between Mr. Strauss-Kahn, a French politician, and the woman, prosecutors now do not believe much of what the accuser has told them about the circumstances or about herself.

Since her initial allegation on May 14, the accuser has repeatedly lied, one of the law enforcement officials said.

Senior prosecutors met with lawyers for Mr. Strauss-Kahn on Thursday and provided details about their findings, and the parties are discussing whether to dismiss the felony charges. Among the discoveries, one of the officials said, are issues involving the asylum application of the 32-year-old housekeeper, who is Guinean, and possible links to people involved in criminal activities, including drug dealing and money laundering.

What prosecutors have discovered is that:

She had a phone conversation with a friend, who is in prison pending drug dealing charges, discussing the financial benefits of pursuing the case.
She appears to have lied about a gang rape on her asylum application.
She appears to have been used in, or participated in, some manner to launder cash and cell phones for her fiance’s operations.

Seeing as how DSK was the leading Socialist candidate for the French presidency, and Nicolas Sarkosy is as about as popular as a case of the clap, I’m wondering if this wasn’t some sort of setup arranged by Sarkosy or his allies.

I don’t think that Sarko can make himself popular, but he could create a situation in which a contested primary by the Socialists could create disarray in the party^* which could be used to his electoral advantage.

Google™ Analytics™ says that I do have an occasional reader from France, and I would love to hear their take on this.

^*In fact, one could consider disarray to be the natural state of the Socialist party.

16 June 2011, 10:33 PM

Pass the Popcorn

Two of former Maryland Governor Robert Ehrlich’s aides have been indicted on charges of conspiracy to violate Maryland election laws and obstruction of justice relating to robocalls, sent out before polls closed, that suggested that people stay home, because “Governor O’Malley and President Obama have been successful”.

It would be interesting to see what happens if one of them is flipped by prosecutors.

While I don’t think that Bad Hair Bob was involved, he’s really too stupid to be involved in such a plan, I can see his wife, Kendel, giving some sort of assent to the plan.

14 June 2011, 6:58 PM

Crap

On a party line vote, the Wisconsin Supreme Court has reinstated Scott Walker’s union busting law:

The Wisconsin Supreme Court, just hours before a deadline imposed by state legislative Republicans, just reinstated the anti-union law which a district court judge had blocked because it violated state open meetings requirements. They made the novel interpretation that those requirements don’t apply to the legislature.

The court found a committee of lawmakers was not subject to the state’s open meetings law, and so did not violate that law when they hastily approved the measure and made it possible for the Senate to take it up. In doing so, the Supreme Court overruled a Dane County judge who had struck down the legislation, ending one challenge to the law even as new challenges are likely to emerge.

The majority opinion was by Justices Michael Gableman, David Prosser, Patience Roggensack and Annette Ziegler. The other three justices – Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson and Justices Ann Walsh Bradley and N. Patrick Crooks – concurred in part and dissented in part.

Not that I have to tell you this, but the four who signed the majority opinion were all nominated by Republicans, while the three who dissented were all nominated by Democrats.

I now expect the court to find a way to stop the recall elections.

13 June 2011, 8:36 PM

Italian Voters Finally Refuse to Cover Berlusconi’s Ass

I think that the Italian people may finally had their fill of Silvio, because they repealed a law granting him immunity, along with repealing laws restarting the Italian nuclear program,. as well as one privatizing the water supply:

Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi suffered a stinging political defeat on Monday when voters overturned laws passed by his government that would have restarted Italy’s nuclear energy program, privatized the water supply and granted him immunity from prosecution.

Analysts said the government was not likely to fall immediately over the results, which came from a popular referendum — the first since 1995 to draw the quorum of 50 percent plus one vote required to overturn the laws.

But just weeks after Mr. Berlusconi’s candidates lost mayoral races in Milan and Naples in elections he had billed as a referendum on his own popularity, Monday’s results pointed to a new reality: the man who once had his finger on Italy’s pulse appeared to be losing touch.

The truth, for course, is that he’s never really had his fingers on Italy’s pulse.

What he has had is a monopoly on private TV in Italy, and control over all the television in Italy while he is in power.

Come to think of it, what Silvio Berlusconi has is a microcosm of America’s media oligopoly.

Imagine what the world would be like if Sarah Palin were Rupert Murdoch, and you will understand the hell that was Italian politics.

Pleasant dreams.

6 June 2011, 6:55 PM

The Term Here is Credible Allegations of Fraud

Pass the popcorn

On the recall front in Wisconsin, Judge John Markson ruled that the Government Accountability Board (GAB) can have an extension to review irregularities in the petition process against the Democratic senators.

What this means is that the allegations of fraud by Rebublicans have enough merit to warrant an investigation, while the allegations of irregularities by Democrats do not:

A Dane County judge has granted the Government Accountability Board’s request for additional time to finish its review of the recall petitions filed against Dems Dave Hansen, Jim Holperin and Bob Wirch.

The GAB now has until June 10 — next Friday — to certify those elections and has a meeting scheduled for Wednesday to review the petitions.

Judge John Markson denied a request from Republicans to delay the recall elections of Republican senators that have already been certified until the Dem reviews are completed.

Markson also specified that today’s original deadline for the GAB to certify those recalls remains in effect, setting up recall elections for six GOP senators for July 12.

If approved and certified next week, the three Dem recalls would take place July 19.

Markson said the GAB had shown good cause to extend the deadline, noting the unprecedented level of recall activity along with the passage of voter ID legislation and completing a statewide Supreme Court recount.

Part of the reason for the need for additional time is that the Republicans did not get half again as many signatures as was necessary.

The Republicans are desperate to have all the elections at once, because they want to make sure that the Dem get out the vote is diluted across additional districts.

I am amused, but I figure that the reactionary corrupt f%$#s on the Wisconsin Supreme Court who hold a 4-3 majority will find a way to mess with this.

1 June 2011, 10:31 PM

Recall Elections Against 6 Wisconsin State Senators a Go

So the final three recall drives against Republicans have been approved, but the Government Accountability Board (GAB) is asking for an extension to rule on the drives against 3 Democratic senators:

GAB announced on Friday that it would need to delay consideration of petitions against Democratic Sens. Robert Wirch of Pleasant Prairie, Jim Holperin of Conover and Dave Hansen of Green Bay because election staff needed more time to review the Democratic challenges to the petitions. Staff Counsel Shane Falk said staff worked significant overtime during the holiday weekend to complete their review of the Darling petition before focusing on the petitions targeting Democrats, which had more complex legal issues.

The translation here is that the allegations of fraud made by the Republicans about the volunteer recall petitions targeting them were laughable, but the allegations made against the mostly-out-of-state for profit signature collectors are credible.

Additionally, the margins for the drives are different, which makes the impact of any irregularities less significant, because, after all, a for profit firm won’t collect a single more signature than is necessary.

What this means is that, absent a court ruling, the Republican and the Democratic (if any) recall elections, at least the 1^st round, would be on different dates if the GAB gets permission from the judges.

Of course, the final ruling may very well be from the Wisconsin Supreme Court, which has a Republican majority, so all bets are off.

1 June 2011, 9:16 PM

JoAnne Kloppenberg Concedes Wisconsin Supreme Court Race

She made some noises about electoral reforms in the unspecified future, but absent an adversarial proceeding with full discovery, i.e. a full legal challenge which she eschewed, it’s not gonna happen.

If the election were just about a difference in philosophy, as opposed to the explicit statements by David Prosser that he would specifically support Scott Walker’s agenda, perhaps there could be an excuse for playing nice, but in this case there is no such excuse.

There were clearly extensive and pervasive irregularities, particularly in Waukesha County, and even in a losing effort, exposing the corruption and incompetence of that county clerk is an independent good that any officer of the court should pursue.

Feh on her.

25 May 2011, 6:20 PM

Whiny Beoches

The Republicans, yet again, complaining that their attempts to dismantle and privatize Medicare are bging called an attempt to dismantle and privatize Medicare:

House GOP budget star Paul Ryan is keeping up his offensive against Democrats who claim their victory in a New York special election Tuesday night was a rebuke of his budget plan that overhauls Medicare.

Democrats “are shamelessly demagoguing and distorting” Medicare, “trying to scare seniors and using this as a political weapon,” Ryan said Tuesday morning at the Peterson Foundation Summit in Washington.

Ryan appeared on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” earlier Tuesday where he blamed Democratic attack ads for the Republican loss, not the substance of his plan.

I understand you are a little objectivist Ayn Rand groupie, and so you believe that everyone thinks that government is pernicious and evil, even when it produces programs that outperform the private sector and benefit society, but the problem here is not that people are lying about your plan, it is that they are telling the truth.

Suck it up, bitch.