Billed as a referendum on Trump, the special election in Georgia’s 6th congressional district has now been counted and the GOP has won the day.
The Republican candidate, Karen Handel, is heading to Washington after defeating her Democratic opponent, Jon Ossoff.
In the 2016 House ballot, the GOP carried the district 62-38. The margin in today’s special election the margin has narrowed to 53-47 with voting complete at midday (AET).
Americans call it a special election but in this country we prefer to call them by-elections. And as is the case in Australia, the results tend to favour the party in opposition, in this case the Democrats with a protest vote of some magnitude being registered. Historically in this country by-elections tend to swing somewhere between three and four per cent swing against the government of the day and this can be greater if a retiring MP is well known or widely admired.
Full column here.
Elsewhere, Paul McGeough seems to be having a dollar each way.
Confirmed Trump hater–and everyone right of Chairman Mao.
I will put my hand up. I am a trump hater. I hate everything he represents. Anyone who supports him and his boasting of sexual abuse or his deliberately divisive racism on the campaign trail, or his attack on the poor through removing the affordable care act or his 1850’s energy policies are as deluded as him. Those here supporting him do not deserve to be in Australia. If you want his style of Dictatorship and disgusting dangerous hate speech go back to or go to what has become a failed society. Go you will not be missed.
Now now Dismal.
“Go back to where you came from.” ?
Not nice.
Peppa Pig would not be amused at such racism directed at an honorable member of this blog whose balanced and sane contributions contrast with your left wing diatribes drawn daily from propaganda central.
1850’s energy policy? Hope all those diesel generators keep the lights on in SA this summer – they are so clean and environmentally friendly .
We in NSW object to our GST contributions being used in such an unseemly manner – but I guess once a state becomes dependent on outside aid realty takes a back seat..
Oh, and my the way, how is the 3rd most expensive building in the world going – the hospital – does it have any patients yet?
I wonder who is living in a failed society?
JS.Yep those that support trump can F right off back to the failing society of the good ol USA. Make up your mind, one minute you claim renewables are the problem and now you say diesel generators are the problem.? NSW would struggle without the GAS from MOOMBA. Oh you didn’t know? Are you saying that NSW does NOT have generators at it’s hospitals and other major buildings? Oh and the GST eh? Well when your mate slimy John Howard was in you were happy with the GST carve up. Now you don’t want all Australian citizens benefitting form the Nations economy. You should have stayed in your echo chamber at least you made sense to yourself. You come on here and embarrass yourself with your ridiculous need to try and divide the Nation no wonder you are a phony. Keep trying, new research shows having a terrible memory like yours can help but you are probably too far gone. Very sad when people get to your stage of degeneration.
i’d pencil him in as a knob, a pedestrian writer and lacking the all important quality of being dispassionate upon what he writes.
it is seriously, depressingly amazing how quickly the SMH has slid into dross. and we all suffer as a result.
Seven new players and it only took about thirty five minutes to sort themselves out! And reduced the Blues to a gaggle of stunned mullets in eighty! Oh dear! Bloody effete Queenslanders have turned it into a thinking mans game.
OT and otherwise here is an intriguing story. Alert! A bit “iffy” the old News “Com.”
http://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-updates/incidents/tour-company-maintains-travel-to-north-korea-is-safe-despite-otto-warmbiers-death/news-story/5460b399430db6f5c27354cfc8a32009
Reckon it was the blues who did too much thinking, they thought they had it won. Joey Johns was in a state afterwards, thought he was going to start weeping.
Well yairs Mack, but theres “thinking” and theres thinking. Thinking you’ve got Queensland beat with either an hour or a minute to go is thinking which doesn’t incorporate much memory.
I think the Maroons played some dumb footy too, Mack but mainly in the first half. After conceding 2 tries I don’t think it smart to kick the ball back to the blues on the 3rd tackle and then let the player make some decent yards. The kicking game by us was also about the worst I have ever seen in origin. AND with 1 1/2 minutes to go (plus another half of footy), when you get a penalty take the bloody 2 points.
Still, we dominated the second half with that old QLD’er smarts and toughness and ticker!!!!
The decider will be a cracker at the cauldron.
NSW blew it totally
Who cares!
I only watched the last 5 minutes. It held my interest to see if NSW could hold on and confirmed my view that Rugby League has to be the most boring game on the planet to watch other than synchronized swimming and the poms playing test cricket when they are in a defensive mood.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V6g78XgCQjU
Thats a big swing against the party with a President who has only been around for a few months. Have the Russians taken their eye off the ball? Will they beaver for the GOP in the mid terms with Pence at the helm? Probably not, but will The Koch bros mega million contributions compensate for that? Absolutely.
It will take a mighty jingo dance from The Trumpkin to distract the “forgotten” from the realisation that the real operators have got the POTUS in their pocket and they’ll be whistling Dixie and wiping the horse shit from their eyes and wondering, again, what the hell happened?
The American Dream, dang! What happened, did I miss it? Was I asleep or something?
There’s an old saying around Horse Racetracks, Mr Baptiste, ‘Winning Form is Good Form” and POTUS Trump just keeps winning. I love your “wishful thinking” there re the Russians. Sadly dear chap I have to ask you to “move along, nothing to see there”. What was that ex FBI Directors name now? Cheers buddy.
Read a report in The Times a couple of days ago Henry. Gingrich claims the establishment is hell bent on destroying Trump! In which case your man who is not a horse will nevertheless be destined for the knackery.
Trump is a mere President.
Mel Brooks saw it all 40 years ago. He also gave us Max Smart.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NzbhbetwYFU
Footy tips, there is a game tonight.
I am in. Crows v Hawks tonight at 7:50 AET.
Build a bridge, Jean and get over a democratically elected Pres who will get better as he goes along. The old world hegemony is over and there is a new boy in town who plays by his own rules. His is an unacknowledged revolution that has happened peacefully and in the face of all odds.
Well said dear Milton, that’s why you too are a Queenslander!
There is a reason he hasn’t been acknowledged as a revolutionary Milton. It’s because he is an atavistic twat. I don’t know what you mean by “old world hegemony” but the old money hegemony will use the jumped up parvenu and spit him out like a pumpkin seed.
He promised the world to the simple minded and cant deliver because he is beholden to the real owners.
If he got through to the next election the voters would hand his arse to him on a platter, but they wont be given that chance.
Why the hell do you think they fitted him up with Pence?
Firstly, excellent result in Origin. Looks like a sluggish QLD won due to the Cockroaches’ repeated sheer stupidity. Brilliant game from Dane Gagai.
Secondly, I doubt Georgia’s been particularly kind to Democrats since either Carter or more likely LBJ and the Civil Rights legislation.
Thirdly, 52.5-48.5 adds up to 101.
Looks like what’s left of the State Department is trying to help clear up some of the mess in the Middle East exacerbated by Trump’s comments supporting the Saudi/UAE-led blockade of Qatar for supporting the wrong terrorists – https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jun/20/us-saudi-arabia-qatar-embargo-trump?CMP=share_btn_tw. No real rationale offered otherwise yet.
The Saudis have a new Crown Prince, too, which could be very interesting indeed.
QUEENSLANDER!!!!!!
Well said Mack! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V6g78XgCQjU
Never say die! They’re revealing today that JT was fairly banged up throughout the week but could still beat the Blues even with one arm!
Go Maroons for the decider in three weeks.
Bassman, pierce and maloney scoring tries off forward passes as usual. Piss weak, think I’ll become an AFL fan, at least forward passes are in the rules. Go the blues, Carlton that is.
They don’t seem to care at all. Qld threw a couple of beauties as well, not resulting in tries. Scrums are pointless, they might as well just admit it and take a tap. Then decide if passes have to go backwards or not.
Hell, throwing forward passes at least might keep James Maloney occupied in between dishing out the cheap shots.
Can’t believe this shit , how the hell can these Yanks keep voting for a President and a Republican Party that’s bat shit crazy , here’s hoping they wake you to themselves between now and the mid-terms in November 2018.
Because they think the other mob are more bat shittier………
“bat shittier” is sufficient, not “more bat shittier”, please.
You’re wrong of course, considerably more people voted for the Democrats, it is a great relief to know the majority of American voters are not bat shit crazy.
You might have missed the fact that a batsh*t Bernie Sanders supporter just attempted political assassination of GOP members of Congress. Was probably worth a few votes.
What! I solitary unhinged Democratic is the basis of your riposte? Found a dime on the sidewalk did you fella? Yeehaaah! Whoop it up, paint the town red!
A fabulous result for the Republicans and POTUS Trump, Mr Insider, he being some 4 odd months downwind of the start of his Presidency. He is not and never will be a Politician in the sense we are used to. He has done exactly as he said he would do pre election and is to be applauded for that. He is, imho, the breath of fresh air that US Politics needed, god help the USA if Hilary had won! POTUS Trump well on the ay to “Making America Great Again”.
Too true, Henry. Hillary certainly isn’t fresh air. And considering the worldwide tsunami of shit being dumped on Trump not a shabby result. Then again Trump isn’t really GOP, he’s the Donald.
Godawful band (imho) playing at the SoO. Go the mighty maroons!!!!
Spot on Milton well observed POTUS Trump sure isn’t GOP he most definitely is the Donald and many having a hard time coming to grips with that given we all seem to get the stereotype politically correct Politicians worldwide. Go hard Donald I say! Superb win by the Maroons and the decider at Suncorp on July 12th.
No comment
But, you commented anyway. 😉
I was begin ironic…
How did it end then?
As was I.
That’s Dismayed line without the HAHAHAHA
so one geezer is going orright or the other mob are shouse?
Little bit of both. I honestly think the Dems are in real trouble come 2018.
at the moment they remind me a little of Labor in 1996, when they were so furious that Howard won that they refused to look at why.
still it’s a little way in to the future and Trump is Trump and there is no reason they couldn’t put something together by 2018.
Pointing Hilary to the exit would be an excellent start.
It’s a pretty good reference point, mate. There is a serious amount of delusion about why they lost. Forget the Russians, why didn’t Hillary go to Wisconsin or step things up in Michigan? She certainly needs to go into the cupboard for the foreseeable.
Unless the Russians convinced her to go to Jay-Z and Beyonce concerts and Hollywood fundraisers rather than visit the land of cheese.
They will lose enough seats in the Senate to perhaps give the GOP a filibuster-proof majority.
There were big swings on SC and GA, mate but I think the lesson here is if the Dems expect to be more than making up the numbers in the Congress, don’t rely on anti-Trump sentiment. Put forward some new leaders, new ideas, new policies and yes, put Hillary in the cupboard and mark it “Do not open before Xmas 2018”.
In the Georgia 6th they might have run a candidate who was actually eligible to vote for himself.
this, from James Taranto, is an example of the sort of problems the Dems face,
“In a nutshell, the structural problem for the contemporary Democratic party is that its funding constituency in mostly urban areas on the coasts embraces Nancy Pelosi’s left-wing politics, but most voters don’t. Considering this situation, an increasingly vocal group of Democratic lawmakers now seem willing to risk fewer donations from Ms. Pelosi’s coastal check-writers in the hope of collecting more votes further inland.”
Yes, policy, ideological and personality problems. The real biggie though is Trump is perceived as a better economic manager among voters and with the US economy having turned the corner, solid employment growth etc., the mid terms could be a disaster for the Dems.
Taranto? Dems? I thought GWS was playing the Lions this week, not Melbourne?
OTA.. but speaking of geezers going orright …..Macron…..impressive
The French love him. Guess because he’s saying all the right things.
Hope it works for them.