His speech was clear, concise, gave the right nod to his team and to his choice of Ryan. Wished Obama well, said he wanted the job but the American people chose somebody else. That sends a very clear message to his party: the American people have chosen Obama for the next four years. Work with him. And his crowd did not boo or groan, which is also good and right. Let’s hope their party colleagues in Congress get the message.
Chuck Todd on MSNBC is saying Virginia and Florida are too close to call but look likely to go for Obama, because the counties still outstanding are generally Democratic-leaning. The call in Ohio by the networks was for the same reason, as Michael Barone explained rather patiently to Karl Rove on air at Fox: the outstanding votes are mostly in overwhelmingly Democratic counties - and in Democratic precincts within those counties, as Barone explained.
An MSNBC reporter at Romney HQ reports that Romney had prepared an acceptance speech but no concession speech. Nobody from the campaign is around to answer questions. If the margin is close, they will go to provisional ballots, which won’t be counted until the end of the month.
Colorado and Washington both approved ballot measures legalizing the possession of small amounts of marijuana. Not medical marijuana - happy weed. That could set up a conflict with the incoming Obama administration. Up to now his Justice Department has opposed California’s medical marijuana law, which effectively nullifies federal drug laws. Tho without much conviction. Recreational use might change the equation and set up a real constitutional confrontation.
The Guardian cites a new report from Price Waterhouse Cooper Consulting saying the world is on track for an average global temperature increase of 6 degrees C (10.8 F) by the end of the century at current rates of carbon emission, with catastrophic implications for human life.
New research by consultancy giant PwC finds an unprecedented 5.1 per cent annual cut in global emissions per unit of GDP, known as carbon intensity, is needed through to 2050 if the world is to avoid the worst effects of climate change and meet an internationally agreed target of limiting average temperature increases to just two degrees above pre-industrial levels.
Such deep reductions in carbon intensity would be over six times greater than the 0.8 per cent average annual cuts achieved since 2000.
The report also confirms that greatest rises in greenhouse gas emissions came from the emerging E7 economies of China, India, Brazil, Mexico, Russia, Indonesia and Turkey, whose cumulative 7.4 per cent annual increase in emissions swamped record levels of reductions in the UK, France, and Germany.
PwC warns sustained economic growth in these countries could “lock in” high carbon assets that will make it significantly harder for them to decarbonise over the coming decades, a point likely to be raised at the UN-backed Doha Climate Summit when it kicks off later this month.
It also warns that industrialised countries must accelerate their partially successful efforts to reduce carbon emissions.
An announcement by the Republican state chairman, despite the fact that all the networks have called it, including Fox. Worth noting: the returns so far have them separated by 1,500 votes with 77% reporting.
Now that Obama has won the Electoral College, two questions remain. First, will he win the popular vote? Second, will Republicans let him govern? There are some very big decisions to make, starting with a deal on the budget and the debt, and addressing the growing climate crisis. Will the Republicans be chastened by their strategy of obstructing everything, or will they sit down and begin talking about real compromise?
Will the Senate Republicans the chamber do business, or will they keep tying everything up in filibusters? Will the House negotiate in good faith? Or will they double down on the policy of blocking everything to make the administration look incompetent?
Another question relates to Israel. Bibi got a big splash of cold water in the face. Olmert and Livni are generally thought to be holding out to see whether they will have a cooperative, competent and experienced White House to help them work on the peace process. Now that they’ve got it, will they jump in? And can they work out a big center-left coalition to face Bibi-Liberman?
Jon Stewart calls “Most of the Confederacy went for Mitt Romney.”
And Florida continues to be “a huge clusterf*** - Florida, of course, being the place where Cubans go to live and Jews go to die.”
Former Rep. Todd Akin is delivering perhaps the ugliest, most ungracious concession speech I’ve ever heard:
We believe that life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness come from Almighty God, not almighty government…
We believe that it’s inexcusable to betray fellow Americans to terrorists when they could have been rescued…
Class act, Todd.
Associated Press calls Tammy Baldwin (D) the winner over former Gov. Tommy Thompson (R) to become the first openly gay member of the Senate.
The other Tammy, Iraq War vet Tammy Duckworth (D), beats incumbent GOP Rep. Joe “You Lie” Walsh in Illinois.
Rep. David Cicilline (D), Jewish former mayor of Providence, is reelected after a tough race in Rhode Island.
The strangest Jew v. Jew race in the country pits Nevada Democratic Senate candidate Rep. Shelley Berkley vs. former mentor-turned-nemesis Sheldon Adelson’s money backing GOP incumbent Dean Heller to the hilt – the polls showed Heller leading, but it’s too close to call.
Senate incumbent Claire McCaskill (D) beats Republican challenger Todd “Legitimate Rape” Akin.
Montana Senate incumbent Jon Tester (D) was expected to lose, but the race is too close to call.
Obama wins WI and NH (Romney hoped to win both).
Senate races: Warren beats Brown in MA, picking up Rep. seat.
Joe Donnelly beats Richard “God’s Will” Mourdock in Indiana, picking up Lugar’s Rep. seat.
Tea Party favorite Ted Cruz projected to win in Texas.
Sherrod Brown beats Ratner family black sheep Josh Mandel in OH.
Gov. races: Pat McCrory [R] wins in NC.
Maggie Hassan (D) holds the Dem statehouse in NH
NBC projects Obama to win PA.
NBC’s Chuck Todd says it’s significant that the Southern swing states are still too close to call. Romney was hoping to nail down FL, NC & VA early, and he hasn’t.
Sen. Bob Casey (D) wins reelection in his tough race in PA.
AZ Senate race (Richard Carmona D vs. Jeff Flake R) too close to call - Dems have a chance of picking up Jon Kyl’s GOP seat.
State Rep. Lois Frankel (D) in FL CD 22 House race in Broward County, FL, apparently dashing Adam Hasner’s hopes of becoming the second Jewish Republican in the House.
Mich (16 electoral votes) called for Obama.
Wis Colo NH Oh Pa NC all too close to call, but CNN exit polls show Obama leading in PA.
NBC projects the GOP to keep control of the House of Representatives.
National exit polls are now saying that 68% of Jews voted for Obama – ten points behind the president’s performance in these polls four years ago.
Once again, the night is young, and these figures could move. Few expect Obama to hold on to the 74% of the Jewish vote he won in 2008. The question is how many Jewish votes he’ll drop, and whether any of that change will have an impact on the actual outcome of the election.
Earlier in the night, exit polls report that 66% of Florida Jews voted for Obama.
These figures are likely based on a very small sample, and likely have a very high margin of error. (We’re looking at this on the CNN site, which doesn’t seem to indicate either the sample size or the margin of error.) That presumably large margin of error could explain why the same poll, in response to a different question, finds that 70% of white Jews voted for Obama.
That could mean that Black and Hispanic Jews voted overwhelmingly for Romney. Much more likely it means that this exit poll doesn’t tell us much.
In 2008, exit polls didn’t question enough Jews in Florida to break down the proportion of Florida Jewish voters who voted for Obama and McCain. Nationally, exit polls found that 74% of Jews voted for Obama in 2008.
Democratic Governor (and Habonim Camp Galil alum) Jack Markell projected to win reelection in Delaware. Also projected to win in Del., incumbent Sen. Tom Carper (D).
NBC calls Chris Murphy the winner over Linda McMahon for Conn. Senate.
As predicted, swing states Florida, Ohio, Virginia, N. Carolina and Pennsylvania are all too close to call. All the states called so far are predictably red or blue.
The only interesting news so far: Sen. Joe Manchin (D) is reelected in W. Va. Firebrand former Rep. Alan Grayson (D) surprisingly on track to win back his seat in Orlando, Fla. Other races: Bill Nelson (D) reelected in Fla., Bob Corker [R] reelected in Tenn. News of the Jews: Sen. Ben Cardin (D) relected in Md.
This doesn’t mean much yet, but very early results in Florida’s heavily Jewish Palm Beach County have President Barack Obama ahead, 66% to 34%
Only about 200,000 votes are counted in the county, less than half the number that voted there in 2008. Obama won 61% to 39% four years ago, and polls don’t close for another few minutes.
The county was the target heavy GOP efforts to win Jewish votes away from Obama, and the outcome there will be a major factor in determining the success of the efforts of groups like the Republican Jewish Coalition this year.
Florida’s statewide exit polls could also help determine whether Jews abandoned Obama today. In past years, those polls have asked the religion of voters leaving poling places. We’ll see in a few minutes, when those polls are released, whether pollsters asked the same questions this year, allowing for side-by-side comparisons.
In another key swing county, Tampa-based Hillsborough County was also reporting a larger lead for Obama compared to 2008.
Early in the night, exit polls suggest that 66% of Florida Jews voted for Obama.
These figures could change over the course of the night. They’re also likely based on a very small sample size, and likely have a very high margin of error. (We’re looking at this on the CNN site, which doesn’t seem to indicate either the sample size or the margin of error.)
In 2008, exit polls didn’t question enough Jews in Florida to break down the proportion of Florida Jewish voters who voted for Obama and McCain. Nationally, exit polls found that 78% of Jews voted for Obama in 2008.
Chemi Shalev at Haaretz tweets that a rumored GOP internal exit poll “allegedly” gives Obama 281 electoral votes.
7:11 pm Early returns on MSNBC: Romney projected to win Indiana (11 electoral votes) and Kentucky (8 electors). Obama projected in Vermont (3 electors).
Mourdock (R) is leading Donnelly (D) 48%-46% in the Indiana Senate race, but it’s considered too close to call. In Vermont, Bernie Sanders is projected to win.
It’s Election Day at last. And as we sit down in front of the TV to watch the results (for those who actually have power), here are five Jewish points of reference on this long night of swing states, bellwether counties and exit poll results.
Ohio. With polls closing at 7:30 p.m., the entire nation will watch to see if President Barack Obama wins the state, thus virtually paving his way to another four years in the White House. But Jewish politicos should look beyond the presidential race to the brutal Senate showdown between incumbent Democrat Sherrod Brown and Jewish Republican Josh Mandel. Brown is in the lead but it is a close race and if Mandel, a Tea Party loyalist, is able to pull it off, he’d be the star of Republican Jewish politics. A Mandel upset would be a bitter moment for the Jewish Democratic establishment, including in Mandel’s home state, which have fought hard to defeat him.
Florida. Polls close at 8:00 p.m. in the Sunshine State and this is the one time it is a good idea to actually look into those detailed maps on your TV hosts’ touch screens with a county-by-county breakdown. Regardless of how Florida goes, our eyes are on the three southernmost counties: Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach.
If Jewish voters have the feeling they cannot avoid the Democratic message this election cycle, it may have to do with a new group formed this summer that has been specifically targeting the media on Jewish voters issues.
The Jewish media hub, as founders, Washington public relations consultants Steve Rabinowitz and Matt Dorf refer to their initiative, is both an attempt to reach out to Jewish voters as it is an acknowledgement that existing Democratic institutions have, for most, ignored the Jewish constituency, seen largely as being a safe demography.
“We couldn’t be sure what the campaign and the NJDC will do, so we decided to do it on our own,” said Rabinowitz, referring to the Obama campaign and to the National Jewish Democratic Council. “Over the years,” he added, “Democrats have done very little to court the Jewish vote.”
During this elections cycle, the burden fell on the shoulders of Ira Forman, the Obama campaign’s Jewish outreach director and on the NJDC, but both worked with very limited staff and funds.
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