February 17, 2008 - February 23, 2008

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YouTube: Obama is to rhetoric what Vanilla Ice is to rap

Filed under: Barack Obama

This is a pretty funny YouTube clip on the dustup over whether Obama plagiarized lines from his friend:

Except that the comparison doesn't hold water. When Vanilla Ice was caught borrowing Queen's bassline, he retreated into the ridiculous argument that the nearly-identical strings of notes were somehow "different" in a way only recognizable to his trained ear. When Obama was asked about using his friend's lines, he copped to it, saying they shared lines all the time:

The notion that I had plagiarized from somebody who’s one of my national co-chairs who gave me the line and suggested that I use it, I think is silly,” Obama said.

Posted by Kevin Hoffman at February 22, 2008 5:07 PM | Comments (3)

 

Straight Talk Express derailed by deposition

Filed under: John McCain

Newsweek is giving the lie to McCain's claim that he never carried water for anybody from his alleged mistress' firm:

Just hours after the Times's story was posted, the McCain campaign issued a point-by-point response that depicted the letters as routine correspondence handled by his staff—and insisted that McCain had never even spoken with anybody from Paxson or Alcalde & Fay about the matter. "No representative of Paxson or Alcalde & Fay personally asked Senator McCain to send a letter to the FCC," the campaign said in a statement e-mailed to reporters.

But that flat claim seems to be contradicted by an impeccable source: McCain himself. "I was contacted by Mr. Paxson on this issue," McCain said in the Sept. 25, 2002, deposition obtained by NEWSWEEK. "He wanted their approval very bad for purposes of his business. I believe that Mr. Paxson had a legitimate complaint."

Here's the deposition from 2002:

Q: "Do you know were they got the information?"

McCain: "No. But I would add, I was contacted by Mr. Paxson on this issue."

Q: "You were?"

McCain: "Yes."

Q: "Can you tell us what you said and what he said about it?"

McCain: "That he had applied to purchase this station and that he wanted to purchase it. And that there had been a numerous year delay with the FCC reaching a decision. And he wanted their approval very bad for purposes of his business.I said I would be glad to write a letter asking them to act. But I will not write a letter, I cannot write a letter asking them to approve or deny, because then that would be an interference in their activities. I think everybody is entitled to a decision. But I can't ask for a favorable disposition for you."

Q: "Did you speak to the company's lobbyist about these matters?"

McCain: "I don't recall if it was Mr. Paxson or the company's lobbyist or both."

Q: "But you did speak to him?"

McCain: "I'm sure I spoke with him, yes."

Which doesn't seem to jibe with this statement from McCain:

"No representative of Paxson or Alcalde and Fay discussed with Senator McCain the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) proceeding regarding the transfer of Pittsburgh public television station (WQED) to Cornerstone Broadcasting and Cornerstone Broadcasting’s television station (WPCB) to Paxson. No representative of Paxson or Alcalde and Fay personally asked Senator McCain to send a letter to the FCC regarding this proceeding."

But the McCain camp is sticking with its guns in this denial to Newsweek:

"We do not think there is a contradiction here," campaign spokeswoman Ann Begeman e-mailed NEWSWEEK after being asked about the senator's sworn testimony five and a half years ago. "We do not have the transcript you excerpted and do not know the exact questions Senator McCain was asked, but it appears that Senator McCain, when speaking of being contacted by Paxson, was speaking in shorthand of his staff being contacted by representatives of Paxson. Senator McCain does not recall being asked directly by Paxson or any representative of him or by Alcalde & Fay to contact the FCC regarding the Pittsburgh license transaction.

Posted by Kevin Hoffman at February 22, 2008 4:27 PM | Comments (2)

 

GOParty Cards' savings to be spent on whiskey, hookers

Filed under: National Republicans

The Minneapolis-St. Paul Host Committee for the 2008 Republican National Convention yesterday announced a new discount card that could save GOP conventiongoers money that might better be spent on whiskey and hookers, organizers announced Thursday.

The card will offer the expected 45,000 visitors to the Twin Cities special discounts at participating businesses from August 23 until September 7.

"The Republican National Convention offers a major opportunity to showcase the metropolitan area and beyond," said organizer Cindy Lasher. "Look, I don't like their politics any more than you do, but there's some major bling to be fleeced off these hicks."

Area sex workers are getting in on the act as well, banding together to create what they are calling GOPanty Cards. Among those expected to participate are "Horny Asian Housewife Getting Tired of Masturbating" and "Christi" a "blonde and busty chick" who has "no time for a relationship" but plenty of time to post naked pictures of herself on the internet.

Posted by Kevin Hoffman at February 22, 2008 2:56 PM | Comments (1)

 

VP sweeps: Pawlenty is the frontrunner

Filed under: Local Republicans

That's the word from The Fix this morning. Here's what Chris Cillizza has to say about T-Paw:

The two-term Minnesota governor has to be considered the frontrunner at the moment to be McCain's pick. He hails from the electorally important Midwest, is young enough to balance concerns about McCain's age, and he stuck by the Arizona senator in the darkest days of the campaign. The criticism that Pawlenty is an unknown on the national stage may, in fact, be an argument in his favor -- voters won't bring any preconceived notions about him to the ticket. Never forget that one of the guiding principles in picking a VP is to find someone who is comfortable being seen but not heard. Want more about the man they call "Tpaw"? Make sure to read Jonathan Martin's profile of the man.

Posted by Paul Demko at February 22, 2008 9:51 AM | Comments (1)

 

The Lessons of Rwanda's Genocide

Filed under: Barack Obama

Fox News's Special Report had the following exchange a few days back where Bush demonstrated a curious understanding of history:

GOLER: The president says it's better that African nations deal with African problems. White soldiers in Darfur, he believes, would be targets for all sides.

BUSH: A clear lesson I learned in the museum was that outside forces tend to divide people up inside their country and are unbelievably counterproductive.

The museum, as Atrios notes, was the Rwandan genocide museum. The lesson Bush internalized, as should be apparent, is the opposite lesson one ought draw from Rwanda. It wasn't outside forces that caused the slaughter. It was the world's failure to act that allowed the slaughter to continue.

This is not a partisan issue. Bill Clinton has much -- perhaps the most -- to answer for in this regard as well. As David Halberstam's book War in a Time of Peace makes clear, Clinton knew full well that genocide was taking place and not only failed to act, he ordered staff not to use the "g" word until it was well too late.

This is to Clinton's great shame, and it's no surprise Bush doesn't know any better. Looking to the future, though, one candidate might be able to use the opportunity to gain ground on foreign policy issues as well as moral authority.

Barack Obama's advisor Samantha Power is an expert on this issue, having won the Pulitzer for her book on the topic.

It'll be interesting to see if Obama (or Power through the candidate) uses Bush's recent words to draw a distinction between his foreign policy views and those of the last two presidents. This could be a chance for him to proactively counteract those who would tar him as nothing more than an eloquent voice, bereft of ideas.

A lot is going on in the race, and much relates to foreign policy. Will Obama (or Power through him) take this opportunity to the bully pulpit? We'll see.

Posted by Jeff Shaw at February 21, 2008 11:37 AM | Comments (0)

 

McCain Mistress Bombshell! UPDATE

Filed under: John McCain

The New York Times is leading with a report suggesting John McCain had an inappropriate relationship with a female lobbyist:

WASHINGTON — Early in Senator John McCain’s first run for the White House eight years ago, waves of anxiety swept through his small circle of advisers.

A female lobbyist had been turning up with him at fund-raisers, visiting his offices and accompanying him on a client’s corporate jet. Convinced the relationship had become romantic, some of his top advisers intervened to protect the candidate from himself — instructing staff members to block the woman’s access, privately warning her away and repeatedly confronting him, several people involved in the campaign said on the condition of anonymity.

When news organizations reported that Mr. McCain had written letters to government regulators on behalf of the lobbyist’s client, the former campaign associates said, some aides feared for a time that attention would fall on her involvement.

Mr. McCain, 71, and the lobbyist, Vicki Iseman, 40, both say they never had a romantic relationship. But to his advisers, even the appearance of a close bond with a lobbyist whose clients often had business before the Senate committee Mr. McCain led threatened the story of redemption and rectitude that defined his political identity.

Both McCain and Iseman deny that they had an affair, but this is sure to give momentum to Huckabee, who suddenly looks smart for staying in till the bitter end.

By the way, this is McCain's "O" face:

UPDATE: And it's not the first time. The current Mrs. McCain started out as a mistress:

Skousen also notes that "McCain cheated on his first wife after she had a severe accident. He then divorced her and married his multi-millionaire mistress, whose daddy bought McCain a spot in the Congress."

More damning details about the first affair and the potential future first lady:

McCain was immediately dazzled and spent the event chatting her up.

"She was lovely, intelligent and charming, 17 years my junior but poised and confident," McCain wrote in his 2002 book, Worth the Fighting For. "I monopolized her attention the entire time, taking care to prevent anyone else from intruding on our conversation. When it came time to leave the party, I persuaded her to join me for drinks at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel. By the evening's end, I was in love."

McCain recalls that both he and Cindy initially misled each other about their ages. McCain made himself a little younger, and Cindy made herself a little older. They found out their real ages when the local paper published them. McCain was 43, Cindy 25.

"So our marriage," McCain cracks, "is really based on a tissue of lies."

Emphasis added to point out the blinding irony. Back to the tape, here's where McCain dumps his old lady for a hot new model:

McCain needed a divorce from Carol, his wife of 14 years from whom he was separated. After McCain's dramatic homecoming from Vietnam, the couple grew apart. Their marriage began disintegrating while McCain was stationed in Jacksonville. McCain has admitted to having extramarital affairs.

"If there was one couple that deserved to make it, it was John and Carol McCain," author Robert Timberg wrote in John McCain: An American Odyssey. "They endured nearly six years of unspeakable trauma with courage and grace. In the end it was not enough. They won the war but lost the peace."

In February 1980, less than a year after he met Cindy, McCain petitioned a Florida court to dissolve his marriage to Carol, calling the union "irretrievably broken."

His wife's take? McCain was suffering a midlife crisis (which makes this latest possible affair his late late life crisis):

She did briefly address her divorce to Timberg: "The breakup of our marriage was not caused by my accident or Vietnam or any of those things. I don't know that it might not have happened if John had never been gone. I attribute it more to John turning 40 and wanting to be 25 again than I do to anything else."

So then McCain marries his mistress a mere month after divorcing his wife. Also, note that the groomsmen including Gary Hart(!):

In April 1980, the judge entered a default judgment and declared the marriage dissolved.

A month later, McCain married Cindy in Phoenix, where the couple would move. The wedding party included a couple of McCain's high-profile friends from Washington. Sen. William Cohen was the best man. Sen. Gary Hart was a groomsman.

Monkey business, indeed.

Posted by Kevin Hoffman at February 20, 2008 9:17 PM | Comments (10)

 

Bill O'Reilly talks about lynching Obama's wife

Filed under: Barack Obama

Media Matters is calling attention to a strange freudian slip by Bill O'Reilly in which he makes reference to "lynching" Michelle Obama.

In defending Michelle Obama from a caller's accusation, O'Reilly said:

"I don't want to go on a lynching party against Michelle Obama unless there's evidence, hard facts, that say this is how the woman really feels."

Now normally I'm not one to play language police--I recently stirred up a hornet's nest of comments when I disagreed with Hillary Clinton throwing a tantrum over an off-hand reference to "pimping out" Chelsea--but this comes barely a week after President Bush condemned nooses, saying:

"The era of rampant lynching is a shameful chapter in American history."

I guess the question is: Do you think O'Reilly would have used the term "lynching party" if he was talking about a white wife, or was this some subconscious expression of racism?

Posted by Kevin Hoffman at February 20, 2008 6:09 PM | Comments (25)

 

Olbermann: "You're a Fascist and a Liar, Mr. Bush"

Filed under: National Republicans

I'm not usually into the single-link video posts, but this is a singular piece of ownage that brings rare venom and insight.

Posted by Jeff Shaw at February 19, 2008 5:38 AM | Comments (4)

 

McCain to Bush: It's Not You, It's Me.

Filed under: John McCain

Word from John McCain's campaign is that the presumptive nominee is asking the President not to appear too often at campaign rallies. Lay low, the logic goes, and he won't bring down his fellow Republican with that 30ish approval rating.

How does one go about asking a sitting president to stay away? We've obtained an exclusive letter from McCain to Bush that reveals how the candidate is navigating these tricky political waters.

CITY PAGES EXCLUSIVE!!1! MUST CREDIT CITY PAGES! MUST USE EXCLAMATION POINTS!

The Hon. George W. Bush
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500

Dear George,

We've had some good times together, haven't we, over the years? There's no easy way to say this. I just need some more space right now.

It's not you, it's me. It's about my needs. Specifically, me needing to have a presidential campaign without the 200-pound millstone of being associated with the least popular president of modern times.

Our relationship has had its rocky, times, to be sure. Like when your lackeys ran a race-baiting primary campaign by spreading false rumors that I had fathered a black child out of wedlock. But I forgave and forgot. When you used fringe figure J. Thomas Burch to malign my image among fellow war veterans, I turned the other cheek.

(Well, OK, I actually ran ads asking if they wanted "another president in the White House that America can't trust." Boy, it's a good thing for you that voters weren't ready to hear "straight talk" back then, right?)

I kid! Bygones.

The irony of this being a "Dear George" letter from a guy named John is not lost on me. If you look up "irony," it will not be lost on you either. Probably.

You'll always be a part my life. In my own way, I'll advance your legacy as president. Why do you think I want to stay in Iraq for anywhere between 100 and 10,000 years? It's out of honor and respect for what we once had, and the war we created together. As a team.

You never know: maybe you and I will have another opportunity to start an armed conflict someday. After all, radio stations still play our song sometimes. Ah, memories!

For now, though, let's just be friends. Of course I still respect you. Can we hug it out?

Sincerely,

John

Posted by Jeff Shaw at February 18, 2008 11:48 AM | Comments (1)

 

Don't Tase Me or St. Paul, Bro

Filed under: Republican National Convention

It's time to rename Kellogg Boulevard "Electric Avenue." The St. Paul police want to buy an additional 230 Tasers to outfit every member of the 370-strong force with a portable Mr. Zappy.

The St. Paul City Council is likely to approve the $210,000 funding request on Wednesday, but they should not. There are three reasons why.

REASON NO. 1: Tasers are more dangerous than people think, and we're learning more about how dangerous all the time. New health studies cast doubt on the manufacturer's safety claims, and suggest that running 50,000 volts of electricity through a body can cause long-lasting cardiac effects.

What an, ahem, shock.

More than 150 people have died in the U.S. after being shocked by police, and as it turns out, many studies that say Tasers are safe are commissioned by the manufacturer -- hardly an unbiased party. Yeah, you'd rather have someone get tased than shot, but is that really the only choice?

REASON NO. 2: Once police forces have the Tasers, they suffer from "mission creep," and use of the devices snowballs. The 2004 Amnesty International report [PDF] Excessive and Lethal Force? Deaths and Ill-treatment Involving Police Use of TASER found that “…far from being used to avoid lethal force, many US police agencies are deploying Tasers as a routine force option to subdue non-compliant or disturbed individuals who do not pose a serious danger to themselves or others.”

In one Colorado county, a 2004 study found that one-third of the 112 people tased were handcuffed at the time the juice went through 'em. A taser might be a dangerous piece of equipment, but it feels like a toy, and people treat it as such -- when you have one, you want to use it.

First, it's a rioter throwing a rock. Then, it's a skateboarder who is pissing you off.

REASON NO. 3: They say it's not about the Republican National Convention. But we all know it's about the Republican National Convention. I'm not even going to take the obvious tack and point out that it's a risk to civil liberties when you can just tase every annoying street theater performer (tempting as that may seem). It is a risk to civil liberties, but there's another angle I want to talk about.

Speaking as someone who reported on the WTO riots in Seattle, the last time you want police officers to be trying out new equipment is during a massive demonstration -- there's so much potential for miscalculation and escalation. You run the risk of not having officers fully trained, not knowing how to use the devices properly or in what context to use them, and, worst of all, the very real potential for overuse.

Nonlethal weapon use by American police is a complex issue, and one that I see both sides of. Whatever side you come down on, though, now is the worst possible time to implement a policy like this.

Posted by Jeff Shaw at February 17, 2008 5:45 PM | Comments (10)

 

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