Almost half the electorate (45%) claim that the economy sucks and they are worried to VERY worried about it..

Only 14% care about immigration..

So, what does Obama and the Democrats do???

They ignore the American people, give amnesty to 5 million new workers that is going to exacerbate the very problems that almost half the Americans are worried about...

And Democrats expect the American people to vote them in in 2016!???

If there was ever a sign that DC has legalized pot, the utter fantastical delusions of the Dem Party would leave no doubt...

Michale
059

Even the POTUS believes that those who didn't vote still sent a message...

Or is Obama just listening to himself blather???

Michale
058

Michale
057

Again, you may spin it how you wish...

But the statement is still logical..

A Democrat will vote Democrat.. So a Democrat who chooses to stay home and not to vote for Joe Democrat is a de-facto vote for for Jane Republican..

Put another way...

If you have a Dem candidate with 10 votes and a GOP candidate with 11 votes and a Democrat voter stays home, that gives the election to the GOP candidate.. By staying home, the Dem voter, in essence has chosen the Republican...

Michale
056

No it's literally a vote for nobody. A non-vote is a genuinely equivalent to a vote only if a majority of non votes means the office is filled by candidate nobody until some candidate gets a majority in the next election, or arguably, until a candidate crosses a predetermined plurality threshold. In systems without runoffs, there is not equivalency, although it's obvious that failure to vote, or casting a blank vote, has consequences. It can even make some long term strategic sense as a political threat.

As my English teacher used to say, satire is a Swift kick in the butt.

EXCEPT, of course, if that mandate-deciding minority is Republican... :D

Michale
055

He's not ACTING like this election had any consequences for him..

"DO AS I SAY, NOT AS I DO"

THAT is blatant hypocrisy..

And yes, "politician" and "hypocrisy" is really redundant...

But my beef is ya'all only call Republicans on it and give the Democrats a pass...

That's my point...

As to the rest, you can spin it any way you want..

But when all the chaff is pulled and the wheat is laid bare, the simple fact is, the Democrat Party got it's ass....

(get it?? Democrat?? Ass?? Get it?? Tough room.. :D)

... handed to it..

The people, by omission or commission have spoken.

And, just like in 2010, the Dem Party is ignoring it..

Which basically sets the stage for a BIGGER Nuclear Shellacking, an APOCALYPTIC SHELLACKING in 2016...

That assumes that the GOP can actually govern.. Which is, by NO means, a certainty...

The Democrat Party lost and lost big.. While I applaud you for trying to find the silver lining (I am a cup is half full kinda guy myself) the simple fact is Democrats are Mudd...

Michale
054

He's not ACTING like this election had any consequences for him..

"DO AS I SAY, NOT AS I DO"

THAT is blatant hypocrisy..

And yes, "politician" and "hypocrisy" is really redundant...

But my beef is ya'all only call Republicans on it and give the Democrats a pass...

That's my point...

As to the rest, you can spin it any way you want..

But when all the chaff is pulled and the wheat is laid bare, the simple fact is, the Democrat Party got it's ass....

(get it?? Democrat?? Ass?? Get it?? Tough room.. :D)

... handed to it..

The people, by omission or commission have spoken.

And, just like in 2010, the Dem Party is ignoring it..

Which basically sets the stage for a BIGGER Nuclear Shellacking, an APOCALYPTIC SHELLACKING in 2016...

That assumes that the GOP can actually govern.. Which is, by NO means, a certainty...

The Democrat Party lost and lost big.. While I applaud you for trying to find the silver lining (I am a cup is half full kinda guy myself) the simple fact is Democrats are Mudd...

Michale

Political hypocrisy is a lot like sunsets - totally predictable and only worthy of comment if the particular occurrence is spectacular. But, in this case, you've simply made the glorious sunset up! When did Obama say this election cycle had no consequence? Of course the election had consequences.

Barak Obama, Nov 5 from WAPO:

"Obviously, Republicans had a good night. And they deserve credit for running good campaigns. Beyond that, I’ll leave it to all of you and the professional pundits to pick through yesterday’s results.

What stands out to me, though, is that the American people sent a message, one that they’ve sent for several elections now."

Consequences of the election duly noted. A message was sent. Spectacular quote not provided, but where is it written that failure to rend his garments and cover himself in ashes is hypocrisy? Your "shock" is rhetorical over cooked baloney. Circular reasoning. Begging the question.

Getting back to the notion of the "average voter" and the Senate flip. Roughly 1/3 of the seats were up for grabs, in roughly 1/3 of the states. Roughly 2/3 of the potential voting population had no vote on the matter. That's our constitutional mechanism. The senate is not decided by anything close to one person, one vote. Regarding the election as a mandate by the "average American" is common enough, but incorrect. Voting is different than polling. Polling is opinion, voting is opinion + power. Roughly 2/3 of the potential electorate had no power to influence the makeup of the senate.

As usual, the vote was approximately evenly split between the parties, with Republicans getting the bigger share I would suspect. So, roughly speaking, 1/6 of the potential voters decided the senate. That's our 200 + year old system, and practical purposes, we're stuck with it, or stuck with something at or close to civil war in order to change it. We could argue about precise percentages, but the basic is point is clear. In any given year, the senate "mandate" is decided by a minority, not by some mythical average Joe or Jane.

I wouldn't put it in those terms exactly, but yes.. That's the case..

A non-vote for Candidate A is a de-facto vote for Candidate B...

I noticed how you won't condemn Obama for being a hypocrite..

Color me surprised.. NOT! ! :D

Michale

So by your compelling logic, not voting is just another form of voting. Voting by omission rather than commission......it's basically the same, which should raise the esteem of the merely lazy and the disenfranchised alike.

On the other hand, This equivalency means that voter fraud is far worse than anybody has realized. Whole cemeteries are filled with unregistered dead who fraudulently vote by omission each and every election! There are stories of the dead voting to tip an election, but the number of unregistered non voting dead must number in the hundreds of millions, and growing! This vast non voting constituency neatly accounts for the low level of congressional activity we see among our representatives and the general creepiness of politicians and their handlers.

To secure public trust, Stringent voting I'D is must. To vote, show ID. To vote by not voting, also show ID. Photo License or photo toe tag.

Dems may be getting a boost from the Latino demographic, but take heart GOP, your older whiter core need never go away with an effective post mortum registration effort!
Rock the non vote!

That usually ends the debate...

But, before ya go, I would be very interested in your thoughts on the last part of #6...

To whit:

Obama himself said that "Elections have consequences"...

I'm just sayin'....

Michale

And, if the election had been identical but favored Democrats ya'all would be saying the EXACT same thing I am saying now...

Michale

"Failure to make a decision is a decision in itself."
-Captain James T Kirk

The people who did not vote in essence DID make their preference known by NOT voting..

By commission or omission, the American people HAVE spoken...

And they overwhelming spoke to Democrats to cut the shit...

This is simply inarguable and undeniable...

Michale

All actors seem to have happily painted themselves into a safe corner. There is no political price to pay for bad behavior, quite the opposite. All politics is local, and local politics in the House o' Reps is gerrymandered. Obama seems quite happy in his role as lame duck. The Senate is functioning as designed: it's a political sea anchor that's perpetually deployed. Supremes are supreme for life/non-egregious behavior.

US National Politics is now pretty close to 100% divorced from the process of actual governance. It's 99% perpetual campaigning = perpetual fund raising. Oh, and things are really not any better at the state or local level.

A few more cycles of this, and it won't be just rural crackpots talking secession. If the populous states ever wake up to the economics of gridlock...

M-(6) Right back at you: What average American are YOU referring to? You think the election was settled by the average American? By the average voter? It doesn't work that way. Not even close. The only thing that's clear is that most Americans didn't vote.

Which "average American" are you referring to??

The "average American" who, just quite recently, told Obama and the Democrats to KNOCK IT OFF!!! in unequivocal and no uncertain terms??

Is that the "average American" you are referring to??

Obama himself said that "Elections have consequences"...

Apparently, he only believes that when HE wins the elections... :^/

I'm just sayin'....

Michale

Happy Thanksgiving, my pal!!!

THAT brought a smile to my face.. :D

Thank you, my friend...

Michale

I guess that means the Tea Party doesn't worry them all that much. ;)

Immigrants from all over the world, however, would be <double-italics>incensed.</double-italics>

Politics doesn't care what the non-voters think. It cares what the people think who are at this very moment plying their extended families with political hogwash, and getting geared up to donate and volunteer in the 2016 primary season that began earlier this month.

I wouldn't say that, Michale.

In fact, whenever anyone says that you're not fit to eat with the pigs, I always stand up for you and say that you are!

:-)

Happy Thanksgiving, my pal!!!

From the biggest turkey here!!! :D

Let me turn that question around..

How does it make sense for legal immigrants to get and return documents when all one needs to do is make it to the United States as an illegal immigrant and then Obama and the Democrats will give them a free ride??

Hmmmmmmmmm???? :D

Happy Turkey Day... :D

Michale