Two of the most moving campaign ads you're likely to see this year

I need add no words to these two amazingly powerful and moving campaign ads from this year's election. Just watch. Hankies at the ready.

I was raped. And then I got pregnant. Sarah Palin believes that the Government should be able to force me to carry the pregnancy to term.

Sarah Palin believes that the Government should make that choice, not me.

Governor Palin, I didn't have a choice about being raped. But I should have a choice about this.

This ad was made by WAMP - Women Against McCain Palin. On their website they say:

This November, female victims of rape and incest are in jeopardy of losing their rights. Join our movement and pay to have these ads run on TV in a swing state.

There is no better way to make a difference in this election than to choose the ads that run in swing states. Please select your ad, swing state, and package. SaysMe.tv will run your ad on TV and brand it with your name at the end with: PAID FOR BY {YOUR NAME}.

Endorse what you believe in and say what YOU want on TV.

If you're interested in paying for this ad to appear on TV in a swing state, go here. For more information on Sarah Palin's plans to outlaw abortion even for girls and women who are victims of rape and incest, go here.

ERIK SCHEI: My name is Eric Schei. Three years ago I was an Army Sergeant in Iraq and I was shot in the head by a sniper. The doctors said I wouldn't survive. But I am still here and I am getting better.

I want to thank Tom Udall for getting more funding for treatment of brain trauma for veterans. For me, that means everything.

Thank you.

TOM UDALL: I'm Tom Udall and I'm humbled to approve this message.

Press release from Tom Udall:

October 16, 2008

Albuquerque, N.M. - The Udall campaign today released a powerful new television ad, in which Army Sergeant Erik Schei testifies to Tom Udall's leadership in Washington in standing up for our troops and veterans.

In 2005, Specialist Erik Schei was shot in the head by a sniper in Iraq. The doctors put his chance of survival at zero. With the right treatment, Sergeant Schei was able to not only live, but can now communicate with others.

"HUMBLED" - Released October 16, 2008

SCRIPT and FACTS

ERIK SCHEI: My name is Erik Schei. Three years ago I was an Army Sergeant in Iraq and I was shot in the head by a sniper. The doctors said I wouldn’t survive. But I am still here and I am getting better.

FACT: From the Associated Press, January 22, 2008: In October 2005, Erik was a 21-year-old Army sergeant serving in Mosul, Iraq, as a machine-gunner with the Army's 94th Engineer Battalion. A sniper's bullet pierced the right side of his helmet and passed through both frontal lobes of his brain.

"They gave him zero chance of survival," Erik's father, Gordon Schei, said. "They said if he did survive, he would be a vegetable. They wanted us to pull the plug on him. But we dug deep.

"We're people of faith, and we brought him home, and today he communicates with people. He laughs, he's standing - not on his own, but with help. He's doing so many things."

Erik uses a wheelchair and lives with his parents and 7-year-old sister in the Rio Rancho home his parents helped him purchase in August. The family moved from Taos to be closer to the VA hospital.

He is constantly impressing his parents, friends and therapists with the improvements he is making. He now speaks one or two words at a time. Often, "annoying" is one of them, speaking of his sister, said Christine Schei, laughing. He has a computer attached to his wheelchair, which often speaks for him. He activates it with his head.

"We're also teaching him to feed himself, which takes a lot of effort," Christine Schei said. "His brain just seems to have forgotten which muscles to use."

There are some things, however, that his brain has not forgotten how to do. "He knows how to read, which was a shock to all of us," she said. "They held up cards and he mouthed the words. A lot of times, it's a whisper. It's not real loud. We have to push him sometimes, 'Erik louder, try harder.' He has been our miracle child. We have great expectations, and hopefully by the end of next year, he can walk in a walker even if it's just two or three steps."

Erik has occupational and physical therapists come to the house three times a week, and a speech therapist comes twice a week. His mother also drives him to speech therapy three times a week.

"My hope is for him to be able to live independently, to be able to take care of himself and not be dependent on anyone else," Gordon Schei said. "He's always going to need some kind of help. Right now, he needs 24-hour care, but nobody thought he would get as far as he is right now, so there's no sense in thinking he won't get further."

ERIK SCHEI: I want to thank Tom Udall for getting more funding for treatment of brain trauma for veterans. For me that means everything.

FACT: As a member of the Appropriations Committee, Congressman Tom Udall pushed for and voted in support of the U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans' Care, Katrina Recovery, and Iraq Accountability Appropriations Act of 2007 which became Public Law 110-28. It included $600 million in funding for post traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injuries. Additionally, Congressman Udall has consistently voted in support of increasing funding for veteran's health care and served for eight years as a member of the Veterans' Affairs Committee.

TOM UDALL: I'm Tom Udall and I am humbled to approve this message.

FACT: It is a moral imperative to provide our veterans with the care they need and opportunities they deserve when they get home. Tom Udall's father, Stewart, served as a waist gunner in the Army Air Corps during World War II. This instilled in him the moral responsibility we have to the honorable men and women who serve our nation in uniform. During to his time in Congress, including eight years serving on the Veterans' Affairs Committee, Tom Udall has worked hard on behalf of our veterans. He is humbled to have the support of Erik Schei and honored to have been endorsed by the VFW-PAC which represents 2.2 million veterans.


Technorati tags: campaign ad, choice about this, women's right to choose, pro-choice, anti-abortion, pro-life, abortion, WAMP, Women Against McCain Palin, rape, incest, Sarah Palin, Palin, humbled, humbled ad, Erik Schei, Iraq, brain trauma, veterans, Tom Udall, New Mexico, Democrat, Senate, US politics, Presidential election, video, YouTube, WebWeaver's World, webweaver.

Read the full post

Read the summary only

ZERO?!?!??

The figure/number/amount zero can be used to describe many aspects of the McCain/Palin campaign, so it is fitting that it was this number and McCain's shocked repetition of the word "zero" that provided one of the highlights of tonight's third (and last, and IMO best) Presidential debate. Watch:

"ZERO?!?!??"

Oh my god - talk about walking directly into your worst nightmare! Hey John, don't you know the first rule of lawyers and politicians is never ask a question to which you do not know the answer!

OK, I'll wait a minute while you stop with the stomach-clenching hysterical laughter and pick yourself up off the floor... and then maybe we can list a few other zeros:

• Amount of honour McCain has left after indulging in this negative, shit-throwing campaign: zero


• Amount of credibility McCain has ended up with after picking Sarah Palin as his running-mate: zero


• Amount of proper vetting the McCain campaign appears to have done on Palin before picking her: zero


• Level of understanding McCain has about the economy: zero


• Number of times McCain mentioned the middle class in the first debate: zero


• Number of times McCain mentioned the middle class in the second debate: zero


• Amount of substance to McCain's education plans (if you don't count school vouchers): zero


• Amount of money you'd have left from McCain's $5,000 lump sum after paying for your own medical insurance under his health proposals: less than zero (the average policy costs $12,000 per year)


• Amount of true understanding (as opposed to wilful self-deception) McCain has about the situation in Iraq: zero


• Amount of oil that would be available to the American people within 10 years if McCain/Palin were to start tomorrow with the "drill baby drill": zero


• Amount of empathy or compassion McCain showed for the "health" of the mother when discussing late-term abortion during the debate: zero


• Number of autistic children Sarah Palin has: zero*


• Amount of real-life experience Sarah Palin currently has with addressing the needs of a special needs child: (virtually) zero**


• Number of times McCain frowned, rolled his eyes, or blinked during the debate: more than 3,000

* Seriously, what was with McCain's continued linking of Palin and autism during the debate? Is he confusing Down Syndrome with autism? Doe he think Trig is autistic? Or does he just lump all those "precious" special needs kids into one amorphous blob and not really care what those special needs actually are?

UPDATE: while writing this I've found out through the power of The Google that her nephew is autistic, so maybe he was referring to that, but still... I certainly didn't know that until I went looking for an answer, and judging by the number of other people asking the same question, it's confused a heck of a lot of people out there in Google-land tonight.

** DuppyConqueror at DailyKos wrote a beautiful diary today about his/her big sister who has Down Syndrome, and who is deeply loved and enormously appreciated by her family:

Special needs children should not be used for political gain. The fact that Sarah Palin is dragging Trig around the country and seemingly parading him around disgusts me and my entire family. It is disheartening. It's almost like the McCain campaign found out that Sarah Palin has a special needs kid and was like, "Oh, we can use that!" (I don't doubt it) My family was further enraged when Senator McCain repeatedly stated that Sarah Palin "knows what it's like" to have a special needs child. Trig is a baby. His symptoms won't start showing up significantly until he gets a bit older. It seems that Sarah Palin has no idea what she's in store for. I just hope that she can give Trig the kind of life my parents vowed to, and succeeded in, giving my sister.

Sarah Palin and John McCain, please stop using poor baby Trig as a political tool. It's petty, disgusting, dishonorable, and insults millions of families like mine across America who have worked hard all our lives to give our family members the best lives possible and never have asked for recognition. It's really not winning you any votes, especially when your "spending freeze" would cut funding to - you guessed it - special needs programs, and The Maverick from Seward's Icebox cut special needs funding before she had Trig. Ridiculous.

In closing, let's just remind ourselves of the starting point of this post:

• Number of dollars in fines for non-provision of healthcare for his workers that Joe the Plumber would have to pay under Obama's plan: zero


• Number of Presidential or Vice-Presidential debates won by McCain or his running-mate: ZERO

Tags: Presidential debate, third Presidential debate, Barack Obama, Barack, Obama, John McCain, McCain, zero, YouTube, US politics, Presidential election.

Read the full post

Read the summary only

Surprise! Sarah Palin abused her powers as Governor

Well well well. Can't say I'm surprised by the results of the Troopergate investigation - it was pretty clear that Sarah Palin was abusing her powers in trying to get rid of Trooper Wooten.

I have to say though that I am pleasantly surprised that the investigation actually managed to proceed as planned (and even more pleased that they decided to publish their findings!), seeing as how the McCain campaign seems to have sent every Republican lawyer in the lower 48 up to Alaska to try and stop it.

I think it's very interesting how Palin seems to be channeling Cheney by denying that anything untoward ever happened - even in the face of a report that says she abused her powers... which is par for the course for the McCain campaign - but I see hope in the fact that more and more Republicans are backing slowly away from the McCain/Palin ticket and everything it stands for.

Now I was planning at this juncture to give you a bunch of links to US news media articles on this latest Palin scandal, but a quick Google on "Palin abused powers" made me realise that this story isn't just making headlines around the US - this one has gone truly global.

I think those of you in the US would be interested in how closely the rest of the world is paying attention right now. I've never seen this much overseas interest in a US presidential election before - and I've been watching them myself for a while now.

The vast majority of the rest of the world, as you probably know, would vote for Obama/Biden over McCain/Palin by an incredibly high ratio (the Economist worldwide poll currently has McCain with 13 global electoral-college votes and Obama with 8,764), but as we can't vote, I guess the next best thing is to pay attention and help spread the word.

So without further ado, here's a small selection of the Troopergate coverage from around the world. All photos on this page are courtesy of alizasherman's Alaskans for Truth Rally Sept 27, 2008 set on Flickr - thanks heaps, dude:

Critics say 'First Dude' too involved - The Chronicle Herald (Canada):

ANCHORAGE, Alaska Todd Palin is not just the quintessential Alaskan man. In many ways, he has also been the quintessential first spouse since his wife, vice presidential nominee Gov. Sarah Palin, took office some 22 months ago...

...But questions have been raised about the quasi-official role of Todd Palin, 44, in his wife’s administration. Some lawmakers have said they have been surprised to find him sitting in on the governor’s meetings with lawmakers on state budget issues. He often stands in the back of the room during her press conferences and legislative committee hearings. Recently released e-mails from Sarah Palin’s personal accounts reveal that her husband was copied on correspondence about state business.

Palin abused power, probe finds - BBC News (UK):

The running mate of US Republican presidential candidate John McCain has been found guilty of an abuse of power, according to a state legislature probe.

Inquiry finds Sarah Palin abused powers in Troopergate affair - The Guardian (UK):

John McCain's election campaign last night suffered the body blow that Republicans had been bracing themselves for when his vice-presidential candidate, Sarah Palin, was found to have abused her powers in pursuit of a personal feud against her former brother-in-law.

At the conclusion of the ten-week investigation into the so-called Troopergate affair, Palin was found to have breached the ethics rules that govern her conduct as governor of Alaska.

Palin's Alaska vendetta adds to McCain's woe - The Guardian (UK):

When John McCain chose Sarah Palin to be his running mate, his supporters declared the move a masterstroke. But Republican poll ratings have been falling day by day - and now the 'Troopergate' scandal has turned the Hockey Mom from Alaska into a liability for a campaign that has lost its way.

Palin: An abuse of office - The Independent on Sunday (UK):

John McCain's beleaguered presidential campaign was yesterday struggling to weather yet another blow, after his running mate, Sarah Palin, was judged to have abused her power as Governor of Alaska when she and her husband sought to kick her former brother-in-law out of the state's police force.

Probe finds Palin abused her power - Financial Times (UK):

Sarah Palin abused her power as governor of Alaska, according to an official report released on Friday into the so-called “Troopergate” scandal that has clouded her candidacy as John McCain’s Republican vice-presidential running-mate.

The case involves accusations that Ms Palin fired a senior state commissioner because of his refusal to dismiss her brother-in-law, a state trooper, who was involved in a divorce and child custody battle with her sister.

‘Pitbull’ found guilty of abusing power - TimesOnline (UK):

THE so-called Troopergate investigation into Sarah Palin’s conduct as Alaska governor has blown a hole in John McCain’s White House campaign and called into question the role of her husband Todd as “first dude” should she become vice-president.

Palin’s breezy, shoot-from-the-hip style on the stump was just as evident in the way she managed Alaskan affairs. An ethics report to Alaska’s legislative council, released this weekend, found that she had abused her power as governor by pressurising officials to sack a state trooper involved in an ugly divorce from her sister.

Sarah Palin 'unlawfully abused power' in feud with state trooper, report finds - Telegraph (UK):

It started as a bitter family dispute over an ugly divorce and allegations ranging from illicit moose hunting to death threats in the small Alaskan town of Wasilla.

But that feud exploded into the race for the White House after an independent investigator concluded that Sarah Palin, the Republican vice-presidential candidate, unlawfully abused her power as Alaska governor to push for her former brother-in-law to be sacked as a state trooper.

Alaska ethics inquiry finds Palin abused power - Irish Times (Ireland):

An Alaska ethics inquiry has found that Governor Sarah Palin, the US Republican vice presidential candidate, abused her authority by pressuring subordinates to fire a state trooper involved in a feud with her family.

The finding, announced yesterday, cast a cloud over John McCain's controversial choice of running mate for the November 4th election.

US probe says Palin abused power - Al Jazeera (Qatar):

Sarah Palin, the US Republican vice-presidential candidate, abused her power as Alaska's governor when she fired the state's public safety commissioner, a legislative committee has found.

A report to the committee concluded late on Friday that a family grudge was not the sole reason for her firing of Walter Monegan, but said that it likely was a contributing factor.

Palin abused powers: Probe - The Telegraph (India):

New York, Oct. 11: Governor Sarah Palin abused the powers of her office by pressuring subordinates to try to get her former brother-in-law, a state trooper, fired, an investigation by the Alaska Legislature has concluded.

Alaska probe finds Palin 'abused her power' - India Express (India):

Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, the running mate of John McCain, ‘abused her power’ in seeking to get her former brother-in-law fired as a state trooper, an ethics report has found, dealing a blow to the Republican Presidential nominee who is struggling to hold ground against Democrat rival Barack Obama.

Palin guilty of abusing power - The Age (Australia):

REPUBLICAN vice-presidential nominee Sarah Palin abused her power as Alaska governor, investigators found yesterday, in another blow to John McCain's struggling White House bid.

As Senator McCain sought to restore control over unruly rallies that have seen a stream of invective, including a death threat aimed at Democratic rival Barack Obama, the "troopergate" scandal threatened to torpedo his campaign.

Palin 'abused power' - Herald Sun (Australia):

SARAH Palin unlawfully abused her power as governor to get her former brother-in-law fired as a state trooper, the chief investigator of an Alaska legislative panel has found.

The politically-charged "troopergate" inquiry could damage Governor Palin's reputation as a reformist vice-presidential candidate on Senator John McCain's Republican ticket.

And it could have a significant effect on the party's hopes of winning next month's US election.

Palin abused power, inquiry finds - NZ Herald (New Zealand):

Sarah Palin unlawfully abused her power as governor by trying to have her former brother-in-law fired as a state trooper, the chief investigator of an Alaska legislative panel concluded today.

The politically charged inquiry imperiled her reputation as a reformer on John McCain's Republican ticket.

And finally, a piece from TPM, written back at the end of August, which pretty much nails the entire Troopergate story - Getting Real About Palin:

I've noticed some people who should know better claiming that bringing up Gov. Palin's troopergate scandal is tantamount to making a victim of or defending her slimeball ex-brother-in-law who allegedly once used a taser on his stepson.

That's awfully foolish. So I thought I'd put together a post explaining why.

...and a couple of more recent articles from the US for good measure:

Alaska Inquiry Concludes Palin Abused Powers - New York Times (US):

Gov. Sarah Palin abused the powers of her office by pressuring subordinates to try to get her former brother-in-law, a state trooper, fired, an investigation by the Alaska Legislature has concluded. The inquiry found, however, that she was within her right to dismiss her public safety commissioner, Walt Monegan, who was the trooper’s boss.

What the Troopergate Report Really Says - TIME (US):

Friday's report from special investigator Stephen Branchflower to Alaska's Legislative Council answered some basic questions about the political and personal bog known as Troopergate.

Did Governor Sarah Palin abuse the power of her office in trying to get her former brother-in-law, State Trooper Mike Wooten, fired? Yes.

Sarah Palin: The view from Alaska - Salon (US):

I sat on the bank of the Kobuk River in northwest arctic Alaska on a mid-September morning. Upstream somewhere, wolves were howling — their chorus filling the silence, close enough that I could hear the aspiration at the end of each wavering call. Behind me, the slate-gray heave of the Brooks Range spilled off toward the north, the shapes of some peaks so familiar I’ve seen them in my sleep. The nearest highway lay 250 miles away. This is the Alaska where I spent half my life, and the only place that’s ever felt like home — the land of Eskimo villages, waves of migrating caribou and seemingly limitless space.

Though I was beyond the reach of the Internet and cellphones, and life was filled with rutting bull moose, incandescent autumn light and fresh grizzly tracks, I knew that thousands of miles to the south, the rest of the country was getting a crash course on our governor, Sarah Palin — someone who believes that climate change isn’t our fault; is dead set against a woman’s right to choose; has supported creationism in the schools; and was prayed over by a visiting minister at her church to shield her against witchcraft.

There. That should keep you busy for a while. Enjoy!


Tags: Sarah Palin, Palin, Troopergate, abused power, abuse of power, Todd Palin, inquiry, Mike Wooten, Trooper Wooten, Walt Monegan, scandal, international coverage, worldwide media coverage, worldwide media interest, media coverage, McCain campaign, Cheney, guilty, Alaskans for Truth Rally, alizasherman, Flickr, US presidential election, US politics.

Read the full post

Read the summary only

Don't Vote!

From 5friendsvote:



No, really - don't vote...

...unless, of course, you care.

To find out about your local voter registration (and more!) go to maps.google.com/vote

Send this to 5 friends, OK?

Technorati tags: Don't vote, YouTube, video, Leonardo DiCaprio, will i. am, Tobey Maguire, Forest Whitaker, 5friendsvote, youth, register to vote, voter registration, local voter registration info, google maps, 5 friends, US politics, Presidential election, WebWeaver's World, webweaver.

Read the full post

Read the summary only

I'm voting for "That One"

...or at least, I would if I could vote in the US Presidential election.

So - what can we say about the second Presidential debate, apart from the fact that it was a bit of a snoozefest, and that Tom Brokaw is an idiot?

I think McCain's reference to Obama as "That One" says it all really. How unbelievably patronising and rude. Whereas Obama politely references McCain as "Senator McCain" throughout, McCain at this point in the debate can't even bring himself to use any part of Obama's name or title.



The disdain McCain feels towards Obama is so strong you can practically feel it radiating off the screen. It was there in the first debate too, when McCain couldn't look at or address Obama directly. Jeez John, why don't you just come out and call Obama "uppity" - you know you want to.

Oh, and here's another moment I missed while watching the debate the first time. McCain can't (or won't) shake Obama's hand at the end - notice the sidestep as he forces Barack to shake Cindy's hand instead.



Grumpy old git. Rude bastard. Hope you lose - big-time.

Here's Obama's really rather good response to McCain on Iraq during the debate:



I read this cool comment on Talking Points Memo after the first debate, by a reader called TB:

I think people really are missing the point about McCain's failure to look at Obama. McCain was afraid of Obama. It was really clear - look at how much McCain blinked in the first half hour. I study monkey behavior - low ranking monkeys don't look at high ranking monkeys. In a physical, instinctive sense, Obama owned McCain tonight and I think the instant polling reflects that.

You betcha!

Thanks to Al Rodgers at DailyKos for the next lot of responses from viewers of the debate:

















In other news, the wingnut Freepers have lost the plot (and McCain lost them today) - thanks heaps to noweasels at DailyKos for taking one for the team and venturing over there - dude, the bleach and hot showers are over here... These are my three favorite Freeper comments from that thread:

"That's about where I threw my remote at the TV and turned it off. Got an absentee ballot sitting on my desk right now and half tempted to go down the capital steps tomorrow and burn it instead of voting. The Republican candidate suggesting bailing out individual home owners. The REPUBLICAN. I need a drink..."

"I was hesitant to put the McCain yard signs up in the first place. I guess I'll take them down."

"John, John, John, when will you learn that you can't possibly out-liberal a true-to-the-rotten-core MEGA-LIBERAL? Please try to not totally turn off your base - it would be nice if some of us showed up and voted in 4 weeks... If you think that the impact of attracting a few more so-called undecided moderates/liberals through Evita-like displays of charity at the public trough is worth more than your entire conservative base, you are into super-denial and delusion. DON'T TOTALLY BLOW IT!"

Awwww! Poor widdle wingnuts!

If you want an I'm voting for "That One" T-shirt (or pretty much any other item of clothing), head on down to CafePress - darthstar or Big Change. Or do a search on "that one" at CafePress - there are loads more designs up already.

McCain came across to me as old, old, old. His voice sounded really wobbly at times - as if he were either really nervous, or really angry, or maybe just a bit senile. All that shuffling around and rictus-grinning didn't help his cause, either. And his voice got on my nerves something rotten! I don't know if it was the audio on my computer or what, but every time he spoke, all I could hear was the whistling of air though his false teeth. Ugh!

And Obama? Well as always he was the epitome of laid-back, well-informed, unflappable cool. Love him!

Sue and I discovered the best place to watch the debate is at MyDebates, a sub-site of MySpace. It's actually really good (all Flash-based, with nary a blinking background in sight), and even gave us a countdown to the start of the debate so we wouldn't miss it. This is my favourite part of the site:



Pretty, ain't it?

...and finally, just because I think it's such an awesome picture and it makes me get a bit mushy:



Tags: Barack Obama, Barack, Obama, John McCain, McCain, debate, Presidential debate, second Presidential debate, I'm voting for that one, That One, Tom Brokaw, Daily Kos, noweasels, Al Rodgers, CafePress, darthstar, Big Change, YouTube, video, Talking Points Memo, TPM, MyDebates, MySpace, FreeRepublic, Freepers, US politics, US Presidential election.

Read the full post

Read the summary only

John McCain and the Keating Five

So the pitbull with lipstick's gone on the attack against Obama. Silly girl.

Seems as though the Obama campaign has been waiting for the game to get really dirty in the final month before the election. And seeing as the McCain campaign has nothing positive to say, and no decent policies to endorse, I guess it's inevitable that they would eventually head right on down into the gutter.

During the first debate, McCain said that Obama didn't understand the difference between a tactic and a strategy. I think it's McCain who doesn't get it. I think Obama's strategy has been to keep to the high road for as long as possible, but to make all the preparations necessary to fight back, should the need arise.

It's pretty obvious that The Grumpy Old Man and Caribou Barbie would bring Bill Ayers up again at some point. I guess they think that trying to make a connection between Ayers and Obama might be a winning move. Never mind that Barack Obama was eight years old when Bill Ayers was a radical.

I'm guessing that the Obama team has been working on their fight-back for some time now, considering the quality of what they've come up with. A thirteen-minute documentary on McCain and the Keating Five, together with a comprehensive website - Keating Economics: The Making of a Financial Crisis.



The old saying "People in glass houses shouldn't throw stones" would seem to be appropriate when considering Palin's attacks on Obama over the past few days. John McCain and Sarah Palin are hardly innocents, after all. McCain has the Keating Five, and Sarah has Troopergate. Wonder what's going to come out of that? Oh, and we mustn't forget Sarah and Todd Palin's membership of the Alaskan Independence Party. How unAmerican!



I feel sad for the people of America that the McCain campaign is so determined to dish the dirt, and so determined not to discuss issues of real importance to real people's lives. I feel sad that Obama has been forced to go negative in response. I'm sure he would much rather not have had to do so. He's done a great job on sticking to the issues thus far, and I think he'll continue to do so to a large extent.

The Obama campaign understands the internet, they understand about viral videos on YouTube, they understand the power of the blogosphere to spread the word. I'm hoping that they will not have to focus too much on the Ayers thing vs the Keating Five/AIP thing, but just let the documentary and the website do their talking for them, while they carry on talking about the real issues facing America.

I think it's enormously significant that, up until now, Obama has not mentioned the Keating Five at all. And there have been plenty of opportunities. I figure he must have accepted that he might have to bring it up, but planned to do so only if he was subjected to extreme provocation - such as the McCain campaign dragging up Ayers again.

A desperate tactic such as letting Palin play attack dog may score a few points in the short term, but I think Obama's longer-term strategy of sticking to the issues and only fighting back if you really have to is a much better way to do business. After the Swift-boating of John Kerry by Rove et al in 2004 I think it was clear to the Obama campaign that they might have to get the gloves off at some point, and I'm glad they're doing so, but I just hope they don't have to get too mired in it.

Oh - and Sarah? I wouldn't recommend you try bringing up Reverend Wright either - I guarantee they'll hit you with your own crazy witchcraft-fighting, anti-Semitic pastor. You gotta believe they have something already prepared on him.

Technorati tags: John McCain, McCain, Keating Five, Sarah Palin, Palin, Bill Ayers, Barack Obama, Barack, Obama, Keating Economics, documentary, Alaska Independence Party, AIP, Todd Palin, scandal, lies, strategy, tactic, video, YouTube, US Presidential election, US politics, WebWeaver's World, webweaver.

Read the full post

Read the summary only

POW! Rolling Stone goes after McCain

Well it's about time someone questioned the McCain tactic of "I'm a war hero! Don't you dare question me about anything" (whether or not the anything has any connection with POW! being beside the point).

Personally I fail to see why being a POW! should give one an automatic "in" to the Presidency - nor do I see any reason why a person's POW! experience would be useful to, or indeed bear any relationship to, the role of President of the US of A. But then I'm just a hippy peacenik, so hey, what do I know?

So why don't we ask a few people who do know - a bunch of people that Rolling Stone has been talking to for their 10-page exposé on John McCain - Make-Believe Maverick - ooooh he's gonna be pretty mad about this article, I can tell you that! And when John McCain gets angry... well, let's see shall we...?

This is the story of the real John McCain, the one who has been hiding in plain sight. It is the story of a man who has consistently put his own advancement above all else, a man willing to say and do anything to achieve his ultimate ambition: to become commander in chief, ascending to the one position that would finally enable him to outrank his four-star father and grandfather.

"John has made a pact with the devil," says Lincoln Chafee, the former GOP senator, who has been appalled at his one-time colleague's readiness to sacrifice principle for power. Chafee and McCain were the only Republicans to vote against the Bush tax cuts. They locked arms in opposition to drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. And they worked together in the "Gang of 14," which blocked some of Bush's worst judges from the federal bench.

"On all three — sadly, sadly, sadly — McCain has flip-flopped," Chafee says. And forget all the "Country First" sloganeering, he adds. "McCain is putting himself first. He's putting himself first in blinking neon lights."

It's all there - how this son and grandson of 4-star navy admirals used his family connections to get into Annapolis with a less than impressive school record, the planes he crashed in training (and how he pulled strings to keep his wings, as well as get preferential treatment wherever he went).

The real story of his time in the Hanoi Hilton and what his fellow POWs really thought of him, his appalling treatment of his first wife Carol, crippled in a car accident when he was in Vietnam and no longer beautiful enough to keep him interested when he came home, his affair with and rapid marriage to Cindy the beer heiress before the ink was even dry on his divorce papers.

His use of family connections (and Cindy's money) to get himself into politics, his unfortunate membership of the Keating Five, and how, in politics, he started as he meant to go on...

McCain voted to confirm Robert Bork and Clarence Thomas to the Supreme Court. In 1993, he was the keynote speaker at a fundraiser for a group that sponsored an anti-gay-rights ballot initiative in Oregon. His anti-government fervor was renewed in the Gingrich revolution of 1994, when he called for abolishing the departments of Education and Energy. The following year, he championed a sweeping measure that would have imposed a blanket moratorium on any increase of government oversight.

...the creation of the "Straight Talk Express' following the Keating Five revelations and Cindy's embarrasing (and criminal) descent into Vicodin and Percocet addiction. The development of his natural inclination towards deregulation, which sowed the seeds of the current economic crisis on Wall Street:

Indeed, if the current financial crisis has a villain, it is Phil Gramm, who remains close to McCain. As chair of the Senate Banking Committee in the late 1990s, Gramm ushered in — with McCain's fervent support — a massive wave of deregulation for insurance companies and brokerage houses and banks, the aftershocks of which are just now being felt in Wall Street's catastrophic collapse. McCain, who has admitted that "the issue of economics is not something I've understood as well as I should," relies on Gramm to guide him.

...McCain's legendary temper, including the "C-word" incident with Cindy in 1992:

At least three of McCain's GOP colleagues have gone on record to say that they consider him temperamentally unsuited to be commander in chief. Smith, the former senator from New Hampshire, has said that McCain's "temper would place this country at risk in international affairs, and the world perhaps in danger. In my mind, it should disqualify him." Sen. Domenici of New Mexico has said he doesn't "want this guy anywhere near a trigger." And Sen. Thad Cochran of Mississippi weighed in that "the thought of his being president sends a cold chill down my spine. He is erratic. He is hotheaded."

...and how all these elements of McCain's life experiences, character and temperament come together to create a man who should be kept far, far away from the Presidency:

The myth of John McCain hinges on two transformations — from pampered flyboy to selfless patriot, and from Keating crony to incorruptible reformer — that simply never happened. But there is one serious conversion that has taken root in McCain: his transformation from a cautious realist on foreign policy into a reckless cheerleader of neoconservatism.

"He's going to be Bush on steroids," says Johns, the retired brigadier general who has known McCain since their days at the National War College. "His hawkish views now are very dangerous. He puts military at the top of foreign policy rather than diplomacy, just like George Bush does. He and other neoconservatives are dedicated to converting the world to democracy and free markets, and they want to do it through the barrel of a gun."

...his role in the lies that led to the Iraq war (and how he's since changed his tune on how difficult the war was going to be):

In September 2002, McCain assured Americans that the war would be "fairly easy" with an "overwhelming victory in a very short period of time." On the eve of the invasion, Hardball host Chris Matthews asked McCain, "Are you one of those who holds up an optimistic view of the postwar scene? Do you believe that the people of Iraq, or at least a large number of them, will treat us as liberators?"

McCain was emphatic: "Absolutely. Absolutely."

Today, however, McCain insists that he predicted a protracted struggle from the outset. "The American people were led to believe this could be some kind of day at the beach," he said in August 2006, "which many of us fully understood from the beginning would be a very, very difficult undertaking."

...and finally, the now legendary McCain 'flip-flps':

"They're drinking the Kool-Aid that somehow I have changed positions on the issues," he said of his critics at the end of August. The following month, when challenged on The View, McCain again defied those who accuse him of flip-flopping. "What specific area have I quote 'changed'?" he demanded. "Nobody can name it."

In fact, his own statements show that he has been on both sides of a host of vital issues: the Bush tax cuts, the estate tax, waterboarding, hunting down terrorists in Pakistan, kicking Russia out of the G-8, a surge of troops into Afghanistan, the GI Bill, storing nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain, teaching intelligent design, fully funding No Child Left Behind, offshore drilling, his own immigration policy and withdrawal timelines for Iraq.

Ouch! And POW!

Well worth reading. I hope it will reach some people who are still under the misconception that McCain would make a decent President. The evidence (in all directions) shows otherwise.

"I'm sure John McCain loves his country," says Richard Clarke, the former counterterrorism czar under Bush. "But loving your country and lying to the American people are apparently not inconsistent in his view."

Tags: John McCain, McCain, Rolling Stone, Rolling Stone article, Make-Believe Maverick, maverick, Keating Five, temper, POW, Vietnam, Cindy McCain, flip-flops, Straight Talk Express, deregulation, neocon, Iraq war, lies, lying, liar, US Presidential election, US politics.

Read the full post

Read the summary only

SNL on the Vice-Presidential debate

Funny...! Tina Fey nails it again - and Queen Latifah's not bad, either.



My favourite bits? "I believe marriage is meant to be a sacred institution between two unwilling teenagers" and "Are we not doing the talent portion?"

Heh heh. We have to laugh because the possibility of having Palin a 72 year-old heartbeat away from the Presidency is just too terrifying to even think about.

Technorati tags: Saturday Night Live, SNL, Vice-Presidential debate, skit, parody, Tina Fey, Queen Latifah, Jason Sudeikis, Sarah Palin, Palin, Joe Biden, Biden, video, YouTube, US elections, WebWeaver's World, webweaver.

Read the full post

Read the summary only

Sarah Palin Debate Flow Chart

adennak over at Daily Kos made this great Sarah Palin Debate Flow Chart, which I think is so funny (and spot-on) that deserves its very own post. Here it is. You can click on it to make it larger:




Technorati tags: Sarah Palin, Palin, debate, vice-presidential debate, flow chart, adennak, funny, Daily Kos, election, US politics, WebWeaver's World, webweaver.

Read the full post

Read the summary only

The moment when Joe won the Veep debate

I thought Joe Biden was wonderful. I was worried beforehand. I didn't know how he would be able to walk the incredibly fine line with Palin between attack and condescension, and I thought he managed it magnificently.

His "keep the focus of attack on McCain" worked really well I thought, and I was glad to see that at the same time he wasn't afraid of pointing out when Palin was wrong, when she was being misleading or when she simply hadn't answered the question that had been asked.

I think Palin helped him in this regard, actually. I know many of us were worried that if he made any comment against her that could be perceived as an "attack" the Repubs would scream "bully!" and "sexist!" at him - but I think the fact that she was so quick on the attack - so feisty (in her own scripted way) - meant that he was able to fight back without being perceived as a bully out to hurt the poor delicate flower that is Sarah Palin.

I was so impressed with Joe's deep knowledge of such a wide range of issues, with his understanding of the nuances of policy both domestic and foreign. And of course I'm not surprised by this - he's been in the Senate a long time - he knows his stuff, and he has a mile-deep grasp of all the issues.

What did surprise me (in a good way) was his ability to stay on-point during the debate, his precise and concise answers, and his very obvious passion for what he was talking about. Wow! I've not seen him debating before, although I've watched a few clips of him in the Senate, but I had heard all about his long-winded answers and propensity for gaffiness. I saw none of that at this debate - I thought he was spot-on throughout the 90 minutes.

I was watching it on CNN, so we had the "approval line" running along the bottom of the screen from CNN's group of undecided men and women. It was striking to see how much higher the lines were for Joe through much of the debate - with approval levels for him actually hitting the top of the box and staying there for extended periods of time.

One of the most powerful moments of the debate for me came when Joe was fighting back against Palin's assertion that because she's a woman, only she could understand about having to raise a family alone.



It resonated with me for a number of reasons:

He was able to absolutely own that particular "I know what it's like to be..." moment through his reference to his family's tragic story - a beautiful pivot and a powerful rebuttal to Palin's sexist claim that "only a woman can know".

The moment when his emotions got the better of him and he actually choked up and couldn't continue for a few seconds was so REAL, so completely unscripted and so genuine. I'm sure it would have had a very powerful effect on many of those watching, who would have empathised deeply with his pain, and with the awful tragedy his family endured.

I think this moment of genuine emotional openness was powerful not just in and of itself, but also in the way it shone a light on what I see as the fakery of Palin. All that faux-folksiness, the nose scrunches, the winks, the breathy tone of voice when she wants to make a "real important point", all the "gosh darn-it"s and "you betcha"s - it's all fake, fake, fake. It makes me want to throw up. And it was revealed in all its plastic shallowness by that single glimpse into Joe's heart.

And if that wasn't enough, I think what followed was a brief glimpse into Palin's heart. And where Joe appears to be a warm, sympathetic and fundamentally good human being, I'm afraid what Palin said next revealed her to be a cold, heartless and fundamentally uncaring person, more concerned with getting through all her talking points than showing any kind of empathy or respect for a fellow human being.

I don't know if it was that she was so busy reading her crib sheet in preparation for the next question that she didn't actually hear what he'd said. Perhaps she isn't even aware of Senator Biden's family history. Or perhaps she simply doesn't care.

But the fact that she made absolutely no attempt to refer at all to what he'd just said about his family, no murmur of condolence, no words expressing empathy or sympathy, that just struck me as all wrong, and as something that will come back to bite her.

The fact that the approval line from both men and women was sky-high during Joe's recollections, and took a massive dive as Palin started speaking, reaching new lows with the word "maverick" says it all, I think.

There were many other moments where I thought Biden made infinitely stronger points than Palin, where it was clear that she was reading from her cue cards, regurgitating the talking points she's been madly cramming, and where she arrogantly refused to answer the question (presumably because she didn't have an answer).

There were a few places where I went "woah" at her response - in particular the one about what the Veep does - and how she would like to expand the powers of the VP (increasing the "flexibility" of the position) in the same way as Cheney has done. Scary! I thought Biden responded very well to her crazy talk - and I hope I wasn't the only one going "woah!" when she made those comments.

Check out the response flatline when Palin's speaking, and the massive jump when Biden calls Cheney the most dangerous Vice-President in American history:



But that moment when Joe's emotions got the better of him was the moment where I went "OK, that's it - he's won this thing - and I'm sure he never meant to win this way..."

In summary, if I were to pick out a few words to describe each of the two candidates in this debate, they'd be something along these lines:

Joe Biden:
Statesmanlike, warm, comfortable, caring, fatherly, deeply knowledgeable, passionate, sympathetic, safe, steady, honest, open, genuine, and ready to lead.

Sarah Palin:
Bright (as in sparkly, not as in clever), brittle, perky, feisty, fake, speaking rote-learned catchphrases and soundbites, flirty, annoying (all those winks and down-home expressions), shallow, uncaring, and definitely not ready to be allowed anywhere near the White House.

When the expectations bar is as low as it was for Palin pre-debate, as long as she manages one or two coherent sentences, she's going to be declared the winner over those expectations - but it was very gratifying to see that in every post-debate poll going, Biden was deemed overwhelmingly to be the winner of the debate itself.

I agree, of course.

Technorati tags: Joe Biden, Biden, Sarah Palin, Palin, debate, Vice-Presidential debate, veep, Cheney, powers, McCain, VP debate, emotion, chokes up, CNN, winner, poll, US politics, election, YouTube, video, WebWeaver's World, webweaver.

Read the full post

Read the summary only

Palin's poetry - and a couple of great Palin links

A little light relief from Slate:

Palin's Poetry
Recent works by the Republican vice presidential candidate.

It's been barely six weeks since the arctic-fresh voice of Alaskan poet Sarah Heath Palin burst upon the lower 48. In campaign interviews, the governor, mother, and maverick GOP vice presidential candidate has chosen to bypass the media filter and speak directly to fans through her intensely personal verses, spoken poems that drill into the vagaries of modern life as if they were oil deposits beneath a government-protected tundra.

"On Good and Evil"

It is obvious to me
Who the good guys are in this one
And who the bad guys are.
The bad guys are the ones
Who say Israel is a stinking corpse,
And should be wiped off
The face of the earth.

That's not a good guy.

(To K. Couric, CBS News, Sept. 25, 2008)

"You Can't Blink"

You can't blink.
You have to be wired
In a way of being
So committed to the mission,

The mission that we're on,
Reform of this country,
And victory in the war,
You can't blink.

So I didn't blink.

(To C. Gibson, ABC News, Sept. 11, 2008)

"Haiku"

These corporations.
Today it was AIG,
Important call, there.

(To S. Hannity, Fox News, Sept. 18, 2008)

Classic!

I also found a couple of great Palin-related blogs/blog posts today.

The first is a piece by Ta-Nehisi Coates in The Atlantic, entitled Sarah, we are not that different, you and I. It's a great piece of introspective, even somewhat sympathetic, writing on the position that Palin finds herself in:

The Palin pick was the most crassest, most bigoted decision that I've seen in national electoral politics, in my--admittedly short--lifetime. There can be no doubt that they picked Palin strictly as a stick to drum up the victimhood narrative--small town, hunters, big families and most importantly, women. Had Barack Obama picked Hillary Clinton, there simply is no way they would have picked Sarah Palin. To the McCain camp, Palin isn't important as a politician, or even as a person. Her moose-hunting, her sprawling fam, her hockey momdom, her impending grandmother status are a symbol of some vague, possibly endangered American thing, one last chance to yell from the rafters "We wuz robbed."

While Ta-Nehisi empathises with Palin, and even feels sorry for her to some degree, many of his readers do not share his feelings, and the blog post is followed by a fascinating collection of comments and responses. It's well worth reading every one. They are erudite, forthright, well-informed and passionate for the most part.

I have to confess though, this comment has to be among my favourites:

I have no pity for Sarah Palin or any other member of the Death And Torture For Jesus wing of the Republican Party - which these days seems to be about 80% of that party. Fuck them all and the Hummers they drove in on.

Rod Dreher and many other hardcore cons started talking about how they were "in love" with Palin the minute she was selected. There was something especially grotesque and fanboyish about that reaction. Now it turns out their pin-up girl is too stupid to fulfill their fantasies of a good screw followed by a discussion of the latest National Review. Boo fucking hoo.

And she is stupid. No doubt she's shrewd and ruthless and she's been using people like Kleenex on her rise to "the top," but her intellect is shabby and mean. Send her back home in disgrace.

Posted by MoeLarryAndJesus

Black Men for McCain is a blog I discovered today (it was linked from a comment on the Coates piece), and it's an absolutely fascinating read. The author, Wendell Jackson, began on August 12 with this:

Brothers, we are on the verge of a great American tragedy. Empty suit Barack Obama has brainwashed the good people of this country and MUST BE STOPPED! Over the past 8 years, Republicans have CUT TAXES, defended LIFE, kept MARRIAGE SACRED and fought for FREEDOM around the world. John McCain will continue to fight for our values. DON'T BE FOOLED by Obama's smooth talk! He will RAISE YOUR TAXES, allow GAYS to marry, TAKE YOUR GUNS AWAY and he won't SUPPORT OUR TROOPS! We cannot stand by as this TAX AND SPEND LIBERAL lays waste to America!

...and by September 27 was writing this:

Ladies, throw your hats in the air. She's done it. After only two interviews with actual reporters (Hannity doesn’t count) Sarah Palin managed to fill in every single one of those cracks and reinforce them with steel. Ain't nobody getting through that ceiling now.

In just twenty minutes of screen time, this woman managed to convince the majority of thinking people, Republicans included, that she should be sent packing immediately. It's farce. It's comedy. Her incoherent babbling has made it crystal clear why McCain tried to postpone the debates. The woman is a disaster of epic proportions.

Fellow Republicans, it's time to look in the mirror and ask ourselves the tough questions. Is a McCain/Palin White House good for our country? Is it patriotic? Is it even Christian? Anyone with an ounce of intellectual honesty knows these are fair questions.

My friends, it may be time to repent.

Wow! His journey is quite something. It'll be interesting to see where the road takes him...

Tags: Sarah Palin, Palin, poetry, Slate, Ta-Nehisi Coates, The Atlantic, Black Men for McCain, Wendell Jackson, disillusioned Republican, McCain, John McCain, election, US politics.

Read the full post

Read the summary only

Katie Couric, I think I love you

Exactly one month ago I wrote my first blog post about Palin. It was entitled McCain/Palin - the gift that keeps on giving.

I've now realised that I must change my focus and declare The Couric/Palin Interview to be that gift - and what a gift it is!

oh.my.god.

First there was this on her foreign policy credentials (and Putin's head!):

COURIC: Explain to me why that [the proximity of Alaska to Russia] enhances your foreign policy credentials.

PALIN: Well, it certainly does, because our, our next-door neighbours are foreign countries, they're in the state that I am the Executive of...

PALIN:As Putin rears his head and comes into the airspace of the United States of America, where, where do they go? It's Alaska, it's just right over the border. It is from Alaska that we send those out to make sure that an eye is being kept on this very powerful nation, Russia, because they are right there, they are right next to, ah, um, to our state.

Then this on the bailout:

COURIC: Why isn't it better, Governor Palin, to spend $700 billion helping middle-class families who are struggling with health care, housing, gas and groceries? Allow them to spend more and put more money into the economy? Instead of helping these big financial institutions that played a role in creating this mess?

PALIN: That's why I say, I like every American I'm speaking with were ill about this position that we have been put in where it is the tax payers looking to bailout.

But ultimately, what the bailout does is help those who are concerned about the health care reform that is needed to help shore up our economy - helping the - oh, it’s got to be about job creation too. Shoring up our economy and putting it back on the right track. So health care reform and reducing taxes and reining in spending has got to accompany tax reductions and tax relief for Americans.

And trade - we've got to see trade as opportunity, not as a, a competitive, um scary thing. But one in five jobs being created in the trade sector today. We, we, we’ve got to look at that as more opportunity. All those things under the umbrella of job creation.

This bailout is a part of that.

...which inspired this from SNL:



I believe that's the first time ever in the whole history of the world wherein a piece of satire quotes a subject word for word while at the same time lampooning them. Yup, she's that bad.

But wait! There's more! First came the Supreme Court rumour which surfaced a couple of days ago - but which was beaten to the line by this piece in which Palin, who majored in journalism at 5 colleges, appears unable to name a single newspaper or magazine:



Then there was this strange segment where Palin clearly has no idea where the Gaza Strip is, has no clue who Hamas is, and therefore doesn't know whether she's "supposed" to support them or not:



And finally (so far, at least) the pièce de résistance, in which Palin is completely unable to name a single Supreme Court ruling apart from Roe v Wade, and once again goes into full-on avoid-the-question talk-as-fast-as-you-can mode:

COURIC: What other Supreme Court decisions do you disagree with?

PALIN: Well, let's see. There's - of course - in the great history of America rulings there have been rulings, there's never going to be absolute consensus by every American. And there are - those issues, again, like Roe v Wade where I believe are best held on a state level and addressed there. So you know going through the history of America, there would be others but -"

COURIC: Can you think of any?

PALIN: Well, I could think of - of any again, that could be best dealt with on a more local level. Maybe I would take issue with. But you know, as mayor, and then as governor and even as a Vice President, if I'm so privileged to serve, would be in a position of changing those things but in supporting the law of the land as it reads today.

Good grief.

I'm not even an American (I'm a Kiwi living in New Zealand), and off the top of my head, in addition to Roe v Wade I could name Brown v Board of Education, Loving v Virginia and Bush v Gore. Hey! maybe I should stand as VP instead! Or not.

Katie Couric, I think I love you.

The thing is, it's not even as if she's known as being a tough interviewer - and really, none of her questions would be considered "difficult" by anyone standing for office who had even a fraction of the knowledge that they should have in that position.

I think one of the killer aspects of this interview (aside from Palin's obvious cluelessness, the ensuing entertainment value and the screeds of material that SNL are able to use verbatim), is the fact that Couric is a woman.

It was pretty obvious (in what respect, Charlie?), that Palin is used to being able to turn on the charm and do a little flirting, with a little wink here and there when she gets into trouble in an interview situation. But it doesn't work quite so well on a woman, does it Sarah? Ha!

I think it's clear that Palin has NO BUSINESS being anywhere near the Vice Presidency. It's ridiculous, shameful, and reflects outrageously badly on McCain's judgement in picking her in the first place.

Roll on the Vice-Presidential debate! I have popcorn! I have yet to decide on the rules of my drinking game! (I will be at work so I probably should drop the drinking game idea anyway...). Wonder if she'll use her note cards again like she was obviously doing in parts of the Couric interview (see especially the bailout segment).

And remember the wise words of Jack Cafferty:

If John McCain wins this woman will be one 72-year-old's heartbeat away from being President of the United States. And if that doesn't scare the hell out of you, it should.

Tags: Sarah Palin, Palin, Katie Couric, Couric, interview, Putin, Putin's head, Russia, foreign policy credentials, bailout, SNL, Saturday Night Live, Tina Fey, newspaper, Gaza Strip, Hamas, Young Turks, TMP TV, Talking Points memo, Daily Kos, Supreme Court, Vice President, VP, vice-presidential debate, YouTube, video, US politics.

Read the full post

Read the summary only