Day572 Friday 03/23/12

ran 0.1 miles

Here is the fiftieth state in my effort to collect important facts and the history of each state’s presidential voting history.  When November 6 arrives and we all cast our votes, just click on “states of the union” in the category section to the right and (in alphabetical order) you can check out a brief history of each state, how many electoral votes they have, and other important information.

Stats and facts about the state of Wyoming:

• Wyoming was the forty-fourth state to join the union on July 10, 1890, six years before Utah and one week after Idaho.

• Population, as of 2010, is 563,626.

• Senators are John Barrasso (R) and Michael Enzi (R).

• Representative is Cynthia Lummis (R).

• Wisconsin has three electoral votes.  Historically, the state has voted Democratic only once since 1952 (Lyndon Johnson in 1964).  In 2008, McCain defeated Obama by 32%, his widest margin of victory.  One last interesting fact, Wyoming has the smallest population in the Union and is, therefore, the most over-represented state in the electoral college.

322.5 miles to go.

Here is what happened one year ago on Day207.

Day531 Saturday 02/11/12

ran 2.0 miles
Sarah Palin’s speech at CPAC has turned out to be the most highly anticipated and received message at the Conservative Political Action Committee’s conference. After instantly silencing a few Occupy Wall Street hecklers she went on to raise multiple standing ovations with her words. The video speaks for itself.

I am almost through with my list of our fifty states and the important stats and presidential voting histories they each have. I wanted to compile this list as a key to quickly reference when the election arrives, rather than having to listen to five different news stations all reporting different things about which directions different states will be likely voting. So, here is the second to last one. Click on “States of the Union” to the right to view more information on other states.

Stats and facts about the state of Wisconsin:

• Wisconsin was the thirtieth state to join the union on May 29, 1848, two years before California and two years after Iowa.

• Population, as of 2010, is 5,686,986.

• Senators are Ron Johnson (R) and Herb Kohl (D).

• Representatives are Paul Ryan (R), Tammy Baldwin (D), Ronald Kind (D), Gwen Moore (D), James Sensenbrenner (R), Thomas Petri (R), Sean Duffy (R), and Reid Ribble (R).

• Wisconsin has ten electoral votes. Historically, the state voted primarily red through 1928. Wisconsin turned blue, like many other states, during the Great Depression and World War II. From 1944 to 1984 the state was unpredictable and swung in both directions from election to election. However, Wisconsin has voted for the Democratic presidential candidate in every single election since 1988. Barack Obama defeated John McCain 56% to 42% in 2008.

454.7 miles to go.

Here is what happened one year ago on Day166.

Day487 Thursday 12/29/11

ran 3.5 miles
Three more states to go. Here are some stats and facts about the state of West Virginia (to check out stats and facts about more states click on “states of the union” on the right):

• West Virginia was the thirty-fifth state to join the union on June 20, 1863, one year before Nevada and two years after Kansas.

• Population, as of 2010, is 1,852,994.

• Senators are Joe Manchin (D) and John Rockefeller (D).

• Representatives are David McKinley (R), Shelley Capito (R), and Nick Rahall (D).

• West Virginia has five electoral votes. An interesting fact about West Virginia is that the state seceded from Virginia after Virginia had seceded from the union during the Civil War. Historically, West Virginia has voted blue 20 out of the last 37 presidential elections, but red for the last three elections. The state historically swings from red to blue but is expected to lean Republican in 2012. In 2008, McCain defeated Obama 56% to 43%.

And here is a little something extra. While certain states exhibit their sovereign interests in slowing down the gates of illegal immigration, Barack Obama has established a hotline for illegal immigrants to call for help if they were so unlucky as to be apprehended. The hotline exists for detainees to call in case they may be U.S. citizens and not realize it or in the event that they feel they were victims of a crime. Here is the story.

598.9 miles to go.

Here is what happened one year ago on Day122.

Day468 Saturday 12/10/11

ran 3.0 miles
Here are some stats and facts about the state of Washington (to check out stats and facts about more states click on “states of the union” on the right):

• Washington was the forty-second state to join the union on November 11, 1889, one year before Idaho and three days after Montana.

• Population, as of 2010, is 6,724,540.

• Senators are Maria Cantwell (D) and Patty Murray (D).

• Representatives are Jay Inslee (D), Rick Larsen (D), Jaime Herrera Beutler (R), Doc Hastings (R), Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R), Norman Dicks (D), James McDermott (D), Dave Reichert (R), and Adam Smith (D).

• Washington has twelve electoral votes. The state gained one electoral vote during the 2010 Census Reaportionment. Historically, Washington has swung back and forth for years at a time voting both red and blue. The state’s current trend has been blue and Washington has voted for a Democrat in the last six presidential elections. Barack Obama defeated John McCain 58% to 41% in 2008.

Thank you for keeping up with this blog! And if you have read this far I may as well make a little announcement. I am happy to announce that I am going to be a dad. Found out this morning that it’s a girl! Whole new set of lenses in my eyes.

663.2 miles to go.

Here is what happened one year ago on Day103.

Day445 Thursday 11/17/11

Iowa Republican Caucus poll from Rasmussen Reports:
Gingrich 32%
Romney 19%
Cain 13%

ran 1.7 miles
Here are some stats and facts about the state of Virginia (to check out stats and facts about more states click on “states of the union” on the right):

• Virginia was the tenth state to join the union on June 25, 1788, one month before New York and four days after New Hampshire.

• Population, as of 2010, is 8,001,024.

• Senators are Mark Warner (D) and Jim Webb (D).

• Representatives are Rob Wittman (R), Scott Rigell (R), Robert Scott (D), Randy Forbes (R), Robert Hurt (R), Robert Goodlatte (R), Eric Cantor (R), James Moran (D), Morgan Griffith (R), Frank Wolf (R), and Gerald Connolly (D).

• Virginia has thirteen electoral votes. Historically, the state has voted almost exclusively blue from Reconstruction through 1948. From 1952 through 2004, Virginia had voted exclusively red except for Lyndon Johnson in 1964. Barack Obama defeated John McCain 53% to 46% in 2008.

737.2 miles to go.

Here is what happened one year ago on Day80.

Day433 Saturday 11/05/11

1,300 MILES!!!

ran 3.0 miles
Only 780 miles left to go! Tomorrow puts us at exactly one year from the day we will vote for the next president of the United States of America. One year until we can start turning this mess around, looking less like the beginning of Greece’s demise and more like America.

Here are some stats and facts about the state of Vermont (to check out stats and facts about more states click on “states of the union” on the right):

• Vermont was the fourteenth state to join the union on March 4, 1791, one year before Kentucky and one year after Rhode Island.

• Population, as of 2010, is 625,741.

• Senators are Patrick Leahy (D) and Bernard Sanders (I).

• The representative is Peter Welch (D).

• Vermont has three electoral votes. Historically, the state has voted red since the founding of the modern Republican Party in 1854 through the election of 1988, except for 1964. In 1992, Vermont voted for Bill Clinton and has been a blue state since. In 2008, Barack Obama defeated John McCain 68% to 30%.

778.8 miles to go.

Here is what happened one year ago on Day68.

Day426 Saturday 10/29/11

ran 3.2 miles
Some stats and facts about the state of Utah:

• Utah was the forty-fifth state to join the union on January 4, 1896, eleven years before Oklahoma and six years after Wyoming.

• Population, as of 2010, is 2,763,885.

• Senators are Orrin Hatch (R) and Mike Lee (R).

• Representatives are Rob Bishop (R), Jim Matheson (D), and Jason Chaffetz (R).

• Utah has six electoral votes. The state claimed the third largest population swell over the past decade (nearly 24%) and gained one electoral vote for the next decade. Historically, Utah has not voted blue since 1964. In 2008, McCain defeated Obama by 28%.

This is from an ABC News article, “The one thing that we absolutely know for sure is that if we don’t work even harder than we did in 2008, then we’re going to have a government that tells the American people ‘you are on your own’.”
That quote from Barack Obama is the most refreshing thing he has said in three years. “On our own” is what we want. Although the quote was uttered during a fund raising dinner in San Francisco, I don’t think Obama has any clue how successful he could be as a president if he would only phrase those words in a different context. Something to the effect of “We cannot continue spending ourselves into oblivion and we cannot continue encouraging Americans to be so reliant upon the government”.

I can’t understand the sense of entitlement so many people in this country feel is somehow owed to them. Get off your rear-end and move forward. We are all victims of the same circumstances. Things could be better and they could be worse. Some of us choose to achieve, no matter how small or large the task, during these hard times and others choose to do…less, for lack of a better and less severe term. Too many have made their government a sedative to everything America has to offer.

801.8 miles to go.
Here is what happened one year ago on Day61.

Day412 Saturday 10/15/11

ran 3.1 miles

Here is your America, ladies and gentlemen, under Barack Obama. I assure you these challenged individuals did not vote for John McCain in 2008 and they will not be voting for Herman Cain or any other Republican nominee in 2012. Four words for this guy to express himself and the direction he wants America to lead, and this is the best he can do. Go Barack!

Some stats and facts about the state of Texas:

• Texas was the twenty-eighth state to join the union on December 29, 1845, one year before Iowa and nine months after Florida.

• Population, as of 2010, is 25,145,561.

• Senators are John Cornyn (R) and Kay Bailey Hutchison (R).

• Representatives are Louis Gohmert (R), Ted Poe (R), Samuel Johnson (R), Ralph Hall (R), Jeb Hensarling (R), Joe Barton (R), John Culberson (R), Kevin Brady (R), Al Green (D), Michael McCaul (R), Michael Conaway (R), Kay Granger (R), William Thornberry (R), Ronald Paul (R), Ruben Hinojosa (D), Silvestre Reyes (D), Bill Flores (R), Sheila Jackson-Lee (D), Randy Neugebauer (R), Charles Gonzalez (D), Lamar Smith (R), Pete Olson (R), Francisco Canseco (D), Kenny Marchant (R), Lloyd Doggett (D), Michael Burgess (R), Blake Farenthold (R), Henry Cuellar (D), Raymond Green (D), Eddie Johnson (D), John Carter (R), and Peter Sessions (R).

• Texas has thirty-eight electoral votes. During the 2010 Census Reapportionment, Texas’ booming population earned the state four more electoral votes through 2020. Texas has gained at least one additional electoral vote in every Census since 1930 and they are second to California’s fifty-five electoral votes. Historically, Texas voted blue with very few splices of red between 1872 and 1976. The streak ended in 1980 and Texas has voted Republican, since. John McCain defeated Barack Obama by a margin of 56% to 44% in 2008.

851.9 miles to go.

Here is what happened one year ago on Day47.

Day398 Saturday 10/01/11

ran 3.4 miles
It’s been over two weeks since our president proposed his American Jobs Act, a bill with a $447 billion price tag on the backs of taxpayers. It is yet another stimulus package serving as one more ingredient in Barack Obama’s stew that is tasteless and hard to swallow. Even the Democrat-led Senate is reluctant to pass Barack Obama’s jobs bill. That is a statement that demands many questions on leadership. It is a given that the Republican-led House only wants to poke at this thing with a ten-foot pole, but the left appears to be imploding under Barack Obama.

Looking back at the mid-term elections, when so many liberal members of Congress were fired by American voters, based on their support of our president’s actions, one can only wonder how many Democrats are now willing to stand in the front lines to defend their president and quite possibly sacrifice their careers in Washington D.C. while the leader of their party sneaks off to Timbuktu for another extravagant vacation on our ticket.

On a lighter note, I have been compiling stats and facts about each individual state to use as a tool for when the 2012 presidential election finally arrives. Quick facts like how many electoral votes each state has, what their presidential voting history is, who their Congressmen and women are, stuff like that. So, here are some facts about the state of Tennessee:

• Tennessee was the sixteenth state to join the union on June 1, 1796, seven years before Ohio and four years after Kentucky.

• Population, as of 2010, is 6,346,105.

• Senators are Lamar Alexander (R) and Bob Corker (R).

• Representatives are Phil Roe (R), John Duncan (R), Chuck Fleischmann (R), Scott DesJarlais (R), Jim Cooper (D), Diane Black (R), Marsha Blackburn (R), Stephen Fincher (R) and Steve Cohen (D).

• Tennessee has eleven electoral votes. Historically, the state voted almost exclusively blue from Reconstruction until after World War II. Since the 1950s Tennessee has trended red with few exceptions. Since 1928 Tennessee has chosen the winning candidate in every election except for 1960 and 2008. John McCain defeated Barack Obama 57% to 42% in 2008.

892.7 miles to go.

Here is what happened one year ago on Day33.

Day383 Friday 09/16/11

ran 1.3 miles
I am running a 5k tomorrow morning so I didn’t run much today and I’ll be doing a short post tonight. Above is a video outlining Herman Cain’s campaign platform. I like this guy. His ideas on reforming our tax codes, or, rather abolishing them and putting something else in place that makes sense, is worth electing him for, alone. Our federal government no longer works as it is. It clinks and grinds and sputters. All of the gears and machinery in our government are enclosed in a shiny red, white and blue box that conceals how broken the inside is. The American machine, which is our federal government, needs a lot of new parts…replacement parts.

Here are some facts about the state of South Dakota:

• South Dakota was the fortieth state to join the union on November 2, 1889, six days before Montana and on the same day as North Dakota.

• Population, as of 2010, is 814,180.

• Senators are Tim Johnson (D) and John Thune (R).

• Representative of South Dakota is Kristi Noem (R).

• South Dakota has three electoral votes. Historically, the state is reliably red. The last time South Dakota voted blue was in 1964 for Lyndon Johnson. In 2008, McCain defeated Obama 53% to 45%.

944.0 miles to go.

Here is what happened one year ago on Day18.

Day377 Saturday 09/10/11

click here for a better look

ran 2.4 miles

I have been posting stats and facts about each state of the union for a while now and, I have to confess, I have done it for somewhat selfish reasons because I want a guide I can access when the 2012 election arrives. I want access to presidential voting history, which senators and representatives are up for reelection, and I want odds and answers at the tips of my fingers.

Each night that I post about a particular state may seem boring now, but it will be a handy tool on November 6, 2012, to compare history to the present.

Above are the flags of our nation. I have to say they look as odd as they do familiar. I am thirty-three years old and I admit there are quite a few I have never seen and would not have expected.

Here are some facts about the state of South Carolina:

• South Carolina was the eighth state to join the union on May 23, 1788, one month before New Hampshire and one month after Maryland.

• Population, as of 2010, is 4,625,364.

• Senators are Jim DeMint (R) and Lindsey Graham (R).

• Representatives are Tim Scott (R), Addison Wilson (R), Jeff Duncan (R), Trey Gowdy (R), Mick Mulvaney (R) and James Clyburn (D).

• South Carolina has nine electoral votes. The state gained an electoral vote during the 2010 Census Reapportionment. Historically, South Carolina has voted almost exclusively blue from reconstruction through the early 1960s. The state has been red since, except for Jimmy Carter in 1976. In 2008, McCain defeated Obama 54% to 45%.

958.6 miles to go.

Here is what happened one year ago on Day12.

Day354 Thursday 08/18/11

ran 2.6 miles

Sorry for the late post. A storm hit us last night and knocked out electricity for the night, right up until the moment I closed my eyes to go to bed. Random lights and electronics all suddenly turned on after having waited four or five hours. Insult to injury. Here’s getting back on track.

President Obama demanded Syrian President Bashar Assad to step down from power today. Assad has been attacking and killing his own people who protest his leadership and Obama, as well as, many other countries are demanding Assad relieve himself from power and implement a democratic approach to their government. After addressing this and a few other highly critical international and domestic problems, our president promptly packed his bags for ten days at Martha’s Vineyards.

In the real world, where real people live and work and do real things, giving Assad an ultimatum to step down as Obama closes the door of his car to head out to a ten day vacation would be like you or me telling our boss how bad we think he is at his job, telling him or her that you or I could do the job better, and then putting on a pleasant smile and saying, “By the way, I’m going to go to Florida for the next week and a half. Thanks.” This approach lacks all sense of urgency and cannot be taken seriously.

On a lighter note, here are some facts about the state of Rhode Island:

• Rhode Island was the thirteenth state to join the union on May 29, 1790, one year before Vermont and one year after North Carolina.

• Population, as of 2010, is 1,052,567.

• Senators are Jack Reed (D) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D).

• Representatives are David Cicilline (D) and James Langevin (D).

• Rhode Island has four electoral votes. Historically, the state has voted blue since 1928, except for four presidential elections (twice for Eisenhower and once for Nixon and Reagan). Obama defeated McCain by nearly 28% in 2008.

1,028.3 miles to go.

Day341 Friday 08/05/11

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Some facts about the state of Pennsylvania:

• Pennsylvania was the second state to join the union on December 12, 1787, six days before New Jersey and five days after Delaware.

• Population, as of 2010, is 12,702,379.

• Senators are Robert Casey, Jr. (D) and Patrick Toomey (R).

• Representatives are Robert Brady (D), Chaka Fattah (D), Mike Kelly (R), Jason Altmire (D), Glenn Thompson (R), Jim Gerlach (R), Patrick Meehan (R), Michael Fitzpatrick (R), William Shuster (R), Thomas Marino (R), Lou Barletta (R), Mark Critz (D), Allyson Schwartz (D), Michael Doyle (D), Charles Dent (R), Joseph Pitts (R), Tim Holden (D), Tim Murphy (R), and Todd Platts (R).

• Pennsylvania has twenty electoral votes after losing one for the 2010 Census Reapportionment. The state has voted blue in the last five presidential elections, but is considered a swing state. Barack Obama defeated John McCain by 11% in 2008.

By the way, Standard and Poor’s has officially downgraded the U.S. credit rating for the first time in American history. Happy Birthday, Barack Obama. This is a response to the mockery our president and congress has made of wasting our tax dollars fighting a lengthy battle over a useless decision regarding our debt ceiling. This is ridiculous. What are these people thinking who fight so hard for Barack Obama? All I see is bitterness and a destructive, childish, misunderstood passion to end America as we know it.

If you voted for this guy, and I know it’s hard for anyone to admit that they were wrong, it’s time to swallow your pride and save your country.

1,066.7 miles to go.

Day334 Friday 07/29/11

ran 3.8 miles
Here are a couple of interesting headlines of the day:

Illegal Aliens Head South To Mexico In Search Of “American Dream”

“It’s now easier to buy homes on credit, find a job and access higher education in Mexico. We have become a middle-class country.”

Sacramento’s Mexican consul general, Carlos Gonzalez Gutierrez

Mexico’s unemployment rate is now 4.9% while America’s is 9.4%.

An estimated 300,000 illegal aliens have left the Sacramento area since 2008 to seek their dreams back home in Mexico.

President Obama Takes Debt Battle to Twitter, Loses More Than 40,000 Followers in One Day

Message: Tweet at your Republican legislators and urge them to support a bipartisan compromise to the debt crisis.

Message received, Mr. President

Republican Twitter accounts were flooded with messages serving the purpose our president intended, but 40,000 drops in one day is a strong message, too.

On a completely separate note, here are some facts about the state of Oregon:

• Oregon was the thirty-third state to join the union on February 14, 1859, two years before Kansas and one year after Minnesota.

• Population, as of 2010, is 3,831,074.

• Senators are Jeff Merkley (D) and Ron Wyden (D).

• Representatives are David Wu (D), who plans to resign after the debt ceiling issue is resolved, on behalf of sexual charges placed against him, Greg Walden (R), Earl Blumenauer (D), Peter DeFazio (D), and Kurt Schrader (D).

• Oregon has seven electoral votes. Historically, the state has voted almost exclusively Republican from is founding through 1984. Beginning in 1988, Oregon went blue and has not looked back since. Barack Obama defeated John McCain by 17% in 2008.

1,089.4 miles to go.

Day320 Friday 07/15/11

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Just some facts about the state of Oklahoma today:

• Oklahoma was the forty-sixth state to join the union on November 16, 1907, five years before New Mexico and eleven years after Utah.

• Population, as of 2010, is 3,751,351.

• Senators are Tom Coburn (R) and James M. Inhofe (R).

• Representatives are John Sullivan (R), Dan Boren (D), Frank Lucas (R), Tom Cole (R), and James Lankford (R).

• Oklahoma has seven electoral votes. Historically, the state has voted blue for all but two presidential elections through 1948 and has not gone Democratic since, except for Lyndon Johnson in 1964. John McCain defeated Barack Obama 66% to 34% in 2008.

1,130.3 miles to go.

Day316 Monday 07/11/11

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The screws continue to tighten on President Obama. Ultimatums and threats are coming from both sides of Congress over the smothering gravity of our debt ceiling. August 2 is the last square on the calendar to sort it out and make big decisions that will have long-term effects on America.

Making an ultimatum of their own, the Progressive Change Campaign Committee is urging voters not to donate their time or money to Barack Obama’s 2012 campaign if he “agrees to cuts in Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid”.

More than 160,000 people have pledged to not support Obama in 2012 if the above-mentioned concessions are made, according to the PCCC. One of the committee’s co-founders, Adam Green, feels that if Obama doesn’t fulfill these requests of his voters then it may be a better idea for him to run as an independent in 2012 instead of in the Democratic primary.

"If he's running as a Democrat, antagonizing the base like that is a pretty bad strategy."

This debt ceiling issue is one of the biggest decisions we’ve faced during Obama’s presidency and both sides have their backs up against the wall. Even compromising fairly on raising taxes and cutting Social Security, Medicare, or Medicaid, no matter how incrementally, will stir much discontent from voters on both sides. And the last thing these politicians want is to lose their jobs on November 6, 2012. This decision will clearly define exactly how honest and genuine each Senator and Representative is to their constituencies.

On a lighter note, here are some facts and stats about Ohio:

• Ohio was the seventeenth state to join the union on March 1, 1803, nine years before Louisiana and seven years after Tennessee.

• Population, as of 2010, is 11,536,504.

• Senators are Sherrod Brown (D) and Rob Portman (R).

• Representatives are Steven Chabot (R), Jean Schmidt (R), Michael Turner (R), Jim Jordan (R), Robert Latta (R), Bill Johnson (R), Steve Austria (R), John Boehner (R), Marcy Kaptur (D), Dennis Kucinich (D), Marcia Fudge (D), Patrick Tiberi (R), Betty Sutton (D), Steven LaTourette (R), Steve Stivers (R), Jim Renacci (R), Timothy Ryan (D), and Bob Gibbs (R).

• Ohio has eighteen electoral votes after having lost two as a consequence of the 2010 Census Reapportionment. Historically, Ohio has been a swing state for a long time. The state’s large number of electoral votes makes it a priority for campaigning in every presidential election. Ohio has voted for the winning president in every single election except one in 1944. Ohio’s unexplainable ability to correctly pick the winner so often makes the importance of the state’s votes even more critical to secure each presidential election. Barack Obama defeated John McCain 52% to 47% in 2008.

1,141.7 miles to go.

Day292 Friday 06/17/11

ran 0.2 miles

• North Dakota was the thirty-ninth state to join the union on November 2, 1889, on the same day as South Dakota and thirteen years after Colorado.

• Population, as of 2010, is 672,591.

• Senators are Kent Conrad (D) and John Hoeven (R).

• Representative is Rick Berg (R).

• North Dakota has three electoral votes. Historically, the state has voted Republican in twenty-four of the thirty presidential elections it participated in. North Dakota has been a reliable red state for nearly fifty years. McCain defeated Obama 53% to 45%.

1,219.1 miles to go.

Day279 Saturday 06/04/11

ran 3.8 miles
Some stats and facts about the state of North Carolina:

• North Carolina was the twelfth state to join the union on November 21, 1789, one year before Rhode Island and one year after New York.

• Population, as of 2010, is 9,535,483.

• Senators are Richard Burr (R) and Kay Hagan (D).

• Representatives are George Butterfield (D), Renee Ellmers (R), Walter Jones (R), David Price (D), Virginia Foxx (R), Howard Coble (R), Mike McIntyre (D), Larry Kissell (D), Sue Myrick (R), Patrick McHenry (R), Heath Shuler (D), Melvin Watt (D), and Bradley Miller (D).

• North Carolina has fifteen electoral votes. Historically, the state voted nearly exclusively blue from 1876 through 1964. Beginning in 1968, North Carolina has voted almost entirely red. Barack Obama ended the Republican trend by beating McCain 49.7% to 49.4%. North Carolina voters cast 4.3 million votes and the decision came down to merely 14,000 votes. In 2012, North Carolina will be one of the most battled-for swing states.

I’ve been posting these facts and stats for each individual state for the past thirty-three weeks. I’ve gathered some interesting history and realized certain things I never would have considered, otherwise. For example, the nine most populous states claim more than half of America’s total population. The twenty-five least populous states harness less than one-sixth of the U.S. population. Make of that what you will, but I can say, regarding our electoral college, something about the overwhelming differences in those two sets of numbers seems frustrating and highly consequential. I am not suggesting that popular vote alone should be the deciding factor in determining what single man or woman gets to sit in the Oval Office, but nor am I dismissing it as a better idea. Popular vote would have been a game changer on some occasions in the past. It is a different approach, yet it equally lacks any strategy or planning for the presidential election process we currently have.

This is what rattles me. A state like California, a state that if the other forty-nine states aspired to be like or viewed America through the same set of eyes with, a state who's example would lead to monumental failure the likes of which America has never before seen, has such a population and so many electoral votes. The questionable legislation California passes in their own state compared to the failures the state faces constantly and the bailouts their decisions cause the federal government, my and your money, the businesses they force out of their state with high taxes and incomprehensible restrictions, sending these businesses to states like Texas who legislate and think rationally, completely losing out on opportunity in their own front yard---and this state, California, has the electoral power to negate the rational thinking of ten other states in our union.

1,254.5 miles to go.

Day272 Saturday 05/28/11

ran 3.4 miles
Some stats and facts about the state of New York:

• New York was the eleventh state to join the union on July 26, 1788, one year before North Carolina and one month after Virginia.

• Population, as of 2010, is 19,378,102.

• Senators are Kirsten Gillibrand (D) and Charles Schumer (D).

• Representatives are Timothy Bishop (D), Steve Israel (D), Peter King (R), Carolyn McCarthy (D), Gary Ackerman (D), Gregory Meeks (D), Joseph Crowley (D), Jerrold Nadler (D), Anthony Weiner (D), Edolphus Towns (D), Yvette Clarke (D), Nydia Velazquez (D), Michael Grimm (R), Carolyn Maloney (D), Charles Rangel (D), Jose Serrano (D), Eliot Engel (D), Nita Lowey (D), Nan Hayworth (R), Chris Gibson (R), Paul Tonko (D), Maurice Hinchey (D), William Owens (D), Richard Hanna (R), Ann Marie Buerkle (R), Brian Higgins (D), Louise Slaughter (D) and Tom Reed (R).

• New York has twenty-nine electoral votes. After the 2010 Census Reapportionment, the state lost two of its electoral votes 2020. Historically, New York has been primarily a “blue” state since the Great Depression. Obama defeated McCain by 27% in 2008.

President Obama is scheduled to return tonight and to begin taking stock of the many events he missed on our own soil for the past week. I feel better already.

1,284.9 miles to go.

Day250 Friday 05/06/11

ran 4.2 miles

• New Mexico was the forty-seventh state to join the union on January 6, 1912, one month before Arizona and five years after Oklahoma.

• Population, as of 2010, is 2,059,179.

• Senators are Jeff Bingaman (D) and Tom Udall (D).

• Representatives are Martin Heinrich (D), Steven Pearce (R) and Ben Lujan (D).

• New Mexico has five electoral votes. Historically, the state has voted for thirteen Democrats and twelve Republicans. As split as New Mexico’s votes have been over the past ninety-nine years, they have remarkably only voted for the losing side twice (Gerald Ford in 1976 and George W. Bush in 2000). Barack Obama defeated John McCain 57% to 42% in 2008.

April jobs +244,000, yet unemployment back up to nine percent. Fannie Mae reports $8.7 billion loss for first quarter; seeks $8.5 billion more from taxpayers. Gas national average $3.99. No word of 2012 budget talks in the news.

Osama Bin Laden.

Osama Bin Laden.

Osama Bin Laden.

Osama Bin Laden.

Osama Bin Laden.

This good news and massive distraction from the issues that were being covered up until Sunday night could not have come at a better time for our president. The more important domestic issues we have been wrestling with have been put to the side like a steak pushed away to devour a few fries.

Osama Bin Laden.

1,351.3 miles to go.