Federal Court Unanimously Strikes Down Republicans Unconstitutional Gerrymander Of Michigan

A federal court Trump hasn't had the opportunity to pervert yet, voted unanimously to strike down the Michigan GOP legislature's grossly unconstitutional gerrymander that handed a 50/50 state over to the Republicans in the state House, state Senate and congressional delegation, even while statewide, the Democrats were kicking GOP butt. The decision will force a redrawing of congressional districts 1, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12; state Senate Districts 8, 11, 12, 14, 18, 27, and 36; and state House Districts 24, 32, 51, 55, 60, 63, 75, 83, 91, 94, and 95. (The Court let 7 contested legislative districts stand as they are-- three in the state Senate and 4 in the state House but will also require Michigan to conduct special state Senate elections for some seats next year, cutting in half the four-year terms those current lawmakers are now serving.)

Unless the Supreme Court-- which Trump has perverted (very much so)-- grants a stay, fairly likely with 2 similar cases pending for North Carolina and Maryland, the new boundaries will have to be approved by the court in time for the 2020 election. The court characterized the boundaries the legislature drew as a partisan gerrymander "of historical proportions."

The ruling stated flatly that the "predominate purpose" of the Republican redistricting plan (2011) "was to subordinate the interests of Democratic voters and entrench Republicans in power" violating the first and 14th Amendment rights of the plaintiffs. In the statewide races last cycle, the Republicans got just 43.7% in the gubernatorial race and just 45.8% in the U.S. Senate race.

The court ordered a super-transparent redistricting process that requires the legislature to present Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer a new map she agrees to sign by August 1. If they fail-- likely-- the court will appoint a special master, the way the court in Pennsylvania did, which was catastrophic for the Republican congressional delegation. The Pennsylvania delegation went from 13 Republicans and 5 Democrats under the illegally gerrymandered map to 9 Democrats and 9 Republicans (if the GOP holds onto PA-12 next week, as expected).

The unanimous decision was made by 3 judges, 2 Clinton appointees and one appointee of George H.W. Bush. During the process, Michigan's new Secretary of State, Jocelyn Benson (D), wasn't nearly as harsh towards the GOP law-breakers as the court was. But yesterday she said that the ruling "confirms that these Michigan state House and Senate and U.S. congressional districts are unconstitutional... As the state’s chief election officer, I’m committed to working with the Legislature, citizens and the court to ensure the new districts comply with our U.S. Constitution."

When the suit began, Michigan had 9 Republicans and 5 Democrats in Congress, despite the fact that the statewide votes are around 50/50. In 2018, though, 2 red seats were flipped and the delegation now stands at 7 Republicans and 7 Democrats. The redrawing could turn the delegation bluer yet. These are the members of Congress directly impacted by the ruling, along with the PVI of each district:

• MI-01- Jack Bergman (R)- R+9
• MI-04- John Moolenaar (R)- R+10
• MI-05- Dan Klildee (D)- D+5
• MI-07- Tim Walberg (R)- R+7
• MI-08- Elissa Slotkin (D)- R+4
• MI-09- Andy Levin (D)- D+4
• MI-10- Paul Mitchell (R)- R+13
• MI-11- Haley Stevens (D)- R+4
• MI-12- Debbie Dingell (D)- D+14

As far as I can tell, a fairer map wouldn't change much. Slotkin and Stevens would probably wind up with less red districts, perhaps with an R+1 lean rather than the current R+4 leans that are usually only flippable in wave cycles. The Republican who could be in serious jeopardy is Tim Walberg in the southeast corner of the state, where his district is likely to end up with more Democratic voters from Washtenaw County in Debbie Dingell's district. It wouldn't put her in jeopardy at all to turn MI-07 into an evenly split district, which is always what courts want to see. Maybe I'm being too conservative in my thinking, but my best guess is that a new map will result in just one change in the delegation. If the DCCC runs a reasonable candidate-- like the sack of Blue Dog garbage they ran in 2018-- they would be able to retire Walberg. That's really it, other than more safety for reelection hopes for Slotkin and Stevens, who are being targeted by the NRCC now, but probably will be just targeted on paper after their districts are made more even.

Walberg beat back wretched Blue Dog Gretchen Driskell, one of the worst candidates the DCCC was pushing last cycle, 158,730 (53.8%) to 136,330 (46.2%). In a slightly fairer district, a non-lesser-of-two-evils Democrat would probably spell the end of Walberg's political career. There are currently 8 counties in the district. The DCCC was eager to field a Blue Dog with relatively little in common with actual Democrats who live in those counties beyond Choice and other social issues. Keep in mind that Democrats in those 8 counties went overwhelmingly for Bernie-- he won all 8 counties-- rather than Hillary in 2016, a real indictment of DCCC interference in local elections. The eight counties are listed here by the size of their voter turnout, but big and small they were all Bernie territory. Democrats chose to back the populist progressive, not the corporatist status quo candidate. That didn't stop-- never stops-- the DCCC from saddling them with an even worse candidate than Hillary, a full-fledged conservative, Republican-lite Blue Dog:

• Monroe- Bernie- 48.1% (to Hillary's 47.2%)
• Jackson- Bernie- 55.0%
• Washtenaw- Bernie- 55.4%
• Eaton- Bernie- 55.6%
• Lenawee- Bernie- 53.9%
• Hillsdale- Bernie- 56.7%
• Branch- Bernie- 53.6%

In the general, Trump won Monroe (58.4%), Jackson (57.2%), Eaton (49.6%), Leenawee (57.6%), Hillsdale (70.9%) and Branch (66.9%). Clinton won only Washtenaw County, where, remember, Bernie has edged her in the primary. It's why people so often say Bernie would have won-- and will in 2020, unless the Democrats manage to run another Clinton-type candidate.

Will Michigan Democrats Allow Themselves To Be Rescued By A Progressive In A District Bernie Won Decisively?

Michigan's 7th district is the southeast corner of the state, carefully gerrymandered by the Republicans to keep Lansing and Ann Arbor residents out of it. Most of the voters live in Jackson, Monroe, Eaton, Washtenaw and Lenawee counties. The district was definitely not Hillary country. The folks there wanted change and Bernie decisively won the primary. Trump then beat Hillary just as decisively. The PVI went from R+3 to R+7. The Democrats ran an especially bad candidate against weak incumbent Tim Walberg in 2016. Despite Bernie crushng Hillary in the primary, the brain surgeons at the DCCC decided they should run an utterly worthless establishment Blue Dog, Gretchen Driskell, virtually the opposite of Bernie. So she lost badly. Walberg beat her 183,549 (55.0%) to 133,697 (40.1%). Walberg raised $2,403,861 and Driskell raised $2,554,488. Pelosi's House Majority PAC wasted another $559,314 on the race and the DCCC thew in $96,200 before abandoning her as hopeless.

She was a dreadful candidate in every way, so, of course, EMILY's List and the Blue Dogs have endorsed her again. So far this cycle Walberg has raised $654,797 and Driskoll has brought in $233,218 and the DCCC hasn't decided what to do.

An exciting new candidate just jumped into the race, Steve Friday. Sam Pernick, chairman of the Michigan Young Democrats, Liano Sharon and Sue Vasquez wrote a post for Michigan Progressive and offered DWT the opportunity to publish it. We gladly accepted.

Steve Friday, a progressive organizer from Dexter, recently launched his campaign for US Congress in Michigan’s 7th district, seeking to unseat Republican Tim Walberg. Friday is a social worker, a US Air Force veteran, and an activist with many progressive organizations, including Indivisible, Ann Arbor for Revolution, and Michigan for Revolution. Friday is the second Democrat to enter the race for the 7th. He will face off in the August primary against Gretchen Driskell, who tried to unseat Walberg in 2016. Her campaign spent over $2.5 million dollars in the 2016 race and lost by 15 points.

At his campaign kickoff event,. Friday spoke about the economic challenges many are facing in Michigan. He said, “I think everyone here at some point in their lives has struggled to make ends meet. Worried about their car breaking down. Worried about paying medical bills. How many people have used a credit card to pay a medical bill, because if you don’t pay that bill, they’re going to report you to the credit card companies and your credit score will go down?“

Friday is running on a unique slogan: “Human First.” Friday said this means setting aside partisan blinders, and letting go of the personal attacks and baggage that comes with politics. Just treating one another with respect.

“I think that no matter who you are, and no matter what you bring to the table, whether you’re a Democrat, Republican, or Independent, we all need to band together and work together to solve problems,” Friday said. “That’s what people are looking for.”

Friday’s first hurdle is the August primary against Gretchen Driskell. The primary pits the party’s rising progressive wing against its establishment wing.

Two years ago, Driskell’s campaign was considered one of the most promising by party insiders. She drew significant behind-the-scenes help from the Democratic Party in Michigan and nationally. A look at her recent donors this cycle shows significant establishment-democratic backing, with contributions from Loreen Powell Jobs (wife of the late Steve Jobs) and Democratic mega-donor Don Sussman. But it remains to be seen if the party establishment coalesces around her as they did in 2016. Instead, they may choose to focus on other races, like Michigan’s 8th and 11th congressional house seats.

That might be because despite strong backing in 2016, Driskell struggled to connect with voters. Walberg’s support of bad trade deals led her to attack him with the nickname “Trade Deal Tim” and urged voters to “Trade Him In.” The attacks fell flat.

Friday said that he and other progressive activists spoke to Driskell in early 2017 as part an organizing effort prior to the Democratic Party convention. They told her they would support her if she ran on a progressive platform and refused to take corporate money. She said “we’ll talk about it,” but the conversation never happened. When asked about her stance on taking corporate money at the 7th congressional district meeting in Adrian last October she replied, “We’ll deal with that after I get elected.”

Michiganders Are Sick Of Trump, But How Many Republicans Will Lose Their Seats In 2018?

Morning Consult's new poll brings more bad news for Señor Trumpanzee after his disastrous trip abroad. More voters want Congress to impeach him. Last week, their poll showed only 38% want him impeached. In just one week, that's risen to 43%. So far, though "much of the support for impeaching Trump comes from political considerations, the poll shows-- not a belief that Trump is actually guilty of impeachable offenses, like treason, bribery or obstructing justice." It's only a matter of time before the evidence is there to show some undeniable combination of treason, bribery and obstruction of justice.

The poll shows TrumpCare is still in the toilet in the minds of Americans-- 47% disapproving and 38% approving. The 33% who disapprove of the "strongly" far outpaces the 14% of imbeciles who approve strongly. 32%-- the hardcore Trumpists, most of whom don't have functioning minds because of prescription drug addiction-- think TrumpCare will make the health care system batter and 47% say TrumpCare would make the health care system worse.

So how's that playing out in states as we head inexorably towards the 2018 midterms? Let's look at Michigan, a blue state which had last voted for the Republican presidential ticket in 1988 when George W.H. Bush beat Michael Dukakis. After that Clinton won both times, Gore won, Kerry won and Obama beat McCain 57.43% to 40.96% and then beat Romney (hometown boy) 54.21% to 44.71%. And then along came the wrong Democratic candidate and Trump won the state 2,277,914 (47.60%) to 2,264,807 (47.33%). Hillary never quite understood why Bernie beat her in so much of the state-- 598,943 (49.68%) to 581,775 (48.26%), never having had to worry about it since Wasserman Schultz fixed the process to award Clinton 73 delegates to Bernie's 67. (In way of comparison, Bernie's 598,943 votes on March 8 stacked up nicely against Señor Trumpanzee's 483,753.) Michigan has 83 counties. Hillary won 10 and Bernie won 73... but the DNC had the state in the bag for Hillary anyway.

Come election day, none of the DCCC's crap candidates who thought they could coast to victory on Hillary's coattails won. Pitifully-- but par for the course for the DCCC-- every single one of them was defeated. Crap candidates usually are. The DCCC spent heavily on a drunken asshole way up north, Blue Dog Lon Johnson, and he was defeated in the MI-01 open seat unable to even win 40% of the vote. But he has a well-connected wife so... the DCCC may well wind up backing him again in 2018. The Democrat who did the best against a Republican anywhere in the state was Anil Kumar in MI-11, who took 40.2% of the vote, with the DCCC talking down his race and urging donors to not waste their money on him. With nothing from the DCCC but bad vibes, Kumar sill managed to beat all their wretched Republican-lite congressional candidates and raise $1,116,535, almost as much as incumbent Dave Trott.

Yesterday the Detroit Free Press reported on a new statewide poll showing Trump's job approval cratering in Michigan.

The survey of 600 likely Michigan voters done May 20-24 by EPIC-MRA of Lansing also indicates that 56% of  Michiganders  view former President Barack Obama favorably while Trump, who won Michigan last November, received a favorable rating of 37% from those polled.

The poll shows that, since the last poll by EPIC-MRA in February, Trump’s job approval rating-- which is different from his favorability score-- has fallen substantially.

Sixty-one percent of those surveyed gave Trump a negative job rating-- up five percentage points from February. That matched the increase from 50% to 55% of Michiganders who believe the direction of the country has taken a “wrong turn,” according to the poll.

The percentage of Michiganders giving Trump positive job ratings fell from 18% to 12% as  the number of respondents saying the U.S. is headed in the “right direction” dropped from 35% to 31%. EPIC-MRA,  which does polling for the Free Press, selects a demographically random sample of respondents from across the state for its surveys.

The pollster told the Free Press that he's "beginning to see some slippage among Republicans for (Trump’s) performance. If he comes to a point where his numbers slip even further among Republicans, you’re going to see more and more legislators jump ship from him." Every single one of the 9 House Republicans from Michigan voted for the extremely unpopular TrumpCare bill. The DCCC, which has virtually no credibility among Michigan Democrats, has announced they're targeting 5 Republican incumbents in 2018: Jack Bergman (MI-01), Fred Upton (MI-06), Tim Walberg (MI-07), Mike Bishop (MI-08), Dave Trott (MI-11).



During a town hall meeting on Friday, Walberg was happy to change the subject from TrumpCare and told his constituents not to worry about Trump dumping the Paris Climate Accord. I believe there’s been climate change since the beginning of time… I believe there are cycles. Do I think man has some impact? Yeah, of course. Can man change the entire universe? No. As a Christian, I believe that there is a creator in God who is much bigger than us. And I’m confident that, if there’s a real problem, he can take care of it."

God: "You shall not defile the land in which you live" (Numbers 35:33-34)

I spoke with one of the most respected political operatives in Michigan this morning. He told me it doesn't matter who the DCCC claims to be targeting at this point in the cycle. "I'd be surprised if they help finance even two of those races," he said after I read him the list. "Trott should be worried. Oakland County went pretty strongly for Clinton and Trump came closer to losing his district than any other Republican-held district in the state." [The score was Trump 49.7, Clinton 45.3%] If they run strong candidates with their heads on straight they could beat Upton and Bishop too. Trump didn't do well in either district." [Trump beat Clinton 51.3-42.9% in Upton's district and 50.6-43.9% in Bishop's district.] But they're go get behind a couple of their Republican-lite candidates and blow the chance for winning, You're writing all the time that's that what they always do; it's true. Michigan should kick them out of the state. They do more harm than good to the party here."

Yesterday's Detroit News carried a piece by Melissa Burke about how Upton's role in the passage of TrumpCare is hurting him back home. There's some talk that he may run against --and the DSCC even ran a preemptive 6 second online ad against him, but if, as is likely, he decides to run for reelection, whichever Democrat rans against him will be able to use his vote-- in committee and on the floor-- for TrumpCare, and his key role in persuading mainstream Republicans to back the radical right plan.

Upton came out against the GOP health care bill in the first week of May. The 64-year-old lawmaker wasn’t comfortable with an amendment allowing states to seek a federal waiver for some requirements of the Affordable Care Act, including the rule that insurers may not set premiums based on an individual’s current and past “health status.”

That means that, in states with waivers, insurers could hike premiums for people with underlying conditions who had a lapse in coverage. Gov. Rick Snyder has said Michigan wouldn’t seek a waiver.

In a 20-minute call with Upton, the president raised his voice and cursed, but Upton said he didn’t bend. He explained his concerns, reading back something the president had said on TV days earlier promising the GOP bill would be as strong on protecting those with pre-existing conditions as Obamacare.

“He was a little gruff, to say the least. I was a little gruff back,” Upton recalled. “But I told him, in no uncertain terms, that I could not vote for this bill.”

Hearing no from Upton-- who never endorsed Trump during the campaign-- was one thing, but hearing the same concerns from Missouri GOP Rep. Billy Long was another. Long was the first Republican in Congress to endorse Trump, back in 2015.

Upton and Long met with Trump the next morning. Upton credits Long with ultimately convincing the president to sign off on his amendment-- $8 billion over five years to reduce premiums or out-of-pocket costs for people that face rate hikes in waiver states.

With the amendment, both Upton and Long supported the bill, attracting a few straggling Republicans and giving GOP leadership the final votes they needed to pass the legislation 217-213 on May 4.

Critics said $8 billion over five years was a “pittance.” Democrats said Upton had flip-flopped and sold out to special interests.

“This was a fig leaf, unfortunately, that allowed a few members to vote yes, even though it made no difference in terms of improving the bill,” Stabenow said.

The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said Wednesday that 23 million more people will be uninsured over 10 years if the bill becomes law. On average, premiums for insurance on the individual market would be lower, in part because the insurance would cover fewer health care costs.

The CBO also expects Upton’s added $8 billion would increase the number of states electing a federal waiver.

Not only is it unclear if Upton will run for the Senate or the MI-06 seat, it's not clear who the Democratic candidate will be. Paul Clements who ran last year and the cycle before hasn't decided if he'll run again or not yet. David Benac, a progressive history professor at Western Michigan University and Eponine Garrod, a 23 year old chemist who works in quality-control testing at Pfizer are running and Matt Longjohn, a progressive physician and public health expert living in Portage, is likely to jump in. The 3 other possible candidates are Rich Eichholtz, a corporate guy from Illinois with a summer house in the district, Cathy Albro from Grand Rapids not far from the district and, worst of all, conservative clown George Franklin, a slimy lobbyist who contributes to both parties, including thousands of dollars over the years to Upton-- $3,000 of which was money he gave Upton to spend against Clements. He's exactly the kind of garbage candidate the DCCC is probably looking for.

Two New Democratic Congressional Candidates: Gretchen Driskell In Michigan, Shawn O'Connor in New Hampshire

Gretchen and Shawn

Late in November, WMUR reported that New Yorker Shawn O'Connor, founder and CEO of Stratus Prep, a test preparation and admissions counseling firm, had moved to New Hampshire to run for Kelly Ayotte's Senate seat. He's licensed to practice law in New York and Massachusetts, but not in New Hampshire. Before founding Stratus, O'Connor worked for Lehman Brothers and also for Republican Congressman James Greenwood (PA). Someone must have told young Shawn about Maggie Hassan because today he let it be known that he's running for Frank Guinta's House seat instead of Ayotte's Senate seat.

O'Connor, who is gay, is socially liberally but more conservative when it comes to the struggle working families have keeping up. He's part of the "Third Way" movement. "The leaders of both major parties, seeking political advantage, have presented voters with a dangerous false choice that has paralyzed our nation," he wrote. "House Republicans want to cut income taxes on the wealthiest Americans from 39.6% to 25% and turn Medicare into a voucher program which could leave some senior citizens without critical medical coverage. At the same time, Senate Democrats want to increase federal taxes by another $1 trillion dollars (when many in New York City, for example, already pay 54% of their income in federal, state and local taxes) adhering to an orthodoxy that more federal spending will automatically drive growth and job creation. America needs to return to its entrepreneurial roots so that we can grow our way out of this crisis. A rebirth of American small businesses will slash the unemployment rate while substantially increasing tax revenues without raising rates."

New Hampshire Democrats are counting on Carol Shea-Porter to run again and beat Guinta again.

Michigan's 7th district is in the southeast part of the state, from Lake Erie just north of Toldeo, Ohio, up to the suburbs of Ann Arbor and out to the suburbs of Lansing. Both Ann Arbor and Lansing were excluded from the district to make it safer for Republican incumbent Tim Walberg. The PVI is R+3 but Obama beat McCain in 2008, 177,638 (51%) to 165,747 (47%) and lost to Romney in 2012, 169,310 (51%) to 158,963 (48%). And in November Democrat Gary Peters bested Republican Terri Lynn Land district-wide, winning majorities in Monroe, Wayne, Washtenaw, Jackson, and Eaton counties.

In 2012, the DCCC recruited a tepid, mediocre candidate, Pam Brynes, and then abandoned her when it became apparent she wasn't gaining any traction with voters. Slavishly following Steve Israel's pointless messaging bromides, Byrnes was unable to make a case for replacing a pretty terrible and ineffective incumbent with herself. Walberg beat her decisively, 118,715 (53.5%) to 91,403 (41.2%). Although she hasn't ruled out running again, Democrats think think they found a better candidate for 2016: Gretchen Driskell, who announced her candidacy Monday. And remember, MI-07 a district that is very likely to go for Hillary Clinton.

State Rep. Gretchen Driskell was the first female mayor of Saline and hopes to also be the first female congressmember from the congressional district. The state House district she won was gerrymandered specifically to be safe for Republicans but she won it anyway. Her reputation has always been that she's good with persuadable voters. Walberg's shocking 2.31 lifetime ProgressivePunch crucial vote score is the most extreme right of any Republican in Michigan. A well-run campaign focused on the kinds of issues that appeal to middle and working class voters will go a long way towards ending his career. It's a moderate district; he's an extremist with an extremist record. Is Driskell the one to successfully fight that battle? She has a record too-- and it's very solution-oriented and has always dealt with issues important to families-- like education.

There's no doubt MI-07 will be a battleground district in 2016 and that Driskell is a serious contender. Its a district we'll keep watching and getting back to you about. And when we find out more information about where Driskell is likely to fall in the progressive/conservative continuum, we'll let me know about that too.


UPDATE: First Michigan Polls Shows Driskell Ahead

This came as a big surprise in late March:

A new Inside Michigan Politics/Revsix/Change Media poll has Michigan State Representative Gretchen Driskell up five points over incumbent tea party Republican Tim Walberg in the 7th District Congressional race. The pollsters polled a sample of voters that was 30% Democrats, 36% Republicans and 34% Independents and Driskell came in with 42%. Walberg had 37% and 21% were undecided. The 5-point lead was just inside the margin of error. Driskell did particularly well among independents, 46-27%, an astonishing 19-point gap.

Retiring Republican Congressmen Refusing To Endorse GOP Extremists In Close Races

Monday we heard that Staten Island's outgoing Republican Congressman Vito Fossella has decided to not endorse the Republican running for his seat, Manhattan hot dog vendor Bob Straniere. This was a terrible blow to Straniere's faltering campaign, particularly because he hasn't been able to round up any other GOP officials to endorse him either (except one widely discredited crony of his, state Senator, Andrew Lanza).

Of course, it could have been worse for the hot dog vendor. Fossella could have decided to endorse his Democratic rival, Michael McMahon. No way? That's exactly what outgoing Republican Congressman Wayne Gilchrest did in Maryland-- urging voters in Maryland's first district to vote for conservative Democrat Frank Kratovil over far right extremist Andy Harris. And then yesterday former Congressman Joe Schwarz (R-MI) endorsed progressive mainstream Democratic challenger Mark Schauer over radical right GOP/Club For Growth incumbent Tim Walberg.

Schwarz, who supports McCain in the presidential election, told the Associated Press in an interview that he decided to endorse Schauer over Walberg in the south-central Michigan congressional district because the anti-tax Club for Growth began running ads critical of Schauer's positions on taxes. He said he had hoped to stay neutral in the race but "once they made the decision, the die was cast. That to me is the straw that broke the camel's back. I object to political dabblers who stand for nothing other than to create havoc and dabble in a congressional race where they truly have no interest."

This comes at a particularly bad time for Walberg. The latest polling in the district shows Schauer beating him substantially, 42-36% among voters who have made up their minds. Schwarz' endorsement is expected to help others, especially in battle Creek, where he had been a popular mayor, to make up their minds as well-- and vote for Schauer. Furthermore, perceptions of Walberg’s job as Congressman are very negative, with only 34% saying he is doing an excellent-to-good job while 46% rate him fair-to-poor, numbers that presage an electoral defeat in November. Schauer has been able to out-raise the unpopular Walberg, an extremist who doesn't fit the moderate district, and as of July 16 Schauer had $928,686 on hand and Walberg, who has been running a vicious, costly negative campaign, only has $855,137.


UPDATE: CONGRESSMAN GILCREST (R-MD) HAS HAD IT WITH THE GOP-- AND THAT INCLUDES GRANDPA

Sounds like he's supporting Obama!

He's had it with his own party, which he says "has become more narrow, more self-serving, more centered around 'I want, I want, I want.' " He's finished with his party's presidential candidate, John McCain, who Gilchrest says "recites memorized pieces of information in a narrow way, whereas Barack Obama is constantly evaluating information, using his judgment. One guy just recites what's in front of him, and the other has initiative and reason and prudence and wisdom."

...After much struggle and study, Gilchrest voted for the bailout; what appalls him about his many colleagues who went the other way was that they appeared to do so based neither on a close examination of the issues nor on principle, but rather with a finger to the wind and an eye on the e-mail inbox.

The congressman, whose strongly Republican district stretches from the Pennsylvania line to the border with Virginia, tells me that he's had it with colleagues who "don't understand the issues, who not only don't read the Financial Times, they have never heard of the Financial Times... We're in this bad place as a country because of the evangelicals, the neocons, the nasty, bitter and mean... very clever ideological groups that use money, technology, fear and bigotry to lead people around," he says. "Voting according to your knowledge and experience-- that's out the window. Competence and prudence? Forget it."

REPUBLICANS IN CONGRESS HAVE A RESPONSE TO TOUGH ECONOMIC TIMES: PENALIZE POOR CHILDREN BY WITHHOLDING HEALTHCARE

If he gets sick, you can throw him away and get a new one

There is an argument in economists' circles whether we are already in a recession or whether there is one around the corner. Bush Regime apologists claim everything is fabulous and pessimists say "forget recession," we're looking at the Bush Depression. No matter who's correct, other than the small handful of Bush Regime apologists, hard times ahead. With that backdrop, the Democratic leadership in the House decided to see if they could work with a few electorally-vulnerable Republican moderates to override Bush's veto of heath insurance for poor children. Their attempt failed today. Every single Democrat except arch-reactionary Jim Marshall in Macon, Georgia, voted in favor of children's health care. 42 Republicans joined the Democrats in trying to help needy children.

Among the Republicans who fought hard to prevent the override were this lot who are in danger of being defeated in November. They should be defeated; every single one of them (along with fake-Democrat Jim Marshall):

Michele Bachmann (R-MN)
Roscoe Barlett (R-MD)
Judy Biggert (R-IL)
Brian Bilbray (R-CA)
Ken Calvert (R-CA)
Dave Camp (R-MI)
John Campbell (R-CA)
Howard Coble (R-NC)
Thelma Drake (R-VA)
David Dreier (R-CA)- Blue America has endorsed Russ Warner
Tom Feeney (R-FL)
Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-NJ)
Elton Gallegly (R-CA)
Scott Garrett (R-NJ)- Blue America has endorsed Dennis Shulman
Virgil Goode (R-VA)- Blue America is likely to endorse Tom Perriello soon
Robin Hayes (R-NC)- Blue America has endorsed Larry Kissell
Tim Johnson (R-IL)
John Kline (R-MN)
Randy Kuhl (R-NY)- Blue America has endorsed Eric Massa
Jerry Lewis (R-CA)
Dan Lungren (R-CA)
Mike McCaul (R-TX)
Thaddeus McCotter (R-MI)
Patrick McHenry (R-NC)
Buck McKeon (R-CA)
Marilyn Musgrave (R-CO)
Steve Pearce (R-NM)
Tom Reynolds (R-NY)- Blue America has endorsed Jon Powers
Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA)- Blue America asks you to stay tuned
Mean Jean Schmidt (R-OH)- Blue America has endorsed Dr. Vic Wulsin
John Shadegg (R-AZ)
Tim Walberg (R-MI)- Blue America has endorsed Mark Schauer

The most far right extremists and raving lunatics from the disintegrating Republican coalition are screaming for jihad against the Republicans who joined the Democrats to try to save the S-CHIP bill.

One of the heroes of the child-hating extremists, Tim Walberg, has an opponent this year who isn't letting him get away with this kind of bullshit. Mark Schauer sent out a statement after Walberg voted against S-CHIP (again):

"Ensuring access to health care for children should be an economic priority, not the victim of a misguided ideological tug-of-war. Continuing to embrace the status quo will only lead to further financial troubles for Michigan families who are already struggling to get by. Losing your house or going bankrupt to pay for an unexpectedly sick child is not a choice we should force anyone to make."

Mark hit the nail right on the head. We need representatives in Congress who are part of the solution. Tim Walberg and the radical right extremists have caused the problems with their narrow and pinched ideological fanaticism. Although Pelosi is still protecting Bush and Cheney from impeachment, at least she has enough of a shred of decency around her to remember when she was a decent progressive who fought for the American people. Today she made a genuine effort to reach out to Republicans (as well as reactionary Democrats) to override Bush's vicious and selfish veto. "The issue comes down to what is happening in America's households today. Unemployment is up, housing starts are down. The price of gasoline and food and health care is up, stock market is down. So the indicators, some that are felt very closely and intimately by America's families, some that are felt by our economy, all point to the need for taking a new direction."


UPDATE: 15 VOTES SHY OF HEALTH INSURANCE FOR NEEDY CHILDREN

Or... get rid of reactionary Jom Marshall plus any 14 right wing Republicans and we can move forward like the rest of the civilized world. Which 14 right wing Republicans? Well, start with the list above; any of these goons your congresscritter?

TIM WALBERG PULLS HIS HEAD OUT OF HIS ASS-- JUST LONG ENOUGH TO SHOW HOW CLUELESS HE IS BEFORE STICKING IT BACK IN AGAIN

If it wasn't bad enough that Tim Walberg is a vicious little racist piece of crap and an extreme right-wing of neo-Nazi bent, it also just so happens that this blight on the great state of Michigan also happens to be one of the most ignorant members of Congress, right up there with Know Nothings like Michele Bachmann (the sneaky puker), Mean Jean Schmidt and Patrick McHenry.

Yesterday the fanatic wingnut freshman from Michigan's 7th CD, considered one of the most likely congress members to be defeated next year, blurted out some discarded Rovian talking points on WILS-AM and kicked up a shit-storm. He claimed that the troops he's supposedly talked to who have returned from Iraq "indicate to me that 80 to 85 percent, in a conservative fashion, of the country is reasonably under control, at least as well as Detroit or Chicago or any of our other big cities. That's an encouraging sign."


When the talk show host mentioned he'd never heard Iraq compared to Detroit before, Walberg plowed on, cluelessly: "Well, in fact, in many places it's as safe and cared for as Detroit or Harvey, Ill., or some other places that have trouble with armed violence that takes place on occasion."

I'd like to recommend that Walberg and other of the self-satisfied and willfully or congenitally ignorant little shits who dominate the Republican Party read Imperial Hubris to learn what exactly they have stirred up in the Middle East. That don't have the foggiest. And they're our leaders. God help us! The fight we're in now is real, very real, and with losers like Bush and Walberg leading the charge we're really doomed.

RIGHT WING EXTREMIST OUSTS MAINSTREAM CONSERVATIVE CONGRESSMAN JOE SCHWARZ IN MICHIGAN. WHAT WILL FOX NEWS SAY?

The big story tonight, as it should be, is the stupendous victory of the grassroots Democrats in Connecticut and their modest, earnest, honest candidate, Ned Lamont. Tomorrow Fox, Limbaugh, Mehlman and the rest of the corrupt and corrosive Republican hate machine (plus the nonpartisan Beltway corporate whore class) will go on the attack to say that Ned's victory over the Bush agenda is some kind of take-over by communists or something equally inane. I doubt however they will be talking about Michigan. In fact, I'm sure they won't be.

Michigan? What does that have to do with Connecticut? Not much but it has a lot to do-- albeit indirectly-- with the national brainwashing session Fox "News" has in store for its hapless viewers. last week I talked about the vicious campaign a fringe right wing fanatic, Tim Walberg, against mainstream conservative Republican Congressman Joe Schwarz in Michigan's 7th congressional district. Do not expect to hear Ann Coulter or Rush Limbaugh or Matthews, Hannity or O'Liely or any of them talking about a far right extremist purge of a party moderate. They'll save all their crocodile tears for the Democratic Party you know they love so well.

Schwarz was a strong McCain ally and his 6 point defeat tonight does not augur well for McCain's presidential ambitions in a state he was counting on for early support and momentum. While the neo-Nazi wing of the GOP celebrates Walberg's victory, Schwarz pointed out in his concession speech that "pandering [to right wing extremists] would have been easy," he was unwilling to throw away his principles (the way most mainstream conservatives have). He grieved for his party falling further down the slippery slope of bizarre extremism.

Republicans spent over $2 million dollars throwing mud at each other. Walberg, heavily backed by religionist nuts and the fascist-oriented Club For Growth, threw more mud and he won. One of the lunatic fringe far right, anti-American blogs, Redstate, rallied it's brain-dead stepford readers today to defeat Schwarz (who is a Bush rubber stamp). The kook who writes it listed 10 reasons it was important for Michigan fascists to turn out in droves... all kinds of nuttiness. And his #1 reason to defeat this mainstream conservative incumbent?

"For the past two years, Republicans have governed in the Joe Schwarz mould (sic). They have expanded government, expanded spending, and otherwise ignored the GOP's conservative base. In fact, conservatives, who are the largest part of the GOP base, have been dumped on, ignored, and shoved aside in favor of politicians like Joe Schwarz.

Republicans in Congress will not get the message if they lose the majority -- they'll blame conservatives. Republicans in Congress will get the message if we take a stand in Republican primaries and start tossing liberals. Let's send this wake up call today."

Let's see how many times Fox propagandists mention Joe Schwarz and Tim Walberg tomorrow-- or is it only the Democratic Party they care about?

GOP PRIMARY IN MICHIGAN MAKES LAMONT/LIEBERMAN MATCH UP LOOK LIKE A GAME OF PATTY-CAKE

Although as Lieberman keeps sinking in the polls and his campaign gets more and more desperate and he calls for more assistance from GOP storm troopers instead of just the Republican-lite DLC clowns, in reality this primary has been pretty mild. I mean the media has tried to sex it up a little but a truck driving around the state with paper mache figures of Lieberman and Bush smooching is as close to "wild" as it's come. (We'll see if this changes now that Lieberman has hired thousands of Young Republican fart boys frat boys from all over the East Coast to invade Connecticut between now and Tuesday. But I'm guessing they'll be too drunk to do any serious damage to anyone but themselves.)

The media is falling all over itself bemoaning how the "Democratic crazies" are "purging" the party just because the fine incumbent is pro-a-little-tiny-inconsequential-thing-like-the-Iraq-war. They never seemed to get too upset when the far right of the Republican Party (financed by the Club For Growth) went after Pennsylvania's Arlen Specter last year or how right wing nutcase Steve Laffey (again, financed by the Club For Growth) is "purging" Lincoln Chafee. And they certainly don't mention the primary in Michigan's 7th congressional district. "Huh?" you ask?

Last May I looked at this district because some progressive groups were thinking about supporting the fake moderate there, Joe Schwarz, because he's being challenged by a far more right wing Club For Growth loon, Tim Walberg (by now you should have figured out what the Club is trying to grow: a cadre of dedicated fascists inside our government).

This week the Jackson Citizen Patriot reported a far more violent Republican primary-- albeit one ignored by the mainstream media-- than anything going on between Connecticut Democrats and Lieberman. "A combative congressional race took a criminal turn Monday, when U.S. Rep. Joe Schwarz's Jackson campaign office was vandalized with an anti-gay slur. Someone scratched a slur into Schwarz's head in one poster and scratched out his eyes in another..."

Although Walberg's decidedly far right, hate-based campaign is hysterically denying having participated in the vandalism, the campaign can't deny that they have done all they could to arouse passions and anti-gay hysteria in the district. Walberg's whole campaign, in fact, sometimes seems to be based on gay-bashing. Schwarz, a conservative (though non-fascist) Republican-- i.e., more a Reagan Republican than a Coulter Republican, which is exactly what Walberg is)-- is against gay marriage but has not backed the lunatic right's demand for a Constitutional Amendment.

With every big name Republican celebrity in the country campaigning for their boy Duplicitous Joe, no one is paying much attention to MI-07. The Republican primary there is this coming Tuesday, the same day Connecticut Democrats determine the fate of Lieberman and his Republican sponsors.