Jungle Party's Hack-Off and Smack-Off

Jungle Party leader Jim Rome announced that the Hack-Off would take place this Friday, April 16, the day before the election, and the Smack-Off a week later on April 23. The Hack-Off is a contest for the "worst of the worst" callers who have a take and DO suck. The winner of the Hack-Off will receive an at-large Smack-Off tournament bid, and thus have a chance to advance to a seat in the 49th Congress.

Among the Hack-Off contestants: Jolene ("dressed as your mom") in Farmington, Vinny Mac ("I'm the bottle on the top shelf") in Des Moines, Eddie ("on the banks of the 'What do we do now' river") in Boise, Parody Patrick, Nezrin not Mezrin ("Phil JACK-son!"), Corey in Buffalo, Aaron in Canton, Jason ("star Canadian linebacker") in Ottawa, Tobin in Chapel Hill, Flamian in LA, Ryan in Wichita, Jerome ("BOHICA, Bend Over Here It Comes Again") in Nashville, and Dean in Edmonton.

While the Hack-Off is new for 2010, the Smack-Off is an annual competition on The Jim Rome Show, in which select listeners are invited to provide their best "smack talk", with Rome and his show personnel determining the winner. The contest is a way to recognize the best callers to the show, as well as a means of determining the best caller of the year. Show host Jim Rome has referred to the Smack-Off as the most important show of the entire year. For Patria, the Smack-Off determines who will sit in Congress as part of the Jungle Party caucus, along with Rome and "Mr. Automatic" J-Stew (Jason Stewart).

The defending 2009 Smack-Off champion Brad in Corona gets an automatic bid for a seat in Congress, along with previous Smack-Off winners, with the exception of Sean the Cablinasian, who was declared ineligible in 2008:

• Iafrate*
  
• J.T. the Brick
• Jeffrey E. DiTolla "Esquire"
• Doc Mike DiTolla
• Steve Carbone*
• Silk in Huntington Beach
• Jeff in Richmond*

Previous Smack-Off invitees who may receive at-large bids in 2010:

• Greg in Vegas*
• Bill in Knoxville*
  
• Irie Craig
• Jeff "bumping around on a car phone" in Phoenix*
• Terrence in Sierra Madre (best caller never to have won)*
  
• Trapper in Dana Point (who should be representing the Social Democrats)
  
• Jay Mohr
• Gino in San Antonio
• John in C-Town
• Jim in Fall River
• Casey in Vegas
• Joe in the O.C.*
• Rachel in Houston*
• Oren in Denver
• Vic in NoCal
• Chad in Portland
• J.D. in Nashville
• Bodie in Pearland
• Corey in Ann Arbor
• Mike in Wichita
• Dan in D.C.
• Smooth Joe in Hollywood
• Josh in Grand Rapids
• Mike in Indy (surprise second-place finisher in 2009)

* Incumbent members of the 48th Congress.

The Jungle Party received only 12 seats in 2006, so it's likely that not all Smack-Off participants will be awarded seats in the 49th Congress, unless the Jungle Party makes the jump from fringe to coalition bracket-buster in 2010.