A Tale Of Two Senators

It's looking like Senate Democrats may let turncoat Joe Lieberliar off with a virtual slap on the wrist for campaigning all out for McSame and frequently slandering candidate Obama. With Obama extending an olive branch to him, Lieberliar may only lose a subcomittee chairmanship, as opposed to losing the chairmanship of the Homeland Security and Government Operations Committee. Lieberliar won't return the favor to the President-elect if he does retain the committee chairmanship. He has no incentive to, since, as Chairman the past 2 years, he was up to his flabby lips in protecting the Bush Assministration's incompetence on Katrina and its failure to respond to al Qaeda's threats in the months before 9-11. He was part of the problem and he knows it, so count on him being a thorn in Obama's side.

And speaking of olive branches, what about Sen. Clinton, who got 18 million primary votes, and who did everything and more that the Obama campaign asked her to do? Obama campaign officials are playing coy about when and how they'll help Clinton retire nearly $8 million in campaign debt. He'll need Sen. Clinton on issues ranging from health care reform to bringing our troops home from Iraq.

Maybe she should have campaigned for McSame, too.

Barone = Moron

Right wing pundit Michael "Baloney" Barone commented at a conference of 500 academics that, "the liberal media attacked" Alaska Gov. Winky You Betcha because "she did not abort her Down syndrome baby. . .they wanted her to kill that child." A number of people at the conference walked out after hearing that disgusting lie. Baloney sheepishly said later that he was "attempting to be humorous." Riiiiight, Baloney. His smear didn't go over so well with the audience, so he decided to lie through his yellow teeth.

You Betcha was "attacked" because she clearly lacked any qualifications to be Vice President, and she showed that on her own by her nasty demagoguery and her clueless responses to simple questions from the likes of Charlie Gibson and Katie Couric. Only hacks like Baloney refuse to see it, despite sixty percent of the American people seeing it.

Wingers like this sick clown are self destructing before our eyes, knowing that they bet on the wrong side and lost big.

Quote of the Day

"You ensure the ongoing Palinizaton and marginalization -- electorally, the terms are synonymous -- of the Republican Party. And to think that you're doing all this not on the Democratic National Committee's dime but on Rupert Murdoch's." - - Harold Meyerson, writing in the Washington Post, about Fux News' reinforcing the myths that are marginalizing the Rethug right wing. Read his whole column.

On Veterans Day

Let's never forget the sacrifice and courage of those who served and are serving in our armed forces. We need to see that our veterans are given the best benefits and care possible.

The GOP's "Very Sad Road" Ahead

Analysis by the Cook Report indicates that the Democrats are looking to pick up even more seats in the Senate in the 2010 elections. That would make 3 elections in a row that the Rethugs lose ground in Congress. Several vulnerable Rethugs are up for reelection: Bunning in Kentucky, Voinovich in Ohio, Martinez in Florida, and Specter in Pennsylvania to name some. Also some Rethug retirements are in the offing: McAncient in Arizona and Brownback in Kansas, paving the way for Democratic Governors Napolitano and Sebelius, respectively, to potentially win those seats.

Looking at the Senate picture for Rethugs in 2010, one Cook analyst said, "it's a long, very very sad road, if you're in the GOP." Yes, but we're not. BWHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Seeing Dumbya's Legacy

A northern Baghdad neighborhood was the scene of three explosions, killing 28. It's the deadliest attack since June 17.

Talks between the Bush Assministration and the Iraqi government are stalled over conditions for continued U.S. troop presence in Iraq. Iraq is looking for complete withdrawal of U.S. combat troops by 2011.

A Hearty Handclasp

President-elect Obama told a story in his book about meeting Dumbya for the first time. Dumbya's worried about catching colds, so he uses a hand sanitizer after shaking hands. After greeting Obama, Dumbya turned to an aide and got a squirt of sanitizer, as did Obama.

Obama might want to douse himself with sanitizer today, since the two are meeting at the White House, presumably for the President-elect to get Dumbya's keen insights into deciderin' and Presidentin'. Sort of like an elementary school basketball player giving tips to Kobe Bryant.

Actions Have Consequences

Democrats are their own worst enemies when they appear to back down on an important matter. That's one thing that the Rethugs always count on. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid looks like he's getting shaky about what to do with Joe Lieberliar, based on yesterday's interview on CNN. Lieberliar not only campaigned actively against President-elect Obama, he shared the stage with Rethuglican Senate and House members up for election or reelection and lent his tacit support to them. He has no business chairing the Homeland Security/Government Operations Committee; he held no hearings in the last 2 years to hold Dumbya's feet to the fire, and he would only be a thorn in President Obama's side were he to continue to chair the committee. Allowing him to remain in the Democratic Caucus would guarantee that none of their deliberations would remain confidential. Democrats can harvest votes from moderate Rethugs such as Sens. Snowe, Gregg, Specter and Collins if needed. If Lieberliar wants to vote with Democrats from time to time, fine, but he needs to know that his actions have consequences.

More Kool Aid, Brothers and Sisters?

Right wingers are in denial about the elections returns, with some of the more delusional saying that the McSame campaign was too moderate! Holy roller Christianist Tony (The One in "Psycho"?) Perkins said that the reason for the Rethug loss was that they tried to appeal to moderates, rather than go full bore wingnut. Yes, that would have been fun to watch: go with the hardcore 15 percent right wing mouthbreathers, because they're "mainstream" America. The polls say that the McSame/You Betcha campaign lost ground with every "Socialist", "terrorist", "Jeremiah Wright" attack that they launched. So, yes, wingers, by all means, go full bore wingnut. That will keep you on the margins of politics for generations to come.

Toot, Toot!

With North Carolina finally called for Obama, we feel it's time for a little horn-tooting: WE NAILED IT! -- meaning our prediction that Obama would get 364 electoral votes was right on the money. (We had Indiana and Missouri, both with 11 electoral votes, switched.)

Other hits: Dole and Sununu out

Near hits: Sen. Coleman awaiting recount in Minnesota; networks called the election at 11:00 EST rather than the predicted 10:30 (although they knew at roughly 10 that Obama was the winner, thanks to victories in PA and OH)

Misses: Rep. Bachmann ("The Minnesota Loon") reelected

Joe the Loser

Joe Lieberliar (Party of Me-CT) cast his lot with a loser in the Presidential elections. He could have just endorsed McSame and remained away from the campaign, which would have been merely awkward for his Democratic colleagues. No. He campaigned every day for him, delivered a vile speech at the Rethuglican Fib Fest in St. Paul that disparaged President-elect Obama, and said nothing when the McSame campaign and its allies on the far right tried to smear Obama as an anti-Semite to Jewish voters. In other words, he aggressively stuck a finger in the eye of the Democratic Party.

Speculation is that he'll certainly lose all of his committee positions, and will likely be booted from the Democratic Caucus. The Democrats are waiting to see the outcome of Senate races in Minnesota and Georgia before acting. Lieberliar says he's considering some "options," meaning that he's likely to caucus with the Rethugs. That should seal his fate in overwhelmingly Democratic Connecticut if he's delusional enough to run for the Senate in 2012.

(photo: Lieberliar emerges from a meeting with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, saying "Harry has a mean left hook.")

Merkley Wins Oregon Senate Seat

Jeff Merkley has defeated Oregon Rethug Sen. Gordon Smith for reelection. The votes from the Portland and Eugene jurisdictions put him over the top. That makes 57 Democrats in the Senate.

Good work to our Portland, Oregon contingent.

North Carolina Won By Obama

The Associated Press is reporting that the final count in North Carolina has been completed, and that President-elect Obama carried the state by a slim margin, roughly 13,000 votes. That brings the electoral vote for him to 364. (Missouri is still out, and it's also very close there with McSame having a slight edge).

Fire. . .Ready. . .Aim!

The Rethug post-election circular firing squad has begun in earnest. As indicated in our post yesterday (Winking Wasilla Wonderwoman), leaks from McSame's loyalists are spilling out at Gov. You Betcha's expense. Newsweek magazine will be carrying a full account of behind-the-scenes backstabbing and disfunction in the McSame campaign. A McSame staffer told Fux News that You Betcha was so clueless that she thought Africa was a country, and that she refused to prepare for the disastrous Couric interview. You Betcha's far right winger fans are furious at the McSame staffers, and are preparing to blacklist them from future Rethug hatefests/campaigns.

What fun! Let's sit back and enjoy the spectacle.

Wingnuts Bemoan Obama's Victory

As to be expected, the hard right blogosphere is in furious spinning mode after Tuesday's decisive win by President-elect Obama (that has a nice ring to it). The 101st Fighting Keyboarders are brushing the Cheetos dust off their fingers, asking their moms not to disturb them in the basement, and getting ready for 4 years of battle with the Godless Socialist enemy by stockpiling Mountain Dew.

Honest appraisals of why American voters turned against the Rethug brand are for wussies, they believe. They know why. The Rethugs weren't viciously right wing enough; some cross-burnings and a treason trial or two would have helped. Get a load of some of the "commentary" that's been offered by the wingnuts, and you'll understand that they need to be kept as far away from civil society as possible.