Don Young filed for re-election as Alaska’s deadline neared opening up a knock down drag out battle with Sean Parnell for the GOP nod. Young’s announcement was frankly weird. He admitted to be aggressive and a bully in Washington but said he got along with Alaskans unless they crossed him. It sounded like bad dialogue from one of those really old westerns.
Young’s campaign site is further testament to his overblown ego. While he uses the headline “Congressman for All Alaska”, Young freely admits that he only represents the people who vote for him and not those who voted for the other candidates. I guess he’s not the Congressman for All Alaskans.
Then new headlines emerge: “No one has done more. No one can do more.” All this while some truly magnificent pictures of Alaska scenery stream by in the background. Folks, the site is borderline delusional and has just a hint of borderline blasphemy to it. Don Young did not create mountains and glaciers and all these neat thins. IIRC, no people either. Guess he gets along better with the scenery than with the people.
Young’s announcement was expected and it may not have been the craziest item over the wekend. That probably goes to Amendment 48, a proposed set of changes to the Colorado Constitutionthat would change the definition of “person” to include “any human being from the moment of fertilization.” The Amendment will be on the November 4 ballot having already survived a Colorado Court challenge and received 103,000 valid signatures.
Prominent backers of the Amendment include the Colorado Springs based Focus on the Family and the Catholic Church. The Amendment would allow what the Denver Post blithely called the “preborn” to due and be sued just like real or corporate persons. The Denver Post says it “would guarantee the pre-born the right to life, liberty sand due process of law.”
Clearly, the Amendment would jeopardize the status of abortion and abortion providers within Colorado while opening up mew forms of employment for Colorado lawyers. Mom, Dad, and the pre-born plus the prosecutor. How expensive and nuts. In the hands of a zealous prosecutor or a wingnut lawyer the number of suits against mom-to-be (or is it mom?) who drinks, drives fast or even over indulges on junk food is clearly in the cards.
I also wonder whether “pre-borns” would count in Colorado’s census and reapportionment (local) issues. In 2006 Colorado had 70,737 borths giving the “pre-born” a population of 53,000. Averaging over 5 years, the number would be 51,000. How would you like to lose a Congressman to the pre-born? (And yes it sounds like the pre-cogs from that Tom Cruise picture of a few years ago).
The strategy is to make abortion this year’s anti-gun or anti-gay theme to turn out fundies in Colorado. The state’s three Republican Congress critters are Tom Tancredo, Marilyn Musgrave and Doug Lamborn who flirts with the lowest score in the country on the Progressive Punch scale. Lamborn may not be sufficiently colorful enough as he seems to be generating some serious opposition.
Colorado and Alaska are tied in, of course, by the use of Mt. denali as photo footage background by Senate candidate Bob Schaffer.
The Boston Globe is reporting that top Republican recruit Jim Ogonowski fell 82 valid signatures short of the required number to place on the primary ballot. Ogo’s spokesman says he has the signatures but they haven;t been reported yet. Ogo’s opponent says he’ll mount a challenge if Ogo breaks the barrier. Fun, fun, fun.
Meanwhile, back on the ranch, New Mexico’s Pajamas Pete Domenici is endorsing his protege, Heather Wilson, for the Senate calling Wilson one of the smartest people he knows. A few years ago, this would have been a touching and meaningful tribute. Now? Who knows.
Background on the Staten Island situation. A City Council member makes $112,000 for a part time job. State Senators make an official $79,500 that expands routinely to $92,000. Assembly members are more likely to take home $79,500 although many bring home $92 K
. Given the costs of a second home or the possibility of part time legal work, the $165 salary really is not too attractive.