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21 Dec 2010 20:40

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Politics: No, we’ll be fine! Seriously: Democrats fight against Census claims

  • Democratic communities and constituencies have grown in size in states like Arizona, Florida, Nevada, and Washington. In states that will lose a seat, the number of Republicans who will be competing with each other creates opportunities for House Democrats.
  • Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chairman Steve Israel • Fighting against claims that today’s census numbers are very bad for Democrats. But let’s face it – they’re going to be very challenging for Obama, and Democrats overall, to fight. The only real Democratic stronghold that gained any seats was Washington, and Obama banked his victory on many of the states that lost electoral college votes. The amount we’re talking about wouldn’t have been enough to hurt Obama’s in 2008, but if the 2012 race is closer, it could hurt. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

20 Dec 2010 20:22

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U.S.: Which states stand to gain (and lose) the most from redistricting?

  • With a fresh Census coming out tomorrow, we all know what you’re worried about. That’s right, where are all the seats in the House gonna move? There’s 435 of them, and people don’t stay stationary their entire lives. So, who benefits this time around? Well, if we could put it into two words: The GOP. People in general are moving into areas that have long been Republican strongholds, while moving away from traditionally Democratic Rust Belt states. “The hands that are on the [computer] mouse will be much more Republican hands, presumably crafting much more Republican seats,” said Election Data Services president Kindall Brace, who put that better than we ever could. Anyway, you want specifics, so here are some specifics:
  • winners Texas is the big winner, and Florida and Arizona should also get multiple seats, too. Nearly every state in the South minus hurricane-ravaged Louisiana wins out. So does the Pacific Northwest.
  • losers States with legacy industrial centers in the Midwest, particularly Ohio (which will likely lose two seats) and Michigan. East-coasters lose out too, particularly New York and Massachusetts. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

19 Dec 2010 21:22

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Politics: FYI: The 20th Amendment was meant to stop lame-duck sessions

  • problem Throughout history, Congress has actually tried to get things done during lame-duck sessions, which was always controversial.
  • solution The Depression-era 20th Amendment changed the end date of Congress from March to early January to stop lame-duck sessions.
  • problem The amendment, however, didn’t account for the proliferation of airplane travel – meaning that Congress could meet in December. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

19 Dec 2010 21:06

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Politics: South Carolina’s OTHER GOP Senator makes a lame-duck excuse

  • If you really want to have a chance of passing START, you better start over and do it in the next Congress, because this lame duck has been poisoned.
  • Sen. Lindsey Graham • Trying to make an argument that Congress shouldn’t be working on passing the START treaty right now because it’s a lame-duck Congress. WAITWAITWAITWAITWAIT. Are you sure this duck is really all that lame? Seems like they’ve gotten a lot of stuff done in just a couple of weeks. A tax compromise. A major food-safety bill. A repeal of “don’t ask, don’t tell,” a piece of major social legislation … and a bunch of other stuff. Now, Lindsey Graham is one of the more level-headed Republicans in the Senate, but this just feels like a different spin on the whole “it’s Christmas” argument his South Carolina counterpart, Jim DeMint, was trying to pass off last week. Stop whining guys; it’ll be a lot less painful when it’s over. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

19 Dec 2010 12:10

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Politics: Kirsten Gillibrand: 9/11 first responders’ health bill still on table

  • We have the votes we need. We have indications from several Republicans that they very much want to vote for this bill.
  • Sen. Kirsten E. Gillibrand • Revealing her hopes of resurrecting the 9/11 first responders’ health care bill before Christmas – this time with GOP support. If this does in fact happen (Gillibrand suggests that they’ve found ways to pay for the bill, which was the main sticking point for the GOP), we think that it will be to Jon Stewart’s credit that this happened, because his cheerleading of this bill kept it on the front-burner even when it looked like it was relegated to the back-burner. Fingers crossed that the $7.4 billion bill passes. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

19 Dec 2010 11:36

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Politics: John McCain’s been really angry lately for some reason

  • I don’t think this will leave any scars. I just think we leave this fight knowing that I was right and he was wrong. I mean, it’s as simple as that.
  • Sen. Joe Lieberman • Explaining his feeling on the flare-up John McCain had over yesterday’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” repeal. While the law’s passage was otherwise calm, McCain (who led the dissent against repeal) got angry at least a few times yesterday, mainly because he wanted more time to debate the bill (which he got without having to be angry about it). Anyway, the former presidential candidate went a little off the deep end, bemoaning “this bizarro world that the majority leader has been carrying us in,” and basically being kind of a jerk about the whole thing. So, this is what it’s like to be a maverick, eh? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

18 Dec 2010 15:39

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U.S.: “Don’t ask, don’t tell” repealed; here’s a romantic scene from the Senate

Kirsten Gillibrand and Harry Reid sure seem a little, um … lovey-dovey over finally pushing through the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” Aww. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

18 Dec 2010 11:53

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U.S.: DREAM Act falters, DADT repeal gets past debate in Senate

  • 55-41 the Senate wasn’t really into the DREAM Act
  • 63-33 however, they can back a DADT repeal (WHOO) source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Dec 2010 17:09

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Politics: Ezra Klein: Obama’s brand power strong even with GOP House

  • Whatever the explanation, there appears to be more life in the Obama brand than the pundits might think, and than the Republicans might hope.
  • Policy superdude Ezra Klein • Reacting to a recent poll which suggests that Obama has stronger post-midterm stock than his two predecessors. While people trusted the other party to solve problems more than the president after the unsuccessful midterms for both Clinton (in 1994) and Bush (in 2006), Obama still has a little bit of  an advantage over the GOP this time around. “There’s been a lot of criticism of Obama’s communication skills lately,” Klein notes, “but if you look at the polls, he’s doing a far better job than his predecessors did preserving his brand within an unfriendly political environment.” source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Dec 2010 11:01

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Politics: Jim DeMint pulls the “it’s Christmas” card to block legislation

  • We shouldn’t be jamming a major arms control treaty up against Christmas; it’s sacrilegious and disrespectful. What’s going on here is just wrong. This is the most sacred holiday for Christians. They did the same thing last year – they kept everybody here until [Christmas Eve] to force something down everybody’s throat. I think Americans are sick of this.
  • Sen. Jim DeMint • Saying a pretty douchey thing about doing his freaking job. So, to clarify … the GOP stonewalls the Democrats in the Senate the entire year, forcing legislation and judicial nominees from getting passed or even debated, and Jim here is all upset because they’re trying to actually get stuff passed while they still have some control of Congress? Yeah, you’re not a jerk. Perhaps you would enjoy your Christmas holiday more if YOU DIDN’T ACT LIKE A JERK THE REST OF THE YEAR. Don’t like it? Deal with it. Seriously, this is the most pathetic reasoning we’ve seen for any political ploy this year. Mind you, it’s December. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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