Wm Blog

Two must-read articles

Wm — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 15:49:23 EDT

Susan Eisenhower talks about why she is leaving the Republican party:http://www.nationalinterest.org/Article.aspx?id=19618
Obama's economic policieshttp://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/24/magazine/24Obamanomics-t.html

We have everything to fear from McCain

Wm — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 01:59:12 EDT

Interesting article from a British newspaper about how crazy McCain and Phil Gramm are, and why the voters should fear them.http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/johann-hari/johann-hari-we-have-everything-to-fear-from-mccain-869681.html

General Wesley Clark on Face the Nation

Wm — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 20:39:25 EDT

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kag0bBJVkIw

"I don't think riding in a fighter plane and getting shot down is a qualification to become president."

Another reason to elect Obama

Wm — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 01:18:46 EDT

If anyone asks you why it is important to elect Obama, here is a good reason. Glenn Greenwald talks about today's Supreme Court decision to declare Section 7 of the Military Commissions Act of 2006 unconstitutional. Section 7 effectively abolished the right of Habeas Corpus, giving the government the right to throw you in prison with no charges. If you don't know why this is important, read his column:

http://www.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/2008/06/12/boumediene/index.html

But the Update at the end is especially important. The Supreme Court decision was only 5 to 4. Of the five justices in the majority, three are expected to retire within the next 4 years. John McCain has promised to appoint more justices like Roberts and Alito (who were in the minority who voted against habeus corpus), while Obama has promised to appoint more justices like Breyer, Souter, and Ginsbert (all of whom were in the majority).

So the next time a former Clinton supporter says they want Obama to lose so that Clinton can win in 2012, remind them of the potential cost of even four years of McCain.

Obama speaks inspiringly to his staff and volunteers

Wm — Sun, 08 Jun 2008 13:42:58 EDT

This video, of Obama speaking to his HQ staff and volunteers a few days ago, embodies what I love about him.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bnhmByYxEIo

Everyone should watch it.

Equality

Wm — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 02:32:59 EDT

The true sign of having achieved equality is when you can lose magnanimously and graciously. For when you blame your gender, or race, or whatever for a failure, you are proclaiming that you don't consider yourself equal.

-------------

Friday night I attended the graduation ceremony of Thomas Edison High school. They are a high school for students with LD (which used to be an acronym for Learning Disabled, but now is more properly Learning Differently). What was amazing was the candor displayed as these students told their stories. Many had been told by teachers and councilors in regular schools to give up, that they would never graduate from high school. And yet, here they stood, graduating, and most of them on their way to university. That was a great success, but they also talked about their failures, and I was struck by the fact that these young people never blamed others, never whined or acted like victims. Beyond graduating, they were in command of their futures, and were personally, quietly responsible for their own successes and their own failures. And in that, they were not only equal to students at any "normal" high school, they were far more mature than many I have seen. I was impressed and humbled.

Interview with Obama supporter

Wm — Sat, 24 May 2008 00:34:40 EDT

I wish I could be half as eloquent as this guy in support of Obama:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kica8hmSdAM

The Right Person For The Job

Wm — Sun, 18 May 2008 12:53:50 EDT

Yesterday was an exciting day. I got to see David Wu (my congressperson), Barack and Michelle Obama give speeches in the same day. Something that both David and Barack touched on got me thinking, and I wanted to share that.

Many of the superdelegates in Oregon have been waiting until after the primary (this Tuesday!) before they endorse anyone, but Wu decided on Obama a while ago, pretty much before anyone thought Obama had a chance. It would have been much easier for him just to wait. He talked about the reason he decided on Obama. It wasn't about who had the best chance of winning, or whether endorsing someone would be good or bad for Wu's political career. He endorsed because he was convinced that Obama was the best person for the job.

The reason this was interesting to me is that lots of people are talking about who Obama should pick for his VP, and much of the discussion is about who would help Obama win the general election -- who would bring in the such-and-such vote, or should he pick a woman VP, or should he pick a more mainstream white guy, etc. I have been thinking the same way. But hardly anyone is talking about who would be the right person for the job. It is so easy to think only about the election and winning, but the whole point of picking someone is not about winning, but (as Obama would say) about governing. The important thing is what happens after the election. Who would be the best person for the job.

Not Funny

Wm — Fri, 16 May 2008 18:28:14 EDT

Today during a speech in front of the National Rifle Association, Republican Mike Huckabee heard a loud noise offstage and quipped "That was Barack Obama. He just tripped off a chair. He's getting ready to speak and somebody aimed a gun at him and he — he dove for the floor."

Even the NRA crowd didn't think the joke was funny.

The Real Loser

Wm — Thu, 15 May 2008 12:27:33 EDT

An excellent article about how the real loser in the current election is the American people who have been betrayed by a cynical press and party strategists masquerading as journalists (like Karl Rove on FOX News).

http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,553068,00.html

Of course, articles like this don't appear in the US media.

A Responsible Plan to End the War in Iraq

Wm — Thu, 15 May 2008 02:30:24 EDT

http://www.responsibleplan.com/plan

Read it. Endorsed by a host of congressional candidates, including both Steve Novick and Jeff Merkley here in Oregon.

The real race today

Wm — Tue, 13 May 2008 17:48:00 EDT

The real political race today is MS-01, a special congressional election in a district that is heavily Republican and has been occupied by a Republican congressman for years. But the Democrat, Travis Childers, has a good chance of winning. If he does, this will be the third election in a row where a Democratic candidate won an upset in a heavily Republican district.

Both parties have been pouring money into this contest. The Repubicans even sent Dick Cheney down to campaign, but it is unclear if this will help or hurt. The Republican strategy has been to paint Childers as a "liberal" and associate him with Obama. The same strategy backfired in Louisiana (LA-06).

If the Republicans lose 3 in a row, that is a very bad sign for them in the upcoming presidential, congressional, and senate elections.

Political Irony

Wm — Sat, 10 May 2008 19:39:01 EDT

I've just started a blog, called Political Irony, as a place for the more twisted side of Politics.

http://politicalirony.com/

I've wanted a place for both humorous and just plain hypocritical stories taken from current political events. If you see something I should post, please send it to me (iron@politicalirony.com).

Cindy McCain

Wm — Fri, 09 May 2008 22:48:19 EDT

If you need a good partisan laugh, read this article:

http://nitpicker.blogspot.com/2008/05/right-wing-magazines-attack-cindy.html?view=print

Be sure to read it to the end. I totally fell for it!

Obama winning Superdelegates

Wm — Fri, 09 May 2008 11:29:56 EDT

There are a large number of news organizations that are tracking the endorsements of Superdelegates, and (not surprisingly) each organization has a different count of which superdelegate supports which candidate. This is not surprising, since superdelegates are free to change their minds at any time up until they vote at the convention. Some organizations will assume a superdelegate is for a particular candidate if they are reported to have said consistently nice things about that candidate, even if they have never definitively said they are endorsing that candidate. Others will wait until they have a confirmed source of a definitive endorsement, even if that candidate is obviously for a particular candidate. It is like preference polling, and as in any imperfect science, the results vary.

But today we passed a milestone, in that at least one of these organizations -- ABC's Political Unit -- is reporting that by their criteria, Obama now has more superdelegates than Clinton. But almost every news organization is reporting that Obama is within 10 superdelegates of Clinton.

http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalradar/2008/05/obama-now-takes.html

This is amazing because Clinton once held a commanding lead of almost 100 superdelegates, but this lead has continuously been whittled down by Obama since Super Tuesday, even when he was having his roughest days. In fact, some of the superdelegates have even said that they decided to endorse because of Reverend Wright (and how Obama was able to deal with it).

Does anyone know how to be GRACIOUS?

Wm — Thu, 08 May 2008 17:07:47 EDT

Come on people, play nice. I'm reading some of the blogs and Obama supporters are saying the nastiest things about Clinton. And at a campaign stop in WV, people are booing Clinton. Heck, they are even booing Chelsea.

Is this how we are going to unite the Democratic Party? Is this how we are going to show people that we are the campaign of HOPE?

I know Obama is not doing these things, but he will be judged by the actions of his supporters.

How easily we fall back into the old politics. Aren't we mature enough to be gracious winners?

Besides,we need to save it for the real fight, which is yet to come.

New Math

Wm — Wed, 07 May 2008 17:23:18 EDT

I know the MSM likes to make fun of Obama supporters because we LOVE math. I guess that's what happens when you are a reality-based campaign. But, as with the Pennsylvania primary, the numbers that are being reported by the media are a little off because they don't seem to know how to round correctly.

If you start with the raw numbers of votes you get the following in Indiana: Obama has 49.44% of the vote, Clinton has 50.56% of the vote. If you -- like the media -- round these first and then subtract (which is wrong) it looks like Clinton has a 2% lead. But if you subtract first (which is correct) then you see that Clinton has a 1.11% lead, which rounds to 1%. So correctly, Clinton won by 1% of the vote in Indiana.

Hardly a lead at all.

As for North Carolina, the same thing happens. Obama has 57.3% of the vote, and Clinton has 42.7% of the vote. If you round then subtract (wrong) it looks like Obama leads by 14%. But if you subtract and then round (correct) then Obama leads by 15%.

And if you haven't had enough numbers yet, consider also that Clinton just had to loan her campaign $6.4 million, on top of the $5 million she lent them a few months ago, plus the money she owes other people (last time she released a number for this, it was just under $10 million, half of which was owed to Mark Penn). If you assume she owes over $20 million (and it could be much higher) no wonder she started out her "victory" speech last night by begging for money.

Talk about deficit spending.

Analysis: Clinton lost popular vote in Indiana

Wm — Wed, 07 May 2008 08:38:52 EDT

I notice that the MSM are all talking about how the vote in Indiana and North Carolina was racially lopsided, but they are not mentioning a larger issue: McCain supporters voting for Clinton (or if they do mention it, they try to dismiss it).

How significant was this? Without McCain supporters, Clinton would have LOST the popular vote in Indiana. How can she claim a win in Indiana, or that she is more "electable" when her win depended on the votes of people who have absolutely no intention of voting for her in the general election?

What Happened to the Real McCain?

Wm — Tue, 06 May 2008 01:16:24 EDT

I will freely admit that once upon a time I admired John McCain. But something happened to him during the 2000 election. It is almost like he was replaced by a Stepford wife. The maverick straight-talker was destroyed and became the sycophant for Bush, Falwell, Robertson, Hagee, and even Karl Rove (the man who destroyed him).

Arianna Huffington's article "What John McCain Tole Me, and What it Says About How Far He's Fallen" is a good summary of what happened to McCain and how, as she says "The John McCain the media fell in love with in 2000 isn't on the ballot in 2008."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/arianna-huffington/what-john-mccain-told-me_b_100183.html

We need The Truth

Wm — Mon, 05 May 2008 12:15:47 EDT

Beautiful editorial in the NY Times:

"Much nonsense has been written about how Hillary Clinton is 'toughening up' Barack Obama so he’ll be tough enough to withstand Republican attacks. Sorry, we don’t need a president who is tough enough to withstand the lies of his opponents. We need a president who is tough enough to tell the truth to the American people. Any one of the candidates can answer the Red Phone at 3 a.m. in the White House bedroom. I’m voting for the one who can talk straight to the American people on national TV — at 8 p.m. — from the White House East Room."

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/04/opinion/04friedman.html

Clinton Opposes Gas Tax Suspension

Wm — Mon, 05 May 2008 01:32:00 EDT

Consider this Q&A:

Q: ... do you see it as a mistake for the Senate to proceed with a bill that would suspend the gas tax?

A: ... the problem I have with it, apart from what it might do to the Highway Trust Fund and the spending obligations that have already been incurred by the acts of Congress, the budgets, is that I'm not sure that the savings would be passed along to the consumers ...

Sounds like the person making the answers is opposed to suspending the gas tax for a number of reasons, including doubts that the consumers would see any savings. Is this person Barack Obama? No, it is President Bill Clinton, answering a question at a news conference in March 2000.

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E07E0D7143CF933A05750C0A9669C8B63&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=all

Learning from Experience

Wm — Sun, 04 May 2008 17:49:15 EDT

In his appearance on "Meet the Press" Obama is asked about his vote for a gas tax holiday when he was a state senator in Illinois. Obama says that he did vote for it, but when they went back 6 months later and looked at the results, they found that the price of gas went up to compensate and that consumers received no benefit at all. Tim asks "So you learned from a wrong vote" and Obama replies "I learned from a mistake" (emphasis his).

What I wish he had added is that Clinton is running on her experience, but what good is experience if you can't learn from it? Hillary's claims of experience include her time as First Lady, and her largest project there was her failed attempt to pass legislation for universal health insurance. If she didn't learn from what she did wrong then, is there any chance we will actually get universal health insurance under a new Clinton administration?

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22425001/vp/24452556#24452556

Indiana, go with Obama

Wm — Sun, 04 May 2008 14:18:49 EDT

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/chi-0504edit1may04,0,3206628.story

Inflammatory statements made by Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Obama's pastor for 20 years, raised questions about the candidate's long association with a man who views America as irredeemably racist. ... Obama was forced to publicly denounce the man who presided at his wedding, baptized his daughters and supplied the title for his book, "The Audacity of Hope." By putting him in this difficult position, Wright may have unwittingly done Obama a favor. Moved to passionate restatement of his beliefs, Obama reminded a lot of people of what they found so appealing in him in the first place.

By contrast, look what we've seen from Hillary Clinton's campaign in recent weeks. Her embellishments about the purported danger of a 1996 trip to Bosnia. Bill Clinton's statement that the Obama campaign "played the race card on me"—and Clinton's later, laughable denial that he had used those words. We've seen a campaign that has sought to tear down its opponent and pander to voters. The Clinton campaign is playing just the kind of politics that Americans say they detest.

Wind-Fall Profits?

Wm — Sat, 03 May 2008 12:04:22 EDT

The oil industry says that taxing their windfall profits is a bad idea, because it will discourage them from investing in new sources of energy.

Yeah, right.

In the UK, Royal Dutch Shell has pulled out of a landmark wind project to build the world's largest offshore wind farm? Why? It was a "hard-headed business decision. This is simply not as lucrative as oil and gas".

http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/may2008/gb2008052_355548.htm?campaign_id=rss_topStories

I find this especially interesting, since economists are saying that McCain and Clinton's proposal for a federal gas tax holiday will give even more money to the oil companies, and not to consumers.

The Audacity of Being Human

Wm — Fri, 02 May 2008 17:44:02 EDT

Read this article:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/peter-birkenhead/barack-obama-the-audacity_b_99860.html

It sums up better than I ever could why I am for Barack Obama.

How profound is something that is so simple: We are all imperfectly human. While each of us is capable of love and joy, we are also just as capable of racism, sexism, and -- under the right circumstances -- even genocide. The fact that Obama seems to completely understand this about himself gives me hope for America.

The Empire Strikes Barack

Wm — Fri, 02 May 2008 16:35:32 EDT

New video on YouTube

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8lvc-azCXY

Obama uses The Force!

What do I HOPE for?

Wm — Thu, 01 May 2008 15:11:24 EDT

Here are a few things I would like to see in this campaign:

1) After 21 Democratic debates, Clinton keeps trying to get Obama to agree to another one. I'd like to see Obama challenge McCain to a one-on-one debate. Let's show the voters how Obama would do against McCain, and let's do it now.

2) As long as I'm hoping, I'd love for Rev. Wright to give one more speech -- this one about HOPE. I want him to talk about how his relationship with Obama has helped him deal with his bitterness and anger. I want him to talk about all the positive change he has seen, and how that gives him hope for the future.

3) I want people to realize that things (including people) do change. I'm old enough to remember JFK's campaign for the presidency. I knew people who said they would never vote for him because he was Catholic, and would take orders from the Pope. Now it would hardly be an issue.

4) I want a reliable source of news and information. A viable democracy needs a free and impartial press, but today's mainstream media too often serves only the interests or greed of its corporate owners. The Web could become this source, but it is not yet reliable enough to be called "mainstream". I'd like to see a "Web News Network" that like Wikipedia is user contributed and reliably vetted.

Maybe you have something you hope for -- feel free to add it in a comment, but please keep it positive.

The Right Candidate For Our Party

Wm — Thu, 01 May 2008 14:17:57 EDT

Today, Indiana superdelegate Joe Andrew, a former Democratic National Committee Chairman appointed by Bill Clinton and who endorsed Hillary Clinton on the day she declared her candidacy, has switched his endorsement to Barack Obama. He is urging other Hoosiers to support Obama in Tuesday's primary, encouraging fellow Democrats to "heal the rift in our party" and unite behind Obama.

"I am convinced that the primary process has devolved to the point that it's now bad for the Democratic Party. ... a vote for Hillary Clinton is a vote to continue this process, and a vote to continue this process is a vote that assists (Republican) John McCain."

"While I was hopeful that a long, contested primary season would invigorate our party, the polls show that the tone and temperature of the race is now hurting us. John McCain, without doing much of anything, is now competitive against both of our remaining candidates. We are doing his work for him and distracting Americans from the issues that really affect all of our lives."

Andrew said the Obama campaign never asked him to switch his support, but he decided to do so after watching Obama's handling of two issues in recent days. He said Obama took the principled stand in opposing a summer gas tax holiday that both Clinton and McCain supported, even though it would have been easier politically to back it. And he said he was impressed with Obama's handling of the controversy surrounding his former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright.

"He has shown such mettle under fire. The Jeremiah Wright controversy just reconfirmed for me, just as the gas tax controversy confirmed for me, that he is the right candidate for our party."

http://www.newsandpolicy.com/news/2008/05/former-democratic-leader-switches-to-obama.html

Spread the Word - HOPE

Wm — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 01:47:51 EDT

A few of us have been communicating and we'd like to try something with you. Starting at 8 a.m. EDT on Wednesday (April 30), we'd like to see if we can get this site RAMPED UP ON HOPE for 24 hours. What's that mean?

Can we get postings for 24 hours that ONLY talk about how we've been changed by this campaign; or how our view of politics has changed FOR THE BETTER; or how we've connected with new people, expecially those we'd never otherwise come in contact with (through posting, calling, rallies, etc.); or how we have had our hopes for our country and the world raised by this movement.

Can we get postings for 24 hours that mention NO piece of negativity? No depression, no critcisms (justified or not) of the MSM, or individual coverage, or of Senator Clinton, or her campaign, even of Senator McCain.

If you agree with this then, sometime during today, copy this message and post it under your name. And, separately, start the ball rolling at 8 a.m. EDT on Wednesday with a message of hope for the rest of us.

We can do this! And, remember -

Barack Obama is going to be the next President of the United States!"

Stupidest Idea to Date

Wm — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 14:29:38 EDT

Hannah McCrea in The Seminal has an interesting analysis of McCain's (and now Clinton's) proposal to suspend the federal gas tax for the summer.

http://www.theseminal.com/2008/04/29/clinton-on-board-with-mccains-stupidest-idea-to-date/

McCrea points out that reducing the gas tax will likely allow gas prices to rise in compensation, so consumers will save little if anything. The only group who will benefit is the oil companies. At the same time, we will stop funding highway and bridge repairs, at a time when our national infrastructure sorely needs updating.

This is called pandering for votes. We should be happy that Obama is speaking out firmly against this proposal. Can anyone doubt Obama's promise to tell you what you need to hear, not what you think you want to hear?

Obama, Pigs, Rock & Roll?

Wm — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 14:46:27 EDT

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080428/ap_en_mu/music_coachella_roger_waters

Let the voters (of Oregon) score the final touchdown

Wm — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 00:16:45 EDT

An interesting article in The Jed Report about how it should be the voters of Oregon who give Obama the delegates he needs to claim the nomination.

http://www.jedreport.com/2008/04/superdelegates.html

Worth a read!

Nobel winning economists agree!

Wm — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 16:36:41 EDT

Today, two Nobel prize winning economists appeared on MSNBC: Joseph Stiglitz, who worked in the Clinton administration and 2001 prize winner, and Edmund Phelps, 2006 prize winner. One of the questions that was asked (from a viewer) was "Who do you think will be better for the economy - President Clinton, President Obama or President McCain ... and why?" Both answered President Obama. Watch the video to see why.

http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=722561891

Stiglitz also said that Obama's speech 3 weeks ago on the economy was "brilliant".

Wow, the mainstream media actually talking real issues, like the economy. Who woulda thunk it?

More info: Stiglitz bio Phelps bio Transcript of Obama's speech on the economy

Run Hillary Run

Wm — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 17:29:12 EDT

For those of you who need a chuckle in your day, read this:

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0408/9839.html

Clinton Cannot Win

Wm — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 12:09:52 EDT

Depressed because of the Clinton "win" in PA? Don't be. Two different blogs did the math today from two different angles and came to the same conclusion: Clinton would need a bloody miracle to win the nomination, and she isn't going to get it.

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/4/24/02723/7112?detail=f

Over at the Daily Kos, the math shows that Obama needs only 43 more unpledged superdelegates to clinch the nomination. Just 43 out of 240 currently undeclared superdelegates. Considering that Obama has added over 100 superdelegates since Super Tuesday (to Clinton's 50), this should be no problem at all. Just yesterday -- right after the PA loss -- he added two superdelegates, to Clinton's one.

http://www.jedreport.com/2008/04/the-delegate-ma.html

At the Jed Report, the math shows that PA actually reduced the number of pledged (regular) delegates Obama needs down to 133, out of a total of 408 to be picked in the remaining primaries. That's only 1/3 of the remaining delegates, which should be no problem considering that Obama is the clear leader in North Carolina and Oregon.

Clinton would have to blow out the remaining primaries by over 70% to keep Obama from getting 133 pledged delegates.

Suddenly, Clinton's 55% win in PA doesn't sound all that impressive.

Digits

Wm — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 09:21:30 EDT

What I want to know is why the media is still reporting Clinton's win in PA as 10%, when the official data shows 8.5%? Are they purposely trying to make it look like she got a "double digit win" since everyone was saying that she needed one in order to stay viable?

http://www.electionreturns.state.pa.us/

As long as Clinton stays in the race (even if she has no chance of winning), the MSM will keep raking in those ad dollars. Is this the definition of a conflict of interest?

A Win is a Win, a Spin is a Spin

Wm — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 16:29:15 EDT

Clinton is trying to downplay the fact that she has gone from a 20 point lead in the polls in Penn, down to somewhere between 0 and 10 (depending on which poll you read on which day) by declaring "a win is a win".

Well, let's see. If that is true, then Obama has 30 "wins" and Clinton has only 14 (less than half as many). Oh, but wait, an Obama win isn't necessarily a win. It isn't a win if it isn't a "big" state, or a "swing" state, or a "caucus" state.

More like "a spin is a spin".

There Is No Gas Shortage

Wm — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 02:45:42 EDT

You know things are crazy when a normally staid and boring magazine like BusinessWeek publishes an article called "There Is No Gas Shortage" which calls our president and energy secretary liars.

http://www.businessweek.com/lifestyle/content/apr2008/bw2008041_945564.htm

Bush said on March 5th "It should be obvious to you all that the [gasoline] demand is outstripping supply, which causes prices to go up." But the department of Energy's own numbers show that demand has actually gone down and supply has gone up, while prices have soared 500%.

Learning to Live in a Post-Fact Society

Wm — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 12:34:31 EDT

Interesting op-ed piece in the NY Times about how people get polarized.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/17/opinion/17kristof.html?ex=1366171200&en=11c569ee70e05ead&ei=5124&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink

"This resistance to information that doesn’t mesh with our preconceived beliefs afflicts both liberals and conservatives, but a raft of studies shows that it is a particular problem with conservatives. For example, when voters receive mailings offering them free pamphlets on various political topics, liberals show some interest in getting conservative views. In contrast, conservatives seek only those pamphlets that echo their own views.

Likewise, liberal blogs overwhelmingly link to other liberal blogs or news sources. But with conservative blogs, the tendency is much more pronounced; it is almost a sealed universe."

Have a Secret Ballot for Superdelegates - Soon!

Wm — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 12:38:20 EDT

Many people (including Chairman Dean) have been calling for the superdelegates to make up their minds, but more superdelegates are still designated as uncommitted than have committed to either candidate. Perhaps many uncommitted superdelegates have made up their minds, but are afraid to publicly commit because they might anger some of their constituents or even other politicians, or may even be accused of being undemocratic. Some people (including Nancy Pelosi) say the superdelegates should vote as their states voted, but that would be an undemocratic "winner take all" solution that goes against the one-person-one-vote foundation of the Democratic party. And if the superdelegates bind themselves in this way, what is the purpose of having superdelegates at all?

I humbly offer a solution: have the superdelegates vote as soon as possible in a non-binding secret poll. Announce the results of this vote, but not individual votes. Let the superdelegates vote their conscience, with confidence and confidentiality, without political pressure. Note that I am not proposing that this replace their public vote at the convention.

The right to a secret ballot is one of the foundations of democracy -- it allows people to vote without fear. Shouldn't superdelegates have the same right?

Hillary Clinton - The Queen of Pork

Wm — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 11:44:52 EDT

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/story/20306341/the_queen_of_pork

Interesting article that notes the connection between "earmarks" (commonly called Pork) to various organizations arranged by Clinton, and endorsements from the leaders of those organizations.

As they say, follow the money.

Dare to Hope - Can Obama take PA?

Wm — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 11:24:20 EDT

http://www.philly.com/philly/opinion/20080420_Urban_Perspectives__Why_phenomenon_Obama_just_might_take_Penna_.html

How Hillary Can Still Win - Humor

Wm — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 15:32:06 EDT

This video totally cracked me up:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uBGyuYKlxIg&eurl

The Clinton Terrorist Connections

Wm — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 02:23:36 EDT

During the debate last night, Obama was asked about his connections to former Weather Underground member William Ayers, alleging that he had been a terrorist (Ayers was never even arrested). But nobody has asked Clinton about the 2001 pardon of two members of the same organization who had been convicted: Linda Evans and Susan Rosenberg, who participated in a bank robbery that left one guard and two police officers dead.

http://www.motherjones.com/mojoblog/archives/2008/04/7998_clinton_bashes.html

And if that weren't hypocritical enough, how about the 16 FALN terrorists who were trying to gain independence for Puerto Rico through violent means? The FALN was linked to 146 bombings, a string of armed robberies, nine deaths, and hundreds of injured victims. But the Clintons granted clemency in 1999 to 16 members of the FALN in order to buy the votes of Hispanics in New York for Clinton's Senate run.

http://online.wsj.com/public/article_print/SB120277819085260827.html

Amazing. Simply amazing.

Worst Debate Ever

Wm — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 11:39:07 EDT

http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/attytood/An_open_letter_to_Charlie_Gibson_and_George_Stephanapoulos.html

Vote From Abroad

Wm — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 12:47:55 EDT

The Vote From Abroad website, run by an American living in Europe, is one of the best (and sanest) sources of political information on the web. Today's edition is especially helpful. For example:

"The candidates are skirmishing about whether the people in rural Pennsylvania are depressed about having their jobs shipped overseas. Maybe they could stop bickering long enough to suggest what they would do about the problem? Is it too much to expect that during a campaign the candidates would talk about their approaches to dealing with the nation's problems? You might expect that either one could score points by saying: "If I am elected, this is what I am going to do to help you..." But instead it looks like Lee Atwater is alive and well in Pennsylvania."

http://www.electoral-vote.com/evp2008/Comparison/Maps/Apr14.html

This whole "elite" thing is pissing me off!

Wm — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 14:40:22 EDT

This whole thing about painting Obama as "elite" is really annoying me. I mean, we now have the first concrete evidence that Bush and his administration personally approved torture (which should get them indicted for war crimes). But what is the media yammering on about? Clinton and McCain (of all people) accusing Obama of being elitist.

Give me a break.

Obama's point is that people have given up on having a good government, so they are susceptible to voting on wedge issues, while ignoring those issues that should really matter to them (like the economy, the environment, etc.). So what do Clinton and McCain do? They turn it into a wedge issue!

The republicans succeeded in painting Gore and then Kerry as elitist. If we fall for this again, we deserve the crappy government we get.

Bill in the Dog House again?

Wm — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 02:04:33 EDT

On Thursday, Bill Clinton tried to defend Hillary's "misstatements" bout her trip to Bosnia by blaming it on age-related forgetfulness. "And some of them, when they're 60, they'll forget something when they're tired at 11 at night, too."

Unfortunately for Bill, it wasn't 11 at night (it was morning). He made a few other mistakes as well: he claimed she misspoke only a single time and that she apologized immediately. But his biggest mistakes were bringing up the flap again after it had started to die down, and for blaming it on her age. Ouch!

For his efforts, Hillary's campaign icily responded with "Senator Clinton appreciates her husband standing up for her, but this was her mistake and she takes responsibility for it."

http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/428/

Ready on Day One? How about Minus One?

Wm — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 17:41:46 EDT

Clinton has already caused her first international diplomatic dust up, without even becoming president!

In a speech, she praised the Prime Minister of England for boycotting the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics. She said "I wanted to commend Prime Minister Gordon Brown for agreeing not to go to the opening ceremonies of the Olympics in Beijing." The BBC picked up on the story, making Brown an unintentional standard-bearer for pro-Tibet campaigners, and leading to reports around the world that he had snubbed China.

The problem is, Brown had never planned to attend the opening ceremonies; he will be attending the closing ceremony. Brown publicly accepted an invitation from the Chinese Prime Minister to attend the Games when he went to China in January.

Clinton jumped to the conclusion that he was taking a stand. Too bad she didn't bother to check her facts.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/olympics/article3723291.ece

Misremembering Reaganomics

Wm — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 16:27:17 EDT

When McCain says he doesn't know much about economics, I believe him. While McCain has repeatedly called for a balanced budget, at a town hall meeting on April 9, he was asked how he would do that: “Basically, which is it? Straight talk: Do you want to raise taxes, cut entitlement spending, cut defense spending, or have a deficit?”

McCain responded that he wanted to reduce the deficit by stimulating the economy, like Reagan did. Can McCain really not remember that Reagan tripled the deficit, severely unbalancing the budget? So much for straight talk.

http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/04/09/asked-about-the-economy-mccain-cites-reagans-example/

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/04/10/mccain-ill-cut-deficits-l_n_96011.html

Monty Python for Obama

Wm — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 09:06:35 EDT

John Cleese says "if Barack Obama gets the nomination I'm going to offer my services to him as a speechwriter because I think he is a brilliant man".

http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,23508627-2,00.html

Maybe we can get Cleese into Obama's cabinet, as the person in charge of silly walks.

Is Obama a Liberal?

Wm — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 06:44:13 EDT

Much blog hay has been made of the National Journal declaration that Obama is the "most liberal" senator. Unfortunately, they never said how they determined this, so it seems suspect. Lucky for us, there is a new non-partisan comparison that ranks senators on a "liberal" scale using their voting record compared to seven well-known liberal interest groups, and they tell us exactly how they came up with their results:

http://www.electoral-vote.com/evp2008/Comparison/Maps/Apr09.html

"Conclusion: when people say Obama and Clinton are liberals, that's not true; when people say McCain is a conservative, that is true." On a scale of 1 (conservative) to 100 (liberal), Clinton is 82, Obama is 80, and McCain is 9.

The interest groups used for this comparison are: the ACLU, the Americans for Democratic Action, the Children's Defense Fund, the League of Conservation Voters, the NAACP, NARAL (abortion rights), and Service Employees International Union. Different interest groups would result in a different result, of course.

A similar comparison using conservative groups is being done.

So if some ditto-head starts yammering about Obama being so far left he is out of touch with America, just point him at this article.

The results also show how polarized our senate is.

Convince a Superdelegate!

Wm — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 13:37:52 EDT

Over in the blog "The Field" a Superdelegate, Debra Kozikowski has posted a challenge:

“Here’s your challenge. Think about me wearing my super duper hat reading your posts. Convince me why I should deliver my superdelegate vote to Senator Obama or for the minority here who support Senator Clinton — you too can rise to the ocassion with civility and grace.”

So far there are over 700 responses, and they make some good reading. People telling their stories. Feel free to add your own story, or just read what other people are saying.

http://ruralvotes.com/thefield/?p=1007

Voting Machines in Pennsylvania!

Wm — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 08:10:45 EDT

Uh oh. Is anyone worried about the fact that Pennsylvania is using voting machines from Sequoia, the same machines that failed outright and misreported results in New Jersey (which Clinton won) on Super Tuesday? If you weren't worried before, a new report shows that things are worse than originally suspected:

http://www.freedom-to-tinker.com/?p=1274
http://www.bradblog.com/?p=5870

If those don't scare you enough, try this one:

http://www.bradblog.com/?p=5839

Terry McAuliffe a secret Obama supporter?

Wm — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 13:11:36 EDT

With all the (ongoing) changes in Clinton's campaign staff, I won't hold it against you if you don't know that Terry McAuliffe is the chairman of Clinton's presidential campaign. He is also the former chairman of the Democratic National Committee.

So what is he doing posing with Obama supporters and campaign signs?

http://rawstory.com/news/2008/Clinton_campaign_chair_photographed_holding_Obama_0407.html

Fundraising state by state

Wm — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 12:46:34 EDT

OpenSecrets.org has posted an interactive map, showing who has led in fundraising, state by state.

http://www.opensecrets.org/pres08/toprecipQ1_2008/toprecip.asp

It is interesting that Obama has raised more money in 40 states, including New York (Clinton is a senator from New York). Hillary Clinton is second with 5 states (AR, OK, AL, FL, and NJ), McCain has raised more money in just three states (AZ, MI, and SC) and Romney raised more money in two (UT and ID).

As they point out, it is votes that determine elections, not donors, but Obama's broad donor base does show that he has support in all areas of the country, even traditional Republican states.

Rev. Wright Redux

Wm — Sun, 06 Apr 2008 14:46:41 EDT

This video is very interesting for two important reasons:

http://www.foxnews.com/video2/video08.html?videoId=1fd1c0cf-5c80-4d75-996f-bd53b2461ae0&sMPlaylistID=

First of all, it is Father Pfleger, a Roman Catholic priest in Chicago, defending Rev. Wright and Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan, and doing an excellent job of it.

Second, the person doing the interview is Porter Berry, producer of the "we report, you decide" Fox News show 'Factor'. But Berry is not reporting, he is arguing with Father Pfleger and trying to promote his own views.

The video linked is the unedited version of the interview, not what Fox actually used. I highly recommend that you watch it.

Hillary Clinton's Self-Swiftboating into Irrelevance

Wm — Sun, 06 Apr 2008 12:44:38 EDT

http://www.buzzflash.com/articles/carpenter/035

Two choice quotes:

"The last 48 hours have been brutal for the 'most vetted' candidate -- a descriptive status that requires regular updating, and for good reason. For journalistic vetters, Hillary is the ideal vettee, because playing it straight is simply beyond her indefatigable Nixonian urges."

"In what proved to be an awkward juxtaposition, the disclosure of the records — which revealed the Clintons to be in the top one-hundredth of 1 percent, or roughly 14,500, of all taxpayers — came on the day that Mrs. Clinton called for the creation of a cabinet-level post to tackle poverty."

Kerry says Obama Won't be Swift Boated

Wm — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 21:59:24 EDT

Senator John Kerry, campaigning for Obama in Penn., said today that he didn't think Obama could be "swift-boated" like he was in the 2004 election. Kerry took responsibility for not fighting the Swift Boat assaults more effectively, but he said advisors, including Bill Clinton, suggested he not defend himself aggressively. "We didn't lose to them ... because we didn't answer it with the truth. We did. We just didn't do it enough. ... We're not gonna get that close [to repeating that mistake] We're just gonna come right back so hard and so fast."

Kerry also said that he thinks that Obama is more prepared to be commander in chief than Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton. "Barack Obama is the only person running for president today who understood Iraq from the beginning, who declared his position on it clearly in the beginning, and who has expressed a foreign policy throughout this that I think captures the needs of our country, and frankly the needs of the world."

http://hotlineblog.nationaljournal.com/archives/2008/04/kerry_obama_won.html

Risk Addiction

Wm — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 15:35:22 EDT

Back in 2004, someone asked Bill Clinton why he had an affair with Monica Lewinsky. His response was "I did something for the worst possible reason. Just because I could. And I think that's the most morally indefensible reason that anybody could have for doing anything."

So, fast forward to now, and we still see the same kind of behavior from the Clintons and those around them:

Hillary grossly exaggerating about her trip to Bosnia, even though there were press there who could check her facts.
The Clintons taking part in questionable business partnerships (as revealed by their tax returns), even though they really didn't need the money.
Hillary making a story the centerpiece of her stump speech on health care without bothering to check if it is true.
Mark Penn taking time off from the campaign to lobby for a free trade deal with Columbia that Clinton opposes.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bob-ostertag/just-because-they-can_b_95230.html

Clinton caught in yet another fib

Wm — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 13:38:48 EDT

It turns out that another story being told by Clinton is not based in fact. Clinton has been telling a horrible story about a woman who died (and also lost her unborn child) after being denied treatment at a hospital because she didn't have $100 to pay them. Unfortunately, none of the details of the story (other than the fact that she died) is true. In fact, this woman did have health insurance.

This link has more information, including video of Clinton telling the story:

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/4/5/2548/10462/625/490580

Now, I'm one of those people who thinks that health insurance in this country is a total mess, and there are plenty of true stories to demonstrate this. So why do you need to use a false story? Doesn't this actually hurt the cause of reforming health insurance?

Would Clinton supporters really vote for McCain if she lost?

Wm — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 14:16:36 EDT

Recent surveys claim that a full 28% of Clinton supporters say that they would vote for McCain if Clinton lost the primary. And a majority -- 51% -- would be "dissatisfied or upset". This is up from 35% in January.

I find this hard to believe. Many voters support Clinton because they support equal rights for women and want a woman in the White House. But on almost every issue of concern to women, McCain is on the wrong side. He is (really) anti Choice (he says Roe v. Wade should be overturned), anti sex education, anti emergency contraception. Pretty much anti-women.

This is from McCain's website (link above): "John McCain believes Roe v. Wade is a flawed decision that must be overturned, and as president he will nominate judges who understand that courts should not be in the business of legislating from the bench. Constitutional balance would be restored by the reversal of Roe v. Wade, returning the abortion question to the individual states. "

http://johnmccain.com/Informing/Issues/95b18512-d5b6-456e-90a2-12028d71df58.htm

So, how can Clinton women say they support McCain? Easy! Among McCain's pro-choice women supporters, 50% don't even know his positions, and an additional 25% assume that his views are in line with their own!

http://news.yahoo.com/s/huffpost/20080404/cm_huffpost/094983

Hopefully, once the primary is decided an the bickering has died down, people will start to come to their senses.

The very best thing about Barack Obama

Wm — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 13:58:00 EDT

Excellent article about why we want Obama to be our next president.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2008/04/04/notes040408.DTL

Obama zings Chris Matthews

Wm — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 00:37:13 EDT

Here's a good laugh for you:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=UNMZZzd1wts

Superdelegates

Wm — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 20:24:33 EDT

Remember when Clinton bragged about her lead in superdelegates? Well, here's what that lead has been doing for the last 3 months:

She started with a lead of around 100 superdelegates, but after Super Tuesday in early February, her lead has been going down. The loss seemed to level off around the time of the Rev. Wright mess, but it has started going down again. As of today, her lead is at 34 superdelegates, roughly one-third of what it was two months ago.

Meanwhile, Obama's lead in pledged delegates continues to grow, sitting at 164. So Obama leads by 130 delegates total (both pledged and superdelegates).

So, remind me of how Clinton is going to convince the superdelegates to vote for her?

Music for Obama

Wm — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 11:42:03 EDT

Yesterday, I created a playlist in iTunes called "Obama". It consists of music about Change, Hope, and Politics. I've been volunteering at the Obama HQ near where I live, and was playing it yesterday while I was there and people seemed to like it. Here's the list:

I'd Love to Change the World - Ten Years After
One (Hu)'man One Vote - Johnny Clegg & Savuka
I'm A Believer (from Shrek) - Smash Mouth
Mad World - Gary Jules
Believe (Flu Season Mix) - Dido
Changes - David Bowie
Do You Believe In Magic - Lovin' Spoonful
Hope Alone - Indigo Girls
There'll Be Some Changes Made - Chet Atkins & Mark Knopfler
I Shall Believe - Sheryl Crow
Changes - Loggins & Messina
You Got To Believe - Dan Hicks & His Hot Licks
Still Believe - Michael Tomlinson
Change In The Weather - Buddy Guy
I Believe - 3 Canal
Political Science - Randy Newman

Anyone have any other suggestions for music for this list?

Dealing with the Devil

Wm — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 02:13:36 EDT

I'm flabbergasted. It appears that Senator Clinton has made a deal with the devil.

Everyone knows that Clinton recently said "He would not have been my pastor" -- trying to stir up the whole Jeremiah Wright thing again, but most people don't know that those words were spoken in an interview with the Pittsburgh Tribune Review, a newspaper owned by Richard Mellon Scaife. Scaife himself was in the room during that interview.

So who is Scaife? Read this: http://www.slate.com/id/2187473/ (Summary: He spent the '90s manufacturing vile innuendo about the Clintons. Scaife "spread the reprehensible allegation that Hillary Clinton killed Vince Foster" and said that Bill Clinton "can order people done away with at his will. He's got the entire federal government behind him. ... God, there must be 60 people who have died mysteriously.")

What does Clinton want from Scaife? Read this: http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/opinion/s_559659.html

And his paper published this hit piece about Obama and Wright yesterday: http://blogs.tnr.com/tnr/blogs/the_plank/archive/2008/04/01/a-vote-for-obama-is-a-vote-for-murder.aspx

Can Clinton be courting Scaife for any other reason than to fan the flames of racism in Pennsylvania?

---------------

And if that weren't enough on Clinton, apparently she was fired from her job on the House Judiciary Committee during the Watergate investigation for lying and unethical behavior:

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/4/1/12146/80206/920/488267

http://newsbusters.org/blogs/john-stephenson/2008/04/01/will-media-give-story-about-hillarys-unethical-past-legs-it-deserve

Alice Walker endorses Obama

Wm — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 11:49:01 EDT

In an article entitled "Obama is the change that America has tried to hide" in the Guardian, Alice Walker talks about race, gender, and the hope that is Obama.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/apr/01/barackobama.uselections2008

Karl Rove on the Democratic Convention

Wm — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 01:30:21 EDT

Yes, that Karl Rove! In a Newsweek article entitled "How to Win in a Knife Fight" he talks about what each side needs to do to win, assuming the fight goes all the way to the Democratic Convention.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/129586/

It is an interesting read. It is also a rare glimpse into the mind of Karl Rove, who seems to think about everything in terms of politics.

AP officially declares Obama the winner in Texas

Wm — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 20:34:54 EDT

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5i_QDnA56kHa3qYl41FUYT3PLHJvwD8VOK68O0

Obama Wins Most Texas Delegates

WASHINGTON (AP) — Sen. Barack Obama has won the overall delegate race in Texas thanks to a strong showing in Democratic county conventions this past weekend.

Obama picked up seven of nine outstanding delegates, giving him a total of 99 Texas delegates to the party's national convention this summer. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton won the other two, giving her a total of 94 Texas delegates, according to an analysis of returns by The Associated Press.

Texas Democrats held both a presidential primary and caucus. Clinton narrowly won the popular vote in the state's primary March 4, earning her 65 national convention delegates to Obama's 61.

Precinct caucuses began immediately after polls closed primary night and quickly devolved into chaos in many parts of the state because of an unprecedented turnout of more than 1 million Democrats. The state party was never able to provide complete results from the caucuses, which is why the AP withheld nine delegates.

The precinct caucuses elected delegates to about 280 county and state senate district conventions on Saturday. The AP awarded the remaining delegates based on results from Saturday's conventions, showing Obama with about 58 percent of vote, compared to 42 percent for Clinton.

Obama won 38 delegates through the caucus/convention system, and Clinton won 29.

The final delegate allocation will be decided at the party's state convention June 6-7, and the numbers could change if either campaign is unable to maintain the level of support they had over the weekend.

Obama leads the overall race for the Democratic nomination with 1,631 delegates, including separately chosen party and elected officials known as superdelegates. Clinton has 1,501, according to the latest AP tally.

Divide and Conquer

Wm — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 16:31:12 EDT

Funny and true blog entry about (indirectly) why we should stop getting so upset at Hillary Clinton.

http://hisvorpal.wordpress.com/2008/03/30/divide-and-conquer/

please read it

Rev. Wright in a different light

Wm — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 08:59:12 EDT

A white man who has been a member of Trinity United church for over 25 years speaks about his admiration for Rev. Wright, and rejects the charge that Wright is racist.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/chi-oped0326trinitymar26,0,2414760.story

An extended quote from the article:

"I do have a bit of personal context. About 26 years ago, I became engaged to my wife, an African-American. She was at that time and remains a member of Trinity. Somewhere between the ring and the altar, my wife had second thoughts and broke off the engagement. Her decision was grounded in race: So committed to black causes, the daughter of parents subjected to unthinkable prejudice over the years, an "up-and-coming" leader in the young black community, how could she marry a white man?

Rev. Wright, whom I had met only in passing at the time and who was equally if not more outspoken about "black" issues than he is today, somehow found out about my wife's decision. He called and asked her to "drop everything" and meet with him at Trinity. He spent four hours explaining his reaction to her decision. Racial divisions were unacceptable, he said, no matter how great or prolonged the pain that caused them. God would not want us to assess or make decisions about people based on race. The world could make progress on issues of race only if people were prepared to break down barriers that were much easier to let stand.

Rev. Wright was pretty persuasive; he presided over our wedding a few months later. In the years since, I have watched in utter awe as Wright has overseen and constructed a support system for thousands in need on the South Side that is far more impressive and effective than any governmental program possibly could approach. And never in my life have I been welcomed more warmly and sincerely than at Trinity. Never."

Print Your Own Obama Posters

Wm — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 14:30:42 EDT

I've created a web page with all kinds of artwork for Obama posters (and other swag) that I've collected from various places on the net:

http://leler.com/politics/posters/

All of these are free. If you are tired of waiting for posters or yard signs, you can print your own, or send the artwork to a print shop.

If you know of other (free) artwork, please leave a comment here and I'll incorporate it into my page.

My Neighbor, Barack

Wm — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 02:30:16 EDT

By Rabbi Arnold Jacob Wolf, from the synagogue across the street from where Barack Obama lives:

http://thejewishweek.com/viewArticle/c55_a5420/Editorial__Opinion/Opinion.html

A few quotes:

"I support Barack Obama because he stands for what I believe, what our tradition demands."

"Barack Obama is brilliant and open-hearted; he is wiser and more thoughtful than his former minister. He offers what America, Israel, and the Jewish community need: a US President willing to ask hard questions, and grapple with difficult answers. I am very proud to be his neighbor. I hope someday to visit him in the White House."

Experience or Just Proximity?

Wm — Sat, 29 Mar 2008 20:26:35 EDT

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/27/AR2008032703070.html

Letter to the editor in the Washington Post, from Jill B. Deal:

I was the wife of the minister (deputy to the ambassador) of the U.S. Embassy in London at the time the Northern Ireland negotiations and the Bosnia crisis were taking place. I also had a "proper" job as a lawyer at an American firm.

Did I, with my husband, attend and actively participate in meetings on Northern Ireland, which included Gerry Adams, Ian Paisley and other dignitaries involved in the peace efforts? Of course.

Did I, per my husband's suggestions, at dinners pass on messages to British government ministers regarding the desirability of their "getting on board" initiative X or Y? Of course. Would I consider this to be foreign policy experience? And would I put it on my curriculum vitae as such? Of course not.

I have found the notion that one absorbs foreign policy experience just by being a spouse increasingly offensive as the presidential campaign has progressed. It demeans Hillary Rodham Clinton, who by all reports, has gained experience altogether separate from her husband since she became a senator, some of which no doubt can legitimately be categorized as foreign policy. It also demeans women like me who have built their experience and their resumes on what they have done on their own.

Crazy Things McCain Has Said

Wm — Sat, 29 Mar 2008 11:50:44 EDT

Since it is pretty much over for Clinton, maybe it is time to turn our attention to John McCain. Here is an article titled "The Top Ten Craziest Things John McCain Has Said While You Weren't Watching".

http://www.alternet.org/story/80622/

While the press has been focusing on the (non-existent) horse race between Obama and Clinton, McCain has been getting a free pass.

Getting Mrs. Clinton

Wm — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 10:41:37 EDT

Peggy Noonan (in the Wall Street Journal!) does a good job of summing up Clinton's situation, and why she has already lost.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120663639483768965.html?mod=todays_columnists

I think the democrats are coming to a conclusion. It goes something like this:

If Clinton gets less than 60% of the vote in Pennsylvania on April 22, she's out.
Otherwise, we wait until May 6, for the primaries in North Carolina and Indiana.

At that point, assuming Obama is still ahead in delegates and popular vote, the superdelegates will likely decide it for him and not wait for the convention.

Of course, things can always change. Obama might be found to actually be an alien from Mars (what else could explain his unbelievable energy and intelligence?). But if things keep going more or less the way they are now, the primary race will be decided in just over a month.

The only downside of this for me is that the primary in Oregon (on May 20) won't matter, but I'm willing to give that up in exchange for getting the real election going!

Hopping Mad!

Wm — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 10:19:16 EDT

I got up early this morning to watch Obama's speech on the economy, but half-way through it CNN cut him off in mid-sentence and put on the old assortment of pundits doing their spinning. They didn't even wait for him to finish.

What the f*ck is going on?

I'm starting to think that not only has the mainstream media stopped reporting on the real problems we face in America, but that they have become one of the main problems themselves.

I sure hope that the full speech gets posted to the internet somewhere, so I can watch it. I was really getting into it. Finally, a politician talking about the economy as if I were an adult!

UPDATE: here's a link to the text of the speech. But if anyone finds the video, please let me know.

http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/samgrahamfelsen/gGBNsq

Fighting Fire with Water

Wm — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 21:55:55 EDT

Two really beautiful and heartwarming blog entries.

The first is "The Obama Logic: Fighting Fire with Water" and it is a must read.

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/3/23/152359/094

The Blue Majority sites (Daily Kos, Swing State Project, and Open Left) are now endorsing Obama, and have added him to their ActBlue fundraising page. This article talks about the reasons they decided to support him.

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/3/26/125659/086

Clinton to give 'landmark' speech on dishonesty

Wm — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 19:12:39 EDT

Your dose of humor for the day, courtesy of Hillary Clinton:

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/3/26/132854/876/420/484691

The Conservative Case for Barack Obama

Wm — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 10:47:43 EDT

Article in The American Conservative about why (true) conservatives should vote for Obama rather than McCain.

http://www.amconmag.com/2008/2008_03_24/article.html

Interestingly, Clinton is not mentioned at all.

While not overwhelmingly complimentary to Obama, it does contain some good points that can be used in the general election when talking to people who are thinking of voting for McCain.

Clinton's Fascist Church?

Wm — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 23:31:32 EDT

Clinton claimed today that Rev. Wright would never be her pastor, but it looks like Hillary Clinton belongs to a church called "The Family" that makes Wright look like a lamb.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/03/20/opinion/main3955108.shtml

"In the 1940s, The Family reached out to former and not-so-former Nazis, and its fascination with that exemplary leader, Adolf Hitler, has continued, along with ties to a whole bestiary of murderous thugs."

"The Family avoids the word Christian but worships Jesus, though not the Jesus who promised the earth to the 'meek.' They believe that, in mass societies, it's only the elites who matter, the political leaders who can build God's 'dominion' on earth. Insofar as The Family has a consistent philosophy, it's all about power - cultivating it, building it and networking it together into ever-stronger units, or 'cells.'"

Are there facts to back this up? The link is from CBS, but it is a reprint from The Nation, published as an opinion, rather than real news. How can we verify this, and -- if true -- get the word out?

Obama Campaign Defies Laws of Time and Space

Wm — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 19:56:23 EDT

According to Time Magazine, the Obama campaign has found a way to defy the laws of time and space -- answering a Clinton attack two minutes before the attack went out.

http://www.time-blog.com/swampland/2008/03/obama_tax_returns.html

The Clinton email attacked Obama for not releasing all his tax returns. The Obama email announced that they were releasing those tax returns.

"Next step: Walking on water!"

Switching Parties Works Both Ways

Wm — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 16:55:36 EDT

From Andy Tanenbaum's "Vote From Abroad" website:

"Rush Limbaugh's campaign to have Republican reregister as Democrats to vote in the Democratic primaries in order to cause mayhem has sunk in. More than a dozen readers commented on what could happen if John McCain wins the election and Arizona governor Janet Napolitano (D) has to appoint a successor, which according to (probably unconstitutional) state law must be a Republican. Everyone suggested that she could follow the Limbaugh spirit and pick a Democrat (possibly herself) and have that person reregister as a Republican to be appointed to the Senate. After being seated, the person could then switch to being an independent, as Jim Jeffords did. That is probably 100% legal, albeit not quite what the framers of the Arizona law had in mind. Still, politicians do change parties after election. In fact, if the Democrats end up with 57 or 58 seats in the Senate, Harry Reid will no doubt try to entice a couple of moderate Republicans, like Olympia Snowe (R-ME) and Arlen Specter (R-PA) to jump ship.

That said, while probably legal, this would be a dumb thing to do. The new senator would have to stand in a special election in 2010 and the cries of hypocrisy would reach the moon. A better approach would be for Gov. Napolitano to state that the law is unconstitutional, appoint whoever she wants, let that person be sworn in, and defy the Supreme Court to get it reversed."

Foreign Policy - The Obama Doctrine

Wm — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 16:49:12 EDT

Really good article about Obama and his proposed foreign policy.

http://www.prospect.org/cs/articles?article=the_obama_doctrine

"I don't want to just end the war, but I want to end the mind-set that got us into war in the first place."

Just the Facts, Maam

Wm — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 13:25:53 EDT

I bet from the headline, many of you thought that this blog entry was going to be about Clinton getting caught "misspeaking" about her trip to Bosnia. Well, it sort-of is about that.

When that story came out, I saw a bunch of blog posts that accused Clinton of being a liar. She may very well be that, but I think that it is important for us (Obama supporters) to really resist the temptation to call people names.

I know, it is difficult. For me especially. Every time some baseless attack comes out against Obama, I want Obama to fight back. When negative campaigning seems to work, I want Obama to come out with his own negative ads.

Then I take a deep breath. And listen to Obama.

I guess it is a good thing that it is Barack Obama running for president, and not me.

When we call people names, I think it makes us sound just as petty and "willing to do anything to win" as Clinton or the Republicans. It just doesn't work for us. This may be unfair, but we are the people who claim that we want to change politics to something based on hope. We can't have it both ways.

But this doesn't mean that we cannot forcefully answer negative attacks. For example, I think it is important for us to point out that Clinton didn't just misspeak about her trip to Bosnia. It was not a one-time slip of the tongue. She told the same story on more than one occasion, and when Sinbad came out and disputed her claims, he was dismissed by her as "a comedian" and she even repeated her false story. I think we should point out that only when faced with actual video footage that directly contradicted her story did she (finally) retract what she (repeatedly) said. The facts speak strongly; we don't need to call her a liar. After all, if we truly respect the electorate, we have to trust that they can figure this out for themselves.

BTW, here's a good summary of the Bosnia story. Update: Clinton digs herself in even deeper.

So, let's try to avoid getting carried away and saying things we will regret. Gordon Fischer has already apologized for his "stain on a blue dress" comment as "stupid, tasteless, and insensitive". Samantha Power apologized for her "monster" remark. Let's stick to the facts, and let the voters decide. If people are tired of negative politics (and I believe they are) let's give them a great alternative! We're far enough ahead in the delegate count that we can afford to be gracious.

Will Rush Limbaugh Be Indicted for Voter Fraud?

Wm — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 03:01:21 EDT

http://www.alternet.org/democracy/80392/

As I mentioned in an earlier blog entry, Clinton's popular vote advantage in Texas was 109,000 votes, and the Boston Globe estimates (from exit polls) that 119,000 republicans crossed over and voted for Clinton solely for the purpose of prolonging the fight in the democratic party. Much of this was at the urging of Rush Limbaugh, who even bragged after the primary that Hillary Clinton should thank him for helping. Not to mention that Bill Clinton appeared on Rush's show the day of the Texas and Ohio primaries.

The problem with this is that it is illegal. In fact, in Ohio it is a fifth-degree felony, punishable by six to twelve months in jail and a $2,500 fine.

So, how do we make sure that Rush gets indicted? And will the Clintons apologize for their complicity and stop claiming the Texas primary as a victory and Ohio as a "landslide"?

Delegate Count Milestone

Wm — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 16:03:55 EDT

I've been following these two websites for a while, which list (and break down) the delegate and superdelegate tallies:

http://demconwatch.blogspot.com/2008/02/ultimate-delegate-tracker.html
http://demconwatch.blogspot.com/2008/01/superdelegate-list.html

I checked them today, and as usual, Obama leads Clinton (1616 to 1495 including both delegates and superdelegates), but I noticed that we had passed an interesting milestone. Even if you count the Florida and Michigan primaries (which currently don't count), Obama and Clinton would be tied (with 1688 delegates each). So even in the unlikely case that the Florida and Michigan primaries count (and remember that Obama wasn't even on the ballot in Michigan, and didn't campaign in Florida), it would not be enough to give Clinton more delegates.

Of course, there is little chance of the DNC counting the Florida and Michigan primaries as is. After all, Clinton agreed to these rules, and if there is no penalty for a state moving their primary forward, then it will never end (until we start having new primaries right after inauguration day!)

A few more weeks of this, and we won't have to worry about Clinton any more. Even Pennsylvania won't help, and North Carolina will be the last nail in the coffin.

Not to mention that the Clinton campaign is running out of money, while it looks like the Obama campaign is on track to get over 1 million donations during the month of March alone, doubling their total number of contributions (during the time when the media was constantly playing up the video of Jeremiah Wright).

¡VIVA OBAMA!

Wm — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 12:46:46 EDT

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_iCJY8bFUtU

This video is from a month ago, but I love it!

Conservative Love for Obama

Wm — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 01:32:49 EDT

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/frank-schaeffer/this-good-friday-let-us-_b_92645.html

Conservative Frank Schaeffer talks about the bitterness coming from the anti-Obama forces, and how we are missing perhaps our last opportunity for redemption:

"Obama offers civility in the midst of a drunken national bar fight. Obama speaks in complete sentences, well-turned paragraphs, offers thoughts with intellectual depth, nuance, humility and compassion. Obama is a reasoned essay cast before sound-bite swine who seem ready to tear anything that falls into their sty to shreds.

By providence or blind luck, we are being given a second chance. In Obama our founders appear once again stepping from the mists of time to offer a wayward great, great grandchild an opportunity for redemption. But everything is turned on its head. Good is called bad. The greatest things about Obama are used against him, decency and transparency are mocked.

Obama stands in the tradition of our founders, a citizen running for office, not a "professional" striver. But the cry goes up, "He doesn't have the experience!" Experience? At what? Playing games with our country's soul while the only real game in our nation's capitol is hanging on to power, enriching oneself at the political trough through connections, taking us to war after war, making us hated throughout the world by catering to our insatiable, unreasoning fears.

Obama is the man who reaches out to help a dying passerby and the passerby snarls, "What do you really want?" Obama came to us on March, 18 with one of the most generous and brilliant speeches that has been delivered on American soil. He spoke honestly of things all other American leaders have been too timid and self-serving to even mention. Standing behind him were the sprits of countless murdered, enslaved, tortured, lost black Americans. Their blood cries out for revenge and yet Obama offered forgiveness, perspective and understanding.

Obama is not Jesus. Obama makes mistakes. He is rightly self-deprecating. Nevertheless, imperfect as he is, Obama is offering America a fresh start. There is more decent intelligent authenticity in his little finger than the Clintons will ever know. There is more kind wisdom in Obama than in all our sneering bloodsucking moronic media combined. But we have imbibed detritus for so long that when clean food is offered we can't taste it.

This isn't about politics. I'm a fifty-five year old white man who has been a conservative all my life. I've been a right wing Republican activist. I'm a big fan of the military. If Obama can reach out to me he can reach out to anyone. He can win in November."

"If we squander this undeserved reprieve and choose business-as-usual, if we don't elevate ourselves out of our self-made mire, we will step into a future of steep and steady decline and war without end. It won't matter if you are right or left. It won't matter if the Republicans or the Democratic Party wins. We will all lose."

"Obama is worth fighting for. ... Do we have the decency, the sense, the last glimmer of sanity needed to open our hearts to change?"

Eisenhower and Nixon for Obama

Wm — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 08:30:27 EDT

http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/03/23/america/letter.php

Good quote from David Eisenhower, whose grandfather was Dwight Eisenhower, former president and supreme allied commander in WWII. David Eisenhower teaches a class at the University of Pennsylvania on American political speeches. Talking about Obama's recent speech on Race and Unity, David said:

"It was a very powerful speech. Obama gives a very compelling reason as to why this is his time."

Not only was David's grandfather a Republican president, but he is married to Julie Nixon Eisenhower, the daughter of president Richard Nixon. But last month this lifelong Republican family gave $2000 to Obama.

Mosaic image of Obama!

Wm — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 07:57:20 EDT

http://www.flickr.com/photos/tsevis/2279253649/

Wonderful mosaic image of Barack Obama, made up of photos of We the People!

Obama vs. Clinton, what's the difference?

Wm — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 00:43:46 EDT

Video of Barack Obama in Salem, OR, answering the question of what to tell your friends when they ask why they should vote for Obama instead of Clinton.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8qUoN-fjvLY

Beautiful account from someone who attended the event in Salem, and her brief conversation with Obama afterwards.

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/3/22/04155/3116/67/481985

"At the close of the questions ... I made a beeline for the state barrier with my daughters, hoping for a handshake. I got a lot more.

As Obama worked his way down the line, he efficiently glad-handed, smiled and thanked supporters for coming. ... I reached out to shake his hand saying, "Senator Obama, please talk more about the economy and the mortgage crisis. My mother is losing her home to foreclosure." Obama stopped in front of me, still holding my hand. "What is the situation, how did it happen?" he asked. "She is moving in with us," I responded, "She got into a bad loan, high rates, and couldn’t keep going when the economy tanked." He asked, "Have you been able to get any help locally?" "No." I said. Obama then talked about a number of non-profit organizations that could assist with the situation, and wished us luck in getting things settled. And he thanked me for coming out today. All the while, he held my hand, looked me right in the eye, and really listened. It was really amazing. I was teary-eyed and a bit shell-shocked when it was over. "

Thank Bill Richardson

Wm — Sat, 22 Mar 2008 23:36:11 EDT

Here is a page on Bill Richardson's website that you can use to send him a thank-you note for endorsing Barack Obama. His endorsement took guts, and we should let him know we have his back.

http://www.governor.state.nm.us/email.php?mm=6&type=opinion

¡Si Se Puede!

Wonderful Ad made by "3 am girl"

Wm — Sat, 22 Mar 2008 02:44:39 EDT

You owe it to yourself to watch this lovely campaign ad, made by the Obama supporter whose old footage was used in Clinton's "3 am" ad.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXmYVRIpu2w

"I'm Casey Knowles, and I approve this message, and not the other one."

The Day Hillary Clinton Knew She Had Lost

Wm — Sat, 22 Mar 2008 02:30:54 EDT

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/paul-jenkins/the-day-hillary-clinton-k_b_92821.html?view=print

Obama Rally

Wm — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 16:30:21 EDT

My wife and I attended the Obama Rally in Portland this morning, and it was GREAT! Especially fun to see Obama so soon after his historic speech. And Bill Richardson was an added bonus. I especially enjoyed the story Richardson told about the debates -- got a great laugh from the crowd.

There was one thing that Obama said that really resonated with me. I can't remember the exact words, but it was something along the lines that nobody is perfect. All of us have the potential to do bad things. Given the right circumstances, each of us has the capability to do evil. As he reminded us, even Obama is not immune.

This is something that has been a guiding principle in my life -- to recognize that I am capable of doing evil. Only by recognizing that fact can I hope to have any chance of doing the right thing. People who feel they are always right (including people who feel like they have God on their side) always make me nervous, for this reason. It was good to hear Obama discuss this in public, not just because I agree with him, but because it is not the kind of thing a typical politician can discuss in public, especially when they are trying to get elected.

But we all know that Obama is not a typical politician. And that is precisely why he needs to be our next president.

Richardson Endorses Obama!

Wm — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 09:08:25 EDT

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5gIWF-cWWTIzLwKoOVfi50PnqNM0wD8VHLSSO0

"I believe he is the kind of once-in-a-lifetime leader that can bring our nation together and restore America's moral leadership in the world," Richardson said in a statement obtained by the AP. "As a presidential candidate, I know full well Sen. Obama's unique moral ability to inspire the American people to confront our urgent challenges at home and abroad in a spirit of bipartisanship and reconciliation."

And it looks like Richardson will be with Obama at the Rally in Portland this morning. On my way there now!

Bush Says He Lets Red Phone Go Straight to Voicemail

Wm — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 22:26:50 EDT

President George W. Bush commented on Sen. Hillary Clinton's controversial "red phone" campaign ads at the White House today, telling reporters, "When that red phone rings, I just let it go straight to voicemail."

President Bush rarely comments about the Democratic presidential contest, but he said that he had to speak up about Clinton's red phone ads because he found them "so confusing."

"If I answered the red phone every time it rang, I would never get any sleep," Bush said. "Sometimes it starts ringing at 9 p.m., and I am already tucked in by then."

Bush said that "there's nothing so important that it can't wait until tomorrow, or whenever I remember to check my voicemail."

In a rebuke of Clinton, President Bush added, "If she doesn't know about letting your calls go straight to voicemail, I don't think she has the experience to be president."

Campaigning in Pittsburgh, former President Bill Clinton took issue with Bush's remarks, telling reporters, "When I get a call at 3 a.m., I always pick up, if you know what I mean."

Shortly after making his remarks, the Clinton campaign said that they were revising the former president's itinerary to focus on states that had already voted in February.

Elsewhere, Sen. John McCain released a new series of campaign ads, showing him answering a telegraph key at 3 a.m.

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Award-winning humorist, television personality and film actor Andy Borowitz is author of the book "The Republican Playbook," published in October 2007. To find out more about Andy Borowitz and read his past columns, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/uc/20080308/cm_uc_crabox/op_475477;_ylt=AmW7uqcqRkkMlQ.hJ9SIda9xFb8C