No, Papa is not headed in the direction you might think from this title. Still on politics. Current Affairs in the context of history has always held my interest. Television reporting of election results in the 1950’s was more or less straightforward. Votes counted, votes received, precincts outstanding, winners, losers, leaders and laggers; newscasters gave viewers statistics. Through the years election coverage has expanded beyond mere numbers to include in-depth analysis and predictions, not to mention post mortems. Papa still enjoys it but his grain of salt listening to various “talking heads” has expanded into a huge lump. However, I will be watching next Tuesday.
A main interest will be how the democrat party’s “cutesy” game turns out. Especially in the state of New Hampshire. Talking heads tell us that control of the US Senate hangs in the balance on November 8th. Drama! In an effort to ensure democracy flourishes, democrat funds were pumped to assist a supposedly “extremist” republican candidate in the New Hampshire’s primary. They wanted an easier opponent for the incumbent. Find an outsider who liked Trump and had questions about the 2020 election outcome and that candidtate could become easy pickings next Tuesday. ( Is an extremist only in the eye of the beholder?) 3.2 million dollars well spent? OOPS! That contest is now neck and neck. The seat could still be lost to a Republican. (Darn! It worked for Claire McCaskill.)
The New Hampshire race is not the only 2022 primary election is which cross-over money from the democrat party was spent to prop up what the party viewed as a questionable candidate/opponent. It’ll take some research to identify other races of less import that might be mentioned during a Tuesday newscast. (Papa’s best research tools so far: Wahington Post, NPR and Bloomberg.) One election that will not need watching or research is for govenor of Illinois. 30+ million dollars spent to maniulate a patsy must make that seat rather valuable. Papa is not sure why any republican needed help to become a defeated one in The Land Of Lincoln by a democrat. Not being a conspiracy nut myself, there is that rumor out there that many new born babies in Illinois have a chip embedded in an index finger by the MWFF* that automatically flicks any switch that has a “d” near to it.
Best to reject unfounded rumors. What is important is to vote to save democracy. At least that is a top issue according to some political pros for the 2022 mid-term elections. Papa needs to do some thinking. It is critical to oppose extremists. However, occasionally it’s okay to give them a small boost in a primary so they can have a bigger platform in the main election to broadcast their views? Perhaps fostering free speech for nut jobs is the ultimate goal of cross over money? I thought that the internet already supplied that outlet.
Crossover money registers a faint memory of a party’s objections to Wisconsin’s open primary system. (Papa likes that system created around 1905.) The Badger State registers voters without party designation. Back home misguided policies somehow developed that convention delegates follow the state’s primary results. That viewpoint bumped into a sentiment against “cross over voters” participating in democracy. So much so that a US Supreme Court case rose up from the democrats 1980 refusal to seat Wisconsin’s delegation. Apples and oranges to some extent of course. Yet, why hold a primary if it is doesn’t have meaning? And, who pays the cost of such unecessary elections? If Wisconsin was trying to undo “smoke filled back room party politics,” are primaries simply window dressing? So much to think about on a rainy day.
*Maternity Ward Freedom Fighters