Strategy Lesson: State Parties Matter

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For the benefit of Alex Pareene — who strangely seems to believe that campaigns are of secondary importance to who wins elections — let me unravel a bit of strategy.

When I visited Massachusetts in early October, there was clearly a grassroots “enthusiasm gap” favoring Republicans. Da Tech Guy kept saying he had that Scott Brown feeling,” and even the Boston Globe noted how fired-up the local GOP was.

Yet when Election Night returns came in, the result was an across-the-board Democratic victory in Massachusetts. Deval Patrick was re-elected governor by a 7-point margin. The NRCC’s favorite House candidate in the state, Jeff Perry in MA-10, got just 42% of the vote, and no GOP House candidate got more than 43%.

The secret of the Democrats’ success wasn’t really a secret: The Massachusetts Democratic Party outspent the state GOP more than 2-to-1:

In the final days of the fall campaign, the Democratic State Committee overwhelmed its Republican counterpart with a massive amount of spending . . .
New reports filed with the state show that from Nov. 1 to Nov. 15, the state Democratic Party outspent the Massachusetts Republican Party, $475,641 to $21,147. In the prior month, the Democrats had outspent the GOP by more than 2 to 1, $2.4 million to $1.1 million, as both parties invested heavily in advertising to support their gubernatorial candidates. Since January 2009, the Democratic Party outspent Republicans by $5.9 million to $2.6 million. . . .
John Walsh, chairman of the Massachusetts Democratic Party, said the late spending was the final piece of a seven-month effort to identify Democratic voters and get them to the polls and avoid a repeat of the special US Senate election last January, when Republican Scott Brown was elected.
He said that the party’s strategy included reaching ethnic communities and about 300,000 so-called sporadic Democratic voters and that the state committee spent heavily on field organizers, about 40 campaign offices around the state, polling to track specific races, and assessing candidates for lesser office who would need additional help.

Read the whole thing, including the excuse-making by the state GOP chairwoman, who should be voted out at the next meeting. The overall money gap between the state parties — the $3.3 million disadvantage for Republicans — was not so great that it could not have been bridged, or at least narrowed, by fundraising efforts in a state as wealthy as Massachusetts.

And that should be a lesson to grassroots Republicans everywhere: Building up the state and local party apparatus is an excellent off-year project: “Stop asking what you can do, and start doing what you can.”

Flashback: Charlie Sheen Called Ex-Wife Denise Richards ‘F***ing N****r’

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One of the strangest things about porn star Capri Anderson’s account of Charlie Sheen’s hotel-room meltdown was her assertion that Sheen “started yelling racial slurs.”

Anderson (a/k/a Christina Walsh) is Irish-American, so what “slurs” was Sheen shouting? Mick?

Evidently, however, Sheen has a habit of shouting the n-word at women when he’s angry, as was the case when he left obscenity-filled voice-mails on the phone of his ex-wife Denise Richards:

In the first message, received on April 19, 2005 at 12.46pm, Charlie said: “You don’t answer the phone and you don’t have the f***ing courage or the wherewithal to like confront me or deal with me or just be f***ing honest.”
“I guess I’ve just got to stop being disappointed by that because that’s just who you are and what you do. And I guess once I accept that, I won’t be frustrated by your chicken s**t f***ing behavior. I’m just really f***ing mad and you owe me a phone call. If I did the same s**t to you, you’d be f***ing furious.”
In the second message, from 1pm the same day, Charlie said: “You continue to be deceitful and mischievous and sneaky, and you’re a f***ing liar. OK. You’re a f***ing liar. So, you know what it’s like, f**k you. OK, I hope you rot in f***ing hell. You’re a piece of s**t f***ing liar and I hope you f***ing rot in hell. So f**k you. I hope I never f***ing talk to you again you f***ing ****. F**k you. You’re a coward and a liar and a f***ing n****r alright, so f**k you.”

Here’s the uncensored audio of those calls:

So there is a certain element of credibility to the porn-star’s claim that Sheen “started yelling racial slurs” at her. Notice that Monday morning, after Capri Anderson’s Good Morning America interview, Denise Richards sent out these Tweets:


So she’s paying attention to Charlie’s latest embarrassment and — wisely, in my opinion — staying away from it. BTW, we still haven’t figured out what happened to Charlie’s $160,000 Patek Philippe 5970 watch . . .

PREVIOUSLY:

Sarah Palin’s New Show Less Popular Than ‘Spongebob Squarepants’?

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Yes, believe it or not Spongebob is the cable ratings king:

[F]or the week of Nov. 8 the top rated non-sports show was Dancing with the Stars with nearly 20 million viewers. Yet the top rated non-sports cable show was Nick@Nite’s Spongebob Squarepants with just a bit over six million viewers. Cable simply doesn’t come close to the viewers the big three networks get.

Warner Todd Huston makes that point by way of pushing back at a Washington Post TV critic who used her column to take cheap shots at Sarah Palin’s Alaska on TLC.

Spongebob Squarepants could not be reached for comment, due to a speaking engagement in New Hampshire. Sources close to the Nickelodeon star denied that Spongebob is considering a campaign for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination.

Holy Crap! North Korean Opens Artillery Bombardment on South Korean Island

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This is kind of scary:

North and South Korea exchanged artillery fire on Tuesday after dozens of shells fired from the North struck a South Korean island near the countries’ disputed maritime border, South Korean military officials said. Two South Korean soldiers were killed, 15 were wounded and three civilians were injured, said Kiyheon Kwon, an official at the Defense Ministry.
The South Korean military went to “crisis status,” and fighter planes were put on alert but did not take off.
South Korean artillery units returned fire after the North’s shells struck South Korea’s Yeonpyeong Island at 2:34 p.m., said Mr. Kwon, adding that the North also fired numerous rounds into the Yellow Sea. Television footage showed large plumes of black smoke spiraling from the island, and news reports said dozens of houses were on fire.
The official North Korean news agency said in a brief statement Tuesday night that the South had started the fight when it “recklessly fired into our sea area.”

Sydney Morning Herald:

NORTH KOREA has burnished the leadership credentials of its 26-year-old dictator-in-waiting with a deadly artillery attack on South Korean territory, causing its neighbour to return fire and scramble F-16 fighters. . . .
A North Korea expert at Beijing’s Central Party School, Zhang Liangui, told the Herald that Kim Jong-un was deliberately destabilising the environment in order to mobilise the military and consolidate his power.

Hat-tip: Gateway Pundit.

UPDATE: “Gird your loins!” says Michelle Malkin, quoting Jim Geraghty: “I can’t believe the president’s personal letter to Kim Jong Il didn’t work.”

UPDATE II: Via Memeorandum, more from Da Techguy’s Blog, Ruby Slippers, Richard Fernandez, Hot Air, Donald Douglas at American Power and AmSpecBlog

Debt Causes Collapse of Irish Government

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Something here I can’t quite put my finger on:

The Irish government faced imminent collapse on Monday, only a day after it signed off on a $100 billion bailout, setting the stage for a new election early next year and injecting the threat of political instability into a European financial crisis that already has markets on edge.
Confronted with high-level defections from his governing coalition, Prime Minister Brian Cowen said he would dissolve the government after passage of the country’s crucial 2011 budget early in December.
His announcement capped a grim day for Ireland, as protesters tried to storm the Parliament building in Dublin, and Moody’s Investors Service, the ratings agency, lowered the rating on Irish debt by several notches.

Hmmm. Deficit spending and a giant bailout leads to angry protests and “political instability” . . . Why does all this sound so familiar?

Alex Pareene: Expert on Hackdom

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Takes one to know one:

These are the most predictable, banal, intellectually dishonest and all-around hacky newspaper columnists, cable news shouting heads and political opinion-mongers working today. . . . We cut the list down to 30 people whose continued employment most baffles us, and then we ranked them in order of shamelessness.

When I think of a “hack,” I think of someone who habitually pushes second-hand partisan talking points or, alternately, an untalented writer who recycles cliches. Either way, it is the lack of originality that defines genuine hackery.

We’ll wait to see the full list before assessing how well Pareene has ranked these pundits. But right off the bat, I’m perplexed by this question: Exactly how the hell does Pareene — who has never done anything except sling snark from the sidelines — presume to apply the label “hack” to a political reporter like Matt Bai? And what the hell kind of criticism is this?

[Bai’s] sins are largely the sins of most professional campaign reporters. . . Because he covers campaigns, he privileges campaigns . . . as the single most important factor in deciding elections.

Excuse me? Is Pareene trying to say that campaigns are a secondary factor in deciding elections? Has Pareene ever done any reporting himself? Does he think that campaign reporters — i.e., the journalists most directly acquainted with the facts on the ground — should be disqualified from offering analyses of elections?

Bai has done some excellent work for the New York Times, including a very informative pushback against the Left’s absurd claim that Democrats lost because of moderate “Blue Dogs.” Having covered several Republican candidates (including Morgan Griffith and Ray McKinney) who were campaigning against incumbent Blue Dogs, I fully understand how valuable such centrists were to Democratic Party control of Congress. If Pareene doesn’t understand that, it’s his problem, not Matt Bai’s.

And why is Howard Kurtz No. 23 on the list? If Kurtz is not the best “inside media” reporter in the country, who is?

LIVE AT FIVE – 11.23.10

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TOP NEWS

300 Killed In Stampede At Cambodian Water Festival

People jammed onto a bridge in Phnom Penh Monday

Worst tragedy since the Khmer Rouge, says Cambodian PM

UK To Join EU, IMF In Propping Up Irish Banks
No change in Irish corporation tax sought




Gas Levels In NZ Mine Too High For Rescuers To Enter
Coal may also be burning in the mine



POLITICS

Quinnipiac Poll: Palin Would Lose To Obama, But Romney Could Win

Sarah Palin and Mitt Romney on the campaign trail in 2008

A little early for this nonsense, isn’t it?

It’s Not Over In Alaska: Miller Sues To Force Compliance With Voting Law





2010 Electorate Old, White & Republican, According to “Nonpartisan” Project Vote

Solomon Ortiz (D-Tex) Concedes To Blake Farenthold; GOP Chalks Up Another House Seat



THE ECONOMY, STUPID

HP Posts Gains In Sales, Profit

Netflix Introduces Streaming-Only Service; Raises Price On Rent-by-Mail Service

Is Black Friday Worth It?

What Next For Novell?

Nissan Leaf Rated at 99 MPG (Yes, It’s Electric)



SPORTS

Reds Slugger Joey Votto Near-Unanimous NL MVP Pick

Cincinnati Reds first baseman Joey Votto, 2010 NL MVP

Only the third Canadian to win the MVP award

Childress Canned As Vikings Coach
Real news is that Sid Hartman says it’s the players who should have been fired


Heat’s Haslem To Have Surgery, Out For Five Months

Titans Lose QB Vince Young For Season With Thumb Injury

Devils Ambush Caps, Extend Division Leaders’ Skid To Three With 5-0 Win



FAMOUS FOR BEING FAMOUS

“Buffy The Vampire Slayer” Reboots – Without Joss Whedon?!?

Whit Anderson: former fangirl, current screenwriter for the "Buffy" reboot

Whedon: “I Have Strong, Mixed Emotions”

Death Threats For Bristol Palin, Mark Ballas

Bieber Bust: AMA Ratings Hit All-Time Low

Parker’s Posse Say Longoria’s Been No Angel Either

Capri Anderson Describes Infamous Date With Charlie Sheen

“Gossip Girl” Sidelines Taylor Momsen

“Fantastic Four” Almost Made Jessica Alba Quit Acting


Lindsay Lohan Gets Her Road Privileges Back

Emma Watson Doesn’t Understand Guys



FOREIGNERS

Irish Debt Crisis Brings Down Government

UN Meeting To Tackle Smaller Climate Issues

Burma Democracy Leader Reunited With Son

Saudi King Arrives In U.S. For Surgery



BLOGS & STUFF

Hugh Hewitt: Nice Job Shilling For The TSA On Gate Rape, Marc

WSJ: GOP Ranks Fray On Debt Limit Increase

Moe Lane: Al Gore Goes To War On Ethanol

Atlas Shrugs: Ground Zero Mosque Hits Up 9/11 Rebuilding Fund For $5 Million

Hit & Run: Abandon Medicaid, All Ye Who Enter Here?

Sister Toldjah: Yes, Meggie, Do Become A Political Consultant  – For The Democrats


— compiled by Wombat-socho

Oritz Concedes TX-27 to Farenthold; GOP Reaches Historic 241 Seats in House

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Most House seats held by the Republicans since 1949:

U.S. Rep. Solomon P. Ortiz conceded late Monday to Congressman-elect Blake Farenthold.
Noting that the recount of more than 106,000 votes had been completed in the district, Ortiz said: “Therefore, with great respect and admiration in the Democratic process, I congratulate my opponent, Mr. R. Blake Farenthold, in his election to the 27th Congressional District of Texas in the U.S. House of Representatives.” . . .
During the recounts, Farenthold, the Republican challenger, continued his lead over Ortiz by nearly 800 votes.
For his part, Farenthold said that, “it’s a great relief to have the uncertainty gone.”
Farenthold also told The Brownsville Herald that he is “very happy” and that Ortiz had been “very gracious.”

Politico writes: “Republicans have now won at least 62 House seats. The GOP leads in one of four unresolved races.” Meanwhile, in NY-25, where Republican Ann Marie Buerkle leads by 567 votes after the absentees were counted, the chairman of the Onondaga County GOP called on Democrat incumbent Rep. Dan Maffei to concede:

“It’s over. Dan Maffei has no chance to win the 25th congressional seat and it’s time for him to stop wasting taxpayer dollars and do the honorable thing and right thing for the residents of the 25th District and concede.”

A court hearing originally scheduled for Tuesday on Maffei’s request for a hand recount has been postponed to Wednesday. Over on Long Island, meanwhile, the count in NY-1 continues seesawing back and forth, as Jim Geraghty points out, linking our friends at Left Coast Rebel. The latest count seems to have Democrat Rep. Tim Bishop leading GOP challenger Randy Altschuler by about 200 votes and, pending “challenged” ballots, that one might not be decided until after Thanksgiving.

So the GOP has scored a net gain of at least 62 seats and possibly as many as 64. Yet with the Republican victory in TX-27, Republicans have now crossed the threshold to 241 House seats — the most they’ve held in more than 60 years.

UPDATE: Welcome, Instapundit readers!

UPDATE II: Welcome, Gateway Pundit readers! Up near Syracuse, N.Y., the Lonely Conservative is angry:

Rep. Dan Maffei (D) continues to deny the obvious. I suppose he’s thinking that perhaps a few voting machines or bags of ballots will magically appear so he can continue with his Keynesian fantasy. . . . No matter how you slice it, Ann Marie Buerkle has won the election. Yet Dan Maffei still refuses to concede.

Dan’s clinging. Bitterly.

UPDATE III: Guy Benson at Townhall has been riding the NY-1 roller coaster. If Altschuler wins there — and if Maffei ever concedes — Republicans will have gained an impressive seven House seats in New York alone. Not like there’s any kind of “mandate” there or anything.

UPDATE IV: One of the most-overlooked results of the national GOP landslide was that the state legislature in Alabama, which had been controlled by Democrats since . . . . well, since forever, was swept by Republicans. And now four Democrat incumbents who managed to get re-elected Nov. 2 have switched parties to join the GOP majority.