Wieners NY seat goes to GOP - foreshadow for 2012?

[DarthTom]

This is a stunning loss for the DNC. Not since 1923 has a Republican held this NY seat.

The ongoing poor economy is taking its toll on the DNC and if the economy still is in the shit tank come one year from today this may be a foreshadow of things to come for President Obama.

Huffington

NEW YORK — It sounded improbable on the surface that a New York City congressional district where Democrats have a 3-1 registration edge and have held office for nearly a century could even come close to electing a Republican to the U.S. House.
But voter frustration over the sour economy and President Barack Obama's policies made the improbable a reality, as a Republican political novice, Bob Turner, scored an upset victory in a special election Tuesday over David Weprin, a Democratic assemblyman from a prominent local political family. The surprising results in the Brooklyn and Queens-area district portend a perilous national environment for Obama as he prepares to seek re-election next year.
Turner said as much when he stepped before cameras to claim victory Tuesday night.
"This message will resound for a full year. It will resound into 2012," said Turner, a retired broadcasting executive. "I only hope our voices are heard, and we can start putting things right again."

 

[Robert Maxwell]

Yes. Republicans will capture 100% of the House, every open Senate seat, and Michelle Bachmann will win the Presidency.

Then, the world will implode right on schedule in December.

 

[SPOCKED]

When Obama goes down in flames, at least we will always have Anthony Wiener to blame. Stoopid, stoopid Anthony Wiener with your gigantic, uncontrollable urges!

Dick

 

[LitmusDragon]

Love the Fark headline for this one

"GOP packs Weiner's seat. No Twitter pics though."

 

[DarthTom]

When Obama goes down in flames, at least we will always have Anthony Wiener to blame. Stoopid, stoopid Anthony Wiener with your gigantic, uncontrollable urges!

Dick

I'm doubting that New Yorkers were the least bit fazed by a politician showing his wiener on Twitter. I'm sure they are however by persistent 9%+ unemployment.

 

[SmoothieX]

^I doubt we'll see a major dip to pre-recession unemployment numbers anytime soon. Companies learned how to get by with less and are not about to just hire people for the hell of it unless there is a reason to do so. We added 3 people in the last couple weeks, and with a company of about 20 people, that's a lot. One is admin staff to replace someone who left. The other two spots are are one engineer to churn out technical stuff, since we were out straight and missing deadlines, the other is also an engineer but was hired more for business development. So we had a need, it's not like we just hired people to fill an empty cube.

 

[DarthTom]

^I doubt we'll see a major dip to pre-recession unemployment numbers anytime soon. Companies learned how to get by with less and are not about to just hire people for the hell of it unless there is a reason to do so. We added 3 people in the last couple weeks, and with a company of about 20 people, that's a lot. One is admin staff to replace someone who left. The other two spots are are one engineer to churn out technical stuff, since we were out straight and missing deadlines, the other is also an engineer but was hired more for business development. So we had a need, it's not like we just hired people to fill an empty cube.

You are correct, worker productivity is up. One of the challenges I've heard anecdotal from small/medium business owners is there still exists uncertainty with regard to Health Care costs and "Obama care" with many employers and the chicken and egg argument of no demand creates no need to hire new employees.

 

[SmoothieX]

I have my gripes about this job, as I would any other one, but ownership positioned themselves well in anticipation of the recession.

The work isn't the sexiest - lots of infrastructure rehab and hazmat abatement - but we are in a much better position than firms that rely upon private development for business. No one wants to leave though, because things are so prosperoous here.

I don't know the inner workings of how they pick healthcare here, but it is an ongoing issue.

We simply had the need to grow in numbers because we were failing to meet deadlines for our clients, which is a sure fire way to lose their business.

 

[DarthTom]

I have my gripes about this job, as I would any other one, but ownership positioned themselves well in anticipation of the recession.

Meh, if I owned a business I'd attempt to maximize productivity, minimize costs myself. Business ownership for most isn't philanthropy.

Balancing the above with being fair or fair enough is the hard part.

On topic: This is a stunning loss for the DNC and should be a wake-up call for Obama if he wants to continue to live at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave in 2013.

Chuck Todd from NBC characterized it this way and Todd typically is very fair and balanced:

** Obama’s rough news day: If Tuesday was “Pile on Rick Perry Day,” today is “Pile on Barack Obama Day.” Consider: Democrats last night lost special elections in New York and Nevada, and Obama’s approval rating didn’t help; a new poll shows that 51% of Americans don’t believe his jobs plan will help lower the unemployment rate; and a congressional hearing today is looking into the administration’s half-billion-dollar loan via the first stimulus to a solar-panel manufacturer, Solyndra, that later went belly up. All of these stories can be explained away via individual context. But taken together, they signal how Obama’s brand has taken a big hit. A stronger Obama could have helped the Democratic candidates, especially the one in New York; a stronger Obama would be getting a bigger reception for his jobs plan; and a stronger Obama would be able to dismiss the Solyndra story as just a minor irritant.

 

[Squiggy]

It wasn't all that stunning...as people were predicting at least a week ago that this seat would turn...but for hyperbolic political reporting, yes...this was stunning.

 

[Robert Maxwell]

I have my gripes about this job, as I would any other one, but ownership positioned themselves well in anticipation of the recession.

Meh, if I owned a business I'd attempt to maximize productivity, minimize costs myself. Business ownership for most isn't philanthropy.

Balancing the above with being fair or fair enough is the hard part.

On topic: This is a stunning loss for the DNC and should be a wake-up call for Obama if he wants to continue to live at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave in 2013.

Chuck Todd from NBC characterized it this way and Todd typically is very fair and balanced:

** Obama’s rough news day: If Tuesday was “Pile on Rick Perry Day,” today is “Pile on Barack Obama Day.” Consider: Democrats last night lost special elections in New York and Nevada, and Obama’s approval rating didn’t help; a new poll shows that 51% of Americans don’t believe his jobs plan will help lower the unemployment rate; and a congressional hearing today is looking into the administration’s half-billion-dollar loan via the first stimulus to a solar-panel manufacturer, Solyndra, that later went belly up. All of these stories can be explained away via individual context. But taken together, they signal how Obama’s brand has taken a big hit. A stronger Obama could have helped the Democratic candidates, especially the one in New York; a stronger Obama would be getting a bigger reception for his jobs plan; and a stronger Obama would be able to dismiss the Solyndra story as just a minor irritant.

We get it. You won't be happy until there's a Republican in the White House. Thanks for that. Now, tell us something we don't know.

 

[DarthTom]

We get it. You won't be happy until there's a Republican in the White House. Thanks for that. Now, tell us something we don't know.

The bed that is Obama's he must lay in - some made for him - some self made. But all the nonsense that the economy "isn't his fault still," is nonsense. The President owns the economy now.

All this crap from his administration about, "bad luck," ad nausea is nothing but complaining in my opinion.

 

[Lindley]

The President owns the economy now.

We'll see whether Congress lets him do anything about it. The political debate up until now has been very light on fixing the economy lately, due to the budget and debt ceiling distractions.

 

[DarthTom]

We'll see whether Congress lets him do anything about it. The political debate up until now has been very light on fixing the economy lately, due to the budget and debt ceiling distractions.

Just curious - what do you think the President or the Congress should do to create jobs? The prior stimulus package proved rather ineffective at doing what was promised, notably creating "shovel ready jobs," which Obama said existed and then said did not over 1 year later.

 

[CaptJack]

We get it. You won't be happy until there's a Republican in the White House. Thanks for that. Now, tell us something we don't know.

The bed that is Obama's he must lay in - some made for him - some self made. But all the nonsense that the economy "isn't his fault still," is nonsense. The President owns the economy now.

All this crap from his administration about, "bad luck," ad nausea is nothing but complaining in my opinion.

I hardly think its fair to say that Obama owns the economy right now. He's pretty much been in a lame-duck state since the Congressional turnover, and had extremely fierce opposition to any action before then. Yes, the Stimulus Package didn't magically solve our economic woes. Nothing will, and no one should have expected any one policy, program, or package of programs to do so. Economies aren't nimble vehicles that can turn on a dime; they're great big ships that take a very long time to change course. This recession/depression has been a very long time coming, and it will be a very long time before we truly recover from it. In order to not get too political in a Miscellaneous thread, I'll just end it with this: I really wish I could have seen where the U.S. would be in a decade had the Obama administration's policies, and proposed policies such as a single-payer healthcare system, received full Congressional and public support. I think it would have been something quite amazing to behold.

 

[Lindley]

We'll see whether Congress lets him do anything about it. The political debate up until now has been very light on fixing the economy lately, due to the budget and debt ceiling distractions.

Just curious - what do you think the President or the Congress should do to create jobs? The prior stimulus package proved rather ineffective at doing what was promised, notably creating "shovel ready jobs," which Obama said existed and then said did not over 1 year later.

I'm not an economist, nor do I play one on TV.

I have heard some economists opin that the previous stimulus did work to the extent that it could----stopping the downward spiral---but that considerably more spending would have been required to turn things around. I don't know if that's true, but I doubt we'll find out now that the Republicans are trying to turn "stimulus" into a 4-letter word.

I think infrastructure spending is almost always a good thing, and our children will thank us for it regardless of whether it helps the immediate situation.

I think an end to the political gridlock, or at least a loosening of the knot, would be beneficial to the economy. It almost doesn't matter what DC does so long as there are clear signs they have a plan and are putting it in motion, rather than staring each other down for months on end.

 

[RoJoHen]

I think an end to the political gridlock, or at least a loosening of the knot, would be beneficial to the economy. It almost doesn't matter what DC does so long as there are clear signs they have a plan and are putting it in motion, rather than staring each other down for months on end.

This, absolutely. I admit I am not a huge follower of politics, but it just seems that government has gotten really good at accomplishing nothing just because nobody can ever agree on a course of action. Republicans? Democrats? At this point, who cares? Let's just do something.

 

[Robert Maxwell]

We'll see whether Congress lets him do anything about it. The political debate up until now has been very light on fixing the economy lately, due to the budget and debt ceiling distractions.

Just curious - what do you think the President or the Congress should do to create jobs? The prior stimulus package proved rather ineffective at doing what was promised, notably creating "shovel ready jobs," which Obama said existed and then said did not over 1 year later.

I'm not an economist, nor do I play one on TV.

I have heard some economists opin that the previous stimulus did work to the extent that it could----stopping the downward spiral---but that considerably more spending would have been required to turn things around. I don't know if that's true, but I doubt we'll find out now that the Republicans are trying to turn "stimulus" into a 4-letter word.

I think infrastructure spending is almost always a good thing, and our children will thank us for it regardless of whether it helps the immediate situation.

I think an end to the political gridlock, or at least a loosening of the knot, would be beneficial to the economy. It almost doesn't matter what DC does so long as there are clear signs they have a plan and are putting it in motion, rather than staring each other down for months on end.

Unemployment declined once the stimulus was rolled out, and it continued to decline until the stimulus money had fully filtered out into the economy--which stopped early this year and, lo and behold, unemployment ticked back up soon after. It helped recovery to some extent but you're right, it was too small and timid, not nearly ambitious enough to turn things around. A stimulus of a few trillion dollars would've made a tremendous difference, but there was no political will for it then and there sure as hell isn't any such will now.

 

[DarthTom]

I hardly think its fair to say that Obama owns the economy right now. He's pretty much been in a lame-duck state since the Congressional turnover, and had extremely fierce opposition to any action before then. Yes, the Stimulus Package didn't magically solve our economic woes. Nothing will, and no one should have expected any one policy, program, or package of programs to do so. Economies aren't nimble vehicles that can turn on a dime; they're great big ships that take a very long time to change course. This recession/depression has been a very long time coming, and it will be a very long time before we truly recover from it. In order to not get too political in a Miscellaneous thread, I'll just end it with this: I really wish I could have seen where the U.S. would be in a decade had the Obama administration's policies, and proposed policies such as a single-payer healthcare system, received full Congressional and public support. I think it would have been something quite amazing to behold.

The President made a series of promises that failed to come to pass notably that unemployment would stay at or below 8% as a result of his stimulus efforts.

Why some people fail to make him own up to that failed promise among many is baffling to me.

 

[Robert Maxwell]

I hardly think its fair to say that Obama owns the economy right now. He's pretty much been in a lame-duck state since the Congressional turnover, and had extremely fierce opposition to any action before then. Yes, the Stimulus Package didn't magically solve our economic woes. Nothing will, and no one should have expected any one policy, program, or package of programs to do so. Economies aren't nimble vehicles that can turn on a dime; they're great big ships that take a very long time to change course. This recession/depression has been a very long time coming, and it will be a very long time before we truly recover from it. In order to not get too political in a Miscellaneous thread, I'll just end it with this: I really wish I could have seen where the U.S. would be in a decade had the Obama administration's policies, and proposed policies such as a single-payer healthcare system, received full Congressional and public support. I think it would have been something quite amazing to behold.

The President made a series of promises that failed to come to pass notably that unemployment would stay at or below 8% as a result of his stimulus efforts.

Why some people fail to make him own up to that failed promise among many is baffling to me.

Has Obama ever come out and said, "Hey, our work is done, the economy is booming, three cheers for me!"? No? Then what the hell are you on about?