Election Day 2012

We arrived at the polling place at 8:56 AM. The parking lot was about half full and there was a line inside, but I was still finished in the booth by 9:12 AM and back home at 9:20. Voters in other locations around the country won't have it so good, unfortunately. The Texas voter ID requirement is on hold, so the line moved quickly at Precinct 63.

Over the years, I've established a routine of defaults that enable me to get through the ballot quickly. The hierarchy looks like this:

(A) Democratic candidate
(B) Green Party candidate
(C) Libertarian candidate
(D) Unopposed Republican incumbent
(E) No choice

The only Republicans I voted for were incumbents running unopposed. If there was no Democrat running for an office, I voted for the Green Party candidate, or the Libertarian if there was no Dem or Green. I spread my support around, so I can claim to be an independent if anyone ever asks me. This year, I think I voted Green or Libertarian as often as I voted Democratic.

Dreary Day

The rain has kept me inside most of the day, so I've been reading the political news online and searching for something good. There's plenty of good news if you're a Republican, a lot less if you're not.

Multiple Mitt doesn't seem to be fading in the polls; he's pulling ahead instead. The prevailing viewpoint is that the town hall debate format tonight won't allow Obama any opportunities to level Willard, and even if Obama wins tonight, Romney won't lose ground unless he makes a major gaffe. So claim the experts.

I guess I'll watch one more debate, but if there's no significant positive movement for Obama as a result, I'll write this fucking election off as a lost cause and move on to other things.

Post Pattern

Here's the pattern I see emerging:

• Something happens. 
• Willard responds by saying stupid or irresponsible or untrue things. 
• Things backfire when his stupid, irresponsible lies spread like wildfire and people start wondering "What is his fucking problem?" 
• Willard hastily tries to change the subject.

How many times has this happened in the last six months? The last month? The last week?

Update 13 September

During the 2008 presidential campaign, there was a long stretch where nearly every TV news report started like this: "More good news today for John McCain..."

Well, there's more good news today for Willard Romney. The latest NBC/Wall Street Journal poll shows Obama with nice leads in Ohio, Florida, and Virginia. Odds are good that if Obama wins two of those, it's turn out the lights, the party's over for Willard and the Cheese Prince. If he wins all three, it's a romp.

The polls may explain why every Republican seems to be comparing Obama to Jimmy Carter. I spent most of the day online reading reader comments from RWers, and noticed that comparison popping up. Among RWers, the election of 1980 was a holy event; most Republicans over forty consider it the greatest moment in history, and they want desperately to relive it. Their problem is that Willard Romney will never be in Reagan's class in terms of popular appeal.

"One Word. Plastics."

George W. Bush commends Romney on selection of Paul Ryan. Well, George, he won't be any worse than that motherfucker you chose... or more accurately, that motherfucker who chose himself for you.

Consequences

I'm not positive yet, but I'm starting to believe that by the time this GOP primary campaign is finished, the Republican party will have succeeded in turning me completely against organized religion. Santorum may be able to do it by himself. 

Hunting for Huntsman

In a field of candidates that's quickly thinning now that actual voting is underway, there's a single Republican that I think I might be able to tolerate for four years. Huntsman barely earns a mention in most media coverage of the campaign, and I don't actually know much about him. Still, when compared with Newtered, the two Ricks, Pappy, and former contestants Moochele and Pie Daddy, Huntsman seems both rational and intelligent. If he's pandering to the usual GOP constituencies, it's subtly enough to be barely noticeable, unlike Romney.

The sad thing is that in today's Republican Party, a calm, reasonable, sensible politician like Huntsman has absolutely no chance of winning their nomination. Therefore, I was surprised to find an endorsement of his candidacy -- in South Carolina, no less.

Added 8:48 pm, same day: Well, shit. Huntsman is apparently officially out. I guess the decision to end his run was a formality. And once more, the Republican Party heads into a presidential election leaving me with no alternative except to vote for the Democrat.

Blood

All along, my belief has been that Romney would be the GOP candidate most likely to beat Obama in November, assuming he could actually win the nomination. Mitts just seems like the one Republican who could attract substantial support among unaffiliated independent voters in the critical purple states that Obama won last time.

Apparently, Republicans don't see it that way. Newter and the two Ricks are working overtime and spending every dime they can lay hands on to rip Mitts apart. Obama must be loving this stuff. He'll either face off against a bloodied, dirtied Romney whose credentials will have been trashed... or even better, he'll draw Santorum or Gingrich, who are cult heroes to their kool-aid drinking followers but probably have zero appeal to independents. The GOP still believes the vast majority of American voters are straining at the bit for the opportunity to vote for the worst that conservatism has to offer.

Predictions

A few political blogs that I check regularly are publishing predictions on the outcome of the Iowa voting (caucuses) tomorrow. All of them seem to see Pappy Ron, Mittens, and The Other Rick splitting up roughly 75 percent of the votes, with Newter, Moochele, Perrito and Huntsman divvying up the remaining 25 percent. One blog predicts Perrito and Moochele might drop out of the race within a week. Wouldn't that be a blessing ? It would, which means both those assholes will probably cling to faint hopes for weeks to come. We've been naughty and shouldn't be expecting blessings these days.

My personal preference, the guy I might even consider voting for (Huntsman), hasn't got a fucking prayer of breaking into double digits. Still, if we can get this clown parade whittled down to Romney and two unelectable assholes like Pappy and The Other Rick, I have to think Willard will prevail in the end. That's only good news because all the others (excluding Huntsman, who exists only in his own imagination) are so mind-numbingly repulsive.

Six would be better.

Pie Daddy has suspended his campaign (meaning he's probably dead as the nominee). Romney and Huntsman have defects, but I can still imagine either one as president. The fuckwad posse chasing the GOP nomination is now trimmed down to Newter, Perrito, The Other Rick, and Moochele. Who am I forgetting ? Oh yeah... Pappy Ron Paul. That makes five worthless lunatics who have no fucking business thinking of themselves as Commander in Chief. Donald Trump needs to get back in the race so we'll have a half dozen. Six is a nice round number.

Huntsman

The only Republican among the current crop of candidates that I'd vote for is Jon Huntsman. As it turns out, the same qualities that make him acceptable to me make it absolutely impossible for him to win the GOP nomination. Of course, this tells us more about the massive psychological and intellectual defects of Republican voters than about Huntsman's weaknesses.

Newtered

Is it possible that enough damage has been inflicted on Pie Daddy and Perrito to make Newter the next big thing in the race to the White House ? I hope an item I read in Salon is making accurate assumptions about the electability of this lowlife.

Added 10:58 pm: Newter may be soliciting the financial support of the tea party nation, but I think he's kidding himself. Newter has a ton of government experience -- he was fucking House speaker, for crying out loud. The tea party faithful are so anti-government they want to elect the likes of Pie Daddy, who has zero political experience, or Moochele, who occupies a seat in the House of Representatives but has never actually done anything. Perrito went after the tea party vote with everything he had, but was fighting the stigma of having spent virtually his entire adult life at the public trough as an elected official. No, the tea people think that if they can elect enough inexperienced, incompetent conservatives, the government will eventually wither and die like a neglected child.

Tough Breaks, Part 24

Michele Bachmann has been fading like a pair of cheap denim jeans, and now one of the tea party groups is calling for her withdrawal from the race for the nomination. Those fucking ingrates. If you ask me, Michele is one of the people who put the tea party movement on America's radar screen, and now they're screwing her around.

The bottom line is they could've saved their breath. MB has been in a nosedive for weeks, and now even the pie guy is more popular than she is. It's just a matter of time until she's officially gone, not that anyone will notice -- or care.

Just keep running your mouth, Herman.

The godfather of pizza decided to start his political career in the top job instead of, say, running for city councilman first. So we're treated to the spectacle of another Republican with absolutely no qualifications for public office at any level embarrassing himself in public, day after day. Now he's declared his views on abortion and he's so incoherent, he makes Palin look like Shakespeare.

Clusterfuck

Absolutely incredible.

Whose values ?

Political Wire reports that Ron Paul won the Values Voters Summit straw poll, followed by the pizza guy and the other Rick. Those three hauled in about 76 percent of the votes, with Mittenful and Perrito combining to scrape together less than 15 percent. This tells me that so-called values voters just get a kick out of dicking around. Ron Paul, Herman Cain and Rick Santorum are never going to be presidents, and there are good reasons why they won't be. But try explaining that to worthless assholes who think the sole purpose of government should be to impose their personal religious beliefs on the rest of America. Apparently the tea party movement is wasting away, and now the evangelunicals are its dominant voices.

Added 11:12 pm, same day: Okay, maybe Ron Paul marched to his straw poll win using the sort of Texas political tactics that worked for Lyndon B. Johnson way back when.

She's out of it

Palin has apparently announced that she's officially not running for president in 2012. In a perfect world, the media would yawn and scurry away to find the Next Big Thing in the wonderland of Republican politics. This isn't a perfect world, and Palin knows exactly how to keep at least some of the national spotlight on herself regardless of anything else happening at the time. God knows, it's not beyond the realm of possibility that El Perrito will choose her as his running mate, although Sarah has made it clear that her role in the nation's future will involve more important work than serving as president.

Dream on, baby

Bachmann promises gasoline at two dollars per gallon during her presidency. I hate to break the news to this bimbo, but America isn't likely to see cheap gasoline again, and is even less likely to elect Bachmann in 2012. Two dollar gas and Michele's journey to the White House ? Those ships have sailed.

Pizza Time

Herman Cain, former pizza tycoon who decided to begin his political career at the top rather than working his way up from the mail room, thinks impeaching Obama would be a good idea according to Politico.

Herman and I have one thing in common. We are equally close to becoming President of the United States. Herman clearly understands marketing though, and he understands there's a demand in the GOP for the one product he has to sell.

Is the suspense unbearable for you ? Same here.

Talking Points Memo reports that El Perrito will use a speaking engagement in South Carolina to announce his... wait, not actually ANNOUNCE but make clear he's entering the GOP primary race.

If you need proof that America's in the shithouse, the thought of El Perrito as the next president should be sufficient. The goddamned Republicans have a candidate in Huntsman that I could probably tolerate off and on for four years, maybe longer. That motherfucker hasn't got a prayer and may even have dropped out for all I know. Or Mittenful, who should have things sewn up by now considering he's competing with dipshits and assholes, but can't close the deal -- and is on the brink of seeing his political career flame out once and for all. Mittenful would've been formidable as a conservative Democrat, but there's no fucking room in the universe for a moderate Mormon Republican.

I wasn't crazy about Obama in 2008, and in one of the lobes of my brain I nursed hopes he'd lose because the next president was sure to sink in the cesspool GWBush, Cheney and Rove were leaving behind. I was gearing up for four years of President McCain when he brought Palin on board. Shit... fucked by a Republican again.

I expect El Perrito and Bachmann will fight it out for evangelunical and tea party primary votes, while Mittenful runs around on the sidelines making an asshole out of himself to attract attention and stay above water a little longer. Herman the pizza guy, Pawlenty and the other non-entities will slide back into obscurity, wondering why they bothered in the first place. Meanwhile, I'll rationalize another vote for Obama because the alternative will be too goddamned nauseating to think about.