Month: September 2014

The Democratic Women In Senate Races

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The role of women in the Democratic Party Senate races is becoming much more significant, and at this time, there is a good chance that many will be successful, including the incumbent women and the challenger women.

In the first category, we have Senator Mary Landrieu of Louisiana, Senator Kay Hagan of North Carolina, and Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire.

In the second category, we have Senate candidates Natalie Tennant in West Virginia, Alison Lundergan Grimes in Kentucky, Michelle Nunn of Georgia, and Amanda Curtis of Montana.

At this point, two months before the election, the odds are good for Landrieu, Hagan, Shaheen, Grimes and Nunn, with Tennant and Curtis more likely to fail to be elected to replace retiring Jay Rockefeller and Max Baucus.

With 16 women Democratic Senators, it is likely that we will see  a few more in 2015!

The Intriguing Greg Orman, Independent Candidate For US Senate In Kansas

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The most intriguing Senate race in 2014 suddenly becomes that of Kansas, a “red state”, which has not elected a Democrat since the Great Depression!

The Democratic nominee has dropped out, leaving Senator Pat Roberts with only an independent candidate, Greg Orman, a very appealing candidate, who has voted both Democratic and Republican in the past, including for Barack Obama in 2008 and Mitt Romney in 2012, and wants to make Washington DC work.

Orman is frustrated with inability of Congress to work, and he pledges that he will join the Senate caucus of the party that he believes is more attuned to change after the midterm elections, and that makes it likely he would become the third Independent Senator, along with Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Angus King of Maine.

Orman has a real chance to win the seat now, and this would almost certainly guarantee that the Senate would remain Democratic, as Roberts’  seat seemed safe before now.

So this will be the most watched race of all, more than Mitch McConnell in Kentucky!

The Odyssey Of Charlie Crist

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Former Republican Governor Charlie Crist of Florida is attempting a comeback to the Governorship, this time as a Democrat, after having left the GOP in 2010, running as an Independent for the US Senate, which he also ran for as a Republican in 1998.

This is the most important race for the Governorship, as Florida is the largest state to have a truly competitive race for Governor or Senator, as California and New York are “Blue”, and Texas is “Red”.

This is also a rare case of a Governor switching parties and winning on the other party line, only five times before in American history, and also a rare race of a former Governor against the sitting Governor who replaced  him, with Rick Scott being his opponent.

Crist is seen by many as a chameleon, a person who is untrustworthy and slick and good at manipulation, but also he is extremely charismatic, a great orator, very handsome with his white hair, and someone hard not to like on a personal level, while Scott is none of these attributes, and is seen by many as totally crooked, with his Medicare scams that he paid millions of dollars in fines, but avoided prison time, which many think he should have served!

It is ironic that Charlie Crist was on the short list of Senator John McCain for Vice President in 2008, and now, if he wins the Governorship of the fourth largest state, and a crucial swing state for 2016, it is conceivable that he could be the Vice Presidential running mate of Hillary Clinton or Joe Biden, or really, almost any Democratic Presidential nominee.

And of course, were something to go wrong, he could be President of the United States by succession, or even being the nominee in four to eight years after 2016 for the Presidency, after having served as Vice President of the United States!

What an interesting odyssey for Charlie Crist, and the future is there for much more, if he is able to come back as Florida Governor!

Virginia: The Disgrace Of Bob McDonnell And Eric Cantor!

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Virginia, the home of Patrick Henry and Thomas Jefferson as Governors, has now seen its recent Governor, Bob McDonnell, convicted on multiple charges of abusing the office and accepting bribes from a wealthy businessman.

At the same time, former House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, who lost his party’s nomination in a true shock to many, now is going to Wall Street to use his influence, and make millions of dollars off of his contacts with other legislative members and powerful lobbyists.

Both of these developments are disgraceful, and show that the Republican Party in Virginia is totally corrupt, an embarrassment to a state which has had remarkably little corruption historically, as compared to most other states.

Patrick Henry and Thomas Jefferson would turn over in their graves if they knew how politics has deteriorated from the idealistic times of the Founding Fathers!

60 Days To Midterm Elections Of 2014, And Republicans On The Run!

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Two months from now, the Midterm Elections of 2014 will occur, and at this point, the Republican Party is, rightfully, on the run!

They have demonstrated that they are only interested in obstruction, and to undermine any possibility of progress on crucial domestic issues, and unwilling to support Barack Obama on the massive challenges this nation faces in foreign policy!

The odds of a Republican Senate seem more unlikely, and  now Kansas offers the possibility of an Independent winning, and allying with the Democrats, bringing about the first non Republican Senator from that state since the Great Depression.

It also looks more likely that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell will be forcibly retired, and we could end up with just about the same number of Democrats and Independents in the Senate, presently 55.

Republican Governors are also running scared, as with Scott Walker in Wisconsin, Rick Snyder in Michigan, Paul LePage in Maine, Tom Corbett in Pennsylvania.  Rick Scott in Florida,  and Nathan Deal in Georgia, therefore insuring a gain in Democratic Governors nationwide.

Disillusionment with the Republicans is obvious, and they are running scared, and they offer no real alternative, except negativism, and the Tea Party Movement has harmed their brand, an embarrassment to their history!

Hysteria Setting In About ISIL (ISIS), But Calmness And Careful Judgment Is Needed!

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The beheading of the second American journalist by the radical extremist movement ISIL (ISIS) in Iraq and Syria gives all of us a stab in the heart, and it is clear that America faces an overwhelming challenge to deal with the worst terrorist group the world has seen, with the recognition that they are a danger to national security.

With about 100 Americans, and 500 British and 500 French citizens having joined this despicable group, it presents the reality that the Western world is under direct threat of serious terrorist attacks, including suicide bombings, with the aim to promote mass murder.

So Barack Obama needs to form a coalition with other Western nations, Israel, and moderate Islamic and Arab countries against the common foe, and the commitment to a long, expensive conflict is unavoidable, no matter how much we might wish otherwise.

But this is also the time to stop the hysteria that has set in, and to use calmness and careful judgment as to strategy and tactics against our common enemy.

It was hysteria and lack of calmness and careful judgment that led to the failed Iraq War, and Barack Obama does not wish to repeat the mistakes of the past, which helped lead to this crisis,

For Neocons to attack Obama, and refuse to take responsibility for their blunders which led to this mess, is totally reprehensible and despicable!

We should not go down the road of disaster that caused the previous administration to manipulate the truth, and make commitments that failed to accomplish their goal, and added to the national debt and loss of life.

Yes, we will have to add to the national debt, and we will see more military casualties, but it is worth it to enter this crisis with a clear head and a different mentality, rather than repeating history!

Republican Front Runner In Iowa Is Mitt Romney? Is This The Best The Party Offers?

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A poll in Iowa, which will hold the first votes of the 2016 Presidential campaign when it has its caucus in early January 2016 shows former Massachusetts Governor and 2012 Republican Presidential loser Mitt Romney far in the lead, an absolutely amazing development!

With all of the multitude of names bandied about, the true chameleon, the “flip flopper” par excellence, the man who will say anything to get your vote, and then change his story tomorrow, is seen as a viable candidate, when it is absolutely clear that he has ZERO chance of winning the Presidency, and had the least government experience of any nominee of either major political party since Wendell Willkie was the GOP nominee in 1940!

Romney seems to be warming up to running again, although he had said he was not interested, but his ego has been stroked, and clearly, he finds the attention hard to resist.

There are those who would say that, after all, Bob Dole ran three times for the nomination, and Ronald Reagan ran three times, but let it be made clear, no matter what their faults and shortcomings, Mitt Romney is not the experience of Bob Dole, or the charisma and two term gubernatorial experience of Ronald Reagan.

The reality is that Mitt Romney has no principles, except his own aggrandizement, first in financial manipulation on Wall Street, and then his belief that he can lie, deceive, manipulate, with the best, and somehow, the American people are suckers enough to believe anything he says.

Mitt Romney would be nearing 70 if he ran in 2016, and while Joe Biden will be five years older, and Hillary Clinton will be seven months younger but nearly 70 as with Romney, the reality is that Mitt Romney is no Hillary Clinton or Joe Biden in background and experience!

So do not put betting money on Mitt Romney, either to be the GOP nominee, or the 45th President of the United States! It is NOT going to happen!

Why Joe Biden Will Run For President!

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Vice President Joe Biden is often ridiculed by critics for his verbal gaffes, but Joe Biden is the real article!

Joe Biden has a wealth of experience, 44 years in government by 2016, and NO ONE matches that!

Joe Biden gets along well with Congress, and is, in many ways, similar to Lyndon B. Johnson in ability to get things done, including for Barack Obama. At the same time, he is NOT the gross individual that LBJ often demonstrated, much more classy on a personal level.

Joe Biden is charming, charismatic, and well liked personally, all of which LBJ was not! He knows how to communicate to the American people, and to get people to listen and notice!

Joe Biden is dynamic as a speaker, still looks handsome in his early 70s, and is so correct in many of his judgments about foreign policy, and except for Hillary Clinton and Jon Huntsman, no one else has the credentials in world affairs.

Joe Biden is sincere, genuine, and real, and how many politicians are that?

Joe Biden is, clearly, running for President, and his rousing speech on Labor Day shows that, as he is the man of labor, the man of the common man, the average guy who goes to work every day and just wants a leader who gives a damn about him and his aspirations!

Joe Biden has been raising money quietly, and visiting states and garnering support from people who know he is the man who has always been there for them.

His odds, if Hillary Clinton decides, ultimately, to run are long, but Joe Biden has never been afraid of a challenge, as when he had an aneurysm in 1987, that might have killed a less courageous man.

And if Hillary surprises us and does not run, Joe Biden will be the front runner for the Democratic Presidential nomination in 2016, and while others might challenge him, do not bet on him losing, if that scenario occurs.

Joe Biden has been underrated for years, but he is someone that you ignore at your own peril, as he is always in the forefront on domestic and foreign policy issues!

And one scenario that would unify the Democrats, even those who have doubts about Hillary Clinton, due to her connections to Wall Street, and her “hawkish” views on foreign policy, is to run Joe Biden for an unprecedented third term as Vice President!

Now that would be some dynamite team, Hillary and Joe together, and it would be unbeatable against any Republican opponent in 2016, even though that opponent, almost certainly, would be quite a bit younger than Hillary and Joe! But the experience of Hillary and Joe are unmatchable!

Labor Day: Too Many Americans Do Not Realize How Much Labor Unions Have Done!

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We are living in a time of labor union decline, and attacks on organized labor itself, beginning with the Presidency of Ronald Reagan!

Too many people have no idea or regard for the importance of labor unions in American history, and the struggle for decent working conditions in our nation!

Without the labor struggles of the past, we would not have:

Minimum Wage and Maximum Hours
Eight Hour Work Day
Five Day Work Week
End of Child Labor
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration
Sick Leave
Vacation Pay
Paid Holidays
Right of Labor to Organize and Bargain Collectively
Progress toward Equal Pay for Women
Retirement Pensions and Health Care Coverage

There has been backtracking and attacks on organized labor by Republicans on the national and state level, and particularly in the South, labor continues to be under strong attack, as it has always been.

But to imagine an America where workers have no rights is, sadly, much of what American workers see today, including a new revelation—wage theft becoming a problem for millions of workers being exploited by their employers.

So those who fight for labor rights, led by Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, need the support of all of us, even if we are not members of organized labor unions. Too much is at stake to remain silent!

75th Anniversary Of Second World War Beginning: Nazi Germany Invades Poland!

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75 years ago, the Second World War began, with Nazi Germany’s invasion of Poland, becoming the most destructive war in human history!

It led to the Cold War between the Soviet Union and the Western world.

It led to the decline and fall of the British and French Empires.

It led to America becoming the most powerful nation in the world.

It led to the creation of nuclear weapons that would threaten the entire globe.

It led to the Holocaust, which killed nearly 13 million people, including almost 6 million Jews.

It is the most transforming event of the 20th century, but an outgrowth of the First World War.

Study of the Second World War abounds, and it is a constantly fascinating, as well as highly disturbing, subject, and always will be!