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Where Tuesday's Tide Was All Republican (Oklahoma Turns Redder Alert)
New York Times ^ | 11/7/2008 | James McKinley, Jr

Posted on 11/07/2008 9:30:12 PM PST by goldstategop

Among Oklahomans, Mr. Cook and Mr. White are hardly alone. Though the state’s Democrats still outnumber its Republicans, you would never know it by looking at the election results. Oklahoma voters went for Senator John McCain by almost two to one, bucking the tide that swept Mr. Obama to the presidency. Not a single one of the state’s 77 counties backed Mr. Obama, despite his endorsement by the popular Democratic governor, Brad Henry. ...

Indeed, the state has a political landscape closely resembling that of the old solidly Democratic South, especially in its southeastern corner, known as Little Dixie, where many Southerners settled after the Civil War. When conservatives of the Old South began abandoning the party decades ago, Oklahoma’s Democrats lagged behind the historical trend. Further, the state has relatively small black and Hispanic populations, and so the Democrats did not absorb as many new voters from those groups as in the states of the old Confederacy.

These days Oklahoma Democrats dread running for local office in presidential election years, for fear of being associated with liberal nominees at the top of the ticket.

“Being liberal in Oklahoma, with the exception of a few legislative districts, will not get you elected,” said State Representative Joe Dorman, a conservative Democrat.

(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...


TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Culture/Society; News/Current Events; Philosophy; Politics/Elections; US: Oklahoma
KEYWORDS: 2008election; buckingthetide; conservatism; ok2008; oklahoma; redstate; republicanparty
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To: fieldmarshaldj

Texas is due to gain seats in apportionment, so the GOP could probably bargain away a seat or two. Actually, considering the surge in the Democratic vote in Dallas and Harris counties, we probably may have to bite the bullet and draw up a new Dem-leaning seat in both counties to protect incumbents like John Culberson and Pete Sessions. Culberson in particular won by a reduced margin this time around; his district has some of the same affluent voters that have been flipping to the Dems as of late. Plus Harris County has seen an additional influx of voters from N.O. fleeing Katrina, which is probably part of the problem.

Of course, if we can reverse those trends, then it’s a different story.


161 posted on 11/10/2008 3:00:09 PM PST by Galactic Overlord-In-Chief (Russia invades Georgia? For a moment, I thought that was Red Dawn II)
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To: Impy

The Texas House is now 76-74 GOP. Good grief. We’re losing ground in the suburbs at a rapid rate. By 2010, we could be a rural only party.


162 posted on 11/10/2008 8:45:01 PM PST by yongin (Slick Willard beliefs: Yesterday a liberal. Today a faux conservative. Tomorrow who knows?)
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To: fieldmarshaldj

“. I’ve never been able to get a solid feel for Craddick, whether he is a RINO squish or playing hardball with the RINOs “

News articles say some rats have voted for Craddick as Speaker, what does that tell you. On the other hand a google search of “rino craddick” yields results that indicated RINOs don’t like him.

“the Dems will be able to insist upon more favorable lines for Congressional seats, and we can’t have that.”

Damn right. A gain in 2010 is a must, need some breathing room before the remap. RINO state senator Jeff Wentworth is pushing for a non-partisan commission to do it. California first Jeff.


163 posted on 11/10/2008 9:30:18 PM PST by Impy (When he takes the oath of office will they say his middle name?)
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To: yongin; fieldmarshaldj

Obviously no state wide rat has carried a majority of districts in quite a while. The losses can be blamed on Perry/Craddick not any big ideological shift in the burbs, not in Texas (hope). Poor leadership and party infighting, if the rats have it (Illinois) they gain legislative seats, if the GOP has it, they lose seats.

Rats gains in Alaska can be attributed to the corrupt RINO wing of the party. Palin should forget about the Senate as some freepers have suggested and finish cleaning up her state.


164 posted on 11/10/2008 9:36:43 PM PST by Impy (When he takes the oath of office will they say his middle name?)
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To: Impy
"News articles say some rats have voted for Craddick as Speaker, what does that tell you. On the other hand a google search of “rino craddick” yields results that indicated RINOs don’t like him."

Well, with Dems voting for Craddick may indicate pragmatism on their parts, as Craddick would be apt to reward them for such.

"Damn right. A gain in 2010 is a must, need some breathing room before the remap. RINO state senator Jeff Wentworth is pushing for a non-partisan commission to do it. California first Jeff."

Yeah, NFW to that notion. It took 130 years for the GOP to finally get the upper hand, and scum RINOs like that to hand away the store. Let's see rodents in my state propose that now that the grown-ups finally took the numerical majority in the legislature... What's good for them is HORRIBLE for us... to them.

165 posted on 11/10/2008 10:04:07 PM PST by fieldmarshaldj (~"This is what happens when you find a stranger in the Alps !"~~)
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To: fieldmarshaldj

It’s interesting to note state legislatures lack the strictest party discipline in choosing legislative leaders. Numerous examples abound. SC rats in 95 electing a GOP Speaker, PA rats with a 1-vote edge making a RINO speaker. The coalition in the Alaska Senate. RINOs proping up John Wilder in your state.


166 posted on 11/10/2008 10:44:41 PM PST by Impy (When he takes the oath of office will they say his middle name?)
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To: Impy
"Numerous examples abound. SC rats in 95 electing a GOP Speaker,"

I don't think that was too exceptional. The GOP had effectively gotten control of the House in the '94 elections (tied, IIRC but I think party switches followed). PA in '07 was a bit odd, because the Dem nominee for Speaker was damaged and there was quite a bit of concern who was actually going to end up in the position. BTW, did that guy survive reelection this year ? You also remember the insane situation in the CA Assembly beginning after the '94 elections where a narrow GOP majority had Willie Brown making mischief for an entire year as they went through puppet RINO Speakers who were recalled until Brown exited the chamber after getting elected SF Mayor. It took a year before we got the GOP nominee, and he was out in under a year when the Dems got back the body in '96, so we scarcely were able to make an impact.

Wilder I will say enjoyed bipartisan support for some time and quite literally led the Senate chamber in a NON-partisan manner, absolutely unique to anywhere in the nation. Any member, left or right, who asked for his help in a campaign got it. However, this stopped when we obtained a numerical majority in 2004 and with 2 Republicans voting to keep him, he ruled like a partisan Democrat and gave most of the chairmanships to Democrats despite our party being the majority (!)

He was a sad spectacle in his last 2 years as Lt Governor and watched as several members (virtually all Dem) were indicted and convicted, and he lost control of the situation when Auntie Ophelia made a monkey out of the body with her threats and race baiting. One West TN Democrat switched parties in disgust at the incompetence and when we retained our majority (losing that party switcher by an extremely slim margin), that led to Rosalind Kurita's courageous vote to oust Wilder (after seeing her own party refuse to dump him in-caucus), which preempted the RINO from East TN, Michael Williams (who was the Senate Speaker Pro Tempore, rewarded for supporting Wilder). Kurita got Williams's slot for her courage. Williams quit the GOP and allowed himself to be photographed and labelled for the 2007-08 TN Bluebook as a member of the "Independent NASCAR fan" party (the photo makes him look like a jackass bank robber with a sports cap pulled down over his head and sunglasses wearing a racing jumpsuit -- clearly he took his service as a joke). Williams was finally ousted last Tuesday after 18 years in office. Kurita was "replaced" by the State Dem Committee even after she won renomination and lost a write-in... however, she's going to be the first battle in January in the Senate as Ron Ramsey has not ruled out seating her as the duly-nominated candidate from the primary (that kind of boldness we usually only see from Democrats). The election WAS stolen from her, so this is only the right thing to do.

I might add as well that RINOs have propped up the despicable punk dictator Speaker Naifeh here in TN. The GOP could've held together and picked off Democrats Naifeh had maligned and punished over the years (and believe me, they were there), but they weren't strong and cohesive enough to do it. I suggested even a bipartisan coalition with a DINO named Frank Buck who got f**ked by Naifeh and stripped of a chairmanship after years in the body, but Buck wasn't up for the heartburn of doing so. He stepped aside this year and a Republican lady took his seat (she had run against Buck in '06, but didn't run a hard race, which was essentially setting her up for this year). It doesn't appear, given the situation in the past week, that Naifeh may try to hold on, but you never know what might happen in January -- he still need only get 1 RINO and hold on, and I warned a Republican member that we need to get Conservative Democrats for backups in case Naifeh springs a surprise.

167 posted on 11/11/2008 12:08:54 AM PST by fieldmarshaldj (~"This is what happens when you find a stranger in the Alps !"~~)
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To: Impy

Oh, btw, here’s a pic of the Jackass Williams, but it’s in .pdf format: scroll down to page 24 of 26 at the top of the page (it’ll say 29 by Williams’ headshot):

http://www.state.tn.us/sos/bluebook/07-08/1-senate.pdf


168 posted on 11/11/2008 12:10:27 AM PST by fieldmarshaldj (~"This is what happens when you find a stranger in the Alps !"~~)
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To: fieldmarshaldj

//////Dem nominee for Speaker was damaged and there was quite a bit of concern who was actually going to end up in the position. BTW, did that guy survive reelection this year ?///////

DeWeese? Yup.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08314/926020-58.stm

Little Greene county is no longer ratland. Kerry and Obama who did worse in West PA lost it. Now DeWeese lost it. Murtha won it only 53-47.

///////You also remember the insane situation in the CA Assembly beginning after the ‘94 elections where a narrow GOP majority had Willie Brown making mischief for an entire year”///////

Yup. One of those RINO supporters of Willie became like his best friend and member of his staff.

//////However, this stopped when we obtained a numerical majority in 2004 and with 2 Republicans voting to keep him, he ruled like a partisan Democrat and gave most of the chairmanships to Democrats despite our party being the majority///////

Rats bite when they feel cornered.

//////// Ron Ramsey has not ruled out seating her as the duly-nominated candidate from the primary (that kind of boldness we usually only see from Democrats)./////

A strong leader for once?

////DINO named Frank Buck who got f**ked by Naifeh/////

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2AHPdKJb0A0

/////but you never know what might happen in January — he still need only get 1 RINO and hold on/////

I read his #1 target has come out and said he won’t do it.


169 posted on 11/11/2008 4:42:58 AM PST by Impy (When he takes the oath of office will they say his middle name?)
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To: fieldmarshaldj

“”Independent NASCAR fan””

What a tool! Glad to see he lost.

I don’t get NASCAR.


170 posted on 11/11/2008 4:45:35 AM PST by Impy (When he takes the oath of office will they say his middle name?)
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To: goldstategop; madison10; PhiKapMom

You guys are welcome here, but tell everyone else in California or wherever there’s nothing here... Just dirt roads and some stinky old ol’ wells.


171 posted on 11/11/2008 4:59:11 AM PST by OKSooner
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To: OKSooner

We need to require proof that someone is conservative before they enter the state. :)


172 posted on 11/11/2008 7:50:27 AM PST by PhiKapMom ( BOOMER SOONER LetsGetThisRight.com RED STATE Oklahoma Republican)
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To: OKSooner

Where do I apply for citizenship in the Republic of Texahoma?


173 posted on 11/11/2008 7:52:21 AM PST by MrB (The 0bamanation: Marxism, Infanticide, Appeasement, Depression, and Thuggery)
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To: Tulsa Ramjet

I love living in Oklahoma. We moved to Norman when the BRAC put Kelly AFB on the closure list and were some of the first people to transfer. Chose Norman because of great schools and the University of Oklahoma with one child already in college, one in high school, and one in middle school. Norman North has terrific schools and my two youngest received a very strong education in preparation for OU.

Been in Norman since Jan 1997 and wouldn’t want to live anywhere else after living in seven states with assignments within Air Force Materiel Command and Education with Industry. Have lived on both coasts and in Middle America, Texas, and Norman is by far my favorite place to live.

When I was told we had a choice of Tinker AFB (OK) or Robins AFB (GA), I picked Tinker sight unseen because I did not want to move to where they have occasional alligators on the runway of Robins. My biggest shock was driving up with the kids as their Dad had been in OK for severl months and going through the Arbuckle Mountains on I-35. So much for flat as a pancake. Oklahoma is definitely not flat in a lot of areas. Beautiful lakes abound in this state along with the Wichita Mountain Refuge where you drive through seeing Buffalo roaming free with Moose, Prairie Dogs, deer, etc.

Wouldn’t want to live anywhere but Oklahoma now! This is Home!


174 posted on 11/11/2008 8:02:44 AM PST by PhiKapMom ( BOOMER SOONER LetsGetThisRight.com RED STATE Oklahoma Republican)
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To: Impy

Oops, I didn’t mean DeWeese surviving reelection (although an interesting article nonetheless), I actually meant did the RINO Speaker get reelected ? I presume the PA rodents must’ve either held or gained a few seats in the House (the GOP majority seems secure in the Senate). Will they reelect the RINO, though ?

“Kill Bill”, heh. I had forgotten that line. Poor Buck, he really got f**ked, but not in a good way...

Oh, and BTW, ALL 50 TN House Republicans signed a pledge that they will vote for GOP leader Mumpower for Speaker. Some DINOs may cross over, too. Interesting to note that unlike in a lot of other Southern states, to my knowledge there’s been no party switchers in the House over the past 25 years... all except for one Black Knoxville Democrat in the ‘80s who switched to the GOP and actually managed to win reelection in a Black plurality or majority district (but lost when he tried the election after that). I would expect now with a GOP majority that there may be some switches from people that Naifeh had kept in line via threats that would be more comfortable with us, ideologically-speaking.


175 posted on 11/11/2008 3:48:07 PM PST by fieldmarshaldj (~"This is what happens when you find a stranger in the Alps !"~~)
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To: Impy

Did you see the pic ? That guy had a “kick me out” stamp all over his face. What did you mean about NASCAR ?


176 posted on 11/11/2008 3:49:40 PM PST by fieldmarshaldj (~"This is what happens when you find a stranger in the Alps !"~~)
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To: fieldmarshaldj
Oops, I didn’t mean DeWeese surviving reelection (although an interesting article nonetheless), I actually meant did the RINO Speaker get reelected ? I presume the PA rodents must’ve either held or gained a few seats in the House (the GOP majority seems secure in the Senate).

Oh, well yes Speaker O'Brein did win reelection because he had the rat nomination as well as the GOP! Didn't know you could do that in PA.

The rats gained a paltry 2 seats for a 104-99 edge.

http://www.ncsl.org/

Rat Whip Keith McCall wants to be Speaker and has Majority Leader DeWeeese's (who is going to move down to a lesser leadership position) blessing. It's will be interesting to see if Republicans vote for O'Brien or a real Republican.

The PA Senate does seem secure baring a bad remap. I don't think it's been below 29 R out of 50 in some time. Interesting PA is one of those states where the state rep districts don't evenly fit into the senate districts. And with the loss of the Delaware house and NY Senate it's the only GOP legislative body in the 'northeast'. I wonder why the upper houses in PA, MI, OH, and IN have endured, the later 2 by large margins while lower house and congressional strength in those states have taken a hit. Heck in my state we really ought to have a 30-29 Senate Majority.

Winning the house and Governorship is a must for the PA GOP in 2010.

Kill Bill”, heh. I had forgotten that line. Poor Buck, he really got f**ked, but not in a good way...

I'd rather have the serious head trauma than be the guy got his tongue bit off. :o

177 posted on 11/12/2008 4:43:41 AM PST by Impy (RED=COMMUNIST, NOT REPUBLICAN)
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To: fieldmarshaldj

This photo? Yes.

I mean I don't get the huge appeal of NASCAR. It's not so popular here in Yankee country.

178 posted on 11/12/2008 4:50:26 AM PST by Impy (RED=COMMUNIST, NOT REPUBLICAN)
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To: goldstategop
BTTT.

As a lifelong resident of the state I can very well attest to what everybody is saying about the elections.

This clearly is a state whose values are much different from those of S.F. and Mass.

And, I can tell you not a whole lot of us think very highly of the Times.

179 posted on 11/12/2008 4:57:27 AM PST by E.G.C. (Click on a freeper's screename and then "In Forum" to read his/her posts)
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