Vote Tomorrow!
Tomorrow is Super Tuesday, or maybe Super Duper Tuesday, or perhaps even Tsunami Tuesday, depending on which cable news network hype you hear. Whatever you call it, if you’re registered to vote, go out and vote!
I’ll be casting my vote for Sen. Hillary Clinton. Democrats have had an embarrassment of riches when it comes to excellent Presidential candidates, and tomorrow I’m voting for the one I believe to be the better of two really good choices.
I’m supporting Hillary Clinton because I think she has the experience we need to get this country back on track after eight years of the Bush maladministration, which has broken down our government to the point that it’s nearly beyond repair (think giving no-bid contracts to private businesses and then farming out the oversight to other private businesses). Someone has to pull what’s left of it out of the bathtub and resuscitate it so it can function properly. We need a President with a substantial understanding of governance, and I believe Sen. Clinton has it. She’s serving her second term in the Senate, and that’s valuable, but I also consider her years as First Lady of Arkansas and then the US relevant. To my mind, those years count as meaningful experience when they were lived by a person who is as intelligent and interested in the process as she is and always has been.
Sen. Clinton has faced down attacks from right-wingers for years, all of them ugly and some of them outright deranged. (If any of you had the dubious pleasure of receiving a slew of email from the professional Hillary-hater who’s been blanketing Alabama for the past few weeks, you know what I mean.) She doesn’t back down, and she’s still standing. I admire her strength and her courage, and I think they’ll serve her well as the Democratic candidate and as President.
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If you live in Jefferson County District 1, be sure to cast your vote for a County Commissioner to replace Larry Langford. The slate includes George Bowman, who was appointed by Bob Riley; Birmingham City Councilor William Bell; real estate investor Kamau Afrika; Orville Ifill, a former County Commission public information officer and lobbyist; Eric Major, a former member of the state House of Representatives; and Fred “Coach” Plump, who filed a suit in federal court that resulted in a ruling that the governor needs Justice Department approval to appoint replacement Commissioners.
I know very little about any of these candidates, but Bowman did vote to allow Commissioners Bettye Fine Collins and Jim Carns to give $15,000 in taxpayer money to fund a religious right propaganda session put on by the Eagle Forum, while claiming to know nothing about the organization. If you’re from District 1, let us know your pick in the comments.
ADDENDUM: A Blues reader reminds me that Mr. Afrika was a big help in Patricia Todd’s race for the State House and that William Bell fully supported the inclusion resolution that finally passed the Birmingham City Council after some childish nonsense from a few other Council members.
February 4th, 2008 at 4:29 pm
Good luck tomorrow, Kathy, and may the best man win.
February 4th, 2008 at 4:35 pm
You said: I’m supporting Hillary Clinton because I think she has the experience we need to get this country back on track after eight years of the Bush maladministration, which has broken down our government to the point that it’s nearly beyond repair (think giving no-bid contracts to private businesses and then farming out the oversight to other private businesses).
Hillary Clinton has been a United States Senator for 6 1/2 years, Bush has been President for 6 1/2 years. You could say that Hillary’s “experience” enabled Bush to break down our government to the point that it’s nearly beyound repair, take us to war based on dead wrong intelligence without an exit plan and to raid the surplus to give a tax break to the rich which created debt as far as the eye can see.
I’m supporting Barack Obama because not only does he have experience, he has good judgement. He will stop the war in Iraq, bring our troops home and make Healthcare accessable to all Americans.
I’m voting for real change.
February 4th, 2008 at 5:08 pm
bhb, it’s interesting that you mention health care as one of your deciding factors. You might want to read this before you vote.
February 4th, 2008 at 5:35 pm
I’ll be voting for Hillary. My daughter, who came back from Tuscaloosa just so she could be sure to vote, is going for Obama. I actually saw an Obama sign in a yard in my highly conservative neighborhood. It is still outnumbered by the Ron Paul and occasional Huckabee signs, but like a daffodil in the spring, it is a sign of change a comin’.
February 4th, 2008 at 7:03 pm
Kathy,
Healthcare reform is not THE deciding issue for me. The illegal, immoral Iraq war/occupation and Hillary Clinton’s vote for it is the deciding factor for me. But since you mention healthcare, let me remind you that Hillary Clinton couldn’t get healthcare reform passed when her husband was President and the Democrats were in the majority in Congress.
Here is some info you might be interested in:
http://www.advocate.com/exclusive_detail_ektid52017.asp
February 4th, 2008 at 8:43 pm
Gee Kathy, it’s a shame that you would vote for such an immoral candidate. I’m glad I’ve got Homeboy to inform me of who is moral. I haven’t heard such pablum since the Reagan adds telling me it was my moral duty as a Christian to vote for him.
February 4th, 2008 at 9:59 pm
bhb, I guess it’s nice to be able to condemn Hillary Clinton for a vote she cast before Barack Obama got to the Senate. Since he did, their voting records on military issues have been virtually identical. He’s done nothing more than she has to end the Iraq occupation. Please don’t come here and imply that you’re somehow more moral than I because you choose to support a different candidate.
February 5th, 2008 at 8:17 am
Well, I was all set to vote for Hillary, but lo and behold, yesterday CHUCK NORRIS HIMSELF called my house and asked me to vote for Mike Huckabee! What to do, what to do?
February 5th, 2008 at 9:21 am
I was pleased to be able to vote for both Patricia Todd and Howard Bayliss again this morning.
I had been wrangling with my decision since Edwards dropped out, and finally decided to vote for Hillary last night — nothing like a little validation when I saw the names of the committed delegates.
February 5th, 2008 at 9:23 am
Lisa, I know it’s hard to resist the pull of Chuck, but you can do it.
I voted for Patricia and Howard also — and Jen Clarke and John Saxon. They were the four on the list that I know personally.
February 5th, 2008 at 9:28 am
[...] reader Lisa says she got a call from Chuck Norris last night asking her to vote for Mike Huckabee. I hope she told him she would — even though [...]
February 5th, 2008 at 9:48 am
Hey Kathy — I just voted myself for Madame President! It felt damn good, too. Did you see her on Letterman last night? The Democrat party ballot here only had 2 items on it - the President, of course, and a local county office. The Republican ballot here is 5 pages long. Watching the turnover of folks voting in front of me - I stood in line for aobut 45 minutes — I’d say the Democrats in my area are getting out. Life is good.
February 5th, 2008 at 1:15 pm
Kathy,
It was certainly not my intention to imply I was “more moral” than you or anyone else on this forum. Nor was I “condemming” Hillary Clinton by pointing out she voted for the Iraq War Resolution which gave Bush authority to send our sons and daughters to war. I do not hold myself out to be a moral compass for anyone but myself.
I thought we were having an open and honest discussion about who we were supporting in the primary and why. You expressed your support and reason for supporting Hillary Clinton and I expressed my support and the reason for supporting Barack Obama. That being said, I do find it odd that you want to hold Barack Obama responsible for a vote he didn’t cast because he was not in the Senate but not Hillary for a vote she cast as a sitting United States Senator. Her voting record is what it is. Do I like the fact she voted for the IWR? No. Am I condeming her for her vote? No, but it is the reason I cannot support her in the primary.
If Hillary Clinton is the Democratic nominee she will have my full support.
Again, please accept my sincere apologies to anyone that I offended.
February 5th, 2008 at 2:10 pm
bhb, I’m not holding Obama responsible for a vote he didn’t make, but I have seen a lot of people give him credit for that vote, to the point of saying “Obama voted against the war.” He didn’t — he wasn’t there. And since he has been there, his record on Iraq has been no different from Sen. Clinton’s. That is reality; it’s not blame.
I hope you noticed that the tone of my post was respectful of both candidates. Your response, IMO, was not.
February 5th, 2008 at 2:37 pm
I don’t know who the lot of people are you’ve heard say Obama voted against the war but everyone knows he couldn’t have voted on the IWR (Iraq War Resolution) because he wasn’t a member of the U.S. Senate at the time. For some reason it’s been protrayed by the media as Barack voted against the war. Barack Obama gave a SPEECH in opposition to the Iraq War while he was an Illinois State Senator.
I apologize if my “tone” appeard “disrespectful” to any candidate or to you.
I always try to agree to disagree without being disagreeable. I have the utmost respect for Senator Clinton,you and the opinions of all that come to this forum to discuss and debate the issues of the day. As I said in my previous post, if Senator Hillary Clinton is the Democratic nominee she will have my full support. Please give me an example of how my “tone” was “disrespectul” so that I won’t make that mistake again.
February 5th, 2008 at 3:07 pm
Kathy, very well said–you make a good case. And feel free to post your endorsement at IIRTZ.
February 5th, 2008 at 4:42 pm
Thanks, Tom.
February 5th, 2008 at 5:37 pm
Kathy,
With all due respect, while it is correct that Senator Obama has supported the troops once they were in Iraq since he has been a member of the U.S. Senate, he made the right decision about the war, Senator Clinton did not.
Good evening and good luck.
February 5th, 2008 at 5:53 pm
Nancy, there was no line at my polling place when I got there just before 8:30. Dear Husband went earlier and didn’t have to wait long. Of course, we do live in a Republican stronghold.
Actually, despite the lack of a line, I was voter #301, and I was Democratic voter #17 on the sign-in sheet for L thru R. There were only 14 Republicans, and I heard the guy behind me ask for a Dem ballot. These numbers don’t really mean anything on their own, and I couldn’t see the other sign-up sheets, but they still gave me a bit of a lift.
February 5th, 2008 at 6:42 pm
I’m district 6 and vote at the Mega Church down the street–the line wasn’t too long, although the person 2 ahead of me was not registered properly and had to be taken aside! Not sure what happened with that!
I didn’t hear too many people asking for a dem. ballot except myself(maybe one inquired in the distance, but I couldn’t be sure, thay may have been joking around about it–that’s how it is around here.) I wanted to vote for my friend Ali to go to the convention, but didn’t want to vote for Edwards, since he is not really running anymore either!–but I voted for Hilary and happily voted for Bayless and Todd as well. I was happy to see names on there I recognized–I hope things go well for them!
February 5th, 2008 at 9:45 pm
Clinton looks to be taking TN! YEAH!
February 5th, 2008 at 10:01 pm
“Clinton looks to be taking TN! YEAH!”
Woohoo!