Special Election megathread (6/11: OH-6, 6/25: CO-4)

[Morning in Atlas]

Address the situation. Why is it okay for Shontel Brown to promote a conservative organization that's trying to boost her campaign?

She's not "promoting a conservative organization trying to boost her campaign".  It's an unbiased poll from a pollster with no vested interest in the race (if anything, anyone who supports the GOP would want Turner to win because her serving in congress while posing as a Democrat would be a huge asset for Republican candidates across the country, not to mention it would be one less Democrat in congress)

Be honest, you're just salty that Turner's campaign is in trouble because  the voters are becoming more informed and finding out the truth about how awful Turner truly is.

I think you're willfully lying about the poll. If you actually read the  poll (aside from having a tiny sample size), it's a clear push poll meant to boost Brown.

You can't accept the reality that you're supporting the candidate of the GOP, so you've resorted to personal attacks against me.

[GALeftist]

Address the situation. Why is it okay for Shontel Brown to promote a conservative organization that's trying to boost her campaign?

She's not "promoting a conservative organization trying to boost her campaign".  It's an unbiased poll from a pollster with no vested interest in the race (if anything, anyone who supports the GOP would want Turner to win because her serving in congress while posing as a Democrat would be a huge asset for Republican candidates across the country, not to mention it would be one less Democrat in congress)

Be honest, you're just salty that Turner's campaign is in trouble because  the voters are becoming more informed and finding out the truth about how awful Turner truly is.

Yeah, these are the questions I would ask if I was pro-Nina Turner



I mean, come on, man. You can support Shontel Brown if you want, but this level of blatant spin and bias is just pathetic. You are extremely blatantly choosing the facts to fit your narrative instead of the reverse. Just be honest here and say that you prefer Brown's policies instead of trying to push these demonstrably false allegations that Brown is favored, or that Turner is backed by Republicans, or that she's not a real Democrat, or whatever else.

[RussFeingoldWasRobbed]

Praying to God Turner wins. If ASL won in NM 01 I wouldn't care about this race but we(the left) can't afford another loss. X, what odds do you give Turner at this point?

[S019]

I don't get why people get so worked up about this race. Both Turner and Brown have their issues, even though I sympathize with the views that Brown is less bad. I'd support a primary of whoever won, but if Turner won the primary, I'd seriously consider abstaining in the general. The willingness of her supporters to just forget how she trashed supporting the Democratic nominee is pretty awful.

[Gracile]

I'm going to hold off making pronouncements until we get a better pollster in this race. Brown has picked up momentum and she's clearly not going to get blown out by 30 points, but it still seems like Turner is favored.

[Morning in Atlas]

I don't get why people get so worked up about this race. Both Turner and Brown have their issues, even though I sympathize with the views that Brown is less bad. I'd support a primary of whoever won, but if Turner won the primary, I'd seriously consider abstaining in the general. The willingness of her supporters to just forget how she trashed supporting the Democratic nominee is pretty awful.

Holding Nina Turner accountable

By doing the same thing Nina Turner did

Remember, folks: it's never about not voting blue for these people.

[Chancellor Tanterterg]

Praying to God Turner wins. If ASL won in NM 01 I wouldn't care about this race but we(the left) can't afford another loss. X, what odds do you give Turner at this point?

I’d give Turner a roughly 70% chance right now, but the race is tightening and that number could go down a lot depending on how things go.

[Morning in Atlas]

The fact that a post that blatantly lies about the poll's intent has 5 recommendations shows how detached from reality The Centrists are. We've reached almost Trumpian levels of denial here.

[S019]

I don't get why people get so worked up about this race. Both Turner and Brown have their issues, even though I sympathize with the views that Brown is less bad. I'd support a primary of whoever won, but if Turner won the primary, I'd seriously consider abstaining in the general. The willingness of her supporters to just forget how she trashed supporting the Democratic nominee is pretty awful.

Holding Nina Turner accountable

By doing the same thing Nina Turner did

Remember, folks: it's never about not voting blue for these people.

The difference is I don’t live in this district and I don’t have a national profile, me saying I wouldn’t vote for Nina Turner has literally no effect, since I can’t vote in that seat. It’s very different than a national figure like Nina Turner trashing Biden or Clinton.

[Morning in Atlas]

https://twitter.com/NickTagliaferro/status/1416104160202743814

https://twitter.com/MK_McMaster/status/1415361890683924481

Glad to see the DNC has their answer to Jim Jordan.

[GeneralMacArthur]

https://twitter.com/NickTagliaferro/status/1416104160202743814

Glad to see the DNC has their answer to Jim Jordan.

Oh wow this is a really gross post.

I've never heard of this guy, but his conviction was in 2003 and he appears to have completely turned his life around since then.  Got out of prison, went to college and then grad school, studied hard, became a minister, got involved in his community, and then tried to help direct events for the Dems.

You know, in OH-11 there's a place called EDWINS.  It's a French restaurant and training institute, and hires exclusively criminals recently released from prison.  The idea is to train them in the restaurant industry and give them the skills needed to start a new life and find gainful employment.  It's pretty much universally regarded as a really good idea and a really good thing.  Their website features the quote "Every human being regardless of their past has the right to a fair and equal future."

God forbid any of those folks try to find work in their local political organization, though.  Even 18 years after their crime, they'll still be used as a weapon by self-proclaimed "progressives."

You should go direct your anger at EDWINS!  You can probably find plenty of former kidnappers and rapists among their staff, now being offered gainful employment and the chance to build a new life.  Go leave them a one-star review on Yelp if you really want to express your outrage at this "rehabilitation" concept.

[Morning in Atlas]

Dude.

He had sex with children.

[DrScholl]

So now suddenly progressives are unforgiving of criminals? I am not saying I agree with the hiring, but it strikes me as hypocritical that progressives are attacking this when many of them are pro-prison abolition and all for giving criminals second chances.

[Morning in Atlas]

We're all for second chances. We just don't think people who molest first graders deserve one.

You know, like normal people.

[GeneralMacArthur]

We're all for second chances. We just don't think people who are attracted to first graders deserve one.

You know, like normal people.

It's funny that we finally find a position where I'm more left than you.  I've always felt that the sex offender registry should be eliminated.  Why are you still punished for your crime after leaving prison?  If you've completed your sentence, you've completed your sentence.  If the government doesn't feel you're ready to safely re-enter society, you shouldn't be in that society.  Let's get rid of this grey zone, especially when it's basically a scarlet letter for life that makes it difficult to find employment or build a social network, greatly increasing the chance that you rescind.

I feel this way about all crimes -- make criminal records private, give ex-felons full civil rights, get rid of the criminal history form on employment applications -- but the sex offender one is a particularly strange case because it only exists for one subset of crimes.  If you killed fifty people, you get out of prison and are considered rehabilitated, but if you raped a 17 year old decades ago, you still have to walk around the neighborhood and tell everyone the day you move in.

Anyway, this isn't the Individual Politics board.  I just think it's pretty desperate and disgusting to try and attack Shontel because she let this guy get involved in community event organizing 15 years after he completed his sentence.

[Lief 🗽]

Sick stuff. In a civilized country, this “man” would have received the death penalty for his crimes.

[Pro-Israel, anti-Bibi]

Supporting a pedo to own the Bros

[Donerail]

Anyway, this isn't the Individual Politics board.  I just think it's pretty desperate and disgusting to try and attack Shontel because she let this guy get involved in community event organizing 15 years after he completed his sentence.

Well, yes, but more to the point — this probably cannot be used as a cudgel against the Brown campaign because his LinkedIn also lists him as "Lead Campaign Volunteer, Nina Turner for Ohio Secretary of State."

[GeneralMacArthur]

Anyway, this isn't the Individual Politics board.  I just think it's pretty desperate and disgusting to try and attack Shontel because she let this guy get involved in community event organizing 15 years after he completed his sentence.

Well, yes, but more to the point — this probably cannot be used as a cudgel against the Brown campaign because his LinkedIn also lists him as "Lead Campaign Volunteer, Nina Turner for Ohio Secretary of State."

LOL

[Horus]

We're all for second chances. We just don't think people who are attracted to first graders deserve one.

You know, like normal people.

It's funny that we finally find a position where I'm more left than you.  I've always felt that the sex offender registry should be eliminated.  Why are you still punished for your crime after leaving prison?  If you've completed your sentence, you've completed your sentence.  If the government doesn't feel you're ready to safely re-enter society, you shouldn't be in that society.  Let's get rid of this grey zone, especially when it's basically a scarlet letter for life that makes it difficult to find employment or build a social network, greatly increasing the chance that you rescind.

I feel this way about all crimes -- make criminal records private, give ex-felons full civil rights, get rid of the criminal history form on employment applications -- but the sex offender one is a particularly strange case because it only exists for one subset of crimes.  If you killed fifty people, you get out of prison and are considered rehabilitated, but if you raped a 17 year old decades ago, you still have to walk around the neighborhood and tell everyone the day you move in.

Anyway, this isn't the Individual Politics board.  I just think it's pretty desperate and disgusting to try and attack Shontel because she let this guy get involved in community event organizing 15 years after he completed his sentence.

If you killed 50 people you're never getting out of prison. This isn't Norway.

The sex offender registry should definitely exist for those who committed a crime with someone under the age of 16. Above that I'm inclined to agree.

[DrScholl]

Anyway, this isn't the Individual Politics board.  I just think it's pretty desperate and disgusting to try and attack Shontel because she let this guy get involved in community event organizing 15 years after he completed his sentence.

Well, yes, but more to the point — this probably cannot be used as a cudgel against the Brown campaign because his LinkedIn also lists him as "Lead Campaign Volunteer, Nina Turner for Ohio Secretary of State."

Oops. Looks like Turner fans didn't look over things thoroughly before running with this attack.

[Morning in Atlas]

Anyway, this isn't the Individual Politics board.  I just think it's pretty desperate and disgusting to try and attack Shontel because she let this guy get involved in community event organizing 15 years after he completed his sentence.

Well, yes, but more to the point — this probably cannot be used as a cudgel against the Brown campaign because his LinkedIn also lists him as "Lead Campaign Volunteer, Nina Turner for Ohio Secretary of State."

...That would certainly do it.

Really wish there was another viable candidate here.

[Lognog]

Somehow this race gets worse

[darklordoftech]

Someone better do some investigative reporting. I have trouble believing such a servere crime wouldn’t be noticed by either of them.

[GeneralMacArthur]

Someone better do some investigative reporting. I have trouble believing such a servere crime wouldn’t be noticed by either of them.

Here's your investigative reporting: he committed a crime, earned his punishment, served his sentence, got released back into society, and tried to start over and build a new, better life for himself.  Apparently he was successful, and became involved in trying to do good things for his local community, working as a minister and volunteering to put together events for local Democrats.  These are all good things and exactly how our criminal justice system works on its best days.

This feels like another one of those moments where I thought everyone was in agreement on something but actually there's a significant bloc of folks who disagree.  I thought liberals were in unanimous agreement on the value of rehabilitative justice and providing a fresh start after prison.  I guess that works better when you can construct a fantasy where the crime was justified and the criminal is Jean ValJean, which is pretty hard to do with pedophilia.