Possibly the Dumbest Challenge Yet to Obama

Ever heard of Wayne Allyn Root? You’re not alone. 
Root is the Libertarian candidate for vice president.  He says that Barack Obama is a commie who only got into Harvard Law School because he’s black.  He also says that he doesn’t have a racist bone in his body, although he does admit that some of his [...]

Sarah Palin Interview Watch II

Sarah Palin is now the Republican nominee for vice president.  She has never done an interview as a national candidate.
Yesterday, sassy muckraker Matt Drudge reported that Oprah Winfrey, an Obama supporter, has refused to have Palin on her show. He posted this item:
BIG DILEMMA: OPRAH BALKS AT HOSTING SARAH PALIN; STAFF DIVIDED Fri Sep 05 [...]

Electoral Count: Obama 301, McCain, 224

This is all pre-RNC, of course, but it’s nice to see a map this blue:

  Go look at it before it changes.

Sarah Palin Interview Watch

The way we learn about candidates and their preparedness to deal with difficult issues is through their records and interviews.  Sarah Palin has no record on foreign and defense policy and, despite her speech to the RNC, her views are virtually unknown to the American people. 
By contrast, Barack Obama, Joe Biden, and John McCain have [...]

Those Who Forget History Are Doomed to Repeat It

A lot was said about John McCain’s decision to appear in front a bright green backdrop the night Barack Obama clinched the Democratic nomination.  None of it was good.  Much of the criticism dealt with the way bright green made him look even older than he is. This is what that looked like:

Tonight, McCain began his [...]

The DNC Has Its Shit Together

McCain = Bush.  That’s all this election is about, and the DNC nails it.

John McCain Served in Vietnam?

John McCain served honorably in Vietnam.  He cites that service whenever he’s questioned about an issue for which he doesn’t have a good answer.  Instead of describing any particular policy or his twenty six year record in Washington, his convention has been a three day description McCain’s military record.  Expect to hear even more about [...]

The Point Exactly

Steve Benen makes it:

Seriously, what’s the message of the week in St. Paul? That Republican governing works? No. That Republicans have a legitimate policy agenda? No. That the next four years should be different from the last eight? No. It’s simple: “Your house may be on fire, but don’t trust that man standing outside with [...]

Obama’s Convention Bounce

There’s apparently no new state-by-state polling, but the national polls seem to have moved substantially:

Pollster
Obama
McCain
Leader

ARG
49%
43%
Obama +6%

CBS
48%
40%
Obama +8%

Gallup
50%
43%
Obama +7%

Gallup tracking
50%
42%
Obama +8%

Hotline
48%
39%
Obama +9%

Rasmussen tracking
48%
43%
Obama +5%

Should Someone With Ties to a Radical Anti-American Group be Getting Sensitive Security Briefings?

Yesterday, CNN reported that once officially nominated, Sarah Palin will receive high level security briefings 
from the office of the Director of National Intelligence, according to officials at the campaign and at the DNI’s office.  DNI spokesman Richard Willing said the briefings were on “topics of national security interest.”
Also yesterday,
The founder of the Alaska Independence Party — a group [...]

From Shahar Golan: Nice

“Change we can believe in.” 

http://frgdr.com/blog/2008/02/16/mentch-white-house-2/

Ads Obama Ought to Run in South Florida Right Now

Florida has been trending red since 2000.  (You may recall that Bush v. Gore was something of a squeaker that year.)  Since then, Republicans have more or less gained the upper hand — but it’s still within reach. 
Cubans and Jews are critical Flordia voting blocs.  As USA Today reported just a month ago
Jewish voters, traditionally Democratic, [...]

McCain Would Rather Win an Election…

John McCain, in an attack on Barack Obama’s patriotism, says that Obama would rather lose a war than risk losing an election.  He also frequently says that he’s so patriotic that he doesn’t care about any particular election — he always puts country first.
Nobody who lives permanently on planet Earth believes Sarah Palin is qualified [...]

An Ad the Obama Campaign Ought to Run

John McCain’s response to everything is to point out that he was a POW.  When defending himself for not being able to remember how many houses he owns, McCain said that there was a time in his life when he didn’t have any homes, didn’t have a table and didn’t have a chair.  http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26399647
That, of [...]

By the Numbers

Barack Obama is 47.  Joe Biden is 65.   Total: 112.
Sarah Palin is 44.  John McCain is 72.  Total: 116.
The Republicans still have it on the strength of John McCain’s decrepitness.