Prospects for Federal Gun Control Grow Even Dimmer

The Boston Globe noted over the weekend that the gun ban lobby was hoping the anniversary of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in December might provide an opening to revisit Manchin/Schumer/Toomey. But others who voted against the bill in April likely feel the way Arizona Senator Jeff Flake does after last week's vote.

Asked if the Colorado recalls made him less likely to switch, Flake said last week, ‘‘I was not prone to do so. I'm comfortable where I am.’’

Flake has been the target of ads paid for by Mayors Against Illegal Guns. MAIG's efforts did not help in Colorado last week and it is likely those being targeted by the group believe they are on the right side of the issue.

CNN's Brooke Baldwin Calls Out Colorado Senator Angela Giron on Voter Suppression Charge

So I guess we now see what the Democrat talking points are for the losses suffered by Colorado State Senators John Morse and Angela Giron - voter suppression. We heard it from Debbie Wasserman Shultz yesterday and today, State Senator Angela Giron repeated the charge on CNN's News Room. To anchor Brooke Baldwin's credit, she wasn't buying it, and when Giron returned to the theme after being cut off by Baldwin after raising it the first time, Balwin continued the skepticism. Good for her. Giron said the people that supported her could not get to the polls because 70% of Colorado voters vote by mail. Given the polls were open for more than one day, it's likely anyone who wanted to get to the polls could have done so. No one kept them from voting, they chose not to.

Hat tip to Cam Edwards and NRANews.com

Dem Chairman Says Voter Suppression Reason for Loss

Can you say sour grapes? The Hill newspaper reports that Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz said Tuesday's historic upsets in the Colorado Recall Election was “voter suppression, pure and simple.”

I can still remember when voting took place on the specified day of the election. But Wasserman Schultz says because people could not vote by mail, that was "voter suppression." You know, if it's important enough to vote, you'll get off your lazy @#*& and get to the polls and vote.

Grassroots Trumps Bloomberg's Money on Colorado

What many expected to be a split decision in the Colorado recall elections turned out to be a clean sweep last night when the final numbers came in, and the race that most thought would be the hardest to win - Senator Angela Giron's district, was the one that lost by the widest margin - 12%.

The big loser - Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who donated $350,000 in this losing effort. NRA donated a little over $361,000 to the recalls. But the real story is that this was not started by NRA, but by what State Senator John Morse derisively referred to as an "unemployed plumber".

'Not bad for an unemployed plumber' man says in passing after news of PW library numbers. #PuebloRecall

— Nick Bonham (@NickBonham1) September 11, 2013

And Victor Head, a the plumber in Pueblo who borrowed money from his grandmother to start the recall against Senator Giron had a message for Morse:

'And I have a message for John Morse ... Who's unemployed now?' -- Victor Head, Pueblo Freedom & Rights. #PuebloRecall #COpolitics

— Nick Bonham (@NickBonham1) September 11, 2013

Virginia can take something away from last night's victory in Colorado. The victory in Colorado was started by the grassroots. NRA did not start it and only got involved when it picked up steam. The signatures for the recall petitions were collected by the grassroots, with over a 90% validity rate to boot. They were out spent by those supporting the incumbants, but they won, and won big in a district that Barack Obama carried handily last year.

This year in Virginia, Ken Cuccinelli is being out raised by Terry McAuliffe by a margin of 2-1. But Colorado proved that if you have committed grassroots, they can trump big money. For some reason, Cuccinelli his having problems firing up his base. There is still time to change that. Hat tip to John Lott.

Update:

Here is the breakdown of the pro-and anti-recall spending via the Denver Post yesterday by way of Jim Geraghty.

Pro Recall

•NRA: $360,000
(Note: updated total for the NRA $361,703 on the two recalls)

•I Am Created Equal: $56,800

•Colorado Citizens Protecting Our Constitution: $29,800

•Victor Head, Pueblo resident: $5,800

•Dianna Harris, Colorado Springs resident: $4,500

AGAINST RECALL

Total raised: $3 million

Itemized donations in Colorado: $1.5 million

Itemized donations outside of Colorado: $1.5 million

Some top donors

•Taxpayers for Responsible Democracy: $620,000

•Michael Bloomberg: $350,000

•DLCC Unincorporated Individual Acct: $300,000

•Eli Broad: $250,000

•Mainstream Colorado: $211,800

So, if my math is correct, the pro-recall grassroots was out spent 6-1 and still won a decisive victory.