Kotek has to remember the maxim, Democrats need to be perfect—Republicans only need *excuses* to get votes. So Kotek has probably got to clean up somehow.
This is why I always say there are never guarantees even in a nominally "blue" state. And my expectation now is that with modern Republicans there will be immediate reprisal against "blue" cities and having their initiatives screwed over.
Kotek must be either a disaster as governor or just a supremely bad politician to be tied with a conservative Republican in Oregon in a political environment like this. Maybe she’ll pull it off in the end but this might be one of the signs that blue state governance has a big Achilles heel.
Notice that more people are migrating from blue to red states rather than the other way around. Blue states aren’t building as much as they used to either (and think how great it would be if blue states had such an abundance of housing and jobs that red states refugees could flock to the blue states for affordable homes and job opportunities—we are seeing the opposite now). I dint know if that’s Oregon’s problem right now but Kotek got me thinking of this.
Blue states are not building as much because of the nationwide trend towards austerity as state governments are ransacked by the bills coming due from federal tax cuts and devolution of essential services. On top of that there's the perverse incentives of housing (that is, because so many people have homes as financial instruments, it discourages more housing from being built) that strike all states but especially the coast.
I think it’s the latter certainly, because just trying to build anything in most cities abd established towns runs into opposition (who wants the cost of housing to drop if that might make your own home go down in value?). But it’s also a regulatory environment that makes building more expensive. In any event it’s bad for everyone if the red areas grow while blue areas are stagnant.
I'm on the opposite coast so not an up close view, but common sense tells me if you're the sitting Democratic governor in one of the bluest states in the country and you are struggling to be re-elected, you have probably done an overall shitty job. This would be one bright spot in what's likely to be a long night for Republicans (and all of us, really, as Trump grows increasingly shrill and desperate).
Kotek has to remember the maxim, Democrats need to be perfect—Republicans only need *excuses* to get votes. So Kotek has probably got to clean up somehow.
This is why I always say there are never guarantees even in a nominally "blue" state. And my expectation now is that with modern Republicans there will be immediate reprisal against "blue" cities and having their initiatives screwed over.
Kotek must be either a disaster as governor or just a supremely bad politician to be tied with a conservative Republican in Oregon in a political environment like this. Maybe she’ll pull it off in the end but this might be one of the signs that blue state governance has a big Achilles heel.
Notice that more people are migrating from blue to red states rather than the other way around. Blue states aren’t building as much as they used to either (and think how great it would be if blue states had such an abundance of housing and jobs that red states refugees could flock to the blue states for affordable homes and job opportunities—we are seeing the opposite now). I dint know if that’s Oregon’s problem right now but Kotek got me thinking of this.
Blue states are not building as much because of the nationwide trend towards austerity as state governments are ransacked by the bills coming due from federal tax cuts and devolution of essential services. On top of that there's the perverse incentives of housing (that is, because so many people have homes as financial instruments, it discourages more housing from being built) that strike all states but especially the coast.
I think it’s the latter certainly, because just trying to build anything in most cities abd established towns runs into opposition (who wants the cost of housing to drop if that might make your own home go down in value?). But it’s also a regulatory environment that makes building more expensive. In any event it’s bad for everyone if the red areas grow while blue areas are stagnant.
That was depressing to read.
I'm on the opposite coast so not an up close view, but common sense tells me if you're the sitting Democratic governor in one of the bluest states in the country and you are struggling to be re-elected, you have probably done an overall shitty job. This would be one bright spot in what's likely to be a long night for Republicans (and all of us, really, as Trump grows increasingly shrill and desperate).