Toss Up House Elections 2018-Part 4-Podcast 756

Toss Up House Elections 2018-Part 4-Podcast 756

As I do the last two podcasts in the toss up series at the Bob Davis Podcasts, more predictions of a democrat wave are most notable. Are these predictions true? We’ll find out in Toss Up House Elections 2018-Part 4-Podcast 756.

Shellacking

In addition to commentators AP reported this week that republican pollsters are telling top republicans they’re in for a shellacking in November.

As a mission of the Bob Davis Podcasts I have been looking at those elections deemed ‘toss ups’ by the experts.

Conventional Wisdom Is Right Until Wrong

Especially relevant is the idea behind the mission. No predictions. Non partisan. What is the situation in these key districts in the final weeks of the election. Readers, subscribers and listeners might be surprised to learn very few public polls exist. Conventional wisdom drives most of these predictions. I detail this for each toss up in Toss Up House Elections 2018-Part 4-Podcast 756.

Close Elections Don’t Always Mean Flips

From North Carolina to Texas in Toss Up House Elections 2018-Part 4-Podcast 756. Toss up races are simply close elections for whatever reason. Moreover most US House elections are in solid democrat or republican districts. This year some say there are more than 40 districts that will be close. Why they’re close is key.

Open Seats And Changing Geography

In some cases the district is an open seat because of retirements. In other cases, the contours of the district’s geography have changed. What was once a solid republican or democrat district is now supposedly more ‘balanced’.

Everyone Hates Congress…

Finally the real question in the 2018 midterms is whether people will vote their opinions of the president or local concerns. The old saying goes, everyone hates congress but not their congressman.

One Size Fits All Election?

In conclusion I spent a fair amount of time not only looking through the data for these districts but also watching some of the internet and TV ads for candidates. Sometimes it’s hard to tell the republican from the democrat. This is not a one size fits all election even though the media would have its viewers believe it is.

Once I finish this series in this podcast, and the next, I’ll do one more podcast with my analysis since there isn’t much time for that in these podcasts dealing with individual districts.

Sponsored by John D Scott Personal Injury Lawyer and the Water Butler Water Purification Systems

Toss Up House Elections 2018-Part 4-Podcast 756

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Toss Up House Elections 2018-Part 3-Minnesota-Podcast 755

Toss Up House Elections 2018-Part 3-Minnesota-Podcast 755

A series of podcasts dedicated to the so called toss up races for the Senate, Governors and House in 2018’s Midterm Election. Most notable in Part 3 are Minnesota’s toss ups. Find out why in Toss Up House Elections 2018-Part 3-Minnesota-Podcast 755.

Dive Deep

These days podcasters can dive deep by doing a series of podcasts on one subject. One of my missions at the Bob Davis Podcasts is to provide the antidote to the prattling and predictions.

So I am diving deep!

What IS a Toss Up?

It’s especially relevant that I am reviewing the data and details about states and districts for this series. One of my takeaways is what political scientists and commentators view as a toss up is entirely up to their judgement.

One man’s toss up is another man’s lean republican, or lean democrat.

Story Lines Are Click Bait and Influence Voters

My issue is these predictions create their own story lines. These ‘predictions’ can influence voters negatively.

This Year’s Story Line

This year the story line is republicans will lose the House and Senate and some Governorships because of the antics of President Donald Trump. Is this true?

Learn more in Toss Up House Elections 2018-Part 3-Minnesota-Podcast 755.

Minnesota Center Stage

In 2018 Minnesotans elect a Governor, two Senators and eight Congressman. There are also contested statewide races like Attorney General and State Auditor. Moreover Senator Tina Smith is running in her first election after Governor Dayton appointed her to the Senate. We have a lot going on in our state.

Finally so called experts say there are four toss up races in Minnesota this year. Two democrat and two traditionally republican House districts.

Find out if I think it is true in Toss Up House Elections 2018-Part 3-Minnesota-Podcast 755.

No Predictions No Partisanship

In conclusion I don’t make predictions or try to make the data ‘lean’ on way or another. I don’t make judgements based on rumors in these districts. I give you the existing data on the district and let you make your own prediction.

Listen To This Series. Know What To Watch For On Election Night

Bottom line, if you listen to this series of podcasts on election night, you’ll know where to look and what races to watch to make an informed prediction about the election’s outcome and what it may or may not mean.

(Editor’s Note: Heads up if you’re using Ballotpedia to check presidential voting stats for individual house districts. One set of data in particular has caused problems for me. A drop down chart purporting to show house election results by HOUSE district is in fact by STATE HOUSE district, In the case of the second district this showed a huge advantage for Trump. It is only in state HOUSE districts, apparently and not overall. A similar chart from the Daily Koz, ON the Daily Koz shows actual house districts and a much closer result. Still a win for Trump in the 2nd in 2016. Despite this update, I still feel the toss up race in 2018 will be in Minnesota’s 3rd district. I did not use this data set for every house race. I don’t think it changes whether a district leans one way or another or is a toss up since I based my analysis on other factors.)

Sponsored by The Water Butler Water Purification Systems and John D Scott Personal Injury Lawyer

Toss Up House Elections 2018-Part 3-Minnesota-Podcast 755

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News-Information Vacuum-Personality Cults-Propaganda-Podcast 731

News-Information Vacuum-Personality Cults-Propaganda-Podcast 731

I find it more difficult these days to talk about breaking news. Propaganda passes for actual news. Find out more in News-Information Vacuum-Personality Cults-Propaganda-Podcast 731.

Attack or Leaping To Defend

In addition correspondents are on the attack or leaping to defend the president’s summit with the North Korean leader. Furthermore, rather than report on the economy talking heads assert there is a ‘boom’ without new GDP numbers to support their contention.

The Narrative Is Controlled By The Wizard Of Oz

What happened to news reporting? Now the narrative is controlled by the president. Media personalities seeking relevance are expected to defend Trump’s increasingly bizarre assertions or say he can’t do anything right. Moreover the media seeks to predict elections before they happen.

Twitter and Catfights

Moreover, newsrooms don’t cover issues.

Reporters cover twitter feeds and catfights.

Since the president inflates any small accomplishment as a world beater it’s especially relevant to talk about actual results.

Results? We Don’t Need No Stinking Results

What are the results of the Trump-Kim meeting? The so called booming economy? The draining of the ‘swamp’? Find out in News-Information Vacuum-Personality Cults-Propaganda-Podcast 731.

Trump Political Vacuum

Welcome to the Trump Political Vacuum. You’re either defending or attacking Trump. Everything else is fake news. Trump is the antichrist. Trump is under the protection of God. The president is a child, or playing “four dimensional chess“. Take your pick. There’s no in between.

Welcome To the Delusion

In conclusion people suffer in the vacuum. Finding a good source is almost impossible. Discerning what’s real and opinion is even more difficult.

So, we live in a dreamworld of delusion.

Finally without facts surrounding an event a free society cannot make informed political choices. I can identify two times in history when it was this bad. Neither ended well. Moreover, this kind of situation erodes the foundations of a free society.

(Editor’s Note: These days in these rambling podcasts sometimes I make confused references. This time I made a reference to the Berlin Wall falling ‘in 1983 or 1984’. Of course I know the fall of the Berlin Wall occurred on November 9th, 1989. Subsequently the Soviet Union collapsed in December of 1991.)

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News-Information Vacuum-Personality Cults-Propaganda-Podcast 731

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