No Christie in 2012

By Michael J.W. Stickings

In case you missed it, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, an authoritarian anti-union bully but also one of the saner figures in today's Republican Party (and one who stands against right-wing Republican orthodoxy on a number of issues), announced yesterday that he isn't running for president in 2012.

He's not running, and he says he means it this time.

Proclaiming "Now is not the time," Gov. Chris Christie announced at a jammed Statehouse news conference today that he would not seek the Republican nomination for president in 2012.

"New Jersey, whether you like it or not, you're stuck with me," Christie, 49, teased at the hour-long press conference.

A Quinnipiac poll also released today showed Christie tied with Romney for the lead, though at a meager 17 percent, five ahead of Cain and ten ahead of Perry:

"This survey shows Gov. Christie is walking away from the possibility -- at least today --to be elected president of the United States. Whether he would have won the GOP nominationor the election will never be known, but the data indicate he had a serious chance to win it all,"said Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute.

Maybe, but I don't think so. He was doing well in the polls (if 17 percent is "well") largely because people don't know him well -- and because Republicans, surveying a terribly weak field, are still looking for their savior. Perry hasn't exactly worked out as planned, so... why not Christie?

Why not? Oh, because I suspect that his numbers would have dropped as people (that is, more specifically, right-wing Republican primary voters) got to know him better. As I wrote last week:

Republicans also don't like people who tell you what they're thinking when what they're thinking isn't right-wing orthodoxy. And Christie has proven -- much to his credit, I might add -- that he's anything but an orthodox right-winger. For example, while there may be quite a bit to recommend him to conservatives (including to the extremist base that votes in GOP primaries), such as his penchant for union-bashing, he actually appointed a Muslim to the state judiciary and, when attacked for doing so by those on the right fearmongering about Sharia law, called such concerns "crap," pointed to the "ignorance" behind the criticism, and said he was "tired of dealing with the crazies." That's no way to talk about your own party, particularly if you want to be its presidential nominee -- which, in the GOP means cozying up to the crazies (just ask Mitt Romney).

Why isn't Christie running? Maybe because he's smart enough to know this. He gets that he's not what his party is looking for -- and that, in the end, he'd probably lose badly. So why not stay in Trenton? Sure, he's not terribly popular in his homestate, but at least he has a future there.

And so, as Michele Bachmann put it, "the table is set." Now it's just a matter of whether anyone decides to crash the party.

Whatcha been up to, Sarah?

(photo)

Former NJ governor (Kean) talks up current NJ governor (Christie) for president

By Michael J.W. Stickings

National Review reports on a possible Chris Christie "boomlet":

Former New Jersey governor Tom Kean, who has known Chris Christie since he was a teenager and remains an informal adviser, tells National Review Online that the governor is "very seriously" considering a presidential bid.

"It's real," Kean says. "He's giving it a lot of thought. I think the odds are a lot better now than they were a couple weeks ago."

Christie remains undecided, Kean says, but is listening closely to pleas from party leaders. The chance for a "Jersey guy" to rise, Kean says, is not something Christie has sought. But now, with the field up for grabs, he is actively mulling a late entry.

"More and more people are talking to him," Kean says. "He's getting appeals from major figures around the country." Kean, for his part, is also encouraging the first-term Republican to jump in. "He is the best speaker I may have ever heard in politics," he tells me.

"In an era when most people suspect that politicians read polls and then tell you what they think, people don't believe he's that kind of a fellow," Kean says. "He tells you what he thinks, period. We like that around here."

I'm not buying it.

First, a lot of people are talking to a lot of people about running, given the general weakness of the GOP presidential field. Kean might as well be talking about Palin or Giuliani.

Second, no one really wants a "Jersey guy" in the Oval Office, or at least not Republicans.

Third, if Christie doesn't care about polls, it may be because the polls don't exactly make him look good. He's deeply unpopular in his own state. And if he couldn't even win New Jersey...

Fourth, getting back to the whole "Jersey guy thing," Republicans also don't like people who tell you what they're thinking when what they're thinking isn't right-wing orthodoxy. And Christie has proven -- much to his credit, I might add -- that he's anything but an orthodox right-winger. For example, while there may be quite a bit to recommend him to conservatives (including to the extremist base that votes in GOP primaries), such as his penchant for union-bashing, he actually appointed a Muslim to the state judiciary and, when attacked for doing so by those on the right fearmongering about Sharia law, called such concerns "crap," pointed to the "ignorance" behind the criticism, and said he was "tired of dealing with the crazies." That's no way to talk about your own party, particularly if you want to be its presidential nominee -- which, in the GOP means cozying up to the crazies (just ask Mitt Romney).

Fifth, Christie may be a bully and a blowhard, but he isn't an idiot. He's got to know that if he got in he'd lose badly.

Like I said, I'm not buying it.

No lesbians allowed at New Jersey bridal boutique

By Michael J.W. Stickings

Here comes the boycott -- and rightly so:

Last weekend, Alix Genter found the perfect wedding dress. But on Tuesday,
the store's owner called and refused to sell it to her.



"She said she wouldn't work with me because I'm gay," Genter told The Philadelphia Daily News. "She also said that I
came from a nice Jewish family, and that it was a shame I was gay. She said,
'There's right, and there's wrong. And this is wrong.'"



Apparently, after Genter left Here Comes the Bride, a Somers Point, New Jersey, wedding
boutique, the store's owner, Donna Saber, took a moment to look over Genter's
customer-information sheet. That's when she noticed that Genter had crossed out
"groom" and written in "partner" and her fiancee's name -- and decided that she
wasn't going to do business with her.

In related news, Ms. Saber has splurged on a huge neon sign for the front of her store. It reads:

We're bigots. Please boycott us.

Chris Christie isn't completely awful (revisited)

By Michael J.W. Stickings

He isn't just not an anti-Muslim bigot and isn't just not cruel to rape victims, as we've seen, he's also not a global warming denialist:

In case anyone had any doubts on where Gov. Chris Christie stands on
climate change, he made his position crystal clear this afternoon: It's
real and it's a problem.



In vetoing a bill (S2946)
that would have required New Jersey to stay in a regional program
intended to curb greenhouse gases — a program Christie plans to leave by
the end of the year — the governor said "climate change is real."



He added that "human activity plays a role in these changes" and that climate change is "impacting our state."

Well, okay. That's a lot to acknowledge -- for a Republican.

Still, it's not clear that Christie actually intends to try to do something meaningful about climate change. He appears to have put his skepticism behind him, seems to respect climate science (and the clear consensus within the scientific community), and for the most part acknowledges the problem ("we know enough to know that we are at least part of the problem"), if not the full extent of the crisis -- and all that certainly distinguishes him within his head-up-the-ass party -- but words, needless to say, even truthful ones, aren't enough. They're a start, and for that he deserves some credit, but the test is whether he puts the state's money where his mouth is.

Chris Christie isn't completely awful

By Michael J.W. Stickings

He's a bully and a blowhard, but New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has actually done a couple of admirable things recently.

First he appointed a Muslim judge, rejecting fears of the imposition of sharia law and slamming those -- on the right, of course, and distinctly Republican -- who opposed the appointment on ignorant and bigoted grounds:

It's just crazy, and I'm tired of dealing with the crazies. It's just unnecessary to be accusing this guy of things just because of
his religious background. I'm happy that he's willing to serve after
all this baloney.

That's awfully refreshing coming from a Republican, that is, from a prominent member of a party that seems to run on bigotry these days. Indeed, it's like he was rejecting his own party, or at least a huge part of it. See the clip below.

And now he's come to the defence of rape victims:

Health care providers in New Jersey can no longer bill sexual assault victims for forensic evidence collection.



Gov.
Chris Christie signed a bill into law Thursday that prevents victims
from being bill directly for medical screenings, medications for
sexually transmitted diseases and pregnancy tests after an incident.



Christie
says sexual assault victims must be treated with respect and
compassion. He says this will help ensure their needs are met.

This was a pretty easy call, to be sure, given that victims aren't supposed to be billed directly. But they often are, and, needless to say, that's hardly what a rape victim needs.

Still, as easy as it may have been, or should have been, to sign this bill, the fact is that rape victims all too often aren't treated with respect and compassion, including by those in the political arena, and especially by some on the right.

At least this time, as with his rejection of anti-Muslim bigotry in appointing a Muslim judge, Christie did the right thing.

Bruce Springsteen's Top 10 has absolutely nothing to do with the debt ceiling

By Richard K. Barry and Michael J.W. Stickings

RKB:

For some reason, my mind is in New Jersey today, which is, by the way, a very beautiful, though sometimes maligned, state. I grew up in New York on the Jersey border, and sometimes made it down to the Jersey Shore, so I guess I'm allowed.

Partly, I just can't think about the debt ceiling for another second without driving myself crazy, so I'm surfing today.

While looking for something entirely different, I came across a website that purports to be able to rank Bruce Springsteen's top 10 hits. The site is called ...ology. They appear to cover off a lot of topics, so their sports page is called "sportsology," and the music page "musicology," etc. You get it.

If for some reason you didn't know that Springsteen was from New Jersey, I should make that clear. Hey, I guess some people wouldn't know.

I like Springsteen, though I'm not a huge fan only because I never really turned my attention to him in any systematic way. It's great rock 'n' roll, make no mistake.

But any website that not only has an opinion on his top 10 but goes to the trouble of posting a YouTube clip for every last one gets my attention.

If you have nothing better to do with your time, as we try to outlast this nasty hot summer, and want to enjoy some great videos, the link is here.

Here's their list:

1. Jungleland

2. Thunder Road

3. Born to Run

4. Hungry Heart

5. Dancing in the Dark

6. Atlantic City

7. Santa Claus is Comin' to Town

8. Racing in the Street

9. The Rising

10. Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)

Final note: I have no skin in this game of ranking hits by The Boss. If you do, by all means, tell us how the folks at ...ology got it wrong (or right).

And not a word about the debt ceiling, please.

(Cross-posted at Lippmann's Ghost.)

**********

MJWS:

Not a word about the debt ceiling here. Of course you're welcome to comment on our many debt ceiling posts.

(But it's good to take a break from it! Political paralysis and possible economic catastrophe -- not so fun.)

Now, I actually lived in New Jersey for several years as a teenager, graduating from West Morris Mendham High School before heading up to Tufts for college. The state has a reputation for being "the armpit of the nation," but that's really only true of parts of the state, the industrial parts across the river from NYC. It's an ugly, smelly part of the country, but probably no worse than many other parts. And much of the rest of the state, including Mendham, in Morris County, in the north-central part of the state, is extremely beautiful, far removed from the reputation.

I lived there but wasn't of there. It's not that I didn't like my time there -- I really did -- but I have more of an affinity for Boston than I do for New Jersey. (Not Boston's sports teams, mind you, just the whole Boston area, a fantastic place to spend four collegiate years.) I don't like Bon Jovi, for example, and don't you have to to be an honest-to-goodness New Jerseyan/Jerseyite? And you probably have to love The Sopranos as well. Me? I never watched it.

As for Springsteen, well, sure, fine. "Born to Run," "Jersey Girl" -- these are songs you just can't avoid there. They are New Jersey. If you're from there, they're part of you. I'd call myself a casual fan. I respect him and admire him as an artist, and he's done a lot that I like, but I can't say I've ever made a point of seeking out his music, beyond a few songs here and there.

Well, okay, I do have the 3-CD Live/1975-85 album with the E Street Band. So maybe I'm more of a fan than I think I am.

For what it's worth, my picks... my Top 20:

1. Streets of Philadelphia
2. Tunnel of Love
3. Secret Garden
4. Brilliant Disguise
5. Human Touch
6. Born in the U.S.A.
7. My Hometown
8. The Rising
9. Born to Run
10. I'm on Fire
11. Atlantic City
12. Devils & Dust
13. Darkness on the Edge of Town
14. Thunder Road
15. Jungleland
16. The River
17. Racing in the Street
18. Dancing in the Dark
19. Badlands
20. Glory Days (a song I occasionally loathe, I admit, but I should tack it on here at the end)

No huge surprises there, I'm sure.

Purists, or rather fans of the more raw Boss of the early years, might object to "Streets of Philadelphia" and "Secret Garden" being so high, or listed at all, but they're wonderful songs. And I suppose I like his 1984-92 period more than the older classics, which is why songs like "Tunnel of Love," "Human Touch," and "Brilliant Disguise" are higher than, say, "Born to Run." And while I have a few more recent songs on here, like "Devils & Dust" and "The Rising," I'm not as familiar with his recent work as I am with the songs I grew up with.

How ironic, though, that in my opinion his best song is about Philadelphia, which, while right across the river from New Jersey, isn't New Jersey. But, then, his art, not to mention his appeal, extends well beyond The Garden State, as much a part of it as he remains.

Gov. Christie, still unpopular in his home state

By Richard K. Barry

Just because I like to point to anything that counts as bad news for that pompous bully governor of New Jersey, Chris Christie, I note a recent Public Policy Polling survey on how Christie would fair against Obama head-to-head in the state. The results were 56 percent for the president, 39 percent for the pompous bully.

It is true that Obama won New Jersey by 15 points in 2008, and the state hasn't gone Republican since 1988, as Daily Kos points out, but isn't Christie supposed to be a cut above?

His current approval rating? 43 percent approve of the job he's doing and 53 disapprove, so maybe not.

I know that a lot of people think Christie could win the White House for the GOP if he would only run, but if the guy can't even come close to carrying his own state, that might be an overly optimistic assessment.

For the record, Obama beats all comers in "The Garden State" with the following breakdown: Romney (53-39); Bachmann (55-35); Pawlenty (54-32); Cain (55-29); and Palin (59-33).

(Cross-posted at Lippmann's Ghost.)

Union-busting and the Koch brothers' plans for our future

By R.K. Barry

As we consider attempts by Governor Scott Walker of Wisconsin to bust public sector unions, not to mention New Jersey Governor Chris Christie's constant rants against these unions in his own state, it doesn't take a genius to figure out that there is a plan afoot – a concerted effort by Republican politicians to do something that they always wanted to do but may not have previously seen a clear path to accomplish.

And, although former White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel has been widely credited with saying that one should never let a good crisis go to waste, it seems his best students have been Republican governors.

Yes, the economy went to rat shit because of the malfeasance of Wall Street types, leaving everyone feeling vulnerable to personal economic collapse, which, in turn, has given Republican politicians the excuse they have longed for to get rid of public sector unions.

It's pretty simple. Point to people who have bargained their salaries and working conditions in good faith, have come to agreement with their employers as part of a legitimate negotiating process, and make them a target for others who are in precarious employment situations, or perhaps unemployed.

Feed on the worst aspects of human nature, which is to say that if some people are not doing well, others, with whom they may generally occupy the same economic class, should not be doing well either. Make it sound like everyone in a public sector union is driving a luxury car and vacationing in the Riviera. Divide working people so they cannot be a threat to the power of wealth and privilege in American. Make then forget who got us into this mess in the first place and stop them from asking annoying questions. Brilliant.

What is not being talked about enough, I believe, is that the assault on public sector unions is an assault on the idea that government is an effective force for good in our society. But, in this case, it's a two-for-one sale. Attacking public sector unions is an attack on the idea of an expanded role of government but also on the idea of unions: two forces that have always been a major impediment to massive private wealth in the United States doing whatever it chooses to do (while admittedly playing that role imperfectly).

Two things that wealth and privilege hate in America: government regulating their activities and working people having their own independent base of power. Take away collective bargaining for public sector unions and you clear the way for making government smaller and destroy yet another potential oppositional force. 

The rhetoric of someone like Governor Christie is priceless. In his world, gold-plated public sector contracts are paid for by working people who don't happen to be on the gravy train. This creates the potential of working people at each other’s throats with the goal of reducing the size of government and its ability to regulate the economy while destroying unions all at the same time. Who would have thought that an economic crisis could be so useful for the power elite?

How any working people can believe that smaller government and fewer effective unions will mean that they will have more freedom and autonomy to do the things they want to do is beyond me.

Whether one wants to go back and look at John Kenneth Gailbraith's theory of countervailing power or some variant of Robert Dahl's theory of pluralism, whatever else their defects, it's pretty obvious that there is real and concentrated economic power in America and those who hope to have real freedom and autonomy had better consider how they will come together, and organize, to challenge that power. Government at times can be helpful, unions as well, as can many different kinds of social movements.

Working people who fail to organize in their own interests or fail to support others who do will wonder how it is that their piece of the pie got so small.

Reduce the size and effectiveness of government, destroy the right of people to bargain collectively, to organize politically, and you will have ceded the entire playing field to the same Wall Street hacks and their cheerleaders in the Republican Party who have grown pretty comfortable with the growing inequalities of wealth in America.

The genius of the right is that they have always been able to find ways to get working people to fight amongst themselves.

Tea Partiers may think that reducing the size of government and the power of public sector unions will lead to a utopia where everyone, even the least among us, is free to realize his or her own version of the American Dream.

The Koch brothers sincerely thank you for being so naive.

(Cross-posted at Lippmann's Ghost.)

New Jersey Senate votes down same-sex marriage bill

By Michael J.W. Stickings

Not great news from my one-time home state. From The Star-Ledger:

The state Senate rejected a same-sex marriage bill today, a major victory for opponents who contend the measure would infringe on religious freedom and is not needed because the state already permits civil unions.

The 20-14 vote defeating the measure followed an hour and a half of public debate inside the packed Senate chamber. The nearly thousand supporters and opponents of the bill held rallies on the Statehouse steps.

The measure fell seven votes short of the 21 needed for passage.

First, enough with "religious freedom." All that means is institutionalized bigotry. What should matter are the human and civil rights of individuals, the freedome of individuals, not whether religions are free to discriminate.

Second, at least New Jersey allows same-sex civil unions. This isn't enough, I agree, but it's not like the state is like, say, Alabama.

For how it all played out yesterday, see Pam Spaulding. Up next is the Assembly, which is scheduled to hold a vote next Monday. Then, of course, the courts.

Ultimately, New Jersey will legalize same-sex marriage, but it will take time. In the meantime, the fight for the right of gays and lesbians to be treated like equal citizens continues.

The good, the bad, and the upsets

By J. Kingston Pierce

Much hand-wringing and tea-leaf-reading is destined to follow yesterday’s U.S. elections. Most of those exercises are probably meaningless. Although the GOP would like to spin the capture of the governor’s mansions in New Jersey and Virginia as indicative of its comeback from Southern regional partyhood, such prognostications are more than a bit of a reach.

Virginia has not only demonstrated a habit over the last three decades of electing governors from the party that does not hold the White House, but the governor’s seat there has switched back and forth between the two major parties on a pretty regular basis ever since 1970. Former State Attorney General Bob McDonnell campaigned as a moderate Republican, and despite a brouhaha over his 20-year-old graduate thesis -- in which he “described working women as ‘detrimental’ to the traditional family ... criticized a U.S. Supreme Court decision legalizing contraception for unmarried couples, and decried the ‘purging’ of religion from schools” -- he managed to duck the tarring his Democratic opponent, state Senator R. Creigh Deeds, tried to give him. McDonnell outpolled Deeds during most of that contest, and even the White House was heard recently grumbling about how poorly Deeds had followed the successful campaign examples provided by the commonwealth’s two most recent governors, Democrats Mark Warner and Tim Kaine. Deeds’ willingness to curry favor with right-learning Independents by criticizing President Barack Obama -- who last year became the first Democratic presidential candidate to win Virginia in 44 years -- and his disinterest in promoting progressive reforms probably didn’t help him drum up Democratic support, either.

The dynamics in New Jersey were rather different. Former U.S. Senator and first-term Governor Jon Corzine was down in the polling early on against his GOP challenger, ex-U.S. Attorney Chris Christie. And despite a seesawing between the two for front-runner status, Corzine was never able to pull far enough head to guarantee a hold on his job. It didn’t help any that he labored under the burden of being a former Goldman Sachs CEO, at a time when Wall Streeters aren’t exactly popular.

In both Virginia and New Jersey, exit polls showed that voters made their decisions based in some part on anxiety over the state of the U.S. economy, but in little or no part on the basis of what they think about President Obama. Republicans who want to paint yesterday’s results as some kind of referendum on Obama are definitely barking up the wrong tree.

More interesting than either of those contests, though, was the upset in New York’s northernmost congressional district, the 23rd, which has been a Republican stronghold ever since the mid-19th century. That race to fill the seat left vacant after GOP congressman John M. McHugh left to become Obama’s secretary of the Army, began as a face-off between Republican Assemblywoman Dierdre Scozzafava and attorney Bill Owens, the Democrat, but turned into a testing ground for right-wing Tea Party insurgents. Despite having been blessed with the GOP’s endorsement, Scozzafava was harshly criticized for being even more liberal than Owens, and finally dropped out of the race after a third-party candidate, accountant Doug Hoffman--who didn’t even live in the district he hoped to represent--won the endorsements of such limelight-loving right-wing pols as half-term Alaska Governor Sarah Palin and ex-U.S. Senator Fred Thompson. Even disgraced former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich -- who can dampen his finger and hold it in the political winds as well as the next schmuck -- switched his endorsement to Hoffman after it became obvious that Scozzafava didn’t stand a chance against someone who called Glenn Beck his “mentor.”

The supposition was that free-floating right-wing anger, coupled with the 23rd district’s history of electing Republicans, would catapult Hoffman into McHugh’s former seat; this, despite efforts by the White House on Owens’ behalf and Scozzafava’s last-minute endorsement of her erstwhile opponent. And some surveys did make a Hoffman victory appear inevitable. However, in the end Owens won with 49 percent of the vote; Hoffman trailed with 45 percent. Regardless of post-game struggles to paint Hoffman’s loss as a win -- with the supposition that it will compel the GOP establishment to tap more “ideologically pure” conservative candidates in the future -- the prospect of more Doug Hoffmans running in the future, and thus driving the already beleaguered and out-of-favor Republican Party farther and farther from the American mainstream, seems like a losing strategy. That may be especially true north of the Pennsylvania border, where, as The Washington Monthly’s Steve Benen notes today, there are “51 congressional districts representing 34 million people” and “Republicans have a whopping two seats.”

Local contests here in Seattle and across Washington state offer favorable tidings, as well. Longtime anti-tax zealot Tim Eyman’s latest ballot initiative, which would have placed a cap on public funds available to city, county, and state governments -- and thereby driven budget deficits skyward -- is going down to defeat. A referendum to expand Washington’s domestic-partnership law appears to be headed for a win, despite opposition from voters living in the state’s more conservative eastern counties. (This victory won’t make up for Maine voters repealing a state law that would make same-sex marriage legal there, but it’s a small sign of hope for equal rights supporters -- and one step toward what is likely to the nation’s eventual legalization of so-called gay marriage.) And Democratic King County Council chair Dow Constantine, angling for the county executive seat vacated earlier this year by Ron Sims (who’s now the Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development), declared “overwhelming victory” over his opponent, ex-TV news talking head and closet Republican Susan Hutchison. Political newcomer Hutchison’s refusal to concede the race, even though she’s behind by 13 percent or more, just demonstrates why she hasn’t the class or temperament to hold public office.

So, as President Obama today celebrates a full year since his historic winning of the White House, he can look around the country with some confidence that favorable changes are taking place, even though there’s still considerable work to be accomplished. And the rest of us can go back to our normal lives -- until the mid-term elections next year, of course.

(Cross-posted to Limbo.)

Not a bad day at all

By Carl

What to make of the off-year elections that people were focusing on?

Well, on balance, while not a stellar performance, one has to believe Obama actually gained a little ground yesterday.

Huh? Wha?

You heard me. Here's why:

1) Governor of Virginia - Virginia went 53-46 for Obama last year. However, of the last five elected governors (including McDonnell now) three were Republicans, all elected with a Democrat in the White House. Add to that fact that Creigh Deeds was a nearly unknown state senator and ran a campaign so egregiously bad that even the White House wrote him off weeks before the election, a landslide was all but inevitable.

2) Governor of New Jersey - Chris Christie barely held onto a lead going into the voting booth, and many polls had this as a toss-up. Over the past thirty years, there have been six elected governors: three Republicans, three Democrats. To call New Jersey a Democratic stronghold at the state-wide level is ludicrous. Now, Obama did put in some energy into campaigning for Corzine, but the billionaire lost to the multimillionaire largely because of outside assistance from the right wing of the Republican party.

This was no slam dunk election that was Corzine's to lose, in other words. The entrance of Chris Dagget probably hurt Corzine more than Christie, altho his vote total probably would not have changed the outcome.

IN NEITHER OF THESE TWO ELECTIONS WAS OBAMA A FACTOR! Voters chose based almost strictly on local and statewide issues, not the national scene and in no way should either of these elections be considered as part of a larger "Republican Rescusitation"

3) The key race for Obama's fortunes, however, was NY State's 23rd. There, in a stunning reversal of Republican fortunes, Democrat Bill Owens stunned the right wing of America by kicking the ass of Neoconservative darling, Doug Hoffman.

Hoffman held a significant four point lead in polling over the weekend, so he lost seven points in support in the blink of an eye.

Hoffman was heavily touted by Sarah Palin, Tim Pawlenty, Rush Limbaugh and the rest of the Fucking Republican Loons. This has to strike terror into Sarah Palin's heart, because she so closely tied her Presidential fortunes to the outcome here. It makes her look like a loser who can't even get a Congressman elected in a heavily Republican, very conservative district that is filled with military types!

Pawlenty at least had the smarts to be a little on the QT when he endorsed Hoffman! But Palin?

Ooo-la-la! She shot her chances in the foot with this boo-boo! She pissed off the Republican leadership and still lost the fucking election!

Too bad, so sad, it's ours, Mooseburger...

(Cross-posted to Simply Left Behind.)

Election Day 2009: A good day for the GOP, but don't make too much of it

By Michael J.W. Stickings

UPDATED BELOW.

It is expected to be a good day for Republicans, notably in several key races across the country, including the gubernatorial elections in New Jersey (my former homestate -- I went to high school in Mendham) and Virginia and the special election in New York's 23rd Congressional District. In another high-profile race, independent Michael Bloomberg is expected to win re-election easily as mayor of New York.

My sense is not to make too much of Republican victories today. If Republicans win, it won't be because of a resurgent GOP, or because of voter opposition to Obama, it'll be because of local factors that have little to do with national politics. Referendums on Obama, Congressional Democrats, the economic stimulus package, the bank and auto bailouts, and health-care reform these elections are not, even if voters emphasize the economy.

We all know what the Republican spin will be. Don't let it fool you.

Republicans have done very well in Virginia, where Bob McDonnell has defeated Democrat Creigh Deeds. It would seem that the "nice guy" lost, a nice guy who was also, from what I can tell, a terrible candidate despite a solid record in state government. Yes, Republicans will herald this as a major victory in a state that went for Obama last year and that, in general, has been trending purple, but Virginia has a long history of voting for the out-of power party and, in this case, it also voted for the better candidate.

In NY-23, there seem to have been disruptions at the polls, notably by pro-Hoffman teabaggers.

By the way, there's also a same-sex marriage vote in Maine, where turnout is high, and a domestic partnership vote in Washington. We'll be keeping an eye on those, too.

More later. (As I flip between CNN, the Lakers-Thunder (Zombie Sonics, as Bill Simmons calls them) game, and the Leafs-Lightning game, with one of my favourite cooking shows, Good Eats, coming on at 10 pm.)

**********

By the way, CNN has some of the key results here.

At 9:23 pm, Chris Christie (R) is leading indumbent Gov. Jon Corzine (D) in New Jersey, 50-44, with 44% of precincts reporting. (I expect a narrow Christie victory.)

**********

11:55 pm - Hilarious takedown of the media by Jon Stewart tonight. They do blow everything so ridiculously out of proportion, as if every vote is endowed with meaning well beyond the reality of the situation. Of course, they're in the business of pumping up "the news," and of ratcheting up the drama, we know that, but whatever "analysis" they offer is so typically inane that they just end up undermining whatever minute traces of credibility they have left.

As I say above, the few votes that were held today do not either individually or collectively add up to a referendum on anything. Yes, there is division in the GOP. Yes, what happened in NY-23, where the far right triumphed yet again in its ongoing effort to take over the party, is meaningful, part of a larger historical trend, but it was pretty much inevitable that the Conservative and, in recent days, Republican candidate would do well in a historically Republican district. All a Hoffman victory would mean is no change in the House (the GOP holding a GOP seat) and a more conservative Republican House caucus.

And that's really the story tonight. These races were all local, even NY-23, which had captured broader national attention. Virginia, a red-purple state, went Republican. New Jersey, a blue-leaning swing state that frequently elects Republicans to high state office, kicked out a relatively unpopular Democratic governor and replaced him with a moderate. There isn't much more to say.

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12:19 am - Okay, here's what's going on in ten key races.

In brief:

-- Bloomberg narrowly won re-election in New York City. I didn't follow this race closely, but I was expecting a wider margin of victory, not least because of all the money he spent on himself. Of course, it's not terribly surprising that his opponent, a Democrat, did well in what is overwhelmingly a Democratic city.

-- With 87 percent of precincts reporting, Owens is up 49-45 over Hoffman in NY-23. I'm surprised.

-- In New Jersey, Christie beat Corzine 49-45. More or less as expected.

-- In Boston, Thomas Menino won a record fifth term as mayor, beating Councilor Michael Flaherty 57-42. Menino won for the first time on November 2, 1993. I was a junior at Tufts.

-- In Maine, it looks like the the same-sex marriage law signed by Gov. John Baldacci earlier this year might go down to defeat. 

12:36 pm - CNN has just declared Owens the winner in NY-23! I figured the vote would be close, but this is, I admit, stunning.

Will this shut the right up? No, of course not. It's more emboldened than ever, and it will attribute this defeat to a corrupt and inadequately conservative Republican establishment that picked Scozzafava and was too slow to back Hoffman. And it'll write it off just as it writes off blue states generally.

But what will Glenn Beck do without such a willing protégé in the House? Yeah, he'll move on and apply his madness elsewhere.

I would have liked Corzine to win in New Jersey, but, honestly, I never much cared for him, and I figured the Republicans would sweep Virginia. But Owens' victory in NY-23 makes up for those losses, and more. It's a fantastic outcome.

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12:49 am - More good news: the Leafs lost!

Good night.

Robert "Uncle Dirty" Altman - Comic Tales From The Road

MIENFOKS EXCLUSIVE - EAST COAST EROTICA SHOW !

While Mienfoks could not budget the coverage of the RNC(St.Paul ?) and DNC (Denver?) that we so dearly wanted to bring you, We are proud that, thanks to the re location of the East Coast Erotica show to Edison, New Jersey and the fantastic photography of Mienfoks on the spot Journalist "KINGPIN" , we can bring you the coverage you really wanted - PORNSTARS !!!
















There were a lot of familiar faces out there ! How many can you name ? come on be honest

Freedom Flashes Its Middle Finger in New Jersey !!!

I HAVE NEVER BEEN MORE PROUD TO BE A NEW JERSYIAN !


BELMAR, N.J. - After battling rowdy renters and out-of-control keggers for decades, this Jersey shore party town has finally decided to lighten up a little.

Belmar, sometimes called "Fort Lauderdale North" for its reputation as a raucous party enclave, has scrapped laws against giving the finger and requiring beer kegs to be registered. The town's mayor said the rules were difficult to enforce.

"I'm not sure anyone even knew that making obscene gestures was illegal," Mayor Ken Pringle said. "Right after we send out our tax bills, I tend to see a few."

The repeals come as the borough has clearly restored some of the quality of life that was routinely shattered by revelers in the 1980s and 90s.

"People that have a hard time obeying our strict rules seem to have gone to other beach towns where the rules are not as tough," he said. "Most of the people who are renting here who are deciding they can behave will not have a problem."

Belmar, on the central Jersey coast about 10 minutes south of Asbury Park, has long been a favorite spot for young people looking for summer fun. The town has 7,000 year-round residents, but the population swells to 60,000 after Memorial Day.

In 1990, there were over 1,200 summer rental units here; now there are just over 300. Lots that once held ramshackle party huts now boast $800,000 homes whose residents are not shy about calling the police to complain about noise.

Belmar has a slew of strict regulations for summer renters that include limits on how many people can cram into one building and when they can put their trash out at the curb. The town also has a "zero tolerance" policy for noise violations, and even leaving empty bottles or beer cups on the porch overnight.



One rule that's no longer on the books related to raising one's middle finger, or the many variants thereof. However objectionable it might be to some people, such a gesture is constitutionally protected free speech, said Pringle, an attorney.

He said the borough was contacted by civil libertarians who questioned the legality of several municipal ordinances.

The ban on "obscene gestures," which never spelled out exactly what was and was not covered, was overly subjective, Pringle agreed. No one can recall anyone being prosecuted for violating it. Another law prohibiting people from loitering in alleyways also was axed.

And a beer keg tagging law, which Belmar enacted last year with great fanfare, withered and died after the state Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control said a handful of similar local laws enacted around the state requiring beer kegs to have the name, address and phone number of the person renting them was unconstitutional.

In summer rentals near the Belmar beach, the repeals are being hailed by the party crowd, some of whom consider the right to raise their middle finger in public a newly won freedom to cherish on Independence Day.

"I'm giving people the finger if it's legal, absolutely," laughed Carlos Padilla, a 23-year-old from Dumont wearing a sleeveless white T-shirt and gold chain. He's renting a house for the season with a bunch of pals — all of whom were drinking beer from red plastic cups and listening to rap music on the front porch one night this week.