Looks like Caroyln McCarthy is doing her part to make sure Gillibrand’s campaign has enough money.
Year: 2009
Stepping Up When It Counts
It’s pretty clear that the media is not going to let Gillibrand’s support of gun rights go away right now. Given that, it’s important that gun owners step up and support her.
One poll already shows that 26% of New Yorkers would be less likely to vote for her because of her pro-gun positions, whereas only 16% would be more likely to vote for her. Fortunately, 41% said they didn’t care. We need to show her that it matters. Those 16% need to show up and/or open their wallets. There’s no way that 26% will show up for the competition on any other day than Election Day. So let’s show Gillibrand that there is no loss to being pro-gun. That with an active 16%, we can easily top their 26%.
- First step: Whether you live in New York or not, sign up for her email list. One, this gives her a strong metric to use against opponents. In the age of the internet, especially after Obama, Paul, and Dean, how many people are on you mailing list now matters.
- Second step: Regardless of where you live, give if you can. She’s already got the Senate campaign started, so we can start giving. Show her the money so that Dems are turned off to a primary challenge and Republicans feel she’s a tough opponent.
- Third step: If you live in or near New York, volunteer. There won’t be much to do at this point, but things will start to pick up later this year. Go ahead and get on the list now to be another metric they can use to scare off the competition.
There are other things you can do like become a supporter of her Facebook page. It’s not as strong as getting on her email list, but it’s public, and they can get an idea of what their supporters are interested in.
One of the biggest risks I see for gun owners could easily be caused by our own inaction. Right now, the media is leaning on her, expecting her to change her positions. Other Dems are saying that now that she reprents the entire state, she needs to turn against guns. Because of this, I suspect many gun owners are going to convince themselves to take a “let’s wait and see” approach to getting involved. If we do that, we shoot ourselves in the foot. Get on board, show her we care and that we’ll support her, and she will be far less likely to give a damn about those anti-gun voters. If we can help her reach out to independents and finance her ability to reach out to Dems on other issues, then we will keep a pro-gun vote in the Senate.
She is going to need a lot of money. She’s only got about $250,000 cash on hand. She’s considered to be a great fundraiser, but a Senate race in New York is not cheap. She will need millions heading into next year.
More Media Heat for Kirsten Gillibrand
From the Albany Times-Union. There is definitely a concerted effort among the New York State media establishment to shame Gillibrand out of her support for gun rights. This puts her in a difficult position. I would encourage everyone in New York, especially Republicans, to send their new Senator a note of support, expressing their appreciation for her support of the Second Amendment. The only thing that’s going to help her stand up to the media onslaught is support from her constituents.
I think that Senator Gillibrand will find that more New Yorkers are closer to Tom King’s view on her than they are to possible GOP challenger Peter King’s.
Barrasso is a No
Wyoming Senator John Barrasso is saying he’ll vote no on Holder.  The reason?
As Wyoming’s United States Senator, I take very seriously the responsibility to protect and defend our right to keep and bear arms. President Obama has every right to nominate Eric Holder to be Attorney General. I have the duty to closely review the nominee’s qualifications and philosophy on issues that are important to all Americans.
Thank you Senator.
Inflation and Deflation
I’m not as panicked as Kevin, SayUncle, and PDB about the vast expansion of the money supply. While I would not sell myself as any economic expert, the risk in inflation the money supply is, well, inflation. But my understanding is that the reason to do this is to prevent giving rise to a much worse beast, which is deflation. We’re already experiencing deflation in a lot of sectors, like Housing, which was the match that lit this fire.
If this recession is fundamentally a problem of people over-borrowing, and business being over leveraged, and falling asset prices, one easy way out of the problem is to inflate your way out of it. The problem with deflation is that it gives people an incentive to hoard money. Not to spend, or invest it, but just to sit on it, because it’ll be worth more tomorrow than it is right now. That’s very damaging to the economy.
Inflation is painful to people who have saved, which isn’t many of us these days. Too much inflation is indeed a bad thing, but if the problem is too much debt, and declining asset prices, an inflationary cycle would actually help alleviate the problem. Unfortunately, runaway inflation is also a big problem, and stopping it can be highly painful. I suspect this massive expansion in the money supply is going to have detrimental effects at some point, as the fed will have to tighten the spigot to deal with inflationary pressures. That’s going to suck, but I suspect it will suck a lot less than the consequences of deflation. Given that, I’ll worry about what effect a rapid expansion in the money supply is going to have when it comes time to cross that bridge. The really scary part to me is, everyone, even expert economists, seem to be playing this by ear. No one seems to really understand what’s going to get us out of this.
Decline of the GOP
This is an excellent analysis of where the GOP stands in the Philadelphia Suburbs. It’s not good. Not good at all. Bucks County, the county I live in, is now the most Republican County, and we traditionally haven’t been. Chester County is even in trouble:
It was once one of the most Republican counties in the state. It gave Nixon 64, 57, and 68 percent of the vote in 1960, 1968, and 1972 respectively; 61 and 70 percent to Reagan; and 67 percent to the elder Bush. Those large margins are gone, though it was the only one of these counties to vote for George W. Bush in 2000 and 2004. 2008 was a historic reversal, as McCain ran 7 points behind Bush’s 2004 performance, becoming the first Republican presidential candidate to lose in Chester County since 1964.
The interesting thing is, Tom Corbett, who is on the short list as a possible candidate for Governor, did very well in the suburbs. The GOP’s losses in some formerly Republican counties, like Delaware and Montgomery, are probably not reversable. I think Bucks and Chester counties can still be saved for the GOP, but they have to front good candidates. As much as I like Pat Toomey, I think Corbett is a much stronger candidate for Governor in 2010, and I hope he runs.
The rest of Pennsylvania needs to be very concerned about this development, because if the Philadelphia Suburbs start voting with the city, they will dominate Pennsylvania politics like downstate New York dominates upstate. That will not be good for a lot of the values central, and western Pennsylvanians hold dear.
UPDATE: I think this commenter pretty much has it right:
1) We must remember these counties are largely Republican bastions to this day at the local level. Republicans control the commission/council in all four county along with a majority of the county row offices.
2) Republicans in these countries run on a different message than their national counterparts: good government. These counties are some of the best ran in the country. The same story can be said for local government. Lower Merion has a local tax rate below the state average while maintaining great services and schools. These people might be social liberals or moderates, but they are generally good government fiscal conservatives.
He goes on to suggest why the brand of Republicanism touted by people like Sarah Palin don’t go over well here. I would actually suggest Palin could sell herself here, since I think she has strong “good government” credentials. George W. Bush’s brand of big government conservatism was a disaster for the GOP in this area. There was little “good” about Bush’s governance from our point of view here. I think people here will coalition with social conservatives, but it has to be a coalition. If the Republican Party continues being the party of big government social conservatism, the Philadelphia suburbs will be solidly Democratic within a decade.
More Hating on Kirsten Gillibrand
So now we have an N.R.A. handmaiden in Bobby Kennedy’s old seat? Kirsten Gillibrand, a k a Tracy Flick, accepting the honor with her Republican pal Al D’Amato beside her on stage? Gross.
This is what passes for opinion these days? Talk about catty.
Then the Democrats would have had another Kennedy in the Senate representing New York — Bobby’s niece and a smart, policy-oriented, civic-minded woman to whom the president feels deeply indebted in an era when every state has its hand out.
I just don’t know if, like, you know, Caroline Kennedy was, like, the right person, you know, to represent New York in the Senate.
Instead they have Gillibrand, who voted against the Wall Street — as in New York — bailout bill. And who introduced a bill to balance the federal budget annually, which suggests she would oppose the $825 billion in deficit spending that President Obama proposes to rescue the country, not least New York.
Like I said, I’m liking these blue dog Democrats a lot better than Republicans these days. She’s against having my tax money go to bail out rich bankers in New York City? I should remember to send her a Christmas card next year.
For the Condors?
Washington State is looking to ban lead shot across the board. The hearing on the bill is today. Why? To save the California Condor. The problem?
This is the California Condor’s established range. Notice a problem? Remember, it’s all about saving wildlife! It’s not about driving up costs to stamp out a politically incorrect sport. Not at all!
Republican Whores
Altmire Vows to Stop Bailout
It’s funny, but a lot of blue dogs these days seem to be more principled that Republicans. Let’s hope this isn’t the only area where Altmire will stand with us. No doubt he’s on Pelosi’s shit list, but Altmire is OK with me.