Election Ballot Measure Resuts from Across the USA, The Daily Show and Colbert Report for the Week of November 6th, 2010

This week was a big election week in the USA, there are a lot of news sources where you can find the individual results from the House of Representatives, the Senate and all the different Governors races across the country, but what really interests me is how each state carves out their own differences from one another. Many states had a number of different ballot measures up for a vote as well this past Tuesday. Here are a few of the general trends I noticed: marijuana ballot measures for partial legalization or even just for medical purposes failed across the country wherever proposed, taxes were generally lowered or proposed increases failed, veterans gained new tax advantages and some states passed constitutional limits on the federal healthcare mandate. Of all of these trends, I was most surprised that all the legalization of marijuana measures failed.

Here are the interesting results from the 2010 midterm election state-by-state thanks to the NY Times State-by-State election results (for more details check out the Ballotopedia’s page on all the 2010 ballot measures):

Arkansas: A constitutional limit was set for interest rates to 17%.

Alaska: Not exactly a ballot measure but a write-in, Lisa Murkowski is currently ahead in the district reporting and is projected to win. It just goes to show how important the right to vote is, each vote counts.

Arizona: A constitutional amendment preventing the mandate to purchase health insurance passed and legalization of marijuana for medical purposes failed.

California: Legalization of small quantities of marijuana for any purpose failed.

Colorado: Defining a “person” as starting at “beginning of the biological development” failed and a measure to prevent mandated health insurance failed, meaning that at this point Colorado will uphold the federal mandate to purchase health insurance.

Florida: Eliminates public campaign financing, relaxes limits on public school class sizes and calls for a federal balanced budget amendment.

Idaho: Allows University of Idaho to charge tuition now.

Illinois: Changes the process of recalling a governor through special election instead of via impeachment.

Kansas: Prevents the legislature from removing suffrage for the mentally ill.

Louisiana: Increases the property tax exemption for disabled veterans, while general limits to property tax increases failed.

Maine: Allows a new casino in Oxford County be built, voting rights for legal noncitizens in Portland failed.

Maryland: Baltimore‘s Orphan Court judges must now be bar members.

Massachusetts: Eliminates sales tax on alcohol, but attempts to reduce the sales tax from 6.25% to 3% failed.

Michigan: Prevents certain felons from holding elective office.

Missouri: A property tax exemption for disabled former prisoners of war passed, they prevented cities from using income taxes and prevented governments from collecting real-estate taxes.

Montana: Limits fees and rates for payday and other loans and continue to prohibit any new real estate taxes.

Nevada: Consolidated Reno and Sparks County governments.

New Jersey: Now dedicates state wage taxes to benefits only.

New Mexico: Fails to pass an extension of term limits for county officials to three terms instead of two terms, establishes a new scholarship program for veterans and a property tax exemption for veterans organizations also passed, they will now issue bonds for improvements to senior centers, library acquisitions and public schools, but not for public colleges. New Mexicans were VERY busy at the polls this week, if the people are voting directly on all these issues themselves, I wonder WHAT the local government is actually doing THEMSELVES.

New York: Returns city term limits to two terms.

North Carolina: Prevents felons from being elected sheriff.

North Dakota: Places oil and gas tax revenue in a trust fund while a measure to prevent hunting in fenced enclosures failed.

Oklahoma: Prohibits mandated purchase of health care, requires identification for voters, set term limits for statewide officials, makes English the language of official state actions and forbids the use of international law or Sharia law in state court decisions. This makes Oklahoma the first state in the US to forbid the use Sharia law in their courts.

Oregon: Expands eligibility of subsidized home loans for veterans, increases mandatory minimum sentences for sex crimes and DUIs, fails to allow sales of medical marijuana, prevents the building of a casino in Multnomah County, extends dedication of 15% of lottery proceeds to wildlife, water and recreation.

Rhode Island: Attempts to remove “and Providence Plantations” from official state name failed and issues bonds for higher education facilities, transportation and open-space projects.

South Dakota: Passed a measure ensuring the right to a private ballot in all elections, broadens their smoking ban, but their attempts at legalizing marijuana for medical purposes failed.

Utah: Affirmed the right to a secret ballot in all elections and passed a property tax exemption for nonprofit water operations.

Vermont: Changed their voting-age requirement (18) to only be applied at time of the general election.

Virginia: Passes a property-tax exemption for disabled veterans.

Washington: Attempts to remove the worker-paid share of health benefits failed, failed to increase the income tax on wealthy and lower other taxes, failed to close state liquor stores/deregulate liquor sales, ends certain sales and excise taxes and lowers food-processor taxes, while lastly fails to issue a bond for energy efficiency in schools.

Bipartisanship will remain dead as Republicans will not compromise, even after railing against Democrats for failure to work with them in compromising on issues… and once again Fox News attacks Obama for something he said that was milder things that Republicans had said previously.
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Jon interviews Chris Wallace from Fox News. Here is the extensive interview of them talking about political coverage from cable news:
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David Sedaris comes on The Daily Show to promote his new book Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk.
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Jonathan Alter provides a different type of analysis about President Obama‘s first 2 years of the administration.
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Colbert interviews David Frum as he talks about the direction of the Republican party and how he does not think it is sustainable for the future of the Republican party.
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Doris Kearns Goodwin gives some presidential perspective to the last 2 political waves from the 2008 and 2010 elections.
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All I know is I hope Spider-man wins in Alaska as a write-in, unless it’s really Joe Miller in disguise.
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Here is an odd bit of muddled political commentary from Elvis Costello along with him performing a new song from his album, A Slow Drag With Josephine, and then a duet of All I Have to Do Is Dream with Stephen on The Colbert Report, not really my cup of tea except for the duet (1st video), but if you like it, get his new album National Ransom.
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Enjoy

Dany