Republican poll challenger James Saalfeld reported violations of election rules at two Grand Rapids polling places this morning by people campaigning to oust Supreme Court Chief Justice Clifford Taylor.
One man handing out literature for Taylor’s challenger, Democrat Diane Hathaway, stood well within 100 feet of the entrance to Eastern Avenue Christian Reform Church, Saalfeld said. The man was wearing an United Auto Workers jacket. Others violated the same 100-foot rule at Sigsbee Elementary, he said.
“It seemed like they knew. It was almost like they were testing the waters to see if anyone would challenge them,” Saalfeld said.
Saalfeld, a Grand Rapids Township board member and local attorney, is monitoring polling places with attorney Tom TerMaat. Both men, credentialed as challengers through the Republican Party, are charged with alerting precinct captains if they see a violation.
“We’re just trying to make sure the rules are followed and everybody gets a fair shot at voting without interference,” Saalfeld said.
I can see the point here. While I have my personal reservation with Republican poll challengers, as I feel it is a form of voter intimidation; I think that the election laws should be followed in any election. This ensures fairness for all.
Let’s keep this election above board. We do not need another 2000 or 2004.
Yes, I did go vote this morning. Yes, I did take the Camera. First the pictures:
And…. Off we go!
I didn’t think there would be many cars at the voting precinct, well, needless to say, I was very wrong!
Did I mention that there were many cars?
Of course, the propaganda masters were out. But I took the bypass to get away from them.
The line was LONG…. But it moved very quickly, people were very friendly, as friendly as one can be at eight O’clock in the morning.
The line moved very quickly, the voting staff was very professional. They even verified my voting information while in the line.
Of course, a trip to a public school to vote, would not be complete without exposure to liberal propaganda. Yes, let’s study and celebrate Multi-Culturalism. Translation: Let’s be ashamed of our ethnic heritage, be ashamed of our forefather mistakes, and embrace Illegal Aliens in our country. I think not!
Well, those were the pictures that I could take. I was not allowed to snap photos inside the voting area, Which is understandable. I had one moron who snarled, “I don’t want any pictures taken of me!” () I said nothing. I wanted to tell him not to worry, because he was nothing I wanted to photograph anyhow. Let’s just say that I did not want to break my camera.
Some things that I saw that stuck out in my mind. An elderly man, who was easily every bit of 75 or older, barely able to walk; who walked with the assistance of a cane. Who came out to vote. I believe that this election is that important to people. Which is absolutely amazing.
The precinct did have plenty of ballots, the line moved very quickly. There were no hassles at all. The election staff here was very friendly. There was an election ballot challenger, he was from the Republican Party. (Surprise there boy!) He was eyeballing the people voting. I somehow doubt that he is going to find any problems around here.
I am glad that that I went early. Because I believe had I waited, I would have been in line much longer.
For what it is worth, I did vote a straight Libertarian ticket this year. Last night, I did have some second thoughts about it, I did consider voting for Obama, however, principles won out over emotions.
It will be an interesting today and this evening and I will be here Blogging on the interesting stuff.
“F__G__D__Joe the G__D__M__F__plumber! I want M__F Joe the plumber dead.”
The reason why it is such a short transcript is because it was during a commercial bump on his show, and whether it was a open mic incident or intentional, still it should not have happened. If someone on the right had said that about anyone related to Obama’s campaign, the Liberals would be out for blood. But because it is McCain’s friends, it’s fine.
I’ve even been exposed to the wrath of Obama’s followers. I did something a while back, that earned me a spot on gawker.com. So, I know all about the rage. I admit what I did was stupid. So I think this liberal ought to own up as well.
Of course, it being a liberal and one of Obama’s supporters, we know that will never happen. 🙄
To which the Editor of the National Review, Kathryn Jean Lopez replied:
Was There a Campaign Bus Nearby?
I mean, is there any more clearer indication to you, that the once fine National Review, founded by a great Conservative like the The Late William F. Buckley, has fallen into the hands of idiotic Neo-Conservative shills? I mean, even Buckley himself, before he passed acknowledged that the Magazine has changed direction.
At this point, I simply ask this. Call me a right of center, Call me a Libertarian Conservative, but don’t you ever call me a god damned Republican. Because the likes of Lopez do not speak for me, at all.
I just wonder, what is Lopez’s Immigration status? I bet an investigation into that would yield some very interesting info. For that damned matter, what’s a descendant of Mexicans doing commenting or American politics anyhow?
Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama leads Republican John McCain by 11 percentage points in the last USA TODAY/Gallup national poll of likely voters before Election Day.
With less than two days to go before polls open, the contenders’ support is estimated to be:
• Obama, 53%.
• McCain, 42%.
Those numbers, released this hour, are based on national surveys of 2,472 likely voters. The interviews were conducted by telephone on Friday, Saturday and today. The margin of error on each figure is +/- 2 percentage points.
Gallup says the group it surveyed is mostly made up of voters who fit its “traditional” model of those likely to show up at the polls. Also among the 2,472 are some who have already voted — including first-timers.
The results are identical to Gallup’s “expanded” pool of likely voters, which adds more first-time voters than the survey firm used in the past.
One other set of numbers to consider: Gallup says that when it allocates the 4% of likely voters who either had no opinion or would not choose between Obama and McCain, it estimates the candidates’ current support levels would most likely be 55% for Obama, 44% for McCain.
This very well could be the writing on the wall for the McCain campaign. What could be causing such a hemorrhage of support for John McCain. Well, besides all the stuff racked up against the Bush Administration, there’s this:
McCain’s choice of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate doesn’t appear to be wearing well with most Americans. In the poll, 45% of registered voters rated the choice as “poor” and another 18% said it was “only fair,” while 19% called it “pretty good” and 16% excellent.
Those are much more negative ratings than in a USA TODAY survey taken just after the Republican National Convention in St. Paul. Then, 60% called the pick of Palin excellent or good; 38% said it was “only fair” or poor.
In contrast, assessments of Barack Obama’s choice of Delaware Sen. Joe Biden remain positive. Now, 60% call Obama’s choice excellent or “pretty good,” while 38% say it was “only fair” or poor. In early September, the divide was 63%-33%.
Biden has a favorable-unfavorable rating of 53%-32%. Palin has a favorable-unfavorable rating of 42%-49%.
One more historic tidbit from the survey: Obama’s favorable rating is 62% — the highest that any presidential candidate has registered in Gallup’s final pre-election polls going back to 1992.
That may very well be the answer. As I have written on here, many times before, John McCain ran on a faulty narrative. One that assumed that the angry Hillary Clinton voters would just come vote for John McCain. That formula, I am afraid was based upon some very flawed thinking. There was a great deal of cooling off that took place, not to mention there was quite a bit of mending that took place in the Democratic Party, between the factions.
Further more, John McCain thought that Sarah Palin would energize the base towards his campaign, and it did just that, but that’s the only thing it energized, it never did catch on with the rest of America. I cannot say that it is entirely the fault of John McCain himself, because having a Vice-Presidential pick say silly stuff like, “I can see Russia from my House!” as a qualification for Foreign policy experience, is not a good way to make an impression on the Independent voters.
I will offer the standard caveat, that is that polls are a snapshot in time; one should keep the issues, not the polls in mind when voting. Vote your principles, Vote your conscience, Vote with your mind, vote with your heart, But above all, Vote. Lives have been lost, blood has been spilled on many a battlefield; distant and domestic, over the great vast space of that shadowing figure we call time; so that we as American Citizens can exercise that one scared thing that gives we the people; the great citizens of this free and Democratic Republic, that is the opportunity to voice our opinions in what happens in our political system in this great country of ours. That is to cast a private ballot choosing whom; we as free Americans, without fear of oppression, to choose the next person to be the President of the United States of America.
If John McCain wants to win, despite the polls, this is not the way to go about doing it. Questioning someones loyalty to America is not a acceptable thing in Politics. As Michele Bachmann recently found out.
Something tells me, that we’ll be seeing a bit more less of this man in the future.
The problem is not technical, uh, and the problem is not mastery of the legislative intricacies of Washington. The problem is, uh, can you get the American people to say, “This is really important,” and force their representatives to do the right thing? That requires mobilizing a citizenry. That requires them understanding what is at stake. Uh, and climate change is a great example.
You know, when I was asked earlier about the issue of coal, uh, you know — Under my plan of a cap and trade system, electricity rates would necessarily skyrocket. Even regardless of what I say about whether coal is good or bad. Because I’m capping greenhouse gases, coal power plants, you know, natural gas, you name it — whatever the plants were, whatever the industry was, uh, they would have to retrofit their operations. That will cost money. They will pass that money on to consumers.
They — you — you can already see what the arguments will be during the general election. People will say, “Ah, Obama and Al Gore, these folks, they’re going to destroy the economy, this is going to cost us eight trillion dollars,” or whatever their number is. Um, if you can’t persuade the American people that yes, there is going to be some increase in electricity rates on the front end, but that over the long term, because of combinations of more efficient energy usage, changing lightbulbs and more efficient appliance, but also technology improving how we can produce clean energy, the economy would benefit.
If we can’t make that argument persuasively enough, you — you, uh, can be Lyndon Johnson, you can be the master of Washington. You’re not going to get that done.
Sorry, you cannot spin that. Obama, in essence, is saying that he will cause one industry to collapse. All so he can promote his own agenda of “Green” energy. The problem with that is this, there are no tested, proven and ready alternative forms of energy, yet.
Ed from HotAir weighs in:
Energy prices skyrocketing will leave the economy in tatters, as we saw earlier this year. While no one doubts the need to start transitioning to better sources of energy, the manner in which that gets done means the difference of whether it gets done at all. A stagnant or receding economy does not produce scientific breakthroughs, especially when government both increases taxes and imposes steep cost burdens on energy. That cuts into both manufacturing and R&D, because as profits fall, fewer dollars go into research — which means that all of these wonderful developments would get delayed, or go unrealized altogether.
We need to plan for the transition better than what Obama proposes. We need to use our own reserves of oil, natural gas, coal, and shale to cushion the economy while we develop the alternatives and build the infrastructure to deliver it. That’s what John McCain proposed in his Lexington Project.
Price shocks on energy is the last thing this economy needs. It would be worse than the taxes Obama promises to impose on investment, and would have the same depressive effect. It’s an utter disaster.
Not only this, but I also believe that if Obama does this, Jobs will be lost. I guess Obama believes that stealing one man’s job, top create another is just perfectly fine. 🙄
That would be like shutting down an auto plant, and putting people, who have worked at an auto plant for some 30 years, out of a job. Just so that a company could start a car plant, making electric cars. Yeah, sure, new jobs are created, but what about the people working for the auto plants, that do not make the Electric car? Why allow them to suffer?
Just more things to keep in mind, when voting, come Tuesday. Because Obama believes in spreading the wealth, except it comes to those working in the coil industry.
If I were the Unionized Coil Miners, I would raising the roof about this!
What I’ve said is that we would put a cap and trade system in place that is as aggressive, if not more aggressive, than anybody else’s out there.
I was the first to call for a 100% auction on the cap and trade system, which means that every unit of carbon or greenhouse gases emitted would be charged to the polluter. That will create a market in which whatever technologies are out there that are being presented, whatever power plants that are being built, that they would have to meet the rigors of that market and the ratcheted down caps that are being placed, imposed every year.
So if somebody wants to build a coal-powered plant, they can; it’s just that it will bankrupt them because they’re going to be charged a huge sum for all that greenhouse gas that’s being emitted.
That will also generate billions of dollars that we can invest in solar, wind, biodiesel and other alternative energy approaches.
The only thing I’ve said with respect to coal, I haven’t been some coal booster. What I have said is that for us to take coal off the table as a (sic) ideological matter as opposed to saying if technology allows us to use coal in a clean way, we should pursue it.
So if somebody wants to build a coal-powered plant, they can.
It’s just that it will bankrupt them.
Now had John McCain had said something like that, the Liberal Media would be all over it. But it’s Obama, so it’s okay.
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Yes, let’s study and celebrate Multi-Culturalism. Translation: Let’s be ashamed of our ethnic heritage, be ashamed of our forefather mistakes, and embrace Illegal Aliens in our country. 
I think 
I wanted to tell him not to worry, because he was nothing I wanted to photograph anyhow. 
Let’s just say that I did not want to break my camera. 