Strange trip through Washington State- (No Obama bumper stickers)

[depakid]

We just made a drive through Washington state, stopping at Olympia, spending a day in Seattle and hanging out several days Bellingham, with side trips to Mt. Baker and the North Cascades.

As one might expect, there were plenty of the usual military folks and defense folks with fundie stickers slogans like "piss off a liberal: work hard & be happy" "mean people kick ass" etc. (that you won't see much in NorthWest Oregon), but what surprised us is that- unlike Oregon, where Obama stickers and signs are damn near ubiquitous, we saw not a single one.

We also saw saw numerous cars sporting McCain 08's and a couple of Hillary stickers, whereas I've never once seen a McCain sticker. Not one.

My guess: the drawn out primary- and late season relevance in states like Oregon account for much of the difference here.

Having Obama troops on the ground -along with rallies and events not only gave people the opportunity to purchase "gear" but reved up their enthusiasm AND dampened the Republican spirits.

Washington had a stupid caucus months ago that left more people disengaged- which favors Republicans and their pre-existing networks.

As others have mentioned, having the race continue onto June looks to me to be net positive for Democrats in many places- both at the presidential level and for candidates and progressive issues down the ticket.

[LibDemAlways]

1. My husband commutes to Seattle weekly from

So Cal. He sees lots of Obama stickers and knows lots of Obama supporters there. The watering hole he hangs out in on Wednesday nights to hear a little jazz band play has a prominently placed clock that counts down the days until chimp is gone. Plenty of progressives and Obama supporters in WA.

[John Q. Citizen]

2. If signs and bumper stickers voted, Ron Paul would be president. Absolutely.

I've never seen "piss off a liberal: work hard & be happy" "mean people kick ass"

But I live in liberal Montana :)

[Cant trust em]

6. I've seen those in the Bay Area

[Mz Pip]

21. Me, too

and in the rural regions in CA there are lots.

The first political sticker I saw when I visited NYC was a Ron Paul for Pres.

[SwampG8r]

31. i put a ron paul

sticker on my truck
its a lunacy warning for the general public

[pnwmom]

43. I'm in a Seattle suburb and I see more Ron Paul stickers than anything else. n/t

[Liberal Gramma]

3. We have our pockets of ignorance too.

The I-5 corridor is pretty much liberal country, eastern Washington the home of the redneck.

[wvbygod]

23. Not sporting an Obama sticker indicates ignorance?

Or perhaps I am misreading the focus of the slight?

[Liberal Gramma]

62. Nooo, supporting McCain when your interests are served by obama indicates ignorance

[gateley]

4. I hate hearing that --

I have faith, though, that WA is Obama country. Washington will go for Obama in November.

.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

5. Every single county in Washington voted for Obama.

Disengaged my ass.

Washington's an Obama stronghold.

[depakid]

10. That may be, but like I mentioned, I saw no outward evidence of it

in stark contrast to what I see around Oregon.

[Growler]

25. WA State is OVERWHELMINGLY for Obama

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x4435951

In fact, we're such Obamaniacs that we scorn the use of bumper-stickers!

('Cept for me. I have one my my crappy Ford Probe :P )

[truedelphi]

7. In some small town rural areas in our nation, the local RW might be yr employers

Put an Obama sticker on your car or truck today, start getting demerits at work tomorrow.

The economy sucks; no one wants to lose their job over their right to express themselves on a bumpersticker.

Better to work, feed your family and send the occasional check to the Obama campaign.

[rebel with a cause]

61. You hit the nail on the head.

It takes a lot of guts to put an Obama sticker on a car here when you work for certain companies takes guts. My daughter had one on her car, as did one of her co-workers. As soon as the primary was over they both, without ever discussing it, took the stickers off. My daughter felt like the dirty looks she was getting when the sticker was on her car, stopped when she took it off. She is now talking about ordering another one, we will see.

The good news is that an Obama yard sign showed up down the street from us. Lets see how long it stays there? This town has quiet a few professors living here, so it may be protected. I don't socialize with anyone and when I do talk to someone, it is not about politics. Outsiders sometimes have to be quiet and watch to see what direction the wind is blowing in these small towns.

[PatGund]

8. Really????

Because I swear you can't throw a rock though the U-Dist, Greenwood, Green Lake, Bitter Lake. Ballard, Fremont, Lynnwood, South Seattle, etc. without hitting an Obama sign.

Most of the other signs you see are Ron Paul. I've seen a couple Clinton signs, and one McCain. But they're downed in the sea of Obama signs

[depakid]

11. Yep, there were Ron Paul signs and stickers. LOL.

We see them in Oregon too.

We didn't hit the U-District, which I'm sure would have been different- as it would be in every town.

[charlie and algernon]

9. Obama isn't exactly going for a visibility campaign

at least that's what their campaign told me when they were in Maryland for the primary. They're main focus is grassroots door to door. I'd much rather have that plan than a campaign based solely on visibility. Lawn signs and bumper stickers won't win votes, they serve more to placate your base, show them your still there. You win votes by knocking on doors and pounding the pavement. Obama seems to get that which is why I really like his chances this november.

It's also early too. Drive around in October and I betcha you'll see a bunch more signs.

[futureliveshere]

12. The latest Ras and SUSA polls say it differently

Here's the diary by Kos which talks about WA being an Obama stronghold. Hope it makes you feel better.

Washington is Obama country

edited for grammar.

[Adelante]

13. Obama has an 18% lead over McCain in WA - 53%-35%

Barack Obama has jumped far ahead of John McCain in Washington, but most voters there don’t want Hillary Clinton as his running mate, a new Rasmussen Reports telephone survey has found.

Obama who led McCain 51% to 40% a month ago has opened up an 18% lead in the state. Fifty-three percent (53%) of likely Washington voters now support the Democrat as opposed to 35% who back his Republican opponent.

Five percent (5%) favor a third-party candidate, and 7% are undecided.

-snip

Washington, with 11 Electoral College votes, has gone Democratic in every presidential election since 1988 and John Kerry carried the state over President Bush 53% to 46% in 2004.

http://rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/election_20082/2008_presidential_election/washington/election_2008_washington_presidential_election

[depakid]

16. Rassmussen. LOL

I wasn't making any statement about Obama's chances, so one needn't worry with cheap, bogus polls.

Just reporting an observation that seemed interesting to me and speculating on the reasons why.

[BeyondGeography]

33. Your BS OP. LOL

[depakid]

41. Anyone who relies on cheap polls after all we've seen this primary season

(not to mention what one would know from a basic stats course) -pretty much forfeits their credibility.

[Adelante]

37. So sorry to have troubled you

:shrug:

[depakid]

42. Sorry about the tone

sometimes it's like banging my head against the wall with respect to the validity (or reliability) of polls like Rassmussen's.

[SeattleGirl]

14. Please don't call our caucuses stupid.

They aren't stupid; they're fun and engaging, and we had a huge turnout this year. They did not favor republicans. This state went huge for Obama, and he still holds a commanding lead over McCain.

They had to move my caucus to another location because they knew the attendance would be far larger than it was the last time.

Caucuses are not stupid.

[depakid]

17. Sorry, they're a really dumb idea

Disenfranchising close to 90% of eligible voters and doing away with the secret ballot for a system that doesn't reflect the electorate at large isn't something Oregonians would embrace.

Then again, we're critical of a lot of stupid things Washington does- like land use "planning" and public transportation choices...;)

[SeattleGirl]

18. Your insults are most unwelcome.

Just stop it.

[depakid]

20. Chill- it's just a Ducks vs. Dogs sort of thing!

You know we love to hate each other....

And guess what? If I flash my Oregon Drivers' license, I don't have to pay Washington sales tax!

[SeattleGirl]

22. I hate the Dogs.

I grew up in Oregon, and bleed Duck green.

[newmajority]

32. Now wait a minute.... let's leave Husky bashing out of this.

Though admittedly they haven't seen their glory days since Don James retired :evilfrown:

[SeattleGirl]

35. I know. Skippy Neweasel ruined that team, and they are still

trying to recover.

[Buck Rabbit]

67. Quack Quack Quack !!

My Duckie Daughter and future Duck grandson (in 17 years) live on Vashon Island. First Obama signs I saw in either Oregon or Washington this year were a string of then on the road from the ferry in West Seattle.

[John Q. Citizen]

50. Does that work for Montana drivers licenses?

[depakid]

53. LOL. Probably not, because you don't share a common border

Essentially, the policy provides an incentive for Oregon citizens to shop at Washington stores.

A lot of people don't know about this little trick (including some smaller merchants) -but most people are quite pleased to waive the tax in return for more business!

[RNdaSilva]

69. I have a sister living in Vancouver, WA.

Washington has a sales tax but no income tax. Oregon is the opposite, no sales tax but has an income tax. Advantages to living, and doing business, on either side of the Columbia.

I also have a sister living in Battle Ground, WA and and another in Bothell, WA. All three sisters, white septuagenarians, are voting for Obama. Took a little persuading with one of them but she's come around.

Washington caucuses are interesting, Oregon's mail-in primary voting is progressive.

My home is in southern California but make many trips to the Pacific Northwest...beautiful country.

I for one think caucuses are great. Tend to weed out the information-deficient and Rush Limbaugh chaos types.

My relatives and acquaintances, in the Pacific Northwest guarantee me that Obama will easily carry WA and OR. We know that he'll win in California, e.g., we on the Pacific coast are a very smart bunch.

Oh yeah, I was born in Honolulu, T.H., that ages me. We can also chalk up Hawaii for Obama.

Mahalo

[newmajority]

34. Hillary conceded. That means you don't have to bash caucuses anymore.

And for the record, our caucuses work just fine here.

As far as our public transportation deficiencies, you can blame that on this asshole....



....and the fools who vote for his budget-gutting initiatives without reading what they actually do, first.

[SeattleGirl]

38. Grrrrrrr! Tim Eyeman is a true pain in the arse.

:puke:

[depakid]

40. I've been "bashing" caucuses for years

Because they're anti-democratic processes that at best should be reserved for vanity purposes.

Has nothing whatsoever to do with Hillary (or any other candidate over the past 28 years).

Seems to me that one might look at this objectively and in the abstract as opposed to tainting the issue with partisanship.

btw: aversion to public transportation is a a weird deal Washingtonians have. Clark county voted down a light rail extension over the I-5 bridge (that included tons of federal money) in 1996. Pissed PLENTY of Portlanders off, including yours truly who lived on Hayden Island at the time.

Ever now at public hearings, Vancouverites are STILL lining up in droves, making irrational arguments about "keeping Portland out," while the traffic over the bridge grows ever more appalling and petrol prices rise to $5.00 per gallon.

Frankly, it doesn't make any sense to me.

[newmajority]

45. There's some weird ones in Clark county.

It's probably not so much Vancouver as it is other areas of the county, but these are the people who once put Linda Smith in congress, for shits sake. Hell, they let Tonya Harding move to Battle Ground. What does that tell you?

As far as caucuses, I do look at them objectively. The objective is this.... as long as electro-fraud machines exist, I'm not giving up my caucus.

[Cha]

26. Of course, caucuses

are not stupid. What's stupid and tragic is faux noise influencing elections and rush limpbaughs getting his dittoheads to vote for "chaos".

Caucuses are for real Democrats who care enough to be informed and get out there and Just DO IT. And Team Obama took advantage of knowing the rules.

Edit~ to show you this..

"Meanwhile, Rasmussen shows Obama with an 18-point lead in Washington. We have gotten used to seeing double-digit leads for Obama on the West Coast, but this is nevertheless an improvement from his 11-point lead in Rasmussen's May poll. We now show Obama as having a 98 percent chance of winning Washington. For the sake of comparison, Obama is roughly as likely to win Mississippi or Wyoming as he is to lose Washington."

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x6351364

[depakid]

36. This isn't about "knowing rules" or any such thing

It's about about state policies that undermine Democracy. Hopefully, the Dems will rethink these irrational methods for 2012.

[Cha]

46. Yes, it is..you just don't know it.

And, I'm not surprised.

[LisaM]

52. No, the caucuses were only fun for Obama people

and attracted less than half the turnout of the beauty contest primary a week later. I know I keep re-hashing this, but the two hours I spent at the caucus were completely miserable. I heard similar stories from other Hillary supporters. Pnwmom told a story of a Hillary supporter getting shouted down and booed by young men supporting Obama. That practically happened at ours. We really need to go to a primary (as the voters tried to do, but the parties shut down). I was with my boyfriend, who supported Obama, and he also felt that it was fun, but I think if you have people who leave feeling really bad about the experience, it's not fun, and as to engaging, well, it became impossible to speak on behalf of Hillary at our caucus.

[knixphan]

15. 'piss off a conservative: read the constitution'

[Beregond2]

19. Speaking for myself,

I don't put up yard signs or put bumper stickers on my car because I can't see that they do any good, and they are an invitation to vandals. Right-wingers are irrational people. I see no advantage in making myself a target for their hatred.

[Carrieyazel]

24. Maybe that's because it doesn't matter, and Obama easily wins Washington State?

Bumper stickers are not a measure of anything.

[Nostradammit]

27. Your post makes no sense

"We also saw saw numerous cars sporting McCain 08's and a couple of Hillary stickers, whereas I've never once seen a McCain sticker. Not one."

Isn't this a self-negating sentence?

My wife and I were in Washington state last week and saw plenty of Obama stickers.

In fact, I'd say you'd have to be trying really hard to not see them if you didn't see any.

[depakid]

28. Needs an edit

I meant "never seen a McCain sticker in Oregon."

Still a little tired from a late drive home last night.

And we didn't work hard to see or not to see at first, until we noticed that unlike Oregon, where you literally can't go into a parking lot or take a short drive without seeing an Obama sticker, there weren't any aorund.

That's when we started paying closer attention and started looking for them wherever we went.

[Nostradammit]

39. Thanks for the clarification

Still surprised that you didn't see any - we were comforted by the sight of so many Obama stickers.

[uppityperson]

29. Maybe because most of us are already for him and don't have to publicize it?

It sounds sort of like the flaggie pin complaint. There are Obama signs and bumper stickers, but I feel no need to publicly proclaim this to my fellow Obama supporters. I'd rather donate money and have it go to promoting Obama where it is needed rather than buying "gear" with it to wear where it isn't.

It seems you don't know a lot about WA, if this is what you think about the caucus, leaving more people disengaged, as that is totally untrue.


"We also saw saw numerous cars sporting McCain 08's and a couple of Hillary stickers, whereas I've never once seen a McCain sticker. Not one."

You saw numerous stickers, yet you've never once seen one?

[ampad]

30. Are you serious

I live in Mount Vernon (small farming town) and I see Obama stickers all the time. I see them on cars and in business windows. I also lived in Seattle for a year and I saw many Obama stickers. I see Obama stickers in the parking lot of my kids schools along with many impeachment stickers and anti-Repig stickers.

[pnwmom]

44. I think you're right about the caucus system making lots of people feel

disenfranchised. It has that effect on me.

And the Hillary supporters that I knew went home feeling bitter because of the behavior of some Obama supporters. Caucuses -- as opposed to primaries -- are only for the thick-skinned.

[40ozDonkey]

49. Yeah, yeah, "the behavior of some Obama supporters"...

...give this divisive and tired meme a rest.

[ampad]

54. LOL

Whatever, unless you got some kind of proof that Hillary supporters were treated like shit why bring it here? Ohhh I went to caucus and a Hillary supporter gave me a dirty look therefore I went home felling bitter. Geesh give it a rest already. :eyes:

[JVS]

57. Didn't you have a week to get this shit out of your system?

[crankychatter]

47. Washington is a red state anywhere outside the urban area - in suburbs around urban areas

just like california and oregon

they came a hair's breadth from having a Republican Governor last election and have had them in the past.... Senators too

[newmajority]

51. Unfortunately, some of our "Democratic" senators have even been republicans.

Maria Cantwell is about half the time, but Scoop Jackson was blatantly right wing. And unfortunately, even some of the future PNAC creators like Perle and Wolfowitz once worked for him.

It's a damn good thing they failed at changing the name of SeaTac airport to honor that proto-neocon.

[lumpy]

65. Interesting. Scoop Jackson hung to the left when he was first in

politics, more of a social/dem . Somewhere along the line he turmed from an FDR adherent and became a blantatly right wing conservative warhawk. Wouldn't be the first time the taste of power turned into greed.

[MrRobotsHolyOrders]

48. You didn't look hard enough

Obama is going to dance on McCain's face in Washington.

[Heddi]

55. Strange. I live in Seattle (downtown) and I see NOTHING but Obama stickers

on cars, in apartment windows, signs on people's yards, signs and stickers on the doors of various businesses.

Staring in April (why that month, I don't know) hubby and I started counting Obama Bumper Stickers (something fun while sitting in traffic) and I see no less than 5 a day.

In fact, today I went to Fred Meyer (ballard) and Uwajamaya (International District) and all points in between. It took me about an hour and a half to run all errands. Saw 17 Obama Bumper Stickers and several others in the yards of businesses and homes.

Have seen ONE McCain bumper sticker, and that was on an auto that had Idaho plates.

[JVS]

56. What's a stupid caucus? Is it something like a blundering campaign?

[Cha]

71. It's kinda like

making excuses for a blundering campaign.

[JVS]

58. LET IT SINK!

[Lilith Velkor]

59. .

[MadMaddie]

60. I wouldn't take the lack of bumper stickers as a sign of a lack of

suppport for Obama....

I live right outide Seattle and I know a lot of Republicans that are voting for him. When I went to the caucus the number of attendees were staggering.

[JackORoses]

63. thanks for your metaphysical 'support', Deepak

[cliffordu]

64. We've internalized Obama. We don't need signs.

[Upton]

66. Saw an Obama bumper sticker just the other day in Chehalis

latest poll has Obama up 18% in the state, it's a given he will win here.

http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/election_20082/2008_presidential_election/washington/election_2008_washington_presidential_election

[regnaD kciN]

68. Your account is really weird...

As one might expect, there were plenty of the usual military folks and defense folks with fundie stickers slogans like "piss off a liberal: work hard & be happy" "mean people kick ass" etc. (that you won't see much in NorthWest Oregon), but what surprised us is that- unlike Oregon, where Obama stickers and signs are damn near ubiquitous, we saw not a single one.

I can only wonder what you mean by "plenty" -- I spend every day driving through that area (and actually live in one of the more conservative parts of it), and have never seen anything like that. Oh, sure, you'll get a smattering of yellow "support our troops" ribbon magnets (particularly on SUVs), but hardly ever do you see any wingnut stickers. And, for the record, I see Obama bumper stickers -- not many, but at least one or two -- every day.

OTOH, the reason you don't see many such stickers here as opposed to Oregon is simple: we had our presidential selection event on February 9th, while yours was on May 20th -- almost three and a half months later. As Obama's popularity has soared, so has the production of his campaign materials. Back on 2/9 (the weekend after Super Tuesday, it should be noted, and the same weekend as several other caucuses and primaries nationwide) the campaign showed up at the caucus sites equipped with lots of buttons and flyers covering his positions on major issues, but no bumperstickers. Had our caucuses been held in May rather than February, I suspect his campaign would have had many more materials out there as well, just as they did in Oregon.

[skooooo]

70. "Washington had a stupid caucus months ago that left more people disengaged"

I would disagree with you there. The caucuses were heavily attended and lively. If you just don't like caucuses, say so, but don't make assumptions about our caucuses, because they were JUST FINE!

:-)

[Frank Booth]

72. "piss off a liberal: work hard & be happy" I have to admit, that's pretty damn funny.

If I lived in Portland, I'd buy one of those for sure just to piss people off. The enforced veganism can grow a bit tiresome.