Throw Out the Leftovers!

Election day (November 2) is less than a month away.  And it will be a pretty interesting day for sure.

Despite it being an "off-year" in terms of presidential elections, it is still just as important due to the plethora of Congressional seats up for grabs during this midterm election.  There are 37 Senate seats at stake, along with all 435 House seats.

The TSAP is very displeased with the current do-nothing 111th Congress.  From Iraq/Afghanistan to healthcare deform to energy policy to the economy to the environment, nearly all members have obsequiously shirked their voter-given responsibilities and did precisely what the big-money special interests have told them to do.  Spineless Democrats and crazy Republicans are the majority of the incumbents.  Wimps to the left of me, crazies to the right--stuck in the middle with you.  We need to vote out all (or nearly all) the incumbents, except perhaps when the only challenger is a teabagger or some other right-wing extremist.   Throw out the leftovers in November.

State elections are also going to be important this time.  Not only are there several incumbents that need replacing ASAP, there are also several ballot initiatives in quite a few states.  The most notable of these initiatives is California Proposition 19, which would fully legalize cannabis in California if it passes.  Most polls have been favorable so far, but it will be close, and every single vote will count.  We have discussed this initiative in previous posts, and while we acknowledge that there are a few flaws, it is without a doubt the right thing to do.  And any wrinkles can be ironed out by the legislature after it passes.  If it passes, it will advance the legalization cause by 20 years, while if it fails, it will set the cause back 10 years.  Other initiatives include ones related to medical cannabis in a few other states (Arizona, South Dakota, Oregon), as well as several more mundane ones such as those relating to taxes and budgets.

I tell you this:  no eternal reward can forgive us now for wasting the dawn.

UPDATE:  Most of the latest Prop 19 polls, including the mid-October one, show that the "yes on 19" side is still clearly winning, while the early October one that was losing was most likely just an aberration or heavily biased.  One should note that the only losing ones thus far have been ones using live interviewers, while automated polls have been winning or tied--probably a reverse Bradley effect.  Also, take a look at a new report that shows what a failure the war on cannabis has been.