From msnbc.com:
Top stories as of 8:54 p.m. Tues., June 3, 2008 --
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Main Story, big font: OBAMA: ‘I WILL BE THE DEMOCRATIC NOMINEE’
... Illinois Democrat the first African American to secure a major party's presidential nomination.
Oh, and by the way: ‘I will be making no decisions tonight’
Hillary Clinton praises Obama but stops short of conceding.
It's not conceding any more, Hillary. Now all you can do is accept defeat. For your first lesson on how to show class, watch the first ten minutes of Senator Obama's victory speech from St. Paul.
Why will Obama win the nomination? Better yet, how did Hillary FAIL to win it? Let me count the ways....
On the Issues -- Lies, Questionable Judgment, Pandering, and General Obnoxiousness:
1. Rationale for remaining in race – "Bobby Kennedy was assassinated in June in California, you know." Then, having your spokesperson calling any interpretation that the statement is a problem “outrageous”. Then, allowing Carville to blame the negative media response on Obama.
2. The commander-in-chief test. At 3 AM, even McCain is better qualified than Obama. But even though he doesn't pass the test, somehow you think he could pass it if we're talking about VP instead. File that in the “help Republican, hurt Democrats” file, just in front of the “bitter” and “elitist” folders.
3. "Running" to "dodge" non-existent "snipers" on the tarmac in Bosnia. Then, when caught in Sniper-gate lies, blaming it on sleep deprivation – even though she repeated the story numerous times. By the way, what about 3 AM sleep deprivation?
4. All that “experience”… especially bringing peace to Northern Ireland. Oh, and supporting NAFTA? That was then, this is now.
5. Gas tax pandering. Nice to see the public realized that emperor had no clothes.
Denigrating Obama, Playing the Race Card:
6. Stating on 60 Minutes that Obama is not a Muslim, “as far as I know.”
7. Tolerating Geraldine Ferraro’s race-baiting comments (if he weren’t black, he wouldn’t be here).
8. Touting support from “hard-working Americans, white Americans”. Because you just know those other kind of Democrats (lazy minorities?) don’t matter in the general election.
9. Bill in South Carolina… it’s just a Jesse Jackson thing.
10. The recurring backroom whispers quietly hyped by the Clinton campaign foretelling some sort of Obama October surprise. Back that up with the loud public comments that Clinton is clearly the only Democratic candidate capable of winning.
Moving the primary victory goalposts:
11. Situational ethics – first penalizing Florida and Michigan for moving up primaries is OK. Having the reps on the Rules and Bylaws Committee support it too. Then, after falling behind, suddenly every vote must count. In defense of FL and MI stupidity, and doing away with well-deserved penalties for same, comparing the situation to slavery, civil rights battles, Florida 2000, and today’s corrupt election in Zimbabwe.
12. Playing up a manufactured “lead” in the popular vote as some sort of justification for nomination – manufactured only by counting 0 votes for Obama in Michigan, and completely ignoring caucus states.
13. Superdelegates, and even pledged delegates, are free to change their minds and vote for Clinton over Obama as another path to nomination. That actually is true... those are the rules, you know. And we have to play by ALL the rules (direct quote from campaign reps McAuliffe and Wasserman Schultz). Oh, except for the rule that penalizes FL and MI for moving up their primaries – we have to ignore that one, and seat those delegations in their entirety. Shhhhhhhhhhhhhh. Don’t mention THAT rule.
14. Let’s not forget the “big state” justification too… except we’ll ignore the big states that Obama won.
15. Oh, and those big Clinton landslides in Pennsylvania, and West Virginia? They count, but the Obama landslides over Clinton in other states don’t.
Honorable Mention:
16. Brand anyone speaking against you as sexist, and ignore any possible reason they might have for supporting a talented, thoughtful, deserving opponent. Point the finger at everyone except yourself, your campaign team, constantly shifting messages, and a bogus inevitability/entitlement strategy.
17. Gov. Richardson is a “Judas” when he refuses to toe the Clinton line by endorsing Obama after much consideration. Thanks again for penetrating, unapologetic insight, Carville.
18. Demonstrating the keen foreign policy knowledge, diplomatic skills, and media relations insight necessary to directly threaten the “obliteration” of Iran.
19. Kowtowing to Fox News, Rush Limbaugh, Richard Mellon Scaife (fanning the flames of the Wright controversy to his Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, of all papers) and Karl Rove’s electoral analysis. Why do you think they really want her in the race, anyway?
20. Do I really have to mention Pardon-Gate, Travel-Gate, Foster-Gate, Whitewater, and the vast right-wing conspiracy waiting in the wings for an encore? Rezko and Wright are child’s play next to that jumbled-up mess of past history... Little if any of it may be true, but why replay THAT part of the 90s? More partisan fighting, or transformational politics? I’ll take No Drama Obama for $1000, Alex.
... here's what the brackets would look like.
Seriously, folks, this is one of the best pieces of satire I've seen in a long time.
It's a reader's contribution to Talking Points Memo:"This Just In: NCAA Declares Winners of First Round Games that Were Essentially Tied"
Here's a sample, a la Michigan and Florida:
Marquette 74, Kentucky 66 Based upon a recalculation of the score that included shots sunk by the teams during the pre-game warm-up, the officials have determined that the Wildcats were, in fact, the winners of this game. The officials have given due consideration to Marquette's contention that NCAA rules provide that the only shots that count are those made during the game, and that both sides had agreed to abide by these rules, but, in light of changed circumstances, the NCAA has decided to ignore them.
On Day One (in his inaugural address), JFK said: "Let the word go forth from this time and place, to friend and foe alike, that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans..." For those who do not yet understand why today's new generation of Americans supports Obama over Hillary, this week was very instructive.
Since Hillary says she's "ready to be President on Day One", let's check the record, shall we?
"Found my own voice"... but not until the New Hampshire primary. Hmmm, pretty interesting timing, for someone with "35 years of experience". Does that mean that until New Hampshire, she was simply the mouthpiece for all those advisers and strategists, willing to say and do whatever they told her would get her elected? Of course it does.
"Just getting warmed up"... that's on March 3, after all the January and February contests... Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, Super Tuesday, etc. etc. The day before she lost Texas. With that timing, she'd get the 3 AM call, let it go to voice mail, hit the snooze button repeatedly when the alarm went off at 9 AM, and check her messages around noon.
Hillary is in desperation mode. Her theme of inevitability was shattered, the backup theme of change was preempted by Obama, and the backup backup theme of experience is being employed. But the harsh, unforgiving spotlight of real scrutiny and honest questions reveals that theme doesn't hold any water either:
1) Peace in Northern Ireland? Not Hillary's doing.
London Daily Telegraph Link
And then, caught with her hands in the cookie jar, Hillary upped the stakes, sending out Terry McAuliffe to say "We would not have peace today had it not for Hillary's hard work in Northern Ireland." The mainstream media was apparently too slack-jawed in amazement at the brazen lie to bother refuting it. Only problem is, no one on the other side of the pond is buying it.
London Daily Telegraph Follow-up
2) Health care for kids? Just because Hillary likes the idea, doesn't mean she created it.
Boston Globe Link
3) Making the difference for refugees from war in Kosovo? Hey, no problem, she'll get right on that... just a day late (if not a dollar short)
FactCheck.org Link
4) And the one I find most offensive, as a 23-year member of the military: risking her life on that crucial, difference-making trip to Bosnia. Dodging snipers with Chelsea and the USO tour...
Newsweek references FactCheck
If Hillary gets credit for that trip, Sinbad must be qualified as VP. And Chelsea passes the threshold for Secretary of Defense.
Sinbad: Not So Fast, Hillary... I Was There Too
Hillary's bunk, debunked by sources with facts and witnesses. There you have it, friends: The Week in Review.
Every now and then, a blog or email or online article will capture some of the chatter in a way that really resonates... and that's why the writers get paid to write.
Here's one from today's Huffington Post... with a few excerpts included here in case you don't want to make the jump.
James Moore
Color-Coded Hillary Alerts
(http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jim-moore/colorcoded-hillary-alert_b_91035.html)
OK... so tonight, we won MS. Last Saturday, we won WY. Last Tuesday, we won VT and TX.
Yes, we won Texas. Why isn't that a bigger story? Let's take credit for what happened here! I was a precinct captain in West Texas. In my precinct, with 17 delegates to the county convention at stake, we took 5. Doesn't sound like a great success, but in El Paso we were playing defense. We didn't get the candidate, or the number 1 surrogate. With only a few second-tier events, and little publicity, we managed to pull 30% of the vote.
That was the result of outstanding work by the field staffers assigned to El Paso and a ton of volunteers. That 30% might not sound like much, but 70-30 was a lot better than the 90-10 it might have been had we not made the effort.
And that work was rewarded when you look at the caucus results. Clinton won the primary with a narrow margin -- 51-47. Basically the two campaigns split those 2/3 of the delegates at stake. And we dominated the caucus, with the other 1/3 of the delegates at stake. So contrary to the Clintonista propaganda, they actually LOST Texas.
Looking in the rear view mirror, we have 2 victories in the last week, a split on March 4 (VT-TX for us, OH-RI for them), and 11 straight victories before that. That's 15-2.
On to Pennsylvania!
(Oh, and kudos to Nancy Pelosi for calling out the Clinton "dream ticket" absurdity!)
Need the shirt!
Who can send one to a Wisconsin expatriate in New Mexico? I will wear it to a Texas rally!
Send me a message...
Don
Wow! Today, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (my hometown paper) AND the Houston Chronicle both endorsed Obama! Nice one-two punch... Here's what they had to say:
From Milwaukee --
http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=718696
... Our recommendation in Wisconsin's primary on Tuesday for the Democratic nomination is Barack Obama... because change and experience are crucial to moving this country forward after what will be eight years of an administration careening from mistake to catastrophe to disaster and back again.
The Illinois senator is best-equipped to deliver that change, and his relatively shorter time in Washington is more asset than handicap...
It is precisely the excitement that we see in the candidate and his supporters in their demands for change. This promises to alter the political landscape and dynamics for the better, energizing youth for service and involvement as we haven't seen in a very long time...
From Houston --
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/editorial/5546874.html
... Obama vows to reach out to independents and Republicans with a message of inclusion and cooperation. He offers a historic opportunity to elevate national political dialogue to a higher ground. Those who insist on vitriol and obstructionism would be marginalized...
Obama is both the epitome of the American Dream and well-positioned to reach out to an international community alienated by recent U.S. go-it-alone policies.
The passion and excitement that Obama has brought to the race can only stimulate more citizens to participate in the electoral process. The Chronicle urges Texas Democrats to cast what could be decisive ballots for his presidential nomination.
Even a token effort in Wisconsin was too much for Hillary. Another big victory margin is out there for the taking, as long as we all keep working hard!
From the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:
(http://www.jsonline.com/watch/?watch=1&date=2/16/2008&id=35716)
SATURDAY, Feb. 16, 2008, 12:38 p.m.By Craig Gilbert Clinton scales back campaign schedule here
Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton has scaled back her Wisconsin campaign schedule by a full day, and is now planning to leave the state after Monday morning instead of Tuesday morning...
OK... the last week in review:
1) Hillary, who wants us to trust her experience, has a campaign run so deeply into the ground that she had to put $5 million of her own money into the mix to keep it afloat, and then fired her campaign manager for good measure. If you can't run a campaign, how can you run a country? Pretty late in the game to be switching campaign managers -- that's generally a sign of desperation, no matter how she tries to spin it.
2) Hillary dismisses the caucuses. Let's think about that a minute. Caucuses are much smaller than primaries, yes, but they also require individuals to be more deeply engaged and thoughtful about the process. So the people who are putting more energy and thought into their vote are supporting Obama by a significant margin. Hmmm.....
3) In her discussion about electability, she talks about how she's earned more delegates than Obama. Not true. Obama leads the delegate race in all independent accounts. Hillary is only ahead when superdelegates are counted, which is inaccurate because the superdelegates are not all committed yet (and some may change their minds).
4) Finally, Hillary says she's a better match for the run against McCain. Today's poll clearly shows that is not the case. Obama 46, McCain 40. Hillary 43, McCain 43. Clearly Obama has a much stronger potential to bring in independents, and the right wingers who would come out in droves to vote against Hillary are more likely to stay home if Obama is the opponent.
Not a good week for the Clintons, and I'm pretty sure you won't be seeing this on hillaryhub.com.
Great thanks to K.O. and the Countdown crew for emphasizing item #4 tonight.
I may live in Wisconsin, but thanks my temporary stay in New Mexico, I got to vote on Super Tuesday!
In a great piece of serendipity, my presidential preference absentee ballot arrived in my PO Box here yesterday. One of the postal clerks witnessed my ballot, and it's on the way back to Wisconsin right now.
It was great watching the returns roll in last night, and talking to friends back home.
I've done my part from afar. I'll be phone banking into Wisconsin as soon as the numbers are up on the site. Now get Fired Up, Badgers! Make it happen!
Don (in NM)
