The Widdershins

Be careful what we ask for, eh, Widdershins? Some of us who lean rather strongly to the left can tend to over-idolize the power of collaboration. Sometimes teamwork can elevate our minds and spirits, and produce great results for all; and sometimes, sincere, lemming-like stupidity can overwhelm the more thoughtful team members amongst us.

Take two primary elections yesterday. The first was the primary for the recall of Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker (R-Koch Brothers Inc.). For months, students, teachers and other supporters of the power of collective barganing were out in the Capitol, protesting Walker’s aggressive public union-busting agenda. When that failed to move him from his path of destruction, they joined with the Democratic Party and took advantage of Wisconsin’s recall laws to  try to get the worst offenders out of office ASAP. The process got rolling, and soon four Democratic challengers appeared (two of whom are wimminz!), along with two Republican challengers (one, Gladys Huber,  is a wimminz who is running as a Democrat). There are several other Republicans who are also facing recall elections today, thanks to the activism of those tireless Wisconsin defenders of collective bargaining rights. And of course, some recall elections were held last year, with mixed results.

As I write this, the election results are in: Democrat Tom Barrett (Mayor of Milwaukee) has won the primary. Whatever happens when the final election is held, I am proud of the people of Wisconsin for staying strong and determined and making this happen. The more of these corrupt, lying mouthpieces of the 1% that are toppled, the better off we’ll be.

And then…there’s the OTHER special election that happened in Indiana yesterday. Can you say “Republican National Implosion?” I knew you could.

Sen. Richard Lugar, the third longest-serving member of the Senate, went down to a primary defeat tonight to his Tea Party-backed opponent in the Republican primary.

State Treasurer Richard Mourdock, backed by tea partiers and conservative campaign groups outside the state, ousted Lugar in Indiana’s GOP primary, the Associated Press projected.

Am I a fan of Famous Bipartisan Grand Old Man Lugar? No, but he did sometimes vote with Democrats on some initiatives – and the voters of Indiana supported him for doing so. Mourdock, on the other hand, was backed by Dick Armey’s Army, and they don’t come from Indiana, apparently.

Mourdock’s win was expected by political operatives in D.C. and Indiana after an expensive campaign in which outside groups flocked to the Hoosier State. A total of 12 groups spent $4.6 million, only one of them based in Indiana.

[snip]

Tea partiers and conservative groups replayed their successful 2010 playbook to defeat Lugar, the first establishment casualty of 2012. The anti-Lugar charge was led by the Club for Growth and FreedomWorks, which routinely pick inexpensive states and vulnerable Republican incumbents, attacking them for moderate votes. In Indiana, that meant Lugar’s votes for TARP, against an earmarks moratorium, and in favor of Supreme Court justices Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan.

The HORROR!

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