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New York: Greenest City in the U.S. (video)

"David Owen, author of the book Green Metropolis, explains how New York City’s... more

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The Great Teabag Disaster in New York

On a night when conservatives expected a landmark victory in New York’s 23rd congressional district, the movement’s anointed candidate, Doug Hoffman, instead went down in a startling defeat to Democrat Bill Owens. The official Republican candidate, Dede Scozzafava, had dropped out days before and thrown her support to Owens after the conservative movement backed Hoffman in a campaign to destroy her, attacking her as a closet socialist with a cynical, hidden agenda—the same terms they have used to demonize President Barack Obama.

Hoffman’s rejection by rank-and-file voters in a solidly Republican district dampened the conservatives’ mood on an otherwise upbeat night and raised serious questions about the movement’s attempt to purge moderates from party ranks. Now, many of Hoffman’s right-wing cheerleaders are struggling to explain their dubious gambit, while others fear repercussions for their zealotry.

With endorsements from the National Rifle Association, the National Republican Congressional Committee and Republican Party elders Newt Gingrich and New York Rep. Peter King, Scozzafava was assured an easy victory. Then Hoffman declared his candidacy on the Conservative Party line. Hoffman was a lawyer and Tea Party activist who did not live in the district and, according to the local Watertown Daily-Times, “showed no grasp of the bread-and-butter issues pertinent to district residents.” Offered as his only selling point: ideological purity.

Hoffman instantly became the point man for the national conservative movement, dedicating himself to fulfilling the right’s dream of a complete purge of moderate elements in the GOP. Campaigning in a local constituency of mostly Republican regulars, Hoffman behaved as though he were running in a presidential primary. He slammed Scozzafava for supporting abortion rights and gay marriage, substituting the hot button issues that had electrified the national Tea Party movement rather than the bread and butter concerns of the working class district he campaigned to represent.

Hoffman’s appeals to cultural resentment attracted zealous support from a who’s who of far-right icons, from Fred Thompson to Glenn Beck, from Rush Limbaugh to Sarah Palin. The former Republican vice presidential nominee recorded a robocall for him a week before Election Day. Tim Pawlenty, the Republican governor of Minnesota, sought to establish his conservative credentials in advance of an expected 2012 presidential run by endorsing Hoffman. The National Organization for Marriage, an anti-gay religious right group, commissioned a poll supposedly proving Scozzafava’s support for gay marriage had doomed her (the sample size was only 318 likely voters). Meanwhile, cash poured into Hoffman’s coffers through conservativeoutfits from the Club For Growth to the American Conservative Union.

More @ link

http://maxblumenthal.com/2009/11/the-great-teabag-disaster-in-ny-23/On a night when conservatives expected a landmark victory in New York’s 23rd... more

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2009 election round-up: NYC, NY-23, NJ and VA, Maine

Both of the most-watched Governors races went to GOP candidates: Virginia and New... more

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NY Atty Gen Files Antitrust Suit Against Intel

New York's attorney general has filed an antitrust lawsuit against Intel Corp.,... more

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Taxation and Stimulus Money is New Prosperity

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Tomorrow is election day

Well, not necessarily for everyone. It's not a presidential election year (obviously) and not a midterm election year for Congress, but yes there are a fair number of elections going on tomorrow. Lots of local races and a few bigger ones. Here are some of the highlights on the national stage:

NY-23: A little corner of New York state you've probably never heard of is attracting big attention for its special Congressional election. Why? First, because commentators think it could be a bellwether for the 2010 midterm elections. Second, because it suddenly got real crazy. There was a three-way race between a moderate GOP incumbent, a Democrat, and a Conservative Party candidate. Then suddenly Sarah Palin swooped in and endorsed the third party candidate, and it ignited a firestorm about tea party conservatives in the GOP. So much so that Dede Scozzafava, the GOP candidate, dropped out. What does it mean? What does it meeeeean? We'll let the politico-blogo-sphere sort it all out after we get the results.

New York City Mayor: New York is voting on their mayor. Incumbent mayor Michael Bloomberg had the law changed so he could run for a third term, and seems to be strongly in the lead. Except Gawker anti-endorsed him. (Ouch).

Maine on Gay Marriage: Last May, Maine's legislators legalized same sex marriage. Now its voters will decide whether or not to repeal it. Boy wonder statistician Nate Silver gives the vote to repeal "5-to-2 underdog" odds.

New Jersey's Governor: Why should you care about who's governor of the Garden State? Well according to the AP: it's "...a campaign being billed as a vote on President Barack Obama's popularity." Democratic governor Jon Corzine is fighting to keep his seat as his Republican opponent has fared well in the polls. Will a GOP win foretell doom for Obama's efforts? Again, we'll let the politico-blogo-sphere sort it all out after we get the results.

What else is going out there? Here in San Francisco we're having a municipal election with two uncontested candidates and a few local propositions.

How about where you live? Any local races out there that could be resonant to the rest of the country?

From the News Blog: http://blogs.current.com/news/2009/11/02/tomorrow-is-election-day/
Image from Gawker: http://gawker.com/5395311/gawker-endorsement-dont-vote-for-bloombergWell, not necessarily for everyone. It's not a presidential election year (obviously)... more