Leadership on both sides of the road

“Boxing the Republicans into a South-dominated party is very good strategy, because the more you reduce the Republican Party, the more conservative and reactionary it will become, and thus less attractive to moderates,” said Tom Schaller, a University of Maryland-Baltimore County professor and the author of “Whistling Past Dixie: How Democrats Can Win Without the South.” “The Midwest and the Northeast are the places where there are still remnants of old-line Rockefeller Republicans. And these are the places where the Democrats will build durable majorities.”

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Specter’s switch –

Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania feels “entitled” to the deal he made with Majority leader Reid over his seniority as a new Democrat. After all Specter swings power to the Democrats in the Senate, giving Democrats enough votes to cut off attempts to filibuster judicial nominations.

A new poll shows that Specter’s party switch paid off, according to The Hill. He is shown to be ahead in two general election match-ups. George Stephanopoulos reported the the results would be closer if he were running against former Governor Tom Ridge.

Senator Specter seems to have been energized by his switch. And he probably feels a bit buoyed by the welcome he has gotten from his female Democratic colleagues in the Senate, according to CQ Politics. The Senator has introduced legislation to curb overreaching of the executive branch, as well as a bill (with Senator Webb) to overhaul America’s criminal justice system.

In the wake of Senator Specter’s switch from Republican to Democrat, people differ about whether it was courageous or ambitious. Most agree that he will remain very independent. Politico reports that “The GOP is a specter of itself.” To quote,

Amid gloating among Democrats and recriminations among Republicans, the Specter divorce is both symptom and cause of the GOP collapse — leaving the opposition party on the brink of irrelevance in Barack Obama’s Washington and facing few obvious paths back to power.

The Pennsylvania Republican’s about-face, combined with the all-but-certain ascension of Minnesota Democrat Al Franken to the Senate, should soon leave Democrats with a filibuster-proof 60-vote majority.

. . . But Specter’s abandonment didn’t happen in isolation. No matter whether his move was motivated by principle, fear, or opportunism — or some combination of the three — it comes in the same month as a traditionally GOP-leaning district in upstate New York tipped for the Democrats. In the nine states of the Northeast, including Pennsylvania, there are only 15 GOP House members out of 83 seats, and now just three Republicans out of 18 senators.

. . . While many Republicans were jeering Specter as he headed for the exits, few were denying that the move was a setback, both in public perceptions and legislative arithmetic.

In the midst of it all, CQ Politics reports, “Sen. Jim DeMint wants to promote new, tougher brand of party discipline in coming weeks as the leader of the Republican Steering Committee. Now facing an emboldened Democratic majority, Republicans disagree on the best survival strategy.” But DeMint wants conservative purity.

Specter’s switch has ushered in a whole new deal in the Senate, in my opinion. Though critics said it was pure ambition, I have to admire his honesty about his motivation. He did not resort to the typical Republican spin, which is at least a good start for him.

See also Behind the Links, for further info on Congress.

Carol Gee – Online Universe is the all-in-one home page for all my websites.

Technorati tags: news news and politics politics republicans democrats congress senate arlen specter

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• Specter colleagues, politicos react to defection (cnn.com)
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What will the new Congress do?

When the U.S. House and Senate come back into session in early January, it will be a changed legislative body. There will be a number of new senators and House members, for starters. And most of them will be Democrats. But will it mean a real change, or just a change of bodies? It will be interesting to observe whether Congress can listen to its better angels, or whether it will in 2009 again be business as usual.

If they are smart – Congress can easily renew the SCHIP children’s health insurance program before it expires in March 2009. It could be one of the easiest and earliest successes possible. A recent poll showed that they could even garner widespread support for covering the children of legal immigrants, according to the Congressional Quarterly. And Congress is wisely considering adding a number of other health care measures to the economic stimulus package, the Washington Post reports, a clever way to “kill two birds with one stone.”

If they are vigilant — They will continue to investigate. There are pertinent committees chaired by smart peopole with no lack of situations that cry out for the light of day, and/or legislative fixes. ProPublica’s recent investigative pieces include: Unsafe/unhealthy housing provided to Katrina victims; gaps in aviation security; as well as threats to the nation’s water supply. The economic rescue program alone could occupy a dozen committees for a dozen months. Yahoo! News spotlights the banking bailout scandal regarding huge gifts to banking execs#. Another similar story points out that there has been no overall accounting of how the banks spent# the bailout monies.

If they are patriotic – They will investigate the true nature of the loss of civil liberties in the past eight years, as chronicled by Tom Head at About.com/civil liberties. And they will investigate themselves as the peoples’ guardians of constitutional protections in the process, as the latest Glenn Greenwald post at Salon.com suggests. Jeff Schweitzer at the Huffington Post reveals just how bizarre are Dick Cheney’s recent revelations# on the administration’s blatently lawless view of a unitary presidency. Will there be any criminal prosecutions? It remains to be seen.

If they are brave — They will begin to try to bridge the partisan divide, the widest in a long time, according to a fascinating recent Congressional Quarterly study. And they should work hard to avoid intraparty divisions, that could be nudged along by spoiler Republicans, according to Politico.com.

If Congressional leaders are to be a match for our new presidential leader, they will turn over new leaves, letting go of their previously ineffectual tactics. There will be no more excuses in 2009.

Hat Tip Key: Regular contributors of links to leads are “betmo*” and Jon#.

(Cross-posted at The Reaction.)

My “personal” post today is at Making Good Mondays.

Technorati tags: news news and politics politics congress democratsleadership

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Ending the conflict

It will not be quick or easy. By conflict I mean the wars abroad and those at home. Many of feel that this election has ended our “long dark night” of discouragement, pessimism and battling to change things. “Unity” and “reconciliation” were among the watch words used to describe what CHANGE meant. Where to start?

Abroad includes all of the Middle East. President-elect Obama has committed to ending the occupation of Iraq in a responsible way, and refocusing on the conflicts in Afghanistan and the nearby border regions of Pakistan. This will amount to first figuring out what to call the new conflicts, besides the “war on terror,” such a misnomer. After that it amounts to a laser beam focus on destabilizing and interrupting al Qaeda. Then the entire military needs to be repaired and re-purposed. Well, optimism says that all should be a piece of cake, huh? The pessimists among us will say that it will be impossible to disengage from Iraq; it is too fragile and we dare not “lose.”

Discouraged others say that the military industrial complex is too formidable to reform or refocus, let alone dismantle.

At home includes conflict within and without the two main political parties, conflict among social classes and ethnic groups, and even the conflicts within our families and smaller social circles. No problem says the optimist. We’ll get started on that right away, too. Whoa, there, say the pessimists. Does not psychology, sociology, anthropology and political theory maintain that conflict is a natural and inevitable part of the human condition? Homeo sapiens is a fighting species, biologically programmed to favor the winners to be the fittest, the survivors? Pessimistically, we could always be fighting.

Conflict, how to end it? The cynic in me says, forget it. The job is too big and too hard. I talked about the weight of the world on our new leader’s thin shoulders in yesterday’s post . My friend “betmo’s” comment was this,

“We are all a bit older and grayer and more subdued after 12 years of the yoke of wrong rule. The weight of the world should be shouldered by all of us. We should lift Obama up to be the leader he needs to be by shouldering the responsibility for change – millions of shoulders carry a lot of weight.”

Conflict remains at home and abroad. Where is the rational middle ground to start to diminish conflict? What should we realistically work towards, now that we the people of good will are all joined in this common effort of CHANGE? I cannot think of a better way to look at the question that though my reader’s powerful thoughts.

We cannot afford to be overly optimistic or pessimistic. We must figure out what is realistic. And it is realistic for me to say to myself, not speaking for anyone else, I am capable of figuring out what my shoulders can carry. I know what I know how to do, what I have the capacity to accomplish, what are realistic goals that can be met just by me alone. Whew! That feels do-able, rational and realistic. I cannot presume to speak for, dream for or plan for others. That is theirs to do. . . or not.

(Cross-posted at The Reaction.)

My “creativity and dreaming” post today is at Making Good Mondays.

Technorati tags: news news and politics politics obama conflict middle east economy

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Monday before TUESDAY marks the 11th hour.

What can you say when time is running out? Talk to yourself:

• If you are a candidate, you would hope to say, “I have done my best; now the voters decide.”
• If you are a voter who has already voted, you can say “Thank goodness!”
• If you haven’t voted yet, you can say, “Whatever it takes . . . I’ll prevail.”
• If you are refusing to vote, even for McCain-Palin, you can say, “Shame on me.”
• If you are a member of the media, you can say, “I’ll do my honest-to-goodness best.”
• If you are a blogger, you can say,”Hang in there; a bit of respite is coming.”
• If you are from outside the U.S., you can say, “Good Luck to America!”

Where are we at this 11th hour? Campaign funds have been spent at an incredible rate. (Obama’s “infomercial” was watched by 33.5 million people). The time for big new ideas on how to win has expired. The papers have all made their endorsements*. More Conservatives have endorsed Obama# than Democrats have endorsed McCain. The candidates that head both parties have either reconciled or split. The Republican Party is more well known# to voters, as candidates are revealed at their best and worst over time#. Most voters know where the Democrats stand on the issues after four debates. New methods for getting out the vote emerged, and old methods for suppressing votes have shown up again.

After Tuesday’s election results are final, we know that half of us are going to be bitterly disappointed at the outcomes. We all know that things will change# in a new administration, such as not keeping campaign promises, raising or lowering taxes#, and resolving the problems of the economic crisis in different ways than what is being tried now. New coalitions will be formed. Old groupings will break up. Democracy will again prevail.

Hat Tip Key: Regular contributors of links to leads are “betmo*” and Jon#.

(Cross-posted at The Reaction.)

My “creativity and dreaming” post today is at Making Good Mondays.

Technorati tags: news news and politics politics 2008 elections democrats republicans political parties

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Voting, the American way

(image by Wordle)

Early voting in the 2008 U.S. elections is going at a record setting pace, according to Politico, who called it an,

“avalanche.
. . Whether encouraged by state officials to vote early and reduce the chaos and lines on Election Day, or pushed by campaigns to convert
enthusiasm into tangible results, the shift to early balloting has made Election Day more of a final deadline than a one-day event.”

The two people in our household have already voted for Barack Obama, just Friday. Because we have Texas official voter registration certificates, we were not required to show a picture ID.  My roommate voted “straight Democrat.” I almost did, but could not resist voting for an acquaintance who is a longtime Republican U.S. Representative. I worked in her very first campaign decades ago. Like most voters, I can be sentimental as well as partisan, and occasionally irrational.

These voters from California were duped by a GOP voter registration scheme that got an operative arrested: Think Progress# reported that, “Voters charge that Mark Jacoby duped them into joining the California Republican Party by making them believe they were signing a petition to toughen penalties against child molesters.” Need more? Bob Cesca posted the “crazy e-mail of the week not long ago*.”

Politicians can also behave irrationally#. There are those who believe that Republicans coming out for Barack Obama is irrational. George Packer#, great writer at The New Yorker, reveals that Ken Adelman has joined Colin Powell in endorsing Obama.

If the world could vote#, according to a Gallup poll, Obama would get 67%, McCain would get 22%, and 11% said they did not know or refused to respond. Also, 75% of the respondents said that the election in the U.S. would make a difference in their own country. Again 22% said it would not, and only 3% did not know or refused to answer. (Great interactive map).

It is just a few days until the actual Election Day, November 4. If you are thinking you will get an early start on the day’s results by keeping up with exit polls, you might want to read this article by Ed Kilgore at The Democratic Strategist: “Exit polls: Not So Fast.” It explains changes made in the network sponsored polling operation.

More Little tidbits for your dining pleasure:

• Will the Dow drive the election? asks Politico.
• Ezra Klein’s review of Andrew Gelman’s Red State, Blue State, Rich State, Poor State; visit the Barnes and Noble Review here:
• Goldwater’s granddaughter# announced on the Huffington Post that McCain would not get the family’s endorsement.
• Bono speaks to women video carried by the “One.org” campaign to fight global poverty.
• Obama Radio Station at Slacker — Hear Bob Dylan, Stevie Wonder, Bruce Springsteen, Sheryl Crow and many more.
• 10 Great Film Cameos From Politicians from Spout.com.
• South Park Republicans and Colbert Democrats, from Neilsen’s.
• PeopleJam . . . is offering “How to determine your Political Personality Type.”

Hat Tip Key: Regular contributors of links to leads are “betmo*” and Jon#.

(Cross-posted at The Reaction.)

My “creativity and dreaming” post today is at Making Good Mondays.

Technorati tags: news news and politics politics 2008 elections obama mccain voting

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Obama-Biden is the ticket

Three great Democrats responded to John McCain’s acceptance speech on CNN’s Thursday night post convention Larry King Live (transcript). The Nation’s editor Katrina Vanden Heuvel, former New York governor Mario Cuomo, and Arianna Huffington of The Huffington Post, were all very effective at keeping on message. Subtly and skilfully their comments reinforced the reality of the convention, as it was characterized by The Raw Story (9/4/08): “Attacks, praise stretch truth# at GOP convention.” The Republican drama, all the huffing and puffing, Rove’s name-calling of Biden,* the attacks on the media for so-called bias, are well-crafted tactics to keep the real story of the Republicans’ 8-year history buried.

Seriously! But not every journalist is actually taking the bait. Politico.com’s Roger Simon appeared to be properly chastened when he offered this: “Why the media should apologize” (9/4/08) To quote:

On behalf of the media, I would like to say we are sorry.

On behalf of the elite media, I would like to say we are very sorry.

We have asked questions this week that we should never have asked.

We have asked pathetic questions like: Who is Sarah Palin? What is her record? Where does she stand on the issues? And is she is qualified to be a heartbeat away from the presidency?

We have asked mean questions like: How well did John McCain know her before he selected her? How well did his campaign vet her? And was she his first choice?

Bad questions. Bad media. Bad.

Arianna Huffington made a very good point. She reminded Democrats that focusing on the Sara Palin story is a distraction we should avoid. To quote:

ARIANNA HUFFINGTON, CO-FOUNDER AND EDITOR, HUFFINGTONPOST.COM: That is a little bit like the same sarcasm that we had last night from Sarah Palin about Obama.

But it was also a speech — I feel her contradictions. Although he had these things to say against Obama, the speech was primarily against George Bush. He actually said we need to change almost everything. He said we need to restore the pride and the principals of our party. He talked about bringing back transparency and accountability. He talked about responding to disasters differently and protecting our security differently. These are all attacks on George Bush. So even though his speech started with his gratitude towards the president, there is no question this was his effort to distance himself from Bush, which of course started…

KING: Isn’t that smart?

HUFFINGTON: Of course, he has to do that. But can he really convince the American people that this man, who has basically voted with George Bush 90 percent of the time, who has changed his positions on taxes, on torture, on immigration, is actually going to bring change to Washington? It really demands a huge suspension of this belief. And I don’t think the American people will go there unless they’re seriously distracted by the soap opera of Sarah Palin. That’s why Democrats need to be very careful not to focus on Sarah Palin. This is not what this election needs to be about.

If you just cannot abstain, however, Ed Kilgore offers these Palin premises for reference: “A TDS Strategy Memo: Six Highly-Targeted Democratic Messages responding to the V.P. Selection of Sarah Palin,” from The Democratic Strategist of 9/2/08. Kilgore begins with four facts:

1. That McCain rejected Mitt Romney in order to pick Palin
2. That Rush Limbaugh energetically promoted Palin’s candidacy and Ralph Reed, James Dobson and Richard Viguerie all consider her one of their own. A number of articles suggest that the desire to satisfy this group played a very significant role in McCain’s decision to choose her.
3. That Palin has extremely limited experience.
4. That Palin has a history of pressuring and firing political opponents. This is not just in relation to a single case regarding a particular State Trooper, but in other cases as well when she was mayor of her small town.

Regarding Obama/Biden – Getting back to the real candidates about which we all should be talking, bobcesca.com “makes sense to me,” says “betmo.” The blogger’s point (on 9/1/08), focused on the subject of all the Republican “venting*” about the candidates executive qualities. To quote:

Would someone somewhere on television repeat, over and over, that, for the last 18 months, Senator Obama been the chief executive in charge of the insanely successful ‘Obama for America’ campaign and has raised more money, received more primary votes and registered more voters than any political campaign in American history?

I agree with Arianna Huffington. Republicans have no program to offer. They are offering two personalities – two Heroes For the 21st Century. According to the Republican plan, we voters need to just get over the first 8 years of the 21st century and move on in to the Era of Heroes.

My conclusion — These morning-after thoughts are from my dear roommate, “Seven-of-Eight:

When choosing a President for the United States each voter has a responsibility that extends far beyond their immediate surroundings and circumstances.

With our system of government, it is highly unlikely that either of the current candidates, or those in the future can bring about all the changes they promise. There are, however, serious consequences from action that a president may take on his own, with or without the approval of the American people. The Bush administration is proof that information can be manipulated to justify whatever a president may decide to do.

We simply cannot afford to have someone in the oval office that is unstable, prone to temper-fits, and an agenda that is military in nature. John McCain is a good person, no doubt. Our country owes him for his service. We don’t owe him the presidency and can’t afford to make that mistake when we vote.

References:

• U.S. Election in Depth from the Financial Times (9/5/08 newsletter)
• Ed Kilgore @ 9/2/08 Democratic Strategist: A collection of “the Best Sound-Bites and Brief Quotes from the Democratic Convention in Denver” — Obama, Biden, Clinton, Kennedy, Kerry, Gore — and many others.
• The Democratic Strategist 8/23/08 — “The Biden Choice, Women and the South“
• Brad Jacobson* @ at-largely: ” Scant Coverage of Obama Assassination Plot — Irresponsible Or Cautious?”

Hat Tip to regular contributors (#Jon) and (*”betmo“) for their links.

(Cross-posted at The Reaction.)

My “creativity and dreaming” post today is at Making Good Mondays.

Technorati tags: news news and politics politics republicans mccain palin arianna huffington 2008 election

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This was the week!

Updated — Memeorandum reported that Alaska Governor Sarah Palin is McCain’s VP pick: source

The mornings after the Democratic National Convention (DNC) this week, I was often struck speechless. The DNC was so very big, bold and beautiful along the way. Fast paced, and yet somehow at ease, the convention moved towards the last day with ascending excitement. Media coverage of the week was available to cable and satellite TV viewers in pundit-driven or gavel to gavel style. By Thursday’s the DNC had visited almost everything. The convention’s conclusion did not begin until afternoon.

FRIDAY MORNING, everyone agrees the DNC was unprecedented in several respects. Barack Obama is the first African American candidate to be nominated by a major party to run for President. His acceptance speech audience was the largest ever. His candidacy was the most high-tech in history. And the United States is in a brand a new kind of governance crisis. The USA is embroiled in two very high cost (in people and money) wars. Polarized politically, in economic recession, its citizens have been routinely victimized by an out of control, inept, constitution-shredding administration. An unprecedented level of problems faces the nation; that is the reason the Democrats are willing to leave the venue mostly united. They and the whole country know what is at stake.

Is it any wonder that the “Change We Need” campaign of (dare I say it?) destiny’s Obama was eventually so welcomed by Democrats? The other reason for Democratic party unity is Barack Obama himself. His skill as a the leader of his own campaign became more apparent as the week progressed. The stadium setting was the story for a while. And it was seized upon by nay-sayers as “over the top.” A full stadium of flag waving, enthusiastic people, who came early and in large numbers, affirmed the planners’ decision in my opinion. A text message exercise in voter recruitment energized a huge starry map showing supporters. Lots of good video filled in the gaps, along with food and funny hats, statement t-shirts, and Diverse Dems dancing in place. The audience was entertained by good music that seemed just right, much of it with a a modern folk feel. Stevie Wonder and Sheryl Crow sang. Republicans and Independents testified to their support. Obama’s best political friends, including his mentor, Senator Dick Durbin, gave little speeches. And a set of “just folks” told us through vignettes why they had to support Obama. In contrast, a stage-filling group of military leaders and generals marched out in a line to support the candidate, some of whom had previously retired in protest against the Bush administration. Vice-President Gore did ‘his thing” with sincerity and skill.

This is the week that culminated last night in Senator Obama’s acceptance speech. By most accounts it was perhaps his best speech ever– it was dynamite. At once biographical, inspirational and confrontational, it was also policy specific. It was a magnificent blue print for the next couple of months of this 2008 presidential campaign. I cannot wait for it to unfold. Unwilling to post yesterday, because I wanted to just enjoy the moments, I went back to my occasional years-ago choice of “being on vacation without my camera.” The blogosphere took appropriate notice, however, as links to the other blogs where I post show. This is the rest of the week as reflected in my earlier notes:

THURSDAY MORNING, Wednesday was historic – Senator Barack Obama was nominated by the Democrats to run for President. In a stroke of genius, Senator Joseph Biden was nominated for Vice-President. Speeches by Former President Clinton, Senator John Kerry and Veep-to-be Senator Joe Biden were all outstanding. Many of us were relieved by Bill Clinton’s endorsement. Wednesday night’s theme was national security. Morning-after reflections gave the Democrats high marks for the way the theme was handled during the third night of this historic week. Bloggers gave the mainstream media less than high marks for the coverage. Because of the difficulty of Surviving the DNC on cable,too many viewers missed the best speech of the evening given by John Kerry.

WEDNESDAY MORNING, Democratic National Convention — Tuesday night was all Hillary Clinton’s, though she was not the official keynoter. The keynote speaking task fell to Governor Mark Warner, who was lack luster, by many of the next morning’s accounts. To me, Hillary Clinton’s address was probably one of her best to date. A few questioned whether Clinton’s endorsement of Obama was strong enough, but most bestowed qualified approval of her speech. Scott Paul, for instance at The Washington Note, gave: “A (Potentially Premature) Defense of Clinton.” To quote:

I had two immediate reactions to Clinton’s speech. First, purely from the perspective of speechcraft and delivery, I’ve never seen her deliver a better one. Second, she said very few positive things about Barack Obama or his candidacy. She talked at great lengths about the need to support Obama given the state of the country, the challenges we face, the alternative of John McCain, and the importance of Democratic Party unity. But aside from one line of praise for the grassroots oriented, bottom-up nature of Obama’s campaign, she had precious little to say about the appeal of the candidate himself.

TUESDAY MORNING, Dateline: Democrats – Michelle Obama was a big hit with all of us who listened to her speech Monday night (8/26/o8). She was both highly “professional,” as well as very personal. On the morning after, this was a typical story: “Michelle keeps things down to earth.” It was penned by Roger Simon at Politico.com. It refers to Michelle’s narrative about Barack, the brand new father, driving his little family home from the hospital at a snail’s pace. To quote:

. . . She was describing a simple moment, a real moment, an emotional moment and one that made only one point: Barack Obama is a human being just like you. He is not an other, he is not a celebrity. He is a father, a husband, a person.

And so, indeed, was Senator Ted Kennedy awesome, according to David Rogers at Politico.com (8/26/08). Most every listener was rooting for his success. In a way, he “had us with hello.” The headline hinted at how we all still felt the next morning: Ailing Kennedy: ‘The dream lives on.’ To quote:

Most people have to fight a whole Civil War before getting a Ken Burns documentary. Not Teddy Kennedy, who staged a triumphant appearance before the Democratic National Convention Monday night complete with a Burns-crafted tribute casting him as the modern Ulysses bringing his party home to port.

Weakened by cancer, the Massachusetts senator first let the pictures do his talking but then rocked the Denver hall with an appeal for healthcare reform and party unity that brought him full circle from his famous the dream shall never die speech in New York 28 years ago.

This is also the week that Senator McCain was to have announced the identity of his running mate. I am not waiting to conclude this piece with that information. I want to savor the week before being forced to move on before I am ready. But, of course I will move on — to Minneapolis. I predict that I will be able to post much more because I will not be savoring all those Republican moments. I give them back to the next participants in this wonderful democratic process.

ADDENDUM — References From Tom Head, who writes about civil liberties for About.com.

1. Obama vs. McCain (on civil liberties issue differences)
2. Joe Biden on Civil Liberties
3. Joe Biden’s Middle East Policy
4. Civil Liberties and November 2008 Ballot Initiatives
5. If You Make a Mistake While Voting

(Cross-posted at The Reaction.)

My “creativity and dreaming” post today is at Making Good Mondays.

Technorati tags: news news and politics politics 2008 election democratic national convention

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Unconventional women

Conventional blogging — (8/22/08) A New York Times headline* (in the Fashion and Style section) reads: “The Year of the Political Blogger Has Arrived.” Many bloggers raised money for the trip to Denver on their websites. But getting credentials has been a big challenge for less well known, less well-off political blogs, such as Pam’s House Blend and Phillip Anderson’s the Albany Project. But both of them managed somehow to do so because of generous readers. Others with more clout, such as Matt Stoller of Open Left, fared better.

There are two kinds of blog credentials, says the NYT. “The first is a national credential, which offers the same access granted to members of traditional news media organizations. The second, more coveted credential is the state blogger credential. It allows one blogger per state to cover the convention alongside its state delegation, with unlimited floor access.” Or they can hang out at The Big Tent. To quote further:

This year, both parties understand the need to have greater numbers of bloggers attend. While many Americans may watch only prime-time television broadcasts of the convention speeches, party officials also recognize the ability of bloggers to deliver minute-by-minute coverage of each day’s events to a niche online audience.

. . . But some bloggers see the procurement of credentials as less of a privilege and more of a right, in recognition of their grass-roots influence.

. . . One perk that bloggers will have access to in Denver is the Big Tent, an 8,000-square-foot two-story structure adjacent to where the convention is being held. For a $100 entrance fee, 400 credentialed bloggers will be allowed to enter the air-conditioned space, hosted by a coalition of progressive blogs and organizations and sponsored by the Web sites Google and Digg, where they can eat meals and find work spaces with Wi-Fi.

. . . Among the devoted readers who believe Mr. Odum deserves their donations is Nate Freeman, one of two Democratic candidates for lieutenant governor of Vermont. Mr. Freeman, 40, gave about $100 to Mr. Odum’s laptop fund, and said he would contribute $50 for Mr. Odum’s convention trip. “Barack doesn’t need my 50 bucks, Mr. Freeman said, but John does.”

Texas Politics reported that a “San Antonio lawmaker has a prime convention spot. Sen. Leticia Van de Putte of San Antonio, a co-chair of the Democratic National Convention in Denver, said she just found out she’ll be chairing the gathering on Wednesday.” But the entire Texas delegation did not fare as well. They got snubbed in the general seating. “When it comes to seating at the Democratic convention, Texas is no Idaho,” according to Trail Blazer’s blog at the Dallas Morning News. Perhaps it will help that Governor Kathleen Sebelius of Kansas was to have been the speaker at the Texas delegation’s breakfast meeting Monday, according to DemConWatch.

My blog friend Fayrouz In Dallas wants us to know this. Her path is “The Pursuit of Happiness.” She has become a U.S. citizen. Congratulations, Fay!

My blog friend Txsharon at BlueDaze wants this — “Obama/McCain: End America’s Oil Addiction, ” partly because of this: “Big Oil. HUGE Money. ENORMOUS Influence.”

From WE/WeCanSolveIt.org., an 8/4/o8 e-mail from Cathy Zoi also decried the huge Exxon profits. She said:

Last week, Exxon Mobil announced record profits — at the same time that the rest of us were paying record high prices at the gas pump. It doesn’t need to be this way. Our energy prices don’t need to be this high. If we repower America and generate 100% of our electricity from clean sources within ten years, we can bring our energy costs down.

A lot of people are surprised when they find out how quickly we can make this transition. We’ve built a fun quiz to help show the way. How well do you know America’s energy? You might find the answers surprising.

Texas has always had a reputation for gutsy women. We will see some of them at the Democratic National Convention this week. And we will also read about it from some good progressive women bloggers who will give us more of the scoop on what is actually happening. I’ll get back to them as the week progresses.

*link from a gutsy woman from New York, betmo at life’s journey

(Cross-posted at The Reaction.)

My “creativity and dreaming” post today is at Making Good Mondays.

Technorati tags: news news and politics politics democrats convention texas women bloggers oil

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Where you stand –

Just what is the right political path? Democrats have a rocky road ahead of them. But they are on the right track, in my opinion. Senator Joseph Biden (D-Delaware), speaking yesterday to the big crowd around the court house in Springfield, and to his television audience, began by hearkening back to Abraham Lincoln. To quote from the transcript of Biden’s Remarks in Springfield (Ht to Liberal OC):

Well, it’s great to be here! On the steps of the old State House in the land of Lincoln. President Lincoln once instructed us to be sure to put your feet in the right place. Then stand firm. Today, Springfield, I know my feet are in the right place. And I am proud to stand firm for the next president of the United States of America, Barack Obama.

“American Prayer” was prescient. This is a song written by Dave Stewart of the Eurythmics. It was recently featured in a post by “Moonbat” at The Mahablog. The “video and lyrics” post contained a few lines that have a clear connection to the upcoming election about which Biden spoke. To quote:

And what you see depends on where you stand
And how you jump will tell you where you’re gonna land
**********
Give me your tired, your poor and huddled masses
You know they’re yearning to breathe free
**********
If you get to the top of the mountain
Remember me

On the economy is the place for Democrats to make a stand — It seems to me that Senator Biden was asking, in a way, that we all heed Abraham Lincoln’s admonition to “put your feet in the right place.” The current public opinion polls show that there is no agreement about which of the two nominees are standing in the right place. Obama (at 44.6%) and McCain (at 43.2%) are “neck and neck,” in horse race terms, according to Pollster.com (8/21/08). And picking Senator Biden was not an instant hit, according to Memeorandum’s Rasmussen poll story. However, Americans may have an even harder time picking Senator McCain for president, according to Steve Benen’s story, “THE DREADED SEPTUAGENARIAN ISSUE…,” posted at his new hangout, The Washington Monthly.

Where I stand – Just because I am a retired social worker does not mean that I can ignore social problems, in our own nation and abroad. A nation is measured by how well it protects its vulnerable people. It is not protecting Americans to focus only on military adventurism and terrorist surveillance efforts that threaten civil liberties. That is of little comfort if we are not making it economically. It is no exaggeration to say that I believe Senator Biden will stand for “the least among us” in ways that would make Lincoln proud.

References:

• Senator Barack Obama’s Springfield remarks, “as prepared for delivery,” from The Washington Note.
• Best laugh line of the day from Think Progress — Biden: McCain has to ‘figure out which of the 7 kitchen tables to sit at.’
• “5 Things Biden Pick says about Obama,” by Jim VandeHei and Mike Allen at Politico.com
• Biden got Obama call during root canal — Memeorandum

(Cross-posted at The Reaction.)

My “creativity and dreaming” post today is at Making Good Mondays.

Technorati tags: news news and politics politics democrats biden obama 2008 election vice-president u.s. economy

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Reasonable people know this –

Do not throw out the baby with the bathwater. Do not replace the current administration — or Democratic members of Congress — with another set of inept Republicans; it would be a strain the nation could not survive. Voters must select enough Democrats to assure that Congressional majorities can prevail in crucial votes. And I am not saying all Republicans need to go down to defeat. There are a number of good independent thinkers out there whom I admire. And their proposed president, John McCain could be just as bad as ourcurrent president (OCP), given his consistent mental lapses. I suspect I am not alone in this thinking.

What would we do without a little muckraking to help us find out the things voters need to know about the candidates? Looking past the law or the rules seems far too easy for Republicans. Here are just a few examples. The Federal Election Commission lawyers are claiming that John McCain may be able to change his campaign financing deal in midstream. Senator Ted Stevens says his arrest was unconstitutional. Senator Norm Coleman may be using undisclosed gifts to his personal advantage.

With possible massive economic collapse a possibility, and loss of privacy a certainty, and an ever-growing “military industrial complex” threat a reality, we do not need to replace leaders who already know

about, and act to combat, these risks to the nation’s well-being. If soldiers stationed in Iraq can favor Senator Obama, then Clinton supporters need to be clear-eyed voters, not angry Dem spoilers. It is time to close ranks, forgo catharsis, and get on with the general campaign. Reasonable people know this.

(Cross-posted at The Reaction.)

My “creativity and dreaming” post today is at Making Good Mondays.

Technorati tags: news news and politics politics republicans congress 2008 elections

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Adopt a Political Candidate

This morning, over at FranIAm’s place, she brought up an important point. She says we MUST become invested in good local politicians. She then introduced us to Darcy Burner, Democrat for Congress in Washington’s 8th District.

On July 2, her house burned to the ground. Her attitude: “We lost stuff. It’s just stuff. The boy is fine. The husband is fine.” She is in a tight race in the 8th Congressional District against U.S. Rep. Dave Reichert, R-Auburn, who narrowly won re-election in a 2006 contest with Burner.

In light of the fact that I am feeling sorry for myself, I have decided to do the next indicated thing to get out of my naval gazing. The Diva is adopting Darcy Burner. I am doing this for a number of reasons: first, Reichert, although a moderate Republican, supports Bush’s Iraq war; second, Burner is part of a group of Congressional Candidates who, if elected, will call for immediate withdrawal from Iraq; third, I really like her attitude.

Plus, as FranIAm pointed out, she needs the fundraising assistance. So, go here and donate, let’s elect Democrats.

Crossposted at DivaJood’s Place.

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it has occurred to me

that i haven’t been around in the loop much of late. it doesn’t mean that i haven’t been thinking about the world at large- because i have. i finally made my party affiliation a non party affiliation. i no longer belong to a major party- or any party- in america. i try to adhere to what i believe in- and i have been pretty diligently trying to parse out my belief system for myself. a good friend of mine once told me that what i wanted was the entire system to grind to a halt and to scrap it and start over. and, he told me, that it wasn’t realistic. i know. and he knows that i know.

much of what we have inherited of our lives has come from our parents’ and grandparents’ generations- the 20th century was a booming one and the western world exploded with wealth and power. folks here have lived the good life- and this country sold it’s soul (and our planet) to the devil to do so. well, the devil has come to collect his due- and we are left holding the bag. sigh. however, there is much that we could do that could at least alleviate suffering of untold millions- and we won’t because there isn’t the political will.

this is where it gets somewhat scathing- so if you are a liberal- you may want to back away and go read kos or something. i left the democratic party because of issues i complained about going on two years ago- and all through last year. (i am not digging through my own archives to link up to the posts- i have already read all of my own stuff- but feel free. check betmo’s musings first and then go from there.) the biggest issues i see with democratic politicians- they are no different than their republican counterparts. they all take corporate monies and are swayed by lobbyists. don’t take my word for it- i just posted about dems making money from mercenary groups and war profiteering by the dems in congress recently- and i linked to the original stories for good measure.

the biggest issue i have with so called liberals in the democratic party- and this primary season showed it in all of it’s red glory- they use the same thought patterns and tactics as the republican party. yep. misogyny, racism, smears, innuendo, insults, slurs, outright lies- and the thorough tearing down of ‘the other side’- in this case fellow dems- were all present. not just on the big blogs- you know the ones hob nobbing with the democratic politicians at the same functions- but the rank and file bloggers like me and you- at each other’s throats for no other reason than they wanted their candidate to win.

and what the fuck would have been the big prize? clinton or obama. both in aipac’s pocket- and countless other corporate interests- obama just backed the telecom bill- couched with an exception of course in typical political maneuvering so as not to insult anyone (wouldn’t want any votes to slip by for standing on principle). so, what did we win? nothing. just a stay of execution- instead of the quick death of democracy we will continue to slowly bleed to death- because obama as president won’t be any different than any other president- except maybe cheney. there will still be war in iraq and afghanistan; there will still be domestic spying that the congress will continue to sanction; there will still be idiocy with homeland security and the militarization of the police state that is becoming a stronger presence by the day- why?

because the democrats want that power- they just don’t have the balls to grab it for themselves. they are certainly not going to give it back. hence, the stay of execution and the slow bleeding versus the neo cons just doing whatever the hell they want to do. hence, obama, pelosi, hoyer, et al and the telecoms or impeachment or the lack of caring for the will of the people.

the democrats don’t have the set needed to rise up in revolution and neither do the real republican conservatives. ‘when in the course of human events’ are just words on paper that has been shredded and thrown into the circular file. so, you can wheedle and whine and talk about ‘lesser of two evils’ but you will get nowhere with me. we have a one party system in this country and it is a corporate oligarchy. we, the people, mean exactly nothing and they laugh in our faces because they consider us the have nots- and when you look at pelosi or reid or conyers or hoyer or shumer or clinton or obama or any of the haves- you will see the little white man standing in the background pulling the strings that makes them dance- and it is attached to a checkbook.

cross posted at life’s journey

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Squeakers . . .

A very close call – Yesterday the Supreme Court of the United States, by a vote that was a real squeaker, restored our most basic Constitutional right, habeas corpus. Glenn Greenwald at Salon.com via Memeorandum wrote the best article. It is titled, “Supreme Court restores habeas corpus, strikes down key part of Military Commissions Act.” To quote the post’s key opening and closing paragraphs:

In a major rebuke to the Bush administration’s theories of presidential power — and in an equally stinging rebuke to the bipartisan political class which has supported the Bush detention policies — the U.S. Supreme Court today, in a 5-4 decision (.pdf), declared Section 7 of the Military Commissions Act of 2006 unconstitutional. The Court struck down that section of the MCA because it purported to abolish the writ of habeas corpus — the means by which a detainee challenges his detention in a court — despite the fact that the Constitution permits suspension of that writ only “in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion.”

. . . UPDATE: Three of the five Justices in the majority — John Paul Stevens (age 88), Ruth Bader Ginsburg (age 75) and David Souter (age 68) — are widely expected by court observers to retire or otherwise leave the Court in the first term of the next President. By contrast, the four judges who dissented — Antonin Scalia, Clarence Thomas, John Roberts and Sam Alito — are expected to stay right where they are for many years to come.

John McCain has identified Roberts and Alito as ideal justices of the type he would nominate, while Barack Obama has identified Stephen Breyer, David Souter and Ginsberg (all in the majority today). It’s not hyperbole to say that, from Supreme Court appointments alone, our core constitutional protections could easily depend upon the outcome of the 2008 election.

Almost too close to call – by the end of the Democratic primary, it was a narrow win in the delegate count by Sentor Obama and a narrow win of the popular vote by Senator Clinton. Hillary Clinton started as the front runner in the campaign. By the end of the primary season, she had lost her lead though the race remained a squeaker. There are many guesses about why that happened. Many of her supporters believed that sexism was the reason. It is a close call according to this story from the New York Times (6/13/08) – “Media and Critics Split Over Sexism in Clinton Coverage” via Memeorandum. To quote:

Howard Dean, chairman of the Democratic Party, who says he was slow to pick up on charges of sexism because he is not a regular viewer of cable television, is taking up the cause after hearing an outcry from what he described as a cross-section of women, from individual voters to powerful politicians and chief executives.

. . . Mike Barnicle, a panelist on MSNBC, said that Mrs. Clinton was “looking like everyone’s first wife standing outside a probate court.” Tucker Carlson, also on MSNBC, said, “When she comes on television, I involuntarily cross my legs.”

The establishment news media were faulted too. The New York Times wrote about Mrs. Clinton’s “cackle” and The Washington Post wrote about her cleavage.

Ken Rudin, an editor at National Public Radio, appeared on CNN, where he equated Mrs. Clinton with the actress Glenn Close in “Fatal Attraction.” “She’s going to keep coming back, and they’re not going to stop her,” Mr. Rudin said. He later apologized.

Call it like it is – Whether it was sexism or something else that caused Senator Clinton to lose the contest, even those of us who did not vote for her owe her a great deal of credit. This list of credits owed from Tapped sounds reasonable: “Seven changes we owe Hillary Clinton.” Her accomplishments include: being a front-runner who stood for women, forced talk about sexism, united Democrats on Iraq, figured out health care, engaged everybody until the end, provided national security leadership, and broadened the question of Progressives and race. I believe that Senator Clinton will keep her word and help Democrats come together.

Calling for Unity, Action Day – The Democratic party has been working to maintain party unity from the beginning, though those efforts occasionally got derailed. But now is the right time to call again for closing ranks and working together for a victory in November. Democracy for America says they have a plan:

Everyone from Sen. Obama and Sen. Clinton to Howard Dean and Speaker Pelosi are asking for Democrats to unite.

Now is the time to take the next step. Together, DFA members across the country will turn words into action on June 21. We will start the process of bringing Democrats together by reaching out to our friends and neighbors and asking them to unite for a progressive victory in November.

Squeakers cause anxiety. Two such as the SCOTUS decision and the Democratic primary remind us of what is at stake for the country this year. If we remain focused on the goals of the party to win Republican contests to be decided in the fall, we need not be overly anxious about the other squeakers as they come along.

(Cross-posted at The Reaction.)

My “creativity and dreaming” post today is at Making Good Mondays.

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Sweet Jesus in a speedo…where does Hillary find these people?

“the Democrats are throwing the election away, for what, an inadequate black male? Who would not have been running if it had not been a white woman that was running for president.”-Harriet Christian

What. A. Fucking. Wingnut. And she purports to be on our side my dear reader.

H/T to SteveO at Bring it On! for finding this…I was wondering if anyone captured this wingnut on film as I heard her incessant screaming yesterday as I watched the Rules Committee’s ‘meeting’.

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