Reason Morning Links: A Gripping Election in New York, a Disintegrating Election in Afghanistan, and an Old Election in Nevada

• NY-23's freshly withdrawn Republican endorses the Democrat over the Conservative.

• CIT Group files for bankruptcy.

• Republicans prepare their own health care bill.

• The Afghan runoff is cancelled after the president's opponent exits the race.

• The White House and members of the press reach a compromise on a media shield law.

• Artificial snow falls in China.

• Late-breaking news from Nevada: Ron Paul won. (His audit-the-Fed bill, on the other hand, is being gutted.)

Comments

[Johnny Longtorso]

NY - 23: Scozzafava Doing Robo Calls For Owens

[Kyle Jordan]

Can't wait until the day that I can seed the clouds above my property to make it rain and snow at my command.

And the Ron Paul story makes me want to shoot something in anger.

[Johnny Longtorso]

Snow is white so you are clearly racist.

[Kyle Jordan]

Rain is clear. What does that say about me?

[John Tagliaferro]

Still means you are racist.

[Tulpa]

Which one? both are pretty infuriating.

[Kyle Jordan]

The delegates story.

[John C. Randolph]

the Ron Paul story makes me want to shoot something in anger.

As it happens, the bitch who screwed the voters who picked Ron Paul delegates for the national convention is the one running against Harry Reid. So, Nevadans also get treated to another term of that incompetent asshole by default.

-jcr

[robc]

As the article made clear, she isnt running against Reid **YET**. She is being challenged in the primary.

[Michael Ejercito]

She deserves defeat.

[@]

The myopic Manhattanite press calls everything north of The Bronx "upstate." District 23 is in northern New York. The state also has a west (Buffalo), a central (Syracuse) and an east (Albany). But it's true: you really can't see them from Rockefeller Center.

[highnumber]

As I understand, journalists traditionally refer to all of New York outside of NYC metro and Long Island as "upstate." Similarly, in Illinois, everything outside of Chicagoland is "downstate." They're just awkwardly worded bits of journalistic shorthand. I don't think nearsightedness is the cause.

[Ska]

Yeah, as a Queens native, I also consider everything north of the Bronx upstate. Alright, maybe everything north of Westchester.

[@]

It's rather elitist, no? The famous New Yorker cover best illustrates New York City's (and New York media's) metrocentric opinion of the rest of America.

[Ska]

I can see your point - shit, NYC media treats the outer boroughs like they're other countries, so what the hell do they think of upstate? There are geographic and travel boundaries that just make going north impractical, and after years of thinking along those lines, seem very distant.

Albany is a 3 hour drive, Syracuse is 5 hours, and I couldn't even think of what Buffalo would be. That's going to affect the way you gauge distance.

[fishbane]

Of course it is elitist. I pay $1700 a month in rent, in Brooklyn, and pay $10 for a pack of Camels. That's gotta buy something.

[Rhywun]

Considering that well over half the state's population lives south of Yonkers, I think the division is a reasonable one.

[@]

No doubt, the biggest gang wins.

[James Ard]

Boy, that endorsement must make Newt feel really smart. That would have been the least reliable Republican House vote in history.

[hmm]

? NY-23's freshly withdrawn Republican endorses the Democrat over the Conservative.

Incoming so called "bipartisan" post appointment within the executive branch. I'm thinking ambassador to Neverland.

[Rich]

Paul ... said Mel Watt, a Democrat from North Carolina, has eliminated "just about everything" while preparing the legislation for formal consideration. Watt is chairman of the panel's domestic monetary policy and technology subcommittee.

Contact Mel Watt.

[Tulpa]

Unless you're on the board of directors of Bank of America, I doubt he'll give two shits what you think. But go ahead, make yourself feel better.

[Rich]

Oh, based on stuff like this, I'm sure he'll listen to us.

[TP]

I know all about Mel Watt. His largest campaign contributors in 2008 were BoA, Wachovia, AMEX, and the American Bankers Association, and also Citigroup. In 1998, when he was first elected to the House, his largest contributors were Labor Unions. His district includes the corporate centers for BoA and Wachovia. Watt is also on the Financial Services Committee, chaired by Barney Frank, who was not necessarily opposed to HR 1207. I would also suggest contacting Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.), Chairman
Rep. Spencer Bachus (R-Ala.), Ranking Republican.

1998: http://www.opensecrets.org/pol.....mp;recs=20

2008: http://www.opensecrets.org/pol.....mp;recs=20

[Mike M.]

I'm getting the feeling that tomorrow could well be an across-the-board beatdown for the Democrats.

[Jim Treacher]

If so: It doesn't matter.

If not: Ha-ha, told ya, wingnuts!

[hmm]

Oh crap I forgot tomorrow is election day.

GOOD LUCK CLICHE BANDIT!!!

The CIT is mildly disturbing. I guess they weren't too big to fail. Then again if you want control of business what better way than to have them owe you money. Oh god must find tin foil hat ASAP.

Does CIT count as an economic indicator? Are things still getting better? Cause I still smell shit and have this squishy feeling between my toes.

[TP]

The article didn't mention about the deal made with Goldman Sucks a few months ago, after CIT was denied more TARP from the Treasury. If I remember correctly, they are supposed to get $1 billion off the top, plus they were heavily hedged in credit default swaps. So much so, that it's estimated that GS will actually profit from CIT's bankruptcy.

[Rich]

Inquiring minds want to know how this will affect the price of Dunkin' donuts.

[Joe Biden]

It won't. Those damn Pakis will slash their prices in a capitalist frenzy to ensure that Americans stay fat. We need to stop these evil Pakis. That is why I am introducing legislation to make it mandatory they all volunteer in the army so we can fight the war in Afghanistan. After all it is their homeland.

[TP]

I was speaking to a real estate broker/residential developer friend of mine the other day. He told me banks were looking for 35% down on mortgages, and up to 50% on new projects. This sure as shit isn't going to help.

[hmm]

Why? It's a great thing. Money has a cost associated with borrowing it. The problem is the government made it possible or forced (for tinfoil hat people) the cost of money to damn near 0. On top of that the removal of any equity in the project the money was borrowed for equals one monsterous motherfucker of a moral hazard. If you have 50% of your money an work in a project and the bank has 50% are you going to walk way if it goes to shit? If you have 0% or 5% in a project and the bank has 95% how about now, gonna stay or bail?

People not having equity in relative to their borrowing is creating a huge problem right now. Huge stake in the gain and no stake in the pain equals walk away from the pain.

[robc]

During the housing boom, required down payments got lower and lower (including negative at times). This was exactly backwards. As the Case-Shiller index* got away from its traditional trend line, the amount down required should have been growing.

*or some other standard, that just seems to be a reasonable one

Of course, this would have killed off demand and prevented the bubble, except the FED was supplying cheap money, so it was going to cause a bubble somewhere. It just wouldnt have been in hosuing.

[hmm]

Kind of like the whole commercial paper melt down. It's not nearly as hard to walk away from something that isn't backed or something you(or the counter party) have no equity in as it is to walk away from something backed by the other guy having a stake in it, or you having a stake in it.

[hmm]

This is turning out to be a good lesson all round in the value of equity on all sides of the equation.

[hmm]

Good point. And not suprising. GS has managed this economic crises with a rent seeking for counter parties, or blocking rent seeking for competition strategy that is fucking genius. It's a shitty way to do business and I wish I could say it will bite them in the ass. But it won't. The AIG transfer was genius on every level. AIG gets hammered for bonuses, no one even bats an eyelash when GS goes back to its huge bonuses, all made possible by the transfer from gov -> AIG -> GS to cover CDS. They get paid, look good, and even get used as some sort of completely retarded economic indicator by some.

Fuck that company is almost as evil as Google.

[R C Dean]

CIT was the big player in credit for small to mid-size business. I expect a ripple effect, as outstanding credit for "Main Street" gets contracted, and new credit gets harder to get. Not good for the real economy.

[hmm]

That was my tin foil hat. What do want to bet the push for smaller lenders to enter the commercial market by the government (adverse selection to a degree since they aren't familiar with the market 90% of the time) and the SBA probably getting ready to roll out a program is a move to gain more control over the largest sector of American business. College loans, business loans, mortgages, pretty soon you won't have to write a check to pay bills. It will just be taken from you before you are paid.

[Clich? Bandit]

Thanks hmm...I just can't wait till this is over. One way or the other. The interesting part is that my opponent is an R being backed by Ds and Rs...nothing like "GO BLUE?RED TEAM" politics. We will see tomorrow how that turns out for them.

Chickens, eggs, hatching...aww screw it I need a drink!

[Kyle Jordan]

And I don't know if Walker meant to do this or if some form of latent homosexuality is cropping up in my mind but when I read "Gripping Election" quickly, I'm sometimes reading it as "Gripping Erection".

[Tulpa]

Maybe you have a deep-seated unconcious desire to grab buildings.

[hmm]

election = politics
politics = getting fucked
erections = fucking

could just be conditioning

[Atanarjuat]

erections = fucking

Wait til you get married.

[hmm]

I never said you weren't fucking your fist.

I am married.

[Enjoy Every Sandwich]

NY-23's freshly withdrawn Republican endorses the Democrat over the Conservative.

Those "major" types stick together, don't they? Can't have those damned outsiders messing up the system.

[T]

Always. The Republicans down here handed a house seat to the Democrats for 2 years rather than endorse the Libertarian candidate. The LP guy was on the ballot and due to a lovely chain of fuck-ups and rulings, the R candidate ended up being a write-in. What a cluster fuck that was.

[Mike M.]

The good news is that the days where this crap works is starting to come to an end. Little by little, more and more people are becoming independent-mind voters all the time.

[Art-P.O.G.]

I hope so. I can't believe how arrogantly Rs and Ds take dumps on third parties.

[The Gobbler]

Ford surprises with $1B profit; sees profit in '11
Ford, the only Detroit automaker to dodge direct government aid and bankruptcy court, surprised investors with net income of nearly $1 billion in the third quarter and forecast a "solidly profitable" 2011.

http://www.startribune.com/bus.....CinchO7DUs

[hmm]

They are having union issues at the moment. The Canadians and mexico are probably going to be getting a nice influx of Ford plants being moved from the US due to the unions not wanting to commit to the same cuts as mandated by the bankrupt automakers. Sometimes I think union workers forget $1 > $0 every day of the week and 1 1/2 that on sundays.

[T]

I have listened to union members discuss the fact that they would rather see the company they worked for go bankrupt than take a pay or benefit cut. Admittedly, this was the airline industry, but it was still mindboggling to hear.

[R C Dean]

From the union perspective, refusing to take cuts and forcing Ford into bankruptcy is the winning strategy. After all, why takes cuts now, when the worst case scenario is government guaranteed wages and benefits down the road?

[hmm]

Mulally is probably not the guy to play hard ball with. He seems to have a knack for getting what he wants, which might mean the unions will be left in the cold as ford moves to consolidate its international and domestic lines. Think about it. Consolidate domestic and international. Kind of lends itself to heh, if you don't want to play ball domestically we have a broadening international strategy already in process, what's it to us if we move a few factories across boarders.

Mulally doesn't seem like a hardball guy, but he has been getting what he wants and moving forward regardless of some pretty fucking impossible scenarios occurring.

[Ben]

I've often wondered what the UAW would have done, if GM, Chrysler and Ford had gotten smart and told Michigan and Detroit to "suck it" and simply moved their companies and operations to right-to-work states like Tennessee back in the late '80s and early 90s when they should have seen the writing on the wall with the Japanese imports.

[JW]

Those plants are a shitload of sunk costs, but I hope Ford fucks the union so hard and without remorse, that the unions actually believes Ford when it says that it will call the union soon about a 2nd date.

[hmm]

A lot of them are already off the books. The sunk costs are in tooling and if you are retooling to consolidate a your lines its a little less painful to just repurchase when you can cut one of your largest variable costs (labor) in half. Unions are playing with fire in this market and economy the old run them bankrupt strategy could easily backfire given all the variables.

[Art-P.O.G.]

Re: the delegates story: WTF were Willard and Lowden doing? I'm honestly a little confused.

[JB]

Scozzafava = Cunt

[Colonel_Angus]

If the republicans are trying to put an end to the claims that they aren't proposing any alternatives to the democrat health insurance bill, their attempt is pretty gay. They both reek of massive statist expansion. How come those pussies don't even bring up the thought of a little deregulation?

[Colonel_Angus]

They should hang that bitch that fucked around with the Nevada convention.

[Art-P.O.G.]

Seriously, do you think she could be sued or held criminally liable?

[Colonel_Angus]

Should, yes. Will, no.

The best thing that can happen is she would be held liable in an election. And someone will rub shit on her door handle.

[T]

I can see a lawsuit, but criminally liable? No. The Party is a private organization and free to conduct matters in any fashion it chooses. Which is yet another reason the preferential treatment of the two major parties bugs the crap out of me.

[JW]

Election season makes me want to shoot my television.

[Attorney]

In other news, WSJ has a good editorial on how the Pelosi healthcare bill is the Worst. Bill. Ever.

[Rich]

the bill creates a new and probably unrepealable middle-class entitlement that is designed to expand over time

Thanks, Attorney. Assuming this monstrosity becomes law, it will be self-repealing, if you get my drift.

[JW]

Hey! Quit cutting in on Balko's turf!

[The Clinton Tapes]

Jiang read studiously from a text "about the glorious history of China and the folly of attempts to influence her internal affairs." On and on he droned. At length, an exasperated Clinton interrupted. Look, he said. I don't want to meddle in your internal affairs. I don't even mind your prisons. I plan on putting more people in ours myself. All you need to do, Clinton confided, is to make a few gestures about human rights, and here are a couple of suggestions.

[Nike Dunk Low]

thanks