Craig Crawford's Trail Mix

Woo Woo

I'm not sure I'm in the mood to watch Repugs today.....

dnd.... yeah but..... that's because you have no idea what it means to live in a state like NH around primary time..... we get calls from EVERYBODY.....
because Rick and I are undeclared..... we get calls from both sides of the aisle....

we not only get calls from candidates and or their staff..... we get calls from ordinary people who are holding events within a 35 mile radius..... we get calls from pollsters..... we get calls from radio and tv stations....

because of the nature of this election being wide open...... the calling has been the worst I've experienced in living here for 30 yrs...... at this point, both Rick and I say f*ck em!.....

Zoey..... god bless you..... but you are crazy..... :0)

"if Bill has to come in and save his wife's campaign"

Just to answer it seriously, it sounds like another talking head "gotta say something to fill the time".

oh yeah.... I forgot to mention.....

the phone rang the other night as Rick was walking by and he chose to answer it just because..... it was the Hillary people..... and they asked to speak to the woman of the house..... he said, "she's not here right now", knowing I'd kill him if he handed me the phone.... they didn't want to talk to him....

guess she's now doing gender specific campaigning.....

Haven't had enough Repug BS? Makesure Kit Bond gets re-elected. Waterboarding is like freestyle, backstroke?

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/060885.php

Not being used? Riiiiiggghhhhtttt. this kinda sh*t drives me up the wall.

Craig,even if the other Repug candidates wanted to pillory Huckster over the FairTax, is the format of the debate such that there is enough flexibility that they can actually do that? I am waiting for Willard to attack the Huckster over his does Romney believe Satan and Jesus are brothers comment. That should be more interesting than hearing stiff necked white guys talk about a tax plan with no chance of being seriously considered by Congress, much less approved.

looks like the Des Moine register doesn't have the same view of the debate format as tweety who was hoping it would be a burning at the stake

instead they are asking for detailed answers with facts to questions about national budget issues etc.

poor tweety he will have nothing to say since he doesn udnerstand any of these issues.

Fair tax - if it is a sales tax and is on everything sold-is no more than a flat tax on net income. Regressive as hell, benefits ONLY the wealthy.

OK, OK, this year's pardon list was released, and for some reason this one struck me asa particularly funny.

"On the list this year was William Charles Jordan Jr., a 64-year-old retiree from Dover, Pa., who was pardoned for his role in a college and NFL football gambling ring that federal authorities shut down on Super Bowl Sunday in 1997.

"Jordan said he did not want his eight grandchildren to know he was a felon, so he obtained the necessary paperwork through his congressman. He learned Tuesday the pardon came through.

"It's a nice Christmas present," Jordan said. "I didn't know what the odds were on getting one. I just sent the stuff in and hoped."

Didn't know what the odds were on getting a pardon? From a guy who was convicted of running a gambling ring? LOLOLOL

I love the way they say that 5% of the people pay 50% of the taxes ... that is BBFF and of course doesn't mention that they have 95% or more of the wealth.

God, they're killing me - more from the pardons list.

John Fornaby, of Boynton Beach, Fla., convicted in 1991 of conspiring to distribute cocaine. He served three years in prison....Additionally, Bush cut short the 1992 prison sentence of crack cocaine dealer Michael Dwayne Short of Hyattsville, Md., who will be released on Feb. 8 after serving 15 years of his 19-year sentence. Short's commutation comes the day the U.S. Sentencing Commission voted unanimously to allow some 19,500 federal prison inmates, most of them black, to seek reductions in their crack cocaine sentences, WHICH THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION OPPOSED.

RFLMAO

There, that's better.

Well, nobody thumped Huckabee on the Fair Tax during the tax question.

jamie, you notice that all the tax system reform ideas that sound "fair" come from the Repugs - and benefit the same guys that the Bush tax cuts benefitted.

dnd, they didn't want to lose the Steve Forbes voting bloc.

Just when you think McCain is bat-shit loony, he gives the perfect answer on climate change.

Does anyone know who the woman is who is moderating the debate? She's good at keeping those guys in line.

in honor of the Rub debates and the holiday season, I offer this little ditty to commemorate both.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WWmKScVBn9Y

yo soy Horsedooty!

the moderator is the editor of the Des Moine Register

Thank you KGC, she's impressive.

pogo,
"Fair tax - if it is a sales tax and is on everything sold-is no more than a flat tax on net income."

Um, I haven't read the specifics at fairtax.org, but I don't think it's a flat tax on net income. I do agree that it's regressive.

Not all high income earners spend a lot of their income (think Warren Buffett).
Just about all low income earners spend all their income.

Senor Horsedooty,

That is so funny. How did that turn up?

Let's see. You are a single mother in the inner city without a vehicle who takes two busses each way to get to and from a job where she puts in nine hours and the best school is half way across town. She can choose to send her child there now the question is what flying carpet does she use to get them there.

dnd

It is always cheaper to be rich than it is to be poor.

Right you are, dnd, it's only a tax on money spent. Which makes it more regressive than a flat tax. Good catch, amigo.

Poor Alan Keyes. He really needs to change the dosage on his meds.

I first heard that version of THAT song on country radio in the AM maybe 7 years ago. One season and then no more. I was just fooling around today and googled Walkin' 'round in womens underwear and that showed up. I thought it was appropriate for todays debate with the Repubs.

Glad you thought it funny.

yo soy Horsedooty!

Enough of the drips for now - now this is interesting - Blackwater loses at the polls, and the members of the community planning group supporting their establising a base in Potrero were all defeated in a recall election.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rick-jacobs/democracy-won-blackwater_b_76401.html

Is it just me, or is this, by far, the best debate moderator so far this year. In fact I think she's the only one who knows the role of a debate moderator.

I agree with you dnd, she is the best. The format works well too.

OK, here's the basic Fair Tax primer (is that redundent?) from Bloomberg (with minor editorial changes by me.

Start with the mechanics. The FairTax does away with the income tax, corporate taxes, estate taxes and just about any other federal levy. It also kills off the Internal Revenue Service. Under the FairTax, Washington would apply a single national sales tax on purchases, whether a DVD player, or a new house. To take the edge off the pain for lower earners, the FairTax offers them a monthly rebate.

Exporters love the FairTax. It cuts their overall tax burden and puts them on a level playing field with those German companies that are doing so well in China. The FairTax campaigners offer something else: a plan to amend the 16th Amendment, which gave the federal government the power to collect income taxes, to make their change irreversible.
A national sales that captures the sort of revenue Washington needs requires a 30 percent rate.
FairTax advocates tout the plan with a 23 percent rate. But this is beyond disingenuous. The 23 percent rate is ``inclusive,'' meaning that for every dollar you pay, 23 cents is tax. That translates to a 30 percent tax on a 77-cent expenditure.

Me again. Soooo, if your effective federal tax rate is 23% or more of your income that is used to purchase stuff, this won't hurt, and may benefit you. If your effecive rate is less than 23% of your net income used to purchase stuff, it will hurt you if the rebate doesn't make up the difference. There certainly are goods you now buy (think gasoline) that carry federal taxes that would not be there under a fair tax proposal and would be cheaper in a gross sense, but since tax rates now are generally progressive (before deductions and credits are considered) this is a plan that, like every other F'ing Repug tax plan I've ever heard about, will benefit the wealthy at the expense of the less wealthy. And they are trying to sell this in Iowa? Good lord.

Whew! Bill Richardson finally got a celebrity endorsement: Martin Sheen. Not only is he an actor, he played POTUS on TV!

'scuse me - I think I'm gonna barf. This passed the House yesterday.

http://www.govtrack.us/congress/billtext.xpd?bill=hr110-847

You folks are burnin' today...
pogo:

Back 2 last thread:

It's a Nissan Micra...probably not available here, as also the Ford Ka is not here in the USA.

Of course my size 22 shoes comment was a joke...only Bob Lanier (Detroit Pistons, many years ago) wore a shoe that huge...but I think the tall Yao Ming of the Rockets wears huge sneakers, too.

Pogo

They weren't specific enough. Without naming the denominations how will we know who we can burn at the stake.

msgop is angry because their agenda wasn't adopted
and clearly did not listen to the moderator who said they were going to discuss issues that were under represented in the campaigns and specifically excluded immigration. Tweety too stupid to live without a conservator.

dog-view:

We lost yesterday, 57% to 43%

Bill Clinton himself couldn't sway these people here in the 5th to vote for Robin Weirauch.

http://blog.aflcio.org/2007/12/12/weirauch-loses-in-hard-fought-ohio-special-election/

I was disappointed to see that the 'Kittens are cuddly' amendment was not part of that House Bill.

Maybe they can correct that in conference committee.

That was defeated by the puppies caucus

jamie, chuckle, snort. (The only MoC I can forgive for voting for this ridiculous piece of jetsam is Keith Ellison.)

Dex, I knew you wear a size 9 1/2. Most guys exaggerate the size of their, well, never mind. Is exaggerating the size of one's feet some cultural thing on the edge of corn country?

Mad, that's scheduled for a vote after the holidays - bush threatened a veto if it was attached.

I'm not surprised pogo and jamie, the power of the puppy lobby cannot be overlooked. Barney backs Bush on Iraq, it's payback time.

Ah pogo..you know what THEY SAY! Last year there was some ad on TV with some dude with hige feet gettin' looks from the hotties...what the hell commercial was that? Can't recall...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
And I just now found out that the CO killer killed himself, according to coroner....I B Dam....the security guard can be spared all those waking -up- with- night -sweats realizing she had killed someone....

corn country? That's my native Hoosierland.

Indiana: a racetrack surrounded by cornfields.

and from the late Jim Murray, LA Times:

"Ladies and gentleman, we'll be landing shortly in Indianapolis, set your watch back fifty years!"

oh goody! mechanic called: "Your van's done."

Sweet music to my ears.

Hey Dex, Bob got some looks about his shoes...

http://youtube.com/watch?v=lTa98ixcy9Q

mucho funny Mad

con mucho gusto

Yo soy Horsedooty!

Dex, the mechanic has a big bill in his hand, waiting for you to arrive. And Dex, I've driven across Ohio to Ada - you can't tell me you don't live on the edge of corn country.

I understand the Indianapolis reference. I had a frien in college from Livingston, AL. His wife, who was from Columbus, OH, described it as 60 miles down the road and 100 years back in time.

open the link to see one of the luckiest men on this planet.

Jessica Alba says she is preggers.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22216863/

yo soy Horsedooty!

yeah...... I watched most of it.....

yup..... that woman moderator showed more balls than Matthews, Russert, and Blitzer put together..... but that's because she wanted answers..... they just wanted a food fight.....

but why the hell was Alan Keyes invited?...... what a MAROOOOOOON!

at one point when Keyes when into his rant about God being removed from American schools, I thought "oh god, watch the audience break out into applause"...... but to the great credit of Iowans... not one clap..... they obviously know a fool when they hear one......

dnd: "Whew! Bill Richardson finally got a celebrity endorsement: Martin Sheen. Not only is he an actor, he played POTUS on TV!"

dnd -- Martin Sheen recorded some radio ads for my son when he ran in the Democratic primary here in TN in 2004....The man takes his politics seriously. He grilled my son on a LOT of issues. (My son is a friend of Martin's son....that's how that came about.)

Dex,

"Your van's done."

Did he tell you to come and pick it up, or invite you to the funeral?

Forget the Republicans for a minute. Clinton is hauling out the heavy artillary in NH. Check out what Bill Shaheen is saying about Obama's electability, and the ingenious way they are positioning it. The Shaheens are heavy duty Democrats in NH, Jeanne is the former governer and will be running for US Senate against Sununu,

Clinton N.H. Official Warns Obama Will Be Attacked on Drug Use
http://blog.washingtonpost.com/the-trail/2007/12/12/post_235.html

Has Harry Reid lost his mind?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2007/12/12/08-dems-pressure-reid-ov_n_76508.html

Asmuch as Iike Jay Rockefeller, I'd much rather have Kennedy, Biden, Harken,Clinton and Boxer backing me. Doesn't he have to run for majority leader in the next Congress?

BTW, I laughed almost to tears at the HuffPo blog on the Repug debate.

the Clintons bringing up someone else's drug use..... that ought to go over as well as the Obama's kindergarten statement fiasco.....

couldn't believe those maroons on MSNBC saying the debate sounded like something from PBS and then laughing away.....

I think there are more than a few people who think the nickname "Tweety" stands for birdbrain...... and of course it doesn't require rocket science to figure out what the nickname "Noron" stand for.....

"Obama Will Be Attacked on Drug Use"

He never should have said he inhaled.

Shaheen is certainly not doing Clinton any favors,nor is he doing Obama any harm. That was just stupid. No wonder Bill is pissed at the campaign staff. Dumbshit like this makes them look stupid, and Bill doesn't like looking stupid or having Hillary look stupid.

Pogo..... as usual..... you're right about the Repug debate on HuffPo.... ROTFL!
here's the link.....

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jason-linkins-john-neffinger-and-rachel-sklar/liveblog-the-gops-last-_b_76505.html

I think I saw something on HuffPo asking if Obama ever sold drugs...

If it worked for Lara Bush in 2000, I don't see it hurting Obama now.

It's funny, when I was watching the news coverage of Obama with Oprah, I was stunned to see the Clinton video with Chelsea and her mom. I was struck by how small she looked on that stage and it was a desperately feeble looking picture. It looked like someone who was at 5% in the polls instead of being the front runner.

See youse tomorrow.

hey.... the first commentor over at the HuffPo piece suggested that Alan Keyes was brought in to make the rest of the Repugs look rational.....

maybe he/she was onto something......

It has been reported that Ike Turner has died. He was in his mid 70's

yo soy Horsedooty!

Too funny! Tweety just told Rachel Maddow he'd like to waterboard her right now for her response when he asked who won the Repug debate. She answered (tongue-in-cheek) that Alan Keyes won...stole the show, she said....

It's sad that they need Alan Keyes to be on stage so that they have at least one Republican that can speak in clear and full sentences that were true beliefs instead of canned sound bites.

After seeing the news of Ike Turner's death, what are the odds that Tina shows up at the wake to beat the crap out of him in his casket???

Bear...Keyes certainly can and does speak in clear and full sentences, and leaves no one in any doubt of the sincerity of his beliefs, but...when anyone sounds as sanctimonious stating his beliefs as Keyes generally sounds, it's an enormous turnoff to most of the audience.

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