In Summary

I hate it when I'm away from my computer all day and this is a week of exactly that. So, in summary, let me just say that today's best news comes from the FiveThirtyEight polling site.

Latest Polls and Trouble for Rethugs

Thanks, Jim for Monday's reporting from Gallup.

Obama 50 McCain 42

And lifted shamelessly from ThePoliticalCarnival (as I race out the door)
The latest Democracy Corps survey of the competitive battleground House districts "reveals an intensely angry electorate, even more sour on Republicans who have not distanced themselves enough from Bush and are now at risk even at the edge of the current map of competitive congressional seats."

"Democratic candidates are now ahead by 4 points in the 40 most vulnerable Republican seats, even in the bottom tier. A near majority of 48% in these Republican seats say they 'can't vote to re-elect' their Republican incumbent, while Democrats are ahead in the open seats."

AND this...
"The CIA's former top administrator pleaded guilty today to steering agency contracts to a defense contractor and concealing their relationship, making Kyle "Dusty" Foggo the highest-ranking member of a federal intelligence or law enforcement agency to be convicted of a crime..."

On a Clear Day...

Sarah sees Alaska!

How Did I Miss This?

My last post about Friday's debate.


GObama!

Smokin' Joe

In front of an estimated 35,000 in Detroit Joe Biden takes on John McCain on everything from foreign policy to the economy. Doin' what a VP candidate is supposed to do. Smokin'!

Who's Demonstrating Leadership?

McShame whose campaign spokesperson is blaming or Obama who, today, personally called for calm and resolve in working through the financial crisis. I agree with TPM.





Here's the statement from the Obama campaign:
This is a moment of national crisis, and today’s inaction in Congress as well as the angry and hyper-partisan statement released by the McCain campaign are exactly why the American people are disgusted with Washington. Now is the time for Democrats and Republicans to join together and act in a way that prevents an economic catastrophe. Every American should be outraged that an era of greed and irresponsibility on Wall Street and Washington has led us to this point, but now that we are here, the stability of our entire economy depends on us taking immediate action to ease this crisis.
Night and Day!!

McChange

My friend Jim created this slideshow. Sorry it doesn't fit, you can view the whole thing here:

Poor Pitiful Palin

Love, Love, Love this photo!

There's apparently some McShame campaign concern about the media being "too hard" on Palin and suggestions that they should go easier on her...be more deferential. Well, I think they're being too soft. But Gottalaff's father-in-law (who used to write for Alan King, Milton Berle and Jonathan Winters, just to name a few. And all those Dean Martin Roasts, too: Don Rickles, Red Buttons, Phyllis Diller, Sammy Davis, Jr., etc) has once again spoofed her among his other jokes. From ThePoliticalCarnival

"Vice Presidential nominee, SARAH PALIN's address to the United Nations was canceled, which was a shame. She was really ready to speak. She says she knows all about the UN because she can see the building from her hotel room."

DNC ad on Gambling w/McCain

Obama/Biden 08

Obama Endorsed

Thousands hear Barack and Joe in Detroit. Crowds lookin' pretty impressive. View news clip here.

Breaking a long string of republican endorsements, The Record is endorsing Obama this year.

About Obama, they write

"Obama can inspire, and our nation desperately needs an inspirational leader. And he does not carry the deep scars of Vietnam, as do many of McCain's generation. He offers hope. A new way of doing business. And a belief that our system of government can be made to work. He's the clear choice."

About McShame and Slick they write:

"mccain's selection of Palin as a running mate was appalling. The first-term governor is clearly not experienced enough to serve as vice president or president if required. Her lack of knowledge is being covered up by keeping her away from questioning reporters and doing interviews only with those considered friendly to her views."

This Photo of Barack Deserves its own Post

"After keeping his supporters waiting for nearly an hour, Mr. Obama went forward with his speech as a crowd estimated by campus officials at 26,000 grew soggy."

photo by Doug Mills/The New York Times

Additional coverage on HuffPost

SlickS & MiteyMc Spark Creativity

Check out the signs from what looks like thousand or more people who attended the anti-Palin rally in Alaska. My fave "so McCain says, sure I'd like to try para-sailin'"

AND listen to the soundtracks that accompany the anti-rally youtube videos here - the top is a GREAT original. Good for Shannyn Moore - painting Alaska blue one stroke at a time!

Check out Tina Fey playing Slick, yet again.

Watching the debate, I found McShame's smirky little comment about being a "betting man" a little gratuitous...and couldn't figure out where it came from. Well apparently he is quite a gambler - as his gambling-related lobbyists and other activities demonstrate. From the NY Times

USAToday/Gallup give Obama the win.

YOU GO GIRLS...Michelle and Jill


Happy Obama/Biden photo

More laughs. I have to ask myself is the other side this creative? Great YouTube Debate Highlights in Song & Dance



Lyrics as best as I can capture them.
McCain: Fundamental differences that Senator Obama and I have.

Lehrer: Sen. Obama: two minutes.

Obama (Michael Gregory): Freedom and justice - and liberty. I'm gonna lower the working class taxes - and make tastier food. John McCain's supports the Hurricanes. But I voted against him. John McCain voted to ruin your life, eight years. Gotta give it to him, the man's got experience.

CHORUS: You know. This time we won't take more of the same. It's time for a change. Yeah.
You're a wolf in sheep's clothing. Dick Cheney in a skirt. Pretendin' you don't know. You're running from your shadow. I'm gonna use a better military strategy, and take care of our soldiers. I'm gonna go to Afghanistan myself and brush the dirt of these shoulders.

John McCain thought the war was a great idea. He said it would be easy. Now we're all spread thin, and don't have what we need to build up in Afghanistan.

We've got Wall Street scrambling, Greenspan gasping and you say we're doing just fine. But you can't just sprinkle sugar on a piece of sh*t and convince people that it tastes good. Oh, yeah.

McShame: Um we republicans came to power to change government and government changed us.

Reprise of chorus

Lehrer: Respond directly to him, ah Sen. Obama about that.

GObama 2

GObama

Much Ado about Sarah

Via ThePoliticalCarnival...a link to American Conservative article about repub fears about Palin's debate performance.

"I've been swamped with other stuff, but just for the record: I thought Palin was dreadful. She obviously didn't have the reaction to the Charlie Gibson interview that I had hoped. She had better be better prepared for next week or she risks damaging her political brand forevermore."

--Rick Lowry, National Review Online

WOW...and from FOX (FIXED?) News

And, from CNN via HuffPo:
Who Did the Best Job In the Debate?

Obama 51%
McCain 38%

Who Would Better Handle Economy?
Obama 58%
McCain 37%

Who Would Better Handle Iraq?
Obama 52%
McCain 47%

GObama!

GOP Strategist: Palin's No Hillary

Summary from HuffPost:

"A growing number of Republicans are expressing concern about Sarah Palin's uneven -- and sometimes downright awkward -- performances in her limited media appearances.

Conservative columnists Kathleen Parker, a former Palin supporter, says the vice presidential nominee should step aside. Kathryn Jean Lopez, writing on the conservative National Review, says "that's not a crazy suggestion" and that "something's gotta change."

Tony Fabrizio, a GOP strategist, says Palin's recent CBS appearance isn't disqualifying but is certainly alarming. "You can't continue to have interviews like that and not take on water."

"I have not been blown away by the interviews from her, but at the same time I haven't come away from them thinking she doesn't know s--t," said Chris Lacivita, a GOP strategist. "But she ain't Dick Cheney, nor Joe Biden and definitely not Hillary Clinton."

About the debate...I want to say Obama won, and he did a great job. On the other hand I wanted to yell at him every time he acknowledged agreement with McCain. It was respectful, but a poor tactic. At the same time, McCain's blatant and insulting disdain for Barack was the perfect metaphor for the self-righteous right. He is no maverick. He's a wolf in sheep's clothing. Don't be fooled people - Obama/Biden 08

Jon Stewart is Priceless!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/09/26/jon-stewart-bush-bailout_n_129588.html

SlickS Should Bow Out...and should McShame

It isn't my idea. It's the call from conservative columnist Kathleen Parker. Here's a bit:
"Palin's recent interviews with Charles Gibson, Sean Hannity, and now Katie Couric have all revealed an attractive, earnest, confident candidate. Who Is Clearly Out Of Her League."

McCain's campaign claims Debate Win at 11:00AM Friday morning. Oops! Doesn't the debate start at 9:00EST tonight?
11:00 AM - McCain's Already Won The Debate? That's what his website says.

McCain to the rescue??? Not even fellow repugs agree:

9:30 AM - Huckabee Says McCain Making A Mistake: McCain's primary challenger says his former rival made a "huge mistake" by even considering skipping the debate.

Huckabee said he still backs McCain's candidacy, but said the Arizona senator should not have put his campaign on hold to deal with the financial crisis on Wall Street. He said a president must be prepared to "deal with the unexpected."

Tonight Obama will smoke McShame

I Can't Stand It...

Yesterday new reports of Obama moving ahead in the polls, SlickSarah once again looks like an idiot in an interview, the repug campaign wants to postpone the VP debate, too and on the HuffPost article about McShame's "suspension of his campaign" there were over 10,000 comments before they reset the number back to 4,000. And truly, the idiotic decision - oops, I mean campaign stunt - warrants the outrage that was reflected. But rather than repeat some of those comments (many priceless), here's David Letterman on the issue:

SlickSara's Roots, McSham Needs Rest?

Check out this HuffPost article about the church from whence SS recently sprung. It's downright frightening.

UPDATE

"Here is a transcript of that prayer for Sarah by Rev. Muthie
http://irregulartimes.com/index.php/archives/2008/09/23/transcript-of-thomas-muthees-sermon-endorsing-sarah-palin/
They are praying that in addition to church the believers are to "infiltrate" areas of economic control, politics, education, media and government. Infiltrated by people "that are born again, spirit-filled, tongue-talking, devil-casting". That's what he prayed while laying hands on Sarah."

And...I can't even bring myself to write about Gramm-Pa McShame's ploy to suspend his campaign and return to Washington to work on the economy (as if he knows anything about it!). Obama certainly looks more presidential on this one. So...the repug's candidate can't multi-task?? Pathetic.

UPDATE
Ole Miss (site of the Friday debate) says it will be "financially devastating" to cancel the debate...so McSham wants to fix the economy and bankrupt Ole Mis??

UPDATE
I can't even comment. This is priceless. McSham debated during the debate to deregulate the financial industry! Another great piece of work by HuffPost.

More Slime...Fake McShame Letters..and GOOD News

McCain campaign hires ghostwriters to create fake letters to the editor - focus on touting Palin as the VP choice. Reported by Salon.com.

ABC/WashPost poll shows Obama strongly ahead of repubs and having regained ground with white women lost after Hillary. Restores my faith in my sisters. YAY!! I ask, like some of the commentators, who are the 17% that think the country is moving in the right direction and what are they smoking?

Obama/Biden 08

More Slime..."Egregious"

From FactCheck.org:
"A McCain-Palin ad says that Obama was "born of the corrupt Chicago political machine" and implies that the candidate himself is corrupt by association with four local political figures. But the ad's implication and many of its supporting details are false. In fact, this is a particularly egregious example of ricochet sliming:"

To be fair, FactCheck has countered some of the Obama/Biden claims, but I haven't see the word "egregious" anywhere.

Obama/Biden 08

McCain Camp "Sexist"?

Campbell Brown of CNN calls the McCain camp's cloistering of Palin "sexist". Frankly, I think their actions are not driven by sexism, but by abject terror about what she might say and how she will humiliate herself and McShame...BUT Brown's "sexist" construct sure makes it tough for the repubs to attack the media for being "mean" to poor Palin, so it is a stroke of genius (even her statement that SlickSarah is "competent" though wrong is perfect in this context). Here's what she said (lifted, with gratitude, from the wonderful folks at ThePoliticalCarnival).

"Tonight I call on the McCain campaign to stop treating Sarah Palin like she is a delicate flower that will wilt at any moment," said Brown. "This woman is from Alaska from crying out loud. She is strong. She is tough. She is competent. And you claim she is ready to be one heart beat away form the presidency. If that is the case, then end this chauvinistic treatment of her now. Allow her to show her stuff. Allow her to face down those pesky reporters... Let her have a real news conference with real questions. By treating Sarah Palin different from the other candidates in this race, you are not showing her the respect she deserves. Free Sarah Palin. Free her from the chauvinistic chain you are binding her with. Sexism in this campaign must come to an end. Sarah Palin has just as much a right to be a real candidate in this race as the men do. So let her act like one."

And the lies (or ignorance??) just keep piling on. From HuffPost this morning...
"Two reports tonight, one from the New York Times, and the other from Newsweek, contradict John McCain's statement this week that his campaign manager Rick Davis had no involvement with mortgage giant Freddie Mac for the last several years."

Obama/Biden 08

Got to Laugh...

"We do not support government bailouts of private institutions. Government interference in the markets exacerbates problems in the marketplace and causes the free market to take longer to correct itself."

-- The 2008 Republican Party Platform, adopted earlier this month.

Making History Again

Palin is making history again. This time in a very, very, very bad way. The networks and news agencies are refusing to be manipulated into her UN photo op without also being able to have an editorial presence. I think it's the Washington Post that has been logging the number of days that McShame and Slick Sarah have gone without talking to reporters on the campaign trail. It's shameful. Well, I guess that's what you have to do if you're doddering and your running mate is a trophy candidate. Story from Huff Post.

Also, her unfavorables are throwing the polls toward Obama in Colorado and other places. PHEW, restores my faith in Americans.

On a lighter note. I love Gottalaff who posts regularly at ThePoliticalCarnival blog. Her father in law is a comedy writer. You'll LOVE these jokes. Here's one I particularly liked:
Stock prices are down, major companies are being bailed out, and SARAH PALIN is just the lady we need to take care of things in this Bear market. She'll shoot it and skin it. And in true vice presidential fashion, she'll probably shoot it in the face.

I'm so furious about the Bush shock and awe treatment of the malfeasance in the financial industry I could spit. The root cause is the fact that the middle class is earning less and less relative to the cost of living and they're balking at helping us while placing a trillion dollar loan on our shoulders. And, oh by the way, the British press reports that Lehman moved $84 billion into an account for executive bonuses that apparently will be given out. Criminal!!

And, yes, I know that Joe has been off message...

GObama!

Oops, Palin...

Here's Ann Telnaes' latest commentoon about Palin. It's, as always, great. How refreshing to have a woman political cartoonist.

Here's what happens when you select an unqualified VP candidate (from Politico):
"John McCain’s campaign is scrapping, rescheduling or offering surrogates for nearly every one of the fundraisers Sarah Palin was to hold this month, instead having her campaign jointly with McCain, prepare for her sole debate next month and get some foreign policy exposure...Palin was to have headlined nine fundraisers across five states by now...She’s attended just one to date"

Obama/Biden '08

Campaign Faux Pas and Bad News for Repubs

Palin only knows about Russia "metaphorically" speaking. PoliticalCarnival

If it's Monday this must be Grand Rapids or is it Cedar Rapids? Palin doesn't even know where she is - in spite of being able to see Russia from her home state. Britain's Guardian

George Will (yes, the conservative George Will) goes off McCain. If you read his Wash Post article, you'll read words like furious, flustered rookie, shallow and worse. Here's a taste:

"It is arguable that, because of his inexperience, Obama is not ready for the presidency. It is arguable that McCain, because of his boiling moralism and bottomless reservoir of certitudes, is not suited to the presidency. Unreadiness can be corrected, although perhaps at great cost, by experience. Can a dismaying temperament be fixed?"

McCain's Mangled Message (title lifted shamelessly from HuffPost): ABC Article

GObama!

Restoring My Faith...

...in my fellow Americans. Over the weekend I read about a focus group of Florida voters the majority of which have been swayed to vote for Obama because of McCain's choice of Palin.

Now, today, similar good judgment shown in New Mexico:
"Sarah Palin is not playing well with New Mexico voters. 46% say her selection made them less likely to vote for John McCain, compared to 38% who say it made them more likely to do so. Among independents her disapproval rating is 47%, and Obama has a 51-35 advantage with that group."

A new Public Policy Polling survey in New Mexico shows Sen. Barack Obama with a double-digit lead over Sen. John McCain, 53% to 42%."

Last night I was one of many making 490,000 calls for MoveOn to get members to the Obama campaign office in Lafayette, Indiana. They blew past their goal of 200,000 calls. It was a blast. Check out MoveOn or the Obama sight's Neighbor-to-Neighbor action resource.

GObama!

For McCain? You'd Think...

From Bloomberg.com
Praise for Obama and this surprising information:

"Tellingly, three former SEC chairmen, a Democrat, Arthur Levitt, and two Republicans, David Ruder and Bill Donaldson, have endorsed Obama. Levitt is a board member of Bloomberg LP, the parent company of Bloomberg News.

Donaldson, who was tapped by Bush to head the SEC, says Obama called him last year about the financial-regulatory problems. He has never heard from McCain.

``Obama has been talking about the need for better financial regulation well before this crisis hit and has done some real thinking about it,'' says Donaldson, a lifelong Republican. ``McCain comes across as someone who suddenly realized changes have to be made.'"

Bailout Doesn't Smell Right

Main Street sounds off on Wall Street bailout. Wash Post

New Obama/Biden ad GOBama!

Adolescents at Play

Yesterday it hit me why the repubs and this bailout are so offensive. They remind me of adolescent boys - "you can't tell me what to do!...oh, Dad, I wrecked the car now you have to pay to get it fixed."

On the "you can't tell me what to do front, this post via the NYTimes
Senator John McCain’s campaign manager was paid more than $30,000 a month for five years as president of an advocacy group set up by the mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to defend them against stricter regulations, current and former officials say....The value that he brought to the relationship was the closeness to Senator McCain and the possibility that Senator McCain was going to run for president again,” said Robert McCarson, a former spokesman for Fannie Mae..."

And, we have only to look at China to see what "less regulation" gets us - 13,000 sick babies because of melamine in their formula, lead paint on children's toys and tainted prescriptions. Less regulation, my @$$.

Well at least the Dems are developing some backbone about it. Nancy Pelosi:
“We will not simply hand over a $700 billion blank check to Wall Street and hope for a better outcome. Democrats will act responsibly to insulate Main Street from Wall Street."

I love Warren Buffet (who, not long ago, chided the repubs because he pays lower taxes than his secretary)! Read his 2003 warning about this collapse.

George Will (really? George Will, the conservative??) said yesterday that McCain looked "unpresidential" last week. On the other hand, Obama was comfortable, conversant and presidential. The result: "Tellingly, three former SEC chairmen, a Democrat, Arthur Levitt, and two Republicans, David Ruder and Bill Donaldson, have endorsed Obama."

By the way, shouldn't we be going after the Wall St high rollers' assets to defray the cost of the bailout?

And, did anyone else notice the difference between McCain's comments and Obama's on 60 Minutes last night? McCain's actions as president would be to take the political office out of the White House (commendable, but pretty irrelevant at the moment). Obama laid out clear actions on the national and international stage. Take your pick of Google links about the interviews.

Gobama!!

Congressional Majority

I've shamelessly lifted this from a comment by joshuahmcdonald on HuffPost

In addition to the shared urgency of purpose in electing Barack Obama as President we must elect a 60-40 Democratic Senate majority.

As our financial institutions crumble around us, the Bush Administration, managed by the most extreme adherents of Market Fundamentalism since Hoover, has proposed a bailout amounting to nearly $1 Trillion in institutionalized Socialism. Having destroyed the foundation of our economy this Administration is now intent on billing the American taxpayer.

The irony is that over the last 2 Senate sessions the minority Republicans have set records in the number of partisan filibusters blocking much needed legislation...including financial regulation which may have mitigated our current economic crisis. Over 130 filibusters in 2 years!

A 60-40 majority in the Senate allows the Democrats to legally quash obstructionist filibusters and get our representatives back to work solving the extremely serious problems currently facing our nation.

I urge you to add your voice and your financial contributions to the following Senate campaigns where strong Democrats are facing vulnerable Republicans:
- Alaska: Mark Begich (http://www.begich.com)
- Colorado: Mark Udall (http://www.markudall.com)
- Idaho: Larry LaRocco (http://www.laroccoforsenate.com)
- Louisiana: Mary Landrieu (http://www.marylandrieu.com)
- Minnesota: Al Franken (http://www.alfranken.com)
- Mississippi: Ronnie Musgrove (http://musgroveforsenate.net)
- Nebraska: Scott Kleeb (http://www.scottkleeb.com)
- New Hampshire: Jeanne Shaheen (http://www.jeanneshaheen.org)
- New Mexico: Tom Udall (http://www.tomudall.com)
- North Carolina: Kay Hagan (http://www.kayhagan.com)
- Oregon: Jeff Merkley (http://www.jeffmerkley.com)

OUCH! McCain's Own Words Bit Him Again

Flip Flop - And Payoff

I loved when at the DNC "candidate" McCain was compared with "Senator" McCain (I can't remember whose speech it was - need more blueberries). Anyway, the CarpetbaggerReport lists 76 issues on which McCain has flipped his positions. They are categorized into areas including:

• National Security
• Foreign Policy
• Domestic Policy
  
• and more.

I sure hope the Obama/Biden campaign will find this website for the inevitable and stale flip-flop attack that is bound to come from the repubs. Seventy six!! Scary.

Now, take a look at this analysis of the proposed bailout of the economy. Here's an excerpt:

• No one who foresaw the crisis, such as Krugman or Stiglitz, is involved in making the plan to fix it.

• The man overseeing the bailout is the ex-CEO of Goldman Sachs, a Wall Street Company. He helped cause the crisis.
• Paulson helped obtain the SEC exemption which allowed brokerages to increase leverage to 60:1 from 12:1.

Folks we really have to get active! Work for Obama/Biden this week.
www.barackobama.com

Current Polls - Great News

Couldn't help but lift this photo from The Political Carnival (who had lifted it from another site).


Hope you'll check my earlier post today (great stuff there), but the latest polls warrants its own post. Check out Obama vs McCain on this poll site!

Lookin' good for Barack and Joe.

Thank You Keith!

I couldn't stand keeping my attention focused on lies Palin's, McCain's, the campaign's (see several posts back), but I am so glad that Keith Olbermann is keeping track of Palin's and is turning the karma around.


In the spirit of turning a sow's ear into a silk purse (hope you like the pig metaphor)...

By now you probably know that Palin made rape victims pay for their own forensic exams. Instead of complaining about her, make a donation to Planned Parenthood IN HER NAME! Great idea...I'm off to the Planned Parenthood site armed with the address for the Palin's home. You can read about the idea here (be sure to go to the bottom of the page).

How can they get away with this from the New York Times?
At the insistence of the McCain campaign, the Oct. 2 debate between the Republican nominee for vice president, Gov. Sarah Palin, and her Democratic rival, Senator Joseph R. Biden Jr., will have shorter question-and-answer segments than those for the presidential nominees, the advisers said. There will also be much less opportunity for free-wheeling, direct exchanges between the running mates.

Go Joe! Go Barack!

Back to Deadly Serious

Great New Ad on Equal Pay

OUCH!

Here’s what McCain has to say about the wonders of market-based health reform:

Opening up the health insurance market to more vigorous nationwide competition, as we have done over the last decade in banking, would provide more choices of innovative products less burdened by the worst excesses of state-based regulation. (emphasis added

All Laughs, All the Time (Well at Least Today)

Jon Stewart is hysterical!! I couldn't figure out how to embed the link so click here.


CNN Cafferty File



One great parody of Palin (I had tears running down my face!). To see more, read brief commentary and interview with comedienne Sara Benincasa, go here.




Work for Obama this weekend!

What I'm Seeing Tonight

"Lies, lies, everywhere are lies" FactCheck.org slams McCain for another ad that lies about Obama's tax proposals.
"In what has become an ongoing theme, the McCain-Palin campaign has released yet another ad that makes false claims about Barack Obama's tax plan."

Very cool polling site shows Obama has regained the lead: http://www.fivethirtyeight.com/

Questions about McCain's fitness. It began last week with a group of docs requesting full release of his medical records and continues in light of his daily flips on issues. What else could he do when the fundamentals (pun intended) of the Republican platform (trickle-down economics and free markets) have brought us to this financial crisis.

Check out the REAL McCain. These 5 videos are something!

The absolute BEST overall assessment of the pro-Palin propaganda makes for a VERY funny take on all the praise the repubs are heaping on Palin. Watch out Joe!

More direct talk from Barack...




...and Joe

"I’ve done a lot of press, I’ve done, I don’t know, I was told I did 68, 70 press conferences, and the person says, "What do you think about Sarah Palin?" I said, “When she does three, I’ll let you know." I don’t know! I don’t have any idea! I don’t know! I don’t know!" Biden said as the crowd rose to their feet.

"You know, I mean, look, and it’s not, look guys, it’s not just Sarah Palin," he continued. "When’s the last time John, when’s the last time John’s had a press conference? I’m serious.”

Biden then turned to Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland, who introduced him.

"Ted, you and I know, when an elected official stops having press conferences, it ain’t because he’s found a way to communicate," Biden said. "It’s because he doesn’t want to communicate. Look folks, I mean, I, I, it’s just, if I sound angry it’s because I am angry. I mean, it’s like I don’t get it, I don’t get it!”

Hagel: Palin Has NO Foreign Policy Credentials

BREAKING NEWS

"Sen. Chuck Hagel of Nebraska on Wednesday became the nation's most prominent Republican officeholder to publicly question whether Sarah Palin has the experience to serve as president.

"She doesn't have any foreign policy credentials," Hagel said in an interview. "You get a passport for the first time in your life last year? I mean, I don't know what you can say. You can't say anything."

... Palin has cited the proximity of Alaska to Russia as evidence of her international experience.

Hagel scoffed at that notion.

"I think they ought to be just honest about it and stop the nonsense about, 'I look out my window and I see Russia and so therefore I know something about Russia,'" he said. "That kind of thing is insulting to the American people."

Read the whole story.

Obama/Biden '08

The Non-Answer Answers

I've been writing to the media about what I consider misguided attempts at "fair and balanced" coverage. For example, after the Obama campaign released an ad pointing to McCain's career-long votes against equal pay, the media repeated the campaign's allegation that women in McC's senate office make more than those in Obama's. To me, an accurate media portrayal would be: when asked about the ad, the McC campaign had no facts to rebut it.

Here's another example of a non-answer, answer from the McC/SP "town hall" yesterday (which, unlike former meetings only permitted pre-ticketed supporters to attend). As you read, please note these things.

1. Palin never responded to the questions about "specific skills".
2. Palin never answered the implied question about foreign policy experience.
3. McCain had to get her back to her scripted talking points about energy = foreign policy and a son heading to Iraq = foreign policy experience. (Boy am I glad he didn't repeat the "we can see Alaska" line.
4. AND, drum roll, please - don't we women rail agains the sexism of men having to remake our points for us. Oh, John, you just don't get women!
   

But one woman challenged Palin on her qualifications.

“Gov. Palin, there has been quite a bit of discussion about your perceived lack of foreign policy experience, and I want to give you your chance,” the questioner said. “If you could please respond to that criticism and give us specific skills that you think you have to bring to the White House to rebut that or mitigate that concern.”

Palin replied at first by saying that opponents look for things to criticize her about because she is a “Washington outsider.” As for her credentials, she did not offer anything specific but asserted she will be prepared for the job by the time she assumes it — suggesting, perhaps, that the four months between now and then will add to her knowledge.

“As for foreign policy, you know I think that I am prepared and I know that on Jan. 20, if we are so blessed as to be sworn into office as your president and vice president, certainly we’ll be ready. I’ll be ready. I have that confidence. I have that readiness.”

McCain jumped in after that to tout her experience with energy issues, saying that dependence on foreign oil is one of the greatest threats to U.S. national security. He also suggested she was prepared because her son is headed off to serve in Iraq." SOURCE: the conservative WSJ

I don't watch TV, so I don't know how the MSM is covering the dissembling, but the blogsphere is ripping into the repubs as are some noted conservatives.

Obama/Biden '08

Corporate Socialism and Obama's Wit

When the repubs bail out the financial industry (which is probably necessary), borrow from China to:

• line the pockets of Halliburton and rebuild Iraq,
  
• funnel money into the military/industrial complex or
  
• subsidize the oil industry it's a good use of taxpayer money.
  

BUT when the Obama campaign talks about investing in infrastructure, alternative energy innovation, education, and providing healthcare to most of the citizens - the repubs claim that the taxpayer will face higher taxes to pay for this (a distortion of Obama's plan). I don't know about you, but I'd rather invest my tax dollars in this country and in sectors that will create jobs and wean us from oil rather than invest them in bailouts (also called corporate socialism).

ON a HAPPIER NOTE
Barack has a great sense of humor.

WATCH!

READ!

Women for Obama/Biden has been very active this week. Congressional endorsements, NOW endorsement, Joe and Hillary webcast. Makes me happy.

Get involved! Take action.

To Other Hillary Supporters...

I invite you to watch her in a discussion on women's issues with Joe Biden. See it here. (30 min)



I'm so glad Bush never privatized social security. So are Barack and Joe...New ad.

Duh..."fully informed..." Did you know about Troopergate? Did you know about her request for earmarks? What else did you not know about Palin, John?



Pretty good debunking of McCain campaign by CNN

Man Oh Man! Tell it Like it Is, Carly

I have admired Carly Fiorina for years and tout her book in my leadership training all the time. So, I was delighted when, yesterday Carly Fiorina - in a rare display of truth from the McCain campaign - said that Palin couldn't run a large corporation. WATCH here.

Now granted, the US government isn't a large corporation, but (if I recall correctly) its budget is about 3 (or is it 30?) times what HP's was when Carly left.

...as so happens with McCain and his surrogates, she later re-explained herself later and said that neither could McCain, Obama or Biden. I don't know...Obama has a vision, he knows how to engage the greatness in others and he's incredibly smart.

But, the commentaries I like best are from the alleged driver of the Straight Talk express. If you want to laugh before you continue today's work for Obama/Biden, take a peek.

UPDATE ON CARLY: Truth-telling gets her punished "Carly will now disappear," this source said. "Senator McCain was furious." Her previously booked interviews have been cancelled. Read the story here with link to CNN story.

You Go Joe! and Validation from Conservatives

Watch a worthy VP candidate discuss real issues!

Read criticism of the McCain/Palin ticket from noted conservatives.

Obama/Biden '08

McCain's Horrible Record on Women's Issues

“For the past 25 years, John McCain has consistently voted against women's health. From opposing funding for family planning programs to voting against requiring insurance coverage of birth control, McCain has taken extreme positions. He has voted against women's health and has not supported legislation that would help reduce the rate of unintended pregnancies and the need for abortion. This has earned him a zero rating - the lowest rating we give in the U.S. Senate.”
(Source: Planned Parenthood)

McCain’s appalling legislative record - view it here. And here. And here.
In summary McCain's votes:
Equal Pay – AGAINST
FMLA – AGAINST before he was for
Choice – AGAINST (but he was for in 2000)
Insurance payments for birth control - AGAINST

Palin is painted as pro-women and an experienced executive. Let's consider what executive action she took to deal with “sexual abuse, rape, domestic violence and murder that make her state one of the most dangerous places in the country for women and children.” What did she do about it? NOTHING Read ABC news.

The republican platform seeks to deny women the right to choice even in the case of rape and incest.

Be informed. Be for Obama/Biden

Channeling Hillary

Hillary in Florida last week. Watch

psst...Do something... AND have a laugh

" straight talk express has derailed." View more

"Big oil fuels the 'straight talk express'". View here.

FOR LAUGHS
Senator Whitehouse challenging the relative importance of drilling now. Watch

Saturday Night Live skit

Let Me Get This Straight...
email chain letter:
I'm a little confused. Let me see if I have this straight...
If you grow up in Hawaii , raised by your grandparents, you're "exotic,
different."
Grow up in Alaska eating moose burgers, a quintessential American story.

If your name is Barack you're a radical, unpatriotic Muslim.
Name your kids Willow , Trig and Track, you're a maverick.

Graduate from Harvard law School and you are unstable.
Attend 5 different small colleges before graduating, you're well
grounded.

If you spend 3 years as a brilliant community organizer, become the
first black President of the Harvard Law Review, create a voter
registration drive that registers 150,000 new voters, spend 12 years as
a Constitutional Law professor, spend 8 years as a State Senator
representing a district with over 750,000 people, become chairman of
the state Senate's Health and Human Services committee, spend 4 years
in the United States Senate representing a state of 13 million people
while sponsoring 131 bills and serving on the Foreign Affairs,
Environment and Public Works and Veteran's Affairs committees, you
don't have any real leadership experience.

If your total resume is: local weather girl, 4 years on the city
council and 6 years as the mayor of a town with less than 7,000 people,
20 months as the governor of a state with only 650,000 people, then
you're qualified to become the country's second highest ranking
executive.

If you teach responsible, age appropriate sex education, including the
proper use of birth control, you are eroding the fiber of society.

If, while governor, you staunchly advocate abstinence only, with no
other option in sex education in your state's school system while your
unwed teen daughter ends up pregnant, you're very responsible.

If your wife is a Harvard graduate lawyer who gave up a position in a
prestigious law firm to work for the betterment of her inner city
community, then gave that up to raise a family, your family's values
don't represent America 's.

If you're husband is nicknamed "First Dude", with at least one DWI
conviction and no college education, who didn't register to vote until
age 25 and once was a member of a group that advocated the secession of
Alaska from the USA , your family is extremely admirable.

OK, much clearer now

Lipstick vs Pig and What Can We Do

Here's what I saw 9/13 at the Obama Rally in Manchester, NH VIEW

TODAY'S Repub Lie Watch:
The idea that McCain is for women because of his VP choice is a lie. NEW
Lies about stance on combat systems? NEW
Lies about VP candidate not requesting earmarks NEW
The BEST compilation of news about repub VP candidate NEW
Lies about repub candidates' crowd sizes?
Lies about repub VP candidate having traveled to Iraq!

Great article from April Mellody on the difference between lipstick on a pig and a pig. Here's an excerpt:

Lipstick: Choosing a female running mate to help tap into the "18 million cracks" left by women who voted for Hillary.

Pig: Voting against a measure aimed at helping women achieve pay equity. Voting repeatedly against funding to fight and prevent domestic violence. Voting against extending insurance coverage to pregnant women and infants. Voting against $214 million for breast cancer research.

And here's my response to April's headline Women, Where Are You?:

Masterful stroke - to turn the idiocy of the pig/lipstick coverage back to the issues. Sad that the mainstream media hasn't.

You asked where the women are. Here are a few places:
http://womenagainstsarahpalin.blogspot.com/
http://defeatmccainandpalin.blogspot.com/
http://www.womenagainstpalin.com
and in every conversation I've had for the past 2 weeks, I've encountered the very outrage you wonder about.

Where the women aren't:
1. We aren't in positions of power in the media behind the scenes deciding how to cover this campaign. The worldview is male; they are out of touch with our issues; they pander to the conflict stirred up by the raving-Rovians.

2. Many of us aren't in cyberspace. In this economy and in this country many of us are too busy working multiple jobs or long hours to feed our families, we're struggling to find the time to care for children and aging parents, we're helping children through schools that are failing them, we're scrimping to save money for college educations, we're sitting in emergency rooms because we have no healthcare. The last 8 years have done much to silence us.

NY Times article on repub VP candidate's scary actions as an "executive".

So, if we can't be all over cyberspace and if the mainstream media are ignoring us, what can we do: Be informed about the issues. Talk to every woman you know about this campaign. If she's a diehard republican, listen with compassion and highlight the negative impact of a repub win for women. If she's an independent or not sure, make your best case for Obama. If she's planning to vote for Obama, ask her to speak about the campaign, volunteer for the campaign and contribute whatever she can.

Sticking to the Message

Lies about repub candidates' crowd sizes?
Lies about repub VP candidate having traveled to Iraq!


MY DAY WITH OBAMA
Up at 4:00AM, on the road by 4:30 and standing in line in Manchester, NH by 7:15.

Why? An Obama rally attended by 7-8,000. (In NH!!)

Barack was amazing, inspirational, on point, positive, visionary, specific on the issues, clear on the differences in position between him and the repubs, crystal clear on how the repubs ARE advocating a continuation of the failed Bush policies on the economy and foreign policy. He highlighted the raving-Rovian tactics of lies and distortions, called out the lobbyists who are advising the repub candidates and more.

Go Barack!

The Facts, Ma'am; Just the Facts

Aside from the obvious fact that if you stand at the very end of a remote part of Alaska you can, on a clear day, see Russia, the one and only other "fact" that I can remember from the first Gibson interview of the repub VP candidate was this:

Palin: Let me speak specifically about a credential that I do bring to this table, Charlie, and that's with the energy independence that I've been working on for these years as the governor of this state that produces nearly 20 percent of the U.S. domestic supply of energy, that I worked on as chairman of the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, overseeing the oil and gas development in our state to produce more for the United States.

Which is no fact at all. According to FactCheck.org,
"Palin claims Alaska "produces nearly 20 percent of the U.S. domestic supply of energy." That's not true.

Alaska did produce 14 percent of all the oil from U.S. wells last year, but that's a far cry from all the "energy" produced in the U.S.

Alaska's share of domestic energy production was 3.5 percent, according to the official figures kept by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

And if by "supply" Palin meant all the energy consumed in the U.S., and not just produced here, then Alaska's production accounted for only 2.4 percent."

Obama is looking better every day!

You Go Girls!!

Tougher questions for McCain on The View than for Palin on ABC News! Choice and the Supreme Court, separation of church and state, what actually Palin might reform...Great job!

What was the same was the % of actual answers to the questions posed. Hmmm I'd say <10%.

Way to go women!

Women, hope you're for Obama/Biden.

Victory in Sight?

Do you trust Slick Sarah and McSame who say that "victory is in sight" in Iraq?

OR

do you trust General Petreas who says in a BBC interview that he did not know that he would ever use the word "victory": "This is not the sort of struggle where you take a hill, plant the flag and go home to a victory parade... it's not war with a simple slogan."

It should be of note that two of Bush' recent moves are exactly what Obama has been saying needs to be done. Get troops out of Iraq and focus on Afghanistan.

Obama/Biden!

In Her Own Words...

Transcript of excerpts of Charlie Gibson's interview. At least the questions weren't total puffballs...though the answers are pretty lame (and scarily megalomaniacal - although there's no indication she would understand what that means). Read here.

Here's one excerpt. I highlight it because it's about identical to what McCain said about her experience in national security. Guess they're singing from the same hymnbook.

Palin on national security:

GIBSON: But this is not just reforming a government. This is also running a government on the huge international stage in a very dangerous world. When I asked John McCain about your national security credentials, he cited the fact that you have commanded the Alaskan National Guard and that Alaska is close to Russia. Are those sufficient credentials?

PALIN: But it is about reform of government and it's about putting government back on the side of the people, and that has much to do with foreign policy and national security issues Let me speak specifically about a credential that I do bring to this table, Charlie, and that's with the energy independence that I've been working on for these years as the governor of this state that produces nearly 20 percent of the U.S. domestic supply of energy, that I worked on as chairman of the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, overseeing the oil and gas development in our state to produce more for the United States.

GIBSON: I know. I'm just saying that national security is a whole lot more than energy.

From the CBS site - McCain on Palin's experience in national security:

AmericaBlog posted a clip of an interview McCain did, via satellite, with Rob Caldwell at WCSH in Portland, Maine. Caldwell noted, for example, that McCain insisted that national security and counter-terrorism is the number one issue facing the United States. McCain denied ever having said that. Caldwell moved on, asking about Sarah Palin's experience in national security. McCain responded by attacking Barack Obama.

"Well, you say you're sure she has the experience, but again, I'm just asking for an example," Caldwell said. "What experience does she have in the field of national security?" McCain responded:

"Energy. She knows more about energy than probably anyone else in the United States of America. She's a governor of a state where 20% of America's energy supply comes from there. And we all know that energy is a critical and vital national security issue. We've got to stop sending $700 billion of American money to countries that don't like us very much. She's very well versed on that issue."And, uh, she also happens to represent, be governor of a state that's right next to Russia. She understands Russia."

More on that interview here.

I'm still Obama/Biden. Hope you are, too.