Joe Negron May Actually Keep Mark Foley's Old Seat

Terrific news-- Negron faces a not-terrible 7 point deficit, and his opponent, who in a way becomes the favorite as if he were an incumbent, is at less than 50%, at 48%.

If the Dems can't win here, at Ground Zero of the Sex Bomb, rumors of the death of GOP control of the House have been greatly overstated.

Michael Barone... Doesn't see this as a "wave" (let alone "tsunami") election. As of today, he calls it narrowly for the Democrats in the House -- picking up 16 Republican seats, to finish at 219 D to 216 R.

It would only take a few of his "lean Dem" contests -- such as Joe Negron rallying to keep a usually Republican seat -- to swing the other way tp result in a skin-of-their teeth Republican retention.

Jay Ambrose... note that it's a lesser of two evils choice -- as it often is.

So the Democrats, if returned to power, are going to spend less? Of course not. They have never even pretended as much.

They are always yelping for higher expenditures, not lower, making it sound as if it is the call of conscience that shapes their pleas when it’s actually the conviction that you get votes in return for federal giveaways.

In part, they are likely sincere. They really don’t seem to get it that this administration has actually upped spending on poverty programs, that lax immigration policy increases poverty and unwed motherhood solidifies it, that the Bush tax cuts have been a boon to the middle class or that the free market is the best gift humankind’s material needs have ever known. They won’t go along with keeping tax cuts in place — and all of us will pay.

...

Let the Democrats rule the Senate, and forget the possibility that, in the event of a vacancy, Bush will be able to get yet another person on the court as deeply respectful of the Constitution as Samuel Alito and John Roberts.

Yes, many of the criticisms against the congressional Republicans and Bush are legitimate, but many range from the grossly exaggerated to the highly dubious, and there is this to keep in mind: The Democrats, by and large, are far worse.

Again, it's a choice between a party that promises to do what you'd like them to do, but delivers rather spottily, and a party that promises to do precisely what you'd like them not to do, and is just crazy enough with BDS at this point to actually ram their preferences through.

They will have the media on their side, remember-- all of the rough edges of their increasingly extremist (hidden) agenda will be nicely sanded down and polished to a rich, golden sheen by the likes of Leslie Stahl and Brian Williams.

It's difficult for conservatives to get their policy preferences made into concrete law. It's less difficult for liberals to do so, even if there are far fewer of them. They own -- positively own -- powerful institutions that act as critical force multipliers in the war of ideas.

posted by Ace at 03:41 PM

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