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I don’t like to pick fights with Democratic bloggers, but a couple of the more popular ones have run posts that act as though the sky is falling because two Democratic senators are going to retire. Which chimes in with the kind of mindless spin the MSM likes to portray daily events, especially when it comes to Democrats. Tapped notes,
Then the pack mentality sets in, and you get nonsense like “Wave of retirements speaks to uncertainty about 2010 elections.” Yesterday I said that 2010 was less predictable than your run-of-the-mill midterm election because of the state of the opposition party. By comparison the electoral consequences of Dodd and Dorgan are all but certain.
* Speaking of the unique set of obstacles confronting Republicans in an election year that would otherwise be very favorable to them, it’s a pretty big deal that the RNC’s finances are worse off now than a year ago, when chessmaster Michael Steele took over. Moreover, look at what spending $90 million (!) in 2009 netted the Republican Party: two governor’s mansions and the loss of five special congressional elections. And most significantly, the NRCC only has enough cash on hand at this point to finance a single congressional race in 2010, a year in which the GOP should be competitive in dozens of districts. Add to the mix the fact that the grass-roots energy (read: money) is being directed toward futile tea party jamborees, and it’s easy to see why this is all more politically interesting than the usual “liberal schism” storyline.
This is a great moment for liberals. We’re getting a little pay back from the tea baggers who are sending their money to their astroturf leaders rather than the RNC. GOP Vulnerabilities May Help Dems Hang On To 60 Senate Seats
Keep in mind that 2004 was a very good Senate cycle for the Republicans, with them winning nearly every state they possibly could. Now, six years later, they have a lot of territory where they have to play defense, and a wide variety of outcomes are possible.
This is not to say that Democrats should be over-confident. Just a few for examples. If you active in Missouri progressive politics now is the time to start the background research on possible conservative Senate candidates. Start blogging, faxing, e-mailing or whatever your talents lend themselves. Same thing for Ohio. Rep. Rob Portman has so much baggage he could open his own suitcase shop, he served as Trade Representative and Budget Director under Bush.
Sarah Palin is destined for the crazy dustbin of conservative history. She lacks maturity. a grasp of issues and appears to have little need for the virtue of humility, Palin: I’m “Not Gonna Back Off” Death Panel Claim. You know the wacky claim that has been thoroughly debunked – Sarah Palin falsely claims Barack Obama runs a ‘death panel’. Hey way to act like a leader. We had a guy named George and his sidekick Dick who had the same hubris when it came to admitting fault and apologizing.
Glenn Beck Hate Mongering Of The Day: Obama And Progressives “Want To Intentionally Collapse Our Economic System”. Beck woke up from a walking coma just last week. OK, that’s not ture, but I was trying to find an excuse for Beck and conservative’s in general lack of knowledge about the history of the last 10 years. America’s Sea of Red Ink Was Years in the Making
The story of today’s deficits starts in January 2001, as President Bill Clinton was leaving office. The Congressional Budget Office estimated then that the government would run an average annual surplus of more than $800 billion a year from 2009 to 2012. Today, the government is expected to run a $1.2 trillion annual deficit in those years.
You can think of that roughly $2 trillion swing as coming from four broad categories: the business cycle, President George W. Bush’s policies, policies from the Bush years that are scheduled to expire but that Mr. Obama has chosen to extend, and new policies proposed by Mr. Obama.
The first category — the business cycle — accounts for 37 percent of the $2 trillion swing. It’s a reflection of the fact that both the 2001 recession and the current one reduced tax revenue, required more spending on safety-net programs and changed economists’ assumptions about how much in taxes the government would collect in future years.
About 33 percent of the swing stems from new legislation signed by Mr. Bush. That legislation, like his tax cuts and the Medicare prescription drug benefit, not only continue to cost the government but have also increased interest payments on the national debt.
Mr. Obama’s main contribution to the deficit is his extension of several Bush policies, like the Iraq war and tax cuts for households making less than $250,000. Such policies — together with the Wall Street bailout, which was signed by Mr. Bush and supported by Mr. Obama — account for 20 percent of the swing.
About 7 percent comes from the stimulus bill that Mr. Obama signed in February. And only 3 percent comes from Mr. Obama’s agenda on health care, education, energy and other areas.
Beck’s ‘expert’ observations and advice are said to bring him about $3 million dollars a years. It turns out conservatives do believe in welfare. Beck should be paying people to listen to his swill.
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