Think Progress

ThinkFast: September 3, 2008

By Think Progress on Sep 3rd, 2008 at 9:03 am

ThinkFast: September 3, 2008»


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Steve Schmidt, Sen. John McCain’s (R-AZ) top campaign strategist, yesterday accused the media of being “on a mission to destroy” Gov. Sarah Palin (R-AK) by displaying “a level of viciousness and scurrilousness” in pursuing questions about her personal life. Schmidt said the McCain campaign feels “under siege” by news inquiries on Palin.

Sen. John McCain has long campaigned against Congress earmarking federal money for pet projects back home, having gone so far as publishing “pork lists” detailing these financial favors. However, “three times in recent years, McCain’s catalogs of ‘objectionable’ spending have included earmarks for this small Alaska town, requested by its mayor at the time — Sarah Palin.”

Yesterday, the state Supreme Court in Bronx County “dismissed challenges brought by a coalition of conservative activists, Republican state lawmakers and the Arizona-based Alliance Defense Fund to a directive by Gov. David Paterson that all state agencies recognize same-sex marriages performed outside New York.”

Although Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) has vowed to distance himself from lobbyists, CQ reports that “McCain and the Republicans gathered in St. Paul are sending a more nuanced message by integrating some of K Street’s brightest stars as managers of floor activities — suggesting that lobbyists could play important roles in advancing a McCain administration agenda.”

On the trail: Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) will be traveling to Minnesota for the Republican National Convention today. Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) will be discussing women and the economy at Kent State University in Ohio.

California lawmakers passed a bill aimed at cutting CO2 emissions by “rewarding cities and counties that prevent urban sprawl and improve public transportation.” Supporters and transportation experts say it is “the first measure in the nation to link government transportation funding with urban planning and CO2-reduction goals.”

Vice President Dick Cheney “traveled to Azerbaijan Wednesday, part of a tour of three ex-Soviet republics wary of Russia’s intentions following last month’s war between Russia and neighboring Georgia.” Azerbaijan is “home to some of the largest oil and gas reserves in the former Soviet Union.”

“The Commerce Department reported Tuesday that construction spending declined 0.6 percent in July, double the 0.3 percent decrease analysts had been expecting.” Construction activity is down 4.7 percent from last year, ” representing one of the major drags on the current economy.”

And finally: Huffington Post claims to have caught former president George H.W. Bush checking his watch last night during First Lady Laura Bush’s speech at the Republican National Convention. The site has posted the “nostalgia-inducing video” here.

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116 Responses to “ThinkFast: September 3, 2008”

  1. Freedom Rebel Says:

    strong>Palin Gets Crash Course in Foreign Policy l0l

    The McCain team has hastily assembled a team of former Bush White House aides to tutor the vice-presidential candidate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, on foreign-policy issues, to write her speeches and to begin preparing her for her all-important Oct. 2 debate against Sen. Joe Biden.

    Steve Biegun, who once served as the No. 3 National Security Council official under Condoleezza Rice at the White House, has been hired as chief foreign-policy adviser to the Alaska governor. After taking leave from his job as vice president for international affairs at Ford Motor Co. last Friday, Biegun flew to St. Paul and, together with McCain’s foreign-policy guru Randy Schuenemann, began briefings for Palin on national-security issues—an area where her resume is conspicuously thin. (That is just a nice way of saying she has absolutely no experience in foreign policy or national-security issues.)

    Biegun is hardly the only Bushie to be tapped for Palin duty. Among others:

    Matt Scully, a former Bush White House speechwriter, is working on Palin’s acceptance speech to the convention Wednesday night.

    Mark Wallace, a former lawyer for the Bush 2000 campaign who served in a variety of administration jobs including chief counsel, has been put in charge of “prep” for the debate against Biden.

    Wallace’s wife, Nicolle Wallace, the former White House communications director, has taken over the same job for Palin.

    Tucker Eskew, another senior Bush White House communications aide, is serving as senior counselor to Palin’s operation.

    Douglas Holtz-Eakin, the former chief economist at the Council of Economic Advisers who has been serving as top economics guru for the McCain campaign, has moved over to serve as Palin’s chief domestic-policy adviser.

    The proliferation of former Bush White House aides in the Palin team may strike some as ironic—and could even provide some fodder for the Democrats—given the McCain camp’s efforts to distance itself from the unpopular president.

    Newsweek

    Talk about an excercise in futility. No amount of briefings is going to help Palin in a debate against Biden. He has been an 11 year member and current chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations. Palin doesn’t stand a chance in being able to speak, from a position of experience or authority, on any major foreign policy issue. It will be entertaining to see Biden make her look completely inadequate for the position of Vice-President.


  2. RUCerious Says:

    the McCain campaign feels “under siege” by news inquiries on Palin

    Ummm, then why’d you dumfuks nominate an unqualified candidate?


  3. TAGG Says:

    I have this gnawing feeling in the pit of stomach that the Palin gambit may just checkmate the Democrats in November, Read more. http://www.tagg-lines.com/ 2008/ 09/ sugar-and-spice-and-everything-nice.html


  4. Freedom Rebel Says:

    strong>Fox host: RNC Protesters Should Just be Left in Jail…

    The hosts of Fox & Friends were predictably irate on Tuesday about the alleged anarchists who have been witnessed causing disruptions during the Republican National Convention, while ignoring questionable police tactics and seemingly indiscriminate arrests directed against peaceful protesters and journalists.

    Gretchen Carlson even appeared to believe that there was no difference between the thousands of orderly protesters and the few dozen individuals who appear in Fox video breaking windows and overturning park benches and litter baskets. “‘Peaceful, family-friendly march’ — is that why I was running for cover into Walmart?” she asked.

    Steve Doocy explained to her that there was a distinction. “These are some of the protesters, and in a moment you’ll see them start to run,” he said, narrating the video he had shot earlier. “Apparently some of the nitwits, these anarchists behind there, are throwing stuff at some of the police.

    They do it on Labor Day because a lot of people have the day off — even though they do not have jobs,” speculated Doocy.
    “They’ve got to put them in jail and leave them in jail,” Kilmeade suggested angrily. “Just leave them there for a week. … Just say the paperwork got messed up.

    Rawstory

    I’d like to see Kilmeade’s & Gretchen’s reaction, if it were them that were forced to lay face down with handcuffs on for 45 minutes while they unlawfully search their homes.

    Or that, St. Paul was the most militarized American city starting Sunday night, even more so than Manhattan in the week of 9/11 — with troops of federal, state and local law enforcement agents marching around with riot gear, machine guns, and tear gas cannisters, shouting military chants and marching in military formations.

    Their complete idiocy knows no bounds.


  5. RUCerious Says:

    You really can’t blame the chymp for being bored out of his tiny mind with his StepfordSpouse’s ramblings.


  6. RUCerious Says:

    Caption contest:

    Crap! I thought caviar was, you know, my friends, jelly or something you’d put on your donut!


  7. tom Says:

    the McCain campaign feels “under siege” by news inquiries on Palin

    The republican’ts are the ultimate “ambulance chasers”. McNumbNuts wandered out into the middle of the street and got his sorry arse run over by a bus. Of course, it’s his own dam fault. Watching them all play the “victim card” has been very humorous, though.


  8. raynman Says:

    Caption:

    Jeff Gannon put the frosting on this donut!!!!


  9. RUCerious Says:

    And here’s the thumper for the day.
    CBS news reports that Ms Palin has been an active member of the Alaska Independence Party. This party advocates secession from the Union in order for Alaska to be its own country.
    THE ALASKA INDEPENDENCE PARTY


  10. Fritz Says:

    Great photo of Grampy! That’s just what I feel like when looking at these morons.


  11. McWars Says:

    Steve Schmidt, Sen. John McCain’s (R-AZ) top campaign strategist, yesterday accused the media of being “on a mission to destroy” Gov. Sarah Palin

    Why would a person throw their own daughter under the bus to quell rumors they could have simply denied? A media spectacle should be present — the veep candidate who opposes sex education has her own daughter to show for it.


  12. tom Says:

    Tucker Eskew, another senior Bush White House communications aide, is serving as senior counselor to Palin’s operation.

    Hmmmm. Would be the same Tucker Eskew who ran the smear campaign against McNumbNuts in South Carolina in 2000?

    Politics makes strange bedfellows, indeed!


  13. Fritz Says:

    “Steve Schmidt, Sen. John McCain’s (R-AZ) top campaign strategist, yesterday accused the media of being “on a mission to destroy” Gov. Sarah Palin (R-AK) by displaying “a level of viciousness and scurrilousness” in pursuing questions about her personal life. Schmidt said the McCain campaign feels “under siege” by news inquiries on Palin.”

    If these morons can’t handle media heat, how can they handle terrorism, the struggling economy, health care and the rest of the big, bad world?

    Whiners and crybabies.


  14. Kay Says:

    I like Jack Cafferty from CNN — here’s what he had to say yesterday:

    NEW YORK (CNN) — This week the Republicans gather for their convention. For four days, they will labor under the illusion their party is still relevant. It’s not.

    It is entirely fitting that the headliner for this masquerade is a feeble looking 72-year-old white guy who doesn’t know how many homes he owns.

    It’s more than symbolic that when a million Americans are losing their homes to foreclosure, the Republican candidate for president has lost track of his holdings.

    McCain surrounds himself with people like former Republican Sen. Phil Gramm who called America a “nation of whiners” and said we are only suffering a “mental recession.”

    That’s the same problem the Republican Party has. It has lost track of what it used to stand for: small government, a disciplined fiscal policy, integrity.

    In a way, the perfect storm of a rapidly changing population — old white people aren’t going to be in the majority very much longer (and isn’t that who most of the Republicans are?) — has combined with the total abdication of principles, Republican or otherwise, of arguably the worst president in the nation’s history to mark the beginning of the end of the Republican Party as we know it.

    Republican Congressman Tom Davis of Virginia said it best: “The Republican brand is in the trash can. If we were dog food, they would take us off the shelf.”

    It is so bad that more than 10 percent of the Republican members of the United States Senate aren’t even bothering to attend their own party’s convention. They recognize dog food when they see it.

    Don’t Miss
    The Cafferty File: Join the conversation
    Jack’s book: “It’s Getting Ugly Out There”
    Commentary: Beverly “Hillary-billies” come to Denver
    In Depth: Commentaries
    And it almost doesn’t matter who the next president is. We are witnessing the beginnings of a sea change in this country.

    A wakeup call has sounded for young people who are suddenly interested enough in politics to make a difference. New voter registrations across the country are making a mockery of the old polling models.

    Voter turnout in the primaries was staggering. Blacks and Hispanics feel they have a real stake in things — and as their numbers continue to grow as a percentage of the population, their voice will only get louder. The march of the next generation is underway and the older generation has no choice but to eventually get out of the way.

    Watch for the signs this November. Republicans stand to be turned out of office at every level — from the U.S. Congress to governors’ mansions and state legislatures. Republicans who remain in office will be rendered impotent by their shrinking numbers.

    Republicans under George W. Bush have done a lot of damage to this country in the last eight years — but they have done more damage to themselves. It will take a good long while and a great deal of soul searching before their brand returns to the shelves in good standing.

    Don’t look for it to happen in St. Paul, Minnesota. This week, Republicans will be happy in the land of make believe.


  15. McWars Says:

    I think…we’ve been toppled. That RNC crowd, with the Hillary supporters backed up into the nose bleed seats and more waiting outside, willing to pay premium prices to pack an already jam-packed stadium. Even Chuck Hagel was there. I think we have a real threat on our hands, folks.


  16. Kay Says:

    The clock is ticking:

    I wonder when Palincomparison is going to step down a la
    Harriet Myers….


  17. RUCerious Says:

    Kay, Jack and Keith are the two best commentators in recent history. Not afraid to tell it like it is.
    Gotta wonder how the pooches at FauxSnooze feel when stacked upo against REAL journalists.


  18. misshusseinmolly Says:

    Schmidt said the McCain campaign feels “under siege” by news inquiries on Palin.
    _________________________________________________________

    What? They want Palin to be “treated like a girl”? Hillary was never given any special treatment, nor should any woman seeking the highest or the second-highest office in the land.

    The stakes are too high to allow any person to ascend to the White House without reasonable challenges as to their qualifications. The questions being asked of Palin are reasonable. As far as the baby thing goes, I have heard far more about it from the Republicans than from the Democrats.

    Grow up, people! If you don’t want the bigtime, don’t play.


  19. The Republic of Stupidity Says:

    Steve Biegun, who once served as the No. 3 National Security Council official under Condoleezza Rice at the White House, has been hired as chief foreign-policy adviser to the Alaska governor. After taking leave from his job as vice president for international affairs at Ford Motor Co.
    _____________

    From Condosleeza Rice to Ford?

    Geez, this guys served on not one but two sinking ships… he’s perferct for the job of turoring Ms Palin…


  20. McWars Says:

    I did see a guy in the crowd though, rather kooky, holding up an “ROTFL!” sign. Eventually got lost somewhere in between the rubes’ “AMERICA FEAST” signs.


  21. Wayne Says:

    Caption contest:

    OK, who farted?


  22. dbadass Says:

    Hi aceomalley7,
    Thanks for dropping by…

    “Arghhhh Arugala!!!!”


  23. hussein toasterhead Says:

    Slightly OT, but:
    In A World Without The “In A World” Guy…
    Sad news for the entertainment world - voiceover artist Don LaFontaine, whose gravelly baritone graced more than 5,000 movie trailers, died on Monday at age 68.

    http://www.washingtonpost.com/ wp-dyn/ content/ article/ 2008/ 09/ 02/ AR2008090201336.html


  24. RUCerious Says:

    Here’s hoping the Democratic Congressional leadership will kick Joe (I-Israel) Liebernamm to the curb, strip him of all committee memberships, and move his office into the basement restroom.


  25. Wayne Says:

    I noticed the shots of the crowd showed gaping holes, lots of empty seats in that stadium. The crowd that was there seemed to have alot of empty heads as well.


  26. RUCerious Says:

    Umm, Acehole, would that be the graveyard where the Republican hopes for election 08 are now dead and buried, but still stinking the country up?


  27. McWars Says:

    aceomalley7 Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    I love checking in from time to time and watching you pricks whistle by the graveyard…

    Speaking of graveyards, I sure hope the GOOBER convention has a steady supply of coffins on standby for their 200-strong audience.


  28. Bilbo Hussein Baggins Says:

    Steve Schmidt, Sen. John McCain’s (R-AZ) top campaign strategist, yesterday accused the media of being “on a mission to destroy” Gov. Sarah Palin (R-AK) by displaying “a level of viciousness and scurrilousness” in pursuing questions about her personal life.

    Excuse me, if Palin really was vetted, they knew she had a very messy personal life and would have expected it to come to light. If they didn’t vet her, too bad so sad.

    Sarah Palin’s messy personal life speaks volumes about her character and is entirely relevant to her being the VP nominee.

    If they can’t stand the heat, maybe they should get out of the kitchen.


  29. RantingTommy Says:

    aceomalley7 Says:

    My question to you: are you serious???

    Yes, we seriously want you to grow up.


  30. Bilbo Hussein Baggins Says:

    Although Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) has vowed to distance himself from lobbyists…

    If he truly means that, then he should be firing all the lobbyists in his campaign. Unfortunately that would be a majority of the people he has working for him.


  31. Freedom Rebel Says:

    Palin Slashed Funding For Teen Moms

    Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, the Republican vice-presidential nominee who revealed Monday that her 17-year-old daughter is pregnant, earlier this year used her line-item veto to slash funding for a state program benefiting teen mothers in need of a place to live.After the legislature passed a spending bill in April, Palin went through the measure reducing and eliminating funds for programs she opposed. Inking her initials on the legislation — “SP” — Palin reduced funding for Covenant House Alaska by more than 20 percent, cutting funds from $5 million to $3.9 million. Covenant House is a mix of programs and shelters for troubled youths, including Passage House, which is a transitional home for teenage mothers.

    According to Passage House’s web site, its purpose is to provide “young mothers a place to live with their babies for up to eighteen months while they gain the necessary skills and resources to change their lives” and help teen moms “become productive, successful, independent adults who create and provide a stable environment for themselves and their families.”

    Washington Post

    All of these neverending revelations wouldn’t be possible if it wasn’t for the blogosphere. The more I read, the more I find she is a perfect fit for John McCain, birds of a feather. I guess sympathy for teen pregancies does not rate high on the list of priorities for McCain or Palin. Only in the Republican Party do facts sound like excerpts out of a good fiction novel.


  32. Uncle Ho Says:

    caption contest:

    I just swallowed another load of Bush man-love.


  33. Fritz Says:

    aceomalley7 Says:

    My question to you: are you serious???

    Are you retarded?


  34. Bilbo Hussein Baggins Says:

    Azerbaijan is “home to some of the largest oil and gas reserves in the former Soviet Union.”

    Iraq didn’t work out too well for them, so they need to set their sights elsewhere. But, I don’t think Russia is the place. Besides, there is hopefully not enough time left in their rein of terror to start something new, other than attacking Iran.

    I’m hoping that they won’t attack Iran because they worry how it will affect the election. I can’t imagine it would help McBush. People in this country are sick to death of American aggression and endless war.


  35. McWars Says:

    aceomalley7 Says:

    My question to you: are you serious???

    My question to you, for which I expect a dim answer: Why does the republican party insist on feigning enthusiasm for what is an entirely broken brand? It’s evidently clear that you people are so self-absorbed with your “principles”, that you will stubbornly remain in the 19th century as the rest of the country yearns to move forward.


  36. The Republic of Stupidity Says:

    Wayne Says:

    I noticed the shots of the crowd showed gaping holes, lots of empty seats in that stadium. The crowd that was there seemed to have alot of empty heads as well.
    ______________

    But I hear the laugh track and canned applause were really first rate…


  37. Marie Says:

    Take your pick, folks — a few more facts on Palin.

    - Sarah Palin as a force in the battle against earmarks and entrenched power brokers - under her leadership the state this year asked for almost $300 per person in requests for pet projects from one of McCain’s top adversaries: indicted Sen. Ted Stevens.

    - Republicans, while managing to take swipe after swipe at Barack Obama, haven’t told us a thing about McCain’s plan for the fixing the failed economy. Nothing. The failing economy isn’t just a political issue for American families, it’s a harsh reality.

    - Speaking before the Pentecostal church, Palin painted the current war in Iraq as a messianic affair in which the United States could act out the will of the Lord.

    - The founder of the Alaska Independence Party — a group that has been courted over the years by Sarah Palin, and one her husband was a member of for roughly seven years — once professed his “hatred for the American government” and cursed the American flag as a “damn flag.”

    Palin’s pastor, Larry Kroon, introduced David Brickner, the founder of Jews for Jesus on Aug. 17, according to a transcript of the sermon on the church’s website.

    Brickner’s mission has drawn wide criticism from the organized Jewish community, and the Anti-Defamation League accused them in a report of “targeting Jews for conversion with subterfuge and deception.”

    Brickner also described terrorist attacks on Israelis as God’s “judgment of unbelief” of Jews who haven’t embraced Christianity.

    Palin was in church that day, Kroon said, though he cautioned against attributing Brickner’s views to her.

    Yeah, just like Wright’s words were not attributed to Obama.


  38. Freedom Rebel Says:

    #25 RUCerious Says:

    Here’s hoping the Democratic Congressional leadership will kick Joe (I-Israel) Liebernamm to the curb, strip him of all committee memberships, and move his office into the basement restroom.

    Good Morning RUC :) I agree and will add I hope the good people of CT wake up and stop voting for him.


  39. Bilbo Hussein Baggins Says:

    TAGG Says:
    I have this gnawing feeling in the pit of stomach that the Palin gambit may just checkmate the Democrats in November, Read more. http://www.tagg-lines.com/ 2008/ 09/ sugar-and-spice-and-everything-nice.html

    I don’t buy it. None of the women I know feel that she is being treated unfairly. But, then maybe I know more intelligent women than does the author of that piece.


  40. Kay Says:

    If McGeezer kicks the bucket one day after taking the “oath” (hehe) — Palincomparison will be the scariest GOP puppet ever. With her “librarian” glasses, her hair extensions, her bad make-up and screechy voice: be afraid. be very afraid.


  41. House of Roberts Says:

    aceomalley7 at 9:31 am

    For the first time, the Obama campaign has reached or exceeded the important 50% mark in two consecutive polls. In fact, the three most recent polls have Obama at that level:

    Gallup: 50%, 8 point lead

    Rasmussen: 51%, 6 point lead

    USA Today: 50%, 7 point lead


  42. McWars Says:

    My First Foreign Policy Workbook

    Name: __Sawah Pallinn__


  43. IgnoranceIsNotBliss Says:

    Schmidt said the McCain campaign feels “under siege” by news inquiries on Palin.

    Hey, if you can’t run with the big dogs, stay at home on the porch with the puppies.


  44. Kay Says:

    #42: this of course, is unlikley b/c I don’t see McGeezer/Palincomparison being elected…


  45. Iolair Says:

    Kay Says:

    In a way, the perfect storm of a rapidly changing population — old white people aren’t going to be in the majority very much longer (and isn’t that who most of the Republicans are?) — has combined with the total abdication of principles, Republican or otherwise, of arguably the worst president in the nation’s history to mark the beginning of the end of the Republican Party as we know it.

    Kay, now the McCain/Palin nomination finally makes sense. Bush supporters are desperately looking for someone to keep Bush from going down in History as the Worst President/Administration ever!


  46. House of Roberts Says:

    House of Roberts at 9:46 am

    http://tpzoo.wordpress.com/ 2008/ 09/ 02/ obama-ticket-cracks-50/

    Meant to add this to previous comment


  47. The Republic of Stupidity Says:

    From the WaPo…

    McCain Strategist Blasts Media
    Top Aide Says News Organizations Are ‘on a Mission to Destroy’ Palin

    Sayeth the article: “The McCain camp has been unusually aggressive in pushing back against the media, and it seems to hope to persuade journalists to back off in their scrutiny of Palin…”

    Riiiiiiiiight… Back off, boys… so we’re free to concoct and float our own fact-free, fairy tale bullsh*t stories


  48. Wayne Says:

    aceomalley7 Says:

    My question to you: are you serious???

    My question to you: Were you born brain damaged or did your momma drop you on your head?


  49. Bilbo Hussein Baggins Says:

    You gotta love the current crop of trolls. They are all running scared and the things they post are getting stupider and stupider. Too bad so sad.


  50. The Republic of Stupidity Says:

    You’re making a big maistake here, House of Roberts…

    You’re assuming Arseomalley can actually read…

    Home skoolin’ works!


  51. Bilbo Hussein Baggins Says:

    All of these neverending revelations wouldn’t be possible if it wasn’t for the blogosphere.

    It’s pretty scary. Think about how this would be if there was no Internet. Sarah Palin could be presented to us as anything they wanted her to be.

    The only thing standing between us and the MSM is the Internet. Thank god it’s there or we would all be woefully uninformed.


  52. Bilbo Hussein Baggins Says:

    But I hear the laugh track and canned applause were really first rate…

    Has anyone figured out which network is filming the convention?


  53. McWars Says:

    A couple thoughts..

    - Michelle Bachmann, in true fashion, had that stupid smile plastered on her face. She used the “government checks” strawman, where the sheeple collectively booed.

    - Joe Lieberman need to stop indentifying himself as a democrat. He ran as an independed, he won as an independent, and he is in office as an independent. He is a war nut who doesn’t represent our party. Get it over with, rip off the band-aid, and announce your run as a republican in the next election, Lie.

    Everyone at the funeral was on their cues.


  54. Bilbo Hussein Baggins Says:

    aceomalley7 - Somehow I don’t remember versions 1-6, do you? I guess it’s a status symbol for trolls to start out here with a high number next to their name.


  55. deebaser Says:

    The Republic of Stupidity Says:
    But I hear the laugh track and canned applause were really first rate…

    Do you really think they used canned applause? At some points (IE when Laura Bush was introduced) it was really wierd how the applause stopped on a dime.

    Also, in the crowd shots it didn’t look as though people were going as nuts as the volume indicated….

    Ill take off my tin foil hat now.


  56. House of Roberts Says:

    The Republic of Stupidity at 9:53 am

    His typist will explain it to him, as well as the other responses.


  57. The Republic of Stupidity Says:

    deebaser Says:

    Do you really think they used canned applause?
    ______________

    Distinct possibility, yes…

    W/ this crowd, I’m surprised they weren’t using cardboard cutouts and inflatable dolls to fill the seats for the cameras…

    And then all the GOOPers could have started hitting on the dolls after it was over…

    “Hey, babe… what’cha doin’ afterwards? Huh… the quiet type… I like that…”


  58. Freedom Rebel Says:

    #18 misshusseinmolly Says:

    What? They want Palin to be “treated like a girl”? Hillary was never given any special treatment, nor should any woman seeking the highest or the second-highest office in the land.

    The stakes are too high to allow any person to ascend to the White House without reasonable challenges as to their qualifications. The questions being asked of Palin are reasonable. As far as the baby thing goes, I have heard far more about it from the Republicans than from the Democrats.

    Grow up, people! If you don’t want the bigtime, don’t play.

    Good Morning misshusseinmolly :)

    That brings to mind something I read last night. I was doing research and was on Michelle Malkin’s website. This is the title of the blog article: P.D.S. alert: Us magazine’s partisan hit job

    You ask what is PDS-Malkin definition is Palin Derangement Syndrome. Anyways she was ranting as usual, but she is angry this time at US magazine because on the Front Cover is a picture of Palin and Trig. Big Bold Print: Babies, Lies & Scandals. This is what she had to say about them laying out the facts to the public. “You may not want to put money in the pockets of rabid partisans who have turned their gossip rag into a propaganda arm for the Democrat Party.”

    LOL, I started laughing so hard. Since when is US magazine been “rabid partisans” or the propaganda arm of the Democrat Party. Neo-cons like her are really reaching on that one…. Talk about desperate..

    Have a good day Missmolly….


  59. The Republic of Stupidity Says:

    House of Roberts Says:

    His typist will explain it to him, as well as the other responses.
    _____________

    Grunting and gesticulation, or pictograms?


  60. fletc3her Says:

    The McCain campaign invited this intense scrutiny of Sarah Palin. The timing of the selection, just one day after Barack Obama’s generation defining speech, suggests that they wanted to dominate the news cycles over the weekend. They wanted a selection who would still be news even with a Hurricane bearing down on the gulf coast.

    I imagine that they do have some regrets now, but blaming the media for doing their job seems disingenuous. Over the past two years, even five years, we’ve heard a lot about Obama’s biography. We’ve heard a lot about preachers at Obama’s church for heaven’s sake! We’ve heard about Biden’s stutter. We’ve heard about McCain’s POW experience.

    Now the media is trying to catch up on all the primary coverage in just a couple days. This woman could be the next Vice President of the United States and we, collectively, know nothing about her. I’m sure the editors of every major publication looked in their files and found a very skinny folder on Sarah Palin. Reporters are combing the streets of Alaska, not necessarily for dirt, but for background on someone who could be the leader of the free world.


  61. tom Says:

    re: your thoughts, McWars –

    1) Bimbo Bachmann served as a vision of “Palin-Future” ten years from now (if she survives a public vetting) — a walking right-wing cliche full of botox and meaningless platitudes and slogans

    2) let’s hope Smokin’ Joe does for McNumbNuts what he did for Gore — costs him five percentage points in the popular vote


  62. The Republic of Stupidity Says:

    Bilbo Hussein Baggins Says:

    aceomalley7 - Somehow I don’t remember versions 1-6, do you? I guess it’s a status symbol for trolls to start out here with a high number next to their name.
    __________

    Awwwwww, give Arse a break, Bilbo… he was named after his fathers… or at least his mom’s best estimate…


  63. Kay Says:

    I wonder if they computer generate the crowd at the RNC? Just like the photo of the military when the Chymp visited.


  64. VerbalKint Says:

    TAGG Says:
    I have this gnawing feeling in the pit of stomach that the Palin gambit may just checkmate the Democrats in November, Read more. http://www.tagg-lines.com/ 2008/ 09/ sugar-and-spice-and-everything-nice.html

    There is a core of left wing bloggers saying similar things about the Palin choice. What they are saying (along with a lot of other defeatist crap) is ridiculous. Only a tiny number of females who might otherwise vote for Obama will switch to McCain, and this number will be vastly outweighed by votes that McCain loses for making such a bizarre and ill-considered choice. Palin is nearly pure downside for the McCain ticket. There is no Rovian genius to this pick.


  65. The Republic of Stupidity Says:

    Seriously, Kay… if they were going to use CG folks to pump up the audience, would they have created such old, wrinkly, ugly folks? Now, if the audience had looked like the cast of “Baywatch”… I’d say absolutely…


  66. Kay Says:

    or at least put one black person…


  67. Freedom Rebel Says:

    #51 Bilbo Hussein Baggins Says:

    All of these neverending revelations wouldn’t be possible if it wasn’t for the blogosphere.

    It’s pretty scary. Think about how this would be if there was no Internet. Sarah Palin could be presented to us as anything they wanted her to be.

    The only thing standing between us and the MSM is the Internet. Thank god it’s there or we would all be woefully uninformed.

    I totally agree Bilbo :) The fact that free-thinking people investigate facts instead of believing everything they read, has proven to be invaluable. Because all of us have found out that you can’t trust many media sources anymore.

    The right-wingers can cry and stomp their feet all they want over this but the bottom line is, when you enter public life you are put under a microscope. That is the reality of it. She used her baby Trig as a political tool, which I find reprehensible. She will continue to get alot of backlash over that issue, because of how she did it.


  68. bigeugene Says:

    This quote is both the very definition of irony (an old boy calling out old boys) and conspiracy.

    I love their violent reaction to the media vetting of Palin…ummm you guys totally f-ed up and now they are simply doing your job for you. Did you think people wouldn’t look into her background simply because you failed to look into her background? And boy are they pi$$ed.

    “This vetting controversy is a faux media scandal designed to destroy the first female Republican nominee for Vice President of the United States who has never been a part of the old boys’ network that has come to dominate the news establishment in this country,” McCain senior adviser Steve Schmidt says in a statement going out Wednesday.


  69. misshusseinmolly Says:

    As I watched the RNC last night (or at least as much of it as I could handle), I was rather amazed at the “excitement” exhibited by people regarding the selection of Sarah Palin to the veep spot. Carly Fiorino, Orrin Hatch, and everybody who had a microphone stuck in their face gushed on about how much she has energized the ticket, what an inspired choice she is, how she is triggering a massive increase in McCain donations, how much of a “reformer” she is, etc. etc. Even Christie Todd Whitman (who looked almost nauseous when asked about Palin) gave a measured response about how she really doesn’t know enough about her yet to comment, but she was very careful to say nothing negative.

    Did they ALL get marching orders?


  70. hussein toasterhead Says:

    Kay Says:

    or at least put one black person…

    September 3rd, 2008 at 10:16 am
    ______

    Are you kidding? A CGI-generated crowd is one thing, but TV viewers can’t suspend their disbelief THAT much…


  71. House of Roberts Says:

    The Republic of Stupidity at 10:05 am

    That now, is information to which I’m afraid I’m not privy.


  72. Marie Says:

    McCain’s selling of his soul was never more evident than it was this week.
    He bowed to the religious right, to the social conservatives whose lives are concerned only with abortion and sexual activity.
    His party has tried to remove themselves from Dubya, and who can blame them, but this choice, this reckless, quick-draw choice, pushed upon him by members of the party who would have no part of a Republican who might not toe the social conservative line to the nth degree may result in a defeat worse than they imagined would occur with a more “regular” candidate.
    The choice of Palin speaks of poor judgment, poorly thought out decision making, bending under pressure, disrespect for the power of the Executive Office, disregard for America’s standing in the world, and contributes to the rumors that McCain’s mental process is in rapid decline.

    Perhaps repugs are fully aware of this and enjoy having a tabula rasa in place where Palin can be programmed and imprinted with their agenda as soon as McCain becomes unfit to hold office, which, if he manages to get elected, would come very quickly in 2009.
    As President Bush heralded in the end of America as we know it, the super power, the world leader, a President Palin (after McCain is “forced” to leave for medical reasons) would be the final, crushing blow. Our enemies in the world could not be happier.


  73. VerbalKint Says:

    I doubt that whining about press coverage of Palin will make any difference. The press is getting into election-frenzy mode and is unlikely to respond to this whining. Maybe criticizing the press isn’t such a wise idea for McCain. He wouldn’t want to spoil his incestuous relationship with them.

    By the way, since when is it considered to be giving a politician a hard time just for asking them about their membership in a rabid anti-American organization, or asking them about a criminal investigation being pursued against them, or simply asking them to explain their views on foreign policy and how they arrived at those views? Only in the utterly corrupt and arrogant GOP would this be considered a hard time. But these are the same lowlife scum who believe that winning is everything, that the ends justify the means, and that lying with utter abandon is somehow morally acceptable. Oh, and most of them are violence-loving folk who openly condone torture.


  74. The Republic of Stupidity Says:

    bigeugene Says:

    “This vetting controversy is a faux media scandal designed to destroy the first female Republican nominee for Vice President of the United States who has never been a part of the old boys’ network that has come to dominate the news establishment in this country,” McCain senior adviser Steve Schmidt says in a statement going out Wednesday.
    __________

    A faux media scandal… ya mean, Steve, like “Is Barak Obama a Secret Muslim”?

    Or… “Why won’t Barak Obama Wear A Flag Pin?”

    Or… “Obama… It’s Almost Spelled the Same as Osama, and His Middle Name is Hussein!!!”

    Those kinds of fake media scandals, Steve???


  75. Kay Says:

    #70:

    you’re right. what the hell was I thinking? (the only black person I saw was a minister in the beginning — all that I saw)


  76. deebaser Says:

    Kay Says:

    or at least put one black person…

    I saw three…
    Yes, i was counting.


  77. Kay Says:

    Maybe this Palincomparison choice was a destraction from Cheney’s ever-lurking-in-the-background: IRAN.


  78. The Republic of Stupidity Says:

    hussein toasterhead Says:

    Are you kidding? A CGI-generated crowd is one thing, but TV viewers can’t suspend their disbelief THAT much…
    ____________

    All except for Fox viewers… but then, even they bounced the 1/2 Hr News Hr pretty quickly…


  79. McWars Says:

    #61 Spot on, tom. Thanks for posting a response. Good morning!


  80. The Republic of Stupidity Says:

    deebaser Says:

    I saw three…

    Yes, i was counting.
    ____________

    Working security or a concession stand?


  81. The Republic of Stupidity Says:

    misshusseinmolly Says:

    Did they ALL get marching orders?
    _____________

    Oh, hell yes…


  82. House of Roberts Says:

    What’s all thia about McSame is afraid of Larry King, The Undead, and Obama is going on “The Factor”?


  83. Kay Says:

    This morning on the local news when they showed the clip of the Chymp at the RNC via satellite : all I could think of is Big Brother, 1984.

    He looks like hell. Crime certainly has taken it’s toll on his face during these l o n g 8 years.


  84. shoeless Says:

    Kay Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    I wonder if they computer generate the crowd at the RNC?

    No Kay, a computer generated crowd is much more diverse and lifelike than a Republican convention crowd.


  85. Kay Says:

    of course, he looks like hell probably from too much booze.


  86. Kay Says:

    #84:

    good point, shoeless…


  87. Shayne Says:

    McCain wanted Lieberman but after one talk with the religious right caved and picked Paling. Then they want us to believe that he was tortured in Viet Nam and didn’t cave. If he can’t take the heat without torture why would we believe he didn’t spill his guts as alleged in Viet Nam.


  88. shoeless Says:

    deebaser Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    Kay Says:

    or at least put one black person…

    I saw three…
    Yes, i was counting.

    This morning, Bill Press said there were 36 black people there. Apparently, the GOP gives them each a number. I’m not sure whether they have to wear it.


  89. bigeugene Says:

    As GOPers whine about the media reporting facts about Palin, let us not forget the words of their own VP choice. She apparently welcomes that excess criticism and decrying it makes you a whiner:

    ABC News’ Eloise Harper reports: Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, in a video interview with Newsweek, posted on YouTube, discussed the coverage of Sen. Hillary Clinton. In an interview that appears to have taken place during the Democratic primary, Palin criticizes Clinton for her response to media scrutiny she received while on the campaign trail.

    Palin says, “When I hear a statement like that coming from a woman candidate with any kind of perceived whine about that excess criticism or, you know, maybe a sharper microscope put on her, I think, man, that doesn’t do us any good. Women in politics, women in general wanting to progress this country. I don’t think it’s, it bodes well for her — a statement like that.”


  90. The Republic of Stupidity Says:

    Kay Says:

    He looks like hell. Crime certainly has taken it’s toll on his face during these l o n g 8 years.
    ____________

    And the booze… don’t forget the booze, kay…


  91. TeleMan Says:

    Kay Says:
    or at least put one black person…

    Last night I did notice they put a woman of darker complexion directly behind Ms. McCain. And I think I saw one Latino. Diversity abounds!


  92. The Republic of Stupidity Says:

    Ya know…

    I just reread most of this thread’s comments…

    And there’s next to no profanity here…

    “Vicious”??? “Vile”???

    Well, okay… deliberately insulting, yes… and definitely heavy on the snark…

    But death threats? Eliminationist rhetoric? NADA!!!!!!!


  93. The Republic of Stupidity Says:

    TeleMan Says:

    Last night I did notice they put a woman of darker complexion directly behind Ms. McCain.
    ____________

    Awww, come on… that was just a good, healthy tan!


  94. stewarjt Says:

    I imagine VP Face of Evil getting on the jet wearing William Wallace face paint saying, “I’m goin’ to pick a fight!”


  95. hussein toasterhead Says:

    The Republic of Stupidity Says:

    All except for Fox viewers… but then, even they bounced the 1/2 Hr News Hr pretty quickly…

    September 3rd, 2008 at 10:26 am
    _______

    Which is understandable. It was probably impossible to distinguish the Fox parody news show from the rest of Fox’s parody news coverage.


  96. And the beat goes on Says:

    Great posts about last night and Palin (OR as Stephanei Miller Sow say Caribou Barbie.) So, now thet have decided to throw Levi, the father of Bristol’s baby, out there. Yeah, that’s smart. I can hear the conversation now. “Yo, Johnston, wanna go on national TV as the gut that knocked up the governors daughter?” “uh, sure dude!” No, I am not making fun of these kids for doing what comes naturally. I am refuting the neocon attitude of abstinence-only education.

    On a personal note, when our son was still in high school, I finally decided to put away some laundry that had sat out for about 7 days and found a giant box of condoms. It was about half empty. Yeah, I was disappointed that he and his girl friend were having sex, but I was relieved he had listened to our sex education talks and followed our advice.


  97. RUCerious Says:

    One might expect Governor Palin to lip-synch her speech, with dub over by Mary Tyler Moore.


  98. TeleMan Says:

    Sorry, I meant to be more cynical in my post:

    Last night I did notice they put a woman of darker complexion conspicuously placed directly behind Ms. McCain so she could be seen as the camera often panned to her.


  99. And the beat goes on Says:

    96 crap — sorry for the typos. I am still the “one-finger wonder!” Guess which finger I use for typing about repukes…


  100. RUCerious Says:

    Hey! There’s a dark complected woman directly behind McIIIrd in the picture!

    What>?

    Oh, she’s just tan?

    Nevermind.


  101. And the beat goes on Says:

    Teleman

    Last night I did notice they put a woman of darker complexion conspicuously placed directly behind Ms. McCain so she could be seen as the camera often panned to her.

    That’s their adopted daughter…


  102. Keith Says:

    #82 House of Roberts,

    McCain’s campaign thought Campbell Brown’s interview of Tucker Bounds was too “confrontational’ and thus cancelled McCain on Larry King as punishment.

    Campbell wanted one example of the “many commander-in-chief decisions” Palin had to make as head of the Alaska National Guard. See it here:

    http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/ washington/ 2008/ 09/ campbell-brown.html


  103. TeleMan Says:

    That’s their adopted daughter…

    Really? Well, it has been eight years since they brought her in to the spotlights.

    Naw, you’re funnin’ me. If I remember correctly this was a woman in her 50’s.


  104. Paul W Says:

    Steve Schmidt, Sen. John McCain’s (R-AZ) top campaign strategist, yesterday accused the media of being “on a mission to destroy” Gov. Sarah Palin (R-AK) by displaying “a level of viciousness and scurrilousness” in pursuing questions about her personal life. Schmidt said the McCain campaign feels “under siege” by news inquiries on Palin.

    The right needs to get over their persecution complex. They would have no problem with the media if they just stopped being such hypocrites.

    http://progressiveworldreview.com


  105. RUCerious Says:

    Here’s an interesting piece by Mark Blumenthal at Pollster.com
    “Internal” Measures of Change on the CBS Survey

    Salient points made:

    Most useful within in are the measures that show the biggest changes since the pre-convention CBS poll conducted in mid August. Some examples:

    50% say Obama “has made it clear what he would do as president;” up 9 points (from 41%)
    58% say Obama is “tough enough;” up 10 points (from 48% in July)
    67% of Obama voters say they “enthusiastically support” him; up 19 points (from 48%) before the convention

    37% rate Joe Biden favorably; up 23 points (from 13%)
    41% rate Michelle Obama favorably; up 13 points (from 28%)
    52% rate Hillary Clinton favorably; up 7 points (from 45%)



  106. TeleMan Says:

    Son-of-a… You’re right. That was her. (and I was paying such close attention!) That’ll teach me to be too cynical.


  107. RUCerious Says:

    TPM has published a retraction of their claim that Governor Palin was ever a member of the Alaskan Independence Party.
    Her husband Todd, however, was.


  108. Bobwurst Says:

    deebaser Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    Kay Says:

    or at least put one black person…

    I saw three…
    Yes, i was counting.

    September 3rd, 2008 at 10

    According to Bill Press, there are 34 African American delagates with credentials.


  109. deebaser Says:

    The Republic of Stupidity Says:

    deebaser Says:

    I saw three…

    Yes, i was counting.
    ____________

    Working security or a concession stand?

    They looked like delegates to me. Still, by my unofficial count McCain has 4 more houses than the republicans have black delegates.

    worst. drinking game. ever


  110. Shayne Says:

    RUCerious Says:

    TPM has published a retraction of their claim that Governor Palin was ever a member of the Alaskan Independence Party.
    Her husband Todd, however, was.

    Yeah, the woman who said this has changed her story since the McCain people are there strong arming the Alaskans.


  111. Shayne Says:

    Haven’t black people suffered enough? You want to make them sit through that boring bunch of lies.


  112. And the beat goes on Says:

    TeleMan Says:
    ——————————————————————————–

    Son-of-a… You’re right. That was her. (and I was paying such close attention!) That’ll teach me to be too cynical.

    Oh, please continue your cynicism! They only pull her off her hooks in the closet when they need some :color” in the audience!!


  113. TeleMan Says:

    And the beat goes on,

    I could never give up my cynicism towards the R’s (or even the D’s) as everything they do publicly is marketing. And this year are they ever selling big piles of **it.


  114. House of Roberts Says:

    Keith at 11:01 am

    Thanks for “Part A”, I was fishing for comments for or against Obama going on Faux, while McSame was too chicken to take his chances with “Papparrazi” Larry even though it was Campbell Brown who made one of “The Tuckers”, (they are all interchangeable, you know), look bad in that interview. Actually it was more like, “make us look bad and we’ll deny your people access so you’ll be at a disadvantage to your competitors”. Same as Bush’s press briefings. That way the individual reporter has to fear losing their job if they “get confrontational” with these liars.


  115. livelongandprosper Says:

    Kay Says:

    or at least put one black person…

    Well we know our resident nutjob Daryl is there.


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