Florida Progressive Coalition guru and uber-blogger Kenneth Quinnell is out at the Netroots Nation event, and he's got outstanding live coverage.
Listen to their award-winning radio show, too, with special guest Arshad Asan Hasan, the Executive Director of DFA.
I don't even have an "Election 2012" category for this blog yet -- and I don't want one. Good lord, I just want to get through this election, first.
Still, apparently there are smart folks out there who do a good job of looking ahead. Hillary Clinton, for one. Of course, she put her best and brightest on it. Marc Ambinder has all the scoop on how the Markham Group bought the domain name HRC2012.com. Yeah, I linked it, but you don't have to go there. It's just a lame place-holder.
I have to tell you, I know Greg and Paul and Jessie and McLarty. I worked with Paul and Jessie in Jimmie Lou Fisher's 2002 campaign for governor against Mike Huckabee. I worked with Greg in that campaign, too, and in DC some.
You guys really are the best -- what in the hell are you doing? We are in the middle of a protracted fight between our nominee (it's Barack Obama, if you haven't gotten over the denial yet) and John McSame... and you're pulling this kind of crap?
This is beneath you guys. If you wanted the domain name, you could've waited until at least Election Day. The day after, maybe.
Look, I bet you're all real pissed off that Hillary didn't win. Sorry, but that's just tough stuff. Don't take it personally. Obama was just a better candidate. Hey, if it makes you feel any better, I was supporting John Edwards at the outset of this thing.
Now, I'm sorry that Hillary didn't win (I guess), but can we please not sabotage our current Democratic nominee by doing things as clumsily as this? Sloppy work, gang. Get it together -- and get behind Obama.
Dara Kam at the Palm Beach Post has an update on the phony Green Party candidates who have filed to run in several races across the state.
Political Whore Wayne Garcia at Creative Loafing is onto this story as well.
From Dara's story:
The Green Party doesn't know five candidates who filed at the last minute in five legislative races. All changed their affiliations, and some their addresses, before or shortly after qualifying in June.
"I'm shocked and I'm suspicious," said Echo Steiner of Lake Worth, the state co-chair of the Green Party.
I bet you are, Echo.
"We're being used," said Julia Aires, Green Party of Florida spokeswoman. "Simple as that. This is the first time this has happened to us in Florida."
Actually, Julia, the ones who are being used -- who are being duped -- are voters. You and your party are being abused. There's a difference.
Horatio Lemus, 21, formerly a Democrat, qualified in the race against incumbent Democrat Keith Fitzgerald in District 69 in Sarasota.
[snip]
"I think it's pretty obvious that there's some kind of dirty trick going on," Fitzgerald said.
"If it's true, this will be the first time in history that a state party has had a coordinated effort to put sham candidates on a ballot to manipulate an election," said [State Senator Dave] Aronberg, D-Greenacres.
[snip]
Aronberg challenger Aniana Robas, 28, switched from a minor party to Green on May 28. She is registered in Riverview, a Tampa Bay community well outside Aronberg's district.
Bold/ital is mine.
As Wayne says:
The dirty tricks are already under way in Florida as we begin hurtling toward our November general election date.
Lord have mercy the GOP must really be running scared to start this level of madness this early.
Gallup -- Americans' Current Views of the Economy: 83% negative, 4% positive.
Zogby -- Economic Worries Grow: 3 in 4 say nation is on the wrong track.
ABC News/Washington Post via PollingReport.com: "Which of these do you think is more important: providing health care coverage for all Americans, even if it means raising taxes, OR, holding down taxes, even if it means some Americans do not have health care coverage?" 66% coverage for all, 31% holding down taxes.
Pew: Candidates positions not widely known.
RealClearPolitics -- candidate favorables: Obama 45.9%, McCain 41.8%.
NPR/Kaiser Family/Harvard -- Floridian Financial Woes, "Is your personal financial situation better or worse compared to one year ago, or is it about the same?" 46% worse, 41% about the same.
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