Tuesday Nov. 2nd

[BlueBallz]

Now there was some political stuff polluting one of Alaska Bear's threads. maybe there is some pent up demand that needs soem release. I will get the ball rolling.

It seems to be a fait accompli that the House will go over to Republican control. It just seems to be a matter of how many seats they will win. I think they will win between 50-60 seats.

The other question is will the Republicans take over the Senate as well?? Things have to break just right for them but it isnt out of the question. I think the Democrats will retain control at 51-49 or 50-50. Something like that. lots of interesting races. I think harry reid will get bumped off in Nevada. Would love to see that cunt Barbara Boxer in California lose but I think she might just hang in there and win. What an unctous, arrogant twat she is.

Sorry to say the likes of the corpulantly corrupt Charlie Rangel will win his seat back. What a joke!!! LOADS of compelling races to look at.

As a wise man once said, "What say you?"..........

[Jake_Sully]

Can we just divide this country into 3 parts? left wing lunatics, right wing lunatics and those with some common sense?

[PigDogg]

Neither party seems to care about health care issues re expats.

Taxation with out representation say me. But the teabaggers don't care about this issue either.

Chairman Ben plan is the reflate the economy which will debase the dollar.

Why don't the real Americans give a shit about us? Do they thing we dererve to go to hell for fcuking 18 year old girls? The pursuit of happiness is an inalienable right.

To the election. Obama was dealt a bad hand. Although a stimulus package is not in my personal self interest, it is my belief that more people would be unemployed if not for fiscal stimulus and TARP.

Most companies have repaid the TARP money which was Paulson's plan anyway, but mad as hell voters are blaming the current POTUS.

[Torurot]

Republicans, "Party of NO" and Tea baggers, "facts don't matter" run by the Koch brothers. The leverage from a small amount of political money after the REAL money is staggering. The best "democracy" money can buy.

[BlueBallz]

I really thought there would be more action on this thread. Perhaps its because the vast majority here are left of center on most issues and it looks like the Dems will get a right thrashing on Tuesday night. not trying to start anything but just saying........

The fact that Rep. Barney Frank D MA is having an actual challenge speaks volumes at how the public is disgusted with Washington. Like it or not, the Democrats have been in power for two years and the folks arent pleased at whats been happening. Now I see Obama using the same hackneyed lines about the car being driven into the ditch. Thats not good enough. He offered hope and answers during his campaign to the White House. Bottom line is he has to deliver. Dont tell me how rough the seas are, just bring in the damned ship.

The good thing is that the Democrats will be replaced. The bad thing is they will be replaced by Repubilcans. If they can one or both Houses, the Rs should demand huge/draconian spending cuts-ACROSS THE BOARD!! Lets start with all the bennies Congress and the public sector workers get!!! LEAD BY EXAMPLE YOU ARROGANT TWATS!!!

[Snick]

i'm going to vote for the masturbation hating lesbian witch...thats limits me to 4 choices.

[Jake_Sully]

I was going to not say much but I agree with you. However I don't agree with you on your assessment since I don't consider myself left of center although people sure do beg to differ. I've been called a N***** lover by some people and told to go suck his dick - even at work! Go figure!

I think the country still thinks of Reagan when it looks at Republicans but Reagan's stance on things today would be considered Republican In Name Only (RINO). I actually do care about some things from their platform.. balanced budgets, less government, lower taxes. But I could care less about the extremist mentality of doing away with social security and their fondness of having organized religion be our main guide instead of the constitution along with it. For a party of less government they sure like government to tell everyone how to live and ignore our 5th amendment rights trying to deny us of life, liberty and prosperity.

Sure I agree with a few things from the left too: LBGT equality, Higher Taxes on those companies who import goods and services from overseas, tax breaks on companies that create jobs here, public education including college. But I could care less about their high taxes to pay off debts, incredible naivety and fondness of redistributing the wealth.

It just seems common sense in America has gone down the drain. Not surprising when one looks at education records. No one researches facts anymore. They just want to play Wii/ Xbox/ PS3 and vote for a charismatic idiot who looks like them although they maybe a complete lunatic who buys more airtime on commercials during their favorite tv program. I'm so jaded after seeing so many elections.. I feel like a punching bag for 2 extremists. I don't like either of them and yet my choice is to vote for which I see as the lesser of 2 evils.

Will a 3rd party please stand up and give us American's a real choice to vote for a Completely Center Common-sense Party? (CCCP, hah!)

[PigDogg]

(Jake_Sully @ Oct. 31 2010,21:16) It just seems common sense in America has gone down the drain.

It is an inevitable trend that the gap between emerging economies and the West will continue to shrink.  

Down the drain, I dunno?  I think Americans will just have to adjust to lowered expectations.

[PigDogg]

(Jake_Sully @ Oct. 31 2010,21:16) I've been called a N***** lover by some people and told to go suck his dick - even at work! Go figure!

The bright side is that you can sue for sexual/racial harrasement!

Thinking about it sucking the POTUS's dick would be an interesting way to get to know the guy even if the sexual act is somewhat repulsive.

One of life experiences and something to tell the grandkids about.

I wouldn't let him cum in my mouth though!

[bill520]

(BlueBallz @ Nov. 01 2010,11:43) Like it or not, the Democrats have been in power for two years.

The Democrats have been in control for 4 years, they won control of both the House, and Senate in 2006.

[BlueBallz]

(bill520 @ Nov. 01 2010,16:04) [

quote=BlueBallz,Nov. 01 2010,11:43]Like it or not, the Democrats have been in power for two years.[/quote]
The Democrats have been in control for 4 years, they won control of both the House, and Senate in 2006.

Yeah but they certainly didnt have control of the White House, which counts for a lot. I do stand corrected though.

I wanted some feedback of what some of you lot think might happen. Yeah the House looks like a done deal but can the Dems lose the Senate as well?? Would LOVE to see both reid and Boxer lose. That Boxer is such a loathsome individual!!

[PigDogg]

(BlueBallz @ Nov. 01 2010,01:32) I wanted some feedback of what some of you lot think might happen.  

These are odds as of Oct 21

Who will win this Nevada senate seat?
Harry Reid -150 (2/3)
Sharron Angle +200 (2/1)

Who will win this Kentucky senate seat?
Jack Conway -110 ( EVEN)
Rand Paul -110 (EVEN)

Who will win this California senate seat?
Barbara Boxer -125 (4/5)
Carly Fiorina +150 (3/2)

Who will win this Wisconsin senate seat?
Russ Feingold +150 (3/2)
Ron Johnson -125 (4/5)

Who will win this Illinois senate seat?
Alexi Giannoulias -150 (2/3)
Rob Kirk +200 (2/1)


Who will win this West Virginia senate seat?
Joe Manchin +225 (5/4)
John Raese -175 (4/7)

Who will win this Colorado senate seat?
Michael Bennet -110 (EVEN)
Ken Buck -110 (EVEN)

Who will win this Connecticut senate seat?
Richard Blumenthal -250 (2/5)
Linda McMahon +200 (2/1)

Who will win this Missouri senate seat?
Robin Carnahan +300 (3/1)
Roy Blunt -280 (14/5)

Who will win this Ohio senate seat?
Lee Fisher +200 (2/1)
Rob Portman -250 (2/5)

Who will win this Pennsylvania senate seat?
Joe Sestak +300 (3/1)
Pat Toomey -250 (2/5)

Who will win this Washington senate seat?
Patti Murray -200 (1/2)
Dino Rossi +150 (3/2)

[Jake_Sully]

PD my name isn't Monica Lewinsky!

But here's an interesting article today in CNN about the Tea Party

http://www.cnn.com/2010....pt=Sbin

Former President George W. Bush loomed large throughout the 2010 campaign even though he has been out of office for nearly two years.

The upcoming publication of Bush's memoirs, "Decision Points," offers us an opportunity to consider the relationship between the former commander-in-chief and the Tea Party activists who played such a major role in energizing the GOP this summer and fall. While the Tea Party attacks on President Obama and his policies were front and center, their anger was also directed toward the nature of Republican politics in the age of Bush.

The Tea Party movement has opened up a civil war within the Republican Party. Recently these tensions exploded when Bush's top political adviser, Karl Rove, said the Tea Party was not very "sophisticated." Former Arkansas governor and presidential candidate Mike Huckabee called Rove an "elitist" and said that "unfortunately, there is an elitism within the Republican establishment. And it's one of the reasons the Republicans have not been able to solidify not only the Tea Party movement but solidify conservatives across America."

The Tea Party movement was born out of a rebellion against one of President Bush's signature policies: TARP, the bailout for Wall Street investment banks. Tea Party activists have been extremely critical of the willingness of Republicans to turn to the federal government to solve some domestic problems.

Bush's support for the financial bailout was part of a longer tradition of Big Government Conservatism that has been around since the 1960s. In addition to national security spending, Republicans in power have always lived with an expansive view of government.

Ronald Reagan came to accept the permanence of programs like Social Security and Medicare when he discovered they were more popular than the right wing of his party expected. George H.W. Bush pushed through Congress one of the biggest civil rights initiatives since 1965, the Americans with Disabilities Act. Under George W. Bush, Republicans undertook a series of major government initiatives, including No Child Left Behind and the Medicare prescription drug program.

For Bush the question was not government versus no government, but rather, what priorities were most important. When the financial markets collapsed in fall 2008, it was not surprising that he opted to use the federal government to help.

Tea Party activists have called for a return to a kind of pristine, libertarian conservatism that they feel once existed. They have attacked all forms of federal intervention and called for their party to embrace a purer form of opposition to big government.

A second concern for Tea Party activists has been the political process in Washington. They have frequently employed the rhetoric of good government reformers in explaining what's wrong with the system. The Tea Party has complained that lobbyists on K Street wield too much influence on Capitol Hill. They warn that interest groups will be the biggest beneficiaries of new policies. And they have expressed their frustration about how congressional practices such as earmarks have been used to unfairly allocate public funds.

These attacks touch directly on how Republican politics worked throughout Bush's presidency. By 2001, Republicans had learned to work within the political system to advance their objectives and to secure their power. Indeed, between 2005 and 2006, Republicans came under fire for having practiced politics as usual.

Investigations revealed that there were tight connections between Republicans and lobbyists such as Jack Abramoff that had been nurtured by the K Street Project. The K Street project was an operation set up after the 1994 elections whereby Republican House and Senate leaders met regularly with lobbyists to talk about legislative strategy and to find possible employment for GOP staffers.

Congressional Republicans also relied on earmarks as much as their Democratic colleagues. After all, most voters like their legislators to bring home a little pork.

Finally, many Tea Party activists have pushed back against the multicultural vision that President Bush promoted for his party. Since his time in Texas, Bush had worked hard to bring new voters into the Republican coalition, particularly Hispanic-Americans. He stood firm for liberalized immigration policies in 2005, even as hard-line conservatives stifled his proposal to overhaul the system.

After 9/11, Bush had been careful to make very clear that he was conducting a war against terrorist networks rather than a war against Islam (to be sure, many of his policies, like the use of torture and the war in Iraq, undercut those efforts).

The backlash against Bush's vision of conservatism has been strong. Tea Party activists have focused on issues like immigration restriction and opposition to gay rights. Some leaders were at the forefront of turning the debate over a mosque in New York into a debate over the role of Islam in American life.

Bush has also felt that the proper role for him was to stay out of the political arena, which has created a bigger opportunity for these voices.

Now that the election campaign is just about over, the party's leaders will have to reconcile the tensions between where the party had been under George W. Bush and where Tea Party leaders would like to see it heading. The impact of the movement on the GOP will create intense pressure on elected officials to listen to what the activists have been demanding if they want their support in 2012.

The question will be whether Tea Party activists will decide that the GOP is just no longer a home for them and if other Republicans, like former President Bush, will be left wondering what has become of their party.

[El_hefe]

To me it'll be interesting to see what happens to the "Tea Party" types once in..... they won't be able to implement any of their more extreme positions since some of the moderate Republicans won't vote for these once the election is over. (Think Reagan & his use of the religious right.)

The TP itself is made up of several factions & once in power there may be infighting to get the more coveted jobs exposing these fractures, this too may force some to ally with (read "compromise") with the GOP leadership which will turn them into ordinary Republicans a far as the true believers are concerned.

I heard a rumour that the Dems may not initiate a lot of necessary legislation in the future so that the GOP can own the misery.... on the other hand the economy has been slowly, but surely getting better, once the inevitable job numbers improve in the next 2 years the GOP/Tea will claim the victory. It took 7+ years of mismangement to hurt the economy, the fact that most numbers have been coming back, but too slowly for the electorate, & the Dem's can't get that msg out is a leadership issue.

Also worth considering is if Obama doesn't run again because his ratings never improve, who among the GOP could defeat Hillary? Right now nobody, but 2 years is an eternity in politics.

A Hillary/Palin 2012 contest would be a hoot!

[PigDogg]

And a different political betting setting site than above:

http://www.intrade.com/