The Delaware Senate [2012]

It has been a couple of months since we have done this, so let's check in on the playing field of our General Assembly races this fall. First up is the Senate. The Senate has 21 members, 14 of them are Democrats and 7 are Republicans. The GOP would need to pickup 4 seats to gain of majority of 11. The big news since we last did this is that Liane Sorenson, the moderate Republican Senator who was redistricted into a very competitive race with Democratic Senator Dave Sokola in a new merged 8th Senate District in the Newark area, decided to retire rather than face Sokola. I must say, I found that surprising. I had listed that race as a toss up of course, but if I had to bet the race, I would have said that Sorenson had the edge. But maybe the demographics of the new 8th SD were too daunting.

Delaware Political Weekly: May 19-25, 2012

Carper Gets New Challenger--And He SPEAKS! Independent Alex Pires, owner of the Bottle and Cork in Dewey. The Bad News: Announced on Fox News. The Good News: He's going after Carper for his banking industry ties, and he's not afraid to hit hard:
“When people find out how dishonest the Democratic party is, and his work is, he’ll never get reelected,” Pires said. “He’s done. He’s finished. Carper, if you’re out there listening, your 36 years of taking money from poor people and living off the fat of the working class man, is done. I am the working class guy. I’m going to mop him up. I’m serious beyond serious.”
Memo to Alex Pires: If you want to win, you're gonna need Democrats, LOTS of Democrats. Many D's still identify with the Party, but not the Carper Corporate subsidiary it's become in Delaware and elsewhere. You don't want to alienate prospective supporters like me by an ad hominem blast at our party. You can blast where the Party has gone w/o blasting the traditional values of the Party, which many of us want to see the Party return to. Tone it down just a bit, you want to be seen as a credible alternative to Carper.

Friday’s Polling Report [5.25.12]

Holy poll drop, Batman. New presidential polls in Ohio, Virginia, Florida and Wisconsin change our map dramatically. The new map in question. Yes, I am putting it at the top now, and also in the excerpt section you see on the front page.

Thursday Open Thread [5.24.12]

Here are some oldie but goodie negative cartoons about JFK. I love this kind of historical stuff, because it serves to remind us that, despite the popular notion that in the good old days Democrats and Republicans got along and did not hate each other, politics has always been nasty. In the election of 1884, charges of illegitimate children and affairs dogged Grover Cleveland. "Ma Ma Where's my Pa? Gone to the White House Ha Ha Ha."

Quote of the Day

"There was a woman in Iowa who shared her story of financial struggles, and [Romney] gave her an answer right out of an economic textbook. He said, "Our productivity equals our income." And the notion was that somehow the reason people can’t pay their bills is because they’re not working hard enough. If they got more productive, suddenly their incomes would go up. Well, those of us who’ve spent time in the real world -- (laughter) -- know that the problem isn’t that the American people aren’t productive enough -- you’ve been working harder than ever. The challenge we face right now, and the challenge we’ve faced for over a decade, is that harder work has not led to higher incomes, and bigger profits at the top haven’t led to better jobs."

Another Teachable Sexism Moment

This has to stop. More than that, it has to be forcibly denounced by everyone. If you don't get why this is so very, very wrong, please turn in your Progressive card. This sort of behavior is abhorrent on every level, and my heart breaks for Ms. Cupp. This image exists. It doesn't matter that it's PhotoShopped. It exists, and will be sent across the internet. Can you imagine how Ms. Cupp feels (how you would feel) knowing that her friends and family will see such a thing, an image that will never go away? I'm not a lawyer, but I hope she's able to sue Larry Flynt for every penny he's worth.

I just got polled in the NCCo. Executive Race.

For real this time. And by that I mean, it was a real poll, not a push poll from a union on behalf of Tom Gordon. The pollster asked my opinion on a host of issues facing New Castle County, and also asked me what I thought was the most important issue facing the county. I answered "development." I was asked my opinion of Tom Gordon. I answered unfavorable because I consider him a criminal. Then I was asked my opinion of Paul Clark, and I said I wanted to answer undecided, but was told my only two options now were favorable or unfavorable. So I said unfavorable due to my concerns over his ethics. I was then asked if the election were held today, who would be getting my vote, and the choices were Clark, Gordon, Shahan or undecided. I answered Shahan.