Ed Martin Concedes

This morning, Ed Martin (R) called Russ Carnahan (D-MO) to congratulate him on winning last Tuesday's election. Martin has alleged voter fraud in the election; however, today he has acknowledged that to the extent that voter fraud occurred in Missouri's Third Congressional District, it does not account for the 4400 vote margin in the race. With almost 49% of the vote, Russ Carnahan will continue to represent the district.

Martin also updated his website with a post entitled election day review - final report which reads in part:

In the early hours of Wednesday, November 3rd we learned that a slim lead our campaign enjoyed disappeared in a surge of votes. At the time we understood that these votes were coming from as few as three precincts from the city of St. Louis. On its face this sudden end-of-night surge was suspicious. We understood that St. Louis had finished reporting. Mathematically, several thousand votes from a small number of precincts was implausible.

Given the history of St. Louis and the state of Missouri where our Secretary of State has refused to take responsibility for compelling local boards of election to purge voter rolls of ineligible registrants, voter fraud looms large in the mind of voters. A sudden wave of votes is easy to associate with an unscrupulous few who might have a few thousand votes on standby in case an election was close and their candidate needed help.

...

Since Wednesday afternoon we have learned that the votes were not from three to seven precincts in the City, but rather included unreported votes from the northwest precincts of St. Louis County encompassed by Missouri’s Third Congressional district. In light of this new information, the implausibility factor evaporates along with my concerns about voter fraud in that late surge. And, although I have concerns about other incidents and improper conduct on election day, I no longer believe these concerns are sufficient to continue our review of what has occurred or delay agreeing that this election is over.

...

Finally, after asking for input, we have heard from hundreds of citizens about problems with voting or voter registration. These problems are real and far too common – or so it seems. The heart of our republic is a voting system that works fairly, with regularity, and which inspires confidence. I fear that the legion of problems threatens the integrity of our voting system.

Our campaign was about empowering people to get involved in politics to change the course of our nation by stopping one-party rule in Washington. This has been accomplished by other victories even as we came up short. Our campaign also sought to instill confidence in the citizens that their voices and votesmatter. Mishaps and misconduct like we saw last Tuesday threaten this confidence. In the coming weeks and days, I will continue to seek to highlight the importance of protecting our voting system and will ask you to assist me in this effort.

Thank you to all and thanks be to God for the blessing that is the United States of America

Ed, thanks for running and best of luck in your future endeavors!

Russ Carnahan Sends DVD to Represent Him at Candidate Forum

Missouri Republican News is reporting that Russ Carnahan (D-MO) was a no show at a candidate forum the other night:

Citizens of Ste. Genevieve gathered last evening to hear from the candidates wanting to represent them. As usual there was an empty seat where Congressman Carnahan should have been. The candidate forum, set up months ago by the local paper, was a timely chance to speak about the issues and ask for the support of the voters.

Instead of facing constituents Congressman Carnahan sent a canned speech filled with Pelosi talking points that he copied on a DVD and he sent to the paper in his place. He has been absent in his service and seems even in his campaign too.

Meanwhile Ed Martin addressed the crowd and personally asked for their support. He addressed their concerns and questions acting as a true representative should.

“Our unemployment rate has gone untouched at 9% and folks want to know who will work for them to help rectify this travesty. I have toured the farms of Ste. Genevieve, walked the streets of St. Louis City and County, and gone door-to-door in Jefferson County. I have left no stone unturned in reaching out to the people. I want the constituents of Missouri’s 3rd to rest assured I am working for them,” said Ed Martin.

Update: Michelle Malkin links! Thanks! Here are some videos of Russ I've done: Where'd the Money Go, Saving Healthcare, and Russ Carnahan Delivers for Us? I've got extensive coverage of both Russ Carnahan and his challenger, Ed Martin, on this blog including complete video coverage of the second debate.

Russ Carnahan Passes the Plate Again

Editor at 24thState.com has posted a recent fund raising letter from Russ Carnahan:

Russ Carnahan just sent out a desperate plea for money.

In a D+7 district, Carnahan knows he's in deep trouble. But don't take my word for it. Take his.

From: "Russ Carnahan "
Date: October 11, 2010 9:35:42 AM CDT
To:
Subject: I’m not kidding
Reply-To: Russ@russcarnahan.com

We have 22 days left till the election and this race is heating up.

Ed Martin has put out his unofficial third quarter fundraising numbers – he raised over $400,000 this past quarter and has raised $1.2 million so far in this campaign provoking the National Republican committee to promote him to “young gun” status.

It seems that the tea party movement has coalesced around Ed Martin and a small but dedicated group of right wing ideologues are propping him up. While Ed Martin has been busy energizing the radical right, I have been fighting to improve the lives and opportunities for the constituents of the Missouri 3rd...

Believe it or not, this race is coming down to the wire. I don’t need to tell you what is at stake in this election --- I need you to join me now and take a stand.

Get that? Believe it or not, this race is coming down to the wire. It's an interesting way to characterize a district that isn't listed on any of the 87 House districts supposedy in the toss-up category.

Believe it or not? It's almost as if Russ is saying, no one would believe that a Dem+7 district held by Dick Gephardt would be at danger when a Carnahan was running. But it is true, and as we've reported before, Russ's internals have him scared, which is why he's planning for his post-Congressional career.

In the interest of mocking Russ Carnahan, I have to take exception to 24thState. When you're paying your volunteers $9/hr (see below), you have a significantly higher burn rate. Because Russ has to pay his canvassers, he has less money available for advertising; therefore, he sends out a plea for cash.



On the other hand, Ed Martin (R) has Tea Party support because he's a Tea Partier. And with that he has access to a huge pool of unpaid volunteers with which to get his message out. There's no better visual explanation of the difference between Russ's volunteer pool and Ed's than this 20-some seconds of video. The first two rows on one side of the hall stand and applaud for Russ after his closing statement, but the other 150 or so people remain seated. That's not an "enthusiasm gap," that's an "enthusiasm chasm":

Russ Carnahan Delivers for Us?

 If the video above isn't work, try this YouTube version.

Cross posted at www.EvictionDay2010.com:

Russ Carnahan (D-MO) claims to "deliver for us". The video above examines some of the things that Russ has delivered. If you'd like to learn more about what he's delivered for Missouri's Third Congressional District, here are some links to more information:

• Russ Carnahan Delivers for Nancy Pelosi by voting with her 99% of the time (according to Congressional Quarterly)
• Russ Carnahan Delivers the Laughs
• In the first segment, Russ draws the laughs when he claims that healthcare reform will save money through efficiency (more coverage)
• Russ gets another laugh when he claims that our national Ponzi scheme, Social Security, is efficient 
• Russ Carnahan Delivers a Federal Budget! Actually, despite majorities in both houses of Congress, the Democrats did not pass a budget.
• Russ Carnahan Delivers for himself. This one could go on for quite sometime, so I limitted it to his world travel.
• Jetting off to the Australian rain forest, the South Pole, and the Great Barrier Reef to confirm his global warming bias
• You really must read about his trip to the $2,000/night Hotel Splendido in Portofino, Italy. "Russ Carnahan, Man of the People," is not a phrase you'll be hearing this election cycle.
• Then there are the trips he's taken on the corporate dime—yes, you paid for the karaoke in Portofino as well as his world tour—Russ, doesn't take a lot of corporate trips, but he does travel in style when he goes. The New York Times reports that Russ is #3 in Congress for corporate money spent on his travel.
• I close this segment out with the breakdown of Russ Carnahan's PAC vs. individual donations the majority of which are from PACs. You will hear the phrase: "Russ Carnahan the PACman" throughout the remainder of the campaign.
• Russ Carnahan Delivers for the Family—the $107 million bailout of Tom Carnahan's wind farm.
• Russ Carnahan Delivers an Applause Line... you just have to watch this. It pretty much captures the enthusiasm chasm between right and left in this election cycle, but don't get cocky. Get out there!

Ed Martin (R) is running against this Rubberstamp for Nancy Pelosi. You can support Ed's campaign at www.EdMartinForCongress.com. If you are in St. Louis, Jefferson County, or St. Genevieve County, please visit Ed's volunteer page and get out there!

Russ Quixote and the Wind Farm Bailout

The Missouri Record's cartoon column, Off the Record, has captured the essence of Russ "Quixote" Carnahan's (D-MO) problem. The cartoon of Russ says: "Those aren't my brother's tax subsidized wind mills.... Those are giants!" This parallels the arguments made at left-leaning blogs as they assert that Russ is innocent in the matter of the $107 million grant in lieu of $90 million tax credit for his brother Tom's wind farm.

As long as the left defends the indefensible award of $107 million grant in lieu of $90 million tax credit they fail to see the structural injustice of a bureaucracy that peddles money and influence into the hands of a few, well-connected individuals. That's the same injustice that bailed out banks and automakers. In fact, because wind power is not economically viable at the moment, funding wind farms is the equivalent of preemptively bailing them out. It's the same injustice, so to say that "Russ is innocent" is to ignore his vote for Cap and Trade which is a reasonable proxy for whether or not he wants to bailout "Big Green".

Perhaps Tom Carnahan has developed an innovation that will make his wind farms economically viable. In that case he will succeed with or without public subsidy and deserves to be richly rewarded for bequeathing to civilization an environmental boon. But in a time of economic turmoil and high unemployment, Russ Carnahan's policy preferences are irresponsible as they will drive up the cost of electricity even for the poorest Americans.

In short, vote for Ed Martin on November 2nd.

Update: Here's a recent example of the systemic problems with bureaucracies. Pajamas Media reports on their FOIA request to the FDIC:

Late last month, PJM reported that Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) — ranking member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform — had begun an investigation into allegations the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) gave preferential treatment to banks with political connections.
...
In the two-page response, the FDIC does not claim they do not maintain such a list or engage in the practice of flagging banks which have important contacts. Instead, they essentially say they do not have to provide such information to PJM because the request was simply too broad.

Is there anyone that would be surprised to learn that the FDIC plays favorites?

24thState Gets Results

Hotline On Call is reporting that the DSCC Moving Money Out of Missouri:

The DSCC is moving TV ad money out of Missouri, a sign that the Senate race may be moving beyond Democrats' grasp.

Four Republican sources who monitor media buying and three Missouri TV stations have confirmed to Hotline On Call that the DSCC has canceled reservations from Oct. 11 to Oct. 25. The DSCC still has reservations in Missouri for the last week before Election Day.

Clearly Sir Robin Carnahan's appearance alongside brother Russ over at 24thState.com doomed her election... or maybe it was her silencing of Green Jobs Man. Can Russ's electoral prospects be that far behind?

Martin-Carnahan Debate Bleg

First, what's a "bleg"? Blogossary.com defines bleg: "To bleg is to write a blog entry or comment for the sole purpose of asking for something."

I need some help. What you're looking at above is all of the video I shot at the second Ed Martin - Russ Carnahan debate. Yes, Nick Ivanovich of the Constitution Party was there, too. The playlist above includes 27 clips. There are introductory remarks in the first and closing statements in the last. The 25 in between are the questions and answers from the three candidates—I was worried about running out of tape, so I cut Nick's answer on two to four of the later questions.

Here's how you can help. I need to title and describe each clip. The title should include the topic of the question asked (unfortunately, I missed some of the questions, so you'll have to base that on dissembling politicians in those cases). The description should be two to six sentences long and provide an overview (not a transcription) of the question. You can contribute your titles and descriptions in the Google spreadsheet I setup. Here's the procedure I recommend:

1. Open up the Google spreadsheet
2. Make a note in the description field that you're working on a video
3. Follow the link in the link column and watch the video
4. Go back to the Google spreadsheet and enter your title and two to six sentence description

I'll use the data in the spreadsheet to update my YouTube channel.

Why do this? you may ask... So the videos can be found with Google and YouTube search.

Thanks in advance for your help!

Ed Martin on Shop Local-Hire Local

Ed Martin, Russ Carnahan's Republican opponent, talks about his Shop local-Hire local initiative to help small businesses network with one another in Missouri's Third Congressional District. This interview was conducted in June while Ed was driving around south St. Louis city with two of his kids.

Return Russ Carnahan to Sender

I saw the following in Suburban Journals Town Talk for Sept. 15:

Return to sender

I live in the 3rd Congressional District. I saw a sign on Union today that said 'Russ Carnahan, he delivers for us.' Let me finish that saying. He helped deliver an $860 billion bailout bail that hasn't worked very well, if at all. He delivered a health care bill most Americans don't like or want. He delivered carmakers, insurance companies and banks to us, the American taxpayer. He helped deliver unemployment, up to 10 percent at it's peak. Yes sir, ol' Russ has really delivered for us in the 3rd District. Maybe we should give Ed Martin a chance to see what he can deliver. Could it be any worse?

All of that's spot on, but what's omitted is also interesting. If you're going to use the sub-headline: "Return to sender", shouldn't you also mention Congressman Russ Carnahan's (D-MO) abuse of his franking privilege?

I've been following politics forever and I only recently learned about franking, so let me explain what it is. If you want to mail a letter, you put a stamp on it. If a Congressman wants to send you junk mail, they put an image of their signature on it. Originally, they would sign the upper right corner of the envelop, but when you spend north of a $100,000 of your constituent's tax dollars telling them about your exploits in Washington you use a copy machine to avoid carpel tunnel syndrome. Russ Carnahan's campaign slogan may be "delivers for us", but the postal workers and mail carriers across Missouri's Third Congressional District have been dragooned to "deliver for Russ."

I don't think Ed Martin (R-MO) would be as careless with the public's money.

Rahm Emanuel: "F*ck the UAW"

In Steve Rattner's soon to be released book Overhaul: An Insider's Account of the Obama Administration's Emergency Rescue of the Auto Industry, Rahm Emanuel is quoted saying "F*ck the UAW":

Rahm Emanuel, former Democratic congressman and President Obama's chief of staff, gave the UAW the Gettelfinger during the GM and Chrysler rescue debate, according to former auto czar Steve Rattner's new book. This could get messy. Especially because there's more.

With friends like Rahm and Russ Carnahan (D-MO) here in Missouri's Third Congressional District, UAW members may want to find some new friends.

Democrats Expect to Lose the House

Politico is reporting Democrats privately fear that their prospects of retaining the House are worsening:

Yet Democratic concern continues to manifest itself in a variety of ways, including the purchasing of ads in districts – like that of veteran Ike Skelton of Missouri -- that historically are only in play in miserable political years and were not considered at risk several months ago. And then there are more subtle hints that professional Democrats are worried -- lobbyists are reporting a noticeable uptick in House committee staffers looking for jobs.

If you'd like to bring change to Washington by supporting the opponent of Ike Skelton (D-MO), checkout Vicky Hartzler (R-MO). She's running a strong campaign in America's heartland. The Politico article continues:

What Democrats are watching most closely right now is to see if the field of at-risk seats does indeed keep expanding. There are fresh concerns about Reps. Allen Boyd of Florida, Jim Marshall of Georgia and Leonard Boswell of Iowa – all of whom were recently moved into the toss-up category by respected handicapper Charlie Cook.

In addition, Reps. Ben Chandler of Kentucky and Stephanie Herseth Sandlin of South Dakota were both outraised by their opponents this past quarter, increasing concern about their races.

That field of at-risk seats will soon include Russ Carnahan (D-MO). His opponent, Ed Martin (R-MO), is running a strong campaign. Of course, Carnahan makes Ed's job is easier when he ignores a constituent's question and runs away, claims to be fiscally conservative despite his Porker of the Month award, and confirms that a disgruntled employee "firebombed" his office. The scary thing is all three of those stories broke in the past twenty-four hours.

The Carnahan crew's yacht is taking on water, and we're not talking a little water like you might see from a leaky roof at the Crystal Ballroom or his residence. No we're talking about water in quantities not seen since his lobbyist funded trips to the Great Barrier Reef, Hawaii, and Antarctica.

Welcome Home Russ Carnahan!

Just a little something to let Congressman Russ Carnahan (D-MO) know how glad we are to have him back in the district for the August recess. I'd recommend watching this one full screen with the volume cranked up.

Russ Carnahan Dodges his Yacht Tax

Wednesday morning, Ed Martin, a Republican candidate for Missouri's Third Congressional district, called on Russ Carnahan to pay back taxes that he owes for the yacht he kept across the river in Alton, IL. Martin compared Carnahan to John Kerry who recently paid back taxes on a yacht he mored in Rhode Island to avoid paying taxes in his home state of Massachusetts.

Jake Wagman of the St. Louis Post Dispatch was there. I believe he contributed to a story about Russ Carnahan having sold the yacht a month ago. To the best of my knowledge no one at Ed Martin's press conference was aware of the sale; however, this does not negate Congressman Carnahan's obligation to pay the property taxes that he owes. 24thstate.com covered the Carnahan yacht story last Friday.

Congressman Mac Thornberry on Ed Martin

Congressman Mac Thornberry (R-TX) explains what Ed Martin needs to do to beat Russ Carnahan (D-MO) in the November 2010 election.

An Ed Martin-Russ Carnahan Debate?

Ed Martin, Republican candidate for Missouri's Third Congressional District, will accept an invitation next week to debate MO-03's current Congressman: Russ Carnahan (D-MO). Presumably, the debate is contingent on both Martin and Carnahan winning their party's primary on August 3rd.

Ed Martin hosted a World Cup Watch Party

Ed Martin, a Republican candidate for Missouri's 3rd Congressional District, hosted a World Cup watch party this afternoon at Favazza's on The Hill.

Interview with Edward Crim (Part 1)

In part one of my two part interview we learn why Edward Crim, a professional photographer, has decided to put down his camera and challenge incumbent Russ Carnahan (D-MO) in the August 3rd Democrat primary. This interview was conducted 1/21/10.

Previously:

• Introducing Edward Crim

Related:

• Edward Crim for Congress
• Forest Park 365

Introducing Edward Crim

In mid-January, Edward Crim (D) announced that he would be running to represent Missouri's Third Congressional District. Crim is running as a Democrat, so he will face Russ Carnahan (D-MO) in the August 3rd primary.

I interviewed Crim and will be releasing more video from that interview in the coming days. You can find out more about Crim at EdwardCrimForCongress.com.

Volunteering for Ed Martin

Ed Martin, GOP Candidate for MO-03

Over the weekend I spoke with Ed Martin at one of his Volunteer Meet-n-Greet events. Ed talked about the importance of volunteers to the success of his campaign and outlined several ways that people could get involved.

Ed Martin on Big Government and Healthcare Reform

Ed Martin on the growth of government and reforming healthcare

Early this month, I spoke with Ed Martin, Republican candidate for the US House of Representatives in Missouri's 3rd district. In this segment from that interview, Ed talks about the growth of government and the steps we should take to truly reform healthcare.