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2020 Election Night Results and Terse Tips

“Frankly we did win this election” — President Trump, in 2:20 am EST speech, says he’s “won Georgia,” is winning Wisconsin, North Carolina and “Pennsylvania by a tremendous amount,” (none of these states have been called by news organizations) and says call of Arizona for Biden could be overturned and voters are being disenfranchised, promises to go to US Supreme Court — Biden earlier gave brief remarks to a drive-in gathering in Delaware expressing confidence that he will win the presidency

Republican Trey Nels defeats Sri Preston Kulkarni in US House District 22 — Associated Press

It’s starting to appear that Republicans will remain in control of the US Senate — The Associated Press declares Republican Steve Daines winner in Montana Senate race

Republicans have gained seats in the US House of Representatives — Surprise defeat of Florida US Rep. Donna Shalala by Republican Maria Elvira Salazar (Shalala was a Bill Clinton health secretary)

11,000 mail-in ballots not counted in Tarrant County Tuesday night — elections administrators to count on Wednesday

Lawsuit filed in Pennsylvania over Montgomery County votes delays results — hearing set for 9 am EST for Republican congressional candidate Kathy Barnette’s request for restraining order to keep officials from “illegally” contacting voters whose absentee ballots were rejected because of flaws

Vote counting in Fulton County, Georgia, suspended — because of broken water pipe at absentee-by-mail vote counting location

Rep. Roger Williams held off Democrat Julie Oliver’s challenge to retain his Central Texas 25th Congressional District seat — Texas Tribune

Texas Tribune calls Republican Chip Roy as winner of Texas US District 21 race, defeating Democrat Wendy Davis — 51%-45%

Associated Press calls Minnesota election for controversial Democrat Ilhan Omar

Incumbent Ron Reynolds keeps Texas House District 27 seat so far

Large leads so far for Texas Senate candidates as of midnight for Republicans Brandon Creighton, Bryan Hughes, Larry Taylor, Lois Kolkhorst, Brian Birdwell as well as Democrats Carol Alverado, Borris Miles, Roland Gutierrez, Judith Zafferini, Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa, Jose Minendez, Eddie Lucio Jr.and Cesar J. Blanco

Popular vote as of midnight CST 49.8% for Biden, 48% for Trump

Associated Press Presidential figures in Pennsylvania have Trump up at 56.7% vs. Biden at 42.2% — Biden fracing remarks thought to have made a difference

Nevada remains a wild card — slow returns at 3% show Trump lead over Biden — 67.6%-to-24.8%

Republican James “Jim” Wright continues lead over Democrat Chrysta Castañeda — 53.3%-to–43.3% — 86% of precincts reporting

Texas judicial races break for Republicans — Supreme Court, Criminal Appeals: all generally 54% average versus about 44%-45% for Democratic challengers

Electoral votes 11:45 CST — Fox News: Biden 237, Trump 213 — AP: Biden 223, Trump 174 (AP has not called Texas)

Associated Press calls Montana for Trump — 52%-45%

Republican Martha McSally refuses to concede Arizona US senator race to Democrat Mark Kelly

Siegel concedes to Michael McCaul in Texas US House District 10

Republican Jodi Ernst wins re-election to US Senate from Iowa

Ballots passed: Oregon became the first state to decriminalize hard drugs like heroin and methamphetamine and to legalize therapeutic use of psilocybin mushrooms — Associated Press

Republican James Wright maintains lead over Chrysta Castañeda — 53%-to-43.5%

Democrat Colin Allred projected winner over Republican Genevieve Collins in US House District 32 — Texas Tribune

Democrat Henry Cuellar maintains lead over Republican Sandra Whitton — 55.6%-42%

Republican Trey Nels continues lead over Sri Preston Kulkarni in US House District 22

Democrat Veronica Escobar projected winner over Republican Irene Armendariz-Jackson in US House District 16 — Texas Tribune

No “blue wave” in Texas — one analyst notes “extraordinary” lack of states flipping against Trump since 2016 considering his widespread “unpopularity” — Arizona is the only one so far

Republican Michael McCaul keeps long lead against Mike Segal — 51%-to-48%

CNN projects Idaho for Trump

Fox News has been most aggressive in calling race this Election Night –– Associated Press, CBS, ABC, NBC, CNN fall behind

Fox News calls Iowa for President Trump

Texas Tribune calls Republican Lance Gooden winner over Democrat Carolyn Salter in US House District 5 — 60%-38%

CNN predicts Biden wins Virginia, Trump wins Mississippi

Fox News call: President Trump wins Texas — Associated Press has not called it

Trump campaign questions Fox News call of Arizona for Democrat Joe Biden

Maine Senator Susan Collins, expected by some to lose, is holding onto office

Democrat Michael Moore conceded the Harris County Precinct 3 commissioner race to Republican Tom Ramsey — Houston Chronicle

Democrat Mark Kelly appears to have beaten incumbent Republican Martha McSally in Arizona US senator race

Fox News calls Arizona for Democrat Joe Biden — 53%-to-45% — giving Biden more than 200 electoral votes, a widening gap over President Trump — the only flip so far from Trump 2016 camp

Van Taylor in 55%-to-43% lead over Lulu Seikaly in US House District 3

US House District 1 incumbent Republican Louie Gohmert wins over Democrat Hank Gilbert — 73% to 26.7% — Associated Press projection

83% of vote in, President Trump leads Joe Biden in Texas — 51.6% to 47.1%

Associated Press projects Democrat Joe Biden wins California, Oregon and Washington presidential races

Fox News projects Florida goes for Donald Trump — “No Republican has won the White House without Florida” — 51.3% to 47.8%

Analysts: Pennsylvania counties most dependent upon O&G-related employment give Trump lead

S&P 500, Nasdaq, Dow 500 futures up about 2% as of 9:45 CST

Austin Proposition A to build rail lines looks like it will pass: analysts, Mayor Adler — “You can declare victory right now,” Adler quoted by Austin American Statesman

Jane Nelson, Larry Taylor win Senate District 12, District 11 races respectively

Charlie Geren, Texas House District 99, declared winner; District 91 Stephanie Klick wins

Pollster Frank Luntz says if Donald Trump wins again, the polling industry is “done” after polls show Biden with big lead in some states — Washington Examiner

Republican former Auburn University football coach Tommy Tuberville beats incumbent Democrat Doug Jones in Alabama US House race, Associated Press projects — Birmingham News likened Tuberville candidacy to “Forrest Gump”

Gov. Abbott congratulates Texas House Harris County-area District 127 Republican Dan Huberty on win

Associated Press projects Lindsey Graham winner in hotly-contested South Carolina US senator race

Republican Incumbents take early leads in Texas Supreme Court race

Three Dallas County Democratic incumbents take early lead — Sheriff Marian Brown, county commissioners Theresa Daniel and John Wiley Price

On CNN, Jake Tapper says “a Biden blowout was always a pipe dream”

Republican Jim Wright in early lead for RRC commissioner seat

Gov. Abbott congratulates Texas House District 21 Republican Dade Phelan on win, House District 130 Texas state Rep. Tom Oliverson too — Phelan has filed for House speaker position

Mr. Abbott also congratulates Geanie Morrison on House Victoria-area District 30 win

Republican Pat Fallon declared Texas US House District 4 winner — by Associated Press

Poll numbers whiz Nate Silver says apparently-likely President Trump win in Florida big step toward a Trump “upset”

NBC News projects that John Cornyn wins the Texas US Senate race against M J Hegar — Hegar has reportedly conceded

Texas Secretary of State’s office suffering from technical problems with election results website

Houston-area Republican Dan Crenshaw wins 2nd Congressional District race — receives second term, wins easily (Dallas Morning News)

Associated Press is projecting Joaquin Castro winner of US House District 20

Controversy: Some have called Virginia for Democrat Joe Biden, but at least one such projection is being walked back

Two sources project US House of Representatives will keep Democratic majority — at least 1 seat added for Democrats

Joe Biden appears to be underperforming in the Rio Grande Valley

Mitch McConnell remains US Senate Republican leader — wins his Kentucky senate race, but it’s not clear yet whether Republicans will keep control of US Senate

“The Left Wants To Shatter” Oil Companies “Because They’re Conservative”: Mike Shiloh

By Mike Shiloh

October 25, 2020 — “Everybody knows oil companies are getting bad publicity because they’ve always been a powerful voice of conservatism and the left wants to shatter them into pieces because they’re conservative, but nobody’s talking about it, so the campaign against oil just goes on.

“I’ve been watching this play [out] over decades and I’m convinced…one of the main goals of the left in America is wiping out conservatism and oil companies have stood in their way for a long time.”

My talk with this former oil patch worker was a little startling because he was so blunt but passionate about his position.

“Some people actually want us to believe that the Houston oil refineries are purposely harming minorities and the lower classes who live nearby, I see the articles in the papers, but I remember when the people who lived close by to refineries were largely middle class people of all kinds, many of them just moved out because of the inevitable bad air that comes from refining oil along the Gulf Coast, with the breezes and no breezes and humidity and all.

“The people moved out, the housing prices dropped a lot and poorer people moved in, but 60 years ago many of those houses were even homes to oil executives who wanted a house close to work.

“Why, I used to go see my friends and the kids would play in a Deer Park neighborhood where all kinds of oil workers lived, but by the ’70s they were moving out as Houston and air pollution grew, but then a lot of regulations were made to fight off that pollution.

“I think the government now ought to buy up all those houses near the refineries and turn the properties into parks and restore the greenery, but I don’t hear the environmental people calling for that.”

This man said he just wanted me to see another side to some issues involving oil and gas politics, and I promised him I wouldn’t name him (hey, if unnamed sources are okay with the New York Times I’m not too proud to join in, I told him, and got him to smile a little).

He said he just wants to live his life quietly in retirement, but it angers him to see his experiences and observations twisted these days.

“They even want us to believe that the people who work in oil today deliberately destroyed the environment 70 years ago, never minding that the people who were in charge then are probably all dead.

“There were bad guys, but there were a lot of good guys too, some of them were ignorant.

“What about the people in non-oil chemical work and waste hauling and all that stuff, I don’t see Democrats trashing landfill servicers and the like the way they do oil.

“And they even want us to believe that oil companies are now just as bad as tobacco [companies] were 50 years ago, but smoking didn’t keep our lights on or make tires for our cars or fertilizers for…for feeding the world.

“It just tears me up to see this, because when I was young you could get a good-paying job and support your family with oil jobs around Houston and it was wide open, you could get your friends a job.

“Now, not that it was great in oil patch, it was low pay getting those derricks up, damn hard work and you’d come home covered in oil and grease, but if you worked hard there was pride and community in it and your pay would go up and the dependable people made good money.

“Now it’s all over the place, oil is big international now and a lot of that local thing is gone, but helped me and a lot of others raise kids and the like.

“It just seems like today’s leftist Democrats are hell-bent on wiping out anything that represents the strong conservatives of yesteryear, and oil companies have that, that reputation.

“Even the conservationists seem like destroying oil companies is a top priority, like if the environment is hurting it’s important, but if it’s hurting and oil companies can be blamed in any way, it’s urgent news and like more proof that the companies are bad people.

“I just mean, I think the environmental people care a lot about nature, but when you see them pushing for political stuff that has nothing to do with environments, it just gets obvious that they have more on their minds than nature.

“And everyone I’ve worked with, they’re just people…I never knew anyone who set out to hurt the land, nobody ever told me, ‘go dump that grease in a lake or pour that runoff in that river down the road.’

I asked him if perhaps he was being too harsh on environmentalists and he waved me off.

“I remember when the environmental people got started in the ’70s or so and they really seemed to want to make things better, but now it all just seems political.

“It just makes me so mad because there’s nobody, nobody left who remembers what it was like before we had all this, all this technological stuff and was just using the tools and spudding and hauling and making all these long, long drives for the companies.

“They don’t remember, nobody remembers that we were just doing the best we knew how to make money and deliver a resource for people for their cars and to power the plants like the one off old Main Street and there was plenty of work if you wanted to work and you knew people needed your output, the refineries, the people made the world a better place with heating oil and transportation and all that.

“Now it’s like people want to blame us for not being as smart as people are now, and I’m not sure people are any smarter now, just meaner, like they want to find someone to blame for things.

“No, they’re shooting themselves in the foot..you can have all the sun and wind in the world but the way things are you can’t do without oil and gas and you can’t go out tomorrow and get it because it takes good money to drill and transport and there’s distribution.

“And now this climate change, global…people want to blame the world’s problems on what we did…and I for one won’t take that blame, it’s so much nonsense and I mean that.

“They want to destroy something that’s helped give America and the world prosperity?

“These people just don’t know [what they’re doing].

So why am I chronicling what this gentleman told me in conversation?

Because it’s one thing to look back on the past and condemn it based on today’s knowledge and principles but it’s another to have survived the experience itself.

“It was dog-eat-dog in the ’40s and ’50s, like if you had a job there were five other people out of work who would take your place, even in the roustabout days when they just needed manpower.

“But it was hard work! People would come home with welding-spark blisters on their arms and rips in their clothes from getting that oil and gas out and the pipelines running and moving this and moving that.”

He shook his head as he finished telling me his story, with “people today don’t know any better and they are just getting a load of bull about what it was like in my day, how bad the business was and is and they’re believing it and it’s wrong.”

This man’s story is important for me to chronicle because respect is due for anyone who’s raised a family and made a tough living during tough times — no matter what — and because experience speaks volumes.

And because no one else is.