Palin Options

[Robert]

Just wanted to point out I called Palin as VP over 4 months ago, for all the same reasons the decision was made now.
If McCain wins, I honestly believe this will be what puts him over the top.

Also you couldn't ask for better timing to make this announcement.
The DNC convention ended last night with a huge bang an there's not a single leading news story about it.
The news is 100% about Palin as VP.
Talk about stealing someones thunder.

I hope they win an McCain dies the next day.

[Robert]

It was a screw up on Biden's part for being so quick to criticize Obama's ad. He's a 30 year politician, you would think he would be able to be a little more diplomatic about it. Then again, this is something Biden is known for.
McCain certainly didn't blow my theory out of the water as to why he doesn't use a computer.
It's due to a lack of dexterity, which is a result of injuries received during the war.
Same as why he always does his stupid looking thumbs up gesture, because he can't raise his arm to wave.
Much the same as Dole an the famous pen he always carried in his right hand to prevent people from try to shake his hand which was paralyzed from injuries received during WWII.
I wouldn't expect someone who's tone deaf to learn to play the guitar and I wouldn't expect someone who lacks the dexterity to easily use a keyboard to use a computer.
The Obama ad was just as stupid as if it complained about a blind man not being able to drive, thereby showing he's out of touch with the modern world.

As for the negative ads, it's done by both sides.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/conte...8092101207.html

I think it's rather funny the change in attitude by Obama people.
1st they down played th excessive donations he received from Fannie & Freddie
Not they are jumping all over lobbyist working for McCain for receiving money from Fannie & Freddie.
Direct association via campaign contributions is okay while while indirect association via a paid lobbyist is a big deal.

Have you read the piece of shit energy bill passed by the House?
That's the kind of junk I'm very afraid Obama will sign because of his past which shows he's always willing to walk the party line.

I do agree with many points in the Time article. The quick bailout seem is little more than socializing business. I understand the need for the bailout, I just don't believe it should have been so quick an all encompassing. I completely disagree with the assertion in the article the current financial mess is solely the blame of the Republicans. The dollar was already down, we now cut it's value even more in what I expect will be a failed attempt to prevent the crash coming.

[HammaTime]

I think it's rather funny the change in attitude by Obama people.
1st they down played th excessive donations he received from Fannie & Freddie
Not they are jumping all over lobbyist working for McCain for receiving money from Fannie & Freddie.
Direct association via campaign contributions is okay while while indirect association via a paid lobbyist is a big deal.

Once again, you put forth a talking-point that doesn't hold up to additional scrutiny. Delving into the issue of contributions/cash from Fannie and Freddie makes for an interesting study on how journalism is played today.

If you or I were to try to research the contributions made to the campaign, we'd undoubtedly head over to OpenSecrets and punch in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to see the contributions from those two firms. This is what John Gibson of Fox News did for a recent piece. Unfortunately, that is all he did. Mysteriously, his piece didn't even bother to list the total contributions to Obama, perhaps that was just too much of an effort for him to make for his weak-ass story. I'm certain that you would have filled out your lede with the precise dollar figure, I know I would.

Well, that piece caused quite a stir, and if you do a search on Google News, you'll find the right-wing blogs jumped all over the story.

But, wait a minute. Does the premise of this story even make sense? A search of OpenSecrets turns up contributions by any employee, so that tally lists the contributions made by secretaries, janitors and all the other low-level employees as well as upper management. Obama has been drawing the majority of his fundraising from individual donors, so I would bet a search on most any New York based firm would reveal that he receives more contributions from their employees than McCain.

Well, the New York Times took this amateurish approach to the professional level as they went directly to the records on file with the Federal Election Committee and then cross matched the donor list with a list of Fannie and Freddie's directors, officers and lobbyists. A $50 donation from a low-level employee at the firm says one thing, a $70,000 donation from a Director says something completely different.

What the NYTimes discovered is a fascinating contrast to the hysteria that John Gibson created. Here is the story that the NY Times published, but the attached graphic really tells the tale.



So, it doesn't surprise me that the Obama campaign is comfortable downplaying the "excessive" donations that employees of a New York firm made to his campaign because when you look at the bigger picture, well the writing is on the wall.

Tonight, we learn of new revelations published separately by the New York Times and Newsweek magazine that allege that McCain's campaign manager, Rick Davis, was receiving $15,000 per month from Freddie Mac through his lobbying firm, Davis Manafort until last month when the government took over the company. McCain had just denied openly that Davis was receiving money. What I find amazing is that their explanation is that Davis "wasn't doing anything" for the money. I don't know about you, but that sounds like graft to me. Perhaps that is too strong, but here is the money quote from the Times' article, "No one at Davis & Manafort other than Mr. Davis was involved in efforts on Freddie Mac’s behalf, the people familiar with the arrangement said."

Here is my point in all of this. I don't care if someone has an R or a D after their name. If they claim to represent the "people," then they damn better be representing the people and not working for their own financial gain. This country needs to clean house and get the stench of a corrupt system out of Washington. We can do that by demanding more transparency in our government and by encouraging open and honest debate.

This post has been edited by HammaTime: 09/23/08 9:32pm