WILL THIS TUESDAY BE A TURNING POINT IN AMERICAN POLITICAL HISTORY ?

I'm in California and, for once, I feel my state can have a real impact on the direction on national politics. Bush's venal brand of corporate fascism is reeling from all the corruption scandals, all the lying, all the greed, all the needless deaths and destruction from Iraq to St. Bernard's Parish, all the cronyism... Yesterday his poll ratings hit new lows and his personal integrity has finally been recognized by American voters for what it's worth: nothing at all. This Tuesday there are elections in 4 states that could have a great impact in Washington.

In California, Schwarzenegger and his Republican-corporate backers, with the Bush/DeLay machine drooling quietly in the background, have proposed a series of innocent-sounding propositions that would make California more like Texas and less progressive and positive. A few days ago I tried to explain why all 6 Schwarzenegger propositions should be defeated. This expensive, unpopular Special Election was designed specifically to encourage as little participation from voters as possible. The corporate campaign for these propositions has been stealthy and costly with the idea of energizing the right-wing base without stirring up working men and woman. All recent polls show Schwarzenegger's popularity as bad or worse than Bush's and show his propositions to be unpopular as well. But will people turn out on Tuesday to send Washington a message that we are sick and tired of GOP schemes and real class warfare against ordinary Americans?

The situation in Ohio also involves voters being asked to approve important changes. This time though, it is for changes that would make the state better. Ohio could well be the most corrupt one-party state in America right now. Tens of millions of dollars have been looted by the Republican establishment and poured into their own pockets and into their campaign coffers, with Secretary of State Ken Blackwell even manipulating the 2004 election enough to fraudulently deliver Ohio's electoral votes-- and thereby the national election-- to Bush/Cheney. It is crucial for the future of Ohio and the future of America that Issues 2, 3, 4 & 5 all pass on Tuesday. The Cliff's Notes version of the four Issues:

• Issue 2: Makes it easier to vote by allowing all Ohioans to vote by mail
• Issue 3: Helps stop the influence of big money in elections by greatly reducing campaign contributions.
• Issue 4: Stops the politicians from drawing their own legislative districts and puts an Independent Commission in charge of this process.
• Issue 5: Places a bi-partisan Board of Supervisors in charge of Ohio's elections, instead of a partisan official who backs candidates and takes sides in elections.

The crusading TOLEDO BLADE which first uncovered the CoinGate scandal and fought against the cover-up by Governor Bob Taft (whose 15% approval rating is even lower than Cheney's 19%), urged YES votes on Issues 3, 4 and 5 this week. Meanwhile the GOP is pouring everything they've got into stopping the reform measures, mobilizing every bigot and snake-handler they can dig up. This weekend two very effective tv spots are running for Reform Ohio Now, better-known as RON.

Virginia and New Jersey have gubernatorial races and in both cases polling shows that the Democrats, Jon Corzine in New Jersey and Tim Kaine in Virginia are ahead and ahead with momentum (although a heavy barrage of corporately-financed, viciously negative advertising this weekend, especially in NJ, is having an impact).

If Democrats do well in all four elections Tuesday, congressional Democrats will be emboldened and Republicans will run (for their lives) away from Bush and his odious agenda. It could endanger the conformation of the most extremist right-wing judge ever nominated to the Supreme Court and could even encourage Bush to get rid of the hated and treasonous Karl Rove and try for more conciliatory policies harkening back to his united-not-a-divider undelivered promises of 2000.