Lincoln, NE, is AWESOME. The best moment was at the state fair watching a beauty contest where one of the speakers talked about her platform as 'eating right and being healthy' right next to booths like the one above.
This is what labor day looks like for lots of people here.
I've been asking around about why Nebraska is Republican. The most common response is 'tradition', and while there is a strong religious element, this is not a state where Huckabee was strong or Ron Paul had resonance. Nebraska has remarkable wind resources, and unlike Oklahoma, very little oil, so it's a net energy consumer. With high energy costs, this is killing the bedroom communities of 800 sprinkled throughout the state, and causing people to move into more urban areas. My guess is that 'tradition' has a lot to do with a heavily subsidized rural and military economy undergirded by historically cheap energy.
Obama is going to run much stronger here than Kerry did, and since Nebraska splits its electoral votes, he may come out and take one or two votes here. If the campaign chooses to organize here, Scott Kleeb could really benefit.
STATE BLOGS
