A Plea to Democrats

A few weeks back, Scott and I endorsed Sen. Barack Obama as our choice for the Democratic nomination, and since then, the two of us, and everyone else, have seen our party become fractured and, in turn, a little weak.

It’s time that we all get over this Obama-Clinton feud, a feud that has become far more divisive than it ever should have and has, at times, reduced intelligent, educated and decent people into something that resembles children fighting over a box of crayons.

The decision over our party’s nominee will eventually be made and that will be that; God-willing.

The arguing between each candidate’s supporters is rising to ridiculous proportions and that must stop… now… because a real fight is coming, and that fight is, of course, the fight to oust the republican party from the White House.

I still believe the Democrats will regain control of the presidency in November, but we need to stop wasting our time arguing amongst ourselves. I understand that everyone is entitled to their opinion and has their favorite… but what I am worried about are those Democrats that have their eyes on voting for John McCain, Ralph Nader or some other inconsequential schlub rather than their party’s nominee.

That talk needs to stop… Right. Now.

As an Obama supporter, the actions of Sen. Clinton have shocked me and have made me lose not only respect for her, but for former president Clinton as well. Having said that, if she were to get the nomination, I would vote for her in a heartbeat if it would mean keeping the gop out of the White House for at least four years.

Those that support Clinton have been shocked by the actions, or at times, inactions, of Sen. Obama. Having said that, a few Clinton supporters I’ve talked to have vowed to vote for him over McCain if he were to win the nomination.

What troubles me are those Obama and Clinton supporters that have said they would vote for someone else if the other gets the nomination…

Explain to me how that would help this nation?

The war in Iraq, the economy, healthcare, education, all of these and more have suffered greatly after 8 years of the Bush White House, and while I, personally, think Sen. Obama would offer more hope for this country, I am also confident that Sen. Clinton would be a huge boost to the nation as well.

Certainly more so than Sen. McBush would… all he would offer is four more years of Bush-like politics; ignoring the Constitution, supporting an unjust and deadly war, further pushing down the middle class and forcing us further into a recession.

So it is for that reason that TBWA endorses both candidates for the presidency.

Should Sen. Barack Obama win, we will offer our full-throated support for him to beat McCain in November.

http://www.barackobama.com/

Should Sen. Hillary Clinton win, we will offer our full-throated support for her to beat McCain in November.

http://www.hillaryclinton.com/

All Democrats and Liberals should choose this option for any other choice, would be foolishly leaving the White House in republican hands for at least four more years.

And our nation can not handle that any more…

Stop the arguing, look further down the road and realize that the real fight is coming.

Unite as one party…

Support one party…

Vote, one party…

Our livelihoods depend on it…

The Monday ‘BushWhack’ing

Another week starts as another month ends…

• The Bush(whacked) Administration is proposing this morning a massive overhaul in the financial markets (this should end well… and by well I mean utter, complete and total chaos and anarchy)
• “President” Bush is heading to his last (YAY!) NATO summit today in Bucharest, Romania where he is expected to keep pressure on NATO allies (if he has any left) to help more with Afghanistan. He will then travel to Russian to speak with Russian President Vladimir Putin… so it’s entirely possible that by the time he gets back, he will have estranged himself further from Russia and NATO and, well, every other person in Europe…
• Having come under intense and widespread criticism (which is a Bush appointee trait) for cronyism and corruption within his department, HUD Secretary Alphonso Jackson is going to resign effective April 18th today…
• CNN headline; “McCain looks ahead as Dems duke it out.” (That’s some crack reporting there guys, thanks…)
• After a myriad of calls for her to drop out of the race, Sen. Clinton said this past weekend that she has no plans to quit the race until the convention… stay tuned.
• Former presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry was stumping for Sen. Obama this past weekend and spoke what could very well be the truest words he’s ever uttered; “"It is very important for both people (Obama & Clinton) to keep the eye on the real target — John McCain and the Republican disaster of the last seven and a half years." (Amen John! Amen!!! I’ll have a post about THIS later…)
• Proving why people are listening to him and NOT James “Mr. Mary Matalin” Carville, New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson is vowing to not “stoop to Carville’s level” after Carville’s inane and incredibly un-apt comparisons of Richardson to Judas…(besides, if anyone is a Judas, it’s Carville, who has admitted he shares his secrets with Mary Matalin, one of Cheney's top aides)
• And have we mentioned? That “President” Bush was greeted with a resounding chorus of boos last night when he delivered the first pitch at the Nationals-Braves game? It’s true; after he was announced, the audience showered Bush with boos as he strode to the mound and delivered the pitch, with it not stopping until he disappeared from the field (my mother told me to never take pleasure in other people’s misery, but she makes an exception for Bush, so to this I say; Hah Hah!)

The Weekly Rewind

Time for another review of the week that was in the world of politics, or as we like to call it; The Weekly Rewind… there are 297 days left in the Bush presidency.

Applaud: to five former secretaries of State for speaking their mind. The five – Henry Kissinger, James Baker, Warren Christopher, Madeleine Albright, and Colin Powell – were attending a University of Georgia roundtable discussion earlier this week and agreed (all of them that the next president should move quickly to close Guantanamo Bay…

Heckle: to subterfuge and obfuscation, Bush government-style. Almost four months after the disclosure that the CIA destroyed interrogation videotapes, the number of legal entanglements for the C.I.A., the Defense Department and other (Bush) agencies is only growing longer and longer, fighting off criminal and Congressional investigations of the tapes’ destruction, as well as major terrorism cases and a raft of prisoners’ legal claims that it may have destroyed evidence from their case… (And no one in this administration has faced impeachment hearings yet becauuuuuuuuuuuuuuuse???)

Applaud: to a new kid on the block, albeit only temporarily. Lt. Gen. Martin Dempsey “assume(d) command of U.S. Central Command from Navy Adm. William J. Fallon on Friday, weeks after Fallon unexpectedly announced that he was “retiring.” Dempsey, like Fallon, opposed the administration’s surge and is a “fan of transition” in Iraq, so expect his command to be over soon…

Heckle: to scary possibilities… for years Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice had repeatedly denied that elected office was part of her “political future,” but after attending a weekly conservative gathering, one conservative pundit wrote; “She’s going to secure her future in Republican politics and to position herself as a ‘potential’ VP candidate on the McCain ticket.” (Aaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!)

Applaud: to news that makes me smile… according to U.S. News, a lot of senior and midlevel White House and administration officials are looking to land private-sector jobs “sooner rather than later.” (Abandon ship!)

Heckle: to sobering, yet not totally surprising, news. AFP notes that at least 97% of the 4,000 deaths occurred after “President” Bush announced the end of “major combat” operations (with a brand spanking-new ‘Mission Accomplished’ banner hanging overhead) on May 1, 2003…

Applaud: to more news that makes me smile… the most recent S&P/Case-Shiller home price index shows that U.S. consumers are “more nervous about the future” than they ever have been since Richard Nixon was President… (and we all know how that ended… please, please, please, please, please, please…)

Heckle: to more evidence that our standing in the world, and for that matter our safety, is lower than Bush’s approval ratings… a new report by Jane’s Information Group shows that 21 countries are ranked more stable than the United States based on a formula that assesses “political structures, social and economic trends, military and security risks and external relations.” (Yeah… big shock there. The measure of how far our country has fallen in the eyes of the rest of the world since Bush entered office in 2000 is staggering… and our next CIC – whether it be Obama, Clinton or someone else – will have their hands full in trying to rectify the damage done…)

Applaud: to telling our ‘leader’ what he needs to hear for once; the truth. Earlier this week, and behind the Pentagon's closed doors, U.S. military leaders told President Bush they are “worried about the Iraq war’s mounting strain on troops and their families.” (about time he hears it from people in the know. The wars in Afghanistan and Iraq have stretched our military to the breaking point, and yet Bush continues to dismiss the possibility of lowering tour lengths… this is gonna get worse before it gets better)

Heckle: to the MSM and the main stream public that views it. According to analysis by Huffington Post, after the US death toll in Iraq hit 4,000, a pathetically scant two U.S. newspapers — The Rocky Mountain News in Denver and the Daily News in New York — honored the men and women with front page stories while The Wall Street Journal, New York Times, and Washington Post delegated the story deep within their paper… (Sad… just sad…)

Applaud: to Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) for asking Attorney General Michael Mukasey to explain the decision to eliminate the public corruption unit in Los Angeles… the department that had been investigating Rep. Jerry Lewis’s (r-CA) “connection to a lobbying firm and the earmarks its clients received.” (well, I’m sure there’s no way in hell the two are connected, right? Right?????)

Heckle: to more news that points to the US entering, if we’re not already in, a recession. Recent GDP numbers released earlier this week show that the economy grew by just 0.6% in the fourth-quarter of 2007, confirming the slump the economy has entered and matched the expectations of weak growth predicted by many economists… (so there…)

Applaud: to republican Sen. Chuck Hagel (NE) for slamming Vice President Dick Cheney’s callousness towards not only the American public but our troops as well… he also attacked Cheney’s credibility since he was a Vietnam draft dodger… (well said Mr. Hagel, thanks for sharing…)

Heckle: to failed policies having the chance to fail again. The Bush(whacked) Administration said earlier this week that it plans to model its long-term Iraq agreement on one that the US already has with Afghanistan. That agreement, reached in 2005, states that the US will “[c]onsult with respect to taking appropriate measures in the event that Afghanistan perceives that its territorial integrity, independence, or security is threatened or at risk.” (This should end well…)

Applaud: to the swelling of bipartisan support for the DOJ to open an investigation into the unauthorized searches of all three presidential candidate’s passport files… and speaking of PassportGate;

Heckle: to the outsourcing of government jobs. The contractors who breached the aforementioned passport files were all employees of a private workforce that has increasingly assumed responsibility for processing the travel documents. State Department officials said earlier this week that 60% of the 4,400 passport employees work for private firms and are NOT government employees. (wow… who wants to guess that at least one of these private firms is connected to Halliburton)

Applaud: to the University of Chicago for proving Sen. Clinton wrong… something that is becoming easier and easier to do over each passing day. Over the last several days, the Clinton campaign has suggested that Sen. Obama was embellishing his role at the school by calling himself a professor when he was listed as a ‘Senior Lecturer,” turns out he was right as the university has stated that Mr. Obama does accurately describe himself as a onetime law professor at the school. (and this isn’t common sense; how?)

Heckle: to the unraveling of a cease-fire. The cease-fire that was highly vital to the improved security situation in Iraq (which republicans of course attributed to the ‘surge’) game unglued earlier this week when one of the militias that are loyal to Shiite Muslim cleric Muqtada al Sadr began shutting down neighborhoods in western Baghdad, which happened to coincide with a crackdown in Basra by the Iraqi government. (This should end well…)

Applaud: to comeuppances. 9,000 people in Kentucky that have switched their political affiliation since Jan. 1st so they could vote on the Democratic ticket and throw a wrench into the Democratic primary are finding out that they won’t even be able to vote in the May 20th primary… (can we say; Karma?

Heckle: to fuzzy logic. The Bush(whacked) Administration is taking credit for the Iraqi government’s offensive against Shiite militias and is calling it a “byproduct of the success” of last year’s surge… (and if the opposite would have happened, who wants to bet that the administration would have thrown the Iraqi government under the bus?)

Heckle: to a trip that could very well end badly… who am I kidding, it’s Bush so it’s definite that it will end badly. Earlier this week “President” Bush announced that he will travel to Russia after a NATO summit next week so he can meet with President Vladimir Putin in hopes of repairing relations that have grown strained… (Let’s just hope he doesn’t decide to give Putin a back rub, things might get awkward…)

Heckle: to scary thoughts… Rudy Giuiliani is eyeing a run for governor in a special election this fall should Gov. Paterson be forced to resign… (does he really think he’s electable to ANYTHNG any more? People have either grown sick & tired of him or don’t like him… I don’t think he would be elected garbage commissioner if he was running against Homer Simpson)

Heckle: to saying incredibly stupid things. U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said earlier this week that your $600 tax rebate check and the economic stimulus package will create 600,000 new jobs… (Wow, that would be a neat trick…)

Applaud: to DNC chairman Howard Dean. Why not?

Heckle: to more economic news that shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone. Health-care costs are “whacking away” at the wages of working class Americans as premium amounts for family health coverage have increased 78% since 2001… (and yet, the current administration does nothing…)

For the second week in a row, we’ve decided to hand out our Tool of the Week to Vice President Dick Cheney. Since telling the American people to ‘ef off last week he’s been a busy little Beelzebub … after the US death toll in Iraq hit 4,000, Cheney was interviewed on ABC and not only asserted that Bush “carries the biggest burden” of the Iraq war (WHAT??) but also implied that the troops volunteered for duty (while true, mentioning it when speaking of 4,000 US deaths is callous) But Cheney wasn’t done, he then compared staying the course in Iraq to Richard Nixon's pardoning (riiiiiight) and called Sens. Obama and Clinton “wannabes” because they want to, eventually, and unlike McBush, get out of Iraq…

It’s clear that Cheney doesn’t give a damn what the people of the United States think, but regardless of that, for a Vice President to say these things is not only pathetic, but also a sad reminder of how far our country has been pushed back with Bush and his cronies in office. 1/20/09 can NOT come soon enough…

All I have, take 'em as you will...

Karma, baby!

I believe in karma, especially in the world of politics and if you try to screw the people, Karma will eventually catch up to you and you'll get your comeuppance.

Well, it's finally happened...

Since the 2008 Presidential campaigns began, republicans have been changing their party affiliations in some states in order to throw a wrench into the Democrat's primary process, whether it is by way of pushing the stronger candidate out of the way so the lesser candidate – the candidate that the polls tell them will lose to their candidate – wins that state.

Hell, even Rush “OxyContin” Limbaugh told his followers to do it, and do it they did in Ohio, and now some, if not all, may face legal action.

Now travel south where approximately 9,000 people in Kentucky have switched their political affiliation since Jan. 1st so they could vote on the Democratic ticket.

And now? Now they're beginning to get a taste of their own disenfranchisement while realizing that their switch won't help their party one bit.

In what can easily be attributed to Karma, thousands of Kentuckians that have switched political party affiliation from republican to Democrat or Independent over the past three months – most likely in a vain attempt to sway the Democratic presidential primary – are finding themselves out of luck.

The state's Secretary of State, Trey Grayson, repeated this week that Kentucky law forbids people who switch parties after December 31st from voting in the presidential primary.

Oops.

Greyson also said that he has been telling all election officials in the state to warn political groups and campaign workers that encouraging Republicans and Independents to switch to the Democratic Party will be of no benefit in the primary because they won't be able to vote.

Despite that, some 9,000 people have changed parties since January 1 and as a result have given up their right to vote.

Acting like true Republicans, I guess these people didn't fully think their plan through, huh?

Karma, baby!

The Friday Presidential Race ‘BushWhack’ing

Computer connectivity issues this morning, but here is your (late) Presidential Race BushWhack…

• News that sends a shiver down my spine was reported this week as a new poll shows that if Sen. Obama wins the Democratic nomination, a lot of Clinton backers would vote for McBush… the reverse is also true, and to that I say; NO!!!! God damnit, no! As I said earlier this week, we as Democrats can NOT allow that to happen. Never has it ever been more important to vote your party than it will be for this election, for if we Sen. McBush gets into the White House, we’ll instantly have 4 more years of a Bush-style presidency… 4 more years in Iraq, 4 more years of economic crap, 4 more years of ignoring the Constitution and 4 more years of HELL. As much as I dislike Ms. Clinton right now for her actions, if she gets the nomination, I will vote for her in November. To do otherwise would be a slap in the face of the nation and will ensure we have more years of Bush-like politics…
• Since he’s already the presumptive nominee, the talk is now turning over who will be Sen. McBush’s running mate…
• Finally acting like they should, Sens. Obama and Clinton have decided to not attack each other on something and instead have focused their disagreements towards presumptive republican nominee Sen. John McBush…(About time you guys started getting it right…)
• Another poll shows that the bickering between Obama and Clinton could hurt turnout in the general election… (that’s some might fine reporting there Lou CNN…)
• Sen. Clinton’s donors have found themselves facing down one of the grassroots most powerful (and in my opinion sometime unethical) groups; MoveOn… (personally I truly hope the group doesn’t go republican on her and swiftboat her campaign, that kind of in-fighting is something we Democrats do NOT need right now…)
• Speaking of pandering… Sen. Clinton said yesterday that she would have long ago distanced herself from the Rev. Jeremiah Wright if she had been a member of his church…(uh-huh, thanks for clearing that up Hillary…)
• Sen. Obama said earlier this week that if Reverend Wright had not retired, he would have left the church because of the statements made by Wright… (stop pandering Barack, it doesn’t suit you…)
• Despite her most-tried efforts, Sen. Clinton’s SerbiaGate just won’t go away… and rightfully so.
• Obama-Bloomberg? Wasn’t that rumor going around weeks ago? Oh that’s right, it’s CNN…
• Sen. Obama released his tax returns… still nothing from Sen. Clinton…
• And have we mentioned? That Sen. Clinton’s personal approval rating has taken a staggering drop in recent weeks? Not only has her approval ratings fallen, but the amount of those that hold a negative view of her has skyrocketed. Her most recent approval rating was 48%, lowest since March 2001, and only 37% have a positive view of her, down from 45% two weeks ago…(I’m sure it has absolutely nothing to do with her constant whining about Florida and Michigan or her ‘misspeaking’ on multiple occasions about Bosnia… it’s so hard to express sarcasm in the written form…)

Make it stop

(HT to Daily Kos)

The Clinton campaign is getting a tad obsessive-compulsive as they have started an on-line petition aimed at, what else, forcing the DNC to recognize the delegations from Michigan and Florida or else promise to hold new elections.

Michael Kempner, a Clinton donor and PR exec, says; “For whatever reason, the DNC seems to be captive of the Obama campaign. The fact is that many, many long-time supporters both financially and non-financially, that have a very different point of view. We very much want to put them on notice.”

Kempner then went on to say that the campaign wants DNC chairman Howard Dean “to exercise some leadership.”

Wow… first, let’s start with the fact that the DNC is NOT captive to Sen. Obama but, in fact, is captive to its own rules… and in abiding by those aforementioned rules, Dean is showing some fantastic leadership.

Why in God’s name should the DNC help Florida and Michigan skirt the rules when 48 other states were able to abide by them? It doesn’t make sense… and as far as new elections go, Dean has said all along that he and the DNC would recognize new contests in both states, but both states passed on that option because, well, because they’re idiots…

None of this has anything at all to do with Dean or Obama but more-so two state’s (bipartisan) decisions to chuck the rules in the toilet and do what they wanted to do…rules be damned. And now, just like we teach children to do, the DNC is abiding by the rules… but Clinton and her people – knowing there is no math anywhere in this world or out of this world that will give her the needed number of delegates – are trying to browbeat HER OWN PARTY… AGAIN... to do what benefits them… rules be damned.

Explain to me again why she has any supporters left?

Checks to the rescue

During a week that saw NRCC chairman Tom Cole write an article in the New York Times Magazine where he admitted that article “President” Bush may not be welcome at GOP campaign events all across the country due to his staggering-low approval numbers, “President” Bush is still trying to spin the already-here (or looming) recession… this time using the economic stimulus package as the savior.

“President” Bush visited a small business in Virginia yesterday and while there discussed his plans to help the recovery, saying; “There’s a rough patch right now in our economy, but I’m confident in the long term we’ll come out stronger than ever before. One of the most decisive actions a government can take is to give people their money back so they can spend it, and that’s exactly what we’ve done. In the second week of May, a lot of folks are going to be getting a sizable check. And I’m looking forward to that day, and I know they are as well.”

Soooooooooo, let me get this straight; to make the economy “stronger than ever before” we have to wait until May when people spend their rebate checks??

And they can’t pay off debt or put them in the bank, they have to spend the checks on goods and services...

Um… who wants to tell him?

...

...

Noone? Fine, I will; poll numbers don’t support your wish there George as a recent CreditCards.com poll finds that almost half the American public plans to either save their rebate checks or use them to pay off debt… while a CNN/Opinion Research Corp. poll shows that 53% plan to “use their rebates to pay off bills” or “put the money in savings.”

Uh-oh…

The Thursday ‘BushWhack’ing

Another day closer to Friday, and another day closer to 1/20/09…

• A new poll shows that if Obama gets the nomination, more Dems could go for McCain, same if Clinton gets the nod over Obama. (NO!!!! God damnit, we can’t let that happen… never has it ever been more important to vote your party than it is in this election… if we elect McCain, we get 4 more years of a Bush-style presidency – end of discussion. As much as I dislike Ms. Clinton right now, if she gets the nomination, I will vote for her in November. To do otherwise would be a slap in the face of the nation and will ensure we have at least 4 more years in Iraq, 4 more years of economic crap, 4 more years of ignoring the Constitution and 4 more years of HELL… VOTE THE PARTY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)
• New GDP numbers released this morning show the economy grew by a scant 0.6% in the fourth-quarter of last year, numbers that “confirm the slump” that the economy has entered and matched the expectations of weak growth predicted by many economists… (or in using-your-own-brain-and-not-the-government-definition words; a recession)
• Sen. Obama says the U.S. government should play an active role in improving the American people's well-being… (conservative whining about government being too-involved in people’s lives unless it deals with fetuses in five, four, three…)
• The U.S. has charged Puerto Rican Gov. Anibal Acevedo Vila on 19 counts stemming from a long-running campaign finance probe… though in his defense, he’s just trying to act like his U.S. bretheren…
• A gaggle of Senators are asking for details regarding the recent sale of Bears-Stearns to JP Morgan Chase, who was able to buy the troubled firm after the Federal Reserve backed it with billions in taxpayer dollars… (stay tuned)
• According to a federal indictment that was unsealed yesterday, Saddam Hussein's intelligence agency footed the bill for a U.S. congressional delegation's trip as evidence for invading Iraq war was being built-up…
• “President” Bush will be visiting President Vladimir Putin next month… so there’s another country we will be able to add to the list of Bush antagonizing…
• And have we mentioned? That Sen. Lindsey Graham (r-SC) has 2 new BFF’s? During a recent interview, Graham called Sens. McCain and Lieberman “something special” (ewwww) and said Lieberman is a “national treasure”… (Um, okay? This has to be the ickiest thing said by a republican since Larry Craig’s ‘wide stance’ argument… Lieberman is a national tool, not a treasure, and the three of them really need to get a room somewhere…)

Hmmmmmm....

Interesting… more than four times in the last few weeks Sen. Clinton, in touting her foreign policy experience, recalled a trip to Bosnia where her, as First Lady, and her group landed “under sniper fire” and were told to “run to our cars.”

Earlier this week Clinton said she was “sleep-deprived” and “misspoke” when she said that she had landed under sniper fire during that 1996 trip to Bosnia…

Sleep-deprived? On multiple occasions?

And she wants us to elect her to answer the red phone at 3 o’clock in the morning?

Something doesn’t make sense here… oh right; her.

The Wednesday ‘BushWhack’ing

• Authorities revealed yesterday that a man carrying a loaded shotgun was arrested in January near the U.S. Capitol… okay, that’s nothing too shock—what’s that? His truck filled with explosives was parked nearby and went undetected for three weeks?? Fabulous… thank you very much Homeland Security…
• Is Sen. McCain making the most of his time? No he isn’t, compared to some supporters, who feel he isn’t doing enough to take advantage of the Democrat’s in-fighting. (What? Do they want him to pander more?)
• Speaking of pandering… Sen. Clinton said yesterday that she would have long ago distanced herself from the Rev. Jeremiah Wright if she had been a member of his church…(uh-huh, thanks for clearing that up Hillary…)
• SerbiaGate just won’t die…
• Nor will DetroitMayorGate…
• Democratic voters in Pennsylvania are eager to vote in next month’s primary… and a top state official told CNN that a near-majority of all voters on the rolls are registered as Democrats…
• Sen. Obama has released his tax returns… still nothing from Sen. hiding something Clinton…
• And have we mentioned? That the most recent S&P/Case-Shiller home price index shows that U.S. consumers “are more nervous about the future than at any time since December 1973, when Richard Nixon was President”? It’s true… and when you add that home prices in 20 U.S. metropolitan areas “fell 10.7 percent in January,” (which marked the sharpest decline since 1987) you have all the ingredients of a bad road ahead… (but the economy is still basically sound and people aren’t nervous at all… could this White House be ANY more out of touch with the people?)

The Tuesday ‘BushWhack’ing

• Realizing that there’s this amazing invention called ‘video’ that shows what was actually encountered, Sen. Clinton says she “misspoke” about her trip to Bosnia. Right… and Cheney misspoke when he gave a big F-U to the nation last week…
• Consumer confidence plunged in March to a new five-year low… but we’re still not in a recession…
• After already offending the American people last week, US soldiers this week, VP Dick Cheney is arriving in Turkey today… this should end well.
• The Bush(whacked) Administration is saying that it plans to model its long-term agreement with Iraq on one that we have with Afghanistan. Reached in 2005, it states that the US will “[c]onsult with respect to taking appropriate measures in the event that Afghanistan perceives that its territorial integrity, independence, or security is threatened or at risk.” (Considering how well Afghanistan worked out – yes I’m being sarcastic – we’re going to be stuck in this Iraq quagmire for a VERY long time…)
• After James Carville called Bill Richardson “Judas” for endorsing Sen. Obama (hmmm, might comments and actions like that from the Clinton camp be part of the reason he endorsed Obama rather than Clinton who, let’s face facts, has taken desperation and manipulation to heights that make Karl Rove blush…), a Sen. Obama staffer has brought up Monica Lewinsky’s blue dress while another has made comparisons of Pres. Clinton and Joe McCarthy… which the Clinton camp immediately started whining about. So it’s okay for the Clintons and their minions to sling mud, but when it’s slung at them, they whine like a kindergartener who jus their crayons taken away…
• The New New York Governor (days after admitting extramarital affairs) has now admitted he tried cocaine and pot in his youth…
• On the day that marked 4,000 US deaths in Iraq, “President” Bush said that the deaths “laid foundations for peace” in the country…
• And have we mentioned? That Rush Limbaugh continues to blow hot air? While I know it’s not a surprise, Limbaugh is attacking Sen. Obama’s race again, insisting on his show last Friday that Obama “disowned his white half” by standing by his pastor, Jeremiah Wright and said; “This is the stuff, this is the part that might bother some of you. It is clear that Senator Obama has disowned his white half. He’s decided he’s got to go all in on the black side.” (Anyone with a working brain – who is allowed to use it on their own – can see that his standing by a pastor does no such thing. Having said that, we’re not talking about people with brains, we’re talking about Limbaugh fans…)

The Monday ‘BushWhack’ing

Another Monday, another week of politics… T

• The U.S. toll in Iraq has reached 4,000 deaths…

• New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson is getting gruff for endorsing Obama from, well, the Clinton campaign who thinks they own him since they helped get started in National politics… in return, the Clinton camp, who had been pressing for his endorsement, shrugged it off and said that each candidate has many great endorsees… (wow, the Clinton campaign responding with inane comments, who could have EVER seen that coming?)
• Sen. Obama wants someone to investigate PassportFileGate…
• Vice President Dick Cheney is in the Middle East… this won’t end well…
• This is what you want to hear; Attorney General Michael Mukasey has been surprised by the scope and variety of potential terrorism threats facing the United States…
• This shouldn’t surprise anyone with a brain. Chile’s ambassador to the UN, Heraldo Muñoz, writes in a new book that efforts by the Bush(whacked) Administration to persuade other countries into supporting the invasion of Iraq “generated lasting ‘bitterness’ and ‘deep mistrust’ in Washington’s relations with allies in Europe, Latin America and elsewhere.” He goes on to describe how the “rough-and-tumble diplomatic strategy” employed by the administration included threats and punishment… (Is it any wonder our standing in the world has dwindled to almost non-existence? The next president, republican or Democrat, has a long tough road ahead…)
• And have we mentioned? That the White House disclosed in court that older “computer hard drives have been destroyed”? AP is reporting that the White House said that a court proposed e-mail recovery plan stemming from lawsuits brought on by the National Security Archive and CREW would be worthless because “[w]hen workstations are at the end of their lifecycle and retired … the hard drives are generally sent offsite to another government entity for physical destruction.” (wow, once again they circumvent the law and once again, NO ONE has the balls to call them on it… for God’s sakes people, it’s a lame-duck admintration, start treating them like it and DO SOMETHING!)

The Weekly Rewind

Ok, turn off the TV, or at least turn the sound down, March Madness will still be there after you finish reading The Weekly Rewind…..I’ll try to make it quick.


Heckle: to paying no attention to the 800 pound gorilla in the room. About half of the state legislatures nationwide are scrambling to plug gaps in their budgets, shot through by rapid declines in corporate and sales tax revenue, distressed housing markets and a national economy on the verge of a recession. Just remember we are not ‘officially’ in a recession….

Heckle: to a not so pleasant vision of the future. Sen. John McCain’s (R-AZ) current visit to Iraq is bolstering the belief by the country’s politicians that if he is elected president, “the American military would have a large presence in Iraq for a very long time.” Jalaladeen Sagheer, a senior member of the leading Shiite Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council, described McCain’s visit as “an advertisement for the American elections.” As if we need anymore negative advertising.

Applaud: to someone with knowledge of the impending crisis speaking out. The current economic crisis “is likely to be judged in retrospect as the most wrenching since the end of the second world war,” writes former Chairman of the Federal Reserve Alan Greenspan in the Financial Times. He also argues that “market flexibility and open competition” are “our most reliable and effective safeguards against cumulative economic failure.” Hmmm, that would mean wild market speculation and obscene corporate profits would help lead the way to economic failure….

Applaud: to a long time coming. Reports are that an internal Department of Justice investigation into the firing of at least eight U.S. attorneys is approaching its conclusion. The report will likely be released in the spring, and it “will almost certainly be explosive.” This will be interesting. What surprises will this hold for our lame duck president and his cronies?

Heckle: to continually spreading the manure. Vice President Cheney made a surprise visit to Iraq this week, in order to reaffirm “the unwavering commitment” of the United States to rebuilding Iraq. Cheney told reporters that it was “especially significant” he was in Iraq five years after the March 2003 U.S. invasion. Shortly after his arrival, “two explosions rocked Baghdad.” How unwavering is our commitment…read on….

Heckle: to our ‘unwavering commitment’. The success of the US ’surge’ strategy in Iraq may be under threat as Sunni militia employed by the US to fight al Qaida are warning of a national strike because they are not being paid regularly. Leading members of the awakening councils “have said they will stop fighting unless payment of their $10 a day wage is resumed.” According to a survey by Guardian Films, four of the 49 councils have quit while 38 more are threatening to leave. Maybe the Bush(whacked) Administration should consider diverting some of the obscene amounts of money being paid to government contractors and instead pay the militias their paltry $10 a day wage.

Heckle: to the fact that maybe $10 a day just isn’t enough. A conference to reconcile Iraq’s warring political groups began to unravel even before it got under way on Tuesday, with the main Sunni Muslim Arab bloc pulling out and protesting it had not been properly invited. I’m sorry did we not put the proper ribbon on the outside of the envelope? Once again, why are we there??

Heckle: to not knowing when to hold ‘em, or knowing when to fold ‘em. JPMorgan Chase agreed earlier this week to buy banking giant Bear Stearns for $2 a share, less than one-tenth the firm’s market price last Friday. The bank and the Federal Reserve “will guarantee the huge trading obligations” of Bear, “which was driven to the brink of bankruptcy by what amounted to a run on the bank.” Now just remember we are only in a slowdown…..

Heckle: to ruining peoples lives for profit. “My life has been flushed down the drain,” said one Bear Stearns employee. Bear Stearns had always encouraged its 14,000 employees, from secretaries to top executives, to be long-term holders in the company’s stock, and the employees own over 30 percent of the company. Remember, slowdown…...

Heckle: to more manure. Following weeks of oil prices hitting over $100 a barrel, Vice President Dick Cheney met Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah on Friday for talks that will include discussions on cooperation to stabilize the oil market. “I’m sure they will talk about the need for a cooperative way forward to try and stabilize this market, reduce the volatility in the market, and serve the interests of both consumers and producers alike,” John Hannah, national security adviser to Cheney, told reporters. Oh and while giving the impression that they care about stabilizing things and helping the consumers, I’m sure they will also talk about ways to keep profits in the pockets of Bush(whacked) Administration supporters.

Heckle: to not listening to the service chiefs in the field. The LA Times reports that “turmoil over the war has increased” inside the Pentagon, with some commanders, including Gen. Davis Petraeus, advocating continued high troop levels in Iraq. On the other side “are the military service chiefs who fear that long tours and high troop levels” will leave “the Army and Marine Corps hollowed out and weakened.” Can the Congress tell the Pentagon to shut up and sit down while they hear from the true line commanders in the field?

Heckle: As the economy sours, voters are increasingly demanding immediate government relief, which is a problem for Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), “whose focus has been on longer-term solutions such as tax and spending cuts and free trade.” “The notion of ‘the market will straighten things out, be patient’ — that has photos of Herbert Hoover juxtaposed with it,” said pollster John Zogby. McCain is nothing more than the same song and dance we have had for almost the past 8 years.. Can we really handle, or yet survive 4 more years at this pace? I don’t think so..


And then we come to our Tool Of The Week. This week it is none other than Vice President and multi-tool winner, Dick Cheney, who wins the TOTW award with this little exchange with ABC Reporter Martha Raddatz as broadcast on Good Morning America:

V.P. Cheney: On the security front, I think there’s a general consensus that we’ve made major progress, that the surge has worked. That’s been a major success.

Raddatz: Two-third of Americans say it’s not worth fighting.

V.P. Cheney: So?

Raddatz: So? You don’t care what the American people think?

V.P. Cheney: No…

There you folks, this is part and parcel with the 'rethuglican' philosophy, “You don’t like the way we do things on your behalf? How much money did you give our canididates? I’m sorry you’re not wealthy enough and not financially beneficial to us, so we don’t care what you think.”


Okay, back to the games, that wasn’t too hard was it? And a Happy Easter to all from Kemp and I.

Be good, stay informed…..later

The Friday Presidential Race ‘BushWhack’ing

Another week down, another week of Florida, Michigan and Ms. Clinton whining...

• Sen. Obama gave a speech earlier this week that not only defined his candidacy, but also received props in conservative circles…he followed that up with a speech that not only railed against Bush, Sen. Clinton, Sen. McCain and Iraq… but took issue with all three of their foreign policies. (Obama has shown us a lot this week… with the Wright affair threatening to overtake his campaign, he responded with a calm and cool demeanor while also keeping pace on the issues. If he hasn’t shown you he’s ready to be CIC, then you just haven’t opened your eyes wide enough)
  

• Two contractors were fired and another one was disciplined after it was discovered that they had looked into the passport files of Sen. Obama... an act that was reminiscent of a breach of Bill Clinton's passport information during the 1992 presidential campaign... (this is just sad and pathetic, and if it was ordered or even suggested by Clinton or McCain, they should both be penalized or charged...). Now word is coming that Secretary of State Rice is apologizing for the incident...
  

• Despite her vote in favor of invading Iraq, Sen. Clinton won the endorsement of Rep. John Murtha… meanwhile, Sen. Obama got the endorsement of former presidential candidate and current New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson...
  


• A McCain staffer has been suspended from the campaign after it was discovered that he leaked the video of Rev. Wright in an attempt to smear Obama…


• Obama pledged to take an active role in the US oil market if elected president. I assume more of an active role than our current leader has, by which I mean; none.


• It seems McCain has a problem making multiple false claims that Iranian operatives are “taking al-Qaeda into Iran, training them and sending them back” despite there being absolutely no evidence at all to support it. The first time McCain screamed at a reporter but was then corrected in front of the cameras by his BFF Joe Lieberman, ewwww…


• Sen. McCain said earlier this week that; “The problem with Iraq, in my view, is that it was mishandled after the initial success.” (There is a kernel of truth in that statement, but McCain’s continuing touting of the surge and the war are portents that, if he gets elected, we will, in essence, be getting a third Bush term…NOOOOOO!!!!!)


• Kos says that Sen. McCain could keep immigrants in his corner solely because he doesn’t follow the gop handbook regarding the issue… good point…


• Having already been declared dead many, many, many times, Michigan and Florida are still trying to get their votes counted. (tough tatas, ya shouldn’t have broken the rules…). Sen. Clinton got in on the act (shocking I know) and urged Obama’s camp to make a decision on the Michigan re-vote…


• Clinton said this past week that she’s the only candidate that can end the Iraq war… (to which I respond; perhaps you NOT voting for it in the first place would have helped. Besides, both she and Obama would end the war – one sooner than the other – the only one that would keep us in Iraq indefinitely for 100 years or so is Sen. McBush…)


• A CNN poll released earlier this week shows that the majority of Democrats would prefer Sen. Obama nabbing the party’s nomination over Sen. Clinton… but remember, according to Clinton (and for that matter Dick Cheney) our opinions don’t matter…


• And have we mentioned? That the turn for the worse that the Democratic primary race has taken is giving McCain a boost in the Daily Rasmussen tracking polls? I still think the intra-party fighting remains the largest risk to us taking back the White House. If Clinton and Obama continue to go after each other, McCain will easily coast to victory. That’s why we need to make our opinions known that we DON’T support either candidate (but let’s face facts – Hillary has been much worse) if they sling insults, slanders, and allegations. Let’s keep in mind that we have one group to defeat in November; the gop…

Lame-duck fever, catch it!

It’s poll time here at TBWA, and a handful of new polls were released in the last few days that measured “President” Bush’s approval rating.

...



...



...

Sorry, had to regain my composure after laughing so hard at the numbers…

A new Zogby poll shows Bush's approval rating at 26%, down dramatically from 34% in February.

A recent CNN/Opinion Research poll shows a scant 31% of respondents approve of Bush’s job performance, a new low for a CNN poll that is a staggering 40 points lower than his rating at the start of the Iraq war five years ago.

A new Reuters/Zogby poll pegs his approval rating at 32%, a 2-point drop from February.

When you consider that 19% of Americans believe the country is headed in the right direction and 40% feel very secure about their jobs, you start to understand that the country has had it up to here with the Bush(whacked) Administration and their overwhelming incompetence.

Wow… nothing like following in Daddy’s footsteps, as Bush 43’s numbers are comparable to Bush 41’s numbers near the end of his term… and the numbers and the humongous drop is equivalent to those of President Lyndon Johnson during the Vietnam War.

And when you consider that Dubya’s approval numbers haven’t topped 40 since mid-2006, is it any wonder this country is ready for a change?

All together now; January 20, 2009 can NOT come soon enough…

The Thursday ‘BushWhack’ing

• According to a new Zogby poll, “President” Bush's approval rating is 26%, down dramatically from 34% in February… Lame-duck fever, catch it!
• Sen. Obama is en fuego… following his inspiring speech in Philly earlier this week, he gave another major speech yesterday on foreign policy and not only took Bush to task over Iraq, but Sens. McCain and Clinton as well… snap!
• Having already been declared dead many, many, many times, Michigan and Florida are still trying to get their votes counted. (tough tatas, ya shouldn’t have broken the rules…)
• Former U.N. weapons inspector Hans Blix writes in The Guardian today; “Responsibility for the war must rest…on what those launching it knew by March 2003. […] Unmovic inspectors had carried out some 700 inspections at 500 sites without finding prohibited weapons. The contract that George Bush held up before Congress to show that Iraq was purchasing uranium oxide was proved to be a forgery.” (So there ya go… another non-partisan expert telling the world what many already knew; the evidence presented as a reason to invade Iraq was false… a lie… fake… how much more proof do we need before we can impeach these people?)
• Scooter Libby has had his license to practice law revoked… (Karma, baby!)
• A new CNN/Opinion Research poll shows that a minimalist 31% of Americans “approve of how President Bush is handling his job,” a new CNN poll low that is a staggering (but not surprising for some) 40 points lower than his rating at the start of the Iraq war five years ago. An interesting part of the article is that, according to CNN polling director Keating Holland, Bush’s drop is “almost identical to the drop President Lyndon Johnson faced during the Vietnam War.” (Interesting… very, very interesting…)
• I’ve always liked CNN’s Jack Cafferty, he seems to have the same smart-ass sense of humor and common sense that I have, and he makes sense. Case in point; yesterday he took McCain’s confusion over Iran and al Qaeda to task and said that the gaffe poses some serious issues about his leadership; “If John McCain makes another mistake like he did yesterday — where he got the Shia confused with the Sunni confused with al Qaeda confused with Iran — the number of people who want the troops out of Iraq will double overnight. [...] I mean, what kind of leadership is that? He’s over there talking to foreign dignitaries, and he has no idea who the players are.” (Nicely said Jack, couldn’t have said it any better myself... though I would have mentioned something along the lines of; isn’t this the kind of foreign policy ineptitude we currently have in the White House which we are desperate to get rid of?)
• Sen. McCain said today; “The problem with Iraq, in my view, is that it was mishandled after the initial success.” (There is a kernel of truth in that statement, but McCain’s continuing touting of the surge and the war are portents that, if he gets elected, we will, in essence, be getting a third Bush term…NOOOOOO!!!!!)
• And have we mentioned? That a day after he essentially told the American people to ‘fuck off’, Vice President Dick Cheney visited Afghanistan? It’s true… he briefly visited Kabul where he praised ties with the Afghan government and expressed hope that the NATO-led effort to confront the Taliban will be expanded… (Not on the agenda apparently was the fact that the NATO-led effort wouldn’t have been needed had the Bush(whacked) Administration not blown the war off in order to follow Bush’s wet-dream of Iraq…)

No grasp of reality

Vice President Dick “President” Cheney was on Good Morning America this morning, spouting off about how he’s confident the US will achieve victory because

“I've worked over the years with both the Iraqi people that are involved, as well as the Americans that are involved.”

So there ya go, the US will win because Cheney was involved.

Come on now, stop the snickering or you won’t be able to read the rest of the post…

Not surprisingly, Cheney continued to shoot off his mouth (let’s hope there weren’t any attorneys around) and said;

Cheney: On the security front, I think there’s a general consensus that we’ve made major progress, that the surge has worked. That’s been a major success.
Raddatz: Two-third of Americans say it’s not worth fighting.
Cheney: So?
Raddatz: So? You don’t care what the American people think?
Cheney: No…

(Ladies and Gentlemen, your Vice President of the United States! The man who doesn’t care what the American people think...)

Cheney went on to say that people can’t be swayed by fluctuations in the public opinion polls about the war… unfortunately the interviewer didn’t have the intelligence or the balls to mention that opposition to the war is not a “fluctuation” in public opinion as a fluctuation means

What’s going on with public opinions about the war is a steady turning of the tide and according to a new poll (which, for those of you who think polls are not legitimate barometers of opinion nor fact, is how one keeps abreast with the thoughts of the American public) a scant 36% believe that “the situation in Iraq was worth going to war over” a number that was at 68% the month the war began.

What does this mean? It means that in five years the number of people who believe the Iraq war was worth starting has dropped 32%... a drop unlike one we’ve ever seen before.

Unless or course you count Bush’s incredibly low 32% approval rating...

Five years on

On March 19, 2003, “President” Bush announced; “My fellow citizens, at this hour, American and coalition forces are in the early stages of military operations to disarm Iraq, to free its people and to defend the world from grave danger.”

Each year on the anniversary of the US-led invasion, Bush has given a speech full of rhetoric and spin, this year was no exception (HT to Daily Kos):

Year One: “There are still violent thugs and murderers in Iraq, and we're dealing with them.” U.S. Fatalities: 583

Year Two: “Iraq's progress toward political freedom has opened a new phase of our work there.” U.S. Fatalities: 1,522

Year Three: “We are implementing a strategy that will lead to victory in Iraq.” U.S. Fatalities: 2,319

Year Four: “There's been good progress.” U.S. Fatalities: 3,224

Today, Year Five: “No one would argue that this war has not come at a high cost in lives and treasure ­ but those costs are necessary when we consider the cost of a strategic victory for our enemies in Iraq .” U.S. Fatalities: 3,990 U.S. Casualties: 40,229

Over the course of five years, Bush has changed his goal of saving the world from (nonexistent) dangers of Iraqi WMD's to a desire to not losing...

Remember; when the war started, the administration predicted that it would cost $50 billion to $60 billion to oust Saddam Hussein, restore order and install a new government. Five years on, the cost of the war is “roughly $600 billion and counting” per the Pentagon, with economist Joseph Stiglitz putting the “long-term cost at more than $4 trillion” an estimate he says is “excessively conservative.”

And that’s not the only things that supporters of the war have gotten wrong… consider these disastrous quotes:

“Facing clear evidence of peril, we cannot wait for the final proof---the smoking gun that could come in the form of a mushroom cloud.” - President Bush, 10/7/02 (hard to create mushroom clouds without WMD’s, isn’t it?)

“We will, in fact, be greeted as liberators.” - Vice President Dick Cheney, 3/16/03 (Yeah, not so much… and now we’re like the house guests that couldn’t get the hint to leave)

"The only people who think this wasn't a victory are Upper Westside liberals.” - Charles Krauthammer, 4/19/03 (or people that AREN’T lemmings and can use their own brains…)

“[Liberals] can't deny that President Bush has won his two wars, and won them resoundingly.” - Paul Mirengoff, Powerline, 4/26/03 (wanna bet we can’t deny it? The Taliban and al Qaeda are back in force in Afghanistan, and the insurgent violence in Iraq is increasing again…)

And the best ones come from ‘The Decider’’ himself; “I believe that the success will be fairly easy.” - 9/24/02 (I guess that depends on what your definition of ‘fairly easy’ is…)

“We will win this conflict. We will win it easily.” 1/22/03 (I refuse to snark this as a means to honor all families that have lost loved ones in this misguided war)

And then there’s this March 24, 2003 quote from the man who vows to continue Bush’s wayward ways in Iraq; Sen. John McCain: “[T]here’s no doubt in my mind, once these people are gone, that we will be welcomed as liberators.”

If McCain gets elected, we probably will be in Iraq for 100 more years… if it’s Clinton or Obama, we will start pulling troops out within six months of them taking office… we all know that a complete pullout would do more harm than good, but it’s time to start reigning in the amount of troops we have over there.

Not only would that protect our soldiers, it would also force the Iraqi’s to act and move forward. I think, and this is merely my opinion, that the Iraqi government has been slow in making any progress because they know the US-led coalition is there to prop them up.

We shouldn’t be… not anymore.

The Wednesday ‘BushWhack’ing

Today is the fifth anniversary of the US-led invasion of Iraq. We at TBWA honor all the brave men and women who have given their life, risked their life, and fought with valor for this unjust war…

• Here we go again... “President” Bush said that the war in Iraq must go on for the safety of the United States. (Can we get an explanation of how? Anyone? Helloooooo?)
• Sen. Obama’s speech yesterday is even receiving props in conservative circles… so yes, it’s now official – Hell has frozen over.
• Sen. Clinton won the endorsement of Rep. John Murtha (D-PA)…
• Note to Sen. Obama’s staff: make a decision on the Michigan re-vote…
• Sen. McCain screamed at a reporter yesterday that it is “common knowledge” that Iran is training al-Qaeda, only to be corrected in front of cameras by his BFF Joe Lieberman… who will be attending the republican National Convention this summer… (Quick show of hands, which is more surprising, that McCain ‘screamed’ at a reporter… that he was wrong about something regarding the Iraq war… or that Lieberman will attend the republican convention? All seem like pretty safe bets to me)
• A federal judge has ruled that the White House has “three days to explain why it shouldn’t be required to copy its computer hard drives to ensure no further e-mails are lost.” (Claims of executive privilege in five, four, three…)
• I know how much some of our conservative readers like when I cite polls, so here’s another one. A new CNN/Opinion Research poll finds that 71% of Americans think that government spending on the Iraq war in Iraq is partly responsible for the economic troubles in the US. (interesting results… even though Bush and other conservatives don’t see a connection between our recess– sorry, ‘economic slowdown’, and the war, a majority of Americans do… but that would require listening to the people, which republicans have trouble doing…)
• On this, the fifth anniversary of the war, a spokesperson for the International Organization for Migration (IOM) says that “There is very little light at the end of the tunnel in Iraq’s humanitarian crisis.”
• And have we mentioned? That for a brief moment Tuesday morning, it seemed as though pigs were going to fly? It was then that SCOTUS Justice Clarence Thomas opened his mouth and spoke… but it turned out to be much ado about nothing as he wasn’t asking a question but merely announcing the court's decision in Washington State Grange v. Washington State Republican Party. (For heavens sakes Justice Thomas, you didn’t even ask a question during a 2nd Amendment argument, the DC gun ban case… a conservative justice’s wet-dream of a case if I’ve ever heard one…)

It’s STILL the economy stupid

More than sixteen years since the phrase was coined, it’s turning out that it’s still the economy in this election cycle.

A new CNN/Opinion Research Poll shows that a majority of Americans are “very concerned”' about the rising rate of inflation, despite the news that the February CPI (Consumer Price Index) was a smidge less than the increase in January, though it’s still up 4% so far this year.

Of those polled, 65% reported to be “very concerned” about the rising rate in recent months, with 26% reporting they were “somewhat concerned.”

The poll also looked into the loss of employment, and those results reflect similar fears, with 59% of those polled saying they were “very concerned” about the loss of employment… news that comes after a two-month fall-off in.

Despite fears, the White House refuses to remove their rose-colored glasses and, while they acknowledge an “economic slowdown,” they say that help is on the way (the Fex cut interest rates again this afternoon) and that,in the long-run, the economy will be fine.

I wish I could believe that…

Regardless of what the White House or the polls say, and regardless of my opinion about a recession, it’s time for all three presidential candidates to realize that the economy is shaping up to be the deciding factor this election cycle… terrorism, national security, education and even the Iraq war are being put on the back burner while thousands of Americans worry about their homes, their jobs, their stocks and, in turn, their futures.

Perhaps the candidates should stop slinging mud at each other in an attempt to sully their opponents and instead talk about the issues.

Or is that merely a pipe-dream?

Senator Obama's speech

Sen. Obama is mad as hell and isn’t going to take it anymore… at least that’s what we at TBWA got from his speech this morning.

In a stirring, emotional and eloquent oration, Obama not only took all races to task, he also faced the Rev. Wright issue head-on.

Will it be enough to stifle the issue once and for all? We shall see… but for now, you can read it here…

Remarks of Senator Barack Obama (D-IL), “A More Perfect Union”
Tuesday, March 18th, 2008 at Constitution Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

“We the people, in order to form a more perfect union.”

Two hundred and twenty one years ago, in a hall that still stands across the street, a group of men gathered and, with these simple words, launched America's improbable experiment in democracy. Farmers and scholars; statesmen and patriots who had traveled across an ocean to escape tyranny and persecution finally made real their declaration of independence at a Philadelphia convention that lasted through the spring of 1787.

The document they produced was eventually signed but ultimately unfinished. It was stained by this nation's original sin of slavery, a question that divided the colonies and brought the convention to a stalemate until the founders chose to allow the slave trade to continue for at least twenty more years, and to leave any final resolution to future generations.

Of course, the answer to the slavery question was already embedded within our Constitution – a Constitution that had at is very core the ideal of equal citizenship under the law; a Constitution that promised its people liberty, and justice, and a union that could be and should be perfected over time.

And yet words on a parchment would not be enough to deliver slaves from bondage, or provide men and women of every color and creed their full rights and obligations as citizens of the United States. What would be needed were Americans in successive generations who were willing to do their part – through protests and struggle, on the streets and in the courts, through a civil war and civil disobedience and always at great risk - to narrow that gap between the promise of our ideals and the reality of their time.

This was one of the tasks we set forth at the beginning of this campaign – to continue the long march of those who came before us, a march for a more just, more equal, more free, more caring and more prosperous America. I chose to run for the presidency at this moment in history because I believe deeply that we cannot solve the challenges of our time unless we solve them together – unless we perfect our union by understanding that we may have different stories, but we hold common hopes; that we may not look the same and we may not have come from the same place, but we all want to move in the same direction – towards a better future for of children and our grandchildren.

This belief comes from my unyielding faith in the decency and generosity of the American people. But it also comes from my own American story.

I am the son of a black man from Kenya and a white woman from Kansas. I was raised with the help of a white grandfather who survived a Depression to serve in Patton's Army during World War II and a white grandmother who worked on a bomber assembly line at Fort Leavenworth while he was overseas. I've gone to some of the best schools in America and lived in one of the world's poorest nations. I am married to a black American who carries within her the blood of slaves and slaveowners – an inheritance we pass on to our two precious daughters. I have brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, uncles and cousins, of every race and every hue, scattered across three continents, and for as long as I live, I will never forget that in no other country on Earth is my story even possible.

It's a story that hasn't made me the most conventional candidate. But it is a story that has seared into my genetic makeup the idea that this nation is more than the sum of its parts – that out of many, we are truly one.

Throughout the first year of this campaign, against all predictions to the contrary, we saw how hungry the American people were for this message of unity. Despite the temptation to view my candidacy through a purely racial lens, we won commanding victories in states with some of the whitest populations in the country. In South Carolina, where the Confederate Flag still flies, we built a powerful coalition of African Americans and white Americans.

This is not to say that race has not been an issue in the campaign. At various stages in the campaign, some commentators have deemed me either "too black" or "not black enough." We saw racial tensions bubble to the surface during the week before the South Carolina primary. The press has scoured every exit poll for the latest evidence of racial polarization, not just in terms of white and black, but black and brown as well.

And yet, it has only been in the last couple of weeks that the discussion of race in this campaign has taken a particularly divisive turn.

On one end of the spectrum, we've heard the implication that my candidacy is somehow an exercise in affirmative action; that it's based solely on the desire of wide-eyed liberals to purchase racial reconciliation on the cheap. On the other end, we've heard my former pastor, Reverend Jeremiah Wright, use incendiary language to express views that have the potential not only to widen the racial divide, but views that denigrate both the greatness and the goodness of our nation; that rightly offend white and black alike.

I have already condemned, in unequivocal terms, the statements of Reverend Wright that have caused such controversy. For some, nagging questions remain. Did I know him to be an occasionally fierce critic of American domestic and foreign policy? Of course. Did I ever hear him make remarks that could be considered controversial while I sat in church? Yes. Did I strongly disagree with many of his political views? Absolutely – just as I'm sure many of you have heard remarks from your pastors, priests, or rabbis with which you strongly disagreed.

But the remarks that have caused this recent firestorm weren't simply controversial. They weren't simply a religious leader's effort to speak out against perceived injustice. Instead, they expressed a profoundly distorted view of this country – a view that sees white racism as endemic, and that elevates what is wrong with America above all that we know is right with America; a view that sees the conflicts in the Middle East as rooted primarily in the actions of stalwart allies like Israel, instead of emanating from the perverse and hateful ideologies of radical Islam.

As such, Reverend Wright's comments were not only wrong but divisive, divisive at a time when we need unity; racially charged at a time when we need to come together to solve a set of monumental problems – two wars, a terrorist threat, a falling economy, a chronic health care crisis and potentially devastating climate change; problems that are neither black or white or Latino or Asian, but rather problems that confront us all.

Given my background, my politics, and my professed values and ideals, there will no doubt be those for whom my statements of condemnation are not enough. Why associate myself with Reverend Wright in the first place, they may ask? Why not join another church? And I confess that if all that I knew of Reverend Wright were the snippets of those sermons that have run in an endless loop on the television and You Tube, or if Trinity United Church of Christ conformed to the caricatures being peddled by some commentators, there is no doubt that I would react in much the same way.

But the truth is, that isn't all that I know of the man. The man I met more than twenty years ago is a man who helped introduce me to my Christian faith, a man who spoke to me about our obligations to love one another; to care for the sick and lift up the poor. He is a man who served his country as a U.S. Marine; who has studied and lectured at some of the finest universities and seminaries in the country, and who for over thirty years led a church that serves the community by doing God's work here on Earth – by housing the homeless, ministering to the needy, providing day care services and scholarships and prison ministries, and reaching out to those suffering from HIV/AIDS.

In my first book, Dreams From My Father, I described the experience of my first service at Trinity:

"People began to shout, to rise from their seats and clap and cry out, a forceful wind carrying the reverend's voice up into the rafters….And in that single note – hope! – I heard something else; at the foot of that cross, inside the thousands of churches across the city, I imagined the stories of ordinary black people merging with the stories of David and Goliath, Moses and Pharaoh, the Christians in the lion's den, Ezekiel's field of dry bones. Those stories – of survival, and freedom, and hope – became our story, my story; the blood that had spilled was our blood, the tears our tears; until this black church, on this bright day, seemed once more a vessel carrying the story of a people into future generations and into a larger world. Our trials and triumphs became at once unique and universal, black and more than black; in chronicling our journey, the stories and songs gave us a means to reclaim memories that we didn't need to feel shame about…memories that all people might study and cherish – and with which we could start to rebuild."

That has been my experience at Trinity. Like other predominantly black churches across the country, Trinity embodies the black community in its entirety – the doctor and the welfare mom, the model student and the former gang-banger. Like other black churches, Trinity's services are full of raucous laughter and sometimes bawdy humor. They are full of dancing, clapping, screaming and shouting that may seem jarring to the untrained ear. The church contains in full the kindness and cruelty, the fierce intelligence and the shocking ignorance, the struggles and successes, the love and yes, the bitterness and bias that make up the black experience in America.

And this helps explain, perhaps, my relationship with Reverend Wright. As imperfect as he may be, he has been like family to me. He strengthened my faith, officiated my wedding, and baptized my children. Not once in my conversations with him have I heard him talk about any ethnic group in derogatory terms, or treat whites with whom he interacted with anything but courtesy and respect. He contains within him the contradictions – the good and the bad – of the community that he has served diligently for so many years.

I can no more disown him than I can disown the black community. I can no more disown him than I can my white grandmother – a woman who helped raise me, a woman who sacrificed again and again for me, a woman who loves me as much as she loves anything in this world, but a woman who once confessed her fear of black men who passed by her on the street, and who on more than one occasion has uttered racial or ethnic stereotypes that made me cringe.

These people are a part of me. And they are a part of America, this country that I love.

Some will see this as an attempt to justify or excuse comments that are simply inexcusable. I can assure you it is not. I suppose the politically safe thing would be to move on from this episode and just hope that it fades into the woodwork. We can dismiss Reverend Wright as a crank or a demagogue, just as some have dismissed Geraldine Ferraro, in the aftermath of her recent statements, as harboring some deep-seated racial bias.

But race is an issue that I believe this nation cannot afford to ignore right now. We would be making the same mistake that Reverend Wright made in his offending sermons about America – to simplify and stereotype and amplify the negative to the point that it distorts reality.

The fact is that the comments that have been made and the issues that have surfaced over the last few weeks reflect the complexities of race in this country that we've never really worked through – a part of our union that we have yet to perfect. And if we walk away now, if we simply retreat into our respective corners, we will never be able to come together and solve challenges like health care, or education, or the need to find good jobs for every American.

Understanding this reality requires a reminder of how we arrived at this point. As William Faulkner once wrote, "The past isn't dead and buried. In fact, it isn't even past." We do not need to recite here the history of racial injustice in this country. But we do need to remind ourselves that so many of the disparities that exist in the African-American community today can be directly traced to inequalities passed on from an earlier generation that suffered under the brutal legacy of slavery and Jim Crow.

Segregated schools were, and are, inferior schools; we still haven't fixed them, fifty years after Brown v. Board of Education, and the inferior education they provided, then and now, helps explain the pervasive achievement gap between today's black and white students.

Legalized discrimination - where blacks were prevented, often through violence, from owning property, or loans were not granted to African-American business owners, or black homeowners could not access FHA mortgages, or blacks were excluded from unions, or the police force, or fire departments – meant that black families could not amass any meaningful wealth to bequeath to future generations. That history helps explain the wealth and income gap between black and white, and the concentrated pockets of poverty that persists in so many of today's urban and rural communities.

A lack of economic opportunity among black men, and the shame and frustration that came from not being able to provide for one's family, contributed to the erosion of black families – a problem that welfare policies for many years may have worsened. And the lack of basic services in so many urban black neighborhoods – parks for kids to play in, police walking the beat, regular garbage pick-up and building code enforcement – all helped create a cycle of violence, blight and neglect that continue to haunt us.

This is the reality in which Reverend Wright and other African-Americans of his generation grew up. They came of age in the late fifties and early sixties, a time when segregation was still the law of the land and opportunity was systematically constricted. What's remarkable is not how many failed in the face of discrimination, but rather how many men and women overcame the odds; how many were able to make a way out of no way for those like me who would come after them.

But for all those who scratched and clawed their way to get a piece of the American Dream, there were many who didn't make it – those who were ultimately defeated, in one way or another, by discrimination. That legacy of defeat was passed on to future generations – those young men and increasingly young women who we see standing on street corners or languishing in our prisons, without hope or prospects for the future. Even for those blacks who did make it, questions of race, and racism, continue to define their worldview in fundamental ways. For the men and women of Reverend Wright's generation, the memories of humiliation and doubt and fear have not gone away; nor has the anger and the bitterness of those years. That anger may not get expressed in public, in front of white co-workers or white friends. But it does find voice in the barbershop or around the kitchen table. At times, that anger is exploited by politicians, to gin up votes along racial lines, or to make up for a politician's own failings.

And occasionally it finds voice in the church on Sunday morning, in the pulpit and in the pews. The fact that so many people are surprised to hear that anger in some of Reverend Wright's sermons simply reminds us of the old truism that the most segregated hour in American life occurs on Sunday morning. That anger is not always productive; indeed, all too often it distracts attention from solving real problems; it keeps us from squarely facing our own complicity in our condition, and prevents the African-American community from forging the alliances it needs to bring about real change. But the anger is real; it is powerful; and to simply wish it away, to condemn it without understanding its roots, only serves to widen the chasm of misunderstanding that exists between the races.

In fact, a similar anger exists within segments of the white community. Most working- and middle-class white Americans don't feel that they have been particularly privileged by their race. Their experience is the immigrant experience – as far as they're concerned, no one's handed them anything, they've built it from scratch. They've worked hard all their lives, many times only to see their jobs shipped overseas or their pension dumped after a lifetime of labor. They are anxious about their futures, and feel their dreams slipping away; in an era of stagnant wages and global competition, opportunity comes to be seen as a zero sum game, in which your dreams come at my expense. So when they are told to bus their children to a school across town; when they hear that an African American is getting an advantage in landing a good job or a spot in a good college because of an injustice that they themselves never committed; when they're told that their fears about crime in urban neighborhoods are somehow prejudiced, resentment builds over time.

Like the anger within the black community, these resentments aren't always expressed in polite company. But they have helped shape the political landscape for at least a generation. Anger over welfare and affirmative action helped forge the Reagan Coalition. Politicians routinely exploited fears of crime for their own electoral ends. Talk show hosts and conservative commentators built entire careers unmasking bogus claims of racism while dismissing legitimate discussions of racial injustice and inequality as mere political correctness or reverse racism.

Just as black anger often proved counterproductive, so have these white resentments distracted attention from the real culprits of the middle class squeeze – a corporate culture rife with inside dealing, questionable accounting practices, and short-term greed; a Washington dominated by lobbyists and special interests; economic policies that favor the few over the many. And yet, to wish away the resentments of white Americans, to label them as misguided or even racist, without recognizing they are grounded in legitimate concerns – this too widens the racial divide, and blocks the path to understanding.

This is where we are right now. It's a racial stalemate we've been stuck in for years. Contrary to the claims of some of my critics, black and white, I have never been so naïve as to believe that we can get beyond our racial divisions in a single election cycle, or with a single candidacy – particularly a candidacy as imperfect as my own.

But I have asserted a firm conviction – a conviction rooted in my faith in God and my faith in the American people – that working together we can move beyond some of our old racial wounds, and that in fact we have no choice is we are to continue on the path of a more perfect union.

For the African-American community, that path means embracing the burdens of our past without becoming victims of our past. It means continuing to insist on a full measure of justice in every aspect of American life. But it also means binding our particular grievances – for better health care, and better schools, and better jobs - to the larger aspirations of all Americans -- the white woman struggling to break the glass ceiling, the white man whose been laid off, the immigrant trying to feed his family. And it means taking full responsibility for own lives – by demanding more from our fathers, and spending more time with our children, and reading to them, and teaching them that while they may face challenges and discrimination in their own lives, they must never succumb to despair or cynicism; they must always believe that they can write their own destiny.

Ironically, this quintessentially American – and yes, conservative – notion of self-help found frequent expression in Reverend Wright's sermons. But what my former pastor too often failed to understand is that embarking on a program of self-help also requires a belief that society can change.

The profound mistake of Reverend Wright's sermons is not that he spoke about racism in our society. It's that he spoke as if our society was static; as if no progress has been made; as if this country – a country that has made it possible for one of his own members to run for the highest office in the land and build a coalition of white and black; Latino and Asian, rich and poor, young and old -- is still irrevocably bound to a tragic past. But what we know -- what we have seen – is that America can change. That is true genius of this nation. What we have already achieved gives us hope – the audacity to hope – for what we can and must achieve tomorrow.

In the white community, the path to a more perfect union means acknowledging that what ails the African-American community does not just exist in the minds of black people; that the legacy of discrimination - and current incidents of discrimination, while less overt than in the past - are real and must be addressed. Not just with words, but with deeds – by investing in our schools and our communities; by enforcing our civil rights laws and ensuring fairness in our criminal justice system; by providing this generation with ladders of opportunity that were unavailable for previous generations. It requires all Americans to realize that your dreams do not have to come at the expense of my dreams; that investing in the health, welfare, and education of black and brown and white children will ultimately help all of America prosper.

In the end, then, what is called for is nothing more, and nothing less, than what all the world's great religions demand – that we do unto others as we would have them do unto us. Let us be our brother's keeper, Scripture tells us. Let us be our sister's keeper. Let us find that common stake we all have in one another, and let our politics reflect that spirit as well.

For we have a choice in this country. We can accept a politics that breeds division, and conflict, and cynicism. We can tackle race only as spectacle – as we did in the OJ trial – or in the wake of tragedy, as we did in the aftermath of Katrina - or as fodder for the nightly news. We can play Reverend Wright's sermons on every channel, every day and talk about them from now until the election, and make the only question in this campaign whether or not the American people think that I somehow believe or sympathize with his most offensive words. We can pounce on some gaffe by a Hillary supporter as evidence that she's playing the race card, or we can speculate on whether white men will all flock to John McCain in the general election regardless of his policies.

We can do that.

But if we do, I can tell you that in the next election, we'll be talking about some other distraction. And then another one. And then another one. And nothing will change.

That is one option. Or, at this moment, in this election, we can come together and say, "Not this time." This time we want to talk about the crumbling schools that are stealing the future of black children and white children and Asian children and Hispanic children and Native American children. This time we want to reject the cynicism that tells us that these kids can't learn; that those kids who don't look like us are somebody else's problem. The children of America are not those kids, they are our kids, and we will not let them fall behind in a 21st century economy. Not this time.

This time we want to talk about how the lines in the Emergency Room are filled with whites and blacks and Hispanics who do not have health care; who don't have the power on their own to overcome the special interests in Washington, but who can take them on if we do it together.

This time we want to talk about the shuttered mills that once provided a decent life for men and women of every race, and the homes for sale that once belonged to Americans from every religion, every region, every walk of life. This time we want to talk about the fact that the real problem is not that someone who doesn't look like you might take your job; it's that the corporation you work for will ship it overseas for nothing more than a profit.

This time we want to talk about the men and women of every color and creed who serve together, and fight together, and bleed together under the same proud flag. We want to talk about how to bring them home from a war that never should've been authorized and never should've been waged, and we want to talk about how we'll show our patriotism by caring for them, and their families, and giving them the benefits they have earned.

I would not be running for President if I didn't believe with all my heart that this is what the vast majority of Americans want for this country. This union may never be perfect, but generation after generation has shown that it can always be perfected. And today, whenever I find myself feeling doubtful or cynical about this possibility, what gives me the most hope is the next generation – the young people whose attitudes and beliefs and openness to change have already made history in this election.

There is one story in particularly that I'd like to leave you with today – a story I told when I had the great honor of speaking on Dr. King's birthday at his home church, Ebenezer Baptist, in Atlanta.

There is a young, twenty-three year old white woman named Ashley Baia who organized for our campaign in Florence, South Carolina. She had been working to organize a mostly African-American community since the beginning of this campaign, and one day she was at a roundtable discussion where everyone went around telling their story and why they were there.

And Ashley said that when she was nine years old, her mother got cancer. And because she had to miss days of work, she was let go and lost her health care. They had to file for bankruptcy, and that's when Ashley decided that she had to do something to help her mom.

She knew that food was one of their most expensive costs, and so Ashley convinced her mother that what she really liked and really wanted to eat more than anything else was mustard and relish sandwiches. Because that was the cheapest way to eat.

She did this for a year until her mom got better, and she told everyone at the roundtable that the reason she joined our campaign was so that she could help the millions of other children in the country who want and need to help their parents too.

Now Ashley might have made a different choice. Perhaps somebody told her along the way that the source of her mother's problems were blacks who were on welfare and too lazy to work, or Hispanics who were coming into the country illegally. But she didn't. She sought out allies in her fight against injustice.

Anyway, Ashley finishes her story and then goes around the room and asks everyone else why they're supporting the campaign. They all have different stories and reasons. Many bring up a specific issue. And finally they come to this elderly black man who's been sitting there quietly the entire time. And Ashley asks him why he's there. And he does not bring up a specific issue. He does not say health care or the economy. He does not say education or the war. He does not say that he was there because of Barack Obama. He simply says to everyone in the room, "I am here because of Ashley."

"I'm here because of Ashley." By itself, that single moment of recognition between that young white girl and that old black man is not enough. It is not enough to give health care to the sick, or jobs to the jobless, or education to our children.

But it is where we start. It is where our union grows stronger. And as so many generations have come to realize over the course of the two-hundred and twenty one years since a band of patriots signed that document in Philadelphia, that is where the perfection begins.

The Tuesday ‘BushWhack’ing

No primaries or caucuses today… how will the media cope?

• Sen. Obama is giving a speech today in Pennsylvania…
• A new CNN/Opinion Research poll shows that Senators Obama, Clinton and McCain are in a statistical dead-heat with Obama and Clinton getting props for their stands on healthcare, the war and the economy while McCain leads in anti-terrorism issues with all three close in the immigration issue. (this probably won’t change much until the Democrats decide on a nominee, until then, we’re going to have a horse race between all three… stay tuned)
• Can we all agree that Florida, Democrats need to STFU… and while we’re at it, Ms. Clinton needs to as well.
• Former New Jersey Governor Jim McGreevey is trying to get back in the news… he’s apparently jealous of all the attention being given former New York Mayor Eliot Spitzer…
• Sen. Clinton says she’s the only candidate that can end the Iraq war… (perhaps her NOT voting for it in the first place would have helped… but that’s just me. Besides, either she or Obama would end the war, the only one that would keep Bush’s strategy – I use that term loosely – intact is McCain…)
• New New York Governor David Paterson and his wife have admitted to past extramarital affairs…
• The aforementioned poll also shows that a majority of Democrats would rather see Sen. Obama win the party’s nomination rather than Sen. Clinton… (we would expect to hear from Clinton strategist Mark Penn, but he’s probably trying to find a new way to circumvent the voters…)
• Heckuva job redux? “President” Bush thanked Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson yesterday for “working over the weekend” in response to the long-brewing economic crisis… (but there’s no reason to worry… right?)
• A recent USA Today/Gallup poll shows that 76% of Americans think the U.S. economy is in recession (some present company excluded). Not since September 1992 has such a large number of Americans said the US is in a recession. (Did I mention that that poll was taken two months before President George H.W. Bush lost re-election?? Wait a moment… Bush 41 was in office the last time the US economy went in the toilet, and now Bush 43 is in office and the economy is in the toilet… bah, I’m sure it’s pure happenstance)
• And have we mentioned? That former Senator Bill “Call me doctor not senator” Frist is erecting an “8-foot wall around his home” to protect himself against… well, we’ll say other Tennesseans for now. The plan (much like the border fence he once supported) are running into problems as zoning regulations are presently prohibiting the wall from being built too close to the adjacent road… oh, and Frist also wants to install “gated entrance gates.” (What is this, Graceland?)

Another poor schlub drinks the Bush Kool-Aid

We all know that Bush’s presidential library and museum is being planned at Southern Methodist University… and that a majority of the faculty and staff at the university are NOT happy about it.

Design firm PRD Group has been hired as the “interpretive planner” for the library and museum, and while the architect for the project said that there will be “no bombast or boredom” to Bush’s library, it’s the comments from the founder of PRD, Dan Murphy, that really shrieks of inanity as he had this to say about the task at hand;

“We’re not really just trying to put a front cover and back cover around eight years of a presidency. […] “We have a much bigger story about America and about the history of the presidency and about the American experience. … We’ve got a great, great, great story.”

Would you trust this firm?

The Monday ‘BushWhack’ing

Here’s a hearty ‘erin go bragh’ and top o’ the mornin’ to you all, let’s get to it…

• This is news that you want to read to start a new day and week; traders across the globe are bracing for a miserable start on Wall Street today following the sale of brokerage house Bear Stearns and some emergency action by the Fed… and the recession starts continues… and the blind-eye of the Bush(whacked) Administration continues as Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said on CNN that the economy is going through a “tough patch” but refuses to call it a recession. He also said that the US is taking the proper steps to turn things around… (Can we say ‘ivory tower’?)
• Sen. Obama is under more scrutiny regarding his ex-pastor...
• Michigan has submitted a proposal that would call for the state to hold a new presidential primary in June… (meanwhile, Florida continues to whine like a spoiled brat republican and refuses to make any consecsions to the DNC. Again, as I’ve said before, screw ‘em. They broke the rules… too bad, so sad…)
• Soon to be retired republican Rep. Tom Davis (VA) told WaPo this past weekend; “You have a very unhappy electorate, which is no surprise, with oil at $108 a barrel, stocks down a few thousand points, a war in Iraq with no end in sight and a president who is still very, very unpopular. He’s just killed the Republican brand.” (I would gloat, but I don’t want to bring any Karma into play…)
• House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says it would be damaging to the Democratic party for its leaders to buck the will of national convention delegates picked in primaries and caucuses (Finally, someone in the leadership of the Democratic party has come right out and said it. For the super-delegates to ignore the will of the people would have such a staggering backlash to the party, it might take years to recover… and we don’t have that kind of time)
• Former Chairman of the Federal Reserve Alan Greenspan wrote in the Financial Times today that the current economic crisis is “likely to be judged in retrospect as the most wrenching since the end of the second world war” which is great company to keep, ain’t it? Greenspan also wrote that “market flexibility and open competition” are the nation’s “most reliable and effective safeguards against cumulative economic failure.” (“President” Bush, are you listening?? I doubt it, it’s Monday morning and he’s probably watching ‘Regis & Kelly’…)
• On the heels of the Senate shooting down a bill he co-sponsored that would have instilled a one-year moratorium on earmarks, Sen. McCain says that Congress is “disconnected” from Americans… uh-huh… I suppose we should all ignore the fact that this was the first time McCain has returned to the Senate in a month to vote for anything? Yeah, that’s what I thought…
• And have we mentioned? That the Bush(whacked) Administration isn’t doing their job on yet another front? A new study by the National Security Archive finds, despite ordering improvements more than two years ago,” “President” Bush has barely made a dent in the enormous backlog of unanswered requests under FOIA, the Freedom of Information Act. (this is nothing new as most of the government agencies in his administration are so backlogged that metric tons of bran wouldn’t help… way to go Bush!)

The Weekly Rewind

No further ado, here’s this week’s edition of The Weekly Rewind… there are 310 days left in the Bush presidency.

Applaud: to the House of Representatives for passing earlier this week an amendment to FISA by a vote of 213-197. While the legislation allows the courts to determine whether a lawsuit should or shouldn’t’ proceed, it does NOT provide retroactive immunity for telecoms, which is the reason that “President” Bush has already threatened to veto the bill… (but will then blame Democrats for supposedly putting the US at risk. Correct me if I’m wrong, but if he were so sure that its passage would ensure American’s safety, shouldn’t he be less worried about the telecoms??? Or am I using too much common sense?)

Heckle: to the not-surprising-considering-who-is-in-the-White-House-news that the U.S. government’s monthly budget deficit for February was $175.56 billion… which, again, is not-surprising-considering-who-is-in-the-White-House-news a record for any month... whoo-hoo, we’re number 1!

Applaud: to making it too damn easy sometimes. In an interview with PBS, “President” Bush was asked if OPEC increasing production would help bring oil, and thusly gas, prices down. His response; “You know, I don’t know. You’re going to have to ask the experts that. I’m just a simple president. But I really don’t know what it would do…” Ladies and Gentlemen: YOUR President of the United States… aren’t you proud?

Heckle: to Congress’ failure to override Bush’s veto crayon ban on waterboarding and other harsh interrogation techniques, with the final vote count being 225-188 with five republicans voting for the override and three Dems voting against the measure… to those 8 I say, based on your party affiliation, you’re doing it wrong...

Applaud: to more people waking up and smelling the toast burning; a new USA Today poll shows that 60% of Americans think the Iraq war was a mistake, with the same percentage favoring a timetable for troop withdrawal – regardless of the situation in Iraq. Additionally, the poll found that 54% think history will judge the war as mostly or a total failure. With this applaud percentage this high, it’s hard to imagine this…

Heckle: to the fact that a mere 28% of Americans don’t know that the number of U.S. troop deaths in Iraq is near 4,000, with according to. Nearly half put the tally far lower, near 3,000. As of today, the Department of Defense has confirmed the deaths of 3,973 U.S. soldiers. These are results from a recent Pew Research Center poll.

Applaud: to the news that a military-commissioned review of over 600,000 Iraqi documents, audio, and video records collected by U.S. forces since the March 2003 invasion has concluded that there is “no smoking gun” to support the Bush(whacked) Administration’s prewar claims that there was an “operational relationship” between Saddam Hussein and the al-Qaeda terrorist network and that Hussein

Heckle: to the MSM for not reporting the aforementioned story and allowing it to get buried by the unnecessary resignation of Eliot Spitzer!!!!!

Applaud: to House Democrats for unveiling earlier this week compromise legislation that withheld immunity for telecoms that cooperated with the Bush(whacked) Administration’s warrantless spying program. Heckle within the applaud as the bill would allow defendants in civil lawsuits to have the right to present classified evidence to the judge in such cases, without the plaintiffs being present... that seems fair, doesn’t it…

Heckle: to a lame attempt to circumvent the rules (no, I’m not talking about Florida or Michigan). Apparently republicans in the House are so intent on forcing through the Senate-approved surveillance bill that they’re trying to attach it to other bills, including an unrelated mental health parity bill (HR 1424). In a vain attempt to justify his logic (a term I use loosely) Rep. Peter Hoekstra (r-MI) said; “This bill is intended to ensure the mental health of Americans; yet, no American’s health can be fully secured if they are under attack by a terrorist or facing the potential threat of terrorist attack.” (Wow, fearmongering and subterfuge, all in the same statement, that’s quite a talent…)

Applaud: to news that the majority of Americans are not the only ones wanting a change in the White House. Turns out that many Iraqis are keeping an eye on the election as well as they look for any signs of policy change under a new president along with the prospect of U.S. troop withdrawals from their country. Auniversity professor from Basra said; “I do not care if the president is a man or a woman, what really matters is the change of American policy towards Iraq.” (Amen Sir, amen…)

Heckle: to cronies of the past coming back to haunt us. “President” Bush has appointed long-time crony Karen Hughes to the board of visitors at the West Point military academy. Hughes most recent White House post was Under Secretary of Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs, a position that asked to her “marginalize violent extremists” (I know, but they wouldn’t see the irony). She resigned last October… and now she’s back…

Applaud: to optimistic hope regarding the Senate Intelligence Committee, who is going to be releasing a “detailed critique” of the Bush(whacked) Administration’s claims in the buildup to the Iraq war. While the report “reaches a mixed verdict” on whether or not the White House “misused intelligence to make the case for war,” it does criticize White House officials for; “making assertions that failed to reflect disagreements or uncertainties in the underlying intelligence on Iraq.” (Excellent… let’s hope it reveals more. Stay tuned.)

Heckle: to news that provoked me to ask earlier this week; with that much conservative absurdity in one place, won’t the earth spin off its axis, the law firm of Kirkland & Ellis not only hired former U.N. Ambassador John Bolton as a “senior advisor” earlier this month it still employs Ken Starr… insert your own anti-conservative snark below…

Applaud: to Naval Training officer Marcus Perkins, who was in attendance last Friday when Vice President Cheney gave a graduation speech at the Great Lakes Naval Training base. The young officer, who has served five tours in Iraq, was not only unimpressed with Cheney’s speech, he told the Chicago Sun-Times; “It took him eight years to get here … at the end of his tenure. […] This was more like a pep rally. He could have sent an e-mail for that.” (Nicely said Mr. Perkins, well done. Too bad it will only fall on deaf ears at the White House)

Heckle: to the news that the US dollar “marked a milestone” in Japan earlier this week as it fell below 100 yen for the first time in 12 years… but there’s no recession coming, no, not at all…not a chance… the economy is perfectly strong… and if you believe that, you may want to take off your rose-colored glasses for a moment.

Applaud: to the House and Senate (how often do I have the chance to type that?) as they passed a $3 trillion spending plan earlier this week that increases spending on domestic programs such as education, health care, veterans benefits and new energy technology. Bonus: It also will cause Bush’s tax cuts to the wealthiest Americans to expire in two years… pwned!

Heckle: to a UN report that says that children in Iraq have been “more gravely affected by the U.S. occupation than any other segment of the population” with “at least two million Iraqi children” lacking adequate nutrition… but at least we found their WMD’s… oh wait… well, at least we severed al Qaeda’s Iraqi ties, oh yeah, we didn’t… yeah I got nothin…

Applaud: to Gen. David Petraeus (did I just write that? Oh my God I did…) He said earlier this week that Iraqi leaders have “failed to take advantage of a reduction in violence to make adequate progress toward resolving their political difference” and that “no one” in the U.S. and Iraqi governments feels Iraq’s leaders are making “sufficient progress.” (Now… let’s see if he says the same thing when he appears on Capitol Hill in a few weeks… my guess is something miraculous will happen and the Iraqi government will suddenly be on track for success… or something like that)

Heckle: to not seeing your hand before your face. Former AG John Ashcroft has been testifying about the multi-million dollar, no-bid contract the Justice Department awarded him last year, and said; “There is not a conflict; there is not an appearance of a conflict,” (Um. Not sure how to break this to you John, but if there was no ‘appearance’ of a conflict, you wouldn’t have been on Capitol Hill. Perhaps you should concentrate on your defense rather than make yourself look like an idiot… it’s just a thought…)

Applaud: to staff members at the NSA that have “expressed concerns that the agency may be overstepping its authority by veering into domestic surveillance.” It seems a handful of current and former intelligence officials are saying that the NSA “monitors huge volumes of records of domestic emails and Internet searches as well as bank transfers, credit-card transactions, travel and telephone records.” (Um… I LOVE the NSA… love ‘em, love ‘em, love ‘em. I gotta go…)

Heckle: to the media for speaking out of their collective asses. They continue to repeat the false claim that the Bush(whacked) Administration sought cooperation from telecoms to conduct domestic spying only after 9/11 when, in fact, the administration approached telecommunications carriers months before 9/11 actually occurred… but remember, the media is Liberal…

Heckle: to shady politics courtesy of, natch, a Bush appointee. Back in January, two political appointees at HUD swapped e-mails discussing how they could punish the director of the Philadelphia Housing Authority after they refused to transfer a $2 million public property to a business friend of Alphonso Jackson. Did I mention that Jackson is the US US Housing Secretary?? Yeah… and in February, Philadelphia Housing Authority director Carl Greene alleged that Jackson threatened retaliation against him for not transferring the property… (Can someone explain to me why the hell this man is still in his position and hasn’t been booted??? Anyone? Hello??? Do I hear crickets chirping??)

And this week’s conservative Tool of the Week is a conservative in Liberal’s clothing, and Sen. Clinton campaign staffer, Geraldine Ferraro. First it started with this statement; “If Obama was a white man, he would not be in this position. And if he was a woman (of any color) he would not be in this position. He happens to be very lucky to be who he is. And the country is caught up in the concept.” Then it continued with her absurd attempts to deflect her comment by her saying; “I really think they're attacking me because I'm white.” (NO, they’re attacking you because of something incredibly stupid that you said. If you believe what you said, fine, it’s your opinion. But when you are a campaign staffer, you don’t say it out loud and you certainly don’t attempt to make you the victim. Someone who has spent a LOT of their life in politics should know that) It’s that fact that provoked some people, myself included, to think that perhaps she was going senile. That went out the window after people started looking into some of her past comments and found that on April 15, 1988, she said about Rev. Jesse Jackson; “If Jesse Jackson were not black, he wouldn't be in the race.” Since then, staggeringly, she couldn’t stop talking… she hit the media circuit and, mind-numbingly, appeared on Fox “News” and talked to Bill O'Reilly, who defended her. By the time she resigned her post in the Clinton campaign it was too late and her image is not only forever tarnished, but she’s also earned this week’s TOTW. Such a fall from grace for someone who once was admired by thousands of Liberals everywhere, including me, who didn’t know when to keep her mouth shut.

Apparently oratorical skills aren't a necessity

“I appreciate the fact that you really snatched defeat out of the jaws of those who were trying to defeat us in Iraq.” – President George Bush on Saturday, March 3, 2008. Trying, and failing, to apply the phrase “snatching defeat from the jaws of victory” to General Odierno

It’s no secret that it’s hard to listen to “President” Bush speak… not only does he have the charisma of a wet towel, his grasp of the English language is not… shall we say… good.

Consider that he tends to say things in the wrong context (see above) or opens himself up for ridicule by saying something so amazingly inane (see example 1 below) or says something that offends anyone that’s allowed to use their own brain (see example 2 below).
When he does that, you just have to point it out… here are two very recent examples:

First let’s look at his comment that exemplifies his uncanny knack of opening himself up for derision. Last night he was interviewed on PBS where he was asked if OPEC increasing their oil production would help bring oil, and thusly gas, prices down… his response;

“You know, I don’t know. You’re going to have to ask the experts that. I’m just a simple president. But I really don’t know what it would do…”

It’s the ‘I’m just a simple president’ that makes it art.

Then there was something he said yesterday that is a perfect example of him saying something that offends people in a way that only he could. During a videoconference with U.S. military and civilian personnel yesterday, Bush praised the troops fighting in Afghanistan, a noble and much-deserved plaudit that he promptly ruined by putting his foot into his mouth;

“I must say, I’m a little envious. If I were slightly younger and not employed here, I think it would be a fantastic experience to be on the front lines of helping this young democracy succeed. […] It must be exciting for you ... in some ways romantic, in some ways, you know, confronting danger. You’re really making history, and thanks.”

Romantic? Seriously? This isn’t a movie ya putz, these brave men and women are risking their lives, and you consider it ‘romantic’ and are ‘envious’??

Do you even think about what you’re going to say before you speak, or does your adle-minded brain not allow you that luxury?

I ask that question rhetorically and then remember your words; ‘I’m just a simple president’ and I think yes… yes you are.

Which then makes me realize that January 20, 2009 can NOT come soon enough...

Passed... but for how long?

The House passed an amendment to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA for you acronym-lovers out there) by a vote of 213-197... essentially along party lines.

The amended legislation “does not provide retroactive immunity" for telecom companies but does allow courts to determine whether a lawsuit should or should not proceed.

Naturally, "President" Bush, being the kind of person he is, has threatened a veto.

(So let me get something straight... he's going to veto the bill because the only thing he doesn't like is the portion about telecom immunity... but then he'll immediately start blaming Democrats for putting the US at risk of a terrorist attack...

Now... correct me if I’m wrong, but if he were so sure that its passage would ensure America’s safety, shouldn’t he be less worried about the telecoms and allow the bill to become law??? Or am I using too much common sense?)

The Friday Presidential Race ‘BushWhack’ing

Note: this is a Spitzer-free zone.

Another week down in the 2008 presidential race with another… oh God, really?? That many weeks left? Oy...

• There was a primary in Mississippi this past Tuesday, which Sen. Obama won. And, since CNN called the Texas caucus for him, he now has the lead in state delegates…
• It seems that this week was the week that the Obama campaign took the gloves off. Case in point, this past week Sen. Obama's campaign directly questioned whether Sen. Clinton is prepared to be commander in chief, a tactic she’s been aiming at him for some time. The part of this that makes it even better is that the memo was written by Greg Craig, a former Clinton administration official and current Obama adviser. (If you ask me, this has been a long time coming. Obama has tried to take the high road with Clinton, and each time was met with the venom of the NY Senator. If nothing else, this will give us an idea of how well he’ll manage against McCain and the republicans when he wins should he win the nomination… stay tuned.)
• Regardless of your views on what she said, I think we can all agree that Geraldine Ferraro just needs to stop talking now…
• Nothing has been decided yet about Florida or Michigan. (Is it my imagination or is the state of Michigan acting way more mature regarding their votes than Florida?)
• In the week that he was endorsed by him, gop candidate Sen. McCain went against the stance of “President” Bush and said at a townhall meeting in Atlanta that he believes America is “very likely” in a recession. Welcome to the self-evident fact that we kne—what’s that? He said later that same day that the US economy was strong? Oh God, he’s drinking Bush’s milkshake kool-aid, isn’t he? God help us… another one.
• Ron Paul decided to stay in the race… but he’s still nuttier than a squirrel’s cheeks in October…
• As if you needed more proof that it’s becoming more and more clear that a McCain presidency would be a de-facto third term for George Bush, the Politico reported earlier this week that several of Bush’s former advisers are now “informally advising” Sen. McCain, including Ken Mehlman and Karl Rove. According to McCain insiders, the list could grow with Dan Bartlett and Sara Taylor eager to provide Sen. McCain with any assistance and advice. (one more reason to not only vote against McCain, but to support whichever Democrat runs, Obama or Clinton. If not, we could be facing at least 4 more years of a Bush-like presidency…and really, who wants that?
• Vice President Mitt Romney… at least that’s what George and Jeb Bush would prefer…
  McCain still needs money, and lots of it…
• Sen. Obama rejected Sen. Clinton’s offer of VP, and mentioned, like anyone with a brain would, that it’s interesting that the person in second place would offer the number two slot to the person in first place… perhaps Ms. Clinton’s campaign staff has been drinking the kool-aid of Bush’s campaign handlers, it would explain their overuse of fuzzy logic…
• Sen. Clinton apologized to ‘black voters’ for the inane comments by Geraldine Ferraro… she then apologized for “President” Bush's lackluster response regarding Hurricane Katrina… which she had nothing to do with… but she still apologized. Yeah, can we say; pandering?
• And have we mentioned? That “comedian” Sinbad is weighing in on the presidential race? Uh-huh… it seems her took a trip with then First-Lady Clinton to Bosnia in 1996. A trip that Ms. Clinton cites as an example of her foreign-policy experience, saying that she helped broker the deal that eventually brought peace to the region while risking her life. Not so fast says Sinbad, who says the trip’s primary goal was to provide some entertainment for U.S. troops. Sinbad also told WaPo’s Sleuth Blog that the the scariest part of the trip "was wondering where he'd eat next” and that the “only 'red-phone' moment was: 'Do we eat here or at the next place.’” (Uh-huh… I’m not sure which is more pitiable in this story, that she tried to pass off a trip like this as being more than it was… the fact that we’re paying attention to someone like Sinbad for political information, or that I’m posting it here… though in my defense, it DOES show the ridiculousness that this election cycle is approaching…)

Please stop, you're making a spectacle of yourself

I don’t want to start trashing Sen. Clinton on this blog as I used to have profound respect for both her and her husband… respect though that I see being tarnished with some of her and President Clinton’s actions in the last few weeks.

Despite that, I've tried to hold my high ground and have refused to get into trash posting like I've seen on other blogs... but what she said this morning on NPR was simply too much for me to ignore.

First you should know that Ms. Clinton, along with Sens. Obama and Edwards,
signed a pledge not to campaign OR PARTICIPATE… and this morning she appeared on NPR:

Clinton: “Well that was his choice, remember. There was no rule or requirement that he take his name off the ballot, and his supporters ran a very aggressive campaign to try to get people to vote uncommitted. So it wasn't that he didn't participate at all. In fact there was a real effort to get people to vote uncommitted and I still won 55% of the vote.”

NPR: “You say that was a fair result even without Barack Obama's name on the ballot?”

Clinton: “Well that was his choice, Steve”

NPR: “Wasn't it the Democratic Party's choice that it would not be a result that be counted and most people took their names off the ballot?”

Clinton: “No...I think that the Democratic Party said that they would not under the circumstances count the votes. But we all had a choice as to whether or not to participate in what was going to be a primary. And most people took their names off the ballot, but I didn't. And I think that was a wise decision because Michigan is key to our electoral victory in the fall. And I think if there is to be any difference between my proposal that we count those votes and any other course of action, it should be a complete redo of the primary. Nothing else is fair and I feel strongly about that.”

So how is this NOT a direct and unequivocal violation of her pledge to the DNC and Democratic voters?

Simple… it IS a direct and unequivocal violation of her pledge to the DNC and Democratic voters… she’s just choosing to change the rules to benefit her, because she wants the presidency so badly that she’s under the impression that she’s not only destined for it, but that the office is somehow owed to her.

My favorite part of her interview was her saying; “…we all had a choice as to whether or not to participate in what was going to be a primary. And most people took their names off the ballot, but I didn't. […] And I think if there is to be any difference between my proposal that we count those votes and any other course of action, it should be a complete redo of the primary. Nothing else is fair and I feel strongly about that.”

Really Ms. Clinton? You’re going to bring up fairness? Seriously? Explain to me and everyone else in this country how the hell it would be “fair” to count two states who broke the rules… how would it be “fair” for you to go back on your pledge?

Fair...

Ms. Clinton’s actions of recent weeks reminds me that we haven’t seen someone like this – someone so intent on getting elected president that they would even throw their own parent under the bus to achieve it – since one Richard Milhouse Nixon ran for president… and we all know how well THAT one turned out.

And before I get flamed for making a parallel to Clinton and Nixon, keep in mind that I’m not comparing the person per se, but rather the lengths they would go to in order to achieve this specific goal…

Sen. Clinton is starting to make a spectacle of herself, and a fall from grace when you're as high-up as she is, can really hurt...

The Thursday ‘BushWhack’ing

One day until Friday… yay.

• Amid growing concerns about the health of the U.S. economy, the (hastily falling) dollar "marked a milestone" in Japan as it fell below 100 yen for the first time in 12 years... but we're not headed for a recession... our economy is stro- hahahahahahaha, I knew I wouldn't be able to say that with a straight face...
• As if the Eliot Spitzer story couldn’t get more tabloid-ish, now we (gasp!) have the identity of the hooker… I mean prostitute… I mean call girl… whatever… the whole saga has me saying; meh.
• Florida is still whining about their votes and delegates not being counted and state Dems are trying to devise ways to have their votes matter. (Again, I say to them – next time, abide by the damn rules. It’s not a hard concept, even five-year olds can abide by the rules…)
• Former VP candidate – and based on your opinions; certified racist or certifiable senile old coot – Geraldine Ferraro has stepped down from her position in Sen. Clinton’s campaign.
• Sen. Obama has increased his delegate lead…
• Here’s another headline that writes the snark itself; “Kevorkian to run for office”… I don’t know what kind of a Congressman he would be, but I bet his campaign would kill… sorry, had to be done.
• The Senate is poised to vote on a one-year earmark ban and the three presidential candidates are interrupting their campaign schedules so they can get to DC and vote on the high-profile measure. (It should be noted that this would be one of the first votes that McCain has attended since his campaign began in earnest. Nice to see him care about his constituents back home so much. Yes Virginia, that was sarcasm…)
• And have we mentioned? That “President” Bush still doesn’t get it? Speaking to the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce yesterday, Bush said; “…I think when people take a look back at this moment in our economic history, they’ll recognize tax cuts work.” (I sincerely doubt that anyone – except possibly that 19% of people that, inexplicably, still think Bush is doing a good job – will view this current time frame, read: Bush’s time in office, as a success in economic terms… and can someone please wake the president up and tell him that the recession is here and that it’s his fault? Thanks…)

You've hit the nail on the head

This has to be THE best quote from this election cycle, and it was said last week by a Daily Kos member...

You tell me if it doesn't sum it all up nicely...

"Saying that Hillary has Executive Branch experience is like saying Yoko Ono was a Beatle."

True. Oh so true... thanks JSN.

More on the "resignation" of Admiral Fallon

While the permanent replacement for recently “resigned” CentCom commander Adm. William Fallon will likely be General Petraeus, the interim replacement is Fallon’s top deputy, Gen. Martin Dempsey, who, in the past, led the training of Iraqi security forces.


Have we mentioned that Dempsey has made statements suggesting a critical approach to the administration in the past as well, just as his former boss had?


Case in point, on November 15, 2007, during a hearing on the Iraq escalation then-CentCom commander Gen. John Abizaid said Dempsey opposed the surge.


Another example was in an interview with the National Journal last June, where he stressed that the U.S. needed a “transition scheme” with Iraqi forces rather than a surge. In the same article he said that the Bush(whacked) Administration should come clean on future force levels… something they haven’t yet done and probably never will do.


Having said all that, Dempsey does have some Bush sycophantic traits to him as he said, according to Think Progress, that the Iraq war was “absolutely worth it” despite the costs during an interview with Bill “Want to see my microphone?” O’Reilly back in 2006.


My feelings are that Dempsey won’t be in the position long as the Bush(whacked) Administration will not waste ANY time in getting someone – Petraeus – in the position who favors war with Iran…


Stay tuned…

The Wednesday ‘BushWhack’ing

Hump day, let’s get humping… wow, that didn’t sound good did it?

• Sen. Obama won Mississippi… I’ve never realized how much fun it is to spell Mississippi until this week… Mississippi…
• “President” Bush had nothing but (feigned?) praise for CENTCOM Adm. William Fallon, saying “He deserves considerable credit for progress that has been made.” (Bush was saying that, but in his addle-minded brain he was snickering and saying ‘Now I get to attack Iran, now I get to attack Iran, yippee!’
• CNN has called the Texas caucus for Obama, giving him the lead in state delegates… but remember, Texas doesn’t matter…
• According to his aides, New York governor Eliot Spitzer will resign today which will transfer power to Lt. Gov. David Paterson. (I, personally, don’t think he should have resigned just yet, if at all. I didn’t call for Larry “Wide Stance” Craig to resign… nor David “DC Madam” Vitter… and I don’t think it was necessary that Spitzer resign as he has not yet been charged with anything…)
• Geraldine Ferraro needs to learn how to keep her mouth shut…
• Nothing has been decided yet about what to do about Florida’s delegates and votes… (while my immediate reaction is ‘screw em’, I understand and realize that that is not entirely realistic. Considering that Florida are the ones that flaunted the rules and held their election early, they should pay for the mulligan… but that’s just my opinion…)
• Mississippi… Mississippi… Mississippi… Mississippi, okay, the last 2 times I copy and pasted
• Democrats in the House are planning to introduce new FISA legislation that would allow lawsuits against phone companies to go forward, but with conditions attached… (Once again, hints of having some balls… let’s see what happens though. And we can expect more republican fearmongering in five, four, three--)
• And have we mentioned? That the House of Representatives has been busy? Besides the new surveillance bill, the House voted yesterday (229 pro, 182 con) to create an outside ethics office that will have the authority to investigate ethical misconduct by its members. The office will be able to initiate its own reviews of conduct by members of Congress, the results of which would then be forwarded to the House ethics committee, they would then review the recommendations and bury it act accordingly. (Interesting… I’ll believe it when I see it, and the first thing I would do would be to start investigating the 182 that voted against the bill… I’m just sayin’…)

Next stop: Iran?

I don’t want to get all tin-foil hat on here, but an interesting development has happened today as the Cetntcom commander who not only opposed the surge in Iraq but also said that an attack on Iran “will not happen on my watch” and that labeled conservative officials’ warmongering rhetoric as “not helpful” has… well, we’ll say “resigned” for now.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates made the announcement this afternoon that Centcom commander Adm. William Fallon submitted his resignation, mere days after he (Fallon) was the subject of an Esquire magazine article in which the admiral suggested he could be “relieved of his command before his time is up next spring,” in favor of a commander more amenable to war with Iran. (If you want to see more examples of Fallon disagreeing with this administration, click, per ThinkProgress, HERE to go to National Security Network’s post about that)

Allegedly Fallon resigned, according to Gates, because of post-article fall-out, with Fallon, again allegedly until I hear otherwise form Fallon himself, telling Gates; “The current embarrassing situation, public perception of differences between my views and administration policy, and the distraction this causes from the mission make this the right thing to do.”

Gates said he approved Fallon’s request to retire with “reluctance and regret.” (but immediately called “President” Bush who hooted and hollered in approval I’m guessing…)

It should be pointed out that there is a line in the Esquire story that says, essentially, if Fallon gets fired, the US is going to war with Iran. When asked to address that, Gates responded with a flippant, “Well that’s just ridiculous.”

Doesn’t seem so ridiculous when you use your own brain and think about it… Bush obviously wants to attack Iran and, as he did in the lead-up to the invasion of Iraq, Bush is sweeping aside respected senior officers who oppose his war plans… what could be even more troubling is that Gates is seemingly playing ball with Bush and going along with this preposterous exercise.

The US can NOT afford another war… and I don’t mean in an economic sense either, though I doubt that would help our looming recession. Our military is already stretched to the max and adding another war front would not only be disastrous to our military, but our nation as well.

January 20, 2009 can NOTcome soon enough…

Isn't ignoring the public a republican trait?

Steve Grossman, a former DNC Chairman and Clinton supporter, as well as a super-delegate, sent out an open letter to Democratic Party Super Delegates this past weekend, and in it he urges these other super delegates to refuse “to be mindless tabulators of primaries and caucuses won, or popular votes amassed” because “our party concluded that we had demonstrated the ability to act as stewards of the national party--and of the national interest. By dint of our experience in the community and our public service, we were adjudged fit to fulfill a moral responsibility to act in the best interest of the country as we saw it…”

So let me understand this… he wants the super-delegates to IGNORE the will of the people and to IGNORE the primary results…

I wonder if he would think along these lines if his candidate was leading the delegate count?

I would vote no, but he would overrule it…

The Tuesday ‘BushWhack’ing

• There’s another primary today, in Mississippi…
• New York Governor Eliot Spitzer (D) has admitted being linked to a top-dollar prostitution ring and some pundits are saying this could be the end of his rising-star political career while others say he must resign. (My question is this, we’ve had a president get a blowjob in the Oval Office, we’ve had a (republican) Senator arrested for soliciting gay sex in an airport restroom and another republican visit a DC madam, will this really de-rail Spitzer’s career, or is it all hyperbole? And don’t even get me started on the hypocritical republican calls for him to resign, to them I have two words; Larry. Craig.)
• Sen. Obama has rejected Sen. Clinton’s offer of VP… (interesting isn’t it when the individual in second place offers the second chair to the person in first place… Ms. Clinton, you’re doing it wrong)
• The DOJ has reined-in the amount of control U.S. attorneys have in arranging deals that allow firms to avoid prosecution if they accept corporate monitors and make restitution to victims… which I’m sure has no correlation at all between the fact that former AG John Ashcroft is appearing on Capitol Hill this morning regarding some impropriety on Ashcroft’s part. Impropriety thy name is Bush Administration…
• Sen. McCain needs women money…
• And have we mentioned? That the law firm of Kirkland & Ellis has hired a new attorney? It’s true as the firm has hired former U.S. Ambassador John Bolton to be a “senior adviser.” And the story gets better as Bolton will probably be working alongside Whitewater tool Ken Starr… (Wow, with that much conservative absurdity in one place, won’t the earth spin off its axis?)

When all else fails, UNITE!

After victories in 3 primaries last Tuesday, Sen. Clinton was ready to call the contest for herself.

Not so fast Hillary.

According to a new Gallup poll, her wins in the Texas and Ohio primaries have not transcended themselves towards any noticeable momentum shift.

According to a just-recently completed Gallup poll, Sen. Obama holds what could best be described as a statistical dead-heat 2-point lead over Sen. Clinton – 47% - 45% respectively.

But that’s not the big news, the bigger news is, as Gallup implies, Clinton gained on Obama in the days leading up to the March 4 primaries/caucus, but her successful showing -- winning three of the four elections held that day -- failed to boost her candidacy nationally. So in other words, Ms. Clinton won… but her victories did not have the huge swell of support that her campaign had been expecting, nay needing.

Despite Obama’s victory in Saturday's Wyoming caucus (he won 61% of the vote and more than half of the delegates) neither of the two candidates has broken through the 50% plus range since mid-February, which is a pretty fair indication that the race is likely to remain deadlocked for a relatively long time, at least until an agreement is reached on what to do about the whiney states of Florida and Michigan. Even that would not guarantee that the race would break decisively one way or another in terms of pledged delegates for either Clinton or Obama.

All of which takes us back to the super-delegates and the possibility of a fight at the Denver convention in late August should the campaigns and the DNC be unable to reach a resolution by then.

It’s promising to be a long, hot summer.

The American people need and deserve a functioning government to deal with pressing domestic issues, and Obama has proven ability to bring in not only Independent voters, but quite a few republicans and millions of Democrats.

Sen. Clinton represents the confrontation domestically and in foreign policy that has brought us to the sorry mess we're in now; a federal government paralyzed by bitter partisanship.

I think Ms. Clinton represents more of the same (as does Sen. McCain, but that's a whole other post)

Having said that… whether the nominee is Clinton or Obama, the most important thing is for the Democratic Party to lead a long-term agenda for building a stronger America and a stronger global community.

Support whichever candidate gets the nomination. Our country and our world could be at stake.

The Monday ‘BushWhack’ing

Monday, another week of delegate fighting and campaigning… oh, joy.

• Could someone explain to me why it’s news that an actor in a Clinton campaign commercial is an Obama supporter?
• An Associated Press investigation shows that there is a vast array of pharmaceuticals found in the drinking water supplies of at least 41 million Americans. EPA assistant administrator for water Benjamin Grumbles says; “We recognize it is a growing concern and we're taking it very seriously.” The EPA is on the case? I feel safer already… it’s so hard to express sarcasm in the written form…
• “President” Bush vetoed the bill that would have banned waterboarding this past Saturday, saying; “The bill Congress sent me would take away one of the most valuable tools in the war on terror.” (and once again, the standing of the United States falls ever lower… thanks to Bush. January 20, 2009 can not come soon enough…)
• In an interview with CNN (new motto: Now with MORE Britney!), Sen. (and super-delegate) Sherrod Brown (D-OH) says that while he has not yet chosen who to support, “nobody wants to overturn what voters have said.” (Let’s hope he’s right, otherwise the Democratic party could see a tremendous backlash in November…)
• Michigan and Florida are still whining about the votes counting… even though neither of the Dems campaigned there and only one was on the ballot. (I see two possible choices; re-do the election - a mail-in ballot is getting a lot of chatter now – or the two states can stuff it. Both states were told what would happen if they held their elections early and they ignored it and did it anyway, to allow their votes to count now would not only set a dangerous precedence, it would also be a lousy message to send to everyone. Having said that, the DNC needs to get on this ASAP and decide on something soon…)
• Sen. Obama won Saturday’s Wyoming caucus…
• And have we mentioned? That a Democrat won the seat of former House Speaker Dennis Hastert this past Saturday as well? Hastert, who retired earlier this year, saw Democrat Bill Foster win the special election in the Illinois 14th, defeating dairy owner (and uber-conservative tool) Jim Oberweis 53%-47%. The loss is a huge kick in the teeth for the NRCC which had been running ads in Illinois in what was a vain attempt to keep the seat, which has been republican for decades, in their hands. Foster will run again in the district’s regular election this November, with some people in the Illinois gop considering installing a different candidate than Oberweis to run then. Stay tuned…

The Weekly Rewind

Well this has sure been one hell of a week. The Democratic candidates have been going after each other which can only serve to help the Republicans in the general election. The economy is still heading down the crapper. You know the usual stuff. Enough of the stuff you already know painfully well, let’s get to some things that may have been overlooked.

Heckle: to flip flops. Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) likes to present himself as the candidate of the ‘Straight Talk Express’ who does not pander to voters or change his positions. But the record shows that McCain has changed his mind on issues such as the Bush tax cuts, immigration, torture and abortion. Sounds like the ‘Striaght Talk Express’ has taken quite a few turns.

Applaud: to delicious irony. Back in 2000, a US Senate candidate said that was “frankly disturbing” that her opponent, Rick Lazio, refused to release his tax returns, this candidate then sent a man dressed as Uncle Sam to protest at Lazio events.. .that candidate’s name was… Hillary Clinton. Sometimes the irony is so thick you need a chainsaw to cut through it…

Heckle: to the sucking sound that is the economic black hole getting larger. College students nationwide will begin to see higher costs for loans this spring, while others will be turned away by banks altogether as the credit crisis roiling the U.S. economy spreads. Over the past decade, student debt levels more than doubled to $19,200. College costs continue spiralling out of control and this is not going to help.

Heckle:to getting caught with your pants down and blaming it on Iran. Vanity Fair writes that the Bush administration’s plan to arm and train Palestinian fighters loyal to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas backfired and led to the Hamas takeover of Gaza. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice called the central premise of the article “ludicrous” and said it was necessary to counteract Iranian influence.

Applaud:to speaking the truth. Adopting a message that could help Democrats to portray themselves as protecting the military and national security, Congressional Democrats will argue that getting troops out of Iraq “is the only way to rebuild a spent military.”

Applaud:House Democrats said a civil lawsuit could be filed as early as this month that challenges the Bush administration’s claims of executive privilege in curtailing aides from testifying on Capitol Hill. Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) is pursing civil litigation because Attorney General Michael Mukasey refuses to enforce contempt citations against two White House aides. You know the administration is going to use this weasel 'executive privilege' any chance they can unless they are stopped now.

Applaud:Voters in two southern Vermont towns passed articles Tuesday calling for the indictment of President Bush and Vice President Cheney for violating the Constitution. More symbolic than substantive, the items sought to have police arrest Bush and Cheney if they ever visit Brattleboro or nearby Marlboro or to extradite them for prosecution elsewhere — if they’re not impeached first. You gotta applaud the gesture...

Heckle:talk about a dilema. If you want to prevent skin cancer, you don’t go to the beach. And if you want to avoid corruption, you don’t go to Vegas, right? Next month, however, Sin City will host Campaigns & Elections magazine’s two-day conference for lobbyists called “All Things Ethical.” Panels include “Using Phones Ethically” and “The Ethics of Deception.” It's like having an AA meeting at a brewery.

Heckle:get your boots on the crap is getting deeper. Yesterday, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) said he does not “agree with [the] sentiment that there has been widespread corruption” in the Bush administration, suggesting he wouldn’t support independent investigations into the administration’s activities if elected. Sorry Senator that is the wrong way to try and grab the average American vote.

Applaud: to not letting this be hidden in the corner. Lawyers for Jamie Leigh Jones argued in federal court yesterday that her case should be “tried in court, not settled in private arbitration.” Jones is suing defense contractor KBR over an alleged gang rape she suffered in 2005, but the company insists her contract binds her to settle all claims through arbitration. KBR needs to taken to task over this issue and stop hiding behind some BS clause in their one sided employment agreement.

Applaud: to a new AP Poll, that shows more and more Americans are identifying themselves as Democrats, with a 7% jump since the primary season began… welcome to the club, we’ve got jackets.

Heckle: to being held to account for your actions. James Clark, the chief of staff under former Alaska Gov. Frank H. Murkowski (R), agreed yesterday “to plead guilty to concealing donations made to Mr. Murkowski’s 2006 re-election campaign” by the VECO Corporation, an oil company accused of bribing much of the Alaskan political establishment. Clark arranged for VECO to pay $68,500 without it being publicly disclosed. It's a start....


That's it for this week.

Be good, stay informed.....later.

He STILL doesn't get it...

Hours after a government report showed a decline in payrolls for the second straight month, and hours before stocks hit their lowest levels in over a year, “President” Bush said earlier today that while “it's clear our economy has slowed”, the long-term outlook is good… “I know this is a difficult time for our economy. […] But we recognized the problem early and we provided the economy with a booster shot.”

I’ve asked this (too) many times… what color is the sky in your world Mr. Bush?

Wow, I didn’t see THAT coming*

Not long after I saw the news of the NYC Army recruitment center bombing yesterday, I remarked that it won’t be long until a fear-mongering conservative tried to tie the bombing to the surveillance bill not getting re-approved.

This morning that bastion of conservative beliefs, Oliver North, appeared on Fox “News” (like he would appear anywhere else) and did just that.

I’m surprised it took them this long…

This morning North said the incident may have been prevented had the House, and Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), renewed the Protect America Act.

North; “Last month, of course, the U.S. House of Representatives under the direction of Nancy Pelosi went on vacation rather than voting on the Protect America Act, which provided for wiretapping of terrorists making phone calls into and out of the United States to foreign places. […] And I note that it would have been a lot easier, perhaps, to find out who did this, or even to know that they were planning it, had we been able to intercept those communications.”

Um… yeah… Ollie, your comments are nothing more than a sad and pathetic attempt to politicize a tragedy – but then again you’re a conservative and there’s nothing conservatives like better than politicizing a tragedy in order to give birth to fear and paint Liberals as being unable to protect Americans – and if you care to step into reality for a moment (I know the thought scares you), surveillance that began under the law would be able to continue, and new surveillance can be initiated by getting a warrant through the FISA court, even after the surveillance has begun.

Funny how Ollie “forgot” to mention that. He also forgot to mention that Senate gop leaders blocked another extension of the PAA last week (which I posted about earlier this week) and that some republicans are boycotting the negotiation meetings.

But, it’s Oliver North, and as we all know, he would rather incite fear and worry than speak the truth…

*Yes, that was sarcasm

The Friday Presidential Race ‘BushWhack’ing

Another Friday, another week down (of WAY too many remaining) in the 2008 presidential race…

• The Delegate Count for this week: Obama: 1,257 (1,451 with super-delegates) and Clinton 1,127 (1,365 with super-delegates)
• In case you were stranded on a deserted island or on the moon, there were more primaries/caucuses this past Tuesday. On the Left, Sen. Clinton won the Rhode Island, Ohio and Texas primaries while Sen. Obama took Vermont and (we still don’t officially know yet), the Texas caucus. On the right, Sen. McCain swept all four states and in the process grabbed enough delegates to be the presumptive gop nominee.
• Gov. Huckabee dropped out of the race…
• Ron Paul might drop out of the race. (Might?? Mr. Paul, McCain has the nomination sealed, you are a distant fourth in delegate count, and you are bat-shit crazy “odd”, drop out already…)
• Sen. Clinton further estranged herself from some Democrats this week when she told a press gaggle that she and Sen. McCain offer the experience to be ready to tackle any crisis facing the country under their watch, but Barack Obama simply offers more rhetoric. So Ms. Clinton is praising someone who could be her opponent later this year… memo to Mark Penn – you’re doing it wrong.
• Even though they broke the rules and ignored the Democrat and republican parties, Florida and Michigan are insisting that their votes should count and their delegates should be allocated accordingly. (N-O… NO! I’ve already said that quite a few voters stayed home that day because they knew their vote wasn’t going to count, and allowing them to matter now would not only be unfair to those that didn’t vote, but unfair to the candidates who didn’t campaign there or weren’t even on the ballot. Before the anti-Clinton or anti-Obama things start trolling me, this has nothing to do with being pro-Clinton or pro-Obama, it’s a playing by the rules thing, and you can’t change the rules in mid-stream. Unless of course you’re a republican president with approval ratings in the low 20’s… )
• Sen. McCain is trying to boost his support among the more conservative republican voters, especially in key battleground states… and considering his rather lack-luster fundraising, that may be more easier said than done…
• Because she’s been bringing up claims that she has more experience and thusly (and wrongly in my opinion) is more qualified to be president, people are starting to analyze Sen. Clinton’s those claims… and they’re finding a true “lack of clarity” on some issues, namely her claims that she helped bring peace to Northern Ireland…
• Bob Dole said earlier this week that John McCain has a temper…
• Sen. Obama set a fundraising record in February by raising an astonishing $55 million… Sen. Clinton has been doing rather well for herself lately as well, bringing in $3 million in the 24 hours since her Tuesday victories.
• Sen. Obama and Sen. Clinton are still sniping at each other over NAFTA… and now there are rumors, first reported by The Globe and Mail, that it was Clinton's campaign that “leaked” the memo
• And have we mentioned? That we can sum up the week that was in the 2008 presidential race with one phrase? The republicans have a presumptive nominee and the Democrats have a horse-race…(As I stated earlier this week, that makes some difference right now, but not as big as some people may think. While it’s true that McCain can now start focusing on the November election and choosing a running-mate, he still has to raise money for his campaign, something that he is lacking in, especially compared to his Democratic opponents who seem to be raising funds faster than a Bush(whacked) Administration employee can claim executive privilege… As we like to say at TBWA; stay tuned)

If it walks, talks and looks like a recession.....it probably is!

In what should be a big eye opening concern for everyone, the Labor Department reports that job losses in February were the worst since March 2003. Watch for the 'Bush'-Whacked Administration to sweep this to the side and focus on the unemployment rate declining. They will tout this number while ignoring the fact that the drop is a purely statistical twist due to fewer people in the total workforce.

Another concern is that the RBC Cash Index reports that consumer confidence is at its lowest point in 6 years.

And hey, remember back in 2005 when a Republican Congress stuck it up the ass of the average American and changed the Bankruptcy laws?? Well guess what, personal bankruptcy filings are at the highest level since 2005!

add these on top of:

- Record Foreclosures

- Continuingly weak home sales

- Home Equity being upside down for the first time since 1945 !

Once again Mr. President, tell me how we are not in a recession?? Seems we need to redifine our view of what constitutes a recession.

Oh I forgot, the $600 to each taxpayer will cause the economy to surge ! yeah right....

More on Stephen Johnson (w/update)

Back in January I wrote a post about how EPA administrator Stephen Johnson had denied California’s request for a federal law waiver so the state could implement its own landmark regulations to slash greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles.

Appearing before the U.S. Senate's environment committee, Johnson deflected oft-repeated questions from Sens. Barbara Boxer, (D-CA) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) about any White House role in the decision.

Since he denied the waiver request, groups have been pressuring him to release his official statement on why he denied their request as more than a few prominent scientists, including some who actually work at the EPA, questioned his decision. Well, he finally released his official statement today, and it’s covered in White House fingerprints with a nice dollop of Bush-logic thrown-in for good measure. (in other words; it’s bullshit. Pure, unadulterated bullshit…)

Johnson wrote; “While I find that the conditions related to global climate change in California are substantial, they are not sufficiently different from conditions in the nation as a whole to justify separate state standards.”

So let me see if I have this straight… because we face global warming everywhere, he’s not going to allow it to be addressed anywhere, thus ignoring an INTERNAL EPA study that showed California suffers disproportionately from the effects of global warming than other states…

Reading that, and then realizing how utterly ridiculous it sounds, one has to instantly wonder how much input the White House gave Johnson… and how strongly did that input weigh on his decision.

Naturally, as all good BushCronies do; he ain't talkin'…

Though I don’t think we really need anyone to tell us how much input the White House had, do we?

3/7 UPDATE: Following Johnson’s actions of overruling his agency’s staff, House Democrats are seeking to overturn Johnson's ruling, with Rep. Peter Welch (D-VT) saying yesterday that the EPA has “said no to the states. They’ve said no to their own scientists. They’ve said no to common sense. […] It’s time for EPA to lead, follow, or get out of the way.” (Nicely done, it seems the Democrats are finally starting to show some balls with an administration that has a low-approval rated, lame-duck president… stay tuned)

Remain calm, all is well ! Yeah sure.....

Some observations-

- For the first time since 1945, on average, American homeowners equity in their homes has fallen below 50%. Which means that the amount of debt owed on their homes exceeds the amount of equity in the home.

- Foreclosures hit a new all time high in the 4th quarter of 2007. And the number of homeowners 30 days or more late making mortgage payments is at the highest level since 1985.

- Inflation fears are increasing, the dollar is continuing to fall against the Euro.

- The stock market continues to drop in response to warnings of bank / mortgage related layoffs and bankruptcy fears.

- Oil keeps going up because traders (aka:greed mongers) get scared every time some one blows their nose in a 3rd world country.

Now can you tell me again Mr. President how we are in a 'slowdown' with no danger of heading for a recession? Curious that actual financial experts say we are already there....

Remember, it doesn't really matter what the experts say, like a self-fulfilling prophecy, if a majority of average American's think we are in a recession......then we are ...

Hold on, the ride is just beginning.

UPDATE BY KEMP: If I may add to Scott's post here, consider that the Federal Reserve announced this afternoon that Americans’ percentage of equity in their homes "fell below 50 percent for the first time on record since 1945” that caused the Economy.com website to estimate that “8.8 million homeowners, or about 10.3 percent of homes, will have zero or negative equity by the end of the month.”

Interesting... I guess people just "built too many houses", huh? It’s the only possible explanation...

The Thursday ‘BushWhack’ing

• A small bomb exploded at a military recruiting station in Times Square early this morning… police and the FBI continue to investigate and are looking for a ‘man on a bicycle’. The media is doing their usual bang-up job of raising fear by playing the terrorism card…
• AP is reporting that the Mortgage Bankers Association is reporting that home foreclosures hit an all time high in the final quarter of 2007 and continue to climb… but according to this administration, we’re not nearing a recession. (Maybe they’re right, perhaps we’re already in one…)
• The states of Florida and Michigan are acting like little kids and don’t want the rules to apply to them, insisting that their votes should count and their delegates should be allocated accordingly. (To that I say; tough! How many voters stayed home that day because they knew their vote wasn’t going to count? I would surmise a lot, and to have the delegates count now would not only be unfair to them, but unfair to the candidates who didn’t campaign there or weren’t even on the ballot. This isn’t a pro-Clinton or pro-Obama thing, it’s an abiding by the rules thing, and they shouldn’t count… )
• Bob Dole says John McCain has a temper… Bob Dole.
• The Texas caucus results still aren’t counted yet… (perhaps this will teach Texas to not do things in a muddled, mind-numbingly stupid way… but I doubt it.)
• The republicans have a presumptive nominee while the Democrats have a horse-race. Does that make a difference right now? Yes and no. It’s true that McCain can now start focusing on the November election and choosing a running-mate, but it’s a precarious place as it’s unwise to attack the Democratic candidate before there even is an official candidate. As we like to say at TBWA; stay tuned.
• FBI Director Robert Mueller told the Senate Judiciary Committee Wednesday that the FBI improperly used national security letters in 2006 to obtain personal data on Americans during terror and spy investigations… (I am shocked. Shocked to find gambling in this establishment…)
• And have we mentioned? That “President” Bush is insisting that America is in the lead on climate change? It’s true, speaking to the Washington International Renewable Energy Conference (WIREC) Bush said; “in the lead when it comes to energy independence; we’re in the lead when it comes to new technologies; we’re in the lead when it comes to global climate change.” (Wow, there are SO many things wrong with that statement I don’t even know where to begin…let’s just ponder it shall we?)

One last thought about last night's primaries/caucus

How about a quick delegate rundown for last night… keep in mind that all these numbers are tentative, as final vote tallies continue to creep in from the post-Texas primary Texas caucus (yes, it is as ridiculous as it sounds…)

Vermont, which Sen. Obama won, and its 15 delegates: Obama grabs 9 and Clinton 6.

Rhode Island, which Sen. Clinton won, and its 21 delegate: Clinton gets 12 while Obama still gathers 8.

Texas PRIMARY, which Clinton won, and its 126 delegates: Clinton takes 65 but Obama still grabs 61, only four less than what Clinton, the winner, got.



Ohio, which Clinton won, and its 141 delegates: Clinton took 76 while Obama grabbed 65.

So for the night, Clinton grabbed 191 delegates while Obama scooped-up a still-respectable 178.

The overall lead in pledged delegates, as of now, per CNN;

Obama: 1,257

Clinton: 1,127

If you add super-delegates, Obama has 1,451 and Clinton 1,365 with 2,025 needed to officially secure the nomination.

What does all of this mean?

Well, the stark reality of it is that, despite her three state victories last night, Clinton only chipped away at Obama's pledged delegate lead, and if Obama can show he's not going to collapse under the weight of Clinton's assault, there will be no reason for the super delegates to overturn the will of the voters in either pledged delegates or the popular vote)… and, as my esteemed colleague Scott says, with the way the delegates are divided, in order for Sen. Clinton to pull ahead in the pledged delegate count she would have to win the rest of the primaries and/or caucuses by 65% in each state… which, barring Sen. Obama having a secret love-child with Brittany Spears, will NOT happen.

As always; stay tuned…

Things to consider after 'Mini' Super-Tuesday

Unless you have been in a cave since last night you know that Hillary won Ohio, Texas and Rhode Island in yesterday’s primary contests.

A couple of observations:

• Total vote counts in each state were roughly 2-1 in favor of Democrats over republicans (Kemp’s Note: Which gives me hope for November, regardless of our nominee…)
• Texas was essentially a tie (In the primary voting, the caucuses have yet to be determined)
• Barack Obama leads in pledged delegates by approximately 150

Now these observations raise questions:

• What does the difference in the number of total votes for each party mean for the General Election
• Are there really that many more Democrats in each of these states compared to Republicans? Or was the Republican turnout artificially low because McCain essentially had it locked up? (Which means they will come out in force in November...)
• What was the factor, specifically in Texas and Ohio that caused the dynamic to switch from Obama to Clinton? And can this factor be repeated by one or defeated by the other?
• If Obama maintains his pledged delegate lead, what does that mean for the convention.

Ok, now the last observation and question raise an interesting question. Which was touched on by most news organizations, and that is the issue of the Super-Delegates.

The Obama camp (and the average person) are stating that the Super-Delegates (let’s call them ‘SD’s) should cast their votes in support of the candidate who comes into the convention with the majority of pledged delegates.

The Clinton camp is stating that the SD’s should vote independently of the pledged delegate counts in favor of whom they feel is most qualified.

Of course each candidate is going to favor the position most beneficial to them personally. However let’s think back to another situation where a select group of people decided an election independent of the popular vote: the 2000 Presidential Election.

Should the SD’s at the convention decide to vote for the candidate who has the least number of pledged delegates they will be no different than when the Supreme Court handed the election to George Bush. And we all know how well that has worked out!

Also, what of the electorate? The people, whose votes were recorded, counted and reflected in the pledged delegate count. Think of the outrage, the effect that disenfranchising their vote will have come November. They voted for a candidate and they all expect that a majority rule should apply. Should this majority be ‘slapped’ in the face by the SD’s at the convention I shudder to think of the repercussions?

Personally, I believe that the SD’s should line up and support the pledged delegate majority candidate. However, should the SD’s vote alter the popular vote and elect the lesser candidate then the party needs to put the control back in the hands of the voters and get rid of the SD’s.

We have worked long and hard to get to this point and to have this screwed up by ‘patronage’ delegates will set the party and the country back by decades.

But hey, this is just my opinion…

The Wednesday ‘BushWhack’ing

Mid week that saw the Democrats take a giant step backward and the republicans take a giant step forward… d’oh!

• Sen. Clinton won the Rhode Island, Ohio and Texas primaries while Sen. Obama took Vermont and, as it looks now, the Texas caucus.
• Sen. McCain swept all four states last night, gathering enough delegates to be the ‘official’ presumptive nominee and will meet with “President” Bush for his (snicker) endorsement.
• Gov. Huckabee dropped out of the race while Ron Paul has been silent… I’m assuming that’s due to him not being able to pick up a clear TV signal on his tin-foil hat…
• Believe it or not there ARE other things going on in the world of politics besides the presidential race… a town in Vermont, Brattlebro, voted yesterday to seek an indictment of “President” Bush and “Vice” President Cheney and to arrest them if they show up in town (Yeah… not sure what the actual point of this was, but any time I can see the words indictment, Bush and Cheney in the same sentence, the world makes a little more sense…)
• Count Sen. McCain out of any plans to investigate the current White House occupants. McCain said yesterday that he doesn’t “agree with [the] sentiment that there has been widespread corruption” in this administration. His statements suggest to me, and anyone with a brain, that he wouldn’t support independent investigations into the administration’s activities if he won the presidency. (there ya go, one more reason to NOT vote for the man…)
• Tensions are on the rise again over some of Bush’s crony, I mean judicial, nominations… and that has prompted Sen. Arlen Specter (r-PA) to take his eyes off of the NFL for a while and focus his attention elsewhere. Specter pointed out that during the last two years of President Clinton's term, the republican-controlled Senate confirmed 15 circuit nominees and 57 district court nominees and since the Democrats took over the Senate, Bush has been successful in confirming only 6.... (Well duh Arlen, that’s what happens when you have qualified and crony-less nominees, they get approved…)
• And have we mentioned? That Senate conservatives plan to announce a package of harsh immigration bills today? The bills would not only require jail time for illegal immigrants caught crossing the border, it would also make it harder for them to open bank accounts and “compel them to communicate in English when dealing with federal agencies.” (How exactly do you ‘compel’ someone who doesn’t speak English to speak English?)

It's all over but the shouting?

Well… for all intents and purposes, Sen. John McCain is the republican candidate for president, collecting the necessary amount of delegates ahead of this summer’s republican convention, and effectively ended Mike Huckabee’s campaign…

It begins…

Hmmmm...

Methinks the media needs to tone things down just a tad…

McCain is being projected as the winner on the gop side in Ohio and Vermont…

On the Democratic side, Obama is being named the projected winner in Vermont, while the other Dem races are too close to call… which might have something to do with the fact that the polls just closed…

Hopefully I'll have some updates later... stay tuned.

UPDATE: Per CNN; the McCain camp is agog that if they can clinch tonight, "President" Bush will endorse him tomorrow.

Yes, you read that right; they're excited about the prospect of Mr. 19% endorsing him.

Hmmmmmm... I think I'm excited about it as well...

Teehee...

Please, make it stop

Just when you think Sen. Clinton can’t say anything that would surprise you, she says something that surprises you, but really shouldn’t considering who it is.

Sen. Clinton told a gaggle of reporters yesterday that she and the presumptive Republican nominee John McCain offer the experience to be ready to tackle any crisis facing the country under their watch, but Barack Obama simply offers more rhetoric, saying; “

I think you'll be able to imagine many things Senator McCain will be able to say. […] He’s never been the president, but he will put forth his lifetime of experience. I will put forth my lifetime of experience. Senator Obama will put forth a speech he made in 2002.”

I’m sorry… did she just endorse the presumptive republican nominee over her fellow Democrat??

This is part of the problem I have with Clinton, her claims that she is ready to be the commander-in-chief from “day one.” But what I want to know, and what a reporter asked her at press conferences, is if she can name a particular instance in her past that equips her to deal with a national security crisis.

When asked by the reporter yesterday she stalled and said “Well, I was involved in a lot of the decisions that were made.”

Huh? What decisions and when?

As a Senator?

As a First Lady?

When? How? What?

Come on, inquiring minds want to know Ms. Clinton… give us some examples... but she won’t… because she doesn’t seem to have any.

And then there’s this tasty tidbit from the Chicago Tribune’s The Swamp that happened earlier this week to an Ohio lawyer;

So last night around dinner time, the phone rings. It’s the Hillary campaign–official number, per the caller ID. The woman on the other end asks me if Hillary can count on my support Tuesday. I say I have not decided.

At the end of her spiel, she says, “And we haven’t heard anything that specific from Osama bin Laden.”

I say, “You did not just say that.” She replies, “I’m sorry . . . just a slip of the tongue.” She then thanks me for my time and encourages me to vote for Hillary on Tuesday.

Sad… sad and pathetic…

But really, what else should we be expecting from her campaign now?

Can you repeat that? On second thought; don't.

One of the things that continues to elude me is how someone who speaks with the clarity of an adult in an old Peanuts cartoon can twice be elected president.

Case in point… in an presser this morning, “President” Bush wanted to thank Lt. Gen. Ray Odierno, who had been serving as the No. 2 commander in Iraq, for his years of service.

Bush was trying to say “snatching defeat from the jaws of victory,” but instead offered up this nonsensical statement;

“I appreciate the fact that you really snatched defeat out of the jaws of those who were trying to defeat us in Iraq.”

Sigh…

The Tuesday ‘BushWhack’ing

It’s Tuesday; and because the media has been quiet about it (sarcasm alert!), we wanted to remind you that there are four primaries/caucuses today in Ohio, Vermont, Rhode Island and Texas...

• Sen. Obama can wrap up the Democratic nod, Sen. McCain can nail a lobbyist down the gop nomination, and this is Sen. Clinton’s last stand… again… so stay tuned.
• Not necessarily political, but a nice story as Army Master Sgt. Woodrow “Woody” Keeble, almost 26 years after his death, has been awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his efforts during the Korean War. In doing so, Keeble becomes the first full-blooded Sioux Indian to receive the honor. Congratulations Sgt. Keeble, we at TBWA salute you…
• Sen. Obama and Sen. Clinton are still sniping at each other over NAFTA. The spat comes on the heels of an AP report that Obama told a Canadian diplomat that he’s open to renegotiating the controversial trade pact… which was pushed and endorsed by President Clinton… amazing that everyone is conveniently forgetting that point…
• Seemingly remembering, finally, that Bush is a lame-duck, House Democrats are saying that a civil lawsuit could be filed as early as this month that would challenge the administration’s claims of executive privilege aimed at not allowing aides from testifying on Capitol Hill. What brought this on? Well, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) decided to purse civil litigation after AG Michael “Gonzales Lite” Mukasey refused to enforce contempt citations against Harriet Miers and Josh Bolten. (While I like this show of balls, I wonder if it’s purely lip service or if they intend to follow through on it…stay tuned)
• Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice is in the Middle East this week trying to further damage our standing in the world get peace talks back on track. (The problem I have with this is that the US, and specifically the Bush(whacked) Administration, is in no position to do this. Bush has largely ignored the reagion for over 7 years and now, with less than a year left in office (yay!) he’s trying to make up for lost time… but I don’t think they’re interested in what Rice, and Bush, are peddling. And with our enormous loss of standing in the world, who is going to listen to anyone from this administration?)
• And have we mentioned? That Sen. McCain has hired John Green to coordinate his “message and travel schedule with congressional Republicans?” It’s true… but have we mentioned yet that Green is a GOP lobbyist and founding partner of Ogilvy Government Relations, and that with this hiring McCain has 59 lobbyists raising money for his campaign? Which is the most of ANY of the candidates… (Um… am I missing something? Isn't McCain fond of presenting himself as an enemy of the D.C. lobbying culture? Constantly claiming that he’s the only presidential candidate that “special interests don’t give any money to"... I think you're doing it wrong John. If you're against something, you don't utilize that something... though maybe I'm using too much common sense...)

Am I missing something?

A couple of weeks back the Bush(whacked) Administration refused to approve a 21-day extension of the Protect America Act (PAA). Ever since, “President” Bush and his merry band of cronies have been fear-mongering in order to force the House to pass the Senate-approved update of the PAA that includes retroactive immunity for telecoms.

One would think that Bush would move on to other things in his head (assuming there is something up there at all) but he hasn’t… in fact, this weekend he continued his fear-mongering and spewed forth crap about how “no renewal of…the Protect America Act is dangerous for the security of the country, just dangerous.”

(BTW, a weekend that AGAIN saw him in Crawford – the 452nd day that Bush has spent at his ranch in Crawford, TX. This marks his 70th ranch visit as president, so Bush has blown President Ronald Reagan – one of the modern presidency’s most famous vacationers – and his record 335 days at his ranch out of the water, but I’m acting like Bush and veering off the subject at hand )

Correct me if I’m wrong, but if Bush and his peons truly believed that America is “open to attack” without the PAA, why wouldn’t they support a temporary extension and engage in negotiations of some sort?

Because they’re republicans that’s why… and they would much rather play with their dolls play politics than protect Americans…

See… I can fear-monger too.

Not all Democrats in Congress have folded like origami though as Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) has grown a pair and has challenged Bush and his gop clique to hold true to their rhetoric and he has introduced a bill aimed at extending the PAA for 30 days while negotiations between the House and Senate get under way.

Think about it… despite their fear-mongering claims that “America is at risk” without the PAA, the White House and congressional conservatives have been unwilling to take actions that would lead to its extension. And even though the House and Senate have been working since the passage of the Senate bill to reconcile difference between the two chambers, republicans have instructed their staff not to participate in these negotiations, effectively making them fruitless…

But republicans are the ones that care about the security of the country, remember?

The Monday ‘BushWhack’ing

It’s Monday, with another slew of primaries tomorrow…

• Using precision missiles, the US military struck a “known terrorist target” in southern Somalia this morning… stay tuned.
• Our condolences to John and Elizabeth Edwards on the death of her father…
• In case you’ve forgotten – and the only way for that to happen would be if you lived on the moon, had your eyes closed and your fingers in your ears – there are four primaries tomorrow. Will Sen. Obama get closer to securing the nomination? Will Sen. Clinton do well or will she have a Dean-moment? Will Sen. McCain get the conservative base vote? Will Gov. Huckabee matter? Will Ron Pa—, never mind… as always; stay tuned.
• Iranian President Ahmadinejad was traveling home after his two-day visit to Iraq and said of the United States; “No one likes them.” (Hello kettle? This is pot, you’re black…)
• House Intelligence Chair Silvestre Reyes (D-TX) hinted over the weekend that a deal on surveillance legislation is close and that the deal may give “phone companies the retroactive legal protections long sought by President Bush.” (Lovely… I knew the Dems wouldn’t have balls for long, but not this quick… what part of lame-duck to they not understand???)
• Karl Rove was on Fox “News” Sunday, and tried something different from the normal, run-of-the-mill republican terrorism fear-mongering… economic fear-mongering… He spewed that redeployment from Iraq would cause oil prices to shoot to $200 a barrel, saying “If we were to give up Iraq with the third largest oil reserves in the world to the control of an Al Qaeda regime or to the control of Iran, don’t you think $200 a barrel oil would have a cost to the American economy?” (and let’s not forget that the reason al Qaeda is in Iraq in the first place is because the US invaded, so essentially the reason for this happening is… all together now – BUSH… January 20, 2009 can NOT come soon enough…)
• And have we mentioned? That Russia has a “new” president? Dmitry Medvedev won Russia’s presidential election by a landslide this past weekend, a landslide that essentially gives him a mandate of succeeding Vladimir Putin, though a 22-member observer mission from the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe said that there were “flaws” in the results which has immediately cast doubt on the fairness of the vote, so stay tuned. Unless of course the Supreme Court gets involved, than it’s all over…
  

eep

From Times Online:

As Hillary’s presidential bid falters, are the Clintons turning to their daughter Chelsea to continue the White House dynasty. [...]

In a presidential campaign filled with surprises, Chelsea Clinton has sprung one of the most intriguing. She has emerged from the shadow of her famous parents to carve out her own political identity as both a devoted and persuasive surrogate for her mother; and – just maybe – as a dynasty’s next best hope. [...]

Yet what if Hillary fails? Will that be the end of the Clinton family’s remarkable presidential run? Or is America about to discover that a younger, prettier but potentially just as formidable Clinton is ready to pick up the baton?

We've seen what happens with two Bushes in the White House, are we ready for three two Clintons?

Stay tuned... if you dare...

The (Overstuffed) Weekly Rewind

Another week down, there's 324 days left in the Bush(Whacked) Presidency, let’s get to it…

Applaud: to the memory of William F. Buckley. While I obviously didn't agree with much he ever said or wrote, he was leagues better than the hate-spewing Limbaugh-Fox-Coulter types that pass for “conservative commentators” nowadays. Scott and I, always ones to practice tolerance for those we disagree with, will miss his greatness – despite the side of the aisle he played on.

Heckle: to lame-ducks wearing rose-colored glasses. “President” Bush predicted earlier this week that voters will replace him with a republican president that will “keep up the fight” in Iraq saying; “I believe the American people understand that success in Iraq is necessary for the long-term security of the American people.” (And as I’ve asked a few times this week Mr. Bush; explain how. Explain how success in Iraq is necessary for the security of us… tell us how… and remember – Iraq had nothing to do with 9/11… Iraq had nothing to do with al Qaeda… and Iraq had no WMD’s… so explain to all of us HOW success in Iraq is necessary. I’ll be waiting…)

Applaud:to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) – wow, haven’t said that in a really long time. She asked Attorney General Mukasey for a “grand jury investigation” into whether White House COS Josh Bolten and former counsel Harriet Miers should be prosecuted for contempt of Congress while also demanding that misdemeanor charges be pursued against the two of them for their refusal to cooperate in the U.S. attorney scandal. (While it’s great to see the Dem leadership show some balls, I am relatively positive that nothing will come of it because the White House will claim executive privilege… but I could be wrong. Though I doubt it…)

Heckle: to “President” Bush for just not getting it. Earlier this week he said; “I don’t think we’re headed to a recession, but no question we’re in a slowdown.” (What. A. Tool. It’s not a slowdown when every economist in the world agrees we’re headed for a recession… and if we weren’t in a recession, why create the stimulus package?? Putz…)

Applaud: to the resignation of Defense Department General Counsel William Haynes. Haynes was a strong advocate of the administration’s bypassing of the Geneva Convention and announced earlier this week that he is “returning to private life next month.” (Nice… Haynes was always controversial, but the spotlight was brightened last week when Gitmo prosecutor Col. Morris Davis insisted that the administration “can’t have acquittals” at Guantanamo Bay and resigned his post…)

Heckle: to already acting like our current commander in chief. Sen. McCain, according to Huffington Post, “may have taken steps to protect his Republican colleagues from the scope of his investigation” into disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff earlier this year. (So there ya go. He’s promised to essentially be a third-term for Bush, and he’s already acting like Bush by protecting his friends and cronies – the law be damned. Let’s do everything we can to make sure that McCain does NOT win the presidency by voting for whomever the Democrats nominate, and ensure that we get some law and order back in the nation’s capital…)

Applaud: to Lee Camp. He appeared on Fox “News” earlier this week and, at the end of the segment, said, “What is Fox News? It’s just a parade of propaganda, isn’t it? It’s just a festival of ignorance.” (Niiiiiiiiiiiceeee…)

Heckle: to the news that “wiretaps will resume under the current law ‘at least for now,’” as “telecommunications companies have agreed to cooperate ‘for the time being’ with spy agencies’ wiretaps.” (and the dumb-ing down of our Constitution continues…)

Applaud: to the news that, the day before a House Judiciary subcommittee was going to discuss issuing a subpoena against him, former Attorney General John Ashcroft has agreed to testify before Congress as they look into no-bid contracts Ashcroft and others received to monitor out-of-court corporate settlements. Heckle within the Applaud to the news that the U.S. Attorney who awarded Ashcroft this sweetheart of a deal, Chris Christie, has not agreed to testify.

Heckle: to news that makes me, and everyone else with a brain, nervous as hell. According to the latest survey by the National Association for Business Economics, more and more economists foresee the country falling into a recession, with 45% of economists on its forecasting panel expecting a recession this year… (and yet, the administration continues to maintain we’re only in a slump… apparently those rose-colored glasses come with blinders as well…)

Applaud: to Army Chief of Staff George Casey for not kowtowing to “President” Bush and his merry band of Iraq cronies. He told a Senate panel that he would not embrace going back to longer tours, even if “Bush decided to suspend troop reductions.” Why? Because Casey is looking out for the wellbeing of US soldiers and the US Army and recognizes that the Army is “under serious strain” from years of war and must “reduce the length of combat tours as soon as possible.” (Well said Mr. Casey… too bad it seems to be falling on deaf ears at the White House…)

Heckle: to once again speaking out of his ass. “President” Bush spoke to the republican Governors Association earlier this week and was in full rose-colored glasses mode when he claimed that Americans will ultimately be thankful for his foreign policy decisions, saying; “I believe 50 years from now, people will look back at this period of time, and say, thank God the United States of America did not lose its faith in the transformative power of liberty to bring the peace we want for our children and our grandchildren.” (Um… I sincerely doubt that, but let’s meet in 50 years and we’ll talk…)… it’s almost as good as his quote about his prognosticating of the presidential election; “When I say I'm confident, I am so because I understand the mentality of the American people.” Uh-huh, and that explains your ever-dwindling approval ratings… how?

Applaud: to an op-ed in the Washington Post (did I just write that?). In the piece, John Podesta, Ray Takeyh, and Lawrence Korb debunk the scenario that an American departure from Iraq would lead to genocide and mayhem, saying; “It is entirely possible that in the absence of a cumbersome and clumsy American occupation, Iraqis will make their own bargains and compacts, heading off the genocide that many seem to anticipate.” (Interesting read… I don’t know about genocide breaking out, but I do see mayhem if the US totally withdrew from the country… that’s why I favor a progressive withdrawal over time…)

Heckle: to Senator Lindsay Graham (r-SC). The eternal optimist took a week-long trip to Iraq and returned brimming with optimism and telling Fox “News” that he wishes Washington DC was more like Baghdad, saying; “The truth is that political reconciliation in Iraq is going better there than it is here at home because of better security.” (Pretty stupid comment there Mr. Graham, but what should we expect from someone wearing rose-colored Iraq glasses that are thicker than Joe Lieberman’s???)

Applaud: to not waiting for November. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer was speaking to reporters earlier this week and made mention of the fact that the Dems aren’t waiting for next year and are planning a robust agenda in the months ahead to tackle things that got voted down by republicans before… (this is an interesting strategy, and it could help tremendously in November. If some of the things they bring up are issues that are important to the American people, it could carry over to the presidential election in November, not to mention the House and the Senate… stay tuned)

Heckle: to Jose Antonio Ortiz and his taking of politics WAY too seriously. For those of you who haven’t heard, he’s the Pennsylvania man that ‘allegedly’ stabbed his brother-in-law in the stomach after they argued about their support of Democratic presidential candidates Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton… for the record, Ortiz is the Clinton supporter and his BIL, Sean Shurelds, is the Obama supporter.

Applaud: to Sen. McCain (wait a minute – hear me out) for NOT playing the Obama-is-Muslim card. After being introduced with an embarrassingly sad and pathetic introduction from conservative radio host Bill Cunningham, the Senator refused to play the part and apologized for Cunningham’s lame attempts at painting Sen. Obama as a ‘Manchurian candidate’ while stressing his middle name. (I understand it was pandering, but I still applaud you for the act Mr. McCain, after all, it’s dumbass comments like those of Cunningham’s that spark hatred for the right… besides – what does it accomplish?)

Heckle: to taking a page from the republican fear-mongering textbook. Israel’s ambassador to the US said earlier this week that Iran was becoming a “very, very dangerous ticking bomb” and urged the world to take a more active role in forcing Iran to give up its uranium-enrichment program… (Um, correct me if I’m wrong, but haven’t they already given up on the program according to the NIE released last year???)

Applaud: to news that could really help the Democrats… the LA Times reported earlier this week that Mitt Romney may rejoin the race for the White House. Romney “suspended” his campaign in February and, while he endorsed Sen. McCain, did not pledge his delegates to McCain… (If Romney jumps back into the race, it will further embolden Huckabee to stay in and could also take quite a few votes away from McCain… stay tuned)

Heckle: to House conservatives for not being able to decide on a proposed moratorium on earmarks… now they are “conceding that they do not have support for the idea from their colleagues” and the “votes aren’t there,” said Rep. Jeb Hensarling of Texas… (Nice… getting republicans to vote against something that gives them free crap is like trying to get cats to march in a parade… it can’t be done)

Applaud: to the House for actually passing a bill – woot, woot! In a 236-182 vote, the House approved an extension and expansion of tax breaks and incentives for wind, solar, and other alternative energy sources. The bill also closes $18 billion in tax loopholes and subsidies for Big Oil.

Heckle: to SCOTUS Chief Justice John Roberts. Earlier this week the Court heard oral arguments on how much money ExxonMobil should be forced to pay as damages for its Exxon Valdez oil spill 19 years ago. According to WaPo's Dana Milbank; What bothered the chief justice was that Exxon was being ordered to pay $2.5 billion — roughly three weeks’ worth of profits — for destroying a long swath of the Alaska coastline in the largest oil spill in American history.” After hearing how much they would have to pay, Roberts asked in court (that’s how it’s done Mr. Thomas); “So what can a corporation do to protect itself against punitive-damages awards such as this?” (Wow, a conservative placing business above the environment, that’s something we don’t see often) Though Roberts question did elicit an Applaud-worthy response from the lawyer representing the Alaska fishermen; “Well, it can hire fit and competent people.” As you could imagine, Mr. Roberts was not amused…

Applaud: to the results of the 2007 Children’s Defense Fund Action Council’s Nonpartisan Congressional Scorecard. While the scorecard does report some positive news, many people didn’t fare so well, in fact current gop presidential candidate John McCain received a 10 percent rating — the worst in the U.S. Senate. (10% Ouch… that’s even lower than Bush’s approval ratings, and that says a LOT)

Heckle: to internet… um, I don’t want to call him a reporter… how about internet wannabe Matt Drudge. After months of a consensual and international media blackout, Matt Drudge decided to reveal on his page yesterday that Prince Harry has been “in Afghanistan for more than two months,” Drudge’s inane and idiotic decision to break the story has been to the “fury of the Ministry of Defence and condemnation from the head of the British Army.” Because of Drudge reporting it, Harry is now being sent back to Britain.

Applaud: to Prince Harry. Do I really need to explain why? Okay… while other children of powerful people (cough cough – Bush twins) stay home and drink themselves into a stupor, Harry has been serving on the front line in Afghanistan with the British Army, calling in airstrikes on Taliban positions and going out on foot patrols.

And this week we have a two-fer four our conservative Tool(s) of the Week. The first choice goes local… Last week Florida state Rep. Donald Brown (r) introduced a bill aimed at creating a “Confederate Heritage” license plate, saying “it would give motorists a way to show pride in their heritage.” Under his plan the money would benefit educational programs run by Sons of Confederate Veterans, a group that considers the Civil War to be “the Second American Revolution.” You can be proud of your heritage, whatever it is… but for something that is a symbol of hostility towards an entire race to be sanctioned by a state is wrong, plain and simple. And because of that, Mr. Brown, and possibly the entire state of Florida, is our first conservative TOTW.

Our second choice this week is republican Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchinson of Texas. Forgetting for a moment that she’s being volleyed about as a possible McCain running mate (ewwwww), she said earlier this week that Sen. Russ Feingold’s bill to begin an Iraq withdrawal within 120 days puts “a bullet right in the hearts of our troops who are there.” (Nice…) Her staff quickly started to backtrack her comment, saying that she meant to say “bull’s eye”, never minding that that wouldn’t make an ounce of sense. (So for saying that it would be a bullet in the hearts of people being shot at on a daily basis and wondering how this meshes with the fact that our troops do not want to be there, she is our second conservative TOTW)

All I have, take ‘em as you will…