'Tiger King' vs. 'McMillion$' — big cats and true crime at the Emmy Awards for World Lion Day

Happy World Lion Day and a belated World Tiger Day to my readers! I am celebrating both international days for big cats by fulfulling the promise I made at the end of Mike Pence at Voteview and On The Issues for National Veep Day.

Tomorrow, I plan on continuing my coverage of the Emmy Awards with nominations of shows about animals and nature for World Lion Day. The irony is that the number one show nominated in this category is "Tiger King." Oh, well, I missed World Tiger Day on July 29th again, so tomorrow I'll make up for it. Stay tuned.

With that, I am sharing the Emmy nominations for "Tiger King" today along with the series' major competitors from the 72nd Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards on Wikipedia.

Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series
American Masters (PBS)
Hillary (Hulu)
The Last Dance (ESPN)
McMillion$ (HBO)
Tiger King (Netflix)

"Tiger King" may be the last show listed alphabetically, but it's the first in terms of nominations with six. Moving up the list is the next most nominated series, "McMillion$" with five nominations. Continuing to the head of the alphabet, "The Last Dance" has three nominations, while "Hillary" and "American Masters" each have one.

In addition to the true crime angle shared by "Tiger King" and "McMillion$," the two shows also explore politics and government in their own ways. Joe Exotic ran for the Libertarian nomination for Governor of Oklahoma in 2018. He came in last, proving that some candidates are too weird even for the Libertarians. The stars of "McMillion$" are the FBI agents who cracked the case and the FBI, like all law enforcement, are part of the government. Finally, "Hillary" is about the life and career of Hillary Clinton, First Lady, U.S. Senator, and Democratic nominee for President, so it's definitely about politics and government. Meanwhile, "The Last Dance" is about sports, namely Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls, and "American Masters" focuses on artists of various kinds. It's a consistent nominee, but hasn't won since 2014.

While I think "Tiger King" is the nominal favorite, both because of its lead in nominations as well as its level of cultural impact, it's not the one my wife and I have been watching, as I already mentioned in 'The Daily Show' and others review movies and series to watch while staying at home during a pandemic.

By the way, the true-crime series "Tiger King" seems to be finding its audience because of people staying home during the pandemic. I've seen tweet after tweet praising it for its entertainment value. So far, I've resisted, as I tweeted "I think my wife would have a problem with the animal cruelty. Instead, we're watching McMillion$ on HBO for our true-crime fix."

Just the same, the trailer for Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness tempts me to view the first episode.

Among the eccentrics and cult personalities in the stranger-than-fiction world of big cat owners, few stand out more than Joe Exotic, a mulleted, gun-toting polygamist and country western singer who presides over an Oklahoma roadside zoo. Charismatic but misguided, Joe and an unbelievable cast of characters including drug kingpins, conmen, and cult leaders all share a passion for big cats, and the status and attention their dangerous menageries garner. But things take a dark turn when Carole Baskin, an animal activist and owner of a big cat sanctuary, threatens to put them out of business, stoking a rivalry that eventually leads to Joe’s arrest for a murder-for-hire plot, and reveals a twisted tale where the only thing more dangerous than a big cat is its owner.

That looks like as spectacular a train wreck as I thought it would be. No wonder people can't look away and Redditors have made memes like this one.


This is why I think "Tiger King" has the best chance of winning.

Follow over the jump for the rest of the nominations for "Tiger King" and "McMillion$."

Justin Amash suspends his campaign for the Libertarian nomination

Less than three weeks ago, I wrote Justin Amash announces candidacy for Libertarian presidential nomination. I concluded it by noting "I will likely analyze his ideology at both Voteview and On The Issues, as I have for the Democrats, but that will only happen after I report on the latest scores for the Democrats at On The Issues, which have changed just since last month. I'll do it along with making drink suggestions, but only after Amash earns the Libertarian Party nomination, which is scheduled for May, but could be delayed." That won't happen, as Wochit Polics reported Saturday Justin Amash Drops Out Of Run For The White House.

During his short-lived run for the US presidency, Rep. Justin Amash of Michigan faced an uphill battle.
According to Business Insider, Amash announced Saturday he will not seek the Libertarian nomination for the White House.
Having abandoned the Republican party last year, Amash has heavily criticized President Donald Trump and has supported his impeachment.
During his campaign, Amash said he wanted to represent the millions of Americans who do not feel well represented by either major party.
In a series of tweets, Amash acknowledged the difficulties of campaigning as a third-party candidate amid the coronavirus pandemic.

My response on Twitter was "Good. While the Libertarians will nominate and run a candidate, America does not need a serious third-party contender to split the anti-Trump vote." I wish him luck defending his U.S. House seat. He'll need it.

As for who will win the Libertarian nomination, I'm rooting for Vermin Supreme, who has won the Libertarian Party primaries in New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and California.


Looks like my kind of joke candidate.

Justin Amash announces candidacy for Libertarian presidential nomination

"Note that the ABC 13 clip reports that Amash has not ruled out running for the Presidency as a Libertarian," I observed at the end of Justin Amash declares his political independence on July 4th, leaving the G.O.P.  Nine months later, the other shoe dropped, as WOOD-TV reported Justin Amash announces bid for presidency as Libertarian.

U.S. Rep. Justin Amash is making a run for the White House, hoping to be the nominee for the Libertarian Party.

That's not a bad analysis, as far as it goes, but it doesn't look at the effect on the general election should Amash get the nomination.  Amash himself offered his scenario in ABC 13's Interview: Justin Amash talks about launching a presidential exploratory committee.

After months of speculation, Rep. Justin Amash (I-Grand Rapids) announced Tuesday night that he launched an exploratory committee to seek the Libertarian nomination for president.

The congressman made the announcement on Twitter.

Amash said two weeks ago that he had put his congressional campaign on pause to consider running for president. Since then, the congressman said he took time to talk with family and friends about what a run for the White House could look like.

Amash's nomination is not a foregone conclusion, which is why I'm waiting to follow up on the rest of what I wrote last July.

I will likely analyze his ideology at both Voteview and On The Issues, as I have for the Democrats, but that will only happen after I report on the latest scores for the Democrats at On The Issues, which have changed just since last month.

I'll do it along with making drink suggestions, but only after Amash earns the Libertarian Party nomination, which is scheduled for May, but could be delayed.  In the meantime, stay tuned for the retrospective about this blog on Twitter I promised in Comments from the ninth year of Crazy Eddie's Motie News for Flashback Friday for Throwback Thursday.

I missed Bill Weld dropping out in March when Trump clinched the GOP nomination

I expressed my pessimism about the last significant primary opponent to Trump in Joe Walsh walks away from the Republican primary and says he'll support the Democratic nominee.

Now it's up to William Weld to serve as the internal opposition to Trump within the Republican Party.  I wish Weld luck, but I don't know if he'll even get enough delegates to earn a speaking spot at the Republican National Convention — this is, if the party bothers to follow their own rules.  I'm not optimistic about that, either.

I was right to be pessimistic — Weld received only one delegate to Trump's 1,330 so far — but as I observed in Bye, Bye, Bernie, the Sequel, I didn't see the confirmation of my opinion when it happened.

I'm not done with this series, as I missed Bill Weld dropping out on March 18, 2020.  My excuse was that I was busy with Vox explains how its viewers and readers can fight the coronavirus.  I'll get around to it on Saturday after I post retrospectives for Throwback Thursday and Flashback Friday.  In the meantime, on to the conventions (no matter how they will be held) and the general election!

Well, at least it wasn't like the last candidate I missed leaving the race, when I wrote I missed Messam dropping out three months ago.  It only took me three weeks.

Enough of the introduction.  Watch Newsy's Bill Weld ends GOP primary campaign.

The announcement comes after  president cleared the number of delegates needed to be the GOP nominee.

Most Americans dislike Trump, but the overwhelming majority of those who remain in the Republican Party appear to be very enthusiatic about supporting him.  Sigh.

Since I never suggested any drinks for him, I don't have to retire any.  Besides, there have been four candidates from Massachusetts, so I've suggested, retired, re-used, and re-retired so many drink suggestions for the Bay State that I don't feel like repeating myself.  Sometimes, even an environmentalist gets tired of recycling.

On the other hand, I will look at what On The Issues says about Weld's ideological position.  It lists Weld as having an economic score of 53 and a social score of 78, which On The Issues considers to be a Progressive Libertarian.  That puts him closer to Tulsi Gabbard than to Trump, who has an economic score of 83 and a social score of 20, a Hard-Core Conservative according to On The Issues.  I guess that's why the Republicans are enthusiastic about Trump and barely gave Weld the time of day.

That's it for this stage of The Hungry for Power Games or Fury Road to the White House, whichever Colbert meme one wants to use, unless I feel like doing something for the Libertarian or Green Party conventions.  Otherwise, I might do it for the general election.  We'll see.

Stay tuned for a drum corps Easter followed by a celebration of Yuri's Night.

Justin Amash declares his political independence on July 4th, leaving the G.O.P.

Last month, I reported that Justin Amash quit Freedom Caucus amidst call for impeachment.  Today, he took matters one step further by announcing that he was leaving the Republican Party in an op-ed in the Washington Post.  CBS This Morning broke the news on network television in Only Republican to accuse Trump of impeachable acts is leaving the GOP.

The only Republican in Congress to accuse President Trump of impeachable acts says he's leaving the Republican Party. In a Washington Post op-ed Rep. Justin Amash said he's becoming an independent. He said he’s leaving the GOP because "modern politics is trapped in a partisan death spiral."

WOOD-TV in Grand Rapids included a comment from Amash himself in its report, Rep. Justin Amash quitting Republican Party.

Rep. Justin Amash of Michigan, the only Republican in Congress to call for impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump, said Thursday he is leaving the GOP because he has become disenchanted with partisan politics and “frightened by what I see from it.”

ABC 13 in Grand Rapids covered much of the same territory then added reporting on the Republicans competing for the nomination to run against Amash and whoever the Democratic nominee will be in Amash announces departure from the GOP.

The only congressional Republican who publicly argued that President Donald Trump has engaged in impeachable conduct has announced he is quitting the GOP. Rep. Justin Amash made the announcement in an op-ed in the Washington Post Thursday morning.

Amash's Washington Post op-ed is currently the most-read page of the online version of the newspaper's Opinion section, so it's making a splash.  For those of my readers who aren't registered or subscribed to the Washington Post or don't want to use up their free articles, the Detroit Free Press has article that summarizes Amash's piece and quotes extensively from it as well as including reactions.  I recommend reading it, either in place of or in addition to Amash's own article in the Washington Post.

Note that the ABC 13 clip reports that Amash has not ruled out running for the Presidency as a Libertarian.  Because of that, I will likely analyze his ideology at both Voteview and On The Issues, as I have for the Democrats, but that will only happen after I report on the latest scores for the Democrats at On The Issues, which have changed just since last month.  Stay tuned.

Justin Amash quits Freedom Caucus amidst call for impeachment

Much to my surprise, I've never mentioned U.S. Representative Justin Amash on this blog before.  That ends today, as ABC 13 in Grand Rapids reported this morning Amash leaves House Freedom Caucus in wake of impeachment talk.

The decision to step down from the conservative group that he started back in 2015 was because he didn't want to be a "further distraction." Justin Amash is still dealing with the aftereffects of saying Trump committed "impeachable conduct" as laid out in the Mueller report.

Yes, Amash is the first Republican in the U.S. House of Representatives to call for impeachment, which the following video from Bloomberg pointed out three weeks ago.

Representative Justin Amash of Michigan, a libertarian who’s often at odds with most other congressional Republicans, said Donald Trump has engaged in “impeachable conduct,” drawing a rebuke from the president as a “total lightweight.”

Amash said on Twitter Saturday that he’s concluded -- after reading Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s redacted 448-page report -- that Attorney General William Barr “deliberately misrepresented” the findings using “sleight-of-hand qualifications or logical fallacies.”

“Contrary to Barr’s portrayal, Mueller’s report reveals that President Trump engaged in specific actions and a pattern of behavior that meet the threshold for impeachment,” said Amash, 39, who arrived in Congress as part of the Tea Party wave in 2010.

Amash’s manifesto-like string of more than a dozen tweets stopped short of actually calling for Trump’s impeachment.

The Bloomberg video noted that this isn't the first time Amash has defied Trump, citing two votes he cast against Trump's policies.  In fact, Amash has been the most likely Republican to support impeachment, as CBS News reported two years ago GOP congressman among first to say Trump impeachment possible.

Congressman Justin Amash, R-Michigan, said Wednesday that if true, Trump's allegations regarding former FBI Director James Comey are grounds for impeachment.

That was on May 17, 2017, just about two years to the day before Amash tweeted that Trump had engaged in impeachable conduct.  Anyone who was surprised that Amash would be in favor of impeachment has not been paying attention.

Finally, the man has principles.  I may not agree with them, but I'm glad he has them and sticks to them.

CBS News, CNN, and CNBC debate Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz running for President as an independent

Last night, Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz said he's considering independent run for president on "60 Minutes."  That prompted a flurry of analysis and speculation on the cable news networks, beginning with CBS's own digital news service, which focused on the negative reaction to the announcement in Democrats fear Howard Schultz presidential run would help Trump win.

Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz told "60 Minutes" he's seriously considering and independent presidential bid in 2020, and he's already facing a backlash from the left. CBSN political reporter Caitlin Huey-Burns has more on the reaction.

After having lost the previous election in the Electoral College while earning a plurality of votes, Democrats are in no mood for splitting the anti-Trump vote.  Three years ago, I wrote that 2016 could be a good year for minor party candidates and it was.

First, the Libertarians achieved "major-party" status in Michigan, even if the party didn't qualify for federal matching funds.   Second, The Greens won more offices than Libertarians in Michigan, seven to the Libertarians' three.  Finally, the minor party share of the vote exceeded the last "good year" for minor parties, 2000, when 3.75% of the vote went to candidates from outside the two major parties, 2.74% of which was cast for the Green Party ticket.  In 2016, 5.73% of the vote was cast for minor party and independent candidates, 3.28% of the total to the Libertarians and 1.07% to the Greens.  I'm sure that's the best showing for the Libertarians in the history of the party.  One has to go back to 1996 for a better showing by a third party, 8.40% for the Reform Party, the largest chunk by far of the 10.05% that went to minor party and independent candidates that year.

While 2016 was a good year for minor parties, it was not a good year for Democrats and they don't want to repeat that performance when they feel like they will need every available vote to defeat Donald Trump.

Follow over the jump for video segments from CNN and CNBC.

Whitmer vs. Schuette for Governor and Stabenow vs. James for Senate as turnout shattered records

It's time to return to a topic I have been neglecting here since I mentioned Gretchen Whitmer running for Governor in Record numbers of women running for office on International Women's Day — elections for office in Michigan.  Yes, I have been looking at proposals on the state ballot, but no candidates.  That changed today because yesterday was the primary election, which chose nominees for the Democrats, Republicans, and Libertarians, who achieved major party status in Michigan and participated in the primary for the first time since I moved here.

WXYZ reported on the outcome, beginning with Bill Schuette wins Republican nomination for Michigan governor, AP reports.

Former Democratic legislative leader Gretchen Whitmer and Republican state Attorney General Bill Schuette won the nominations for Michigan governor on Tuesday, besting five other candidates who were also vying to succeed term-limited GOP Gov. Rick Snyder.

I expected this result, as I could see he was preparing to run for governor this year all the way back in 2012.  I also saw that Lieutenant Governor Brian Calley would struggle because he was associated with Governor Rick Snyder and the Flint water Crisis, hurting his candidacy.  As a result, Schuette won handily, while Calley won only three counties, including a majority in Ionia County, which he calls home.  The situation worked out exactly as I thought it would, which was good for Schuette.

WXYZ also reported Gretchen Whitmer wins Democratic nomination for Michigan governor.


I wrote in March that I was planning on voting for Whitmer in the primary.  I did and she won.  Yay!

Whitmer faced tougher opposition than Schuette, but ended up winning every county.  MLive showed her main opponent Abdul El-Sayed giving an emotional concession speech, urging support for Whitmer.


I'm glad to see El-Sayed being a team player for the Democrats.  I'm looking forward to seeing more of him in Michigan politics and government in the future.

As for the Libertarians, Bill Gelineau beat John Tatar to win the nomination for Governor.

Follow over the jump for the rest of the results.

Minor parties for the sixth year of Crazy Eddie's Motie News

I ended Michigan recount for the sixth year of Crazy Eddie's Motie News by telling my readers that I would "examine top posts about minor party candidates next in this series."  With only a couple of hours left in the day, here is the retrospective I promised.

The sixth most read entry posted last year and the seventh most read of all time is 2016 could be a good year for minor party candidates with 3640 page views, 3773 according to the raw counter.  As I have done repeatedly, I'll be a good environmentalist and recycle to tell the story of its page views, this time from Monthly meta for May 2016.

The top post of May 2016 was "2016 could be a good year for minor party candidates" from May 14, 2016 with 3669 page views, 3676 according to the raw counter.  It also came in second for most comments with 6.  It earned its page views from being shared at the Coffee Party Facebook page, where it got more than 3400 page views in the first 24 hours, and helped attract 3440 page views the next day, 883 the first hour.  The entry also ended the month as the second most read of all time, knocking "Corn questions from 'Food, Inc.' worksheet" out of the top ten after it had briefly re-entered the leader board at the start of the month.

It did turn out to be a good year for minor parties, both in the top twenty on in the real world.  Follow over the jump for three more entries plus an update on the story.

Libertarians achieve 'major party' status in Michigan

I finished Greens win more offices than Libertarians in Michigan by writing "The Libertarians can take some consolation from achieving "major party" status, a topic I'll save for tomorrow."  The Greens may have elected more candidates to office, but the Libertarians won enough votes to play by the same rules as the Democrats and Republicans, at least in this state.  The Detroit News has the story.

Michigan Libertarians received enough votes to have their candidates listed in the next state primary election in August 2018.

Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson earned Tuesday more than the 154,040-vote threshold necessary for the Libertarian Party of Michigan to participate in the August 2018 statewide primary.

The former Republican governor from New Mexico won 172,711 votes in Michigan, or 3.6 percent of the state’s total vote. That’s the largest percentage of votes captured by a third-party candidate since Ross Perot won 9 percent in 1996.

I thought 2016 would be a good year for minor party candidates.  This is yet another sign that it was.

The good news is that the Libertarians will have more visibility.  The voting public will get to see the party's candidates' names on the August primary ballot and the party will likely be eligible to participate in more debates.

The bad news is that this means the party will have to work much harder, as Michigan Radio reports.

[Michigan Libertarian Party Chairman Bill]Gelineau cautions [it] will be a “challenge” for the party to maintain ‘major party’ status.

“We’re going to have to find a candidate that runs for governor [in 2018] who’s going to be able to express those values and rally people to maintain that level,” says Gelineau.

Along with fielding strong candidates, Gelineau says Libertarians will also have to back ballot questions in keeping with their philosophy of believing in free enterprise and the free market system together with a tolerant social policy. He says that would include legalizing marijuana.

That issue would probably be a winner in this state, as it contributed to some of the good news from last week's election.  The problem won't be the legalization vote; I'm sure that will happen.  Instead, it would be qualifying for the ballot.  Doing so is more difficult now than it was just a few years ago.

Speaking of which, major party status and participation in the primaries means that Libertarians will have to qualify their candidates for Governor and the federal and state legislatures by petition instead of by convention.  Ballotpedia lists the number of signatures required depending on the population of the district.   For State House, that's a minimum of 200 signatures.  One candidate could probably collect those.  It gets tougher for U.S. House, where a minimum of 1,000 valid signatures are required.  That isn't guaranteed even for major party candidates, as Thaddeus McCotter found out the hard way in 2012.  The hurdle rests even higher for U.S. Senate and Governor, both of which will require 15,000 signatures.  That's going to be daunting for a party that is used to nominating people at a convention for all offices.

When Gelineau said that the Libertarian party organization would have to change to accomodate major party status, he wasn't kidding.  The Republicans and Democrats have clubs in most medium-sized or larger municipalities (Royal Oak, Southfield, Farmington Hills, and West Bloomfield each have their own Democratic clubs), and those are where the candidates get a lot of their petitions signed.  I don't know if the Libertarians have that level of local organization.  If they don't, they might need to create it in order to qualify their candidates for the ballot.  That might be interesting to watch.

Greens win more offices than Libertarians in Michigan

While I'm waiting for the final national popular vote to be counted and certified, I'm following up on a contest I highlighted in Michigan Green candidates from the bottom of the ballot to the top.

I'll start at the bottom of the partisan ballot by repeating what I wrote in June.

The most interesting in terms of practical effect are running for the lowest offices.

Finally, the Libertarians nominated three candidates for Ypsilanti Township Park Commissioner, Elizabeth Ceader, Lawrence W. Johnson, and Kalyn Sterzik.  Of this group, Johnson had previously run for Ypsilanti Township Trustee in 2012 and lost.  He and the rest may have more success this year.  There are currently four Democratic candidates on the August primary ballot for seven slots with no Republican candidates.  Unless another party nominates candidates or an independent files for the office, all three appear likely to be elected, serving as the opposition to the Democrats.

Even if these three are the only Libertarians elected in Michigan this year, 2016 would still be a good year for minor party candidates.

The Greens did nominate two people for these positions, Stuart Collis and Shauna McNally.  While the possibility of all three Libertarians serving has dropped, there will still be three minor party members of the board, at least one of which will be a Libertarian.  I personally think the Greens are a better match for the constituency than the Libertarians, but I have my doubts that they will be able to pull enough votes away from the Democrats, who I expect will all get elected, to pick off more than one of the Libertarians.  Still, this will be an interesting contest to watch for no other reason than seeing what happens when minor parties actually can compete and win.

I was right and wrong about this contest.  I was right that the Greens were a better fit for the constituency than the Libertarians, so I was wrong that only one of them would win.  According to the Washtenaw County Clerk, both did, leaving only one Libertarian to serve as opposition to the Democrats from the right.  Here are the candidates listed in decreasing order of vote totals/percentages with the party identifications added and the winning candidates names and numbers bolded.

Debbie Swanson (D)   17888    19.37%
Gloria C. Peterson (D)    17544    18.99%
David L. Streeter (D)   17051    18.46%
Edward Burnett (D)    17042    18.45%
Shauna L. McNally (G)      5009    5.42%
Elizabeth Corder (L)    4719    5.11%
Stuart Collis (G)     4580    4.96%
Lawrence W. Johnson (L)    4163    4.51%
Kalyn D. Sterzik (L)    3888    4.21%

It looks like I misspelled Corder's name, but that's because the Libertarian Party did, too (the error has since been corrected).  Still, congratuations to McNally, Corder, and Collis, all of whom get to represent the "minor parties" in local government.

By the way, they're not alone.  Jesse Torres was elected to the Holly Township Parks Commission as the only elected Green Party official in Oakland County.  She came in sixth for board with seven members (the seventh will be either a qualified write-in or an appointee).  Korie Blyveis was re-elected as Newburg Township Clerk in Cass County; she ran unopposed and still got 370 votes.  She was one of three Greens in local office in the state before last Tuesday, the others being Scott Klein on Hamtramck City Council and David Newland on the Bellaire School Board Trustee.  Finally, Tom Mair won a seat on the Grand Traverse County Commission, beating a five-term Republican incumbent.  That probably makes him the highest ranking elected member of the Green Party in the state out of seven.

On the other hand, no other Libertarian candidates won offices in Michigan as a result of last week's election.  Even adding Corder to the two elected Libertarians in Michigan gives them a grand total of three to the Greens seven.  Surprise!  The party that came in fourth in the statewide presidential contest beat the one that came in third when it came to getting candidates into office, including defeating them in the one local race where they competed head to head.

*The Libertarians can take some consolation from achieving "major party" status, a topic I'll save for tomorrow.

John Oliver and Keith Olbermann examine minor party candidates

Earlier this month, I shared how Stephen Colbert and Seth Meyers mocked Gary Johnson and Bill Maher warned against voting for him even as newspapers endorsed him.  I pointed out this was exactly what should be happenning in a good year for minor party candidates.

Now, John Oliver spreads the attention and the mirth not only at Johnson, but also Jill Stein and some other minor party candidates for President in Third Parties.

Third party candidates want to be serious contenders, so John Oliver considers them seriously as potential presidents.

What I saw actually made me think better of Gary Johnson.  First, he proved he was smarter and better prepared than Rick Perry.  Asking Perry what three departments he'd eliminate led to his infamous "Oops" moment.  At least Johnson could name them off the top of his head.  Second, I didn't know he climbed Mt. Everest.  Regardless of his politics, that's impressive.  Third, he actually has the right attitude of humility about his accomplishment; one does not conquer the mountain, one merely survives the experience of visiting.  Just the same, his metaphor for expressing himself is downright strange--but that's Johnson.

As for Stein, Oliver shows she can do more musically than play the bongos; she sings better than I expected, although AutoTune may have done wonders for her.  However, Oliver exposes how she is even more tolerant of bad weird ideas than Johnson.  I found that disappointing.

While Oliver came to the conclusion that all of the candidates are flawed, so voting for Johnson, Stein, "Joe Exotic," or any of the candidates in last night's Free and Equal debate will not be any better than voting for Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump, Keith Olbermann actively warned his viewers against voting for any minor party candidate in This Election is Too Important Not to Vote for Hillary.

Don't like Hillary Clinton? Desperate to change the system? That's fine. But those impulses must wait.

I'm not quite that adamant.  If any of my readers live in a safely Red or Blue state, voting for Johnson, Stein, Darrell Castle, or Evan McMullin will not matter; go right ahead, you're throwing away your vote harmlessly and in the case of Johnson will likely end up qualifying the Libertarians for public election funding.  On the other hand, those who live in Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Carolina, or Ohio have votes too valuable to waste.  Think hard about your vote this time, and then work to change the system between elections.  That's more likely to get the results minor party voters say they want.

As for Keith, he may be scared, but at least he remembered his tag line--"watch this space."

Free and Equal debate tonight

Last week's debate, which prompted Keith Olbermann to declare Trump a threat to democracy and people to stream Janet Jackson's 'Nasty' in response to Trump insulting Clinton, wasn't the last debate of the campaign.  Like 2012, the Free and Equal Debate for minor party and independent candidates will be.  Take it away, Denver Post!

Actor Ed Asner will moderate a presidential debate being held Tuesday on the University of Colorado, organizers announced Monday.

Asner, the seven-time Emmy Award-winner best known for his performances in “The Mary Tyler Moore Show,” “Lou Grant” and the animated film “Up,” will lead a discussion between presidential candidates Darrell Castle, of the Constitution Party; Gloria La Riva, of the Socialist Party, and Rocky De La Fuente, an independent candidate, the Daily Camera reports.

Unlike four years ago, Gary Johnson and Jill Stein, who have been invited along with Evan McMullin, Bill Kristol's better joke, probably won't attend.  That's disappointing.  If any of them were likely to show up, I'd be tempted to put together drinks and a drinking game for the event.  It would be worth it for the B-list candidates.  For these C-listers, I'm not going to bother.

Newspaper endorsements roll in while comedians laugh at Gary Johnson

I wrote 2016 could be a good year for minor party candidates and then made a prediction of what that would most likely look like.

FiveThirtyEight asked Could An Independent Candidate Succeed In 2016?  Of all the answers to the question, I agreed most with Harry Enten, who said "this year pretty much meets all the criteria for at least a moderately successful third-party candidacy."  For me, that means that the Libertarians and possibly the Greens could reach the threshold of five percent of the popular vote to qualify for public financing in 2020.  The Constitution Party does not have ballot access in enough states to meet that criterion.  It's very unlikely that even one of the minor parties will qualify for the debates with the major party candidates.  As Gary Johnson pointed out, that requires fifteen percent in several polls before the debates.   While minor parties have earned Electoral College votes before, that happened when they had concentrated regional strength, such as the Dixiecrats and the American Independent Party, and could win pluralities in three-party contests.  Neither the Libertarians nor the Greens meet that criterion; their support is more diffuse.  Consequently, none of the minor parties will win the presidency, but they'll certainly overperform compared to any election since 2000 and possibly even 1996, but not 1992.  None of these candidates is Ross Perot.  Even he didn't win any Electoral College votes.

So far, those predictions are panning out.  First, Johnson did not get into the debates, as he did not get 15% in the polls in time.  Second, as of today, FiveThirtyEight projects Johnson will earn 7.6% of the vote in November.  That would be the best showing for a minor party candidate since Perot in 1996, but not better; Perot earned 8.4% in that election.  As I wrote, Johnson is not Perot.  Third, FiveThirtyEight is also predicting only a 2.9% probability that Johnson will earn any electoral votes, most likely in his home state of New Mexico.  My forecast, as far as it went, is coming true.  That written, there are two results of Johnson's success that I didn't foresee, the newspaper endorsements and the comedic reaction.

First, the endorsements.  Politico quoted the Chicago Tribune endorsing Gary Johnson for president and listed Johnson's other endorsements.

“We would rather recommend a principled candidate for president — regardless of his or her prospects for victory — than suggest that voters cast ballots for such disappointing major-party candidates,” the editorial board wrote.

“We reject the cliche that a citizen who chooses a principled third-party candidate is squandering his or her vote,” the endorsement continued. “…We offer this endorsement to encourage voters who want to feel comfortable with their choice. Who want to vote for someone they can admire.”
...
It’s the fifth newspaper endorsement that Johnson, who is polling in the single digits, has received from traditionally right-leaning editorial boards. On Thursday, The Detroit News, which has until this year always endorsed Republican candidates for the presidency, endorsed Johnson. The Libertarian candidate also has received endorsements from the New Hampshire Union-Leader, the Richmond Times-Dispatch and the Winston-Salem Journal.

In contrast, the closest Trump has to a major metropolitain newspaper endorsement comes from the New York Post.  Five endorsements to maybe one.  That's not a result I would have expected, even from the Detroit News.  Speaking of which, WXYZ reported on Detroit News endorses Libertarian Gary Johnson for president.  Roll video!


Get used to that clip.  It will show up again and again over the jump as Stephen Colbert, Seth Meyers, Bill Maher, and Sarah Silverman laugh at Johnson.

Clinton lead over Trump shrinking in Michigan

When I last reported on the state of the presidential contest in Michigan, Clinton had leads of 17% and 15%.  That was at the start of July.  The situation has changed dramatically since then, as WXYZ reports in EXCLUSIVE POLL: Presidential race between Clinton & Trump too close to call in Michigan.

The race for U.S. President has narrowed considerably in Michigan and is now too close to call!

The Detroit Free Press explains what happened.

Where she led among every age group a month ago, she now trails with voters 50-64 by 41%-33%. And what had been a 24-point lead among voters 18-34 has dropped to 7 points, 31%-24%, with Johnson picking up support to match Trump’s (24%).

Also, where Clinton led among black voters, 85%-2% over Trump in August, that is now 74%-2%, with the poll showing some support migrating to Johnson and Stein and the undecided number growing from 10% to 14%.

And in the most populous part of Michigan — Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties — where Clinton held a 53%-27% edge over Trump in August, she now holds a 47%-32% margin. Undecideds remained at 11%.

Clinton's support among people from union households fell from 49% to 41%, where Trump’s rose from 29% to 37% — though she appeared to continue to hold a wide margin among union members themselves. The UAW, Teamsters, AFL-CIO and others have endorsed Clinton.

On the one hand, EEP!  FiveThirtyEight now gives Clinton 71.4% chance of winning the state, down from 93% in August.  On the other, it's now time to do something about the situation.  Fortunately, there is a campaign field office just a mile away.  The manager there has been asking me to phone bank and canvass since it opened.  When Clinton had a more than ten point lead, I didn't think she needed my help.  Now, she does.  Time to start volunteering!

Trump, Johnson, and Kaine campaigning in Michigan

Just two weeks ago, Donald Trump and Jill Stein visited Detroit.  This week, Trump returned to Michigan, where he was interrupted and heckled as he visited a church in Flint.  WOOD-TV reports.

Trump was chastised and heckled during what was supposed to be a speech on helping where the government had failed the people of Flint.

Trump may have had supporters there, but he had more detractors, and they weren't shy about booing him when he left the church.  The only good news for him on that front was that Rashida Tlaib wasn't there, or the protest would have been better organized.

Just like Trump's previous visit to Michigan, a minor party candidate visited Detroit the same day.  Then, it was Stein.  Yesterday, it was Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson speaking to the Detroit Economic Club.  Again, WOOD-TV reports.


Johnson's message about the auto companies probably wasn't popular, but at least it was ideologically consistent.

Hillary Clinton may have been off the campaign trail early this week because of illness, but her surrogates were out in force.  Chief among them was Tim Kaine, who spoke in Ann Arbor on Tuesday.  WXYZ reports.

Democratic Vice Presidential candidate Tim Kaine spoke at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.

Kaine was certainly better received in Ann Arbor than Trump was in Flint.  May the vote totals in November reflect this.

Michigan Green candidates from the bottom of the ballot to the top

I concluded yesterday's Hillary Clinton rebuts Trump in Warren, Michigan with "I will give the Green Party its due."  I'll start at the bottom of the partisan ballot by repeating what I wrote in June.The most interesting in terms of practical effect are running for the lowest offices.

Finally, the Libertarians nominated three candidates for Ypsilanti Township Park Commissioner, Elizabeth Ceader, Lawrence W. Johnson, and Kalyn Sterzik.  Of this group, Johnson had previously run for Ypsilanti Township Trustee in 2012 and lost.  He and the rest may have more success this year.  There are currently four Democratic candidates on the August primary ballot for seven slots with no Republican candidates.  Unless another party nominates candidates or an independent files for the office, all three appear likely to be elected, serving as the opposition to the Democrats.

Even if these three are the only Libertarians elected in Michigan this year, 2016 would still be a good year for minor party candidates.

The Greens did nominate two people for these positions, Stuart Collis and Shauna McNally.  While the possibility of all three Libertarians serving has dropped, there will still be three minor party members of the board, at least one of which will be a Libertarian.  I personally think the Greens are a better match for the constituency than the Libertarians, but I have my doubts that they will be able to pull enough votes away from the Democrats, who I expect will all get elected, to pick off more than one of the Libertarians.  Still, this will be an interesting contest to watch for no other reason than seeing what happens when minor parties actually can compete and win.

Follow over the jump for more on the Green candidates as I work my way up the partisan ballot.

Bill Kristol's bad joke

I made an aside about Bill Kristol in 2016 could be a good year for minor party candidates.

The Atlantic wrote There's Still Time for a Serious Third-Party Presidential Run.  Yes, if it's the Libertarians or Greens, who will have ballot access in a majority of states; the Libertarians might have ballot access in all of them.  No, if it's William Kristol's quixotic crusade to draft someone like Romney as an Establishment alternative to Trump; the deadline to get a true independent on the ballot in Texas has already passed.  Besides, any idea Kristol favors is likely to be a bad one.

Earlier this month, Kristol proved me right when his search turned up--David French?

Over Memorial Day weekend, Bill Kristol of the Weekly Standard hinted that anti-Trump forces were poised to mount a major candidate to run as an independent. Last week, news broke that the candidate Kristol had in mind was French, a writer for the National Review who served in Iraq and was awarded a Bronze Star.

Really?  He couldn't get Jon Huntsman?  Fortunately, that news turned out to be too bad to be true.

In an article posted on the National Review’s website Sunday night, French said he opposes both Trump and Hillary Clinton but determined after “serious study” that he would not be the right candidate for the job.

“[G]iven the timing, the best chance for success goes to a person who either is extraordinarily wealthy (or has immediate access to extraordinary wealth) or is a transformational political talent. I’m grateful for the opportunity to serve my country, and I thank God for the successes I’ve had as a lawyer and a writer, but it is plain to me that I’m not the right person for this effort,” he wrote.

Heath Ledger's Joker best summarizes my reaction to both announcements: and I thought my jokes were bad.


For more laughs, read Wonkette on the subject.

As for Kristol, he should give up on his quixotic quest, as I wrote in CNN and MSNBC interview Libertarian candidates William Weld and Gary Johnson.

[William] Weld running with Johnson [is] a very serious ticket should the Libertarians actually choose both. They are serious about being the alternative to Trump and whoever he picks (please, let it be either Gingrich or Palin--the laughs will keep coming all the way to Election Day!) Too bad neither will meet the approval of William Kristol; the Libertarians are insufficiently hawkish and interventionist for his taste. He'd be better off with Hillary Clinton, but he'll never admit it. No wonder liberals call him "Captain Always Wrong."

Well, he isn't always wrong; he's right in this tweet: "Official position of the leadership of the Republican Party: Trump is an inexcusable bigot, and Trump must be our next president."  Even a stuck clock is right twice a day.  My advice is to wait another 12 hours to listen to him again.

Examiner.com article on Clinton leading Trump and Johnson in Michigan

Hillary Clinton, seen here campaigning in New Jersey, has a more than four percent lead over Donald Trump in Michigan according to the latest poll.

Poll shows Clinton leading Trump and Johnson in Michigan

Late Tuesday evening, WDIV released the results of a poll it and the Detroit News commissioned.  It showed likely Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton leading presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump by 4.5 percent in a two-way contest.

Clinton also led Trump in a three-way contest including Libertarian nominee Gary Johnson.  Her lead shrank to 4.1 percent when Johnson was included, indicating that the Libertarian candidate drew from both Republicans and Democrats.  Both leads were barely outside the margin of error, which was four percent.

“It appears that right now the support (for Johnson) comes equally from both sides,” pollster Richard Czuba of the Lansing-based Glengariff Group Inc., which conducted the poll, said to the Detroit News. “It’s kind of that middle that’s intrigued with the Libertarian option.”

Johnson got 11.5 percent when his name was included.  It's already a good year for minor party candidates, including the Michigan Libertarians.

More at the link, including good news for Bernie Sanders and a video of Clinton and Trump attacking each other over their legal problems.  May Clinton get the better of that exchange.

Examiner.com article on 2016 Michigan Libertarian nominees

Former New Mexico Governor Gary Johnson, seen here at the Free and Equal Debate in 2012, will head the Libertarian ticket as the party's nominee for President again.

Michigan Libertarians announce 2016 candidates from President to Park Commission

Wednesday morning, the Libertarian Party of Michigan released its list of nominees for offices from U.S. President to Ypsilanti Township Park Commissioner.  The candidates for state and local office had been nominated at the party's state convention in Lansing the weekend of May 14 and 15, while the nominees for President and Vice President were nominated May 29 at the Libertarian Party national convention in Orlando, Florida.

Two former two-term Republican Governors earned the Libertarians' nominations for President and Vice-President, Gary Johnson of New Mexico at the top of the ticket and William Weld of Massachusetts as Johnson's running mate.  Combined, the two of them have more executive experience than either Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton.

It looks like CNN and MSNBC got the Libertarian ticket they were hoping for.

Although it will be the second time Johnson has run as the Libertarian's nominee, it will be the first time he will be on Michigan ballots.  In 2012, Michigan Secretary of State Ruth Johnson, no relation, disqualified him under the state's sore loser law.

I told that story in Michigan Secretary of State attempts to screw over Libertarians.  She succeeded, too.

Now for the state party's nominees.

A nearly full slate of nominees for Congress will join Johnson and Weld on Michigan ballots with candidates in all districts except the Third.  In Washtenaw County, the Libertarian candidates are Ken Proctor of Charlotte in the Seventh District and Tom Bagwell of Wyandotte in the Twelfth.

All the rest of the Libertarian candidates on the ballot in Washtenaw County, Michigan, along with a video of Gary Johnson's and William Weld's nominations, at the link.  Read and watch there.

The most interesting in terms of practical effect are running for the lowest offices.

Finally, the Libertarians nominated three candidates for Ypsilanti Township Park Commissioner, Elizabeth Ceader, Lawrence W. Johnson, and Kalyn Sterzik.  Of this group, Johnson had previously run for Ypsilanti Township Trustee in 2012 and lost.  He and the rest may have more success this year.  There are currently four Democratic candidates on the August primary ballot for seven slots with no Republican candidates.  Unless another party nominates candidates or an independent files for the office, all three appear likely to be elected, serving as the opposition to the Democrats.

Even if these three are the only Libertarians elected in Michigan this year, 2016 would still be a good year for minor party candidates.