More on Sarah Palin

The Hat Thief blog reports that Palin is a dirty as the rest of the Alaska Repug politicians. Whatta surprise! A consistent pattern of putting cronys first, over the interests of the citizens she supposedly represented. Hey, that could be the Bush-McCain/Palin campaign slogan--"Putting Cronys First"!

Meanwhile, Andrew Sullivan over at The Atlantic reports that as governor, Palin appointed a sexual harasser.

As for her "executive experience", here's a shot of downtown Wasilla, where she was mayor for two terms (thanks to the Mudflats blog):




Again, from Mudflats:

Before her meteoric rise to political success as governor, just two short years ago Sarah Palin was the mayor of Wasilla. I had a good chuckle at MSN.com’s claim that she had been the mayor of "Wasilla City". It is not a city. Just Wasilla. Wasilla is the heart of the Alaska "Bible belt" and Sarah was raised amongst the tribe that believes creationism should be taught in our public schools, homosexuality is a sin, and life begins at conception. She’s a gun-toting, hang ‘em high conservative. Remember...this is where her approval ratings come from. There is no doubt that McCain again is making a strategic choice to appeal to a particular demographic - fundamentalist right-wing gun-owning Christians.

This is more than a desperation ploy by McCain, it's a joke.

Sarah Palin: Are You F***ing Kidding Me?

Sarah Palin? The first-term governor of Alaska who's under investigation for abuse of power? A former contender for the title of Ms. Alaska with NO foreign policy experience? A conservative ideologue who wants to overturn Roe v. Wade and opposes gay rights? A woman whose only experience is being mayor of a town of 8,000 and less than two years as governor? A 44-year-old creationist, anti-choice/pro-life "hockey mom" politician who sits atop in the most corrupt Republican organization in the country? This is supposed to attract the PUMAs and independent women voters? What was McCain thinking?

Oh, right: he *wasn't* thinking. It was Rove & Co. who did the thinking for him. She's a far-right conservative, that's all that matters to them.

Kiss the experience argument goodbye. This woman is the most unqualified candidate for the vice presidency *ever*. Palin even makes Dan Quayle look good! I cannot emphasis how bad a choice Palin is, how inexperienced she is, and how wrong her beliefs are.

Sarah Palin:

• Has ZERO foreign policy experience. Despite FAUX's assertion that "Hey, Alaska is close to Russia!", One of Marc Ambinger's reader reports thusly:

"I thought you might like to know that under the heading of 'Sarah Palin on Foreign Policy' at the On The Issue site for her, this is what's listed:

"'No issue stance yet recorded by OnTheIssues.org.'"

• Has said that she wants to drill in ANWR.

• Has said in an interview with CNBC that she doesn't know what the vice president does.

• Opposes putting the polar bear on the Endangered Species list.

• Pronounces "nuclear" just like George Bush.

• Opposes abortion rights in all cases except when the life of the mother is in danger. In other words, if you're raped, too bad; if you're a victim of incest, you're out of luck. Palin wants you to give birth to that child of violence and/or abuse.

• Has her own scandal going, as covered by Talking Points Memo. ThinkProgress further reports that she's currently the subject of a special commission's ethics investigation:

  ...she was accused of attempting to get a state trooper fired. That state trooper was her former brother-in-law who had gone through "a messy divorce" with her sister. After the trooper’s boss wouldn’t act on the governor’s request, she fired him. Though Palin says she doesn’t "have anything to hide" and she "didn’t do anything wrong there," an investigation has found that one of her aides pushed the firing...

• Believes that creationism and evolution should both be taught in schools.

Rahm Emanuel's statement today sums it up:

"After trying to make experience the issue of this campaign, John McCain celebrated his 72nd birthday by appointing a former small town mayor and brand new Governor as his Vice Presidential nominee. Is this really who the Republican Party wants to be one heartbeat away from the Presidency? Given Sarah Palin’s lack of experience on every front and on nearly every issue, this Vice Presidential pick doesn’t show judgement: it shows political panic."

This is a desperation move by the McCain campaign. It's not going to work.

Obama's Acceptance Speech

Simply put, this was the best political speech I've heard since JFK's inauguration. He knocked it out of the park! Obama was forceful, passionate, direct. He did everything he had to do in his address, did everything I and others have been *waiting* for him to do, and did it with style, grace, and eloquence, surpassing even Bill Clinton's speech of the night before, Barack Obama gave notice to the Repugs that here is a Democrat that will fight for what he believes in, here is a Democrat who won't back down from the lies and rumors spread by the opposition; a Democrat, in short, who's not only ready to lead, but actively taking the fight to the enemy for the country that he loves.

When Obama said, "Tonight, I say to the American people, to Democrats and Republicans and independents across this great land — enough!", the group I was watching the speech with applauded. When he said "John McCain likes to say that he'll follow bin Laden to the gates of hell — but he won't even go to the cave where he lives", there was a sputtering laugh, then loud clapping. And when he said "So I've got news for you, John McCain. We all put our country first", we cheered. It's been more than fifty years since a Democrat fought back with that kind of ferocity, conviction, and poise, and I'm very happy to see it happen.

I have had some nagging doubts about Obama's reluctance to take on McCain's lies, to fight back, but no longer. He was more than a courageous defender of his beliefs, more than a forceful advocate of his plans for America, more than a strong leader of his party--he was presidential. We're going to win in November.

The Convention - Day 4

Just returned from watching Barack Obama's acceptance speech. To sum it up briefly:

CHANGE IS COMINGHERE!

More tomorrow.

WTF is WRONG with these people?!

By way of Ta-Nehisi Coates, this obscene little tidbit came to my attention today. See for yourself:

PUMA PAC members think blackface and other racist garbage is “funny”


This is absolutely disgusting. Hillary should put the smackdown on these people ASAP.

McCain Isn't A POW, He's A POS

Tonight Barack Obama will accept the candidacy of the Democratic Party for the office of President of the United States of America, 45 years to the day after the famous March on Washington, and Dr. Martin Luther King's "I Have A Dream" speech. The first African-American to receive the nomination of a major political party for that office.

So how does McCain recognize this historic occasion? What does he do to mark the event? This (emphasis mine):

Republicans, who mock Barack Obama as a self-appointed savior, gleefully pounced Thursday on pictures of a classically-themed set for his big convention speech, which they said resembles a temple.

The Democratic presidential candidate will accept the party White House banner before a more than 70,000-strong crowd at an outdoor football stadium here late Thursday.

Pictures and an aerial film footage of the set being constructed for the speech show a curved, backdrop with creamy, gray column-like structures, which could suggest a classical structure, like a Greek or Roman temple.

The backdrop may also be intended to evoke the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, where civil rights icon Martin Luther King gave his soaring "I have a Dream Speech" exactly 45 years to the day before Obama's keynote address.

As anticipation for Obama's address built, Republicans sent out an edition of their "Audacity Watch" email newsletter which they use to point out perceived examples of hubris by the Obama campaign, titled "The Temple of Obama."

This, from the same guys who have been worshipping at the Temple of SatanBush/Cheney for the last eight years? The so-called "maverick" who voted against the MLK federal holiday, who's voted with Bush 95% of the time? The cranky old bastard who, when asked to define "honor", told Time magazine "read my books"?

He's not a POW, he's a POS.

The Convention - Days 2 & 3

Catching up on the week's events...what a week to get sick!

First off, Hillary! She delivered a superb speech on Tuesday night, giving strong support to Obama, and put the question to the PUMAs, "Were you in this campaign just for me?" This speech was exactly what we as a party needed, and what she needed herself to remain as a leader of the party. Sure, it was part survival, but it also was a speech that showed how she is truly one of the most vital members of the Democratic party. "No way, no how, no McCain." Just great!

Then yesterday, the triple-header of Bill, John, and Joe!

Leading off was the Big Dog, Bill Clinton. At long last he remembered that he's a Democrat first, and reminded the audience of what we're fighting for, as only he can. Bill remains one of the premier speakers of his generation, and all his oratorical skills were on display last night. More than anyone else, Clinton knows how to bring to the point home. I hope Obama was taking notes for tonight.

Then later last night, John Kerry delivered a barn burner of a speech--damn, if he has spoken like that in 2004, he'd be running for reelection right now! He stuck it to Bush/McCain with a sharp knife, then twisted it. Unfortunately, some of the networks pulled away to show the talking heads, but Josh Marshall at Talking Points Memo links it here.

Finally, Joe Biden gave an intensely personal, passionate speech later in the evening. He's a great addition to the ticket, and will be a great vice president. He's working-class tough, righteously angry, and ready to bring the fight to the Repugs. A strong supporter of women's rights and author of the 1994 Violence Against Women Act, Biden's life and candidacy refutes F. Scott Fitzgerald's contention that "there are no second acts in American lives"--something that I also find personally gratifying. Obama "stopping by" as a surprise didn't hurt, either.

Rove to Obama: "Meh"

Karl Rove apparently didn't like Michelle Obama's speech, but Juan Williams teared up over it. Awww, how cute: the resident lawn jockey at FAUX News was moved! And as far as Rove goes, will no one rid us of this troublesome turd blossom?

Most quotable non-pundit

Charles Barkley!

Leave it to Barkley, former NBA star, to take on politics with his trademark bluntness. A big fan of Obama, Barkley told CNN: "I can't believe in my lifetime that a black man has a legit chance to be president. That's amazing." As for Clinton backers who won't vote for Obama: "First of all, they're idiots. You're either a Democrat or you're not."

The Democratic Convention - Day 1

Been under the weather lately, so a couple of thoughts here in brief.

First of all: Michelle Obama. Classy, intelligent, and a moving speaker. As has been noted elsewhere , her speech wasn't for us (myself and the 3-4 of you out there), but for those in darkest Red America. Speaking to the closeted and public racists alike, she demonstrated that "Hey, we're not scary black people, we're just like you!" Bringing out her daughters was a masterstroke. As Keith Olbermann said, "this is the Huxtable family!" She'll be the best First Lady since Jackie Kennedy.

Secondly, WTF is going on with the network video feed? Who are all these stiffs we see on the screen, and why aren't they more energized? It's the DEMOCRATIC CONVENTION, dammit! This isn't Muffy & Biff in St. Paul next week for the RNC. What gives?

Well, it turns out that it's a pool feed, and Fox controls it. NO WONDER we see so many shots of bored and inattentive people! But why are we being denied excellent speeches like Kucinich's, yesterday? That lack can be laid at the feet of the networks directly, like CNN, which ran talking heads while Kucinich set the house on fire. To paraphrase Kucinich himself, wake up, DNC! Why isn't the DNC controlling the video feed? Someone wasn't thinking.

Who Is This Bitch, Anyway?

A "Hillary Clinton Democrat"? Oh, puh-leeze!! There's what, a few dozen angry suburban mommies still agitating for Hillary? The so-called PUMAs? And they're so supportive of what Hillary stands for, that they're going to vote for the old white man who's her diametric opposite.

Guess what, fools: Hillary released her delegates. She's gotten with the program, which is to elect a Democrat to the Presidency. Remember? Do you really want to keep your right to choose, end the war in Iraq, and get the economy working again for everyone who doesn't own seven houses? Or are you so pissed that your candidate didn't get the nomination, largely because of her own mistakes, that you're now going to vote for the guy who wants to send you back to the bad old days of back-alley abortions? When are you idiots going to wake up?

My Favorite Biden Moment

Here's Joe bitch-slapping Rudy Giuliani...enjoy!

McCain's Money

The New York Times has the scoop on Cindy McCain's fortune, and how John McCain used it to fuel his rise to power. It reads like an episode of "Dallas". Cindy comes from some pretty nasty people....and it shows.

We've got a ticket!

Congratulations to the next President and Vice-President of the United States of America. Give 'em hell, guys!!

The Tipping Point

Webster's New Millennium™ Dictionary of English defines a tipping point as: "the culmination of a build-up of small changes that effects a big change." Wednesday, in response to a simple question about how many houses he and his wife owned, John McCain couldn't give a straight answer. He didn't know how many. Estimates range from seven to twelve houses, but McCain couldn't pull any kind of number out of his ass. "I think--I'll have my staff get back to you", he lamely replied.

I think that, like Bush 41's surprise and confusion when confronted with a supermarket scanner in 1992, we've reached a similar tipping point in this election. McCain's people have tried to paint Obama as an out-of-touch, arugula-eating, egghead elitist, and it's backfired on them; fatally, I believe. The Karl Rove-driven campaign has been trying to make the case that a man who was raised by a single mother who was no stranger to food stamps, a man who went to college and law school on scholarships and loans, and who literally has close relatives who live in huts, is an elitist! They now are desperately trying to hide the fact that their own man is so rich that he doesn't know how many houses he and his wife own. Who's the elitist now?

First of all, I don't understand the problem with being an "elitist". As John Stewart once pointed out, the American Heritage Dictionary defines the word "elite" as "noun: A group or class of persons or a member of such a group or class, enjoying superior intellectual, social, or economic status". Don't we want the superior candidate to have the job? I don't think judging the presidential candidates on the basis of who's the one you'd most like to belly up to the bar with, worked too well last time. Secondly, some of our best presidents, Theodore Roosevelt, FDR, and JFK, to name a few, were from "elite" families and fortunes. They may have been rich, but they understood the hopes and fears of ordinary people.

I think the phrase that more accurately describes the problem is "out of touch". If you understand that people are worried about keeping their homes out of foreclosure, then you're not out of touch. If you realize that for the vast majority of people in this country, the economy stinks right now, then you're not out of touch. If you can see that people are worried that their children won't be able to afford to attend college, then you're not out of touch. If you agree with most Americans that we need to get out of Iraq as quickly as possible, then you're not out of touch.

When he couldn't even say how many houses he owned, John McCain irrefutably proved that he was out of touch, and the tipping point of this election was reached. Take him off the fire, he's done.

More on Saddleback

The Rude Pundit noticed, as I did, the different wording in the questions posed to Obama and McCain respectively, at Saddleback Saturday night, and writes about it far more colorfully than I can.

Norm wants to run....away

"If the convention wasn't in St. Paul, I wouldn't be at the convention."

I KNEW IT!

The New York Times reported today that John McCain was NOT in a "cone of silence" at Saddleback during Barack Obama's Q&A session with Rick Warren on Saturday. I suspected as much at the time; his answers were too pat, and he responded too quickly, to not have had some advance warning of what the questions would be. Andrea Mitchell first brought it up on "Meet the Press" Sunday morning, and today's article by Katharine Seelye confirms both Mitchell's report and my own suspicions!

Senator John McCain was not in a "cone of silence" on Saturday night while his rival, Senator Barack Obama, was being interviewed at the Saddleback Church in California...The matter is of interest because Mr. McCain, who followed Mr. Obama’s hourlong appearance in the forum, was asked virtually the same questions as Mr. Obama. Mr. McCain’s performance was well received, raising speculation among some viewers, especially supporters of Mr. Obama, that he was not as isolated during the Obama interview as Mr. Warren implied.

...Mr. Warren, the pastor of Saddleback, had assured the audience while he was interviewing Mr. Obama that "we have safely placed Senator McCain in a cone of silence" and that he could not hear the questions...Interviewed Sunday on CNN, Mr. Warren seemed surprised to learn that Mr. McCain was not in the building during the Obama interview.

And again, the McCain lying weasels campaign played the POW card, by replying that "the insinuation from the Obama campaign that John McCain, a former prisoner of war, cheated is outrageous". BULLSHIT. Being the idiots that they are, they inadvertently confirmed the story, in a protest letter sent to NBC New president Steve Capus by McCain campaign manager Rick Davis, and reported by both Mike Allen at Politico and Rachel Sklar at the Huffington Post:

The fact is that during Senator Obama's segment at Saddleback last night, Senator McCain was in a motorcade to the event and then held in a green room with no broadcast feed.

OK, so McCain wasn't in the green room at first, so hell yeah, he wasn't in the cone of silence to begin with! Then next, they're trying to say that he couldn't see the interview when he finally, 30 minutes into Obama's appearance, arrived there? C'mon, Rick, ever heard of a Blackberry? Someone else couldn't have been watching, and then fed the questions to McCain? Remember, these are the same people who wired W with a receiver and an earplug during his debate with John Kerry in 2004, then flatly denied it, even after a highly-regarded NASA expert on image analysis identified an electronic device on Bush's back in photos.

They lied then, and they're lying now. You just can't trust these guys.

Quick Notes on the Saddleback forum

McCain dispelled all doubts that he will be a pro-life president. All you disgruntled Hillary supporters threatening to vote for McCain should think about this, hard.

Obama was thoughtful, contemplative, and erudite in his responses. He needs to talk less, these are Americans he's talking to, not some people with a decently-long attention span.

McCain basically gave his stump speech tonight, responding with pat answers to questions that should have demanded some critical thought before replying. Of course, the wingnuts in the crowd ate it up.

All things considered, Obama did well tonight, considering he was speaking before an audience of evangelicals.

Finally, if there are any lingering doubts that Karl Rove is running the McCain campaign, tonight should have dispelled them. McCain sounded like Bush, circa 2000. Things are going to get even dirtier and uglier, before Election Day.

"Approval Ratings: The Public v. McCain"

From cartwrightdale at Daily Kos (doing my bit to help this go viral):

Baracky II

I only WISH I'd made this video myself! Enjoy.

Why Is He Getting Away With This?

Writing at the excellent Too Sense blog, OneDrop makes this point:

What I find interesting about McCain's response is that the list of personal attributes that arise out of McCain's time as a POW keeps growing. We've been hearing the argument that having been a POW gives McCain foreign policy savvy for a while. Now, in addition to gaining expertise in international relations, McCain apparently also gained irrefutable proof that he is a man of faith. There can't be any criticism of McCain's publicly-known philandering, and abandonment of his badly injured first wife in favor of a young, blonde heiress, because McCain was a POW. Of course he has faith, he was a POW.

Look, what McCain went through in Vietnam was horrific, and worthy of tremendous respect and honor. There is no denying that the man served valiantly, and paid a very high price in blood and tears for his country. But there's a difference between recognizing his service and accepting any and all arguments that get advanced based upon that service.

This is an ongoing pattern with McCain. "He was a POW", so he "knows how to win wars". I'm still wondering exactly which war it was that he won--Vietnam? "He was a POW", so he's expert on national security matters. When during his time in the Hanoi Hilton did he acquire this expertise? "He was a POW", he has foreign policy experience. So then maybe it's the incipient Alzheimer's that's made him confuse Shiite with Sunni, Sudan with Somalia, and repeatedly refer to a country (Czechoslovakia) that hasn't existed for fifteen years?

Saying that McCain has foreign policy expertise because of his years as a POW, is like saying that Mike Tyson has women's rights expertise because of his years in prison on rape charges. It's ridiculous, it's ludicrous, it's something that intelligent people should respond to with derision and laughter.

Is This The Beginning Of The End?

If you only get your news from the MSM, then you might have missed this little story. TPM Muckraker reports that the House Judiciary Committee is going to investigate the allegations in Ron Suskind's book, The Way of the World, that the Bush administration forged documents to support its case for going to war with Iraq. This could be the smoking gun that I've been waiting for.

Drilling to Hell

There's a 5-year wait for deep-sea drill-ships...

...and we know that more drilling now would take at least 17 years to affect the price of gasoline...

...and we don't want to risk the California coastline and the Eastern Seaboard with an Exxon Valdez-scale spill....

...yet these Repug idiots like Bush, McCain, Coleman, and Bachmann want to drill offshore NOW:

Meanwhile, Obama has a comprehensive energy plan that will help America wean itself off fossil fuels....

So, what do we do?
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C'mon, is there really a choice?!

Obama's Not Taking It, Lying Down Or In Any Other Position

I'm so very glad to see that Obama is actively combating the lies in Obama Nation. Looks like he learned from John Kerry's puzzling inaction in 2004; he's responding forcefully, immediately, and vigorously on all fronts.

Marc Ambinder reports that

...Chastened by Sen. John Kerry's 2004 refusal to respond quickly enough to Corsi and the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth ads, the campaign is determined to discredit Corsi, quickly.

"We are aggressively attacking the factual errors in this book, and making sure that everyone knows about the deeply offensive things Corsi has said that will give readers of any political affiliation pause and ample reason to question the lies he's written," Tommy Vietor, an Obama spokesperson, said in a statement.

I'm as heartened by the response of the Obama campaign, as I was infuriated four years ago by the lack of response from the Kerry people. For far too long, Democrats and progressives have sat back fearfully and refused to counter-attack while the wingnuts have slung their dirt and lies at us relentlessly. The Repugs have been masters of the art of the Big Lie for decades, to our disadvantage and undoing. The early 21st Century has been downright Orwellian, and frustrating to aggressive progressives like myself, as the lies and deceptions kept piling up without significant rebuttal from anyone on the left. In fact, the number of progressive politicians willing to stand up to the far right Lie Machine have been few and far between.

Oh, how things have changed! From TPM Election Central:

Obama advisers say that whenever they hear that Corsi has been booked for an appearance on a network program, they are quickly contacting the program's producers to rebut the book's charges in phone conversations and giving them a whole run-down of past Corsi quotes that are controversial.

Obama aides also vow to insist that the producers allow them to have on a campaign surrogate to attack the charges, and are expecting to recruit more campaign surrogates, well plied with talking points, to push back against the book.

And I say, IT'S ABOUT DAMN TIME!! Obama is showing the far right--and some of us on the left, too--that seeking justice and being peace-loving doesn't necessarily mean that you know nothing of self-defense.

Batshit-Crazy

TPM ElectionCentral reports that Minnesota's own batshit-crazy Repug congresscritter, Michelle Bachmann, is at it again, and:

"...this latest is really out there -- Bachmann says we don't need pesky environmentalists like Nancy Pelosi around, because Jesus already saved the planet!"

Hey, Michelle, do the polar bears know about this? I don't think they got the memo.

The man is a warmonger. He's senile, out of touch, and lacks experience as leader. He's a hotheaded bully, and has now become a lying weasel, willing to do anything to obtain the presidency. We can't afford another four years of this insanity.

A McCain presidency promises not only the prospect of more war, but more corporate rapacity, the further destruction of our basic rights as Americans, more corruption in our government, and more terror for the rest of the world. We cannot, the world cannot, tolerate this any longer.