Swing State Project

Wednesday, November 01, 2006

Changeover to SoapBlox Site Complete

Posted by DavidNYC

This is the final post on the "legacy" Movable Type version of the Swing State Project. This site now resides at http://www.swingstateproject.com and is no longer being updated. You can, however, find all of our archived posts dating back to this site's origin on Oct. 19, 2003 at this location.

To reach the active Swing State Project site (running on SoapBlox), please visit http://www.swingstateproject.com. Thank you.

Posted at 10:51 PM in Site News | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Site Switchover Coming Soon

Posted by DavidNYC

Hopefully today, we should switchover to our new Soapblox-powered site. (More on that here.) When we do, just a few things to be aware of:

• You'll need to create a new User ID to post comments and diaries - your old TypeKey IDs won't work on the new site.

• For at least the first few days, the archives will still reside on the legacy (Movable Type) site. We'll port them over as soon as we can. This means that the new site will look a bit empty for a little while - so please feel free to start posting diaries!

• And vis-a-vis that last point, links to old SSP stories, either on this site or others, will temporarily "break" until we can finish importing the old material to the new site.

You can check out the beta site here. And if you encounter any technical problems, or things don't look right on your screen, please e-mail us with a detailed description of the problem. Thanks.

Posted at 08:54 AM in Site News | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Tuesday, October 31, 2006

A Quick Note to Advertisers

Posted by DavidNYC

The Dan Seals campaign just locked up the top corner premium adstrip for the final week leading up to the election, but the #2 featured slot (which also holds only one ad) is still available. Traffic has been steadily increasing at the Swing State Project and I'm sure things will be hopping on election night, especially once we have user diaries in place. And, as always, the main adstrip is open.

Posted at 10:45 PM in Site News | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Monday, October 30, 2006

Coming to the Swing State Project: User Diaries!

Posted by DavidNYC

An exciting bit of site news to share - in fact, the biggest change to the Swing State Project since its inception: We're going to be re-launching the site shortly on the SoapBlox platform, which means we'll now have user diaries! Just like on DailyKos and MyDD, all Swing State users will be able to share their thoughts in full-length format. We'll be moving the site over soon, once we work out the last few technical issues. But you can have a look at the preview site here:

http://www.swingstateproject.com/

The URL is only temporary, so no need to bookmark it - we'll be switching the domain names shortly. But feel free to sign up for a user ID and post a comment or diary. You'll find the "Recent Diaries" box in the right-hand column, just below the Campaign Engine ad and the box titled "Menu." (Just be warned - everything on the preview site will get wiped clean at some point soon.) If you run into any technical difficulties or see anything that looks out-of-whack, send us an e-mail.

I'd also like to thank Paul at SoapBlox for all his hard work in getting the new site to look almost exactly like the current version, down to the last pixel. And of course I'd like to thank my very good friend Ben at Media Mezcla for managing the transition on this end and for three years of tremendous service in maintaining and expanding this site. If you want a blog with diaries, Paul is definitely your guy. And if you want a sophisticated Movable Type site or a fantastic campaign software package, talk to Ben.

So go, have fun, play around and report back if need be. We'll post another announcement when we're ready to make the swap final.

Posted at 10:29 PM in Site News | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Thursday, October 19, 2006

Happy Third Birthday, Swing State Project

Posted by DavidNYC

Today is, believe it or not, the third birthday of the Swing State Project, which began three years ago as a humble diary on DailyKos. Since then, this site has featured several guest posters who have risen to prominence in the blogosphere, like Chris Bowers & Tim Tagaris; raised tens of thousands of dollars for numerous Democratic candidates; and has led the way on candidacies like Paul Hackett's in the OH-02 special last year and Paul Hodes's in NH-02 this year.

Most importantly, what's kept this site going are the readers and commenters. Indeed, we've had an astounding 2.75 million visitors since we began publishing this site. I personally have learned so much from following the discussions here and I look forward to reading the comments every day. So a huge thank you to everyone who has made Swing State a huge success over the years. My hat is off to all of you!

Posted at 09:01 AM in Site News | Comments (10) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Sunday, September 03, 2006

E-Mail Subscriptions Are Available Again

Posted by DavidNYC

Good news: Thanks to FeedBurner, we have live e-mail subscriptions once more. If you sign up, you'll get an e-mail every morning containing the prior day's entries here on Swing State. (If we don't publish anything new, you don't get an e-mail.) It's easy to sign up - just type your e-mail address in the appropriate box in the right-hand column, or just use the box just below:

Sign up to receive a daily e-mail whenever the SSP is updated:

I've been testing the service for a couple of days without any trouble, but if you run into any problems, please let us know. Also, a big shout-out to Rick Klau at FeedBurner for helping us set up this e-mail list, among other recent behind-the-scenes improvements to the site.

Posted at 09:40 PM in Site News | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Thursday, August 31, 2006

E-Mail Subscriptions Service Change

Posted by DavidNYC

This is a note for those of you who may have signed up to receive a daily e-mail of SSP posts. This service was provided for several years, free of charge, by Monsur at Bloglet. Unfortunately, Bloglet has now closed its doors. The good news, though, is that FeedBurner provides a similar service, and we should be up and running with them shortly.

If you had previously signed up with Bloglet, you'll have to re-sign up with FeedBurner when that goes live. (I'll post an announcement when it does.) While this might be a slight inconvenience, I'd rather protect my readers' privacy than turn over their e-mail addresses without permission. (What's more, some of the Bloglet e-mail addresses are hidden even from me, so I couldn't transfer everyone over even if I wanted to.)

Thanks for your patience. And feel free to use this as an open thread.

Posted at 05:43 PM in Site News | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Wednesday, August 16, 2006

SSP Changing Servers

Posted by DavidNYC

Because we don't want to wind up like Joe Lieberman on election day, the Swing State Project is moving to a new server. The transition should be seamless for all readers, with one exception. There's a chance that if you post a comment during the change-over, it'll get lost in the ether as we switch servers. So please don't be alarmed if something you write turns into a ghost. But if you were thinking of penning any brilliant comments, you might want to wait twenty-four hours - that's when the transition should be complete.

Thanks for your understanding.

Posted at 01:49 PM in Site News | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Wednesday, June 21, 2006

Server Difficulties

Posted by DavidNYC

Our apologies: As you may have noticed, we've been experiencing server difficulties here today. Usually, they are in the form of "500 Internal Server Errors," which arise when you click a link or sometimes even try to load the main page. We are working with our host company to resolve the problem. Because the error only arises intermittently, if a page doesn't load properly, please wait a few minutes and try again, as there is a good chance it will eventually load. Thank you for your patience.

Posted at 12:23 AM in Site News | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Saturday, June 03, 2006

Weekly Open Thread: What Races Are You Interested In?

Posted by DavidNYC

This weekend, the title question is probably unnecessary - CA-50 and MT-Sen are on everyone's minds. But if you've got anything else going on - perhaps a little Iowa? - let us know.

Also, a few site news notes. First, as you may have noticed, authors' names are now automatically linked to their e-mail addresses. So if you want to contact me, James or RBH, just click our names right below the headline of any post.

Second, we've made it easier to navigate to older stories. When you reach the bottom of the page, you will now see a link to "Next Page »". Clicking that will bring you to the previous set of posts. You can keep navigating back that way at for least 10 pages worth of material.

Finally, you'll notice that the last link at the bottom of every post says "Technorati". This link will take you to a page on the blog search engine Technorati where you can see if other blogs have linked to (and are discussing) the post in question. For example, a number of blogs linked to yesterday's post about CA-50 GOTV efforts, which is definitely something I like to see. Anyhow, it's a fun feature you can play around with.

P.S. It's also looking like another new contributing editor may join us here soon. Stay tuned!

Posted at 05:10 PM in Open Threads, Site News | Comments (27) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Thursday, May 18, 2006

An Introduction

Posted by RBH

Howdy. It really didn't take a lot of time for me to accept the offer to be a guest blogger here.

While James is from Alberta, I'm from Missouri. Missouri being the geographic center of America, and probably one of the swingingest of all swing states. Missouri offers unpredictablle weather, scenic fields, and Missouri also offers up a front-line Senate race, between Claire McCaskill and Jim Talent.

But then again, I'm sure that the SSP audience probably heard of that whole McCaskill/Talent thing.

When it comes to that campaign, I'll imagine that as we move farther into Summer, Jim Talent will continue to tap dance and sing his new tune. A song which he doesn't usually sing (except in election years).

But, enough about Jim Talent for the moment. When "Jumping Jim" does his "election year tap dance," I'll pass it along.

Back to me for a few moments. I'm 20 (which makes it a bit more incredible that I get to use a shiny object like MT). My first votes were in 2004. I'll also try to refrain from directing donations. I'll also try not to ignite a "Coke v. Pepsi" flamewar. Basically what I'll offer involves campaign news (with possible assists from Google News or Lexis-Nexis or where ever else) .

I'd like to thank David for the offer to be on here. Also, I wouldn't be stunned if I post something on here sometime today or tomorrow.

Posted at 09:58 AM in Site News | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

A View From the North

Posted by James L.

When DavidNYC first approached me with the opportunity to join the Swing State Project as a guest blogger, I immediately said yes (after changing my pants, of course), but with one major caveat: that my presence on the front page will undoubtedly raise more than a few eyebrows. The long and short of it is that I’m Canadian. Granted, I am a Canadian with a borderline-unhealthy interest in U.S. electoral politics, but a Canadian nonetheless.

You may be wondering why someone from Canada has been engaging in U.S. political discussion and keeping tabs on local races in the U.S. Fair question. It could be that the fate of the free world hinges on the political direction of the U.S., but the honest assessment is that I’m an elections junkie in a region with a devastatingly boring political climate. In my home province of Alberta, the government has only changed hands between political parties twice in the last 100 years, and not once in my lifetime. Yawn. For the real juicy stuff, you’ve just gotta look south, baby. And, as a Political Science major with a focus on North American and international politics at the University of Alberta, the U.S. is constantly under my microscope. I think that I’ve built up enough knowledge on American politics to speak coherently on the subject, but I have no doubt that being more intimately involved in this blog will provide many more opportunities to learn. I’m sure it’ll be a blast.

Also, let me be clear about my role here: I’m not here to tell you who to donate to (I’ll leave that to David), or to provoke discussions on international politics, or to wedge ideological debates within my entries. To me, the Swing State Project is about one thing, and one thing only: meat ‘n’ potatoes, nitty gritty U.S. electoral analysis and discussion. That's the reason I'm here and that’s not going to change.

Last but not least, thanks again to DavidNYC for letting me borrow the keys. I’ll try not to take her out for too many joyrides, old man…

Posted at 02:03 AM in Site News | Comments (11) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Wednesday, May 17, 2006

Introducing Our New Contributing Editors

Posted by DavidNYC

As you know, I've just finished up law school. While I'm thrilled beyond words to be done with school, this unfortunately means that in less than a week, I start bar review classes (the bar exam is at the end of July). Because I'd like to keep the Swing State Project going strong, I've asked two new contributing editors to join me as guest posters. Their names are undoubtedly familiar to you, as they've both been longtime commenters and community members here.

So please give a warm welcome to RBH and James L. (whom you know as "HellofaSandwich"). Both RBH and James, like myself, are keenly interested in the bread and butter of this site, horserace politics. If you've ever read any of their commentary, you know that these guys really know their stuff. Indeed, their comments have often inspired me to research and write on new topics. I know you will enjoy reading their front-page posts.

As for me, I will do my best to stay active on the site as I study for the bar. But it goes without saying that I am truly grateful to James and RBH for stepping up to the plate here to make sure that the SSP continues to thrive. I know the site is in good hands, and I can't wait to see what the future holds.

Posted at 03:54 PM in Site News | Comments (5) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Wednesday, April 26, 2006

Blogads Survey Results

Posted by DavidNYC

A while back, I asked you to participate in the Blogads Reader Survey. Almost thirty of you were kind enough to do so and to list the Swing State Project as your referring blog. While that's not a huge sample size, it's enough to get the gist of what the readership of this site is like. Click here for the SSP-specific results. One thing that jumped out at me: 8 of 29 respondents are students - perhaps like attracts like!

The full Blogads survey (covering all political blogs) is here, and a descriptive summary is here. Thanks again for participating!

Posted at 12:52 PM in Site News | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Monday, April 24, 2006

Crunch Time

Posted by DavidNYC

Sorry about the slow posting - I'm in my last week of law school classes, ever! While I consider that to be excellent good news, it also means that it's final exam crunch time. I'll try to toss up some updates now and again, but you'll have to forgive me in advance for any paucity in posting over the next few weeks.

For now, please feel free to chatter away about anything and everything in this thread.

Posted at 03:17 PM in Site News | Comments (16) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Saturday, March 18, 2006

Weekly Open Thread: What Races Are You Interested In?

Posted by DavidNYC

NY-24 is currently my number one race, and I suspect it'll occupy quite a lot of my thoughts from now until November. People are saying that Oneida County DA Mike Arcuri is the top Dem candidate. What do you know about him? (And, if Arcuri's as good as people seem to think, I'd really like it if the campaign would start reaching out to bloggers.)

Posted at 01:53 PM in Site News | Comments (25) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Saturday, March 11, 2006

Koufax Awards Voting Has Begun

Posted by DavidNYC

Voting for the 2005 Koufax Awards has begun. I support the Sandies both because I like the idea of recognizing blogs and bloggers who have made meaningful contributions to the blogosphere, but also because I think the lists of past winners can serve as a helpful guide for newcomers to blog-land. To vote, go over to Wampum and click on the category links in the box atop the left-hand column. Leave a comment with your vote in each category you wish to vote in.

One blog I am definitely casting my ballot for is the Bluegrass Report, in the category of "Best State/Local Blog." I think Mark Nickolas almost single-handedly helped put a Congressional seat in play with his tireless - and successful - efforts to Draft Ken Lucas. For that alone, he deserves the nod. Mark was kind enough to support this humble site in the category of "Best Single-Issue Blog," but I'd be voting for Bluegrass Report even if he weren't.

Posted at 05:53 PM in Site News | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Thursday, March 09, 2006

MPRE Lockdown

Posted by DavidNYC

With the MPRE (joy!) this weekend, I don't expect to be able to post between now and then. Regularly scheduled posting should resume next week.

Please use this as an open thread to discuss whatever races you're interested in. CA-50, for one, looms large.

Posted at 04:29 PM in Site News | Comments (4) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Friday, March 03, 2006

Spring Break

Posted by DavidNYC

Spring break starts today, so posting will be light for the next week - and not even because I have some fun out-of-town trip planned. I've got to study for the MPRE, which is, sadly, next Saturday - right during spring break. (If you're not a law-type person, just be glad you'll never have anything to do with MPRE, the bar, or any of that stuff.)

Feel free to use this as an open thread.

Posted at 01:37 PM in Site News | Comments (11) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Thursday, March 02, 2006

Blogads Reader Survey

Posted by DavidNYC

I kindly ask that you take a few minutes and fill out the annual Blogads reader survey. The better data we have on readership, the better advertisers are able to make decisions about placing ads. It also means you (the readers) get to see ads which are more precisely tailored to this site. Ads are crucial to keeping this site running as they help defray bandwidth expenses (which are considerable, especially when traffic spikes.)

And for question number 23, where it asks you to fill in the referring blog, please put "Swing State Project". Thank you so much!

Posted at 10:00 AM in Site News | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Thursday, February 09, 2006

Blogger Spotlight

Posted by DavidNYC

Shameless bit of self-promotion coming up: I'm featured in today's "Blogger Spotlight" in the Hotline's Blogometer. Have at it!

Posted at 01:37 PM in Site News | Comments (6) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Saturday, January 07, 2006

Beantown

Posted by DavidNYC

I'm up in Boston for a few days visiting friends, so posting will be slow. I've been here a few times before but have never really done the touristy things. Any suggestions on things one should do or see?

Posted at 10:41 AM in Site News | Comments (5) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Wednesday, December 21, 2005

Out of Town

Posted by DavidNYC

I'm visting my fiancee's family in Ohio - the mother of all swing states. (Cleveland, to be precise.) My Internet access unfortunately is pretty limited, so I may not be able to post much until Monday. Back in some home-state news, you've probably seen by now that Janeane Pirro has bailed on the NY Senate race and plans to run for AG. This doesn't really change the calculus for Clinton - she'll steamroll whomever it is she faces. However, Pirro may yet prove to be a decent candidate for Attorney General, which worries me - if she wins, she could turn the nation's top regulatory enforcement agency into a slavering lapdog. I'm proud to say that I once worked for the NY AG's office, and I'd truly hate to see Pirro turn it into the embarassing mess it was under Spitzer's predecessor, the pathetic Dennis Vacco.

In any event, enough politics for now. Go enjoy yourselves - happy holidays to all!

Posted at 06:02 PM in Site News | Comments (9) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Saturday, December 17, 2005

Thank the Maker!

Posted by DavidNYC

At long last, after a 24-hour Con Law 2 take-home exam, I am done done done with finals. Once I recover, blogging should return to normal.

Posted at 02:10 PM in Site News | Comments (6) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Friday, December 09, 2005

Patent Law Final Today

Posted by DavidNYC

Hence the lack of updates. I could tell you all about the statutory bar of 102(b), but you're going to have to clue me in as to what's going on in the real world.

Posted at 09:18 PM in Site News | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Tuesday, December 06, 2005

Jeremy Blogged in Class Today

Posted by DavidNYC

So I'm taking a study break, and I head over to check out the SSP's stats on Google Analytics. (Some study break, huh?) If you run a website, you're gonna want to use Google Analytics to track your traffic. It's free, and seriously sophisticated. It leaves SiteMeter way, way in the dust.

Anyhow, GA lets you look at every source that ever referred someone your way. Nearly all of the referring sites for the SSP are the ones you'd expect - DailyKos, Google, Bluegrass Report, etc. But toward the bottom of the top 50, one site really jumped out at me: Pearl Jam. If you go to this page and click on the "Politics" button, there we are! I'm guessing we wound up there via the Jon Tester connection, but damn, that's just too cool.

So, welcome Pearl Jam fans!

Posted at 09:37 PM in Site News | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Wednesday, November 23, 2005

Happy Thanksgiving

Posted by DavidNYC

Just wanted to let you know that the SSP probably won't publish much until after the holiday weekend. Have a great Thanksgiving!

Posted at 06:09 PM in Site News | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Wednesday, November 16, 2005

Comments Down Temporarily

Posted by DavidNYC

Commenting appears not to be working at the moment, though the rest of the site is functioning normally. We hope to have them restored soon.

UPDATE: Comments are restored and should be working normally. Please e-mail me if you encounter any problems.

Posted at 06:16 PM in Site News | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Friday, November 11, 2005

Going Solo Once Again

Posted by DavidNYC

This is just a short note to let my readers know that I'm once again going solo here at the Swing State Project. It'll be the same site with the same focus - campaign & election news, horserace politics, plus some activism and fundraising - that you've come (I hope) to appreciate and enjoy. And it goes without saying that I extend my thanks to Tim & Bob for all their hard work.

And as always, if you have some thoughts you'd like to share, please leave a comment or drop me a line: davidnyc -at- swingstateproject -dot- com.

Posted at 06:26 PM in Site News | Comments (7) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Wednesday, November 09, 2005

Peace Out

Posted by Tim Tagaris

A little over a year ago, I badgered David about letting me post consistently at Swing State Project. His work at law school was picking up, and he eventually relented right before election day. Having effectively dragged his baby through the mud, my work here is done. Nothing long and sappy, just wanted to say a quick thank you to everyone who has visited this site and put up with the good (Hackett & State Party Blog Project), the bad (my anti-Bob Casey Jr. ramblings), and the ugly (my inability to self proofread). For the curious, you'll be able to find me at my new home, over here. Yeah, no kidding. Send me an email and I'll see what I can't do about getting all SSP readers half-priced Democracy Bonds. Yes, kidding about that one.

Anyway, that's that. From one location to another, hopefully I'll see you over there -- especially you Ohioans; we'll turn this sucker blue soon enough.

-- Tim

Posted at 11:59 PM in Site News | Comments (8) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Tuesday, November 08, 2005

2005 Election Night Coverage

Posted by Bob Brigham

This is the last hurrah for the 2005 Swing State Project team, so we will do everything we can to provide top-notch election night coverage. DavidNYC is in Washington, DC (ready for legal deployment to Virginia if the Tim Kaine vs. Jerry Kilgore race goes into extra innings). Tim Tagaris is on the ground in Ohio, ready to follow through on all he has done to help Reform Ohio Now. And I'm in California with front row seats for Arnold Schwarzenegger's initiatives. In addition to the election results, check out what the local bloggers are writing in the major states. There are now two major wires services for liberal bloggers -- state by state. Keep refreshing Swing State Project, but also visit all of the bloggers on the ground by visiting the wires:

Virginia: BlogPAC wire -- Lefty Blogs

New Jersey: BlogPAC wire -- Lefty Blogs

Ohio: BlogPAC wire -- Lefty Blogs

California: BlogPAC wire -- Lefty Blogs

DISCLAIMER: I've ended up on BlogPAC's reports before, but all I'm trying to do here is direct you to the bloggers with the on the ground knowledge.

Posted at 07:24 PM in 2005 Elections, California, New Jersey, Ohio, Site News, Virginia | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Monday, November 07, 2005

Election Night

Posted by Bob Brigham

Of course, we will have updates all day and late into the night tomorrow.

Posted at 03:52 PM in Site News | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Wednesday, November 02, 2005

Comments Down

Posted by DavidNYC

Comments are down right now. We are working on a fix. Thanks for your patience.

Posted at 10:29 AM in Site News | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Wednesday, October 12, 2005

The Comments Are Fixed!

Posted by DavidNYC

Ah, at long last - the comment box is where it ought to be. No more scrolling way down the page to find it. Thanks so much to everyone who offered advice and helped out. If you notice any weirdness, let us know.

Also, I'll be signing off for the next day as it is Yom Kippur. To those of you observing the holiday, I wish you an easy fast.

Posted at 03:14 PM in Site News | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

OH-02: SSP in Mother Jones' Hackett Stories

Posted by Bob Brigham

Mother Jones posted their cover story on the OH-02 Special Election:

The Ohio Insurgency: The Democrat who Fought
Major Paul Hackett came home from Iraq to launch an assault on a GOP stronghold. Can Democrats follow his lead?
By David Goodman

They have now also posted a companion piece that provides a timeline of blog support for Paul Hackett:

The Digital Insurgency
How liberal bloggers and their readers fueled Paul Hackett's rise
By Jonathan Stein

On Election Night, I mentioned this was coming. Thoughts?

Posted at 02:13 PM in 2005 Elections, Netroots, Ohio, Site News, Special Elections | Comments (12) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Seeking Help for Our Strange Comment Box Problem

Posted by DavidNYC

As you may have noticed, the SSP's comment box is often buried at the very bottom of the page - totally separate from the line asking you for your URL and if you want the site to remember you (ie, the normal place you'd want a comment box to appear). It's also the case with this post. Just sign in with TypeKey and scroll all the way down - you'll notice the problem immediately. And we've been totally confounded by it. Nothing in our templates or CSS file seems to bear any relation to this oddity. And it happens in both Firefox and IE (which is to say, we think it's a site problem, not a browser problem).

One thing that is clear is that the comment box winds up beneath the bottom of the main left-hand adstrip - or, more precisely, below the Site Meter chicklet which is beneath the adstrip. If you have any thoughts on why this might be happening, we'd be extremely grateful for any assistance you can provide. Either leave a comment here (if you can find the box, heh) or send us an e-mail using the links in the right-hand column. Thanks so much!

Posted at 01:15 PM in Site News | Comments (8) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Thursday, October 06, 2005

OH-Sen: The Story So Far

Posted by DavidNYC

Way, way back at the start of the year, President Bush followed all second-term presidents in performing a time-honored rite: the cabinet reshuffle. We saw some dear old friends depart, like John Ashcroft and Colin Powell. We were introduced to some wonderful new faces, like Alberto Gonzalez. And some of our long-time buddies just couldn't bear to leave, like Condi Rice and Donald Rumsfeld.

Almost lost in this misty-eyed pastoral is the tremendously important post of US Trade Representative. Whoever holds this job is responsible for travelling around the world on the government's tab to convince foreign countries to buy our goods. What an awesome job. The lucky fellow who held this job in Bush's first term was one Robert Zoellick, who became a Deputy Secretary of State at the start of Bush's second term. Ah, Bob, we hardly knew ye.

To fill this crucial gap in our nation's governing apparatus, George Bush tapped Robert Portman to fill Zoellick's big shoes. Portman, you see, was a Congressman from southwest Ohio, roughly in the neighborhood of Cincinnati. His district - Ohio's second - was one of the most conservative in Ohio, if not the nation. It had reliably sent a Republican to Congress for decades, and Democrats hadn't poked their heads above a feeble 30% or so for a long, long time.

Smart play by Mr. Bush: Tap a solid insider for your cabinet, and ensure that you don't lose any ground in the House. And the plan worked, too - but you couldn't ask for a better illustration of "be careful what you wish for." So what happened along the way?

A certain blogger - me, as it happens - noticed the Portman nomination and espied the inevitable open seat and special election that would of necessity ensue. So I wrote about it over at the seminal Democratic blog DailyKos. I didn't view the race as winnable (not at the time, at least), but I did think it would give our side a great opportunity to do some political R&D - to experiment, be bold, hold nothing back. When you've got nothing to lose, you can be as aggressive as you want.

Meanwhile, things began to unfold on the ground in Ohio. The fateful primary election took place on June 14th. The Dems emerged with a man that almost no one had heard of - but he did have an interesting resume. Major Paul Hackett had just returned from serving a tour of duty with the Marines in Iraq - a war, believe it or not, he opposed. Who could speak with more authority - both intellectual and moral - on such an important subject, than someone with a background like that?

It turns out that Paul Hackett was also the sort of blunt, plain-spoken non-politician that so many Democrats had craved for so long. He was Howard Dean in fatigues. To many, Hackett's individual positions weren't nearly as important as his willingness to speak his mind. He definitely didn't vote for anything before he voted against it.

The blogosphere began to take serious interest in the race at this point - and a huge reason was Tim Tagaris, one of the editors of this humble magazine. Tim, on the ground with Grow Ohio, served as a crucial conduit between the online world and OH-02. Reports flowed in fast and furious from southwest Ohio. The Swing State Project (along with the OH-02 Blog) quickly became a hub for anyone who wanted to know more about the race or get involved.

As online activists started tuning in, volunteers began to flood the district as well. Hackett started getting real media coverage. He also had a lot of things going for him: Distrust and anger toward Republicans in the state of Ohio had been mounting since the Coingate revelations; Bush's popularity amongst Buckeyes had been steadily dropping; and he drew an opponent, Jean Schmidt, who was as corrupt (she took piles of cash from the now-indicted Tom DeLay) as she was feckless (she was reduced to defensively declaring she wouldn't be a "rubber stamp" during debates).

In the middle of the hubbub, Tim's fellow SSP editor, Bob Brigham, also decamped for the battleground of OH-02. Traffic exploded here as Bob and Tim tag-teamed the final days of the race. Back home, I kept the front page of DailyKos updated as often as I could. A certain energy crackled and infused everything about the whole campaign.

And people began to realize that this was no long just an opportunity to do some R&D - something much more was happening here. Hackett got scads of scrilla from online donations. The GOP got spooked and poured in big money of its own - in a district that Portman had won by 40 points the last time out. The establishment Dems took notice and fired back with a further cash infusion. The race was getting seriously, seriously hot.

It looked like Hackett could conceivably, possibly, just maybe win. No one knew for sure, of course - no one had done any independent, verifiable polling. But even if Hackett didn't win, lots of people - on the ground, in the professional commentariat, across the blogosphere - realized that a strong performance would send a message.

And boy did Paul Hackett send a message. Yeah, he lost - but by a margin much narrower than anyone would have dreamed. Republicans enjoyed scoffing about Hackett's loss, but there was jubilation on the Democratic side. Hackett lost by four points. The prior Dem who ran for this seat lost by ten times that margin. Anyone who refused to believe this showing didn't mean something truly had their head in the proverbial sand.

But the race did more than just send a message. A new star was born - and it wasn't Jean Schmidt. While she limped into her seat in Congress, Paul Hackett became a new Democratic Party star. His fearlessness and ability to connect with normal people (ie, everyone in America who doesn't suffer from D.C. Beltway Brain-rot) ensured that he wouldn't soon be forgotten. Just about everyone agreed he had a bright future in politics.

It turns out that his future was now. The Ohio GOP was reeling. Incumbent Republican Senator Mike DeWine, suffering atrocious approval ratings, was up for re-election in 2006. The Dems were looking for someone to take him on. A lot of people thought Paul Hackett would be the perfect guy to do that.

After some months of convincing, it appeared that Paul Hackett finally thought so as well, and rumors of his candidacy spread like wildfire across the Internet during the month of September. The way was clear for Hackett: Ohio Congressmen Tim Ryan and Sherrod Brown both indicated that they weren't going to run against DeWine.

As October rolled around (and the third quarter ended), an official announcement from Hackett was widely expected. (No candidate for office was going to announce right in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, in any event.) Yet a funny thing happened on the way to the election: Sherrod Brown, previously thought to be uninterested in the Senate race, started making noises that he would, in fact, throw his hat into the ring.

At that point, almost instantly, battle lines were drawn. Now, brother is pit against brother, more or less. Alright, so I'm making it sound like a melodramatic Civil War miniseries, only with fewer guns. But the dynamics are pretty fascinating.

Jerome Armstrong, the liberal blogfather and creator of the ur-blog MyDD, jumped on board Brown's ship. (Jerome is, in fact, working for Brown.) Jerome's greatest protege, Markos Moulitsas of DailyKos, has sided with Hackett.

And over here at the Swing State Project, the situation is no less jumbled. Tim, as I mentioned above, works for Grow Ohio, which means, like Jerome, he works for Sherrod Brown. Bob, on the other hand, has just started volunteering for Hackett and, as you can see from his posts here, supports him vociferously.

Today, however, Markos seems to weigh in on Brown's side, though the bulk of his readers support Hackett. Meanwhile, Tim (rightfully) wants to focus on RON, not an internecine battle. The Hotline's Blogometer has already noted a "split" in left-blogistan, but as all this indicates, the fault lines are far from clear. Indeed, Chris Bowers, the lead author at MyDD and Jerome's fellow blogger-in-arms, hasn't yet decided whom to support.

So where does this leave me? I count myself in the Hackett camp. But I definitely don't want to see a real blogspheric civil war emerge. We just don't need another huge round of infighting, like we saw during the Democratic Presidential primaries throughout all of 2003. The tide this year is turning strongly against the Republicans. Their corruption is catching up with them. Many will lose next year - both at the ballot box and in the courtroom. It's more important than ever that we stay united to capitalize on this perfect storm.

And the Swing State Project remains committed to bringing you the best coverage possible of the race - and that means reporting on the strengths and foibles of both the guys we support and the guys we don't.

I'll be honest: I wish Brown had chosen a different course of action. But since he's apparently committed at this point, all I'm hoping for is a good clean fight. So let's do this thing!

Posted at 08:30 PM in 2005 Elections, 2006 Elections, 2006 Elections - Senate, Democrats, Netroots, Ohio, Site News, Special Elections | Comments (33) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Monday, October 03, 2005

Happy New Year

Posted by DavidNYC

I'll be taking off for the next couple of days to celebrate Rosh Hashanah. So to all of you who are joining me in celebrating this holiday, I wish you Shanah Tovah - Happy New Year. May you have a restful and peaceful holiday, and a good year.

(As always, Bob & Tim will have things covered.)

Posted at 07:48 PM in Site News | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Friday, September 30, 2005

C&E: Blogosphere Rally

Posted by Bob Brigham

The Swing State Project received a great deal of press in August for our work to make Paul Hackett a contender. Now that Paul Hackett is viewed as a Senate candidate, we won't let up. But the press keeps flowing about our triangular approach of DavidNYC, Tim Tagaris and me. From the cover story of the (subscription only) Campaigns and Elections:

When US Rep Rob Portman left the House in April to become US trade representative, Democrats were not expected to make much of a race for his seat.

After all, the congressman’s district in Ohio’s rural, southwest 2nd district had been in Republican hands since 1974. More recently, it gave Portman and President George W. Bush respectively 72 percent and 63 percent of the vote in November 2004.

But some liberal activists spied an opportunity. At the blog Daily Kos, a liberal Web site with more than 500,000 daily hits, a law student with the handle DavidNYC posted a short essay titled “OH-02: Let’s Take This Open Seat on a Trial Run.” Sixteen months earlier, the Daily Kos regular had launched a blog called “SwingStateProject” that monitored Democrats’ chances at capturing key states in the 2004 election. After the party’s defeat, David kept up the blog and posted prominent commentaries at Daily Kos.

Back to the political consulant story...

A pivotal site was “Grow Ohio,” launched in June by U.S. Rep. Sherrod Brown of Ohio’s 13th District. In 2004 that site’s
chief blogger, Tim Tagaris, had worked for a Daily Kos-endorsed candidate named Jeff Seemann in Ohio’s 16th district, who had lost the race but earned more than $100,000 from online donations. Tagaris, also a blogger at Swing State Project and Daily Kos, had learned how to direct the eyes of media and bloggers to a
campaign.

On July 13, the Hackett campaign sent a press release to bloggers and reporters called “Choose Your Seat Wisely,” which dramatized what Hackett and Schmidt were doing on Oct. 24, 2004. While Schmidt appeared at a Republican fund-raiser and a football game, Hackett was in a chopper being transported from Ramadi to Fallujah. Tagaris posted a version of the release on Grow Ohio titled “What a
Difference a Day Makes.” The campaign’s visibility was dramatically increased, and donations through Hackett’s Web site and ActBlue spiked.

So let's talk about the history...

Six days later the campaign experienced another surge. A large number of liberal blogs had dubbed July 19 “Blogosphere Day.” A year earlier, bloggers at Daily Kos had “adopted” Ginny Schrader, a nominally funded candidate in Pennsylvania’s 8th district, and given her $25,000 in one day. As blogs were commemorating the day by coordinating donations to Hackett, Democracy For America sent out an
e-mail to its list asking members to support him. Thanks to this combination, the Hackett campaign raised more than $80,000 in 24 hours – the best-ever day of online donations for a non-presidential campaign.

With the candidate’s name and biography now known nationally across the blogs, the campaign was able to attract hundreds of volunteers. Bob Brigham, Tagaris’s co-blogger on Swing State Project, got plugged into the campaign and started using the blog as a rapid response tool. Brigham’s first test came on July 28, when a USA Today story on the race quoted Hackett saying, “I’ve said I don’t like that son of a bitch that lives in the White House. But I’d put my life on
the line for him.” The next day, the NRCC announced two ad buys in the 2nd district totaling $525,000. Committee spokesman Carl Forti said it had reacted to Hackett’s comments and “decided to bury him.”

Can SSP Deliver?

On Aug. 1, the campaign told bloggers that it needed $30,000 to fund GOTV. They raised $50,000. On Election Night, Tagaris and Brigham had Internet access at campaign headquarters, where they posted updates and rumors. For around 30 minutes, when it looked like the race might come down to a few hundred votes in late-returning Clermont County, MyDD and Swing State Project asked readers to
dig up information on Ohio election law.

Indeed.

Posted at 01:58 AM in Site News | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0) | Technorati

Tuesday, September 20, 2005

Supreme Court: I Oppose John Roberts

Posted by Bob Brigham

The Feminist Bloggers have announced opposition to John Roberts and I posted in the comments my signature to their letter and urge you to also.

The political optics are very simple: when Roberts drives the court away from Americans, Democrats need to be able to have clear contrast.

This is especially true for Democratic presidential candidates. Roberts will have a couple of years to do his worst before the primary heats up. Any presidential candidate who votes for Roberts will be blamed for Roberts.

As for rank and file Democrats, the play is easy to see. If you are on the judiciary committee you damn well better vote with your team. If a senator is going to make a comment other than opposition, don't. STFU.

Democrats win when we play as a team (i.e. Social Security). We need that now more than ever. We're watching to make sure every Democratic senator plays off the Democratic playbook;

WASHINGTON - Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid has told associates he intends to oppose confirmation of John Roberts as chief justice, Senate sources said Tuesday as rank and file Democrats began staking out positions on the man named to succeed the late William H. Rehnquist. [...]

As party leader, Reid had urged fellow Democrats not to announce their positions until the conclusion of last week's confirmation hearings for Roberts.

By stating his own position first, Reid likely would set the stage for strong Democratic opposition to the 50-year-old appeals court judge and former Reagan administration lawyer.

We're watching.

UPDATE: And we're talking. From MSNBC:

Bob Brigham, a Democratic blogger who writes for Swingstateproject.com said Democratic activists are following the Roberts battle more closely than they did the 1991 Clarence Thomas saga.

“With the decentralization of politics and the blogs, there are a lot more people paying attention. The Democratic base is following this very closely,” Brigham said.

If he is confirmed, Brigham predicted, “Roberts is going to have a chance to hand down some serious decisions before the 2008 presidential race heats up. And every bad decision he makes will be blamed on any Democratic senator who votes for him. Democratic senators will be held accountable individually for the bad decisions he makes between now and 2008.”

Democratic Senators need to do the right thing.

UPDATE: Full statement from Leader Harry Reid:

“One of the Senate’s most important constitutional responsibilities is to provide “advice and consent” with respect to a President’s nominations. The task is especially important when the nomination is of an individual to be the Chief Justice of the United States.

“No one doubts that John Roberts is an excellent lawyer and an affable person. But at the end of this process, I have too many unanswered questions about the nominee to justify a vote confirming him to this enormously important lifetime position.

“The stakes for the American people could not be higher. The retirement of Justice O’Connor and the death of Chief Justice Rehnquist have left the Supreme Court in a period of transition. On key issues affecting the rights and freedoms of Americans, the Court is closely divided. If confirmed, Judge Roberts, who is only 50 years old, will likely serve as Chief Justice and leader of the third branch of the federal government for decades to come.

“The legal authority that we will hand to Judge Roberts by this confirmation vote is awesome. In my view, we should only vote to confirm this nominee if we are absolutely positive that he is the right person to hold that authority. This is a very close question for me. But I must resolve my doubts in favor of the American people whose rights would be in jeopardy if John Roberts turns out to be the wrong person for the job.

“Some say that the President is entitled to deference from the Senate in nominating individuals to high office. I agree that such deference is appropriate in the case of executive branch nominees such as Cabinet officers. With some important exceptions, the President may generally choose his own advisors.

“In contrast, the President is not entitled to very much deference in staffing the third branch of government, the judiciary. The Constitution envisions that the President and the Senate will work together to appoint and confirm federal judges. This is a shared constitutional duty.

“The Senate’s role in screening judicial candidates is especially important in the case of Supreme Court nominees, because the Supreme Court has assumed such a large role in resolving fundamental disputes in our civic life. As I see it, any nominee for the Supreme Court bears the burden of persuading the Senate and the American people that he or she deserves confirmation to a lifetime seat on the Court.

“Let me start by observing that Judge Roberts has been a thoughtful, mainstream judge on the DC Circuit Court of Appeals. But he has only been a member of that court for two years and has not confronted many cutting-edge constitutional issues. As a result, we cannot rely on his current judicial service to determine what kind of Supreme Court justice he would be.

“I was very impressed with Judge Roberts when I first met him, soon after he was nominated. But several factors caused me to reassess my initial view.

“Most notably, I was disturbed by the memos that surfaced from Judge Roberts’s years of service in the Reagan Administration. These memos raise serious questions about the nominee’s approach to civil rights.

“It is now clear that as a young lawyer, John Roberts played a significant role in shaping and advancing the Republican agenda to roll back civil rights protections. He wrote memos opposing legislative and judicial efforts to remedy race and gender discrimination. He urged his superiors to oppose Senator Kennedy’s 1982 bill to strengthen the Voting Rights Act and worked against affirmative action programs. He derided the concept of comparable worth and questioned whether women actually suffer discrimination in the workplace.

“No one suggests that John Roberts was motivated by bigotry or animosity towards minorities or women. But these memos lead one to question whether he truly appreciated the history of the civil rights struggle. He wrote about discrimination as an abstract concept, not as a flesh and blood reality for countless of his fellow citizens. The memos raised a real question for me whether their author would breathe life into the Equal Protection Clause and the landmark civil rights statutes that come before the Supreme Court repeatedly.

“Nonetheless, I was prepared to look past these memos, and chalk them up to the folly of youth. I looked forward to the confirmation hearings in the expectation that Judge Roberts would repudiate those views in some fashion. Instead, the nominee adopted what I consider a disingenuous strategy of suggesting that the views expressed in those memos were not his views, even at the time the memos were written. He claimed that he was merely a “staff lawyer” reflecting the positions of his client, the Reagan Administration.

“Anyone who has read the memos can see that Roberts was expressing his own personal views on these important policy matters. In memo after memo, the text is clear. It is simply not plausible for the nominee to claim that he did not share the views that he expressed.

“For example, there is a memo in which he refers to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission as “un-American.” If Judge Roberts had testified that this was a twenty year old bad joke, I would have given the memo no weight. But instead, he provided a tortured reading of the memo that simply does not stand up under scrutiny.

“In another memo Judge Roberts spoke about a Hispanic group that President Reagan would soon address, and he suggested that the audience would be pleased to know that the Administration favored legal status for the “illegal amigos” of the audience members. The use of the Spanish word “amigos” in this memo is patronizing and offensive to a contemporary reader.

“I do not condemn Judge Roberts for using the word “amigos” twenty years ago in a non-public memo, but I was stunned when at his confirmation hearing he could not bring himself to express regret for using the term, or recognize that it might cause offense.

“My concerns about these Reagan-era memos were heightened by the fact that the White House rejected a reasonable request by Committee Democrats for documents written by Judge Roberts when he served in the first Bush Administration. After all, if memos written twenty years ago are to be dismissed as not reflecting the nominee’s mature thinking, it would be highly relevant to see memos he had written as an older man in an even more important policymaking job.

“The White House claim of attorney-client privilege to shield these documents is utterly unpersuasive. Senator Leahy asked Attorney General Gonzales for the courtesy of a meeting to discuss the matter and was turned down. This was simply a matter of stonewalling.

“The failure of the White House to produce relevant documents is reason enough for any Senator to oppose this nomination. The Administration cannot treat the Senate with such disrespect without some consequences.

“In the absence of these documents, it was especially important for the nominee to fully and forthrightly answer questions from Committee members at his hearing. He failed to do so adequately. I acknowledge the right – indeed, the duty – of a judicial nominee to decline to answer questions regarding specific cases that will come before the court to which the witness has been nominated. But Judge Roberts declined to answer many questions more remote than that, including questions seeking his views of long-settled precedents.

“Finally, I was very swayed by the testimony of civil rights and women’s rights leaders against confirmation. When a civil rights icon like John Lewis says that John Roberts was on the wrong side of history, Senators must take notice.

“I like Judge Roberts. I respect much of the work he has done in his career, such as his advocacy for environmentalists in the Lake Tahoe takings case several years ago. In the fullness of time, he may well prove to be a fine Supreme Court Justice. But I have reluctantly concluded that this nominee has not satisfied the high burden that would justify my voting for his confirmation based on the current record.

“Based on all of these factors, the balance shifts against Judge Roberts. The question is close, and the arguments against him do not warrant extraordinary procedural tactics to block the nomination. Nonetheless, I intend to cast my vote against this nominee when the Senate debates the matter next week.”

Posted at 02:45 PM in 2006 Elections - Senate, 2008 President - Democrats, Activism, Democrats, Site News, Supreme Court | Comments (1) | Technorati

Thursday, September 15, 2005

NOLA: Boots on the ground - we need more bloggers

Posted by Bob Brigham

Having a crack team of bloggers on the ground has allowed us to do more than provide coverage, it has provided real-time communication ability and scalable models.

As many of you know, we've been working with Dr. Ernest Johnson, President of the Lousiana NAACP. In addition to all of the direct aid relief, we have also been working closely with local political leaders.

The following case study is just one example of why we need you to get down to Louisiana and help the NAACP scale up efforts.

Americablog Coorespondent Kyle Shank documented how this started out.

It began with a simple idea, as old as democracy itself. That we need to organize structures of the evacuees, by the evacuees, and for the evacuees.

Due to the team we had on ground, we were able immediately cut PSAs, shoot a video release and blast a press release:

LOUISIANA NAACP PRESIDENT
CALLS FOR EVACUEES TO TAKE CONTROL
OF THEIR OWN DESTINY AND FORM
"SHELTER COMMITTEES"

Ernest L. Johnson, President of the Louisiana NAACP called today for Katrina evacuees in shelters to take control of their own destinies by forming SHELTER COMMITTEES.

"Each SHELTER COMMITTEE should elect a Chairperson and a Secretary and begin holding meetings, organizing, and working as a team for better treatment," Johnson said. "In unity there is strength." [...]

The Louisiana NAACP is airing public service announcements on radio stations that explain the process for bringing participatory democracy to the shelter system.

"The Louisiana NAACP is with you in solidarity," Johnson said. "The NAACP will stand with all displaced people until each and every one return to a brand-new New Orleans."

It worked

The PSA's began running and the press began calling. We began reaching out to other groups and other groups began reaching out to us. We began building a coalition and providing the tools to the evacuees to organize themselves.

Then it hit the front page (above the fold) of the Baton Rouge paper (that all of the national press read).

NAACP seeks to organize evacuees

The NAACP is trying to organize occupants of evacuation shelters so they can take some control of their lives and, for black New Orleans residents, so they can have a voice in their city's 2006 elections.

Louisiana NAACP President Ernest Johnson said he wants evacuees to pick leaders who can speak for the groups on common issues, such as, lack of supplies, getting their children educated and moving into temporary housing.

Such efforts are natural for any community and echo the efforts that founded the United States, Johnson said. Banding together is especially important for people thrown into a new environment with few resources, he said.

The head of the state's chapter of National Association for the Advancement of Colored People said he especially wants to be sure that black New Orleans residents -- a majority of shelter occupants, he said -- can return to the Crescent City, if they wish. Thousands were taken, without their input, to states as far away as Montana, Johnson said.

There are problems in the shelters and there will be problems in the camps. Some with the Red Cross, some with FEMA, some with Guard, some with the evacuees. By organizing, we can put a model in place that can deal with whatever problem comes up. The evacuees will be able to collectively negotiate and take control over their own destiny.

We Need Your Help

Organizing takes boots on the ground and we need yours.

We need organizers, activists, media specialists, bloggers and people who can document the stories of the victims so we are ready when it comes time for accountability.

We need you. And your friends. This is a General Call to Action, join us. We have tents in the lawn of the NAACP for you to have shelter, we have wifi at the command center. This is the most important civil rights battle of these times, you are needed.

Please help spread the word and come to:

Lousiana NAACP Command Center
1755 Nicholson Dr.
Baton Rouge, LA
225-334-7490

You might go days without showing, New Orleans smells like hell and Lake George is a toxic waste dump. But when all is said and done, you will have played any important role in history. Join us. Spread the word. In solidarity, do what you can.

Posted at 11:21 AM in Louisiana, Netroots, Site News | Comments (0) | Technorati

Monday, September 05, 2005

Video and Pics of Katrina

Posted by Bob Brigham

Right now, I'm in Baton Rouge. You can see video from yesterday here and keep up with my travels at www.RebuildTheSouth.com.

Posted at 03:15 PM in Site News | Technorati

Saturday, September 03, 2005

Katrina: Live from Houston, TX

Posted by Bob Brigham

I'm at the Houston airport, waiting for a flight into Birmingham, then driving south.

During Paul Hackett's campaign, I think we proved that being on the ground is a great fulcrum. "Showing up maximizes" the leverage and we need it now, more than ever. Bush failed America, so now the burden falls to each American to help do what needs to be done.

My specialty is using the internet, which is a perfect vehicle. From ABC News:

"When I put the listing on the Web site in the evening, I had five or six families respond by the morning," van Gelderen said while he was sending out e-mails to his friends challenging them to help. Van Gelderen had his entire staff mobilizing relief efforts, rather than focusing on business. "The private sector has to start doing just as much as the government."

Van Gelderen listed his available housing through Moveon.org, a liberal-leaning non-profit political organization.

MoveOn launched its hurricane housing site on Thursday afternoon, and within 25 hours received offers for 45,000 beds — 11,500 within driving distance of New Orleans, according to MoveOn president Eli Pariser.

"Basically we were just racking our brains trying to figure out how we could help our members provide some help for victims," said Pariser. "We have a direct line to 3 million people and there might be a lot who might be able to open up their homes."

At Swing State Project, I will continue to examine the electoral implications of the second disaster: the response. When Bush's poll numbers dropped below 40%, I didn't think they could go lower. I mean, he would always hold the Republicans, wouldn't he?

Apparently not...

The right wing realizes Bush's decision to continue his vacation kick-started a chain of events that will haunt the Republican Party for a long time. Geographically, Bush's incompetence has put the entire south in play. As the harvest forces tough conversations about transportation, the Midwest will also come into play. Not only is the Republican congress corrupt, but voting Republican gives another vote to the incompetent Republican Administration.

Bush fucked up. And even rabid right-wingers know it. The Washington Times knows it; Fox News knows it. Hell, even the Bull Moose is talking about impeachment. These organizations have propped Bush up for years and now they are cutting him loose, realizing that it is impossible to defend Bush's response – it is a credibility killer.

The hurricane was a disaster, but Bush's vacation-based reaction has been the real catastrophe.

So I'm going in. We're bringing in a SUV full of supplies, I also have my laptop and video camera.

Please sign up for Hurricane Housing.

Additionally requests will be coming.

Posted at 03:26 PM in 2006 Elections, Activism, Culture of Corruption, Republicans, Scandals, Site News, Texas | Comments (2) | Technorati

Thursday, September 01, 2005

Sacrifice

Posted by Bob Brigham

While DavidNYC is the publisher of Swing State Project, he saves his best stuff for the front-page of Daily Kos.

Posted at 05:16 PM in Site News | Technorati

From the Swing State Project Team

Posted by Tim Tagaris

We have added a new blog ad to the left linking readers to a Billmon piece that gives a number of different options for those who want to contribute to the people trapped in the Gulf Coast.

CONTRIBUTE TO HURRICANE RELIEF EFFORTS

For those wondering, there are so many good links about what is going on in the Gulf Coast right now that we aren't going to try and compete--you can expect the same electoral politics coverage you are used to at Swing State Project.

I know that I join many SSP readers in my feeling of complete helplessness. If anyone has information on how we can help in addition to giving money, I am all ears and will do what I can to make sure they get promoted. For those looking for more information, some of the links I am following in the extended entry.

WWLTV Blog in New Orleans
Times Picayune Blog
AmericaBlog
Eschaton

UPDATE: (Bob) Here is a little more on Bush and Katrina. I think we'll begin to see electoral fallout at the state level as early as tomorrow. I mean, people are calling it Lake George. District by district, state by state, this is rocking the political world.

Posted at 02:12 PM in Site News | Technorati

Wednesday, August 31, 2005

Swing State Project News

Posted by Bob Brigham

Thanks for making August a great month. Thanks for reading, helping and sending us tips. In terms of traffic, August was our best month since SSP launched in 2003. Swing State Project also received a great deal of press in August, including the Atlantic Monthly, CNN's Political Play of the Week, Daily Standard, MSNBC, The New Republic, Philadelphia Enquirer, and the Washington Post. Thanks everyone.

Posted at 11:59 PM in Democrats, Netroots, Site News | Technorati

Thursday, August 25, 2005

Supporting Bloggers

Posted by DavidNYC

You might notice a new ad to the left from Markos of DailyKos, asking readers to support their favorite bloggers. It's a very generous gesture and definitely an unusual sort of blogad. We very much appreciate it.

Yet despite my close working relationship with Markos (most of you probably know that I'm a front page contributing editor at DailyKos), the ad comes totally unsolicited - and proof of that is the fact that the SSP doesn't ask for or take donations. We're fortunate enough that we don't have to. (Though hey, we may one day need to put out a tip jar, so we reserve all rights to come a-beggin' at some point in the future.)

But if you would like to support us financially, the best way to do so is to take out a blogad. That way, we get some cash, Blogads (the company) gets some support, and you get to promote a worthy site, product or cause. It's win-win-win.

And as always, thank you to our readers.

UPDATE (Bob): Markos deserves a great deal of credit for all he has done and is doing to support individual bloggers. And thanks to all of the readers and activists who make what we do possible. One other thing you can do to support the blogs is to encourage your friends to read your favorite blogs. Our power is not just in our writing, but in our numbers. For those of you who haven't yet started a blog to focus on politics in your area, the time to do so is now. Thanks again to Markos and everyone reading this.

Posted at 04:39 PM in Netroots, Site News | Technorati

Sunday, August 21, 2005

Democrats 2006: SSP in the News

Posted by Bob Brigham

The Swing State Project in the Philadelphia Inquirer:

Bob Brigham, who runs Swingstateproject.com, said: "We as a party can't run from this issue any longer. Some people need to admit being wrong about the war. And we all need to show some political courage. That's what voters respect. If you have core convictions, and aggressively demonstrate that, voters will respect you, regardless of whether they agree with you on individual issues."

Brigham and Sirota, among others, cite the results of an Ohio congressional race on Aug. 2. In a die-hard Republican district where Democrats routinely lose by 40 points, Democrat Paul Hackett, an Iraq veteran who contended that Bush has been "incredibly stupid" on the war, lost by only two. Yet the Washington Democrats seemed not to notice; when the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee analyzed Hackett's strong showing in a memo, it never cited the war as a factor.

Bill Burton, the campaign committee's spokesman, was asked ab