Southern White Men Are Not Fans Of Barack Obama

Matt Yglesias posted this map: (via atrios)

When you combine it with this chart, it's not pretty picture for the south. As Atrios would say, there's something about Obama that white men in the south can't stand.

Thinking... thinking...

So Everyone Thought John McCain Was Crazy...

Remember when John McCain weirdly decided to suspend his campaign because the economy was tanking? Remember how completely insane and stupid it seemed at the time?

Barack Obama to Harry Reid, after the suspension stunt:

"Harry, what's John up to? It sounds crazy."

Nice to know we weren't the only ones who thought so.

Great Moments of 2008: Awesome Quotes

1) From the PUMA blog during the Democratic convention:

JUST SNAPPED THIS PHOTO MOMENTS AGO INSIDE PUMAPAC HQ — WE ARE WATCHING THE INTRO — CHELSEA’S AD. PUMAS ARE CRYING AND YELLING WITH JOY. IT IS UNBELIEVABLE HERE. WE ARE ALL THINKING ABOUT YOU AT HOME.

I think that crying and yelling with joy might be my favorite new expression of this year, to go along with "I don't give a hell" and "I got a Fuck Lion, come fuck with me".

2) Hillary Clinton, before Iowa:

"That's what I intend to do, so I'm in it for the long run. It's not a very long run. It'll be over by February 5th."

Really speaks for itself. Hillary Clinton's primary campaign made me achieve levels of schadenfreude I didn't realize I was capable of.

3) Sam Donnellon, Philadelphia Inquirer sports columnist:

Column Title: "Danny the Great... May Make You Forget Alex."

"For two periods last night, Danny Briere was rewriting the script to this Stanley Cup playoff series. Scratch out Alex Ovechkin. Insert Briere. The go-ahead goal. The back-breaking goal. Two even-strength goals by Briere's line within 33 seconds.

You want an explosive scorer? We have your explosive scorer right here, pal."

Alex Ovechkin so far in 2008-2009: 27 Goals, 26 Assists, 133 Hits.
Daniel Briere's 2008-2009: Mostly injured, fans of non-shitty teams began urinating on him in discust.

4) Geraldine Ferraro's response to people daring to call her racist remarks... racist:

"Racism works in two different directions. I really think they're attacking me because I'm white. How's that?"

Flawless logic.

5) Mitt Romney celebrates MLK day the only way he knows how:

Mr. Romney, the Republican candidate from Massachusetts by way of Michigan and Utah who enjoys a milkshake at the end of a long day, stopped by a staging area for a Martin Luther King Birthday parade here. In his dress shirt and tie, and with his unwavering smile, he walked over and posed for photographs with a group of black youngsters. Putting his arm around a teenage girl, he waved to the cameras and offered, “Who let the dogs out?” He added a tepid “woof woof.”

Later, Mr. Romney admired a child’s gold necklace and said, “Oh, you’ve got some bling-bling here.”

And just think, he's the Republican's front-runner for president in 2012! What a talent pool!

There are a bunch I left out (you could do a top 50 Hillary Clinton moments, and I still might) so feel free to add any of your favorite quotes from last year in the comments.

Tennessee making a strong case to be stripped of its statehood

I've never been a fan of Tennessee. Any state that's brought us Harold Ford Jr. and the UT football team is already enough to get on my bad side, but recently they've taken things to another level.

First off, Harold Ford was made a full time commentator on all of the MSNBC shows during the election season, and this has continued into the present. Now I know this isn't directly the state of Tennessee's fault, but since they spawned him, I have to hold them partially responsible. Unless he is answering the question "Do you think that your support of the Iraq war and terrible economic policy had something to do with the fact that you were the only democratic senator in a competitive race to lose during the "sea-change" election of 2006?", Harold Ford should not be on television. Period.

Second, another recent sign that Tennessee was up to no good came when the New York times released this election map.

Now maybe Tennessee and Arkansas just LOVED John Kerry and really hated Obama's tax plan, but something tells me that wasn't the reason they went so strongly against the national trend.

Then today, I read this: (via Ta-Nehisi)

So I was driving through western Tennessee on my way home for the holidays and I saw a sign for the "Nathan Bedford Forrest State Park" along the interstate.
Hmm... Nathan Bedford Forrest. Where have I heard that name before. Oh right. First Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan. Or as the Tennessee Environmental Department calls him, "the intrepid Confederate cavalry leader."

Nice. Naming a state park after a Klan leader. And not just any Klan leader, this guy is a former confederate general who ordered the massacre of 200 black union prisoners of war. It was such a horrifying event that even a confederate soldier described it this way in a letter:

"The slaughter was awful. Words cannot describe the scene. The poor, deluded, negroes would run up to our men, fall upon their knees, and with uplifted hands scream for mercy but they were ordered to their feet and then shot down. I, with several others, tried to stop the butchery, and at one time had partially succeeded, but General Forrest ordered them shot down like dogs and the carnage continued. Finally our men became sick of blood and the firing ceased."

Hearing a story like that really makes you want to name a state park after the guy, doesn't it?

I always have a token state that I demand should have it's voting rights stripped until DC gets theirs, and it's about time for a change. I used to pick Utah, because few people have attempted to do more damage to this city than Orin Hatch, but recent events have pushed it over the edge towards Tennessee.

When you stop naming your state parks after Klan leaders, stop letting Harold Ford protégés run unbelievably offensive ads, and stop getting blown out by shitty PAC 10 teams in the first game of the season... then we'll talk.

King Cotton

Via Strange Maps, a member of our Cool blogroll, here's yet another take on the presidential demographics:

Both these maps show the same segment of the southern United States, and demonstrate a similar pattern. Yet each describes a wholly other era and a completely different process.

The bottom map dates from 1860 (i.e. the eve of the Civil War), and indicates where cotton was produced at that time, each dot representing 2,000 bales of the stuff. Cotton was King back then, and mainly so in the densely cultivated border area between Louisiana and Mississippi, and in an equally dense band of cotton cultivation starting west of the Mississippi-Alabama line, tapering out across Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina. Other cotton centres are the areas around Memphis and what appears to be Lawrenceburg in southern Tennessee.

The top map dates from 2008, and shows the results of the recent presidential election, on county level. Blue counties voted for Obama, red ones for McCain (darker hues representing larger majorities). In spite of Obama’s national victory, and barring Virginia, North Carolina and Florida, all Southern states (i.e. all states formerly belonging to the Confederacy) went for McCain. The pattern of pro-Obama counties in those southern states corresponds strikingly with the cotton-picking areas of the 1860s, especially along the Louisiana-Mississippi and Mississippi-Alabama borders (the pattern corresponds less strikingly and deviates significantly elsewhere).

In a way, all this means is that the descendants of slave families voted overwhelmingly for Obama. Not exactly a surprise. But the map is still really striking, isn't it? Even nearly 150 years after the civil war, the racial/political demographics split in almost precisely the same way and, one could argue, for some of the same reasons.

The influence of our history on the present is crystal clear.

What does this map tell us?

From the New York times: (via John Cole)

The Red and Blue are the percentages they voted R or D compared to the 2004 election.

So they voted for Kerry, but for some reason they couldn't vote for Barack. Going door to door in southwestern VA a lifelong democrat told me that she just didn't think Barack would look out for "us" the same way John McCain would. Looking at this map it seems like she wasn't the only one who felt that way...

The Turn of the Tide

For those of you who followed PalinAsPresident.com, you're in for a treat if you check back now.

For those of you who didn't, here's the original. They added one feature a day, slowly filling up Palin's Oval Office with pieces of insane clutter that each represented a facet of her insane candidacy.


I can't believe it's all over, guys. But in a way, that's the beautiful thing: it isn't all over. And while hearing back from the campaign administration is probably about as likely as winning the lottery, I found myself filling out this form tonight. Maybe they need a photo editor?

A day I'll never forget: Part 2.5

Rb and others had been asking for pictures and/or video footage of the scene on U Street Tuesday night, and thanks to the fine folks at New Columbia Heights we have some! This is the longest and best video I've seen so far from the night and I'm sure there will be more and more in the coming days.

Update on the Senate Races

From Chris Bowers:

Senate
Democrats have 54 seats, Republicans 40, and Independents 2. There are four remaining campaigns:

1. We are tailing in Alaska, and it doesn't look good. Probably one for Republicans. Something strange happened in Alaska.
   
2. Georgia will have a run-off. Four more weeks of campaigning for Jim Martin.
   
3. Minnesota is headed to a recount. Right now, Coleman leads by 694 votes, with all precincts reporting. The provisional ballots, which always favor Democrats, will come into play as well. Not over by a longshot. AP already retracted their call for Coleman. Recount and certification will take at least two weeks.
   
4. Oregon is close, but seems like it will be OK.

If we win Georgia, Minnesota and Oregon, we get the Employee Free Choice Act. However, we need all three. Right now, I think we are only the favorite in one (Oregon). I can see pulling off one upset, but both will be difficult.

Take Number four off of the list, since we won Oregon late last night.

The depressing point that Bowers makes about the Employee Free Choice Act is one that I was getting ready to write about anyway, but it doesn't look good. Short of 57 seats (Plus two Is and Specter, who supports EFCA), I'm afraid it just isn't going to happen. Labor will make a hard push, but if there's any bill that will bring out the Fillibuster, it's this one. Big business is spending over 100 million dollars to kill this bill, and it's not like most Democrats have shown particular fortitude in standing up for the working class when they know a big fight is ahead.

Then again, with Georgia heading to a runoff and Minnesota going to a recount, those fights aren't over yet. And as KG taught us: ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE!!!!!!!!

A day I'll never forget: Part 2

I will be periodically sharing random moments & memories from what was surely one of the most incredible days in American history, not to mention all of our lifetimes. As I post various snapshots from the day, I urge you to share your favorite moments as well in the comments.

Exactly 40 years ago, U Street was the epicenter of the worst of the Washington D.C. riots following the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King. Shortly after Obama was declared the winner, the very first live scene local news networks cut to was of U Street. Only this time, it was filled with joyous revelers wildly celebrating.

I was watching the election at a party in Cleveland Park. Most of the people in attendance were in their 40's, 50's and 60's, with some families sprinkled in. Of the few people there who were my age, it was immediately understood that we would be going to U Street, though none of us had to say it.

Five of us crammed into the backseat of my friend's parents' car (one of the thousands of reasons I love Marcy and Peter Seitel). A few minutes later, we approached the street scene, directly passing by police cars but none of them seemed to care about our seating arrangement. Tight.

The sights and sounds of pure joy and pent-up frustration over the last eight years being released was overwhelming. As we walked towards the noise, we passed a bar that was showing Obama wrapping up his victory speech. We entered another bar & ordered a round of Jameson's. They were out of it so we had to settle for shots of Jim Beam, only they were double shots (not what we asked for). I grabbed a maraschino cherry off the bar to cut the taste, which worked quite well actually.

After some more, um, "spirits," we joined the rain soaked celebration on the street. 14th and U resembled a European nation after winning the World Cup, right down to the chants of "Olé! Olé Olé Olé!" Ol-é, Ol-é!" Only this outpouring was inherently American. Strangers hugging and hi-fiving. Everybody dancing to sounds and rhythms of varying nations. One truck was parked in the middle of the street blasting go-go. People from all walks of life, all ages, all races and sexual orientations, all co-existing.

There was nothing angry about it. Nobody was destructive. Police and party-goers were cooperative. Right there, at the intersection of 14th and U, even if only for one night, things had come full circle.

After a few hours of partying, a mass congregation of drummers and dancing folks huddled in the middle of the street. A chorus began to form: "To the White House! To the White House!" As the group we were now a part of started moving, I looked back to see more and more people following along stretching back as far as I could see. Looks like I was heading to the White House.

We marched directly down 16th Street (like, in the southbound lane), greeted by the honking horns and hi-fives from out of cars heading northbound. As we approached our destination, some of the following chants were:
-Yes We Can!
-Yes we did!!!
-Sí se puede!!!
-USA! USA! USA!
-Move Bush! Get out the way! Get out the way, Bush, get out the way!
-Whose house? Obama's house!!! (6.54's and mine's clear favorite)
-Pack your shit! Pack your shit!
-Na na na na! Na na na na! Hey, hey, Hey! GOODBYE!!!

Me and my friend Jesse tried to start a round of "We Are The Champions," but it didn't really catch on.

Back at home at nearly 4 am, I still couldn't really wrap my mind around what had just happened. All I could think was, "Man, what a night!"

Turnout & The Youth Vote

Any analysis is complicated and tentative because the votes are still being counted, but we've already surpassed 2004's 122,267,553, with at least 133,275,000. Given the margins, this means more people voted for Barack Obama than for any candidate in the history of the country.

But even more encouraging, young voters went for Obama 66% to 32%, which is totally and completely unprecedented: Kerry only beat Bush by 9% among 18-29 year olds, and the average divergence between the youth vote and the rest of the populace between 1976 and today is only 1.8%. Furthermore, as Georgia10 puts it,

"Thanks to George W. Bush, who crystallized the effect of conservatism on this country, there's a whole generation of truly progressive voters out there. And thanks to Barack Obama, these young voters are energized and organized, and will remain so even though the election is over."

This was a victory on many levels.

A day I'll never forget: Part 1

I will be periodically sharing random moments & memories from what was surely one of the most incredible days in American history, not to mention all of our lifetimes. As I post various snapshots from the day, I urge you to share your favorite moments as well in the comments.

"Stand in line for an hour and a half and vote before noon. Check. Drop Mom back off at the Largo Metro station. Check. Take the sister into the city so she can meet up with her ride back to Virginia Tech. Check. Damn, it's only 1:45? I don't have to be at my brother's soccer game for another hour and a half."

This was my thought process as I headed up 24th Street just behind the Foggy Bottom Metro. With all the things I had to do yesterday, all the hoops I had to jump through and all the planets that had to align to get everything accomplished, the day couldn't have been running any more smoothly.

Quite the surprise.

"Well if I cut up 16th to New Hampshire Ave., I'll be in Sandy Spring way to early. How did I end up on Connecticut? God, I hate driving in D.C. Shit, I need to get gas."

With the fuel light on and a slight on-again-off-again drizzle falling, I set out for the nearest Exxon. As I pulled up to a stoplight just beyond the Uptown Theater, the thumping of the kick drum from the intro to Bad Brains' "Big Take Over" started coming from my car speakers. Not caring about the rain hitting my arms, I rolled down every window in my mom's car, turned the volume to near capacity and cruised up Conn. Ave. at about 24 miles per hour.

Downticket LiveBlog!

3:59 (6.54): Oh yeah! I almost forgot: DC, and it's odd that this could conceivably be disappointing, went for Obama by 92.9%.

3:55 (6.54): All good things must come to an end, and so must this night. But one final update:

-CA Prop 8 is not looking so good, at 52% Yes to 48% no with 63% in.
-CT Question 1 is in much better shape. In fact, it's almost exactly where it was at our last update. I think they may have stopped counting for the night, for some reason.
-Possession of Marijuana is now loosely legal in Massachusetts.
-Physicians can now legally kill people in WA.
-Al Franken's race is still totally up in the air.
-As are the 11 electoral votes of Missouri. I have no way of even guessing, because every county in the state is 100% reporting. God knows where the extra votes are coming from.
-While Georgia was called for McCain early, and the senate race would clearly go to Chambliss if pluralities were allowed, it's too close to 50% to be sure that Chambliss will make the majority required for the race to count. Also, there's the possibility that Georgia has not counted as many as 600,000 early votes because they do it by county and keep them separate. Since these would probably be overwhelmingly for Obama and Martin, there's a real chance that it'll go to a runoff (which will draw basically every democrat within 1000 miles just out of a desire to continue campaigning), and a very very slim chance that Georga could end up going for Obama. But who knows what'll happen there. If this is not the case, we have to explain why NC, which has far fewer registered voters and a GOTV operation on less favorable ground somehow turned out hundreds of thousands more voters than GA
-Ted Stevens is up 3%, with 72% reporting. WHAT THE FUCK. Hopefully that will turn around by morning.
-Darcy Burner's leading by 4%, but nearly 80% of the vote remains uncounted.
-As for Donna Edwards? Well, the Maryland PG county site hasn't updated at all, and remains at 0% across the board. But let's be honest. She won.

In conclusion: what an awesome night.

1:17 (6.54): By rb's request, it looks like VIDEO POKER is WINNING in MARYLAND by a large margin, and is projected to win by CNN.

1:06 (JJ): Marilyn Musgrave, one of the most hateful people to set foot in congress, lost!

12:50 (JJ): The amendment to ban gay marriage seems to be ahead so far in Cali, 54-46 with 30% in according to MSNBC. Darcy's lead maintained with 43% in. Franken still down by 2% with 68% in. Don't understand how someone like Norm Coleman can withstand this tide, pretty upsetting.

12:28 (JJ): Darcy Burner up 57-44 with 30 percent in. Franken down 1% with 56% in.

11:52 (6.54): Results still far from complete, but we're winning CT's Question 1 by 91992 to 145468, or about 61.3%. In a tight move, Middletown went "NO" by a 2:1 margin.

11:33 (JJ): Franken now behind, barely. It seems like that one will last late into the night.

10:50 (JJ): The anti- abortion amendment failed in South Dakota. Franken's race is very tight and still at 13% reporting.

10:13 (6.54): Still way far away from the final numbers, but CT's answer to Question 1 is a resounding "NO" so far: 31533 to 18360

9:29 (JJ): Haven't really been many down ticket updates recently. Al Franken is the next one to watch, right now he's up 45-39 over Norm Coleman.

8:17 (JJ): Man, more good and bad. A pickup with Shaheen in NH, but MSNBC calling it to for Susan Collins of Maine.

8:10 (JJ): Good and bad news. Fox news calls it for Mitch McConnell and Kay Hagen. Goodbye Liddy Dole! Brit Hume decides that this is all bad news for Democrats.

7:55 (6.54): FYI, Question 1 in Connecticut reads "Shall there be a Constitutional Convention to revise or amend the Constitution of the State". While that sounds innocuous enough, a convention – the last one of which was called in 1965 – would be likely used to reverse the Connecticut Supreme Court's decision to allow gay marriage, as well as for several other insidious ends. Though not quite as obvious, and although Connecticut is much smaller, the question is on par with California's Proposition 8 (an explicit amendment to ban gay marriage in the state).

President aside, there's a race to 60 in the Senate and a push for massive Democratic margins in the House. The M$M should cover a lot of this fairly well, but there are a few races we'd particularly like to follow (Darcy Burner, Donna Edwards), and a few ballot questions that might not get the coverage they deserve (Proposition 8 in CA and Question 1 in CT). And hell, it's election night! Let's talk about all of it!

Presidential LiveBlog!

The First Family Elect

2:53 (6.54): HOLY SHIT, Missouri is functionally tied: 49.4% (1,426,779) to 49.4% (1,426,381). Indiana is really in Obama's column, barring some sort of recount. North Carolina is closer, but I don't see how McCain could make up the margin. Montana is weird, but my guess is that it will go for McCain. Lookin like AT LEAST Obama 364, McCain 163, with Missouri still out.

2:37 (6.54): Aaaannnd Kenya declared today a public holiday in honor of Barack Obama's victory. Hell yes.

1:19 (6.54): Bill Richardson shaved! WTF! On the plus side, he just said "Bad people like me, so I do well with them." Also, NC and IN look to be going Obama, and MinnesotaMissouri, while still in the McCain column, has shifted towards Obama lately. MT is still out.

12:32 (JJ): I'm going to bump this thread below the down ticket race one, since those races are still active. Not sure how long I'll be able to stay up and keep updating, but we'll see what happens.

12:21 (JJ): Biden joins Obama onstage after his speech for a genuinely powerful moment, your next president and vice-president of the United States. Jesse Jackson in tears, the crowd going nuts. The Oregon Trail music in the background just adds to the drama.

12:18 (6.54): Obama's had better speeches, but that will fucking do. (and bonus: with 28% of the vote in, DC is giving Obama 94.2% of the vote. Best. "State." Ever.)

11:30 (JJ): McCain amazingly gracious in his concession speech while being interrupted by awkward outbursts and boos from the crowd.

11:25 (6.54): Hilarious things: Todd Palin's blank dismayed face as McCain talks about Sarah's future in the Republican party.

11:15 (JJ): People outside setting off fireworks and yelling in my neighborhood. Had to go outside and join them, too much fun.

11:00 (JJ): NBC News calls it. Obama will be the next president of the United States. Wow. This is going to take some time to sink in.

10:58 (6.54): Hilariously, Utah is still technically blue. Yeah, Salt Lake City! But nah, that is one state that will not come through for us tonight.

10:56 (6.54): As Atrios and an OpenLeft poster that I can't remember predicted, the pundits immediately went for the "What a hard time the Obama administration will have" angle.

10:50 (JJ): The major networks might start calling the race shortly after 11. They'll call California, and I'm guessing that VA, CO or one of the other ones could put him over 270.

10:43 (6.54): I concur. In addition to Ohio's early call looking like its gonna bear itself out, Obama's already got a significant lead in VA and nearly all of the red counties are at 100% while some major blue ones (Fairfax, Arlington, Newport News) are still low in the count. BARACK OBAMA HAS WON THE 2008 UNITED STATES PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION.

10:30 (JJ): And Obama Wins! When Chris Bowers and Nate Silver say it's so then it has to be right. Add Colorado, (as the Rocky Mountain News is reporting) and this thing's really over.

10:22 (JJ): Stewart and Colbert are on Comedy Central with Live election coverage. Why is Steve Forbes there? Doesn't quite make sense.

10:01 (6.54): Iowa! Also, Obama just passed McCain for the first time in VA.

9:30 (6.54): I say it's still too close to call, with only about 15% of Ohio's vote in. But to continue the theme of the month, there strategic possibilities for a McCain victory are virtually nonexistent and shrinking every moment.

9:27 (JJ): And with Ohio Chris Bowers calls the race for Obama. And if you read this blog, you know that Chris Bowers can do no wrong.

9:23 (6.54): OHIO OHIO OHIO !!!!! (from MSNBC)

9:21 (JJ): @Helen- As much as my inner democrat is telling me to be nervous, I just see now way for McCain to win without Pennsylvania. I'm afraid the senate isn't going to be as great as we all hoped, but Obama really, really, think that Obama should be fine.

9:15 (6.54): Haha, Governor Crist of Florida has been "called away on an urgent legal matter, and won't be able to attend the McCain campaign's election night party."

9:09 (JJ) Still nervous about Virginia. I know northern Virginia is still on the way, but I was hoping he would have done better in the south.

9:03 (JJ): It doesn't seem like many surprises with the 9PM states. Sucks about Georgia, hopefully we can still pull off the senate there.

8:37 (6.54): Damn, looks like Georgia's going for McCain. There goes my election prediction!

8:27 (6.54): Wow, according to an MSNBC exit poll, 30% of the NC voters who said that race was a factor in their decision voted for Obama. I guess it's obvious: even for crazy racists, race won't be their ONLY concern. But it's still pretty crazy, and certainly demonstrates McCain's weakness in the state.

8:23 (JJ): MSNBC has a report on Palm beach county voting screw ups with confusing ballots. Honestly, if these assholes couldn't get this shit right after 8 years, we might have to consider just sending the whole state into the Atlantic.

8:16 (6.54): Oddly, Obama seems to be killing in Florida but getting killed in Virginia, with a fair number of precincts reporting. Still, the actual numbers are really low, and there's reason to think that cities (Obama's strength) report later.

8:07 (JJ): MSNBC seems to be the only one calling PA so far. It has to mean something that it was called at 8:01 though, there must have been some pretty impressive trends.

8:00 (JJ): Obama takes Pennsylvania, essentially this race is over. Not an exaggeration in the slightest. McCain's whole strategy needed that this one for any chance of winning, not gonna happen.

7:46 (6.54): Oh noes! MSNBC calls South Carolina for McCain!

Well, this one's pretty self explanatory. But that's why we're all so obsessed! Bring on the precinct reports!

On Voting

I believe that voting entails responsibility. Not that it is a responsibility – that's assumed – but that casting your vote for a person indicates an endorsement of their actions that carries moral weight. That's a complicated thing to say, of course, since the role of electoral strategy and the near-meaninglessness of any single vote means that the moral consequence of voting is neither a sufficient nor a necessary expression (particularly in a place like CT or DC). But as the most explicit method of participation in government, the only act of self-governance on the national level for the vast majority of the populace, it is unavoidably significant. It matters who you vote for.

Because of this belief, I found myself embroiled, three months ago, in one of the fiercest political arguments of my life. It was probably deserved: I'd just announced my tentative decision not to vote for Barack Obama, and was defending myself against friends of the most unmixed partisan Democratic variety. Despite my support during the primaries, and fervent hope that he would prevail over John McCain in the general, the fact that Obama and I disagree, or insufficiently agree, about so many of the most important of today's issues was enough to make me worry about the consequences of his presidency and the endorsement that my vote would entail.


Well, Obama and I still disagree. But this was my ballot today:




This is my patriotism: the decision to take personal responsibility for what my country will do over the next four years, should Obama win. I didn't have to, since a downticket-only vote in Connecticut would probably have meant as much as a fully Democratic/Working Families ballot. But it's time to step up. This country is mine, as much as anyone's, and there's less of a reason to be ashamed of that fact with Obama in the White House. I'm sure I'll look like an idiot in a year or so, but I do feel, for a change, that this is not merely a choice between two evils.


This was a really amazing campaign.

Four Years Ago

I've gotta tell this story, even if it stretches the bounds of decency, because November 2nd, 2004 was the single craziest night of my entire college career and still being on campus today brought back some of the memories. Let me just describe one moment:

I was with a girl that I had sort of a thing for (/with). After leaving an election night party where we'd watched the country turn red, the results unclear but entirely discouraging, we'd all streamed down to the field next to the baseball diamond in the middle of campus. A friend lit his coat on fire while reading The Second Coming, and we set off some fireworks before using gas to burn an effigy of an elephant. The energy was palpable, and all the chaos brought us closer in that tingly, new crush sort of way. As the likelihood of Bush's win increased in the wee hours, everything reached a fever pitch and someone shouted at us to just kiss and get it over with, and we did, for the first time. A few minutes later, intertwined on the side of the hill, with Darth Vader's theme song blaring into the night, and two lesbians grinding against one another a few feet away, the can of gasoline was kicked over. Flames began to spread across the baseball field as the liquid came into contact with the remaining embers from the effigy. It wasn't long before public safety showed up, and, just like any well-trained mischief makers, we split into a hundred different directions and all walked quietly away.


Today is different: I'm not sure I'll be spending much time in the "real world" tonight. But even so, I think I'll end up having more fun.

Another Bet

What do you think about DC:

+/- 95% for Obama?


I'm goin' with 94%.

Game on.

Come by the Train of Thought tonight for liveblog election coverage of the presidential race as well as some of the more interesting down ticket ones as well. Get out and vote, and we hope to see you all tonight!

Bring It On, America!

LET'S DO THIS!


Okay, but in all seriousness, here are my predictions for the election. My method was very slightly more sophisticated than pulling random numbers out of a hat. (I used a calculator!)

Obama: 52.4% and 373 368 electoral votes [Whoops! Misplaced WV the first time]
McCain: 44.7% and 165 electoral votes

8 Democratic Senate pickups for 57 total seats (59, with Lieberman and Sanders)
0 Republican Senate pickups for 41 total seats

26 Democratic House pickups for 260 total seats
4 Republican House pickups for 175 total seats


They are mildly, but I think not overly, optimistic.


EDIT: Figured I should be more specific with my electoral predictions. 368 is a bit of an odd number, since I've got Georgia and North Carolina going for Obama but Indiana, Missouri, North Dakota, Montana, West Virginia and Arizona going for McCain. I just sorta have a good feeling about the southern Atlantic coast. There are those who disagree with me, though.

I guess I shouldn't be surprised

I have this tradition on Sunday mornings where I'll wake up in time to turn on the talk shows, only fall right back to sleep thanks to the soothing sounds of David Broader's bullshitting. So you can imagine my surprise when I was greeted to this during the first commercial break of meet the press:

The “Crisis” ad opens with a shot of the planes hitting the Twin Towers on Sept. 11, 2001. “9/11, a planned terrorist attack. They targeted Wall Street, collapsed our financial markets. Now our economy is in shambles. Fighting terror has cost America nearly $1 trillion,” the ad states, adding “Joe Biden predicts another attack.”

The script of the latest attack ad is less provocative than than the images used. Along with footage of the Twin Towers, the commercial is shot stylistically like the Fox show “24” with shaky camera images of dark-skinned men building a bomb, and ends with the bomb’s detonation in a city. The ad also uses an image of Obama next to one of the terrorists driving a van.

It’s also unclear what the ad is advocating—it does not name any policies Obama has supported or opposed, but suggests that he will “undermine” U.S. security efforts.

I may not run a campaign, or a 527, but it doesn't seem like it would take a genius to understand that using video of the 9/11 attacks is that whole "3rd rail of politics" thing. But don't worry! That seemingly unspoken rule didn't deter the people at "rightchange.com":

The group responsible for the ad is www.rightchange.com, a recently formed conservative group backed by Fred Eshelman, a wealthy North Carolina based pharmaceutical executive. The group’s Web site states it “communicates with a zingy edge and a sense of humor.”

Yeah, nothing says "a zingy edge" or a "sense of humor" like footage of the 9/11 attacks.

Ugh. No better way to push back against crap like this then make sure the wins tomorrow come at all levels and are as large as possible. Vote early if you can and get out the vote if you can. I'm back in VA (northern this time) today, but late tonight I'll have a preview of the Train of Thought's election coverage.

One more day...