Carson Clothespin

Lessons of 112

Democrats need to define their positions based on clearly stated principles*, rather than a grab bag of issues. These principles should be defined in moral terms more than in logical terms. Everybody has principles they think are worth fighting and even dying for, and people want to know what ours are. Until we can explain them, they will never trust us. Until we can prove to them that they share those principles, they will not vote for us.

Early Returns

DailyKOS is listing the early returns, with cautionary notes not to get too excited.

Yeah, right!

Election Eve Count

11/1/04 22:00 Today: 19 Total Clothespins: 270 Total Weblog hits: 1402
Check in later for our final election day count. And vote for Kerry and Dodd!

Wireless Youth Cut the Cord for Kerry

Pollwatchers have been calculating a 3% undercount of support for Kerry based in part on the youthful voters who don't get called in the typical "Survey of Likely Voters" schema: They haven't voted before, and they don't have a phone with a cord on it. But Zogby did some heavy lifting, and got the numbers. The upshot? "Senator John Kerry [leads] President Bush 55% to 40% among 18-29 year-old likely voters...." Plus, they can use those phones to play games while they wait in line to vote!

How to Vote

Please plan to take some time and go to the polls early tomorrow. Reports from voters who went to the County Election Board on Friday say the turnout was high and the line was long. This is partly because the electorate is more energized than it has been in years -- but also because OK put so many questions on the ballot, each voter needs a lot more time to exercise their rights! In the end, the election may go to those who care the most -- those who take their vote (or victory) for granted may turn away and go home.

Some very detailed and timely voting information comes from Jeff Johnson of PFLAG. Read on for links and specific instructions about finding your polling place, and what to do if you feel you are being denied the right to vote.

Another OK Blogger Dons the Clothespin

David Rain already decided to hold his nose when he got our message. He tells the story on his Make me one with everything blog.

I called Brad Carson's campaign office a few weeks ago and told them I was going to hold my nose and vote for Mr. Carson for the U.S. Senate despite my strong disagreement with most of his policies and actions in Congress.

Yesterday I learned there's an actual campaign underway encouraging all of us progressive and liberal Oklahoma voters who believe in the principles espoused by the Democratic Party to let Mr. Carson know just that: that while we disagree with most of most of his votes and policies in the House of Representives, we want a Democrat from Oklahoma in the Senate and our "swing votes" can make the difference in whether he wins or loses the race.

Give Your Voice Against 711

Nobody's talking about State Question 711, which will engrave discrimination into the Oklahoma Constitution? Yes they are! And you can lend your voice. Read on....

Sullivan Still Up to Tricks on Brookside

I went down to the BooHaHa Parade on Brookside yesterday to get some pictures of my son's performance with the Edison Marching Band. Imagine my surprise to find myself catching John Sullivan in a little sophomoric stunt right under my nose! Thanks to my cheap little digital camera, I even have the pictures to prove it....

It started innocently enough -- Sullivan's crewe went by with little fanfare. I noted the absence of the candidate and assumed he must be off raising funds from out-of-state interests or talking to conservative church leaders who might be morally flexible enough to overlook his arrest record.

To my Republican Friends in the OK 1st District

Sometimes it really IS just about voting for the best guy.

Doug Dodd, like me, is a Democrat. You probably don't agree with his positions on a number of the issues. I'm not going to try to convince you that he secretly agrees with you, or try to convince you to change how you think about such issues. Instead I want to convince you to vote for him in spite of those differences.

Why? Because sometimes it's just about choosing the better candidate. Who is going to best be able to look out for our shared interests and represent our shared values?

Today's Count - Fri Oct 29 (Day 10)

Today: 26
Total Clothespins: 251
Weblog Hits: 1154

Clothespin Comments on KOS

Now we're starting to get hits from this post on Daily KOS: OK-Sen: Brad Carson campaign stop in El Reno

I had no idea about this group - excellent link. If nothing else, it's great to know that there are more than 6 progressives here in OK :) I've bookmarked the link and will peruse it in depth. But at first glance, even the tag line is fantastic... "Hold your nose and be counted"

Two More Progressive Sites

We're getting links from OkiePundit and the new Scissortail Café online community site.

OkiePundit is a long-standing progressive blog hosted by Alfalfa Bill. I'm glad to find it again (it had fallen off my radar) and add it to our "Where to find OK Progressives" list (see right margin of this page). Scissortail is not a blog, but an interactive site. If you're a progressive, you'll want to go there and check the online event calendar and list of websites -- or maybe add your own entry.

Protest Vote?

Before I came up with the Clothespin concept, I sought out alternatives. Despite my disdain for Ralph Nader's divisive tactics, I don't discount the validity of voting for third party candidates. I sought information on OK Senate Green Party Candidate Sheila Bilyeau. I didn't want to "throw away" my vote, but voting for someone I could believe in would be better than not voting at all. The story of Ms. Bilyeau's candidacy was not encouraging. While I respect her right to run for office and in fact agree with many of her positions, I simply find her lack of qualifications and more-than-erratic behavior make it impossible for me to support her candidacy.

200 Voters in Seven Days

Today: 18 Total Voters: 217 Weblog hits: 972

Okay, in terms of a social revolution, these numbers may not look so great. But one week ago, I was alone. Now I've got 200 voters on my side. And (statistically) conservative extrapolations show my message has reached at least 2000. If you saw the debate last night on Channel 8 (Tulsa KTUL), then you know Brad can use all the help we can give him.

Objective reviews of the debate (what can I be but objective at this point?) score the contest this way:

Coburn - Clueless, but likeable
Carson - On message, but smarmy

Was Carson just tired from his 77 county jaunt? Or is he having trouble believing what he is forcing himself to say? Will Okie voters go for the guy who can't figure out that we want good roads -- but has good hair? Or the guy who has an answer for everything -- but a demeanor like the Count of Muppet Cristo?

I'm thinking Brad will be counting his clothespins this time next week....

Polls Post

Paul the pollmeister has another piece of bad news for Bush:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uselections2004/markosmoulitsas/story/0,15139,1336232,00.html

Of course, the fact that 40 states' presidential numbers don't matter (Bush is polling at something like 65% in OK) doesn't mean that Democrats in those bright red states should stay home. Elections aren't just about raw majorities, they're about trends. If we want better Democratic candidates in Oklahoma, we have to be better Democratic voters. We show at the (voting) polls and show the (telephone) polls to be wrong, even by a few percentage points, and the kind of people we want will be more willing to step forward and speak the truth.

What A Man Believes

I know this site is not about the presidential race, but I had to let you know about this editorial:

Why I believe in our president by Thomas F. Schaller.

Should we shut up?

I received the following thoughtful reply from a correspondent who clearly seems to agree with us on the issues. I hope you will give it -- and my response -- your full consideration.

While I understand well your position, I will respectfully decline to participate in the clothespin exercise. And Tom Coburn is dead set against all those positions you say you support. The difficulty, of course, is that if Carson came out for any of those positions, he would go counter to the positions and philosophy of about 2/3 of Oklahomans. Carson would get about 1/3 of the votes cast, as has many a doctrinaire liberal in this state. We must face the fact that most Oklahomans believe differently from us. Doesn't mean we have to give up, but it does mean that we must try to sway the minds of other people, not just pick on politicians. I witness for the viewpoint whenever I have the opportunity to do it without being obnoxious, i.e. if someone else starts the argument or discussion by presenting the conservative viewpoint, I never sit silently.

Quotes from the Wire

"I understand the vocation of the intellectual as trying to turn easy answers into critical questions and ask these critical questions to those with power."

- Cornel West

Incoming!

Today's Count (as of Monday Oct 25, 10:00 pm): 49
Total Clothespins: 199
Included Bluenoses (Republican crossovers): 2
Website hits: 948

More Comments received by the Clothespins for Carson Campaign:

I received the message below and concur with it completely. I hope Carson gets the strong message that many Democrats are holding their noses and voting for him. Gawd, I hate voting for the lesser of 2 evils, and I fear from his service in Congress that is exactly what we are doing. Many of us need reassurance that he's not another Watkins or Brewster.

*^*^*

I regret that I am forced to cast my vote for Brad Carson in this election. I have been quite disturbed at many of the hateful and divisive positions set forth by Mr. Carson in his effort to win this election. Unfortunately, there is no alternative. Therefore, I'm joining the cause espoused in the attached email. Mr. Carson should know that a significant percentage of votes cast in his favor on election day will not be votes for him at all. Rather, they are merely votes to prevent a man with truly frightening ideas from representing our State in the Senate. Mr. Carson has much work to do to begin healing the wounds he has created within his core constituency.

More Virtual Press

Life and Deatherage comments on a recent online editorial suggesting OK gays withold their vote:

If Oklahoma gay people deny Carson their votes, they don't win. Coburn wins, and then gay people lose. Coburn has said that the "gay agenda," as he calls it, "is the greatest threat to our freedom that we face today." He is against AIDS prevention for anyone who has sex outside of opposite-sex marriage, he is against all laws and rules that prohibit discriminating against gay people simply because they are gay, and if he favors the death penalty for abortion providers, you can just imagine what kind of anti-gay laws he'd pass if he thought he could.