Obama reached the 270 electoral vote mark on Nov. 4th, 2008, becoming the 1st African American President-Elect in the history of the United States of America.
God bless this country, the history we are making and road we have ahead of us.
We did it. Its over, and it begins...
OBAMA 44
I love it, two debates in one week. Politics junkies like myself are definitely getting our fix.
This should be an interesting debate. McFAILin's campaign has taken a nasty turn this week, both in tone and in polling. They have apparently decided that discussing the issues facing the nation is a losing strategy, and looking at the polling as of late, coupled with McCain's disastrous policy history and proposals, I kinda have to agree with them.
So he's taken a drubbing in the polls, but this debates format is supposed to be McCain's strong point. For some reason, the conventional wisdom is that McCain excels in "town hall" style events, while Obama does not. I know, I laugh too. The idea that in any speaking role, McCain could surpass Obama in coherence, eloquence, or poise is completely ridiculous.
The bottom line, the economy is still the number 1 issue facing Americans today, followed by the Bush/McCain wars. Both issues are losers for McCain; public opinion and reality both favor Obama's positions in each area. So whatever character assassination, slime politics, "Johnny Drama" bullshit McCain wants to throw around is only going to further alienate him in the eyes of American voters. Americans are smart, whatever McCain may think, and they want to see answers. They want strong leadership, not playground politics. We shall see tonight which candidate can offer us what we are looking for.
Edit: Damnit Barack, that was such a non-answer. Gonna need to do better than that. Eh, McCain's answer was no better.
Edit: Did McCain just tell that questioner that he was wrong? Bailout vs rescue, who gives a damn? And here he goes on a Freddie and Fannie rant. Johnny Drama, there are more than 2 companies involved in this crisis. Jesus.
Edit: Fantastic rebuttal by Obama. Well done.
Edit: What the hell is he talking about? An overhead projector? Who gives a damn? Can McCain please answer a question?
Edit: I hate it when Obama starts talking about offshore drilling and "clean coal." Bullshit proposals that don't offer any solutions. We need to move away from these archaic energy sources, towards new, cleaner types of energy. And damn it, he should be leading on that point, not merely co-signing the same tired policy that has gotten us where we are.
Edit: I'm not happy. Obama keeps making the same points over and over again. Move on man. Make a new point, or change the damn topic. I know, 95% of tax payers will get a cut under your plan. Move the fuck on! Talk about McCain's plan to tax employers healthcare expenditures. Something. McCain is actually talking about policy, Obama is floundering. Shit...
Edit: Shut the hell up Tom.
Edit: Ok, Obama recovered a little on the healthcare debate. M looked petty and spiteful on his "how much is the fine?" comment. On to foreign policy.
Edit: Shit. I give the debate to McCain. It was exactly what he needed to do to get his campaign back on track. I hate to admit it, but Obama looked befuddled and slow. McCain was crisp and likable. I'm going to have a drink and try to not think about politics for a while. As a better man than myself likes to say, good night and good luck.
Let the madness begin. How will Palin embarrass herself, her campaign, her party, and her country tonight? Let us count the ways.
Seriously, Biden needs to just sit back, answer his questions succinctly, and let Palin talk. If he does that, he will win. But what the R's are praying for is for him to lay into her (i.e. he is picking on the poor little hockey mom), or for him to be overly-respectful (i.e. patronizing the powerful and respected Governor of Alaska. They'll bitch either way. Biden doesn't need to beat Palin, he just needs to stay out of the way while she beats herself.
Edit: Palin sounds good. Doesn't sound smart, but she's speaking English, so its a start.
Edit: HAHA! Holy shit, did she just say that she may not answer the questions the moderator asks? Awesome. Nice burn by Biden, calling her on the bogus charge that Obama voted all those times to raise taxes.
Edit: She's just like McCain, smiles at the wrong times.
Edit: Oh damn! "the ultimate bridge to nowhere." Well said.
Edit: Oh my God, a plan to remove troops from Iraq is a "white flag of surrender"? Jesus....
Edit:This is intense. Good debate so far. Biden seems sure of himself and knows his stuff. Palin is cute, I guess. Still lacking some substance as I see it.
Edit: "Dog-gone-it Joe?" Are we electing fucking Howdy Doody to the VP office?
Edit: Jesus, these "beauty pageant" answers are freakin' killing me. Can she answer a damn question?
Edit: I dunno, Biden looked great, but Palin didn't piss herself either, so I'll reserve judgment for tomorrow.
But she makes it so easy. Does Palin even have a running mate? I've lost track.
Interesting article over at Culture11.com. A conservative argument for Sarah Palin excusing herself from the GOP ticket to save McCain's chances in November. Seems pretty compelling to me, but I'd also be dancing naked in the streets if the McPalin ticket imploded like that (The author, Conor Friedersdorf, is a HuffPo writer, so apply grains of salt as needed).
Then on the same site, some guy, Joe Conor, rebuts Conor's position, claiming that Sarah is only bad on television. Outside TV, she's got a great personality, and personalities, not issues, are what this election (supposedly) is all about.
Making judgments about Palin — or any candidate — based on how they come across on television seems to me to be irrational and dangerous.Did this guy see those interviews? Sarah Palin isn't just bad on TV. John Kerry was bad on TV, so was Nixon. Sarah Palin is an atrocity, on TV and in person. She's a god damn journalism major who can't name a single newspaper or magazine she reads to keep up on the news; she shouts contradictory campaign positions in Philly sandwich shops; she lies her damn head off!
She has, however, revealed she has the character to make the right decision on such issues, even at great personal cost. This, in my view, is the core of leadership and the primary reason she is more qualified to be the chief executive than anyone on the Democratic ticket.More of that gut-feeling decision making, W. style. That hero-worship of "instinctive" leaders and demonetization of intellectual prowess has done wonders for the country these last 8 years, hasn't it?
Ya'll seen this Palin chick? She's freakin' hilarious! I don't know who her writers are, but she is a comedic genius. That Borat guy better look out, there is a new kid on the block of awkward humor, and she looks like the big leagues. This whole PR stunt she's puling with the faux-VP bid is revolutionary. Obviously, no one really believes she wants to be the Vice President, but the publicity Palin and her comedy troupe have received is priceless. /snark
Seriously, Sarah Palin is a train wreck by any standard. Her anti-science, fiscally unsound policy and debilitating lack of experience should be enough to disqualify her for the 2nd highest office in the country. The woman wants Creationism taught on par with Evolution and actually tried to ban books from the Wasilla Library. Done. The argument is over at this point, she should not be VP. Period.
But oh no, Palin is the candidate that keeps on giving. Get comfortable. Pour a second cup of coffee and settle in.
She's packing major baggage in the "personal" area, such as the influence of "first dude" Todd Palin in her administration, her 17 year old daughter Bristol's pregnancy (not a problem at all in itself, but a poignant highlight of Palin's defunding Alaskan programs to help teenage mothers and emphasis on abstinence-only sex education), and the infamous "Troopergate" scandal. So this religious wacko who (allegedly) acknowledges the existence of witchcraft has been using her government office to wage personal vendettas against the former husband of a slighted family member. Again, done. The argument against her election is over, a second time. She should not be VP.
And friends, there is more. Apparently, Sarah Palin has a little problem with coherence and sentence structure. Her (few and meager) media interviews have been physically painful to watch. I seriously had to leave the room when I saw that poor Governor sputtering on about Russia and Canada sharing boarders with Alaska and Putin "rearing his head" over her state. During her interview with Couric, Palin's answer about the bailout bill will go down in history with that Miss Teen America contestant's response.
Notice the similarities? I did.
She has exhibited less-than-perfect message discipline as well, contradicting McCain's Pakistan policy when talking to voters. Then when called on it, McCain issues this doosy:"I don't think most Americans think that that's a definitive policy statement made by Governor Palin,"
Come on guys, just because she said it, doesn't mean she meant it.
So this debate looks like its over before it began. On both substance and style, Palin looks dead in the water. Biden, a career vet of foreign policy and the intricacies of policy and government, ought to be able to pick her apart with relative ease at the VP debate on Oct. 2nd. The man is a hell of a speaker and an amazing personal story as well.
So on paper, this thing is over. Whatever happens with the top of the tickets, the VP question has been answered. Yet if my party affiliation has taught me anything, it is to never underestimate the Democrats ability to really knuckle down, do some hard work, and completely blow a "gimme" election. Or issue. Or vote. Democrats are pretty much the leading experts in the field of professional fuck-ups and are more than capable of adding this VP debate to the long list of pathetic foot shots in our history (for further reading, see 2004 Presidential Election, or even better, the FISA debate).
So we need to shut the hell up. Palin is a joke, we all know that. Even the Republicans know she's isn't even approaching "ready," as is evident by the Great Palin Media Blackout of 2008. She has been ridiculed into the ground. Tina Fey, of SNL, doesn't even change her dialogue when she mocks Palin. She doesn't need to. Palin mocks herself. The poor woman must cry herself to sleep at night, I know I would. But then, I don't have an army of handlers insulating me from the scary media, or any outside contact at all for that matter.
At this point, if Palin spells her name correctly on the debate sign-in sheet, she's going to be a freakin' all-star. The media and the public are going to expect her to tank in epic fashion; come on stage with her head shaved or with a plug of chewing tobacco in her lip or something. So now, if she shows up fully dressed and speaks passible English, this debate will be a "win" for the McCain/Palin ticket. She is already expected to make very little sense and play defense the whole 90 minutes, so when she does just that, the talking heads are going to be crowing about her "meeting expectations" and "holding her own." She is already being held to a lower standard for success than anyone else on this campaign trail, and it is only getting worse. We used to care about a candidates qualifications in this country. We ought to still. As citizens, we should be demanding well-qualified, educated, knowledgeable statesmen and women run this country, not just some lady who manages to make it through a debate without wetting herself.
There is enough to disqualify Palin to be the VP without running her mental capacities into the ground. All we are doing is making it easier for her to exceed those expectations. So lets be honest, Sarah Palin is dumb, vicious, and incompetent, but you don't become the governor of a state by being a complete waste of oxygen. She will eventually exhibit some ability during this campaign, and we should be asking if that paltry offering is enough. I'm sure there is some kind of mental process going on behind those glasses, but the issue should be the quality of that process, not that we are all "so impressed" that this infant-woman actually does possess a functioning mind.
McCain is apparently putting his campaign on hold in response to the economic crisis at hand. He is calling for a meeting of both party's leaders, himself, and Obama to address the financial meltdown and the governments response.
Seems very level headed, responsible, and surprisingly bipartisan. Damn. So that means the post about McCain's unacceptably partisan tone during this crisis that I have been writing is now worthless.We must meet as Americans, not as Democrats or Republicans, and we must meet until this crisis is resolved.I am directing my campaign to work with the Obama campaign and the commission on presidential debates to delay Friday night's debate until we have taken action to address this crisis.
I know, its from Drudge. It hurts me to even admit that I read that garbage. But damn, the man breaks some stories.
So, is this some cheap trick to give McCain some breathing room for the debate he is about to lose and to give him further excuse to keep Sarah "Delicate Little Flower" Palin out of the harsh, scary media sunlight? Doesn't seem so at first blush. This does actually sound like a smart idea. As the economy veers towards the cliff of depression, maybe a little time away from soap opera politics and some focus on nuts and bolts legislation is a good thing.
Or perhaps what we need is precisely that, a focus on the politics that will determine the next 4 or 8 years of our country's future. Honestly, I cannot think of a more pertinent question to this crisis than which governmental philosophy we will follow going forward.
I am not ready to make a pronouncement yet, but my political lean obviously makes me slightly skeptical of this new-found love of legislation that John "Absentee Senator" McCain has developed.
I eagerly await Obama's response.
Update: Obama wont play McCain's game.
Emphasis mine. I like it. I'm still not sure if McCain's idea is a good one or not, but it is nice to see a Democrat not asking "How high?" when a Republican says "Jump.""I believe that we should continue to have the debate," Obama said. "It's my belief that this is exact time when the American people need to hear form the person who in approximately 40 days will be responsibly for dealing with this mess and I think that it is going to be part of the president’s job to deal with more than one thing at once."
Obama said that unlike McCain, he will not suspend ads, or campaign events scheduled between now and Friday's debate.
"I think it's very important that the American people see the people who potentially could be in charge of this problem within the next couple of months and so my attitude is that we need to be focused on solving the problems, as I have been," Obama said. "It's also important that we communicate where we need to go in getting us out of the situation."
Obama said he will stay in Florida for the time being and will not return to Washington unless asked by Congressional leadership.
"I've told the leadership in Congress is that if I can be helpful then I am prepared to be anywhere at anytime," he said.
"The worst thing we can do as a nation is taking the easy way out. ...If you start opening up offshore drilling, then you are buying time and you are not addressing the fundamental problem with fossil fuels." -Lindsey Graham (one of McCain's top boosters)Sounds like a pretty reasonable argument to me, but for some reason that argument has changed lately. Now Graham and McCain are supporters of legislation that would open a 27 year moratorium on offshore drilling. This is a political pander and nothing more. 8 years ago, while running for the Presidential nomination, John McCain espoused on the reasons offshore drilling would not help Americans in the long run, now the tune has been reversed and he is going public with his idea that offshore drilling will lower prices of oil and open up a new supply of domestic oil. The only problem with this is that it will not help. This is simply a political line that Republicans are using just like they used terrorism in 2004. People are scared of rising gas prices squeezing extra income from their households, scared that they will have to start sacrificing the needs of their family simply to commute to work or the grocery store. And these are real concerns unfortunately, but let's look at why an expanded offshore drilling program will not address the issue of price or supply.
"For anyone to represent that someone drilling off the coast in Florida is going to lower gas prices here or anywhere in this country is disingenuous and a flawed argument...Oil drilling could take 10 years before any oil is pulled out of the ground, and there are a large number of leases held by oil companies that are not being exploited right now. We can't say we need more until we've exploited these."But wait Marco, John says "There are areas off our coasts that should be open to exploration and exploitation, and I hope we can take the first step by lifting the moratoria...[drilling] would be very helpful in the short term in resolving our energy crisis."
Delayed post from StifledMind's Junior Senior Political Correspondent Alex K
On the anniversary of D-Day, we are at a momentous time in this country. I think we can all feel it, when you turn on the TV, read a newspaper, or talk with people there's a sense of excitement. We now have an official presumptive nominee, a nominee with great oratory skills and a huge base of young motivated citizens. The other presumptive nominee is amazing as well. He's got the oratory ability of a 10th grader (watching that speech was brutal). He's packing them in by the 10's with old vets hopped up on pepto bismol and cialis. Vets looking to the promises of the past, and not the opportunities of the future.
The last year has been a whirlwind for all the candidates McCain has come back from near death early in the season to capture the nomination from a flip flopper and social liberal republican. A very difficult season to say the least. Barack has dealt with the inexperience card, the unpatriotic card, the bad preacher card, the slumlord ties, and the fact he's still a minority in a racially divided nation. I would say that Barack has repeatedly got up from the mat to show he has the mettle to lead the nation. He has broken ground in fund raising, energized the general public, and with ad visors mapped a winning campaign strategy overcoming insurmountable odds. If he runs the country the way he runs the campaign the American people should be in great shape.
Both sides of the political spectrum, i believe see this and are mentally preparing. The conservatively leaning right are bashing their own candidate. The base seem to be taking slow steps to recede in the shadows. The blogosphere are making Obama administration jabs, and what the future holds rants. The other side is having meetings to set campaign agenda allegedly and trying to unify the party.
Anyways, I firmly believe that Ronald Reagan would be spinning in his grave if he knew how much McCain is trying to stake a claim as an heir to his political legacy. Especially after being inseparable with the Bush White House.
Here's a speech truly worthy taking the time to watch.
Done. Finally.
You know, as critical as I have been of Hillary during this campaign, I do feel that she deserves a salute on her way out. She's been an influential voice and powerfully visible figure for progressive causes for a couple of decades, and her impact on the American political scene cannot be overstated.
As a politician, Hillary Clinton is the perfect example of a Democrat with a Spine; a rare creature indeed. She plays hardball, doesn't pull punches, and is obviously willing to fight to her last dying breath for the causes she believes in. The other cringing, capitulating congress critters who call themselves Democrats (with a few exceptions) can, and should, learn a great deal from her.
She gave a speech today (I believe) which C&L reports will be running in full on MSNBC today at 4 o'clock Eastern time, in which she officially backs Obama in his candidacy for the Presidency. It was one of her better pieces of oratory, and hopefully will mend some of the rifts in the Democratic Party (real or media-made) and prime the Party to stomp McBush this November. She referred to an Obama victory as "the path to peace, prosperity and progress" for the country, and I can't think of a better way to put it. It might be shallow and calculating of me, but when I hear that line, I think "campaign slogan," and I like it. It'll sell.
I know its nothing official, but damn, its nice to see someone in the mainstream media admit what the folks in Left Blogistan have been saying for months.
Obama will be the Democratic Nominee.
Man, that felt good to say. Now if only Clinton would get the message. I do understand her campaign's rhetoric though, they are trying to pump up their voters. The coach of a lagging underdog team doesn't come out before a game and declare his intentions to get his ass handed to him, he says that they're in it to win it, and that the scoreboard will decide the game. Clinton is doing the same thing. She is a relatively intelligent, self-aware homo sapien, so she must know she will not win, but she has to give her "Inches" speeches before the game.
Man, I love that speech. Crappy movie, but awesome scene.
I expect a concession in the next few days.
But I've been wrong before.
EDIT: But not this time. Bam. Via ABC News: Clinton to Concede Race to Obama Saturday
So its already been called for Hillary, but that really not a surprise. The question has always really been the margin. How much will Clinton win BY? If its a nail biter, down to the last few hours, the argument for her to stay in the race becomes more of a stretch. Lets see where this goes.
Olbermann on MSNBC just mentioned that the early reports of voter turnout in Pennsylvania are pretty encouraging. In 2004, 26% of registered Dems voted in the primary, and it looks like that number may have doubled this year. This number will probably change, but the early count is 52% of registered Dems showed up today.
Stay tuned for the Dean & Tye Show, LiveBlogging the primary.
Dean and Tye will be hosting a liveblog of the Pennsylvania Primary tomorrow, from about 7-8 until we decide its over, or until we are too drunk to type. Should be fun and uninformative. So come cheer our man Barack on to victory!
Hopefully we'll find some space for a dash of that "objectivity" I've heard of as well.
So Hillary Clinton has been driving me nuts these past few days. (Full disclosure: I'm definitely an Obama supporter, and I don't pretend to not have a horse in this race, so get your grains of salt ready.) Conflict and controversy suddenly erupted late last week over comments Obama made at a private fund raiser.
You go into these small towns in Pennsylvania and, like a lot of small towns in the Midwest, the jobs have been gone now for 25 years and nothing's replaced them.And they fell through the Clinton Administration, and the Bush Administration, and each successive administration has said that somehow these communities are gonna regenerate and they have not.And it's not surprising then they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren't like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations.
Honestly, that seems like a fairly candid assessment of the possible sentiments of some Americans. Its not the rosiest picture of the American Electorate, but I think we have had enough happiness and sunshine in the face of Reality from Bush and Company for the past 7 years.
It shows an elitism and condescension towards hardworking Americans that is nothing short of breathtaking.Is this for real? This is the subject of 24 hour news coverage? Bush admits he "approved" of his top aides discussing exactly how and to what extent to torture specific individuals, and we labast Obama for discussing the sentiments of American Voters and asking for a glass of orange juice. Holy hell.
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