Election Thread

[Lustful Bride]

A bit of goodnews :)

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/kim-davis-loses-re-election-bid-for-kentucky-county-clerk/ar-BBPqvwM?ocid=spartandhp

[lustfulintentions]

It will give them subpoena power which will end Trump and republicans.

This assumes that the Republicans have any respect for the rule of law, which is very assumptive of the current iteration of the Republican party.

[Lustful Bride]

Getting lots of confusion. But it looks like the Dems have the House of Representatives and the GOP has the Senate.

Even if it wasn't the big blue wave, its still something. :)

[lustfulintentions]

Getting lots of confusion. But it looks like the Dems have the House of Representatives and the GOP has the Senate.

Even if it wasn't the big blue wave, its still something. :)

Plus the governorships we've picked up.

[Lustful Bride]

Plus the governorships we've picked up.

So compared to before the midterms, how good/bad is it now? Can anyone confirm?

[Tolvo]

That's actually better than I expected.

[Blythe]

This is fascinating.

Major accomplishment for Democrats in Oklahoma. District 5 has not been represented by a Democrat since the 70s, and this was completely unexpected here. No Democrat was predicted to win anything major in my state.

[CrownedSun]

Also, my understanding is that Florida managed to pass Amendment 4.

The one that gives Felon's back their voting rights, automatically, after they've served their crime. Discounting people with violent or sexual-related convictions.

Regardless of anything else, that feels huge to me.

[HannibalBarca]

1.5 million felons will be able to vote...a majority of them black.  Florida will certainly swing Democratic in the next election with that, unless someone tries to fuck it up more.  With that idiot winning as governor, we'll see.

On the bright side, Colorado elected the first openly gay governor in Jared Polis, so good on you, Colorado!

I'm a socialist...or at least, support socialist policies within a democratic political framework.  Here in the US, it's more like banging my head against the wall with how slow the national consensus is turning towards socialism.  We've had aspects of the government be socialist for decades, but enough negative press has kept it a dirty word to many people, and to others there's no difference between socialism, communism, and fascism  ???  The youth in the US prefer socialism to capitalism by a large margin, so maybe after I'm gone there will be a sea change.  Of course, by then the sea will be changing literally, so it may not matter :(

[NicciKotor]

Here is a small list of stuff that will be investigated.

White House security clearances (involving Jared Kushner, Ivanka Trump, national security adviser John Bolton, and others)
The controversial addition of a citizenship question to the 2020 census
The Trump administration’s Muslim travel ban
The State Department’s decision to close its cyber office
The EPA’s use of a political loyalty list
The possible participation of Cambridge Analytica’s foreign employees in US elections
The deadly ambush in Niger that left four American soldiers dead
The use of private email by White House officials
Trump’s response to the hurricane that devastated Puerto Rico
The dealings of the Trump Foundation
Potential conflicts of interest between Kushner’s business actions and his policy advice
Payments the Trump Organization received from foreign sources
Russian intervention with state voting systems
Former national security adviser Michael Flynn’s contacts with foreign officials

[la dame en noir]

I'm ready to throw up...

[Iniquitous]

Tennessee will keep it's republican senator (ughs, cant stand Blackburn) and it is still too close to call on the House (409 out of 435 have reported with Dems holding a very small lead 50.1% to 44.4%)

[Oniya]

Still have to put up with Smucker (PA-11), but it was a close race, especially considering that Jess King was a crowd-funded newcomer to the political scene.

[Iniquitous]

Annnnnnd... republican Bill Lee beat out democratic Karl Dean for governor of Tennessee.  So... yay. We have an idiot who wants to arm our teachers and put public money towards private schools/vouchers.

I hate that this state is so damn red.  Eventually it will turn blue (when all the baby boomers die off and more northerners move in) but I may not be alive to see it.

[CrownedSun]

I read that like 4 states passed measures that should help with gerrymandering, which is a small incremental thing that is as important as it is unsexy.

[gaggedLouise]

Trump and the GOP lose control of the House, and the public response of the Donald is laughabluy predictable:

1) He claims the night was a massive victory. Yeah, he used that tactic already when he was a young real estate market climber in Mew York. If he got into a heavily publicized lawsuit and lost, he would beat his chest and  shout to the media that he had won. And some of the media would accept it.

2) He claims that he never said the election would be a referendum on himself and the Trump presidency. You know? (he was spinning it that way already during yesterday, well before voting ended). Bwahahaha, nice try!! :D

3) He claims (during one of his final rallies) that his presidency and the support for him personally make up the greatest and most amazing political movement in US history, even in world history (I actually saw him making this quasi-Messianic boast about himself and Trumperica in footage from a rally on Monday) . Yeah, right...  ::)

[gaggedLouise]

Does the Dems' control of the House mean that they can block any attempt by Trump, and whatever kneedogs he might appoint after Rosenstein (and Sessions?) are fired, to force a quick end to Mueller's investigation? :)

[TheLionKing]

Little disappointed with Ohio.

[Flower]

Illinois turned out good.

A bit disappointed at other results though.

[gaggedLouise]

Beto O'Rourke (D) almost winning the senate race in Texas against Ted Cruz is very impressive. Texas should have been a home run for any high-level republican.

[TheLionKing]

I saw Texas' race. That was impressive.

[Mithlomwen]

I am so proud of my state right now! Major win for the Democrats (as Colorado is normally a Red state), and a huge victory for our LGBTQ community. 

[legomaster00156]

Does the Dems' control of the House mean that they can block any attempt by Trump, and whatever kneedogs he might appoint after Rosenstein (and Sessions?) are fired, to force a quick end to Mueller's investigation? :)

I would like to say yes, but... no. Congress cannot normally prevent an executive branch employee from being fired by the President (I think there are only a few fringe cases otherwise). The confirmation of a new lapdog would be in the Senate's hands.

[Callie Del Noire]

I saw Texas' race. That was impressive.

It depends.. I foresee one of two things going down. The senator decides that this is a lesson and unclenches on some of his past stances to coax the Mexican community back into supporting him on some things, but I think Ted Cruz will swing further right and into the President's pocket.

I think that several state Republican parties should take a long hard look at their treatment of Mexican, Puerto Ricans and so forth. Odds are that if they don't.. the next couple election cycles are going to get quite scary. I know one of the republican legislators down here in Florida tried to disinvest the dispersed Puerto Ricans here in Florida.

[gaggedLouise]

I would like to say yes, but... no. Congress cannot normally prevent an executive branch employee from being fired by the President (I think there are only a few fringe cases otherwise). The confirmation of a new lapdog would be in the Senate's hands.

But if Mueller was fired simply for the reason that "the White House thinks he's inefficient and not finding anything" - a blatant conflict of interest when it's Trump and his people that are the focus - wouldn't that oblige them to find a new director of the investigation? Firing Mueller as a person is different thing than forcing an end to the inquiry, and the questions they are working on relate to the integrity of the presidency and of elections, so it seems that the House should have something to say about it as well.