"He's a citizen of the United States, so I say we uphold the laws and the Constitution on citizens...If you are a citizen, you obey the law and follow the Constitution. He has all the rights under the Constitution...We don't shred the Constitution when it is popular. We do the right thing."
I can't believe I'm saying this, but Glenn Beck is right. (Although Glenn does make other statements during that segment like favoring torturing non-citizens, when torture is ineffective and more importantly immoral and illegal under U.S. and international law.) Every citizen is entitled to Miranda rights save some legal exceptions like the public safety exception, which allows authorities to question terrorist suspects about whether they acted alone or if they know of other threats. In the case of Faisal Shahzad, the public safety exception was employed, then they Mirandized him and he continued to talk.
But John McCain thinks Mirandizing him was a mistake. And now Joe Lieberman is introducing a bill that would allow the State Department to revoke an American's citizenship if they are "a member of a terrorist group, even before trial or capture." They could then appeal the decision--and the burden of proof would at least be on the State Dept.--but if their citizenship is revoked before they have a chance to appeal, I don't see this working well in practice.
This should be self-evidently a bad idea. If the government can revoke someone's citizenship without sufficient judicial constraint, there is bound to be abuse. And if even if their citizenship could be revoked, the Supreme Court has ruled that they are still entitled to rights under U.S. law.
Last word:
The appalling behavior of John McCain and Joe Lieberman this past week underlines what a bullet this country missed by electing Barack Obama president...
Now recall that McCain and Lieberman were celebrated in Washington for their alleged maturity, wisdom, and elder statesmen experience. They are in fact adolescent hysterics, whose terrorized Manichean view of the world sees nothing but an existential struggle and the imperative to win it. We would have been electing Cheney to a third term. And we barely knew it.
God save the Middle East. When John McCain unleashed "Joe the Plumber" in the midst of the presidential debates, who would have thought that months later, "Joe" (who is not a licensed plumber and whose first name is actually Samuel) would have opinions that matter.
Apparently, conservative blog pjtv.com thinks "Joe" has a few more things for the world to hear. So, in their infinite wisdom, "Joe" is heading over to Israel to cover the current conflict in Gaza as a war correspondent in the Middle East for the blog.
Samuel J. Wurzelbacher (WUR'-zuhl-bah-kur) says he'll spend 10 days covering the fighting.
He tells WNWO-TV in Toledo that he wants to let Israel's "'Average Joes' share their story."
Wurzelbacher gained attention during the final weeks of the campaign when he asked Barack Obama about his tax plan.
He later joined Republican John McCain on the campaign trail. At one stop, he agreed with a McCain supporter who asked if he believed a vote for Obama was a vote for the death of Israel.
...The Anchorage Daily News, Alaska's largest newspaper, endorsed Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama Sunday after declaring Gov. Sarah Palin "too risky" to be one step away from the Oval Office.
"Like picking (Republican presidential candidate John) McCain for president, putting her one 72-year-old heartbeat from the leadership of the free world is just too risky at this time," The Daily News said.
The newspaper said Obama "brings far more promise to the office. In a time of grave economic crisis, he displays thoughtful analysis, enlists wise counsel and operates with a cool, steady hand."
The Daily News said since the economic crisis has emerged, McCain has "stumbled and fumbled badly" in dealing with it...
Are tensions rising between Sarah Palin and the McCain campaign? Maybe.
First, Ben Smith reports that Palin is "going rogue," disregarding the advice of McCain advisers, going off-message, and even trying to talk to the media. Funny story:
Palin strolled over to a local television crew in Colorado Springs. "Get Tracey," a staffer called out, according to The New York Times, summoning spokeswoman Tracey Schmitt, who reportedly "tried several times to cut it off with a terse 'Thank you!' in between questions, to no avail."
It's telling and sad that Palin's handlers freak out if she tries to talk to the media.
Palin's rogue status has been cheered by a camp of Republicans who see Palin as a fresh face that could revitalize the Grand Ole Party. The "Palin camp" is disgruntled with McCain, particularly with his campaign's handling of their savior, and is afraid that a McCain loss will be blamed on Palin.
Smith's report was based on four anonymous Republican sources. In response to the story, Tracey Schimdt retorted, "Unnamed sources with their own agenda will say what they want. But from Governor Palin down we have one agenda, and that's to win on Election Day."
And after that, a McCain advisor called Palin "a diva. She takes no advice from anyone. She does not have any relationships of trust with any of us, her family or anyone else."
Regardless of where total truth ends and exaggeration begins, one thing is clear: things are not going well in McCainLand.
Last night, at a dinner hosted by the Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation in New York, Presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama took turns laughing at themselves and roasting each other. Both candidates were quite funny (yeah, even John McCain got some laughs) and the jovial tone of the evening made John McCain look like pre-2004 McCain (as in, not a jerk).
Take a look and judge for yourself which one is funnier.
Below is the footage from last night's third and final presidential debate. It was by far the best debate of the election. Barack Obama, while strong all throughout the debate, was particularly strong on his health care, pro-choice, tax policy, and education plans. John McCain provided the entertainment of the night, whether it be a grimace or two when Obama referenced Fox News' criticisms of the McCain campaign or when McCain introduced "Joe the Plumber" and then proceeded to mention Joe over 20 times throughout the evening and change the analogy.
The most interesting question of the night though was this: "Both of you run or have run negative campaign ads. Senator Obama, you have called him 'out of touch' and 'unfit to lead.' Senator McCain, you have called him a 'terrorist,' 'pals around with terrorists,' and 'liar.' My question to both of you is would you say what you said in your ads to each other's faces? Senator McCain, you are first." While neither one came out and called each other those exact phrases, John McCain discussed his "hurt feelings" while Obama said that he did not care if he would be attacked for the next three weeks and that the voters do not care about the candidates' hurt feelings; they care about the issues. Obama also told John McCain that the one instance McCain referenced, the Obama campaign had nothing to do with it and issued a statement saying it was inappropriate and the senator that made the comment apologized and redacted the statement, while people at Palin/McCain rallies scream "Terrorist!" and "Kill Him!" and neither Governor Sarah Palin nor Senator John McCain request the crowd to stop and tell them that their actions are inappropriate. In my opinion, there is absolutely no comparison to what McCain was griping about and the fact that his campaign does not denounce supporters' calls for Obama's assassination as totally inappropriate. Grow up, McCain, and lose like an adult.
Another interesting question was asked about the vice presidential candidates. The question was, "why do you think that your vice presidential candidate is better than your opponent's?" I don't think that John McCain answered with nearly as many "mavericks" as "Joe the Plumber" references.
By the way, apparently "Joe the Plumber" really does exist. And he's kind of a stingy guy when it comes to tax policy for the richest 5% of Americans. Take a look at both videos and see what you think. Enjoy!
I couldn't help but snicker reading this editorial in the Michigan Daily. In it, Alex Prasad laments the opportunities Palin missed at the vice-presidential debate:
For example, Biden, speaking of Vice President Dick Cheney, said, “The idea (Cheney) doesn't realize that Article I of the Constitution defines the role of the vice president of the United States, that's the executive branch.”
Palin easily could have retorted, “Actually Joe, Article I of the Constitution discussed legislative power. Ya know, it’s disappointing that a sitting senator doesn’t even know the Constitution he’s sworn to protect. The American people need somebody who is intimately familiar with the Constitution.”
Seriously? Do you really think Sarah Palin is "intimately familiar with the Constitution"? Do you think someone who can't even remember what publications she reads knows which article of the constitution refers to what? Does it seem like Palin would say anything in that above statement besides "Actually Joe" and "Ya know"? Prasad continues:
The moderator, Gwen Ifill, asked Biden if Americans have the stomach for all the intervention he has proposed over the years, citing his calls for intervention in Bosnia, Iraq, Pakistan and Sudan. Biden responded, “I think the American public has the stomach for success. My recommendations on Bosnia … saved tens of thousands of lives … (and) the end result was it worked.”
[....Palin] should have answered as follows: “Ya know, let’s talk about success senator. Certainly, I can’t match your long record in the realm of foreign policy. But, I don’t think the American people — those Main Streeters — just want experience. They want good Main Street judgment. You cite Bosnia as a success, yet 13 years after the initial conflict, we still have 10,000 troops there. You were one of the few opposed the first Gulf War, saying thousands of U.S. soldiers would die. In fact, only 293 did in an overwhelming victory. Your maverick opposition was irresponsible.
In addition to the fact that Palin again probably does not know these things, I fail to see how these points will help her win the debate. How can you criticize Biden for supporting something that resulted in 10,000 troops staying in Bosnia for 13 years when McCain wants troops to stay in Iraq for 100 years?* If our victory in the first Gulf War was so overwhelming, why was it necessary to go to war with Iraq again just 12 years later? And you're really going to criticize someone who is not John McCain for being an irresponsible maverick? Yeah, that's a good idea.
Despite the hopes of the Obama campaign and many liberals, electoral defeat may just be the thing that reignites the conservative base. Democrats better hope that Republicans don’t find the second coming of Ronald Reagan by 2012, or conservatives will again unite behind a presidential candidate.
Wow. Are conservatives really that relentlessly optimistic/out of touch with reality? Maybe I'm wrong here, maybe I'm the one being overly optimistic, but it seems to me that we're in the middle of a paradigm shift. The pendulum is swinging leftward. Americans are tired of the excesses of conservatism and the Bush administration: deregulation, wars without provocation, living without a safety net, ignoring our civil liberties, corruption, etc. This is not to say that liberals cannot be guilty of their own excesses; indeed, Americans upset with Great Society, Vietnam, the Chicago protests, race riots, and the Iranian hostage crisis deserted Johnson, Humphrey, and Carter and turned to Nixon and then Reagan. We've been living in a conservative age ever since. Until now.
*NOTE: McCain does not want to see American troops fighting in Iraq for a century like the Obama campaign might want you to think. McCain wants the U.S. to establish a peacetime presence there as in Germany or South Korea or Bosnia. Permanent bases in Iraq are still a bad idea, though.
Here is the CSPAN footage from the second presidential debate. The moderator was Tom Brokaw and the style was that of a Town Hall debate. All in all, both candidates did far better than the previous presidential debate, with Barack Obama making great improvements and doing an excellent job of differentiating between his and McCain's policies. McCain, on the other hand, often times sounded condescending and quick to levy false accusations. Both candidates, however, were constantly harassed by Tom Brokaw about the time constraints.
For the New York Times' interactive webpage on the debate, please click here.
The Associated Press reported that Iran ordered an aircraft to land due to invaded airspace and then questioned the plane's passengers. Iran then allowed the plane and its passengers to continue to their destinations.
If this behavior of negative reciprocity continues, there will be escalation and more tension between Iran and the United States, making attempts for genuine diplomacy more difficult. And genuine diplomacy is what is really needed between the United States and Iran. Also affecting the possibilities of real progress and improving relations between the two countries is each country's presidential election (2008 for the United States and 2009 for Iran). Hopefully, the leaders elected in each respective country are more serious and sincere about diplomacy and less inflammatory to one another.
Read the Associated Press article below for more information on the plane situation.
TEHRAN, Iran - Iranian news reports claimed Tuesday that Iran forced down a Western aircraft that accidentally entered its airspace, then allowed the plane to continue to Afghanistan after questioning its passengers.
The state-owned Al-Alam, Iran's official Arabic-language television station, quoted an unidentified senior Iranian military official as saying the plane belonged either to a British or Hungarian relief agency. It said Iran forced the aircraft to land on Sunday and then permitted the passengers and crew to leave the following day.
The U.S. military in Iraq issued a statement noting "media reports that a small, civilian passenger jet was forced to land in Iran. This was not a U.S. aircraft and there were no Americans reported on board. All U.S. aircraft are accounted for and none are missing."
White House spokesmanGordon Johndroe said, "We're looking into the various and conflicting reports coming from the Iranian `news' agencies, but do not have any information at this time that would lead us to believe they are correct."
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Hasan Qashqavi said he had no information about the case. Other Iranian officials could not immediately be reached for comment.
The official quoted by Al-Alam said the plane "lost its way" and violated Iranian air space. He said the passengers — who he said included American military personnel — were questioned and that the plane was allowed to continue to Afghanistan.
In Afghanistan, officials with the U.S. military, the American Embassy and the British Embassy said they had no information about a plane being forced down in Iran.
Initially, the semiofficial Fars news agency said the plane was American. Fars reported that the plane was carrying five military officials and three civilians from Turkey to Afghanistan when it "unintentionally" entered Iranian airspace.
According to the Fars report, Iranian fighters guided the plane to an Iranian airport, the passengers were questioned and a day later were released and allowed to continue to their destination.
Fars said the plane was a Falcon, apparently referring to a passenger aircraft manufactured by the French firm Dassault and primarily used by business executives. Dassault Falcon produces five jets with ranges from about 3,250 nautical to more than 4,000 nautical miles, with cabins that typically carry about six passengers and two crew members.
There’s that word again: maverick. In Thursday’s vice-presidential debate, Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska, the Republican candidate, used it to describe herself and her running mate, Senator John McCain, no fewer than six times, at one point calling him “the consummate maverick.”
But to those who know the history of the word, applying it to Mr. McCain is a bit of a stretch — and to one Texas family in particular it is even a bit offensive.
“I’m just enraged that McCain calls himself a maverick,” said Terrellita Maverick, 82, a San Antonio native who proudly carries the name of a family that has been known for its progressive politics since the 1600s, when an early ancestor in Boston got into trouble with the law over his agitation for the rights of indentured servants.
In the 1800s, Samuel Augustus Maverick went to Texas and became known for not branding his cattle. He was more interested in keeping track of the land he owned than the livestock on it, Ms. Maverick said; unbranded cattle, then, were called “Maverick’s.” The name came to mean anyone who didn’t bear another’s brand.
Sam Maverick’s grandson, Fontaine Maury Maverick, was a two-term congressman and a mayor of San Antonio who lost his mayoral re-election bid when conservatives labeled him a Communist. He served in the Roosevelt administration on the Smaller War Plants Corporation and is best known for another coinage. He came up with the term “gobbledygook” in frustration at the convoluted language of bureaucrats.
This Maverick’s son, Maury Jr., was a firebrand civil libertarian and lawyer who defended draft resisters, atheists and others scorned by society. He served in the Texas Legislature during the McCarthy era and wrote fiery columns for The San Antonio Express-News. His final column, published on Feb. 2, 2003, just after he died at 82, was an attack on the coming war in Iraq.
Terrellita Maverick, sister of Maury Jr., is a member emeritus of the board of the San Antonio chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas.
Considering the family’s long history of association with liberalism and progressive ideals, it should come as no surprise that Ms. Maverick insists that John McCain, who has voted so often with his party, “is in no way a maverick, in uppercase or lowercase.”
“It’s just incredible — the nerve! — to suggest that he’s not part of that Republican herd. Every time we hear it, all my children and I and all my family shrink a little and say, ‘Oh, my God, he said it again.’ ”
On Thursday, October 2, 2008, the first and only vice presidential candidate debate was held. Below is the article from the Associated Press fact-checking statements made by the candidates. You can also watch the full footage of the debate, courtesy of CSPAN.
WASHINGTON - Republican Sarah Palin criticized a version of a Barack Obamahealth care plan that doesn't exist and Democrat Joe Biden clung to a misleading charge about Republicans and big oil when the two clashed in the vice presidential debate Thursday.
Some examples of facts cast adrift in the debate:
PALIN: Said of Democratic presidential candidate Obama: "94 times he voted to increase taxes or not support a tax reduction."
THE FACTS: The dubious count includes repetitive votes as well as votes to cut taxes for the middle class while raising them on the rich. An analysis by factcheck.org found that 23 of the votes were for measures that would have produced no tax increase at all, seven were in favor of measures that would have lowered taxes for many, 11 would have increased taxes on only those making more than $1 million a year.
___
BIDEN: Complained about "economic policies of the last eight years" that led to "excessive deregulation."
THE FACTS: Biden voted for 1999 deregulation that liberal groups are blaming for part of the financial crisis today. The law allowed Wall Street investment banks to create the kind of mortgage-related securities at the core of the problem now. The law was widely backed by Republicans as well as by Democratic President Clinton, who argues it has stopped the crisis today from being worse.
___
PALIN: Criticized Obama's "plan to mandate health care coverage and have universal government run program" for health care, and added: "I don't think it's going to be real pleasing for Americans to consider health care being taken over by the Feds."
THE FACTS: Wrong on several counts. Obama's plan does not provide for universal coverage, only mandates insurance for children and doesn't turn the system over to the government. Most people would still get private insurance through their work. Obama proposes that the government subsidize the cost of health coverage for millions who have trouble affording it and he'd set up an exchange to negotiate prices and benefits with private insurers — with one option being a government-run plan.
___
BIDEN: Warned that Republican presidential candidate John McCain's $5,000 tax credit to help families buy health coverage "will go straight to the insurance company."
THE FACTS: That's not surprising — the money is meant to pay for health insurance. The Obama campaign tried to capitalize on the candidates' health care exchange by issuing an ad Friday contending that the Republicans can't explain "the McCain health tax."
___
PALIN: "Two years ago, remember, it was John McCain who pushed so hard with the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac reform measures. He sounded that warning bell."
THE FACTS: Republican Sen. Chuck Hagel of Nebraska led an effort in 2005 to tighten regulation on the mortgage underwriters — McCain joined as a co-sponsor a year later. The legislation was never taken up by the full Senate, then under Republican control.
___
BIDEN: Said McCain supports tax breaks for oil companies, and "wants to give them another $4 billion tax cut."
THE FACTS: Biden is repeating a favorite saw of the Obama campaign, and it's misleading. McCain supports a cut in income taxes for all corporations, and doesn't single out any one industry for that benefit.
___
PALIN: Said the United States has reduced its troop level in Iraq to a number below where it was when the troop increase began in early 2007.
THE FACTS: Not correct. The Pentagon says there are currently 152,000 U.S. troops in Iraq, about 17,000 more than there were before the 2007 military buildup began.
___
BIDEN: "As a matter of fact, John recently wrote an article in a major magazine saying that he wants to do for the health care industry — deregulate it and let the free market move — like he did for the banking industry."
THE FACTS: Biden and Obama have been perpetuating this distortion of what McCain wrote in an article for the American Academy of Actuaries. McCain, laying out his health plan, only referred to deregulation when saying people should be allowed to buy health insurance across state lines. In that context, he wrote: "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."
___
PALIN: Said Alaska is "building a nearly $40 billion natural gas pipeline, which is North America's largest and most expensive infrastructure project ever to flow those sources of energy into hungry markets."
THE FACTS: Not quite. Construction is at least six years away. So far the state has only awarded a license to Trans Canada Corp., that comes with $500 million in seed money in exchange for commitments toward a lengthy and costly process to getting a federal certificate. At an August news conference after the state Legislature approved the license, Palin said, "It's not a done deal."
___
PALIN: "Barack Obama even supported increasing taxes as late as last year for those families making only $42,000 a year."
BIDEN: "The charge is absolutely not true. Barack Obama did not vote to raise taxes."
THE FACTS: The vote was on a nonbinding budget resolution that assumed that President Bush's tax cuts would expire, as scheduled, in 2011. If that actually happened, it could mean higher taxes for people making as little as about $42,000. But Obama is proposing tax increases only on the wealthy, and would cut taxes for most others.
___
PALIN: Said a McCain-Palin administration "will support Israel," including "building our embassy ... in Jerusalem."
THE FACTS: Moving the U.S. Embassy from its present location in Tel Aviv to Jerusalem is a perennial promise of presidential candidates courting the Jewish-American vote. In fact, moving the embassy is actually required by U.S. law. But successive administrations of both parties, including George W. Bush's, have made the same pledge only to find that the realities of Middle East peacemaking have forced them to invoke a waiver to delay it. Jerusalem is claimed as a capital by both Israelis and the Palestinians and Israel's occupation of east Jerusalem is not internationally recognized. The city's status is one of the key issues of disagreement in peace negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians.
The NYPD lieutenant who ordered the second officer to Taser Inman Morelas was stripped of his badge and gun and assigned to desk duty. Yet another example of persistant problems with NYPD officers' aggression towards minorities.
Lay off the caffine. From the LA Times, "Caffeine intoxication is a recognized clinical syndrome. It is described as nervousness, anxiety, restlessness, insomnia, gastrointestinal upset, tremors, rapid heartbeat, restlessness and pacing. In rare cases, caffeine intoxication can cause death."
From PCMAg.com, "Jammie Thomas, who was ordered to pay $222,000 to a group of music labels for allegedly pirating songs using the Kazaa peer-to-peer service, has been granted a new trial...The key word and definition was 'distribution,' which both the labels and Thomas' lawyers disputed. Both sides agreed that the only copying of files in the case was by MediaSentry, a firm hired by the labels to seek out pirates. The lawyers for Thomas had argued that a copyright holder or its agent, MediaSentry, can not infringe its own copyright."
Oh, please. Give it a rest. The man is 45 years old and his most famous role is a pirate with make-up and the movie is based off of a roller coaster. Time to move on.
Who knows? I've been reading almost every article I've come across and things are still a little fuzzy:
What's going on in Congress? On Monday, there was a tangible fear that a Congress pressured by Bush, Cheney, Treasury Secretary Henry "Hank" Paulson, Fed Chief Ben Bernanke, and SEC Chairman Christopher Cox would hurry up and pass a bill without holding hearings or bothering to think about granting broad new powers to the Treasury Department and expanding next year's deficit to $1 trillion. Newt Gingrich complained that conservative voices were "silent or confused" because this fiscally irresponsible, socialist (We are basically nationalizing the financial industry here.) plan was proposed by Republican leadership.
On Tuesday, Congress woke up. Bernanke, Paulson, and Cox testified before the Senate Banking Committee. Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) asked if $150 billion would be enough for now with a promise of more to come later if needed; Paulson said that would be a "grave mistake." However, compromises were made. Paulson agreed to assistance for homeowners facing foreclosure, limits on compensation for participating firms' executives, and congressional oversight of the program. He balked at the idea that the government should receive stock for helping these companies so the taxpayers could recoup their investment, saying that companies would be less likely to participate if this stipulation was made. (Never mind that that was part of the deal with the savings and loan scandal in the '80s.)
The consensus seems to be that Congress will pass a bill, just one significantly different from Paulson's original proposal.
What's happening on Wall Street?
It seems like nobody knows what's happening. On Friday, the Dow rose nearly 369 points on news that a bailout plan was being suggested. On Monday, it fell 372 points supposedly because investors had a weekend to examine the plan and did not like the lack of details. On Tuesday, it fell an additional 161 points supposedly because investors did not like the details Congress was considering. (Today, it remained relatively stable, losing only 29 points.)
How is it affecting the race for president? Hoo boy. A mere yesterday, both Obama and McCain trod softly, reluctant to make the first move. Neither had given any word about how the expensive deal would affect campaign promises. But it was clear that the bailout was becoming increasingly unpopular; by Monday night, 44% opposed the plan compared to 25% supporting. It was less clear, but the economic mess seemed to help Obama in the polls; a WaPo-ABC poll showed Obama with the first statistically significant lead in the general campaign. (Both campaigns found it hard to believe that Obama could gain 11 points on McCain in one week.)
Yesterday night, Obama said the bailout would likely delay implementing his campaign proposals as president.
And if they were reluctant to make the gambit 27 hours ago, the chess pieces are flying tonight. (Perhaps you'd prefer a poker metaphor?) First, McCain said he'd suspend his campaign tomorrow and fly back to Washington. He also asked that Friday's debate be postponed. The two campaigns agreed to issue a "joint statement outlining their shared principles," which turned out not to say much. But Obama said he'd still want to hold the debate:
With respect to the debates, it's my belief that this is exactly the time when the American people need to hear from the person who in 40 days will be responsible for dealing with this mess. . . . In my mind, actually it's more important than ever that we present ourselves to the American people.
Are these gimmicks? Probably. But the issue could fundamentally alter the presidential race.
"This is the narcissism of partisan. You get furiously outraged at the other campaign's lies, and you love your own. Nonetheless, I do think it is fair to say that the McCain campaign has been more egregious than the Obama campaign." --David Brooks
John McCain is drawingcriticism for claims he's making about Barack Obama, even from the normally welcoming ladies on The View:
In one of the two ads to which Joy Behar is referring, McCain accuses Obama of sexism for saying, "You can put lipstick on a pig; it's still a pig." But Obama wasn't insulting Sarah Palin; he was referring to the McCain-Palin ticket's attempt to portray themselves as agents of change. And compare Obama's comment to Palin's "What's the difference between a hockey mom and a pit bull? Lipstick," and McCain's saying the same thing about Hillary Clinton's health care plan during the primaries.
The other ad accuses Obama of perversely wanting to teach comprehensive sex ed to kindergartners, when he really supports teaching what constitutes inappropriate behavior from adults.
And while speaking in Missouri last week, McCain said that Obama's health care plan would "force small businesses to cut jobs and reduce wages and force families into a government-run health care system where a bureaucrat stands between you and your doctor." Even though Obama's plan drew criticisms in the Democratic primaries for not forcing all Americans into a government-run system. Said Jonathan Oberlander, a professor of health policy at UNC-Chapel Hill, "I would say this is an inaccurate and false characterization of the Obama plan. I don’t use those words lightly.”
"We must do whatever it takes, and we must not blink, Charlie, in making those tough decisions of where we go and even who we target." --Sarah Palin
On the New York Times' most-emailed list lie at least three editorials criticizing Sarah Palin's naïveté. And why not? Her ignorance is shocking even if you're not an Eastern media elite. (Side note:
Perhaps Mitt Romney thinks he's a reporter for the Daily Show?)
Palin argued that Alaska's proximity to Russia gives her better insight into Russian affairs. Can you "[i]magine the derisive laughter in conservative circles if the Democrats had tried such nonsense"?
She was completely ignorant of the Bush Doctrine. Talking heads later argued that most Americans couldn't explain the Bush Doctrine, but how many of them are running for vice president? Others have argued that several policies could be labeled that way, but Palin seems completely unaware that the label exists at all.
New York Governor David Paterson today gave a statement at a business conference in which he states that the McCain campaign is using the term "community organizer" as a shield for their veiled racism against Barack Obama.
As stated by Governor Paterson, "I think the Republican Party is too smart to call Barack Obama 'black' in a sense that it would be a negative. But you can take something about his life, which I noticed they did at the Republican Convention – a 'community organizer.' They kept saying it, they kept laughing."
For the video, please see below.
Matt Damon gave an interview with the Associated Press that also critiques the McCain/Palin campaign. He compared it to a "really bad Disney movie" and stated that "...this [McCain/Palin campaign] is absurd...I want to know if she really thinks dinosaurs were around 4,000 years ago...because she will have the nuclear codes...I want to know if she banned books or tried to ban books because we can't have this."
Let's stop talking about what a particularly putrescent pick Palin (I like alliteration) was for a moment and discuss other (foreign) political leaders in trouble.
First up, Canada: Prime Minister Stephen Harper formally scheduled a parliamentary election for October 14, despite previously specifying a much later date (by about a year) and promising to end this sort of political manipulation. Harper is hoping to build a larger Conservative bloc in Parliament by capitalizing on his own popularity before opposition to the Canadians' commitment in Iraq and discontent with a sluggish economy grow.
And no beleaguered prime minister omnibus would be complete without Thai PM Samak Sundaravej. Anti-government protesters have been camping on the grounds of Government House, the PM's residence, demanding Samak's resignation. Violence between the protesters and Samak's supporters flared five days ago, prompting Samak to declare a state of emergency and empowering the army to restore order in Bangkok. Then on Friday, in a move to defuse the situation, Samak announced that a referendum on whether Parliament should be dissolved would be held within the month, all the while steadfastly refusing to resign. Detractors are not impressed, saying a simple up-down vote cannot cover such a complex situation.
Here is the complete video of Barack Obama's acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention. The speech was given on the 45th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech in Washington, D. C. Although Barack Obama delivered his speech at the Mile High stadium in Denver to over 80,000 supporters, the moment was equally historic. As one young Obama supporter put it, "Barack Obama is my personal Jesus."
Aside from putting the entire stadium and all the viewers at home on Cloud 9, the speech secured Barack Obama's place in history as the first black American to receive the presidential nomination of a major political party (before him, Frederick Douglas received one vote from the Republican party when he ran for president) as well as a place as one of the United States' greatest orators.
In the words of a young college student after watching the speech, her voice cracking with emotion, "That was beautiful!!! How could you vote for anyone else?" In my own words, "No one can rock as much as Barack."
I didn't do too bad. I ranked Joe Biden fifth out of Obama's top ten veep choices back in June, but I rated him most highly of the three contenders receiving the most coverage as of late (Biden, Evan Bayh and Tim Kaine).
And of those three, not only did I think it most likely Obama would choose Biden, but I also personally liked Biden the most. Unlike the bland Evan Bayh, Biden is a dynamic politician who has spent over 30 years in the Senate and can serve as an adept attack dog against John McCain. And unlike Governor Kaine, Biden, currently the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, will add experience to the argument that Obama is better on foreign policy. And now the silly,rampantmediaspeculation can end.
The only problem is Biden's comments before the primaries, saying that Obama was too inexperienced. The McCain campaign has already put up an ad to that effect:
But I'm sure McCain won't show you Biden's more recent comments on Obama...
Biden called me in June to express his amazement that McCain continued to insist that Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was the leader of Iran, even after I pointed out--during a press conference--that the Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei controlled Iran's foreign policy and nuclear program. McCain's response was that the "average American" thought Ahmadinejad was Iran's leader...and Biden proceeded to jump all over that in a subsequent interview with Think Progress:
I don’t want an average American as president. I have great respect for average — average Americans don’t want an average American president of the United States of America. I want someone above average. I want someone who knows what they’re dealing with. And it surprises me that John didn’t understand the complexities of the power struggle going on in Iran right now.
Biden told me that he was amazed and disappointed by the changes in McCain during the course of the campaign. "I just don't recognize the guy anymore," he said. "It's a shame."
Obama and Biden appeared for the first time together in Springfield, Illinois, today. You can read the transcript of Obama's speech here.
Wolverine received his B.S.E. in civil engineering from the University of Michigan in 1950 and was one of the engineers who worked on the Mackinac Bridge. Following its completion in 1957, he immigrated to France and became friends with Albert Camus and Jean-Paul Sartre. Ten years later, he formed the psychedelic rock band Camille Sans Saints, which had a major hit with “Le homard veux me manger.” For more...
J-Mad is the leader of The Federalists. In addition to being the most fly correspondent for WP, J-Mad is co-owner of CSAir, Inc., and senior partner in the infamous Robbem & Runn law firm. Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. and J-Mad are BFFs and were in each other's Five, despite neither one having T-Mobile service. J-Mad will be president someday so watch for the announcement to be made on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. Also, FREE TIBET
Clarence Garside is a simple man of simple raising and simple pleasures and...oh heck...he enjoys being part of the mile high club that you only wish you could attend. He is the founder of CSAir and along with J-Mad, they'll rule the airline industry. Eventually, he will get that plane he's always wanted, but for now he must enjoy being a Golden Eagle. By the way...in case of a water landing your Wolverine may be used as a flotation device.
