An example of what to expect with government-run health care

Patients from V.A. clinics in Tennessee and Georgia are infected with hepatitis and other viruses, and the number could rise. The infections are due to using unsterilized equipment! That's the quality government health care you'll get if the system is nationalized.

Gail Collins takes cheap shots at Chambliss and his win

Oh, it's really not surprising at all, coming from the op-ed of NYT. I can understand why columnist Gail Collins is taking these cheap shots since Democrat Jim Martin lost to Saxby Chambliss in Georgia. If the outcome had been the reverse, I'm sure Collins would've penned something less of an eyesore.

Cheap shot #1, attacking Chambliss' work ethics:

Anyhow, the Georgia runoff was more important than you might imagine. Certainly more significant than anything Chambliss has done since he skipped a closed-door Senate session on Iraq intelligence data to go golfing with Tiger Woods...

Cheap shot #2, making fun of other Republicans and those who went to Georgia to support Chambliss:

...Mitt! Mike! McCain! Together again, just like in the primaries, with a stuffed manatee playing the part of Fred Thompson. “If we give them a blank check, they will sign that check and be taking money out of our pockets,” warned Rudy Giuliani, whose total failure as a presidential candidate clearly has not affected his ability to turn a phrase.

Cheap shot #3, somehow linking Sen. Chambliss' golfing skills with her BDS:

Now Chambliss has been a senator for six years, and his greatest achievement was getting ranked the 33rd best golfer in Washington by Golf Digest. It is highly unlikely that he could stop the president from doing anything beyond making a putt.

Cheap shot #4, dragging Sen. Joe Lieberman into the picture:

Besides, if the Democrats did get the 60 seats, one of them would belong to Joe Lieberman. You may recall that although Lieberman spent the last year campaigning for John McCain (and, as it turns out, donating money to Republican candidates for the senate), the Democrats were so desperate to keep him in their caucus that they caved in to his demands to keep his committee chairmanship. If Lieberman had turned out to be Mr. 60, he would not only have wanted the committee, he would have insisted on being carried to all its meetings on a litter, borne by the fellow senators who failed to appreciate him, with Lindsey Graham running ahead, clashing cymbals.

Cheap shot #5, trying to justify her cheap shots with RINO Olympia Snowe (Maine):

Olympia Snowe, the senior senator, is widely regarded as one of Congress’s quality acts. In fact, some people might have wondered why John McCain, if he was so desperate for a woman on his ticket, ignored a well-traveled, independent-minded experienced legislator who does her homework in favor of an out-to-lunch moose-murderer who cannot seem to put together a coherent sentence.

All right, so #5 can also be #6, which is ridiculing Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, a well-liked politician and rising star among conservatives, but a woman that, for odd reasons, doesn't quite appeal to the feminists and liberal op-ed columnists.

It's not just about those 60 seats...

Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R) defeated Jim Martin (D) with a clear mandate -- by nearly 15 points! --from Georgia voters: we want to stay a red Peach State. This win for the Republicans assures that no super-majority can be achieved by Senate Democrats. Whew!

But it's really about more than that...

Clearly, the Democratic vote driving machine did not work this time in the runoff election. Black voters didn't turn out to vote for Martin as they had in the general election for Obama. If this is any indication of voter turnout in 2010, the GOP certainly will attempt to exploit this kink in the armor.

And why didn't President-elect Obama go down to Georgia to support Martin knowing how important of a race it was? Was he never a believer in Martin? I'm sure Jim Martin is left with a bitter taste in his mouth after this campaign, and not because he'd lost, but because "The One" didn't consider traveling to the Peach State to rally for him.

Chambliss had better luck with his support cast. Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin went to Georgia to campaign for Chambliss, and according to the senator, "When she walks in a room, folks just explode." No matter what your opinion of her is, she's going to stay on the media radar and remain a star in the Republican Party.

And what about the messy senate race in Minnesota? Some Democrats are scared of Al Franken actually becoming a U.S. senator. Is it really that easy for any Hollywood hack to become a Washington politician?! Will a Franken win encourage more of these west coast loudmouths to run for office? A Hollywood invasion of Washington. That won't be a pretty sight.

Chambliss wins in Georgia

The Democrats won't be able to attain their 60-seat majority in the Senate as Georgia incumbent Sen. Saxby Chambliss wins with nearly 60%. My guess is that a lot of Republicans and conservatives came out to vote for fear of the Democratic super-majority threat. It's good to know that Georgia remains red. The win by Chambliss will look good on all those who'd gone to Georgia to campaign for him: Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee, John McCain, and especially Sarah Palin.

Palin's reputation rides on Georgia election

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin went to Georgia to stump for incumbent Republican Sen. Saxby Chambliss in the runoff election on December 2. This senate race has national attention because it could mean a 60-seat filibuster-proof majority for the Democrats if challenger Jim Martin wins (and in Minnesota, Al Franken).

Palin also took a bold step in traveling to Georgia after the fallout of the presidential campaign. Georgia is fairly receptive to Palin's conservative messages, but in other red states and among other Republicans, Palin has plenty of vocal critics. She's obviously interested in staying on the political radar for the coming years, and a win for Chambliss would allow her to bank some political credits. However, if for whatever reason Martin unseats the incumbent, then there will be many, many fingers pointed at Palin.

Ted Stevens loses senate race

Sen. Ted Stevens has lost re-election in Alaska, defeated by Democratic challenger Mark Begich. Sen. Stevens was the longest running Republican senator in Washington.

Now the Democrats have 58 seats in the Senate. The Georgia runoff race between Saxby Chambliss (R) and Jim Martin (D) is attracting attention from the top. Former President Bill Clinton is said to be in Georgia to rally for Martin, while Republican heavyweights John McCain and Mike Huckabee are gathering support for Chambliss.

The importance of the Georgia senate race

Incumbent Republican Saxby Chambliss won only 49.98% of the popular vote and cannot avoid a runoff against Democrat challenger Jim Martin. The runoff election is on December 2. Dick Morris puts it best: The election is not over.

He also mentions GOPTrust.com as the conservatives' MoveOn.org. Seriously? I hate to say it, but GOPTrust.com has a long way to go to even be as effective as MoveOn.org.

Georgia senate race heads for run-off

Neither Chambliss (R) or Martin (D) received 50% of the votes, so a run-off election will happen on December 2. This is a high profile race as Chambliss unseated Democrat and war veteran Max Cleland previously and the Democrats would love to have one of their own from this southern state. Winning this won't put the Democrats to the magical super-majority, but another pickup would hurt the GOP in the Bible Belt.

The day after...

So America and the world celebrate Obama's victory, another orderly and lawful power transition in the United States. Many heralded the end of racism in the country and proof that in America, you can reach your dreams no matter your skin color and background.

As of this posting Obama/Biden won 349 electoral votes vs. McCain/Palin's 163. Things started to look gloomy for MacCain last night when Ohio and Virginia turned blue. In popular votes, Obama/Biden captured 52% against McCain/Palin's 47%. Some would categorize this as a landslide win, but I beg to differ. Maybe in the Electoral College, but not among the population.

The result of the senate races did not give the Democrats a mandate, either. First, Harry Reid's hope of leading a filibuster-proof senate is dashed. The Democrats' plan to unseat minority leader Mitch McConnell also fizzled as he won re-election by a comfortable margin (53% against Lunsford's 47%). In the hotly contested Minnesota senate race, Republican Norm Coleman held a slim lead to win over Democrat and entertainer Al Franken. The race is still tight in Alaska where convicted Republican Ted Stevens holds the lead, but whether he is actually seated is still questionable; and in Georgia, incumbent Republican Sen. Saxby Chambliss may have a run-off against Democrat Jim Martin if neither garner 50% of votes (Chambliss leads a slim margin right now). Overall it looks like Democrats will pick up five more senate seats.

There's a lot of talk about a change in the electoral landscape. Yet that isn't really the case. We still have a Red South, Red Midwest, and Red Prairie. With the exception of Virginia and North Carolina, the other battleground states have traditionally been toss-ups. The GOP needs to refocus on why support in the south has slipped. Although Georgia went for McCain/Palin overwhelmingly, it was troubling that the state became a toss-up in the latter weeks of the campaign.

Georgia holds for McCain

The McCain camp can let out a sigh of relief as Georgia is called for the candidate. This was a southern state which ended up being a toss-up in recent weeks.