Mixed emotions
By Libby
I put up my initial thoughts on yesterday's vote over at Newshoggers so I'll just summarize it here to say, I wish Obama had blown Hillary out of the water, only because we would all have been spared the next six weeks of mudslinging going into the next big contest in PA. But it appears that Hillary's last minute GOP style smear tactics worked. I hate that and I wish with all my heart it wasn't true.
Furthermore, David Weigel crunched the numbers and concluded Rush's appeal to the dittoheads probably swung it for Hillary, at least in Texas. I hate when Rush gets what he wants. What's good for Rush is generally bad for America.
I have some thoughts at the other post about how this ongoing bloodbath might work out to the Democrats' advantage in the long run, but the only really bright spot in the whole sordid season has been the record breaking voter turnouts. It's good that people feel like their vote matters and participate in the process. Whether that translates to increased Democratic voter participation in the general will very much rest on what happens at the convention. If the public perceives the choice is made by backroom dealing instead of reflecting the will of the people, I'm predicting they will stay home in the same numbers.
And one other point that's worth repeating, over and over again, is that the high turnout has exposed the weakness in the voting system. In state after state, there has been chaos at the polls because no one was prepared to deal with voters actually showing up. We need to address this shortcoming and repair it somehow before November.
I put up my initial thoughts on yesterday's vote over at Newshoggers so I'll just summarize it here to say, I wish Obama had blown Hillary out of the water, only because we would all have been spared the next six weeks of mudslinging going into the next big contest in PA. But it appears that Hillary's last minute GOP style smear tactics worked. I hate that and I wish with all my heart it wasn't true.
Furthermore, David Weigel crunched the numbers and concluded Rush's appeal to the dittoheads probably swung it for Hillary, at least in Texas. I hate when Rush gets what he wants. What's good for Rush is generally bad for America.
I have some thoughts at the other post about how this ongoing bloodbath might work out to the Democrats' advantage in the long run, but the only really bright spot in the whole sordid season has been the record breaking voter turnouts. It's good that people feel like their vote matters and participate in the process. Whether that translates to increased Democratic voter participation in the general will very much rest on what happens at the convention. If the public perceives the choice is made by backroom dealing instead of reflecting the will of the people, I'm predicting they will stay home in the same numbers.
And one other point that's worth repeating, over and over again, is that the high turnout has exposed the weakness in the voting system. In state after state, there has been chaos at the polls because no one was prepared to deal with voters actually showing up. We need to address this shortcoming and repair it somehow before November.
Labels: Democrats, Election 08
posted by Libby Spencer at 1:05 PM
9 Comments:
The year 2000 is when I moved to Florida, ground zero for stolen elections, and one of the friends I made here is Carol Roberts, the famous "hanging chad" commissioner who called for the recount (her bio is available on Wiki). She commissioned me to write a book about her recount experiences.
So here we are again, another attempt to win an election at all costs with no concept of honesty and integrity in the democratic process.
I listened to Obama's speech tonight. Short but sweet. He invoked a story about a Ugandan man who had kin in the USA and stayed up all night to watch an election return. Obama said (rough paraphrase): The world is watching. What will we tell them? What will they see?
Indeed. His words spoke to me. We show the world our worst, our ugliest side, and expect the world to emulate us. Voters have demonstrated yet again that slash and burn politics wins elections. Democracy will not be honest until voters say: "Enough."
The USA is not my idea of a world class role model. And I have to ask this question, as difficult as it sounds: "Are the Clintons any better than the Bush family?" After last night, I think not. I cannot vote for a Republican under any circumstances, but will have a hard time voting for Clinton after last night.
I'm still working out my mixed emotions here SC but Clinton surely hasn't endeared herself to me. I'm really depressed that so many people bought into the shit slinging.
if it's any consolation, a republican who votes for hillary is surely due some seriously bad conservative karma.
In Michigan in 2000, democratic union members voted in droves for McCain to help spoil that primary for Bush. But, of course, the Democrats have NEVER been gulity of anything corrupt -- oh -- except for Kennedy stealing Illinois and Texas in 1960. But I digress.
The bottom line is this: liberals will NEVER EVER have Amerika the way they want it, even if Obama gets elected. By the same token, right-wingers (and I am not one, even though you label anyone just a tiny hair to the right of you as one) will never get their way either. It's called compromise by those in favor of it, and sleaze by those against it.
Just vote your pocketbook -- it is actually quite cathartic.
LOL Lester. I'm a big believer in karmic kickback.
Anon, if you weren't obviously too bloody lazy to read the linked post I put up at NH, you would see that I said we can't complain about it being unfair because we've advocated the same in this cycle, nevermind rehashing 2000. Nor did I call Rush sleazy for doing so. Not that there isn't a thousand other reasons to call him a sleazy gasbag.
But hey, don't let the facts get in the way of your prepackaged narrative. I won't bother to delete you from my threads unless you get abusive or defamatory or REALLY boring. I like living illustrations of intellectual paucity, but neither will I engage you in a discussion if all you got is some straw men from the past that you want to knock down so you can feel like you've won something.
So unless you can think of something informed to say, I consider this discussion closed.
I couldn't disagree more. Yes I know that the Dems will have to keep fighting for another 6 weeks. Yes I know that McCain will use the time to raise more money. Yeah...and perhaps we've reached a new low point in Democratic campaigning, but is a vigorous campaign...a close convention, really a bad thing?
We may be gearing up to see something that political junkies haven't seen in 60 or so years...a deadlocked convention. Wouldn't that be something?
Hey Kvatch. That indeed would be something, and the political junkie in me would love to see it, but I think it would be better for the country if the Dems emerge from the convention with everybody energized to win, not just half of them.
I worry that we still don't have a verified vote, and a close election is easy to steal.
a close election is easy to steal
All too true as a resident from the State of Stolen Elections can attest. How ironic that the one more likely to steal delegates and votes this time is the Billery tag team.
Well, I was thinking ahead to the general SC, but Hillary's willingness to strongarm delegates is troublesome.
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