I'm watching Morning Joe and they just cut in with "breaking news" to announce that Exxon Mobil had just announced $14.83 billion in profits for the last quarter. This breaks the previous record set by big oil for a record quarterly profit, announced in the previous quarter.
I am not much for writing diaries telling our nominee how to run his campaign. It is pretty clear he is doing fine on his own and if he listened to me, or the red meat liberals who agree with me on most of this stuff, he probably would not be where he is right now. But I strongly believe that this record profit announcement by Exxon fits PERFECTLY with the message which Senator Obama is pitching.
More below.
The fact is that the obscene profits which Exxon Mobil crows about on a quarterly basis is money taken directly from the pockets of every American who doesn't live in a cave. They are making these outlandish profits while the rest of the nation worries about paying the bills and making it from paycheck to paycheck (or unemployment check to unemployment check) in the teeth of the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. The case here is very simple. Senator Obama wishes to impose a windfall profits tax on these robber barrons, and Senator McCain wishes to give them more tax breaks!
The only thing more wrong headed than big oil diddling all of us when we are trying to live day to day in a recession is the notion that one of the Presidential candidates actually wants to give them a tax break!
Let McCain try to make the case that asking big oil to pay a pittance is somehow redistribution of wealth. We the people have been distributing wealth hand over fist to the most obscenely wealthy elitists in the history of mankind. And John McCain wants to give THEM a tax break, while increasing taxes on the health benefits which the rest of us work our butts off for, (or wish we could work for if we have been thrown out of the work force through no fault of our own) the health benefits given by employers.
The largest quarterly profit in American history, announced five short days before this election, by Exxon Mobil: Senator Obama has been given mana from heaven.