Just shut up already!

I'm actually not one of those dirty effin' hippy bloggers who got upset at the Democratic caucus for failing to punish Joe Lieberman. I don't like him, but I get it-I understand why it may be better not to punish Lieberman to the full extent possible.

But if he's learned any lesson from all of this, it should be to shut the hell up for a little while. For god's sake:

Shorter Joementum:

Over

"______ of rivals."

That's right, it's over. Done. All of it. "Team of rivals," "cabinet of rivals," all of it. Over.

The mind-blowingly unimaginative news media has drained that construction of all of its usefulness and left only meaningless catchphrase useful only for identifying those that use it as superhacks.

The concept of staffing a cabinet with former adversaries is as good or bad an idea as it ever was. Nobody has done anything to the thing the now-dead phrase describes. But the phrase itself has been rendered lifeless by herd animal talking heads mouthing it somewhere around infinity times in the last two weeks.

Doris Kearns Goodwin should sue.

Gingrich on "gay and secular fascism."

It'd be nice to have republican commentators who actually had a reasonable grasp of this whole "republican form of government" thing:

Did you notice how Gingrich invoked the popular will here? That's cute. Our My old friend, James Madison, had something to say about it:

When a majority is included in a faction, the form of popular government, on the other hand, enables it to sacrifice to its ruling passion or interest both the public good and the rights of other citizens. To secure the public good and private rights against the danger of such a faction, and at the same time to preserve the spirit and the form of popular government, is then the great object to which our inquiries are directed...By what means is this object attainable? Evidently by one of two only. Either the existence of the same passion or interest in a majority at the same time must be prevented, or the majority, having such coexistent passion or interest, must be rendered, by their number and local situation, unable to concert and carry into effect schemes of oppression.

-Federalist #10

Shorter Madison: Where fundamental rights are concerned, the popular will can pound sand.

For those of you keeping score at home

I found out today that I passed the New York State Bar exam. Assuming I can keep my nose clean for a few months, I'm gonna be a real live lawyer!

Strange music: The return!

This is the very definition of strange music. The Sun City Girls are probably my favorite band. 90-95% of their output was utterly unlistenable. The other 5-10% was pure, mad brilliance. Even much of the unlistenable dreck was brilliant in its own way. A live Sun City Girls show could be infuriating or rapturous-or both.

This song may be in the brilliant minority or it may be in the awful majority. I post, you decide.

You still celebrating?

I am. I've been smiling all week.
We haven't undone the damage yet, but we have gone one step beyond the catastrophe that is the Bush years. And in that vein:

Yes, there is...

All you have to do is have a successor with some respect for the constitution.
Mission accomplished!

Just in case you're wondering

We still live in a world where people ask Joe The Plumber&trade what he thinks about things. Fair warning.

(H/t Driftglass)

Seems appropriate

I little music for the end of a week like no other that I can remember:

Uh...ok

To the three of you who wound up here after googling "I'd rather vote for a dog than Obama" as well as anyone else who gets here later via the same route: Errrmmmm...welcome?

It's worth pointing out that the way things are going in the Republican Party these days, you are likely to get your chance in a little under four years.

I'm gonna go ahead and pat myself on the back here

On September 3rd, I wrote this:

Is it possible that the McCain campaign (and more likely, the RNC) chose Palin as a means to save the Alaska senate seat for the Republicans?

I just saw Chuck Todd and John Harwood on MSNBC saying that the McCain campaign is touting a post-Palin bump in the polls in Alaska. They wondered why the campaign would have spent money on a poll in a state as solidly red as Alaska. But it occurs to me that even if the presidential race isn't exactly tight there (and the polls have been tighter than anyone would have guessed), putting Palin on the ticket would get Alaskan Republicans out to the polls, and potentially create some coat-tails for Ted Stevens.

Even if McCain loses, this could prevent the Democrat Mark Begich from capturing what before Senator Stevens's indictment, was considered a long shot victory in the Alaska senate race. I guess it makes some sense for the NRSC to stem the bleeding wherever possible.

I know it's exceedingly gauche to link to yourself (especially at such length), but I'm thinking I may just have been on to something there.

History's pivot

Remember this?

Realization

Every couple of minutes, I think "Obama's going to be President." And not in the hopeful, fingers-crossed way I have over the last year, but really, certainly. And I smile so big my face hurts. Holy hell. Barack Obama is going to be President of the United States of America.

Further signs of sanity

Looks like Marilyn Musgrave got bounced. Huzzah!

Point of personal pride

Nevada just went blue. It's an Obama state. My parents were tireless Obama volunteers since the primaries. Today they were up at 5 to go monitor polls. As far as I'm concerned, my parents won Nevada for Obama. Thanks mom and dad!

Meanwhile

They are showing the scene outside the White House on MSNBC. All it's missing is torches and pitchforks.

Heave-ho, my man. We will shed no tears when you vacate the premises.

(On that note, I'm drinking beer tonight, but on inauguration day, it's fine, fine champagne all the way...)

I'm man enough to admit it

When MSNBC showed the jubilation in Ebenezer Baptist Church, I fell apart.


(AND WE WON FLORIDA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

AAAAAAAnnnnnnd that's a wrap!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

CNN, MSNBC call the whole shootin' match for Obama!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

CNN calls Virginia for Obama

Let me pile on...

It's been said in many, many places and probably more eloquently than I can manage, but I'm going to repeat it:

Howard Dean is THE hero of the night. The strategy that got Obama the nomination, then won him the national election was Dean's (yes, I'm assuming California, Oregon and Washington will not go for McCain-I have a hunch). The 50 state strategy is Dean's jam and it won the presidency, the House, and the Senate for his party.

Tonight should be 80% Obama-hype and 20% Dean-hype. And the people who supported Harold Ford for party chairman in 2004 should feel mighty sheepish.

I'm an asshole, right?

I can't help but think how lucky we are that we nominated the electable candidate who was the favorite of low-education Appalachian whites.

Dodged that bullet.

/snark

South Dakota: only partly crazy!

Rachel Maddow on MSNBC just reported that South Dakota's second recent attempt to run the clock back on abortion rights has failed. Couldn't have happened to a nastier ballot measure.

(fingers still crossed on Prop. 8...)

So long theocrat!

Dole, eh? Can't say I'm sorry to see her take a hike.

This one's for you Liddy. And spread a little around to your theocrat friends:

Like Christmas Eve

I love voting. I always have. I'm a dork and a sap but I just love it. And I've never had the pleasure of voting for my first choice for President. Call it civic pride. Hell, I've never even voted for the winner in a presidential election and I've still always loved doing it.

But this time is different by an order of magnitude. I'm like a kid on Christmas eve. I'm going to wake up early enough to be at the poll site WAY before work-and I hate waking up early. I may not be able to sleep, though, so maybe it'll just be more a matter of getting up than waking up.

Either way, I can't wait.