TODAY'S TOPICS: Obama Speech!, Gore, McCain's VP, Progressive Pugilism, Diebold, Colbert, Dreyfuss, CEO's, Pickens
OBAMA'S SPEECH: BEST OF MY LIFETIME
I can safely say -WITHOUT A DOUBT - that was the most extraordinary speech I have seen in my lifetime. I wish I had time to talk about it more today, but I’m just too busy here at work. Suffice to say, it was EVERYTHING I’ve wanted to hear from him, but haven’t to date. It was the epitome of my recently coined phrase: Populist Pugilism!
I watched it three times last night, breaking it up into multiple parts, and what I found was that every section of it, was soaring, precise, and powerful in its own right, no matter what the topic.
He not only gutted McCain, FINALLY, but he dispelled every one of his perceived weaknesses: he was strong, he was specific, he was tough, and he of course, was inspiring too.
I’ve never seen such an absolute dismantling of everything the GOP stands for today, and such a complete, and perfect answer to EVERY ATTACK that has been thrown at him. It was an exhibition of rhetorical ju jitzu like I’ve never seen. Every perceived weakness he flipped into his strength. Every perceived strength of McCain he flipped into a weakness.
He talked about Roosevelt (finally a dem did this!!) even! I’ve been advocating for this for so long I don’t remember when I started…he’s the founding father of the modern Democratic Party and he’s got an amazing story for every Democrat to tie themselves too, which is especially critical because it is the New Deal that the right wing is out to destroy. Obama just made that clear…that the New Deal is going to be protected and preserved, and that it’s principles are OUR principles. Huge!
And better, he contrasted the progressive philosophy encapsulated by the New Deal with the right wing's philosophy of The Ownership Society…which he took a rhetorical FLAME THROWER TOO!! My god, he even took apart the way Wall Street economic measurements are actually bogus identifiers of what really matters, like jobs, wages, health care, and so on. I’ve been waiting so long for a Democrat to start taking about these Matrix Myths, and he did last night, on a level none have surpassed.
He buried each and every one of those damn GOP meaningless slogans, from boot straps, to patriotism, to the ownership society, to trickle down economics!
There were so many brilliant lines too, like the Bin Laden one…oh my god! “McCain says he’ll chase Bin Laden to the gates of hell when he won’t even chase him to the cave where he lives!” Oh Snap!!
He knocked the celebrity issue out of the park. The patriotism issue is now dead. He got personal about himself, and he got personal about McCain (to perfection). As tough as he was, he still managed to turn it back to this concept of unity…and somehow he appealed to both the hard core progressives, but also to Independents and moderate Republicans.
And probably most courageous, was when he went right after all those “third rail”, untouchable type issues, going from guns, to abortion, to gay marriage. He discussed each with a level of honesty and nuance I also have almost never seen, clearly articulating why they should no longer divide us and how different people from different regions could see them differently. Pure beauty...
I barely sat the entire speech…he brought tears to my eyes numerous times, and many a shout of exultation as well.
The Democratic Party has now officially come full circle. From what once was the party of slave owners is now the party with a black nominee for President. Not just a black nominee, a nominee who just gave the most transcendent speech by a candidate in the history of our nation at a time when it was needed more than anytime in our history.
If you doubted the power of this speech, look no further than the McCain camps response. I nearly bowled over laughing when I heard it. It literally went into OFF SHORE OIL DRILLING right off the bat! How petty and ridiculous in light of the conversation Obama just took to an entirely higher level of consciousness.
It went, “When the temple comes down, the fireworks end, and the words are over, the facts remain: Senator Obama still has no record of bipartisanship, still opposes offshore drilling…”
Really? THAT’S ALL YOU GOT??? Hilarious...
Pat friggin Buchanan even called it the best convention speech in history!! Game over man, game over!!
More on this in future posts…
GORE SPEECH: Fantastic too…no time to talk about it though J
MCCAIN’S VP PICK
My first reaction: What the f***??? Let me get this straight, the guy that has been harping on Obama’s lack of experience, and who is literally on death’s door, just picked a woman who was mayor of an Alaskan town of 8,000 people and a Governor for 18 months to be his Vice President!!??? If the experience “issue” for Obama wasn’t dead from his speech last night, it’s officially dead now.
I don’t have time to dissect her extremist right wing policies now, but I’ve got three words for you to ponder: PRO LIFE CREATIONIST. Somehow I don’t think he’s going to “steal” all that many women voters when they find out just how terrible this woman is on WOMEN’S ISSUES!
More on this another time too…
VIDEO SECTION
Watch Obama’s historic speech…the best I’ve ever heard or seen…
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/28/barack-obama-accepts-his-partys-nomination-in-historic-speech/
Watch the Gore speech…:
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/29/al-gore-%e2%80%9ci-believe-in-recycling%e2%80%9d-but-mccain-recycling-bush-policy-%e2%80%9cis-ridiculous%e2%80%9d/
Classic…Chuck Todd of MSNBC points out the obvious after hearing the McCain camps response…they’re SPEECHLESS!!
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/29/chuck-todd-mccains-canned-response-shows-he-might-as-well-be-speechless/
Three cheers to Richard Dreyfuss who also tore the GOP apart on MSNBC last night…get the feeling this campaign, for all intents and purposes, just ended???
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/28/richard-dreyfuss-calls-out-bush-mccain-and-their-corrupt-republican-party/
Colbert mocks Bloody Bill Kristol of Fox news…too good…
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/28/colbert-mocks-bill-kristols-concern-trolling/
Howard Dean on Daily Show…trying to get inside McCain’s twisted brain:
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/28/daily-show-howard-dean-goes-inside-john-mccains-brain/
ARTICLE SECTION
CEO (over) pay and how WE SUBSIDIZE it…and there are bills to address this issue, and with an Obama President we may even see them become law.
A few clips:
Last year, the new Executive Excess 2008 report notes, top CEOs in the United States continued to pocket outlandishly large paychecks, $10.5 million on average. That’s 344 times the pay of an average U.S. worker -- and ten times the pay gap that existed 30 years ago. The second story takes a bit more explaining: Our tax dollars are actually subsidizing this incredible excess. The federal government, through the tax code, is directly rewarding companies that overpay their top executives.
SNIP
Direct subsidies for America’s most powerful, Executive Excess 2008 estimates, add up to $20 billion a year. To place this $20 billion in context, the report also notes what the federal government is currently spending to educate America’s most vulnerable, children with disabilities and other special needs: only $10.8 billion a year.
Billions more in CEO pay subsidies, Executive Excess adds, flow indirectly, through government bailouts and procurement. Federal officials regularly let out contracts to corporations that pay their executives hundreds of times more than their workers. One example: Lockheed Martin is currently getting about 80 percent of its revenue from the federal contracts. Lockheed Martin CEO Robert Stevens made $24 million last year, 787 times the pay of a typical U.S. worker.
http://www.alternet.org/workplace/96670/should_uncle_sam_be_helping_ceos_get_richer/
T. Boone Pickens…the truth behind this FRAUDSTER:
Pickens is currently the head of BP Capital Management, a secretive hedge fund (aren't they all?) that has extensive connections to the magnate's hated "foreign oil" interests. The most glaring example from its investment portfolio is Halliburton, which was once run by U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney, is currently headquartered not in America but Dubai, and whose main business segments and subsidiaries involve oil exploration, construction, production and refining. And that's not mentioning its resume on rampant fraud and corruption, especially in Iraq but also elsewhere, which has so far cost American taxpayers billions.
But Halliburton isn't the only BP Cap holding that stinks. Pickens is also heavily invested in Schlumberger, the world's largest oil services corporation; nuclear and conventional energy powerhouse Shaw Group; the embattled ex-Halliburton subsidiary Kellog Brown and Root and so on. For a very rich man who decries the influence foreign oil has on American life, Pickens sure hasn't put his money where his mouth is. He's put his money where the oil is.
SNIP
Those are the shells being moved around in this particular game. But shuffling responsibilities and resources will do nothing to forestall our dystopian environmental future, unless those resources burn clean. And what the Pickens Plan does not mention is that the oil tycoon has been deeply invested in natural gas for decades. If the entire American fleet were to switch over to natural gas, the air would possibly (but not probably) be around 30 percent cleaner in a decade, but Pickens would be richer in much higher percentages. And while the air would only stay cleaner for a short while, Pickens would stay loaded beyond the grave.
SNIP
The biggest stain on the Pickens Plan is its architect's distasteful history of water privatization. According to Hauter, it is probably the biggest reason, more than all the aforementioned, not to trust him.
SNIP
We should be concerned everywhere they occur, one might add, not just in Texas. That means putting aside the media buzz and fawning articles and seeing the Pickens Plan for what it is: a resource power grab for a post-oil oil tycoon. Natural gas will not save us from environmental catastrophe, nor will it wean us off foreign oil. Wind farms are a great start, but they deserve to be more than leadoff pitchers for natural gas, whose implementation into our fleet will do nothing to kick-start the massive emissions reductions we are going to need. Everything from oceanic dead zones and bizarre storms to desertification and societal collapse are on the burner. And we need to cool it down, rather than heat it up.
http://www.alternet.org/environment/95471/why_t._boone_pickens%27_%27clean_energy%27_plan_is_a_ponzi_scheme/
MCCAIN’S HEALTH CARE POLICY ADVISOR’S MOMENT OF HONESTY
FROM C&L: The McCain campaign likes to tell us we’re a “nation of whiners” complaining about a “mental recession,” so it should come as no surprise that their solution to the health care crisis is to simply have the Census Bureau redefine the term uninsured. Seriously. Let John Goodman, McCain’s point-man on health care issues, explain:
“I have a solution. And it will cost not one thin dime,” Mr. Goodman said. “The next president of the United States should sign an executive order requiring the Census Bureau to cease and desist from describing any American – even illegal aliens – as uninsured. Instead, the bureau should categorize people according to the likely source of payment should they need care.
“So, there you have it. Voila! Problem solved.”
Voila! No more health care problems! All those “whiners”out there who are losing their homes due to unmanageable health care bills can sleep sound tonight. The health care crisis is solved!
As Michigan Messenger says:
If you’re uninsured, out of money - and not having a life-threatening emergency - you not only don’t exist in John McCain’s world, you’re completely out of luck.
END
ELECTION FRAUD SECTION
Diebold Fails Again in Sarasota Florida Primary... (remember, the GOP will still try and STEAL this election...)
Premier/Diebold has again had to accepted the blame for voting machine failures. This time the optical scan machines that had tallied absentee ballots in Sarasota County would not upload the totals to the main server and refused to post elections in Hillsborough County. Election officials in Sarasota ended-up having to count 10,000 ballots by hand. It is a good thing they had the paper ballots to count by hand or those votes would have been lost....
http://www.bradblog.com/?p=6329
WASHINGTON POST REPORTS ON DIEBOLD BOMBSHELL
A voting system used in 34 states contains a critical programming error that can cause votes to be dropped while being electronically transferred from memory cards to a central tallying point, the manufacturer acknowledges. The problem was identified after complaints from Ohio elections officials following the March primary there, but the logic error that is the root of the problem has been part of the software for 10 years, said Chris Riggall, a spokesman for Premier Election Solutions, formerly known as Diebold.
The flawed software is on both touch screen and optical scan voting machines made by Premier and the problem with vote counts is most likely to affect larger jurisdictions that feed many memory cards to a central counting database rapidly.
-- Washington Post
SIGNS OF FASCISM
"Private contractors account for more than one-quarter of the core workforce at U.S. intelligence agencies," according to new numbers released by the government. The figures illustrate "how much of the nation's spying work has been outsourced" since 9/11.
"The United States is spending more money than ever on private security contractors in Iraq as thousands of troops return home amid steady declines in insurgent attacks." Over $1.2 billion will have been spent this year on "contractors, who protect diplomats, civilian facilities and supply convoys."
A Washington law firm "filed a lawsuit yesterday against KBR, one of the largest U.S. contractors in Iraq, alleging that the company and its Jordanian subcontractor engaged in the human trafficking of Nepali workers." The firm says 13 Nepali men were recruited for kitchen work in Jordan only to have their passports seized upon arrival and "told they were being sent to a military facility in Iraq."
OTHER NEWS
CNN reports that the number of people and businesses heading to bankruptcy court has spiked. "Bankruptcy filings surged 29% in the 12 months that ended June 30, according to government figures released Wednesday."
House Democrats are scheduling a Sept. 11 hearing "that would put former White House counsel Harriet Miers under oath." Justice Department lawyers "said they would go to court as soon as today to block a ruling by U.S. District Judge John Bates that forces the White House to cooperate" with the attorneys scandal investigation.
Friday, August 29, 2008
Thursday, August 28, 2008
TODAY'S TOPICS: Clinton Delivers, Biden So-So, Kerry, Daily Show, Global Warming, Protests, Signing Statements
Always remember this when republicans, the chatterers on tv, or the democratic straddlers tell you that we must “move to the center”, when in fact, progressive polices ARE THE CENTER:
"[T]he nation's middle class displays broad consensus on...support[ing] a universal national health insurance plan, requiring employers to provide paid family and medical leave, making it easier for employees to join labor unions, and allowing bankruptcy judges to change mortgage payments to keep homes out of foreclosure."
-- Drum Major Institute, 8/18/08
"If there was an Olympics for misleading and mismanaging this Administration would take the gold."
-- Dennis Kucinich - STILL THE SPEECH OF THE CONVENTION
MY DNC CONVENTION COVERAGE
WEDNESDAY’S HIGHLIGHTS:
Before I get to my analyses, let me just say that as a whole, I still wish more speakers would go after Bush, CHENEY!, and McCain a little more...not personally, but as representations of a failed philosophy and failed policies. Most of all, we need to hear about the collapsing economy from a populist perspective (maybe poverty???)...because we, the people, are suffering, while the corporations and wealthy elites are looting the commons. And I sure would like a little more talk about the Constitution and the assault it has undergone...but there's been some good stuff too - like the constant talk of health care and the opportunity for progress on the issue Obama represents - so let's get to it.
BILL CLINTON'S SPEECH
Well, no one should be surprised anymore when Bill Clinton expertly lowers expectations for his speech, and/or his support for Obama in this case, then knocks it out of the park. As I said the other day about Hillary’s speech: If there was one thing I think she could have said and didn't it would have been something like, "Any doubts I had regarding Barack's readiness to be President have been erased after competing with him for 18 months and watching him now compete with the GOP slime machine. And I can tell you, he'll be ready on DAY ONE!"
This would have addressed the constant replays of all the attacks she made on Obama during the primaries...attacks McCain is running continuously.”
Well, Bill Clinton did EXACTLY that, over and over again…not only saying Obama was ready, but tying Obama and his run in 92’ together. But that wasn’t the best part of his speech. As I also said the other day, it would now fall on Bill Clinton to do what he does best, contrast the philosophies of the GOP versus the Dems and on Biden to take a Ginzu knife and open up McCain and the GOP's soft underbelly of incompetence, lies, corruption and deceit.
Well, Clinton did his part perfectly. In fact, he’s the only major prime time speaker so far to go after Torture, Katrina, Income Disparity, The War on Unions, Protecting the Constitution, Cronyism, and rewarding corporations at the expense of the rest of us. Further, he had the line of the night when he said (paraphrasing) American has always been better served when we lead through “the power of our example, not the example of our power.”
But this is what I MOST LIKED about Clinton’s speech, and what should sound familiar to anyone who knows me. He finally framed the last 30 years as an extremist movement, then pointed out, which ALL DEMS SHOULD DO, that it was not until 2000 when the GOP finally got control over the White House AND Congress. Thus, the last 8 years are the first time we were able to see what it’s really like if GOP policies were instituted. And as Clinton then pointed out:
In this decade, American workers have consistently given us rising productivity. That means, year after year, they work harder and produce more. Now, what did they get in return? Declining wages, less than one-fourth as many new jobs as in the previous eight years, smaller health care and pension benefits, rising poverty, and the biggest increase in income inequality since the 1920s. American families by the millions are struggling with soaring health care costs and declining coverage.
BANG!!! END OF DEBATE!!!
It’s not by accident he beat the Republicans twice…badly (this is not an endorsement of a lot of his policies while in office mind you).
JOE BIDEN'S SPEECH
I was a little disappointed in Biden’s speech, as it wasn't always delivered perfectly. But, he did go after McCain in ways that hadn’t been done nearly enough to date. Clearly his stuff about his mom and family resonated, with the other highlights being his “That’s not change, that’s more of the same” riff on all McCain’s Bushian policy positions. And I was especially happy to see Biden go after McCain’s perceived “strength” on foreign affairs, as he pointed out time and time again how “the disgrace” has been WRONG on EVERY major foreign policy issue of our time, and Obama’s judgments have been right.
I’ll also admit, I did like his metaphor of “getting up” when knocked down, and how he ended with “America, it’s time to get up again”. Because let’s face it, we’ve had the CRAP knocked out of us, and everything our country once stood for, for 8 years now, and it is going to take a bit of will and courage to turn this sinking ship around.
What bothered me a little substantively about Biden was his "tough talk" about Russia and "terrorists". I mean, what does "We will make sure Russia backs down" mean (paraphrasing)?
OTHER NOTABLES: John Kerry gave one of his best speeches, giving a few pf the lines of the night including:
Candidate McCain now supports the very wartime tax cuts that Senator McCain once called irresponsible. Candidate McCain criticizes Senator McCain’s own climate change bill. Candidate McCain says he would vote against the immigration bill that Senator McCain wrote. Are you kidding me, folks? Talk about being for it before you’re against it!
Let me tell you, before he ever debates Barack Obama, John McCain should finish the debate with himself.
Harry Reid actually said that nearly all the major wars since the WW2 were for oil (fantastic!), and I’ve heard Schweitzer’s was good too (Montana Governor), but haven’t had a chance to watch it.
GORE AND OBAMA: That’s right, it’s now time for the clean up hitters to come in and finish this thing…and with it the fascist movement of the last 30 years – started by the corporatism of Reagan, and hopefully ended by the idiotic sociopath Bush.
VIDEO SECTION
Classic Daily Show on what I alluded to in my last post…has Michelle Obama now proven she’s patriotic enough!?
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/27/daily-show-has-michelle-obama-sufficiently-proven-her-patriotism/
Watch Bill Clinton do his thing…it really is a pleasure to watch him do surgery on the GOP tumor again…this is always when he’s at his best (and why I think he wasn’t so good in the primaries…he needs to be targeting Republicans, not Democrats):
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/27/bill-clinton-throws-his-full-weight-behind-obama-blasts-bushmccain-legacy/
Watch the Biden speech here:
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/28/sen-biden-rips-mccains-poor-judgment/
John Kerry gives a speech that would have ensured he won in 2004 by even more than he did…he slams McCain, over and over again. Very nice…particularly in light of the fact that it was Kerry who “discovered” Obama, and got him to be his keynote speaker in 04’ when no one knew who he was…
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/28/sen-kerry-blasts-mccain-lets-compare-senator-mccain-and-candidate-mccain/
But let us not forget what is also happening in Denver…protesters being subjected to the new American Police State…
http://www.alternet.org/blogs/video/96600/dissent_in_denver/
This is too great…Caroline Kennedy puts idiot reporter Wolf Blitzer in his place:
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/27/caroline-kennedy-punks-wolf-blitzer/
Senator Bob Casey gives one of the lines of the week: “John McCain calls himself a maverick, but he votes with George Bush 95% of the time. That’s not a maverick. That’s a sidekick.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RZAGbtCHyE
Olbermann just can't stand listening to anymore of Scarborough's shit and calls him out on air...get the feeling that there's a little bit of tension over at MSNBC between Olbermann and Maddow versus Scarborough and Buchanan? Of course, we have the blathering chatterers in the middle like Brokaw and Williams that try to always add both sides, truth and fiction, to the debate too, but this infighting is getting good...
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/26/partying-with-the-blue-dogs/
Watch Rachel Maddow beat down Buchanan on why McCain is running the risk of degrading his very salient and personal past into a "punch line."
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/26/tonight-show-mccain-plays-pow-card-again/
ARTICLE SECTION
Even though Obama's plan would cut taxes for 95 percent of Americans, Gallup records 53 percent thinking he'll raise them. So to dispel any myths for you all, check out the actual tax plans, and what you’ll in fact get back (chart inside). I will get a TAX CUT of over $1000 under Obama, and nearly nothing under McCain. Exxon on the other hand…well, it goes without saying who benefits more with McCain’s plan.
A few clips:
You can boil down conservative messaging to the economy to this: We're all the same. Rich and poor, high-skilled workers and those without, wage-slaves and Paris Hilton -- and either politicians "raise taxes" or provide "tax relief." The reality is that the federal government is always going to rake in somewhere around 18 to 20 percent of the GDP in revenues, and the questions people should be asking are: 1) is the level of revenue sufficient so that government can do what we ask and expect it to do, or are we going to run up huge deficits, and 2) how is that burden distributed?
SNIP
But back to individual taxpayers. According to an analysis of both candidates' tax proposals by the Tax Policy Center and the Urban Institute (PDF), the reality is that under McCain's plan, the middle class would pay a few dollars less, the top 5 percent would pay a whole lot less, and the deficit would continue to snowball. Under Obama's plan, the top 2.5 percent of filers would see their tax rates return to what they were under Clinton -- a real increase -- and the bottom 95 percent of filers would pay a lot less.
http://www.alternet.org/election08/96476/half_of_americans_believe_gop_spin_on_obama%27s_tax_plan_/
Robert Scheer once again dissects McCain and his warmongering ways. It’s a simple little exercise we can do to make this clear. You ask me a question about “What would McCain do if such and such a foreign policy crisis arises?” Here’s how it goes, “What would McCain do if elected President and Iran won’t stop enriching uranium?” Answer: BOMB! Question: “What would McCain do if North Korea continues to enrich uranium?” Answer: BOMB!
End of exercise…
In fact, the lesson that McCain seems to have learned over his years of “experience” (crashing planes, cheating on his wife, and forgetting things) is that we only failed at things because we didn’t bomb enough civilians. That’s what this sick son of a bitch learned from VIETNAM for Christ’s sakes! If we only would have bombed more…alas, so true…was that Ghandi that said that? I think it was King who said “bombing more is the only way to true salvation.” Okay, let’s get to the article…
A few clips:
McCain can win only as a war president. He neither knows nor cares much about the economic meltdown, which is the consequence of the deregulation mania that he has supported at every turn during his career in the Senate. If McCain had to run on his economic policy record in the Senate, he might be a loser even in his home state of Arizona, whose residents are suffering mightily from economic disarray presided over by the Republicans. Better to dwell on the dubious success of the surge in Iraq than on the surge in home mortgage foreclosures and the price of gasoline that has crippled Arizona's and the nation's economy. Still better to change the subject to the Russians and Georgia rather than dwell overly long on the disaster of Iraq, which has cost our nation trillions of dollars and where the prime minister now is far more zealous than Barack Obama in calling for an early withdrawal of U.S. troops. But whatever McCain's problems from cheerleading for Bush's war, they pale in comparison to his vulnerability on the most pressing domestic issues.
SNIP
That's why he needs a new Cold War, but it's a bad fit for the world we face. The danger from Russia is not that it has imperial ambitions driven by the remnants of an expansionist communist ideology. Even China, which is still a communist-run state, knows that old-fashioned imperialism doesn't pay. What drives nations to madness these days is not ideology -- communist, Muslim or any other flavor of the month -- but rather an assortment of nationalist and religion-fueled grievances. In the case of Russia, the evolution of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin from the man Bush so admired to the one McCain despises was driven by hostile U.S. policies -- from NATO expansion to placing anti-missile rockets near Russia's borders.
http://www.alternet.org/story/96624/john_mccain%3A_running_for_war_president_at_any_cost/
NEWS CLIPS
The oil industry is holding an "Energy Mid-Day Reception for invited guests only" today at the Democratic convention. "Location: Unannounced," writes the Houston Chronicle. "The event is sponsored by the American Petroleum Institute, the American Gas Association and the Edison Electric Institute."
Twelve states and two cities, New York City and Washington, D.C. "are suing the Environmental Protection Agency over greenhouse gas emissions from oil refineries." The lawsuit "accuses the agency of violating the federal Clean Air Act by refusing to issue standards, known as new source performance standards, for controlling the emissions."
78% of Bush’s signing statements “have raised constitutional or legal objections”
When President Bush receives a bill he doesn’t like, instead of issuing a veto and challenging Congress to override him as School House Rock would have you believe, he issues a private “signing statement” setting forth how he plans on interpreting the new law. The House Armed Services Committee has just released a report on the practice and the conclusions are not encouraging.
“78 percent of President Bush’s more than 150 signing statements have raised constitutional or legal objections, compared with only 18% of all of President Clinton’s.”
That begs the obvious question: Which laws has Bush challenged?
1. A provision in the 2008 defense bill that would make it illegal to build permanent bases in Iraq. The White House is currently pushing for 58 bases.
2. A bill outlawing the use of torture on detainees. McCain did a lot of grandstanding on the day this law “passed,” but he hasn’t said anything since about Bush’s refusal to abide it.
3. A provision in the Patriot Act that requires the White House to inform Congress on how the FBI was using it’s new spying powers. This one naturally led to the FBI severely abusing their power.
Thanks the Democratic Congress for this...
UNINSURED RATE FALLS AS GOVERNMENT PROGRAMS EXPAND: The U.S. Census Bureau said yesterday that the number of people living in the United States without health insurance fell in 2007 for the first time since President Bush took office -- from 47 million in 2006 to 45.7 million in 2007. The decline in uninsured is "thanks mostly to expanded government health coverage for children," the State Children's Health Insurance Program, observes the LA Times. While the number of people covered by government programs rose from 2006, "the rate of private health insurance coverage slid to 67.5% of U.S. residents in 2007, down from 67.9% a year earlier" with the employer-based insurance rate falling slightly to 59.3 percent from 59.7 percent. However, "the report, which also included data on income and poverty, did not take into account the economic downturn that began late last year, and therefore it probably presents a rosier picture than the current economic reality," the New York Times notes.
Sheila Bair, the chairwoman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation warned yesterday "that the outlook for the ailing banking industry was bad -- and getting worse." Bair said "the swelling tide of toxic home loans is proving to be even more worrisome than initially feared," adding that “we haven’t seen the trough of the credit cycle yet."
GLOBAL WARMING
International researchers said yesterday that "Arctic sea ice has shrunk to the second-lowest level since record-keeping began three decades ago" illustrating "how rapidly climate change is transforming ecosystems in northern latitudes." Because the ice usually "reaches its minimum level in mid-September, researchers warned that a new low might be recorded within weeks."
Greenpeace:
Increased temperatures due to global warming have combined to create news of three separate climate disasters in different parts of North America. But while news of these disasters emerged in the past week, several states and Google announced major new investments in the clean energy technology necessary to solve the climate crisis and prevent even worse global warming. Meanwhile, President Bush and Congress were touting false solutions, like offshore oil drilling, that will only accelerate the climate crisis.
“These three events add up to a planet in deep trouble,” said Greenpeace Global Warming Campaigner Melanie Duchin. “But while states and companies are responding to the climate crisis, the Washington politicians are just spraying offshore oil on the fire.”
What three things, you ask?
1. Sea Ice at Second Lowest Level Ever; Polar Bears at Risk of Drowning as Ice Melts
2. Greenland Glacier Breaking Up, Threatening Sea Level Rise
3. Fay Dumps 26 Inches of Rain on Florida
Always remember this when republicans, the chatterers on tv, or the democratic straddlers tell you that we must “move to the center”, when in fact, progressive polices ARE THE CENTER:
"[T]he nation's middle class displays broad consensus on...support[ing] a universal national health insurance plan, requiring employers to provide paid family and medical leave, making it easier for employees to join labor unions, and allowing bankruptcy judges to change mortgage payments to keep homes out of foreclosure."
-- Drum Major Institute, 8/18/08
"If there was an Olympics for misleading and mismanaging this Administration would take the gold."
-- Dennis Kucinich - STILL THE SPEECH OF THE CONVENTION
MY DNC CONVENTION COVERAGE
WEDNESDAY’S HIGHLIGHTS:
Before I get to my analyses, let me just say that as a whole, I still wish more speakers would go after Bush, CHENEY!, and McCain a little more...not personally, but as representations of a failed philosophy and failed policies. Most of all, we need to hear about the collapsing economy from a populist perspective (maybe poverty???)...because we, the people, are suffering, while the corporations and wealthy elites are looting the commons. And I sure would like a little more talk about the Constitution and the assault it has undergone...but there's been some good stuff too - like the constant talk of health care and the opportunity for progress on the issue Obama represents - so let's get to it.
BILL CLINTON'S SPEECH
Well, no one should be surprised anymore when Bill Clinton expertly lowers expectations for his speech, and/or his support for Obama in this case, then knocks it out of the park. As I said the other day about Hillary’s speech: If there was one thing I think she could have said and didn't it would have been something like, "Any doubts I had regarding Barack's readiness to be President have been erased after competing with him for 18 months and watching him now compete with the GOP slime machine. And I can tell you, he'll be ready on DAY ONE!"
This would have addressed the constant replays of all the attacks she made on Obama during the primaries...attacks McCain is running continuously.”
Well, Bill Clinton did EXACTLY that, over and over again…not only saying Obama was ready, but tying Obama and his run in 92’ together. But that wasn’t the best part of his speech. As I also said the other day, it would now fall on Bill Clinton to do what he does best, contrast the philosophies of the GOP versus the Dems and on Biden to take a Ginzu knife and open up McCain and the GOP's soft underbelly of incompetence, lies, corruption and deceit.
Well, Clinton did his part perfectly. In fact, he’s the only major prime time speaker so far to go after Torture, Katrina, Income Disparity, The War on Unions, Protecting the Constitution, Cronyism, and rewarding corporations at the expense of the rest of us. Further, he had the line of the night when he said (paraphrasing) American has always been better served when we lead through “the power of our example, not the example of our power.”
But this is what I MOST LIKED about Clinton’s speech, and what should sound familiar to anyone who knows me. He finally framed the last 30 years as an extremist movement, then pointed out, which ALL DEMS SHOULD DO, that it was not until 2000 when the GOP finally got control over the White House AND Congress. Thus, the last 8 years are the first time we were able to see what it’s really like if GOP policies were instituted. And as Clinton then pointed out:
In this decade, American workers have consistently given us rising productivity. That means, year after year, they work harder and produce more. Now, what did they get in return? Declining wages, less than one-fourth as many new jobs as in the previous eight years, smaller health care and pension benefits, rising poverty, and the biggest increase in income inequality since the 1920s. American families by the millions are struggling with soaring health care costs and declining coverage.
BANG!!! END OF DEBATE!!!
It’s not by accident he beat the Republicans twice…badly (this is not an endorsement of a lot of his policies while in office mind you).
JOE BIDEN'S SPEECH
I was a little disappointed in Biden’s speech, as it wasn't always delivered perfectly. But, he did go after McCain in ways that hadn’t been done nearly enough to date. Clearly his stuff about his mom and family resonated, with the other highlights being his “That’s not change, that’s more of the same” riff on all McCain’s Bushian policy positions. And I was especially happy to see Biden go after McCain’s perceived “strength” on foreign affairs, as he pointed out time and time again how “the disgrace” has been WRONG on EVERY major foreign policy issue of our time, and Obama’s judgments have been right.
I’ll also admit, I did like his metaphor of “getting up” when knocked down, and how he ended with “America, it’s time to get up again”. Because let’s face it, we’ve had the CRAP knocked out of us, and everything our country once stood for, for 8 years now, and it is going to take a bit of will and courage to turn this sinking ship around.
What bothered me a little substantively about Biden was his "tough talk" about Russia and "terrorists". I mean, what does "We will make sure Russia backs down" mean (paraphrasing)?
OTHER NOTABLES: John Kerry gave one of his best speeches, giving a few pf the lines of the night including:
Candidate McCain now supports the very wartime tax cuts that Senator McCain once called irresponsible. Candidate McCain criticizes Senator McCain’s own climate change bill. Candidate McCain says he would vote against the immigration bill that Senator McCain wrote. Are you kidding me, folks? Talk about being for it before you’re against it!
Let me tell you, before he ever debates Barack Obama, John McCain should finish the debate with himself.
Harry Reid actually said that nearly all the major wars since the WW2 were for oil (fantastic!), and I’ve heard Schweitzer’s was good too (Montana Governor), but haven’t had a chance to watch it.
GORE AND OBAMA: That’s right, it’s now time for the clean up hitters to come in and finish this thing…and with it the fascist movement of the last 30 years – started by the corporatism of Reagan, and hopefully ended by the idiotic sociopath Bush.
VIDEO SECTION
Classic Daily Show on what I alluded to in my last post…has Michelle Obama now proven she’s patriotic enough!?
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/27/daily-show-has-michelle-obama-sufficiently-proven-her-patriotism/
Watch Bill Clinton do his thing…it really is a pleasure to watch him do surgery on the GOP tumor again…this is always when he’s at his best (and why I think he wasn’t so good in the primaries…he needs to be targeting Republicans, not Democrats):
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/27/bill-clinton-throws-his-full-weight-behind-obama-blasts-bushmccain-legacy/
Watch the Biden speech here:
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/28/sen-biden-rips-mccains-poor-judgment/
John Kerry gives a speech that would have ensured he won in 2004 by even more than he did…he slams McCain, over and over again. Very nice…particularly in light of the fact that it was Kerry who “discovered” Obama, and got him to be his keynote speaker in 04’ when no one knew who he was…
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/28/sen-kerry-blasts-mccain-lets-compare-senator-mccain-and-candidate-mccain/
But let us not forget what is also happening in Denver…protesters being subjected to the new American Police State…
http://www.alternet.org/blogs/video/96600/dissent_in_denver/
This is too great…Caroline Kennedy puts idiot reporter Wolf Blitzer in his place:
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/27/caroline-kennedy-punks-wolf-blitzer/
Senator Bob Casey gives one of the lines of the week: “John McCain calls himself a maverick, but he votes with George Bush 95% of the time. That’s not a maverick. That’s a sidekick.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RZAGbtCHyE
Olbermann just can't stand listening to anymore of Scarborough's shit and calls him out on air...get the feeling that there's a little bit of tension over at MSNBC between Olbermann and Maddow versus Scarborough and Buchanan? Of course, we have the blathering chatterers in the middle like Brokaw and Williams that try to always add both sides, truth and fiction, to the debate too, but this infighting is getting good...
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/26/partying-with-the-blue-dogs/
Watch Rachel Maddow beat down Buchanan on why McCain is running the risk of degrading his very salient and personal past into a "punch line."
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/26/tonight-show-mccain-plays-pow-card-again/
ARTICLE SECTION
Even though Obama's plan would cut taxes for 95 percent of Americans, Gallup records 53 percent thinking he'll raise them. So to dispel any myths for you all, check out the actual tax plans, and what you’ll in fact get back (chart inside). I will get a TAX CUT of over $1000 under Obama, and nearly nothing under McCain. Exxon on the other hand…well, it goes without saying who benefits more with McCain’s plan.
A few clips:
You can boil down conservative messaging to the economy to this: We're all the same. Rich and poor, high-skilled workers and those without, wage-slaves and Paris Hilton -- and either politicians "raise taxes" or provide "tax relief." The reality is that the federal government is always going to rake in somewhere around 18 to 20 percent of the GDP in revenues, and the questions people should be asking are: 1) is the level of revenue sufficient so that government can do what we ask and expect it to do, or are we going to run up huge deficits, and 2) how is that burden distributed?
SNIP
But back to individual taxpayers. According to an analysis of both candidates' tax proposals by the Tax Policy Center and the Urban Institute (PDF), the reality is that under McCain's plan, the middle class would pay a few dollars less, the top 5 percent would pay a whole lot less, and the deficit would continue to snowball. Under Obama's plan, the top 2.5 percent of filers would see their tax rates return to what they were under Clinton -- a real increase -- and the bottom 95 percent of filers would pay a lot less.
http://www.alternet.org/election08/96476/half_of_americans_believe_gop_spin_on_obama%27s_tax_plan_/
Robert Scheer once again dissects McCain and his warmongering ways. It’s a simple little exercise we can do to make this clear. You ask me a question about “What would McCain do if such and such a foreign policy crisis arises?” Here’s how it goes, “What would McCain do if elected President and Iran won’t stop enriching uranium?” Answer: BOMB! Question: “What would McCain do if North Korea continues to enrich uranium?” Answer: BOMB!
End of exercise…
In fact, the lesson that McCain seems to have learned over his years of “experience” (crashing planes, cheating on his wife, and forgetting things) is that we only failed at things because we didn’t bomb enough civilians. That’s what this sick son of a bitch learned from VIETNAM for Christ’s sakes! If we only would have bombed more…alas, so true…was that Ghandi that said that? I think it was King who said “bombing more is the only way to true salvation.” Okay, let’s get to the article…
A few clips:
McCain can win only as a war president. He neither knows nor cares much about the economic meltdown, which is the consequence of the deregulation mania that he has supported at every turn during his career in the Senate. If McCain had to run on his economic policy record in the Senate, he might be a loser even in his home state of Arizona, whose residents are suffering mightily from economic disarray presided over by the Republicans. Better to dwell on the dubious success of the surge in Iraq than on the surge in home mortgage foreclosures and the price of gasoline that has crippled Arizona's and the nation's economy. Still better to change the subject to the Russians and Georgia rather than dwell overly long on the disaster of Iraq, which has cost our nation trillions of dollars and where the prime minister now is far more zealous than Barack Obama in calling for an early withdrawal of U.S. troops. But whatever McCain's problems from cheerleading for Bush's war, they pale in comparison to his vulnerability on the most pressing domestic issues.
SNIP
That's why he needs a new Cold War, but it's a bad fit for the world we face. The danger from Russia is not that it has imperial ambitions driven by the remnants of an expansionist communist ideology. Even China, which is still a communist-run state, knows that old-fashioned imperialism doesn't pay. What drives nations to madness these days is not ideology -- communist, Muslim or any other flavor of the month -- but rather an assortment of nationalist and religion-fueled grievances. In the case of Russia, the evolution of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin from the man Bush so admired to the one McCain despises was driven by hostile U.S. policies -- from NATO expansion to placing anti-missile rockets near Russia's borders.
http://www.alternet.org/story/96624/john_mccain%3A_running_for_war_president_at_any_cost/
NEWS CLIPS
The oil industry is holding an "Energy Mid-Day Reception for invited guests only" today at the Democratic convention. "Location: Unannounced," writes the Houston Chronicle. "The event is sponsored by the American Petroleum Institute, the American Gas Association and the Edison Electric Institute."
Twelve states and two cities, New York City and Washington, D.C. "are suing the Environmental Protection Agency over greenhouse gas emissions from oil refineries." The lawsuit "accuses the agency of violating the federal Clean Air Act by refusing to issue standards, known as new source performance standards, for controlling the emissions."
78% of Bush’s signing statements “have raised constitutional or legal objections”
When President Bush receives a bill he doesn’t like, instead of issuing a veto and challenging Congress to override him as School House Rock would have you believe, he issues a private “signing statement” setting forth how he plans on interpreting the new law. The House Armed Services Committee has just released a report on the practice and the conclusions are not encouraging.
“78 percent of President Bush’s more than 150 signing statements have raised constitutional or legal objections, compared with only 18% of all of President Clinton’s.”
That begs the obvious question: Which laws has Bush challenged?
1. A provision in the 2008 defense bill that would make it illegal to build permanent bases in Iraq. The White House is currently pushing for 58 bases.
2. A bill outlawing the use of torture on detainees. McCain did a lot of grandstanding on the day this law “passed,” but he hasn’t said anything since about Bush’s refusal to abide it.
3. A provision in the Patriot Act that requires the White House to inform Congress on how the FBI was using it’s new spying powers. This one naturally led to the FBI severely abusing their power.
Thanks the Democratic Congress for this...
UNINSURED RATE FALLS AS GOVERNMENT PROGRAMS EXPAND: The U.S. Census Bureau said yesterday that the number of people living in the United States without health insurance fell in 2007 for the first time since President Bush took office -- from 47 million in 2006 to 45.7 million in 2007. The decline in uninsured is "thanks mostly to expanded government health coverage for children," the State Children's Health Insurance Program, observes the LA Times. While the number of people covered by government programs rose from 2006, "the rate of private health insurance coverage slid to 67.5% of U.S. residents in 2007, down from 67.9% a year earlier" with the employer-based insurance rate falling slightly to 59.3 percent from 59.7 percent. However, "the report, which also included data on income and poverty, did not take into account the economic downturn that began late last year, and therefore it probably presents a rosier picture than the current economic reality," the New York Times notes.
Sheila Bair, the chairwoman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation warned yesterday "that the outlook for the ailing banking industry was bad -- and getting worse." Bair said "the swelling tide of toxic home loans is proving to be even more worrisome than initially feared," adding that “we haven’t seen the trough of the credit cycle yet."
GLOBAL WARMING
International researchers said yesterday that "Arctic sea ice has shrunk to the second-lowest level since record-keeping began three decades ago" illustrating "how rapidly climate change is transforming ecosystems in northern latitudes." Because the ice usually "reaches its minimum level in mid-September, researchers warned that a new low might be recorded within weeks."
Greenpeace:
Increased temperatures due to global warming have combined to create news of three separate climate disasters in different parts of North America. But while news of these disasters emerged in the past week, several states and Google announced major new investments in the clean energy technology necessary to solve the climate crisis and prevent even worse global warming. Meanwhile, President Bush and Congress were touting false solutions, like offshore oil drilling, that will only accelerate the climate crisis.
“These three events add up to a planet in deep trouble,” said Greenpeace Global Warming Campaigner Melanie Duchin. “But while states and companies are responding to the climate crisis, the Washington politicians are just spraying offshore oil on the fire.”
What three things, you ask?
1. Sea Ice at Second Lowest Level Ever; Polar Bears at Risk of Drowning as Ice Melts
2. Greenland Glacier Breaking Up, Threatening Sea Level Rise
3. Fay Dumps 26 Inches of Rain on Florida
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
TODAY'S TOPICS: Kucinich!, Hillary!, DNC Convention, Maddow, Olbermann, Fox, Blue Dogs/AT&T, McCain v. Women
MY DEMOCRATIC CONVENTION COVERAGE
MONDAY NIGHT: Michelle Obama gave an excellent speech that did what sadly she needed to do: convince people she’s not an angry Muslim and that she and Obama love America. And then there was the heroic return of Ted Kennedy, who passed the torch once again to Obama (tribute video to him very moving, I have link below). A real testament to his courage, as not only is this a pretty amazing feat for someone in his condition, apparently he passed kidney stones earlier in the day.
TUESDAY: Kucinich steals the show with a speech for the ages!!! (Watch speech below) Then Mark Warner delivers a meaningless and stale speech that makes you wonder if you’re watching the Democratic Convention or a conference on aluminum siding. Jesus Christ!What does it take to get these people to start attacking the GOP Mafia and their ringleader John “the disgrace” McCain (Kucinich aside)?? Don’t they understand to win this thing they need to EDUCATE people regarding the record of this criminal enterprise and contrast them to the policies of the Democrats?? They’ve only murdered millions and tortured thousands of innocent people and shredded our Constitution…otherwise, gee, let’s reach out to them!! I have also been struck, but not surprised, by the near total blackout of Kucinich's speech in terms of it being discussed by anyone in the media. I've heard "reporter" after "reporter" say that NO ONE has gone after the GOP yet...uhhh...anyone see Kucinich??? The Matrix just can't handle that little guy...
And then there was Hillary (and now the second person to go after McCain!). What can I say? The speech was a friggin home run! Granted, listening to Hillary speak doesn’t necessarily bring me to my feet, or stir my soul, and I think its safe to say this is true for the vast majority of us. In fact, she kind of rubs me the wrong way. But in nearly every way, this speech did what it needed to do (which was a herculean task with all the attention on her and the many balancing acts required of her), and more.
She expertly connected her CAUSES and campaign with that of Obama’s, finally going beyond just saying she supports him over McCain, but WHY she supports him. That is what has been needed, and man did she deliver. Not only did she connect her causes, and their fate with Obama’s election, she also connected her husband’s legacy with that of Obama too. She articulated a kind of “compact” (credit to Chris Mathews for that term) that included her, Bill, the American people, the democratic party, women, and Obama, and then she tied McCain to the antithesis of everything this compact stands for. Very nice...
The causes and issues that demand this “compact” ranged from everything from universal health care, to women’s rights, to peace, to worker rights, to well, everything that makes us Democrats. And best, she had some great lines tearing into McCain and Bush…both the line about them being in the Twin Cities together, as well as her, "No Way, No How, No McCain" line. Nice...
If there was one thing I think she could have said and didn't it would have been something like, "Any doubts I had regarding Barack's readiness to be President have been erased after competing with him for 18 months and watching him now comptete with the GOP slime machine. And I can tell you, he'll be ready on DAY ONE!" This would have addressed the constant replays of all the attacks she made on Obama during the primaries...attacks McCain is running endlessly.
Those are my immediate thoughts after just watching it…
Now it falls on Bill Clinton to do what he does best, contrast the philosophies of the GOP versus the Dems...that has not been done nearly as effectively as it could, especially on the economy and our RECESSION!!! Then, it falls on Biden to take a Ginzu knife and open up McCain and the GOP's soft underbelly of lies, incompetence, corruption, and deceit.
VIDEO SECTION
Watch the speech of the year!! Kucinich from earlier today...every cowardly Democrat should be taking notes rather than talking about bipartisanship! All that “come together” talk is akin to a battered wife that continues to go back to her abusive husband saying “this time it’s going to be different.” When is the Democratic Party going to stop reaching out to those that spit on their hands? A group that filibusters EVERY piece of legislation, and calls them traitors, unpatriotic, and immoral! This is one of the best speeches in a long time...and of course it wasn’t on at Primetime…
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/26/dennis-kucinich-at-the-dnc-wake-up-america/
Watch Hillary's speech:
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/26/no-way-no-how-no-mccain/
Rachelle Maddow (and Keith Olbermann too) has been the real “hero” of the convention so far. She rarely let’s an idiotic statement go by from one of the chattering talking heads without, kindly and respectfully of course, deconstructing and debunking it, then flipping it on its head…and ending with a perfect, rational progressive case.
I just don’t know what we’d do without her and Keith…and now, as I’m sure you all know, she has her own show following Olbermann starting on September 9th!
Buchanan and Scarborough must be furious getting constantly beaten by this short haired lesbian every night. Classic! Scarborough must be especially upset because she got a show and he didn’t…
Unfortunately I’m not seeing clips from some of her outstanding work last night, particularly of her literal DEMOLITION of Pat Buchanan time after time.
For fun though, here was a not too long ago slap down of Scarborough (made him so upset he left the set)…
http://www.alternet.org/blogs/video/96457/rachel_maddow_spanks_joe_scarborough/
Watch the moving tribute to Ted Kennedy…encapsulates so much of why I became, and still am (as opposed to Green…which can be tempting), a Democrat (though a disgruntled one):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-HCBy77nDdk
And here's Kennedy’s speech…coming back from brain cancer to make it:
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/25/teddy-teddy-teddy/
Not to douse water on this lovefest, but reality calls. Naomi Klein lays down the gauntlet in regards to Obama’s huge shortcomings when it comes to being a real progressive. It’s not by accident Wall Street is in love with the guy…I don’t think they believe he’s going to be much of a challenge to the power either. And this gets to Klein’s (and mine if you’ve been reading this blog over the past years) message: we need to push Obama hard to do what’s right…as we know the corporations will be for him to do what’s wrong:
http://www.alternet.org/blogs/video/96462/naomi_klein_on_what_obama_means_for_progressives/
Let’s remember, that Democrats are FAR from immune from sucking on the “tit” of the corporate mafia too. And what better representation of the end of democracy is this little party – sponsored by AT&T – for the Blue Dog Democrats (the corporate slut wing of the party). Watch as Crooks and Liars bloggers try to ask a few questions to the party goers, who apparently are so aware of their sleaziness they won’t even say what the party is for!! Remember, the Blue Dogs led the effort to ensure that companies like AT&T received retroactive immunity for their crimes against US!! Now comes the payoff…with a little help from the police state:
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/26/partying-with-the-blue-dogs/
This scares me...
Plot unfolds to assassinate Obama on national TV, a 4th arrest, more details -- More details emerging from Denver as we write this in the predawn hours on the now suspected plot to assassinate Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama with a high-powered rifle on national television during his outdoor acceptance speech at Invesco Field Thursday night. Andrew Malcolm LA Times Top of Ticket weblog
-- 8/26/08
ARTICLE SECTION
Chris Hedges on what is becoming another immoral and unjust quagmire in our long history of them that threatens our reputation and future…as well as the lives of our troops and the Afghan people. War and imperialism only brings us, and those we attack, misery.
A few clips:
Coalition forces carried out an airstrike that killed up to 95 Afghan civilians in western Afghanistan on Friday, 50 of them children, President Hamid Karzai said. And the mounting bombing raids and widespread detentions of Afghans are rapidly turning Afghanistan into the mirror image of Iraq. But these very real events, which will have devastating consequences over the next few months and years, are largely ignored by us. We prefer to waste our time on the trivia and gossip that swallow up air time and do nothing to advance our understanding of either the campaign or the wars fought in our name.
As the conflict in Afghanistan has intensified, so has the indiscriminate use of airstrikes, including Friday’s, which took place in the Azizabad area of Shindand district in Herat province. The airstrike was carried out after Afghan and coalition soldiers were ambushed by insurgents while on a patrol targeting a known Taliban commander in Herat, the U.S. military said. Hundreds of Afghans, shouting anti-U.S. slogans, staged angry street protests on Saturday in Azizabad to protest the killings, and President Hamid Karzai condemned the airstrike.
SNIP
We are propelled forward not by logic or compassion or understanding but by fear. We have created and live in a world where violence is the primary form of communication. We have become the company we keep. Much of the world-certainly the Muslim world, one-fifth of the world’s population, most of whom are not Arab-sees us through the prism of Iraq, Afghanistan and Palestine. We are igniting the dispossessed, the majority of humanity who live on less than two dollars a day. And whoever takes the White House next January seems hellbent on fueling our self-immolation.
http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2008/08/24/11125/
Good article on CEO salaries and ideas to reign in these crime bosses...which might be possible if Obama wins.
A few clips:
Obama is supporting a fix for just one of these, the "carried interest" loophole. This is the one that lets buyout kings like KKR's Henry Kravis (personal net worth: $5.5 billion) pay a lower tax rate than their secretaries. Private equity managers get away with this by claiming the profit share portion of their compensation as capital gains, a neat maneuver that cuts their tax bill from 35 percent to 15 percent. When financial royalty like Kravis don't pay their fair share, the rest of us common taxpayers get stuck with the bill.
SNIP
According to a new report by my organization, the Institute for Policy Studies, and United for a Fair Economy, average U.S. taxpayers subsidize executive compensation to the tune of more than $20 billion per year. Other beneficiaries include guys like Kenneth Griffin, the head of Citadel Investment Group, who made $1.5 billion in 2007. Like most hedge funds, Citadel has a subsidiary in a tax haven, in this case, Bermuda. Such offshore investment vehicles make ideal locations for fund managers to stash boatloads of money in tax-deferred accounts.
http://www.alternet.org/workplace/96199/outrageous_ceo_salaries_are_a_nationwide_scandal_--_where_are_the_politicians/
Okay, so Eighty-seven percent of Americans support "a proposal to allow Medicare to use its bargaining power to negotiate prescription drug prices with manufacturers." In a democracy you would think that might mean we’d be able to accomplish this then, right? After working against these forces on a daily basis, the answer I have found is time and time again, NO. Hence the need for a party that fights for these causes, and keeps them up front in center.
A good article on how Medicare D has helped drive a health care and prescription drug crisis. A few clips:
Because federal negotiation is prohibited, elderly Americans are being overcharged billions of dollars. Agencies that negotiate get much better drug prices than the private Part D insurance plans do. If Medicare was allowed to negotiate with manufacturers, the program would save approximately $90 billion a year, which could be passed along to the elderly in the form of lower costs or greater benefits.
From 2002 to 2007, prescription drug prices increased by 50 percent, more than 21⁄2 times faster than inflation. Eight in 10 Americans think that the cost of prescription drugs is too high, and four in 10 report struggling to pay for medication prescribed by their doctors.
http://www.alternet.org/healthwellness/96308/priced_out_of_prescription_drugs/
FOX NEWS HIT BY SPRINKLERS (I just love that headline)
A sprinkler system partially flooded part of the Pepsi Center Monday morning.
The Denver Fire Department, which has a crew stationed at the center all week, was able to respond quickly before 5 a.m. when the sprinkler went off. After going off, the sprinkler released 50 to 100 gallons of water per minute and 9NEWS crews estimate it was on for around 5 minutes.
The cause of the sprinkler is under investigation but early reports indicate it was likely bumped or the heat sensor may have been affected by equipment in the room. The sprinkler was located on the club level in a skybox which had recently been renovated to host a news crew. It appears the skybox belongs to Fox.
end
MCCAIN VERSUS WOMEN
According to a 2008 Planned Parenthood Action Fund poll, many pro-choice voters are under the impression that Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) would protect women's rights, particularly in the area of reproductive rights. Forty-six percent of women supporting McCain said they’d like to see Roe v. Wade upheld, and a quarter of the all the pro-choice women polled thought McCain's views were consistent with theirs. The poll reflects the need for greater awareness of McCain's record, as "51 percent of women voters in battleground states have no idea what John McCain's positions are on women's reproductive health issues." The poll numbers also hint a misleading spin campaign from McCain and his surrogates to portray a "maverick" image on women's issues and cover up his hard-right record. McCain's long opposition to birth control measures, fair pay legislation, and his support for conservative justices such as Sam Alito and John Roberts who have undermined women's rights on the Supreme Court underscore his poor support for women.
THE REALITY: McCain said in 2006 that he would repeal Roe v. Wade. His campaign website calls for overturning Roe, returning the issue of abortion to the states, and then building "the necessary consensus to end abortion at the state level." "I will be a pro-life president and this presidency will have pro-life policies," he told Pastor Rick Warren this month. Planned Parenthood and NARAL have both given him a zero rating on abortion issues. According to NARAL, of 130 congressional votes by McCain related to reproductive freedom, 125 have been against abortion. "I've got a consistent zero from NARAL throughout all those years," he trumpets. On other reproductive health issues, McCain toes the right-wing line, having voted against requiring health care plans to cover birth control, comprehensive sex education, public education for emergency contraception, and restoring Medicaid funding for family planning for low-income women. "The guy I really respect on this is Dr. Coburn," McCain told the New York Times in March 2007, referring to the vociferously anti-abortion Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK). McCain has also supported anti-women's rights judges such as Robert Bork and Clarence Thomas.
WOMEN ON THE BACKBURNER: McCain's record is poor not only on reproductive health issues but other issues related to women's rights. Last month, he skipped the vote on the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which would have made it easier for women and other workers to pursue pay discrimination claims. McCain explained his opposition to the bill by saying that instead of stronger pay protection, women simply needed "education and training." In May, he told a 14-year old girl that he didn't think equal pay protections would do “anything to help the rights of women," claiming the legislation could "violate[e] the rights of the individuals who are being sued." (In July, however, McCain claimed he was "committed to making sure that there’s equal pay for equal work.") McCain has also opposed the reauthorization of the State Children's Health Insurance Act. NARAL President Nancy Keenan yesterday reminded the public that McCain said he would vote against a family-planning program that "provides millions of low-income women with access to birth control and breast-cancer screenings" and that his record suggests he would "force teachers to censor life-saving information from our teens" in support failed abstinence-only policies.
MY DEMOCRATIC CONVENTION COVERAGE
MONDAY NIGHT: Michelle Obama gave an excellent speech that did what sadly she needed to do: convince people she’s not an angry Muslim and that she and Obama love America. And then there was the heroic return of Ted Kennedy, who passed the torch once again to Obama (tribute video to him very moving, I have link below). A real testament to his courage, as not only is this a pretty amazing feat for someone in his condition, apparently he passed kidney stones earlier in the day.
TUESDAY: Kucinich steals the show with a speech for the ages!!! (Watch speech below) Then Mark Warner delivers a meaningless and stale speech that makes you wonder if you’re watching the Democratic Convention or a conference on aluminum siding. Jesus Christ!What does it take to get these people to start attacking the GOP Mafia and their ringleader John “the disgrace” McCain (Kucinich aside)?? Don’t they understand to win this thing they need to EDUCATE people regarding the record of this criminal enterprise and contrast them to the policies of the Democrats?? They’ve only murdered millions and tortured thousands of innocent people and shredded our Constitution…otherwise, gee, let’s reach out to them!! I have also been struck, but not surprised, by the near total blackout of Kucinich's speech in terms of it being discussed by anyone in the media. I've heard "reporter" after "reporter" say that NO ONE has gone after the GOP yet...uhhh...anyone see Kucinich??? The Matrix just can't handle that little guy...
And then there was Hillary (and now the second person to go after McCain!). What can I say? The speech was a friggin home run! Granted, listening to Hillary speak doesn’t necessarily bring me to my feet, or stir my soul, and I think its safe to say this is true for the vast majority of us. In fact, she kind of rubs me the wrong way. But in nearly every way, this speech did what it needed to do (which was a herculean task with all the attention on her and the many balancing acts required of her), and more.
She expertly connected her CAUSES and campaign with that of Obama’s, finally going beyond just saying she supports him over McCain, but WHY she supports him. That is what has been needed, and man did she deliver. Not only did she connect her causes, and their fate with Obama’s election, she also connected her husband’s legacy with that of Obama too. She articulated a kind of “compact” (credit to Chris Mathews for that term) that included her, Bill, the American people, the democratic party, women, and Obama, and then she tied McCain to the antithesis of everything this compact stands for. Very nice...
The causes and issues that demand this “compact” ranged from everything from universal health care, to women’s rights, to peace, to worker rights, to well, everything that makes us Democrats. And best, she had some great lines tearing into McCain and Bush…both the line about them being in the Twin Cities together, as well as her, "No Way, No How, No McCain" line. Nice...
If there was one thing I think she could have said and didn't it would have been something like, "Any doubts I had regarding Barack's readiness to be President have been erased after competing with him for 18 months and watching him now comptete with the GOP slime machine. And I can tell you, he'll be ready on DAY ONE!" This would have addressed the constant replays of all the attacks she made on Obama during the primaries...attacks McCain is running endlessly.
Those are my immediate thoughts after just watching it…
Now it falls on Bill Clinton to do what he does best, contrast the philosophies of the GOP versus the Dems...that has not been done nearly as effectively as it could, especially on the economy and our RECESSION!!! Then, it falls on Biden to take a Ginzu knife and open up McCain and the GOP's soft underbelly of lies, incompetence, corruption, and deceit.
VIDEO SECTION
Watch the speech of the year!! Kucinich from earlier today...every cowardly Democrat should be taking notes rather than talking about bipartisanship! All that “come together” talk is akin to a battered wife that continues to go back to her abusive husband saying “this time it’s going to be different.” When is the Democratic Party going to stop reaching out to those that spit on their hands? A group that filibusters EVERY piece of legislation, and calls them traitors, unpatriotic, and immoral! This is one of the best speeches in a long time...and of course it wasn’t on at Primetime…
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/26/dennis-kucinich-at-the-dnc-wake-up-america/
Watch Hillary's speech:
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/26/no-way-no-how-no-mccain/
Rachelle Maddow (and Keith Olbermann too) has been the real “hero” of the convention so far. She rarely let’s an idiotic statement go by from one of the chattering talking heads without, kindly and respectfully of course, deconstructing and debunking it, then flipping it on its head…and ending with a perfect, rational progressive case.
I just don’t know what we’d do without her and Keith…and now, as I’m sure you all know, she has her own show following Olbermann starting on September 9th!
Buchanan and Scarborough must be furious getting constantly beaten by this short haired lesbian every night. Classic! Scarborough must be especially upset because she got a show and he didn’t…
Unfortunately I’m not seeing clips from some of her outstanding work last night, particularly of her literal DEMOLITION of Pat Buchanan time after time.
For fun though, here was a not too long ago slap down of Scarborough (made him so upset he left the set)…
http://www.alternet.org/blogs/video/96457/rachel_maddow_spanks_joe_scarborough/
Watch the moving tribute to Ted Kennedy…encapsulates so much of why I became, and still am (as opposed to Green…which can be tempting), a Democrat (though a disgruntled one):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-HCBy77nDdk
And here's Kennedy’s speech…coming back from brain cancer to make it:
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/25/teddy-teddy-teddy/
Not to douse water on this lovefest, but reality calls. Naomi Klein lays down the gauntlet in regards to Obama’s huge shortcomings when it comes to being a real progressive. It’s not by accident Wall Street is in love with the guy…I don’t think they believe he’s going to be much of a challenge to the power either. And this gets to Klein’s (and mine if you’ve been reading this blog over the past years) message: we need to push Obama hard to do what’s right…as we know the corporations will be for him to do what’s wrong:
http://www.alternet.org/blogs/video/96462/naomi_klein_on_what_obama_means_for_progressives/
Let’s remember, that Democrats are FAR from immune from sucking on the “tit” of the corporate mafia too. And what better representation of the end of democracy is this little party – sponsored by AT&T – for the Blue Dog Democrats (the corporate slut wing of the party). Watch as Crooks and Liars bloggers try to ask a few questions to the party goers, who apparently are so aware of their sleaziness they won’t even say what the party is for!! Remember, the Blue Dogs led the effort to ensure that companies like AT&T received retroactive immunity for their crimes against US!! Now comes the payoff…with a little help from the police state:
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/26/partying-with-the-blue-dogs/
This scares me...
Plot unfolds to assassinate Obama on national TV, a 4th arrest, more details -- More details emerging from Denver as we write this in the predawn hours on the now suspected plot to assassinate Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama with a high-powered rifle on national television during his outdoor acceptance speech at Invesco Field Thursday night. Andrew Malcolm LA Times Top of Ticket weblog
-- 8/26/08
ARTICLE SECTION
Chris Hedges on what is becoming another immoral and unjust quagmire in our long history of them that threatens our reputation and future…as well as the lives of our troops and the Afghan people. War and imperialism only brings us, and those we attack, misery.
A few clips:
Coalition forces carried out an airstrike that killed up to 95 Afghan civilians in western Afghanistan on Friday, 50 of them children, President Hamid Karzai said. And the mounting bombing raids and widespread detentions of Afghans are rapidly turning Afghanistan into the mirror image of Iraq. But these very real events, which will have devastating consequences over the next few months and years, are largely ignored by us. We prefer to waste our time on the trivia and gossip that swallow up air time and do nothing to advance our understanding of either the campaign or the wars fought in our name.
As the conflict in Afghanistan has intensified, so has the indiscriminate use of airstrikes, including Friday’s, which took place in the Azizabad area of Shindand district in Herat province. The airstrike was carried out after Afghan and coalition soldiers were ambushed by insurgents while on a patrol targeting a known Taliban commander in Herat, the U.S. military said. Hundreds of Afghans, shouting anti-U.S. slogans, staged angry street protests on Saturday in Azizabad to protest the killings, and President Hamid Karzai condemned the airstrike.
SNIP
We are propelled forward not by logic or compassion or understanding but by fear. We have created and live in a world where violence is the primary form of communication. We have become the company we keep. Much of the world-certainly the Muslim world, one-fifth of the world’s population, most of whom are not Arab-sees us through the prism of Iraq, Afghanistan and Palestine. We are igniting the dispossessed, the majority of humanity who live on less than two dollars a day. And whoever takes the White House next January seems hellbent on fueling our self-immolation.
http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2008/08/24/11125/
Good article on CEO salaries and ideas to reign in these crime bosses...which might be possible if Obama wins.
A few clips:
Obama is supporting a fix for just one of these, the "carried interest" loophole. This is the one that lets buyout kings like KKR's Henry Kravis (personal net worth: $5.5 billion) pay a lower tax rate than their secretaries. Private equity managers get away with this by claiming the profit share portion of their compensation as capital gains, a neat maneuver that cuts their tax bill from 35 percent to 15 percent. When financial royalty like Kravis don't pay their fair share, the rest of us common taxpayers get stuck with the bill.
SNIP
According to a new report by my organization, the Institute for Policy Studies, and United for a Fair Economy, average U.S. taxpayers subsidize executive compensation to the tune of more than $20 billion per year. Other beneficiaries include guys like Kenneth Griffin, the head of Citadel Investment Group, who made $1.5 billion in 2007. Like most hedge funds, Citadel has a subsidiary in a tax haven, in this case, Bermuda. Such offshore investment vehicles make ideal locations for fund managers to stash boatloads of money in tax-deferred accounts.
http://www.alternet.org/workplace/96199/outrageous_ceo_salaries_are_a_nationwide_scandal_--_where_are_the_politicians/
Okay, so Eighty-seven percent of Americans support "a proposal to allow Medicare to use its bargaining power to negotiate prescription drug prices with manufacturers." In a democracy you would think that might mean we’d be able to accomplish this then, right? After working against these forces on a daily basis, the answer I have found is time and time again, NO. Hence the need for a party that fights for these causes, and keeps them up front in center.
A good article on how Medicare D has helped drive a health care and prescription drug crisis. A few clips:
Because federal negotiation is prohibited, elderly Americans are being overcharged billions of dollars. Agencies that negotiate get much better drug prices than the private Part D insurance plans do. If Medicare was allowed to negotiate with manufacturers, the program would save approximately $90 billion a year, which could be passed along to the elderly in the form of lower costs or greater benefits.
From 2002 to 2007, prescription drug prices increased by 50 percent, more than 21⁄2 times faster than inflation. Eight in 10 Americans think that the cost of prescription drugs is too high, and four in 10 report struggling to pay for medication prescribed by their doctors.
http://www.alternet.org/healthwellness/96308/priced_out_of_prescription_drugs/
FOX NEWS HIT BY SPRINKLERS (I just love that headline)
A sprinkler system partially flooded part of the Pepsi Center Monday morning.
The Denver Fire Department, which has a crew stationed at the center all week, was able to respond quickly before 5 a.m. when the sprinkler went off. After going off, the sprinkler released 50 to 100 gallons of water per minute and 9NEWS crews estimate it was on for around 5 minutes.
The cause of the sprinkler is under investigation but early reports indicate it was likely bumped or the heat sensor may have been affected by equipment in the room. The sprinkler was located on the club level in a skybox which had recently been renovated to host a news crew. It appears the skybox belongs to Fox.
end
MCCAIN VERSUS WOMEN
According to a 2008 Planned Parenthood Action Fund poll, many pro-choice voters are under the impression that Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) would protect women's rights, particularly in the area of reproductive rights. Forty-six percent of women supporting McCain said they’d like to see Roe v. Wade upheld, and a quarter of the all the pro-choice women polled thought McCain's views were consistent with theirs. The poll reflects the need for greater awareness of McCain's record, as "51 percent of women voters in battleground states have no idea what John McCain's positions are on women's reproductive health issues." The poll numbers also hint a misleading spin campaign from McCain and his surrogates to portray a "maverick" image on women's issues and cover up his hard-right record. McCain's long opposition to birth control measures, fair pay legislation, and his support for conservative justices such as Sam Alito and John Roberts who have undermined women's rights on the Supreme Court underscore his poor support for women.
THE REALITY: McCain said in 2006 that he would repeal Roe v. Wade. His campaign website calls for overturning Roe, returning the issue of abortion to the states, and then building "the necessary consensus to end abortion at the state level." "I will be a pro-life president and this presidency will have pro-life policies," he told Pastor Rick Warren this month. Planned Parenthood and NARAL have both given him a zero rating on abortion issues. According to NARAL, of 130 congressional votes by McCain related to reproductive freedom, 125 have been against abortion. "I've got a consistent zero from NARAL throughout all those years," he trumpets. On other reproductive health issues, McCain toes the right-wing line, having voted against requiring health care plans to cover birth control, comprehensive sex education, public education for emergency contraception, and restoring Medicaid funding for family planning for low-income women. "The guy I really respect on this is Dr. Coburn," McCain told the New York Times in March 2007, referring to the vociferously anti-abortion Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK). McCain has also supported anti-women's rights judges such as Robert Bork and Clarence Thomas.
WOMEN ON THE BACKBURNER: McCain's record is poor not only on reproductive health issues but other issues related to women's rights. Last month, he skipped the vote on the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which would have made it easier for women and other workers to pursue pay discrimination claims. McCain explained his opposition to the bill by saying that instead of stronger pay protection, women simply needed "education and training." In May, he told a 14-year old girl that he didn't think equal pay protections would do “anything to help the rights of women," claiming the legislation could "violate[e] the rights of the individuals who are being sued." (In July, however, McCain claimed he was "committed to making sure that there’s equal pay for equal work.") McCain has also opposed the reauthorization of the State Children's Health Insurance Act. NARAL President Nancy Keenan yesterday reminded the public that McCain said he would vote against a family-planning program that "provides millions of low-income women with access to birth control and breast-cancer screenings" and that his record suggests he would "force teachers to censor life-saving information from our teens" in support failed abstinence-only policies.
Monday, August 25, 2008
TODAYS TOPICS: Biden Analysis, Biden Speech, Populist Pugilism!, I was a POW!, Fox v. Protesters, Diebold Admits
BIDEN AT HIS BEST ON “WAR ON TERROR”, HABEUS CORPUS, AND GUANTANAMO:
"[The Bush administration] has destroyed faith in America's judgment. And it has devalued America's moral leadership in the world. Instead, this administration has focused to the point of obsession on the so-called "war on terrorism" and produced a one-size-fits-all doctrine of military preemption and regime change ill suited to the challenges we face. It has made fear the main driver of our foreign policy. It has turned a deadly serious but manageable threat -- a small number of radical groups that hate America -- into a ten-foot tall existential monster that dictates nearly every move we make. Even if you look at the world through this administration's distorted lens, you see a failed policy."
And more...
"I disagree categorically with Mr. Gonzales. The Constitution guarantees the right of habeas corpus unless in the case of rebellion or invasion it is suspended. My National Security with Justice Act reinforces this Constitutional right by extending by statute meaningful habeas review for all Guantánamo detainees."
...that Biden toughness Obama so desperately needs:
"I refuse to sit back like we did in 2000 and 2004. This administration is the worst administration in American foreign policy in modern history -- maybe ever. ... Every single thing they've touched has been a near-disaster."
-- Senator Joe Biden, leading advocate for closing down Guantanamo
MY ANALYSIS OF THE BIDEN PICK
Politically, Barack Obama's choice of Biden as his running mate is about as strong as he could have had. As I stated many times, he was superior to the keystone cops of “centrism”, Kaine, Nunn or Bayh...all who would have been wretched choices.
Unfortunately, this is a bad choice for the anti-war movement as it indicates that those that supported the war are still being rewarded in the Democratic Party. And yes, this fact does undermine Obama’s initial strongest asset: that he had the judgement to oppose the War in Iraq from the beginning. Clearly he will have to explain how he could choose someone that supported “the worst foreign policy decision in history” and didn’t have the same good judgment that Obama did.
As I have also said, even more important than Biden’s foreign policy experience (which will help reassure a lot of voters) is he's tough and he isn't afraid of taking on the GOP...and certainly not McCain. In fact, in the past six months I’d venture to say Biden has been the most effective and aggressive in challenging McCain on the war, and the “surge”.
It goes without saying that Obama desperately needed an injection of toughness and aggression in his campaign, and I would argue some passion and urgency too. Biden most certainly brings all of these. I’d also say that Biden speaks and comes across as authentic, with a kind of "every man" type feel and a sense of humor to boot.
These characteristics also help balance Obama’s more cool and collected persona that some seem to feel comes across as aloof. Whether true or not, Barack's “cool” needed some Biden “hot”.
Finally, and I hate to say it, but Biden is liked by the corporate media. And though I loathe the idea of choosing a VP because it appeases these jackals, and I don’t think that’s why Obama did choose him, the fact is, being liked by the press is a big bonus…particularly when Obama is their "target number one" while McCain is their secret lover.
But how’s Biden on the issues? (more on this in an article today too)
Overall, Biden falls slightly to the left of center of the Democratic Party. Across the board, outside of two areas that I will get to, he has a fairly progressive record on basic economic issues, and has evolved to be more progressive on issues like trade. He’s also been a strong voice opposing unilateral war against Iran, and as I have continued to say, he is effective and comfortable in contrasting the GOP’s economic philosophy with that of the Democrats…a critical ability this election as we are in the midst of a transition into a Banana Republic.
Biden has a good record on the environment and an outstanding record on labor issues. He also authored the Violence Against Women’s Act, which by all accounts was a critical component in the drastic reduction in domestic violence since the laws institution.
The bad news: War support, Bankruptcy Bill, Drug War
I will always have trouble forgiving Biden for his two most notable betrayals. He was one of the most ardent supporters of the credit card-industry written Bankruptcy Bill of 2005, one of the most regressive pieces of economic legislation in the last generation. And he used his position as one of Democrats’ top foreign policy voices to act as head cheerleader for the Iraq War. In addition, he has bought the "war on drugs", and it's mythic moral righteousness hook line and sinker.
So, all in all, I’m of the feeling that strategically this was a great choice. And more than anything, what I’m personally energized by is Biden’s ferocity and his skill in attacking the other side…because the Dems can’t keep showing up to knife fights with tweezers. We have the luxury of being able to attack AND be truthful and honest, so there is no excuse not to go on the offensive! We don’t have to be dishonest as the GOP does, so let’s stop taking their shit…which Biden won’t.
Ideally the perfect choice would have been a candidate that also saw through the war lies and opposed this fiasco from the beginning (among other thins) and opposed the bankruptcy bill. But, we don’t live in a perfect world…so let’s just hope he delivers in the areas he’s strong in…
VIDEO SECTION: Biden Delivers...so far
As I expected, it took Biden all of about a minute to go after McCain:
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/23/forget-the-kitchen-sink-we-got-the-kitchen-table/
Or watch the whole speech here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fSNuYqYMeG4
FOX News meets leftist protesters in Denver…only to realize they are hated and despised! While politically I can sit back and say, “This kind of profanity from demonstrators doesn’t help us appeal to viewers…blah, blah, blah”. I can also say, Fox is a fascist network that intentionally lies, day in and day out, to the people of this country in order to create divisions, perpetuate prejudices, and keep the corporate elite in power. So, I kind of agree with the message of Fu** Fox News!
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/24/fox-news-gets-a-little-freaked-out-by-convention-protesters/
Hold your horses, a good sign to report! Three prominent democrats - Governors Ed Rendell, Kathleen Sebelius and Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. - stay on the “McCain is out of touch” message for an entire interview in Denver! Yea!!! Now let’s turn up the heat on “The Disgrace”, and keep it up until Election Day.
I’d also include in the attacks (or framing) the fact that McCain DOESN’T KNOW HOW TO USE THE INTERNET. Seriously, is a man who is just discovering the personal computer qualified to lead us into the 21st Century?
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/24/face-the-nation-the-democrats-stay-on-message/
ARTICLE SECTION: Biden, Rich
Here is the kind of comprehensive review of Biden’s record I was looking for (which I generally already knew…but this saves me having to write it all out!). The good news about his record is on labor, environment, and more generally, middle class pocketbook stuff (aside from his almost criminal vote on the bankruptcy bill). The worst about Biden is of course his support of the war and the fact he’s a whore of the credit card industry. The war, and Biden’s long record of supporting US military interventionism is yet another reminder that when all is said and done, the Military Industrial Complex still runs DC, the corporate media, and the inside the beltway group think we see chattering on our tv’s every night…and sadly, Biden fits that bill.
When all is said and done though, he’s a fairly liberal Senator, one that appeals to working class whites, and will tear into McCain and the GOP mafia like no ones business. In other words, there are a lot of reasons that lead me to believe this was a good choice in light of the way the Matrix shrinks the options available these days.
A few clips:
Biden brings other political benefits to the ticket. An articulate and hard-hitting debater, Biden will do well serving the traditional vice presidential nominee's role of attack-dog, while Obama himself stays (somewhat) above the fray. Despite decades in Washington, Biden's reputation as a straight-shooter who says what he means regardless of the repercussions -- a tendency that has gotten him into trouble a few times during his career -- gives him a bit of an ousidery caché. He is, in a sense, a Democratic version of John McCain, appreciated by the Beltway media for his availability and ability to come up with a pithy quote when need be. He has also long appealed to those much-discussed "white working-class" voters who have so far approached Obama's candidacy with a certain amount of trepidation.
SNIP
Biden's most problematic domestic issue, as far as progressive voters are concerned, is probably his record of fealty to the finance industry. Not only did he vote in favor of the 2005 bankruptcy "reform" bill, he also voted against most of the proposed amendments that would have strengthened consumer rights under the legislation. Biden, whose top contributor over his career has been the credit card giant MBNA Corp., was one of only 18 Democrats to vote for the bill. He's often referred to by progressive critics as Joe Biden (D-Mastercard).
SNIP
But looking at his entire record, Joe Biden is strong on the issue that polls show to be Americans' number one concern in this election cycle: the economy. According to the Drum Major Institute, which tracks votes that are "supportive of America's middle class," Joe Biden's score so far in 2008 is over 95 percent. He received an A+ from DMI in 2007, and has earned an A rating from the group in each of the last 5 years except 2005 -- the year the bankruptcy reform bill passed.
Foreign policy is another matter. Biden is considered one of the leading experts on foreign policy within Washington circles, but his approach to the world -- his views on the use of American power -- is very much in keeping with that of the Democratic establishment. He is, in short, a "liberal hawk," a more multilateralist version of John McCain who has consistently supported the use of force in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as earlier "interventions" in Kosovo and Bosnia. He's called for U.S. troops to act, unilaterally if need be, in Sudan.
http://www.alternet.org/election08/96137/media_sees_biden_pick_as_big_plus_for_dem_ticket/
Frank Rich joins me in urging Obama to “take the gloves off”, and do it with the rhetoric of a "populist pugilist" (my term)! More and more experts are starting to see the light...
A few clips:
Americans watching the Olympics could not escape the reality that China in particular and Asia in general will continue to outpace our country in growth while we remain mired in stagnancy and debt (much of it held by China).
How we dig out of this quagmire is the American story that Obama must tell. It is not a story of endless conflicts abroad but a potentially inspiring tale of serious economic, educational, energy and health-care mobilization at home. We don't have the time or resources to go off on more quixotic military missions or to indulge in culture wars. (In China, they're too busy exploiting scientific advances for competitive advantage to reopen settled debates about Darwin.) Americans must band together for change before the new century leaves us completely behind. The Obama campaign actually has plans, however imperfect or provisional, to set us on that path; the McCain campaign offers only disposable Band-Aids typified by the "drill now" mantra that even McCain says will only have a "psychological" effect on gas prices.
SNIP
The argument against Obama's "going negative" is that it undermines his message of transcendent politics" and will make him look like an "angry black man." But pacifistic politics is an oxymoron, and Obama is constitutionally incapable of coming off angrier than McCain. A few more fisticuffs from the former law professor (and many more from his running mate and other surrogates) can only help make him look less skinny (metaphorically if not literally). Obama should go after McCain's supposedly biggest asset -- experience -- much as McCain went after Obama's crowd-drawing celebrity.
http://www.alternet.org/election08/96200/obama_and_mccain%3A_the_stakes_are_too_huge_for_%27civil%27_politics/
Diebold Admits Their Tabulator Software Doesn't Count Votes Correctly
UPDATED WITH VIDEO: CNN's Lou Dobbs Covers Stunning Admission...
If you didn't happen to pay close enough attention to Ellen Theisen's guest blog on Friday, now that I'm back on the grid (after a few blissful days in the mountains with family friends on the way to Denver here), let me re-iterate the main points of her article quite directly: Diebold has admitted that their tabulator software, known as GEMS, and used all across the country, in at least 34 states, does not count votes correctly.
In fact, it actually loses votes, by not counting them at all, yet gives the system administrator no indication that the votes were not counted. yet gives the system administrator no indication that the votes were not counted. Instead, it tells them that all votes have been counted correctly. This bug has been in Diebold's software --- where it remains to this day-- for years. Diebold has only admitted it now that it's been found by someone else (a number of counties in Ohio, of all places) and with the 2008 Presidential election less than 80 days away. Washington Post's coverage here.
http://www.bradblog.com/?p=6309
Bob Herbert Also Agrees with Me: Get Tough and Get Populist Obama!
Barack Obama was always a long shot to win the White House. It's no secret that some portion of the electorate will never vote for him because of his color. But he has made the odds even longer by running a campaign that, since the primaries, has seemed directionless, uninspired and addicted to the empty calories of generalities.
And the candidate himself has seemed flat. No fire. No passion. The last eight years have been calamitous. We're struggling with two wars, one of which we never should have started. The economy has tanked big time. The housing market has collapsed and foreclosures have skyrocketed. Motorists are reeling from high gasoline prices.
The financial-services sector is teetering like a skyscraper in an earthquake. Robust budget surpluses have morphed into deficits stretching to the horizon and beyond. And cash-strapped, debt-ridden working families are viewing the future with high anxiety, if not outright fear.
SNIP
We need a policy to create jobs here in America," he said. Suddenly, the crowd was paying closer attention. Feeding off the heightened energy, Mr. Obama talked of the need "to invest in people and our infrastructure right here in the U.S.A." He went on: "At a time when Iraq has a $79 billion surplus -- they have parked it in banks in New York City -- it doesn't make too much sense for us to be still spending U.S. taxpayer dollars, $10 billion monthly, rebuilding Baghdad.
"We should use some of that money to rebuild Virginia, building roads and laying broadband lines and putting people back to work."
There was a burst of applause and the crowd was completely with the candidate. It was the kind of connection that Senator Obama will have to make repeatedly, across the country, if he expects to be taking the oath of office in Washington in January.
-- Bob Herbert, NY Times
I’M A POW DAMN IT!! Keep going to that well "Disgrace"...
FROM C&L: Since it’s no longer taboo to point out John McCain’s ridiculous and offensive attempts to use of his experience as a POW as if it’s somehow an excuse for everything from his extramarital affairs to his rule-breaking to his having more pieces of real estate than he can keep track of, and so on, we would be remiss if we didn’t point this one out too.
When CNN’s Walter Isaacson confronted John McCain about his professed love of the band of ABBA, which of course was a lame attempt to cater to “disaffected Hillary supporters” as his blogger Michael Goldfarb made clear, McCain (you guessed it) whipped out the trusty ol’ POW card to explain:
“What were you thinking?,” Isaacson asked him, looking incredulous.
“If there is anything I am lacking in, I’ve got to tell you, it is taste in music and art and other great things in life,” McCain joked. “I’ve got to say that a lot of my taste in music stopped about the time I impacted a surface-to-air missile with my own airplane and never caught up again.”
But, as Spencer Ackerman was quick to point out:
What? McCain was shot down in 1967. ABBA began making music in 1972. Don’t try this sh** on me, McCain! Your POW experience has nothing to do with your Partridgey musical taste.
BIDEN AT HIS BEST ON “WAR ON TERROR”, HABEUS CORPUS, AND GUANTANAMO:
"[The Bush administration] has destroyed faith in America's judgment. And it has devalued America's moral leadership in the world. Instead, this administration has focused to the point of obsession on the so-called "war on terrorism" and produced a one-size-fits-all doctrine of military preemption and regime change ill suited to the challenges we face. It has made fear the main driver of our foreign policy. It has turned a deadly serious but manageable threat -- a small number of radical groups that hate America -- into a ten-foot tall existential monster that dictates nearly every move we make. Even if you look at the world through this administration's distorted lens, you see a failed policy."
And more...
"I disagree categorically with Mr. Gonzales. The Constitution guarantees the right of habeas corpus unless in the case of rebellion or invasion it is suspended. My National Security with Justice Act reinforces this Constitutional right by extending by statute meaningful habeas review for all Guantánamo detainees."
...that Biden toughness Obama so desperately needs:
"I refuse to sit back like we did in 2000 and 2004. This administration is the worst administration in American foreign policy in modern history -- maybe ever. ... Every single thing they've touched has been a near-disaster."
-- Senator Joe Biden, leading advocate for closing down Guantanamo
MY ANALYSIS OF THE BIDEN PICK
Politically, Barack Obama's choice of Biden as his running mate is about as strong as he could have had. As I stated many times, he was superior to the keystone cops of “centrism”, Kaine, Nunn or Bayh...all who would have been wretched choices.
Unfortunately, this is a bad choice for the anti-war movement as it indicates that those that supported the war are still being rewarded in the Democratic Party. And yes, this fact does undermine Obama’s initial strongest asset: that he had the judgement to oppose the War in Iraq from the beginning. Clearly he will have to explain how he could choose someone that supported “the worst foreign policy decision in history” and didn’t have the same good judgment that Obama did.
As I have also said, even more important than Biden’s foreign policy experience (which will help reassure a lot of voters) is he's tough and he isn't afraid of taking on the GOP...and certainly not McCain. In fact, in the past six months I’d venture to say Biden has been the most effective and aggressive in challenging McCain on the war, and the “surge”.
It goes without saying that Obama desperately needed an injection of toughness and aggression in his campaign, and I would argue some passion and urgency too. Biden most certainly brings all of these. I’d also say that Biden speaks and comes across as authentic, with a kind of "every man" type feel and a sense of humor to boot.
These characteristics also help balance Obama’s more cool and collected persona that some seem to feel comes across as aloof. Whether true or not, Barack's “cool” needed some Biden “hot”.
Finally, and I hate to say it, but Biden is liked by the corporate media. And though I loathe the idea of choosing a VP because it appeases these jackals, and I don’t think that’s why Obama did choose him, the fact is, being liked by the press is a big bonus…particularly when Obama is their "target number one" while McCain is their secret lover.
But how’s Biden on the issues? (more on this in an article today too)
Overall, Biden falls slightly to the left of center of the Democratic Party. Across the board, outside of two areas that I will get to, he has a fairly progressive record on basic economic issues, and has evolved to be more progressive on issues like trade. He’s also been a strong voice opposing unilateral war against Iran, and as I have continued to say, he is effective and comfortable in contrasting the GOP’s economic philosophy with that of the Democrats…a critical ability this election as we are in the midst of a transition into a Banana Republic.
Biden has a good record on the environment and an outstanding record on labor issues. He also authored the Violence Against Women’s Act, which by all accounts was a critical component in the drastic reduction in domestic violence since the laws institution.
The bad news: War support, Bankruptcy Bill, Drug War
I will always have trouble forgiving Biden for his two most notable betrayals. He was one of the most ardent supporters of the credit card-industry written Bankruptcy Bill of 2005, one of the most regressive pieces of economic legislation in the last generation. And he used his position as one of Democrats’ top foreign policy voices to act as head cheerleader for the Iraq War. In addition, he has bought the "war on drugs", and it's mythic moral righteousness hook line and sinker.
So, all in all, I’m of the feeling that strategically this was a great choice. And more than anything, what I’m personally energized by is Biden’s ferocity and his skill in attacking the other side…because the Dems can’t keep showing up to knife fights with tweezers. We have the luxury of being able to attack AND be truthful and honest, so there is no excuse not to go on the offensive! We don’t have to be dishonest as the GOP does, so let’s stop taking their shit…which Biden won’t.
Ideally the perfect choice would have been a candidate that also saw through the war lies and opposed this fiasco from the beginning (among other thins) and opposed the bankruptcy bill. But, we don’t live in a perfect world…so let’s just hope he delivers in the areas he’s strong in…
VIDEO SECTION: Biden Delivers...so far
As I expected, it took Biden all of about a minute to go after McCain:
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/23/forget-the-kitchen-sink-we-got-the-kitchen-table/
Or watch the whole speech here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fSNuYqYMeG4
FOX News meets leftist protesters in Denver…only to realize they are hated and despised! While politically I can sit back and say, “This kind of profanity from demonstrators doesn’t help us appeal to viewers…blah, blah, blah”. I can also say, Fox is a fascist network that intentionally lies, day in and day out, to the people of this country in order to create divisions, perpetuate prejudices, and keep the corporate elite in power. So, I kind of agree with the message of Fu** Fox News!
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/24/fox-news-gets-a-little-freaked-out-by-convention-protesters/
Hold your horses, a good sign to report! Three prominent democrats - Governors Ed Rendell, Kathleen Sebelius and Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. - stay on the “McCain is out of touch” message for an entire interview in Denver! Yea!!! Now let’s turn up the heat on “The Disgrace”, and keep it up until Election Day.
I’d also include in the attacks (or framing) the fact that McCain DOESN’T KNOW HOW TO USE THE INTERNET. Seriously, is a man who is just discovering the personal computer qualified to lead us into the 21st Century?
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/24/face-the-nation-the-democrats-stay-on-message/
ARTICLE SECTION: Biden, Rich
Here is the kind of comprehensive review of Biden’s record I was looking for (which I generally already knew…but this saves me having to write it all out!). The good news about his record is on labor, environment, and more generally, middle class pocketbook stuff (aside from his almost criminal vote on the bankruptcy bill). The worst about Biden is of course his support of the war and the fact he’s a whore of the credit card industry. The war, and Biden’s long record of supporting US military interventionism is yet another reminder that when all is said and done, the Military Industrial Complex still runs DC, the corporate media, and the inside the beltway group think we see chattering on our tv’s every night…and sadly, Biden fits that bill.
When all is said and done though, he’s a fairly liberal Senator, one that appeals to working class whites, and will tear into McCain and the GOP mafia like no ones business. In other words, there are a lot of reasons that lead me to believe this was a good choice in light of the way the Matrix shrinks the options available these days.
A few clips:
Biden brings other political benefits to the ticket. An articulate and hard-hitting debater, Biden will do well serving the traditional vice presidential nominee's role of attack-dog, while Obama himself stays (somewhat) above the fray. Despite decades in Washington, Biden's reputation as a straight-shooter who says what he means regardless of the repercussions -- a tendency that has gotten him into trouble a few times during his career -- gives him a bit of an ousidery caché. He is, in a sense, a Democratic version of John McCain, appreciated by the Beltway media for his availability and ability to come up with a pithy quote when need be. He has also long appealed to those much-discussed "white working-class" voters who have so far approached Obama's candidacy with a certain amount of trepidation.
SNIP
Biden's most problematic domestic issue, as far as progressive voters are concerned, is probably his record of fealty to the finance industry. Not only did he vote in favor of the 2005 bankruptcy "reform" bill, he also voted against most of the proposed amendments that would have strengthened consumer rights under the legislation. Biden, whose top contributor over his career has been the credit card giant MBNA Corp., was one of only 18 Democrats to vote for the bill. He's often referred to by progressive critics as Joe Biden (D-Mastercard).
SNIP
But looking at his entire record, Joe Biden is strong on the issue that polls show to be Americans' number one concern in this election cycle: the economy. According to the Drum Major Institute, which tracks votes that are "supportive of America's middle class," Joe Biden's score so far in 2008 is over 95 percent. He received an A+ from DMI in 2007, and has earned an A rating from the group in each of the last 5 years except 2005 -- the year the bankruptcy reform bill passed.
Foreign policy is another matter. Biden is considered one of the leading experts on foreign policy within Washington circles, but his approach to the world -- his views on the use of American power -- is very much in keeping with that of the Democratic establishment. He is, in short, a "liberal hawk," a more multilateralist version of John McCain who has consistently supported the use of force in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as earlier "interventions" in Kosovo and Bosnia. He's called for U.S. troops to act, unilaterally if need be, in Sudan.
http://www.alternet.org/election08/96137/media_sees_biden_pick_as_big_plus_for_dem_ticket/
Frank Rich joins me in urging Obama to “take the gloves off”, and do it with the rhetoric of a "populist pugilist" (my term)! More and more experts are starting to see the light...
A few clips:
Americans watching the Olympics could not escape the reality that China in particular and Asia in general will continue to outpace our country in growth while we remain mired in stagnancy and debt (much of it held by China).
How we dig out of this quagmire is the American story that Obama must tell. It is not a story of endless conflicts abroad but a potentially inspiring tale of serious economic, educational, energy and health-care mobilization at home. We don't have the time or resources to go off on more quixotic military missions or to indulge in culture wars. (In China, they're too busy exploiting scientific advances for competitive advantage to reopen settled debates about Darwin.) Americans must band together for change before the new century leaves us completely behind. The Obama campaign actually has plans, however imperfect or provisional, to set us on that path; the McCain campaign offers only disposable Band-Aids typified by the "drill now" mantra that even McCain says will only have a "psychological" effect on gas prices.
SNIP
The argument against Obama's "going negative" is that it undermines his message of transcendent politics" and will make him look like an "angry black man." But pacifistic politics is an oxymoron, and Obama is constitutionally incapable of coming off angrier than McCain. A few more fisticuffs from the former law professor (and many more from his running mate and other surrogates) can only help make him look less skinny (metaphorically if not literally). Obama should go after McCain's supposedly biggest asset -- experience -- much as McCain went after Obama's crowd-drawing celebrity.
http://www.alternet.org/election08/96200/obama_and_mccain%3A_the_stakes_are_too_huge_for_%27civil%27_politics/
Diebold Admits Their Tabulator Software Doesn't Count Votes Correctly
UPDATED WITH VIDEO: CNN's Lou Dobbs Covers Stunning Admission...
If you didn't happen to pay close enough attention to Ellen Theisen's guest blog on Friday, now that I'm back on the grid (after a few blissful days in the mountains with family friends on the way to Denver here), let me re-iterate the main points of her article quite directly: Diebold has admitted that their tabulator software, known as GEMS, and used all across the country, in at least 34 states, does not count votes correctly.
In fact, it actually loses votes, by not counting them at all, yet gives the system administrator no indication that the votes were not counted. yet gives the system administrator no indication that the votes were not counted. Instead, it tells them that all votes have been counted correctly. This bug has been in Diebold's software --- where it remains to this day-- for years. Diebold has only admitted it now that it's been found by someone else (a number of counties in Ohio, of all places) and with the 2008 Presidential election less than 80 days away. Washington Post's coverage here.
http://www.bradblog.com/?p=6309
Bob Herbert Also Agrees with Me: Get Tough and Get Populist Obama!
Barack Obama was always a long shot to win the White House. It's no secret that some portion of the electorate will never vote for him because of his color. But he has made the odds even longer by running a campaign that, since the primaries, has seemed directionless, uninspired and addicted to the empty calories of generalities.
And the candidate himself has seemed flat. No fire. No passion. The last eight years have been calamitous. We're struggling with two wars, one of which we never should have started. The economy has tanked big time. The housing market has collapsed and foreclosures have skyrocketed. Motorists are reeling from high gasoline prices.
The financial-services sector is teetering like a skyscraper in an earthquake. Robust budget surpluses have morphed into deficits stretching to the horizon and beyond. And cash-strapped, debt-ridden working families are viewing the future with high anxiety, if not outright fear.
SNIP
We need a policy to create jobs here in America," he said. Suddenly, the crowd was paying closer attention. Feeding off the heightened energy, Mr. Obama talked of the need "to invest in people and our infrastructure right here in the U.S.A." He went on: "At a time when Iraq has a $79 billion surplus -- they have parked it in banks in New York City -- it doesn't make too much sense for us to be still spending U.S. taxpayer dollars, $10 billion monthly, rebuilding Baghdad.
"We should use some of that money to rebuild Virginia, building roads and laying broadband lines and putting people back to work."
There was a burst of applause and the crowd was completely with the candidate. It was the kind of connection that Senator Obama will have to make repeatedly, across the country, if he expects to be taking the oath of office in Washington in January.
-- Bob Herbert, NY Times
I’M A POW DAMN IT!! Keep going to that well "Disgrace"...
FROM C&L: Since it’s no longer taboo to point out John McCain’s ridiculous and offensive attempts to use of his experience as a POW as if it’s somehow an excuse for everything from his extramarital affairs to his rule-breaking to his having more pieces of real estate than he can keep track of, and so on, we would be remiss if we didn’t point this one out too.
When CNN’s Walter Isaacson confronted John McCain about his professed love of the band of ABBA, which of course was a lame attempt to cater to “disaffected Hillary supporters” as his blogger Michael Goldfarb made clear, McCain (you guessed it) whipped out the trusty ol’ POW card to explain:
“What were you thinking?,” Isaacson asked him, looking incredulous.
“If there is anything I am lacking in, I’ve got to tell you, it is taste in music and art and other great things in life,” McCain joked. “I’ve got to say that a lot of my taste in music stopped about the time I impacted a surface-to-air missile with my own airplane and never caught up again.”
But, as Spencer Ackerman was quick to point out:
What? McCain was shot down in 1967. ABBA began making music in 1972. Don’t try this sh** on me, McCain! Your POW experience has nothing to do with your Partridgey musical taste.
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