Presidential race 2016

[username]

Cruz won in Iowa. I don't like him either but anyone but Tump.

[HairOfTheDog]

So, Bernie virtually tied Clinton tonight for the Democrats -- based on current counts. That's a huge victory for a guy who has truly led a grassroots campaign and had very little national name recognition before last year. A tie has gotta sting for Clinton though (not as much as the loss to Obama and Edwards in 2008, but still has to be a huge disappointment for her campaign considering she was deemed virtually unbeatable for the Democrats less than 6 months ago).

I'm glad Cruz beat Trump in Iowa for the Republicans, but watching and listening to Cruz is irritating to me -- he seems so contrived and phony and I don't like all the religious references. But, he's got the majority evangelical vote at this point and has really run the smartest campaign thus far, in my opinion. I like Rubio way better than Cruz and think he appeals to a broader base and would probably have a better chance at beating the Democratic nominee than Cruz. Rubio is still my prediction for the Republican nomination.

I like Bernie. It's cool to see a candidate who spits in the face of Super PACs, who fought for equal rights his whole adult life, who attacks problems in the system and inequality rather than attacking all of his opponents in the race, etc.. I like the man for his conviction and ideals. I think Bernie will win in New Hampshire for the Democrats (and Cruz or Rubio will win there for the Republicans, though Trump is currently way ahead in the polls there too).

There's a Democratic Town Hall on Wednesday night; CNN at 8 p.m. EST. It's down to just Hillary and Bernie now. Martin O'Malley is a decent guy (though he kinda reminds me of Fred Rogers) and he did some great things in Baltimore, but he didn't even get 1% in Iowa. He dropped out tonight. On the Republican side, Mike Huckabee failed to secure many votes in Iowa and also threw in the towel.

This is the most interesting election run-up that I can remember.

[Cutz]

This is the most interesting election run-up that I can remember.

Eh. I hate all of them. Sanders is a crackpot, he's just dimmed to oblivion by Trump.

[HairOfTheDog]

I get that, Cutz. There have been a few elections over the last 20 years where I hated them all too and felt like I was choosing between the lesser of two evils.

I don't feel that way this time; maybe because Trump and Sanders have changed the game just by being in the running and getting a lot of traction. This election is not, yet again, a simple question of "who's the least objectionable special interest backed candidate from each party and which one will do the best for the domestic economy and national security?" That's typically been what it's come down to for me. This time, I feel like there's a lot more to consider.

Sanders isn't a crackpot, in my opinion. Last election, some people thought Libertarian Ron Paul was a crackpot Republican candidate. I disagreed with them too. I like what Sanders is saying, what he's doing, and how he's doing it. I don't know if I'd vote for him and trust him to run the country at this point. But, I think it's a good thing that if Hillary Clinton wants to win the democratic nomination, she's gonna have to fight for it and convince Dems that she means what she's saying now; she not a shoe-in.

I still think Trump has been a needed wake up call for the Republicans and good for the race in many ways. But, he's not really about improving the lives of the American people and representing everyone as fairly as possible. He's about narrowing the pool of every ones and playing to the very large group of (understandably) fed-up Americans. He doesn't want to give more power and voice to the people, he wants to take the power away from a bunch of super rich groups and put the power in his hands. That's how I see it anyway.

Anyhow, while there are things about each and their platforms that concern me, I don't hate Sanders, Kasich, Rubio, Clinton, Paul or even Bush.

[HairOfTheDog]

Iowa Caucus Results

Republican:

[HairOfTheDog]

(continued)

Democrat:


http://mic.com/articles/134071/iowa-cauc....wHkp4ldll

[QueenBee]

I am pure democrat, and would choose Sanders over Clinton. But on the Republican side, I am just in favor of Trump NOT being the candidate..for reasons already mentioned in previous posts here. I think it is great that Trump's ego was deflated a notch to remind him and his clueless minions that he is not a god, he is not a savior of the masses and he would NOT be a good representative of the people who have been taken in by his hype.

[Carsman]

Iowa Caucus Results

Republican:

I'm surprised, I thought Christie would have done better. Maybe it's time for all the single digit candidates to bow out so to close the ranks.

[Maggot]

I'm interested in the percentage of the vote received by all the candidates together.

[HairOfTheDog]

You'll have to take that up with the DNC, Maggot. I'd wager you're aware that they don't release vote counts; just percentages and delegate counts.

[Maggot]

You'll have to take that up with the DNC, Maggot. I'd wager you're aware that they don't release vote counts; just percentages and delegate counts.

Yeah, but I'd still like to know. Maybe in a caucus because that's a bunch of people tossing votes in a hat but in the nomination voting process it gets out.

[HairOfTheDog]

You'll have to take that up with the DNC, Maggot. I'd wager you're aware that they don't release vote counts; just percentages and delegate counts.

Yeah, but I'd still like to know. Maybe in a caucus because that's a bunch of people tossing votes in a hat but in the nomination voting process it gets out.

I'd like to know too, baby. I'm a geek; I love data, numbers, and stats. It's not part of the DNC process to release raw vote counts from caucuses and primaries though.

HOWEVER, last night's caucus was so close between Clinton and Sanders, Sanders (always one to buck the system, gotta love Independents ) is appealing to the DNC to release the vote counts. If Bernie gets his way, maybe we will see the raw data this time. If we do, we can use the Dem raw vote counts to come up with a consolidated cross-party comparison very easily.

Sanders has long accused the DNC of being Clinton-partial. Personally, I think he's right about that. I'm not really suspicious that there was any wrong-doing in the counting, reporting upward, tallying, and resulting delegate distribution. But, it's not like the caucuses are sophisticated in process and it's not my ass in the race. I don't fault Bernie for demanding a recount and public disclosure. The race was so close that the Des Moines register reported 6 precincts used the old "flip a coin" method to decide a Democratic winner.

As it stands now, Clinton won Iowa by a hair-thin margin and got two more delegates than Bernie. It's being reported as the closest caucus in history.

[Duchess]

6 precincts used the old "flip a coin" method to decide a Democratic winner.

In this era of technology, that just seems so archaic.

[Maggot]

6 precincts used the old "flip a coin" method to decide a Democratic winner.

In this era of technology, that just seems so archaic.

Yeah..........Rock,paper,scissors works much better.

[HairOfTheDog]

Well, Rand Paul threw in the towel today.

I wonder which candidate will be able to scoop up most of his supporters and bolster his/her own base?



“Although, today I will suspend my campaign for president, the fight is far from over,” Mr. Paul said in a statement. “I will continue to carry the torch for Liberty in the United States Senate and I look forward to earning the privilege to represent the people of Kentucky for another term.”

“Across the country thousands upon thousands of young people flocked to our message of limited government, privacy, criminal justice reform and a reasonable foreign policy,” he said. “Brushfires of Liberty were ignited, and those will carry on, as will I.”

[Duchess]

Trump is on a tear today. He's accusing Cruz of fraud and wants a new election in Iowa.

From the horse's mouth -

Based on the fraud committed by Senator Ted Cruz during the Iowa Caucus, either a new election should take place or Cruz results nullified.

Ted Cruz didn't win Iowa, he stole it. That is why all of the polls were so wrong and why he got far more votes than anticipated. Bad!

During primetime of the Iowa Caucus, Cruz put out a release that @RealBenCarson was quitting the race, and to caucus (or vote) for Cruz.

Many people voted for Cruz over Carson because of this Cruz fraud. Also, Cruz sent out a VOTER VIOLATION certificate to thousands of voters.

The Voter Violation certificate gave poor marks to the unsuspecting voter(grade of F) and told them to clear it up by voting for Cruz. Fraud

Story

[Maggot]

Trump has been nominated for the Nobel peace prize. EOM.

[Duchess]

Jesus Christ.

This man has offended countless people and preaches intolerance.

[F.U.]

Go Donnie!

[sally]

Trump is on a tear today. He's accusing Cruz of fraud and wants a new election in Iowa.

From the horse's mouth -

Based on the fraud committed by Senator Ted Cruz during the Iowa Caucus, either a new election should take place or Cruz results nullified.

Ted Cruz didn't win Iowa, he stole it. That is why all of the polls were so wrong and why he got far more votes than anticipated. Bad!

During primetime of the Iowa Caucus, Cruz put out a release that @RealBenCarson was quitting the race, and to caucus (or vote) for Cruz.

Many people voted for Cruz over Carson because of this Cruz fraud. Also, Cruz sent out a VOTER VIOLATION certificate to thousands of voters.

The Voter Violation certificate gave poor marks to the unsuspecting voter(grade of F) and told them to clear it up by voting for Cruz. Fraud

Story

I imagine it affected the polls somewhat and now Cruz gets away with it by just saying "oh sorry, my bad". I don't like that slime ball. I'd take Trump over him in a heartbeat.