Mattweb's Blog

An analysis by the Dallas Morning News finds Obama voters ignore other primary races when they go into the voting booth.

That's a real concern.  Don't get me wrong: it's exciting to see a political candidate stir so much interest from so many different demographics so early in the contest.  The more people making informed choices, the better.

But I've always believed that the REAL power resides in the Congress, not the presidency.  In the media, we tend to 'worship' the presidency.  It's more convenient and more affordable to track one person than the 535 in the House and Senate.  Unfortunately, national political coverage tends to reflect that and consequently we believe the POTUS (President of the United States in news jargon) is more important than s/he is in balance with the other branches of government.

So am I happy these Texas Obama voters are getting to the polls?  Absolutely.  I just wish they understood the power of representative democracy involves offices close to home, too.

I can't wait to vote in my local school board race.  Plan to throw the whole lot out of office!

Below is the article in it's entirety.  Or you can see the rest of the DMN coverage by linking here.

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Many Obama voters ignored other Texas primary races
11:21 AM CDT on Sunday, March 9, 2008
By WAYNE SLATER and GROMER JEFFERS JR. / The Dallas Morning News wslater@dallasnews.com; gjeffers@dallasnews.com
 
Backers of both Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton turned out with passionate support for their candidate in last week's Texas primary. But once they got in the voting booth, they did something different.
 
 Obama supporters were more likely to vote in the presidential race and then skip the other contests than Clinton supporters, who tended to continue voting down the ballot, a Dallas Morning News analysis finds.
 
 More than 80 percent of Democratic voters in the Texas counties where Mrs. Clinton had her largest victory margins went on to vote in the U.S. Senate race, the leading statewide contest on the ballot after the presidential race. By contrast, only 71 percent of voters in Mr. Obama's strongest counties did.
 
 In Dallas County, where Mr. Obama got nearly two-thirds of the vote, the falloff was nearly 30 percent.
 
 The analysis has limitations: It's impossible to tell which voters skipped the down-ballot contest, though the counties in question leaned heavily to one candidate or the other. And it cannot take into account the decisions of individual voters, driven by many different factors.
 
 But the numbers suggest that many Obama voters were drawn singularly to him and might not return in the fall if he's not the nominee -- blunting the flood of new voters who Democrats hope will help revive the party in Texas and sweep it into the White House.
 
 "We wouldn't get a lot of those young voters that came into the process exclusively for him," said Dallas lawyer Doug Haloftis, a Clinton supporter.
 
 It's a crucial point as the campaigns continue their long and possibly bloody battle for weeks, and perhaps months more. As they argue over familiar themes of experience and judgment, Democratic voters might become increasingly concerned with a more fundamental issue: Who can beat Republican John McCain in November?
 
 The Obama campaign has attracted new voters, including young people and black voters "who had, by a factor of 10, more information on the presidential race than anything down-ballot," said Democratic strategist and Obama volunteer Glenn Smith.
 
 "To get these people to return to the polls in November, the odds are much better if Barack Obama is the nominee," he said.
 
 Garry Mauro, coordinator of the Clinton campaign in Texas, said he views the bigger drop-off rate among Mr. Obama's voters as a measure that they were more "candidate-oriented" than "issue-oriented."
 
 "There are hundreds of people supporting Obama who don't have a clue why, so they can't vote for anybody else who they don't know anything about," Mr. Mauro said.
 
 By contrast, he said, Mrs. Clinton is driving large numbers of women to the polls in Texas, a constituency that could offset any erosion should Mr. Obama's newfound primary voters stay home in November.
 
 "We will have more women voters to the polls if Hillary is the nominee," Mr. Mauro said. "There is a whole body of political science knowledge that when you have a disproportionate number of women vote, that's when Democrats win."
  Drop-off rate shifts
 Statewide, nearly a quarter of Democrats cast ballots for president but didn't go on to vote for Senate.
 
 In 1996, the last presidential year that included a competitive Senate primary, the drop-off rate between the presidential and Senate races among Democrats was 3 percent. The drop-off was higher in 2000, but there was no serious Senate contest that year.
    Also Online     Map: Down-ballot voting by county (.pdf)
   
 This year, state Rep. Rick Noriega of Houston fended off three challengers to win the Democratic nomination.
 
 Mrs. Clinton won the popular vote in the Texas primary, but Mr. Obama has a good chance to take more convention delegates from the state, thanks to results from precinct conventions held after the primary. Those votes are still being tabulated, and the delegates won't be finally awarded until after regional and state conventions.
 
 There are several types of convention delegates, the voters who will determine the party's nominee at its national convention in August in Denver. After contests in three-quarters of the states, Mr. Obama leads Mrs. Clinton in "pledged delegates" -- those whose votes are apportioned by the results of voting in states. Both sides are now actively appealing to party leaders known as superdelegates, who appear likely to have the final say on the nomination.
 
 The fear among Obama supporters is that although he leads in delegates, he will be denied the nomination as a result of a deal negotiated by party leaders. If Mr. Obama holds a lead as the result of popular voting after all the primaries, his voters might allege a conspiracy against him if he doesn't get the nomination.
 
 Paul Quinn College president Michael Sorrell, who helped raise money for Mr. Obama, questioned whether, if the Illinois senator is denied the nomination, Mrs. Clinton can attract his voters.
 
 "Conventional wisdom says those people stay at home, but once they are in, you have a chance to keep them," he said.
  GOP crossover
 A review of the Texas vote shows that among the 15 counties Mr. Obama won with his biggest margins, the voter falloff between the president and Senate races ranged from 22 percent, in Harris County, to 38 percent, in Jefferson County.
 
 The biggest falloff was in Republican-heavy Collin County, which Mr. Obama carried by 55 percent. Four in 10 Democratic voters who cast ballots in the presidential race didn't vote in the Senate race.
 
 Republican strategist Royal Masset said the Collin County vote illustrates a big reason for the voter falloff -- Republican crossover voters who wanted to influence the outcome.
 
 Although some conservative talk show hosts had urged Republicans to cross over and vote for Mrs. Clinton in order to keep the contest going, there was little evidence that happened.
 
 According to exit polls, only 9 percent of Democratic voters statewide identified themselves as Republicans, and they went for Mr. Obama, 53 percent to 46 percent.
 
 Republican pollster Mike Baselice said a 9 percent to 15 percent crossover vote is typical in Texas, and early-voter analysis indicates many of the "new" voters had some history of voting Democratic in general elections and were only new to a primary.
 
 On the Clinton side, her top 15 counties had a substantially lower voter falloff, from 11 percent in Webb County to 24 percent in Bowie County and 26 percent in Hidalgo County.
 
 In South Texas, a Clinton stronghold, more people likely voted for both president and Senate because of the presence of a Senate candidate with a Hispanic surname.
 
 Removing the South Texas counties from the equation did not significantly change the falloff numbers.
 
 Mr. Haloftis of Dallas said he's confident that even if the party loses some Obama supporters, a Clinton candidacy would attract "strong support from Southern, blue-collar Democrats."
 
 Jeff Strater, a client relations manager at a Dallas law firm who voted for Mrs. Clinton, was also optimistic that she would get strong Democratic support in November.
 
 "Everyone wants to see an end to the current administration, regardless of who the current nominee is," he said. "We'll be focused on capturing the White House. And if it's Obama, I'm right there with them."
 
 Wayne Slater reported from Austin and Gromer Jeffers Jr. reported from Dallas.
 

I'm looking to buy my first home and some financial-types are telling me this is a great time to buy.  But there is a reason personal spending across the board has flat-lined.  People are hanging on to their money.  Is this the time to make such a large investment?

The guest speakers at the home-buying seminar I attended last night said the level of housing foreclosures and the clamping down of credit were being blown out of proportion.  They blamed "The Media" (one of my favorite terms- who are The Media these days anyway?) for brainwashing everyone into believing that times were uncertain and that buying a home was risky.  At the heart of their speeches: money is available (federal first-time home buyer programs) and "great" interest rates can still be found (not 4% anymore, but 6.5%- "awesome" as I was reminded when compared to 17% in the late 70s).

I take that pep talk with a grain of salt.  It doesn't take a journalist to figure out that they are trying to sell houses and make loans. 

So I did a little research online, which seems to bear out that, if you can land a decent interest rate, maybe you could land a decent place.  The housing data for the handful of zip codes I checked seems to indicate fewer home sales.  And in the cases in which sales levels were where they were last year (or close to it), the average selling price was lower.  If this squeeze continues, people may get desperate and chop $20K off the price to unload...?

There's a lot more research I need to do on this.  The Fox Business Financial Planning Tools have been a help.  But every financial planner I've seen on Good Day is still saying wait to make a move.

Any advice out there?

Guess I need to see a "sold" sign in my mind before I'm ready to see it on my new front lawn.

If you like new music from hot up-and-coming bands, you won't want to miss this. The MySpace Music Tour is coming to Philadelphia on Monday, March 10th. The performance at the Electric Factory begins at 8:00 and features Justice and select bands like DJ Mehdi, Fancy, Busy P, Diplo, or Chromeo.

Link here to join the MySpace.com Music Tour Community for updates on the upcoming tour dates, band and artist photos from the concerts, videos from the live shows & listen to free music from the MySpace Music Tour Artists.

Here's the press release with the rest of the 411:

JUSTICE TO HEADLINE SPRING MYSPACE MUSIC TOUR

New Tour, Presented by Discover Card, to Kick-Off March 3 in Austin, TX

LOS ANGELES—January 8, 2008 (updated)—MySpace, the world’s most popular social network, today announced the Spring 2008 MySpace Music Tour Presented by Discover Card, featuring the Grammy-nominated French electronic duo JUSTICE with support from Diplo, DJ Mehdi, Chromeo, Busy P, Fancy and Disco Ruido DJs on select dates.

The second in a series of MySpace produced and branded concert events slated for each fall and spring, the Spring 2008 MySpace Music Tour, produced by Live Nation, the world’s largest live music company, will kick off March 3rd in Austin, TX, and finish on March 31st in Los Angeles, CA. Tickets are on sale now at the MySpace Music Tour profile (http://myspace.com/myspacemusictour), local ticket outlets and venue box offices. SPIN magazine is a media partner for all dates on the Spring 2008 MySpace Music Tour, and SPIN.com will be the destination for exclusive event coverage and photos.

“MySpace members can connect with and discover an endless amount of bands and music on the site, and the MySpace Music Tour concert series gives us the opportunity to showcase some of the very best in today’s music culture, doing what they do best, for fans across the country,” said Tom Anderson, president and co-founder of MySpace. “Justice has a phenomenal thing going on, and I can’t wait to see them on this tour!”

"Justice had an extraordinary year in 2007, earning tremendous critical and commercial acclaim around the world and three Grammy nominations,” stated Josh Deutsch, Chairman/CEO - Downtown Music. “As we continue to introduce Justice to a wide audience in the U.S., the Spring MySpace Music Tour is great way to kick off 2008. MySpace provides a platform that is truly organic to the band, and the tour offers a way to connect fans with their music and energy in a very powerful way.”

On the MySpace Music Tour profile, fans can also check out exclusive tour offerings, including Justice Tour Diaries and music videos, exclusive backstage photos from the tour, and behind-the-scenes scoops from the premiere spring event of the electronic music scene.

Tour headliner Justice is Xavier de Rosnay and Gaspard Augé (http://myspace.com/etjusticepourtous), who have attracted a rabid following of fans across several continents for their blistering, rock-driven electro dance music. The Paris-based pair’s breakthrough debut album, † (Downtown/Vice/Ed Banger), is nominated for Best Electronic/Dance Album – and their unstoppable single "D.A.N.C.E." received two Grammy nominations, for Best Dance Recording and Best Short Form Music Video. “Justice is leading the fashionable French parade,” hails BPM, “exposing a new generation of beat-friendly rockers and curious pop kids to their dynamic brand of dance floor readiness.”

Philadelphia-based DJ and producer Diplo (http://myspace.com/diplo) got his start as one half of the famed club duo Hollertronix.  Diplo now tours around the world, runs his record label, Mad Decent, and the non-profit music initiative Heaps Decent, and recently produced tracks for M.I.A. on her album Kala. The “Smash A Kangaroo” Heaps Decent single featuring Diplo and Live Session EP is available now.

Born and raised in Paris, DJ Mehdi (http://myspace.com/djmehdi) has been producing major French hip-hop artists since 1995 while also gathering much acclaim with his bands Ideal J and 113.  Now signed to Ed Banger Records, DJ Mehdi's recent album, Lucky Boy, bridges the gap from hip-hop to electro, featuring guests Chromeo on "I Am Somebody" and a throbbing edit of "Signatune" by Daft Punk's Thomas Bangalter. 

Chromeo (http://myspace.com/chromeo) is Pee Thug and Dave 1: best friends since their adolescence, virtuoso musicians, walking hip hop encyclopedias, and the only successful Arab/Jew partnership since the dawn of human culture.  Following up the critical success of 2004's She's In Control LP and last year's hit collaboration "I Am Somebody" with DJ Mehdi, the illustrious Montreal-based duo known as Chromeo hit the studio and returned with Fancy Footwork, available now.

Well known in the world of electronic music for his longtime management of French heroes Daft Punk, Busy P (aka Pedro Winter) (http://myspace.com/busyp) launched his own label Ed Banger Records in 2003.  Responsible for breaking artists such as Justice, Uffie and SebastiAn, as well as DJing the wildest parties around the globe, Busy P has developed a cult-like following through his sets of head-banging electronic music.  Check out his single "Rainbow Man," out now.

Fancy (http://myspace.com/welovefancy) is a flamboyant boy/girl four-piece outfit from the notorious riot zones in the working-class suburbs of Paris. Mixing AC/DC and T-Rex with the glitter ball sparkle of disco, Fancy comes armed with loads of make-up, feather boas, killer tunes at the ready, and a mountain of glowing press in France – including the “Most Entertaining Group” award from the French newspaper Libération. Onstage, Fancy has supported MC5, TV on the Radio, Daft Punk and The Rapture.

Tour dates for the Spring 2008 MySpace Music Tour Presented by Discover Card Featuring Justice include:

                                                       
                      

DATE   CITY                       VENUE              _____________ARTISTS  

3.3        Austin, TX               Stubbs                        Justice, DJ Mehdi, Fancy

3.4        Dallas, TX               Palladium Ballroom      Justice, DJ Mehdi, Fancy

3.6        Orlando, FL             The Club at Firestone  Justice, DJ Mehdi, Fancy

3.9        Baltimore, MD         Sonar                                 Justice, DJ Mehdi, Fancy

3.10      Philadelphia, PA      The Electric Factory             Justice, DJ Mehdi, Fancy

3.11      New York, NY          WaMu Theater at MSG         Justice, Chromeo

3.12      Washington, DC      9:30 Club                            Justice, Busy P, Fancy

3.15      Boston, MA            Paradise                             Justice, Busy P, Fancy

3.16      Montreal, PQ           Cepsum                              Justice, Busy P, Fancy

3.17      Toronto, ON            The Docks                          Justice, Busy P, Fancy

3.19      Detroit, MI               Royal Oak Music Hall           Justice, Diplo, Fancy

3.20      Chicago, IL             Riviera Theatre                    Justice, Diplo, Fancy

3.22      Denver, CO             Ogden Theater                    Justice, Diplo, Fancy

3.24      Seattle, WA             Showbox SoDo                  Justice, Diplo, Fancy

3.25      Vancouver, BC        Commodore                        Justice, Diplo, Fancy

3.26   Portland, OR           Roseland Theater                Justice, Diplo, Fancy

3.27      San Francisco, CA  Concourse Design Center    Justice, Diplo, Fancy

3.29      Mexico City, DF      Roots Magic Club       Justice, Diplo, Disco Ruido DJs

3.30      Las Vegas, NV        House of Blues           Justice, Diplo, Fancy

3.31      Los Angeles, CA     Mayan Theatre                     Justice, Diplo, Fancy

The inaugural MySpace Music Tour launched in Fall 2007 and featured co-headliners Say Anything and hellogoodbye, plus Young Love, MySpace Records’ Polysics, Dr. Manhattan and Socratic. To date, MySpace has more than six million bands using the site. MySpace music has allowed bands to share music and videos, announce tour dates and communicate with fans and others in the MySpace community, seamlessly integrating the web into shared online and offline experiences.   MySpace Music centers around the more than six million major, indie, and unsigned artists that use their MySpace music profiles to communicate and intimately connect with fans and friends. Each music profile empowers artists to upload video content, blog, post tour dates, lyrics, and make their music available to fans for stream or download. As one of the most popular and most trafficked music platforms in the world, MySpace Music has evolved into an offline experience by connecting bands and fans around the world through various concert series and live events including Secret Shows, MySpaceLIVE, and The List.

Wow.  I hate being the one in charge of "censoring."  Images of Fahrenheit 451 come to mind.  (Ironically appropriate)

Here's the deal:

Ideas are great.  Highly encouraged actually!  Discussion of ideas makes us all better people.  You absolutely have the right on these blogs to express your opinions and feelings.  That's why it was created.

However, everyone has the right to participate in an environment free from harassment.  Name-calling and discrimination (overt or implied) are not acceptable.  If done so in the form of a personal attack, particularly on someone else on this forum, you will be banned from the blog.  

Several entries were deleted from Rob's blog tonight because they crossed the line between harassment and discussion/opinion.  Several items were not deleted because they did not cross the line.

Please use common sense, good judgment, and general respect for an individual even if you do not believe what s/he believe.

Thank you.  I look forward to meeting you-all at the blog party.  I'll be the one with the badge.  HA!
Matt