McCain Straight Talk = Double Speak

McBush has developed a reputation for straight talk - here's some good examples

How Obama Won

The Washington Post has an interesting article on how Obama won.

The result may have lacked the glamour of a sweep, but last night, with the delegates he picked up in Montana and South Dakota and a flood of superdelegate endorsements, Obama sealed one of the biggest upsets in U.S. political history and became the first Democrat since Jimmy Carter to wrest his party's nomination from the candidate of the party establishment. The surprise was how well his strategy held up -- and how little resistance it met.

"We kept waiting for the Clinton people to send people into the caucus states," marveled Jon Carson, one of Obama's top ground-game strategists.

"It's the big mystery of the campaign," said campaign manager David Plouffe, "because every delegate counts."

It may be a political nerdy article, but you are reading a political blog.

Claire Makes Us Proud

Once again, U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill makes all of Missouri proud.

McCain Says Economic Problems are Only in Our Minds

McBush says our economic problems are all in our heads. $4 gas is not in my head. The low value of the dollar compared to the euro or a barrel of oil is not in my head. Kids in Haiti eating mud is not in my head.

Everyone in the world (including the Chinese who hold the note on America's $9 trillion in debt) knows that George Bush cares about oil more than the dollar, so a barrel of oil is a better investment than the dollar. All that will change when Obama gets to the White House.

Senator John McCain (R-AZ)
Republican presidential candidate Senator John McCain (R-AZ) suggests much of America's economic woes may be merely 'psychological'.

In a recent interview with Fox News, McCain said the fact that America's oil and gas prices have reached all-time high has deeply concerned him.

"I'm very concerned about it…. And obviously the way it's been going up is just terrible," claimed the Arizona senator.

"But I think psychologically - and a lot of our problems today, as you know, are psychological - the confidence, trust, the uncertainty about our economic future, ability to keep our own home," he added.

McCain explained that his proposal to eliminate the federal gas tax for three months would provide Americans the necessary 'psychological boost' to deal with their economic problems.

"Let's have some straight talk. It's not a huge amount of money, but it might be nice to be able to save a few bucks and maybe buy something else the next time that they have to fill up their gas tank, and say, you know, I'm going to be able to afford that little extra expense now," he concluded.

Political pundits remain skeptical of McCain's prescription for US gas problems, arguing that most of the tax break will go to corporations, not families.

Sen. Byrd Endorses Sen. Obama

The wonderful thing about the human spirit is that it can change. Case in point is that Sen. Robert Byrd has endorsed Sen. Barack Obama.

WASHINGTON (AP) - Sen. Robert C. Byrd, a former member of the Ku Klux Klan and a one- time opponent of civil rights legislation, is endorsing Barack Obama for the Democratic presidential nomination.
Obama is vying to be the nation's first black president.

The West Virginia senator says Obama has the qualities to end the Iraq war.

In a written statement, Byrd called Obama "a shining young statesman, who possesses the personal temperament and courage necessary to extricate our country from this costly misadventure in Iraq."

Byrd is the longest-serving senator in history and third person in the line of presidential succession.

See, there is hope for our Country and World. If a former KKK member can endorse a black man, think of what is possible in our world.

Bob Barr on Gay Marriage

How's this for an interesting and thought provoking response to the Califorina gay marriage ruling; apparently state's rights really means something to some Republicans.


BobBarr2008.com
For Immediate Release – May 15, 2008
To schedule an interview, contact Audrey Mullen at 703-548-1160

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Bob Barr, former Member of Congress from Georgia and current candidate for President for the Libertarian Party, today issued the following statement in reaction to today's decision by the California Supreme Court allowing for the recognition of same sex marriage in that state:

"Regardless of whether one supports or opposes same sex marriage, the decision to recognize such unions or not ought to be a power each state exercises on its own, rather than imposition of a one-size-fits-all mandate by the federal government (as would be required by a Federal Marriage Amendment which has been previously proposed and considered by the Congress). The decision today by the Supreme Court of California properly reflects this fundamental principle of federalism on which our nation was founded.

"Indeed, the primary reason for which I authored the Defense of Marriage Act in 1996 was to ensure that each state remained free to determine for its citizens the basis on which marriage would be recognized within its borders, and not be forced to adopt a definition of marriage contrary to its views by another state. The decision in California is an illustration of how this principle of states' powers should work."

Another Open Letter to Super Delegates

I understand that you are now hearing from some Obama supporters asking you to abdicate your right and responsibility to use your judgment to stand up for the best interests of the Democratic Party. They feel you must now surrender your own thought-process to vote for whomever receives the most popular votes - in effect, silencing yourself.

Ironically, these same voices were suspiciously quiet about the necessity of popular majority rule back when their candidate did not lead in the delegate count. Odd, that. Ironically, these same voices were suspiciously quiet about creating the role of super-delegates. Funny, isn't it? Ironically, these same voices seek to persuade support of their candidate by pointing to - hold on, it's worth the wait - . . . - really, it is - famous big-name celebrity insiders who happen to support their candidate! Sounds like they think that some Democrats ought to be heard louder than others, after all.

(And don't get me started on Claire "Telecom Immunity" McCaskill's WWJTD bracelet . . .)

Now that the Republicans have a clear choice, there may be more crossover voting by trouble-making Republicans seeking a less experienced opponent. Alternatively, there could be positive or negative developments in either of the Democrats campaign. Certainly, I would hope that no super-delegate would feel bound by my vote for Senator Clinton if we find out next week that she really did murder Vincent Foster, and I would hope that Obama supporters would expect super-delegates to abandon their candidate if the vision of hope turns out to be cloudier than the media is currently telling us.

Above all, I sincerely hope that by the time the convention rolls around, either Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama will be the clear favorite, and that the convention will unite behind one of them.

Let the Party choose the best candidate available at the convention, regardless what some caucus voter in Iowa way back in January had to say before s/he had the full story.

And don't let the Obama supporters succeed in their attempts to vote for anything other than the best candidate. Maybe, at the time of the convention, the best candidate will be Obama, but maybe not. Let's decide those issues at the convention, without trying to "game the system" by artificially tying the superdelegates to the popular vote, okay?