In a great column today in the Wall Street Journal, former Bush political guru Karl Rove, who I knew in College Republicans in the late 1960s, had a tremendous collection of advice for John McCain. Hopefully it will not fall on deaf ears.
The main point is that McCain needs to let down his natural guard and reserve, and let the American people know the more intimate details of his life, particularly of his time in captivity in North Vietnam,
Col. Bud Day, McCain's roommate in the Hanoi Hilton, tells Rove amazing tales of McCain's strength, character and courage during his capitvity. He tells of McCain's refusal to sell out himself or America to his North Vietnamese captors, just for his personal comfort and safety. He tells of McCain sharing Bible stories to the other American captives, learned in his Episcopal childhood, urging them to be of good courage and cheer.
Rove also details the touching story of McCain's wife Cindy bringing two orphans in need of medical attention home to the U.S. from Asia. Ultimately, the McCain's adopted one, who is his teenage daughter today, and his chief aide and his wife adopted the other. The caring and compassion these young girls have been shown is heartwarming.
Rove observes that McCain is the most reserved and circumspect candidate for president that he has ever observed. He believes that if the American people knew the extent of his patriotism and service to this great country, he would be an irrestible candidate. He points out that rarely has such a humble and sacrificial man run for president, so totally unwilling to shine the spotlight on his personal life and values.
The Straight Talk Express, and McCain's well-know independent streak, have brought him this far. To get his candidacy over the top, he needs to let people look inside and get to know him better. Let's hope he does--for he certainly has nothing to hide.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
What Obama was really mad about
Just as he threw his white grandmother under the bus, identifying racist statements she had made in his childhood, Barack Obama sent his 20-year pastor who conducted his wedding and baptized his children, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, underneath with her. God help anyone who is, or has been, a friend or relative of Barack Obama. If he perceives you as interfering with his political ambitions, you could be next.
Very belatedly, after Wright resurfaced this week with a plethora of big time public appearances defending his outrageous black liberation theology, Obama has followed the dictates of the political pundits, who virtually unanimously said he could not win the presidency without repudiating Wright.
While the obvious, surface reaction Obama had in his angry press conference was disagreement with Wright's controversial views, what Obama was REALLY angry about was that his 20-year pastor, confident and friend wouldn't stay hidden until after November and let his buddy Obama be elected president in peace and quiet. Obama can't possibly be opposed, or unfamiliar, with Wright's views, having been associated with him for 20 years. If he was, he would have left the church long ago, as Oprah Winfrey and others have.
But Obama obviously misread Wright, or didn't know him as well as he thought he did. The main conclusion one can draw from Wright's convention and television appearances this week is that he has a huge ego and has a new book coming out shortly. While its possible for him to garner the publicity, he needs to do it--whatever the consequences for Obama--to sell books.
Wright is simply following in the footsteps of other major black preachers like Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton, who make their living as professional apologists for their race. They show up at any real or perceived event with possible racial overtones and exploit it to the max for their own personal gain. They extort millions of dollars in hush money from major corporations and countries around the world for their "non-profit" organizations--from which they draw huge salaries and expenses--in return for not attacking them.
Poor naive Barack Obama had not stopped to consider the dollars involved for Wright. Most pastors stand behind and help their parishoners in their pursuits, acting as behind-the-scenes cheerleaders and encouragers, praying for their success.
Jeremiah Wright obviously has a very different agenda.
Very belatedly, after Wright resurfaced this week with a plethora of big time public appearances defending his outrageous black liberation theology, Obama has followed the dictates of the political pundits, who virtually unanimously said he could not win the presidency without repudiating Wright.
While the obvious, surface reaction Obama had in his angry press conference was disagreement with Wright's controversial views, what Obama was REALLY angry about was that his 20-year pastor, confident and friend wouldn't stay hidden until after November and let his buddy Obama be elected president in peace and quiet. Obama can't possibly be opposed, or unfamiliar, with Wright's views, having been associated with him for 20 years. If he was, he would have left the church long ago, as Oprah Winfrey and others have.
But Obama obviously misread Wright, or didn't know him as well as he thought he did. The main conclusion one can draw from Wright's convention and television appearances this week is that he has a huge ego and has a new book coming out shortly. While its possible for him to garner the publicity, he needs to do it--whatever the consequences for Obama--to sell books.
Wright is simply following in the footsteps of other major black preachers like Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton, who make their living as professional apologists for their race. They show up at any real or perceived event with possible racial overtones and exploit it to the max for their own personal gain. They extort millions of dollars in hush money from major corporations and countries around the world for their "non-profit" organizations--from which they draw huge salaries and expenses--in return for not attacking them.
Poor naive Barack Obama had not stopped to consider the dollars involved for Wright. Most pastors stand behind and help their parishoners in their pursuits, acting as behind-the-scenes cheerleaders and encouragers, praying for their success.
Jeremiah Wright obviously has a very different agenda.
Monday, April 28, 2008
Great irony in Clear Channel response to Salazar
As blogged earlier, Colorado Sen. Ken Salazar wrote to Denver's KOA radio, which carries Rush Limbaugh locally, to complain about Rush's comments about riots during the Democratic National Convention.
KOA, owned by media conglomerate Clear Channel, had local domo Lee Larsen respond. His letter is a classic of senatorial speak, just like you'd get from your Senator if you wrote advocating a position. It is full of the dismissive rhetoric about what a great American Salazar is, how sacrificially he serves in our nation's highest deliberative body.
As close as the letter gets to taking a tough stand or advocating a position, is that it points out that in America we have constitutionally-guaranteed free speech and that Rush was exercising his.
Salazar, as liberal a Democrat as serves in the U.S. Senate, likes to fashion himself a moderate. He occasionally votes conservative on a dead duck like the flag burning amendment, but when it really matters, Salazar always votes liberal. Salazar wears a really ludicrous looking cowboy hat, which makes him look even less like a cowboy that he already does. This is intended to burnish his moderate, reasonable Western image. Salazar is a lousy public speaker with a poor command of the English language, who doe not think and respond well on his feet.
Larsen closes by telling Salazar what an honor it was to have him on KOA discussing the issue, and how generous it was of Salazar to take time from his busy schedule to talk with callers on KOA.
Talk about giving a solon a dose of his own medicine! I've quit writing to Senators and Congressmen because I can't stand to be patronized with the phony baloney letters that come back. It is exciting to see the tables turned, giving a Senator exactly what he dishes out to the citizenry on a regular basis.
KOA, owned by media conglomerate Clear Channel, had local domo Lee Larsen respond. His letter is a classic of senatorial speak, just like you'd get from your Senator if you wrote advocating a position. It is full of the dismissive rhetoric about what a great American Salazar is, how sacrificially he serves in our nation's highest deliberative body.
As close as the letter gets to taking a tough stand or advocating a position, is that it points out that in America we have constitutionally-guaranteed free speech and that Rush was exercising his.
Salazar, as liberal a Democrat as serves in the U.S. Senate, likes to fashion himself a moderate. He occasionally votes conservative on a dead duck like the flag burning amendment, but when it really matters, Salazar always votes liberal. Salazar wears a really ludicrous looking cowboy hat, which makes him look even less like a cowboy that he already does. This is intended to burnish his moderate, reasonable Western image. Salazar is a lousy public speaker with a poor command of the English language, who doe not think and respond well on his feet.
Larsen closes by telling Salazar what an honor it was to have him on KOA discussing the issue, and how generous it was of Salazar to take time from his busy schedule to talk with callers on KOA.
Talk about giving a solon a dose of his own medicine! I've quit writing to Senators and Congressmen because I can't stand to be patronized with the phony baloney letters that come back. It is exciting to see the tables turned, giving a Senator exactly what he dishes out to the citizenry on a regular basis.
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Obama's pastor, Rev. Jeremiah Wright, resurfaces
It's not clear if Barack Obama is behind the resurfacing of his pastor, Rev. Jeremiah Wright in the mass media this week, or if, as he should be, he and his handlers are horrified.
Just as the controversy over Wright's incendiary racially-charged sermons, which they used to give out on CDs at his church, and posted on the church website, was starting to lose steam, Wright has suddenly reappeared, winning a big civil rights award and doing the talk show circuit, led by ex-LBJ press secretary Bill Moyers.
No matter how moderate, sweet and reasonable Wright appears on the talk shows, the coverage is always accompanied by the same videotape of Wright's fire-breathing, anti-white screeds, which much of America finds way over the top. There's preaching like that in some pentecostal and evangelical churches, but most mainstream and evangelical churchs have a much more easy-listening style and find Wright to be out of bounds, at best.
Obama has never satisfactorially answered questions about whether he agrees with Wright, and that's why he stayed at the church 20 years, allowing him to conduct his wedding and baptize his children. Numerous big name blacks found Wright an embarrassment they didn't need as they got famous, like Oprah Winfrey, and left the church. The only other answer is that Obama attended church so infrequently, or slept when he did, that he missed what Wright had to say.
Wright is friends with many Muslim bigwigs, like Louis Farrakhan and African dictators, who he has honored at the church. Obama has been oblivious to this as well, and in fact, has been endorsed by Farrakhan.
Obama doesn't need this controversy percolating around the internet, and providing fodder for fall GOP TV spots. His equivocating and doubletalk haven't made the problem go away, and Wright resurfacing in public only reminds voters of one of Obama's bad associations.
Whether Obama realizes it or not, Wright is one of the major factors keeping Hillary Clinton's campaign alive. Just as he has suddenly kept his sharp-tongued wife Michelle away from microphones, Obama needs to do that with Wright as well.
Just as the controversy over Wright's incendiary racially-charged sermons, which they used to give out on CDs at his church, and posted on the church website, was starting to lose steam, Wright has suddenly reappeared, winning a big civil rights award and doing the talk show circuit, led by ex-LBJ press secretary Bill Moyers.
No matter how moderate, sweet and reasonable Wright appears on the talk shows, the coverage is always accompanied by the same videotape of Wright's fire-breathing, anti-white screeds, which much of America finds way over the top. There's preaching like that in some pentecostal and evangelical churches, but most mainstream and evangelical churchs have a much more easy-listening style and find Wright to be out of bounds, at best.
Obama has never satisfactorially answered questions about whether he agrees with Wright, and that's why he stayed at the church 20 years, allowing him to conduct his wedding and baptize his children. Numerous big name blacks found Wright an embarrassment they didn't need as they got famous, like Oprah Winfrey, and left the church. The only other answer is that Obama attended church so infrequently, or slept when he did, that he missed what Wright had to say.
Wright is friends with many Muslim bigwigs, like Louis Farrakhan and African dictators, who he has honored at the church. Obama has been oblivious to this as well, and in fact, has been endorsed by Farrakhan.
Obama doesn't need this controversy percolating around the internet, and providing fodder for fall GOP TV spots. His equivocating and doubletalk haven't made the problem go away, and Wright resurfacing in public only reminds voters of one of Obama's bad associations.
Whether Obama realizes it or not, Wright is one of the major factors keeping Hillary Clinton's campaign alive. Just as he has suddenly kept his sharp-tongued wife Michelle away from microphones, Obama needs to do that with Wright as well.
Saturday, April 26, 2008
Bubba redoubles effort in Hillary's campaign
Former president Bill Clinton has doubled the number of appearances on his campaign schedule for the North Carolina and Indiana primaries this coming week. This is a real two-eged sword for Hillary.
Bubba has been pretty controversial on the trail so far. By pointing out the truth about the South Carolina pimary, that it was stacked for a black candidate, just like it was for Jesse Jackson in 1992, he was dubbed "playing the race card." This coming from America's first black president, as named by leftist poetess Maya Angelou, didn't play well in the mass media.
Bubba also flubbed a ham-handed defense of Hillary's lies about her trip to Bosnia. All her handlers wanted to keep the controversy quiet, since Obama was grabbing all the headlines at that moment with his self-destructing, elitist comments about small town Democratic white males who take solace in church and guns.
Bill is still something of a celebrity, though, and has drawn huge, fawning crowds in some places. The hope is that in white small towns and suburbs, he can crank the voter turnout in Hillary's favor. When he can resist the temptation to even scores on real and imagined slights, Bill is a folksy, knowledgeable speaker who can create favorable attention.
Old Bill Clinton hands have been turning up more often recently at Hillary's campaign headquarters, along with Bill himself, and he's thought to be the major impetus behind Hillary's "never say die" campaign to hang on. It's thought that he cannot bear to lose the campaign to Obama and his retinue of veteran Clinton-haters, so is digging in for the long haul.
This is good news for John McCain and the GOP, if nothing else, to prolong the Democratic bloodshed.
Bubba has been pretty controversial on the trail so far. By pointing out the truth about the South Carolina pimary, that it was stacked for a black candidate, just like it was for Jesse Jackson in 1992, he was dubbed "playing the race card." This coming from America's first black president, as named by leftist poetess Maya Angelou, didn't play well in the mass media.
Bubba also flubbed a ham-handed defense of Hillary's lies about her trip to Bosnia. All her handlers wanted to keep the controversy quiet, since Obama was grabbing all the headlines at that moment with his self-destructing, elitist comments about small town Democratic white males who take solace in church and guns.
Bill is still something of a celebrity, though, and has drawn huge, fawning crowds in some places. The hope is that in white small towns and suburbs, he can crank the voter turnout in Hillary's favor. When he can resist the temptation to even scores on real and imagined slights, Bill is a folksy, knowledgeable speaker who can create favorable attention.
Old Bill Clinton hands have been turning up more often recently at Hillary's campaign headquarters, along with Bill himself, and he's thought to be the major impetus behind Hillary's "never say die" campaign to hang on. It's thought that he cannot bear to lose the campaign to Obama and his retinue of veteran Clinton-haters, so is digging in for the long haul.
This is good news for John McCain and the GOP, if nothing else, to prolong the Democratic bloodshed.
Friday, April 25, 2008
Salazar harvesting cheap political hay
The Denver media have gone ape over comments Rush Limbaugh made on his syndicated Thursday radio program, calling attentioin to Rev. Al Sharpton's comments that there would be trouble at the Democratic National Convention in Denver if Barack Obama is denied the presidential nomination.
The Denver media twisted Limbaugh's comments, which were very clear and obvious if you listen to the replay of what he actually said, to say that Limbaugh advocated violence at the Denver convention. Nothing could be farther from the truth, and it was a gross distortion of what he said, to imply otherwise. All the left-wing blogs went nuts, without listening to what Limbaugh really said, when in reality Recreate '68 and its leader Glenn Spagnulo have already said there'll be riots and demonstrations in Denver, which they've been planning for over a year.
At the time Denver's Civic Center Park was granted by permit to the Democratic National Committee for use during the convention, rather than Recreate '68, Spagnulo made the threat. His group seeks to duplicate the police in riot gear at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago that nominated Hubert Humphrey, dooming his chances against Richard Nixon.
The cheapest and silliest shot fired over the fake controversy was by Colorado Sen. Ken Salazar, who called on Denver's KOA radio 85, which carries Limbaugh locally, to repudiate him. This is a non-starter, seeking only to garner favorable publicity for Salazar as he prepares for his 2010 re-election fight. Salazar is a far-out leftwinger, who manipulates his public image to be called a moderate. He does this mainly by voting conservative on lost causes like the flag burning amendment, but ultra-liberal on everything that counts.
The unvarnished truth is that Al Sharpton and Recreate '68 had called for, and predicted, riots in Denver at the convention long before Limbaugh even brought the subject up. He was only commenting on their threats.
As the old saying goes "gimme a break!"
The Denver media twisted Limbaugh's comments, which were very clear and obvious if you listen to the replay of what he actually said, to say that Limbaugh advocated violence at the Denver convention. Nothing could be farther from the truth, and it was a gross distortion of what he said, to imply otherwise. All the left-wing blogs went nuts, without listening to what Limbaugh really said, when in reality Recreate '68 and its leader Glenn Spagnulo have already said there'll be riots and demonstrations in Denver, which they've been planning for over a year.
At the time Denver's Civic Center Park was granted by permit to the Democratic National Committee for use during the convention, rather than Recreate '68, Spagnulo made the threat. His group seeks to duplicate the police in riot gear at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago that nominated Hubert Humphrey, dooming his chances against Richard Nixon.
The cheapest and silliest shot fired over the fake controversy was by Colorado Sen. Ken Salazar, who called on Denver's KOA radio 85, which carries Limbaugh locally, to repudiate him. This is a non-starter, seeking only to garner favorable publicity for Salazar as he prepares for his 2010 re-election fight. Salazar is a far-out leftwinger, who manipulates his public image to be called a moderate. He does this mainly by voting conservative on lost causes like the flag burning amendment, but ultra-liberal on everything that counts.
The unvarnished truth is that Al Sharpton and Recreate '68 had called for, and predicted, riots in Denver at the convention long before Limbaugh even brought the subject up. He was only commenting on their threats.
As the old saying goes "gimme a break!"
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Barack couldn't get in military
It's a very strange anomaly in American politics that candidates with ties to terrorists and haters of America can be elected to the highest security post in the land--president--when they would fail the test, and not be able to get in the military.
So it is with Barack Obama, who almost daily has one more terrorist friend or far left America-hater exposed from his vast list of contacts, friends and supporters. Bill Ayers, one of hisneighbors, good friends and fellow professor at the University of Chicago, is a far out socialist and member of the Weathermen underground during the Vietnam War. He is totally unrepentent, and a major policy advisor listed on the Obama website.
There are numerous other Muslim terrorists with links on Obama's presidential campaign website. This is to say nothing of his fire-breathing pastor, Rev. Jeremiah Wright, who said, among many anti-American diatribes passed off as sermons, that America itself is to blame for 9/11, getting what it deserved.
As bad as these connections are for a prospective U.S. president, they don't disqualify him from running or serving, even though they would preclude him from passing the security entrance tests to get into the military.
Of course only a rabid Obama hater would dare point these things out, and the mainstream media wouldn't dream of printing them. But that's what a blog is for. To bring out truth the mainstream ignores, as being in "bad taste."
So it is with Barack Obama, who almost daily has one more terrorist friend or far left America-hater exposed from his vast list of contacts, friends and supporters. Bill Ayers, one of hisneighbors, good friends and fellow professor at the University of Chicago, is a far out socialist and member of the Weathermen underground during the Vietnam War. He is totally unrepentent, and a major policy advisor listed on the Obama website.
There are numerous other Muslim terrorists with links on Obama's presidential campaign website. This is to say nothing of his fire-breathing pastor, Rev. Jeremiah Wright, who said, among many anti-American diatribes passed off as sermons, that America itself is to blame for 9/11, getting what it deserved.
As bad as these connections are for a prospective U.S. president, they don't disqualify him from running or serving, even though they would preclude him from passing the security entrance tests to get into the military.
Of course only a rabid Obama hater would dare point these things out, and the mainstream media wouldn't dream of printing them. But that's what a blog is for. To bring out truth the mainstream ignores, as being in "bad taste."
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Barack hasn't won a primary since February 22
Lost in all the big media coverup of the significance of Hillary Clinton's victory in the Pennsylvania primary, is the fact that Barack Obama hasn't won a primary since Feb. 22. Hillary won Texas and Ohio, the last ones held, and now Pennsylvania.
Those three are all big, crucial states for Democratic chances in November, and Barack lost them all. No matter how hard the major media pump for Obama, a substantial segment of the party isn't buying it and this thing is still a horse race. The fact is that the main states Obama has won in primaries are Republican states in a general election, while the ones Hillary won are the key Democratic states that they must win to win a general election. Who is the more electable candidate in November?
It's said that the Democrats fall into, and out of, love quickly. So it was in nominating George McGovern, Michael Dukakis and John Kerry--three of the weakest candidates the party has ever nominated. Now it is on the verge of falling in love with Barack Obama, who cannot carry the major Democratic states where the election is won or lost.
The voters have issued one last warning that Barack won't do. Are the superdelegates listening?
Those three are all big, crucial states for Democratic chances in November, and Barack lost them all. No matter how hard the major media pump for Obama, a substantial segment of the party isn't buying it and this thing is still a horse race. The fact is that the main states Obama has won in primaries are Republican states in a general election, while the ones Hillary won are the key Democratic states that they must win to win a general election. Who is the more electable candidate in November?
It's said that the Democrats fall into, and out of, love quickly. So it was in nominating George McGovern, Michael Dukakis and John Kerry--three of the weakest candidates the party has ever nominated. Now it is on the verge of falling in love with Barack Obama, who cannot carry the major Democratic states where the election is won or lost.
The voters have issued one last warning that Barack won't do. Are the superdelegates listening?
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Hillary's pyrrhic Pennsylvania win
Hillary Clinton scored a decent win in the Democratic Primary in Pennsylvania by about 8%--but the real question is, does it really mean anything?
The conventional wisdom is that she is too far behind Obama to win the Democratic nomination. Pennsylvania will only close the gap a little bit, as the arcane Democratic rules virtually split the delegates in every state in half. That's why the party's in the mess it is, that even a decisive win by one candidate or the other really doesn't change things very much.
The news media has carefully avoided saying anything about Rush Limbaugh and his Operation Chaos, which saw some 170,000 Republicans re-register as Democrats in order to vote for Hillary. If Hillary wins the state's popular vote by any less than 170,000 votes, that means the Republican switchers put her over the top, right? I don't want to turn blue, so I won't hold my breath waiting for the news media to admit that.
The real significance of the Pennsylvania vote is, that it means the chaos will go on in the Democratic contest. The win encouraged Hillary enough to stay in the race for the Indiana and North Carolina primaries--and probably well beyond that, on in to the convenion in August in Denver. There is no over-arching leadership in the Democratic Party with enough power to force a premature decision on the party, so this is the most likely outcome.
As a Republican, I'm glad to see the fight go on. Congratulations, Hillary!
The conventional wisdom is that she is too far behind Obama to win the Democratic nomination. Pennsylvania will only close the gap a little bit, as the arcane Democratic rules virtually split the delegates in every state in half. That's why the party's in the mess it is, that even a decisive win by one candidate or the other really doesn't change things very much.
The news media has carefully avoided saying anything about Rush Limbaugh and his Operation Chaos, which saw some 170,000 Republicans re-register as Democrats in order to vote for Hillary. If Hillary wins the state's popular vote by any less than 170,000 votes, that means the Republican switchers put her over the top, right? I don't want to turn blue, so I won't hold my breath waiting for the news media to admit that.
The real significance of the Pennsylvania vote is, that it means the chaos will go on in the Democratic contest. The win encouraged Hillary enough to stay in the race for the Indiana and North Carolina primaries--and probably well beyond that, on in to the convenion in August in Denver. There is no over-arching leadership in the Democratic Party with enough power to force a premature decision on the party, so this is the most likely outcome.
As a Republican, I'm glad to see the fight go on. Congratulations, Hillary!
Monday, April 21, 2008
Democratic honchos moving to shortcut campaign
Major domos in the Democratic party nationally are moving quietly behind the scenes to bring the Hillary Clinton-Barack Obama competition for the presidential nomination to a quicker close. Particularly with the nasty blows the candidates exchanged this last weekend in Pennsylvania, both in live campaign appearances and in television and radio ads, the honchos fear such a wide split once a nominee is named that the GOP's John McCain will be a shoe-in.
National Democratic chairman Howard Dean, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid are talking behind the scenes, with their main strategy tied to getting all the the superdelegates to announce for Obama.
The fear a divisive national convention in Denver in August, much like the ones in Chicago in 1968, the George McGovern convention in 1972 and the Michael Dukakis convention in 1984 that leaves the party so devastated it cannot win in November.
Hillary Clinton is still widely thought to win tomorrow in Pennsylvania, though not by a wide enough margin to put her campaign firmly back on the map. Most observers still see Obama with a commanding lead in delegates that Hillary cannot overcome. They believe she can be a spoiler, but not victorious in her own right.
They fear all of Hillary's attacks on Obama coming back in John McCain commercials in the fall, and that the earlier the party can be united around one candidate, the better.
The real question is: is it already too late for Democratic unity?
National Democratic chairman Howard Dean, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid are talking behind the scenes, with their main strategy tied to getting all the the superdelegates to announce for Obama.
The fear a divisive national convention in Denver in August, much like the ones in Chicago in 1968, the George McGovern convention in 1972 and the Michael Dukakis convention in 1984 that leaves the party so devastated it cannot win in November.
Hillary Clinton is still widely thought to win tomorrow in Pennsylvania, though not by a wide enough margin to put her campaign firmly back on the map. Most observers still see Obama with a commanding lead in delegates that Hillary cannot overcome. They believe she can be a spoiler, but not victorious in her own right.
They fear all of Hillary's attacks on Obama coming back in John McCain commercials in the fall, and that the earlier the party can be united around one candidate, the better.
The real question is: is it already too late for Democratic unity?
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Significant issues elude presidential debate
A Denver Post columnist points out that in the latest Democratic presidential debate between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, it was 43 minutes into the debate before Iraq was discussed. He called this the fault of the press who was conducting the debate, but political infighting between Barack and Hillary was at least as much to blame.
What it amounts to is that Americans can tell you what Barack has said about guns and church among small town folks, or how Hillary lied about her trip to Bosnia, but have no idea where the candidates stand on health care, the economy or Iraq. As usually happens in election, trivia overtakes significance every time.
This becomes an increasing problem for Democrats, the longer the fight between Barack and HIllary drags on. The longer the candidates can be kept focused on each other, tearing each other from stem to stearn, the more of a free ride John McCain and the Republicans get. With an unpopular incumbent GOP president in George W. Bush, it would be better politically for the Democrats to concentrate their fire there. The longer they can be kept from doing that, the better it is for the GOP's fall electoral chances.
If Hillary loses Pennsylvania, its probably all over. It may be anyway, as she is thought to be seriously short of money. But any kind of win this coming Tuesday in Pennsylvania, its on to North Carolina and Indiana, the next biggies, Hillary will go. National Democratic Chairman Howard Dean, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, recognize the desirability of the party coalesing around a single candidate as soon as possible and are calling on the Superdelegates to take the lead in doing so. So far it seems to be falling on deaf ears.
As much as anything, this indicates the depth of the split within the Democratic ranks, and how close the two candidates really are. It will make it that much more difficult to paper over, when the actual candidate is finally selected. John McCain is a more moderate Republican, who can appeal more easily than many GOPers, to Democrats. Disgruntled losers, when the die is cast, could leave McCain in a very formidable position come November.
This lack of sharp distinctions between the candidates on issues means the division is done on trivial stuff. We're seeing that already.
What it amounts to is that Americans can tell you what Barack has said about guns and church among small town folks, or how Hillary lied about her trip to Bosnia, but have no idea where the candidates stand on health care, the economy or Iraq. As usually happens in election, trivia overtakes significance every time.
This becomes an increasing problem for Democrats, the longer the fight between Barack and HIllary drags on. The longer the candidates can be kept focused on each other, tearing each other from stem to stearn, the more of a free ride John McCain and the Republicans get. With an unpopular incumbent GOP president in George W. Bush, it would be better politically for the Democrats to concentrate their fire there. The longer they can be kept from doing that, the better it is for the GOP's fall electoral chances.
If Hillary loses Pennsylvania, its probably all over. It may be anyway, as she is thought to be seriously short of money. But any kind of win this coming Tuesday in Pennsylvania, its on to North Carolina and Indiana, the next biggies, Hillary will go. National Democratic Chairman Howard Dean, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, recognize the desirability of the party coalesing around a single candidate as soon as possible and are calling on the Superdelegates to take the lead in doing so. So far it seems to be falling on deaf ears.
As much as anything, this indicates the depth of the split within the Democratic ranks, and how close the two candidates really are. It will make it that much more difficult to paper over, when the actual candidate is finally selected. John McCain is a more moderate Republican, who can appeal more easily than many GOPers, to Democrats. Disgruntled losers, when the die is cast, could leave McCain in a very formidable position come November.
This lack of sharp distinctions between the candidates on issues means the division is done on trivial stuff. We're seeing that already.
Saturday, April 19, 2008
Unions denigrate own product, destroy business
Once again, we see the federal meat inspectors union grinding its own axe at the expense of the public perception of the healthfulness and wholesomeness of beef.
Unions always need more members to pay dues and contribute political funds, so constantly seek more employees to be hired at each location they represent. So it is with the meat inspectors, who once again are scaring the wits out of the beef consuming public by decrying the shortage of union inspectors at packing plants.
With compliant liberal Democrats in charge of Congress, they allow the union activists to add a tissue of credibility to their wild charges by repeating them to congressional committees. Last week at the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, veteran union activist Stanley Painter, currently working for the meat graders union, painted a lurid picture of all manner of filth, lies and deceit that allegedly goes on in meat packing plants, all to expose the consuming public to evil health risks and gross eating adventures.
The bottom line is that Painter needs more than the 6,000 federal meat inspector members for his union kitty, both in terms of federal dues collections, rebated directly to the union coffers, and political action fund donations to support liberal members of Congress in their re-election bids. Any way he can scare members of Congress into helping him out by hiring more meat inspectors, he is not above doing it.
American beef is the most wholesome, carefully inspected in the world. American packing plants are the cleanest, most humane in the world. If Painter were an objective observer, he would go to packing plants in other countries, to see the abuses he's talking about, because they exist there. Not in America.
Just like the packing plant employee's unions, the federal meat inspectors have no fear of bombarding the beef consuming public with all manner of wild stories, whose only purpose is to club management into submission to the union's will. If beef sales go down, due to the adverse union-generated publicity, so be it.
The next time you read wild charges from union activists before Congress or in the press, take it with a grain of salt. Ask yourself what they're really after--and it has nothing to do with the cleanliness or wholesomeness of meat. They're only concerned with the healthfulness of the union bank account.
Unions always need more members to pay dues and contribute political funds, so constantly seek more employees to be hired at each location they represent. So it is with the meat inspectors, who once again are scaring the wits out of the beef consuming public by decrying the shortage of union inspectors at packing plants.
With compliant liberal Democrats in charge of Congress, they allow the union activists to add a tissue of credibility to their wild charges by repeating them to congressional committees. Last week at the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, veteran union activist Stanley Painter, currently working for the meat graders union, painted a lurid picture of all manner of filth, lies and deceit that allegedly goes on in meat packing plants, all to expose the consuming public to evil health risks and gross eating adventures.
The bottom line is that Painter needs more than the 6,000 federal meat inspector members for his union kitty, both in terms of federal dues collections, rebated directly to the union coffers, and political action fund donations to support liberal members of Congress in their re-election bids. Any way he can scare members of Congress into helping him out by hiring more meat inspectors, he is not above doing it.
American beef is the most wholesome, carefully inspected in the world. American packing plants are the cleanest, most humane in the world. If Painter were an objective observer, he would go to packing plants in other countries, to see the abuses he's talking about, because they exist there. Not in America.
Just like the packing plant employee's unions, the federal meat inspectors have no fear of bombarding the beef consuming public with all manner of wild stories, whose only purpose is to club management into submission to the union's will. If beef sales go down, due to the adverse union-generated publicity, so be it.
The next time you read wild charges from union activists before Congress or in the press, take it with a grain of salt. Ask yourself what they're really after--and it has nothing to do with the cleanliness or wholesomeness of meat. They're only concerned with the healthfulness of the union bank account.
Friday, April 18, 2008
Pope visit brings out best in America
I am not a Catholic, and do not consider the Pope to be diety. He is just a man, just like the spiritual leader, Dr. Dennis McGuire, of my prostestant denomination, the Church of God Cleveland, Tennessee. Both are a fine spiritual leaders, and certainly bring out the best in fallen, cursed mankind, and speak for excellent moral values and goals we should all strive to live by.
That said, it is still moving to see the Pope's visit to the United States, all the pomp and ceremony of President Bush meeting his plane and hosting him at the White House. The press covers his remarks, and for a day, there is positive, good values expressed in the news media. Even Rush Limbaugh had President Bush on his show, to thank him for the stirring White House visit by the Pope and hosting 13,500 people on the lawn to see him.
Any time the cynical national press, as well as non-spiritual common folk, bow and scrape before the Pope, it is a positive thing and an admission, however faint, that there is a God who governs their lives and this planet. You don't see that in popular culture very often. In fact the church, and the things of God, are more often panned, vilified and put down.
The Catholic denomination, as well as most mainstream protestant denominations are losing members. If it wasn't for Latin America, a Catholic stronghold, the church could be in even deeper trouble. The secularization of Europe has had a particularly negative effect on Catholicism, which that continent is only starting to pay for, with the rise of the Muslim faith sweeping through country after country. The attendant rise in unrest, violence and division is only beginning to manifest itself.
That ought to be a wake-up call and example for the United States, to not marginalize the church as Europe has. The moral and family values it teaches and husbands are the backbone of a free, democratic society. The reaction to the Pope's visit signifies that there is still hope for this country.
We ignore that lesson at our own peril.
That said, it is still moving to see the Pope's visit to the United States, all the pomp and ceremony of President Bush meeting his plane and hosting him at the White House. The press covers his remarks, and for a day, there is positive, good values expressed in the news media. Even Rush Limbaugh had President Bush on his show, to thank him for the stirring White House visit by the Pope and hosting 13,500 people on the lawn to see him.
Any time the cynical national press, as well as non-spiritual common folk, bow and scrape before the Pope, it is a positive thing and an admission, however faint, that there is a God who governs their lives and this planet. You don't see that in popular culture very often. In fact the church, and the things of God, are more often panned, vilified and put down.
The Catholic denomination, as well as most mainstream protestant denominations are losing members. If it wasn't for Latin America, a Catholic stronghold, the church could be in even deeper trouble. The secularization of Europe has had a particularly negative effect on Catholicism, which that continent is only starting to pay for, with the rise of the Muslim faith sweeping through country after country. The attendant rise in unrest, violence and division is only beginning to manifest itself.
That ought to be a wake-up call and example for the United States, to not marginalize the church as Europe has. The moral and family values it teaches and husbands are the backbone of a free, democratic society. The reaction to the Pope's visit signifies that there is still hope for this country.
We ignore that lesson at our own peril.
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Obama off the cuff: inarticulate, ponderous
Last night's Democratic "debate" in Pennsylvania confirmed what most observers have known since the campaign's earliest days: Barack Obama is lights out reading prepared remarks about hope and futures off the teleprompter, but at sea in answering questions not revealed to him in advance. The media questioners were unusually hard on him in the first half of the debate, leaving him stammering around, with long-winded, vague, obtuse answers--frequently for questions that weren't even asked.
Instead of the confident, calm, in control, presidential looking Obama, what viewers saw was a sweating, stressed, nervous and inarticulate pretender to the throne. The rookie Senator really showed through, instead of the boy wonder. Obama has not introduced, much less gotton passed, any significant legislation in his four-year Senate term. He has not been a tough questioner in committee hearings or used his subcommittee chairmanship to any obvious advantage.
In short, his Senate career has been that of a show horse, not a work horse. His footprint on the Senate is very faint.
This lack of background and institutional knowledge showed through strongly last night, which should have set Hillary Clinton up for the kill. She probably won the debate, such as it was, but bogged down in her own right, defending her lies about her trip to Bosnia and defending Bubba. Either candidate looked like a fat, juicy target for McCain in the fall.
The weakening economy and unpopularity of the war in Iraq should make this a banner year for Democrats, but instead McCain is running strong in the polls in many normally Democratic states.
With leaders like this pair on the top of the ticket, its easy to see why.
Instead of the confident, calm, in control, presidential looking Obama, what viewers saw was a sweating, stressed, nervous and inarticulate pretender to the throne. The rookie Senator really showed through, instead of the boy wonder. Obama has not introduced, much less gotton passed, any significant legislation in his four-year Senate term. He has not been a tough questioner in committee hearings or used his subcommittee chairmanship to any obvious advantage.
In short, his Senate career has been that of a show horse, not a work horse. His footprint on the Senate is very faint.
This lack of background and institutional knowledge showed through strongly last night, which should have set Hillary Clinton up for the kill. She probably won the debate, such as it was, but bogged down in her own right, defending her lies about her trip to Bosnia and defending Bubba. Either candidate looked like a fat, juicy target for McCain in the fall.
The weakening economy and unpopularity of the war in Iraq should make this a banner year for Democrats, but instead McCain is running strong in the polls in many normally Democratic states.
With leaders like this pair on the top of the ticket, its easy to see why.
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
McCain strongest outside GOP constitutencies
The conservative wing of the Republican Party has been in an "anybody but McCain" mode from the get-go, and the perceptible lack of enthusiasm for him even now, as the presumptive nominee, is palpable.
At the same time, McCain is running strong against either Obama or Hillary in the polls in rust belt and eastern states the GOP hasn't carried in years. If he were to actually win by carrying non-traditional GOP states like Pennsylvania and Michigan, he will be even less beholden to the most recent party conservative power base. This will make him even more of a middle-of-the-road president than most of us had feared.
That isn't to say that he isn't still light years ahead of Obama or Hillary in conservative's eyes, or probably even better than the likely Libertarian candidate, former Georgia Rep. Bob Barr. But unless it is amply demonstrated to McCain and his people that the GOP base brought him home, his well-documented proclivities for working with liberals like Wisconsin Sen. Russ Feingold and Massachusetts Sen. Ted Kennedy will be become even more pronounced.
I'm not yet ready to join a segment of conservatives who actually believe it would be good to have four years of a Jimmy Carter-like Obama to bring the GOP back to united conservative roots, but based on today's polling data, a McCain victory would not bode well for conservatives.
The maverick, independent streak that has made McCain so popular with the press and older "patriotic" voters among unaffiliated and Democratic voters, cuts both ways and may wind up disappointing everyone.
At the same time, McCain is running strong against either Obama or Hillary in the polls in rust belt and eastern states the GOP hasn't carried in years. If he were to actually win by carrying non-traditional GOP states like Pennsylvania and Michigan, he will be even less beholden to the most recent party conservative power base. This will make him even more of a middle-of-the-road president than most of us had feared.
That isn't to say that he isn't still light years ahead of Obama or Hillary in conservative's eyes, or probably even better than the likely Libertarian candidate, former Georgia Rep. Bob Barr. But unless it is amply demonstrated to McCain and his people that the GOP base brought him home, his well-documented proclivities for working with liberals like Wisconsin Sen. Russ Feingold and Massachusetts Sen. Ted Kennedy will be become even more pronounced.
I'm not yet ready to join a segment of conservatives who actually believe it would be good to have four years of a Jimmy Carter-like Obama to bring the GOP back to united conservative roots, but based on today's polling data, a McCain victory would not bode well for conservatives.
The maverick, independent streak that has made McCain so popular with the press and older "patriotic" voters among unaffiliated and Democratic voters, cuts both ways and may wind up disappointing everyone.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Hillary a fine one to talk
The Obama campaign is taking lots of gas for his elitist San Francisco fundraiser remarks about bitter small town white males. The criticism is well-deserved, as the mask is finally being rolled back to reveal the actual Barack Obama, as opposed to the liberal mass media creation.
The lead critic, with certainly no right to talk in her own right, is Hillary Clinton. The Wellesley and Yale Law School graduate, whose family has made $109 million as revealed in their tax returns since 2001, has no room to talk. Bill has his multi-million dollar mansion in Chappaqua, New York and Hillary has her multi-million-dollar mansion on embassy row in Washington D.C. Many would use say they are the elite of the elite.
This all brings to mind what this blog has written about several times in recent weeks: the 2008 election is going to be determined by the angry white males, and neither Obama or Hillary is doing a decent job of speaking to them or for them. Blue collar white males, both union and non-union, are big outdoorsmen, hunters and fishermen, gun owners. They ride Harleys, drink beer and smoke cigars. They are the significant voting bloc that is being left out in all the political calculations.
What probably is happening, is Hillary and Obama both are baring their natural antipathy to blue collar, white male values and setting them up to vote for John McCain in November. While hardly a man of the soil, McCain is a war hero, graduate of the public naval academy, with a much more conservative record on the issues most critical to the white male.
Not to be too unduly politically incorrect, but blue collar white males are not going to vote for a woman or black President. They might be shaken by the inclusion of a white male on the ticket, but probably not. The younger generation might not think the same way, but for 2008 anyway, the blue collar baby boomer white male will still carry huge clout.
Hillary and Barack tarring each other as elitists only drives home the point, for re-use in the fall campaign by John McCain.
Thank you!
The lead critic, with certainly no right to talk in her own right, is Hillary Clinton. The Wellesley and Yale Law School graduate, whose family has made $109 million as revealed in their tax returns since 2001, has no room to talk. Bill has his multi-million dollar mansion in Chappaqua, New York and Hillary has her multi-million-dollar mansion on embassy row in Washington D.C. Many would use say they are the elite of the elite.
This all brings to mind what this blog has written about several times in recent weeks: the 2008 election is going to be determined by the angry white males, and neither Obama or Hillary is doing a decent job of speaking to them or for them. Blue collar white males, both union and non-union, are big outdoorsmen, hunters and fishermen, gun owners. They ride Harleys, drink beer and smoke cigars. They are the significant voting bloc that is being left out in all the political calculations.
What probably is happening, is Hillary and Obama both are baring their natural antipathy to blue collar, white male values and setting them up to vote for John McCain in November. While hardly a man of the soil, McCain is a war hero, graduate of the public naval academy, with a much more conservative record on the issues most critical to the white male.
Not to be too unduly politically incorrect, but blue collar white males are not going to vote for a woman or black President. They might be shaken by the inclusion of a white male on the ticket, but probably not. The younger generation might not think the same way, but for 2008 anyway, the blue collar baby boomer white male will still carry huge clout.
Hillary and Barack tarring each other as elitists only drives home the point, for re-use in the fall campaign by John McCain.
Thank you!
Monday, April 14, 2008
Dems values debate farcical
Sunday night's big clash on spiritual values between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama was either tragic, or a complete farce. It would be hard for any reasonably religious person to put a good face on it.
Despite the usual lip service to Christianity and moral values, neither Clinton nor Obama have what any fundamental or evangelical Christian would consider acceptable views. Both are pro-abortion, pro-gay marriage, and major proponents of the social gospel, as opposed to the Bible itself. The debate featured them mealy-mouthing around the issues, to avoid having to defend their indefensible positions.
The only thing worse than the duo's answers, were the questions from the panel. The questioners were even more at sea in the discussion of moral values, as well as their willingness to let Hillary and Obama off the hook with non-answers. The discussion begged for one or two questioners of great moral or theological understanding, who could both bring clarity to the questions, and force clarity from Hillary and Obama.
After sitting through this thoroughly muddy and obtuse discussion, it's not hard to see why Democrats have such a hard time appealing to values voters. They are out of step with values voters to begin with, and then come across as almost laughably inept in trying to disguise the fact.
The few Democrats with solid values like Pennsylvania Sen. Robert Casey, who is anti-abortion, and Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman, who is socially conservative, are drummed out of the party or marginalized to the fringes of the debate.
Save for Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, the Republican candidates were hardly much better, which explains why much of the GOP sat on their hands through the primaries, and why there is so little enthusiasm for presumptive nominee John McCain. His record on social issues is very muddy and his ability to discuss them is marginal. This lukewarm GOP response is a major problem for McCain, and why the nasty shootout between Hillary and Obama that will split the Democratic Party may still leave them with the ability to win in November.
Despite the obvious attempts Sunday night by the mass media and the Democrats to minimize and temporize social issues, they are very real and very important to one-third to as much as one-half of the electorate. It would behoove the candidates to get a handle on it.
Despite the usual lip service to Christianity and moral values, neither Clinton nor Obama have what any fundamental or evangelical Christian would consider acceptable views. Both are pro-abortion, pro-gay marriage, and major proponents of the social gospel, as opposed to the Bible itself. The debate featured them mealy-mouthing around the issues, to avoid having to defend their indefensible positions.
The only thing worse than the duo's answers, were the questions from the panel. The questioners were even more at sea in the discussion of moral values, as well as their willingness to let Hillary and Obama off the hook with non-answers. The discussion begged for one or two questioners of great moral or theological understanding, who could both bring clarity to the questions, and force clarity from Hillary and Obama.
After sitting through this thoroughly muddy and obtuse discussion, it's not hard to see why Democrats have such a hard time appealing to values voters. They are out of step with values voters to begin with, and then come across as almost laughably inept in trying to disguise the fact.
The few Democrats with solid values like Pennsylvania Sen. Robert Casey, who is anti-abortion, and Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman, who is socially conservative, are drummed out of the party or marginalized to the fringes of the debate.
Save for Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, the Republican candidates were hardly much better, which explains why much of the GOP sat on their hands through the primaries, and why there is so little enthusiasm for presumptive nominee John McCain. His record on social issues is very muddy and his ability to discuss them is marginal. This lukewarm GOP response is a major problem for McCain, and why the nasty shootout between Hillary and Obama that will split the Democratic Party may still leave them with the ability to win in November.
Despite the obvious attempts Sunday night by the mass media and the Democrats to minimize and temporize social issues, they are very real and very important to one-third to as much as one-half of the electorate. It would behoove the candidates to get a handle on it.
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Bubba subconsiously sabotaging Hillary?
The more former President Bill Clinton campaigns for is wife Hillary for the Democratic presidential nomination, the worse it seems to get for her.
Bubba was a tremendous campaigner and politician in his own right, running for president and re-election. It is not a stretch to surmise that psychologically he cannot handle the thought of four humiliating years as First Gentlemen, or whatever the White House protocol chief would instruct everyone to call him, and is at least subconciously sabotaging Hillary's campaign.
There is little else that would adequately explain the rookie gaffes he has made to cause Hillary a bunch of problems. Bill is a much more deft, polished campaigner than he has shown in Hillary's behalf. He has made many bad mistakes in this misguided effort, but two stand out as just plain stupid.
Bill knows better than:
1. The South Carolina race baiting, where he recited the history of how Jesse Jackson had won the Democratic primary there, so there was nothing unusual about Obama being ahead in South Carolina. What Bill said was probably true, but very impolitic and ignited racial passions that have been very much to the detriment of Hillary. Poetess Maya Angelou has called Bill the nation's first black president, and he moved his post-presidential office to Harlem. It is nearly inexcuseable and completely incompetent that Bill managed to turn this major advantage to dust.
2. Reminding voters in Indiana last week of Hillary's lies about her First Lady trip to Bosnia and running off the plane through sniper fire, cancelling the opening ceremonies. This was an outright fabrication, as CBS news footage from the event showed, as a little girl read Hillary a poem and gave her flowers, with no evidence of danger of any kind.
Obama's recent gaffes about working class Democrats in Pennsylvania, Indiana and his native Illinois in small towns being bitter and seeking refuge in guns, church and anti-illegal immigration efforts were as damaging to him as his pastor Jeremiah Wright's black power sermons pandering to Muslims like Louis Farakhan. This had buried Hillary's embarassing falsehoods in voter's minds, until Bill brought it all up again in a ham-handed attempt to justify what she had said.
A cardinal rule of politics is to let sleeping dogs lie, and that's certainly what had happened for Hillary, courtesy of Obama's elitist rhetoric to the toney San Francisco fundraiser.
Hillary and John McCain, the presumptive GOP presidential nominee, have been handed a big gift by Obama and are working hard to capitalize on it.
One can only hope that Bubba doesn't give it all back, with his pathetic campaign performances.
Bubba was a tremendous campaigner and politician in his own right, running for president and re-election. It is not a stretch to surmise that psychologically he cannot handle the thought of four humiliating years as First Gentlemen, or whatever the White House protocol chief would instruct everyone to call him, and is at least subconciously sabotaging Hillary's campaign.
There is little else that would adequately explain the rookie gaffes he has made to cause Hillary a bunch of problems. Bill is a much more deft, polished campaigner than he has shown in Hillary's behalf. He has made many bad mistakes in this misguided effort, but two stand out as just plain stupid.
Bill knows better than:
1. The South Carolina race baiting, where he recited the history of how Jesse Jackson had won the Democratic primary there, so there was nothing unusual about Obama being ahead in South Carolina. What Bill said was probably true, but very impolitic and ignited racial passions that have been very much to the detriment of Hillary. Poetess Maya Angelou has called Bill the nation's first black president, and he moved his post-presidential office to Harlem. It is nearly inexcuseable and completely incompetent that Bill managed to turn this major advantage to dust.
2. Reminding voters in Indiana last week of Hillary's lies about her First Lady trip to Bosnia and running off the plane through sniper fire, cancelling the opening ceremonies. This was an outright fabrication, as CBS news footage from the event showed, as a little girl read Hillary a poem and gave her flowers, with no evidence of danger of any kind.
Obama's recent gaffes about working class Democrats in Pennsylvania, Indiana and his native Illinois in small towns being bitter and seeking refuge in guns, church and anti-illegal immigration efforts were as damaging to him as his pastor Jeremiah Wright's black power sermons pandering to Muslims like Louis Farakhan. This had buried Hillary's embarassing falsehoods in voter's minds, until Bill brought it all up again in a ham-handed attempt to justify what she had said.
A cardinal rule of politics is to let sleeping dogs lie, and that's certainly what had happened for Hillary, courtesy of Obama's elitist rhetoric to the toney San Francisco fundraiser.
Hillary and John McCain, the presumptive GOP presidential nominee, have been handed a big gift by Obama and are working hard to capitalize on it.
One can only hope that Bubba doesn't give it all back, with his pathetic campaign performances.
Saturday, April 12, 2008
Barack and Michelle: out of touch elitists
Barack Obama and his wife Michelle have lived a very charmed, privileged life, far removed from that a typical American of any race lives. Both came out of upper-middle-class economic status, educated in private schools as youths, and then attended elite universities such as Harvard. Both have both bachelors and law degrees. Both have worked at upper crust, high dollar positions, except when it suited their political purposes for one to take a less lofty post for a brief period.
Contrast this with the average American, a product of public schools and then if college attendance were possible, at a state junior or four-year college with in-state tuition, sandwiched around near-fulltime employment to pay the bills. Many more entered the work-a-day world without college, advancing in their career through the union, trade school or the school of hard knocks. Most are lucky to afford a modest flat, rather than a million dollar mansion in the Chicago suburbs, with open space purchased by a shadowy political opportunist, moneyman and developer.
The Obamas have largely been able to keep their true life and lifestyle under wraps, abetted by a compliant liberal press. However, inevitably, the truth has leaked out from Barack and Michelle's own lips, at campaign speeches where they thought no one was listening.
Michelle has largely been silenced in recent months, after embarassing remarks about her daughter's dance lessons, high private school tuition and how tough life was with student loan payments, until Barack struck it big with over a million dollars in revenue from his first book. She also drew fire for counseling young girls at several university and high school appearances to eschew corporate and profit-making work, instead becoming a teacher or other public servant.
The latest controversy came this week, as Barack's remarks to a private San Francisco fundraiser, about small town life in Pennsylvania, where his campaign has had trouble gaining traction. Once again, the remarks had to get widely circulated on the internet and blogosphere, before a reluctant mass media had little but choice but to tardily publish them. Barack was so obviously out of touch with the little guy and his plight, that the term "elitist" was barely adequate.
The truth was bound to surface, especially with a desperate Hillary and Bill Clinton grasping at any straw that might allow them to claw past the Obama juggernaut. (As if their two multi-million dollar mansions in New York and Washington D.C. make them feel the plight of the common man, either).
The truth is, liberal hyprocrisy ("do as I say, not as I do") is never going to enhance the life of the down-and-out, or do anything but keep them dependent on the next federal handout. Their only hope is unbridled free enterprise, creating an ever-greater quantity of well-paid jobs, allowing them to make their own way--becoming strong and self-reliant.
When that happens, it puts Obama and Hillary both completely out of business.
Contrast this with the average American, a product of public schools and then if college attendance were possible, at a state junior or four-year college with in-state tuition, sandwiched around near-fulltime employment to pay the bills. Many more entered the work-a-day world without college, advancing in their career through the union, trade school or the school of hard knocks. Most are lucky to afford a modest flat, rather than a million dollar mansion in the Chicago suburbs, with open space purchased by a shadowy political opportunist, moneyman and developer.
The Obamas have largely been able to keep their true life and lifestyle under wraps, abetted by a compliant liberal press. However, inevitably, the truth has leaked out from Barack and Michelle's own lips, at campaign speeches where they thought no one was listening.
Michelle has largely been silenced in recent months, after embarassing remarks about her daughter's dance lessons, high private school tuition and how tough life was with student loan payments, until Barack struck it big with over a million dollars in revenue from his first book. She also drew fire for counseling young girls at several university and high school appearances to eschew corporate and profit-making work, instead becoming a teacher or other public servant.
The latest controversy came this week, as Barack's remarks to a private San Francisco fundraiser, about small town life in Pennsylvania, where his campaign has had trouble gaining traction. Once again, the remarks had to get widely circulated on the internet and blogosphere, before a reluctant mass media had little but choice but to tardily publish them. Barack was so obviously out of touch with the little guy and his plight, that the term "elitist" was barely adequate.
The truth was bound to surface, especially with a desperate Hillary and Bill Clinton grasping at any straw that might allow them to claw past the Obama juggernaut. (As if their two multi-million dollar mansions in New York and Washington D.C. make them feel the plight of the common man, either).
The truth is, liberal hyprocrisy ("do as I say, not as I do") is never going to enhance the life of the down-and-out, or do anything but keep them dependent on the next federal handout. Their only hope is unbridled free enterprise, creating an ever-greater quantity of well-paid jobs, allowing them to make their own way--becoming strong and self-reliant.
When that happens, it puts Obama and Hillary both completely out of business.
Friday, April 11, 2008
Huckabee knows how to move a crowd
I attended a fundraiser tonight of Denver's Faith Christian Academy, where the featured speaker was former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee. I will say up front that I was not a Huckabee supporter as he sought the GOP presidential nomination this year. I'm more of a Club for Growth type, and found Huckabee's tax and spending policies in Arkansas pretty hard to swallow. It is questionable if he would be an improvement on the Bush spending policies, and probably not as good on tax policy.
Nonetheless, as a platform speaker, he is without peer. There were two thousand people present, and largely in sync with his moral views. That, frankly, is something of a set-up and very hard to live up to the expectations the crowd has for you. Huckabee was very eloquent, articulate and easy to understand. There was no complicated jargon, no attempt to show himself superior to the crowd.
The essence of his remarks was to contrast the cost of educating children in a Christian school, versus paying the costs in society later on, when unprincipled youth with no character get in trouble. Drawing dramatically on his experience as Governor to carry out the death penalty and administer the prison system and the attendant costs for people run amuck, he pointed out what a great investment--and bargain-- education is.
Faith probably got a bargain itself, as Huckabee has just signed up with the William Morris Agency, the nation's number one talent firm in booking speakers into paying venues. That will be Huckabee's career until he runs for President again. By booking many months ago, presumably Faith got off for a lot less than the William Morris charge.
Whatever it cost, they got more than what they paid for. There is no doubt, agree with him or not, Huckabee has a presence and stage manner that will be heard from again.
Nonetheless, as a platform speaker, he is without peer. There were two thousand people present, and largely in sync with his moral views. That, frankly, is something of a set-up and very hard to live up to the expectations the crowd has for you. Huckabee was very eloquent, articulate and easy to understand. There was no complicated jargon, no attempt to show himself superior to the crowd.
The essence of his remarks was to contrast the cost of educating children in a Christian school, versus paying the costs in society later on, when unprincipled youth with no character get in trouble. Drawing dramatically on his experience as Governor to carry out the death penalty and administer the prison system and the attendant costs for people run amuck, he pointed out what a great investment--and bargain-- education is.
Faith probably got a bargain itself, as Huckabee has just signed up with the William Morris Agency, the nation's number one talent firm in booking speakers into paying venues. That will be Huckabee's career until he runs for President again. By booking many months ago, presumably Faith got off for a lot less than the William Morris charge.
Whatever it cost, they got more than what they paid for. There is no doubt, agree with him or not, Huckabee has a presence and stage manner that will be heard from again.
Thursday, April 10, 2008
The ultimate hypocrisy
As it looks more and more likely that Barack Obama will be the Democratic nominee for President, now comes word that he may opt out of public financing for his general election campaign.
Now you must understand, I believe the government has no business in the campaign finance business, either in regulating it or putting up the money for campaigns directly. It should be wide open, complete free enterprise all the way. Raise every nickle you can, and spend all you can raise and borrow.
But that's not the system in America. The presumptive GOP nominee, Arizona Sen. John McCain, gave us the McCain-Feingold Act, which has unleashed the greatest torrent of unregulated campaign cash in the history of the world. The money was much more tightly controlled before McCain-Feingold, and much more honestly raised. Now the money is all in the hands of shadowy 527 groups with no control by individual campaigns or national parties, and no limits on what they can raise and spend.
This would all be fine, except for far-out leftwingers like Barack Obama, who are the main beneficiaries of McCain-Feingold. Because he has found out that he can raise a great deal more money in small amounts on the internet than federal financing allows, he is throwing off signals that he will forego federal financing.
This is very hypocritical. Obama has proven he can raise hundreds of millions of dollars on the internet. There is nothing wrong with this, except that Obama self-righteously presents himself as holier-than-thou, when in reality, he is just one more garden variety, money-grubbing politician.
If he turns down the federal funding for his campaign, so he can spend millions more, he should not be allowed to go unscathed. Fat chance of that, given the velvet gloves the national media handles him with.
John McCain prefers the federal funds, as he hates fundraising with a passion, but may not be able to afford to keep up with Obama if he's limited to the just the taxpayer's bread.
There is certain justice to both candidates turning down federal funds, which hopefully would accelerate the end of the federal funding of presidential campaigns altogether. But the candidates, and particularly the socialist, big government fan Barack Obama, should not be reclaimed virgins about it--they're grabbing for every buck, and cutting every corner necessary to get every last one.
This is as it should be, but don't lie about what you're really doing.
Now you must understand, I believe the government has no business in the campaign finance business, either in regulating it or putting up the money for campaigns directly. It should be wide open, complete free enterprise all the way. Raise every nickle you can, and spend all you can raise and borrow.
But that's not the system in America. The presumptive GOP nominee, Arizona Sen. John McCain, gave us the McCain-Feingold Act, which has unleashed the greatest torrent of unregulated campaign cash in the history of the world. The money was much more tightly controlled before McCain-Feingold, and much more honestly raised. Now the money is all in the hands of shadowy 527 groups with no control by individual campaigns or national parties, and no limits on what they can raise and spend.
This would all be fine, except for far-out leftwingers like Barack Obama, who are the main beneficiaries of McCain-Feingold. Because he has found out that he can raise a great deal more money in small amounts on the internet than federal financing allows, he is throwing off signals that he will forego federal financing.
This is very hypocritical. Obama has proven he can raise hundreds of millions of dollars on the internet. There is nothing wrong with this, except that Obama self-righteously presents himself as holier-than-thou, when in reality, he is just one more garden variety, money-grubbing politician.
If he turns down the federal funding for his campaign, so he can spend millions more, he should not be allowed to go unscathed. Fat chance of that, given the velvet gloves the national media handles him with.
John McCain prefers the federal funds, as he hates fundraising with a passion, but may not be able to afford to keep up with Obama if he's limited to the just the taxpayer's bread.
There is certain justice to both candidates turning down federal funds, which hopefully would accelerate the end of the federal funding of presidential campaigns altogether. But the candidates, and particularly the socialist, big government fan Barack Obama, should not be reclaimed virgins about it--they're grabbing for every buck, and cutting every corner necessary to get every last one.
This is as it should be, but don't lie about what you're really doing.
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Justice done in Colorado political case
The liberal news media will never give a fair shake to a man exposing the shaky record of a liberal Democrat, but fortunately a jury of his peers did today in Colorado.
ICE agent Cory Vorhis was found not guilty on two trumped-up political misdomeanor charges by a Denver jury. He had turned over information to the Bob Beauprez for Governor campaign about excessive and unjustified plea bargains negotiated by Denver District Attorney (now Colorado Governor) Bill Ritter. In a case that probably would never have been brought had Ritter lost the gubernatorial election, it was alleged that Vorhis took the information from a confidential federal database, while in reality, all the information was a matter of public record in state courts.
The sad thing in this travesty is that Vorhis lost his job and is saddled with some $250,000 in legal bills. Some citizens have been trying to raise money to assist with the lawyer fees, but at last report were far from the total. Just in his mid-40s, Vorhis has a long career ahead of him, and few assets to launch a new career with.
The press will never take Ritter to task for the obvious political retaliation in allowing charges to be brought against Vorhis. It's terrific that the courts have vindicated him, but as the old saying goes "to which office do I go to get my reputation back?"
ICE agent Cory Vorhis was found not guilty on two trumped-up political misdomeanor charges by a Denver jury. He had turned over information to the Bob Beauprez for Governor campaign about excessive and unjustified plea bargains negotiated by Denver District Attorney (now Colorado Governor) Bill Ritter. In a case that probably would never have been brought had Ritter lost the gubernatorial election, it was alleged that Vorhis took the information from a confidential federal database, while in reality, all the information was a matter of public record in state courts.
The sad thing in this travesty is that Vorhis lost his job and is saddled with some $250,000 in legal bills. Some citizens have been trying to raise money to assist with the lawyer fees, but at last report were far from the total. Just in his mid-40s, Vorhis has a long career ahead of him, and few assets to launch a new career with.
The press will never take Ritter to task for the obvious political retaliation in allowing charges to be brought against Vorhis. It's terrific that the courts have vindicated him, but as the old saying goes "to which office do I go to get my reputation back?"
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Lies, staff shakeups put Hillary on life support
Hillary Clinton's fading presidential campaign is on life support. Money is drying up, she pushed her chief strategist, Mark Penn, overboard, and has been caught not just lying about her trip to Bosnia but now her plan to assault Obama's committed delegates.
That's what Hillary's campaign has come down to: turning the screws of whatever power and influence she and Bubba have left, to get committed delegates and superdelegates to switch from Obama to her. This high risk strategy threatens to tear the Democratic Party from stem to stearn, much to the delight of John McCain and the GOP.
She is losing ground rapidly in the crucial Pennsylvania primary, which doesn't occur until April 22. By then, at the present pace, Obama will win going away. Just as he won Missouri by targeting just a few black-dominated counties (he carried just 7 of Missouri's 50-some counties), in the Indiana primary that follows Pennsie, he is targeting just the few black-dominated counties like Gary, which still may be enough to knock off Hillary there too.
This would drive the final nail into her coffin, regardless of how hard the Clintons pull out all stops on Obama's delegates.
As it appears increasingly likely that Obama will be the nominee, the question comes down to stopping the bleeding enough to get some semblence of unity in the Democratic Party. Taking Hillary on the ticket may be the only way, but he should ask the ghosts of Vince Foster and Ron Brown how wise that would be.
Even worse, white males are likely to carry the big stick in this election. Without one their own on the ticket, Obama may be sunk. With one on the ticket, someone like antiseptic Indiana Sen. Evan Bayh, for instance, he may have Hillary and her core group of middle-aged, uppercrust white women sitting on their hands.
Talk about a Hobson's choice!
That's what Hillary's campaign has come down to: turning the screws of whatever power and influence she and Bubba have left, to get committed delegates and superdelegates to switch from Obama to her. This high risk strategy threatens to tear the Democratic Party from stem to stearn, much to the delight of John McCain and the GOP.
She is losing ground rapidly in the crucial Pennsylvania primary, which doesn't occur until April 22. By then, at the present pace, Obama will win going away. Just as he won Missouri by targeting just a few black-dominated counties (he carried just 7 of Missouri's 50-some counties), in the Indiana primary that follows Pennsie, he is targeting just the few black-dominated counties like Gary, which still may be enough to knock off Hillary there too.
This would drive the final nail into her coffin, regardless of how hard the Clintons pull out all stops on Obama's delegates.
As it appears increasingly likely that Obama will be the nominee, the question comes down to stopping the bleeding enough to get some semblence of unity in the Democratic Party. Taking Hillary on the ticket may be the only way, but he should ask the ghosts of Vince Foster and Ron Brown how wise that would be.
Even worse, white males are likely to carry the big stick in this election. Without one their own on the ticket, Obama may be sunk. With one on the ticket, someone like antiseptic Indiana Sen. Evan Bayh, for instance, he may have Hillary and her core group of middle-aged, uppercrust white women sitting on their hands.
Talk about a Hobson's choice!
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Wedding day -- Next post April 7
It is with great joy and celebration that I'm leaving to attend my son Zach's wedding in Tyler, Texas this weekend to Beth Reynolds. I am very pleased with my son's selection of a mate and am looking forward to my new daughter-in-law./
Due to travel time and family time, I will resume posting on Monday, April 7.
Due to travel time and family time, I will resume posting on Monday, April 7.
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Catfight breaks out among Democrats
The impolitic suggestions by liberal white males Sen. Patrick Leahy of Vermont and Sen. Chris Dodd of Connecticut that Hillary Clinton drop out of the presidential campaign have ignited a catfight between Clinton women supporters and the male Barack Obama crowd.
In a piece entitled Trying to Shove Hillary Aside, pundit Marie Cocco says "If it weren't so galling, it would be amusing to watch the Democratic men shuffling nervously in their television studio chairs, trying to conceal the audacity of their arrogance. For they have something in common besides their anatomy: It's Hillary Clinton."
She continues "Now Clinton's methodical, dogged history of work for the Democratic Party is treated just like the methodical, dogged histories of so many women in the workplace. Having come this far she must not go too far. She must step aide to take the smaller office, with the lesser title and the lower pay to make room for the younger guy with the thinner resume. And please, would she just go quietly like a good girl?"
Cocco concludes "So, the Obama campaign can continue trying to get its allies in the media and various party poohbahs to push Clinton aside early. Or Obama can welcome the fight--and win it like a man."
The bitterness and venom is running off those words like a river. And it is only the tip of an iceberg, as relates to the true feelings of many women in the Democratic Party.
John McCain must be licking his chops.
In a piece entitled Trying to Shove Hillary Aside, pundit Marie Cocco says "If it weren't so galling, it would be amusing to watch the Democratic men shuffling nervously in their television studio chairs, trying to conceal the audacity of their arrogance. For they have something in common besides their anatomy: It's Hillary Clinton."
She continues "Now Clinton's methodical, dogged history of work for the Democratic Party is treated just like the methodical, dogged histories of so many women in the workplace. Having come this far she must not go too far. She must step aide to take the smaller office, with the lesser title and the lower pay to make room for the younger guy with the thinner resume. And please, would she just go quietly like a good girl?"
Cocco concludes "So, the Obama campaign can continue trying to get its allies in the media and various party poohbahs to push Clinton aside early. Or Obama can welcome the fight--and win it like a man."
The bitterness and venom is running off those words like a river. And it is only the tip of an iceberg, as relates to the true feelings of many women in the Democratic Party.
John McCain must be licking his chops.
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