Wins and Losses

Well, we made it through another Election Day, this time without wondering whether the vote would be close like in 2000. It was anything but that. Obama's landslide victory surprises even me. I know a lot of people are concerned whether he will do well or not. I think he will. It will take time, but we will find out. If not, then we'll look for another President. At least he can't be worse than Bush :)

I would like to thank John McCain for his effort, and for his service to the country. He has served his country honorably, in both peace and war. Here's a suggestion: If Obama wants to truly create a bipartisan cabinet, why not select John McCain for Secretary of Defense? His military experience alone qualifies him in my book. I have a lot of respect for John McCain, I just don't like his party. He would be a tough cookie in that position.

Congrats to Baron Hill for his win over Mike Sodrel. Baron ran a good campaign against a tough opponent. Baron's win means that we still have a voice in the House, a voice that will work for us, not for a party. Again, congratulations Baron.

On the loss side, I was terribly disheartened to hear that Jill Long Thompson lost to Daniels. That is really a shame. Jill did not have enough money to push back against Daniels' massive sign blitz and television ads. She would have made a good Governor. Now we face four more years of watching our state get sold off piece by piece. In a few months, those that believed his ads will wake up to realize they made a mistake, once he starts back in on his privatization kick. Just wait and see. The only good thing is that the Democrats control the Statehouse. This will help to keep Daniels in check, and stop him from running roughshod over the state. Maybe someone in the Statehouse can get enough support to push a measure to end DST, or at least a referendum. It will have to have a lot of support in order to override any possible veto by Daniels. I can only hope.

Low Blows and Slick Tricks from the GOP Slime Machine

Just when you thought that the GOP couldn't dig any lower in the slime pit, here's the latest examples. For the first example, the Washington Post, in their campaign diary, The Trail, reports that when Obama's Grandmother was dying, Obama made a trip to Hawaii (on October 24th) to visit her. According to the article, the California GOP filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission about the Obama Campaign using campaign funds to make the trip. Here is the complaint:

"Obama for America violated federal law by converting its campaign funds to Senator Obama's personal use," the release stated. "Senator Obama recently traveled to Hawaii to visit his sick grandmother. This was the right thing for any grandson to do -- at his own expense -- but it was not travel that his campaign may fund."

According to the article,

At issue was whether the trip should have been paid for with campaign funds, based on the law that forbids candidates from using such funds to pay for personal travel. The Obama campaign said the trip had been vetted with lawyers beforehand and was allowable. The Republicans argued that, because Obama did not campaign during the quick journey to Hawaii, it should not have been a campaign expense.

The Republicans released the statement about 1:30 pm on Monday. Obama's Grandmother died the same day. Talk about bad timing...releasing a statement condemning someone visiting his dying Grandmother on the day that she dies. That's low. Ok, maybe there might be an issue about what funds were used. If so, Obama can pay them back. The real issue here is a heartless, desperate GOP that continues to find new ways to stoop lower and lower into the muck. If the shoe had been on the other foot, I'm sure the GOP would have said it was ok, and would have thrown a fit if anyone says anything. As far as not campaigning while he was there, well, if he had, they would have twisted that, too.

Here's another one. Here in Indiana, two Republican poll workers were removed for challenging voters improperly. According to another article in The Trail, the workers challenged "voters on the basis of their party affiliation". Read on:

Voters in the battleground state can be challenged on the validity of their address, age or if they lack an ID, but not based on their party affiliation. The two poll workers -- a Republican vote challenger and a clerk -- forced at least three voters to file provisional ballots, said Angie Nussmeyer, spokeswoman for the Marion County Election Board.

The county's bipartisan elections board voted unanimously to remove the two. The Marion County Republican Party reacted with a statement this afternoon saying it was unaware of the improper challenges and had not instructed party workers to do so. "We wish to see all qualified voters vote and find it reprehensible to ever deter a proper voter from voting," read the statement.

Um, yeah, sure they didn't know...yeah, right. Just another GOP tactic to keep people from voting, and keep themselves in power. At least they were stopped before they did much damage.

There have been countless reports across the country about tactics such as these and worse in the last few days. Maybe by people hearing about it, people will be prepared if they are challenged.

If you still are able to vote, and are challenged, call your local election board, call the media, whatever it takes. If you are told that you can't vote because of parking tickets or voting for Democrats is tomorrow, don't believe it because it is a lie. You can't be stopped from voting or arrested for parking tickets, and the only day for elections is today. You have a right to vote. Don't let them stop you.

Time To Vote!

Well, we've finally made it to Election Day. This has been the longest and most arduous campaign I've ever seen. I'm not going to get into any history about this campaign, because you probably already know about most of it. What is important here is that no matter who you support, get out and vote. We in Indiana only have two hours left, but the rest of the nation will not stop until late tonight. The media networks, thankfully, have put a moratorium on releasing any information about the election until after 5 pm EST. Personally, I wish that they would wait until after the last poll closes in Alaska at 1 am, but that is probably not going to happen. Hopefully, if you are on the West Coast and reading this, you have already voted, or are preparing to vote. Don't let the media outlets sway you with projections, or give up because you think you may have lost. Get out and vote, and make your voice heard.

The Coattail Effect

Doing a little late-night blogging, and found something interesting in the Indianapolis Star . The Star is a Republican newspaper, so they will do anything they can to help their side. Latest article is about ticket splitting, telling how that many will vote for a Democrat for President, and a Republican for Governor (got to back their great Mitch!). Anyway, buried in this is this quote:

Among voters supporting Obama, 28 percent also are backing Daniels for governor. Among those voting for McCain, 13 percent are supporting Long Thompson for governor.

Hmm, that means that if Obama takes a large chunk of the vote, 72% of those voters will vote for Jill Long Thompson. If McCain takes a majority, then 87% will vote for Daniels. The way things are looking right now for Obama, he could take this state, and bring Jill Long Thompson in with him, thus the coattail effect of riding to victory due to someone elses good political fortune and popularity (not that it's a bad thing). That is not good news for Daniels, because a Democratic wave could sweep him out of office.

Let's hope for a Democratic tsunami on Election Day! Get out there and vote Democrat, and let the waves sweep the Repubs out of office!

DST - Just In Case You Forgot

Well, we're back on Eastern Standard Time again. Just in case you forgot, DST ended at 2:00 am this morning. If you forgot, and are late for church, or just aggravated at having to switch times, just remember who caused all this...our wonderful Governor, Mitch Daniels. Just in case you forgot about it, remember that he didn't ask us if we wanted it, he rammed it down our throats, and the vote passed by one vote. I don't call that a mandate. In case you are upset about it, just keep that in mind for Tuesday, when you can VOTE HIM OUT, and vote in a Governor who will let the people decide whether to continue this mess. Jill Long Thompson will call for a statewide referendum on the issue, and let US decide whether to continue with DST or end the mess once and for all. Jill will give the people a voice in government, one that has been silenced for the last four years under Daniels.

Over the last four years, I have watched this Governor slowly sap the life out of this state. First by de-certifying the teachers union, then closing license branches, forcing DST on us, selling off the Indiana Toll Road, and on and on. His signs say he has courage and vision...baloney! His tactics are not courageous or visionary...they are from the viewpoint of a corporate CEO who views this state like his company. I for one am tired of watching my state slowly die under him. It is time for a change, and not a minute too soon.

I urge you, when you go into the booth on Tuesday, to think about what happened over the last four years. Remember the issues, remember the problems. Ask yourself if you want four more years of this. If you don't, vote for Jill Long Thompson for Governor. She will give us our voice back in government.