Ted Stevens re-election still a possibility?

I posted about Stevens’ re-election previously here.

From the New York Times:

“Best to wait on those political obituaries, say his supporters, and some opponents, too. In a state that can stir up plenty of bitterness toward the federal government and has long revered Mr. Stevens for extracting billions of dollars from it on behalf of Alaska, maybe, just maybe, they say, the votes will still be there for him, polls and conventional wisdom aside.”

So Alaskans may vote to re-elect Ted Stevens in appreciation of the billions of federal funds he directed to the state, even after he was found guilty for corruption (well, a failure to disclose $250,000 of gifts, but that’s essentially what it is)?  If Ted Stevens is re-elected, it would paint a pretty clear picture that corruption is perhaps a winning electoral strategy, even in its worst cases.

And despite being the beneficiaries of Ted Stevens’ Federal handouts, in yet another example of t-shirt politics:

“Even before the verdict on Monday, a Stevens supporter printed a new campaign couplet on black T-shirts. The first line proposes doing something unprintable to “the Feds.” The second rhymes cleanly, “Vote for Ted!””

Fuck the Feds, Vote for Ted?  It is a bit strange to me that a state that has benefited so much from out of proportion Federal outlays (3rd highest in Federal spending per federal tax dollar in 2005, “Alaska ranked 18th in federal taxes paid per resident ($5,434) but first in federal spending received per resident ($13,950)”) would hate the Feds so much.  But it is at least accurate that a vote for Ted would effectively be a big ‘Fuck You’ to the Feds and the nation as a whole.  (In case anyone cares, Ted Stevens was responsible for $175,600,000 in earmarks in the 2008 Defense bill)

Ted Stevens’ success in the Senate is really starting to make sense to me.  If you do hate America, and wish for its government to become a parasite unto its people, then Ted Stevens is the man for you.  As is becoming increasingly usual, a t-shirt lights the way to truth.

Fuck the Feds.  Vote for Ted!

… and the cow goes moo