tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36493321169132168822024-02-08T04:34:47.426-08:00The Populista ReportKarlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03696617154238807359noreply@blogger.comBlogger144125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3649332116913216882.post-36154047394221468652009-07-14T18:55:00.000-07:002009-07-14T18:58:20.496-07:00Help send me to Netroots Nation!I want to go to Pittsburgh. Not for the G20 summit, not to see the best team in football's opener, not simply to visit a emerging hub of the green economy. <br /><br />I want to go to Pittsburgh for the fourth annual Netroots Nation convention. But I need your help. I try not to <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/3/21/481813/-The-Obamathon-(2.0)-Begins">ask for</a> <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/3/24/483416/-Lets-build-an-Obamajority">too much</a> from this community but I need to ask for some help again.<br /><br />From August 13-16 Pittsburgh will be hosting this years Netroots Nation, I want to be there to <a href="http://www.netrootsnation.org/node/1124">appear on a panel</a>, attend other awesome panels, meet you all and do the whole Netroots Nation experience.<br /><br />I need your help to get there. Democracy for America is running a scholarship competition to help make the costs of attending more affordable. They will be selecting 10 winners from the final round judged by a variety of factors, but one of them is public support. You can help me win a scholarship by voting for me. It will take less than a minute and I'd really appreciate your help. <a href="http://www.democracyforamerica.com/netroots_nation_scholarships/619-karl-singer/netroots_nation_supporters/new">Just click here</a>. That will take you to a page where you can either log into your existing DFA account (if you have one) or create a new one, then it takes you to a page where you can write a quick comment of support and click on "voice support" to officially support me. If you want to read my application <a href="http://www.democracyforamerica.com/netroots_nation_scholarships/619-karl-singer">click here</a>. <br /><br />It costs money for DFA to provide these scholarships, if you can <a href="https://democracyforamerica.com/contribution_pages/106">send them some money</a> to help out with the cost. It helps send 30 people to Netroots Nation who might not have been able otherwise. It was built out of kid oakland's original <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/story/2007/7/5/354518/-yearlykos-and-a-worthy-cause">chicago voices effort</a>. So any donations you could send them give a great bang for the buck and help send some great people to Netroots Nation. <br /><br />Thanks so much for all that you do and for any <a href="http://www.democracyforamerica.com/netroots_nation_scholarships/619-karl-singer/netroots_nation_supporters/new">votes</a> that you could give me. <br /><br />Sí se puede!Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03696617154238807359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3649332116913216882.post-49509122858969355042009-07-03T21:46:00.000-07:002009-07-03T21:58:08.773-07:00Daily Stuff: May July 3rd / 2009-This is a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F4nZNPnmZAo&feature=player_embedded">must watch video</a> from Bill McKibben -- a real American hero -- about climate politics and movements in the United States and about how the Obama White House told him that if we want Obama to be able to take the bold action on climate change that we need we have to build a movement to make him do it, and I would add, make the Senate do it.<br /><br />-National Republicans <a href="http://bluevablog.blogspot.com/2009/07/gop-hurls-worst-insult-at-tom-perriello.html">are idiots</a>. <br /><br />-The idea that the Farm Bureau represents farmers is laughable. They are, to be quite frank, a evil organization. <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/story/2009/7/3/1391/80098">Exhibit A</a>, <a href="http://www.lavidalocavore.org/diary/2048/funny-food-videos">Exhibit B</a>. <br /><br />-I'm reserving comment on <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/07/03/sarah-palin-resignation-s_n_225557.html">this</a> until Google releases it's much hyped Palin to English translation machine. <br /><br />-I <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/07/02/obama-im-annoyed-by-the-s_n_225062.html">agree</a> with this guy. Stage makeup is overrated for the positives it brings. <br /><br />Happy almost Forth of July!Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03696617154238807359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3649332116913216882.post-21442060303692920312009-06-26T18:32:00.000-07:002009-06-26T18:33:14.649-07:00Tom Perriello: Profile in Climate Courage<img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3277/2378022052_b2320847be.jpg?v=0" alt="" title="" /><br /><br />Today the American Clean Energy and Security Act (ACES) passed the House of Representatives on a 219-212 vote. It was not a perfect bill, indeed it has major flaws, but it is the first time a chamber of Congress has ever passed meaningful, comprehensive legislation dealing with climate change. It is a historic vote.<br /><br />Unfortunately 44 Democratic representatives voted NO on this bill. Only three of them did that beacuse the bill was too weak. The rest wouldn't take the political risk of voting for even a fairly weak climate bill that doesn't even come close to doing what science demands. That's a pretty depressing fact. And it means we've got a lot of work to do as climate activists. <br /><br />But one representative from a tough district didn't go along. He stood up for what he knew was right and voted for the bill despite a flood of calls to his office driven by hate radio, despite the political pressures of being a freshman Democrat in a district McCain won. That representative is Tom Perriello of Virgina's 5th district. <br /><br />Although I don't live in his district or even in Virgina I've been a fan of Perriello for a long time. In 2006 Keith Ellison was elected to Congress from the 5th district of Minnesota which is the district next to mine. He happens to be a Muslim and was the first Muslim elected to Congress. <br /><br />At the time the representative from Virgina's 5th district was Republican Rep. Virgil Goode. Virgil Goode is a bigot. The idea of serving next to a Muslim made him <a href="http://thinkprogress.org/2007/01/02/goode-ellison-911/">spew out lots of bigotry</a>. That's how I first learned about Virgil Goode. He seemed like a nasty guy. But his district seemed like it was unlikely to elect a Democrat. I forgot about the district.<br /><br />But I am a reader of Josh Marshall's Talking Points Memo, particularly the TPMCafe section. And they allow guest posts from notable people. Well in October, 2007 Tom Perriello was one of the guest posters. And he wrote one of the most important articles I've read by a politician. Entitled "<a href="http://tpmcafe.talkingpointsmemo.com/2007/10/29/conviction_politics_in_practic/">Conviction Politics... in Practice</a>." Read it. It's worth your time.<br /><br />After that I got very interested in the campaign and did what I could as someone who doesn't live in the district and can't vote. <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/3/31/487273/-Tom-Perriello-for-a-Obamajority-">Asked for money online</a>. No one thought he could win. But I believed in him. He ran a great, grassroots campaign and won in one of the biggest upsets of the 2008 election by under 1000 votes. <br /><br />And today he made any probably meaningless contribution to his campaign that I made worthwhile by putting his conviction politics into practice and voting for ACES. It wasn't a easy vote. McCain won the district. It has been traditionally Republican. But Tom stood up for what he believed in. <br /><br />As Darcy Burner so <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/story/2009/6/25/746862/-Energy-Bill:-Damned-if-we-do,-damned-if-we-dont">eloquently wrote</a> we need to reward people to stand up for what they believe in and display courage and conviction. Of all the representatives who made the right vote today Tom needs the most help. His district will be a top target of Republicans in 2010. He will have a strong opponent. We need to reward conviction politics and thank Tom Perriello by supporting him. <br /><br />I've set up a <a href="http://www.actblue.com/page/thankyoutom">ActBlue page</a> where you can donate to his campaign. Tom doesn't going to get a lot of money from special interests and if he ever did he won't after today. He needs our help. He did the right thing. It's time to reward that.<br /><br /><strong><a href="https://secure.actblue.com/contribute/page/thankyoutom">Please donate what you can</a>. Anything helps. </strong><br /><br />And while your at it. Join <a href="http://www.1sky.org/">1Sky</a>, a fantastic group working hard for a strong climate bill. They are doing some of the best work in the environmental movement and have lots of ways you can help. Passing a good climate bill in the Senate will be very, very hard. We need to build a strong climate movement to do that and that's exactly what 1Sky is doing. They could also use some <a href="https://org2.democracyinaction.org/o/5075/t/6409/shop/custom.jsp?donate_page_KEY=1023">money if you've got any</a>. Polluters are outspending us 16-1. <br /><br /><blockquote>We need to restore the founding American ethic that we are better off when we are in this together. Since the original thirteen colonies joined together as the United States, through Civil War and the Great Depression, we have risen or fallen according to this simple rule: America thrives when we are united in a common purpose for the common good.- Tom Perriello</blockquote>Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03696617154238807359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3649332116913216882.post-39020308836072704922009-06-21T20:50:00.000-07:002009-06-21T21:24:51.894-07:00Michele Bachmann is a liar: Climate action editionMichele Bachmann is crazy in a lot of ways. If your reading this blog, you probably know that. One of her most outrageous examples of that is her denialism and lies about global climate change and the cost of federal action on climate change to avoid the devastating <a href="http://globalchange.gov/">effects of climate change</a>.<br /><br />She has been doing this by making wild and incorrect claims to scare the American people into opposing climate action. She's thrown out a lot of figures, for example in a <a href="http://www.startribune.com/opinion/commentary/42630262.html?elr=KArksUUUU">op-ed she wrote</a> for the Avista Capital Partners-owned Star Tribune in which she claimed the cost of climate action would be between $3,128 and $4,000 per household. <a href="http://www.startribune.com/opinion/commentary/42630262.html?page=1&c=y">To combat climate action she's called for ‘Armed and Dangerous’ Opposition</a>.<br /><br />But as we learned today her fearmongering is far, far from the truth. In reality the modest climate action being considered by Congress now in the form of the American Clean Energy and Security Act (ACES) <b>would likely cost $5 dollars a year or less per household</b>, and that's without factoring in the negatives economic impacts of climate change that would be averted with this action.<br /><br />The CBO (Congressional Budget Office) <a href="http://cbo.gov/ftpdocs/103xx/doc10327/06-19-CapAndTradeCosts.pdf">released a report</a> about the economic impacts of H.R. 2454 (ACES) at the request of Rep. Dave Camp, a Republican from Michigan. And here's what they found: the average household would spend a minuscule amount to reduce global warming pollution. Their analysis determined “that the net annual economywide cost of the cap-and-trade program in 2020 would be $22 billion—or about $175 for the average household.” To put that in perspective, <b>48 cents per day – a tiny bit more than the cost of a postage stamp – to avoid climate change</b>. In fact, households in the lowest economic quintile would see an<b> average net benefit of about $40 in 2020</b>.<br /><br />But the CBO is certainly overestimating the what the costs would really be. It only estimates the economic impact of the cap and trade "title" of the bill and does not factor in the other major parts of the bill dealing with energy efficiency and renewable energy which would significantly lower economic impacts. The <a href="http://aceee.org/energy/national/HR2454_Estimate06-01.pdf">American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy</a> estimates that the efficiency provisions alone could <a href="http://climateprogress.org/2009/06/09/waxman-markey-energy-efficiency-savings-jobs/">save $170 per household in 2020</a>. The math is easy. That's nearly as much as the CBO estimates the total cost per household to be which makes the cost of climate action a mere $5 a year per household in America or a <b>little bit more then a penny a day</b>. <br /><br />And even that estimate is likely far overstating the costs of action. Most environmental regulations cost much less <a href="http://climateprogress.org/2009/06/21/cbo-stunner-waxman-markey-postage-stamp-a-day-low-income-families-efficiency-savings/">then originally estimated</a>, for example the actual cost of the Clean Air Act of 1990 was just <b>one quarter</b> of original EPA estimates.<br /><br />So when you hear politicians like Michelle Bachmann lying about the costs of climate action remember what the truth is. Climate action will cost per household at most, will create <a href="http://images2.americanprogress.org/CAP/2009/06/factsheets/peri_mn.pdf">30,000 new jobs</a> in Minnesota and prevent the worst <a href="http://www.ucsusa.org/greatlakes/glregionmin.html">impacts of climate change</a> which could hit Minnesotans, particularly our farmers. Unfortunately Minnesota's Rep. Colin Peterson is leading the fight to block climate change action with some of the same Bachmannesque denalisim which is sadly being enabled by Rep. Tim Walz who helping him delay progress until Peterson's demands to weaken the American Clean Energy and Security Act are met. It's too bad that Minnesota Democrats are standing in the way of climate action that will help the farmers in their districts and create new jobs for their constituents. I'll have more on that soon.Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03696617154238807359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3649332116913216882.post-91688923339217903582009-05-31T21:26:00.000-07:002009-05-31T21:41:52.984-07:00AssaisinatedNo daily stuff today. Robert Tiller was assassinated today and that's about all I can deal with.Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03696617154238807359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3649332116913216882.post-20015991739850196162009-05-29T20:04:00.000-07:002009-05-29T20:51:51.754-07:00Daily Stuff: May 29th / 2009-Tom Tancredo: <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/story/2009/5/29/736824/-I-Dont-Know-If-Tom-Tancredo-...">Racist</a><br /><br />-Vermont passes feed in tariffs. This is a policy that needs to be debated more. I know it was tried a few decades back in California and it didn't work but Germany made some changes to it and it seems to be working very well for them. Gainesville, Florida recently started a feed-in tariff and it has been a big success. Yet it doesn't seem like it's being discussed nationally as a realistic policy option, it's about time we at least have a debate about it.<br /><br />-Isn't small government <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/05/29/schwarzenegger-would-clos_n_208941.html">awesome</a>!<br /><br />-Ladies and gents, introducing <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/05/29/rendell-sestak-would-get_n_209285.html">Ed Rendell</a>, last seen <a href="http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/10/21/rendell-still-a-little-nervous-about-penn-asks-obama-to-return/">worrying</a> about Obama losing a state he won by double digits.<br /><br />-<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/05/29/bill-oreilly-the-left-see_n_209054.html">White male power!</a><br /><br />-I don't always agree (in fact I quite often disagree) with things said by some writers on the OpenLeft frontpage but I'm always happy when people step it up and put their money where their mouth is <a href="http://www.openleft.com/diary/13555/a-humbling-experience">in support of progressive infrastructure</a>. <br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/hT5eJwgAtvY&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/hT5eJwgAtvY&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03696617154238807359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3649332116913216882.post-36526335233054375352009-05-27T20:05:00.000-07:002009-05-27T20:55:33.566-07:00Daily Stuff: May 27th / 2009-My fellow MPP blogger Big E <a href="http://www.mnprogressiveproject.com/diary/3289/parallels-between-california-and-minnesota">has a post up</a> on the parallels between California's total governmental breakdown and move toward 19th century social Darwinism and Tim Pawlenty's impending disastrous unilateral cuts in Minnesota. It's worth a read. <br /><br />-Obama nominated a <a href="http://thecable.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2009/05/27/white_house_announces_ambassador_nominations">bunch of ambassadors</a> today. <br /><br />-He's also apparently considering a <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jodi-jacobson/game-changing-pick-under_b_205284.html">really awesome guy</a> to head up a big new forign aid effort. <br /><br />-<a href="http://www.ourfuture.org/report/center-left-nation">America is a center-left nation</a>, despite the reports to the contrary. <br /><br />-When Joe Romm talks about offsets in cap and trade it's generally worth reading. So <a href="http://climateprogress.org/2009/05/27/domestic-international-offsets-waxman-markey/">take a look</a>. <br /><br />-<a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/05/27/AR2009052703654.html?hpid=topnews">This</a> strikes me as a very good idea that the Senate will probably kill.Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03696617154238807359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3649332116913216882.post-69167318822111672942009-05-26T19:34:00.000-07:002009-05-26T20:07:30.887-07:00Daily Stuff: May 26th / 2009Back from a vacation of getting ticks on me and marveling at the genius of Pixar and Rowan Atkinson movies.<br /><br />-<a href="http://yglesias.thinkprogress.org/archives/2009/05/maria-sotomayor-and-the-looming-pretty-much-the-same-court.php">Apparently</a> Barack Obama nominated Maria Sotomayor to the Supreme Court today. Seems like a very good and historic pick although conservatives will likely be upset that Obama didn't nominated their ideal choice: <a href="http://www.openleft.com/diary/13498/the-terminator-for-supreme-court">a robot</a>.<br /><br />-Unsurprisingly Prop 8 was upheld by the California Supreme Court today. Certified genius Adam Bonin <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/story/2009/5/26/735607/-Prop-8-Decision:-What-Did-They-Decide,-Exactly">explains</a>. The <a href="http://www.couragecampaign.org/">Courage Campaign</a> gears up to repeal it. <br /><br />-In more surprising news Ted Olson, Bush's lawyer in Bush vs Gore and one of the most influential conservative lawyers in the countries is <a href="http://laist.com/2009/05/26/bush_vs_gore_attorneys_team_up_to_f.php">challenging</a> Prop 8 in federal court. <br /><br />-My college Joe Bodell has his latest gubernatorial power rankings for Minnesota. I pretty much agree. I'd put Coleman and Marty a bit higher but Joe is better at these things then I am. It's definitely a race that could play out a lot of different ways. <br /><br />-Dear Tucker Carlson: If your not going to go away at least come up with <a href="http://briefingroom.thehill.com/2009/05/26/tucker-carlson-to-launch-right-leaning-huffpo-alternative/">a new idea</a>, Thanks. <br /><br />-Ezra Klein does more <a href="http://voices.washingtonpost.com/ezra-klein/2009/05/health_care_reform_for_beginne_1.html#more">explaining</a> of healthcare reform.Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03696617154238807359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3649332116913216882.post-16007514729433827132009-05-22T20:31:00.000-07:002009-05-22T21:20:34.157-07:00Daily Stuff: May 22 / 2009-<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/05/22/mississippi.black.mayor/index.html">This</a> is kind of cool.<br /><br />-<a href="http://yglesias.thinkprogress.org/archives/2009/05/kyl-conservatives-believe-in-free-market-health-care-and-intend-to-get-it-by-lying.php">Funny things</a> happen when Republicans are honest.<br /><br />-Yes. Waterboarding is torture. <a href="http://yglesias.thinkprogress.org/archives/2009/05/conservative-radio-host-has-himself-waterboard-to-prove-its-not-torture-realizes-he-was-wrong.php">Duh.</a><br /><br /><br />-Doesn't have a rate cap but still a step forward. Obama signs the <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/05/22/obama-signs-law-curbing-s_n_206944.html">credit card bill of rights</a>.<br /><br />-Please stop tweeting, <a href="http://twitter.com/GlennBeck">Glenn Beck</a>. Examples of Beck tweets "we're all going to die. Soon." and "I like fish"<br /><br />-I don't entirely agree with Jesse Jenkins and the Breakthrough Institute on climate change and the ACES bill (See <a href="http://climateprogress.org/2009/05/22/waxman-markey-offsets-breakthrough-institute-shellenberger-nordhaus-media/">Joe Romm</a> for a slightly over the top version of that) but Jesse has a <a href="http://theenergycollective.com/TheEnergyCollective/41409">very measured take</a> on what we need to do to improve the bill. The bottom line: we need more money for clean energy. It's more complicated then that but it is a important point to make. <br /><br />-<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/05/22/colorado-third-grader-org_n_206923.html">Ethan McNamee for President</a>!Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03696617154238807359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3649332116913216882.post-81782772561523488212009-05-21T19:40:00.000-07:002009-05-21T21:48:55.917-07:00Daily Stuff: May 21 / 2009Today the House Energy and Commerce Committee finished it's markup of the landmark clean climate, energy and jobs bill known as Waxman-Markey or more formally the American Clean Energy and Security Act. It passed the committee with one Republican vote (Mary Bono Mack of California) and four Democrats in opposition. It's a pretty huge deal so that's most of what today's stuff is about.<br /><br />-First. <a href="http://www.grist.org/article/2009-05-21-citizens-seattle-fossils-d.c/">What Dave said</a>. And I would add it would be nice to have that kind of presence in the office of every legislator every week. <br /><br />-Lots of people have roundups on the passage. I recomend Grist's <a href="http://www.grist.org/article/2009-05-22-house-panel-oks-climate-bill/">Kate Sheppard</a> and Climate Progress's <a href="http://climateprogress.org/2009/05/21/waxman-markey-approved-house-energy-and-commerce-committe/">Joe Romm</a>. Adam Siegel is <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/story/2009/5/21/734227/-16-Times-Louder">less impressed.</a> <br /><br />-It was really awesome to read the great reporting/livetweeting under the #ACES tag on twitter. In particular <a href="http://twitter.com/JesseJenkins">@JesseJenkins</a> <a href="http://twitter.com/climatebill">@climatebill</a> <a href="http://twitter.com/kate_sheppard">@kate_sheppard</a> <a href="http://twitter.com/LCVoters">@LCVoters</a> <a href="http://twitter.com/MeghanMcNamara">@MeghanMcNamara</a> and probably some others I'm forgetting did a really fantastic job of providing real time updates throughout the process. They really showed that Twitter can be used as a powerful tool for open government, not just a way to update the world on what your eating.<br /><br />-Evan Bayh is a <a href="http://thinkprogress.org/2009/05/21/evan-bayh-votes-against-a-national-renewable-electricity-standard-that-even-republicans-supported/">really bad Senator</a>. I don't mind being a Big Tent party, don't think most Democrats should get primaries and am fine with Democrats who "vote their district." But Evan Bayh is from a state that <span style="font-weight:bold;">Barack Obama won</span>. Every single issue he tries to find a way to find "common ground" for no reason other then that's the niche he's created for himself. It's hard to see what he does as motivated by any principle or conviction. If he faced India's other Senator, Republican Richard Lugar, in an election I honestly think I'd vote for Lugar. <br /><br />-<a href="http://climateprogress.org/2009/05/21/the-speed-reading-clerk-waxman-marke/">This guy is cool</a>. Maybe I should become a speed reader.<br /><br />-What would happen if we delayed helathcare reform? Really, really <a href="http://voices.washingtonpost.com/ezra-klein/2009/05/what_would_happen_if_we_delaye.html">bad things.</a><br /><br />-Ezra Klein makes incredibly boring things exiting and easy to understand Part 1: <a href="http://voices.washingtonpost.com/ezra-klein/2009/05/health_reform_for_beginners_th.html#more">differential tax treatment of health care benefits when provided by your employer</a><br /><br />-Mmmm. Nice cool <a href="http://www.mncampaignreport.com/diary/3271/mud-soup-by-The-Big-E">Mud Soup</a>.Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03696617154238807359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3649332116913216882.post-56678330358020580212009-05-16T21:02:00.000-07:002009-05-16T21:33:19.084-07:00Daily Stuff: May 16 / 2009I'm back from the road.<br /><br />-Megan Mcardle <a href="http://meganmcardle.theatlantic.com/archives/2009/05/putting_the_trade_in_cap_and_t.php">the make a great case</a> to not include offsets in a cap and trade regime and turns it into a argument in favor on a carbon tax. Sigh.<br /><br />-Waxman released the compromise version of his climate bill. <a href="http://climateprogress.org/2009/05/15/waxman-markey-allowances/">Romm</a>, <a href="http://watthead.blogspot.com/2009/05/waxman-markey-climate-bill-introduced.html">Jenkins/Norris</a> and many more have takes on it. I pretty much agree with the <br /><br />-Obama's nomination of Jon Huntsman to be Ambassador to China strikes me as <a href="http://narcosphere.narconews.com/thefield/huntsman-china-its-about-romney">completely</a> <a href="http://www.thewashingtonnote.com/archives/2009/05/obama_taps_jon/">brilliant</a> <br /><br />-Happy <a href="http://washingtonindependent.com/43284/happy-whitey-tape-eve">Whitey Tape</a> Day!<br /><br />-CBO + Healthcare Reform Numbers = <a href="http://www.tnr.com/politics/story.html?id=b8f7b0c6-8f56-4e24-9168-f89b5852544e&k=37414">Jon Cohn</a><br /><br />-R.T. Rybak won his first DFL endorsement easily on <a href="http://www.mnprogressiveproject.com/diary/3231/rt-rybak-endorsed-by-huge-margin-and-more">the first round</a>. Why? Beacuse he's a good mayor. <br /><br />-You've got to admit, our president is just a <a href="http://www.suntimes.com/news/politics/obama/1577478,barack-obama-soccer-gallery-051609.photogallery">little bit adorable</a>.Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03696617154238807359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3649332116913216882.post-63728895317468315842009-05-11T21:14:00.000-07:002009-05-11T21:35:57.439-07:00Daily Stuff: May 11 / 2009-I wonder what reading Senate Finance Committee papers on policy options to expand healthcare coverage on a Monday night and finding it interesting makes me. In any case, if anyone else is into that kind of stuff <a href="http://www.finance.senate.gov/sitepages/leg/LEG%202009/051109%20Health%20Care%20Description%20of%20Policy%20Options.pdf">here</a> it is.<br /><br />-This is incredibly <a href="http://yglesias.thinkprogress.org/archives/2009/05/public-deeply-ignorant-about-cap-and-trade.php">depressing</a>. Our planet is about to hit dangerous tipping points that could drastically change the way of life for billions of people on Earth and potentially cause "water wars" that could cost us trillions and Congress is debating perhaps one of the most wide reaching changes to our economy ever. And no one has any clue about what that change is. More people think cap and trade has to due with Wall Street reform then the enviorment. Doesn't make you feel confident in our f future. <br /><br />-Speaking of which Gillian Caldwell, the awesome director of 1Sky has a post on Climate Progress about "<a href="http://climateprogress.org/2009/05/11/dealing-with-climate-trauma-global-warming-burnout-psychology/">climate trauma</a>." It was good to know that I wasn't the only one feeling like that.<br /><br />-On a much brighter climate related note Joe Romm thinks carbon dioxide emissions in the United States <a href="http://climateprogress.org/2009/05/11/us-carbon-dioxide-emissions-peaked-in-2007/">peaked</a> in 2007 and I can't argue with his logic. That would be fantastic news.<br /><br />-Mike Lux is quite smart. He is a <a href="http://www.openleft.com/diary/13296/a-tale-of-three-toasters">big fan of toast</a>. Me too. He also wishes America made good high quality products, that would be cool as well.<br /><br />-What <a href="http://yglesias.thinkprogress.org/archives/2009/05/stanley-mcchrystal-to-replace-david-mckiernan-as-top-commander-in-afghanistan.php">Yglesias said</a><br /><br />-Arjun Jaikumar is <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/story/2009/5/11/730237/-GBCWGoodbye-Cool-World">leaving DailyKos for the DSCC</a>. Couldn't have happened to a better person. Arjun is one of the best damn bloggers that DailyKos ever put on the front page.Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03696617154238807359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3649332116913216882.post-35098398868052381942009-05-10T21:43:00.000-07:002009-05-10T21:59:22.290-07:00Weekend StuffHere's some notable stuff that I have been reading or watching over the weekend. <br /><br />-The AP has a scoop on a major announcement coming tomorow about healthcare costs. I have a no AP linking policy due to many things (mostly their stance on content distribution and copyright) but you should be able to find it with a quick Google. <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/11/opinion/11krugman.html">Paul Krugman has</a> most of it along with his thoughts which I mostly agree with. It's a good step forward but I honestly don't have a whole lot of trust in these people. I think they are trying to use this to improve their public image so they can kill the public plan. I hope Obama sticks to his guns and gives us all a choice (You can help out with that by <a href="http://standwithdrdean.com/">Standing With Dr. Dean</a>).<br /><br />-Obama as it turns out, can make some pretty good jokes. Sure they got written by comedy writers so do Colbert and Stewart's jokes. I've always imagined this would be the most fun part about being president. <br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/T0GwZFAV1Lw&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/T0GwZFAV1Lw&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />-Rock Hackshaw, a great blogger from NYC has a <a href="http://www.r8ny.com/blog/rock_hackshaw/what_s_really_going_on.html">very good post about urban issues</a>. <br /><br />-John Edwards had <a href="http://blogs.abcnews.com/george/2009/05/edwards-staff-h.html">smart people</a> running his campaign. <br /><br />-Cory Booker <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/cory-booker/a-hard-look-at-education_b_201368.html">takes to HuffPost</a> to write about education reform. I don't agree with Cory on everything but it's worth a read.<br /><br />-President Obama: <a href="http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article6261925.ece">Please stand up to Bibi</a>. If you are able to resolve the I/P issue it will be a lasting legacy that only addressing climate change will be able to match.Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03696617154238807359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3649332116913216882.post-2089623878350712902009-05-08T21:39:00.000-07:002009-05-08T21:58:20.788-07:00Daily Stuff - 5/8/09-My fellow MPP blogger Brian Falldin wants my favorite St Paul City Councilmember, Melvin Carter, to <a href="http://www.brianfalldin.com/2009/05/08/carter-for-governor/">run for governor</a>. I'm unconvinced. Melvin is a great guy but he's been on the council for a year. I'll be strongly encouraging him to run for mayor in 2013 and maybe governor in 2018. He's got young kids and by then would be just barely 40 when inaugurated I believe. We've got plenty of other promising potential candidates this time around.<br /><br />-I'm proud of my state for being the <a href="http://www.mncampaignreport.com/diary/3176/minnesota-is-first-state-to-restrict-use-of-bisphenol-a-in-baby-bottles-and-sippy-cups">first to ban BPA</a>, all the fantastic advocates who worked so hard for this day and Governor Pawlenty for signing this bill. <br /><br />-Arlen Specter and Diane Feinstein are <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jane-hamsher/feinstein-specter-comprom_b_200427.html">laying the groundwork</a> for a "compromise" on EFCA. It's not nearly as good as the original bill which I continue to support but it's much better then other "compromises" I've seen floating around and would be a genuine improvement over the current system. Labor law needs to be updated and this would be a step forward. <br /><br />-Breaking news: Sean Hannity <a href="http://www.colbertnation.com/the-colbert-report-videos/226993/may-07-2009/sean-hannity-s-liberty-tree">makes Stephen Colbert's job easy</a>. <br /><br />-Obama's administration is <a href="http://www.theconglomerate.org/2009/05/the-stress-test-threats.html">gearing up</a> to fire two awful bank CEO's: Ken Lewis and Vikram Pandit. Good.<br /><br />-A Democratic Congressman from a district that Obama won by a huge margin is <a href="http://getenergysmartnow.com/2009/05/07/neil-apologize-to-barack-and-the-nation/">obstructing</a> any chance of saving the climate. And he wants to be governor. Awesome! Don't elect this guy, Hawaii.Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03696617154238807359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3649332116913216882.post-5714747511697988752009-05-05T19:22:00.000-07:002009-05-05T21:56:55.275-07:00The march towards equality continuesToday was another great day in the fight for human rights and equality for GLBT people. Marriage equality for same-sex couples moved forward in three localities. <br /><br />In Washington, DC the city council <a href="http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hS7g5mwC49dUIkKwPECteDt9g9DAD980BIC82">voted 12-1 to recognize same-sex marriages</a> performed out of state potentially setting up the issue for a vote in Congress. The Mayor, Adrian Fenty has said he will sign it.<br /><br /><br />In Maine marriage equality <a href="http://www.turnmaineblue.com/diary/2778/maine-house-passes-samesex-marriage-bill-8957">easily passed</a> the Maine House with some very conservative members <a href="http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/2009/05/update_out_of_maine.php">in support</a>. <br /><br />In New Hampshire the State House Judiciary Committee approved the State Senate's marriage equality bill. <br /><br />Tomorrow the full New Hampshire State House and Maine State Senate will vote on marriage equality. Both bodies have recently passed marriage equality legislation but need to vote for it again beacuse the other chamber has amended the legislation. Then it will go on to two Democratic governors: Maine's John Baldacci and New Hampshire's John Lynch. Both have expressed opposition to marriage equality in the past but have not said they will veto marriage equality if it comes to their desks. I remain hopefully that both will stand on the right side of history but any phone calls to them from in state residents will be very important in getting them to sign the bills.<br /><br />Even less then 5 years this kind of stuff would have been unthinkable. The Democratic presidential nominee was <a href="http://www.washblade.com/2004/8-13/news/national/kerryback.cfm">campaigning in favor</a> of anti-marriage equality constitutional amendments in Missouri and other states and only Massachusetts allowed same-sex marriages. Now four states have marriage equality with Maine and New Hampshire possibly being added to that list within a week. If Jon Corzine wins re-election in 2009 New Jersey will pass marriage equality, additionally New York, California, DC, Minnesota, Washington State and maybe Rhode Island have active efforts underway to win marriage equality. I think it's quite possible that all of those states and potentially more will legalize marriage equality for same sex couples in the next two years or so, if we work hard enough.<br /><br />The march towards equality continues!Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03696617154238807359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3649332116913216882.post-2263094152603044232009-05-05T19:21:00.000-07:002009-05-05T19:22:19.408-07:00El Tinklenberg will also take on Michelle Bachmann<img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3038/2686829135_f55494ac38.jpg?v=0" alt="" title="" width="300" /><br /><em><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/s4xton/">Photo by Aaron Landry</a></em><br /><br />The second candidate to jump in against Bachmann in as many days is El Tinklenberg who has ran twice for the seat, in 2006 when he lost the DFL nod to Patty Wetterling and in 2008 when he won the DFL and IP nods but lost to Bachmann in the general. He has started calling local DFLers in the past days telling them he is in.<br /><br />Tinklenberg has been mulling this over since his loss in November. He had over $452,898 in campaign funds left over at the end of his campaign and has been talking to local party officials, unions and the DCCC (Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, the national party outlet for electing Democrats to the House). Since the election he's donated over $250,000 of that to the DCCC and also sponsored the Humphrey Dinner. Previously he said he would make a announcement in July but I expect Reed's entrance sped up his entry.<br /><br />Lots of district DFL activists didn't think Tinklenberg ran a good campaign last time around. To his credit he has acknowledged that he made mistakes and has said he will try to avoid the mistakes made in the 08 campaign but it remains to see what that means. He will have a uphill climb convincing many DFL activists that he will be able to run a stronger campaign this time around. <br /><br />A third candidate is said to be considering the race. I haven't been able to confirm this but it is rumored to be Sen. Tarryl Clark. Whoever ends up the nominee will have a tough race ahead if we are going to dump Bachmann and I think <a href="http://www.mnprogressiveproject.com/diary/3143/maureen-reed-vs-michelle-bachmann">these </a>thoughts hold whoever it is. In addition it's extremely important that whoever wins the DFL nod articulates a clear, positive case for why they should be elected to Congress not just rely on being the anti-Bachmann.Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03696617154238807359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3649332116913216882.post-6965872750222809482009-05-05T18:52:00.000-07:002009-05-05T19:21:15.349-07:00Maureen Reed to run against Michelle BachmannCould 2010 be the year we finally <a href="http://dumpbachmann.blogspot.com/">Dump Bachmann</a>?<br /><br />Political Muse of Liberal in the Land of Conservative <a href="http://liberalinthelandofconservative.blogspot.com/2009/05/breaking-reed-v-bachmann.html">is reporting</a> (and I have been able to independently confirm) that 2006 Independence Party Lt. Governor Nominee Dr. Maureen Reed spoke to a meeting of the 6th District DFL tonight and announced that she will be running against Rep. Michelle Bachmann as a DFL candidate in 2010. <br /><br />This is a very interesting development. Reed would be a very strong candidate. First. Who is she?<br /><br />Dr. Maureen Reed currently serves as a diplomate in internal medicine with the American Board of Internal Medicine and a fellow of the American College of Physicians. She formerly served as medical director for HealthParners and as a member and chair of the University of Minnesota Board of Regents. In 2006 she <a href="http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2006/06/15/hutchinsonreed/">ran for Lt. Governor</a> on the Independence Party ticket with Peter Hutchinson. If she does indeed run she would be the first candidate to announce a run against Bachmann so far this cycle. 2006 and 2008 DFL candidate El Tinklenberg is also rumored to be mulling a run. <br /><br />However I don't believe a Democrat is likely to beat Bachmann unless one of three things happens: Minnesota passes fusion voting in time for the 2010 election, Minnesota passes Instant Runoff Voting in time for the 2010 election or only two major parties run candidates on the ballot in 2010. <br /><br />First of all. Why does one of those things need to happen for a Democrat to have a strong chance of winning? In Minnesota three political parties have qualified for major party status. The Republican Party (which will nominate Michelle Bachmann should she run for re-election), the DFL Party and the Independence Party. <br /><br />In 2006 El Tinklenberg was endorsed by both the DFL Party and the <a href="http://tinklenberg08.blogspot.com/2008/06/independence-party-joins-dfl-by.html">Independence Party</a>. However Minnesota law does not allow candidates to appear on the ballot for multiple parties so Tinklenberg filed to appear on the ballot as a DFLer. You might expect no one to file for the Independence Party seeing as they'd already endorsed Tinklenberg, however someone named Bob Anderson plunked down the 300 bucks to file thus ensuring his appearance on the general election ballot as the Independence Party candidate.<br /><br />In November Bachmann got only 46.4 percent of the vote. However she still won the election beacuse Anderson pulled 10 percent of the vote which split the anti-Bachmann vote and let her sneak into office again with a plurality. If this happens again and the Independence, DFL and Republican Parties all run candidates I do not think that Democrats have a good chance of winning the seat. However if a former Independence Party member like Reed runs and one of these three things happens I believe we can Dump Bachmann. <br /><br /><b>1. Pass into law and and implement Instant Runoff Voting before for 2010 elections </b><br /><br />This is my preferred solution and probably the least likely to happen. It would allow both the DFL and IP to run candidates and allow voters to choose whoever they thought was the best candidate. As long as a majority picked the DFLer or IP candidate before Bachmann she would be defeated. However it seems very unlikely that this could happen before 2010 as Tim Pawlenty would surely veto it if it came to his desk. <br /><b><br />2. Pass into law and implement fusion voting before the 2010 elections.</b><br /><br />Fusion voting allows a candidate to be endorsed by multiple parties. It is currently in use in New York. Reed could then run for both the DFL and Independence Party endorsements and appear on the ballot and the candidate for both parties. Had this been the law in 2008 Tinklenberg would have appeared on the ballot for the DFL and IP and I believe he'd be the congressman currently. <br /><br />Unlike Instant Runoff Voting fusion would not require replacing the current machines and so it might have a better chance of passing but I still doubt it will be made a priority and get Pawlenty's signature before 2010. <br /><b><br />3. Have only two major party candidates on teh ballot in 2010</b><br /><br />Of the three I believe this one is the most achievable beacuse it does not require a change in law that could be blocked by Pawlenty. <br /><br />First Reed or another candidate would need to secure the backing of both the DFL and Independence Party as Tinklenberg did. They would then need to make sure that unlike in 2008 no other Independence Party candidate filed and thus put three major party candidates on the ballot. <br /><br />It may not be necessary to do anything to make sure that happens. Anderson was the only person to file as a Independence Party candidate after Tinklenberg had won the official IP endorsement and perhaps no one would do the same this time making sure the IP had no candidate on the ballot. However it's always possible that someone WOULD file thus potentially making a split outcome that sends Michelle Bachmann back to Congress.<br /><br />So how to prevent that possibility? I see only one legal way. Run a front candidate. Now I know that doesn't sound very nice but if Reed or another candidate wins both the DFL and IP endorsements and wants to win in November I think it needs to happen. Essentially assuming that does happen someone needs to file for the IP primary on a platform of dropping out to make sure the officially endorsed IP candidate doesn't lose in the general. If it turns out no one else files they can end their campaign up to two days after the filing deadline, if someone else does file they have to win the primary and then they can drop out leaving the November ballot with just two major party candidates and giving the DFL and Independence Parties and chance to unseat the worst member of Minnesota's delegation to Washington. <br /><br />Personally I think the final option is the most realistic. If we want to Dump Bachmann Democrats, IP members, independents and sane Republicans are going to need to join together. Dr. Reed is well positioned to do just that. It will be interesting to see how her campaign plays out. <br /><b><br />UPDATE:</b> Political Muse is reporting and I have been able to confirm that she did indeed speak to the CD6 meeting tonight and officially announce her campaign. No video but my source says she sounded a theme very simular to what I said above. We have to unite the DFL and IP parties and put together a coalition that also includes independents and moderate Republicans if we want to win in the 6th. Here's a note that Muses's source sent:<br /><br /><blockquote>Yes she announced officially.<br /><br />I talked to her quite a bit and she is really a good 'people person', listener and has a good handle on health care, job creation and the mortgage crisis.<br /><br />She calls herself a 'blue dog' which turned some off, but I'm willing to give her a chance.<br /><br />She understands the need to gain both the DFL and Indepence party endorsements and understands that other IP candidates need to be out of the mix. However knows legally she can't really do anything about it. But she has been a big part of the IP party so her influence may mean something.</blockquote><br /><br />In addition I've been able to confirm that she has already started building a campaign staff and will be making hires in the upcoming weeks. As I said before, it will be a very interesting race. We'll keep you updated.Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03696617154238807359noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3649332116913216882.post-43109336430981370382009-04-28T12:39:00.000-07:002009-04-28T13:12:27.560-07:00HUGE Victory for marriage equality in Maine!Local <a href="http://www.wcsh6.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=104002&catid=2">TV is reporting</a> that the Maine Judiciary Committee has voted 11-2 to pass LD 1020 which would establish marriage equality in Maine. One member of the panel, Republican Sen. David Hastings, voted to send the bill to voters for a public referendum. Four members of the panel are Republicans. That means at least one voted for marriage equality. <br /><br />This is a huge victory. Marriage equality will now almost certainly either become law this year or be on the ballot in 2010. The Maine Senate has a 18-17 Democratic majority. If it passes there it will have a very strong chance of passing the more liberal state house. Then it heads to Democratic governor John Baldacci. Baldacci has been opposed in the past but now says he's keeping a open mind. Only time can tell but I don't think he will veto it if it comes to his desk. He's not running for re-election and I doubt he'd want to be remembered as the Democrat who stood in the way of equality. <br /><br />Equality is also very likely to be headed to the ballot in 2010. Even Republicans are now favoring that. There are two ways that could happen. The legislature could send it straight to the ballot or it could pass marriage equality and then the forces of hate would attempt a repeal referendum. So no matter what we are going to be gearing up for a ballot campaign that will not be easy. We can't sit by and watch and repeat the mistakes that we made on Prop 8 in California. We have to change hearts and minds and be proactive. If you don't live in Maine you can still help by <a href="https://secure.ga4.org/01/eqme_donate">sending a donation to Equality Maine</a> which has launched a major campaign to win marriage equality and is doing great work. If you live in Maine you can go <a href="http://www.mainelymarriage.org/">here</a>, type in your zip code and town and contract your legislator in favor of marriage equality. <br /><br />And on a related note, New Hampshire's State Senate will be voting on marriage equality <strong>tomorow</strong>. It has already passed the State House. It's not looking good but if you live in New Hampshire <strong>please</strong> <a href="http://bluehampshire.com/diary/7103/why-and-how-to-call">click here</a>, find your Senator and call them. Let's win!Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03696617154238807359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3649332116913216882.post-70338308597807511062009-04-16T22:06:00.000-07:002009-04-16T23:03:40.264-07:00Sick<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/E9d38EoQ9pg&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en&feature=player_embedded&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/E9d38EoQ9pg&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en&feature=player_embedded&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object></p> <p dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;"></p> <p dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;">A scary world for them =</p> <p dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;"></p> <p dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;">-The world being a safe place for gay people</p> <p dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;"></p> <p dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;">-People being open about their sexuality and gender identification.</p> <p dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;"></p> <p dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;">-Accurate portrayals of happy gay families.</p> <p dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;"></p> <p dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;">-Other bad things include tolerance, piercings, diversity, courage, compassion, pride and equality.</p> <p dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;"></p> <p dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;">In their sick and twisted world god loves you but he doesn't love who you are. They use "studies" to show that gays are inferior, remember anyone else using "studies" to show that any other groups are inferior? In their world hate, bullying and bigotry and accepted and encouraged.</p> <p dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;"></p> <p dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;">It's sick, disgusting and wrong.</p> <p dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;"></p> <p dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;">In California last November these forces of hate used their fear tactics, caught us all by surprise and passed Prop 8, banning marriage equality in California. In 2010 their will almost certainly be a measure on the ballot to repeal Prop 8 in 2010 and it will be a close fight. The forces of hate are gearing up with a false and fearmongering ad. Luckily the Courage Campaign, one of the best progressive groups in California, is fighting back by holding "Camp Courage" training camps around the state modeled off Camp Obama and Camp Wellstone to train activists on how to fight for equality. But they need money to put these on all over the state. If you want to fight back against these sick, fear mongering bigots <a href="https://secure.couragecampaign.org/page/contribute/TurnFearIntoHope">send the Courage Campaign a donation</a>. Whatever you can afford, 5 bucks or 5 thousand bucks. Don't let hate win.Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03696617154238807359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3649332116913216882.post-77889255517538810212009-01-11T12:21:00.001-08:002009-01-11T12:21:53.809-08:00OH-Sen: Voinovich to call it quitsSo says <a href="http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0109/17324.html">Politico</a> <blockquote>Ohio Republican George Voinovich is expected to announce Monday that he won't seek re-election to the Senate in 2010. </blockquote> <p>Cue the music </p><p><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/hMenB9Ywh2Q&hl=en&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/hMenB9Ywh2Q&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="344" width="425"></embed></object> </p><p>This is retirement number <b>four</b> for Big Bad John and Co. just five days into the 11th Congress. In addition to that everyone knows that Kay Bailey Hutchison will make a run for governor and may resign to focus on that. Democrats have legitimate chances to pick up all of them. </p><p>Republicans likely to take a shot at the seat include Rob Portman and John Kasich. Democrats have a large field of potential candidates including Rep. Tim Ryan and Rep. Betty Sutton but the CW in Ohio says that Lt. Governor Lee Fisher will run and clear the field with Gov. Ted Strickland's backing. </p><p>The Republicans so far are dropping like flies. Big Bad John Deathwatch Part 1? </p><p>Also at this point in the 2008 cycle no Republican had announced their retirement. Wayne Allard announced his retirement on January 15th, 2007. The next retirement wasn't until August 31. In 2006 only Bill Frist retired for the Republicans. If I remember correctly Democrats won quite a few seats in those elections, imagine what 2010 will look like. <br /></p>Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03696617154238807359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3649332116913216882.post-72051271367511985452008-12-22T21:41:00.000-08:002008-12-22T22:04:46.931-08:00I'm backI guess.<br /><br />Been over a month since I've posted here, didn't really go anywhere though and I doubt my loyal readership of maybe 1 missed me too much.<br /><br />I'm now a "frontpager" at the newly launched and totally awesome <a href="http://www.mnprogressiveproject.com/">Minnesota Progressive Project</a> which is in my humble and totally biased opinion the best state blog (or will be on Jan 1 when the legendary <a href="http://www.raisingkaine.com/">RK</a> closes down).<br /><br />So yeah, I'll try to be a bit more regular now.Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03696617154238807359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3649332116913216882.post-22142399592819127412008-11-12T17:00:00.000-08:002008-11-12T18:41:29.977-08:00Taking a look at my predictionsIt's been a little bit more then a week since the elections and I'm finally starting to recover so let's take a look at how my predictions turned out.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Gubernatorial</span>: Nailed it.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Presidential:</span> Got everything right except for Indiana and NE-02 which Obama won and Missouri which it looks like Obama lost but still has not been called. Only one off for the electoral college count though.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Senate: </span>Nailed it in every called race so far. Votes are still being counted and recounts will probably happen in Alaska and Minnesota. There will be a runoff in Georgia.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">House:</span> Off by a lot. We kept PA-11 but lost LA-06 and KS-02 and didn't pick up FL-25, IL-10, IN-03, MN-03, MN-06, MO-09, NJ-07, WA-08, AZ-03 and OH-02. So I was wrong on 13 races. There is a runoff in LA-04 and votes are still being counted in OH-15 and CA-04, I predicted the Dems would win all three of them, right now that's looking likely in OH-15 and LA-04 but not quite as likely in CA-04.<br /><br />Right now though I missed 16 races out of 536 or about 97 percent. Not bad, not great.<br /><br /><h3 class="post-title entry-title"><a href="http://populistareport.blogspot.com/2008/11/populista-report-final-predictions_03.html"><br /></a></h3>Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03696617154238807359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3649332116913216882.post-19014374402216040642008-11-03T11:22:00.000-08:002008-11-03T11:35:32.396-08:00Populista Report Final Predictions: House ElectionsNow finally for the exiting and long list of House elections.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Republican Pickups: </span>FL-16, TX-22, PA-11<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Democratic Pickups: </span>NY-13, AZ-01, VA-11, NY-25, AK-AL, CO-04, FL-24, IL-11, MI-09, MI-07, NY-29, OH-16, OH-15, NC-08, NM-01, NM-02, <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" >CA-04, CT-04, FL-08, FL-25, ID-01, </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" >IL-10, IN-03, LA-04, MD-01, MN-03, MN-06, MO-09, NJ-03, NJ-07, NV-03, OH-01, PA-03, WA-08, AL-02, AZ-03, OH-02, VA-02, VA-05.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Net Democratic Gain:</span> +36<br /><br />Maybe a little optimistic. But I think that's going to be pretty close.<br /></span>Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03696617154238807359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3649332116913216882.post-63969371190879851452008-11-03T11:20:00.000-08:002008-11-03T11:22:30.650-08:00Populista Report Final Predictions: Senate ElectionsNow for the very important Senate elections.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Republican Pickups: </span>None<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Democratic Pickups: </span>Virgina, New Mexico, Colorado, New Hampshire, Alaska, Oregon, North Carolina, Minnesota<br /><br />And I also predict the Georgia Senate race will go into a runoff and Jim Martin will win it but I'll have final predictions closer to that election.Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03696617154238807359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3649332116913216882.post-37862668104792734252008-11-03T11:17:00.000-08:002008-11-03T11:20:01.667-08:00Populista Report Final Predictions: Gubernatorial ElectionsNext up the less exiting gubernatorial races.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Republican Pickups:</span> None<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Democratic Pickups: </span>Missouri<br /><br />Polls show close elections for Democratic candidates in Washington and North Carolina but both will hold their seats.Karlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03696617154238807359noreply@blogger.com0