Delaware’s Most Intriguing 2012 Races: Part I

As always, counting down from #10. 10. RD 32: Andria Viola Bennett vs. Ellis Parrott. The undistinguished daughter of one of Delaware's least distinguished legislators (John Viola) has parlayed her homewrecking skills into a run for State Rep, ostensibly as a 'placeholder' for her DUI-plagued new husband and soon-to-be former Rep., Brad Bennett. You know, the guy who tearfully lamented the damage he had done to the institution of the House. Ellis Parrott doesn't get me excited either. An R political aparatchik and long-time Kent County magistrate, now retired. Nothing says 'political patronage' quite like Justice of the Peace. The post-redistricting registration numbers are, shall we say, daunting to the R's: 6133 D, 3143 R, and 3159 I.  You do the math. I haven't the stomach for it. 9. Sussex Council District 3:  Councilperson Joan Deaver vs. Don Ayotte. Sane vs. insane. Deaver has worked hard to protect Sussex County, and has done it within a body that generally supports the entreaties of developers, especially if said developers offer perks that warm what passes for the hearts of said 'Honorables'. Unintelligible ex-blogger Don Ayotte brings 'teh crazy' to the race: a self-proclaimed English major who can't punctuate, spell or put together a sentence that makes sense. Although his mindless minions do seem to have their barnyard epithets memorized, based on the condition of many of Deaver's campaign signs. Deaver's one of the few serious public officials on Sussex County Council, she's not divisive, so it remains to be seen how effective Ayotte will be. Bonus points to Deaver for opposing the frivolous wasting of taxpayers' dollars on legal fees to permit Council to recite "The Lord's Prayer" at the opening of Council meetings. Perhaps the wingnuts have The Lord's Prayer confused with the Landlord's Prayer. Click through to read more....

The Polling Report [9.19.12]

The polling report officially goes meta: A new Washington Post-ABC News poll finds 46% of Americans hold favorable views of polls in general, and 47% have negative ones. My brain has officially malfunctioned... Meanwhile, Romney's outrageous and unAmerican Libya lies have done real damage: Anyway, we have a lot of new polls, and they only change the shades of color on the map. Wisconsin finds a deeper shade of blue while New Hampshire is irritating in its preference for sky blue.

I Thought Republicans Were Against Taxes

It seems that Republicans are only against taxing rich people.  Taxes for the middle class and poor people are apparently a-okay.  Cutting programs that help the poor, the elderly, children and the middle class in order to give the rich more tax cuts is just fine.  This strikes me a quite a shift from the days when the GOP ran against all taxes.

It is September 18, 2016 and Mitt Romney is leading Hillary Clinton by 2 percentage points

If Mitt Romney beats Ms. Clinton it will because he set the stage for his victory during the primary season of 2012. In the summer of 2012, when the rest of the GOP field was running to the right, Mitt Romney stuck to his moderate guns. While Michelle Bachman and Newt Gingrich stoked the fires of hatred and division among Republicans, Mitt Romney argued for a more sensible, inclusive GOP. It was obviously a message that the Republican primary voters were not ready for, but ...

Tuesday Open Thread [9.18.12]

"All campaigns have their ups and downs, but the last three weeks for Mitt Romney have been about as brutal as we can remember for any presidential candidate, especially this close to the election. First, the biggest speech of Romney's life got overshadowed by the Clint Eastwood stunt. Then came President Obama's significant bounce in the polls after the two political conventions. After that, Romney found himself on the defensive for his reaction to embassy attacks in Egypt and Libya. Next, Politico reported about infighting and disorganization inside the Romney campaign. Finally, all of these events were capped off yesterday by the surreptitiously recorded video of Romney..." "What is so potentially deadly about this video is the timing, because it comes as the Romney campaign was already viewed to be behind and in crisis. Back in late July, we wrote that the presidential contest had entered halftime with Obama leading, 14-13. Now after the 3rd Quarter (the Ryan pick, the conventions, and post-convention period), Obama has scored two uncontested touchdowns, bringing it to 28-13. And now we head to the 4th Quarter (the debates)."

The Polling Report [9.18.12]

More polling. Less days until the election. And the race remains the same: President Obama is a clear favorite in the swing states and in the electoral college. We have new polls out of Pennsylvania, Indiana, Kentucky, New Jersey, Wisconsin, and Virginia, and the polls just confirm what we had previously knew. Here is the map, which is unchanged:

‘Bulo To Discuss Most Intriguing November Contests on Today’s Al Show.

Today, from 10-12. I'm counting down my tentative Top Ten Most Intriguing Delaware Races. Your feedback has definitely proven helpful, both in determining which races to include, and in determining the order. I'll be writing a couple of lengthy pieces about these races in the next few days, but if you want a sneak preview, tune in today at 10, WDEL-1150 Newsradio on your AM dial. Hey, maybe we'll also talk about that John Atkins fella.