I think primaries are really important and really democratic-- especially in one of the scores of districts where the only realistic accountability is through a primary challenge. Obviously, many incumbents hate them. Wouldn't it be nice to not have to worry about being accountable to the constituents! I might go for the idea, if "none of the above" was an option in every election.
In 2008, Obama's message of "Hope and Change" resonated in Ohio and he took the state, 51.5% to 46.9%. Four years later it was a little closer-- 50.7% to 47.7%-- but Buckeyes were still looking for the change Obama was promising. In 2016, the candidate promising change was Trump, while Hillary represented the status quo of an establishment the Midwest was sick of. Ohio-- like other Midwestern states that had backed Obama-- peeled off and gave Trump the presidency. Hillary took just 43.24% of the vote, a shockingly low number for a swing state.
Austin Civil Rights attorney Mike Siegel has been working hard to replace the richest Republican in Congress, reactionary Trumpist Michael McCaul, for nearly 4 years. He held McCaul down to a 51.1% win in 2018, McCaul's closest call ever. In a tough primary on March 3rd Siegel led the two "moderates" with Big Money backing who opposed his progressive platform:
In an off-the-record talk with a top Florida elected official, I was informed that Debbie Wasserman Schultz no longer has any power inside the Florida Democratic Party. "She has zero influence. The consultants who make money loosing elections have all the influence... The current chair's career experience (Terrie Rizzo) is that she’s a yoga instructor.
Tomorrow's a big day in Texas-- runoffs for the primaries. Two congressional races with progressive candidates are up for grabs-- TX-10 (Travis-Harris county corridor) and TX-24 (-- where, respectively, Mike Siegel faces moderate vanity candidate Pritesh Gandhi and Candace Valenzuela (Kenny Marchant's abandoned seat in the suburbs northeast of Ft. Worth and northwest of Dallas) faces moderate Kim Olson.
Nationally, Republicans have, by and large but with a few exceptions, fought against Democratic governors trying to protect their states' residents from the worst of the pandemic. But no Republican-dominated state legislature has been more pro-COVID than Wisconsin's. They have worked hard-- and effectively-- to prevent Gov. Tony Evers, a very moderate Democrat, from instituting rules to keep the state safe. The Republicans have given Wisconsin 36,448 cases of the disease-- 6,260 cases per Wisconsinite. On Saturday there were 926 new cases reported (and 7 new deaths).
COVID-Don with COVID-RonOn Friday, Governor Ron DeSantis and the Republican-dominated state legislature gave Florida 11,433 new corfimed COVID cases. Yesterday it was 10,360 more, bringing the ghastly total to 254,511 (11,850 per million Floridians). Also on Friday Governor Greg Abbott and his Republican-dominated state legislature gave Texas 10,063 new cases.
"Kilroy" has known Sapp for years. He brought DWT his story at least in part because we are supporting Adam Christensen, the progressive Democrat opposing Sapp in the race to fill the north central Florida seat being abandoned by tea bagger Ted Yoho.
Senate candidate John Wayne wants Alaska to secede-- or at least to not pay any taxesYesterday, writing for the Washington Post, Seung Min Kim reported that "Republican senators up for reelection this fall i
