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posted by martyb on Wednesday December 13 2017, @08:06PM   Printer-friendly
from the It's-Fake-News-until-the-Fat-Man-Sings dept.

Democrat Doug Jones won a remarkable upset victory over controversial rival Roy Moore in the diehard Republican state of Alabama on Tuesday to win election to the US Senate.

By a margin of 49.5 to 48.9 with 91% of precincts reporting, Jones dealt a major blow to Donald Trump and his efforts to pass tax reform on Capitol Hill. Jones was able to become the first Democrat in a decade to win any statewide office in Alabama by beating Moore, who had faced multiple allegations of sexual assault during a campaign which exposed Republican party faultlines.

The Democratic victory will reduce the Republican majority in the Senate to 51-49 once Jones takes his seat on Capitol Hill. This significantly reduces the margin for error as Republicans attempt to push through a major corporate tax cut.

takyon: The final count is:

Doug Jones - 671,151 votes (49.9%)
Roy Moore - 650,436 votes (48.4%)
Write-ins (total) - 22,819 votes (1.7%)

The margin for an automatic recount in Alabama is 0.5%. Roy Moore has yet to concede.


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  • (Score: 4, Interesting) by Sulla on Wednesday December 13 2017, @08:10PM (24 children)

    by Sulla (5173) on Wednesday December 13 2017, @08:10PM (#609343) Journal

    In an era where the entire media proclaimed a man guilty of being a pedophile and harped on it for weeks the Democrats were only able to pull off a win by ~2%. Hopefully for the Democrats they run someone equally as terrible next election or I doubt the Dems will be able to maintain the seat.

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    Ceterum censeo Sinae esse delendam
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  • (Score: 5, Insightful) by quacking duck on Wednesday December 13 2017, @08:20PM (4 children)

    by quacking duck (1395) on Wednesday December 13 2017, @08:20PM (#609348)

    In an era where even top Republican Mitch McConnell believed their candidate guilty of being a pedophile [foxnews.com] the Republicans were still able to come within ~2% of pulling off a win.

    Fixed that for you.

    It's a disgrace that it was even this close of a race.

    • (Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 13 2017, @08:30PM (3 children)

      by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 13 2017, @08:30PM (#609356)

      So if Mitch McConnell believes something, it must be true?

      • (Score: 3, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 13 2017, @08:42PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 13 2017, @08:42PM (#609359)

        About one of his homeboys? Yeah I'd believe it.

      • (Score: 5, Touché) by fyngyrz on Wednesday December 13 2017, @08:44PM (1 child)

        by fyngyrz (6567) on Wednesday December 13 2017, @08:44PM (#609361) Journal

        So if Mitch McConnell believes something, it must be true?

        The man is clearly an expert on turtles. We just have to take him at his turtley word on turtles unless we have consensually experiential, repeatable, falsifiable evidence to the contrary. If Mitch McConnell says it's turtles all the way down, I don't want to hear any blasphemy about elephants, you hear me? It's turtles.

  • (Score: 5, Informative) by bob_super on Wednesday December 13 2017, @08:21PM

    by bob_super (1357) on Wednesday December 13 2017, @08:21PM (#609351)

    A win by 2% in AL is a twenty-plus points win for a D.

    Unless the story about Moore being banned from the mall is false, it's not just the media.
    The fact that he got removed twice from the AL Supreme Court (hopefully that's a record), for putting his religion ahead of his duties tell me I'd rather have another man in office, R or D...

  • (Score: 5, Insightful) by takyon on Wednesday December 13 2017, @08:22PM (11 children)

    by takyon (881) <reversethis-{gro ... s} {ta} {noykat}> on Wednesday December 13 2017, @08:22PM (#609352) Journal

    the Democrats were only able to pull off a win by ~2%

    Anything can be reframed:

    In a state where Democrats lose routinely by wide margins and never hope to win major elections, Republicans managed to gloriously screw things up.

    The 7 most inflammatory things Roy Moore has said [politico.com]
    Roy Moore's incredible 'even though we had slavery' quote [cnn.com]

    As for the "pedophilia" (call it ephebophilia if you prefer):

    Roy Moore on whether he dated teenage girls: “Not generally, no” [vox.com]

    Genius.

    --
    [SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
    • (Score: 5, Informative) by stretch611 on Wednesday December 13 2017, @08:44PM (1 child)

      by stretch611 (6199) on Wednesday December 13 2017, @08:44PM (#609362)

      Also...

      A state Trump won by nearly 30 percentage points. (The biggest republican stronghold in the country according to one news report I read.)

      Had the support of Trump and most republicans despite the accusations.

      In a state that allowed marriages to 16 year olds at the time of the accusations. (But not 14, which was the age of one accuser.)

      And the biggest issue that Moore's campaign was pointing out was abortion in a deeply religious population.

      --
      Now with 5 covid vaccine shots/boosters altering my DNA :P
      • (Score: 5, Informative) by NotSanguine on Wednesday December 13 2017, @09:42PM

        by NotSanguine (285) <NotSanguineNO@SPAMSoylentNews.Org> on Wednesday December 13 2017, @09:42PM (#609407) Homepage Journal

        Also...

        A state Trump won by nearly 30 percentage points. (The biggest republican stronghold in the country according to one news report I read.)

        Had the support of Trump and most republicans despite the accusations.

        In a state that allowed marriages to 16 year olds at the time of the accusations. (But not 14, which was the age of one accuser.)

        And the biggest issue that Moore's campaign was pointing out was abortion in a deeply religious population.

        What's more, until yesterday, Alabama hadn't *elected* a Democratic candidate for the Senate [en.wikipedia.orgwiki] (Democrats hold one of six seats in the Alabama delegation to the House) in 27 years.

        And a Democratic presidential candidate hasn't won in Alabama in over forty years [wikipedia.org].

        --
        No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr
    • (Score: 5, Informative) by Thexalon on Wednesday December 13 2017, @08:46PM (7 children)

      by Thexalon (636) on Wednesday December 13 2017, @08:46PM (#609366)

      Moore specifically advocating getting rid of all constitutional amendments after the Bill of Rights. That would include:
      - Ending slavery. I get the impression Mr Moore would be fine and dandy with slavery, and might be interested in buying a few pickaninnies for late-night visits to the slave quarters
      - Applying the federal Bill of Rights to state law, and giving all people equal protection under the law. Mr Moore is clearly interested in not giving all people equal protection under the law, regardless of his time as judge.
      - Giving black people the right to vote. He clearly would like to put a stop to this.
      - Direct election of senators. If Moore had his way, he wouldn't have needed the approval of those pesky voters
      - Giving women the right to vote. Because what could they know, get back in the kitchen woman!
      - Ending of poll taxes. Again, more tools to keep the unqualified masses from voting.
      - Ending the limit on 2 terms for a president. Trump uber alles!
      - Making it impossible for an incapacitated but not dead president to be replaced, or for the VP to be replaced if that office end up vacant for some reason. Again, Trump uber alles!
      - Giving people aged 18-21 the right to vote. Stupid kids, wanting a say in whether we draft them into the army and send them off to fight halfway around the world for no reason.
      - Making it legal for Congress to vote themselves a raise whenever they want. Because if there's one thing our Congresscritters need, it's more money out of the public treasury!

      Either he didn't know what he was saying, or he doesn't believe in democracy or in America. Based on his history, I'm thinking the latter is the case.

      --
      The only thing that stops a bad guy with a compiler is a good guy with a compiler.
      • (Score: 4, Interesting) by takyon on Wednesday December 13 2017, @08:50PM

        by takyon (881) <reversethis-{gro ... s} {ta} {noykat}> on Wednesday December 13 2017, @08:50PM (#609368) Journal

        Giving people aged 18-21 the right to vote.

        Those stupid meddling kids voted for liberal Doug Jones! [washingtonpost.com]

        Alabama voters ages 18 to 44 supported Jones by a roughly 20-point margin over Moore, marking a stark shift from 2012 when Mitt Romney won voters under 45 by a small margin.

        Moore led among older voters, especially seniors, who favored him over Jones by about 20 points.

        --
        [SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
      • (Score: 1) by Sulla on Wednesday December 13 2017, @09:09PM

        by Sulla (5173) on Wednesday December 13 2017, @09:09PM (#609384) Journal

        This guy sure is a crackpot.

        I don't like telling other states what to do, but this guy sure is a crackpot and hopefully they see that.

        --
        Ceterum censeo Sinae esse delendam
      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 13 2017, @09:19PM (4 children)

        by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 13 2017, @09:19PM (#609393)

        We need to send congress to live a year in Liberia.

        They will either love it there and work even more fervently towards making America the White Liberia. Or they will finally understand what it is they have been working towards and consider a *SLIGHTLY* less conservative political stance.

        • (Score: 3, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 13 2017, @10:38PM (3 children)

          by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 13 2017, @10:38PM (#609449)

          ...or to Trump's favorite country, Nambia. [google.com]

          "I am very smart." --Donald J. Trump, Sr. [google.com]

          "Donald Trump was the dumbest goddamn student I ever had." --William T. Kelley, Trump's marketing professor at Wharton [alternet.org]

          Professor Kelley told me 100 times over three decades that “Donald Trump was the dumbest [goddammed] student I ever had.” [...] Trump came to Wharton thinking he already knew everything.

          -- OriginalOwner_ [soylentnews.org]

          • (Score: 2, Interesting) by Ethanol-fueled on Thursday December 14 2017, @02:14AM (2 children)

            by Ethanol-fueled (2792) on Thursday December 14 2017, @02:14AM (#609550) Homepage

            That sounds exactly like the kind of shit a professor would say when one of his own students makes him look like a dumbass. Maybe Trump had too many street smarts to tolerate jargon and bullshit?

            • (Score: 1, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday December 14 2017, @02:39AM

              by Anonymous Coward on Thursday December 14 2017, @02:39AM (#609560)

              Just keep rationalizing, no way your guy could be wrong

            • (Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Thursday December 14 2017, @09:04AM

              by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Thursday December 14 2017, @09:04AM (#609623) Journal

              Yeah, what AC said. Remember, he's the damned court fool who ran against the evil witch. IMO, the court fool was the better choice, but not a hell of a lot better. Where Hillary would have sold the nation to any buyer, Trump is busy selling the nation to rich Americans. We're still sold down the river, but at least we know how to navigate our own river.

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday December 14 2017, @12:01AM

      by Anonymous Coward on Thursday December 14 2017, @12:01AM (#609501)

      Mark Foley is an ephebophile [slate.com]

      [Congressman] Foley's creepy electronic communications with 16- and 17-year-olds about masturbatory techniques, penis length, and other sexually explicit topics clearly crossed a moral line, and possibly a legal one too.

      That article was written in 2006, before Foley became a federal judge in Alabama.
      He was boinking his court clerk while he was married to someone else.
      He divorced the 1st wife and married the clerk.
      He beat the 2nd wife (caught on a 9-1-1 call).
      He resigned his judgeship when it became clear that he could be impeached.

      Alabama grows some real gems.

      -- OriginalOwner_ [soylentnews.org]

  • (Score: 3, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 13 2017, @08:25PM (5 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 13 2017, @08:25PM (#609355)

    In an era where the entire media proclaimed a man guilty of being a pedophile and harped on it for weeks the Democrats were only able to pull off a win by ~2%. Hopefully for the Democrats they run someone equally as terrible next election or I doubt the Dems will be able to maintain the seat.

    Yep. With that logic, John Gotti [wikipedia.org], prior to his conviction, should have been able to get at least 70% of the (R) (and he was a NY Republican voter) vote if he ran for the senate. Because he was just an honest businessman being harassed by the media until then.

    and speaking of Gotti's conviction, Mr. Noun, Verb, 9/11 [wikipedia.org] should totally have been elected President. Except he was a bigoted, hateful anti-liberty scumbag who mistook his trained-in prejudices [artsy.net] for the laws of nature.

    I don't see a hell of a lot of difference (leaving aside all the icky/rapey/molesty stuff) between Moore and Guiliani. It heartens me that in a state as strongly R as Alabama, a plurality (albeit a small one. more's the pity) sets a higher bar than having an (R) next to their name for those they choose to represent them than you do.

    I choose to hold candidates to a *slightly* higher standard. It's not enough for me that they haven't been convicted (yet) to support someone, regardless of their party affiliation.

    • (Score: 1, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 13 2017, @10:07PM

      by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 13 2017, @10:07PM (#609429)

      I don't see a hell of a lot of difference (leaving aside all the icky/rapey/molesty stuff)

      That's not enough? :P

    • (Score: 3, Interesting) by LoRdTAW on Wednesday December 13 2017, @11:34PM (3 children)

      by LoRdTAW (3755) on Wednesday December 13 2017, @11:34PM (#609482) Journal

      Yep. With that logic, John Gotti [wikipedia.org], prior to his conviction, should have been able to get at least 70% of the (R) (and he was a NY Republican voter) vote if he ran for the senate. Because he was just an honest businessman being harassed by the media until then.

      As someone who grew up in Ozone Park/Howard Beach, and know people associated with Gotti and other mafioso's, you are probably correct. After his arrest and conviction many in the neighborhood were upset and for years afterward claimed the neighborhood was safer when Gotti was around.

      • (Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday December 14 2017, @12:32AM (2 children)

        by Anonymous Coward on Thursday December 14 2017, @12:32AM (#609509)

        Yep. With that logic, John Gotti [wikipedia.org], prior to his conviction, should have been able to get at least 70% of the (R) (and he was a NY Republican voter) vote if he ran for the senate. Because he was just an honest businessman being harassed by the media until then.

        As someone who grew up in Ozone Park/Howard Beach, and know people associated with Gotti and other mafioso's, you are probably correct. After his arrest and conviction many in the neighborhood were upset and for years afterward claimed the neighborhood was safer when Gotti was around.

        I lived in Carrol Gardens for many years (mid 80s-mid 90s) and it was quite safe, likely because of all the mafiosi who lived there.
        A (likely apocryphal) story that went around the neighborhood for years was that a young, black kid who snatched a woman's purse on Court street was found dead on the same spot where he snatched the purse not too long after.

        I personally observed (the only time I saw this in the neighborhood in nearly ten years) a car with its window smashed (remember those days?) as I walked to the subway one morning. A uniformed police officer was in the process of writing a summons for the car (apparently its registration had expired -- it was a bad day for that car's owner!) and I somewhat snarkily asked the cop, "I thought that sort of thing didn't happen around here?" He replied, "That's only certain cars," with complete seriousness.

        And while it's true that the neighborhood was very safe (and a very nice place to live in general), even regular residents were afraid of the mafiosi,. who did whatever the hell they wanted, whenever they wanted. And if you had a problem with that, you'd better keep your mouth shut or there might be some unfortunate consequences.

        Regardless, I prefer it when murderous scum (like Gotti and some of the wiseguys I knew in Carrol Gardens) go to prison, even if it makes the neighborhood a bit less safe from your run-of-the-mill scumbags.

        • (Score: 1) by Ethanol-fueled on Thursday December 14 2017, @02:16AM (1 child)

          by Ethanol-fueled (2792) on Thursday December 14 2017, @02:16AM (#609552) Homepage

          " A (likely apocryphal) story that went around the neighborhood for years was that a young, black kid "

          AKA Guinea Eggplant?

          • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday December 14 2017, @09:05AM

            by Anonymous Coward on Thursday December 14 2017, @09:05AM (#609624)

            Young, not old. New Guinea Eggplant.