"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler
by Smitty
Via McCotter on Twitter, my other favorite blue state Republican, after the recently beclowned Pawlenty, is introducing legislation to stabilize Social Security:
The McCotter plan salvages both the Old Age and the Disability trust funds from that projected insolvency without reducing benefits, raising taxes, or increasing the age of retirement eligibility. Continue reading Can McCotter Survive Where Bush Found Himself Whacked? →
Watching Democrats lose a district they’ve held for 88 year? Classic! Watching Democrats make complete idiots of themselves? Priceless!
Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-Calif.) stressed that it was important for Democrats to not cave in on pieces of either Obama’s jobs plan or the [Congressional Progressive Caucus’s] job-creation agenda.
“Half a loaf is not enough in the United States of America,” Woolsey said. “The whole proposal is what we must have now.”
Well, (a) I thought it was those “Tea Party extremists” who always refused to compromise, and (b) “The only good Republican is a dead one“? Thanks for the civility lessons!
— compiled by Wombat-socho
TOP NEWS
Turner Scores Upset Win In NY-9
Catholic Republican’s election seen as stinging rebuke for Obama’s Israel policy in this predominantly Jewish district
Taliban Attack On Kabul Over After 20 Hours
Afghan Police root out last holdouts; seven dead including three civilians
Amodei Crushes Marshall In NV-2
57-36 margin not seen as indicative of anything in this solidly Republican district
POLITICS
Census: Poverty Rate Hits 15%; 1 In 6 Below Poverty Line
Median income falls 7% from 2000 after inflation adjustment; poor, minorities hardest hit
Obama Taking His Jobs Road Show To NC
Elizabeth Warren To Challenge Scott Brown
Fewer Pat-Downs For Kids From TSA
Democrats Concerned Over Obama’s Planned Cuts To Medicare, Medicaid
Carl Lewis Reinstated On NJ Ballot
$6 Billion In Disaster Relief Clears Senate, Fate In House Uncertain
THE ECONOMY, STUPID
Google Flight Search Takes Off
Demand For Missoni Line So Hot, It Crashes Target’s Web Site
Euro Falls; No Imminent End To Sovereign Debt Problems Seen
Moody’s Cuts French Bank Ratings As Euro Crisis Deepens
US Stocks Register Back-to-Back Gains For First Time This Month
CBO Chief Seeks Wholesale Reordering Of Government Priorities
Microsoft Unveils Windows 8
Intel Brandishes First Android Tablet
Samsung Takes Apple Patent Battle To France
Nielsen: Americans Spend 25% Of Online Time On Social Networks
SPORTS
Wakefield Gets 200th Win In Rout Of Jays
Overcomes shaky start, wins with lavish run support
Mariano Rivera Notches 600th Save In Win over Mariners
Eagles’ Vick To Face Tough Crowd In Return To Atlanta
NCAA Hits Boise State With Three-Year Probation
Big 12’s Prospects Of Holding Together Grow Dimmer
Verlander By The Numbers: 100, 23 And 11
Orioles Play Spoiler, Rally Behind Wieters To Beat Surging Rays
Nationals Get To Parnell, Beat Mets 3-2 Again
FAMOUS FOR BEING FAMOUS
Christina Hendricks Is Too Busy For Children Right Now
Talking about cooking, marriage, and babies with People magazine
“It’s Like Washington Crossing The Delaware To Get To Hooters”
(h/t Moe Lane)
Material Girl Forces Volunteers To Look Away At TIFF
Paul McCartney To Wed This Weekend
Michelle Williams: My Week With Michelle
JJ Abrams Officially Commits To Direct “Star Trek 2”
CBS Developing Modern “Sherlock Holmes”, Adapting “Mommy-Track Mysteries” Books
Lady Gaga Holds Nothing Back About Her “Self-Indulgent” Past
Britney Spears Is Not Getting Engaged
FOREIGNERS
Iran Judiciary Denies Americans’ Release Is Imminent
US envoys To Meets Abbas, Netanyahu In Effort To Halt Palestinian UN Bid
Bani Walid Residents Given Two Days To Leave Before City Attack
11 Killed, Hundreds Injured In Argentina Bus/Train Accident
Turkey’s PM Warns Of Syrian Civil War
New Japanese PM Concerned Over Growth Of PRC Military
Heavy Rains, Flooding Leave Hundreds Dead In Pakistan
Abuse Victims Ask International Court To Prosecute The Vatican
BLOGS & STUFF
Riehl World View: So Much For NRO Being Conservative
Michelle Malkin: The Right And Wrong Way To Talk About Gardasil/A Really, Really Stupid Attack On Palin
Allahpundit: E-Mails Reveal White House Closely Monitored Energy Department Deliberations On Solyndra
Hit & Run: Solyndra – A Big Story For The Wrong Reasons
Weasel Zippers: Obama’s Jobs Bill Makes Unemployed A Protected Class, Allows Suits For Discrimination
Megan McArdle: Need Someone To Protest Against Your Union? There’s a Union For That!
Power Line: Connecting The Dots – How The Left Works
Lonely Conservative: Poverty Soars Under Obama’s Leadership
Sister Toldjah: Tone-Deaf Prez To Give Jobs Plan Speech At NC Company Shipping Jobs To Costa Rica
Legal Insurrection: Pennsylvania Federal Court Strikes Obamacare Mandate
by Smitty
Title reference, for those who would mis-interpret.
Weiner, the Left punts on 3rd down, systemically. It’s part of failing upward, which is what you do when you hate liberty and just want a nipple from a federal family breast stuffed in your face.
It takes a very special person to try to talk tough while the arrows of reality are placing picturesque perforations in his rapidly deteriorating perimeter. All things considered, Weiner, that little big horn of yours has assured its place in the Andrew Sullivan Museum of Junk.
Given the location of the Little Big Horn, one wonders if you’ll be moving to Montana soon, where you can be a dental floss tycoon?
UPDATE 12:08 a.m. ET: ASSOCIATED PRESS DECLARES REPUBLICAN BOB TURNER THE WINNER IN NEW YORK’S 9TH DISTRICT!
UPDATE 12:13 a.m. ET: While AP has called it for Turner, Democrat Dave Weprin has not yet conceded:
Businessman Bob Turner (R) defeated state Assemblyman David Weprin (D) in the special election for the House seat held by former New York Rep. Anthony Weiner (D).
Turner’s victory is regarded as an upset given the Democratic history of the 9th district, which takes in portions of Brooklyn and Queens, as well as the fact that President Obama carried the seat by 11 points in 2008.
Weprin has yet to concede, but the Associated Press has called the race for Turner.
Turner becomes the first Republican elected in this district since 1923.
UPDATE 12:25 a.m. ET: How big is this win?
This is the same congressional seat that was held by pervert Anthony Weiner, before he tweeted his meat. This is also the some congressional seat that was once held by far left Marxist Chuck Schumer, and even 1984 VP nominee Geraldine Ferraro. Now it’s held by Republican Bob Turner, thanks to the epic failure of Obama, and his anti Israel policies!
In other words, SCOAMF.
UPDATE 1 a.m. ET: Matt Drudge’s headline:
From the Associated Press story Drudge linked:
Weprin, a 56-year-old Orthodox Jew and member of a prominent Queens political family, seemed a good fit for the largely white, working-class district, which is nearly 40 percent Jewish.
But voter frustration with Obama put Weprin in the unlikely spot of playing defense. A Siena Poll released Friday found just 43 percent of likely voters approved of the president’s job performance, while 54 percent said they disapproved. Among independents, just 29 percent said they approved of Obama’s job performance.
Turner, a 70-year-old Catholic, vowed to push back on Obama’s policies if elected. . . .
Weprin became embroiled in New York-centric disputes over Israel and gay marriage, which cost him some support among Jewish voters.
Orthodox Jews, who tend to be conservative on social issues, expressed anger over Weprin’s vote in the Assembly to legalize gay marriage. In July, New York became one of six states to recognize same-sex nuptials.
Former Mayor Ed Koch, a Democrat, endorsed Turner in July as a way to “send a message” to Obama on his policies toward Israel. And Weprin was challenged on his support of a proposed Islamic center and mosque near the World Trade Center site, in lower Manhattan.
So: Obama, gay marriage, Israel and the Ground Zero Mosque. I’m sure Charles Johnson will blame this election on Pamela Geller.
UPDATE 11:55 p.m. ET: Republican Bob Turner is still leading — by a margin of about 2,400 votes, 53%-47% — but I just now saw this shocking story at ABC News:
Claiming a handful of deceased voters have been mailed absentee ballots for today’s special election, an attorney for Republican congressional candidate Bob Turner told ABC News that he has obtained a court order to seal all paper ballots in New York’s 9th Congressional District, pending judicial review.
“We found five dead people, confirmed, who were mailed absentee ballots,” said Turner’s attorney, Grant Lally. “Some of these people have been dead for years.”
Now Democrats will accuse Republicans of necrophobia.
PREVIOUSLY: It is very early — polls closed at 9 p.m. ET and we’ve only got 7 of 512 precincts reporting as of 10:15 p.m. — but Republican Bob Turner is leading 55%-44% in the New York district formerly represented by Anthony Weiner.
UPDATE: The White House is already spinning NY-9 as something other than a referendum on Obama, even though the Turner campaign has been nothing but all-Obama-bashing-all-the-time.
UPDATE 10:30 p.m. ET: OK, now a few more precincts reporting — we’re up to 13 of 512 — and it’s Turner 53%, Weprin 47%.
This might be a good time to mention a conversation I had in Tampa with someone who knows New York politics very well. My source mentioned Democrat Dov Hikind’s endorsement of Turner and said: “Dov Hikind doesn’t endorse losers.” FWIW.
UPDATE 10:40 p.m. ET: With 45 of 512 precincts reporting, it’s Turner 52%, Weprin 47%. There’s a good chance the Republican will win, but we certainly shouldn’t expect a GOP landslide in a district that Obama won with 55% three years ago.
UPDATE 10:45 p.m. ET: You’ve got to admire the way they’re holding back precincts in Brooklyn. That may be either (a) Democrats up to shenanigans on behalf of Weprin or (b) Democrats following Dov Hikind’s orders on behalf of Turner. Remember what my source said, eh?
Our upstate New York friend The Lonely Conservative is tracking the results.
UPDATE 10:55 p.m. ET: Tea Party people . . . in New York City? Raaaaacism!
And with 121 precincts reporting, Turner leads 51% to 49%. If Turner pulls this one out, tomorrow’s White House press conference with Jay Carney ought to be an all-time classic.
UPDATE 11:05 p.m. ET: Ace of Spades has an NY-9 open thread. With 149 precincts reporting, it’s Turner 52%, Weprin 48% — a margin of barely 700 votes, of course. Very low turnout, and those Brooklyn precincts are suspiciously slow with their reports.
UPDATE 11:15 p.m. ET: With 191 precincts reporting, Turner leads 51%-48%.
UPDATE 11:30 p.m. ET: Democrats have got to be sweating now: Turner leads 51%-49% with 218 of 512 precincts reporting.
The margin is just 524 votes out of more than 28,000 cast, but still . . . this is New York City!
Linked by Donald Douglas at American Power — thanks!
UPDATE 11:40 p.m. ET: Do we dare hope? Can Turner hold on to this lead? With 271 precincts reporting, it’s Turner 53%, Weprin 46%.
UPDATE 11:45 p.m. ET: How will Democrats spin a loss in NY-9? They’ll probably blame it all on Dave Weprin’s toupeé credibility gap. And at this hour, Turner’s still leading by some 1,500 votes.
PREVIOUSLY:
The National Affairs Desk, 4 p.m., Sept. 13, 2011
“Shortly after the election-night returns [in the 1972 Florida Democratic primary] showed Muskie hopelessly mired in fourth place behind Wallace, Humphrey, and Jackson, the Man from Maine called an emergency staff meeting and announced he was quitting the race. This stirred up a certain amount of panic and general anger among the staff people, who eventually persuaded Big Ed to at least get himself under control before talking to any reporters. He agreed to go out and play golf the next day, while the top-level staffers got together and tried to find some alternative.
“This was the reality behind the story, widely published the next day, that Muskie had decided to ‘change his whole style’ and start talking like the Fighting Liberal he really was at heart. He would move on to Illinois and Wisconsin with new zeal . . . and his staff people were so happy with this decision to finally ‘take off the gloves’ that they had agreed to work without pay until the day after the big Victory Party in Wisconsin.
“It took about a week for the story of Muskie’s attempt to quit the race to leak out to the press, but it was not an easy thing to confirm. One of the most frustrating realities of this goddamn twisted business is the situation where somebody says, ‘I’ll only answer your question if you promise not to print it.’
“Everybody I talked to about the Muskie story seemed to know all the details – but there was no point trying to check it out, they said, because it came from ‘somebody who was at the meeting’ and he ‘obviously can’t talk about it.’
“Of course not. Only a lunatic would risk getting fired from his un-salaried job on the Muskie campaign several days before the crucial Wisconsin primary.”
— Hunter S. Thompson, Fear and Loathing: On the Campaign Trail ‘72
PHILADELPHIA
We took off from Tampa International Airport at noon sharp, some 90-odd passengers aboard a U.S. Airways 737, including the prisoner who sat handcuffed in 25F, the right-side window seat in the rearmost row. A plainclothes law enforcement officer — federal marshal? sheriff’s deputy? homicide detective? — sat in 25D, the aisle seat.
Nobody sat in 25E, for obvious reasons.
What crime had the prisoner committed? I didn’t dare ask. But whatever it was, somebody wanted this guy transported to Philadelphia ASAP, which was why he shared my pleasant flight on U.S. Airways, three rows behind me in the tail end of the big Boeing jet.
Our flight was only about three-quarters full, so even though my ticket was for seat 6E — a center seat on the right side, just a couple rows behind first class — I was able to opt for 22C, an aisle seat on the left, way in the back. I always prefer an aisle seat, and this flight was sufficiently underbooked that I got extra room because seat 22B was empty. All in all, then, it was a nearly ideal flight experience in terms of 21st-century commercial air travel.
Did the prisoner in seat 25F fully appreciate this? Probably not.
Interstate fugitives don’t usually collect many frequent flyer miles, and so the guy in handcuffs probably had no frame of reference — overbooked planes, delayed departures, missed connections, long layovers — with which to compare his involuntary trip to Philly.
Meanwhile, the guy in 22A (the window seat next to me) was reading A Clockwork Orange while I was reading Hunter S. Thompson’s account of the 1972 campaign. Both are tales of twisted madness, but only one of those stories is fiction. And covering the current presidential campaign confirms every insight Thompson had about “this goddamn twisted business” of political journalism. Continue reading The Prisoner on Flight 1884 →
by Smitty
David P. Goldman looks at Egypt and has an ugly conclusion:
The result, I predict, will be a humanitarian catastrophe that makes Somalia look like a picnic. It’s not surprising that the Egyptian mob might attack the Israeli embassy. The Egyptian street has nothing to do but rise up against perceived oppressors, because nothing good awaits them; and the desperation that will follow the collapse of the Arab “Spring” threatens every Middle Eastern regime, such that the rulers have to try to get out in front of the rage. But what will they actually do? The Egyptian military is hanging onto power by its fingernails. If it attacks Israel, it will lose, and generals will be hanged from lamp posts. The Syrian military is too busy killing protesters to attack Israel, or to assist Hezbollah in a confrontation with Israel.
What we are likely to witness during the next two years will be repellent, even horrifying–but not necessarily dangerous.
Read the whole, depressing thing. American exceptionalism, indeed: decades and billions have simply not waved wands where wanted.
And, while it’s cheap and easy to take swipes at the President over U.S. foreign policy, precisely what anyone would do differently or better is not abundantly clear.
by Smitty
Kevin Jackson in Taki’s Magazine:
Obama promised to deliver his ideas with no subterfuge. Unlike his actions in the past such as sealing his college transcripts, there would be transparency with jobs. Obama would not treat jobs like his birth certificate or his Harvard writings and other musings. Lobbyists are not welcome here, as jobs are the order of the day, and almost three years into his presidency we need to know that jobs are Priority #1.
Quite a good read, overall. The Obama Bible, AKA The New Book of Jobs, is territory that one could mine endlessly.
Now, if only Kevin could give the President some Moses-like success. . .