Comment by Raine on 8/22/2008 5:38:13 PM HEy... I just had a thought... wouldn't it be hilarious if we all got the text message from Barack Obama at 3 am?
It's Three Am, and this is barack obama
DENVER - The candidate of change went with the status quo.
In picking Sen. Joe Biden to be his running mate, Barack Obama sought to shore up his weakness — inexperience in office and on foreign policy — rather than underscore his strength as a new-generation candidate defying political conventions.
He picked a 35-year veteran of the Senate — the ultimate insider — rather than a candidate from outside Washington, such as Govs. Tim Kaine of Virginia or Kathleen Sebelius of Kansas; or from outside his party, such as Sen. Chuck Hagel of Nebraska; or from outside the mostly white male club of vice presidential candidates. Hillary Rodham Clinton didn't even make his short list.
The picks say something profound about Obama: For all his self-confidence, the 47-year-old Illinois senator worried that he couldn't beat Republican John McCain without help from a seasoned politician willing to attack. The Biden selection is the next logistical step in an Obama campaign that has become more negative — a strategic decision that may be necessary but threatens to run counter to his image.
Democratic strategists, fretting over polls that showed McCain erasing Obama's lead this summer, welcomed the move. They, too, worried that Obama needed a more conventional — read: tougher — approach to McCain.
"You've got to hand it to the candidate and the campaign. They have a great sense of timing and tone and appropriateness. Six months ago, people said he wasn't tough enough on Hillary Clinton — he was being too passive — but he got it right at the right time," said Democratic strategist Jim Jordan. "He'll get it right again."
Indeed, Obama has begun to aggressively counter McCain's criticism with negative television ads and sharp retorts from the campaign trail.
A senior Obama adviser, speaking on condition of anonymity, said his boss has expressed impatience with what he calls a "reverence" inside his campaign for his message of change and new politics. In other words, Obama is willing — even eager — to risk what got him this far if it gets him to the White House.
Biden brings a lot to the table. An expert on national security, the Delaware senator voted in 2002 to authorize military intervention in Iraq but has since become a vocal critic of the conflict. He won praise for a plan for peace in Iraq that would divide the country along ethnic lines.
Chief sponsor of a sweeping anti-crime bill that passed in 1994, Biden could help inoculate Obama from GOP criticism that he's soft on crime — a charge his campaign fears will drive a wedge between white voters and the first black candidate with a serious shot at the White House.
So the question is whether Biden's depth counters Obama's inexperience — or highlights it?
AGAWAM - Ed O'Reilly worked the crowd at an annual clambake, introducing himself to dozens of potential voters with a jolly optimism that seemed to overlook the stiff odds against his candidacy for the US Senate.
He spoke about the sputtering economy. He asked about local issues. He ate clams with a plastic fork.
Most were willing to hear the pitch from the mop-haired former firefighter and defense attorney who bears a striking resemblance to Joseph Kennedy. Some even said they would vote for him.
Until John Kerry arrived.
Kerry, who has made few recent appearances in this small town next to Springfield, swooped into a pavilion near the Six Flags amusement park with a half-dozen staff members at his side and began shaking hands. Heads turned. Conversations stopped. Cellphone cameras came out.
"He's like the heavyweight prizefighter," said John Auclair, a 51-year-old police captain from Ludlow who made sure to get a photo with Kerry.
The scene demonstrated the struggle O'Reilly faces in trying to unseat a 24-year incumbent and 2004 presidential nominee when Democratic primary voters go to the polls on Sept. 16.
O'Reilly said he is motivated to run because he believes Kerry is out of touch with Massachusetts voters and has not spent enough time focused on the state. But O'Reilly has little experience in elective politics and is massively underfunded, with just 2 percent of the $8.8 million that Kerry has in his war chest.
Yet the scene in Agawam also showed that O'Reilly's surprisingly strong effort is forcing Kerry to get on the local campaign trail at a time when most Democrats of his stature are focused on Denver, not Danvers. Kerry has not faced a Democratic challenger since he won the seat in 1984 and the only serious race of any kind he has faced was his 1996 campaign, when he was challenged by Republican governor William F. Weld.
Quote by trojanrabbit:
Good morning all. This will be a drive-by as I'm reading from my sister's place and we're holding a yahd sale.
I do have problems with Biden, as he's beholden to Delaware's biggest industry - credit cards. We'll have to see.
Quote by trojanrabbit:
Good morning all. This will be a drive-by as I'm reading from my sister's place and we're holding a yahd sale.
I do have problems with Biden, as he's beholden to Delaware's biggest industry - credit cards. We'll have to see.
Quote by BobR:Quote by trojanrabbit:
Good morning all. This will be a drive-by as I'm reading from my sister's place and we're holding a yahd sale.
I do have problems with Biden, as he's beholden to Delaware's biggest industry - credit cards. We'll have to see.
That was always my concern for me with him as well. However, his other positions and directness are appealing, so I am willing to accept this flaw considering his other assets.
I've always liked him personally, and I think he's a good match for Obama.
Quote by m-hadley:
Mornin' Everybody :coffee:
I didn't get a text message, 'cause I turned that feature off on my phone, but I did hear the news on NPR this morning and I think it is a fine choice. Any VP brings some baggage and some questions, but I think it demonstrates Obama's pragmatism. I think he thought it through and picked the best from a qualified group of possible candidates. I worry that this won't ease the minds of the PUMAs, but I am ready to say "screw 'em." Sorry I didn't join in the blog discussion yesterday - it was a hell of a week, but I don't have to go in today, so I'll be around, blogging and watching the TeeVee. Later gators... :P
Cheers.
mfaye
:hug: & :peace:
Quote by livingonli:
Good morning all.
He is a little centrist for my taste. Did anyone listen to Mike Malloy last night? He was going on a rant on the whole moving to the center strategy and how it has made the Democratic Party enablers of fascism. Although at this point the Obama campaign is going to have to go on the attack since that's all that is coming from the McCain campaign as he sold what is left of his soul to run for office in this election.
Quote by Raine:I have resolved that issue regarding Biden... An older friend of mine from Delaware explained to me something interesting... those credit card companies in Delaware have a lot of employees... regular folk, as it were, who are his constituents. While he may, and rightfully so perhaps, be perceived as beholden to those companiens, he has worked hard to keep them in his state there for keeping many people from falling into unemployment.Quote by trojanrabbit:
Good morning all. This will be a drive-by as I'm reading from my sister's place and we're holding a yahd sale.
I do have problems with Biden, as he's beholden to Delaware's biggest industry - credit cards. We'll have to see.
A great example was that wretched Bankruptcy bill. Those companies were threatening to pull out of the state, you see Phil graham changed the entire industry to make it easy for the lobbyists to do so, unless they got that bill passed. I hope that makes sense. I am not saying I like it, but I can understand why Biden was caught between a rock and a hard place, and I think he sided with keeping those jobs in his state...
Unlike that McCain Lobbyist who sided with a dutch company to outsource over 2000 Ups jobs) or was it Fed Ex? -- anyway he lobbied to outsource thousands of jobs away from Ohio.
Good Morning!
Oh, and Liv, While I understand what you are saying, and what Malloy is saying, right now we MUST do what we ever we can to get THESE fascists out of office. Biden is a good choice. We needed someone who would fight back.
Quote by BobR:Quote by livingonli:
Good morning all.
He is a little centrist for my taste. Did anyone listen to Mike Malloy last night? He was going on a rant on the whole moving to the center strategy and how it has made the Democratic Party enablers of fascism. Although at this point the Obama campaign is going to have to go on the attack since that's all that is coming from the McCain campaign as he sold what is left of his soul to run for office in this election.
I will agree with Raine on this - right now our choices are Obama/Biden or McCain/??? (or Barr or McKinney). The most important thing we can do is get Obama elected, and THEN push him (and our CongressCritters) to do the right thing(s)...
Quote by Random:Quote by BobR:Quote by livingonli:
Good morning all.
He is a little centrist for my taste. Did anyone listen to Mike Malloy last night? He was going on a rant on the whole moving to the center strategy and how it has made the Democratic Party enablers of fascism. Although at this point the Obama campaign is going to have to go on the attack since that's all that is coming from the McCain campaign as he sold what is left of his soul to run for office in this election.
I will agree with Raine on this - right now our choices are Obama/Biden or McCain/??? (or Barr or McKinney). The most important thing we can do is get Obama elected, and THEN push him (and our CongressCritters) to do the right thing(s)...
Is this the point where i get booed off the island for saying that i believe Centrist is the correct way to go?
Since, theoretically, it would be a mish-mash of both left and right ideas. Which is what this country was kind of founded on, and probably the ideal way of running such a large and diverse group of people.
Quote by Raine:You don't get booed off the island at all.Quote by Random:Quote by BobR:Quote by livingonli:
Good morning all.
He is a little centrist for my taste. Did anyone listen to Mike Malloy last night? He was going on a rant on the whole moving to the center strategy and how it has made the Democratic Party enablers of fascism. Although at this point the Obama campaign is going to have to go on the attack since that's all that is coming from the McCain campaign as he sold what is left of his soul to run for office in this election.
I will agree with Raine on this - right now our choices are Obama/Biden or McCain/??? (or Barr or McKinney). The most important thing we can do is get Obama elected, and THEN push him (and our CongressCritters) to do the right thing(s)...
Is this the point where i get booed off the island for saying that i believe Centrist is the correct way to go?
Since, theoretically, it would be a mish-mash of both left and right ideas. Which is what this country was kind of founded on, and probably the ideal way of running such a large and diverse group of people.
I have long held the belief that I, as a uber progressiveliberal leftie...:P , won't tolerate centrist-- which I still do not believe we have, then I am a hypocrite.
Obama is not a centrist. he is a moderate at best. He is still farther left than Bill Clinton was, and he is not DLC...
And truthfully, I don't see 'right' ideas from Barack Obama. he just isn't ultra left. He is a full blooded Democrat. It has been a LONG time since we have had that, and I think we are just not used to it.
Quote by Raine:Pragmatist is the perfect word Faye.Quote by m-hadley:
Mornin' Everybody :coffee:
I didn't get a text message, 'cause I turned that feature off on my phone, but I did hear the news on NPR this morning and I think it is a fine choice. Any VP brings some baggage and some questions, but I think it demonstrates Obama's pragmatism. I think he thought it through and picked the best from a qualified group of possible candidates. I worry that this won't ease the minds of the PUMAs, but I am ready to say "screw 'em." Sorry I didn't join in the blog discussion yesterday - it was a hell of a week, but I don't have to go in today, so I'll be around, blogging and watching the TeeVee. Later gators... :P
Cheers.
mfaye
:hug: & :peace:
After 8 years of radicalism, I will take pragmatism.
Quote by Raine:
So, Momma Psychic was kinda, well how do I put this... WRONG!!!!
:rofl:
Quote by livingonli:
Although if the modern Republican Party is any indication, the right just want power for itself and they want it to enrich themselves and their buddies. The Republican Party these days has moved to embracing full-blown fascism. That's why I believe we need a strong Left in this country to counteract it and move the political discourse away from the Far Right where it's pretty much been for the last two decades.
Quote by livingonli:Quote by Raine:
So, Momma Psychic was kinda, well how do I put this... WRONG!!!!
:rofl:
But didn't the psychic predict an Obama victory?
Quote by m-hadley:
Raine,
Thanks for responding to my comment - I always worry that if I'm off the blog for a day or two that I've lost my groove I basically agree with everybody's comments this morning, of course I haven't ventured into any other blogs (other than HuffPo which I check along wih the NYTimes and WashPo every morning), so I don't know what the PUMAs are saying, but as I've said before "screw 'em" if they can't or won't get with the program. I think the McCain camp's response is so predicateble and doesn't hold much credibility in its predictability. And I, for one, am thrilled that Johnny McSame is so clueless when it comes to how many houses he and his wife own
Cheers,
mfaye
:fbump: & :hug:
Quote by clintster:
BTW, last night I took Ian to his first sports event; a preseason NFL game between the Falcons and the Titans. He loved it up to the point when the Falcons scored their first TD, and fireworks went off in the Georgia Dome. He freaked out and said he wanted to go home.
We went, and I listened as the home team won their first preseason game. When I got back, however, Mrs. C informed me that I had to go to her office and get her passport to use as ID at a test she's taking today. She would've gone but she had a pretty strong migraine. I got back in the car and drove all the way back to the ATL to get her passport. Somewhere during the trip, my driver's side windshield wiper stopped working and I had to drive in a drizzle looking out the passenger side. How I made it back home I have no clue.
Quote by Raine:
you know this means most likely that Bill Richardson will be our next secretary of state!
Quote by Raine:no doubt about it.Quote by livingonli:
Although if the modern Republican Party is any indication, the right just want power for itself and they want it to enrich themselves and their buddies. The Republican Party these days has moved to embracing full-blown fascism. That's why I believe we need a strong Left in this country to counteract it and move the political discourse away from the Far Right where it's pretty much been for the last two decades.
A President Obama will become the leader of the entire nation.. left and right, and that is why the left must always be there to make sure we regain BALANCE in this nation.
Quote by livingonli:
Just remember when Reagan was running in 1980, there actually were people who thought he was too far to the right and now the Republican Party is dominated by people even further to the right than Reagan. The perception that Goldwater was too right-wing was the big contributor to his big defeat in 1964 but now he is considered too liberal by today's Christian Right dominated Republican Party.
...[T]he GOP knows that the middle DOES matter. They know that by playing to their base in very well-crafted ways, they can shift the very definition of what the middle is. By introducing radicalism into the public discourse (and taking initial heat for it), whatever used to be radical within this context becomes moderate by comparison.
Quote by Shane-O:Quote by livingonli:
Just remember when Reagan was running in 1980, there actually were people who thought he was too far to the right and now the Republican Party is dominated by people even further to the right than Reagan. The perception that Goldwater was too right-wing was the big contributor to his big defeat in 1964 but now he is considered too liberal by today's Christian Right dominated Republican Party.
It call all be explained by the Overton Window.
And that window is very far to the right at this moment in American politics.
See also, the discussion at the Daily Kos on this theory....[T]he GOP knows that the middle DOES matter. They know that by playing to their base in very well-crafted ways, they can shift the very definition of what the middle is. By introducing radicalism into the public discourse (and taking initial heat for it), whatever used to be radical within this context becomes moderate by comparison.
Quote by livingonli:Quote by Shane-O:Quote by livingonli:
Just remember when Reagan was running in 1980, there actually were people who thought he was too far to the right and now the Republican Party is dominated by people even further to the right than Reagan. The perception that Goldwater was too right-wing was the big contributor to his big defeat in 1964 but now he is considered too liberal by today's Christian Right dominated Republican Party.
It call all be explained by the Overton Window.
And that window is very far to the right at this moment in American politics.
See also, the discussion at the Daily Kos on this theory....[T]he GOP knows that the middle DOES matter. They know that by playing to their base in very well-crafted ways, they can shift the very definition of what the middle is. By introducing radicalism into the public discourse (and taking initial heat for it), whatever used to be radical within this context becomes moderate by comparison.
Then like the right has done for years, the left needs some people on the outside to push the discourse away from the extreme right and show how bad the right-wing policies really are and why we need progressive solutions and not reactionary ones. If progressives had the funding of the think tanks and media the way the right has for the last 30 years, the political discourse in this country wouldn't have been so poisoned and many right-wing policies probably would never have been enacted. This also would have made it difficult for the DLC to have taken control of the Democratic Party and shift it rightward like it did during the Clinton years.
Quote by IzzyBitz:
USA women win basketball gold! Whoo hoo!
HA! My "thing(ies)" was great last night, Liv. Someone kept filling my glass with wine. I swear it wasn't me.
Tits to the wind. Let's win this thing!
p.s. We need a new Gobama/Biden emoticon. I have no idea how such things are made.
Quote by Random:
I wanna vote for Biden!
Quote by Random:
I wanna vote for Biden!