So, here we are.  After sixteen months, it is all on the line tonight.  So time to settle in with an oil can or three of some Union Made macrobrews from Wisconsin, and watch Ed Schultz get all Schultzy.

The early indications are that turnout is absolutely massive.  Hell, Dane County (home to dirty fucking hippies in Madison) reported a possible turnout of 119% at one point.  (This, of course, set all the voter fraud goons off.  Someone had to gently explain to them that same-day registration may actually make such a thing possible.  But, of course, gentle explanations are not terribly effective.)  The Dane County election overseers had to clarify the 119% number a bit, by saying it was simply a projection, and that absentee votes were goosing the projection models a bit, but still — this looks incredible from here.

Anyway.

IN THE BLUE CORNER, THE CHALLENGER, THE FIGHTING PRIDE OF MILWAUKEE, THE HONORABLE MAYOR OF CREAM CITY, TERRIFIC TOM BARRETT! (yea!) BARRETT!

IN THE RED CORNER, THE REIGNING, DEFENDING, SUPER-LIGHTWEIGHT CHAMPION OF THE RIGHT…. THE WAUWATOSA WANKER…. SCOTT WALKER (boo!) WALKER!

And, like any other good championship fight, there is an undercard.  Four State Senate seats on the line. As things stand, if there is one pick-off for Team Blue, the unified stranglehold on state government that GOPers now enjoy will be all gone.  Of note, Scott Fitzgerald — one of the orchestrators of the right-wing movement in the Legislature last winter — is in a surprisingly tough fight.

Full-blown LIVEBLOG action, post-jump.

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President Reagan died on June 5, 2004. Let’s win one for the Gipper!

— Scott Walker (@ScottKWalker) June 5, 2012

Wisconsin:

Tom Barrett’s Wisconsin campaign is sounding the alarm, with finance director Mary Urbina-McCarthy warning supporters in an email Monday night of a mysterious round of phone calls to suppress voting:

“I’m in our situation room right now and I have an urgent update about the state of the race on the ground. Reports coming into our call center have confirmed that Walker’s allies just launched a massive wave of voter suppression calls to recall petition signers. Here is what people are receiving across Wisconsin:

‘If you signed the recall petition, your job is done and you don’t need to vote on Tuesday.’”

One thing about the GOP – when they have power, they use it – no Democrat-style dithering.

Barrett Campaign Sounds Warning on Vote-Suppression Calls [TPM]

We tweeted this instead of posting it yesterday, because we didn’t have it in us to publish a photo of a Dead Flying Cat.

And then we saw the video.

Cats away! Artist turns his dead pet into flying helicopter after it is killed by a car [Daily Mail UK, via @LuxMentis]

From the Department of Oh My Fucking Flying Spaghetti Monster Please Pass the Popcorn:

A novel California primary that premieres Tuesday was intended to produce moderates, but in California’s U.S. Senate race, it could yield a challenger who claims President Obama was born in Kenya.

Incumbent Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein, 78, running for a fourth full term, faces 23 challengers, including 14 Republicans, the best known of whom is litigious Orange County “birther” Orly Taitz, a Russian Israeli emigre who has appeared on national television with her claims that Obama faked his birth certificate.

Polls taken by robocalls, including those commissioned by Taitz, show Feinstein with a wide lead, trailed by a strange assortment of single-digit rivals, in some cases led by Taitz. Whoever finishes second Tuesday, from any party, wins the chance to take on Feinstein in November.

What do you think, Stinquers? Should the California Stinquers all cast their votes for Orly tomorrow just to fuck with the GOP?

[SF Chron: CA Primary Could Pit Birther Against Feinstein]

Soon as we can get the fucking ignition to turn, we’ll tell you.

So misunderstood:

Several supporters of Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) sustained injuries while being arrested during the Louisiana Republican Party’s state convention over the weekend, in a conflict that engulfed the meeting after Paul’s supporters overwhelmed other delegates and voted in new leadership, only to be ignored.

Love it when they beat the shit out of each other.

Louisiana GOP Spirals into Chaos [Raw Story]