Pic Of The Moment: In One Sentence, Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) Sums Up Opposition To Keystone XL

[calimary]

42. THIS ^^^^! And Welcome to DU, BOTH of you - mosestybl AND calguy!

Glad you're both here! modestybl, that is the perfect solution in a case where some Dem does want to step down and it might not be the wisest time, strategically, to do so. Heck, MY outgoing Congressman, Henry Waxman, chose this election cycle to pack it in, too, after 30 years. I thought that was a little reckless, also. Why couldn't he wait just another two years, to make SURE that he'd be replaced by another DEMOCRAT - when Dems traditionally can be counted on to come out in droves to vote because it's a presidential election cycle? Maybe think just a wee bit more strategically, and put Country and also party first, for one last time??? As it happened, and much to my relief, he was indeed replaced by Democrat Ted Lieu, who's pretty good but not yet as muscular on offense as I'd like and hope to see.

But what started to make the alarm bells go off for me here in SoCal was watching helplessly as Ted Lieu's opponent almost carpet bombed the local airwaves with a series of spots - one building him way way way way up in the appeal department, and then in the last two weeks going hugely negative against Ted Lieu. His ads versus Ted Lieu's ads were running at a rate of at least 5 or even 10-1. They were pretty shrewdly crafted, too, with a female voiceover (a very subtle and subliminal shout-out to women voters). He had a shitload of money behind him. Money was pouring into the campaign for our bright blue district, hoping to turn it red. Money from who-knows-where. SOMEBODY on the enemy side thought this might be a competitive district at long last, and ripe for the picking, and thought it worth the time and money and effort to try to take it away from us. I've lived in this district for more than 50 years. I've never seen that kind of frontal assault from the bad guys before. Evidently SOMEBODY on that side thought it was time to come after us, ESPECIALLY when there's no longer any "power-of-incumbent" dynamic in play and that THIS time presented that rare opportunity. CA-33 is a bright blue district. But SOMEBODY in the enemy camp CLEARLY calculated that, THIS time, it might be just vulnerable enough to be worth putting up a fight here.

I've long suspected that they're plotting busily and with increasing focus and energy to try turn California red again. They want us back. BADLY. California is a real plum. We're a HUGE haul of winner-take-all electoral votes - 55 big ones. You win California and you've got a TREMENDOUS leg up with all those electoral votes. Ours is the biggest motherlode in the country. And I've seen the Democratic Party in general really behaving in such a way as to take us for granted. They don't campaign out here much, except to raise funds to go campaign in earnest somewhere else. They've taken us for granted for a long time. And I guarantee you - SOMEBODY on the other side is taking note.