Marsha v. NRO

Tennessee's own Marsha Blackburn was selected for an interview with NRO's Kathryn Jean Lopez ("One Conservative’s ‘No’"--Interview on National Review Online) regarding her vote not to approve the "Bailout" plan. I'm glad to see Blackburn in a lead role on this issue, but the questions said more about the presumptions of the "Financially-Sophisticated" than Blackburn's seemingly truncated answers said about the rationale for her vote. I'm not sure that Lopez wanted to hear the answers to the questions.

Dems circled the wagons on Frank, Freddie and Fannie

Here's some fascinating video footage of House hearings (from several years ago) during which Democrats circled the wagons on behalf of Obama advisor (and then Fannie Mae Chair/CEO) Frank Raines and Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae.

Well, not everyone circled the wagons . . . watch all the way to the end for the statement by Bill Clinton.

Now Democrats are attempting to pin the failure of these institutions (and their millstone effect on financial markets) on Republicans? Talk about audacity.

Maybe if McCain had been preparing . . .

Maybe one more debate prep session (as opposed to DC debates on the bailout) would have helped McCain respond to this fat pitch from Obama:("Saturday-Morning Quarterbacking" by John J. Pitney Jr.):

Early in the debate, Obama asked rhetorically: “The question, I think, that we have to ask ourselves is, how did we get into this situation in the first place?” Instead of talking abstractly about greed, McCain might have said: “Senator Obama wants to know how the trouble started. He might ask his close adviser Jim Johnson, who headed Fannie Mae and got an exorbitant pay package.”

Don't wring your silk stockings

A friend (one a little politically squishy, I'd say) lamented/announced to me this morning that Palin had really messed up in her interview with Katie Couric and blahblahblah. Yes blahblahblah, even when National Review writers like Kathleen Parker (a bit squishy, though certainly more politically conversant than my friend) are urging McCain to pull Palin off the field. ("Palin Problem" by Kathleen Parker on National Review Online).

Why this reaction? I've mentioned the squishyness factor(common among those I affectionately refer to as "Silk-stocking Republicans"), but a second reason for my indifference to such criticism is the fact that what follows is Parker's best evidence of Palin's incompetence:

When Couric pointed to polls showing that the financial crisis had boosted Obama’s numbers, Palin blustered wordily: “I’m not looking at poll numbers. What I think Americans at the end of the day are going to be able to go back and look at track records and see who’s more apt to be talking about solutions and wishing for and hoping for solutions for some opportunity to change, and who’s actually done it?”

Though that answer may have been worded more succinctly, what exactly would Ms. Parker propose as an answer to that question? Maybe something predictable (even if accurate) like accusing Democrats and their PR ops in the MSM of class warfare and vacuous "change" rhetoric?

Dem marketing

If marketing's objective is making a product a household name, nobody's better at political marketing--the negative kind, than the Dems. You can't spell demonize without D-E-M, as I was reminded in The Center for Public Integrity | PaperTrail Blog - ELECTION ’08: Scoring Secretary of State Seats for Dems">this email alert today blaming Democrat losses in 2000 and 2004 on Republican Secretaries of State (and promoting a 527 devoted to continued demagoguery of same).

CHILL OUT NASHVILLE

Anxious about lines at the gas station? Feeling powerless in the face of the fuel shortage? You're not powerless . . . and there's not much of a shortage . . . as WSMV is reporting, demand for gasoline in Middle Tennessee has DOUBLED over the weekend (they cited TEMA as the source for that figure). Panic Grips Area During Gas Shortage - Money News Story - WSMV Nashville. CHILL OUT NASHVILLE. Fight the urge to hoard gasoline.

The American Left and the War in Iraq

While reading a post about another outrageous Keith Olbermann statement, I was reminded of a recent (National Review) book review about Bing West's new book on the war in Iraq (The Strongest Tribe):

Bing West has many useful insights on the Iraq War. The nuggets are there for anyone willing to mine them. But two points in particular are worth noting.

The first is the danger of conducting war when American society is divided. One division, notes West, has been ideological and partisan: “Although sacrifice on a national scale is not required for every conflict, a healthy society does not treat war as an extension of domestic political competition. . . . National security cannot be sustained when domestic party affiliation and ideology determine the support for a war. Iraq was a symptom, not the cause of the ideological polarization of American society.”

The second insight is related to the foolishness of leaving Iraq without regard to the long-term consequences, another penchant of the American Left:

The second point concerns the endgame in Iraq. West argues that while the wisdom of invading Iraq in the first place can be debated by reasonable people, four factors should determine whether the U.S. perseveres in Iraq. First, a stable Iraq advances U.S. interests in the region. Second, any reduction of U.S. forces in Iraq should be done prudently, not in such a way as to signal that the U.S. has given up. Third, a precipitous pullout would most likely shatter Iraq, unleashing centrifugal forces. Fourth, if Iraq were to hold together in the face of a precipitous withdrawal, it would “resent America for having given up.” This would have serious implications for the regional balance of power.

It's for the children

Nutroots activists reportedly hacked into Sarah Palin's personal email account and this Ted Bridis AP story was shillingly amazing. From the article:

WASHINGTON (AP) - Hackers broke into the Yahoo! e-mail account that Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin used for official business as Alaska's governor, revealing as evidence a few inconsequential personal messages she has received since John McCain selected her as his running mate.

. . . .

The disclosure Wednesday raises new questions about the propriety of the Palin administration's use of nongovernment e-mail accounts to conduct state business. The practice was revealed months ago - prior to Palin's selection as a vice presidential candidate - after political critics obtained internal e-mails documenting the practice by some aides.

(emphasis added) Evidence of what? And what an interesting read on the story, "the disclosure (of illegal and astonishingly invasive activity) raises questions about" . . . drum roll please! . . . something bad about Palin. Give me a break.

To be sure, any illegal or unethical behavior by these Liberals is most certainly for the children.

Hillary has no time for non-partisan event, thank you

This seems like a major misstep in light of Barack Obama's strained relations with Jewish Democrats and Independents (read: Jewish voters). Hillary has cancelled an appearance (here) at an Iranian accountability rally because . . . the she-devil (aka Sarah Palin was also invited. Ironically, Clinton's people are complaining that the event is "partisan":

“Her attendance was news to us, and this was never billed to us as a partisan political event,” said Clinton spokesman Philippe Reines. “Sen. Clinton will therefore not be attending.”

I think she should have just gone, but I'll concede that graciousness is not a Hillary strong suit.

Change Fannie Mae can believe in

Barack Obama--after only three years in office, has outpaced all but one other Federal legislator in campaign donations from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac over the past 20 years.

Ironically, "Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama said Saturday that any government takeover of troubled mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac must put the interests of taxpayers and homeowners first," (here), while McCain, "said it was essential to restructure the mortgage giants."

Obama's crass Iraq politics

Change we can believe in? Give me a break. ("OBAMA TRIED TO STALL GIS' IRAQ WITHDRAWAL" - New York Post). From the article:

WHILE campaigning in public for a speedy withdrawal of US troops from Iraq, Sen. Barack Obama has tried in private to persuade Iraqi leaders to delay an agreement on a draw-down of the American military presence.

Evolving definitions of "election fraud"?

Tennessee Democrat leaders' weekend vote to punt on the Kurita/Barnes election controversy ("On Politics: Kurita was robbed on Nashville City Paper") has multiple "levels." Incidentally, none of the reports (e.g., Tennessean or the City Paper), provide any details about Barnes' basis for challenging his losing tally so it is difficult to know the validity of his claims (personally, I want the MSM to be my eyes and ears, not my brain).

But I have my suspicions. One thing that Barnes appears to have camped on is that some Republicans may have voted for Kurita in the primary . . . for the record, Dems, is cross-over voting in an open primary now a legitimate basis to void an election?

I can sympathize with Tennessee Lefties' spite for a maverick party member and bi-partisan Wilder votes, but this is just how these folks work . . . whatever it takes to win, right?

Obama's radical sex ed agenda

I've posted previously (here and here) I just came across this article chronicling a nationwide effort by a motley crew of organizations--the ACLU and Planned Promiscuity Parenthood Federation of America ©, to get states to reject Federal funds to pay for abstinence education in schools.

That in and of itself was disturbing, as the Crisis Pregnancy Center where I am involved saw grant money dry up following Gov. Bredesen's choice not to file the simple paperwork to receive the federal funds.

But another interesting angle to the story was all the Left-wing verbiage about "scientific" instruction about sex (read the article). That reminded me of the sex education legislation Barack Obama fought for in Illinois. I'm a bit embarrassed that I wasn't more aware of the "code" these groups were using, but it does help a voter connect the dots in discerning the values and priorities of Barack Obama, the person voted the "Most Liberal U.S. Senator" by National Journal.

People . . . if students receive Abstinence-only sex ed, it is not the only sex ed they get. I, like most parents, want my child to at least hear more than PPFA & Co.'s obligatory line: "Sure, the only way not to get pregnant (or otherwise punished, like by getting a STI) is to abstain from sex, but now everyone pick up the cucumber and the condom I've placed on your desk, and . . ."

Praising Palin with faint damnation--Part II

Here's another example of an article intended to reflect poorly on Sarah Palin which actually bolsters her image. By the way, all of the scandal-ish allusions in the article are teased up like beehive hairdos . . . feel free to challenge me on that assertion.

Gloves being challenged to go for jugular

As if Liberals haven't already taken the gloves off in regard to Sarah Palin, I came across this HuffPo article that throws down the proverbial gauntlet for the nutroots (I presume) Naomi Foner: We're in Big Trouble. There's some disturbingly Liberal clap-trap in the op/ed, and here's a sample:

Leaders need to be chosen from the most talented among us, not from the bottom of the barrel. And we shouldn't be afraid to say so.

What kind of misplaced chivalry would keep the Democrats from calling Sarah Palin what she is? An ignorant, misinformed, inexperienced, bigoted fraud. And unless we find a way to do it, she will be running the country before we have time to turn around.

As far as "talent," isn't it most important what someone does with their talent? And aren't a person's views on issues at least equally as important as whether they are "talented"?

Keep typing, idiots.

Is this "age appropriate," Senator Obama?

I posted previously about Barack Obama's radical views on sex education (here), but I just came across this story about efforts by HRC (the "Human Rights Campaign") in Minneapolis public schools to normalize homosexual behavior . . . among kindergartners.

I wonder if Barack Obama thinks this type of sex education is "age appropriate"?

Gearing up for "election fraud" fraud

Since Democrats are (now) facing some pretty ugly polling data, it would be wise to gear up for the inevitable, Left-wing "election fraud" stories to come, because Liberals don't ever lose elections.

Well this is an example of how some Democrats--in this case it is the Democratic Governor of Montana,* work to influence elections: hindering transparency of the process (I wonder why that is?). Such Dem tactics happen even in little ol' Nashville, as I observed while poll watching a number of precincts for Corker . . . various officials in these Democrat-heavy precincts weren't interested in anybody making sure that things were done according to the law. Hey, whatever it takes to win, right?



*Of course we now know that being a governor is not that big of a deal for Democrats.

Who's "lying" about the "bridge to nowhere"?

I know that Liberals/"Progressives" have a different standard for "lying," but I think this issue is a wash (see here and here)--voters can judge for themselves which campaign is over-reaching in their characterization of how the "bridge to nowhere" reflects on Palin's political character.

Obama and sex education for kindergarteners--UPDATE

You may have heard, but Barack Obama has long supported sex education for kindergarteners (link).

And I hope you'll forgive me for not implicitly trusting the most liberal person in the U.S. Senate (not to mention Planned Promiscuity Federation of America ©) to define "age-appropriate" and "explicit."


Incidentally, the Bill-that-Obama-Wishes-He'd-Voted-"Present"-On has this language:

"Factual information" includes without limitation
30 medical, psychiatric, psychological, empirical, and
31 statistical statements.

-2- LRB093 05269 NHT 05359 b
1 "Medically accurate" means verified or supported by
2 research conducted in compliance with scientific methods,
3 published in peer-review journals, where appropriate, and
4 recognized as accurate and objective by professional
5 organizations and agencies with expertise in the relevant
6 field.

(emphasis added) We know who those "organizations and agencies" are, don't we?

It's about time: Bishops criticize politicians "who claim to be Catholic"

Bishops criticize Biden’s abortion remarks for flawed reasoning. In response to Sen. Biden who,

said that he is “prepared as a matter of faith to accept that life begins at the moment of conception” but would not impose that belief on anyone through law. He claimed that to do so would be “inappropriate in a pluralistic society.”

A number of Catholic Bishops in the U.S. released a statement of their own:

“Any human being -- regardless of his faith, his religious practice or having no faith -- any human being can reason to the fact that human life from conception unto natural death is sacred,” he argued. “Biology -- not faith, not philosophy, not any kind of theology -- Biology tells us, science [says], that at the moment of conception there exists a unique individual of the human species.”

Glass ceilings; coat tails

I came across this (What is McCain Thinking? One Alaskan’s Perspective. « Mudflats) blog post (yes, they have a nutroot outpost in Alaska!!) this a.m. It is apparently garnering the blogger a lot of attention (1,246 comments/responses), but this howler deep down in the post needed a home on my blog:

"18 Million Cracks in the Glass Ceiling

It was obvious anyway, but became beat-you-over-the-head-with-a-two-by-four obvious when Palin referenced the ‘glass ceiling’ line, that this choice is a blatant pander to women. I would like to believe that women will actually feel insulted by this. Yes, it would have been historic if Hillary had gotten the nomination. It was historic that she made it as far as she did. Yes, it would be great to have a woman in the oval office, or in the VP slot if they are the right woman…a woman who got there with her own drive, grit, determination, intelligence, skill and merits. When you’re hand-picked by a man to win votes simply because you are a woman, that doesn’t count, and it doesn’t break any kind of ceiling. Would we have had a Stan Palin as our VP pick? No. So choosing a woman because you think her gender will get votes is insulting."

No doubt Hillary is intelligent and a hard worker, but to read the name "Hillary Clinton" in a paragraph about someone who got to where she was without a male's coattail is just stupid.

Sarah Palin's affair

While standing in the grocery store checkout line this evening, I saw a National Enquirer hit piece on Sarah Palin touting "the affair that almost ruined her career." As Byron York had discovered, though, there's no "there" there:

Concerning the allegations in the new National Enquirer of an extramarital affair involving Sarah Palin, I called the tabloid this afternoon and asked for a copy of the new story. They obliged, and here is the portion of the story dealing with the alleged affair:

Another incredible allegation emerging from the family war is that Palin, a mother of five, had an affair with a former business associate of her fisherman husband, Todd.

“Todd discovered the affair and quickly dissolved his friendship and his business associations with the guy,” charges an enemy. “Many people in Alaska are talking about the rumor and say Todd swept it under the rug.”

And that's it, as far as the affair is concerned. In the brief cover story, the Enquirer also says this:

The ugly family feud stems from a three-year battle between the 44-year-old governor and her former brother-in-law, state trooper Mike Wooten.

“Sarah has many enemies in her hometown – but a lot of them are in her own extended family,” a source close to the Palin family told The Enquirer.

Family members loyal to Wooten are now waging a campaign to drag Palin’s reputation through the mud.

This, on the heels of the now notorious US Magazine hit piece.

I guess if they similarly smear Democrats, I could believe that it is just a way to sell papers, but . . .

Did someone say "equal time"?

This is quite an admission from NBC and MSNBC. They've realized that Chris Matthews and Keith Olbermann are not journalists. But I had no idea how over-the-top they were--until I watched some of the "work" on youtube (Olbermann and Matthews on youtube) the DNC couldn't have done it more partisan-ly.

Praising Palin with faint damnation

This Politico article ("Palin’s cold shoulder - Kenneth P. Vogel") actually enhances Gov. Sarah Palin's maverick reputation, in my estimation, but you need to read the entire article. I especially like the verbiage pulled out of a "wrongful termination" complaint/pleading, which was ultimately dismissed (the only pleading you could expect to be more borderline defamatory would be a divorce petition . . . GET PALIN %&$@%#^*&+!!!!)

From the article:

While Sarah Palin’s supporters tout her personal warmth and openness, the newly minted Republican vice presidential nominee can be brusque to allies, advisers and employees who fall from her favor.

Palin has unceremoniously ended relationships with an aide who was dating a family friend’s soon-to-be ex-wife, a campaign adviser whose mother-in-law fought Palin’s legislative agenda, a local political mentor who she felt represented the “old boys' network,” a police chief who she said tried to intimidate her with “stern look[s]” and a state commissioner who refused to fire her sister’s ex-husband.

I was discussing this weekend with a close relative the uneasy feeling I get when an opposing party's attorney begins to demonstrate a willingness to throw his client under the bus in the interest of a quick resolution of a lawsuit. Unlike Palin (it seems), such attorneys forget who they work for.

For the first time in his adult life . . .

Bill Whittle (at NRO) explains why he's proud of the GOP for the first time in a while:

And I don’t know whether or not we will win in November, but for the first time I feel like we deserve to win more than they deserve to lose. And I find myself at peace for the first time in . . . well, it seems like forever. Because now I know that we will win or lose based on what we love and what we believe in, and that we have managed to find two politicians who have lived those values through good times and bad.

Community Organizer in Chief

I think the best line from Sarah Palin's acceptance speech was her response to Obama's denigration of her time as Mayor of Wasilla:

I guess a small-town mayor is sort of like a ‘community organizer,’ except that you have actual responsibilities.

(Though the line about having authored two books but no reform legislation either in the U.S. or Illinois senate was a good one).

Mark Hemingway of NationalReviewOnline
details how the "community organizer" line has the Left indignant and Michelle Malkin provides more background on the kind of organizing Obama has done.

The wrong kind of strong woman

Victor Davis Hanson explains why Palin Derangement Syndrome is "surreal":

In short, Sarah Palin is the emblem of what feminism was supposed to be all about: an unafraid, independent, audacious woman, who soared on her own merits without the aid of a patriarchal jumpstart, high-brow matrimonial tutelage and capital, and old-boy liaisons and networking.

Instead this entire sorry episode of personal invective against, and jealousy toward, Sarah Palin is surreal. Given the rising backlash, Palin Derangement Syndrome may prove to be the one thing, fairly or not, that sinks Barack Obama.

Could they do it again?

Despite a protracted military struggle (in Eyerack), a sluggish economy, high fuel prices and the advantage of being out of office for eight years, the Dems could snatch defeat out of the jaws of victory once again.

Drudge is reporting larger viewership for the GOP convention, more popularity for the GOP’s VP candidate and more popularity for the Conservative network than the opposition.

Must be racism.

Michael Moore proved wrong again: who serves in the military?

Yep, Michael Moore is proved wrong again--likewise for John Kerry. Here's a new study on those who serve--and those who are signing up to serve, in the U.S. Military.

Updated to include MM's crocumentary's assertions.

Palin: Miss Congenial Warrior

After reading this blog post from Andy McCarthy at NRO I remembered a draft post from last weekend about a great NPR story from 2006 on Sarah Palin in which you can see a glimpse of the "happy warrior"--like Ronald Reagan.

I think she showed that same winsome toughness last evening.

Ann Coulter on Palin

Perhaps one reason Glen Dean is keen on Sarah: ("The Best Man Turned Out To Be A Woman"):

John McCain's choice of Sarah Palin, governor of Alaska, as his running mate finally gave Republicans a reason to vote for him -- a reason, that is, other than B. Hussein Obama.

Otherwise, this is an op/ed that sums up my views on Palin.

A tribute to the family dog

I just came across this heart-rending tribute to a blogger's family dog--Charlie. I encourage you to read it if you want a nice respite from politics and/or a reminder of the simple pleasures of life.

They'll get over it--Education reform and the Democrats

This article at getliberty.org asserts that there may have been a "bitter breakup" between the Democrats and the Teachers' Unions:

"It appears that the demands of teachers unions have become so unpopular that not even the drafters of the Democrat Party platform this year wanted to fully embrace them."

At best, this is a "marital spat" and, based on the DNC's history in this area, this looks more like Bill Clinton's Federal School Uniforms Initiative than a sincere effort to reform/improve education.

Thompson delivers for the GOP

Fred Thompson is getting rave reviews for his performance at the RNC convention last night, and if you happened to miss it, here 'tis. Aside from his distracting throat-clearing, I think it was a notable testimonial.

Dems' working theory of working class

Andrea Tantaros has a nice op/ed related to how Sarah Palin threatens the Left:

This could only mean there must be something about Sarah Palin that is deeply threatening to the left, a constituency that has long believed they have cornered the working mother market. Five kids? She should be at home begging Democrats for a handout. A husband in a union? He should be on the picket lines.

Liberals like to pretend they are tolerant and accepting of those who are different but when it comes to anyone not ensconced in their progressive, elitist dogma they mock and attack their lifestyle to inspire hate.

And Rich Lowry writes,

As such, she’s the object of the cultural disdain of a Left that loves the working class in theory, but is mystified or offended by its lifestyle and conservative values in reality. If there’s ever been an exemplar of the rural America that, in Barack Obama’s telling, “bitterly” clings to its guns and religion, it’s Sarah Palin.

Nutroots discover "sermons on-line"

Though not in time to adequately vet Democratic candidate Barack Obama, it appears that the Liberal nutroots have discovered that church sermons are available on-line. "Palin's Church May Have Shaped Controversial Worldview," Nico Pitney and Sam Stein on the Huffington Post.

I'm kind of doubting they'll conclude that Obama's church for the last 20 years has "shaped" his worldview.

Show your donkeys, Democrats

Wow.

A couple things regarding Bristol Palin's pregnancy. First, I hope--HOPE, that her decision to keep (as opposed to place for adoption--chopping up said human isn't an option) the child and marry the father has been made completely without regard to her mother's professional goals.

Second, it is disheartening to observe the Left's reaction to the report (in the comments).

Next, even people with morals fall short of their standards. That doesn't mean that we should do away with morals.

Lastly, teaching kids that self-control is inferior to birth control isn't the answer to out-of-wedlock births. And using a teenage daughter as a demagogic prop is wrong.

Identity politics and Sarah Palin

As they say, "great trains . . ." Glen has posted a response (at TennesseeFree) to Newscoma's "Girl Politics" post, so I thought I'd post my Friday night draft on the subject. I have a little different take on it, but . . .

Newscoma raises the issue of identity politics in regard to McCain running mate Sarah Palin. It's a fair-minded and lucid post on the subject, but it highlights how most Democrats/Liberals are exaggerating (for effect) one purported consideration of McCain in making this choice: the potential for peeling off some of the likely Hillary Clinton voter demographic.

As Newscoma concedes, Palin is right on most issues important to the GOP base; she's talented and winsome; she's a rising political star with more than winning political campaigns to her credit (especially campaigns against inveterate, carpet-bagging, firebrand opponents). Actually, Newscoma didn't concede the parenthetical comment . . .

The Hillary Clinton voter that McCain has in mind is not this variety, which makes up a very small portion of the American population. As Rich at ShotsAcrosstheBow asserts, it is the "uncommitted moderate female vote" he was after.

Which raises, for me, another issue that ACK touched on yesterday. I think the Left, especially in the area of "social issues," doesn't realize how out of touch it is with the average voter, much less "traditionalists."

"Average voter" doesn't mean the 15-20% on each end of the political spectrum, mind you. And given that the diehards of each party/movement often drive the political debate, the key in winning a presidential election is how much a party's respective diehards overlap--in values, with the average, middling, non-partisan voter.

I think Democrats are misunderestimating Palin's strength in this area.

Just a pretty face?

In a post commenting on a Frank Luntz focus group of voters answering the question, "Why vote for Obama?" (video included):

But what, besides winning elections, has the guy actually done for America? For his state? What has he accomplished besides winning elections while black? For goodness sake, even Ms. America has a talent competition.

This line might come in handy when responding to derisive Democratic comments about Sarah Palin's history in beauty pageants.