With most of the media focusing their 2010 election coverage on whether or not Republicans will reclaim one or both houses of Congress, the 37 states that are about to elect (or re-elect) a governor get lost in the shuffle.

If Republicans do as well as projected, most observers expect gridlock to descend upon Washington D.C.  That means the real action and drama will be at the state level, where newly-elected governors will have to deal with high unemployment, shrinking budgets and public employee unions that will fight as if very existence is at stake (which it is).

Here’s a brief overview of what’s at stake for the governors of three states.

Michigan: The Wolverine State’s manufacturing-based economy has been ravaged by free trade agreements and obstinate unions.  Since 2000, Michigan has lost over 900,000 jobs.  The current unemployment rate is 13 percent, and unlikely to drop below double digits any time soon.

The state’s public employee pension funds are awash in red ink.  The Mackinac Center reports that the state has underfunded pension plans by almost $12 billion.  The state’s next governor will almost surely be Michigan businessman Rick Snyder who ran under the slogan, “One tough nerd.”  Come November 3, Mr. Snyder will face one tough job.

Ohio: Like its neighbor to the north, the Buckeye State is barely hanging on.  The unemployment rate is 10 percent, which only exacerbates the state’s “structural budget shortfall” that could reach $8 billion by 2012.  On top of that, the State Teachers Retirement System (STRS) has $40 billion in unfunded liabilities.

On the bright side, Ohio was recently awarded $400 million in federal funds from the Obama administration’s “Race to the Top” initiative. The bad news: after four years, that money will dry up.  Since Ohio spends “49 percent more on district-level bureaucracy than the national average,” there will have to be some big changes to the public education system.

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When I learned over the weekend that the Free Vietnamese Mutual Association of Quad Cities will support Illinois Republican Bobby Schilling in his bid to unseat liberal Democrat incumbent Phil Hare in the 17th Congressional District race, I was reminded of a story I published Aug. 19.

That story focused on the hardships, past and present, endured by Thi Nguyen. Now going by her American name, Teresa Pershall, she told me some incredible things about the hardship and oppression that accompanied communism in her native Vietnam. In addition, she drew my attention to hardships she is enduring today as a small business owner in St. Peters, Mo.

An excerpt from that article appears below:

Asked to describe what it was like to live under communism, she said, “It’s a really wonderful life for people who work for the government and a really horrible life for those who work outside the government.”

Comparing government officials to “sticks” who are willing to cover up for each other and accept mediocrity as long as it allows them to enrich themselves, she went on to highlight corruption as one of the biggest problems she saw in Vietnam.

“One stick, you can break it,” she said. “One chopstick, you can break it. But one-hundred chopsticks, you cannot break.”

In other words, it’s hard to get rid of crooked politicians once corruption becomes the norm.

Though I’ve not had no direct contact with the FVMA, I have been told by people in Illinois’ 17th CD that the group is comprised of individuals who, like Pershall, fled their homeland for many of the same reasons as Pershall and eventually landed in the heartland of the United States: They wanted to escape oppression and enjoy life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

That in mind, it should come as no surprise to anyone that members of the FVMA are backing Schilling, a small business owner with labor union experience, instead of Phil Hare, the man who has been described as having lived a “year of foolishness” and said, among other things, “I don’t worry about the Constitution to be honest.”

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On the eve of this historic election, we wanted to provide a service to our readers.  Call it a “voter education” program.  The following videos, which were all featured first here at Big Government, helped provide an insight into what makes the Democratic Leadership tick.  It allowed the American public to see how these upstanding representatives behave when the CSPAN cameras are off, and citizen journalists’ cameras are on.

As much as we appreciate the content they have provided us over the past year, we will be happy to see some of them go back to their civilian life.  And remember, even if you don’t live in their districts, you can still cast a vote against the party that gives these congressmen such influence over our lives, liberties and pursuits of happiness.

Rep. Hare Doesn’t Care:

Rep. Etheridge ‘Who Are You?’

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In today’s edition of Coffee and Markets, Brad Jackson and Ben Domenech are joined by Francis Cianfrocca to discuss predictions for tomorrow’s election, and how the market might react.

We’re brought to you as always by BigGovernment.com and Stephen Clouse and Associates. We’d also like to let you know that we’ve set up a standalone site at CoffeeandMarkets.com for easier browsing of our past broadcasts.

You can subscribe to the podcast by following the links above, and if you’d like to email us, you can do so at coffee[at]newledger.com. We hope you enjoy the show.

Related Links:

Final Gallup Poll sees historic GOP wave into ‘uncharted territory’ of a 60-seat gain or beyond
The Cook Political Report’s Election Predictions
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Democrat Congressman Charlie Wilson (OH-6) is a documented wife beater.  Clara Wilson documented her abuse at the hands of her husband in great detail as evidenced here.

On October 1, 2010 President Obama signed a “Presidential Proclamation” denoting October 2010 as National Domestic Violence Awareness Month.  The proclamation states:

Ending domestic violence requires a collaborative effort involving every part of our society.  Our law enforcement and justice system must work to hold offenders accountable and to protect victims and their children.  Business, faith, and community leaders, as well as educators, health care providers, and human service professionals, also have a role to play in communicating that domestic violence is always unacceptable.  As a Nation, we must endeavor to protect survivors, bring offenders to justice, and change attitudes that support such violence.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim October 2010 as National Domestic Violence Awareness Month.  I call on all Americans to speak out against domestic violence and support local efforts to assist victims of these crimes in finding the help and healing they need.

Democrat Charlie Wilson is a sitting congressman for Ohio’s 6th district and, it bears constant repeating, is a documented wife beater.  The fact that he has ignored this issue and has not stepped down from his congressional seat or as the Democrat incumbent as Jack Ryan was forced to do–on alleged charges–the double standard continues.  But at what price?

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With less than 24 hours until polls open in most of the United States, the media seems to have taken on the role of the young boy with his finger in the dike, doing their best to plug leaks that will hurt incumbent and liberal Democrat candidates so that voters will not have critical information to help them decide how to vote.

The media would have you believe that in California, former Governor Jerry Brown has already won with poll reports showing Meg Whitman trailing and Barbara Boxer surging to a low single digit lead over Carly Fiorina. Sources associated with the Whitman and Fiorina campaigns have indicated that internal polling actually shows Whitman and Fiorina to be much more competitive than the media would have you believe, and in some cases, beating Brown and Boxer who represent the relics of failed Democrat ideals.

Americans have come to understand the phrase “all politics is local” as immortalized by former House Speaker Tip O’Neill; however, all local politics are not reported equally.

I would like to share with you three examples where the media has been protecting politicians and an explanation of how the media is being influenced in their decision to not report these stories.

First, on October 19, 2010, with news cameras present in studio and rolling, it was revealed on The Rick Amato Show that Congressman Bob Filner (D-CA 51st) was having an inappropriate relationship with a Southwest Airlines corporate lobbyist. It was also revealed that Congressman Filner who serves on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee agreed to sponsor legislation impacting aircraft maintenance.

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In Virginia’s 5th district, a supporter of Rep. Tom Perriello goes on a rampage against supporters of Republican Robert Hurt who had assembled for a rally.

Everyone’s a racist. Nobody’s a racist. Another example how the Democratic Party, President Obama, the liberal mainstream media, and leftwing activists devalued the currency of the racism charge by allowing baseless accusations to go unchallenged — while conspicuously ignoring the racism in their own camp. Notice how the enraged Democrat supporter uses his eagle eye to isolate a conservative of color who he deems a “house ni*&er.” Case closed on who the real racist is in this incident. News not at 11.

As the Chair of the Senate Ethics Committee, and a 28-year inhabitant of Washington, DC, locked in a surprisingly tight race for re-election, one might expect Barbara Boxer to avoid controversial figures like the plague.  But the challenges facing Boxer as she seeks to win a fourth term in the U.S. Senate on Tuesday apparently haven’t stopped her from buying the endorsement of her close friend, embattled Rep. Maxine Waters, once again.  Below the fold are images of the pages of Waters’ 2010 general election “slate mailer” obtained by Big Government on Saturday, which showcases her endorsement.  On page three of the mailer itself, Boxer is prominently recommended by Waters.

Waters, of course, is embroiled in an ethics scandal and will proceed to a full ethics trial following the election.  The case against Waters is focused on her alleged use of her elected office as a U.S. Representative for the financial benefit of a family member.  This is relevant to Boxer’s “purchase” of her endorsement not only because it is unseemly for a sitting Senator who chairs her chamber’s ethics body to be buying the endorsement of someone facing such charges, but also because Waters’ slate mailer “business,” which appears to focus entirely on the sale of Waters’ endorsement for sometimes large sums, is a financially lucrative enterprise that involves her using her political position again to financially benefit her family.

The slate mailer “business” is run by Boxer’s daughter, and has been criticized by (among others) good government groups Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington and the Sunlight Foundation.  Karen Waters has benefited to the tune of over $400,000 since 2004 by virtue of her mother’s willingness to hawk her political backing to various high-bidding Democrats, including Boxer.

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It is hard to believe that, when America’s founding fathers established our democratic republic, they could have envisioned it could be so easily manipulated and corrupted so cheaply. However, to Democrats and their union handlers, the ends apparently do justify the means when it comes to transforming America.

America’s democratic system for electing our representatives is supposed to be a model for the rest of the world.  Yet, unions and union-funded shadowy groups, along with their Democrat cronies, seem to have come up with a clever way of corrupting America’s democracy using Latinos and…pizza.

Last month, we wrote about how unions or their allies could be stealing the mid-term elections even before November 2nd. What you’re about to read and see for yourself is one of those events where Hispanic voters were lured to an early voting rally just two weeks ago and fed pizza for their votes…all the while under the watchful gaze of one of Arizona’s highest officials. (more…)

The Houston chapter of the New Black Panther Party has announced that it will be sending members to the polls in Harris County on Tuesday, November 2nd.  The mobilization has caused some concern for members of the King Street Patriots, a group of citizens who have been monitoring polls in Harris County.  The group claims they have been the victims of harassment from County election workers and members of the Democrat Party.  They believe the Black Panthers have one goal: intimidate their members.

The paramilitary organization came under fire in 2008 after Election Journal broke the videoof King Samir Shabaz and Jerry Jackson  intimidating voters with a nightstick outside of a poll in Philadelphia.  But that may pale in comparison to the Houston chapter, which appears to have an arsenal of assault weapons. In the video below, shot in June 2000, the Houston Black Panthers marched on the Texas Republican convention with “machine guns.”

Further raising tensions,  several months ago Shabaz, now the National Field Director of the group, surfaced in a video calling for members to “kill crackers and their babies.” It is unknown if Shabaz plans to be in Houston.

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Fifteen Missouri counties have more people registered to vote than they have people who are aged eighteen or older. This is egregious, illegal and contemptuous of the rule of law. And it is just the tip of the iceberg.

Voter fraud is rampant. Nevada voting machines are automatically registering votes for Harry Reid, no matter who you vote for. And who are the voting machine technicians? Members of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), which donated $500,000 to the Patriot Majority PAC, which in turn has spent $1.3 million to destroy Sharron Angle — who is running against Reid.

In Craven County, North Carolina, a man voted the straight Republican ticket, only to see the machine register his votes as if he had voted straight Democrat.

In Chicago, thousands of votes submitted through the new vote-by-mail system may not be counted. In Daytona Beach, Florida, City Commissioner Derrick Henry was arrested last week for absentee ballot fraud during his re-election campaign earlier this year.

In southeastern Pennsylvania’s 8th district, according to Thomas A. Shakely in National Review, voters “were receiving notices warning that their right to vote could be in jeopardy if they did not return an absentee ballot to the ‘Pennsylvania Voter Assistance Office,’ a fictitious agency headquartered at a post office box. The letters…were underwritten by the Pennsylvania Democratic State Committee.”

This comes on top of the sharp increase in Democrat absentee ballot requests in Pennsylvania in 2008 — probably because they threw away non-Democrat requests. This tactic resembles incidents in Texas and Arizona. And in Harris County, Texas, a former SEIU member registered 23,207 fraudulent voters. There are rampant incidents of voter intimidation being documented in Harris County.

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After what seems like a decade’s worth of commercials, more talking head blather than should be allowed under the Geneva Conventions and spin enough to make even the most rabid rollercoaster fan nauseous, election 2010 is upon us. Any reading of the news would lead you to believe that Republicans will have a good night tomorrow and Democrats will learn nothing, unless your news source is MSNBC, in which case reread the “Democrats will learn nothing” part of this sentence. The disservice outlets like MSNBC and Huffington Post have done liberals is a column for another day, this one is about the election and what you should look for as results roll in tomorrow.

The Guessing Game

Just how many House seats Republicans win tomorrow is irrelevant, the only number that matters is 39. If Republicans win 39 more seats than they have today they will take control of the House and Nancy Pelosi returns to being as insignificant a factor in your life as the kid who sat next to you in 3^rd period French class your senior year in high school. You shared some times and even wrote “Keep in touch” in his yearbook, but you didn’t include your phone number so he actually could, and now he’s gone.

As soon as those 39 seats flip Nancy returns to being Minority Leader, a fate former Speakers of the House resign from faster than a call girl cancels a date on Charlie Sheen. But I digress.

Pundits are predicting historic numbers, up to 100 seats are in play, they say. Maybe they are, but it doesn’t matter, all that matters is 39. Predictions of 50 to 75 have not been uncommon in the last few weeks; if Republicans surpass those numbers the predictors will claim the “wave” was so big no one could have foreseen it, if they are close they will claim a clairvoyance not seen since the glory days of Miss Cleo. If they fall short, the story they will tell is one of a rejection of the Tea Party, of limited government, of Americans “coming to their senses,” a near-literal smearing of lamb’s blood on the door posts of Congress to ward off the 10^th plague of the 10^th Amendment. Don’t listen to them either way. All that matters is 39.

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Today, in 1765, the British Parliament enacted the “Stamp Act”. It was the beginning of the end of British rule in the colonies. Today is also the beginning of the end of progressive rule in the United States. What are you doing for liberty today?