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A new Mason-Dixon showing Sharron Angle only one point behind Sen. Harry Reid poll garners reactions from both sides of the blogosphere, with conservatives celebrating what they see as her staying power and liberals pushing the narrative that she is too radical for the Senate. Two other issues making waves today both involve Democratic New York Congressmen: a rant on the House floor and a list leaked by a congressman locked in a re-election fight.
"I told you Sharron Angle is okay," Red State's Erick Erickson titled his post, noting that Reid led Angle 44% to 37% in the previous Mason-Dixon poll. "Reid is losing ground and Angle is making up ground... Again, Reid spent ELEVEN MILLION DOLLARS to define and attack Sharron Angle. After all that money, Angle is a point or two behind with Reid unable to make up the ground. Angle will be fine," he repeated.
Though optimistic, NRO's Jim Geraghty is slightly more cautious about the Mason-Dixon results: "So in Mason-Dixon's sense of the race, Reid still can't break 44 percent and has slid a bit; Angle has stopped the bleeding and is actually getting back some of those supporters who were wavering. (Angle's biggest lead in a Mason-Dixon poll was 5 percentage points, back in January.)
More: "I'd like to see some other polls show the same trend before I declare disaster averted. And Angle's still in a race where she has to demonstrate she's a better option than Reid, not merely an alternative; I'm wary of Nevada's "none of the above" being listed on the ballot. But this has got to be the most reassuring trailing-by-1poll of this cycle."
Generally speaking, liberal blogs mostly refrained from talking about today's Mason-Dixon poll. AMERICAblog's John Aravosis acknowledged only Angle's 11-point loss in Rasmussen robopolls, not the close poll numbers in the Mason-Dixon survey. Posting a list from the Huffington Post on some of Angle's more extreme statements, Aravosis wrote, "Yeah, armed insurrection against the government was my personal fav."
Liberal blogs were more focused on New York Rep. Anthony Weiner's tirade yesterday evening after House Republicans resolved to vote against a bill that would have provided aid to 9/11 survivors. The 9/11 Health and Compensation Act was brought to a vote under suspension of the rules, a provision invoked for the passage of noncontroversial bills which also allows House leadership to block amendments.
DailyKos' Joan McCarter writes that Republican opposition to the bill was purely political: "Prevented the opportunity to make political hay because of this procedural move, the Republicans (and a few Blue Dogs) used that as their excuse to vote against the bill. Which brought this, from Rep. Anthonly Weiner: 'If you believe this is a bad idea, to provide health care, then vote no—but don't give me the cowardly view that 'if only it was a different procedure.
"Those great patriotic Republicans who have been more than happy to use 9/11 victims and heroes as political props for years but when it comes time to do something for them, obstruction is more important," McCarter.
AMERICAblog simply posts the video with the headline: "Rep. Weiner Goes Off On Republicans Over Blocking 9/11 Health Compensation Act."
Conservative blogger Daniel Foster at NRO offered his take on the Weiner outburst: "How many times have you found yourself thinking: "You know, I used to disagree with Rep. Anthony Weiner (D., N.Y.) on policy issue X, but then he took to the floor of the House, screamed at the top of his lungs, and shouted me down as a coward, and I've since come around to his position."
The scandal du jour for the conservative blogosphere was the news that Rep. Michael McMahon (D), up for re-election in New York's 13th district (scandalized former Rep. Vito Fossella's district), provided the New York Observer with a list of Jewish donors to his Republican challenger Michael Grimm's campaign, with a statement from McMahon's spokeswoman Jennifer Nelson that "There is a lot of Jewish money, a lot of money from people in Florida and Manhattan, retirees."
The news has raised Grimm's profile among conservative bloggers, along with a Facebook endorsement from Sarah Palin on Wednesday.
Red State's Moe Lane posted a phone interview with Grimm on the blog's website. Of the McMahon leak, Grimm said, "I was speechless at first, because the idea that something like this could happen in 2010 on this level as U.S. congressman? It was beyond disturbing. It is nothing less than outrageous. Especially for someone like me. I'm a combat veteran... these are the things exactly that I fought for, for the liberty and freedoms that I think at this point in our lives and as Americans, we would be much further down the road.
"I don't think of my donors based on their ethnicity or their religion," he added. "They're American patriots."
Wrote NRO's Jim Geraghty, "Let's assume, for the moment, that McMahon's campaign is not a hotbed of anti-semitism, a benefit of the doubt that he has not yet earned. At best, this suggests his operation is riven with folks who have the worst of an Al Davis "just win, baby" mentality; it's not that they hate Jews, mind you, but they thought this would make good way to somehow hurt his opponent and appeal to the anti-semitism of others. It's not that he sought to foster suspicion and hatred of Jews, mind you, merely that he sought to profit from it politically."
Hot Air's Allahpundit called the news "Wonderful" in his headline, and wrote, "When I first glanced at the article, I thought maybe they were trying to make the point, however awkwardly, that Grimm is failing to win over local Jewish voters based on the fact that comparatively few have donated to him. Nope: No way to square that with the boldfaced part from Nelson."
Leave a Comment:
Is this what the "news" has come to?...that we have to hear what both extremes are saying & know what each side is ignoring?
Where's the balanced middle? We need more true discussion.
She is whistling alright but it sounds more like taps.
LOL
Funny... Sharon strikes me as more of a 'hummer' than a 'whistler'! imho!
Feisty,
That just makes me wonder if that is why she keeps her mouth Wide open like Palin does....for the same reason
Good grief, are there really that many dumb voters in Nevada......this woman is an idiot. Can you visualize her on the Senate floor pushing her cockeyed agenda. Please Nevada, we have enough rightwing zealots in Congress, dont add another.
Mamma, I couldn't have said it better...
Let's see... We've got DeMint, Inhofe, King, Buning, Grassley in the asylum.. What's another nut to the mix?
And to think these are the 'chosen' to lead us. Lord, help us all...
Now why would you call the voters Dumb? They make think you are a dumb azz. Have you ever thought about that. You're not from Nevada, so why do you care?
You worry about your Congressional leaders and let those folks worry about theirs.
I can care less about what goes on outside of Texas in MY district aces. If everyone would worry about their own districts and concentrate on making them better then sh!t would change. When you go dipping into someone else's issues then not a damn thing gets done and this is why those 40yr veteran Congressmen keep sneeking in.
I can care less about what goes on outside of Texas in MY district aces.
_________________
And there in lies the problem ITM... take off your blinders will ya?
America consists of much more than YOUR district 'aces'... lmao!
Or hadn't you heard?
They might vote her in for the same reason they voted for Michelle Bachman. There are that many crazy voters.
If republicans win this election, politicians may have to appeal to the crazy voters. 2012 might get weird.
This may be an election where the voters pick the person they like least or can do the least amount of harm. If Angle keeps running to her car and talks to the local media. Then Harry is a shoe-in.
Since they have an option to pick "none of the above" could it be that None of the Above could get most of the votes?
Ron ~ I won't argue with the logic, but if that's the outcome you want, then be careful what you wish for. Harry Reid (whom I do not particularly admire) can do a fair amount of harm as Senate majority leader. Sharron Angle, as a powerless freshman senator with about as much charm as Michele Bachmann, not so much.
But if she gets elected, I just plan to make lemonade. Cool, refreshing lemonade.
Dennis: Excellent post this morning. Well done!!
I guess it is possible that "None of the Above" could win. Could it be that None of the Above could participate in a followup election and you get a new slate of candidates? Who knows...or cares on a Friday afternoon.
Anna Molly:
I'll drink some of that lemonade. Save me a few Door County Cherries to nibble on.
BTW, You were quite funny today.
Just another day in First Read paradise, Ron. But thank you.
Your cherries are reserved.
Geraghty's making some sense and Erickson's whistling past the graveyard. Maybe Erickson can explain how Angle went from +11 to -3 in RASMUSSEN, the right's holy of holies!
This goes to the question of the Dems making a comeback. You can't beat something with nothing and you can't beat nothing with bat s#!t crazy! Angle still hasn't taken a vow of silence, so she'll continue to screw herself!
LoL Auntie. Here's the image that evokes:
the real kicker is a non nut case republican could have beaten (I must have 60 votes) Harry easily. the only reason this race is competitive is that she is so far out of the main stream. if there is a massacre, dems have no one to blame but themselves. so much potential for middle class good wasted. no wonder there is disillusion among the ranks.
joan walsh is my new hero!
Leon, you're right, but your point is....? Nutcases are all the Republicans have gravitated towards since the 2008 election!
Leon ~ The problem with your theory is that there are hardly ANY non-nutcase republicans left, and probably not many at all in Nevada. So we were left with Angle or the Chicken Kook. That whole chicken thing still makes me laugh, but I predict we'll have some fun with lemonade if Angle gets elected.
Here's the punch line: If Angle gets elected, then it's Harry Reid's fault. If the Senate majority leader is not a good enough politician to beat Sharron Mangle, then he's not a good enough politician to be Senate majority leader. It may be time for change, in any event.
Hey Sharon- don't blow it around town, but....... Y' got a whistle up ya butt!
Harry Reid may not be perfect but he has worked hard to push through legislation which seemed impossible considering the constraints of the current Senate rules. He seems like a nice, quiet man--maybe not the best majority leader but he has gotten things done, maybe watered-down but that's not his fault. He supports the democratic views and he isn't afraid of a fight, look at what HCR cost him but he got it done anyway.
The problem with thinking that a Sharron Angle cannot cause much harm since they're new is that if you get enough of new ones like her, there's plenty of others already there to cause great damage. We've already seen how moderate republicans have caved to the Tea Party; there's no reason to think they would do otherwise.
What does it tell you when even Harry Reid's son wants to distance himself from his daddy. I sure hope you Nevada voters help the rest of the country to get rid of this incompetent. Doesn't he sound like he is always giving an eulogy whenever he speaks. This guy is depressing.
Interesting results from the latest Las Vegas Review-Journal/Mason-Dixon poll on the Harry Reid/Sharron Angle Senate race.
In the last poll, conducted by the same people, Senate Majority Leader Reid was ahead by 7 points...that lead has evaporated, with Senator Reid ahead of Angle by a mere one point, with a poll margin-of-error of +/- 4 points.
Harry has used his impressive war-chest to unload a scorched-earth, uber-negative ad campaign against Tea Party favorite Angle...all resulting in a within-the-margin-of error lead of just one point.
Nevadans must really, really despise Harry Reid.
Apparently...even more than most Americans do.
Well, at least if Angle wins, her supporters won't have to resort to their "Second Amendment remedy" and start shooting people.
I wouldn't be all that surprised if Angle won. Being barking mad isn't really all that big a negative for politicians in some states. And Angle's suggestions that conservatives should resort to gun violence if they don't like election outcomes is certainly barking mad.
Mixed Bag ~
You mean Nevada is not in America? Well, that certainly explains it, doesn't it?
Unfortunately, much of rural Nevada sees nothing "barking mad" about the idea of taking up arms against the government. As an unwilling transplant to that neck of the woods, I'm impressed that there are almost as many "Don't Tread on Me" banners as American flags. I personally tend to lean left, but sometimes fear that doing so publicly will earn me four slashed tires, or worse.
I wouldn't get too excited by the change in the Mason-Dixon poll. I don't know the margin of error, but it's probably at least 3%. That means the earlier poll only had Reid up by 1 point, too, if you subtract 3% from his 44% and add the same to Angle's previous 37% number. In other words, the real number could have been 41% to 40%, same as now. Of course, the same goes for the later poll, which could still have been Reid 44% and Angle 37% given the margin of error.
There's always this tendency to divine some trend in these small changes in poll numbers. Probably reading chicken entrails would be just as reliable.
Houston,
C'mon, everybody knows that goat entrails do a better job for divination than chicken ones....Just sayin...
Thanks Fiesty, this guy is a real peach, isn't he? and not too bright himself either.
Just where have you been ITM? Of course these races are of interest to other voters no matter where they live, that's called having an interest in politics, and last time I checked, it was still Ok to express an opinion and if one wants, to support a candidate anywhere in the country. Or should I first check with you? That'll be the day, ..... when I ask any man for permission to do anything.
Now sit down and be quiet.
Ouch!!! Gingerbread Mamma!
Yes ITM has MANY issues not the least of which is bullying women! He might get away with it at home... but he fails miserably around here @ FR!
Keep up the GOOD work... it drives him insane!
Another republican WAC JOB ! End medicare end social security ..What is this broad thinking?
KeepN it,
Obviously she isn't thinking, just like Palin she is one of those programmable plastic pod people who has their programming scrambled by the Rush to Limbo radio waves, and you know how bad They are at scrambling things...
jody, the hcr reid got passed is just about useless for us middle class folk, if we are to be honest about it. reid refused to push anything unless he had 60 votes. the way to mantain a majority is to push your agenda and dare your oponents to filibuster. the bottom line is if dems would have done something for the middle class namely public option(which is optional thus option) or a great big middle class stimulus check for middle America or REAL credit card reform or really getting our boys and girls and money out of the 51st and 52nd states of iraq and afghanistan, we would not be in this situation. Any one of these would have provided enough support to change history and increase the dems majority. reid is not a leader in any sense of the word and as Anna has put it: if reid loses to angle then he didn't deserve to win. please think about this she wants to abolish social security and medicare. the dems have always been too bashful about taking opponents on and it has cost us dearly.
remember kerry and dukakis? I wish to stay above the fray. both losers!
All I need to know Senator Harry Reid (D-NV) is an avid pro-amnesty incumbent, which to me means billions more dollars to support these illegal people. FAIRS analysis offers a figure of 113 billion dollars annually are drained from public treasuries. According to the banking committee 60 billion dollars are forwarded in remittances to foreign countries from illegal labor. THROW OUT HARRY REID AND THE REST OF THE LEADERSHIP, WHO WOULD FORCE THROUGH ANOTHER DEVASTATING AMNESTY. Angle is not the greatest, but she is not pro-illegal alien and she will be shaped by the propagating TEA PARTY and Independents.