Political Games - Where the fuck’s the reset button?

The central premise of our modern-day conservative/Republican movement is that government cannot do anything right (except lock up some people for using some drugs, and bomb brown people). To quote Reagan, “Government is the problem”. Now, I disagree with this, especially as a blanket statement; there are things governments are very good at, most visibly coordinating and building infrastructure. This, of course, is a completely different statement than “Governments shouldn’t do those things”; I also disagree with that, but at least it doesn’t deny that government actions can have large-scale beneficial effects.

One of the biggest issues with allowing a political party that doesn’t think government works to run a government is that they invariably suck at it, either due to ignorance or malice. Just look at the underfunded and thinly-spread mess that is our non-defense budget, or New Orleans, and you can see quite plainly that the modern GOP doesn’t know how to run a government. Now, though, they’re taking it to a new level.

As you may have heard, the government bought out GM after it filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy. So we own the company, and will for some time (along with AIG and a few other institutions). I have mixed feelings on the idea behind it, but I hope it works. GM is one of the few remaining manufacturing employers in the country, and even if they go under, we’ll need time while new employment options take root. Plus, maybe this will make transitioning to more fuel-efficient vehicles easier. Silver lining, etc.

The right-wing sees a different silver lining: they see an opportunity to ‘prove’ that government can’t do anything right! Yes, Rush Limbaugh and Hugh Hewitt are calling for a boycott on GM in order to… something? I don’t really see how a GM boycott does anything besides make them look like bitter morons. There are plenty of critiques of the GM buyout and discussion on whether or not it will succeed in helping the economy recover and stabilize [for the actual left-wing view, I recommend Open Left. Commenters can be annoying, but the main page writers are sharp], but the overarching theme of those writings is “man, I really fucking hope this works”. The right-wing? They throw a temper tantrum, say “fine, I didn’t like this economy anyway, I HOPE it breaks!!!” and start throwing bricks at the windows.

I mean, seriously? Really? Let me see if I follow the chain of events correctly:

1. Government buys out GM in effort to jump-start economy
2. Right-wing opposes on ideological grounds: “Government can’t do anything right!”
3. Right-wing boycotts GM, further hurting GM and the larger economy
4. Right-wing points to failure as proof that government can’t do anything right
5. ???
6. Profit!

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In my blogging absence over the past few months, there’s been a steady increase in progress on an issue that is close to me: legalizing gay marriages. Since the Prop 8 debacle, there’s been steady progress. Connecticut, Iowa, DC, Maine, Vermont, and New Hampshire have joined Massachusetts with full marriage rights. New York state also recognizes marriages performed out of state, though as of yet it doesn’t for those in state (pending legislation). The homobigots are flailing about, desperate to blame the courts (in Iowa and Connecticut) or the legislatures (Vermont and New Hampshire) for the fact that the public is seeing (via MA) that gay couples aren’t any different from straight couples*. Time is on our side, but that shouldn’t breed complacency: it should make us anxious to press the issue. No matter what, we will win. We just need to keep pushing our spineless allies in the Democratic party.

*I’m sure there are differences in bedroom experiences, but that doesn’t have much to do with marriage. There has been one difference that I’ve seen in early studies: homosexual couples are much more equal, in terms of work done (paid and unpaid) and income than heterosexual couples. Huh, it’s almost as if homosexuals and their allies know marriage is about love and partnership, while the bigots think it’s about one person subjugating another. But I digress.

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After decades of deferential coverage to the executive branch, with criticism being restricted to personal-drama bullshit, has the press learned its lessons from its plummeting sales? So far, the answer is a resounding ‘No!’ Despite a laundry list of shit to choose from, such as the walkback on DADT, the lack of tough oversight on the bank bailouts, or the decision to use the (admittedly much more fair, since it doesn’t use a modified version) military tribunal system to try guantanamo detainees that we aren’t releasing, we’re treated to discussions on what kind of dog the Obamas were gonna get; what kind of mustard he ordered on his jaunt to a burger joint; where he took Michelle on a date; and, my personal favorite, whether or not he’s “trying to do too much”. The best, most-distilled example of this is NBC’s all-access day at the White House. Read all of Dan Foomkin’s write-up here; here’s a small sample.

And yet what seems to fascinate Williams the most is what everyone is eating. There are, it turns out, apples and M&Ms all over the White House. In fact, the show devotes a whole montage to people pouring, throwing and consuming M&Ms. And the high point of the day, the centerpiece of the hour-long show last night, what Williams calls Obama’s “brief shining moment,” is a hokey, obviously staged burger run to Five Guys. The cameras literally languish over greasy paper bags full of french fries.

Williams tells The Washington Post’s Howard Kurtz the experience exceeded his expectations: “We were pretty stunned at how much we were able to record and how natural events seemed to be,” he tells Kurtz. “To be in the hallway when the president walks by with a handful of M&Ms, popping them in his mouth as he goes to visit his chief of staff — it was unbelievable. I don’t think the expression ‘took up residence’ is hyperbolic.”

Seriously? You call yourself a journalist? Jesus Fucking Christ on a cracker! Of course, it’s not some new-fangled thing for our press celebrities to celebrate the celebrity of the presidency. Look at our last two presidents, and the thing you get is either fawning crushes (see also: Chris Matthews, flight suit) or morally righteous tut-tutting about the mores of our leaders (see also: blow job, impeachment). Think about most of the criticism of Bush that made it into the elite media: it was mostly of the superficial, contentless personality fluff that also dominates the praises they give. It hurts our discourse, and it makes us stupid.

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Head of Coalition to End Judicial Filibusters now promotes filibustering sotomayor. It’s fucking hilarious.

For those with short-term memories, back in 2005 the Senate Republicans threatened to remove the filibuster from Senate procedures because the Democrats (then with 45 seats) were filibustering some of George Bush’s judicial nominees (not supreme court). They also specifically argued that filibustering judicial nominees was a gross distortion of how it was suppose to be used. One of the organizations that sprang up to decry this practice was Manuel Miranda’s CEJF: Coalition to End Judicial Filibusters. In the end, while some Democrats did attempt to filibuster judicial nominees, enough were peeled off to break the filibusters. That Congressional session, there were 68 filibuster motions. In 2006, the Democrats gained a bare majority (51 seats). The 2007-2008 Congressional session saw 139 filibusters; less than 5 months into the 2009-2010 session we’ve seen 26, which means we’re on pace for just under 130 motions.

Anyway, moving away from general GOP hypocrisy back to this specific case. The CEJF has since been renamed to Third Branch, and here is the letter they sent to Republican Senators today:

We call on you…to display leadership, if the nominee merits it, in preparing for the use of the traditional filibuster…so that the debate on the Senate floor is appropriately long and, therefore, suitably catalyzed to the American people.

Yeah… they make the argument that because the Democrats did it at some point, their prior arguments are no longer valid. I of course stand by my previous stances: the GOP is free to filibuster judicial nominees. Go ahead. I think it’s within their rights to do so. But that doesn’t make them any less hypocritical.

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The news is everywhere about the murder of Dr. Tiller on Sunday as he attended church services with his family. Dr. Tiller was pretty well-known, as his Kansas clinic was one of only 2 in the country which provide late-term abortions. Tiller and his clinic has been the target of massive, borderline-illegal picketing, government witch hunts, and a previous assassination attempt in 1993. The murderer was some Operation Rescue member (note to ND conservatives who protested Obama speaking: way to pick your allies) who, besides being an anti-woman fuckface, engaged in paranoid 90s militia crap; he was even arrested on the anniversary of the OK City bombing with bomb-making materials in his car and detailed instructions on how to make bombs (specifically to target federal interests) at his home.

I’ve written before (I’ll add links later, I want to free-think this entry) about how most people who consider themselves “pro-life” are really only soft opponents to abortion and agree with pro-choicers’ policy stances 95% of the time. Most people, if asked without any context about late-term abortions, would say they oppose them, unless they were medically necessary (or there was some other contingency, like if the woman was a rape victim). Of course, most people aren’t informed that only about 1% of all abortions occur past viability (after the 2nd trimester), and that most of these occur due to either a medical reason or because the woman had difficulty getting an appointment during the first 2 trimesters (the latter, of course, is largely a result of our “pro-life” movement creating arbitrary red tape to make it difficult and shutting down abortion clinics through threats). The later a pregnancy is, the more likely the abortion was medically indicated. In other words, not only are the vast majority of abortions in the time window that is relatively* uncontroversial, the majority of late-term abortions could be prevented without the pro-life movement’s actions or are for an acceptable contingency.

Of course, some “pro-lifers” do object to abortions in any and all cases, even if medically indicated. Sadly, these people, who compose about 15-25% of the population, have co-opted the population’s general unease with the idea of late-term abortions and turned it into a movement opposed to all abortions anytime, contraception, family planning, and other methods which could actually reduce the abortion rate. “Pro-life”? Maybe the majority of people who consider themselves such, but this 20%? Hell no. They’ve co-opted the term as much as they (and the related anti-gay movement) have co-opted the term “Christian”. Fuck them.

That said, I hope they continue to speak loudly, calling people who provide medically necessary, life-saving abortions “Child Killers”, and then acting shocked, Shocked!, when those people are gunned down in cold-blood… but reiterating that he was a “murderer” and that the only sad thing is that he “didn’t get right with Jesus Christ before he died” [ed: he was gunned down in a church you self-righteous fuck!!!]. The more these assholes make their true intentions known, and the more informed the population gets about rates and reasons for abortions, the sooner the adults can ignore them and work out our differences towards our common goal of reducing unwanted pregnancies and increasing pre-natal care to reduce the number of abortions. The pro-choice movement wants this conversation; abortions are an unpleasant operation that can make you a social pariah; of course no one WANTS to get one. It’s up to the majority of self-described pro-lifers to reject their leadership and the crazies. Conversely, prominent pro-choicers and our 4th Estate needs to stop allowing the crazies to hijack our attempts at talking to each other. We need to say “No, you have nothing constructive to say and your rhetoric brings nothing but death. The grown-ups are talking now.” Until we do, the instigators of anti-choice terrorism will continue to get media attention and will continue to instigate murders.

May Dr. Tiller’s friends and family find strength and comfort in each other.

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When I first read this, I thought it was some an onion quote. There’s no way anyone could be that stupid. And yet, Montana’s senior senator, Max Baucus (D), uttered the following: “Housing potential terrorists in Montana is not good for our state. These people stop at nothing. Their primary goal in life, and death, is to destroy America.”

Below is some handy information should you encounter the zombie hordes

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Fuck you.

Love,
Everyone Else

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Hey, if everyone else gets to do a 100 day recap, I do too! So let’s take a look at some things.

The Good

Gitmo is being closed. We have a timetable for Iraq withdraw. We repealed the Global Gag rule. The bush tax cuts for the highest tax bracket will be allowed to expire. We got the torture memos released. A couple of states got gay marriage legalized (not Obama-related, but it’s still good news!). We got a stimulus bill passed that was ok. It wasn’t great, but it was at least a step in the right direction. The House passed a bill adding sexual orientation and gender identity to hate crime laws and giving the federal law enforcement greater leeway in assisting local law enforcement. We’ve gotten reversals on a number of policies in various agencies, notably the EPA. There’s also the increase in education (and college aid!). The response to the Swine Flu has been professional. The weasily Senator Spector defected to the Democratic party (and I’ll have more on that later on, believe me). Progress is being made on climate change and universal health care legislation. And he’ll have a chance to make a Supreme Court appointment in the next month.

The Bad

The lack of an independent investigation of torture. The walkback on repealing DADT and DOMA immediately. Holding on to some of Bush’s State Secret privileges.

The Ugly

Geithner and Summers. The strings-free bank bailouts while the automakers are held to much higher standards. The failure to learn from past mistakes and the lack of a push to increase oversight and regulation of our Masters of the Universe.

The Hilarious

The right-wing collective freak-outs over: Roberts botching the Oath and therefore Obama is not legally president; helping out the auto industry (but no similar freak-out over the bank bailouts); the continued birth certificate “controversy”; our turn to socialism communism fascism as evidenced by a 3% increase in the top marginal tax rate and increased education funding; Obama not punching the leaders of unfriendly nations in the face and instead shaking hands with them like a grown-up; stating that we are a secular state and not a theocracy; the release of the Torture Memos; the possibility that the Swine Flu was caused by Obama; and all of the above (and more: enter your own personal favorites below and I’ll add them in!) being just cause to secede from the United States.

Pleasant Surprises

SecDef Gates has done a fine job, despite my concern he would be an unproductive thorn in the side of the Administration. Many kudos to him.

Unpleasant disappointments

Geithner and Summers, obviously. You’d think they’d have learned something in the past, you know, 8 years, but apparently not. I hope they get fired ASAP.

Conclusion

All-in-all it’s been a respectable start, from a policy perspective, and an excellent start from a political perspective: the GOP is just an absolute mess right now, despite constant news stories about how New Event is Excellent News!! For Republicans!! and they’ll be turning the corner any minute now.

I’m still waiting for those mandatory interracial gay abortions over a burning American flag while imams look on in approval. Some Commie Fascist Muslim president this guy is!

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I just wanted to single out this comment from Sadly, No!: “I am amazed at the sheer cognitive dissonance involved in simultaneously believing that it’s treasonous to peacefully oppose an unjustified war but that it’s patriotic to lead an armed insurrection against the government because they want to pay you unemployment benefits.” It really is baffling to me. Could someone explain it in a way that doesn’t make these conservatives look like huge hypocrites?

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Someone should inform the North Dakota legislature that “Every Sperm Is Sacred” was written as a parody, not a guide.

The bill declares that “any organism with the genome of homo sapiens” is a person protected by rights granted by the North Dakota Constitution and state laws.

Jesus Fuck. By ND’s standards, every man on the planet is responsible for genocide on a regular basis [not because all men masturbate, per se, but even if you don't you'll still, ah, "expel" a large number regularly]. An unfertilized egg? Murder. You taking chemotherapy for your cancer? Monster! Have hair? You’re wearing dead people!!!

Seriously, this is insanity. Only scientific-illiterates and spiteful jackasses would support this. It’s blatantly unenforceable (not to mention unconstitutional), but as Amanda Marcotte points out, it’s another way of telling women that they aren’t worth as much as a sperm cell. The bill passed 51-41 (I’d love to see the partisan breakdown on that); someone should file criminal complaints against the 51 yea votes for being murderers.

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Well, today is his 7th day on the job. Obviously, it’d be too early to declare something a success or failure based on just a few days worth of actions, but we can still evaluate the actions in and of themselves. Here’s a sampling!

Well, we got “enhanced interrogation” halted. We got a hold placed on any regulation changes made by the previous administration during their lame-duck period. He’s closing Gitmo. He’s ordered the Pentagon to begin planning a 16-month withdraw from Iraq. He repealed the Global Gag Rule. He authorized several states the ability to regulate fuel efficiency more stringently than the federal government. He signed executive orders that mandated tough lobbyist regulations and relaxed the ability of the Executive Branch to declare privilege.

Not a bad week at all. Congress is fighting over the stimulus bill, and Obama is throwing his weight around (on the GOP complaining about their ideas not being accepted much, Obama told them: “I won”). Gotta give our new supreme overlord high marks for his first 7 days on the job, but when does he declare Sharia Law, compel mandatory gay abortions, and force white people into reeducation camps?

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Well, here we are. The beginning of a brand new era. The end of Bush’s presidency. The beginning of Obama’s. I’m watching the Obama daughters walk out now. It’s truly something. The commentary is unbearably vapid. So I’m going to share my thoughts.

Back in 04, I had a mini-bumper sticker taped to my backpack that said “Don’t Blame Me, I Voted For Kerry”. We live in a democracy, and as such I think we are responsible, in a way, for the actions of who we vote for. So, in the interest of consistency, I will hold myself responsible for Obama’s actions as president. I voted for him; some of the fault will lie with me. More importantly, though, most of the fault will lie with him, and if I fail to hold him accountable, if I fail to push him to do the right thing, then I am even more to blame. There is more to citizenship than voting, and it was this that always infuriated me about the conservative Bush supporters: nothing was ever his fault, nor were they to blame for anything. I guarantee than anything that happens after noon today will be Obama’s fault; and maybe it will be. If he screws up, misses warnings, ignores his Briefings, signs bad bills, etc etc, than yes it will be his fault, and I will not let that pass without comment.

Anyway, Bush and Cheney now walking out to boos from the crowd (I’m pretty sure he’s been booed at every inauguration he’s been at). More boos. God I won’t miss that smirking bastard. Nor Darth Cheney. Here comes Biden. Reid and Pelosi are coming out next I think, with Obama behind them. With Reid and Pelosi is Hoyer and some other dude that I missed because I wasn’t paying attention.

President-Elect walking out now. Damn, this is one hell of a day. The crowd is embarrassing themselves a bit. Ah, let them enjoy this moment, it’s historic. Ah, Feinstein is going to give a brief introduction. Hopefully very brief. I’m not a huge fan of hers. Warren’s giving his talking-to-the-sky-fairy thing, and I’ve turned the TV off. I’ll wait 2 minutes. While I’m thinking of it, here’s a brief reminder that I called this more than 4 years ago. Where’s my cushy cable news pundit job??

Is the bigot off yet? Yes, and now there’s singing by I think Aretha Franklin. JP Stevens is doing the Oath of Office to Biden right now. Biden is the Vice President. There’s some sort of instrumental being played by Yoyo Ma and others (I missed who, sorry) which was written by (who else) John Williams. Fitting. Instrumental is done. Now John Roberts is going to give the Oath to Obama. Lol they’re screwing up the oath xD good job President Obama

Well, he is the President now. Let’s see what his first speech is. Speech! Speech!!

Damn, even I just got teary-eyed at Feinstein’s introduction to the 44th President. Chanting his name, Obama thanks them. Crowd quiets down.

“My fellow citizens” is how he opens. I like that. He’s reminding us that he’s a citizen just like we are.

He thanks Bush. Talks about how some prez’s come in on “the rising tide of prosperity” and “the still waters of peace”, but notes now is not one of those times. He’s very good at this speaking thing. Says that we must not allow the challenges to cause us to lower our goals for the next generation. “Greatness is never a given”. I like that. Talks about those obscure people who worked and fought to get us on the path of freedom and greatness, often under cruel conditions and oppressions. A reference to both wage-slaves and, ya know, actual slaves. It’s quite good.

Talks about what we need to do. Says we CAN do it, we will do it. “We refuse to make the false choice between our safety and our ideals”. Yes, “will not give them up for expediency’s sake”. Message to the world: “America is a friend to every man woman and child who seeks peace.” “Our power comes from its prudent use.” “Our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness.” “To leaders who wish to sow violence and blame your nation’s ills on the West, know that your people will judge you by what you can build, not what you can destroy”. “We will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist”. I’m just pulling random quotes. He’s damn good. “We have duties to ourselves, our country and the world.” “That is the price and opportunity of citizenship”. And he has finished speaking. He waves at the crowd, which chants enthusiastically. Ex-President Bush looks aggravated, but the two hug. Obama says hi to the kids and Michelle, shakes hand with Biden and others of Obama’s entourage. A poet is going to speak, Elizabeth Alexander.

That was dull. Anyway, moving on to something more interesting: a civil rights leader whose name I missed, again. I should pay more attention. National anthem is being sung now. Sorry for the end of reactions, but I was just enjoying the moment. Can’t always be blogging! And it’s done. Good night kids, I plan to be around more, but no promises.

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Alaska gets called for McCain (shock!), still waiting on Indiana, Mizzou, Montana, and NC, as well as the Senate races from Alaska, Georgia, Minnesota, and Oregon. Weeeeee…

[2:35]: CNN is being dumb, but Indiana and North Carolina are gonna be won by Obama. Damn. Great showing. I’m very certain that Obama will lose Mizzou by less than a thousand votes, and McCain will likely win Montana. That’d be 364-174 Obama. Damn, 190 electoral vote victory, as well as a 5.5 million vote victory

No change in Senate races. Current projected House is 246-163, with 26 remaining.

[3:15]: Montana goes for McCain. Boo!

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Well kids, here we are, getting ready for our last election returns of the year (barring runoffs… please let there be runoffs!). The first polls close in 20 minutes, although no state is fully finished until 7. Parts of Indiana and Kentucky close at 6 though, and so we sit here waiting. Hurry up and go vote if you haven’t already!!!

[6:05]: Well the time has come… and gone. No results yes. Ho-hum. Will update whenever we get some actual damn votes.

[6:15]: 2700 votes just came in from Kentucky. McCain up with 57%, no surprise. McConnell and Lunsford are about 50/50 for the Senate race. Exciting!

[6:30]: I want CNN’s toys so badly. It’s AWESOME.

[6:40]: Results trickling in from IN and KY. Small Obama lead in IN, big McCain lead in KY (let’s just go ahead and call it now), small McConnell lead. More polls closing at 7, including all of GA, SC, VT, and VA, as well as the rest of IN and KY.

[7:01]: And boosh. CNN calls Kentucky for McCain, Vermont for Obama. No projections in Georgia, Indiana, South Carolina, and Virginia. No calls made on the Senate races.

[7:02]: Correction: CNN calls the SC Senate race for Graham and VA for Warner.

[7:10]: Exit polls are fun to read through! Currently, CNN’s exit polls project to an Obama victory (of 4-5 points) in IN and a very very tight loss in Georgia (<2 points). On the Senate side, it looks like a loss for Lunsford of around 8 points and a loss for Martin (D) in Georgia of about 3. Hopefully Martin can outperform the exits; Chambliss (R-inc) is a scumbag.

[7:20]: Right now on CNN, Blitzer is talking to a female correspondent, live from Chicago via hologram. Yes, you read that right. It’s… insane. And awesome. Very Star Wars-esque. Oh, uh, Virginia exit polls have Obama up 9.

[7:40]: Ohio, NC, and WV have closed their polls. Hagan (D) has a narrow lead according to the exits in the NC Senate race over Dole (R-inc). A smaller lead for Obama in NC. Decent lead for Obama in Ohio. Obama down ~10 in West Virginia (I’d be pleasantly surprised with that).

[7:45]: SC exit polls show Obama down by 6ish. Forgot to update that.

[7:50]: Lots of states have their polls close at 8; 15 (and Washington, DC), including my home state. So things will be hectic. I’ll try and update a few states at a time.

[7:57]: SC gets called for McCain. Many calls incoming…

[8:01]: Obama is called winner in Mass, CT, IL, DE, DC, Maine (3/4), and MD. McCain called winner of OK and TN. Let’s look at the others’ exit polls!

[8:08]: Obama is leading in the following exit polls: 20 in NH, 15 in PA, 7/8 in Mizzou, and 1 in FL; McCain leads by 3 in Mississippi and 15 in Bama. Whew. Senate races next!!

[8:12]: Only race worth mentioning is the special election for Miss’ 2nd senate seat, which sorta-incumbent Wicker (R) leads Musgrove (D) by 6-7%. Other than that, it’s 15+ point races (although Miss’ other one was around 10-12). Stay tuned!

[8:18]: MSNBC has, apparently, called PA and NH for Obama. Nothing yet from CNN, they’re being more conservative in their projections. Fine by me.

[8:25]: Just waiting for more votes to trickle in; Arkansas closes its polls at 8:30.

[8:34]: NH gets called for Obama by CNN, Arkansas too early to call (but Obama looks to have lost it by 10ish)

[8:40]: CNN calls PA for Obama. Hell yes!

[8:55]: More states closing soon. Weeee. Will update as fast as I can. Oo, CNN projects that Hagan (D) defeats Dole (R)! This one is personal to me: Dole tried to attack Hagan for having a fundraiser at the house of an atheist. I’m damned glad to see that it backfired!

[8:59]: McCain wins Bama, says CNN.

[9:01]: Obama is called to win: Rhode Island, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and NY; McCain is called to win: Wyoming and North Dakota

[9:08]: Exit polls that show Obama ahead: Colorado by 7 and NM by 12/13, and TIED in SD. McCain is in ahead in the rest, some noteworthy ones: by 3 in TX, and by ONE in Arizona. Holy crap.

[9:12]: Udal (D) in NM and Shaheen (D) in NH win against the Republicans, who were the defending party. Franken (D) is up around 9 in exit polls in Minnesota. Udal (D) in Colorado is up in the exit polls. Georgia goes to McCain says CNN.

[9:20]: Damn, McConnell wins KY Senate, says CNN. Sigh. Come on Martin…

[9:23]: McCain wins West Virginia, says CNN. God I hate the talking heads.

[9:25]: Via my sources, Fox News calls Ohio for Obama. Wow. How long until CNN projects it?

[9:35]: Game over. CNN calls Ohio for Obama.

[9:45]: John King just showed that it’s nigh-impossible for McCain to win. Now it’s all about running up the score. Crush the GOP.

[9:50]: Obama wins New Mexico, McCain wins Louisiana, says CNN. Waiting on IN, VA, NC, and FL, which are all close. Blitzer’s beard is trying to talk up how close it is (in terms of popular vote), if we ignore that California isn’t in…

[10:01]: More states close their polls: Iowa, Montana, Nevada, and Utah. Bill Bennett looks very unhappy (good!), and… here come the predictions: Obama wins Iowa, McCain wins Utah. Nevada and Montana are too early/close to call. To the exit polls!

[10:04]: Kansas is called for McCain. And I can’t access the exit polls for Montana or Nevada. Great, thanks CNN.

[10:09]: I’m going to give a personal opinion here: Obama wins VA, but loses NC and IN narrowly. I have nothing to base this on besides what I’m seeing happen to the vote totals. Arkansas gets called for McCain.

[10:16]: Watching Comedy Central, refreshing CNN.com. Dad’s on the phone.

[10:19]: Nevada exit poll has Obama up 9, Montana looks tied.

[10:25]: Texas gets called for McCain… uh… something else did too. I missed it. Whatever. The close ones are still un-called.

[10:50]: So…. how’s it going? Yeah… bored here. Rockin’ out to some bitchin’ music though I’m waiting for Cali to come in and see the results for Prop 8. I want that thing to burn.

[10:58]: Virginia gets called for Obama. West Coast closing their polls soon.

[11:01]: President-Elect Barack Obama, ladies and gentleman. California gets called for Obama, along with Washington, Oregon, and Hawaii. Idaho goes to Mccain.

[11:03]: Merkley looks like he’s going to win Oregon, but no call yet, still too early/close.

[11:15]: Come on Prop 8, fail!!!!

[11:20]: Obama called to win Colorado. Yeah it’s academic at this point, but I’m keeping track of everything.

[11:24]: Louisiana senate race gets called for the incumbent Dem. Dems go their second straight election without losing a Senate seat. Brutal.

[11:26]: South Dakota, Nebraska, Arizona, and Kansas get called for McCain, while Florida goes to Obama.

[11:40]: Nevada goes to Obama, just waiting on Montana, Missouri, Indiana, and North Carolina.

[11:55]: Obama getting ready to speak. By the way, McCain’s concession speech was very gracious.

[12:25]: Current EV Total is 338-156 with the four mentioned above outstanding. The Senate stands at 56 Dems, 40 Repubs, with the Oregon, Minnesota, Georgia, and Alaska senate races outstanding. The House is currently 230 Dems, 143 Repubs, and 62 outstanding. I’ll update these numbers as the votes come in, in a new post.

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The election is 6 days away, but right now I’m here to go crazy over the Phillies winning their first World Series in 28 years and the first championship for the city of Philadelphia in 25. On my birthday. I’m so ecstatic right now.

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