Sen. Reid's Challenger Sharron Angle To Reporters: "Shhh!"

Politicians who do not like to be held accountable to the people they wish to represent would be well advised not to air their grievances in public. Unfortunately for the candidacy of Sharron Angle, a Republican from Nevada, she forgot (or perhaps never learned) how to use common sense. Instead of taking the questions of Nevadans, she proposed a different way of being held up to scrutiny in the Silver State.

From TPM:

"We needed to have the press be our friend," Angle said in an interview that aired on Fox over the weekend.

"Wait a minute. Hold on a second. To be your friend?" said a disbelieving Carl Cameron. Before Angle could fully answer, he added: "That sounds naive." Apparently this was too much for even him.

"Well, no," said Angle. "We wanted them to ask the questions we want to answer so that they report the news the way we want it to be reported."

Cameron's face may have shown disbelief, but only because Fox likes to keep these friendly relationships on the down low....at least when it comes to admitting it. Fox has a long history of proving their allegiance to the Republican party.

As for Angle....well her actions are simply idiotic. Her numbers, once strong and promising for her quest to oust the Democratic Senate Majority Leader, have tanked quite precipitously. I presume comments like this will just keep moving her in the downward spiral she now inhabits.

Tasini For Senate, Part Deux

While the potential candidates to primary State Senators Monserrate and Espada are sorted out, it looks like we have a definite primary challenge to the recently appointed Senator Gillibrand. Jonathon Tasini has jumped in the race to be, as he claims, the progressive candidate. The press release, or shall I say diary is strong and to the point.

From DailyKos:

I believe New York voters deserve a choice. We live in a democracy, and elections should be about addressing the issues, not about party insiders "clearing the field" for a favored candidate. If party insiders had "cleared the field" in 2008, Barack Obama would not be president today.

New York--and the nation--are at a critical point. We are living through the most unprecedented financial crisis in our lifetime--and, at the same time, I see a great opportunity to change the country.

There are great choices to be made--whether and how we will unburden Americans and businesses from the crushing costs of obscene health care costs (I have been an unwavering supporter of single-payer, "Medicare for All"), whether workers will truly share in the great productivity they have created over the past three decades, whether workers will have the right to join a union, and whether we will live up to the promise of "equal justice under the law" by granting marriage equality throughout the land.

I am the only progressive in the race. And I believe, as do my supporters, that we have a chance to move the Democratic Party in a progressive direction. New Yorkers will have a very clear choice in 2010--a choice of values and principles.

Of course that all sounds great, but can a guy that won 17% of the Democratic primary vote take on another establishment candidate? The answer is probably not. Of course anything can happen, and as Tasini notes, Obama did overtake Clinton about a year ago today. Yet Tasini is no Obama and as much as his ideas warm the hearts of progressives everywhere (or not), what anti-Gillibrand forces need is a strong challenger and at this point, the consensus is for Carolyn Maloney to spearhead the effort.