Clinton Supporters Complain

Political Punch: "A Clinton Hurricane Hits Outside the DNC Hearing Room, May 31, 2008 2:05 PM

There was a tornado watch outside the Democratic National Committee's Rules & Bylaws Committee meeting at the Marriot Wardman Park Hotel Saturday afternoon. And there was a brewing storm inside the hotel as well.

A group of public officials -- allies of both Sens. Hillary Clinton, D-NY, and Barack Obama -- walked out of the hearing room to discuss their willingness to come together on a plan to seat all their delegates, each voting at half-delegate status, but representatives of the Clinton campaign from outside Florida interrupted their press conference to dispute the idea that the Clinton campaign agreed with the plan..."

Threat Update

From NO QUARTER{

"Obama’s Campaign of Threats to Superdelegates
Specter of Violence Raised to Drive Lemmings

A major fundraiser for the Obama campaign who conducts regular conference calls with his staff has been interrupting Hillary Clinton events for nearly two years. Her organization has joined with a radical group that is threatening massive, unspecified protest actions in Denver if Hillary seizes the nomination. Now, Obama’s official mouthpiece warns that he could deploy these forces even sooner with the click of a button.

For the first time, a paid staffer of the Obama campaign appeared inspired by the ominous language of shadowy pro-Obama protest groups like “Recreate ‘68.” Spokesman David Plouffe told Politico the following on 5/28:

“We are not encouraging our people to gather and protest on Saturday,” he said. “With the click of a mouse it would be pretty easy for us in the Mid-Atlantic to gather thousands of people...”

One thing the protesters should in mind that for sure is not like '68 is that we are all now enduring the Patriot Act and while they will probably get away with disrupting the Democratic convention (keep in mind also, you are in Denver, not exactly friendly territory for people who could well be cast as terrorists), I certainly wouldn't recommend those tactics with the GOP.

Laws and Rules

Democrat Taylor Marsh Broadcasts Live Talk Radio and Blogs Politics: "Nedra Pickler, the Associated Press and all the Bias That's Fit to Print" (by Marc Rubin): "...I don't know how much thought Pickler has given to the proposition that in 1789 the Constitution gave the sole power to make laws to the Congress and not the Democratic Rules Committee, but that is the case.. The DNC rules have nothing to do with the law. In fact Arlen Specter has already said he thinks the DNC punishment in question is probably unconstitutional and wants a congressional investigation if the DNC does not seat all the delegates. But Pickler, who has a history of seeing things through Obama colored glasses reports to us that it might be illegal to seat all the delegates..."

Clinton and Her Supporters

Cavuto and Cristi Adkins -- March on DC

BO Sez It's Over

Obama Camp Says Democratic Race Will Be Settled in 6 Days - America’s Election HQ: "Six days and counting.

That’s how long Barack Obama thinks it’ll take before he is the hands-down nominee of the Democratic Party and can make the full pivot toward a general election.

Hillary Clinton is still traipsing through primary states and pressing her case to uncommitted superdelegates, but the Obama campaign is spreading the word that once the final primaries in South Dakota and Montana are held Tuesday, the race is over..."

Note that Clinton is "traipsing" while Obama is "campaigning." Sure, we're a fair, fair media with no gender biases.

Dissing The Police?

Obama Campaign Asks Supporters to Piss on Police in Portland, Oregon : NO QUARTER

Everyone cites Obama’s “superior campaign” as evidence of Obama’s judgment and his ability to lead. How do they square those arguments with the following:

PORTLAND, Ore. — Portland police officers have asked for an apology after they said organizers of a Barack Obama rally set up Porta-Potties on a memorial honoring fallen officers.

Uncles Lost and Found

Crooks and Liars » Obama’s uncle and an extreme example of molehill politics
"In a sign of just how desperate far-right conservatives have become — and just how odd their standards are — we saw one of the dumber outrages of the 2008 presidential campaign this week..."

Wow. Let's see, McCain gets confused and it's a sign of mental illness; either Clinton makes an error, and it's an example of the heart of the evil incarnate. Obama makes a mistake and it's our fault for making a mountain out of a molehill. Breathtaking, simply breathtaking.

Fighting The Gender War

Joan Walsh vs Chris Matthews and Joe Madison

Reagan Democrats Mythology

Crooks and Liars » If Reagan Democrats existed, they’re gone for good

"We’ve been hearing for about a generation now about “Reagan Democrats” — white, working-class voters who voted Republican in the 1980s, and who pundits believe Democrats have to get back if they hope to be competitive on the national level again. (That the Democratic candidate has won more votes than the Republican candidate in three of the last four presidential campaign does not seem to affect this analysis.)..."

I'm not one, never was one, but I beg to differ.

Principles and Pain

President of CSEA (California School Employees Association) Chapter Resigns: Obama’s Hateful and Racist Philosophies Too Difficult to Bear : NO QUARTER: "...In addition, I understand CSEA has not endorsed a presidential candidate, but permitted the Keynote Speaker, Lee Mun Wah, to use the CSEA platform to, by his words, endorse a presidential candidate, Senator Barack Obama, defending hate speech by Senator Barak Obama’s spiritual mentor Reverend Wright, while denigrating the other two candidates.

I, sir, am a white male of Scottish heritage and personally had absolutely nothing to do with the imprisoning of Japanese American’s during WWII, or the death of Lee Mun Wah’s mother, or ANY of the racist examples he put forth. I will not be associated with an organization that permits the use of “white guilt,” calls me a bigot or ANY other form of racism and does nothing to address it.

I cannot stand by while a photo of the jet crashing into the World Trade Towers is used for marketing purposes in describing a “stereotypical” group of younger people. Among the many innocent lives to perish, I had friends die in that building that day, on 9/11/01. How dare CSEA use that tragic event, in the manner it did..."

Required Reading

If you're female, you must read this article; if you're male, for your own future self-preservation, you ought to read this article: New Statesman - Hating Hillary

Working Stiff?

This one is for Katiebird. « The Confluence

"Many of us have followed Katiebird’s never ending quest to find out if Barack Obama ever really had a full time job. A lot of us have searched high and low, but so far nothing concrete. The only thing we could find was this resume for Barry online. Notice that in 1998 Obama was actually holding down two part-time jobs. One was as state senator, the other as a university “lecturer”. Actually that second one is kind of iffy. His resume states that he was a “visiting Law and Government Fellow (read: Free Money for Doing Nothing) then a Senior Lecturer”. So in 1998 he may have been only working one part-time job while collecting academic welfare..."

In all fairness, I must point out that, sometimes, working part-time in as a teacher can be more time-consuming and more difficult than working full-time. I've done both and I know there are no hard and fast rules, other than if you're working at the University level (not a big deal, btw), the hours are nearly always fewer and the pay much better.

More Vet Complaints

Illinois Combat Veterans: Obama Wasn’t Available To Meet With Us : NO QUARTER: "Looks like Barack Obama ignored another constituency when the cameras weren’t rolling. And now Democrats will have to pay. This is why we must nominate Hillary Clinton, our only chance to beat John McCain in the fall.

Below is a Commercial made by Republican 527 Vets for Freedom Political Action Committee. In it, an Iraq combat veteran from Illinois discusses how he and 12 other combat veterans were unable to meet with Barack Obama. This vet wants to know why it is that Barack Obama is willing to meet with despots and terrorist leaders but not with Generals or combat veterans. He wants to know how it is that Barack Obama is so smart about the Middle East when he hasn’t even been there during his two and a half years in the Senate..."

Go to No Quarter to see the ad.

Visiting Mars

MSNBC Space : Mars 08-05-23 : Phoenix Preview

Upset Vet

Bob Geiger: Dead Troops Remembered By President Who Had Them Killed - Politics on The Huffington Post:

"Yes, that's a harsh headline for this piece.

But I'll ask you to forgive me because, as a Veteran, there isn't a day on the calendar that causes my hatred -- and I do indeed mean hatred -- of George W. Bush to bubble over the top more than Memorial Day.

"On Memorial Day, we honor the heroes who have laid down their lives in the cause of freedom, resolve that they will forever be remembered by a grateful Nation, and pray that our country may always prove worthy of the sacrifices they have made," reads Bush's official Memorial Day proclamation, issued by the White House on Thursday.

The Chickenhawk-in Chief says a lot of things that make this Vet's blood boil but stuff like saying that he prays "...that our country may always prove worthy of the sacrifices they have made" is almost vomit inducing..."

More Primary Math

Democrat Taylor Marsh Broadcasts Live Talk Radio and Blogs Politics: "The New Math for Clinton and the Old Horse Race for Obama, guest post by Marc Rudin:

"...With yesterday's primaries Hillary Clinton now leads in the popular vote by 179,704 votes with 12% of the precincts yet to report in Oregon. It also includes the Florida and Michigan vote totals where I allocated 149,010 votes to Barack Obama for his share of the "uncommitted" line in Michigan.

As everyone familiar with what really went on in Michigan knows, Obama arranged with the state Democratic committee to have his name represented by a line that read "Uncommitted" and every voter in Michigan knew it. John Edwards agreed to be part of the "uncommitted" line so the only issue was apportioning the 40.7% of the uncommitted vote. I gave Edwards the 14% of the vote average he had gotten everywhere else and Obama a little over 25%. When Florida and Michigan are factored in, Clinton has the popular vote lead. With regards to delegates, Obama's lead is now by 94 delegates and that will get smaller after Puerto Rico where 55 delegates up for grabs. Clinton is expected to do even better in Puerto Rico than she did in Kentucky.

Clinton is virtually assured that she will end the primary season with the popular vote lead. And its the popular vote that is the only clear indicator of the true will of the people , not the delegate count given the Democrats bizarre way of apportioning delegates..."

Going Home (Or Not)

A Lack of Taste (Typical of Obama’s Followers?) : NO QUARTER: "When I told my 86 year year old mother that Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky is calling for Obama signs and supporters to fill the crowds at the Park Ridge Memorial Day Parade on Monday May 26th, she was appalled.

“No,” she said. “Surely, not in Hillary’s hometown?”

“Yes, ” I told her. “It is in the worse possible taste.”

And my mother, who is known for telling it like it is said, “Not only is that in the worse possible taste, it is just plain mean.”

Mean, it is.

But then I have hardly experienced civility from many Obama supporters during this election. I was spit on in the course of my volunteer work in Portland, have been accused of being racist from long time friends because i support Hillary and am now getting anonymous hate mail about Hillary at my home address.

So much for a politics of transformation..."

Scoping The Trends

Buyers' Remorse: How Rank & File Democrats Rejected Obama Once He Was Declared The "Inevitable" Nominee | Corrente: "Ever since the media declared that Barack Obama was “inevitable” after February 19th, based on a two week period when an unprepared Hillary Clinton campaign suffered “10 straight losses”, rank and file Democratic voters have been sending a message. Rather than rally ‘round the “inevitable nominee” that message has been a consistent, loud, and clear message to the Democratic Party – DO NOT WANT..."

The Wind Is Still In My Sails

On the Geo Stepho show, the round table, George Will excepted, said the "Hillary Gaffe" (re: RFK) had taken the wind out of our sails and that we're all ready to throw in the towel now. Uh. Wrong. Anyone who throws in the towel over this wasn't much of a Clinton supporter to being with, and I would never abandon a candidate of any kind over such an innocuous remark.

Good Troll Thread

Obama’s Cousin Won’t Let Us Go After Terrorists : NO QUARTER : "Looks like Barack has some more family problems on the horizon. Apart from waiting for the videotape of his wife, Michelle, to hit the airwaves (looks like October if he is the nominee), he now has his Kenyan cousin to worry about. Raila Odinga is the Prime Minister of Kenya. He is on the record espousing a political view that promotes Islamic law as the law of Kenya and has agreed to ban Christian broadcasts in Kenya. But more troubling is Odinga’s view that any Muslim residing in Kenya, visitor or relative, cannot be arrested or detained in Kenya for terrorism by any other country. So, if the men responsible for bombing the U.S. Embassy in Kenya in August 1998 are located in Kenya, Odinga is on the record denying the United States the chance to bring them to justice. Thankfully, he lacks this clout right now..."

If you're interested in trolling, this is a particularly sporting thread.

Origin of the Faux Outrage

Quoted from http://riverdaughter.wordpress.com/:

 

The Confluence :Obama takes his talking points from Drudge

 

...Apparently it took the creative mind of Drudge to inspire the Obama campaign to tastelessly exploit the death of an American icon for political gain, in the very same week his sole surviving brother was diagnosed with a brain tumor… very classy. Now this is the kind of thing we expect from Drudge, but from a Democratic presidential candidate, and the left blogosphere? It appears that is the path they are choosing. But they still have some lessons to learn from the pros. See, this isn’t the first time Clinton has made this comparison, as the Fox article goes on to say:

 

But Clinton has made a similar “long primaries are fine” argument before — once with a more oblique reference to the Kennedy assassination. “If you look at successful presidential campaigns, my husband didn’t get the nomination until June of 1992. I remember, tragically, Senator Kennedy won California near the end of that process,” she said at a DC fundraiser on May 7th. “It has often gone on. And we have a lot to work out here. Because we have to figure out who would be the stronger candidate...”

 

RFK on RFK

Clinton, Discussing Nomination Battle, Invokes R.F.K. Assassination - The Caucus - Politics - New York Times Blog: "...Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has endorsed Mrs. Clinton, defended her remarks in a telephone interview Friday evening. “I’ve heard her make that argument before,” Mr. Kennedy said, speaking on his cell phone as he drove to the family compound in Hyannis for the holiday weekend. “It sounds like she was invoking a familiar historical circumstance in support of her argument for continuing her campaign...”"

Do Something Different

Sick of gas prices? Think it might go to $20 a gallon? So instead of subsidizing oil companies and spending trillions in Iraq, shouldn't the government be subsidizing the move to electric cars, which, if push comes to shove, can be fueled by increased nuclear power (yeah, I know, you prefer coal-- or maybe just freezing in the cold and dark.) Remember that definition of insanity? Well, our dependence on oil, both domestic and foreign, is not working out to the betterment of our citizenry and probably not to the world as a whole either. Following is just one of many ideas:

Home - Ultra Capacitor - Super Capacitors - Super Battery? - Ultra Capacitor - Super Capacitors - Super Battery?

"...Let’s go back to 1993 when United States President Bill Clinton challenged US automakers to “Think Different”: President Clinton was surrounded by the CEO’s of General Motors, Chrysler, and Ford and he said that the US Government was going to help build cars with better fuel efficiency. He said that their research would lead to production of prototypes vehicles capable of up to three times greater fuel efficiency, for example, “radical new concepts such as fuel cells and advanced energy storage systems such as ultracapacitors, to produce more fuel-efficient cars that are affordable, meet or exceed current safety standards and retain the performance and comfort available today.”

TODAY.. Fifiteen years after President Clinton’s announcement, ultracapacitors are becoming more mainstream as engineers are now taking a second look at alternative energy engineering. Ultracapacitors outperform batteries in several key parameters such as power density, cycle life and temperature sensitivity..."

I'll take one of these (if anyone's buying, or I could buy it myself if I had $30k lying around or maybe if I had some sort of government incentive...)

On O'Lectures

James Wolcott's Blog: Mahogany Sleigh Bed Heads for the Cliff: Wolcott's Blog: vanityfair.com

"...That was one of the chords Obama struck today in his response to Bush's "Nazi appeaser" accusation before the Israeli Knesset--he firmly, deftly mummy-wrapped Bush and McCain together and dropped them off at the pier. It's rather impressive to see a first-term senator chastise the President of the United States and the presumptive nominee of the Republican Party as if he were the headmaster and they the ones guilty of infractions unworthy of upperclassmen. That's one of the benefits of having an oratorical voice that sounds tall--it automatically adds height to every utterance, allowing them to drop like acorns and make a nice thunk when they bounce off of the nearest thick skull."

And there's another O'Problem. It seems that every time he criticizes one of the Bush Mafia, he sounds like the preacher who just caught someone else's kids screwing in the poison ivy. If you're gonna complain, let the napalm fly, not the sparklers.

Pat Shroeder on Clinton's Campaign

What Actually Happened In Florida

Josh Marshall Doesn’t Seem to Understand Florida: Let Me Explain : NO QUARTER
"...For the millionth time, Florida Democrats had no power to block the moving of Florida’s primary election. Thus, the DNC should not have “punished” Florida Democrats.

Our state legislature moved the primary dates, an entity on which the DNC’s rules are not legally binding. Our State House has about 77 Republicans to 43 Democrats. Republicans constitute about 60% of our State Senate.

In short, Florida Republicans can unilaterally pass or block any legislation they want. They could have moved the primary date without a single Dem vote.

Instead, they wanted Dems to go on record voting for it, so they tied the primary-date provision to a provision requiring paper trails for those touchscreen voting machines that ex-Sec. of State Katherine Harris had persuaded our big counties to buy.

For an idea of how well paperless voting has worked in Florida, see this article about paperless voting machines that reversed the results of a Medley, Florida, election in 2002 (scary stuff). Even better, the Equal Justice Foundation has a list of documented paperless voting-machine problems throughout the U.S.

The upshot: it is for very good reasons that Florida Dems wanted a paper trail, but state Republicans effortlessly blocked Dems’ efforts for years..."

If the DNC does not count Florida, then they are letting Republicans disenfranchise Democratic voters, but at this point, I don't think they care. They are much more interested in winning (for Obama) than in either fair play or a victory in November.

DNC Sued

Broward Politics | Sun-Sentinel Blogs | Geller files federal lawsuit in an attempt to get Florida delegates seated: "State Senate Minority Leader Steve Geller filed a federal lawsuit today against the Democratic National Committee in an attempt to get the full Florida delegation seated at the party's national convention - with its votes weighted to reflect the results of the disputed Jan. 29 primary..."

Anglachel's Journal: Legitimacy, Not Unity

Anglachel's post is lengthy and complex but well-reasoned and, I think, right on target. Here's the opening snippet: Anglachel's Journal: Legitimacy, Not Unity--"The continued calls for "unity" in this campaign have bothered me for some time. As I alluded to in an earlier post, unity means something very different in politics than being in agreement. It would mean that contestation foglr the resources and social goods of the nation had been set aside. Rousseau and Machiavelli were both vital to helping Madison develop his theory of countervailing power in a system of institutions. Machiavelli, quite in contrast to his popular image, was a man who very firmly believed in laws, independent institutions to counter the power of princes, and humane rule. The result of any political excess would be chaos and death unless power was used to check power. Rousseau was the first theorist of "the general will" and thought that perfect unity is the absence of legitimacy because there is no possibility of dissent. He was always uncomfortable with the formation of the general will due to its tendency to consolidate power to depotic levels, yet feared social dissolution almost as much..."

Good Question

Question For The Day: If Appalachia’s inbred racist hicks … « The Confluence: "Posted on May 22, 2008 by ronkseattle

… explain BO08’s 30-65 loss in Kentucky’s closed Democratic PRIMARY Election — how did Harold Ford possibly rack up 48% of the statewide popular vote for Senator in Tennessee’s 2006 GENERAL Election?"

The Democratic Problem

Read the whole article. If you can't, this little excerpt illustrates the problem perfectly:

Daily Howler: Tears splashed down Tim Russert's face--and a Major Dem kissed, smooched and fawned: "..Is there no decency? Even them! Hillary Clinton had run an ad which implicitly criticized Russert. And even Matthews and Olbermann! But, as a great American once said, This would not stand! Helping us understand “her problem,” Bob Shrum rushed in to succor his friend—to pander, kiss, smooch, fuss and fawn:

SHRUM (continuing directly): And if she wants to get mad, she ought to put a picture of Euclid up there, because the problem is the math doesn't add up. No matter how you do this, this race is fundamentally over. She's not going to be the Democratic nominee for president, Barack Obama is. And we ne.ed to go into a process of healing. And I want to say, on her behalf in the last week, the, the level of the rhetoric has come down, the level of the attacks have come down. She's making an electability argument. I think she really cares about the Democratic Party, and I hope that, in the end, whether she's mad at you or not, she can somehow or other help unite this party and move us toward victory in November.

That was stirring stuff! But it started with a Big Dem Consultant running about as fast as he could to take the side of these long-time Democrat-trashers against a Big Major Dem. Boo hoo hoo hoo hoo hoo hoo! he said. Oh please..."

Voting For Litl'O

David Corn: "...My hunch is that the passions--and acrimony--will cool down in the months ahead. But it's clear that there's been a messy patch of bad feelings generated on both sides of the black-versus-woman Democratic contest. (The Post recently reported on the blatant racism encountered by Obama campaign workers on the ground.) But these Democratic women who are disappointed that HRC will not become the breaker of the ultimate glass ceiling are going t have to get over it. The obvious point is, do they want to vote for a guy who will appoint Supreme Court justices likely to overturn Roe v. Wade, who recently voted against a bill that would remove restrictions on a woman's right to bring an equal pay lawsuit, and who will keep the Iraq war going and going and going?"

Uh, won't those Supreme Court nominees have to be approved by a Democratic Congress? Roe Fear will not scare women into supporting Obama. McCain has never betrayed his principles concerning women-- everyone knows he is a sexist. Obama pretends he is not, and that, Mr. Corn, is significant to people of a certain gender.

Copper Art By Victor Raul

Visit here to see larger, slower pictures of Victor's copper creations. (He'd never bring this up himself but Victor Mora-Loza is a decorated, wounded, disabled Vietnam veteran. If you see anything you like, please call Victor at 828.349.4189)

P.Bush and BO

The Raw Story | The View co-host brings up Prescott Bush's Nazi ties: "'...One more point,' continued Behar, pulling out a prepared statement. 'It's very interesting and ironic that George Bush, Senior's -- er, George Bush, this one -- his grandfather -- this one -- the late -- I don't like to speak ill of the dead, but in this case it's fun -- he was a United States senator, Prescott Bush. Okay -- he was a director and shareholder of companies that profited from their involvement with the financial backers of Nazi Germany.'

'This is his grandfather,' Behar continued. 'He has no business talking to Jewish people when he's got this right in his backyard.'

'How come you can bring up this backyard but then it's not alright to dig into Obama's backyard and family history?' was all the flustered Hasselbeck could find to say..."

Hmmmm. Nazis and kettles, I see.

Bitch Ok For Some

From Crooks and Liars

From The Mighty Nice Of Them Department

Ban on Sex for Soldiers in Afghanistan Lifted ... Sort Of

"Stars and Stripes | Drew Brown | May 15, 2008

JALALABAD, Afghanistan -- Single soldiers and civilians working for the U.S. military in Afghanistan can now have sex legally. Sort of.

A new order signed by Maj. Gen. Jeffrey Schloesser, commander of Combined Joint Task Force-101, has lifted a ban on sexual relations between unmarried men and women in the combat zone..."

The Rest of the Real Story?

Crooks and Liars » Top McCain aide steps aside, rather than take on Obama

"Last summer, Mark McKinnon, the former chief media adviser to George W. Bush, and now a top aide to John McCain’s presidential campaign, admitted that he liked Barack Obama so much, he didn’t want to work on the campaign running against Obama and he wouldn’t create negative ads against the Illinois senator if he became the Democratic nominee.

Of course, that was easy to say at the time. A year ago, McCain’s campaign was in deep trouble, and Obama still seemed like a relative long-shot. Given that we’re talking about a top-tier politico who was Bush’s top media guy, I assumed he’d come up with some excuse to change his mind.

I assumed wrong. Chris Cillizza reports that McKinnon actually meant it..."

Somewhere pigs are flying and hummingbirds are dive bombing Audis.

Comment of the Day

Comments at TaylorMarsh.com:

"I found this really inspiring and I hope the author doesn't mind me sharing it with all of you.

Boycotting Obama Will Lead to Famine, Armaggeddon, Government-Controlled Uteruses, and other Scare Tactics

A lot of desperate Democrats are suddenly scrambling to 'unify' with Clinton's supporters, now that they realize that their snowjob of an election will lead to an Obama boycott in November. The classic line says that we need to avoid letting emotions interfere with judgment and to think about “the issues.” Well, here's my answer (disclaimer: I do not have a uterus).

First of all, I do not need to clear my head and take a deep breath. I am a lifetime Democrat, and I have been voting for Democrats since the mid-80s. I am very experienced having my candidate lose, but then moving on to support the party ticket. In past primaries, for example, I voted for Dean, Bradley, and Jesse Jackson (twice!). I get the idea of party unity....Next.

Second, my vote represents more than just support for a set of standard liberal issues. It also protests liberal hypocrisy. The party espouses an equality rhetoric but has undermined it during this election. The party has bashed poor white people, as if they are responsible for the racially segregated nature of corporate America, U.S imperialism, and the exploitation of vulnerable consumers. The party has ignored Latino voters because recognizing them challenges the "only racists vote for Clinton script." The party has invented claims of racial injustice to demonize the Clintons. The party has ridiculed "uneducated" voters, even though Democrats supposedly represent disadvantaged people. Male party members and liberal media have constantly called for Clinton to drop out -- starting after Iowa -- in order to place an aura of doubt around her campaign. The party has completely ignored or even denied the sexist treatment of Clinton, while responding with absolute venom to any real or imagined "racism" directed towards Obama. The party has allowed Obama to wear multiple racial hats -- the nonracial black man, the just black enough to be an historic black president, and the black racial victim – to secure votes. But if Clinton deviates even slightly from a prior script, she is portrayed as a horrible witch who would do "anything to get elected." I refuse to join this madness...

... -- A Black Male Civil Rights Attorney

Posted by: Tony Smith | May 20, 2008 12:50 PM

sarnold51 | 05.21.2008 - 01:12 am | # "

Davis On The Nomination

Lanny Davis

O'Appalachia Issue

The Confluence

"...I know our Obama fans are going to jump to conclusions right away and think that these people are bigots. But let’s say most Kentuckians are like me. Let’s say they’ve heard his campaign and his supporters call them dumb old racists one too many times. Or stupid old women. Or uneducated working class. Let’s say they have seen the same clueless attitude as DHinMI’s at the Big Orange Cheeto who writes diaries with the following title: Appalachia’s Last Chance to Show It Doesn’t Have an Obama Problem (no, I’m not providing a link. We’re honoring the strike). How insulting can you possibly get to these voters? Appalacia has a problem? That’s not the way politics work. If a politician wants a person’s vote, it’s not up to the voter to adjust their attitudes or shed their personalities or agree to be invisible or unimportant. It is the politician’s job to get down on the ground and grovel and beg that person for their vote and speak about issues that are important to them and propose policies that will improve their lives and move them to think beyond themselves.

But instead of reaching out to Appalacia, Obama is writing off the entire region.But this is typical of Obama’s campaign. At times it seems like he deliberately goes out of his way to offend one constituency or another..."

Free Food Will Bring Them Out, Too

Free Concert by Popular Band Preceded Obama’s Big Rally | NewsBusters.org: "From CNN to the New York Times, the media hyped Barack Obama's Portland, Oregon rally on Sunday, some comparing him to a rock star.

Unmentioned in national reporting was the fact that Obama was preceded by a rare, 45-minute free concert by actual rock stars The Decemberists. The Portland-based band has drawn rave reviews from Rolling Stone magazine, which gave their 2005 album Picaresque four and a half stars (out of five), and another four and a half stars for 2007's The Crane Wife..."

Support Your Vets

Part of an email from Wes Clark:

"Dear Bob,

VoteVets has just released a TV ad demanding that John McCain vote for the New GI Bill. Click here to watch the ad, then email your Senators, demanding that they provide our troops with the education they deserve!

This week, our veterans are counting on us more than ever.

Senator Jim Webb's New GI Bill, which would give our returning soldiers the education benefits they need, is up for a Senate vote this week. We're so close to reaching that critical 60-vote majority to overcome unprecedented filibusters and the opposition of President Bush and John McCain, but we need your help. That's why VoteVets has just released a TV ad demanding that John McCain do the right thing and vote for the New GI Bill.

Click here to watch the new VoteVets ad that is airing across the country. Then email your Senators, demanding that they provide our troops with the education they deserve today!.."

Follow The Money

Well, ok, it is LaRouche, but what the heck, he does have an interesting take on it all. Here: If He's So Confident, Why The Desperate Behavior? | LaRouche Political Action Committee

Where We Are

The Confluence

"...This is where we are. The foundations of support, the people and principles that made the Democratic party viable and strong, are being callously destroyed by those who have been given permission to rig the system for one candidate over the other. Those of us who stayed with the party and our country through decades of movement conservatism, who volunteered our time and our voices, who suffered withering criticism and family divisions for not adopting Republican values, who protested the war, the attacks on science, the regression of women’s and GBLT progress in the public sphere, the subjugation of the working class have all been told that we’re not wanted anymore. Our party has evolved and we, like neanderthals, didn’t make the cut.

 

What is left is the Republican party and a Republican Lite party. There is no place for the “tired, the poor, the huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of the teeming shores”. Where is our liberty? Who will defend us? What has happened to our power in a union?

To those who are celebrating their triumph, light and joyous, unburdened by the working class and their entitlements, be careful. There is one power that we still have. And if we have to exercise it to bring you back into line and ground you in your responsibilities and obligations to us, we will."

 

More On Sexism

via Stop-Obama

Dissing FL and MI

Politics

Obama Will Not Count FL And MI - TalkLeft: The Politics Of Crime

I believe this is a political mistake by the Obama camp:

 

Barack Obama will reach a significant milestone Tuesday as he marches toward the Democratic nomination for president — a majority of pledged delegates at stake in all the primaries and caucuses. . . . "A clear majority of elected delegates will send an unmistakable message — the people have spoken, and they are ready for change," Obama campaign manager David Plouffe wrote in a memo to supporters Monday.

 

The Obama campaign will ignore Florida and Michigan tomorrow night. There simply is no getting around that. and for what? To declare victory on May 20 as opposed to June 3? This is simply stupid. The Associate Press of course is on Obama's side on this, but actually harms him:..

Double Standard Clinton Rules

Washington Post Suppresses News of Abuse of Clinton Campaigners | Corrente... but did publish reports of Obama workers and racial slurs. I guess the membership of C.U.N.T. is snickering all the way to the ballot box and White House.

Sexism

Rhododendron

From the backyard...

Blogging From The Other Shoe

Clinton Election Juggernaut Accelerates | Corrente: "From the Side-by-Side Wing Chairs of The Mighty Corrente Building..."

One Who Remembers

From Sen. Jim Webb's book: Read an excerpt of "A Time to Fight: Reclaiming a Fair and Just America" - Meet the Press, online at MSNBC- msnbc.com: "...I am a junior senator, ninety-fifth on the seniority list, and so by Senate standards my office in the Russell Senate Office Building is less than splendid. But having spent most of my life outside of government, I know what splendid is, and how much it usually costs if you’re paying for it out of your own pocket. From that perspective, my office meets the test—the high ceiling, the ancient fireplace along one wall, the classic furniture, the modern technology evident in the top-of-the line computer on my desk, all bought and maintained with money that came from hardworking people who have paid for such emoluments through their taxes. And especially splendid, invisible but permeating, is the history that both haunts and inspires me every day. It is not always enjoyable to serve as a United States senator. But it never ceases to be an honor..."

Political Spying and Cold, Hard Cash

Who Wants to Be the Next Millionaire? [Updated] : NO QUARTER
"Here’s the news short and sweet–if you have a copy of the Michelle Obama video, in which she is lambasting white people (four different sources say she uses “whitey” as an epithet) at Jeremiah Wright’s church, then there is an ultra conservative Republican billionaire who wants to pay your $1 million dollars for the tape. Why? He hates John McCain. Conservative Republicans refer to John McCain as a Marxist and a sell out (and those are the nice comments). The billionaire in question believes Barack is a very weak candidate and, if he gets the Democratic nod, then McCain will surely be President. Especially after the October “surprise” of Michelle Obama railing against whitey. The billionaire wants to preempt McCain and Rove and has put the word out thru conservative networks that there is a $1 million dollar bounty for the person or persons who produce the tape..."

Mapping, Not Mathing

The Confluence: "It’s the Map, not the Math

...The meat of the conversation is that Hillary sees a clear path to the nomination. She said that the campaign had “acknowledgment” that Hillary is ahead in the popular vote. And (she said) she expects to be ahead on the popular vote after the last primary on June 3rd.

In addition to that since our big win in West Virginia, she has won states totaling 300 electoral votes while Barack has won states with 217 electoral votes. AND she has far fewer deep red states in her list..."

Back In The Saddle

Picasa Web Albums - Bob - SanteeCooper - P5140024.JPG

...though I had rather be fishing.

Gone Fishing

I'm taking a break and doing something I have never done-- going fishing way down in Santee-Cooper, SC. I'll probably be back on-line Sunday.

The Unmissed

Truthdig - Reports - A Farewell to the ‘Hillary Nutcracker’ and Other Obscenities: "WASHINGTON—As the Democratic nomination contest slouches toward a close, it’s time to take stock of what I will not miss.

I will not miss seeing advertisements for T-shirts that bear the slogan “Bros before Hos.” The shirts depict Barack Obama (the Bro) and Hillary Clinton (the Ho), and they are widely sold on the Internet.

I will not miss walking past airport concessions selling the Hillary Nutcracker, a device in which a pantsuit-clad Clinton doll opens her legs to reveal stainless steel thighs that, well, bust nuts. I won’t miss television and newspaper stories that make light of the novelty item..."

Amen, sister.

Update: A picture in honor of commenter billy pilgrim-- always an inspiration!

Finding Fault

The Confluence: "...Don’t go trying to pin this one on Hillary. She’s doing what she is entitled to do, what no one would deny Ted Kennedy, which is why you guys exist in the first place. And her case is much stronger than Kennedy’s in 1980. With FL and MI, they are essentially tied. It is her right and obligation to the voters, especially in Florida and Michigan, to take this fight as far as it will go. If it tears the party apart, she will not be the cause of that. You can’t suppress 2.3 million voters and expect everyone to kiss and make up after they’ve been raped.

You know and we know what will happen this fall. The AA voters will get diluted, as always. The states that Obama won by caucus will go Republican, as always. And the states that you desperately needed, like Florida and Michigan will probably also fall into Republican hands. Now, I don’t know what’s going on in the party behind closed doors but if you have a choice. You can grow a pair and tell the Deaniacs to stick it where the sun don’t shine or you can face the voters this fall and have a weakling at the top of the ticket. And if he goes down, he may take the rest of you with him.
Time to speak up."

Poll Says "Stay In"

TalkLeft: The Politics Of Crime: "A new ABC News/Washington Post poll finds:

Pushing back against political punditry, more than six in 10 Democrats say there's no rush for Hillary Clinton to leave the presidential race even as Barack Obama consolidates his support for the nomination and scores solidly in general-election tests."

"...And A Child Shall Lead Them"

The Times West Virginian - UPDATE — 11-year-old gives $440 to Clinton campaign: "WILLIAMSON, W.Va. — Everyone who knows 11-year-old Dalton Hatfield sees it. There’s something special about the young man. His mother Vickie says all who come in contact with the Kentucky elementary student look at him and say “He’s going to be something” when he grows up.

Apparently that goes for former presidents, too.

When Hatfield presented former President Bill Clinton with a check for $440 after Friday’s rally at the Williamson Fire Station, the man who was once the leader of the free world seemed to nearly come to tears.

“You sold your bike to get this?” Clinton asked the McAndrews, Ky. native.

The reply was “yes” and a whole lot more..."

Winning With Clinton

Ellen R. Malcolm - Quitters Never Win - washingtonpost.com

"...Which brings us to Hillary Clinton running for president. This brilliant woman believes that she can compete for the most powerful office in the world. She believes that she can do a better job than any of the men running to lead our country through these challenging times. And millions of Americans, women and men, believe that she is correct.

Yet over and over again the media and her opponents have claimed that she is defeated -- it's over, she can't win, she's a loser. And over and over again -- in New Hampshire, on Super Tuesday, in Texas and Ohio, in Pennsylvania last month, and in Indiana this week -- female voters poured out of their homes to cast their ballots for her. They know that women can compete, and they want to make sure that women, especially this woman, can win.

It's not surprising that low-income working women are the cornerstone of Hillary's success. Many of these women live on the edge of disaster. A pink slip, a family member's illness, a parent who can no longer live alone, a car that won't start or a mortgage rate that goes up -- all are threats that could devastate the family. And yet these women do what women have done for ages. They put on a confident face, feed their children breakfast and get them off to school. They don't quit. They suck it up and fight back against whatever life throws their way.

They see in Hillary Clinton a candidate who understands the pressures they face. As they watch her tough it out against all odds, refusing to quit and continuing to compete against whatever the media and her opponents throw her way, they see a woman as tough and resilient as they are. They clearly want her to win. Her victory, I believe, is their victory..."

My Mother

Margaret Underwood, born in Waynesville, NC 82 years ago, she worked hard her entire life. She raised four children virtually alone. She was a child-bride of World War II and suffered the ultimate loss there-- husband and brother, but she always loved her country and she always voted. She died Feb 1 and I was still so weak from recent surgery that I wasn't there for her the way I should have been. I was also weak from grief for my mom was slipping away and I was feeling very alone, though I was surrounded by people.

I haven't paid all your bills yet but Mom I am working on it. And I haven't come terms yet with the fact that you are gone.

I love you, Mom.

More GOP Fodder

Will the GOP run a "Barack-is-a-wimp" campaign with "Michelle is running the show?" Could be. They do have some workable material. See Michelle Obama’s Hostility : NO QUARTER/

Circling East Tennessee

More crop circles appear in East Tennessee

Ideas and Entitlement

Daily Howler: Krugman has some decent ideas. Robinson has a sense of entitlement

"THE DIVINE RIGHT OF PUNDITS: Barack Obama will likely be the Democratic nominee in the fall. If that’s what happens, it’s fine with us—but will he be able to win in November? We can imagine him winning big—and we can imagine him losing. But we were struck by the way two pundits discussed this important question today. Their efforts made us consider two issues—“race,” and the sense of entitlement.

Let’s start with Paul Krugman, who has favored Clinton, talking about what has to be done to help Obama win. In particular, Krugman discusses the things that have to be done to encourage blue-collar white Democrats—a group which includes so-called “Reagan Democrats”—cto cast their lot with Obama:

KRUGMAN (5/9/08): More tirades from Obama supporters against Mrs. Clinton are not the answer—they will only further alienate her grass-roots supporters, many of whom feel that she received a raw deal.

Nor is it helpful to insult the groups that supported Mrs. Clinton, either by suggesting that racism was their only motivation or by minimizing their importance..."

O' West Vrirginia Questions

MyDD :: Direct Democracy for People-Powered Politics

I'd humbly suggest, to all the Obama supporters that join us here on this blog, that if you can't stand the heat of the West Virginia primary, you stay out of the kitchen. While I'm at it, I also suggest that you refrain from accusations against West Virginians as being racist, or you'll join the other 6 previous users here, whose offensive comments were deleted on Friday, and that were themselves banned from the site. This is a political junkie website, we thrive on primary and election coverage. When Obama blew out Clinton in Wyoming, it was blogged excessively here, both in the run-up and the day of the event coverage, and it'll be the same way with West Virginia. You don't like that? Fine, its a big wide blogosphere, go find a blog that has its head in the sand. Are the ground rules understood?

In WV, Clinton is blowing Obama away in numbers that she has not been seen since Super Tuesday. And while Obama supporters have claimed that the her voters will move over to support Obama in the GE, this poll doesn't quite show that happening in WV:

The MBE poll also looks ahead to the fall election against the presumptive Republican presidential nominee John McCain. Of the Democrats and independent voters surveyed, Clinton shows up better against McCain in West Virginia. 62% of Democrats and independents indicated they would vote for Clinton over 24% for McCain. In a head to head matchup between Obama and McCain in WV, Obama received 37% support compared to McCain's 35%.

And that's not even including the Republicans. If I could submit a question to Ted Kennedy, it'd be: "Why can't Barack Obama connect with the voters of West Virginia like JFK did?" ...

Financing The Vote

Simply Left Behind: The Non-Rapturist's Guide To The Galaxy: "...Weinstein recognizes this and is offering to privately finance the elections [FL and MI](with some small help). While Obama and to a lesser extent, Clinton have raked in gobs of cash, the DNC is actually running behind its previous contribution levels (probably a result of Obama's fund raising drying up the well...there's talk he's negotiated a fundsharing deal with Dean).

Weinstein's solution is the best possible one out there: re-run the primaries (since that would place them well behind the February 5 deadline), and allow those results to stand.

What is Obama so scared of?"

Leno UnFunny, Too

Tonight Jay Leno joked that "Hillary" was in West Virginia pandering for votes and said she and Bill were married and it was really cool because they were also brother and sister. Can you think of another equally insulting remark to make about a minority? That you would trot out on network tv? Of course not. Because it's just okay to joke and demean bitter, clinging, white people, (Kevin joined in with a little Dueling Banjos music.)

Insert wild, angry profane rant here. Concluding with "Bite me."

Blinding Bill

'I want to rip (Bill Clinton's) eyes out. Kidding!'

"Michelle Obama, wife of presidential candidate Barack Obama, known for saying what's on her mind – candidly, spontaneously and frequently – has exposed this trait yet again in a profile in the London Guardian.

Asked how she feels about Bill Clinton's use of the phrase "fairytale" to describe her husband's characterization of his position on the Iraq war, she first responded: "No."

But, after a few seconds of contemplation, and gesturing with her fingernails, she told the reporter: "I want to rip his eyes out!"

Noticing an aide giving her a nervous look, she added: "Kidding! See, this is what gets me into trouble..."

Ha. Ha.

More Bad Politics

Obama’s Illegal Tricks at Work in Oregon [Updated, with North Carolina Experience] : NO QUARTER: "

...UPDATE: Now factor in this highly reliable source’s experience at a polling place on Tuesday in North Carolina:

His victory in NC was predicated on a large African-American turnout. And I had to absorb abuse slung at me by Obama supporters who are now convinced the Clintons and Clinton supporters are attempting to deny an African-American the Presidency.

I staffed a demographically split precinct, and the turnout was 80-20 African-American. Everyone, including those who are illiterate, unemployed, attached to IVs and in wheelchairs, arrived at the polls yesterday.

I had fingers pointed in my face. A high school principal who transported 17 year olds from his school to the polls refer to me as a racist, as well as hostile Obama supporters tearing Clinton literature right in front of my eyes. One Obama supporter told me I did not belong at the precinct....

Saints and Sinners

Anglachel's Journal: Revolution of the Saints

"...What I see rising from the other side is clearly of two kinds. Half of Obama's support is simply racial identity voting. The other half is from the faction of the party that is significantly insulated from the stark world of need and want. There is a love of the other-worldly where the beauty of the idea and the ideal matters more than the base. The political "base" is seen as base - low, uncouth, adulterated, impure, unworthy. They are not among the saved and the saints. I honestly cannot remember a previous time when so many people in the party were reviled for doing nothing except vote for a conventional candidate. These are not Naderites or Wallace supporters. They are middle-of-the-road solid Democrats who voted Kerry, Gore, Clinton, Clinton, Dukakis, Mondale, Carter, Carter, and so on down the line. The contempt of the saints for the fallen has always been there, but is emerging without a filter or much in the way of self-consciousness this time. The code we learned to speak in our liberal arts colleges falls to the wayside, and I read claims of being rid of the old evil "white working class" (What of us who are not that thing? What of those of us who are?) in a final conflict to end all conflicts and there will be a purified party to which will flock millions of new, young, untainted followers, ready to be led into the land of Goshen..."

More UnLove For Clinton Supporters

More Democratic help for Sen.McCain.

The Confluence

"...In Brazile’s new Democratic Party, only African Americans and well-heeled whites need apply. And if anybody thinks I am being hyperbolic, one only need look at the message this “new coalition” is sending to us (via SusanUnPc at No Quarter):

“It’s the Kool Aid Cultists and liars I am calling out. Get lost. We’ll win by double digits without you as we attract tens of millions of new voters in the place of the few of you. For decades people have been turned off as the likes of Susan, Karen, and Larry have been too prominent in our party. (not you 3 specifically but the likes of you such as Bob Shrum, Mark Penn, Harold Ford, Joe Lieberman, etc…) It is your ilk that made the Democratic party a minority party for way too long. And by getting rid of your ilk, Democrats will become the majority party for decades to come...”

The Undead Politician

Media Matters - Kondracke echoed Maureen Dowd "theory" that "Hillary's a vampire ... sucking the blood out of Barack Obama": "Summary: On Fox News, Morton M. Kondracke presented a 'theory' for why Sen. Hillary Clinton may be having a 'good time' on the campaign trail: '[S]omebody I know has a theory about this. Remember back when [Bill] Clinton was president of the United States, people said that he's really Satan because he walks through life and people collapse around him and go to jail and die, and all this kind of stuff? Well, this person says Hillary's a vampire. She's sucking the blood out of Barack Obama.' Kondracke did not name his 'theor[ist],' but the purported 'theory' has been publicly articulated before, by New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd..."

Uh. Takes on to know one.

A Good Question

Why Did Obama Do Worse in N.C. Than Virginia? - TalkLeft: The Politics Of Crime

"Obama won Virginia by 28 points and North Carolina by 14. What's different, given the similar voter demographics?

Using exit poll data here and here from the NY Times, TwinMom shows the percentages of white men, white women, black men and black women voters were very similar but the results were not:

• In Virginia, Obama won 67% of White Men. In North Carolina only 40%

• In Virginia, Obama won 45% of White Women , in North Carolina only 33%.

• In Virginia, Obama won 93% of Black Men and 85% of Black Women. In North Carolina, he won 91% of Black Men and Black Women..."

Looking Good For McBush

O'voters rejoice! Your truest wish is even closer than you think. Hominid Views » Blog Archive » Poll Analysis: Obama Down to 10% Against McCain

Nobody Loves Me

First nobody wanted my vote. Now this:

Crooks and Liars » FOX News’ Fred Barnes: Working Class = Lower Class: "...Hume opened the segment by asking Barnes to elaborate on his view that many of Hillary Clinton’s supporters are “downscale.” Barnes could hardly contain his laughter as he explained that the term “working class” is a euphemism because “it’s kind of mean to say ‘lower class.’ It’s as simple as that.” He explained that the “lower class” are people of low “social class.”"

And they say class warfare is dead.

Rush Dems

Obama Campaign Says Rush Affected Indiana Vote - TalkLeft: The Politics Of Crime: "...Via Fox: David Axlerod attributes Hillary's better numbers in Indiana to Rush Limbaugh.

It was an open primary. 11% of voters in the Democratic primary said they were Republicans -- half of those said they voted for Hillary. There's no support for the theory that this 5.5% listened to Rush. It's just as likely they are sick of Bush and don't like McCain and prefer Hillary to Obama. 5.5% voted for Obama. Maybe they listened to Rush but decided Obama is the more unelectable against McCain and wanted him to be the nominee to help McCain win in November. Six of one, half dozen of the other.

Obama urged Republicans and Independents to register as Dems and vote for him in earlier open caucuses and primaries. I guess what's good for the goose isn't good for the gander in Obama's world."

No Need For Old Voters

Well, I guess it's official. The Democrats don't want my support or my vote. Ok. I'll find somebody who does.

The Confluence: "Donna Brazile did an awful lot of eye-rolling last night. I caught her doing it on several occasions when Paul Begala pointed out the obvious. But it wasn’t Paul that made the outrageous statement of the night. It was Donna herself:

BRAZILE: Well, Lou, I have worked on a lot of Democratic campaigns, and I respect Paul. But, Paul, you’re looking at the old coalition. A new Democratic coalition is younger. It is more urban, as well as suburban, and we don’t have to just rely on white blue-collar voters and Hispanics. We need to look at the Democratic Party, expand the party, expand the base and not throw out the baby with the bathwater..."

Obama Wins NC, Clinton Wins IN

Google News

John and Elizabeth Can't Decide

CNN Political Ticker: All politics, all the time - Blogs from CNN.com: "(CNN) — Need more evidence John and Elizabeth Edwards are torn on who to endorse in the Democratic presidential election?

In an interview with People Magazine, their first joint interview since John Edwards bowed out of the presidential race in January, the Democratic power couple sound off on what they like — and dislike — about both remaining Democratic hopefuls..."

Sexist Gar-bage

Marsh has a post on the Clinton Nut Cracker and its assorted implications. (I do know some nuts I'd like to use it on.)

Democrat Taylor Marsh Broadcasts Live Talk Radio and Blogs Politics--"The Politcs of Sex"

Uh-Oh

Is This Legal? Obama Activity in Polling Place

The Villagers and Their Idiots

“Mitchellism” « The Confluence: "...Remember back in November and December of 2000? The media went all Chicken Little on us and told us the country would fall apart if Gore didn’t concede? And remember how the Weapons of Mass Destruction would rain down upon us in 45 minutes if we didn’t go into Iraq right now, RIGHT NOW, I SAY, and disarm Hussein? And how did both of those scenarios go? So, now, the media is starting to rev up the noise about how Clinton threatens the party and the country if she challenges the DNC at the convention (or before) on the resolution of the FL and MI delegations. I think Lincoln wisely remarked on fooling all of the people all of the time. There is a limit to how much of this stuff you can get away with and it has been reached. One of the most beneficial things that can come out of this protracted primary season is that we may finally be able to retire people like Andrea Mitchell, David Broder, Cokie Roberts and the other Villagers. Nobody’s listening to them anymore anyway."

Update: The Idiocy Continues (from Crooks and Liars): "Sex and Politics and Sex and The Villagers and Sex and….

A Newer Deal

I'm not a sophisticated investor (that takes money) but this makes sense to me.

The Case for a Newer Deal - New York Times

"PART of the New Deal was a new financial deal. The shameful shenanigans leading up to the 1929 stock market crash and the frightening wave of bank failures during the Depression led directly to the creation of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

As we emerge from this, the worst financial crisis since the 1930s, a New Financial Deal may follow. If so, what should some of the reforms be?

A warning to laissez-faire-minded readers: The following is mostly about the dreaded “R” word — regulation. But I’m afraid that we need more of that, starting in the mortgage market..."

Niching Bill

In Small Towns, Bill Clinton Finds A Campaign Niche - washingtonpost.com

"...Clinton had traveled here, to a dead-end street in a 22,000-person town that no other U.S. president had ever visited, to make the case for his wife, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. But first, as he stared out at the 300-plus people and their various pets lounging in the overgrown weeds of Williams's lawn, he felt it necessary to clarify something.

"They say Bill Clinton's been banished to the backwater, but that's not how it is," he said. "I'm from the backwater. I like it here."

After a series of awkward moments and costly missteps while campaigning for his wife, Clinton has finally discovered a role that suits him. He's become the campaign's self-proclaimed "ambassador to small-town America," traveling to places where the mere arrival of his motorcade signals a significant moment in local history, where his charm and affability carry substantial weight among voters..."

I think this is the primary reason the race in NC has tightened. The Clintons have really paid attention to small venues in NC, and while they may need see thousands every time, the ones they do see have telephones and they talk to other people all over the state and region. The web among small town Americans is as pervasive as the internet-- and a whole lot friendlier.

Four Dead in Ohio

Conspiracy Theory 2.0

Update from Alex Jones' Infowars: There's a war on for your mind!: DC Madam Predicted She Would Be Suicided

"Click here to listen to Palfrey clearly state that she would not commit suicide.

DC Madam Deborah Jeane Palfrey predicted she would be "suicided" on several occasions both recently and as far back as 17 years ago - comments that now appear ominous in light of the announcement that the former head of a Washington escort service allegedly killed herself today.

"If taken into custody, my physical safety and most probably my very life would be jeopardized," she wrote in August 1991 following an attempt to bring her to trial, "Rape, beating, maiming, disfigurement and more than likely murder disguised in the form of just another jailhouse accident or suicide would await me," said Palfrey in a handwritten letter to the judge accusing the San Diego police vice squad of having a vendetta against her..."

Local Congresscritter Goes Clinton

I'm sure he'll be broiled and probably have "Bush Dog!" sprayed figuratively all over by the O'Blogs.

SD Shuler To Follow Voters In His District (to Clinton) - TalkLeft: The Politics Of Crime

"Rep. Heath Shuler (D- NC) is expected to follow his district in choosing the Dem Presidential candidate he will support:

Shuler, a freshman congressman, is expected to announce Monday that he will pledge his support to whichever Democratic candidate wins his district in Tuesday’s primary. . . . Given the demographics of Shuler’s district, Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY) is predicted to win there on Tuesday..."

Another Outrage

VetVoice:: Contractors Still Electrocuting Troops

"The Pentagon has provided $30 billion in contracts to KBR during the Iraq War. Apparently that's just the Basic Troop Support Package, however, because it's not enough money to keep the contractor from electrocuting a dozen troops in showers and elsewhere throughout Iraq and Afghanistan.

If we want soldiers to be able to shower without the fear of death, perhaps KBR could offer us a Premium Package for another $20 billion or so, that could guarantee troops their safety when they try to do seemingly standard things: like cleaning up after all-night missions..."

Bad Politics

MyDD :: Texas Caucus Fraud (Updated). Another update here.

The Daily Flashback: Decider Edition

Legitimate questions of judgment, experience : NO QUARTER

"...The approach of tough diplomacy backed by the threat of military action was the correct one and it yielded exactly the desired results, a unanimously passed U.N. resolution and the capitulation of Saddam when he readmitted the inspectors.

The betrayal occurred not when the president was given the tools he needed to secure international support for inspections, but rather when Bush refused to allow the inspectors to complete their work and decided preemptively to invade, conquer and occupy Iraq.

That decision and power was his alone — not the Congress’ and certainly not Hillary Clinton’s. Obama is wrong to turn Bush’s war into Clinton’s responsibility. And Obama is dangerously na•ve in failing to understand the need in international crises to blend tough diplomacy with the other foreign policy tools at our disposal to achieve a strong national security posture..."

Close In Carolina

Suddenly, North Carolina Is Facing Tighter Race - New York Times

"RALEIGH, N.C. — Just days before the North Carolina primary, the Democratic presidential contest in this state is suddenly alive with a fresh air of competition, as Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton seeks to capitalize on a controversy that polls suggest has whittled away some of Senator Barack Obama’s support among white voters.

Not long ago, Mr. Obama was perceived to hold such an advantage that some Democrats here wondered whether Mrs. Clinton would bother to compete vigorously. But the candidates intensified their efforts in the final weekend — both appeared here on Friday evening — and Mr. Obama was eyeing a return on the eve of the election..."

Flowers For Thomas

Crooks and Liars » Send Flowers To Helen Thomas:

"I’m amazed no one has thought of this before. Micah Fitch has created Helen Thomas Deserves Some Flowers to thank the only White House Press Corps member not afraid to ask the tough questions and confront the White House about torture.

In fact, along with all the plaudits that she deserves, I think that she also deserves a “Letter to the Editor” from all of us to our local papers asking WHY is she the ONLY journalist asking the question. Please consider it, for there is no better way to show your support."

Bill and the Whippets

The Clinton Campaign — it never stops « The Confluence: "I've been poking around Google News looking for non-AP news and I found this charming story from something called Bloomberg.com:

Bill Clinton unleashed: When the former president and his Secret Service detail stopped for the night at the Valley River Inn in Eugene, Oregon, he found himself amid about 500 whippet fanciers and their dogs.

Rather than head to his room, Clinton held an impromptu two- hour town hall-style meeting. He petted the dogs and mugged for photos with canines and owners in town for the American Whippet Club’s 22nd National Specialty Show.

“He just talked to us and talked to us and talked to us, and he was reluctant to leave,” said whippet owner Karen Lee, 46, of Lincoln University, Pennsylvania. Clinton finally headed upstairs at about 1 a.m.

So, the President is doing 7 or more events in a day. Then he gets to his hotel and instead of collapsing in an exhausted heap — he spends two hours talking policy and dogs with the hotel guests..."

UnDissing Edwards

Democrat Taylor Marsh Broadcasts Live Talk Radio and Blogs Politics: "...John Edwards, the other strong progressive in the race, deserved a lot more support from people who didn't choose Clinton. In the end we should be hashing it out between Clinton and Edwards, because Obama is just not in their class on policy."

Amen.

Shafting The Troops, Part ?

God, I've used this headline so much I have no idea what "part" it actually is, and that speaks mountains, too. What is going to take for this country to do the right thing by its veterans? I'm frustrated and angry about this on-going, never-ending, raging incompetence in government and its enablers in the media and in the public. Enough! Demand that Congress and the President do the right thing. Fund the veterans!



Audit: Vets with brain injury still not getting proper care - Yahoo! News

WASHINGTON - Many Iraq war veterans with traumatic brain injury are not getting adequate health care and job assistance for their long-term recovery despite years of government pledges to do so, Veterans Affairs Department investigators say.

"Significant needs remain unmet," according to the report released Thursday by the VA's inspector general. It is the first to examine the Bush administration's long-term efforts in supporting veterans with traumatic brain injury, a leading problem among soldiers struck by roadside bombs that often causes lasting emotional and behavioral difficulties....

The Cooling of Hades

The Confluence-- "It's 32.1 Degrees In Hell" : "...We have been watching the world gradually turn upside down over the last few months. Things and people we once trusted and believed in have turned on us. People we once were suspicious of seem reasonable. Every day brings a new level of surreality and sometimes it is hard to keep your bearings. I mentioned to someone a couple months back that its like Oedipus in real life. Imagine a witch or a shaman came to you six months ago and told you that you would be watching Fox news to escape the bias of MSNBC. I never would have believed it. I would have laughed in the face of destiny. And now here I am slowly freezing as we get closer and closer to 32 degrees in Hell."

Mathing The Count

Anglachel's Journal: "...One of the questions Hillary answered in the Indianapolis Star interview was a math question, and she gave it a proper algebraic answer. (Our girl’s good with numbers, after all.) When asked about Obama’s allegedly insurmountable pledged delegate count lead, Hillary responded in two ways: first that she is ahead in popular vote count because she won Florida and Michigan and, second, that voters regarded vote counts as the basis of legitimacy, and the remaining primary states darn well wanted to have their votes counted. She emphasized the legitimacy of the Florida vote in particular and then threw down the political math challenge to the Obamacans. Are you really going to try to pick the nominee without counting Florida and Michigan? How do you think you can get the necessary Electoral College votes from them in November if you don’t allow them their primary votes now?..."

Candles

Yep. It's been that long.

Update: Media Matters has a retrospective post on the media coverage of this event. Don't go read it if your stomach is tender-- it might make you puke. If you have a vague memory of how fawning sucky awful the MSM was during this, trust me, your memory is foggy. The coverage was beyond mere sucking and blowing. Anyway. The link is here.

The Daily Flashback: Libby Wilson Edition

LIBBY AND LIBERATION - OregonLive.com: "For anyone who missed the news from 2003 to 2006 -- and trust me, you were probably better off -- Wilson, a high-ranking career diplomat, was sent to the African country of Niger to check out reports that Saddam Hussein had tried to acquire uranium there for his nuclear program. After the invasion, when it became clear that Saddam didn't, um, have a nuclear program, Wilson wrote an op-ed for The New York Times arguing that there was no way Saddam could have gotten uranium from Niger.

And then the roof fell in.

Conservative columnists, The Wall Street Journal editorial page and Fox News joined in a full-throated baying denunciation, including the revelation that Wilson's wife was an undercover CIA agent, and charging that she had arranged to have him sent to Niger as a personal boondoggle. By the time it was all over, Wilson and Plame had been vilified (and lionized), the White House declared that anyone leaking a CIA agent's identity would certainly be fired, major national reporters had been subpoenaed and a New York Times reporter had been jailed for refusing to testify -- and Scooter Libby, Vice President Dick Cheney's chief of staff, had been convicted of four counts of obstruction of justice and lying to investigators.

Deeply moved by it all, President Bush commuted Libby's sentence..."

...and a traitor walked free with a presidential pardon.

Conspiracy Theory 1.0

D.C. Madam commits suicide in Tarpon Springs: "Deborah Jeane Palfrey, better known as the 'D.C. Madam,' hanged herself in a storage shed next to her mother's Tarpon Springs home, police said Thursday.

Tarpon Springs detectives said handwritten notes were found that describe the victim's intention to take her life, and foul play does not appear to be involved..."

Dropping Out Is Hard To Do

The Left Coaster: Sen. Clinton On the Stump in IN and NC

...

Or Jerry Brown in 1992? He continued his campaign against Bill Clinton through June despite the fact he tallied fewer than 600 delegates. (By contrast, Hillary Clinton has won approximately 1,600 delegates so far.) Brown's attacks at the time were far more personal and bruising than anything we've seen this cycle. As The New York Times reported on June 2, 1992, Brown "put his party on notice that he intends to carry his politics-is-corrupt, Clinton-is-unelectable message to the Democratic National Convention in New York in July, and beyond." Brown also told the Times that voting for Clinton was like buying a ticket on the Titanic.

At the time, Clinton was actually polling in third place nationally, behind President George H.W. Bush and independent candidate Ross Perot, so why wasn't the press in a frenzy demanding that Brown drop out of the race because he was hurting his party's chances in November?

Boehlert has a lot more, including more historical data from past elections. As you read it, visualize all the downright depraved people in the media and blogosphere who have been part of the extended character assassination campaign against Sen. Clinton (by the way, she can use help in IN and NC), recall The Clinton Rules and thank your stars that the Democratic party has an extraordinarily resilient fighter running for President who has defied so much of the fake conventional wisdom in D.C., and the unrelenting fakery and trashing of the traditional media and the fake "progressive" bloggers who co-opted the media. (Don't miss this)...