Friday Roundup: Sudden Fraud!

There is a great deal of news in a week that seems to have been loaded towards the rear with significant findings and happenings. The first thing I want to mention is this story from various Texas media outlets only one media outlet (Thanks, PDiddie) about a mysteriously-timed discovery of voter fraud and some analysis and discussion at the Burnt Orange Report.

It does seem more than just a tad suspect that, on the eve of a showdown over legislation in the Senate that purports to combat a voter fraud epidemic which is little more than vapor, voter fraud would suddenly be discovered by a high profile Republican in a high profile county. At any rate, Gallegos is in town, reportedly here to stay in the Senate until the battle is over.

The GOP had their first debate last night, and as expected, they performed like a JV squad with the flu, making sure to high-five the Gipper whenever possible. I watched a chunk of it and then much of the post-game coverage, and it seemed like no one could agree on who the big winner was. Some said Romney, but every clip replay seems to be of Giuliani saying Ahmadinejad is "irrational." That isn't the kind of rhetoric that makes its way onto a bumper sticker magnet, but I guess everyone has to be careful early on.

Speaking of presidential politics, how about this new ploy by Senator Clinton (with Byrd along, for good measure) that would require Bush to get Congressional permission to continue the war after October 11? The article points out that their proposal could end up causing a Constitutional debate in the courts over war powers. In an ideal world, that would work out. With the Supreme Court the way it is now, though, I'm not sure the result would protect the idea of a checked and balanced Executive Branch.

Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II is in Virginia to commemorate the 400th anniversary of Jamestown. That is pretty fun, but of course I'd say that, because I am a fan of the UK. I heard an excerpt of her speech to the General Assembly this morning, in which she talked about American democracy, and how much social change has come to both the US and the UK since she began her reign. It is funny to consider how long our days and weeks seem, when time is really awfully compressed. We're a young country yet.

Finally, the UK's version of the midterm's midterms happened yesterday, and the results are coming in. I'm watching the Scottish election in particular because I have a friend or two in the thick of things for Scottish Labour. This is normally where I insert a joke about how Sean Connery single-handedly keeps the Scottish National Party up and running. The election was expected to be another in a long line of severe beatings for Tony Blair and Labour, but it may actually turn out all right, both in Scotland and Wales. You may see Labour lose the election by just a tiny bit and then form the government anyways, which is humo(u)rous to guys like me.