The Political Bridge

Franken(D) Will NOT FOR NOW appeal Canvassing Boards Decisions Against Him

From NBC News

Senate candidate Al Franken will not appeal a decision by the Minnesota State Canvassing Board, which today rejected the Democrat's request that rejected  absentee ballots be included in the race's hotly contested recount.

The canvassing board's decision was perceived as a blow to Franken...

 

Click here   NBC News to read the entire article.

With 86% of the MN Recount Done: Coleman(R) Gains Still More on Franken(D)

 

Totals

Nov. 4 Ballots Cast for Norm Coleman  1046101

Nov. 4 Ballots Cast for Al Franken        1042208

 

Recounted Data

Totals

Percent

RECOUNT Number of Ballots for Coleman (as recounted)

1044255

RECOUNT Number of Ballots for Franken (as recounted)

1040285

41.41

 

Gain of 90+ for Coleman

 

RECOUNT COLEMAN and Other Ballots Challenged By FRANKEN 2292

 

RECOUNT FRANKEN and Other Ballots Challenged By COLEMAN  2448

 

Just In: MN CANVASSING BOARD REJECTS FRANKEN'S CASE ABOUT ABSENTEE BALLOTS

Board members stressed that they weren't rejecting the merits of the arguments made by Franken's attorneys

A comment by a Franker supporter...The 6000 plus ballots that were rejected will have a review in court. Until then, everyone has to wait through the process. 

Click here MN Senate Race to read more on this developing story.

With 80% of the Vote Re-Counted Coleman(R) Ups Lead against Franken(D); But

So do the number of challenged ballots by Coleman and Franken.

Nov. 4 Ballots Cast for Norm Coleman  980121

Nov. 4 Ballots Cast for Al Franken        977580

 

Recounted Data

Totals

Percent

RECOUNT Number of Ballots for Coleman (as recounted)  978751

RECOUNT Number of Ballots for Franken (as recounted)   976187

 RECOUNT COLEMAN and Other Ballots Challenged By FRANKEN  1758

RECOUNT FRANKEN and Other Ballots Challenged By COLEMAN   1836

% of Ballots Recounted 80.62 %

Just In: Reports of Missing Ballots in MN Senate Race(From the MN Star-Tribune)

A new wrinkle is surfacing today in the recount battle in Minnesota between incumbent U.S. Sen. Norm Coleman and challenger Al Franken -- missing ballots.

The Franken campaign today said that it has learned of missing ballots totaling several hundred in various counties. Franken recount attorney Marc Elias said he's also bothered that counties that know they have missing ballots aren't bothering to look for them.

Click here Star-Tribune to read the entire article.  

Democrats Pick Up House Seat in Virginia(From the Washington Wire)

November 24, 2008, 6:20 pm

Another U.S. House race has been decided: six-term Republican Rep. Virgil Goode lost his seat to Democratic challenger Tom Perriello. Goode didn’t waste any time asking for a recount of the vote in the central Virginia district, but his chances of overcoming the 745-vote margin are slim.

Challenges to Ballots Soar in MN Senate Recount

RECOUNT COLEMAN and Other Ballots Challenged By FRANKEN  1401

 

RECOUNT FRANKEN and Other Ballots Challenged By COLEMAN  1400

 

Percentage of Ballots Recounted = 74.18

Click here MN Secretary of State for more results in this recount.

CAN KENTUCKY BECOME A TRUE BLUE STATE? By DrTed

In the last decade, Kentuckians have tended to vote Republican in federal elections.  Before then, Kentucky was a true blue state. 

Can Kentucky revert to its old ways in the coming years? 

Virginia and North Carolina did.  So then could Kentucky, one would expect.

 

This change is seemingly in the numbers, with Democrats far exceeding Republicans in voter registration.  This difference between registered Democratic and Republican voters is the highest it has been in decades. 

 

Demographic data from the 2008 election suggest that Kentucky might continue its trends of voting (mostly) red in federal elections.  That is because the typical Kentucky voter resembles the typical McCain voter.

 

The prototypical McCain voter tends to be over 45, living in suburban or rural communities, a non-union member, gun owner, and a White Evangelical Christian.

The demographic data (from exit polls) show that 55% of the Kentucky voters are over 45 years of age (which is slightly higher than the national average.) 

 

In addition, 91% of Kentuckly's voters live in either suburban or rural communities. Correspondingly, only 9% of its voters live in urban communities, which one is of the lowest percentages for this category in the nation. 

 

Moreover, White Evangelical/Born-again Christians compose 45% of the Kentucky’s electorate.  Twenty-six percent of the nation’s voters claim to belong to this voting bloc.  (While data could not be found concerning gun owners and non-union voters in Kentucky, I expect that both groups represent a majority of Kentucky voters.)

 

What then, you ask, about North Carolina and Virginia?  Are they not both rural states with high numbers of White Evangelical Christians?

 

This profile is not accurate for the prototypical Virginia voter, who tends to live in urban/suburban communities. Only 28% of Virginia voters label themselves as Born-again Christians.

 

The profile of a typical North Carolina voter corresponds to the typical Kentucky voter, except for two important demographic categories.   A larger percentage of North Carolina voters live in urban areas than do Kentucky voters.   A North Carolina voter is more likely to have college and post-college degrees than is a Kentucky voter. 

 

(Interestingly, voters without high-school degrees, and voters with college and post-college degrees were more likely to vote for Obama than for McCain.)

 

It is not very likely then that Kentucky will become a true blue state.

 

But then again, I never dreamed in 2004 that Barrack Obama would be our President in 2009.

KENTUCKY BLUES: THE FORECASTED KENTUCKY REVENUE SHORTFALLS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2009 (info courtesy of Larry Clark, Speaker Pro Tem of Kentucky House of Representatives)

Ladies and Gentlemen:

 Below you will find a 4-page summary that was included with materials discussed at today’s Consensus Forecasting Group (CFG) meeting. The first two pages  describe two scenarios concerning the anticipated revenue shortfall for fiscal year 09. After much discussion, the CFG ultimately adopted the more pessimistic scenario and projects a $456.1 million budget deficit for the current fiscal year. Note also that the attachment includes road fund estimates as well. I thought it was important that each of you have access to this information as promptly as possible given the significance of the difficulties we face. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to contact me.

Larry Clark

 

Click here Download Kentucky Revenue Forcecast  to read more about the forecasted revenue.

JIM BUNNING: THE DISMAL SENATOR FROM TOYOTA by DrTed

In 2006, Time Magazine surveyed dozens of academics, political scientists and current Senators and former Senators to determine the best and worst U.S. Senators.  Kentucky’s own, Senator Jim Bunning, made the list as one of the five worst U.S. Senators. 

 

Time Magazine claimed that Bunning went from Cooperstown to the U.S. Senate’s “Chamber of Shame” because he shows little interest in policy.  This is a polite way of saying that Bunning has initiated very little, if any, legislation in the U.S. Senate.

 

Bunning’s senatorial career has gone downhill from 2006, if that’s possible.  In 2006, Congressional Quarterly gave Mr. Bunning a power rating of 69(with one being the most powerful); in 2008, he received a power rating of 78.    

 

Jim Bunning has recently awakened with his fervent opposition to government bailouts.  The Republican biosphere is calling him a visionary who believes that minimal government action is always best.

 

  What a nice spin! Almost as good as the one that Bunning had on his reported (illegal) spitball.

 

I have another take on Senator Bunning’s awakening, which is that Mr. Bunning is acting in the best interest of Toyota, North America.

 

Last year, Toyota North America selected Erlanger in Northern Kentucky as the location of its North American home office.  Senator Bunning resides (relatively) close-by in Fort Thomas, KY.  For ten years, Senator Bunning represented the Northern Kentucky area in U.S. Congress. 

Senators (e.g., Richard Shelby, Alabama) from states with Toyota or Honda plants have led the opposition to the Detroit bailout.  This makes economic sense since Toyota and Honda have much to gain with the demise of America’s Big 3 automakers. 

Except for Kentucky, the Toyota and Honda States have right-to-work laws.  After co-organizing the baseball union, Mr. Bunning has been a staunch opponent of organized labor.  If he had his way, Kentucky would be a right-to-work state.

One more items about the dismal Senator from Toyota—he recently voted against tax credits for plug-in hybrids with batteries.  Only 25 Senators voted against this measure. (Even Senator McConnell voted for it.)

For the longest time, Toyota North America fought this piece of legislation. As reported in Autmobilemag.com “Toyota’s Robert Wimmer said this requirement ‘redefines plug-in electric vehicles to seemingly eliminate consumer tax credits for all but one plug-in vehicle design.’

 

Toyota also lobbied hard against the 2007 Democratic-sponsored changes to the Corporate Average Fuel Economy act, which President Bush eventually signed into law.  Bunning twice voted against this measure.

 

 The dismal Junior Senator from Kentucky seemingly believes that what is good for Toyota is good for America.  

 

Jim Bunning has then become the Dismal Senior Senator from Toyota.