H/T Chris Bowers, Daily Kos
I’ve yet to find a clear explanation of exactly how the recall elections will work, but I take it the Republican move is meant to delay the recalls by another month by forcing Democrats to hold a primary election, at a cost to the state of tens of thousands of dollars.
The fake candidate scheme is explained in newspapers all over Wisconsin, and no doubt in radio and television news as well. Seems to me it just makes the Republicans look more pathetic. If I had a lot of money, I would be buying full page ads in all Wisconsin newspapers saying, “Wisconsin Voters: Republicans Must Think You Are Stupid. Let’s Show ‘Em You’re Not.”
The state Government Accountability Board has now certified the recall petitions against three Democratic senators as well. Thousands of signatures were tossed, but not enough to invalidate the petitions.
Also:
Tent City “Walkerville” Grows in Madison
What Republicans Are Saying About the Recall
This is interesting to me on several fronts.
First, they are hurredly trying to put in their draconian social agenda’s, and bad economic policies, on the chance that they might lose the Legislature.
After the election, they can then do what they’ve been doing for years – running against the Democrats who can’t fix the problems that the Republicans created fast enough. This has been a successful formula for decades.
And second, and perhaps more importantly, what we’re seeing regarding these WI elections may well be the Republican blue-print for decades to come.
Right now, they trying to change voting requirements, and limit the time to vote, to impact workers, seniors and the poor, regardless of race. This is being done with the present AND future in mind.
In the present, it may help limit the number of workers who can show up during the new elections, and also hopefully affect the number of seniors who may now change their vote because of the Repbulican’s “bold” plans to change Medicare to MediKILL, and Social Security to Social INsecurity, essentially ending both programs as we know them.
Also, this running Republicans as Democrats may be the other wave of the future. And it’s actually brilliant. As their traditional Republican voter corp of seniors either dies off, or changes parties because of attitudes towards safety net programs, they’ll need to confuse the issue.
As the old tricksters die off, the younger scum of Consevative Republican political operatives, who suckled on the teats of Atwater and Rove, will apply their dirty tricks, and a few of their own – this being one of them.
If you run a “former” Republican to the LEFT of the Democrats, they will hopefully suck off some of that vote. If asked why someone who has always been a Republican is now running to the left, that person can say that they had an epiphany, and is now a Liberal. If they lose, and the Republican wins – no harm, no foul. Wingnut Welfare will take care of them. But if that person by any chance DOES win, then they can do what Walker and Kasich and other Republicans who recently won did – they can go and do whatever they want, supporting radical Conservative change, until either recalled, or they lose the next election.
God forbid the Republican Party try to learn new tricks, and change attitudes and policies, with new ideas.
No, they’ll double down on the BS they support now, until they either lose the demographic battle, or, far worse, can win elections and maintain power long enough to turn this country into some Christian Fascist state, were there will be NO vote, unless you are a white, Christian, Conservative, who owns land.
Without lies, obfuscation, and dirty tricks, there would be no Republican Party as we now know it.
What a sad end to what was once known as “The GRAND Old Party.”
The only thing ‘grand’ left, is their desire for power for their party.
Party over Country!
PARTY UBER ALLES!!!
Oh happy day!
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/09/opinion/09coates.html?_r=1&hp
“Ta-Nehisi Coates, a senior editor at The Atlantic, is a guest columnist.
Gail Collins is on book leave.”
Let’s hope Collins’ book is a hyper best seller and she tours for a while.
I like her, but Coates is the direction the NY Times needs to go in on its Op-ed page after Herbert and Rich left.
Even local hate/talk radio ‘host’ (who subs for Rush so you know he’s not at all loving of libs) Mark Belling thinks this is a terrible and cynical idea. I’m with you, Maha, it just makes them look that much more pathetic. One thing I have noticed since paying more attention to state politics, in a lot of ways it’s amateur hour. We get used to paying attention to national people who have been glossed up and gelled (except the thrilla from wasilla) and the state parties just aren’t that slick. Wisconsin Republicans have done amazingly stupid things, to their own detriment, since Scooter took over. Just another example.