Recent Posts

Show posts from buddies only

In my opinion, it should be 100,000. I don't care that the House would have 3,400 members. If it's truly the "people's house", the population per district should be small enough where Congressional staffs don't have to be sized in the dozens in order to serve constituents.

That is akin to there size of the state of reresentatives in New Hampshire some 400 members 0r some crazy thing.

Maryland is still not done counting, but here's what we have so far:

Dems (86% in)
Biden 87.2%
Uncommitted 9.7%

Reps (92% in)
Trump 78.3%
Haley 21.7%

By the end, I expect Biden to get to ~88% while Trump around ~77% (though they probably don't have as many VBMs left at this point)

Candidates clash over Middle East Crisis

Washington, 19 May -

In the hours following the Turkish incursion into northern Iraq and the response by Saudi Arabia, both Hurt and Short have responded. The two candidates offered different reactions to the row. Speaking to CNN, Sen. Joanne Hurt (MN-NNL) affirmed Turkey's right to defend itself against terrorism and warned Saudi Arabia against further attacks.

"Turkey is a NATO allly and has an inherent right to stop weapons smuggling from across the Iraqi border. I would caution the Saudis against making any more threats... [W]e don't want another war in the Middle East." Hurt said. "Saudi Arabia has been an ally to us in the past, but as President I will stand up to anyone, even our friends."

When pressed on the fact that Turkey launched these attacks preemptively, Hurt said "Turkey has a right to secure its own borders. That does not mean I condone everything their military does, but this was a sensible decision." She continued "What we should be talking about is the bloody Saudi intervention in Yemen that has killed hundreds of thousands."

Alternatively, Gov. Veronica Short (NY-ALP) has been more critical of Turkey. Speaking to reporters in Brooklyn, Short said "This decision by Turkey was reckless. There remains no convincing evidence that weapons smuggling across the border is occurring." She said. "What this appears to be is a prelude to Turkish expansion into Kurdish territory at the expense of Iraq. We should be standing by our Iraqi partners and sending a clear message to Turkey that further attacks will not be tolerated."

$60M. The fact he hasn't released it yet likely betrays a lack of confidence.

What the hell happened? All I can guess is Morrisey pissed off Trump somehow behind closed doors but not enough to get him to endorse somebody else in this race. The fact that Justice's endorsement did nothing while he won his own primary handily is quite a spectacle.

Did the other candidate siphon off would-be Capito voters?

I presume the networks would still take about a trillion years to call Florida if it votes for Trump by a double-digit margin.

President Warns NATO Ally Turkey against further aggression in Iraqi Kurdistan

President Carey at the White House

Washington D.C. May 19 -

Today, Charles Carey warned Turkey against further military action against the Kurds in Iraq. This warning comes after Turkey attacked several targets outside the city of Zakho in the Kurdistan region of Iraq. The US and Turkey are both in NATO, however this did not prevent Carey from communicating to the Turkish government that the US would not condone further advances into Kurdistan.

Despite these warnings, there is no indication that the US would make any meaningful changes to the American-Turkish relationship. As Turkey is a member of NATO, the US would be obligated to come to the nation's aid in the case of any invasion. Carey affirmed such a committment but also implied that the military would not aid in any offensive operations.

I personally find it a bit odd that Biden's team has not announced money raised for April yet. Wondering if it topped Trump's $76M haul at this point. I would think so, but them being quiet seems odd.

Turkey attacks Northern Iraq, Saudi Arabia warns intervention

18 May
Erbil

Early this morning, Turkish jets attacked Kurdish targets in northern Iraq. This operation came as a surprise to both Iraqi and Kurdish officials. The attack occurred at around 03:00 AM local time near the city of Zakho, close to the Turkish border. The attacks consisted of targeted bombings carried out by TAI Hurjets. The Turkish government claimed it was targeting a number of militias who were funneling weapons into Turkey for use by who officials called "terrorists". The Turkish-Kurdish relationship has remained cold for decades as Kurds make up a large minority in eastern Turkey and a group that has been targeted by Turkey in the past.

A number of countries condemned the attack, including Iraq, Syria, and Saudi Arabia. The latter threatened Turkey against further attacks, vowing to respond appropriately to any infringement on either Iraqi or Kurdish sovereignty. European leaders have cautioned against inflammatory rhetoric.

Marist: Hurt Up Nationally, movement against Short

May 15 - 19 (1000 RV)

Joanne Hurt (NNL) - 46% (+2)
Veronica Short (ALP) - 41 (-1%)
Steven DiFalco (presumptive nominee) (CDP) - 12% (-2%)

First Quinnipiac Poll: Hurt Narrowly Up

May 14 - May 19 (800 RV)

Joanne Hurt (NNL) - 44% (+1)
Veronica Short (ALP) - 43% (=)
Steven DiFalco (CDP) - 11%(-1)

NYT/Ipsos: Hurt Leads Presidential Race

May 10 - May 15 (1200 RV)

Joanne Hurt (NNL) - 43% (+1)
Veronica Short (ALP) - 36% (-3)
Steven DiFalco (CDP) - 19% (+3)

CNN: Tied Race

May 13 - 15 (950 RV)

Joanne Hurt (NNL) - 43% (-1)
Veronica Short (ALP) - 43% (-2)
Steven DiFalco (CDP) - 10% (+2)