Barack Obama’s short-lived bid to be the first Democrat to win North Dakota since Democrats became America-Lasters has apparently disappeared into one of those deep prairie snowdrifts:
[Obama staff spokesbeing Amy Brundage] declined to say how many campaign workers were being shifted, but other Democratic activists put the number at more than 50. Obama has opened 11 North Dakota campaign offices and run television advertising in the state, which is unusual for a Democratic presidential candidate.
McCain’s campaign has no paid staff or offices in North Dakota.
The Obama campaign’s decision comes just before North Dakotans will begin marking early ballots for the Nov. 4 election. Absentee voting may start as early as Thursday, and county auditors have reported getting thousands of ballot applications.
Hm. Who predicted this?
Why yes. It was me.
And who did not? Why, him and him!
Not to say a Democrat could never win NoDak. Just not any of the Democrats currently in the party.
Isn’t North Dakota part of Canada?
Mitch,
I think comparing your prognosticating ability to Flash’s will leave you holding cold, snow swept prairie grass.
NoDakans move to Minneapolis to find jobs, quality of life, and infrastructure that NoDak No Got. Oh, and in some cases, some balance to the right-wing drumbeat of personal responsibility while living in the state with one of the historically highest government payrolls vs. tax receipts. (5th according to the 2005 budget – Ratio 1.65). It really is pretty funny that the states with the higher ratios tend to be those which are most conservative – I guess it’s all those earmarks which they SAY they oppose.
http://www.nemw.org/taxburd.htm
AC- you’re RIGHT, it IS Canada! Who’da thunk it?! I suppose they vote Repug because they get so many handouts as a result
Don Preciado drooled in his wine:
“It really is pretty funny that the states with the higher ratios tend to be those which are most conservative – I guess it’s all those earmarks which they SAY they oppose.”
the last Republican Congressman (Mark Andrews) in ND completed his term in 1981.
The last Republican Senator (Mark Andrews) in ND completed his term in 1987.
Precious One you may be right about the earmarks but they would be DemocraTIC earmarks – not Republican. Do you have any citations for either Kent Conrad or Byron Dorgan opposing earmarks?
See how a little actual knowledge about a subject makes such a difference!
ac: Isn’t North Dakota part of Canada?
quite a lot of the topsoil probably is since a few acres blow across the border from Canada every time there’s an Alberta Clipper – gonna be hell to pay if they ever ask us to give it back.
highest government payrolls vs. tax receipts. (5th according to the 2005 budget – Ratio 1.65).
OK, quit french-kissing Paul Krugman and get ready for actual facts.
Most Western states have lots of federal spending as a percentage of their state product (“earmarks” and otherwise) because they have LOTS of federal land, government installations, and the military. NoDak has millions of acres of federal land (mostly in the west), two air force bases and, still, a bunch of missile silos; the DOD spends a ton of money there.
And yep, the socialistic farm bills pour a lot of money into the state. Go ahead and search this site for any sign of me supporting any of them. That’ll keep you busy for a while; I’ve always favored dismantling them – via air strikes, if necessary.
Finally – yes, North Dakota’s congresspeople tend to serve forever. Dorgan and Conrad are among the most senior senators, with immense power. They – like their neighor and former colleague Tom Daschle – are pork machines.
And they’re Democrats.
Oh, yeah – and when you get past Paul Krugman’s mypopic slurs and the obscenity that is the farm program, North Dakota’s conservatism serves it well. They spend 2/3 as much per student on education – and yet their test scores in most areas are better than Minnesota’s. Their legislature hasn’t gotten a pay raise since the 1890’s – they still get $5 a day, and meet every other year.
So to sum up, Peev – everything you know and say on the subject is either wrong or grossly lacking context.
…or full of insults. He does that a lot.
Peev’s comments are all about volume,
Full of dourness, nonsense and gloom
If you read all his crap,
You’ll need a week’s worth of nap
Or you’ll succumb to his commenting fume.
“It really is pretty funny that the states with the higher ratios tend to be those which are most conservative – I guess it’s all those earmarks which they SAY they oppose.”
WHOHOO! DC has become Republican.
everything you know and say on the subject is either wrong or grossly lacking context.
Wow!!! That very sentence can be used in almost every thread Peev comments.
highest government payrolls vs. tax receipts. (5th according to the 2005 budget – Ratio 1.65).
Fair arguement. Now, to add at least a smithering of credibility to your attack, please tell me which spending you woud cut out of ND.
Close I-94?
Cut Social Security pmts?
Move Minot and Grand Forks air bases to a blue state? Which blue state would be better for our defense?
Close UND or other public school?
Let me add:
Now, to add at least a smithering of credibility to your attack, please tell me which spending you woud cut out of ND.
Abolish all farm subsidy programs?
Privatize Roosevelt Park?
Drain Lake Sakajawea and dismantle Garrison Dam?
Stop enforcing the rules along the Canadian border?
Stop paying social security to the state’s population, whose median age is higher than most of the US?
NoDakans move to Minneapolis to find jobs, quality of life, and infrastructure that NoDak No Got
Well, duh – North Dakota is a sparsely populated farm state; not a lot of things for English majors to do. Here’s the tricky part – not a few people move there to find the quiet, relaxed pace of life and solitude that big cities No Got, too. Different places have different characteristics. It’s not a big secret.
By the way – North Dakota’s economy (business and high tech as well as farm) rode out the last two recessions with hardly a blip. And the foreclosure crisis has pretty well bypassed the place. I’m not moving back there, but Peev, please do try to know what you’re talking about before you slur anything. You are woefully ill-informed.
So – would you care to get any facts straight today?
Oh, yeah:
I think comparing your prognosticating ability to Flash’s will leave you holding cold, snow swept prairie grass.
So have you checked the record (obviously not), or have you just adopted his “if I say it enough times, it must be true” style of approaching arguments?
I’m gonna guess “b”.
I remember flash predicting that John Edwards was going to drop out of the race and endorse Bill Richardson who would then ride the tide all the way to Denver.
I don’t think that happened.
“Close I-94?
Cut Social Security pmts?
Move Minot and Grand Forks air bases to a blue state? Which blue state would be better for our defense?
Close UND or other public school?”
“Abolish all farm subsidy programs?
Privatize Roosevelt Park?
Drain Lake Sakajawea and dismantle Garrison Dam?
Stop enforcing the rules along the Canadian border?
Stop paying social security to the state’s population, whose median age is higher than most of the US?”
Sure. You know, if you ever decide to walk the walk instead of just talking the talk. But we won’t hold our breath.
Would that be a silly walk to match your silly talk, angryclown? Cut subsidies perhaps, and privatize some institutions maybe, but the others? Those sound almost silly enough to get onto a liberal agenda.
BTW – Mitch, neither person said NoDak would go blue, they said MIGHT – and at the time, all they were pointing out was that the polls reflected McCain’s weakness. They both made qualifications that they didn’t expect it, Flash certainly MORE than said he was dubious- so please, predicting NoDak is going to vote Red.. hmmm, that’s not a prediction – that’s simply putting your head outside in a thunderstorm and noticing you got wet.
And Mitch, YEAH, I’ve checked the record, in 2006, you were roughly 2-7-2 – Flash was, conversely,
RIGHT about Bush’s economic policy
RIGHT about the impacts of the Iraq War
RIGHT about the coverups in the White House
RIGHT about the craven nature of the Presidency
RIGHT about the abuses of power
RIGHT about Coleman’s ineherent weakness
Would you like me to go on?
NoDak rode out the last two recessions on farm subsidy and the flat fact that there is little industry in the state. What jobs you have there are either agricultural or DOD related… both of which represent massive subsidy.
My point was dead on – thin skin showing on your part notwithstanding – the states with the highest ratios of money to tax contribution are ALL conservative – including, btw, Alaska, which has such largesse that it gets 80% of it’s revenues from taxing BIG OIL – in a hypocritical twist of reality. Palin doesn’t have the first clue about what it means to be cash strapped – to face real crisis.
And Mitch – infrastructure is something which can be measured per capita – its size relative to population is what counts. I wonder how well NoDak fares? I actually expect it fares pretty well considering the massive federal handouts covering other state costs – but still – your reply couldn’t have been more offbase. Infrastructure doesn’t have a damned thing to do with the states size – it has to do with its willingness to spend on necessary support systems.
BTW – Mitch – you were wrong on your guess.. yet another flubbed prediction.
You predicted Kennedy close – (if memory serves) and you predicted Walz would lose. Those were the closest races other than governor, which you predicted TPAW would win by what, 8 points – hardly right now was it?
You got Frau Bachmann right – I remember that – by predicting what the pundits said, between 5-9 points, and you picked 8, and it was 8, meaning, in a 1-5 shot, you got it.. yippee!
Your ability to foresee coming problems is legend.. well, no, it’s not. Where was your voice regarding this financial crisis, the general health of the economy, or the (likely) recession – including Fannie Mae? wait.. I know.. it was SILENT.
Conversely, people like Flash saw this trouble coming – whilst PollyAnnaBerg fiddled.
Troy, AC is merely pointing out Rightwing duplicity. If Mitch abhores nanny-statism, let it rest first in his own (state) house. Let them balance the budget w/o all the subsidy. Let him try to advocate for the ‘privatization’ of Social Security in his own state – see how well that goes over.
And another thing Mitch…
Flash was right about the ‘economic stimulus/booster shot’ being mostly, a piss in the wind.
Whereas YOU, well, let’s just say you implied it was going to help, in fact, WAS helping.
Yep, we’re so good right now due to that package – I’m sure the folks at Bear Stearns and Lehman are DAMNED glad those checks came JUST in the nick of time.
My. God.
I could say, “Get a life, Peev,” but there’s no amount of life on this planet that could fill the void that is Peev’s existence.
Peev,
You’re making up nuimbers from the clear blue sky, you’re declaring victories based on criteria that are not only subjective but, given that it’s you making them up, intensely divorced from reality, and always, always the off-topic strawmen.
And you are utterly clueless about the North Dakota economy – to the point where it’s really not worth trying to salvage any understanding.
Hey, instead of commenting over here, shouldn’t you be over on your own blog, jacking your post rate up above one every six to eight days?
Peev is also mixing metaphors at a comical rate:
Conversely, people like Flash saw this trouble coming – whilst PollyAnnaBerg fiddled.
I suppose that’s a weird combination of being unreasonably optimistic (“pollyanna”) and fiddling while Rome burns.