Politics Junky

This is either a weather balloon or a decoy:

Romney Tops McCain's VP List

Regardless of what McCain says, you aboslutely pick a running mate based on what he can bring to the campaign. No sense focusing on how he might perform as VP if you can't win.

So, this leak is either a way for the campaign to test the reaction among the base or it's a total decoy to give McCain room to vet his real top pick. Romney is a lightening rod and people love him or hate him...mostly they hate him. He strikes most people (and pundits) as an arrogant robot, but that didn't stop Dick Cheney from winning the second seat.

What does he add?

David Addington and John Yoo are testifying before the House Judiciary Committee and Chairman John Conyers (D-MI) asked Yoo whether the president could bury a detainee alive. Now, you would think that in these United States you could get a firm "NO" to that question. I mean, the mere idea is repulsive to what we believe in as a nation. That is inhumane and indefensible behavior. But Yoo just can't bring himself to say that.

CONYERS: Could the President order a suspect buried alive?

YOO: Uh, Mr. Chairman, I don't think I've ever given advice that the President could order someone buried alive...

CONYERS: I didn't ask you if you ever gave him advice. I asked you thought the President could order a suspect buried alive.

YOO: Well Chairman, my view right now is that I don't think a President — no American President would ever have to order that or feel it necessary to order that.

CONYERS: I think we understand the games that are being played.

John Yoo is, of course, the man who said the Presidnet has virtually unlimited power in a "time of crisis," which apperently does not rule out burying people alive. God Bless America.

Posted by Derek Phillips at 11:48 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Chris Dodd gets to the heart of the matter on this whole FISA nonsense and immunity for telecoms.

"Either the companies and the President acted outside of the rule of law, or they followed it," he said. "Either the underlying program was legal or it wasn't. Because of this legislation, none of the questions will be answered."

That's exactly the point. You don't grant immunity to someone who has not broken the law. So, what did the telecoms do that would require immunity and shouldn't that be examined? We really are talking about the fundamentals of law and ordert here.

Via Salon

Posted by Derek Phillips at 9:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Obama campaign's new logo, which bears a striking resemblance to the Seal of the President of the United States, has raised the ire of many people on the right. CNN.com ran this piece describing the new logo on Friday, June 20, 2008 and even the most cursory review of the article's comments (now closed) reveal that many Republicans have taken great offense to the new logo.

A few gems from some of the "conservative" comments regarding the CNN.com article include:

Freida NYC wrote, "This is scary, he even wants to change the American logo-seal, by replacing it with his name. Americans please wake up and do not vote for Obama. Are these the kind of changes you really want.?He will turn this country into a Muslim sect, Just wait and see."

dz in Austin wrote, "Arrogance has no limits!"

Mary from Westport CT wrote, "He thinks he can take a presidential symbol and make it his. Very disrespectful. If that's not another example of his elitist attitude I don't know what is."

Ruth Bell wrote, "The Logo is just a logo and should not resemble the Presidential Seal. This is another Obama attempt to belittle the traditions of the United States of America, our Nation under God, and he should develop something entirely different. He doesn't like our National Anthem and is making every effort
to undermine our traditional American beliefs."

Continue reading "Sealing the Deal" »

Posted by Jude Lemrow at 12:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

It's been said that a candidate steers hard left or right (depending on their political affiliation) in the primaries to woo the base of his party and then quickly tacks back to the center in the general election. Well, somebody should tell John McCain who seems to be careening down the conservative cliff in an effort to shore up a less-than-enthusiastic base in his bid for the presidency.

Today McCain pushed the old right-wing oil talking point by saying the ban on off-shore drilling should be lifted. Now, folks in Florida will not likely take kindly to the idea of oil rigs dotting their tourist magnet ocean front, but John McCain thinks it's a great idea.

With gasoline prices rising and the United States chronically dependent on foreign oil, the Republican presidential contender said his proposal would "be very helpful in the short term resolving our energy crisis."

That of course is horseshit as oil is traded on a global market and any oil tapped from the ocean (or ANWR, for that matter) would have little if any influence on the price of oil. Even if it had a nominal effect it would be at least five years before US consumers saw it. It's not like US oil companies would find new oil reserves and only sell it to Americans for a discount. They sell it to the highest bidder, which may be China or India. And then there's the problem of refineries...

But that's a more complicated message than telling the American people that crazy environmentalists are keeping gas prices high by blocking exploration on our own shores. So much for straight talk..

Posted by Derek Phillips at 3:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Longtime readers of POLJUNK might remember a curmudgeon named Mike who used to write for this site. Well, he and I had a heated argument once over Tim Russert. Mike was convinced that Russert was soft on conservatives and disproportionally tough on liberals on Meet the Press. While I think any of us could criticize a particular interview based on our own bias, I have always thought Tim Russert was a fair interviewer who asked tough follow-up questions and was always prepared for his interviews. I also think he was probably a hell of a guy.

So I am glad to see that a portion of Route 20 that runs past the Buffalo Bills stadium was up for renaming in honor of Russert, a native of the area. Sens. Charles Schumer (D-NY), Hillary Clinton (D-NY), and Rep. Brian Higgins (D-NY) are planning to introduce legislation to rename a portion of Route 20 near the Buffalo Bills' stadium after him and I hope it passes.

Posted by Derek Phillips at 1:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

I hate to think this, but John McCain may be losing his mind. How else am I to take this:

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN: I think maybe legislation working with the Congress, which would define more narrowly the habeas corpus rights of people who we have detained. It's very broad right now. At least try to provide some definition of that so we're not ending up in endless lawsuits. Already the detainees have brought suit on diet, on reading material, on all kinds of other things that are certainly not central to what we have detained them for. So I would hope that we could at least do that.

The Supreme Court's recent decision regarding habeas corpus and limitless detention has nothing to do with lawsuits regarding diet and reading materials. Nothing at all. Does he even read the papers or is he that confused about what is going on at GITMO?

Posted by Derek Phillips at 3:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

According to the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), a fair amount of white supremacists are actually hoping for an Obama presidency. Why? Because they believe that he would be so horrible a president that it would teach Americans a lesson about putting minorities in positions of power and Americans would forever after support only white candidates for the presidency. Some even hope that a black man in the White House would ignite a long-imagined race war in America.

The SPLC website provided the following nuggets of wisdom from some of our hate-filled white citizens:

"He will make things so bad for white people that hopefully they will finally realize how stupid they were for admiring these jigaboos all these years," "Darthvader" wrote on the neo-Nazi Vanguard News Network web forum.

Ron Doggett, a key activist in the Klan, the paramilitary White People's Party, and the neo-Nazi National Alliance, said, "I hope Obama wins because in four years, white people just might be pissed off enough to actually do something. ... White people aren't going to do a thing until their toys are taken away from them. So things have to be worse for things to be better."

"Centimanus" on the white nationalist Stormfront website. "I am gleefully, sadistically looking forward to Obama as president. ... It will be a beautiful day when the masses look at the paper and truly realize they have lost their own country."

And, of course, no sampling of white racist commentary would be complete without the insights of David Duke, who offered that, "Obama is like that new big dark spot on your arm that finally sends you to the doctor for some real medicine. ... Obama is the pain that let's [sic] your body know that something is dreadfully wrong. Obama will let the American people know that there is a real cancer eating away at the heart of our country and Republican aspirin will not only not cure it, but only masks the pain and makes you think you don't need radical surgery. ... My bet is that whether Obama wins or loses in November, millions of European Americans will inevitably react with new awareness of their heritage and the need for them to defend and advance it." European Americans! I love it.

And I thought they would just try to assassinate him. Silly me. Well, let's hope that they get their wish of an Obama presidency, but, obviously, not for their stated reasons. If Obama wins and turns out to be a good president, is it too much to wish that perhaps some of these clowns might recognize the errors of their ways? One can only hope.

Posted by Jude Lemrow at 10:43 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Nestled in the heart of the speech in which he claimed the Democratic nomination, Barack Obama made a promise to the American people that laid out the tone and tenor of his campaign against John McCain:

It is a debate that the American people deserve on the issues that will help determine the future of this country and the future for our children.

But what you don't deserve is another election that's governed by fear, and innuendo, and division. What you won't hear from this campaign or this party is the kind of politics that uses religion as a wedge and patriotism as a bludgeon...

What you won't see from this campaign or this party is a politics that sees our opponents not as competitors to challenge, but enemies to polarize, because we may call ourselves Democrats and Republicans, but we are Americans first. We are always Americans first.

After eight grueling years of Bush/Cheny/Rove political wedges and fear mongering, how does McCain respond? With an ad called "Safe" that's scheduled to run in the coming weeks.

In the ad, McCain says: "Only a fool or a fraud talks tough or romantically about war. ... I was shot down over Vietnam and spent five years as a POW. ... I hate war. And I know how terrible its costs are. I'm running for president to keep the country I love safe. I'm John McCain, and I approve this message."

McCain TV Ad - Safe

Only a fool and a fraud thinks we don't see right through this. Get ready for another several months of The Fear.

VIA The Politico

Posted by Derek Phillips at 9:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I hate to think that our race for the Presidency boils down to style and perceived personality. Heaven knows the "have a beer with" test has doomed us to 8 years of George W. Bush, but a politician's ability to connect on a human and emotional level is key to getting the public's attention. And on that front, Obama is going to clean up on John McCain. Especially if the Old Man's entire campaign staff is busting the same robotic moves as the Senator from Arizona.

Check out this video from McCain's campaign manager that is supposed to inspire--yes, inspire--supporters to engage in a little viral marketing. They are just so out of it I am actually embarassed for the old coot. Seriously, it's painful.

American Neighbor Convention Contest

VIA Talking Points Memo

Posted by Derek Phillips at 4:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)

In what must be one of the most pathetic smear attempts in years, some right wingers are actually trying to paint Barack Obama as—get this—a Marxist.

On right-winger Mike Gallagher's radio show today, former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-TX) claimed that Barack Obama is a Marxist.

"I have said publicly, and I will again, that unless he proves me wrong, he is a Marxist," DeLay said.

GALLAGHER: Yeah, that's, we hear that everyday. Congressman, every day someone will say to me, and I've said it, it's as if this were a guy who's desperately trying to cover up what seems to be the kind of old school Marxist, radical liberal failed ideology.

DELAY: Absolutely.

GALLAGHER: That's what he is.

DELAY: No doubt about it.

I guess painting him a Manchurian Candidate Muslim Terrorist or radical black nationalist isn't testing well so they're going back to the hits of the 50s and 60s. I mean, who the fuck is afraid of Marxists anymore???

VIA ThinkProgress, who has audio of tis absurd exchange.

Posted by Derek Phillips at 4:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

These folks are...

One hundred percent awesome.

Posted by Derek Phillips at 9:43 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Andrew Sullivan has a growing list of awards he likes to give out. There's the Malkin Award, the Yglesias Award, and now...The Hewitt Award. As Sullivan describes it, "The Hewitt Award, named after the absurd partisan fanatic, Hugh Hewitt, is given for the most egregious attempts to label Barack Obama as un-American, alien, treasonous, and far out of the mainstream of American life and politics."

His first honoree is Gregg Pollowitz at National Review Online for this bit of pure genius:

U2's "Beautiful Day" is playing at the Barack Obama rally. No Americans write music Obama likes?

Seriously? That's the best you have? November is looking good, folks.

Posted by Derek Phillips at 9:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Obama Nets Over A Dozen Super-Delegates So Far Today

• Former President Jimmy Carter, who had dropped hints for quite a while that he was for Obama, and officially confirmed the news with the Associated Press.

• South Carolina Congressman John Spratt.

• DNC member Ralph Dawson, from Hillary Clinton's home state of New York.

• Massachusetts DNC member Deb Kozikowski.

• Massachusetts Congressman John Olver.

• DNC member Joyce Beatty of Ohio.

• DNC member Jennifer Dechant of Maine.

• DNC member Maria Chappelle-Nadal of Missouri.

• DNC member Carnelia Fondren of Mississippi.

• DNC member John Perez of California.

• Five Michigan super-dels, who each count as half a vote: Detroit Mayor and DNC member Kwame Kilpatrick, Congresswoman Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, and DNC members Debbie Dingell, Rick Wiener and Joyce Lalonde.

Score: Obama +12.5, Clinton +0.5. According to DemConWatch, Obama now has 2,089.5 delegates to Clinton's 1,917

Posted by Derek Phillips at 3:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Mega busy right now but this is too important not to post:

AP tally: Obama clinches Democratic nomination

WASHINGTON - Barack Obama effectively clinched the Democratic presidential nomination Tuesday after a grueling marathon, based on an Associated Press tally of convention delegates, becoming the first black candidate ever to lead his party into a fall campaign for the White House.

So, will Hillary concede tonight? Tomorrow? This weekend? When Hell freezes over?

Posted by Derek Phillips at 1:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

One of the more peculiar refrains heard from Bush partisans in response to Scott McClellan's What Happened: Inside the Bush White House and Washington's Culture of Deception is "It doesn't sound like Scott." Ari Fleischer, once McClellan's boss, says it as though there is something chemically wrong with McClellan. Karl Rove goes so far as to add that the text is more along the lines of something that would be written by "a left-wing blogger." Whoa! Them's fightin' words.

Continue reading "Scott McClellan: Misguided, Sad & Honest?" »

Posted by Stephen Macaulay at 1:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

Going after John McCain on his supposed strength Barack Obama put this whole dust-up over talking to your enemies in blunt terms: What are you afraid of?

Responding to McCain's recent attacks that Obama is naïve in thinking Iran is a lesser danger than was the Soviet Union during the cold war, Obama said:

"Here's the truth: the Soviet Union had thousands of nuclear weapons, and Iran doesn't have a single one. But when the world was on the brink of nuclear holocaust, Kennedy talked to Khrushchev and he got those missiles out of Cuba. Why shouldn't we have the same courage and the confidence to talk to our enemies? That's what strong countries do, that's what strong presidents do, that's what I'll do when I'm president of the United States of America."

In that last sentence, Obama just turned the tables and framed himself as the candidate of "strength," which will likely put McCain on his heels and in a defensive position. Anyone who still questions whether Obama has the political experience or the balls to run a campaign against the Republicans need only look at this pivot. Beautiful.

Posted by Derek Phillips at 2:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

This is a message to Superdel holdouts: game over

On the eve of a sure blowout in Kentucky, Barack Obama addresses 75,000 supporters in Oregon, a staggering turnout that will dominate the news coverage for the next few days. Sorry Hillary, but a win in the Bluegrass State can't overshadow this. It's another indication of Obama's keen sense of timing in politics. Whenever Clinton has posted a win, he's snuffed it with major endoresement announcements or events that steal her thunder. I like his style.

Bobby Kennedy employed the same tactic in 1968. Party bosses held MUCH more control over primaries and how candidates were picked. Bobby was less-than-popular with that crowd so he had to show that he had overwhelming public support in order to shake the bosses from their preferred picks (LBJ or Gene McCarthy). So he launched his campaign with a pair of HUGE rallies in conservative Kansas. Bad ass! (Here's an excerpt from this Month's Vanity Fair cover story on this very topic)

Posted by Derek Phillips at 11:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)

This is exactly what I want to hear Obama say in response to the "appeasement" flap:

Obama also slammed the notion that he'd ever supported any sort of negotiations with terrorists. "They're trying to fool you, trying to scare you, and they're not telling you the truth because they can't win a foreign policy debate on the merits," he said.

He's right and this is exactly how he should address this sort of nonsense.

I also love how so many of these bozos reference Neville Chamberlain but not WHAT he did to appease Hitler. Take a few seconds and ask yourself if you know what it was. Got it? Well, right-wing radio host Kevin James didn't when he appeared on Hardball last night and Chris Matthews nailed him on it:

MATTHEWS: You don't know what you're talking about, Kevin. You don't know what you're talking about. Tell me what Chamberlain did wrong.

JAMES: Neville Chamberlain was an appeaser, Chris. Neville Chamberlain was an appeaser, all right? [...]

MATTHEWS: I've been sitting here five minutes asking you to say what the president was referring to in 1938 at Munich.

JAMES: I don't know.

MATTHEWS: You don't know, thank you.

Matthews has taken a lot of heat this year from some questionable things he's said about both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama and their respective unique campaigns as minorities in America, but this sort of thing is why I still watch his show every day. He may throw softballs to Trent Lott and Tom DeLay, but when he gets his dander up, he's a king mixer!

Matthews ended the segment by dropping this science on James:

Matthews rebuked his clueless guest — and the entire Bush administration — for being "blank slates in terms of history":

You don't understand there's a difference between talking to the enemy and appeasing. What Chamberlain did wrong, most people would say, is not talking to Hitler, but giving him half of Czechoslovakia in 1938. That's what he did wrong. Not talking to somebody. Appeasement is giving things away to the enemy.

'zactly!

Posted by Derek Phillips at 12:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Here's why I still love old Joe Biden:

"This is bullshit, this is malarkey. This is outrageous, for the president of the United States to go to a foreign country, to sit in the Knesset ... and make this kind of ridiculous statement."

Biden, of course, was reacting to President Bush's shameful accusation that Democratic strategies for dealing with adversarial states and parties amounts to "appeasement" on the level of what we saw in the run up to WWII.

Biden joins a chorus of other Dems who are outraged at the President's remarks, including, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, House Democratic Caucus Chairman Rahm Emanuel, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, and Sen. John Kerry.

I wish they'd pile on Lieberman too. I hate that he's treated with kid gloves.

Posted by Derek Phillips at 2:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)