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ELECTION DAY

We will have bulletins, when appropriate, during the day, and will begin intensive blogging tonight about 7 p.m. ET.  Stay with us.  Get pizza (or something more nutritious and life-affirming, according to Democratic Party guidelines).  We intend to go into the early hours of the morning.

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2010

1:48 A.M. ET:  We are signing off for the night and will be back in about six hours. 

1:47 A.M. ET:  Fox News is projecting a possible 65-vote gain for the GOP in the House, pending further counting.

1:46 A.M. ET:  Vote counting has stopped for the night in Washington state, where the Senate race between Dino Rossi and Democratic incumbent Patty Murray is very close.  However, political observers believe that Rossi hasn't done well enough in certain precincts to prevail.  We'll see when the count continues tomorrow.

In Colorado, with 74% of the vote in, Republican Ken Buck leads Democratic incumbent Senator Michael Bennet, 48-47%.

In Alaska, write-in candidate and incumbent Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski is actually ahead of the Republivan and Democratic candidates, but the reporting is confused, and we don't even know what percent of the vote is in.

12:56 A.M. ET:  BULLETIN:  CNN NOW PROJECTS THE REPUBLICANS WILL PICK UP AT LEAST 60 SEATS IN THE HOUSE, THE LARGEST SWING SINCE 1948.

12:28 A.M. ET:  BULLETIN:  IN A MAJOR DISAPPOINTMENT, FOX NEWS PROJECTS THAT SENATE MAJORITY LEADER HARRY REID OF NEVADA HAS BEEN REELECTED, DEFEATING SHARRON ANGLE. 

There will be great soul-searching about this race.  Reid was a goner earlier this year.  But Sharron Angle, with Tea Party backing, won the Republican nomination.  To some, she seemed wacky and out of the mainstream, and the image stuck.  The Republican advantage collapsed.  The Republicans could have done better.

12:27 A.M. ET:  Republican Susana Martinez has been elected governor of New Mexico, the first Latina to be elected governor of an American state. 

12:24 A.M. ET:  Republican John Kasich has been elected governor of Ohio, an absolutely critical state in the 2012 presidential election.

12:21 A.M. ET: FOX NEWS DECLARES REPUBLICAN MARK KIRK THE WINNER IN THE ILLINOIS SENATE RACE, TAKING THE SEAT HELD BY BARACK OBAMA.  YIPPEE, YIPPEE, YIPPEE. 

11:50 P.M. ET:  BULLETIN:  REAL CLEAR POLITICS DECLARES PAT TOOMEY THE WINNER IN THE PENNSYLVANIA SENATE RACE, DEFEATING DEMOCRAT JOE SESTAK.

11:44 P.M. ET:  Much of the TV commentary tonight runs along these lines:  The Republicans are doing very well in the House, but are putting in a disappointing performance in the Senate.

Not so fast, guys.  Critical Senate seats are still out – in Illinois, Pennsylvania, Colorado, Nevada, Washington state and Alaska.  While Republicans won't take control of the Senate, they'll be more powerful than they are now, with the ability to filibuster reckless legislation. 

We're watching those outstanding Senate seats.

11:25 P.M. ET: With 96% of the Pennsylvania vote in, Pat Toomey is now leading Joe Sestak 52-48%.   Keep fingers crossed.  In Illinois, with 91% of the vote in, Republican Mark Kirk leads the Democrat whose name I can't spell, 48-46%. 

11:07 P.M. ET:  Pat Toomey has just pulled ahead, 51-49%, in the Pennsylvania Senate race against Democrat Joe Sestak, with 94% of the vote in.  Hold onto your seats.

UPDATE:  The race has pulled even again, 50-50.  I am concerned about those last-minute votes that may come in from Philadelphia. 

11:01 P.M. ET:  Well, I guess it was a pipe dream.  Fox News is projecting that Barbara Boxer has defeated Carly Fiorina for the California Senate seat.  Boxer, one of the more useless senators in American history, will return to Washington for a fourth term.  Fox also projects that Jerry Brown, who has been in American politics since Noah built his ark, has been elected governor, a job he held before we had home computers.  Nostalgia rules.

10:57 P.M. ET:  In Pennsylvania, the vote count in the Senate race between Republican Pat Toomey and Dem Joe Sestak is dead even, with 92% of the ballots counted.  As in Illinois, we worry about big-city votes suddenly appearing.  Stand by for a recount.

10:55 P.M. ET:  Mark Kirk has just taken a slight lead in the Illinois vote count for the U.S. Senate seat held by Barack Obama.  We caution, however:  The lead is only one percent, with 78% of the vote counted.  We don't know how many votes the Chicago Democratic machine is holding in reserve.  Stand by.  I can feel the sleaze already.

10:45 P.M. ET:  Fox News projects that Tea Party Republican Nikki Haley will become the next governor of South Carolina, defeating Vincent Sheheen.  Haley was one of Sarah Palin's first picks during this election campaign.  She was subjected to terrible smears, but has now prevailed. 

10:40 P.M. ET:  Republican Ron Johnson has defeated incumbent Russ Feingold for the U.S. Senate seat from Wisconsin.  This is a major turnover for the Republicans.

At the same time, I'm bittersweet over this.  I want to see good, decent people in Congress in both parties.  John McCain paid tribute to Feingold earlier this evening.  He's a fine, honorable man, who never had a whiff of scandal about him.  He leaves a good name and an enviable reputation.  I learned early in my career, when I was on the staff of Democratic Senator Paul Douglas of Illinois, to respect those in the opposition who conduct themselves with distinction.  That defines Russ Feingold.  s 

10:27 P.M. ET:  I've been following the Senate races in Illinois and Pennsylvania.  Happy to report that Republicans Mark Kirk in Illinois and Pat Toomey in Pennsylvania are catching up in the vote count.  I can't guarantee they'll win, but we have grounds for cautious optimism at this hour.  It depends on where the remaining votes will come from. 

10:18 P.M. ET:  In Ohio, the governor ship race between incumbent Ted Strickland and Republican John Kasich is still very close at this hour, but Kasich is pulling head.  Governors are important to the redistricting process, which will result from the 2010 Census.  Ohio is a critical state.

10:03 P.M. ET:  Deval Patrick, ally of President Obama, has been reelected governor of Massachusetts.  Coupe Deval, as he's sometimes called because of his extravagant tastes, was thought to be beatable, but this is Massachusetts.  Also in Massachusetts, Barney Frank has been easily reelected, despite a stiff challenge. 

9:47 P.M. ET:  We are watching, with worries, the Senate races in Illinois and Pennsylvania.  In both races the Republicans had been slightly ahead in the polls as of yesterday, but Democrats are leading in the current count.  However, we don't know from TV reports where the votes are coming from.  Stand by on these two races.  They're critical. 

9:43 P.M. ET:  In New York, invisible U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, appointed to fill out the Senate term of Hillary Clinton, has been elected in her own right.  She was eminently beatable, but the GOP, once again, put up a weak candidate, assuring that the seat would stay in Democratic hands.  Gillibrand could walk down the street of a New York town or city and not be recognized.

9:16 P.M. ET:  BULLETIN:  CNN PROJECTS THAT THE REPUBLICANS WILL TAKE CONTROL OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

9:06 P.M. ET:  Rand Paul, the new senator from Kentucky, is making his victory speech.  Well, I guess I'm glad he won, but my enthusiasm is restrained.  I don't consider him a conservative.  More of a reactionary.  His father, Ron Paul, is the eccentric congressman from Texas, and something of a conspiracy theorist. Let's hope the apple fell far from the tree. 

9:02 P.M. ET:  Republican Rick Snyder has been elected governor of Michigan, replacing Democrat Jennifer Granholm.  That is a big deal in a major union state.

8:51 P.M. ET:  The trends so far:  Republicans appear to be having a very strong night in House races, but a so-so night in Senate contests.  There have been no positive shockers for the GOP in the Senate.  Moral of the story:  Weak candidates don't win elections, and Republicans haven't exactly had top talent in some of these races.  But stand by for the rest of the evening.  Ya never know.

8:46 P.M. ET:  Ah, satisfaction.  In Florida's 8th Congressional District, obnoxious incumbent blowhard Alan Grayson has been defeated by Republican Daniel Webster, who I don't think is the dictionary guy, but knows words.

8:39 P.M. ET:  BULLETIN:  According to Fox News, Democrat Joe Manchin has defeated Republican John Raese for the United States Senate seat from West Virginia.  This is a major setback for the Republicans, who'd hoped to grab the seat held by Robert Byrd. 

But Raese was a problematical candidate who seemed to live more in Florida than in West Virginia, and Manchin is a popular governor who ran againt Barack Obama.  The Democratic win makes it virtually impossible for the GOP to take control of the Senate. 

West Virginia is the first close Senate race to be decided. 

8:33 P.M. ET:  Republican Kelly Ayotte has been elected to the Senate from New Hampshire, retaining for the GOP the seat being vacated by Judd Gregg.

8:31 P.M. ET:  As expected, John Boozman has defeated incumbent Democrat Blanche Lincoln for the U.S. Senate seat from Arkansas.  A turnover.

8:10 P.M. ET:  There are all kinds of early predictions being made.  Drudge is predicing 50+ gains for the GOP in the House and 7+ in the Senate.  Stay calm.  It's early, and much too early to make such sweeping predictions.  But so far the pollsters' general script is being followed.

8:03 P.M. ET:  A couple of disappointments, although expected:  Democratic candidate Richard Blumenthal has been elected to the Senate from Connecticut, retaining the seat for his party being vacated by Chris Dodd.  He is defeating wrestling executive Linda McMahon, who could not overcome the image of the wrestling business. 

In Delaware, Fox projects that Christine O'Donnell has been defeated by Democrat Chris Coons.  The Dems thus retain the seat vacated by Joe Biden.  However, I'd be curious to see how close Christine comes.  She was treated with gross unfairness by the mainstream media and by the GOP establishment. 

8:01 P.M. ET:  Marco Rubio has, as expected, been elected to the Senate from Florida, and instantly becomes a national figure.  He would, if selected for a national ticket in 2012, be the first Hispanic to be so chosen.  Rubio is getting 50% in a three-way race, a spectacular showing. 

7:59 P.M. ET:  In South Carolina, Nikki Haley, one of the first candidates anointed by Sarah Palin, is in a very tight race for the governorship.  No winner yet.  If she wins, Haley could become a GOP star.

7:56 P.M. ET:  Republican Rob Portman has been elected to the Senate from Ohio, as expected.  That's a GOP hold.  Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy has been reelected from Vermont, where they eat healthy food.

7:46 P.M. ET:  Exit polling results released thus far indicate that the election is going pretty much as the pollsters predicted.  Turnout among some Democratic groups, like African Americans or young voters, is depressed.  Exit polls show the kind of dissatisfaction with the Obama administration that we've been seeing in pre-election polls.  This bodes well for us tonight.

I live in a Democratic district.  When we went to vote we were the only voters there.  The poll watchers were delighted to have us.  We signed autographs.

7:01 P.M. ET:  Polls are now closed in Indiana and Kentucky.  Fox projects that Republican Rand Paul has been elected to the Senate from Kentucky in what was becoming a close race.  That is a GOP hold.

Fox also projects that Dan Coats, a former U.S. senator, has been elected to the Senate from Indiana.  That is a GOP pickup of the seat vacated by moderate Democrat Evan Bayh.

IT'S 7 P.M. ET:  AND WE'LL NOW BEGIN OUR ELECTION-NIGHT BLOGGING.  STAY WITH US.

SNIPPET OF THE DAY – AT 6:47 P.M. ET:

Worried that you've been a victim of voter fraud? Sadly, there's an app for that.

Concerned by growing reports of voter fraud before the elections, Austin James decided to do something. James, the director of new media for American Majority Action, released Voter Fraud for the iPhone, Blackberry and Android platforms about a week ago. Since then, more than 8,000 people have downloaded the app -- and he's received 50 reports of election impropriety.

Talk about a sign of the times.  Sobering.

November 2, 2010       Permalink

AND IN THE REAL WORLD – AT 9:25 A.M. ET:  Let us not forget what's out there, and what those elected today will have to deal with.  From Fox:

After two explosives-laden packages were sent from Yemen to the United States last week, federal authorities began to piece together what they now believe was a dry run of the plot more than a month earlier, according to a U.S. official with knowledge of the situation.

The nation’s top counterterrorism officials, including Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and White House counterterrorism adviser John Brennan, have said the latest attacks bear all the hallmarks of Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, or AQAP, the same Yemen-based group that sent Umar F. Ambdulmuttalab to blow up a jetliner over Detroit last Christmas Day.

Less than two months ago, in September, the U.S. intelligence community received a tip indicating that a suspicious package from Yemen was heading for Chicago, but when law enforcement officials tracked down and checked the package, all they found was a box from Yemen filled with religious books, according to the official.

U.S. intelligence didn’t know what to make of the tip or the package, but after a new issue of an AQAP magazine aimed at Westerners included an image of Chicago’s skyline, officials began to wonder whether terrorists could be looking to strike Chicago next, the U.S official said.

The most recent tip from Saudi Arabian intelligence, indicating two active bombs from Yemen heading to the United States aboard cargo planes, prompted federal officials to begin wondering whether the episode in September was a dry run for the latest plot, the U.S. official said. They now believe the September package was used to track how a shipment gets from Yemen to Chicago, and to help determine how long such a trek would take, as ABC News first reported.

COMMENT:  We should praise the good work of our intelligence people, while realizing that our luck won't hold forever.  We still must wonder whether last weekend's attempt was a well-timed effort at affecting our elections.  I can't believe the timing was coincidental.

November 2, 2010      Permalink 

FOCUS ON THE WHITE HOUSE – AT 8:55 A.M. ET:  What will President Obama do tomorrow morning, if the dire predictions about today come true?  Fox News reports:

Some high-level Democrats are calling for President Barack Obama to remake his inner circle or even fire top advisers in response to what many party strategists expect to be a decisive defeat on Tuesday.

Tensions have come to the surface after meetings over the past few weeks in which Obama senior adviser David Axelrod discussed communications strategy with senior Democratic strategists and party officials. Some Democrats were so unhappy with the White House meetings, they started their own.

The strategy sessions aired a range of disagreements over how to help Democrats forestall an electoral drubbing at the polls—a defeat party strategists believe could have been minimized with a different White House playbook.

Among the complaints: Obama conveyed an incoherent message that didn't express what Democrats would do over the next two years if they retain power; he focused more on his own image than helping Democratic candidates; and the White House picked the wrong battle when it attacked Republicans for using "outside" money to pay for campaigns, an issue disconnected from voters' real-world anxieties.

The latest strategy session took place Monday afternoon.

COMMENT:  Yeah.  I like the one about Obama focusing more on his own image than helping his fellow Dems.  What else is new?  The guy has an ego that can fill a barn. 

There are going to be a lot more strategy sessions.  You can be sure that the people in the White House are, today, thinking back to election day two years ago and wondering where it all went wrong.  And they'll be remembering the famous plaque on President Truman's Oval Office desk:  "The buck stops here." 

Yes it does.  Yes it does.  And every president, save the one in power right now, came to realize that.

November 2, 2010      Permalink

TRAVEL NEWS – AT 8:43 A.M. ET:   We're such a full-service site, aware of the comings and goings of the famous.  Just thought you'd like to know the latest, from Toby Harnden of London's Telegraph:

Hillary Clinton, the US Secretary of State, will be several thousand miles away from American shores on election day in a move some are interpreting as a deliberate way of literally distancing herself from the result.

Oh, oh, oh.  Would our little Hillary think that way?  These nasty journalists!

Although former President Bill Clinton has held more than 100 election events, his wife is unable to campaign because of her foreign policy role. She is currently on a two-week tour of Asia and Australasia that includes stops in Vietnam, Cambodia, China, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, New Zealand and Australia.

In Siem Reap in Cambodia yesterday, Mrs Clinton met a group of about 50 victims of human trafficking at an American-funded facility and promised continued American support.

Look, maybe the trip just had to be scheduled around a losing election day.  The fact that the future (she hopes) president is halfway around the world today is sheer coincidence.  Don't you think?  You do, don't you?

"I am so proud of you," she told the young women, former prostitutes who were mostly aged between 17 and 23. At the facility, they receive an education and vocational training including weaving and sewing lessons.

The same kind of training a lot of Democratic members of Congress will be needing tomorrow morning.

I'm so upset that anyone would think that our secretary of state would have some ulterior motive for being out of the country.  Is there no decency left?

November 2, 2010      Permalink

NOTHING, NOTHING, NOTHING – AT 8:18 A.M. ET:  It is election day, the day we've looked forward to since...the last election day.  And nothing is happening.  Nothing, nothing, nothing.  If you don't believe me, go to The Politico and read all the warmed-over nothing stories. 

It's waiting time.  Maybe there'll be some last-minute polls, but they're not up yet.  We wait for the returns.  While we wait, these are things we want to observe:  1) turnout.  How large is the turnout compared with past midterms?  Where is that turnout?  Who is coming to vote?  2) tone.  Is there a tone to those on the voting lines?  Anger?  Enthusiasm?  3) weather.  Are there weather patterns in some areas that might affect critical elections?  There is "Democratic" weather and "Republican" weather, depending on the area.  4) Voter fraud.  Don't be shocked if the charges start to fly.  Watch for fraud charges involving new, digital voting machines.  5)  Family reunions.  If you're in Chicago, be warmed and moved by the number of dearly departed relatives who show up at the polls to show they're still interested.

November 2, 2010     Permalink

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 1, 2010

HE FINALLY NOTICED – AT 8:35 P.M. ET:  President Obama committed a major blunder recently, and Republicans were poised to come down hard on him on the last day of campaigning.  He finally woke up.  From The New York Times:

WASHINGTON (AP) — A day before the pivotal midterm elections, President Barack Obama pulled back from remarks he made last month when he called on Latino voters to punish their "enemies" on Election Day. In an interview Monday with radio host Michael Baisden, Obama said he should have used the word "opponents" instead of enemies.

Republicans were quick to criticize the president's remarks. House Minority Leader John Boehner was expected to use Obama's words in an election eve speech in Ohio to paint the president as a staunch partisan.

"Sadly, we have a president who uses the word 'enemy' for fellow Americans, fellow citizens. He used it for people who disagree with his agenda of bigger government," Boehner said, according to prepared remarks released in advance of his speech.

Obama's original comments came during an interview with Eddie "Piolin" Sotelo, a Hispanic radio personality. Piolin questioned how Obama could ask Latinos for their vote when many don't believe he's worked hard to pass comprehensive immigration reform.

COMMENT:  The record will show that Obama only apologized when it became evident the Republicans would use the word "enemies" against him.  He seemed to have no concern about the concept, which is one of the problems with this administration.  Arrogance.

November 1, 2010      Permalink

THE LAST DAY OF CAMPAIGNING – AT 8:00 P.M. ET:  And it's almost over.  A sweep of the news networks and the internet this evening reveals that nothing important has changed today. 

Democrats may be feeling a bit more optimistic in West Virginia, and Republicans seem somewhat spirited about Washington state.  But these are feelings.  There has been no last-minute jolt, no major event in the news that migjht change things.

Fox News is putting great emphasis on the possibility of voter fraud, and has even set up an e-mail address for voters to report suspicions.  It's Voterfraud@Foxnews.com.  Fox's Eric Shawn reports that many, many complaints have already come in.  In very close elections, this is the issue to watch.

If you want an indication of what, at base, this election is about, look no further than a headline today at Salon:

The unbearable stupidity of American voters 

Nice, huh?  That is the attitude that Americans see coming from the liberal left, and, for good reason, they don't like it.  How many votes do you think you get by calling voters "stupid"?  I believe that, although the economy is the main issue, there is an underlying resentment toward the snotties in the Obama administration and in the liberal media, and they are being sent a clear message.

We'll be blogging tomorrow, tomorrow night, and through Wednesday morning, until control of each body of Congress is decided.  I have a recurring dream about Barbara Boxer's concession speech.  Oh yes, I have a dream today.

November 1, 2010     Permalink

OUTRAGEOUS AND UNACCEPTABLE – AT 9:13 A.M. ET:  What are the Obamans thinking, if anything?  From AFP:

The United States will come under the spotlight at the UN's top human rights assembly's for the first time over the coming week along with other countries that face scrutiny by the Human Rights Council.
The 12-day session of the 47 member council starting on Monday will include regular "universal periodic reviews" of 16 members of the United Nations, including the United States on November 5.

Several dozen non governmental organisation are expected to lobby the debate on the US human rights record, while Washington will also defend its record.

This is sickening.  The Human Rights Council is one of the most corrupt bodies in the UN, and is run by some of the world's worst dictators. 

Some 300 US civil liberties and community groups in the US Human Rights Network on Monday called on the Obama administration to bring "substandard human rights practices" in the United States into line with international standards.

These are the usual suspects, the old red groups and their allies.  They will stop at nothing to embarrass the United States. 

The United States only agreed to join the Council in May 2009, after the Bush administration had shunned the body which replaced its similar though discredited predecessor, the UN human rights commission, in 2006.

Bush was right, Obama was wrong.  We're used to that already, aren't we?  The Human Rights Council is at least as discredited as its predecessor. 

The Network produced a 400-page report criticising "glaring inadequacies in the United States? human rights record," including the "discriminatory impact" of foreclosures, "widespread" racial profiling and "draconian" immigration policies.

Huh?  Draconian immigration policies?  Like what?  We've allowed millions of illegal immigrants to flood across our border and receive benefits and jobs.  Boy, how draconian is that? 

This is the usual "everything is racist" crowd. 

I hope a new Republican administration in 2013 will pull us out of this evil body and restore our self-respect.

November 1, 2010      Permalink

SNIPPET OF THE DAY – AT 8:45 A.M. ET:

Seeking to find some good news to disseminate amid a bounteous harvest of otherwise dire political predictions for Democrats in Tuesday's voting, the Democratic National Committee sent out a rapid response news release over the weekend.   It proudly announced that the committee, headed by President Obama favorite Tim Kaine, had just presented 11 different state parties with a total of $2.67 to split among themselves for last-minute expenses.

You see, Democrats are already getting into the spirit of cost-cutting.  They're learning that $2.67 goes a long way, when wisely spent.

November 1, 2010      Permalink

GALLUPING GALLUPS, WOULD YOU LOOK AT THIS – AT 8:23 A.M. ET:  The Gallup organization has now joined the list of those predicting a game changer tomorrow:

PRINCETON, NJ -- The final USA Today/Gallup measure of Americans' voting intentions for Congress shows Republicans continuing to hold a substantial lead over Democrats among likely voters, a lead large enough to suggest that regardless of turnout, the Republicans will win more than the 40 seats needed to give them the majority in the U.S. House.

The results are from Gallup's Oct. 28-31 survey of 1,539 likely voters. It finds 52% to 55% of likely voters preferring the Republican candidate and 40% to 42% for the Democratic candidate on the national generic ballot -- depending on turnout assumptions. Gallup's analysis of several indicators of voter turnout from the weekend poll suggests turnout will be slightly higher than in recent years, at 45%. This would give the Republicans a 55% to 40% lead on the generic ballot, with 5% undecided.

Republicans' 15-point lead among likely voters contrasts with their 4-point lead, 48% to 44%, among registered voters, highlighting the importance of higher GOP turnout to the election outcome. This wide difference between the GOP's margin among registered voters and its margin among likely voters is similar to the 2002 midterms, in which Democrats led by 5 points among all registered voters in Gallup's final pre-election poll, while Republicans led by 6 points among likely voters -- an 11-point gain.

COMMENT:  Gallup's model has shown the most dramatic leads for Republicans.  We will be very interested to know whether this model holds up tomorrow. 

I suspect that the GOP will wrap up a House majority fairly early in the evening, and that the Senate may well be the fascinating story once the House is secure.

November 1, 2010      Permalink

THIS IS RIDICULOUS – AT 8:04 A.M. ET:  The 2012 presidential sweepstakes have already begun, and dumb ideas are immediately making their appearance.  From The Politico:

Top Republicans in Washington and in the national GOP establishment say the 2010 campaign highlighted an urgent task that they will begin in earnest as soon as the elections are over: Stop Sarah Palin.

Interviews with advisers to the main 2012 presidential contenders and with other veteran Republican operatives make clear they see themselves on a common, if uncoordinated, mission of halting the momentum and credibility Palin gained with conservative activists by plunging so aggressively into this year’s midterm campaigns.

There is rising expectation among GOP elites that Palin will probably run for president in 2012 and could win the Republican nomination, a prospect many of them regard as a disaster in waiting.

Many of these establishment figures argue in not-for-attribution comments that Palin’s nomination would ensure President Barack Obama’s reelection, as the deficiencies that marked her 2008 debut as a vice presidential nominee — an intensely polarizing political style and often halting and superficial answers when pressed on policy — have shown little sign of abating in the past two years.

COMMENT:  I don't like using words like "stupid."  It's arrogant and lazy.  I'll make an exception this time.

First, "stop" anybody movements rarely work.  All they do is enhance the prestige of the target and make that person larger than life.  If a candidate is stopped, it's by the voters.

Second, dividing the party right out of the gate is not exactly smooth politics, coming right after what (we hope) will be a smashing victory.

Third, show me the money, or, rather, the candidate that these worthies want to throw up against Palin, and let's see if he, or she, can beat her.  That's the only "stop" movement that counts. 

I happen to agree that Palin remains polarizing, and has not corrected her deficiencies.  They're there, they're obvious, and they hurt.  But polls show that she doesn't do all that well in trial heats, even among conservatives.  If she runs for president, she should be treated as any other candidate.  If she improves that much and captures the nomination by the sheer quality of her candidacy, she deserves it.  If she falters, the voters will take care of the issue.

But please, no "stop" movements.  If you want to plan to stop anyone, make it Obama.

November 1, 2010      Permalink 

ONE DAY TO GO - AT 7:44 A.M. ET:  The last full day of campaigning is about to begin.  Some final polls are already out, with others expected later in the day.

Most interesting is a PPP (leans left) poll in Washington state showing Dino Rossi up two over Senator Patty Murray.

A PPP poll in Illinois shows Republican Mark Kirk up four over Dem candidate Giannoulias.  PPP in California, though, still has Barbara Boxer with a four-point lead over Carly Fiorina.  But RealClearPolitics has that race as a toss up.

RealClearPolitics is showing an average projected gain for Republicans in the House as a whopping 67 seats.  Well, we'll hope, but we'll see.

We are looking for any last-minute polls in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Delaware, which will be among the first states to come in tomorrow night.  If the GOP can win Robert Byrd's old Senate seat in West Virginia, the party has a shot at taking the Senate, assuming Pennsylvania also goes our way.  If both states go Dem, however, the Republicans can hope only for some significant gains in the Senate.  Delaware is more a curiosity.  How close can Christine O'Donnell actually come on election day?  So far, she's sliced Chris Coons's lead in half, but she's running out of time.

From every report we've seen, this is the most energized midterm election of our era.  One key question:  Has President Obama's constant (and at times, unseemly) campaigning been enough to turn out a good chunk of the Democratic base?  Two days from right now we'll know the answer and we'll be writing about it.

November 1, 2010     Permalink