Joe Biden will appear on "Parks and Recreation," though we'd still rather have him as a recurring character on "Here Comes Honey Boo Boo." Last week's unemployment claims were down, which will really help President Obama in the polls. And within a day, Mitt Romney went from having a 15-vehicle motorcade to having his son drive him home -- but hey, shorter waits for the car elevator! This is HUFFPOST HILL for Thursday, November 8th, 2012:
ROMNEY CAMPAIGN CONCEDES FLORIDA - The Obama/Biden campaign continued to not have a mandate today when its opponent conceded the fourth-most populous state. Sabrina Siddiqui: 'The numbers in Florida show this was winnable,' Brett Doster, Romney's senior adviser in Florida, told the Miami Herald in a statement. 'We thought based on our polling and range of organization that we had done what we needed to win. Obviously, we didn't, and for that I and every other operative in Florida has a sick feeling that we left something on the table. I can assure you this won't happen again.' As of Wednesday, the president maintained a narrow lead over Romney in the state, with 100 percent of precincts reporting. But the state had yet to count a total of 200,000 absentee and provisional ballots, which was larger than the president's lead of 47,028 votes. With a win in Florida, Obama finishes the election with 332 electoral votes, just 33 fewer than he won in his victory in 2008." [HuffPost]
The CBO reminds us that rolling back the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy would barely do anything to hurt the economy. Expect it to be retracted under pressure in 5, 4, 3, 2...
SENATE DEMOCRATS LOOKING TO MOVE ON IMMIGRATION REFORM - Hispanics are a major reason why President-elect Mitt Romney isn't drawing up blueprints to transform Michelle Obama's vegetable garden into a stable for Rafalca, so it's no surprise that Democrats are trying to craft policy appealing to them. Elise Foley and Sam Stein: "Senate Democrats are planning to quickly revisit immigration reform after President Barack Obama's inauguration, according to several Democratic sources. What type of legislation they will end up pushing has yet to be discussed in detail. But the party feels emboldened by Tuesday's election results, in which Republicans suffered a blistering defeat among Latinos. And there is a sense that the political landscape couldn't be more ripe for a legislative topic that's proved dicey in the past...A Democratic Senate source who spoke on condition of anonymity told The Huffington Post that the full push for reform won't happen immediately, but will begin soon after Obama starts his second term. The Dream Act, which would give legal status to undocumented young people who came to the U.S. as children, will be included in the efforts, according to the source." [HuffPost]
DAILY DELANEY DOWNER - Melissa Littlewood of Sarasota, Fla., voted for Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney because she thinks the government is becoming too expansive, too intrusive, and too burdensome for small business owners such as herself. At the same time, President Barack Obama's health care law, reviled by conservatives as an expansion of big government, may be the only way for Littlewood to get affordable health insurance. "I think we're in a society that is on a runaway train," Littlewood said. "I think I'm about to see what that is all about." [HuffPost]
UPSIDE DOWNER - Hey Chicago guys, you can stop cooking the books now. "In the week ending November 3, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 355,000, a decrease of 8,000 from the previous week's unrevised figure of 363,000." (Hurricane Sandy might have depressed new claims, but still.) [Labor Department]
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REID NOT GOING ANYWHERE - Though it remains to be seen just how badly the dude wants to see Mitt Romney's tax returns. Politico: "In an interview with POLITICO, not only did Reid suggest he'd stay as leader for the remaining four years of his curent Senate term, but the Nevada Democrat said he'd run for reelection in November 2016, when he'd be close to turning 77 years old. It would make him the longest-serving Senate leader since Montana Democrat Mike Mansfield, who was majority leader from 1961 to 1977. 'I have this one and one more Congress before I have to run for reelection,' Reid said. 'I'm planning on running for reelection.' When asked whether he wants to stay on as majority leader throughout his tenure in the Senate, the answer was an emphatic yes. 'Oh sure,' Reid said. 'Why not?'" [Politico]
KARL ROVE TRIES TO SPIN LOSS - Watching the former Bush strategist learn of the results Tuesday night was like watching a child learn that Santa Claus doesn't exist. Amanda Terkel: "No one lost as much on election night as Karl Rove. Although he wasn't running for office, his Crossroads organizations spent more than$300 million on Republican candidates in the 2012 election, with some of the biggest spenders in the conservative movement putting their hopes -- and dollars -- in the care of Rove. Combined, his groups were the largest single outside force of the 2012 election. The results were bleak. According to the Sunlight Foundation, American Crossroads, Rove's super PAC, saw just a 1 percent return on its investments. Crossroads GPS, the political nonprofit arm, saw a 14 percent return.... Rove was back on Fox News Wednesday morning after his election night meltdown. He didn't address his reaction to the Ohio call or Crossroads' failures but instead argued that Republicans need to do a better job in reaching out to the Latino community. "Obama kept the coalition that he had in 2008, only it was a little bit smaller," he said. Underlying Rove's comments is the belief that while Obama won, he did not win by as large a margin as he would have without all the money and support from conservative outside groups." [HuffPost]
@PaulBlu: Megyn Kelly says it's great to have Rove on and hear his expertise in a totally unconvincing tone.
Via the Times, Rob Portman's awkward debate portrayal of the presidency: "Senator Rob Portman of Ohio was recruited to play Mr. Obama, and he embraced the role, even anticipating how the president would open his first debate, which fell on his wedding anniversary. 'I've got to tell you, tonight's a really special night,' Mr. Portman said, playing Mr. Obama. 'I see my sweetie out there, boy, 20 years ago.'" [NYT]
The founder of Unskewed polls admitted that his polling analysis was, well, skewed.
Womp womp: "Of all the indignities involved in losing a presidential race, none is more stark than the sudden emptiness of your entourage. The Secret Service detail guarding Governor Romney since Feb 1. stood down quickly. He had ridden in a 15-car motorcade to the Intercontinental Hotel in Boston for his concession speech. He rode in a single-car motorcade back across the Charles River to Belmont. His son, Tagg, did the driving." [GQ]
Womp womp, cont.: "For a while on Wednesday, a draft version of [Mitt Romney's] transition website was visible to the public on a server belonging to the company that designed it, a Utah software shop called SolutionStream. The site, located at romney.solutionstreamcreative.com, was titled: 'Mitt Romney Elected the 45th President of The United States of America.'...The site opened with a quote from Romney: 'I'm excited about our prospects as a nation. My priority it putting people back to work.' On the homepage was a placeholder link to video of Romney's acceptance speech...There was a list of nominees -- all blank, except for the position of vice president. And the 'Join the Administration' page warned applicants that 'government service is not for everyone.'" [HuffPost's Dan Froomkin]
JOE BIDEN WILL APPEAR ON 'PARKS AND RECREATION' - The cameo was filmed before the election, so can you imagine just how awkward it would've been had Obama/Biden lost? Also, a Paul Ryan/Chris Traeger P90X sequence should DEFINITELY be on the table. "NBC announced that the vice president will appear as himself on the Thursday, November 15 episode of 'Parks & Rec.' Biden has frequently been mentioned as the object of Leslie Knope's (Amy Poehler) affection. According to EW, Biden filmed his cameo in July when the show was in Washington, DC and filmed scenes around the nation's capitol. Senators John McCain, Barbara Boxer and Olympia Snowe guest-starred in the Season 5 premiere. The New York Times reports that the cameo was forced to be kept top secret. 'Parks & Rec' was warned that if Biden's cameo appearance leaked before the election, than some provisions might have to be made for Paul Ryan to make a similar cameo." [HuffPost]
Gabrielle Giffords' has major cojones, pt, 5,822 : "A federal judge in Arizona sentenced Jared Lee Loughner to life in prison without parole Thursday for a 2011 Tucson shooting rampage after several of his victims, including former congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, confronted him in court. Before the sentencing, Giffords and her husband confronted the man who shot her, telling him in a dramatic courtroom session that he had 'failed to extinguish the beauty of life.'" Amen. [WaPo]
MINNESOTA PROGRESSIVES ORGANIZING GAY MARRIAGE PUSH - Well it's been a gaytastic week in Lake Wobegon, reports the Star Tribune: "Energized by a decisive win, marriage amendment opponents are already huddling to plot their next step, including a possible push to legalize same-sex marriage in the state. 'The conversation didn't end last night, the conversation just began,' said Richard Carlbom, campaign manager for Minnesotans United for All Families, the group that led the effort to defeat the measure. 'This conversation will continue for the foreseeable future.'...Marriage amendment opponents stopped Minnesota from becoming the 31st consecutive state to use a ballot initiative to define marriage as a union between a man and a woman. With 47 percent of the vote, the measure fell well short of the majority needed to pass. Minnesotans United did it by raising unprecedented sums of money, building a massive network of supporters and sparking thousands of one-on-one conversations about not limiting marriage rights for same-sex couples. Some would like to see the giant campaign architecture morph into a movement to wipe out the state law banning same-sex marriage." [Star Tribune]
Buck up, Ron Paul, there's always the massive number of Spanish doubloons we're sure you have stashed in your attic: "Retiring Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) sounded a dark note about the reelection of President Barack Obama Thursday...'If you look at the numbers and if you look at the way pure democracy works, pure democracy is dangerous,' the former GOP presidential candidate said Wednesday on Bloomberg TV. 'The majority dictates against the minority. So, right now the majority are receiving a check...'" [HuffPost]
Sheriff Joe: man of peace. Daniel Lippman: "Sheriff Joe Arpaio has long tangled with Hispanics in Arizona over his harsh immigration policies, but after winning reelection this week, he apparently wants to sit down with them and clear any issues. 'I would hope to get together with the Latino community, if I could ever have them talk to me without screaming and threatening me,' the Maricopa County, Ariz., sheriff told supporters on Tuesday night, according to CNN. " [HuffPost]
BECAUSE YOU'VE READ THIS FAR - Reginald the Cat takes a bath.
RAISE THE ROOF? - HuffPost DC: "An announcement made Thursday by Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), the chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, could lead the way toward the nation's capital allowing taller buildings." [HuffPost]
COMFORT FOOD
- "7 Sites You Should Be Wasting Time On Right Now," via HuffPost Comedy. [http://huff.to/XmU5p5]
- Of course: the musical-ized version of Mitt Romney's concession speech. [http://chzb.gr/RGalxK]
- Want to insert your archenemy into a Nickelback video? Here's your chance. [look-at-this-photograph.com]
- Behold a prosthetic hand that would make LucasFilm circa-1980 go bonkers. [http://bit.ly/T3C8qk]
- Tibetan exiles recorded a "Gangnam Style" spoof to criticize China's government. Humanity is awesome/awful. [http://bit.ly/TxEoGv]
- "Videos From The Jazz Age" -- rare footage of the Fitzgeralds from the 1920s. [http://bit.ly/RWJ2Mh]
- Someone affixed go carts to a railroad track. Still not as good as the "Top Gear" episode where they attached a camper to the tracks. [http://bit.ly/Qr6eHv]
TWITTERAMA
@sampjacobs: With Romney as Secretary of Business, I guess we're looking at Bill Burton for Ambassador to Cayman Islands in term two.
@pourmecoffee: I can't reach anyone in Colorado. The line picks up then all I hear is Phish or something and Xbox sounds in the background.
@daveweigel: RUMOR: Chris Coons and Joe Donnelly to form "Jesus, can you believe how lucky we were?" Senate caucus
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