So what did we learn?

By Dan Brooks in Politics versus Government 4 Comments

Jubilant Democrats briefly forget they are in Orlando.

So it turns out I was all worked up about nothing, you guys. Barack Obama has been re-elected president, and the balance of power in Congress has remained fundamentally the same. Democrats picked up a couple of seats in the senate, but not enough to achieve the 60-vote supermajority that has become the threshold for overcoming inevitable Republican filibusters. But are those filibusters still inevitable? The GOP spent four years stymying the president at every turn; they held the nation’s credit rating hostage and generally wrecked a two-century tradition of comity in American government, and it didn’t work. So will Obama’s second term be any different?

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There was something I was supposed to do today

By Dan Brooks in Uncategorized 1 Comment

Majestic, isn’t it?

First of all, that kid is way too young to vote. Also he appears to have a karate rat tail, which should disqualify his mother. Sorry—I’m just gearing up for election day, which I will spend at my local polling place challenging suspicious-looking voters for the good of democracy. Judging by the number of “I voted” statuses scrolling Facebook this morning, an alarming number of my friends A) have jobs and B) already went to the polls. Probably I could have disqualified some of them, had I gotten out of the house early enough, but I am here typing so that I can bring you the very latest election results. For example, Dixville Notch was a tie.

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Oh my god, it’s tomorrow

By Dan Brooks in Existential Dilemmas 5 Comments

I don’t know how it crept upon me, exactly, but I woke this morning gripped by election dread. Never mind that Barack Obama is going to win. Nate Silver now gives Romney a 13%-ish chance of winning the electoral college, and the spate of national polls that declare a tie in the popular vote are matched by the spate that read Obama-plus. Granted, it is baffling and unsettling that it remains that close. Romney turned in a tax plan everyone said was nonsensical, went to various sporting events and told fans what an owner he was, tied his dog to the roof of his car and made a video of himself promising to ignore half the country. Obama looked tired in a debate—tie! Evidently, the American people do not follow the news. Either that or polls don’t mean a damn thing, and anything could happen tomorrow.

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Friday links! Scoundrelsy edition

By Dan Brooks in Friday Links 5 Comments

A scoundrel

Everybody loves a scoundrel. Who can resist the raffish charm of Han Solo, the ironized confidence of Chael Sonnen, the armed troops of Francisco Franco? Not Americans—Americans love an anti-hero, a fellow who does bad but deep down is good, somehow. Our penchant for anti-heroes is so strong that, as many critics observe, we have damn few regular heroes left. I am not worried about the hero population, though. I’m worried about our supply of villains, which dwindles to near zero as they are all declared likable scoundrels. Today is Friday, and the week that was does not look so bad in retrospect. It was actually total dicks, though, and a scoundrel is a scoundrel no matter how much the princess loves him in Jedi. Won’t you shoot first with me?

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The insane stupidity of the Romney compromise argument

By Dan Brooks in Politics versus Government 2 Comments

“What’s that direction people look in when they’re lying? I can look the other direction if you want.”

Much has been made over the last few days of the Des Moines Register‘s endorsement of Mitt Romney. The Register‘s argument is two-pronged: first, they believe that Romney’s plan of lower taxes and decreased regulation is the best way to fix the economy. That’s obviously true; when businesses and rich people spend money, it goes into the economy, whereas when the government spends money it goes into a deficit. Low taxes and deregulation are known drivers of economic growth—that’s why we had a massive economic collapse when taxes and regulations were at their lowest. But forget that. The second, more important reason the Register endorsed Romney for president is that he is the better candidate to “forge compromise” in Congress. David Brooks made the same argument over at the Times, and he sounded just as nuts.

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