By John Y. Brown III, on Tue Nov 6, 2012 at 12:00 PM ET
 A momentous occasion. Historic even.
Today…. is Election Day.
And Election Day will be followed by Wednesday….and, if all goes as planned, followed by Thursday. Short of cataclysmic fallout on Tuesday night, Thursday more than likely will be followed by Friday. And then we will probably see something resembling what we used to call “the weekend.” …
And then Monday. And we’ll return to tilling our individual gardens.
And so on.
I’m guessing this will be how it play out anyway.
In anticipation of this overblown occasion, I sent this message to a friend this morning who is a great person and someone who I like and admire a lot –and who, coincidentally, is working hard to elect political candidates with different views from the ones I support.
“Let’s get something down for late next week or the following week…..Mid morning on Thur or Fri are best for me. Will be a wild and wooly week for sure! But when it’s all over, the votes are counted, and the dust settles, people will still need to drink caffeine together. That much I know…. ; )”
There’s not much else I know about the next week or two. But I do know that.
And it’s more important to know that than we probably think. I guess what I’m trying to say is that this is a “big” week.
But not because we will have chosen as a country the president and vice-president for the next four years. But because we will return focus to our daily lives.
Where we have the most impact. And where we actually live.
By Jonathan Miller, on Tue Nov 6, 2012 at 10:43 AM ET  I voted!
For Barack Obama (President), Ben Chandler (Congress) and Reginald Thomas (State Representative)
Have you voted yet?
For whom?
How long did you wait?
Any other thoughts?
Please comment below:
By Bradford Queen, Managing Editor, on Tue Nov 6, 2012 at 9:00 AM ET Today’s the day: Election Day 2012
Ladies and gentlemen, it has arrived: Election Day 2012. Did you ever think this day would come?
For a moment, let’s put our politics aside and ponder. Today, we show the world democracy in action in our free elections. This is a day on which people from all parties and affiliations came be proud of our this country we call the United States of America.
Mike Allen, writing in today’s POLITICO Playbook: “Soak it in, have fun, pop some popcorn: This is an amazing, romantic day in our history and for our democracy.”
Now, some links to get you through Election Day:
9 takeaways from 2012. … “8. Both parties have soul-searching to do” [POLITICO]
A great interactive on the NYT – ‘What will swing the states’ [NYT]
It all comes down to turnout. [The Daily Beast]
A complete guide to the key U.S. Senate races. [The Guardian]
Nate Silver’s final look. [FiveThirtyEight/NYT]
POLITICO takes a look at the ‘what ifs’: Obama loses. Romney loses.
Are exit polls still relevant? With media trends changing, so do methods. [USA Today]
And the BIG ONE – “Suppose it’s close,” writes Jeffrey Toobin. [The New Yorker]
By Jonathan Miller, on Tue Nov 6, 2012 at 8:30 AM ET  As you prepare to head out to the polls, we offer you this link to the dozens of “closing argument” pieces written by our contributing recovering politicians and the brilliant members of the RP Nation. You will see plenty of advocacy for Obama and Romney, and even the cases made for Green Party standard-bearer Jill Stein, Libertarian Gary Johnson and even Mos Def.
Maybe these arguments have helped you make up your mind. Maybe their have strengthened your prior determination. Or maybe you just feel a little more educated and/or entertained. Anyway, it has been a great week at The Recovering Politician, and we appreciate that you’ve played along.
Our Electoral College contest entry period has closed, but you can view what dozens of members of the RP Nation have predicted for tonight, by clicking here and reading through the comments section.
And tonight, beginning at 6 PM EST, this home page will be the site of a live twitter feed of our contributing RPs as they assess the vote-counting and speechifying. And as always, you are invited to join in the live debate, by tweeting from your own Twitter account, using the hashtag #RecoveringPol. Your tweets will be broadcast live at this Web site, along side our team of recovering pols..
So join us tonight. Good luck to the candidates of your choice. And get ready to join us in healing the nation tomorrow.
By RP Nation, on Mon Nov 5, 2012 at 5:00 PM ET  Much talk has been centered around “voter suppression”!
Many of you know I have been a field operative in about 40 states and often spend Election Day in some of the biggest cities in our country. I have seen these efforts up close and they fall into four categories:
1.Misinformation – mail, soundtracks, flyers and posters that tell people the wrong time date or place to vote or lying about requirements to vote
The classic example was MD where inner cities voters were told if you knew you owed taxes or had unpaid tickets you had to pay them first! Not true needless to say.
2. Slow down– challenge voters to produce ID’s or information needed to vote greater than required by law, increase the number of challenges of voters to slow down the process and increase the lines which will make people wait longer to vote and adversely effect folks who have time constrictions.
3. Direct Confrontation– verbal or physical confrontation outside of polling places yelling soundtracks folks dressed in camo or klan robes or racist tee shirts or holding posters sometimes holding weapons trying to intimidate voters not to vote. We have seen this in many ways and in many places. My worst case was in Texas in 96 runoff election; where a guy on the back of a pickup with an American Flag, shotgun and sigh that said “niggers don’t you dare vote here!” The cops would not do anything about it and took us 6 hours to get a court order to get him removed. Or a woman yelling only at black elderly voters as they walked into polls “you got your papers, you got your papers, you can’t vote if you don’t got your papers” this went on until a very old woman shakes her walker at the lady and said no but I got my granddaughter and she just got out of jail and she’s gonea kick your honky ass if you don’t shut the fuck up, her granddaughter all tatted up and with lots of gold on got out of her car and said that woman bothering you – the woman left and the grandmother started laughing turning to her granddaughter and said I know you never went to jail honey but I grew up in Georgia and no one’s stopping me from voting ever!
This type of suppression effort has some potential for violence. If so that will also slow down and disrupt the process as well as scare folks from coming out.
4. Government control of process using it in a partisan manner to tilt advantage to one side or the other. In all fairness this has been done by both sides! The number of machines at each poll the conduct of officials conducting the elections the use of sheriffs or police to enforce laws and the laws passed by the lawmakers regarding registration, AB or early vote and requirements for IDs are all examples of that. I understand from two republicans that the McMahon campaign has done suppression training last Saturday if that is true watch out New Haven,Hartford, Bpt & and other cities better have riot police ready because citizens are not going to let folks intimidate or hassle them outside polls!!
Two thoughts – it should be against the law to vote fraudulently an people who do and people who engage it efforts to conspire to aid that effort should go to jail! Their fraud is a crime against every voter. But likewise anyone who makes an organized effort to deny an citizen of our country their right to vote in any way should also go to jail. Our Government to a great extent is based on the consent of the governed. That consent is based on having a voice at the polls they view as a fair processIf the system stops voters from voting or there is violence at the polls it will be hard to put the genie of trust in the process back in the bottle and I am afraid that that some of the voter suppression efforts might lead to that, please dear God we will have a fair open election election with a very large turnout everywhere in the country and a process that make folks feel the democratic system works regardless of weather their candidates win or lose. A big fair vote makes for a strong country!
By RP Nation, on Mon Nov 5, 2012 at 10:00 AM ET  Ted Buerger, an entrepreneur who is the Chairman at American Towns, is a Co-Founder of No Labels A year ago, most pundits would have guessed that a slow economy with millions out of work, and record spending and deficits projected into the future, would favor a credible Republican challenger. Yet Gov. Mitt Romney and President Barack Obama are locked in a see-saw battle, as polls fluctuate daily at the national and state level. Why is the race so close?
Despite the Governor’s resume in business and public service, it is clear his strength is not in retail politicking, and the Democrats have smartly exploited Republican weaknesses and idiotic statements. The President’s campaign also defined Romney through negative ads in swing states, and is now running as many ads as the Republicans through election day.
To win, Gov. Romney needs to make the affirmative case that he can address the huge problems facing America. Bush II notwithstanding, the traditionally Republican ideas of spending restraint, responsible budgets and limited but effective government still play well with most voters. But after years of hyper-partisanship and Washington dysfunction, the people want government to actually work, for everybody’s benefit.
 This past summer No Labels conducted a poll and found that 54 percent of American voters want candidates who are focused on problem solving rather than on loyalty to their political parties. 84 percent want candidates who will work across the aisle to solve their problems.
No Labels — a grassroots movement of nearly 600,000 Democrats, Republicans and independents who are dedicated to a new politics of problem solving — argues that the only way to address our country’s big problems is to work across the aisle to find practical solutions. That’s what undecided voters are looking for, and that’s what Romney needs to focus on.
In a recent ad Romney said, “We need to have leadership — leadership in Washington that will actually bring people together and get the job done and could not care less if — if it’s a Republican or a Democrat. I’ve done it before. I’ll do it again.”
As an entrepreneur, I understand the poor state of our nation’s finances and that big things get done only when people pull together — that’s why we need a leader who can work across the aisle and appeal directly to the American people. In 2008, then-candidate Obama won in part on the hope for a united “red-white-and-blue America”. In 2012, this is the roadmap to a Romney victory and to a Presidency worth having. And in 2013, the President (whoever he is) needs to embrace the No Labels philosophy. That’s the only way to begin truly fixing our big problems.
By Jonathan Miller, on Mon Nov 5, 2012 at 9:15 AM ET My fellow Americans:
Let me close this campaign for re-election with an overdue apology. Four years ago, when I first asked you for the extraordinary and humbling honor to be your President, I got a little carried away. I was so caught up in the excitement of the incredible crowds, so moved by the remarkable and quite unexpected history we were making, that I promised you a vision that was not only impractical, it was by all measures unachievable.
Sure, all politicians make promises that they can’t keep; but despite my sincere belief in the goals that I shared with you in 2008, it would have been impossible for anyone to meet them. And I apologize for setting those expectations too high.
Where I feel I let you down most was failing to achieve my vision of a post-partisan politics. Like you, I continue to be fed up with our broken government, with the hyper-partisanship that polarizes and paralyzes our system, that makes tackling our nation’s most difficult problems nearly impossible. I really believed that my presidency could transcend our mean-spirited and divisive status quo.
Unfortunately, I failed. I certainly admit that some of the fault lies in my own hands. I failed to do the little things: the intimate personal gestures mastered by Lyndon Johnson, or the brilliant employment of the bully pulpit demonstrated by Ronald Reagan.
But frankly, the larger problem was that I encountered an opposition that made bi-partisan problem-solving impossible. As early as the night of the inauguration, GOP leaders were plotting to undermine, even destroy my presidency. One was candid about it, when he admitted that “the single most important thing we want to achieve is for President Obama to be a one-term president.”
It would be unfair, however, to simply blame the Republican party for this phenomenon. While hyper-partisan obstruction by the opposition has never been worse than during this administration, it has been an enormous and growing problem over the past few decades. Indeed, our current political incentive system forces most well-meaning public servants to adhere strictly to their party line simply to stay in office. Compromise — the hallmark of our democracy — has become a dirty word.
I believe that it is time to change the incentive system. We need to fundamentally alter the way we do business in Washington so that elected officials no longer will be shouting from behind their partisan bunkers, and instead will be reaching across the aisle to work with their colleagues to solve the nation’s most difficult problems.
That’s why, if you choose to give me a second term, I will call together congressional leaders of both parties to the White House next week, and ask them to join me in changing the culture of American politics. I will bring to the table policy solutions that have been developed through diligent, bi-partisan work — proposals such as the Simpson/Bowles deficit reduction package and the Kerry-Graham-Lieberman climate change proposal — to serve as the starting point for negotiations to fix our country.
And, equally as important, I will ask them to endorse with me the ideas introduced by No Labels — a grassroots movement of more than 500,00 Democrats, Republicans and Independents — to Make Congress Work and Make the Presidency Work. These proposals mostly don’t require new laws or new spending, and they don’t favor any party or particular cause. They are simple, straightforward proposals to break gridlock, promote constructive discussion and reduce polarization in Washington.
I can’t promise that Congressional leaders will sign on. And that’s where you come in. If they refuse to accept my olive branch, if they resolve to proceed with continued obstruction and hyper-partisanship, it will be up to the American people to make them pay the price. I encourage you today, to sign on to No Labels to be prepared to apply pressure to all of your elected officials — including yours truly — to ensure that we promote problem-solving, not polarization; that we act not in the parties’ interests, but in the interests of the American people.
America truly reaches greatness when we all — elected officials and average citizens – – put aside our labels to do what’s right for the country. It is about putting our community and our country ahead of our selfish, pedestrian interests. And, in the words of the Scriptures, it is truly about loving our neighbors as ourselves.
My fellow Americans, if you give me a second term, I solemnly promise to fight my hardest to realize the post-partisan vision I painted during my first campaign. With your help — and only with your help — we can lift this country together out of the political muck, and toward common higher ground.
By Jonathan Miller, on Sat Nov 3, 2012 at 10:00 AM ET Tuesday night, beginning at 6PM EST, our contributing recovering politicians will be offering their instant thoughts on the election returns, speechifying and mainstream media coverage via Twitter. We will be broadcasting their live Twitter feed here on The Recovering Politician home page.
Even better, YOU are invited to join in the debate. You can participate in the discussion by using you own Twitter account and adding the hashtag #RecoveringPol to your tweets. We encourage you to participate through the evening, and please free free to engage, question, and challenge our contributing RPs.
So please join us Tuesday night at 6PM EST, until the wee hours Wednesday morning — and who knows, maybe even longer…
By Nick Paleologos, on Fri Nov 2, 2012 at 10:00 AM ET Everybody says the country is polarized. Really? It seems that everybody pretty much agrees on the following:
DEFENSE SPENDING:
1) Our troops should be the best trained and best equipped in the world.
2) The various branches of our military should not be competing against each other for resources but preparing instead to fight increasingly sophisticated threats to our national security.
3) Our allies should be paying their fair share of the cost of defending freedom around the world.
DOMESTIC SPENDING:
1) Social Security is good. But Warren Buffet should have to pay the same percentage of his total income into Social Security as the rest of us. And if the retirement age also has to go up a year or two in order to make the system solvent over time, we’re fine with that.
2) Medicare and Medicaid are also good. But each needs to be run better—and by that we mean cheaper. As far as national health care is concerned, let’s stop fooling around. Requiring businesses to pay for health care is ridiculous. It’s a huge drag on their ability to grow and to create new jobs. Basic health care (just like education) should be the birthright of every US citizen. Smart and healthy citizens make for a stronger and more competitive country. Fear of destitution from illness, on the other hand, makes us less entrepreneurial and less productive. The best thing we can do for this economy is to take the cost of health care off the backs of our job creators, and instead have everybody chip in.
3) Education? Don’t get me started. Every kid in America—regardless of income—goes to school. And that’s a good thing. So why stop at high school? If you’re smart enough to cut it, the country needs you to go to college. Period. But let’s face it. Colleges have been jacking up tuitions on the back of government guaranteed student loans for way too long. No college—public or private—should be eligible for any taxpayer funds of any kind (direct or indirect) unless they can prove they have a needs blind admission policy. That is, the kids they accept are allowed to attend—even if their parents can’t afford the full freight. And when colleges complain, the answer is simple. You’re supposed to be smart. Figure it out!
PUBLIC TELEVISION:
1) We get a much better bang for the buck from Big Bird, than from Big Oil.
Read the rest of…
Nick Paleologos: A Closing Argument for Obama — Tough Choices? Gimme a Break!
By Jonathan Miller, on Fri Nov 2, 2012 at 9:15 AM ET  In his latest column in The Huffington Post, The RP introduces No Labels‘ newest set of policy proposals to promote problem-solving in Washington: Make the Presidency Work! No matter who is elected tomorrow, we need a stronger chief executive in order to help fix our broken political system. And No Labels has a plan to make this happen. Read an excerpt:
Promises, promises.
President Barack Obama and Governor Mitt Romney are certainly making plenty of them.
Recent experience, however, suggests they will have a hard time keeping many of their promises.
It’s not because either is intentionally lying (all the time); but rather, it’s because gridlock, obstructionism and hyper-partisanship have become the rule in Washington.
Chances are very good that whoever sits in the Oval Office for the next four years will have to deal with a Congress that is closely divided between the two parties. One party may control the House and the other the Senate. And, even if one party were to have a majority in both bodies, progress will be confined by Senate rules that make it almost impossible to pass anything unless 60 of its 100 members agree.
Historically, divided government can work. President Ronald Reagan, a conservative Republican, and House Speaker Tip O’Neill, a liberal Democrat, famously joined forces in the 1980s to shore up Social Security and pass comprehensive tax reform.
More than 50 years ago, President Eisenhower won support from a Democratic Congress to build the Interstate Highway System.
The Civil Rights laws of the 1960s passed only because a significant number of Republicans joined with Democrats in a common front against discrimination.
The common thread in every instance: Presidents and legislators who crossed party lines to put their country first.
In recent years, unfortunately, hyper-partisanship and political point-scoring have emerged as dominant themes. Over the last two decades, no matter which party held the White House, the opposition’s consistent, knee-jerk response was to “just say no” to almost anything the president proposed.
To be fair, some of the resistance reflected honest differences in policy. And, also to be fair, presidents also have often failed to reach out meaningfully to the other side.
But too often, the legislative paralysis has been simply a function of politics.
With a fiscal cliff threatening to derail the economy; a record budget deficit that threatens long-term prosperity; health care costs rising with no end in sight; challenges of immigration, energy, and global warming continuing to mount and fester; and an ever-present concern about potential terrorism on the homeland; it’s high time to change the environment in Washington so that the president and Congress we choose on November 6 can work together to solve problems.
No Labels, a grassroots movement of more than half a million Republicans, Democrats and independents, has introduced a set of proposals that would make it easier to get things done in Washington. Our Make the Presidency Work! action plan consists of 11 common-sense proposals that would help break the gridlock, by changing outdated rules and traditions that get in the way.
Click here to read the full column.
Click here to sign onto No Labels’ action plan.
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