Results Thread

[Hacker]

Omigawd! CNN is broadcasting from Tryst right now! That's a local trendy cafe in my neighborhood.

OMIGAWD, lol!

 

[doppelganger]

Whew . . . 80% reporting in MO now and McCaskill is beginning to build a bit of lead on Telent. This one is going to be a while too.

If Webb and McCaskill can win these two close ones (and Tester holds on to his 8% lead in MT), then Dems take the Senate, too.

 

[lilithu]

Whew . . . 80% reporting in MO now and McCaskill is beginning to build a bit of lead on Telent. This one is going to be a while too.

If Webb and McCaskill can win these two close ones (and Tester holds on to his 8% lead in MT), then Dems take the Senate, too.

I have friends who planned on taking tomorrow morning off from work because they thought they'd be up all night drinking in celebration of the results. Looks like we'll be up all night just getting the election results.

 

[Sunstone]

South Dakota voters rejected their state's ban on abortion tonight.

 

[lilithu]

South Dakota voters rejected their state's ban on abortion tonight.

Thank you.

 

[CaptainXeroid]

If there is an upside to the Democrats taking the House and the Republicans hopefully holding onto the Senate is that the runaway spending will slow down a great deal.

How would that balance in the Senate affect Bush's ability to appoint judges?

If the Senate winds up 50-49-1(Lieberman), confirmation of Bush appointments in the next 2 years would pretty much be automatic. If the Democrats take the Senate as well, Bush will have to dance with them in a way he hasn't had to. Now that Lieberman is an indepedent and not beholden to the Democrats, it will be interesting to see how he votes.

georgia went republican all the way

Thurbert Baker(AG), Michael Thurmond(Labor), and Tommy Irvin(Agriculture) were Democrats re-elected rather comfortably because they have served the state of Georgia well. John Lewis and Hank Johnson were elected in yellow dog Democrat districts. David Scott's gerrymandered 13th district was a real piece of work compliments of the previously Democratic controlled state legislature.

Anyway, given the Republican scandals, spending, and the quagmire that the Iraq War is fast becoming, I am a git surprised the Democrats didn't make bigger gains. I guess we'll see if they can parlay their limited "Bush & Republicans are stupid" message into some real action.

 

[gnomon]

Just d***.

Arizona is going to pass a proposition to amend a law that sends those individuals arrested for possessing meth for personal use to jail and exempt them from probation and possible treatment in conjunction with said probation.

Not dealers or producers. Not violent criminals. The users. One approximation is that this will cost taxpayers ~$2,800 per person incarcerated. Arizona has a large meth problem. Rather than diverting people to treatment (outside of a jail or prison) they will be incarcerated, removed from their job (and thus the local economy) and achieve what?

G** D*****!

 

[doppelganger]

Nick Lampson won Tom Delay's old seat in Texas over the Republican write-in candidates.

 

[lilithu]

Just d***.

Arizona is going to pass a proposition to amend a law that sends those individuals arrested for possessing meth for personal use to jail and exempt them from probation and possible treatment in conjunction with said probation.

Not dealers or producers. Not violent criminals. The users. One approximation is that this will cost taxpayers ~$2,800 per person incarcerated. Arizona has a large meth problem. Rather than diverting people to treatment (outside of a jail or prison) they will be incarcerated, removed from their job (and thus the local economy) and achieve what?

G** D*****!

As I've said more already tonight, I don't understand my country.

 

[gnomon]

As I've said more already tonight, I don't understand my country.

I said it once tonight but I mean it now. I can't think about elections anymore. Seeing what will be the final verdict on this amendment has actually enraged me. Thousands of people will probably end up in far worse situations in Arizona. Sending people, especially those who aren't addicts, to jail or prison in these situations is usually rather bad.

I will now log out and go scream invectives outside against John Walters then try to finish watching Mists of Avalon before having to get up in six hours to go to work.

It's apathy bred with contentment.

 

[doppelganger]

88% reporting and McCaskill is starting to pull away in Missouri (51-47 now). Looks like MO is going to the Dems.

With 65% reporting, Burns has cut into Tester's lead, but the Democrat is still holding a 4% lead.

 

[doppelganger]

As the last precincts report, Webb's lead over Allen continues to grow. It's now close to 6000 votes. I don't think a recount is going to change the result.

If Tester hangs on (and the exit polls suggest he probably will), then it looks like the probable final Senate count is going to be 50 Democrats, 49 Republicans and 1 Connecticut for Liebermanite.

 

[lilithu]

88% reporting and McCaskill is starting to pull away in Missouri (51-47 now). Looks like MO is going to the Dems.

With 65% reporting, Burns has cut into Tester's lead, but the Democrat is still holding a 4% lead.

CNN says McCaskill won!!!!!!!!!

 

[doppelganger]

CNN says McCaskill won!!!!!!!!!

Excellent. An assist goes to Michael J. Fox and the many other people who suffer from diseases for which stem cell research may hold the key (and to Rush Limbaugh, too ).

So it looks like control of the Senate is going to come down to whether Macaca can figure out a way to manage a 6000 vote swing on the recount.

 

[Sunstone]

What has to happen now for the Dems to take the Senate? Can they still?

 

[lilithu]

As the last precincts report, Webb's lead over Allen continues to grow. It's now close to 6000 votes. I don't think a recount is going to change the result.

If Tester hangs on (and the exit polls suggest he probably will), then it looks like the probable final Senate count is going to be 50 Democrats, 49 Republicans and 1 Connecticut for Liebermanite.

Well, they're saying that even when there is a recount it's extremely rare for the person holding the lead to lose it, so let's just hope that Webb and Tester hold on (and that McCaskill's projected victory holds).

Having said that, I want to acknowledge what Standing_Alone has said a couple of times tonight. I do think that there is a difference between the Dems and the Repubs. If Gore had been president we would not be in Iraq, he would not gutted FEMA right before Katrina, and we would have ratified the Kyoto accord. BUT I don't think that there is a big enough difference between the Dems and the Repubs. Afterall, it was Clinton who signed the "Defense of Marriage" Act. I'm not sure how much is going to change.

 

[doppelganger]

What has to happen now for the Dems to take the Senate? Can they still?

Phil,

It looks like they have! Webb's lead in VA is now 12000 votes over Allen. Allen's chances of changing that many votes in a recount is pretty slim (without help from Diebold ). Tester is going to carry MT and McCaskill claimed MO. So the count looks like its going to be 50 Democrats, 49 Republicans and 1 Connecticut for Liebermanite.

 

[lilithu]

What has to happen now for the Dems to take the Senate? Can they still?

The Dems would have to win all three senate seats that are still up for grabs: Montana, Missouri, and Virginia. CNN is projecting that McCaskill has won in Missouri and both Dems are leading in Montana and Virginia. So there is still a very good chance.

 

[doppelganger]

BUT I don't think that there is a big enough difference between the Dems and the Repubs. Afterall, it was Clinton who signed the "Defense of Marriage" Act. I'm not sure how much is going to change.

I agree. I'm anti-Bush, but not a Democrat. I'm an independent liberal because I don't think the Dems as a party really represent progressive and liberal values (though some of the new ones certainly do). However, we need oversight and with the current regime that requires subpoena power. All we really needed was one house to switch hands so we could at least get some kind of public hearings on wiretapping, Cheney's secret energy policy meeting, pre-Iraq invasion intelligence, current intelligence estimates of the global status of terrorist organizations and many other issues.

As far as legislation goes, it isn't going to matter really. Bush will finally start using that veto pen of his and the Dems don't have a solid enough majority to override the torrent of vetos. But when as much has gone horribly wrong as has under Bush, don't underestimate the value of public hearings and legal subpoena power.

 

[Sunstone]

Phil,

It looks like they have! Webb's lead in VA is now 12000 votes over Allen. Allen's chances of changing that many votes in a recount is pretty slim (without help from Diebold ). Tester is going to carry MT and McCaskill claimed MO. So the count looks like its going to be 50 Democrats, 49 Republicans and 1 Connecticut for Liebermanite.

GREAT! Now, it's up to them to do something worthwhile in the next two years. I think this is the first election since 9/11 when terrorism didn't trump everything.