Coat tails, who has ‘em? The Democratic electorate has got six weeks until the Pennsylvania election to decide. (Though only until March 24 to register to vote in PA) And we’ll find out for sure in November.
Who has the ability to draw on his own support and supporters to help other candidates? Other Democrats and […]
March 12, 2008
March 7, 2008
John McCain has an interesting choice to make as to who should be his vice presidential running mate. In the most basic of terms the considerations are wide. It’s not even clear the so-called “Maverick” would pick a Republican, though it would be a pretty craven Democrat who would accept his request. What’s that, Joe Lieberman?
A woman? Someone in a wheelchair? A general?
How about Colin Powell? Woah, that one is worth a long, considering pause isn’t it?
Regionally does it matter? Likely not another southwest presence but what about Arnold Schwarzenegger to help drag California to his side? I think it is technically constitutionally legal for a naturalized American to be vice president. National media would shine the biggest spotlight on this campaign.
Laura Ingraham? McCain likes the blondes.
Would he want to strengthen his hawkish (to put it mildly) positions or push someone who would balance where he is perceived as weak.
Does he accept that he is not conservative enough and that being more conservative would actually help with the general electorate?
Would he bring Jonah Goldberg aboard so the right-leaning blogosphere would finally come aboard?
Michael Bloomberg is a serious consideration. What say you?
March 5, 2008
With his own confetti strewn picture atop his Web site, Independent candidate Ralph Nader wants people to not only listen to his views but to vote for him and send him money to become the 44th President of America.
Currently there sure do seem to be a lot of potential defectors from the Democratic Party if their preferred candidate doesn’t get the nomination. From the right, it’s hard to think Nader’s anti-corporate stance - not a bad thing - will draw many Republican defectors unhappy with John McCain. After all, they don’t like him because of McCain-Feingold’s attempted stripping of money power from corporations. McCain isn’t right enough.
Nader lays down 12 major issues he says are “off the table” of the other candidates. They are:
• Adopt single payer national health insurance
• Cut the huge, bloated, wasteful military budget
• No to nuclear power, solar energy first
• Aggressive crackdown on corporate crime and corporate welfare
• Open up the Presidential debates
• Adopt a carbon pollution tax
• Reverse U.S. policy in the Middle East
• Impeach Bush/Cheney
• Repeal the Taft-Hartley anti-union law
• Adopt a Wall Street securities speculation tax
• Put an end to ballot access obstructionism
• Work to end corporate personhood
Here Nader makes the pitch why he’s a better choice than McCain or Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton:
March 4, 2008
After a sweep of the states tonight, In what was a fairly substantial - and conservative speech - John McCain accepts the Republican nomination for the 2008 presidential race. This is a big deal for McCain who has been trying for so long.
Because he wrapped up the campaign, in all but math weeks ago, this speech has been prepared for a while.
In Austin, Texas, speech below:
March 3, 2008
There’s a strong temptation to wonder how much minimizing Obama supporters will fill the air with today as his, what, associate / friend? Antoin “Tony” Rezko begins his trial on eight counts of aiding bribery, attempted extortion, fraud, and money laundering starts today. (US v. Rezko court filing.)
As a real estate developer Rezko, 52, was known for run down rental properties and shady practices, many of which are now thought to have been illegal - and so the trial.
Call it something that’s out of the Obama campaign’s control that he’s going to have to deal with; a crisis even, though one only directed at a presidential campaign - and one he’s known is coming for about 18 months since Rezko was first indicted and charged.
Obama’s name may be mentioned at the trial but likely only in passing. Obama while in the Illinois state Senate represented a district that included 11 of Rezko’s 30 low-income housing projects. Still this issue will receive wider scrutiny and now be looked into by many bloggers and news organizations.
That the case against Rezko has weaknesses is relevant, but it it is hard to credit that anyone not paid to would defend the man without being fairly certain of the facts.
Rezko is charged with using his positions on two state boards to enrich himself and government officials, including Democratic Governor Rod Blagojevich, to the tune of about $7.5 million. Blagojevich has also been a high-flying beneficiary of Rezko’s fundraising efforts and was set to receive about $1.5 million through the extortion of Hollywood producer Thomas Rosenberg. Rezko has raised and given money to numerous Illinois politicians, including Barack Obama.
Does Obama’s connections to Rezko reach to the level of crisis, or even a big deal?
Nothing illegal is alleged between the two and what most appears to be center stage in the court of public opinion is Obama’s own judgment and willingness to play along to get along - quid pro quo - and get a sweet price on a home he wanted.
The connection was certainly a big land deal. Obama and Michelle Obama got their Chicago home for $1.65 million - $300,000 below the asking price after the property was split in two. Obama approached Rezko about the purchase. The other, garden parcel was purchased for $625,000 by Rezko through his wife, Rita, on the same day after both men toured the property. Then, a few months later a 10-foot-wide strip of it was sold to Obama.
Obama landscaped the entire parcel in exchange for Rezko erecting a security fence around the property. The only access to the property then was through the Obamas property and the Reskos never developed it further.
One of this is any part of the legal reasoning that finds Rezko facing decades behind bars. The land transaction happened just over two years ago in 2005 when Obama was a US Senator and long after Rezko was “tainted” in the world of Chicago politics. At thsi time Rezko was under federal investigation led by U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald (Scooter Libby prosecution).
By this time, Rezko had been a significant contributor to Obama’s various political campaigns for eight years and they had been friends for 15 years at that time.
Obama has certainly tried to underplay the extent of their professional relationship. In the Jan. 21 debate after Hillary Clinton brought up Rezko as a slumlord, Obama said this:
“I’m happy to respond. Here’s what happened: I was an associate at a law firm that represented a church group that had partnered with this individual to do a project and I did about five hours worth of work on this joint project. That’s what she’s referring to.”
How much disbelief you have to suspend in this depends on what you want to believe in the first place. What you hope is true. Perhaps agnosticism will rule the day after all.
February 5, 2008
Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton both made it clear they are serious contenders for the Democratic race, and they both likely personally earned each other’s respect tonight.
Mitt Romney, though he has pledged to go on, had a dismal day, where Mike Huckabee earned more delegates. John McCain should easily make the nomination for Republican primary candidate, excluding a possible revolt of delegates at the Republican convention.
States won:
Obama:Alabama, Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, North Dakota, Utah (totaling approx. 137 delegates tonight, 306 tally so far)***
Clinton: Arizona, Arkansas, California, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oklahoma, Tennessee (totaling approx. 130 delegates tonight, 371 tally so far)***
John McCain: Arizona, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, New Jersey, New York, Oklahoma (won 363 delegates tonight, 474 tally so far)
Mike Huckabee: Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Tennessee, West Virginia (won 76 delegates tonight, 105 tally so far)
Mitt Romney: Colorado, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, Utah (won 57 delegates tonight, 151 tally so far)
*** NOTE: The final winning margins in the Democratic results will show how the delegates will split for the candidates, so these are approximate numbers so far, without the final vote counts in the counties and congressional districts.
It’s a close match up in Connecticut that currently, with 11 percent of precincts reporting shows a 2% and 1,000 vote lead for Barack Obama. Delaware shows a similar percentage spread though with only about a 100 votes of separation.
That, so far is the closest race with Huckabee enjoying a 4% lead in Georgia.
Arkansas it appears has gone big for former first lady and first state lady, Hillary Clinton and McCain. Another Southern state, Tennessee is leaning her way. Though weirdly it’s not being called, yet, Obama took a landslide in Alabama, with about 70 percent of the vote in the Democratic primary with 6% of precincts reporting. That equals Clinton’s landslide in Arkansas.
Called races, so far, include:
Arkansas, Clinton ~71% —- Huckabee ~53%
Connecticut, McCain ~52%
Georgia, Obama, ~ 59%
Illinois, Obama ~ 54% —- McCain ~51%
Massachusetts, Romney ~ 51%
New Jersey, McCain, ~52%
Oklahoma, Clinton, ~54%
Tennessee, Clinton ~54%
(UPDATE: Obama takes Illinois. Mitt Romney wins Massachusetts)
Today has the distinction of having four of the five major candidates except Mike Huckabee - and we now must include him in the mix.
The only one absolutely certain to take his home state, at the moment, is Barack Obama in Illinois. A few days ago, that certainty was also bestowed on Hillary Clinton in New York - which has seen her elected senator in very high numbers. Her other home state, Arkansas has also leaned favorably her way. John McCain has rarely enjoyed enthusiastic support from his “home team” but Arizona was caught up in the surge of support for the survivor candidate.
Only Mitt Romney of the group, with a strong (yes that’s an understatement) Mormon vote could rest easy - in Utah, but not Massachusetts.
Al Gore, famously, in the general election lost his home state of Tennessee, and its hard to ignore the people that often know them best. If they don’t like the person, it’s an eye-opener.
The punditry division has overwhelmed news online and on television.
Most of it - but certainly not all of it - is completely useless, adding to the information overload that makes it easy to concentrate on the inconsequential but not focus on what matters.
Here are a few things that are completely different:
Share yours please because mine was rather boring.
I went and voted with my girlfriend at our new place which I found out a few weeks ago but forgot so had to look it up again. It’s a few blocks from where we live and if I wasn’t voting in the middle of my lunch hour, I could have walked there.
I thanked all the volunteers at the polling place for volunteering, which happened to be the Arizona Recreation Center for the Handicapped. A person in front of us did not have his name in the books, despite, he said never missing an election. I’m not sure how that was resolved except he was allowed to vote, so I have to assume he received a provisional ballot. That’s it. It was a small line. I went about 1:30 p.m.
There was a list of 24 names, mostly ones I have never heard. I voted for Hillary Clinton, having been denied the chance to vote for John Edwards. I’ll explain further in comments if anybody asks. For anyone who voted for any party, thank you for doing so.
I moved months ago, registered to vote on the last possible day to do so in Arizona and I am now in a new place, in the big city of Phoenix. I had no idea where to physically go and vote and had a fairly easy time of looking it up. I typed up my address and it gave me the place. But not all state elections Web sites are as friendly and it takes some time to even find out that they aren’t going to give you what you want.
Calls may still have to be made to your county recorder (or similar office) to find out where you need to vote. If in a final panic, go anywhere you know ballots are being accepted and you’ll be able to get a provisional ballot. you’re vote won’t be counted for days in most cases, but it will count.
The following Web links are the shortest path to getting what you need to help you. (Hint it helps if you know what county you live in before starting):
* Alabama - Board of Registrars for county phone numbers. See also frequently asked questions about voting in Alabama. (PDF)
* Alaska - Polling place locator. Need to know your Congressional District but the Web site helps you find that, too. Also, to find your polling place, call 888-383-8683, or 269-8683, with your voter ID or Social Security number ready.
* Arizona - County Clerks, some you can enter information online, some you will have to call.
* California - County Clerks, immediate phone numbers at this page and links where some will allow you to typwe in address and some you will have to call anyway.
* Colorado - Interactive statewide map of county clerk phone numbers and Web sites. You can also verify your voting information here
* Connecticut - Registrars of voters list, will need to call. Alos could call the overall election department phone number, 860-509-6100. More election information but some is outdated.
* Delaware - Maps and exact locations for where to vote.
More at the flip of the page …
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