Counties that flipped parties between 2004 and 2008

See the article here and the map below (or at left, or however it comes out):

How much of McCain win in Appalachia and South was due to race?

Barack Obama didn't win West Virginia, which still tends to be a pretty Democratic state. Bill Clinton won it both times, as did Jimmy Carter at least once, and most Democrats before that. I was told by a Democratic legislator in Arizona on election night that of course Obama didn't contest West Virginia, because "they'd hang him." Yet this analysis shows that Obama did about as well in Appalachia as John Kerry did, and Obama got about the same percent of the White vote in West Virginia as he did nationally. The biggest area of racial backlash may have been in Alabama, where Obama got 10% of the White vote, compared to the 19% of the White vote that Kerry got four years earlier. So yes, race was probably a small factor, but obviously didn't decide the race for the White House.

Recess boosts academic performance, but NCLB forcing schools to cut out recess

From the Food Research and Action Center, which advocates for the poor and hungry in America:

Children Need Recess to Learn, But Minority Students Missing Out(Macon.com, October 14, 2008)In order to bolster math and reading scores, many predominantly-minority schools have cut recess in favor of extra class time. For some schools, recess is cut because the schools lack playground equipment or are in unsafe neighborhoods. In Macon, Georgia's Hartley Elementary, third-grade students go directly from lunch to the computer lab for math instruction. Across the region, students get an average of 15 to 30 minutes of recess each school day, while other students get less or none, according to a survey conducted by the Macon Telegraph. Recess is necessary, say education experts, as it provides an outlet that helps students focus in the classroom. According to a Center for Public Education report, schools across the country provided more recess in the years before the No Child Left Behind act required school testing and accountability measures. The Act had the effect of reducing recess for a reported 20 percent of schools, replacing that time with English and math instruction. While recess still remains in many schools, "There exists a recess gap," said Patte Barth, director of the Center for Public Education. According to the report, children attending the highest poverty, highest minority schools "are the least likely to get recess at all." Some statistics showing the trend: Approximately 14 percent of high minority elementary schools and 18 percent of high poverty schools don't give first graders recess. Only 2 percent of low-minority elementary schools and 4 percent of low-poverty rate schools lack recess.

McCain campaigning for Georgia Senator whose smear tactics he once decried

From the Center for American Progress, this is worth passing along:

RADICAL RIGHT -- McCAIN TO CAMPAIGN FOR CHAMBLISS AFTER DECRYING HIS SMEAR TACTICS: Last week Sen. Saxby Chambliss's (R-GA) campaign announced that Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) would be campaigning for Chambliss in Georgia's runoff senate election. McCain's involvement is surprising given his previous denouncement of Chambliss's campaign tactics. In 2002, Chambliss ran against former senator Max Cleland, who was lost three limbs in Vietnam. During the race, Chambliss released an ad that portrayed the war veteran as lacking the "courage" to confront terrorism. The ad juxtaposed images of both Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein to Cleland's voting record in the Senate. Asked his opinion of the ad, McCain said, "I'd never seen anything like that ad. Putting pictures of Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden next to the picture of a man who left three limbs on the battlefield -- it's worse than disgraceful. It's reprehensible." Tomorrow, however, McCain will campaign and fundraise for Chambliss, who is now running against another Vietnam veteran, Jim Martin.

Many Obama supporters back gay marriage ban; many Al Melvin supporters opposed it

We know from the fact that Barack Obama carried California in a landslide while Proposition 8 passed comfortably that many Obama backers clearly voted to ban gay marriage. Among them were the 70% of African-American voters in California who voted to ban gay marriage. Around 95% of African-American voters supported Obama nationwide, a figure that is probably similar in California. But what we now know is that afluent Republican voters in the Tucson foothills, who elected a socially and otherwise conservative new state Senator, Al Melvin, also voted against banning gay marriage, accorind to the Arizona Daily Star. It is one of those issues that does not really follow partisan divides. Higher educated and more affluent voters tend to be more open minded on the subject, even if they want their capital gains and dividend tax cut.

Great chart shows US legal immigration process, and why people don't come legally

http://reason.org/immigrationchart2.pdf

Sorry I am too lazy to convert it to a jpeg or whatever and upload to my blog directly, so you'll have to click the link.

State Senator John Huppenthal caught stealing opposition signs?

From the website of the Tribune, which is doing more video on their website now that they will stop being a daily newspaper, a 78 year old campaign volunteer talks about trying to stop a man from illegally stealing an opposition sign at the polls. Was the man state Senator John Huppenthal of Chandler/Ahwatukee?

http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid1155316042/bclid1155075693/bctid1900390591

(I apologize that I cannot embed the video. I didn't see a way to do that from the Tribune website.)