So what does the result out of Rhode Island mean?
I think this basically speaks for itself. The Republicans could have guarenteed themselves the loss of a senate seat tonight. They dodged that bullet. As these numbers show, I think Whitehouse, the ironically named Democratic candidate, still has the advantage. But it’s going to be close.
The real question in looking at this race is which number is more important: the spread between Whitehouse and Chafee, which I don’t think has ever been outside the margin of error but with Whitehouse almost always ahead, or that fact that Chafee, the incumbent, hasn’t been able to get over 43% in any poll I’ve seen.
Here’s Steve Clemons’ take, in the context of the Bolton nomination.
Latest numbers out of Maryland at our TPM Election Central numbers board.
The House Intelligence Committee has investigated Duke Cunningham’s dirty deeds for months. Why don’t they have anything to show for it? That and other news of the day in today’s Daily Muck.
As of just before 11 AM, Maryland incumbent Al Wynn seems to have retaken a very thin lead over challenger Donna Edwards. But it’s certainly not over.
Bush’s beard? Middle school teacher Gary Weddle pledged he wouldn’t shave his beard until bin Laden was captured. Click here to see his very long beard.
A new ad hits Sen. George Allen (R-VA) for a vote against funding body armor for troops in Iraq.
Litigation saves the day — Rep. William Jefferson (D-LA) will likely not be indicted before the November election.
TPM Reader GM has a nice catch out of the Sen. Allen Macaca Apology 3.0 article in today’s Virginia-Pilot, emphasis added …
“The point is, symbols matter, they should matter, and this is something that I wish I learned a lot earlier,” Allen said. “Even if your heart is pure, the things you say and do and the symbols you use do matter because of the way others may take them.”
Allen wore a Confederate flag pin on his lapel in his 1970 graduation picture from a Southern California high school. He hung a noose from a plant in his Charlottesville law office in the 1980s and a Confederate flag inside his home. As governor in the mid-1990s, he alienated some by signing a resolution that designated a Confederate history month in Virginia but did not acknowledge the evils of slavery.
I guess you have to hand it to Sen. Allen since in his feeble efforts to wriggle his way out of his history of bigotry he has actually managed to lend an element of bleakly dark humor to this country’s heavy history of racial segregation and violence.
A noose? He missed the symbolism of that one? Thought it was just about southern heritage?
The weird thing is, as Ed Kilgore pointed out back in April, it’s not even like George Allen is even a southerner. As Ed wrote then, “Allen’s whole cowboy-boot-wearing, tobacco-chewing, country-music-loving Southern Man routine was something he cultivated during his formative high school years in the hyper-exclusive Southern California community of Palos Verdes.”
What was the noose about?
Even with all the Macaca coverage, this guy’s still getting a free ride from most of the press.