Rise and shine!
I hope you'll indulge me on a small rant - since when have small towns become the real America?
Lots of news today on Colin Powell, vote-machine irregularities in West Virginia, and the Joe the Plumber strategy.
Also, Obama gets some love from Salt Lake City!
Ok, a small vent here on Palin's latest foot-in-mouth moment:
"We believe that the best of America is in the small towns that we get to visit, and in the wonderful little pockets of what I call the real America, being here with all of you hard-working, very patriotic, very pro-America areas of this great nation," she said.
I am so sick of this bullshit! Why is the "best of America" in small towns? Why is that considered "real America?" Can anyone explain this to me? I just don't understand when small towns became the embodiment of patriotism and values and everyone else who lives in suburbs or big cities is somehow not a real American or not patriotic. And you don't just hear this from politicians either... It riles me right up.
At least Biden picked up on it and it sounds like he is also tired of the patriotism questions:
"It doesn't matter where you live, we all love this country, and I hope it gets through. We all love this country," he said. "We are one nation, under God, indivisible. We are all patriotic. We all love our country in every part of this nation! And I'm tired. I am tired, tired, tired, tired of the implications about patriotism."
That's my quote of the day. Ok, I'm moving on now...
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The McCain campaign is complaining again to the New York Times about today's article on Cindy McCain, according to Jonathan Martin. I wondered how long until they'd go there:
John Dowd, Cindy McCain's attorney, complained in a letter to New York Times editor Bill Keller earlier this month that the paper had scrutinized the GOP nominee's wife but not investigated matters surrounding Barack Obama including his youthful drug use.
Wah, wah, wah.
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Some disturbing reports of vote irregularities in West Virginia, reported by the Charleston Gazette:
At least three early voters in Jackson County had a hard time voting for candidates they want to win.
Virginia Matheney and Calvin Thomas said touch-screen machines in the county clerk's office in Ripley kept switching their votes from Democratic to Republican candidates.
"When I touched the screen for Barack Obama, the check mark moved from his box to the box indicating a vote for John McCain," said Matheney, who lives in Kenna.
and:
Waybright blamed the problem on voters.
"People make mistakes more than the machines," he said, "but I went in yesterday and recalibrated the machines. We are doing everything we can not to disenfranchise anybody."
This is my nightmare... anyone else picking up stories like these in their local papers?
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The New York Times reports this morning that Palin's administration in Alaska tried to fight additional protections for beluga whales so as not to potentially restrict offshore drilling:
As with the polar bear, Ms. Palin’s administration opposed the beluga listing in part because of its potential to restrict coastal and offshore oil and gas development. The beluga listing could also affect other projects, including the expansion of the Port of Anchorage and a proposed bridge over Knik Arm that would connect Anchorage to the Matanuska-Susitna Valley and Ms. Palin’s hometown, Wasilla.
Who cares about the viability of an entire species when we might have oil down there? I would recommend sending this article to any animal lovers you know who are not yet for Obama. I was able to convince my Republican aunt with a combination of the polar bear and the aerial wolf hunting issues.
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Mike Littwin, a columnist for the Rocky Mountain News (CO), wonders why McCain is still using the Ayers strategy even though it's not working:
And so we get even more Bill Ayers. I'll admit to being confused by this strategy. Joe the Plumber was a shrewd move. But Bill the Bomber? Everything seems to show that Ayers isn't helping McCain, so why does he keep using him? Even David Letterman, in his smackdown with McCain on Thursday night, demanded to know why it was any worse to pal around with Ayers than for McCain to pal around with G. Gordon Liddy. (For you youngsters out there, that's G. Gordon the Nixon White House plumber, who wields his own kind of plunger.)
It took a while, but I think I finally get it. Ayers is the 2008 version of the '60s culture wars. He's meant to appeal to, say, Obama's "bitter" western Pennsylvania voters. Of course, if it's me, I don't get bitter until I get a robo-call.
I agree with most of what Littwin says in this column, but "Joe the Plumber was a shrewd move?" Puh-leaze! I'm not buying that one.
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AP analysis also questions the "Joe the Plumber" strategy:
The misadventures of Joe the Plumber were just the latest stumble for Republican John McCain as he veers from one idea to another in a thus-far elusive quest to slow Barack Obama's momentum.
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Even Republicans are embarassed by the anti-Obama robocalls, as the Los Angeles Times reports:
Maine Republican Sen. Susan Collins, facing a tough reelection fight, urged GOP presidential contender John McCain on Friday to stop making automated calls into her state linking Democratic nominee Barack Obama to a 1960s radical.
"These kind of tactics have no place in Maine politics," said Collins' spokesman, Kevin Kelley. "Sen. Collins urges the McCain campaign to stop these calls immediately."
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Barack Obama is endorsed today by the Kansas City Star (MO):
The Obama-Biden ticket offers the best hope of recovering from today’s economic difficulties, reclaiming leadership in the world and moving forward to a more promising future.
Obama is also endorsed today by the Las Cruces Sun-News (NM), the Bangor Daily News (ME), the Salt Lake Tribune (UT) and the Denver Post.
The Salt Lake Tribune is surprising because, well, it's Utah and they endorsed Bush in 2004. The Denver Post also endorsed Bush in 2004 and is owned by a Republican. Obama currently has 58 editorial endorsements to McCain's 16.
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Jon Soltz at HuffPo has a column on Why a Powell endorsement would matter:
And, of course, all of this doesn't even account for the fact that this is the former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs -- a man who loves America and loves America's military. For all the smears being hurled about "palling around with terrorists" and "white flag of retreat," nothing can counter that like a Republican former 4-star coming out and saying "This guy loves America as much as me."
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Philip Sherwell of the Telegraph (UK) also has a tidbit from one of Powell's close friends:
A friend and ex-aide said that Gen Powell was extremely "upset" by the "vitriol, bile and prejudice" aimed at Mr Obama on the campaign trail.
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Speaking of former Secretary of States:
Sen. Barack Obama’s response to the recent economic crisis should assure voters that he will prove a measured, thoughtful and effective commander-in-chief during a time when the country is facing deep challenges in its global relations, former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright said Friday in an interview with the Sun.
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So what's on your mind this morning?