Dare I hope? No, I don't. This five of wands might signify a long election night, and that it will be close, and hard fought down to the last vote cast. But, if it is that close, can't that just as easily forecast a victory for Christine O'Donnell.
I look at it this way. Thanks to all the national media exposure, and the blatant unfairness of the coverage against her, she might have a shot. To say nothing of the admirable way she has conducted herself in the debates. She looked reasoned, knowledgeable, poised, and intelligent. Her opponent, Coons, just looked like an ass.
The people of Delaware might come to the ironic conclusion that if they really want to elect a fool and an idiot to the Senate, somebody that will make the first state of the Union look like a laughingstock, they should elect Chris Coons.
However, if they want to elect an independent voice and a person of integrity who will represent them and their state to the best of her ability, which come to find out is considerable after all, they should elect O'Donnell. It's just a matter of whether or not Christine can overcome the incredibly unfair negatives heaped on her by a complicit leftist media, Democrats, and by the elites of her own party.
Another thing that has to be said is that her supporters are dedicated. Coons base of support is non-existent. All he has-ALL he has-is people who habitually vote Democratic, when they are in the mood to go to the polls. This year, polls notwithstanding, they might not be.
There is a path to victory here for Christine O'Donnell, but its going to be a long, hard road.
Pennsylvania is another one Dems might as well say fare thee well to. What have they got here? Republicans don't want to permanently extend unemployment benefits with no end in sight. Granted, that's probably the only reason its going to be as close as it will be, but that's just not enough. Pennsylvania is one of the hardest hit states in the union in terms of job loss, loss of manufacturing, and business closings.
People there are finding it hard to listen to Democrats talk about how they're the party of the working man and woman and "the little guy" and keep a straight face.
How sweet it is. Feingold is going to get hammered hard. I could be conservative and say he'll get beat by four or five points, but I think this is going to be a double digit rout.
The Lexington Mayor's race is typically billed as non-partisan, but nobody buys that. They just don't run as Democrats or Republicans. But there is no doubt as to which is which in this race. Jim Newberry, the current Mayor, is a Republican running for re-election against the current Vice-Mayor Jim Gray, who is almost certainly a Democrat. Newberry has his problems and might lose this thing. If he does-and I am calling it for Grey-it will probably be because of objections to the water rate hike imposed by a foreign company who brought the lake and water system.
There are also questionable expenditures involving city contracts, and some disagreement as to how much money was wasted. Newberry says one certain project was under budget and that Gray voted against controlling costs. Gray says however, in a very effective ad, that due to cost overruns involving the paving of South Limestone by a company with connections to Newberry, the paving of one particular road ran to seven thousand dollars a foot. There have also been scandals involving public funds at Bluegrass Airport and the City Library, and Gray has attempted to lay these at the doorstep of Newberry.
Gray is accused of hiring illegal immigrants for his construction business, which he denies. And so it goes-accusations, denials, and counter-attacks. I think its going to come down to the water rates, which at 37 percent are significant.
For now, I'm calling this for Gray. I just have this sense that his campaign is making connections with the public while Newberry is mainly playing defense. We'll see.
And, sure enough, here's a poll that shows Gray leading in the polls by four points.
One of the hottest races this election,and one of the closest, is one that has been flying under most people's radar screens, but its important, for it involves one of the most reliably Blue Dog Democrats in the Congress, Ben Chandler, locked in a tight race against attorney Andy Barr, the Republican who Chandler has tried to tie to the corrupt administration of former Kentucky Republican governor Ernie Fletcher. Chandler has even attempted to paint Barr as a convicted criminal. In reality, Barr was caught with a fake id when he was a college student, something he didn't mention when filling out a job application because he thought it was so minor it wasn't important enough to mention. However, it is telling that in all the ads Chandler runs, he never mentions the nature of the crime, just that Barr is a convicted criminal. In one ad, one I have so far been unable to dig up, and which hasn't run now in quite some time, the narrator, a woman, says of Barr, and I paraphrase here-"criminal charges are usually how politicians end their careers, not start them".
I always said, if I absolutely were forced to vote for one Democrat this year, and could do so for any one anywhere in the country, Chandler would be the Democrat I would vote for. He has been good on some things, like Second Amendment rights and border security/illegal immigration, and he voted against Obamacare. But, at the same time, he voted for the stimulus bill, and for Cap And Trade. So even this best of possible Democrats is a mixed bag.
If I could vote in his race, I would vote for Barr, who I am tentatively calling this race for. The Five Of Caps looks like Chandler morosely saying goodbye to his congressional career.
A lot of people have been making noise about Sean Bielat's bid to unseat Barney Frank, noise that I used to see as wishful thinking. Lately though I don't know, I'm starting to think there might actually be something to it. Or could be, if Frankor his allies don't figure out a way to steal the election, which would be my first interpretation of the above card, the Seven of Swords.
But, there could be a better interpretation for Sean Bielat, one that sees him as a clever campaigner who has made Frank look like an idiot, as well as one of the most corrupt bastard in Congress, while not getting personal, and even going about his campaign with good humor and grace.
I would have preferred he got in Barney face, just enough to make Barney lose it and show his true face to his constituents and the world, the face that is barely below the surface as it is.
But it would have been fun to see Franks reaction to charges that he has used his power and influence to help first one gay lover after another. Sure, he would have been charged with homophobia, but who cares? If Frank had female lovers, what would be the difference? Of course, this is Massachusetts were talking about, so maybe Bielat made the right call.
I would at least like somebody to point out how Frank's involvement with a gay brothel, run out of his own Washington home, was probably more about blackmail than fun and games, or making money through prostitution. After all, why would a sitting congressman take that kind of chance for anything other than compiling a list of potential extortion targets? This, and many many other things, is something the coming Congress needs to look into, provided Frank is re-elected. Or for that matter, even if he is not.
In the meantime, let's hope this ad by Sean Bielat does the trick.
I know this is almost definitely too good to be true, but what if its not? Hoyer is considered so safe no real polling has been done in the fifth district. The last time he ran he won more than seventy.
But, his opponent, Charles Lollar, another black conservative Republican, is running an intelligent, energetic campaign. He got on Hoyer's nerves so badly Hoyer, sometime during a break in a debate the two were having, took him off to the side and punched him in the back-twice. He then told Lollar, ""I'm coming after you".
Unfortunately, Lollar didn't press this, probably because it was not caught on tape or video, so there is no proof, as there were no witnesses-well, that is, other than the one reporter who questioned Lollar, who affirmed it happened.
Hoyer also got some bad news from some of his constituents during the course of a glad handing trip to the district, in which a couple of business owners told him things were by no means improving for them, and questioning his assessment of things.
Steny's district has a large black population. They might possibly be a majority, and Lollar is black. Granted, he's by no means the typical liberal Democratic plantation straw boss they are used to having shoved in their faces, but is he persuasive enough to convince a sizable number of them its time to escape their bonds and make their way into the twenty-first century? Are there enough business people, black and white, who are sick of Hoyer's arrogance and sense of entitlement to send a clear message to Washington?
Like I said, it sounds almost too good to be true. But one things for sure, the card of The World reversed will almost definitely come true for Hoyer in one way.
His days as the House Majority Leader are about to come to a screeching halt.
The House race in Florida between Republican and Tea Party favorite Allen West and Democratic incumbent Congressman Ron Klein might well be the most fascinating race of the election. Right now, it looks like West is slightly ahead, and Klein is desperate to keep his seat. So desperate, in fact, that he recently came out with the following over the top campaign ad.
The basis for this is that West at one time wrote articles for a biker oriented magazine called Wheels On The Road, which Klein says is affiliated with the Outlaws motorcycle gang, a criminal organization.
It is actually a one man operation, run by a man called Miami Mike, who has threatened to kick Klein's ass, wherefore Klein has filed a criminal complaint against him. Personally, I hope Miami Mike eventually makes good on his threat, but hey, that's just me.
The real importance of this race is that it could signal the beginning of the end of the Democratic Party's stranglehold on black voters, which is facilitated by their seeming domination of qualified black candidates and office-holders at the national level. Of course, the true qualification is that they meet the seal of approval of such groups as the NAACP, National Action Network, and Operation Rainbow Push. Because West does not run in those circles, and because he is a conservative as well as a Republican, you can cue the Uncle Tom accusations in 3, 2, 1-
But for now let's just content ourselves with smearing this decorated retired Marine Corps Colonel by tying him in with one of the most vicious criminal gangs in the history of the country, based on not even flimsy evidence, but on actually nothing but the most ephemeral of associations.
Now if West wins, which I think it will, that would be Justice. This is especially true in that he might be one of many up-and-coming Republican black conservatives in the US Congress. Yes, they are running all over the place this year, including against Democratic House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer's in Maryland. I have already posted as to how Hoyer got so angry at his opponent during a debate, he met him offstage and punched him in the back, telling him "I'm coming after you".
There is another black candidate in Illinois, a female, whom Democrats have tried repeatedly to exclude from the ballot.
Although that last one did make at least one national news broadcast, the vast majority of the other conservative Republican candidates have been ignored by the media, as though they didn't exist. After all, that would be going against the narrative of the Democratic Party as the party that supposedly protects the rights of minorities.
If this year is as big a Republican year as most now seem to think it will be, you might have a phenomenon similar to 1992's "Year of the Woman". 2010 could well turn out to be "The Year Of The Black Conservative Republican".
If the Congressional Black Caucus ended up being dominated by conservatives, or eclipsed in power and influence by "The Congressional Conservative Black Caucus", that could only be good, for blacks and for the country as a whole. But it shouldn't be that much of a surprise. After all, it won't be the first time Republicans have freed black folks from Democrat slavery.
I know this probably seems like a waste of time, but I'm not really trying to "predict" the outcome so much as trying to gauge the possible long-term effects, and to ask-why? New York should have been in play for Republicans this year, but unfortunately New York is one of those few places in the country where the state and national Democratic Party working in tandem set the agenda and control the narrative.
Because they have such a lock, they have succeeded in setting New York in the direction of the same fiscal ditch that contains the rotting carcasses of the state of California, and the city of Detroit.
Andrew Cuoma, the all-but anointed future governor of the state, at first had some potential competition from Carl Paladino. But after some criticism in the national press due mainly to him temper, he was effectively neutered, and then avoided. By the time of the so-called debates, Paladino was effectively shut up. That's too bad. It would have been must-see tv had Paladino told Cuomo "I'll take you out".
In fact, that would be one hell of a campaign slogan.
Or he could have told Cuomo "no good father would want to bring his children anywhere near you."
Does anybody doubt that this would have been all over the news, nationally, and that Paladino would have gotten more attention and, yes, support? Would that have been a bad thing? Let's face it, Carl Paladino is a perfect reflection of the way most Americans feel right now about smug, elitist bastards, like Cuomo, and for good reason.
But like I said, Paladino was effectively neutered, and the debate descended to the level of bad comedy, with the candidate that should have commanded the stage being upstaged by some vague third party candidate of the "The Rent Is Too Damn High" party, who it turned out in fact doesn't pay rent anywhere.
How did it come to this, that the Republican Party is so weak in such an important, vitally important state, which is controlled by a party and legislature that seems hell bent on ruining it? Oh sure, people will point to Giuliani, but never forget, he made his name as a DA first, and that was the horse he rode to the mayor of New York City's office. Bloomberg, never really a Republican, just came along afterward and hitched a ride on his coattails.
But Giuliani has long since lost the taste for politics. He refused to run against Hillary, and he refused to face off against Cuomo. Unfortunately, neither he nor any national Republicans saw fit to give Paladino the support he deserved, or even the benefit of their friendly advice, so far as I know.
What's worse, there are two Senate races in New York, one being a special election of sorts for Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, who was appointed to replace Hillary Clinton. The other one is nothing but the inevitable re-election of Chuck the Schmuck Schumer. I don't even know who's running against either one of them. I don't really care. Why should I? The national party doesn't. Had Palladino not come across for a while like an old time mob boss, thereby drawing the attention of a media starved for evidence of Tea-Party nuttiness, I wouldn't know who he was either.
The Two of Pentacles (the first card to turn up twice in this set of readings) then signifies a basic truth. If the GOP is going to be a factor in New York outside of a small handful of congressional districts, they are going to have to rebuild the state party from the ground up. And the only way they are going to do that is by funding candidates like Paladino, and giving them the resources they need to defend themselves, and further standing by them in the face of unfair assaults by an in-the-tank press, as opposed to running as far away from them as possible, which only serves to make them even more defensive because they are on their own-which looks even worse for all concerned.
Granted, Paladino isn't the kind of Republican New Yorkers are accustomed to, which is why they are so marginalized, in my opinion. It goes to prove the veracity of that old saying-give the people a choice between a liberal Democrat and a liberal Republican and most of the time they'll choose the liberal Democrat. Again, Rudy was an exception that proves the rule-a socially liberal Republican who was tough on crime while being an economic conservative.
But Rudy is now gone, and what has he left? A personal legacy that can not be passed on, because it was based on the force of his own personality, not on any kind of value or philosophy that offered anything in the way of a viable alternative to the status quo-which is what people hunger for, not just in New York, but everywhere. Hell, that's why we have a two-party system to begin with. So we have a choice. But New Yorkers have not reaped the benefits of that system for decades now. While Giuliani gave them a brief taste of that potential, for what it was worth, I wonder how much longer its going to be now before New York City once again descends into the gutter of crime and desperation that once held it in thrall for so long no one could have ever imagined it would pull its way out.
But before that happens, the state itself will probably be the first to fall into default. It's only a matter of time. It is governed by a legislature that is dominated by Democrats, and will soon be governed by a guy who was, along with Senator Gillibrand, knee-deep in the mortgage and housing fiasco that has wrecked the nation. Just watch the following video recorded during the time of Cuomos tenure as Clinton's Secretary of HUD.
Just for this reason, this guy should not be defeated, for the simple fact he should never be allowed to run for any kind of public office, or for that matter allowed anywhere near one.
He, along with the states Democratic legislature, and the state's two US Senators-one of whom, Gillibrand, was, it beards repeating, also involved in the mortgage meltdown-are all a lock to acquire or to hold their offices, for no other reason than the Republican Party can't see fit to invest in building their resume in the state of New York beyond a few token RINOs. It's unfathomable.
Good news, if you believe in internal polls. According to Linda McMahon, she's running almost even with Attorney General Richard Blumenthal. As much as I would like to see this turd wagon get body slammed on election night, I find it hard to believe, but its possible. Just slightly. I have to take it with a grain of salt though since all other reputable polls show Blumenthal leading McMahon, the former CEO of the WWE, by anywhere from nine points to on up in double digit territory.
What happened? At one point McMahon was surging and was knocking at the door of the margin of error, and then-something let the air out. She went off offense, and Blumenthal's numbers went up. So much for how much everybody hates negative ads.
I'm going to be blunt here. Linda McMahon was probably the wrong person in the wrong race in the wrong state. Her history with the WWF is questionable, especially the allegations of steroid use among wrestlers, something that she, as CEO, is somewhat responsible for. After all, if this has been such a systemic problem-and I have little doubt that it is-she would almost have to have been aware of it.
Then of course there's the whole wrestling deal in general. There are those who think it sets a bad example to youth and all that crap, and I can't imagine the general populace of Connecticut feels much differently.
Add to these problems the simple fact that McMahon is, let's be honest, not very likable. This all adds up to a big problem. If you are going to run as a Republican in a state as blue as Connecticut, you had damn well better be likable.
Now personally, I'm sure Linda McMahon is a fine person. Hell, I'd do her. But she doesn't have the right personality for this.
Having said all this, Blumenthal is by no means a prize, and if anybody deserves to be tossed from the top of the turnbuckle and hit over the skull with a folding chair-preferably a real one-its him. He's smarmy, arrogant, and an all-around son-of-a-bitch who has gone out of his way to prosecute small businesses for the smallest infractions, and even lied about his military service, falsely claiming to be a Vietnam veteran, a charge which still surfaces from time to time.
I hope I'm wrong in this reading. Maybe the six of cups signifies a sense of nostalgia among enough voters for the good old days of the WWF and WWE, or maybe even a longing for the way things were in general terms-which if it is true, would mean that older, more conservative voters might put McMahon over the top, depending on what the GOTV effort looks like for both sides.
Unfortunately, I'm very much afraid that if anything it signifies that McMahon is going to quickly go back to her old life very quickly. It's going to be a painful loss, if lose she does, because that means that ass Blumenthal will be in the Senate. Which, when you stop to think about it, is a big inducement for Connecticut voters-to get his ass out of the states AG office. Maybe then, Connecticut business people can breathe a little easier.
At any rate, the way things look, I'm going to have to very reluctantly, and with a heavy heart, call this for Blumenthal, whom I suspect will win handily, by at least five or six points.
I guess that's a respectable enough showing for a first time candidate running as a Republican in blue-state Connecticut, even for one who has invested a lot of her own fortune in the race-something that might also give some voters pause.
I only hope she isn't trounced too badly, for the simple fact that it might not bode well for down ticket Republican candidates if her defeat ends up looking similar to this-
Joe Manchin is about to be rewarded for all his years of service to the people of West Virginia, and for the bang-up job he has been doing as governor of the state. Unfortunately for him, the reward is not exactly what he had in mind. He is going to get to keep his current job by way of losing his current race to replace the late Robert Byrd in the Senate.
Sarah Palin has been pushing this meme, calling Manchin a good governor and telling voters at a recent rally for Manchin's opponent, Republican John Raese, to keep Manchin as their governor and send Raese to the Senate. It's a clever argument, and I think it will work.
Manchin however is desperate to win, so desperate in fact that he distances himself from the Obama Administration as often and completely as he can, such as in the following ad, in which he shores up his Second Amendment credentials at the expense of Cap And Trade.
This is yet another race that has see-sawed back and forth in the polls, with the advantage going to first one and then another. As such, due to the closeness of the polls, it would behoove Republicans to remember where they are-West By God Virginie-and keep their eyes open and their ears to the ground. The Democrats are so entrenched here, they, like Manchin, will pull out all stops to win.
In other words, expect hi-jinx. If Manchin wins this one, in all likelihood it will be because it was stolen.
Even with this in mind, I nevertheless call this one for John Raese.
This is an easy one to call for Republican Ruth McClung. She's run a good campaign against an opponent who is so unbelievably stupid he advocated a boycott against his own state. Seriously, how can you conceivably get any more stupid than that? That is like something you would expect to see from a Saturday Night Live skit. He also signed a letter requesting diplomatic courtesies be extended to members of Code Pink during a visit to Iraq where the group engaged in delivering aid and comfort to the enemy. He also is an advocate for open borders. He also is a rubber stamp for everything on the Obama-Pelosi agenda. And, he also faked a terrorist threat against his office when his campaign was caught red-handed in a voting fraud scam. There's so many "alsos" with this guy he should actually be barred from seeking public office, and whether he wins or loses this race he should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
A lot of people want this guy out of office, including Arizona Senator John McCain, who is now sharing office space with Ruth McClung and is actually putting ads out against Grijalva. When you can't get along with John McCain you are pretty much on everybody's enemies list.
This is a race between two opponents, one of whom is a rocket scientist, the other one of whom is most decidedly anything but that.
The Two of Pentacles is a good card. I see McClung as a sure winner. Oh, it will be close. It certainly won't be a blow-out. But it will be a firm defeat with no legitimate need nor excuse for a recount.
I'm not calling this race for Dino Rossi solely because of the masculine nature of the card above, though I am calling it for him tentatively, with much reservation. Patty Murray has been in the Senate just long enough to grow deep tentacles reaching down into the entrenched interests that want to keep her there. That means mucho money has come her way, in addition to foot soldiers courtesy of the SEIU and the Washington Teacher's Unions, and Gods only know who and what else.
But this is a Republican year, and the GOP has a decided edge when it comes to the money game. That's why Murray, the Democratic incumbent whom Anne Coulter calls the stupidest person in the Senate has been on the ropes this campaign season, with the advantage see-sawing first to and away from her and back to Rossi. At one point Murray seemed to be surging, but at last count, Rossi was maintaining a slim lead.
The money game. What would politics be without it?
Advantage Rossi, albeit barely, but just enough for me to call it for him. But, it's gonna be a long night.
I hate to think this, but I'm calling this for Boxer. I just don't see how Fiorina pulls it out. That's too bad, but the Two Of Swords, reversed, would seem to apply more to Boxer. This is the first real contest she's ever faced-ever, in her life, I am inclined to believe. If she were a Senator from any other state, she would probably be long gone-well, except for New York, Vermont, or Massachusetts. Her arrogance is almost Kennedyesque.
She is nothing, absolutely nothing, but a leftist hack politico. But hacks do have this advantage-they have people who are heavily invested in keeping them in their place, and towing the line. In Boxer's case, that is not only an easy job description to fulfill, its her natural calling.
It might be close, but I think Boxer wins, thanks in part also to Meg Whitman's candidacy for governor dragging Fiorina down.
Yep, I'm calling it for Moonbeam. Wealth and connections notwithstanding, and even if she were to manage to buy the governors seat, there's no way Meg Whitman can conceivably adopt imperial airs with the Democrat California legislature, though she might have fun trying. But Moonbeam, he can get things done simply through consensus. In fact, that's probably why he was destined to win this thing from the start. There are a lot of people in California that hold a certain nostalgia for the Brown era, and legacy. There's probably still a few people that even remember his father, who ran both as a Democrat and a Republican-at the same time-and increased the states water supply and resources. Now that's the kind of thing only an emperor can do.
That's not to say everything an emperor does will always be the right thing, of course, but when you're dealing with the problems on the magnitude of those that beset California, it takes an emperor, with an emperors power and influence, to get things done, whether its the right thing or not. And evidently, that's really what the people of California really want, someone to tell them what to do in a way that doesn't rock the boat.
The kind of ruler with a steel resolve and steady hand, with which to guide the ship of state on its journey, all the way to the bottom of the sea.
Stern and tough, yet fair, cares about his people, and about his responsibilities. Tends towards being overly-dogmatic and ideological, overly-zealous about his cause.
Yep, I'm going to go out on a limb and call this race for Tom Tancredo. And, I am not alone.
And, by the way, since the Republican Party for the most part supports Tancredo, running on the Constitution Party against the Republican Party's own Dan Maes, Tancredo might well help to put Ken Buck over the top-or vice versa.
But it will be close, and Democrat Hickenlooper might pull it out, of course, but I don't think so.
This is the one that's going to amount to the deciding factor as to who controls the Senate, if not technically, then in reality. Because of all the ones that the Republicans had a legitimate chance of winning, this one might very well go down as the one they did not win.
Or, it could be the Democrats that are left out in the cold, and in the minority, when this last best hope of retaining their majority are swept away with this final punctuating loss. But just judging by this card, I'm seeing my way clear to at least predict the future make-up of the Senate.
Democrats- 49 + 2 independent fellow caucus members, thereby keeping them in the majority. Republicans-49
Or it could be Republicans 51 and Democrats 47 + 2.
Ya know, I think I like the sound of that. The eight of cups could well signify Michael Bennett having to come to grips with the loss of his one true love-the political power his appointment to the Senate granted him for one slight, brief moment in the sun.
It could also mean that Republican and Tea-Party supported candidate Ken Buck-the man who believes being gay is a choice and who referred to the likelihood that a jury would probably see the plight of one particular rape victim, if she chose to go to trial, as a case of buyer's remorse-will have a hard time adjusting to the realities of present day Washington, which isn't going to change in a hurry.
This drawing for the Florida Senate race seems like a card that belittles the importance of the race. On the other hand, Marco Rubio has already got this race in the bag. Kendrick Meeks, the Democrat nominee and Congressman, doesn't have a snowball's chance in hell of winning, and he has to know that. This is due in no small measure to the fact that Florida is not in any kind of a mood to elect a rubber stamp for Obama. Having said that, by all rights he should get at least forty percent of the vote if it were not for Governor Charlie Christ who, having failed in his primary bid against Rubio, elected to run to the center left as a write-in candidate. He then had the gall to try to pressure Meeks into dropping his bid in a last ditch effort to defeat Rubio, who seems unstoppable.
He brought the White House into it, and Bill Clinton, all to no avail. He even personally approached Meeks, who refused Christ's request, whereupon Christ offered him his sister's crucifix, imploring Meeks to think about it-still to no avail.
Again, Meeks is going to win, and the only reason I did this reading is to ascertain a gauge of voter mood, and what this election might portend for Rubio. He is seen as one of the genuine rising stars in the GOP firmament. This is no longer a campaign for Rubio. It's an audition. But, its also a reminder that he is going to the Senate at an entry-level position. He has to start out small, but maybe for just a very brief time. After a couple of Senate terms, he can probably write his own ticket. For that matter, maybe well before then. But for the time being, he has to be content to learn the ropes.
As for Crist, I don't see how he recovers from this disaster of his own making. He proved himself to be more than just a RINO, but a veritable wolf in sheep's clothing. I think his political career is well nigh over. As for Meeks, he's still a young man who actually comported himself well in his campaign and during his debate appearances. It's just the wrong time for him.
I think we can rule out Democrat Mayor of Sitka Scott MacAdams as anything other than a spoiler here, but the question is, which of the two candidates might he help enable to be victorious? Judging by the card I drew, the Sixth of Wands reversed, which I see here as indicative of a Pyrrhic victory of sorts, I am very much afraid Murkowski is going to be successful in her write-in bid against GOP nominee Joe Miller. That is going to spell trouble down the road, if true, because Murkowski might not be above siding with the Senate Democrats, or even caucusing with them if push comes to shove. And she will be doing plenty of pushing and shoving if the Tea Party becomes too influential.
She is probably already enraged at Alaska Republican voters for denying her, albeit by a very slim margin of votes, the nomination to which she obviously believes she is entitled, as though it were her birthright. She will almost assuredly be more amenable to crossing party lines if it comes down to any kind of showdown with the Tea-Party. Of course, the Tea-Party will be nowhere near as much of a factor in the Senate as they will in the House of Representatives. Still, Murkowski will play the centrist to the hilt. I have every reason to believe enough Democrats will vote for her in this election to put her over the top, and by playing the centrist moderate she might even feel safe enough to cross that aisle for good, if the GOP goes in a direction she does not like over the course of the next couple of years.
Of course, there's another way to interpret this card. Joe Miller could well win, only to find himself viewed as an outsider by his own party, which has as of now pulled all efforts on his behalf. I have no doubt this is due to the influence of Murkowski, whom the party hierarchy would doubtless prefer had won the nomination to begin with. In fact, Miller himself, fearing they were secretly supporting Murkowski during the primary, warned them to stay out of Alaska during the final vote tally. He was sure they were going to try to help her steal the election.
Obviously, this is not a good way to start out, and either way it turns out its going to be a mess. But whoever wins, its going to result in a fractious, divided party in Alaska, the opening battle in the war between the Palin and Murkowski factions for control of Alaska, with all of its vast resources and potential. Seen in this context, Miller becomes more of a pawn than a king. But a pawn is only a pawn until he achieves a position of power. Then the pawn actually has a voice, and becomes more of an equal partner than a junior associate. The Murkowski brand could end up in trouble at the stage of the game.
And when you stop to think about it, its not entirely beyond the realm of possibility that MacAdams could pull off an upset. It depends on-
1. How many Democrats turn out to vote for him, versus how many vote for Murkowski in order to better derail Miller and the Tea Party. Or, conversely, how many Democrats vote for Miller just to get rid of Murkowski, for whom they have no love either. There is also the question as to how many Democrats will bother to vote at all.
2. Seeing as to how Republicans are about evenly split between Miller and Murkowski, which one get their supporters to the polls. Miller's supporters are devoted. But the Murkowski machine is not to be underestimated.
Whoever emerges from the pile victorious will do so battered, bloodied, and bruised.
As I write these words, Barak Obama is speaking at an appearance in Cleveland Ohio, ostensibly on behalf of Ohio Democratic Governor Ted Strickland, who is currently a little behind in the polls in his re-election bid against his Republican opponent, the former Congressman John Kasich.
This is not the first trip he's made to Cleveland over the last few weeks, and it seems that he might also be attempting to save the seat of House member Dennis Kucinich, who seems to be up against the first credible opponent he has faced in years.
It's pretty easy to see why. Kucinich's major legislative accomplishments can probably best be described as the naming of a couple of post offices. His legislative failures are probably best described as, at best, wastes of time, and at worse, a joke, such as the attempt to establish a cabinet level "Department of Peace".
Kucinich is so far to the left of most Ohio voters, even Cleveland, that it was only a matter of time before he ran up against a credible opponent, one who, were he to win, hopefully won't spend half of his time in quixotic runs for the presidency.
It might also be well worth pointing out that the appearance and endorsement of Obama might not be the best judgment call the jack-ass party could have made in hard hit Ohio. Biden isn't going to help alleviate the doubts this time around in this mid-western state, so what they are thinking about, I can only guess.
Stirckland is more than likely going to lose, and I wonder if Kucinich might be on his way out as well, seeing as how he caved to Obama over Obamacare which he thought didn't go nearly far enough-until a certain infamous ride on Air Force One changed his mind, and netted Kucinich's wife a nice, semi-cushy little job working with Michele Obama's childhood obesity initiative.
I hope the voters of Ohio's 10th district are finally fed up enough with the little tin-foil twerp to finally send him packing to a galaxy far, far away.
UPDATE: I just learned, there's been some kind of scandal involving the local Democratic Party in Cleveland, but I haven't heard yet what this entails, only that it is feared that it could have a crippling effect on Democratic get out the vote efforts. That, and the fact that Democratic Senate candidate Rob Portman is a shoe-in to defeat Democratic candidate Lee Fischer, makes it imperative to rally the Cleveland Democratic troops, hence the visit there by Obama and Biden.
I have to be frank, its a little too optimistic to hope that Kucinich is defeated, but it seems obvious that the Democratic Party is in trouble in Ohio generally speaking. And its really hard to say. If Portman's lead translates into an inspired Republican turnout, this could have a corresponding effect on races across the state. One can only hope.
