Anti-Incumbency Fever Set To Hit PA, AR, KY

It's a cool, rainy and most likely uneventful political day in New York. All eyes will likely be fixed on the primary elections in nearby Pennsylvania, and Arkansas and Kentucky as well. Two incumbents are looking at serious challengers and after Senator Bob Bennett (R-UT) was booted by a more right-wing Republican, the situation has become quite serious. Two of today's races are contests on the left, while the other in Kentucky pits a teabag backed candidate versus the Republican party's choice to take over for resident loon Jim Bunning (who has spurned the establishment and backed the teabag-friendly Rand Paul).

From The Huffington Post:

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama is not on the ballot in this week's primaries, nor is Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the Republican Senate leader.

But both have a stake in intensely competitive Senate races in three states, contests testing the strength of the tea party among Kentucky Republicans and the durability of incumbent Democratic Sens. Blanche Lincoln in Arkansas and Arlen Specter in Pennsylvania.

In a fourth race of national significance, Republican Tim Burns and Democrat Mark Critz battled to fill out the term of the late Democratic Rep. John Murtha in a congressional district in southwestern Pennsylvania. Both political parties reported spending roughly $1 million to sway the race, turning it into a laboratory for the fall campaign, when all 435 House seats will be on the ballot.

Laboratories aside, the biggest issue here that isn't mentioned in the article is that turnout will likely be extremely low. Any kind of defining moment, or partisan revolution, will come from a small minority of voters who are either fearful of new blood or sick of the same old politician and wish to make a change. Of course, there'll be a big headline on every paper tomorrow morning proclaiming a mandate has been stated by the American people (living in PA, AR and KY) regardless. The truth of the matter though, is that most people simply do not care about these contests and do not see a point in bothering to make it to the ballot box.

While Obama Wins, Equality For All Americans Fails

Make no doubt about it, last night was a tremendous turning point in our nation. Barack Obama's overwhelming victory was a testament to our nation's democracy. However, not everything went well for those that must seek to be seen as equals in our society. Across the country, numerous propositions were put onto the ballots of states such as California, Florida, Arizona and Arkansas to restrict the rights of the GLBT community. I didn't expect much from Arizona, Arkansas and Florida (sorry to those that do support equal rights there but clearly you aren't the majority) but I was hoping California could overcome. I was sadly mistaken about having that hope.

From The LA Times:

In San Francisco on Tuesday night at the packed headquarters of the "No on 8" campaign party in the Westin St. Francis Hotel, supporters heard from San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, whose decision to issue same-sex wedding licenses in his city led to the court ruling that made gay marriage briefly legal in the state. .

"You decided to live your life out loud. You fell in love and you said, 'I do.' Tonight, we await a verdict," Newsom said, speaking to a roaring crowd before final returns were in.

Elsewhere in the country, two other gay-marriage bans, in Florida and Arizona, also won. In both states, laws already defined marriage as a heterosexual institution. But backers pushed to amend the state constitutions, saying that doing so would protect the institution from legal challenges.

Proposition 8 was the most expensive proposition on any ballot in the nation this year, with more than $74 million spent by both sides.

The measure's most fervent proponents believed that nothing less than the future of traditional families was at stake, while opponents believed that they were fighting for the fundamental right of gay people to be treated equally under the law.

Obviously the ridiculous belief that restricting rights of the gay community made the "traditional" families safer. Shame on the majority of California's voters for denying people their rights as human beings.

Well, while their ignorance and bigotry may have the proponents of these bills cheering, they must know the fight isn't over. Just as the country's attitude on race is slowly changing as new voters come into the system and the older ones fade out, so too will the ability to treat people the same regardless of their sexual orientation. It took a long time to get where we are on race (and we still have a long ways to go) and hopefully we can get equal rights for all within a smaller amount of time. Maybe not this year and years past, but the future will ultimately be better.

Siegelman Speaks At Netroots Nation

Don Siegelman knows what Karl Rove did (illegally) to him and isn't afraid to talk about the abuse of power used by Rove and the White House to go after the former Governor.

Sacha Cohen Exposes Homophobia In Arkansas For His New Movie

Today is a pretty dark day when it comes to the Constitution, our rights as Americans not to be spied on...stuff like that. So to lighten the mood a bit, it seems that we may have caught a hint of what is going to be in Sacha Baron Cohen's new movie starring his other character, Bruno. If you haven't seen Da Ali G show before, Bruno is a gay reporter from Europe that travels around in a (to put it lightly) flamboyant manner. It isn't to mock flamboyant gay people, but to expose the ugliness of homophobia and make those that embrace it ashamed of their behavior. Well some people in Arkansas may have been shamed last month, but they acted that shame out with violence.

From The Huffington Post:

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Crowds in Arkansas came for the lure of cage fighting and $1 beer, but police say what they got instead was men ripping each others' clothes off and kissing _ a stunt suspected of being orchestrated by Sacha Baron Cohen of "Borat" fame.[...]

The day after the June 5 Texarkana bout, Fort Smith's convention center hosted "Blue Collar Brawlin.'" Fort Smith police Sgt. Adam Holland said organizers told him a character named "Straight Dave" would goad a planted audience member into the ring for a fight.

The two men would then wrestle, rip away some of their clothes and share a brief kiss reminiscent of one between Baron Cohen and Will Ferrell in the film "Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby."

Producers said "there would be a romantic embrace," Holland said. "They said it was kind of to essentially make fun, poke fun at wrestling _ two guys rolling around on the floor, all sweaty."

The crowd's love of wrestling was certainly exposed, as well as all that repressed anger underneath. Unfortunately for their egos, they signed waivers allowing them to be filmed....and most likely shown to the world in all their ugliness when Bruno comes to the big screen. Cheers to Sacha for this stunt, I can't wait to see it in a theater near me.