Weird 2nd Round March Madness Facts

Finally some upsets.  Two number 2 seeds downed by 2 number 15 seeds.  Unbelievable, and probably unprecedented.  Duke taken down by the Lehigh Mountain Hawks.  Lehigh, that’s right, no, not the Nehi Grape Sodas.  And Norfolk State, yes they have a team, ousted Missouri.

Some other interesting games on this second night of round 2 included several  in which two teams with states for names matched up:

Ohio – Michigan, with Ohio upsetting the favored Wolverines and North Carolina – Vermont, a game closer than the outcome with NC advancing.

In a fairly rare match up between two major cities, St. Louis toppled Memphis.  If both Louisville and St. Louis win their next game, they would meet in the Sweet 16.

North Carolina teams are 2-3.  Kentucky teams 3-1.  Wildcats 3-1: Kentucky (W), Kansas State (W), Davidson (L).  Tigers 0-2: Memphis and Missouri. Bulldogs are 3-1: Georgetown (W), Gonazaga (W), UNC-Asheville (L).

All 4 California teams are out:  St. Mary’s, California, Long Beach State and San Diego State.  All 4 Ohio teams are still in: Ohio, Ohio State, Xavier and Cincinnati.

All the Irish teams are out: Iona Gaels, St. Mary’s Gaels and Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

The Fruit and the Nut advanced: Syracuse Orange and Ohio State Buckeyes; the Grain, the Wichita State Shockers lost out to an Iowa State Cyclone.

Dems Who Voted No To Health Care Bill

How did your representative vote on the Health Care Reform Bill? Surprisingly, 34 Democrats did not stand with the President and voted no.  I compiled some interesting facts on some of these naysaying Democrats and the states from which they hail.

2 of the 3 Arkansas Democrats voted no.  Marian Berry and Mike Ross.  In the Land of Opportunity, 20% of the population has no health insurance at all according to the Center for American Progress.

Not to be outdone by Arkansas, Alabama’s entire House delegation voted no – 2 Democrats and 5 Republicans, a state in which 21% of its residents are without health insurance.

Two Barts voted in favor of the health care reform overhaul: Bart Gordon of Tennessee (who voted no the first time around) and Bart Stupak of Michigan.  One of Mr. Stupak’s constituents by the way is filmmaker, author and activist, Michael Moore.

There are no Republican members of the House in Massachusetts.  Of the 10 Democrats, 9 voted yes.  Only Stephen Lynch voted no, directly snubbing Ted Kennedy’s family and legacy.  Many from Lynch’s congressional district voted for Scott Brown in the special Senate election.  Lynch could be looking to replicate Brown’s success by focusing on fiscal restraint and job creation.  Lynch justified his vote against health care reform by saying essentially that what’s good for the country is not necessarily good for his constituents, who mostly have health insurance.  He argued the bill didn’t go far enough.  But that’s a tough message to sell to the constituent who believes affordable health care should be a right for all, not just Massachusetts residents.  Lynch is rumored to be interested in running for the Senate in 2012.

3 of the 8 Democrats from North Carolina including former NFL quarterback  Heath Shuler voted no.  A young Blue Dog Democrat, he may have more in common with his Republican colleagues.  Interestingly, he received pac money from pharmaceutical companies including Merck, Novartis and Gloxosmithkline who stand to profit considerably from the legislation with increased business and subsidies.  On the other side, he received contributions from Blue Cross and Blue Shield, giants in the health insurance industry that might not be as enthusiastic about government regulations.  If he’s re-elected, I’d say Shuler is a better politician than football player.

Democrats from 24 states voted no.  Alabama and North Carolina tied for the most Democrats in opposition with three.

Half of the states in the original Louisiana Purchase had 1 or more Democrats who voted no:  Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Missouri, New Mexico, South Dakota and Minnesota.

“Liberal” Massachusetts was the only New England state with a representative who voted no.