February 26th, 2014
It’s a mere six days before the March 4 primary, and I haven’t covered the various statewide races nearly as well as I would have liked. (Maybe Ukraine will refrain from blowing up this week.) So I’ll try to catch up with some statewide race update, including a summary of the current state of play for those just tuning in, as well as some race tidbits (some of which are, alas, fairly musty). First up: The Governor’s Race.
Gregg Abbott is a better, more focused candidate with a better organization in a deep red state. Abbott has both experience running successful, high-profile statewide races, has a solid record of achievement as Attorney General, and unquestioned conservative credentials. I’ve seen Abbott work a room in person, and he’s very good at it. He has all Rick Perry’s strengths and none of his weaknesses. He came into the campaign with a hfty warchest and continues to raise money at a record pace.
Wendy Davis, by contrast, is a photogenic white woman whose main claim to fame is her filibuster in support of unlimited late-term abortions. Davis had a fairly indifferent record as a State Senator, and called herself a Republican back in the 1990s. She has been fundraising at a more-than-respectable clip, and pulling in impressive amounts of out-of-state liberal special interest money. She probably has more enthusiasm at the liberal grassroots level than any statewide top-of-the-ticket candidate since Ann Richards. Her campaign has frequently seemed very poorly organized, and indifferent or hostile to potentially friendly reporters. Her fibs about her life story and unconvincing flip-flops on guns and late-term abortions may have hurt here with swing voters, but don’t appear to have dampened the enthusiasm of her liberal base. She’s aided in her campaign by Battleground Texas, a well-funded attempt to “turn Texas blue” by registering more Democrats.
Obviously, Abbott is going to win the Republican nomination, and, despite her many stumbles, Davis is going to win the Democratic nomination. Abbott is going to cream her in November.
Now some race tidbits:
Abbott holds an 11 point leader over Davis in the latest polls.
Gregg Abbott raised $2.5 million in the latest filing period, and has $30 million cash on hand.
In case you missed it before: Abbott outraised Davis 3-1 in January. Davis’ claimed advantage comes from counting Battleground Texas totals as her own.
Speaking of BattleGround Texas, did they break the law?
Abbott and the Texas Republican Party aren’t taking Battleground Texas efforts lying down. “Abbott…has 50 paid staff members doing grass-roots outreach.”
Davis’ actual campaign finance report
Greg Abbott on ObamaCare.
Ted Nugent apologizes.
For all her walkback on late-term abortions, it’s still the pro-abortion crowd who is giving Wendy Davis the big bucks.
“Wendy Davis is no Ann Richards.” To be fair, Ann Richards wasn’t really Ann Richards either, but she was a whole lot better at faking it…
Davis gets a New York Times Magazine profile…
…which the hard left complains is insufficiently sensitive to radical feminist language demands.
Tags: 2014 Election, 2014 Governor's Race, Battleground Texas, Greg Abbott, Republican Party of Texas, Texas, video, Wendy Davis
Posted in Democrats, Elections, Republicans, Texas, video | No Comments »
February 25th, 2014
Yesterday I received a copy of The Link Letter in the mail, touting certain Republican Primary candidates and carrying ads for them. You should take these “endorsements” with several grains of salt, since they are strictly pay for play; candidates pay for ads and get endorsed. Houston has had these paid “list” newsletter endorsements for a while, but this is the first time I’ve seen them in Williamson.
The Link Letter is an advertising flyer, nothing more. Its endorsements should not sway you any more than any other advertisement might (which is to say, little to none).
Tags: 2014 Election, Elections, Texas, Williamson County
Posted in Elections, Republicans, Texas | No Comments »
February 25th, 2014
Another roundup of tab-clearing news, much of which got pushed aside by Ukraine updates:
Obama Administration admits that ObamaCare will screw small businesses. (Hat tip: Instapundit.) Why are any Republicans futzing around with any fix but full repeal?
Bobby Jindal: “Obamacare is giving low-income Americans fewer reasons to work.”
How ObamaCare is turning into the Democrats’ own forever war.
Two more congressional Democrats retire.
And that doesn’t count liberal Democratic fossil John Dingell, who’s also retiring after a mere 58 years in office.
And speaking of Michigan Democratic congressman, here’s how Rep. Gary Peters is trying to kill a woman with cancer:
Democrats in denial over ObamaCare unpopularity. Well, those who haven’t retired yet…
How unions and Democratic cronies looted Detroit’s pension plans.
Former Democratic congressman and convicted statutory rapist Mel Reynolds arrested on child pornography charges in Zimbabwe. (You might remember that Bill Clinton pardoned him on the way out the door…)
Deeply incompetent New Orleans Democratic Mayor Ray “Chocolate City” Nagin convicted on 20 federal corruption counts.
NJ’s Democratic Rep. Rob Andrews: The Washington Generals of Legislators.
The top special interest donors contribute to Democrats.
This week in the Democratic Liberal Media Complex Revolving Door.
There are few people liberals hate more than conservative black men.
Ted Cruz is winning.
Food prices continue to soar, yet another sign that inflation figures are significantly understated.
Record numbers of college graduates are living with their parents. Thanks, Obama!
“*Somebody* at Cover Oregon will end up going to jail.”
“The combination of UAW micromanagement and adversarial culture, not wages per se, is what helped to do in GM.”
“The UAW couldn’t even win an election it had been handed on a silver platter by management.”
Venezuela continues to stumble along at a repressive simmer.
Too bad they’re out of toilet paper.
Catholic priest in Venezuela beaten unconscious by socialist state thugs.
Michael Totten points out that Che Guevara is a murderous communist scumbag. Bonus: “Cuba’s maximum wage is less than one percent of America’s minimum wage”
Battle is joined between EUroskeptic UKIP and the EUrophilic Liberal-Democrats.
John Kerry: There’s no room in the religion of global warming for cost-benefit analysis.
UK Leftists want punitive taxes even if they bring in no additional revenue.
Detroit home-owner with an AR pattern rifle 3, stupid thugs trying to break into her home 0.
Portugal decriminalized all drugs 11 years ago. Result? Addiction cut in half, and “Portugal’s drug usage rates are now among the lowest of EU member states.”
“Diversity demands that diversity of opinion not be tolerated anymore.”
“Anti-male misandry, like anti-female #misogyny, is unjust and dangerous.”
Paying attention to the victimhood identity politics crowd, or how to murder your writing career.
Sarah Hoyt further dissects Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America idiocy. She touches on many of the reasons I didn’t renew my membership, the main ones being that SFWA is no longer important enough to be worth fighting for, and was certainly not worth $90 a year in dues.
“Human Resources has been very reluctant to respond to my complaints about being invisibly strangled by a cyborg space wizard.”
One more Tweet:
Tags: Anthropogenic Global Warming, Bill Clinton, Bobby Jindal, Communism, Crime, Democrats, Detroit, Gary Peters, Guns, inflation, John Dingell, John Kerry, LinkSwarm, Media Watch, Mel Reynolds, Michigan, New Orleans, ObamaCare, SFWA, Ted Cruz, UAW, unions, video, Welfare State
Posted in Communism, Crime, Democrats, Global Warming, Media Watch, ObamaCare, unions, video, Waste and Fraud, Welfare State | No Comments »
February 24th, 2014
So word came down that Piers Morgan’s shown on CNN is ending. At which point I quipped:
Enter Mr. Olbermann himself, who I like to imagine scanning Twitter in a darkened room while wearing an off-brand superhero costume. “Peasants? Making fun of me??? I will be avenged!”
I don’t think I ever received replies to these two.
RE: That public access show in Akron:
Nothing says “up to date” like referencing a TV show that went off the air when I was four…
Back on the subject of the Current TV lawsuit:
Tags: CNN, Current TV, Keith Olbermann, Media Watch, MSNBC, Twitter
Posted in Media Watch | 1 Comment »
February 22nd, 2014
First word came that Yanukovich had left Ukraine for various rumored destinations from Russia to Dubai. Then came word that Yanukovich was denied exit from the country.
But the delight of the day was ordinary Ukrainians touring the abandoned Presidential vacation palace, which such amenities as:
A classic car collection
A private zoo
A gold toilet
An actual galleon (helpfully named GALLEON; this pretty much confirms what we suspected of the vast range of Mr. Yanukovich’s imagination…) floating on an artificial lake.
Some Tweets on the theme:
Also, Russia has a sad.
Tags: Communism, Crime, EuroMaidan, Foreign Policy, fraud, Ukraine, Viktor Yushchenko
Posted in Communism, Foreign Policy, Waste and Fraud | No Comments »
February 21st, 2014
Yanukovych’s “compromise” looks more and more like a complete rout, with reports of him fleeing Kiev for his political base in Kharkiv, where reports have security forces burning documents:
There are dark, unconfirmed mutterings of pro-Russian forces preparing “provocations” or for a partition of Ukraine. But even in Kharkiv, Euromaidan is marching.
Tweets:
And via Michelle Malkin’s twitter feed, here’s video of happy Ukrainians toppling statues of Lenin:
Tags: EuroMaidan, Kharkiv, Kiev, Ukraine, Viktor Yanukovych
Posted in Communism, Foreign Policy | No Comments »
February 21st, 2014
A small update on easing Ukrainian tensions. Lots of details remain to be worked out, and a lot of Euromaidan members aren’t happy with Yanukovych staying through December. But it’s sounding like they were made an offer they couldn’t refuse…
Polish minister to Euromaidan: “Take the deal or you’ll all be dead.”
Ukraine Parliament moves to release opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko.
Inside Kiev’s makeshift hospital/morgue.
Problems with Ukraine’s economy, and the Russian loan that helped kick off the crisis.
This warms my heart:
There are calls for Ukraine’s Parliament to impeach Yanukovych. I can hardly imagine Yanukovych or Putin taking that lying down…
Tags: Communism, EuroMaidan, Foreign Policy, Kiev, Russia, Ukraine, Yulia Tymoshenko
Posted in Communism, Foreign Policy | No Comments »
February 21st, 2014
Early reports indicates that Yanukovych may finally have gotten a clue:
Viktor Yanukovych conceded to the major demands made by protesters, he announced Friday on his website. He had been holding out against their raging street demonstrations for months.
Yanukovych said he has initiated new presidential elections and a return to the old constitution that would cut presidential power, and also form a national unity Cabinet.
Now word is comning down that Euromaidan leadership has signed off on the agreement.
Great news, if it holds.
There are also unconfirmed reports of police either leaving or coming over to Euromaidan. Presumably these are the regular police and not the Berkut riot police.
Now the question becomes: What will Yanukovych’s puppet-master Vladamir Putin do? He met with his security council, and the discussion sounds more than a little ominous:
“Putin emphasized that it is imperative to immediately stop the bloodshed and take urgent measures to stabilize the situation and suppress any extremist and terrorist sorties.”
Is Putin willing to go to war to keep Ukraine is Moscow’s orbit?
Stay tuned…
Tweets
Tags: Communism, EuroMaidan, Foreign Policy, Russia, Ukraine, Viktor Yanukovych, Vladimir Putin
Posted in Communism, Foreign Policy | No Comments »
February 20th, 2014
A super-brief update on Ukraine:
Current conformed death toll for recent fighting at 67, unconfirmed at 100 dead.
Euromaidan captures 67 policemen.
EU agrees to impose sanctions, including asset freezes and visa bans. It’s a start. Refusing to pay for any Russian oil or gas until democracy is restored in Ukraine would have a lot bigger effect…
Map of Russian gas pipelines in Ukraine. I differ with Zero Hedge in that I don’t think this is an all-encompassing explanation for the conflict…
Forget Sochi; Ukraine shows that it’s the same old Russia: “At the heart of the battle lies a fundamental question: Is Ukraine a free nation or is it a piece of Moscow — a piece on Putin’s chessboard?”
Obama’s White House: months late and several dollars short on Ukraine.
Video
Battle footage with CNN talking heads:
More random fight footage:
Military base torched:
More Tweets
And holy fark is Gary Kasperov pissed:
Tags: EuroMaidan, Foreign Policy, Gary Kasparov, Russia, Twitter, Ukraine, video, Vladimir Putin
Posted in Foreign Policy, video | No Comments »
February 20th, 2014
That happens sometimes, when you try to escape your country’s harsh political bondage, despite the clamps and chains Putin’s police state has forced on dissidents, reformers and lesbians…
(Hat tip: Moe Lane, who doesn’t seem to have realized the glorious keyword trolling possibilities…)
Tags: Communism, Pussy Riot, Russia, Sochi Olympics, video, Vladimir Putin
Posted in Communism, Foreign Policy, video | No Comments »