A Progressive on the Prairie

There's plenty of post-election analysis floating around, ranging from not so good to average or so. The Washington Post and the Christian Science Monitor are among those focusing on the race in the context of Democratic efforts to control the House. For some reason, the New York Times led its story indicating the vote was sending a message to Bush about his Iraq policies. It wasn't until the 12th paragraph that the article noted that Herseth "steadfastly refused to criticize Mr. Bush's Iraq policy." I actually think Mike Madden of Gannett News Service came closest, indicating that we won't know until November whether the vote was a sign voters are sick of Bush and his policies or that a well-known Democrat barely held on to win a race against a Republican who started with far less name recognition.

Noticeably absent from much discussion is the vote on the Indian reservations or by the Native American community. As with Tim Johnson, the voters in Shannon County and Todd County could be said to have won the election for Herseth.

Statewide, she won by 2,981 votes. In Shannon and Todd counties, she won by 3,184 votes. She got 94 percent of the vote in Shannon County (equal to the percentage of the county's Native American population, the highest of any county in the country). She got 84 percent of the vote in Todd County, again roughly equal to the percentage of the population that is Native American. (According to the Census Bureau, these counties were the fourth and fifth poorest counties in the nation in 1999.) Herseth also polled extremely well in Buffalo County (81 percent) and Dewey County (75 percent), numbers again basically equal to the percentage of Native American population in each.

Personally, I wasn't surprised how close the race was. In fact, I thought there was a realistic chance Diedrich would win. I think many voters really like Herseth but I'm not quite so sure how they view her on issues, though. I also think there is some concern about an all-Democrat congressional delegation and wonder how that will play out in November when both Herseth and Daschle have strong opposition. Certainly, the huge gap Diedrich closed can't make the Herseth or DCCC people feel very comfortable and the Dems may need to get her some prime assignments and work in DC.

Two final notes. Despite an e-mail complaint to the Secretary of State's election supervisor (with a copy to the Minnehaha County auditor) about the sign discussed below, I have yet to receive a response or an acknowledgement. Second, you gotta wonder when Lyndon LaRouche outpolls Dennis Kucinich in the Democratic presidential primary. Interestingly, LaRouche did best in Buffalo County (12 percent) and Shannon County (10 percent).
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The Justice Department's release of previously classified information regarding Jose Padilla has prompted a remarkable number of items worth reading. Clearly leading the list is Dahlia Lithwick's insightful and devastating review at Slate. Equally as good is this op-ed piece by Richard Cohen in the Washington Post. (Via The War in Context). There is also a broader overview at Axis of Logic.

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I know nothing about the source and thus cannot judge its accuracy. But Capitol Hill Blue is reporting that Bush "knew about, and took no action to stop," the release of Valerie Plame's identity as a covert CIA agent. (Via TalkLeft). It says that is why Bush has consulted with private counsel. If true, an impeachable offense?
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While Kos indicated yesterday that Diedrich was already conceding defeat, that wasn't stopping everyone from engaging in illegal activity.

When I voted at about 5:15 p.m., a window adjoining an interior door to my polling place had a sign that said, "Vote for traditional values" with the second "t" in traditional shaped as a large cross. I complained to a precinct worker, who said, "This is a church." When I said that didn't matter, another worker went and looked at the sign, returned and said, "It's not political." I said, "Excuse me, ma'am, it certainly is." The sign was then removed but only because I raised the issue. The election workers claimed to not know how the sign got there or how long it had been there.

I contacted the County Auditor's office to voice a complaint and notified the Herseth campaign in the hopes that whoever did this will be located and appropriately sanctioned. I don't know how optimistic to be since the woman I spoke to at the auditor's office seemed to miss the point. She said since the polls had been open since 7 a.m. and I was the first one to complain, the sign must not have been very noticeable. Gee, then, how come I saw it? And who knows how long it was up?

And noticeable has nothing to do with the law. South Dakota's statutes provide: "Except for sample ballots and materials and supplies necessary for the conduct of the election, no person may, in any polling place or within or on any building in which a polling place is located or within one hundred feet from any entrance leading into a polling place, . . . display campaign posters, signs, or other campaign materials or by any like means solicit any votes for or against any person or political party or position on a question submitted." Does that sign meet this test? I certainly think it does given the nature of the issues and the way the Herseth-Diedrich campaign was run.

I do not know who put up the sign and certainly am not accusing anyone in particular. I do believe it is totally improper, illegal and unethical. Proof of my reaction came in the voting booth. As any of you who follow or have read this blog know, I was not a Herseth fan and was not going to cast a ballot in the race. The sign, though, pissed me off enough that I voted for her.
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