David Corn

"When you've lived in a box....you put your people first."

That does say it all!

Every homeless person living in a box should BE the next president.

McCain was a POW? THAT is news! Who would have thought.

Senator McCain are you qualified to be president?

McCain: "No but I stayed at the Hanoi Hilton for five years!"

lol

Thanks for all of your work and thanks for enduring the speech so I didn't have to.

No Questions, Please. We'll Tell You What You Need To Know.

According to Nicole Wallace of the McCain campaign, the American people don't care whether Sarah Palin can answer specific questions about foreign and domestic policy. According to Wallace -- in an appearance I did with her this morning on Joe Scarborough's show -- the American people will learn all they need to know (and all they deserve to know) from Palin's scripted speeches and choreographed appearances on the campaign trail and in campaign ads. Here's the exchange:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LhgUvX_8Joo

Wallace's bash-the-media exercise has its merits as a campaign tactic. It certainly rallies the base. But the base won't lift McCain to 50% in November. More importantly, in her smug dismissal of the media's role in asking questions of the candidates, Wallace was really showing contempt not for reporters, but for voters. I bet there are a lot of undecided voters out there who were intrigued by Sarah Palin last night, but who don't yet know enough about her -- what she believes, what she knows -- to be comfortable with the idea of her as vice president of the United States. It's important to them to know if Palin can handle herself in an environment that isn't controlled and sanitized by campaign image makers and message mavens. Maybe she can, maybe she can't. As far as Wallace is concerned, it's none of their -- or your -- business.

(Time.com)

*****

They will submit Sarah "Peggy Hill" Palin to some BS softball interview on "FAUX Spews" and claim she has talked to the "press."

Too predictable.

Arianna Huffington: McCain is Running on the Amnesia Platform, But It's Democrats Who Need to Forget Sarah Palin

During his acceptance speech, John McCain had some very strong criticism of his opponent. I'm not talking about Barack Obama; I'm talking about George Bush. After rushing headlong into the embrace of Bush and the Rovian wing of the GOP, McCain has now decided that he desperately needs to distance himself and try to reclaim the maverick mantel. Not an easy thing to do when you have sided with Bush 90 percent of the time. But McCain gave it his best shot, claiming: "We need to change the way government does almost everything." Listening to the speech, you'd think it was the Democrats who occupied the White House the last seven-plus years and it was time to throw the bastards out.

*****

At least he got the "throw the bastards out" right.

Political Wire:

We've now heard McCain's personal story as a prisoner of war dozens of times in just three days and he included again in his speech. It's truly inspiring. No one would ever doubt that McCain loves his country.

But no matter the content, McCain had serious delivery problems with this speech. Starting with the awful lime green background (that later turned to blue) and continuing through McCain's difficulties reading from the teleprompter, the speech was very disjointed and hard to follow. To top it off, the crowd reaction at the end of the speech seemed forced and staged, almost like delegates were reacting to flashing "applause" signs at the side of the stage.

Overall, it was a very mediocre performance. I'm not sure it got the job done.

Too funny:

John Bush is his own man?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T6ZnHTWWErM

An essay from both candidates to the next generation.

Some good stuff.

http://www.tolerance.org/teach/magazine/index.jsp

ABOUT McCAIN

I saw the 'Maverick' McCain tribute video. They left out the part about his napalming asian men, women and children basically because they were asian. Also not mentioned was the incident when as a USN pilot he almost singlehandedly took out an aircraft carrier. Unfortunately it was one of ours.

When dad was mentioned in the video, Four Star Admiral John S. McCain Jr., his ramrodding the coverup of the Israeli attack on a basically unarmed USS Liberty in June 1967 during The Six Days War is not noted.

Google - Admiral John S. McCain Jr. USS Liberty cover up

http://tinyurl.com/6ya454

You libs a screwed and you know it. The GOP VP candidate has more governing experience than the guy at the top of your ticket (community organizer? wooo hooo!!!). Where is Hillary when you need her?

YOUR party was the one who didn't properly vet. Only it was your pres candidate who wasn't vetted. Promising to be Santa Claus to all of your constituents only goes so far.

""The GOP VP candidate has more governing experience than the guy at the top of your [libs'] ticket""

sure!
palin has been gov for just slightly longer than obama has been running for president.

-----
family values!

http://tinyurl.com/6aaxoc

sure!
palin has been gov for just slightly longer than obama has been running for president.

Correct, and that's all he's done is run for president, ever since he was elected to the US Senate.

It looks like the GOP's efforts to persuade the public that the press has been out to "destroy" Sarah Palin are a bit of a bust. Check out these numbers buried in the internals of the new ABC News poll:

Overall, do you think the news coverage of Palin has been fair or unfair?
Fair 50%

Unfair 41%

(via TPM)

It is ironic that McCain wants to keep Sarah Palin away from the Press, but Sarah Palin is a Celebrity now and just like Paris Hilton and Britney Spears will be pursued by the Press and paparazzi! As you can see, Sentaor McCain, what goes around, Comes Around --God's Hand of Judgment is Swift!

And, You know, Jesus was a Community Organizer and Pilate was a Governor (Hah!) so was George Bush, so much for Executive Experience...

Yes, Barack worked as a community organizer but he also worked as a civil rights lawyer, taught constitutional law, 8 years as a Legislature in the state legislature, and 4 years in the US Senate where he is currently a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee with Joe Biden (an almost carbon copy resume to the great, Abraham Lincoln, America's Greatest President)! He is more than qualified to lead and bring true and positive change to this nation. Barack Obama is looking forward and wants to talk about the Future and not about the Past!

"Breaking News.....
We will have breaking news regarding an ongoing story around 10am Alaska time on Friday......"
AndrewHalcro.com, Alaskan Blogger

"He is more than qualified to lead and bring true and positive change to this nation. "

Still not one mention of an actual accomlishment in government.

Also, your Jesus/Pilot comment has already rolled off the Dem talking points sheet. Very weak. Don't really think Jesus would be for killing living babies after a botched abortion.

an American attack on Iran is imminent. Dutch intelligence service reportedly has pulled out of a covert operation inside Iran on the grounds that a U.S. strike is right around the corner – in "a matter of weeks," according to De Telegraaf, a Dutch newspaper.

As the story goes, the Dutch had infiltrated the purported Iranian weapons project and were firmly ensconced when they got word that the Americans are about to launch a missile attack on Iranian nuclear facilities. They wisely decided to close down the operation and pull out.

http://www.antiwar.com/justin/?articleid=13401

The GOP have shot themselves in both feet by running with a neophyte unknown and unqualified candidate.

The "keep her from the press" is very telling indeed.

I wonder if it will work?

You guys are unbelievable. IT'S BEEN ONE DAY and you claim she's been kept from the press.

More Dem talking points.

Evolutionists Flock To Darwin-Shaped Wall Stain

DAYTON, TN—A steady stream of devoted evolutionists continued to gather in this small Tennessee town today to witness what many believe is an image of Charles Darwin—author of The Origin Of Species and founder of the modern evolutionary movement—made manifest on a concrete wall in downtown Dayton.

"I brought my baby to touch the wall, so that the power of Darwin can purify her genetic makeup of undesirable inherited traits," said Darlene Freiberg, one among a growing crowd assembled here to see the mysterious stain, which appeared last Monday on one side of the Rhea County Courthouse. The building was also the location of the famed "Scopes Monkey Trial" and is widely considered one of Darwinism's holiest sites. "Forgive me, O Charles, for ever doubting your Divine Evolution. After seeing this miracle of limestone pigmentation with my own eyes, my faith in empirical reasoning will never again be tested."

Added Freiberg, "Behold the power and glory of the scientific method!"

http://www.theonion.com/content/node/85766

McCain Camp Says Palin Won't Talk To Media During Campaign

According to Nicole Wallace of the McCain campaign, the American people don't care whether Sarah Palin can answer specific questions about foreign and domestic policy. According to Wallace -- in an appearance I did with her this morning on Joe Scarborough's show -- the American people will learn all they need to know (and all they deserve to know) from Palin's scripted speeches and choreographed appearances on the campaign trail and in campaign ads.

http://tinyurl.com/567upl

*****
I think it is a McCain talking point? Or a McCain "she will not talk" ing point?

"Get the facts, or the facts will get you. And when you get them, get them right, or they will get you wrong."

~ Dr. Thomas Fuller (1654 - 1734), Gnomologia, 1732

More "facts"

"Mittens" Romney said: "We need change, all right change from a liberal Washington to a conservative Washington! We have a prescription for every American who wants change in Washington throw out the big-government liberals, and elect John McCain and Sarah Palin."

Facts:

George W. Bush, a conservative Republican, has been president for nearly eight years. And until last year, Republicans controlled Congress. The mess this country is in is due to Republican negligence and abuse! Only since January 2007 have "liberal" Democrats have been in charge of the House and Senate, resisted at every turn by conservative Republican obstructionists . We need change all right - we need to throw out the conservative Republicans in Washington!

Mike Huckabee said:

Palin "got more votes running for mayor of Wasilla, Alaska than Joe Biden got running for president of the United States."

Facts:

Huckabee's nose must have just grown 10 feet!. Palin got 616 votes in the 1996 mayor's election, and got 909 in her 1999 re-election race, for a total of 1,525. Biden dropped out of the race after the Iowa caucuses, but he still got 76,165 votes in 23 states and the District of Columbia where he was on the ballot during the 2008 presidential primaries.

*****

The GOPhers are just not fact based. (that means they lie)

McCain said of Palin:

"She's the commander of the Alaska National Guard. ... She has been in charge, and she has had national security as one of her primary responsibilities".

Facts:

A governor's authority over their state's National Guard units ends whenever those units are called to actual military service. Guard units that are deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan, for example, assume those duties under "federal status," which means they report to the Defense Department, not their governors.

McCain also said of Palin:

"She's been governor of our largest state, in charge of 20 percent of America's energy supply ... She's responsible for 20 percent of the nation's energy supply. I'm entertained by the comparison and I hope we can keep making that comparison that running a political campaign is somehow comparable to being the executive of the largest state in America".

Facts:

McCain is clearly exaggerating and attempting to mislead. When it comes to population, Alaska is the 47th largest state. It is only the largest state in America if you are talking about geographical size. The population of Alaska is smaller than that of most major American cities.

Palin said:

"The Democratic nominee for president supports plans to raise income taxes, raise payroll taxes, raise investment income taxes, raise the death tax, raise business taxes, and increase the tax burden on the American people by hundreds of billions of dollars."

FACTS:

Obama's plan would provide $80 billion in tax breaks, mainly for poor workers and the elderly, including tripling the Earned Income Tax Credit for minimum-wage workers and higher credits for larger families.

Obama also would raise income taxes, capital gains and dividend taxes on the wealthiest. He would raise payroll taxes on taxpayers with incomes above $250,000, and he would raise corporate taxes. Small businesses that make more than $250,000 a year would see taxes rise.

Palin said:

"I have protected the taxpayers by vetoing wasteful spending ... and championed reform to end the abuses of earmark spending by Congress. I told the Congress 'thanks but no thanks' for that Bridge to Nowhere.

Facts:

While Palin says that she rejected plans to build a $398 million bridge from Ketchikan to an island with 50 residents and an airport, that opposition came only after the plan was ridiculed nationally as a "bridge to nowhere". She also ended up accepting those Federal monies. In her two years as governor, Alaska has requested nearly $750 million in special federal spending, by far the largest per-capita request in the nation. As mayor of Wasilla, Palin hired a lobbyist and traveled to Washington annually to support earmarks for the town totaling $27 million.

Palin said:

"There is much to like and admire about our opponent. But listening to him speak, it's easy to forget that this is a man who has authored two memoirs but not a single major law or reform _ not even in the state senate."

Facts:

Obama has authored several pieces of legislation. From Wikipedia:

1. Obama cosponsored the Secure America and Orderly Immigration Act

2. Obama introduced two initiatives bearing his name: "Lugar–Obama," which expanded the Nunn–Lugar cooperative threat reduction concept to conventional weapons,

3. the "Coburn–Obama Transparency Act," which authorized the establishment of www.USAspending.gov, a web search engine.

4. Obama sponsored legislation requiring nuclear plant owners to notify state and local authorities of radioactive leaks.

5. In December 2006, President Bush signed into law the "Democratic Republic of the Congo Relief, Security, and Democracy Promotion Act," marking the first federal legislation to be enacted with Obama as its primary sponsor.

6. In January 2007, Obama co-sponsored the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act, which was signed into law in September 2007.

7. He introduced S. 453, a bill to criminalize deceptive practices in federal elections.

8. Obama also introduced the Iraq War De-Escalation Act of 2007.

9. Later in 2007, Obama sponsored an amendment to the Defense Authorization Act adding safeguards for personality disorder military discharges.

10. He sponsored the "Iran Sanctions Enabling Act" supporting divestment of state pension funds from Iran's oil and gas industry, and co-sponsored legislation to reduce risks of nuclear terrorism.

11. Obama also sponsored a Senate amendment to the State Children's Health Insurance Program providing one year of job protection for family members caring for soldiers with combat-related injuries.

The Republicans are resorting to lies and insults because they cannot run on their record (a record of destroying this country for the last 8 years).

******

Anything from the Reich-wingnuttia?

(crickets chirping)

But but but, can Obama hunt moose?

lololololololo

A pretty good video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Svmd6ps1BMc

"I think it is a McCain talking point? Or a McCain "she will not talk" ing point?"

Wallace sets Palin's interviews?

So I guess the VP debate will be scripted. If I were a lib I would be petrified of Obama unscripted in a debate. He's lost without a teleprompter. Something Palin overcame without any problem.

Nicole Wallace is a McCain campaign spokesperson.

I'm sure she is a liar but I think she does speak for the McCain camp.

The only question is will the media give Sarah "Peggy Hill" Palin a pass when nobody knows anything about her?

Time will tell, eh?

Senate Dems to force equal pay vote on McCain

Democrats have hammered Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) this summer over his vote against legislation pushing equal pay for women and men. The Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act will get a second act in September, as Democrats seek to remind voters that McCain opposed it, according to an e-mail from the Democratic Senate message center. It lists "[e]qual pay legislation" as among the issues the Senate will take up in September.

http://tinyurl.com/6evplt

*****

Maybe McC(ompl)ain will put his money where his lies have been this week and vote FOR equal pay?

Some of the comedy about Palin, some very funny stuff!

http://tinyurl.com/5wnkkq

*warning this video will make you snarf on the keyboard*

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6xR-_fvUOY

lol

"The Republicans are resorting to lies and insults because they cannot run on their record (a record of destroying this country for the last 8 years)."

Palin used the word "major" for a reason. The 11items Obama has sponsored (which does not neccessarily mean authored) are astounding in their insignificance.

"The recipe for perpetual ignorance is: be satisfied with your opinions and content with your knowledge."

~ Elbert Hubbard (1856 - 1915)

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The unemployment rate soared to a nearly five-year high in August as employers trimmed jobs for the eighth straight month, the government reported Friday.

The unemployment rate rose to 6.1%, the highest level since September 2003. That's up from 5.7% in July and 4.7% a year ago.

In addition, the economy suffered a net loss of 84,000 jobs in August, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, compared to a revised reading of a 60,000 job loss in July.

The U.S. economy has lost 605,000 jobs so far this year.

"Maybe McC(ompl)ain will put his money where his lies have been this week and vote FOR equal pay?"

Twenty-one States have already adopted equal pay laws. In addition, many collective bargaining agreements covering thousands of workers contain equal pay clauses and others are being negotiated each day. Many employers located in States without equal pay laws and not covered by union contracts have voluntarily established the equal pay principle as a part of their personnel policies.

Unneccessary legislation - just like hate crimes legislation, the feel good law of the left. The death penalty or life in prison is not enough for someone convicted of murder. If we can read the perps mind and determine he did it because he hated the vic, maybe we should torture him before he goes to prison.

"The unemployment rate rose to 6.1%, the highest level since September 2003. That's up from 5.7% in July and 4.7% a year ago."

Wow! And all of this occurred right after the minimum wage increases began. What a coincidence! Another example of unintended consequences of liberal ideas.

Obama Camp Has Now Raised More Than $10 Million Since Palin Speech

The cash keeps flowing in to the Obama campaign in the wake of Sarah Palin's speech, suggesting that whatever effect she's had on the GOP base has been duplicated on the Democratic side.

Obama spokesperson Tommy Vietor confirms that the campaign has now pulled in over $10 million since her speech -- a "one day record," Vietor says.

"I hope she gives a speech every day," Vietor joked.

Separately, the RNC reportedly raised $1 million after the speech.

http://tinyurl.com/5tm6gg

*****

Not what the GOP had intended, eh?

"Obama Camp Has Now Raised More Than $10 Million Since Palin Speech"

Wait, didn't Obama lie about taking only public funding? Yeah, I think he did.

http://sendables.jibjab.com/

Very funny stuff!

FOX Attacks Obama Like Kerry

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lM3oww9Vk-c

The retread BS ain't selling this election cycle.

McCain 42% - Obama 42%

Obama should be 15 points ahead with all of the MSM in the tank for him. Dem convention bump disappears in the blink of an eye.

Troopergate trooper speaks:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7YWNKj3Y50

Hmmmm?

"Troopergate trooper speaks:"

Is this the same guy who tazered his 10 yr old stepson and made death threats to Palin's dad?

I trust what he says, how about you?

Poll: Half say Palin isn't experienced enough to be president

A new poll out from ABC News shows that Americans haven't yet fully bought in to the arguments about Sarah Palin's experience that Republicans have been making this week.

Pollsters found that a majority of respondents think Democratic vice-presidential nominee Joe Biden has the experience necessary to be an effective president; 66 percent said he does, while 21 percent said he doesn't and 13 percent had no opinion. Only 42 percent said Palin has the requisite experience, while 50 percent said she doesn't and 7 percent had no opinion.

Come on, people -- don't you realize she's from a really big state?

http://www.salon.com/politics/war_room/

*****

Maybe McCain should reconsider keeping Palin from the media? People will never vote for an unknown, not even lock-step lemming GOPhers.

Quiz: Palin or Bush?

See if you know your hockey mom from your Dubya.

http://tinyurl.com/5rarz7

*****

Then again, I understand why the McCain camp wouldn't want Sarahcudda speaking to the press.

If people can't tell any difference between her and Bunnypants - she too will get approval numbers in the twenties.

"Joe Biden has the experience necessary to be an effective president; 66 percent said he does, while 21 percent said he doesn't and 13 percent had no opinion. Only 42 percent said Palin has the requisite experience, while 50 percent said she doesn't and 7 percent had no opinion."

The important question is about Obama's experience, not Biden's. You seem to keep forgetting that Obama is at the top of your ticket. Palin is the GOP's VP selection. BIG difference.

Fired Commissioner: Palin Hasn't Been Truthful on Trooper-Gate

It looks like the figure at the center of the Trooper-Gate probe thinks Sarah Palin hasn't been entirely honest about her involvement in the matter.

Walt Monegan, the former Alaska public safety commissioner, told ABC News today: "I think there are some questions now that, coming to light about how transparent and how honest she wants to be," Monegan said.

Monegan also said, as he has before, that he believes he was fired because of his reluctance to fire Mike Wooten, a state trooper who was embroiled in a bitter dispute with Palin's family.

http://tinyurl.com/5eebhy

*****

The GOPhers should be pissed that McCain didn't vet this loser. She has some major problems coming down the pike. It will be too funny if she ends up indicted before the election!

lololololo

Archives of Alaska Papers Reveal Disturbing -- And Goofy -- Details from Palin's Past

NEW YORK The McCain team may not have vetted Sarah Palin with boots on the ground in Alaska, but the Democrats sure did -- two years ago when she ran for governor. The oppo-research, compiled in a 62-page document with countless summaries or direct quotes, largely from local newspapers, covers all of the important issues you would expect to see, from her views on abortion and abstinence to tangled oil pipeline questions.

But it also gets into some quirky, if revealing, areas as well, such as Palin founding a company called "Rouge Cru" -- what she called a "classy" way to say redneck -- in case her political career didn't work out a few years ago.

Politico.com obtained a copy and printed merely a handful of the hundreds of findings on Tuesday. These included serious matters such as her use of the mayor's office in political campaigns. But it also posted a PDF of the entire document which few have probably examined. Here some of the more outrageous, or surprising, revelations -- strictly from newspaper clips. They are posted here under their heading in the document. Note: The Frontiersman is the local paper in Wasilla.

[snip]

LYING

Palin Exaggerated Work Experience for Mayoral Campaign. In 1997, Frontiersman columnist Paul Stuart wrote that after Palin had criticized her opponent for using City Hall resources for political gain, "when Palin was asked back then (by me) why the lodge where she claimed, in her campaign, to have gained her management experience, had no record of a borough business license or of paying any bed tax, she paused and said it might have been because the place had no clients for a year or so." In an article describing the possibility of recalling Palin, the Frontiersman wrote the "reasons include Palin's alleged falsification of her credentials during the campaign last fall." [Frontiersman, 1/22/97, 2/5/97]

Frontiersman Editorial Said Palin Made Statements That Were "Patently Untrue," Said She Had Shown "Unrepentant Backpedaling and Incessant Whining." A Frontiersman editorial wrote, "Wasilla residents have been subjected to attempts to unlawfully appoint council members, statements that have been shown to be patently untrue, unrepentant backpedaling, and incessant whining that her only enemies are the press and a few disgruntled supporters of former Mayor John Stein." [Frontiersman editorial, 2/7/97]

Frontiersman Editorial: Palin Doesn't Grasp the Truth. A Frontiersman editorial wrote, "Mayor Palin fails to have a firm grasp of something very simple: the truth." [Frontiersman editorial, 2/7/97]

http://tinyurl.com/6hd2g8

Palin's stall

Governor is stonewalling the Troopergate investigation

Gov. Sarah Palin is taking the wrong approach to Troopergate. She should be practicing the open and transparent, ethical and accountable government she promised when running for governor and boasts about now that she's on the national stage

http://www.adn.com/opinion/view/story/516641.html

If Palin has nothing to hide she had better open up everything - less than 60 days before an election - stonewalling will cook her books.

Of course, if she has something to hide she could try to run out the clock - I doubt it will work.

Running out the clock will make her look guilty even if she isn't.

[...]

The Legislature's investigation is supposed to be wrapped up by Oct. 31. That's obviously poor timing from the standpoint of the McCain-Palin presidential campaign, coming just a few days before the national election.

Instead of trying to delay the whole thing, Palin should take a cue from U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens, who asked that his corruption trial be moved up so it would be completed well ahead of the November general election. Voters deserve to know the outcome of Sen. Stevens trial and the investigation into Palin.

When this investigation into Troopergate started, Gov. Palin's response was refreshingly open. Since she became the Republican candidate for vice president, her approach has changed for the worse. America deserves the same openness and ethics from vice-presidential candidate Palin that she promised to Alaska voters in 2006.

http://www.adn.com/opinion/view/story/516641.html

Investigation into Palin Now on Fast Track

Sources Tell ABC News that Report Will Be Released Almost Three Weeks Early

ABC News has exclusively learned that Alaska Senator Hollis French will announce today that he is moving up the release date of his investigation into whether Gov. Sarah Palin abused her office to get the Alaska public safety commissioner, Walt Monegan, fired. The results of the investigation were originally scheduled for release Oct. 31 but will now come almost three weeks earlier, according to sources.

The announcement is set for 9 a.m. AKDT time.

The Alaska state senator running an investigation of Gov. Palin had accused the McCain campaign of using stall tactics to prevent him from releasing his final report by Oct. 31, four days before the November election.

"It's likely to be damaging to the Governor's administration," said Senator Hollis French, a Democrat, appointed the project manager for a bi-partisan State Senate Legislative Counsel Committee investigation.

Palin, who has denied any wrongdoing and has said she has nothing to hide, has hired private lawyers to represent her in the matter.

http://www.abcnews.go.com/print?id=5734511

*****

It would have looked better if she called for it but the fact that she needed to lawyer-up is troubling for most people.

Wow, out of 54 posts, more than 30 are capt's!!!!!! lololo

I love the smell of DESPERATION in the afternoon.

"Troopergate trooper speaks:"

Is this the same guy who tazered his 10 yr old stepson and made death threats to Palin's dad?

I trust what he says, how about you?
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
It seems clear that she tried to get this trooper fired, and it seems pretty clear on paper that this guy really shouldn't be a trooper. Having said that....

The way I understand it is that she didn't succeed when she tried going through Commissioner Wooten - and I think there is proof beyond a doubt she tried to influence the commissioner to fire the trooper - so she fired Wooten and then she succeeded to get the commissioner to fire the trooper, right? I think that if Commissioner Wooten wasn't doing his job because he was letting a bad person remain on the job as Trooper, then it would seem right to fire him for not firing the trooper, wouldn't it? If it was legal then why lie and say he was fired for other reasons? And if the commissioner wasn't fired because she tried to get the trooper fired and he wouldn't do it, then so what? If it's not illegal to pressure the commissioner to fire someone, then what's the big deal?

Unless... It's illegal for her or someone from her office to pressure the commissioner to fire someone...then maybe I could see what the hubbub is all about.

So what to do? On paper, this trooper doesn't look like he should be allowed to have a gun. They say he was reprimanded for all of the things she says he did - I guess before she was even in office. So it seems that legally, he can't be fired. I bet there are a lot of police that shouldn't be on the job - there have to be legal ways to protect the public from them.

So, should governors have the ability to have someone fired that they know shouldn't be on the job, with a gun? If yes, get the law changed. I'm all for that. But work within the law. Pressuring the commissioner when it is not legal to do so - and really, I kind of understand why she did it, I'm not getting down on her for that, except that it was illegal.

As a governor, she should be setting an example of working within the law to get things done. If she felt she should have been able to fire the trooper, or have him fired, then she should have tried to have the law changed. Since she took powers into her own hands, then she should suffer the consequences.

"On the issue of 'experience' - here's a very interesting finding:

Even though Palin is the vice-presidential nominee, voters are fairly evenly divided as to whether Palin or Obama has the better experience to be president. "

Too funny - lololo!!!

"According to a poll from Rasmussen Reports, Governor Palin is now more popular than Democratic rock star, Obama. "

Palin explained why she couldn't run for the Senate in 2004..."A hockey mom and a former standout athlete herself, Palin said she understood her son's concerns. 'How could I be the team mom if I was a U.S. senator?' she said." [Anchorage Daily News (Alaska), 4/24/04]

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
So it's ok to use the kids when she doesn't want to run for National Office, like a US Senator, but when she does want to run for VP, it's sexist to ask about the kids?

Huh?

The "job" numbers will be revised next month. It will sound better. The old tricks are not working these days.

The revised uptick will not be enough to make the numbers positive but the M$M will be saying as much.

Don't you find it odd that the "Country First" crowd always wants their taxes to be cut first before anything else? Looks to me like they are the "My Pocketbook First Party".

If they we're really for "Country First" they would want us to be strong internally and build up our infrastructure, educate our children, have a healthy populace and be a peace loving nation. But they don't.

Phil Gramm was right, and prophetic. Despite all their rhetoric, the McCain party is just a bunch of whiners looking to avoid responsibility for what they have created.

[...]

French says the McCain campaign failed to contact any of the Senators involved in the investigation during the vetting process of Gov. Palin.

"If they had done their job they never would have picked her," said French. "Now they may have to deal with an October surprise," he said, referring to the scheduled release Oct. 31 of the committee's final report.

Meanwhile, at a campaign stop today in Philadelphia, McCain told reporters that Palin was thoroughly checked out by his staff before being tapped.

"My vetting process was completely thorough and I'm grateful for the results," said McCain.

The report is a preliminary step prior to any effort to impeach the Governor, said French.

"That will be for the legislature to decide," he said.

McCain campaign officials say they were aware of the "trooper thing" but did not consider it an impediment to her selection as the running mate.

http://tinyurl.com/64ss7l

*****

Being impeached will not be an impediment but can you imagine the press if she was impeached or indicted?

I think she is going to have to face the press. I doubt the M$M will ask much of her.

One thing that I have not heard - this is the first broadband presidency for all intents and purposes.

People from both sides are better informed (or better misinformed) and the impact will be against the lies and negative BS.

I hope Obama stays positive. McCain's train already left that station, if he tries the pivot he will look like he is capitulating style-wise to Barack.

" the McCain party is just a bunch of whiners looking to avoid responsibility for what they have created. "

Yeah, what ever happened to responsibility? Personal, political, philosophically responsibility for the mismanagement of our country 20 of the last 28 years?

The one liner that drives it home is "22 million jobs" under Clinton. It isn't even populism or liberalism it is just the numbers.

Hey capt,

When the Obama speech outdrew the number of viewers for the Olympics, you posted the fact NUMEROUS times, referencing this as a sign of a clear victory in sight for Barry.

Now that McCain has outdrawn BOTH the Olympics AND OBAMA (with fewer broadcasters - Telemundo and Univision were absent, for example - and no styrafoam columns), is this a clear sign of victory for McCain/Palin?

Just askin'

Cheers
does this have the same significanc

Palin Media Avoidance Watch, Day Seven

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin was named to the Republican ticket one week ago, and she has yet to answer questions from reporters.

Yes, some of the comments from the punditocracy about her have been untoward, even sexist, but given the importance of the job she accepted Wednesday night in her nomination speech, it's entirely reasonable for voters to expect Palin to answer questions from journalists about her positions and her record.

If Sens. Barack Obama, D-Ill., or Joe Biden, D-Del., refused to answer questions from the press, the RNC and the McCain campaign would never stop carping about it -- and rightly so.

In fact, they have done so in the past when Obama has gone several days without talking to the media.

So what are we to expect from Gov. Palin?

Time magazine's Jay Carney tried to get McCain spox Nicolle Wallace to answer this question the other night.

Watch HERE.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LhgUvX_8Joo&e

****

Kinda like the "clocks" they harped on about Obama? Again I think the law of unintended consequences applies.

I think the McCain camp has PO'ed some in the media. It is historically a losing strategy.

The VA Continues to Abandon Returning Vets

"Supporting the troops" only applies until they actually come home from war.

http://www.alternet.org/waroniraq/97284/

*****

Where the heck is congress on this? Don't tell me Pelosi has taken the VA and healthcare for the troops "off the table" too?

We have to do better.

The parade of Barack Hussein Obama's FELONIOUS FRIENDS continues, as Kwame Kilpatrick cops a plea and resigns.

Obama said about Kilpatrick, “I’m grateful to call him a friend.”

You can know a man's character by the people he surrounds himself with -

Ayers, Rezko, Wright, Pfleger, Kilpatrick , etc. !!!!!

I wonder if any imaginative reporter will connect the dots between Cheney taking a billion dollars to give to Georgia while the VA has to beg for a few hundred million to properly care for our returning vets?

I would like that question asked of any politician from any party. Seems like screwing over the vets is a bipartisan issue.

Gallup says:

Support for Obama since just before the Democratic National Convention kicked off on Aug. 25 has ranged from 44% to 50%, while McCain's support has ranged from 41% to 46%. Whereas the race was initially tied at 45%, Obama pulled into an eight-point lead at several points over the course of his convention. It now appears the Republican National Convention may be helping McCain to recoup some of his losses, though with Obama's current four-point lead, the entire convention period to this point has still been a net plus for Obama.

******

Still pollstrology - but interesting just the same.

""You can know a man's character by the people he surrounds himself with""

http://tinyurl.com/4mermj

http://tinyurl.com/64fomn

Are we better off?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UBHuhg8Q5-g

Media Matters reports:

During their September 2 and September 3 coverage of the Republican National Convention, MSNBC, CNN, and Fox News each dedicated more on-air time — significantly more in most cases — to speeches and other official Republican convention programming during the most-watched portions of their coverage than each channel dedicated to official convention programming during the same times on comparable nights of the Democratic National Convention one week earlier.

*****

I'm shocked! Shocked I tell you - there are politics going on with the M$M?

lolololo

Jim Carney on his interview with McCain:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wB4-OC1wbTE

Um, Jay not Jim - but you know. . .

Backlash: 2,000 People Show Up To Obama HQ Opening In L.A.

The general election has begun. On a random Thursday night, when most political junkies were watching POW McCain's cottage cheese and lime Jello speech at the RNC convention, in a town notoriously hard to get anywhere in on time, 2,000 people showed up at the opening of Barack Obama's first campaign office in Southern California.

There were a couple speeches from locals (Eric Garcetti, Harb Wesson, Mark Ridley-Thomas, and a couple others) at the beginning, and they handed out a few yard signs and bumper stickers, but basically, this was an office opening. Just a walk-through of the building. And the campaign sent only one email out about it, with just 24 hours advance notice.

Two thousand people.

Wow.

http://tinyurl.com/5rk2sc

*****

That is a huge number. I know LA and that is nothing short of AMAZING!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBCUUV7pPIE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ym70CoF6h44

Back to Alaska

Howard Fineman reported tonight (and I heard something similar) that Sarah Palin will, after a brief stretch on the trail, head back to Anchorage and away from the national media.

"They're basically taking Palin back to Alaska," said Fineman, citing a senior McCain campaign official.

Fineman's source (and mine) said she'd spent much of the time between now and the middle of next week (when her son leaves for Iraq) straightening her affairs, tending to her official duties and packing her bags — having departed abruptly for the national stage. She also seems unlikely to do many major media interviews between now and then, and the campaign seems to feel no urgency about putting her on the Sunday shows.

The campaign will "also use the plane time and time on the ground to begin the education of Sarah Palin," Fineman said. "They want to take that pause to train."

http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0908/Back_to_Alaska.html

*****

"Pause to train?" Train what or whom? Surely Palin is ready on day one for campaigning or is this an admission of her not being ready?

Mexico Drug Plane Used For US 'Rendition' Flights: Report

http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2008/09/05-3

Coincidence?

Obama speech was watched by 42.4 million:

Nielsen said that 38.4 million people watched Obama's speech as it was carried live by 10 commercial networks: ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, Fox News Channel, MSNBC, BET, TV One, Univision and Telemundo.

PBS also televised the speech, but didn't pay Nielsen for a count of its national viewership. Based on a sample of several large cities, PBS estimated that an additional 4 million people saw the speech on its network. C-SPAN, which also televised the speech, has no estimate of its audience.

*****

42.4 million is HUGE! Most of those watching were supporters. The Palin/McCain numbers include substantial numbers of democrats and non-supporters because of the "tabloid" nature of the VP selection.

Palin won't be subpoenaed in 'Troopergate' probe

The state House and Senate judiciary committees will meet next Friday in Anchorage to issue subpoenas to key witnesses in the "Troopergate" investigation, but Gov. Sarah Palin will not be among those getting one, committee members just announced.

http://www.adn.com/palin/story/517135.html

*****

They are showing great deference to Palin. If she refuses to cooperate it will be bad.

The Republican Party has given us a failed war in Iraq. None of the stated Bush administration goals in invading Iraq were ever actually accomplished. No threat from Iraq existed, it was completely unrelated to 9/11,had no serious weaponry or military capability, and is not 'liberated' but rather occupied. The government installed under US auspices is best friends with the ayatollahs in Iran and may actually be taking orders from them on some issues.

McCain wholeheartedly supported that war from before it was launched. Yet McRambo is posing as a challenger of the war, and is rebranding this burned-out hulk of a country that he helped to destroy as a "victory."

The Republican Party gave us a long list of massive scandals, in which the American public was actively stolen from and defrauded, not to mention disenfranchised. That was the point of Jack Abramoff and his pyramid scheme intended to create a permanent Republican majority, so that the hogs at the trough could be propped up there and remain indefinitely a drain on your pocketbook. That was the point of Tom Delay's scam, and the many cases of embezzlement and sheer criminality by Republican lawmakers.

Rambo and the Mean Girl will tell you that they are the squeaky clean Republicans, not like all those other Republicans, and we should focus on them, not on all the crooks.

The Republican Party has massively grown the size of the federal government, including especially of the Pentagon, but Rambo and the Mean Girl are all of a sudden promising to fire every other government employee.

The Republican Party oversaw the mortgage crisis. But won't admit it, and neither will these two.

You want a narrative, about a war hero tortured by the confession he signed, or about a feisty soccer mom who cleaned out the Augean stables of Seward's Ice Box, then you have got it.

You want real policy positions and a rationale for them that goes beyond "I will make my friends rich," then you won't find that in the convention in Minnesota.

(JuanCole.com)

How transparent are McCain's bogus claims? Even Fox News has noticed. Consider this report from Major Garrett:

"Based on the crowd reaction to recent attacks from Barack Obama and Joe Biden about John McCain's tax policy, the Republican nominee may have something to worry about. [...]

The crowds roar with approval when Obama and Biden describe their plans for a middle class tax cut and boo loudly at statistics showing how McCain's continuation of the Bush tax cuts favor the wealthy. Of course, these are partisan Obama crowds. But it would be unwise for anyone seriously backing McCain to dismiss their full-throated roars for Obama-Biden on an issue that historically has favored the GOP nominee. [...]

Add to this the mounting evidence that McCain's TV commercials assailing Obama's tax policy contain serious distortions, if not out-right lies."

Wait, is that a Fox News report accusing John McCain of blatant dishonesty? Yep, I think it is.

When Fox News is slamming the Republican nominee for lying, you know McCain has gone too far.

Sarah Speaks -- Once I Was Blind

Governor Gidget appeared on screen melting my heart and conquering my soul. That was after The Mayor of America softened me up.

Once I was blind. But now I can see.

I agree with every one of their points.

Black is white.

Up is Down.

Slavery is Freedom.

Arbeit Macht Frei.

We are winning in Iraq.

The WMD did exist.

Saddam was the leader of Al Qaeda.

Torture is legal.

Mitt Romney is a populist renegade.

Running Wasilla is more or less like running New York City.

Black men who become president of the Harvard Law Review are effete snobs.

Community organizers are sinister.

The media is run by Socialists.

Ivy League universities should be shuttered and replaced by trade schools.

Writing two best-selling memoirs is, um, a black mark.

Having a baby out of wedlock or aborting the fetus is strictly a personal, private issue even when the state wants to criminalize the latter.

America's perceived economic crisis is a mental aberration curable by sexual abstention.

Reading someone their legal rights is an act of wussiness.

Sarah has had more executive experience than Joe Biden and Barack Obama combined.

Hockey moms are more intelligent than hockey pucks.

Running the PTA is very much like the CIA.

Piloting a snowboard is the same as flying an F-16.

Garnering about 655 votes to win a Mayor's seat is major executive experience.

Palin would be the perfect President to stare down Vladimir Putin.

Mike Huckabee should be named head of National Institute for Science Education.

No Alaska Governor is a member of the Permanent Political Establishment.

Sarah is more or less like Harry -- Truman.

Traveling outside the country once by age 43 makes you fit to run the most powerful military in the history of the world.

Capacity to read a pre-canned generic speech written by spinmeisters is a major qualification for national office.

The Republicans are a shoo-in to win in November.

The sun sets in the east (except in Alaska which dwells in darkness much of the year).

(MarcCooper.com)

******

Gov. Gidget!

ROTFLMAO!

Wow, lefty's are supposed to hate religious fanatics. But above is capt, using a Juan Cole quote!!!!!

"Cole's perspective on Iran is informed by his Bahá'í background. The Bahá'í Faith first arose in Persia whose government caused the exile of the religion's Prophet-Founder, Baha'u'llah, as well as family members and disciples to a prison in Akka (or Akko, Acre, Israel) in the Ottoman empire (located today in Israel), has many of its scriptures in Persian, and represents the largest religious minority in Iran. Cole's writings accordingly celebrate Persia as a source of culture. At the same time, Cole has met Bahá'ís who were later executed by the Khomeini regime"

Cole is just another fanatic follower of a Middle East-based religion, and allows it to color his opinions.

The left should check their sources before posting!!!!

Cheers

HA!!!! And now a post quoting Marc Cooper!!!!

"From 1971 to 1973, Cooper served as the Spanish-English translator for Chilean Socialist president Salvador Allende."

Change... to SOCIALISM ... that's the DEMS!!!!

Cheers

59 out of 86 posts by Capt. Great choice John! Palin has the liberals in such a panic they are being driven nuts. Note to Sarah Palin. If you were such a liability, liberals would want to keep you on the ticket. I hope you enjoy your stay in Washington, DC and are sucessful at your mission.

A Choice For Me, But Not For Thee? Or Any Other Woman In America?

http://tinyurl.com/6ob4qn

Well, that gets the point across quite well, doesn't it? Samantha Bee, gotta love her.

lolololo

Open Letter to Network and Cable Pundits: This Is Not A Game

http://tinyurl.com/6fmol6

*****

They don't care. If people stopped watching these liars THAT could change the way they do things.

So says the prophet profit.

RE "Open Letter to Network and Cable Pundits: This Is Not A Game", written by Glenn W. Smith.

Mr. Smith's Wikipedia entry was authored by he and an associate, and is currently labeled as a COI (Conflict of Interest) article. Take a look yourself!!!

"If people stopped READING these liars THAT could change the way they do things."

lololo!!!!

61 of 91. Job well done John!

RE "61 of 91. Job well done John!"

Coffee just came out of my nose!!!!!!!

Joe Biden: Philadelphia, PA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atUmBqW4Q3w

*****

About 4 minutes in Joe gets fired up!

McCain is breaking a promise he made on national television. In July, during an interview with CNN’s Larry King, McCain assured King that his running mate would appear on King’s show shorty after his announcement:

KING: We have a history on this program that whenever the vice presidential nominee is announced, he or she appears on this show the next night. It’s been going on for quite a while. We hope that Senator McCain follows that tradition since I have a hunch he will not announce tonight who that candidate is.

But how close are we?

MCCAIN: I want to say that that vice presidential candidate will be on your show. I will not risk the wrath of Larry King. I want to assure you.

Watch it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VaWQcPOU4V0

(ThinkProgress)

G.O.P. P.O.W.

I wasn’t in St. Paul, but through the filter of the endless chatter on cable news, here’s how the Republican Convention looked: John McCain became a P.O.W. this week, at the hands of his own Party. It was Sarah Palin’s Convention, not McCain’s. His speech last night was so out of sync with the vituperative tone and stale, hard-right cultural populism of the Convention’s other headliners—above all, Palin—that he sounded less like a Presidential nominee than one of those token speakers given a spot on the program just to prove that the Party welcomes diversity. McCain stood before an arena full of stoked conventioneers, who seemed bored or turned-off as often as they seemed pleased by his remarks, and acquitted himself with the decency and honor that he summoned during the ordeal that defines his life.

This time, though, McCain is collaborating with his captors. By picking Palin he knowingly guided his campaign well over hostile territory and then aimed its nose straight down. Once taken hostage, he refused to speak his captors’ propaganda, but he allowed everyone else to shout it to the rafters. He gambled, all right, but it was in the direction of orthodoxy—for Palin is a creature and an icon of the Republicans’ evangelical base, which came into full possession of the Party this week and completed the G.O.P.’s conversion to identity politics. (See my last post for more on this transformation.) No wonder Pat Buchanan was so fired up on MSNBC, while Mike Huckabee wore the look of a man who missed his train because he was given the wrong departure time.

In yesterday’s Times profile, several observers suggested that McCain’s whole adult life has been a series of tests, and his shortcomings have been just as decisive as his victories. “He takes a past failing, hangs it around his neck, and wears it like a medal,” said a former Romney adviser. The psychological pattern with which McCain seems most comfortable holds him initially suspended in perfect tension between principle and ambition; the tension slackens, he slides into a betrayal of his ideals, and then he undergoes a searing period of repentance that ends in a renewed commitment to do what is right regardless of the consequences. It’s almost as if he deliberately sets out to fail himself in order to experience the joy of self-recovery at its fullest. No one would hold against him the fact that he broke, as he said last night, under North Vietnamese torture. His capitulation to the latest group of hard-liners to take him prisoner is a lot harder to justify. But his speech already hinted at the penitent President McCain would be if his current ordeal at the hands of his party’s base takes him to the White House.

http://tinyurl.com/6faa6f

Obama breaks pledge to use Public Campaign Funding - No response from the Left!!!!!

McCain breaks "assurance" to have VP pick appear on Larry King - LEFT IS OUTRAGED. OUTRAGED!!!

Bottom line is that Palin scares the skirts off the liberal left males and the pants suits off the liberal left women. That is fine because McCain/Palin appeals to the conservatives and also to moderates and independents. They are not in the race to appeal to the liberal left.

Just another example of leftt wing journalism at its best. They ignore the affair of John Edwards because it is a private matter when it accually occurred when he was running for president. But they will pile on the daughter of a VP candidate of a republican candidate for being pregnant without being married. Pansy journalism at its' best.

Remember the MSM going after Cheney because his daughter was a lesbian? Did one gay/lesbian/transgender group come to her defense or his?

CRICKETS CHIRPING AND CHOKING!

Actually, tons of folks came to the defense of Cheney's daughter...but not him...because as comedian Ron Shock said, "It isn't the SODOMY, it is the HIPOCRISY that gets to me, you see."

...and explain to me, please how McCain appeals to conservatives?

'Cause that's not what we've heard about him in the past...

-T

sorry...

RON SHOCK

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jxwcG66mUqQ

Still searching Capt?

...and it is disingenuous to say that the MSM ignored John Edwards' dalliances...

It was all one heard about for weeks, AFTER it was confirmed...and certainly kept him from being considered for the VP slot...and also from coming out for any demo candidated before it was a foregone conclusion.

He didn't get a pass...and is through in politics, at least from a "being elected to anything" point-of-view.

-T

Cheney didn't appeal to me at all and still doesn't.

I do not know who Ron Shock is but should the defense be of both? After all she is the daughter of a candidate for VP and should be off limits such as Chelsea was and all of the Gore children. Have you heard the saying"attack my family, you attack me?"

I find the MSM so laughingly funny these days that I cannot believe they even still exist. Lets see how many people actually watch them when they have to replace their rabbit ears with a digital converter. They are on a slow burn to ashes in the dust bin of history.

Note how every MSM reporter responded with their reaction of the Palin speech with the "reciting words written for her." They all know that every politician has speech writers but how dare a republican give such a great speech without mentioning it was written by someone else. Hell, even JFK's book "Profiles in Courage" was not written by him but he sure as hell gets the credit for it.

The MSM gave him a pass when until he admitted to the allegations. If he had never owned up to the affair, it would have been filed away just like the MSM did with the Lewinsky affair. They know the information is out there and refuse to report on it. But, God forbid, that some conservative reportedly had a DUI 30 years ago it becomes major news.

All I have to say to the MSM agenda is Dan Rather and his accurate but unauthenticated proof of GWB's record in the guard. If he was so right, why is he still not the anchor? He lied through his false teeth just like his nemesis Nixon did who helped make Dan Rather who he came to be. Hell, even Brokaw is playing the bias game and I actually used to have some respect for him.

No, the defense of "both" should not be.

When one is officiating over legislation directly contradictory to one's own family...when one lovingly accepts and supports one's OWN childs' gay partnership while disparaging any and all others...that is NOT acceptable.

The primary criticism of Palin's speech was that it was written well before her selection and simply changed to reflect the gender and biography of the speaker.

It seemed to me like all the speeches were written beforehand and lots were then cast to determine who would deliver them...

...Goouliani speaking on anti-cosmopolitanism?

That's GOT to be the result of "pick a speach out of the hat!"

Ron Shock is one of the few comedians that make me laugh these days.

I saw him in Lexington, once and when I asked him to autograph a CD of his performance for Sgt. Karl in Iraq, at the time, he gave me 5 copies to send to Karl and his troops!

Funny, biting and poignant. I hear he's a great poker player, too!

-T

C'mon Hajji. A comedian at a stand up show? How many people actually saw that at the time? You Tube did not even exist at the time. I am speaking of some one in the news media, a GLT orginazation representative etc. I do not recall it happening and if it did, I didn't see it.

All speeches are pre-written. They pick and choose words that were effective before in the campaign or even in previous campaigns. To mention that Palin's words were written by others while Obamas and Bidens weren't is rank bias. It smells and people notice it, I watched both conventions from 9-11 pm every evening and not once was it said that the Dem's speech was written by "someone else."