6/10: Good Deeds

Liberal bloggers are pleased that state Sen. Creigh Deeds won yesterday's VA GOV Dem primary -- not because they love Deeds, but because they're relieved that ex-DNC Chair Terry McAuliffe lost. John Cole thinks "Democrats dodge[d] a bullet" by nominating someone other than McAuliffe, while Oliver Willis argues that "Deeds is much better positioned to win and lead Virginia than a glad-hander like McAuliffe." That said, Steve Singiser thinks McAuliffe deserves praise for emailing his supporters within hours of his concession speech and urging them to donate to Deeds.

On the right side of the blogosphere, Ed Morrissey thinks Deeds' win makes things tougher for the GOP: "[GOP nominee] Bob McDonnell would have an easier time painting McAuliffe as too liberal and out of touch for most Virginians, while Deeds showed that he can compete anywhere in the state."

What else is happening in the blogosphere?

• Liberal bloggers (McCarter, Hamsher, digby, Lemos, Waldman) are blasting Sens. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) and Lindsey Graham (R-SC) for threatening to shut down the Senate until Congress passes legislation prohibiting the release of the detainee abuse photos.
• In an unlikely alliance, liberal blogger Jane Hamsher and conservative blogger Erick Erickson are both urging their readers to contact members of Congress and tell them to vote against the supplemental bill.
• Liberal bloggers (Bowers, Eli) are annoyed that Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) is now opposed to the creation of a public health insurance plan (which she previously supported). Meanwhile, conservative blogger Hugh Hewitt is urging his readers to contact Dem senators up for re-election in '10 and tell them to oppose the public plan.
• Conservative bloggers (Rubin, Lane, Hawkins, Hemingway) are criticizing the Obama admin.'s decision to transfer the 17 Uighur detainees from Guantanamo to the North Pacific island of Palau.
• Liberal bloggers (Marshall, Benen) are criticizing Rep. Mark Kirk (R-IL) after he admitted to telling Chinese leaders "that the budget numbers that the US government had put forward should not be believed."

VA GOV: Dodging The McAuliffe Bullet

Many liberal bloggers are relieved that McAuliffe lost:

• Balloon Juice's Cole: "Democrats dodge[d] a bullet. [...] There were two scenarios should McAuliffe win. First, he could lose the general quite easily to McDonnell. Second, he could win, and then be a national embarrassment for four years. I have no idea how Virginians as a whole think about this, since so few of them showed up to the polls, but I am relieved as hell that McAuliffe was sent packing."
• Willis: "Virginia has chosen Creigh Deeds over Terry McAuliffe whose claim to fame to date had been presiding over one of the worst eras in history for the Democratic party. Virginia's likely to be a close fought race, but Deeds is much better positioned to win and lead Virginia than a glad-hander like McAuliffe."
• BooMan: "For me, Terry McAuliffe is kind of a distilled, pure form of Clintonism. He basically represents the crystalline heart of Clintonism. Terry McAuliffe got his ass handed to him today in the Virginia governor's Democratic primary. [...] This is a guy who had the best rolodex of big-money donors on the planet. And he failed, utterly. If only more Democrats like him could be rejected, we might actually get some positive change in this country."
• Daily Kos' Markos Moulitsas: "Terry McAuliffe, PLEASE don't try this again!"

On the other hand, Daily Kos' Singiser thinks McAuliffe deserves praise for emailing his supporters within hours of his concession speech and urging them to donate to Deeds: "I have been following politics for about half of my lifetime. And I have never seen a vanquished candidate in a primary exhort his supporters to financially support the primary winner within hours of the polls closing in the election. That was an 'A+' move from the guy, and a sign that any divisions in the Democratic Party in Virginia are bound to heal rather quick. It is pretty common for candidates to talk about unifying their party after an election. Good on McAuliffe for, on this occasion, actually doing something about it."

VA GOV II: Bad News For The GOP?

Several liberal bloggers think Deeds will be a strong general election candidate:

• Moulitsas: "Republicans had their worst nightmare realized. This Deeds/McDonnell rematch is going to be quite the battle."
• Ed Kilgore: "If I were Bob McDonnell, I wouldn't be real happy about tonight's results. Deeds showed no real regional weaknesses, and with all due consideration of the problems that [ex-state delegate Brian] Moran and McAuliffe caused themselves and each other, it does look like the Bath County senator knows how to run a campaign. The win was decisive enough that there shouldn't be too many hard feelings among Democrats, and Deeds will get some nice media buzz. And let's don't forget that Deeds basically tied McDonnell in the AG race four years ago, despite being outspent. The first couple of head-to-head polls between Deeds and McDonnell should be very interesting."
• FiveThirtyEight's Nate Silver: "Well, I think both parties are going to go into November with a candidate they're feeling pretty happy about. And the stakes are fairly high: given Virginia's newfound status as a swing state, whomever wins is a decent bet to make a VP short list in 2012 or 2016."

Conservative blogger Morrissey thinks Deeds' win is both good news and bad news for the GOP: "Any time McAuliffe gets a setback, it seems like a win for Republicans. Furthermore, the overwhelming victory for a relative conservative in Virginia should be good news for the GOP. Unfortunately, that pits a conservative Democrat against a conservative Republican in a state that has gone purple the last few cycles. Bob McDonnell would have an easier time painting McAuliffe as too liberal and out of touch for most Virginians, while Deeds showed that he can compete anywhere in the state."

Meanwhile, NRO's Jim Geraghty talks to "sources close to McDonnell" about what they perceive to be Deeds' weaknesses.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Boycotting GM

Right Wing News' John Hawkins explains why he supports Rush Limbaugh's boycott of GM:

"I'm not buying another car from Chryser or General Motors for the foreseeable future, despite the fact that I currently own a Dodge. There are good reasons for taking that position. At Chrysler, the UAW now owns more the 50% of the company and the sad fact is that union is run by people hostile to everything conservatives hold dear. Since the UAW is so slavishly devoted to the Democratic Party, every time you buy a Chrysler from this point forward, you're now essentially making a contribution to the Democratic Party with your purchase. [...]

As for General Motors, the federal government is going to be the majority shareholder in the company and given how stupid, slow, and incompetent the Feds are, you've got to believe the quality of their vehicles is going to drop. The Feds can claim that they're not getting involved with the day to day operation at GM, but they're neck deep in which plants remain open and closed, which dealers get axed, personnel matters, and what kind of cars are being made. Given the habitual ineptitude of the federal government, it seems rather foolish to risk buying a car from a company they're heavily involved with."

LEST WE FORGET: Another One Of Those Days...

From FMyLife.com:

• Today, I realized the senior thesis I turned in last week uses the word "asses" instead of "assess" 17 times. FML.
• Today, my friend had to take my cat who has a tumor to be put down when I wasn't home since I couldn't bear to take him myself. I have two cats. He took the wrong one. FML.
• Today, I was jogging in my neighborhood when I saw a kid's ball roll over to where I was jogging. I stopped, grabbed the ball for the kid and started to hand it to him. He then yelled "Stranger Danger" and his parents came sprinting out. I had to explain the story to the police for 30 mins. FML.
• Today, I went out for a smoke break. A homeless person walks up to me and asks for a cig. As I pull out my pack he says "Oh... Menthols... no I don't smoke that cheap shit." I was called cheap by a hobo. FML.
• Today, I went to meet my girlfriend's parents for the first time. I accidentally drove past their house the first time, but saw the whole family outside waiting to meet me. I pulled a U-Turn and heard a thud. The whole family watched me run over their dog. FML.