Mitt Romney just can't get a break. Check out this online poll at the London Times that gives their readers a chance to 'vote in the US primary'. The results I got were this.
McCain - 41.4%
Romney - 4.8%
Rudy - 17.7%
Huckabee - 12.5%
And the big winner of the night placing second exceeding expectations????
Ron Paul - 17.9%
What? Don't they realize that he's a nut?
On the Dem side, no real suprises though. Obama 60%, Clinton 25% and Edwards 9%. I guess there is something of a suprise. Where did all that Clinton goodwill of the world go?
Oh, and if you do look at the actual poll, notice the option at the bottom that allows you to change your vote after you've seen the results. They have this Iowa stuff down cold.
Friday, January 4, 2008
John Edward's New Client
Apparently if John Edwards does pull out of the Presidential race after New Hampshire, he won't be out of work for long. It looks like Glenn Beck will be in the market for a good Trial Lawyer.
It should be intersting to see if Beck actually sues, you know, considering how all of those evil fake malpractice lawsuits are driving up our medical costs and all.
It should be intersting to see if Beck actually sues, you know, considering how all of those evil fake malpractice lawsuits are driving up our medical costs and all.
No Mo' Joe Part II
Over almost as soon as it started Joe Biden and Chris Dodd both dropped out out of the race for the President last night. As most know I was pulling for Joe Biden to make more headway than he did, first because during many of the debates he seem to come across as the adult in the room when issues of foreign policy were discussed, and secondly having grown up in Michigan watching the Detroit Lions for all these years, I've been subconciously programmed to root for the team with no chance of ever winning. Perhaps that's why I'm a liberal? :) Oh well.
I thank Dodd and Biden for their time and efforts on our behalf and all the best.
As life generally works, one door closes and another opportunity comes along, so hopefully this just gives Dodd more time to organize his philibuster of the FISA bill and run for Senate Majority Leader. Go team Dodd!
Really though, why would anybody agree to give immunity to the Telecoms if we aren't even allowed to know what they did in the first place? Oh well...... another time.
I thank Dodd and Biden for their time and efforts on our behalf and all the best.
As life generally works, one door closes and another opportunity comes along, so hopefully this just gives Dodd more time to organize his philibuster of the FISA bill and run for Senate Majority Leader. Go team Dodd!
Really though, why would anybody agree to give immunity to the Telecoms if we aren't even allowed to know what they did in the first place? Oh well...... another time.
Thursday, January 3, 2008
Charlie Rangel, Man of Reagan
In what I'm sure is a sign of the coming apocolypse, George Will is singing the praises of Democrat Charlie Rangel, calling him a closet Reaganite of all things. He starts out with a recapping of the life story of Rangel, going from being a college drop out, joining the military, serving in the Korean War (at the Chosin Resevoir, I believe) and then coming home and graduating high school and eventualy going to law school and going on to the Congress. It is a fairly inspirational story.
The gist of the article comes down to this:
It certainly isn't the quote you would expect from a Democrat if all you read were right wing publications and even most left wing publications for that matter and I think Rangel is right. Democrats have for that past couple of decades have been playing the games of the tax cut junkies, and that is the constant manipulation of the tax codes to try to exempt more and more people at the bottom. Part of the reason the Dems bottomed out in the 90s is that with the EIC we reached a point where the people on the bottom either paid nothing or got back more in from a tax return than they paid in taxes.
Just as you aren't providing health insurance to poor people by providing tax deductions, you don't create opportunity for the poor to improve thier lives by cutting what little taxes they do pay. You create opportunity for people by providing as many educational opportunities as possible, by providing small business loans, by enhancing worker rights, and by insisting on fair trade. We have to balance the interests of workers with the interests of business. We can't simply have a supply side economic policy and I'd bet that is where Rangel parts ways with Reagan.
The gist of the article comes down to this:
Regarding two matters, Rangel is a Reaganite. Ronald Reagan opposed using the tax code "as a means of achieving changes in our social structure." Rangel -- in his 19th term, a man of House proprieties -- says, "I don't think the tax code should be a substitute for the appropriations process in making social change." Social policy should be, he thinks, the province of "the standing committees." The question for tax writers "is not just what is fair and equitable but what is good for the economy."
It certainly isn't the quote you would expect from a Democrat if all you read were right wing publications and even most left wing publications for that matter and I think Rangel is right. Democrats have for that past couple of decades have been playing the games of the tax cut junkies, and that is the constant manipulation of the tax codes to try to exempt more and more people at the bottom. Part of the reason the Dems bottomed out in the 90s is that with the EIC we reached a point where the people on the bottom either paid nothing or got back more in from a tax return than they paid in taxes.
Just as you aren't providing health insurance to poor people by providing tax deductions, you don't create opportunity for the poor to improve thier lives by cutting what little taxes they do pay. You create opportunity for people by providing as many educational opportunities as possible, by providing small business loans, by enhancing worker rights, and by insisting on fair trade. We have to balance the interests of workers with the interests of business. We can't simply have a supply side economic policy and I'd bet that is where Rangel parts ways with Reagan.
Obama and Huckabee
Everybody knows the results of the Iowa Caucus by now. Obama and Huckster took home the gold. But what is amazing is what an amazing rebuke this was for George W. Bush. What a rebuke it was for the Iraq War. Things are going better in Iraq yet still the candidates that were able to realize that even given that Americans still haven't forgiven George W. Bush for the war. They haven't forgiven the Republicans for being so cavalier in their treatment of our national security and our troops.
I get frequently assailed over at Ankle Biting Pundits for making the claim that Republicans don't really care about our troops, but you can't possibly be for the troops and be so callous to the plight of the troops and our returning veterans. If you care for the troops then you care about giving them the proper equipment, a proper strategy for victory and the proper medical care when they get home.
The campaign of Mike Huckabee scares the Republican party. The conventional wisdom is that Mike Huckabee scares the Republican party because he can't win. He can't win because he is a religious nut. There is something bigger though that is running as an undercurrent here. Mike Huckabee is threatening to bring the evangelical vote back to the center.
I honestly wouldn't want someone in the charge of our government who has religious views as conservative as Mike Huckabee, be we should be rejoice in his victory, because if the further Mike Huckabee goes the more likely that this represents the shattering of the Reagan coalition and the resurrection of the FDR coalition. And American will Progress once again.
So congrats to Barack Obama and Mike Huckabee!!!!
I get frequently assailed over at Ankle Biting Pundits for making the claim that Republicans don't really care about our troops, but you can't possibly be for the troops and be so callous to the plight of the troops and our returning veterans. If you care for the troops then you care about giving them the proper equipment, a proper strategy for victory and the proper medical care when they get home.
The campaign of Mike Huckabee scares the Republican party. The conventional wisdom is that Mike Huckabee scares the Republican party because he can't win. He can't win because he is a religious nut. There is something bigger though that is running as an undercurrent here. Mike Huckabee is threatening to bring the evangelical vote back to the center.
I honestly wouldn't want someone in the charge of our government who has religious views as conservative as Mike Huckabee, be we should be rejoice in his victory, because if the further Mike Huckabee goes the more likely that this represents the shattering of the Reagan coalition and the resurrection of the FDR coalition. And American will Progress once again.
So congrats to Barack Obama and Mike Huckabee!!!!
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
The Huck Man Cometh
Listening to the popular median one would think that Mike Huckabee is a one trick pony. He may just win Iowa but the conventional wisdom seems to be that it is over from there.
But looking at Real clear Politics seems to tell a vastly different story. He is trailing the pack in New Hampshire polling at a RCP average of 9% as compared to McCain's 32%.
But after New Hampshire the campaign moves to Michigan where Huckabee is in a statistical dead heat with Romney. 18.8% for the Huckster as compared to 19.8% for Romney.
From there it is on to Nevada where Huck is at 15.7% as compared to Romney and Rudy tied at 23%.
Then it is South Carolina where Huck is leading Romney 25.8% to Romney's 19.3%.
Finishing off the month of January is Florida where Huckabee is trailing Rudy 25.3% to 23.3%.
No wonder Romney and McCain are going so hard after the Huckster. It is a very easy to image a scenario where Huckabee leaves January having won 5 of 6 primaries and leading the delegate count by a mile. Ofcourse then comes California where Huck is again second only to Rudy.
These numbers will must have the Rockafeller Repubs squirming.
But looking at Real clear Politics seems to tell a vastly different story. He is trailing the pack in New Hampshire polling at a RCP average of 9% as compared to McCain's 32%.
But after New Hampshire the campaign moves to Michigan where Huckabee is in a statistical dead heat with Romney. 18.8% for the Huckster as compared to 19.8% for Romney.
From there it is on to Nevada where Huck is at 15.7% as compared to Romney and Rudy tied at 23%.
Then it is South Carolina where Huck is leading Romney 25.8% to Romney's 19.3%.
Finishing off the month of January is Florida where Huckabee is trailing Rudy 25.3% to 23.3%.
No wonder Romney and McCain are going so hard after the Huckster. It is a very easy to image a scenario where Huckabee leaves January having won 5 of 6 primaries and leading the delegate count by a mile. Ofcourse then comes California where Huck is again second only to Rudy.
These numbers will must have the Rockafeller Repubs squirming.
No Mo' Joe
Yahoo News is reporting that ole Joementum himself has selflessly come forward to declare that he is not interested in being John McCain's running mate.
Did anybody bother to ask McCain if he even wanted Joe Lieberman as his running mate? I'm sure it would be hard for McCain to turn down a man who proved to be such an asset the last time he secured a slot on the national ticket, but it would be impolite to assume.
It cold be fun though. We could call it the Unified Traitor '08 ticket. McCain being considered the traitor of the right, and Lieberman being.......well Lieberman.
Did anybody bother to ask McCain if he even wanted Joe Lieberman as his running mate? I'm sure it would be hard for McCain to turn down a man who proved to be such an asset the last time he secured a slot on the national ticket, but it would be impolite to assume.
It cold be fun though. We could call it the Unified Traitor '08 ticket. McCain being considered the traitor of the right, and Lieberman being.......well Lieberman.
Defacto Line Item Veto
The Righties are all excited because they feel the Bush Administration has found a way to implement a line item veto on earmarks without all of the messy hard word of actually having to amend the Constitution or pass a law.
Apparently Bush has decided that he can simply enact the line item veto by simply telling the government agencies not to spend the money as directed by Congress.
You see we're a nation of laws. And we have a Constitution. And we must follow the laws and the Constitution to the letter, unless ofcourse Republicans find a convenient way to ignore that laws. And the Constitution.
Bush is a genious I say!! Who else could have found so many originalist intent executive powers in the Constitution that amazingly nobody knew were there! Even the founders!
Update: Kagro X over at the Daily Kos has a more in depth article discussing this issue that is definitely worth a read. Apparently this use of Presidential power originated in the Reagan administration, well I guess if Reagan was the origin then it must be right.
Apparently Bush has decided that he can simply enact the line item veto by simply telling the government agencies not to spend the money as directed by Congress.
You see we're a nation of laws. And we have a Constitution. And we must follow the laws and the Constitution to the letter, unless ofcourse Republicans find a convenient way to ignore that laws. And the Constitution.
Bush is a genious I say!! Who else could have found so many originalist intent executive powers in the Constitution that amazingly nobody knew were there! Even the founders!
Update: Kagro X over at the Daily Kos has a more in depth article discussing this issue that is definitely worth a read. Apparently this use of Presidential power originated in the Reagan administration, well I guess if Reagan was the origin then it must be right.
Them Rotten Liberals at the Washington Times
Tony Blankley over at the Washinton Times has an interesting editorial today regarding the success in Iraq. It starts out with the ole standard of blaming media for everything indicating that ofcourse the media is not reporting the 'good news' from Iraq. We've heard that before right? But he goes on to say that poll results are now showing that the American people are understanding that military progress is being made in Iraq.
Well Sparky if the media isn't reporting it, how exactly are the American people learning about it? It must be ESP or Claire Voyency or whatever the fuck type of supernatural power it is that would allow for people to come to that remote understanding (perhaps we should have the guys from ParanormalState investigate). The truth is, as always the media is doing a good job of portraying the news from Iraq. It isn't as positive as Blankley would like it to be simply because the true objective of 'The Surge', the political reconciliation of Iraq isn't taking shape. I'm not saying that it won't happen, but now is not the time to claim Victory V.8.3 again.
But what gets me most about Blankley's article is the following quotes:
Wow. Noting the human costs of the war in American and Iraqi terms. Noting the vast cost in treasure of the war. Noting driving thousands of muslims into the hands of the extremists. Noting the fact that we've been bumbling in Iraq for years. Holy Crap. A conservative on the pages on the Washinton Times pretty much saying that the criticisms of the left of this war have been right all along!
Blankely goes on to make an arguement that I've made for a while now. That if it is possible to succeed in Iraq that is the best path, and we may be on that path. Some people on the left have become to invested in the failure of Iraq and not willing to look at the problem going forward, rather they want to refight the decision to invade. But we Dems need to be willing to take credit for the fact that the turning point in Iraq was the turning point in US politics. The November 2006 election. Lets not blow it because we (rightfully) dislike and distrust Bush.
kwAwk
Well Sparky if the media isn't reporting it, how exactly are the American people learning about it? It must be ESP or Claire Voyency or whatever the fuck type of supernatural power it is that would allow for people to come to that remote understanding (perhaps we should have the guys from ParanormalState investigate). The truth is, as always the media is doing a good job of portraying the news from Iraq. It isn't as positive as Blankley would like it to be simply because the true objective of 'The Surge', the political reconciliation of Iraq isn't taking shape. I'm not saying that it won't happen, but now is not the time to claim Victory V.8.3 again.
But what gets me most about Blankley's article is the following quotes:
"First, of course, the debit side must be noted, foremost the human cost,
to date: about 4,000 dead American troops, about 30,000 injured, perhaps half
seriously, including more than 600 amputees and about 3,000 diagnosed traumatic
brain injuries. Many more Iraqis have been killed. The financial cost of the war
will run above $1 trillion. We have also, at least temporarily, driven thousands
of Muslims into the radical ranks, created great enmity in much of the Muslim
world (and not a little in Europe also.)"
"If, after years of stumbling and bumbling, the enduring strength and
eventual wisdom of the American people can enter into the belly of the Islamist
world, overturn tyrants, empower the Muslim people with peaceable and prosperous
ways and intimidate two Islamist nuclear aspirants to renounce their
pretensions, we will show ourselves to be the strong horse."
Wow. Noting the human costs of the war in American and Iraqi terms. Noting the vast cost in treasure of the war. Noting driving thousands of muslims into the hands of the extremists. Noting the fact that we've been bumbling in Iraq for years. Holy Crap. A conservative on the pages on the Washinton Times pretty much saying that the criticisms of the left of this war have been right all along!
Blankely goes on to make an arguement that I've made for a while now. That if it is possible to succeed in Iraq that is the best path, and we may be on that path. Some people on the left have become to invested in the failure of Iraq and not willing to look at the problem going forward, rather they want to refight the decision to invade. But we Dems need to be willing to take credit for the fact that the turning point in Iraq was the turning point in US politics. The November 2006 election. Lets not blow it because we (rightfully) dislike and distrust Bush.
kwAwk
Tuesday, January 1, 2008
Bhutto Cries Foul From the Grave....
CNN is reporting that Benazir Bhutto was planning to meeting with Republican Arlen Spector and Democrat Patrick Kennedy on the day of her assasination to provide them with evidence that the Pakistani government was planning on rigging the upcoming elections for Prime Minister. Unfortunately I think the reaction of most everybody here is the US is going to be: "Duh. It's Pakistan, what do you expect".
But what gets me is the next claim from the article:
But what gets me is the next claim from the article:
Ninety percent of the equipment that the USA gave the government of Pakistan to fight terrorism is being used to monitor and to keep a check on their political opponents," the report says.
You've gotta love 3rd world countries ehh? The country is the new home for world terror. Their President has had numerous assasination attempts against him. Their political candidates are under constant attacks. The fanatical Islamists are drooling over the prospects of getting ahold of the country's nuclear weapons. And all can do is take the equipment we've sent them to help out and use it to futher degrade their own political institutions.
This is world George Bush has led us into. Our national security, ney, world security is in the hands of a government in Iraq which can't seem to compromise to save itself, a government in Afghanistan that has no control over its country, and a government in Pakistan which is more interested in fighting itself than Al Qaida.
If I were a religious person, I'd say 'God help us'.
kwAwk
Our Great Inaugural Post
The new year is here. We're counting down the days to the elections in 2008 and to the welcome day, shortly over one year from now when George W. Bush will finally be tossed onto the great scrap heap of history. Ooh admit how you long for that day to come! It is no secret! The real secret is how much the Republicans are longing for the day just as much.
So what is the point of this blog? What I'm aiming to do is to create a different form of blog. The standard format for a blog that I've come across seems to be a place where people can gather to demostrate to themselves exactly why everybody else in the world is downright stupid!! Except ofcourse those people who believe in exactly the same thing that the proprietor of the blog believes in. I want a free place where people can have fun, discuss issues, and maybe learn something new once in a while.
I am a Democrat and I am a liberal. I believe that liberals always win on important matters, it is just a matter of waiting long enough for the foot draggers to die off. Democracy during the revolution. Slavery during the civil war. Sufferage. The Sherman Anti-Trust Act. The League of Nations and the United Nations. The rise of Unionism. The New Deal. The Civil Rights Movements. And soon to come the equal rights for homosexuals.
But lets not confuse that with the notion of Liberals always being right. There has yet to be a perfect person born, and there has yet to be a ideology perfected. So expect me to be really hard on the Wingnuts, and loonies on the Right. But expect me to be just as hard on the left.
Anyways, hopefully I can at least be fair.
To whomever reads this, thanks for coming, and let me know what you do and don't enjoy!
kwAwk
So what is the point of this blog? What I'm aiming to do is to create a different form of blog. The standard format for a blog that I've come across seems to be a place where people can gather to demostrate to themselves exactly why everybody else in the world is downright stupid!! Except ofcourse those people who believe in exactly the same thing that the proprietor of the blog believes in. I want a free place where people can have fun, discuss issues, and maybe learn something new once in a while.
I am a Democrat and I am a liberal. I believe that liberals always win on important matters, it is just a matter of waiting long enough for the foot draggers to die off. Democracy during the revolution. Slavery during the civil war. Sufferage. The Sherman Anti-Trust Act. The League of Nations and the United Nations. The rise of Unionism. The New Deal. The Civil Rights Movements. And soon to come the equal rights for homosexuals.
But lets not confuse that with the notion of Liberals always being right. There has yet to be a perfect person born, and there has yet to be a ideology perfected. So expect me to be really hard on the Wingnuts, and loonies on the Right. But expect me to be just as hard on the left.
Anyways, hopefully I can at least be fair.
To whomever reads this, thanks for coming, and let me know what you do and don't enjoy!
kwAwk
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