Craig Crawford's Trail Mix

Woo Woo?

Once more Savage Chicken captures the "morning after" mood

http://www.savagechickens.com/blog/2008/01/raccoon-vs-moon.html

again, sooooo close.

Craig,

Given the jobs report today indicating that even the low paying "service" jobs aren't keeping up with population growth, another day of plummeting Dow, the war, the debt, and the falling dollar I think you will see defections of Republicans on a scale with Democrats during the "Reagan Revolution".

If Thompson hadn't gotten into the race Ron Paul may have taken third on the RFN side.

I think that Thompson was suppose to be the firewall wall for Romney and he took votes that would have gone either to Ron Paul or McCain.

I do have one fear though and that is we may see another RFK if it looks like Obama may go all the way.

I would put nothing past the Republican Christian Fascist Nazi's or the Clinton establishment to retain the status quo.

I hope I'm wrong but history does repeat itself. There are many RFN nuts who would welcome being the next Eric Rudolph or Paul Hill.

The new Nazi Fourth Reich Party is as racist if not more than the old guard who have I believe become more tolerant of minorities than what is representing them now.

As far as McCain goes I no longer believe anything he says. After being swiftboated by the Fourth Reich he turned around and embraced Der Fuhrer Bush and his policies.

Now he has gone over the edge and panders to them for their votes. I believe that one of the reasons he supports the policies in Iraq is due to POW status from Vietnam.

Sometimes I believe he feels guilty for surviving the torture while others with him did not. He don't want to lose another war and for that he will sacrifice our troops to ease his guilt.

Like Vietnam we have already lost in Iraq and only more death and destruction will result unless we pull out now and put our own house in order.

We can not go on being the Policemen of the World without losing our Freedom because the American Taliban want to create an empire to rule while subjecting our own citizens to the same conditions that those in Dictatorship countries live under.

Sorry for the long rant, but it has to end now before its too late to save our souls from damnation and death. If not the whole world from destruction.

God Bless.

Do you really see Obama as a "protest vehicle" for the Democratic left?

He seems much more than that to me.

I would think he's an appealing candidate with crossover appeal who was able to motivate young people to come out to vote.

Appealing to independents and moderates is the way to go.

Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid are also very lucky they were not on the ballot last night.

Craig, B minus maybe a C.....
Your focus only on Bush (which I would agree is somewhat correct) is misguided or over focused; you need to add the Democratic Congress which I believe continues to have a much lower approval rating then Bush. So points removed for allowing the bias to creep and limit any also relevant attack on Nancy / Harry and Co.

The Pitch Forks would be for all of Washington; maybe even the 4th estate will be included so keep your head low

I would love to see breakout on how military families vote in the upcoming primaries.

Missed most of C-Span's Washington Journal this morning (am in Pacific time zone; still O dark hundred) BUT did catch a friendly sounding Iowa man enthusing about Obama.

He said he had voted. By absentee ballot. Right.

But is that called jumping on a bandwagon?

====

Am vacationing with a friend who's a Hillary supporter. He does not think Obama can win due to racism. I think Obama's appeal may trump racism, that he might bring out more young and disaffected voters than those who just cannot see beyond his skin color.

People who have ears and not just eyes.

Ping: hola. Agree Congress has low approval ratings, but believe that is more because people are tired of GOP intransigence.

I want to see bipartisanship in service of the American people. And turning back Bush-Cheney-Addington's assault on the Constitution. Restoring checks and balances and respect between the govt branches.

Do not want to see Dem payback over GOP excesses.

Clarification – Two issues in this Trial Mix.

First, The voters are not only voicing change due to Bush but also the Congress

Second, I challenge the statements “The Democratic left is so eager for a complete break with the past that its protest vehicle, Illinois Sen. Barack Obama, overwhelmed national frontrunner Hillary Rodham Clinton and her aim to move the party to the political center.” Or was this a factor of the demographics (as HRC) stated in one report, the turn out mix was in favor of Obama.
If Craig is correct on the second point here then HRC is toast. To soon to tell as what does Iowa alone indicate? What has the predictive value been for Iowa?

Craig.... YES..... people are tired of Bush.....
the big turnout for the Dems as compared to the much smaller turnout for the Repubs is the biggest story coming of Iowa, IMO....

tylenol..... yes Matthews fawned and gushed over Bush..... but he also said that he thought going into Iraq would be a mistake..... you can love someone and yet not agree with them 100% of the time.....

dnd.... a woman that writes for the no quarter blog under the name SusanUnPC is a huge Hillary supporter...... but Larry Johnson came out last week and said he was an Edwards supporter....

Pogo..... sorry.... but I will not be doing any NH tracking for this blog.... Rick had 12 days off between the Xmas season and New Years.... I took the time off with him..... I'm now back at work and working hard..... and I live in a very small rural town...... BowmanC and Kathy both live in cities.... I think their input would be much more meaningful.....

Renee,
I stand corrected. I seem to recall a Larry Johnson post a week or so ago where he fawned all over Hillary.

Bear,

My phrase "weak" on foreign affairs for Obama actually comes from the joke that almost did in Hillary during one of the debates, when he acknowledged that his "advisors" were formerly Hillary's and then he said he would seek her advice as well. He is an intelligent man. He knows his own weaknesses, and I do believe he will study the global issues. The problem is that Hillary has been sending herself to school for more than a decade.

You go with change. I prefer experience.

Hmm, well, call me cynical but I keep hearing that Hillary is banking on "experience," Edwards wants a fight with corporate America, while Obama sees change and conciliation ahead.

My problem is this: the Republicans are never going to be conciliatory. There is no bipartisan wing of the Repub party....Bill Clinton tried conciliation and he ended up having to cave on a lot of issues.

And anon....you should be ashamed of yourself. For God's sake, to accuse the Clintons of hiring a hit man? Have you been reading the old murder stories put out by Scaife and Co?

"the Republicans are never going to be conciliatory"

Patsi, This is the one reason that I hope the American public is so totally sick of Bush and company that the clean house with an overwhelming Democratic sweep of Congress so that the new Democratic president won't have to fight tooth, nail and conciliation to get anything done.

Jamie,
"You go with change. I prefer experience."

Why not both? Bill Richardson in '08!

dnd,
Just popping in for a minute before work but I wanted to answer your questions from the last thread:
1. The 15% threshold for viability is used in most precincts but not all.Whether the 15% is used or not depends on how many delegates the precinct will elect. If 1 delegate, no preference groups and the whole group elects the delegate. If 2 delegates the total attendance is multiplied by .25, if 3 delegates the total is divided by 6, and if 4 or more delegates the total attendance is multiplied by .15. I don't know who came up with the formulas but It is probably available through research on the net.

2. The Dems didn't really run negative ads. The Republicans did and I would guess they may have had some impact since I think the R's tend to respond to negative advertising while the D's tend to reject negative ads in this state.

3. I did not hear of anyone receiving the focus group type polls. They may have but not in my circles. I don't get polled because I screen my calls and do not answer the phone unless it is someone I know.

Off to work now -be back later.

Craig,

After reading Jamie's last post, I thought of a perfect name for this election because I think a lot of voters will do this to make up their minds...

This should be the Magic 8 ball election.

I voter would step into a voting booth rigged for the Republican candidate, (of course they won't know it), they will then ask themselves should I vote with change in mind or experience and shake the ball and then vote accordingly...lol

Also Jamie, in regards to your last post, Howard Fineman made a great point about how the problem with Bush is that he doesn't listen to others. It is obvious that GWB never read the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People because if he did, he would remember, Seek to Understand, then be Understood...

TGIF!!!

DND,

Didn't you think that Richardson and his red shirt last night looked alarmingly similar to Hugo Chavez?

" I hope the American public is so totally sick of Bush and company that the clean house with an overwhelming Democratic sweep of Congress so that the new Democratic president won't have to fight tooth, nail and conciliation to get anything done."

Worth repeating!

Gilbert --

We just won Iowa, and I'm about to head down to talk to everyone.

Democrats turned out in record numbers tonight, and independents and even some Republicans joined our party to stand together for change.

Thank you for everything you've done to make this possible.

Barack

Donate

Patsi...
Let me clarify what I said for you and everyone else.

Let me inject that all I wrote clearly depends on us actually having elections in November.

Now I don't know if Obama is for real or not. I believe that he maybe is and that is why I think they will not let him be the nomination.

They {the hidden supporters of the NWO} have planned for too long to enact there one ruler world and will not let anyone or anything stand in the way now.

I hope and pray Obama has more security to protect him as I fear what happened to Bhutto will happen to him.

The evil that permeates our government is not past ordering a hit on the person who could stop their plans dead in its track.

He will need massive protection until the elections {once again if we have them} are over to ensure the safety of him and his family.

Now I'm not saying anything will happen, however I would certainly feel better if history don't repeat itself and we see another RFK occurrence.

I like Hillary and see her as a very smart and capable women who at any other time in our history would make a good President, however not now.

Do not forget that Der Fuhrers father was I believe the head of the CIA at the time JFK was assassinated. His grandfather made their fortune supporting Hitler and Bill Clinton and Bush the father are, or so it seems to be, very friendly.

Now maybe the Clinton's would not be involved in any kind of plot, however to keep the status quo those who operate in the dark of night will not let someone come in and upset the apple cart they worked so hard for so many years to establish.

They would prefer having Hillary as the nomination than Obama.

Obama is a threat to their plans as was RFK to the establishment when it appeared that he would win the nomination.

God Bless.

Craig, A+, sorry, Ping Pong.

"Bush and Cheney have behaved like a military junta that views democracy as something to work around. They rolled over anyone who got in their way, especially fellow Republicans who dared to criticize. "

SO true!

tt

I am very busy at work ,but last night the e-mails and the phone calls started as the refugees from Iowa began to head for NH. I have enlisted Mrs. Bowmanc and son of Bowman (not SOB please) as trail watchers. They plan on going to the Nashua Radisson this afternoon to see Edwards. We have a possible Obama event on Saturday. I'm not going to bother with Romney but want to see McCain if the timing works out. I'll keep you posted on any candidate encounters.

{climbing onto soapbox}
Ya know what really pisses me off about the demmycrats? It's this obsessive fawning over the "celebrity" candidates. I fault the MSM for doing the same thing. Now that the dems have dumped two of their greatest current statesmen like some red-headed step-child they wanted nothing to do with, they may be heading for a Dukakis moment. Edwards/Clinton/Obama are polarizing to the moderates, the right and even some on the left. Biden/Richardson/Dodd are the unifiers.

If the dems have any hope, they'll have a brokered convention and draft Jim Webb.

{climbing off soapbox, as I see an angry mob forming...}

Much to my surprise, Blogger, suddenly decided to fix my user name & password, after many months.

My fist post is a copy of a letter from Michael Moore. It's long, so go here http://patterns2.blogspot.com/ To read it.

tt

dnd....
my chosen candidate is Richardson..... but I've written nice things about most of the Democratic candidates on this blog.....
Larry Johnson said he supports Edwards...... what's wrong with him writing about a meeting he had with Hillary where he was impressed with her intelligence....

Bear.... to a casual reader.... your comment on Richarson and his red shirt could be construed as anti-Hispanic....

my copy of "Deer Hunting with Jesus" just came in the mail.....
hope it's better than "What's the Matter with Kansas".... which I found infinitely boring.....

Ping, the Reps in congress have lower approval numbers than the dems, an I don't believe the American voters are so stupid as to fail to understand the obstruction going on in the Senate by the reps and the intransigence of Bushco. But then again, maybe the voters are that stupid - they did re-elect Dumya after all.

Dog for Obama, you should hope that both you and Craig are right - that is the best hope Obama has - get the protest vote and appeal to some of the moderates out there. Otherwise, good luck. I must say that I have to agree with Arianna Huffington that Iowa marks a sea change in the racial scene in the US. It's about time.

While Obama and Huckabee have the headlines today and for the next several days, here is a reminder of exactly what was won yesterday: Obama 16 delegates; Edwards 14 delegates; and, Clinton 15 delegates (go figure how Clinton coming in third ends up with one more delegate than the second place winner).

And, for the national picture, there are 4,049 total delegates to the Democratic National Convention, including 3,253 pledged delegates and 796 superdelegates. The total number of delegate votes needed to win the nomination is 2,025. Let's see: 2,025 minus 16 equals only 2,009 delegates to secure the nomination.

Renee,
"Larry Johnson said he supports Edwards...... what's wrong with him writing about a meeting he had with Hillary where he was impressed with her intelligence..."

Not a thing. I respect Johnson. He's a bit of a loose canon, but that only adds to his charm...

That's funny Renee...if he had gotten any kind of news coverage last night, I would show you the picture of him in his nice red turtleneck under a sueded brown shirt. Very nice outfit. If you want to deem that anti Hispanic, all the power to you.

One of the best courses I took at URI were in the field of political communications. My professor, Dr. Patrick Devlin taught us that in political arena, how something is said, the visuals that accompany a speech are often more important than what is being said.

Go back to 1988, Dukakis was leading Bush until the idiot went for a ride in that tank. If you think back to his first debate with Bush, not only did he blow the rape question, but his handlers allowed him to go to the podium with his tie eschew. It looked like he was being choked by his tie and he flopped badly.

When I saw that 2 second video of Richardson last night, my first thought was of Chavez. I wonder if a casual observer would know who Hugo Chavez is?

I want to thank Zoey and Spike for a real insiders look at the caucuses last night. Their observations and reports were as good or better than anything I saw on national tv.

"What's the Matter With Kansas"? Perhaps when God created that state as an afterthought while sitting on his "throne" on the 9th day, he figured why bother...lol

Eprof...good to see you again...

Also, If any of you political junkies would like to get access to any presidential campaign commercial going back to 1952, Dr. Devlin had them all on video tape. I haven't spoken to him in years but I am guessing he got them all on DVD by now.

Who is this Larry Johnson that was just referred to?

eprof2,
"want to thank Zoey and Spike for a real insiders look at the caucuses last night. Their observations and reports were as good or better than anything I saw on national tv."

You said it. They were great, as was IAgirlinDC and Claire.

And thanks for reminding us of the numbers it takes to win the prize.

I need just a minute to mourn Biden. I liked Craig's urging all the candidates to stay in until next week, but on the other hand, Biden would not have been able to out sizzle Obama.

Anyone else notice how the I-man's (Imus) face does not register recognition when Biden's name is mentioned? This AM he said that everyone he's asked to be on the program since his return a month ago has said "yes", so if someone's not there, it's because Imus hasn't invited him. Is Joe on the outside now? I'll miss him.

anon-p, Bush's daddy was appointed DCI in 1976. When JFK was assassinated he was desperately seeking Congress - probably in Nov., '63 working very hard to secure the Rep. Senate nom in Texas, and first failing in his 1964 Senate effort then succeeding in his 1966 house race.

Bear,
Johnson is a former spook.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_C._Johnson

dnd

You have to get people to pay attention before they can hear your message. I have an enormous amount of respect for Richardson, Dodd, and Biden but they did little to attract the attention of the voter who usually only pay attention to politics just before an election.

Morning, folks! (Oh, wait...it's nearly 2pm...) Afternoon, folks! I'm sick as a dog so I called in sick to work today and slept the rest of the morning away.

In case this interests anyone: In the last hour, I have received two phone calls and one email from friends who "revealed" to me that they are Obama supporters and they are very excited about last night's results.

Now, a little background: I signed an Obama supporter card in February at the rally he held at the University of NH a day or two after announcing his candidacy in Springfield, IL. I've been doing actual volunteering since May or June. It's no secret to anyone who knows me whom I'm supporting, but I don't pressure my friends to tell me whom they are supporting. (There's still an undercurrent of "your vote is private" in me that was deeply instilled by my parents. I couldn't tell you a single person they voted for while I was growing up...they were that close-to-the-vest about it. Mom opened up a little more about it as she neared the end of her life.)

Anyway, my point to all this is that one would think that since it's been no secret that I'm an Obama supporter and volunteer, any of my friends who also supported him might have thrown me a "Me, too!" at some point.

I was honestly pleasantly surprised to have these three friends reveal themselves to me as enthusiastic Obama supporters. Perhaps they were afraid to get their hopes up that an Obama victory could become reality? Now that they've seen it is possible, they feel more free to allow themselves to believe it? I don't know. And while I know that three New Hampshirites can hardly be considered a scientific sample, I can't be the only Obama supporter today whose friends are coming out of the Obama closet.

Oh, and for what it's worth about a different topic: I'm a huge Hardball fan and TiVo it every day. I don't recall Chris Matthews EVER being in favor of the war. I'm not so pigheaded that I wouldn't admit to being proven wrong, but I honestly recall him being decidedly and vociferously AGAINST the war from the beginning.

Join my Facebook group "Fans of Craig Crawford"! http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=6242424321

eProf - good to see you back again. Are you sure of those delegate numbers from IA? Given the 38%,30%, 29% numbers, that seems strange. Is there a link to a source for those delegate numbers?

Richardson is at the Tech College in Nashua tonight. Doors open at 6:30.

DND,

As usual, thanks for the information.

Craig, you should affiliate with a university so we can get college credit for posting here...lol!

dnd, thanks for the props!

BTW, that focus group call I got last night asked if they could call me back with follow-up questions. I answered that indeed they could...I just couldn't guarantee that they'd find me at home much over the next few days. But I did give them my first name at their request so they could ask for me specifically when they called to follow up. If they manage to get me, I'll be sure to report back here on the questions.

Tabi, I also wish that Biden (and Dodd, too) had been able to find a way to stay in the race through New Hampshire at least. No matter whom I'm supporting, I don't like to see any candidates get bounced out after only the Iowa caucus.

At what point can delusion become need to commit for insanity.

Bush was just on saying the economy is strong, no need to raise taxes, and we really need to explore for more oil.

Does this qualify as becoming a danger to himself and others?

pogo
super delegates

All right...I know that they've had nearly non-stop campaign coverage for the last two days, but did MSNBC really have to begin the 2:00 news hour with Britney Spears' hospitalization? SWITCH!! (Can't stand Contessa Brewer anyway...)

Pogo, the delegate count is the following from CNN:

www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2008/primaries/results/scorecard/#D

There is, indeed, a long way to go yet!

The problem with Tweety is although he has been against the war...he supported the war mongers.

kc - wha'? Hillary supposedly has 150 some odd super delegates committed to her versus about 90 for Obama. I'm trying to figure out the numbers EProf cited for the Iowa delegates won yesterday - I'm searching, but can't find anything that approximates that.

Thanks eprof - actually that says 18, 17, 16 in the order of the popular vote finish - I assume your prior numbers were net of the previously committed delegates? Thanks for the link, though - it will go into favorites to track things was they progress through SDT.

Pogo

Here is the run down on the "super delegates"

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18277678/

For all you New England sports fans, this is from the most recent Bill Simmons mail bag...

Q: I went to the Pats game at Giants Stadium last night. While the game itself was awesome, my favorite moment was before the game. Walking around the parking lot before the game we came across about 15 people sitting around a television in the back of a truck. On the TV was Game 4 of the 2004 American League Championship Series. We arrived right before "The Steal." We all yelled for Dave Roberts to take off, accompanied by a bunch of "we have no chance ... Rivera never blows a save ..." Everyone erupted when Roberts slid in safe, and a bunch of Yankees fans looked on in disgust from the other parking spots. Then, I went in and watched my football team complete a perfect 16-0 season. Life doesn't get much better than this, does it?
--Chris, Quincy, Mass.

SG: If we could send e-mails through time, and somebody sent this mailbag question to the 2000 Me, I probably would have passed out.

All right, I'm properly juiced. Time for the wild-card picks. Wish me luck.

I got the following from the NY Post. Can this be correct that Hillary only received 737 votes and Obama received 940. Do the Ds have a special way of counting votes or are these the actual votes?

DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATES
Name % Votes Pct rept.

Joe Biden | 0.9% | 23 | 100

Hillary Clinton | 29.5% | 737 | 100

Chris Dodd | 0% | 1 | 100

John Edwards | 29.7% | 744 | 100

Mike Gravel | 0% | 0 | 100

Dennis Kucinich | 0% | 0 | 100

Barack Obama | 37.6% | 940 | 100

Bill Richardson | 2.1% | 53 | 100

Uncommitted | 0.1% | 3 | 100

Other | 0% | 0 | 100

REPUBLICAN CANDIDATES
Name % Votes Pct rept.

Rudy Giuliani | 3.5% | 4059 | 96.7

Mike Huckabee | 34.3% | 40326 | 96.7

Duncan Hunter | 0.4% | 519 | 96.7

John McCain | 13.1% | 15383 | 96.7

Ron Paul | 10% | 11723 | 96.7

Mitt Romney | 25.3% | 29674 | 96.7

Fred Thompson | 13.4% | 15726 | 96.7

Tom Tancredo | 0% | 5 | 96.7

AHA! Found it - under the super delegates tab, pledged delegates in the bar chart. Muchas gracias.

Ping-pong

You have to look at the number when they are broken down by age group. If it wasn't for the 17-29 year olds group going all out for Obama, John "PB" Edwards might have won. Now that is a scary thought, but fortunately his days are numbered. He will come in 3rd in NH, and his home state of SC. Then it will be hemlock time.

Dog, when did switch from Edwards to Obama? Wasn't that long ago you were touting all the virtues of Johnny Boy. But maybe you saw the light of day and decided to jump the sinking Edwards ship just before it goes under.

I like Obama, not that I would ever vote for him. his positions are to similar to Edwards, but unlike Edwards he isn't a flat-out phony. I like Hillary over Obama, not that I would vote for her, but because I think she would grab you by the throat first then start negotiations. I see Obama wanting to sit down and have tea while the arsonists who are running around his office touching the curtains. I see him as a Jimmy Carter, a great neighbor, but a ineffective president. And as much as i would like to see Obama be the D nominee, that just isn't going to happen, it will be Hillary.

Lastly it wouldn't be right of me for not reminding you of the best TV series ever will start this Sunday on HBO, David Simon's "The Wire". It is so over looked by the critics, yet it is so much better than The Sopranos.

""What's the Matter With Kansas"? Perhaps when God created that state as an afterthought while sitting on his "throne" on the 9th day, he figured why bother...lol"

Awk, bear....my home state!

Seriously, Renee -- I know what you are talking about re: "What's The Matter" -- although since I grew up in Kansas I know I found it more interestibng than someone from out of the state. Kansas used to be very progressive in education and of course, women's suffrage....not to mention the Bloody Kansas days. But something damn sure happened because the tone has changed. I think it's because they all started listening to Limbaugh.....

Sorry, Claire ..but Tweety was a cheerleader until it became obvious that those images of tanks plowing through the desert were but a brief celebratory mini-victory parade. Matter of fact, there were very few commentators, writers, journalists, columnists who advised caution. And he kept saying idiotic things like, "isn't president bush great?" what an ass!

Patsi,

I hate to tell you this but your boy Rush used to be in the front office of the Kansas City Royals. I think that is when God started flicking boogers at your state...lol

Fry, enjoy the last season of the Wire, Bill Simmons of ESPN.com call its the best TV show he's ever seen. I tried to watch it when BET started airing the censored episodes and I didn't get into it. I'm going to look for the DVD's to get caught up for the show...

Claire,

Tylenol is correct. If you were to look in Tweety's closet, you will find his cheerleader outfit from the war. He like it from the get go but he was annoyed that there wasn't more of a debate since it would have been better television for him.

He didn't sour on the war until he realized that it was being run by total incompetents. He had that same look on his face during Katrina which really galvanized the idiocy factor of this administration in his mind.

Bear: "I hate to tell you this but your boy Rush used to be in the front office of the Kansas City Royals."

Sick.

By the way, Fry -- if you are trashing Edwards this much I have to wonder if he's the one the Thugs really are afraid of in the general......

Fry, those votes on the dem side in IA reflect the number of precincts won by each candidate, I think.

Bear and Tylenol, as I said, I was willing to stand corrected. I do know that Chris voted for Bush, because he's admitted it. (But I do admit that this surprises me. I can't imagine what would have inspired him to do that.)

Bear, GREAT experience at Giants Stadium!! Thanks for posting that!

- Claire (Boston born-and-bred-and-lived-for-27-years...in economic exile in NH)

Just saw a Joe Biden ad on CNN. Why not pull it? Couldn't they have saved themselves some $, or would CNN have already charged them for the time anyway?

Fry, nope, the numbers don't total the delegate total. I'm flummoxed. Maybe zoey or spike could clarify...

well it looks like the California primary will count for something ...

I wonder if any candidates will come to Western Sonoma County

kc, if there's wine there, they'll come. I've saidallalong that with NY & CA in the wings, IA & NH won't stop Hillary no matter the outcome.

Patsi,

Edwards is a failed candidate. Last election he came in 2nd in Iowa, was grudgingly accept by Kerry as his running mate, was a poor example of a US Senator, and if he had tried to run again was going to lose here in NC. The thing I am really going to miss when Edwards drops out, I'll not be able to scrutinize his latest IRS 1040 returns.

fry
what about your failed party
your failed president
the failed policy in eyerack and afghanistan

Bear,
You want evidence God loves Kansas? Look at the Jayhawk's season, capped with an Orange Bowl win over the Va Tech Hokies.

pogo,

Well I don't want you to be flummoxed, but the numbers just don't seem to jive. Maybe Sheila, or Jamie can add some insight.

If it is Friday and 3:18 PM, then I am out of here. Have a good weekend.

pogo...re: your 2:51 post...Will the numbers add up if you include the 3% of delegates who are still uncommitted?

Time to take a deep breath before NH

Finish Every Day
Ralph Waldo Emerson

Finish every day and be done with it.
You have done what you could.
Some blunders and absurdities
no doubt have crept in;
forget them as soon as you can.

Tomorrow is a new day;
begin it well and serenely
and with too high a spirit
to be cumbered with
your old nonsense.

This day is all that is
good and fair.
It is too dear,
with its hopes and invitations,
to waste a moment on yesterdays.

Strong economy - RIGHT...

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/04/business/04cnd-econ.html?ref=business

hw, I don't think so - the numbers fry posted from the NYPost add up to about 2500 - I don't know what that represents.

Maybe this has been out there before but today was the first I heard that the leader of the vast right wing conspiracy is divorcing.....Richard Mellon Scaife, who financed the investigation into Bill Clinton's sex life was caught with his pants down -- surprise, surprise. His wife suspected him of cheating on her and hired a detective....from the news story:

"In December of 2005, the private detective proved Ritchie’s fears to have been well founded: he took pictures showing the reclusive 75-year-old billionaire with a woman named Tammy Vasco, a tall, blonde 43-year-old whose criminal history includes two arrests for prostitution. The pair was photographed at Doug’s Motel, a roadside establishment near Pittsburgh, where rooms rent for $49 a night, or $31 for three hours."

Doug's Motel, indeed.....

Trail Watch Report:

Mrs. Bowmanc & son went to tthe Edwards event this afternoon. Packed ballroom at the Nashua Radisson. Mixed crowd of approx. 300 people. Edwardsand his wife both spoke and got the crowd fired up to fight the established corporate interests. He did not mention Hillary or Obama but made the point that both, with the help of the media are trying to make it a two person race and have made a point of not mentioning other people that are running. The crowd was pumped up and he was in good form " sounded good" . I'll try to get more impressions from my 13 YO later on after his guitar lesson.

Tyring to get to the Hudson VFW tonight for a McCain town meeting. Not sure if we can make it to both McCain & Richardson tonight.

Claire

I think tweety's attitude toward a lot of stuff has to do with the Clintons' NOT hiring him as communications director... he's been a tad 'off' ever since.

Patsi, that stuff about Sciafe hit the news yesterday, I think. As a rich and powerful man with no morals, he probably figured all rich and powerful men had no morals, so getting Clinton would be a cakewalk. Guess it was. I think a chart listing the top reps and top dems over say the past 30 or so years (at least to cover the period since reps have claimed to be the party of family values), with the number of marriages and known affairs they have had would be a best seller - dems would buy it to put up on their office walls; reps would buy it to keep dems from putting it up on their office walls.

BowmanC, excellent work - keep it up.

Well, I'm outta here for the weekend - basketball for little pogo and vist the rental place to assess the rental season damge. I shudder to think about it.

Craig, only a minority of the populace has any right to criticize Bush-Cheney at all...cuz most voters favored how Bush-Cheney acted from 2000 to 2004.
I'll never forget the sea of red on the electoral maps on election night, 2004.
I was not amazed, just totally disgusted and helpless-feeling as the electorate returned Bush to power.
Obama made me chuckle last night when he spoke of "no red states, no blue states..."...and they criticize Huckabee for not being on top of the news?
Yes,. Obama, there ARE red states..a solid blanket of red states that love old preachers ... and you will find out just how red they are.
Huckabee could win this thing.
It's so hard to win states like ours, for example. (Ohio).
How many US voters are really ready to vote in a Democrat.
If they didn't do it in 2004...I truly wonder. And I hope. "Hope"? Now there's a word for us!

Bear....
I know you're not anti-Hispanic.... just like you know Jamie isn't anti-black.....
but when I saw that comment about Richardson and a red shirt and Hugo Chavez.... I thought you were implying Richardson's shirt made him look like a commie..... sorry if that wasn't the case.....

and yes..... thanks for the report from Giant Stadium..... hope our Pats go all the way.....

eprof..... thanks for that post..... I miss your thoughtful musings....

Claire..... I'm Fitchburg born and bred.... raised in Lunenburg 23 yrs.....living in NH due to marrying a native.... I LOVE it here.... ain't ever going back to Massachusetts....

Jamie..... you made my day...... I LOVE Emerson....

Bear,
You want evidence God loves Kansas? Look at the Jayhawk's season, capped with an Orange Bowl win over the Va Tech Hokies.

DND, I would say thats a case of even a blind squirrel finding an acorn. Then you take one look at Mangino and know that he ate the squirrel...lol

Further proof that God looks down on Kansas...

Jayhawk fans will never forget the 80-75 beating the Rams dealt top-seeded Kansas in the second round of the NCAA tournament in 1998. One of the most infamous losses of the Roy Williams era, it brought an inglorious end to the college careers of All-American Raef LaFrentz and future NBA star Paul Pierce.

That is the Rhode Island Rams by the way...

Interesting column by Achenbach from the campaign trail.

http://blog.washingtonpost.com/the-trail/2008/01/04/post_263.html?wpisrc=newsletter&wpisrc=newsletter

I think Craig needs to write a follow up to "Attack The Messenger" only this time with the subtitle, "How the media turns you against politicians"

Dex.. i too was devastated on election night 2004... I started screaming 'nooooooooooooo...not that IDJIT for anotherrrr fourrrrrrr yearrrrrs".. Quite frequently, I still wake up screaming it.

lol.. no but Tweeety is ;)

you mean.. before he finishes his first sentence..hahahaaa

I do wish that guy Huck would quit defiling that nice fender bass.......

It's Tweety Time!

The IA Election night vow is still holding.

NO MSNBC ever again except for KO or Craig. In their own way, the channel is as dishonest and dumb as Fox and I've never watched Fox except when Stephanie is on to give them migraines.

If Tweety says anything so transparently prejudiced or stupid as to be humorous, I hope someone will post it.

Elizabeth is superb. No need to add "with" anything else.

C-SPAN coverage from NH tonight could be interesting

http://inside.c-spanarchives.org:8080/cspan/schedule.csp

Cindy McCain is one scary chick......*shudder*

oh.....that bass he's abusing today isnt a fender.....

DEBATE SCHEDULE FOR JANUARY 5, SATURDAY:

http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalradar/2008/01/ready-set-new-h.html

Ok, I'm firmly now in the Dex camp. I refuse to vote for anyone who voted for the war in Iraq and won't get us out of there ASAP. Period.

I just found out that someone I use to work with lost her son in Iraq. Ramadi. She was a single mom. And the sweetest kindest, most loving soul you'd ever meet. Ever. She's devastated, and I am so sad for her.

There is a special place in hell for the bastards that started this war...

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