Aikane Leo

Trump Circus Comes To Lakeland

2016-10-12T16:32:00.002-04:00

Donald Trump will bring his campaign to Lakeland today, but I won’t be at the airport to greet him. I do, however, have a strong opinion on his candidacy. Unlike the candidate himself, who threatened his opponent with jail, and just yesterday “unshackled” himself to go even lower, I will instead go high and employ all the subtlety I can muster.

At today’s Trump rally, no weapons of any kind, down to sticks, needles and produce, will be permitted. To a man who prefers his fans armed and dangerous, any gathering without guns is surely panic time, with each stop more frightening than the last. Even more unnerving to the Playa-in-Chief, men of a certain age will be strictly admonished to keep hands in pockets for the duration -- unless some thug sneaks in and needs decking, of course. After all, the Republican Party is not sending us their best, and I fear that Central Florida may not be sending its best to meet him.

To be clear, I would never in a million years have voted for Donald Trump, even when I thought he was a slightly better man than he has proved to be. I did not vote for Hillary Clinton, either, in the 2008 and 2016 primaries, but I will cast my vote for her in November. Although I disagree with Hillary on several issues, and do not defend her faults and mistakes, she is sane and that’s a good thing in a leader. Viewed in the context of this election and the country’s future, her weaknesses pale when compared to those of Donald Trump, a man with no record of self-sacrifice or public service during his entire 70-year life, no comprehension of major issues facing the nation, and apparently no ability to tell the truth. Ever. About anything.

Symbolically, Trump’s biggest lie yet may have been an offhand remark in Sunday’s presidential debate. “I’m a gentleman,” he declared. That laughable quip came not from a real gentleman, but from a man unfit to be in the same room with any woman I know, and just as unfit to be in a locker room with real men. His vile temperament, overarching grandiosity and total lack of preparedness showcase a charlatan unsuited to public office at any level. Some have questioned how a con man who most likely would never be elected to a town council could become the presidential candidate of a major political party. The answer is obvious: He is the vacuum sweeper collecting and embellishing all the fear and loathing that’s been cultivated by political extremists for more than a decade. The Donald sucks it up and spews it out.

The things I find most repugnant in Donald Trump are the very things that appeal to far too many of his well-known supporters, including on-air crackpots and well-documented hate groups. His campaign slogan, “Make America Great Again,” is a clarion call to reactionaries and culture warriors determined to “take their country back” -- as if their birthright had been stolen by lowlifes and imposters. Trump’s most impassioned backers are driven by unbridled animus. Their numbers include a block of voters who to this day deny a twice-elected president’s legitimacy and mock his aspirations to continue building a more perfect union. They wave their flags and their fists as they proclaim their dedication to life, liberty and justice for all, then work themselves into a near frenzy for candidates and policies that would deny full constitutional rights to anyone they deem unworthy. Witness any Trump campaign rally.

I commend the handful of elected Republicans with the integrity to separate themselves from the nastiness that overshadows their party, but I have no respect for spineless leaders, including our local congressman, who, fearing a backlash from Trump voters, have effectively sacrificed whatever principles they ever may have possessed. My utmost contempt, however, is reserved for the cadre of so-called religious leaders falling over themselves to cast their lots with a vindictive demagogue. Their unearned claim to ownership of the high moral ground, based solely on their own self-appropriated, “deeply held religious convictions,” is not only a galling insult to people of faith who disagree with their peculiar brand of religiosity, their claim is also a full-frontal assault on the millions of thinking Americans whose values encompass our country’s secular, constitutional foundations. Even though slick politicians and self-righteous preachers, like the rest of us, are free to share their personal opinions on anything and everything, their chosen professions do not endow them with a monopoly on values. Their “political incorrectness” claims are not an acceptable cover for their rhetoric nor a license to plow the fields of hate along with a man like Trump and his shady associates.

How can we as a civilized people even pretend to care for our fellow man – the sick and the poor, the hungry and the homeless, the orphan and the refugee, the powerless and the oppressed, the person of a different faith or of no faith, the victim of hatred or of prejudice – if we choose a sniveling bully to lead us? This is a great country, and I am not willing to risk its future by turning down a blind alley to some imaginary place in the warped mind of Donald Trump. He is the embodiment of a festering bigotry that must be rejected if we are to thrive together. That is why my vote goes to the one person, imperfect though she may be, who stands between him and the White House.

See how subtle I can be?

Florida legislature takes one small progressive step

2013-04-10T10:03:00.001-04:00

While Florida legislators’ brain cells are too densely arranged to comprehend the definition of equality, the need to fund education and research, the value of protecting the environment, the crime of denying health care to the vulnerable, or the insanity of unlimited weaponry in the hands of criminals and the mentally unstable – they are finally changing the definition of their own behavior. One small step ...

Bill eliminates "mental retardation" in state law

TALLAHASSEE (AP/Miami Herald) -- A Florida House panel has unanimously cleared a bill that would remove the term "mental retardation" from state laws and replace it with "intellectual disability."

The House Health and Human Services committee voted up the bill (HB 1119) on Tuesday. It also would replace "mentally retarded" with "intellectually disabled."

The change would not affect the content or effect of any laws. Proponents of the bill say the word "retarded" is outdated and has become offensive.

Forty-three states have already taken steps to remove the word "retarded" from their laws. President Obama signed a law in 2010 striking use of the term in federal policy.

Political Reincarnation

2013-02-15T17:30:00.002-05:00

Joe McCarthy 1954 - Ted Cruz 2013

Bully for you, Mitten Ticklebritches!

2012-05-10T15:10:00.003-04:00

“I like being able to fire people who provide services to me.” – Mitten Ticklebritches

Once a bully, always a bully? Take Governor Ticklebritches' attitudes and policies toward gays, immigrants, the poor, the unemployed, college students, people without health care insurance, and anyone else who can’t write him a six-digit check or help him land the job he covets.

And if you get in his way, get ready for a swift kick -- or perhaps a haircut.

Today we’re expected to believe Mitt Romney's claim that he cannot recall a vicious attack he led against a high school classmate. It’s bad enough if the jokester is lying about his memory, but even worse if bullying comes so natural to him that the incident was easily forgotten.

But not to worry. If anybody was hurt by “a lot of high jinks and pranks during high school, obviously I apologize for that,” Romney chortled.

Obviously. He's "running for office, for Pete's sake!"

He does not apologize, however, for manipulating his memories. While he can't remember this incident, he can recall saving the U. S. auto industry. Really? Wanna bet? Ten thousand dollars?

Like his principles, Mitt's memories are free-floating: “I certainly don’t believe that I thought the fellow was homosexual.”

And he finds that explanation perfectly fine, no doubt even marvelous, or just the right height -- or at least good for a chuckle. Haha!

Here's Mitt being Mitt. Witness the mind of a bully.

Romney Apologizes After Reports of Bullying Emerge

Florida Dems not all aboard CSX rail boondoggle

2009-04-06T15:43:00.016-04:00

According to a press release from Senate Democratic leaders Al Lawson and Nan Rich, Florida's secretly-negotiated and ill-advised CSX rail deal may finally face the scrutiny it deserves:

See . . . .

Call for renewal: Florida's 1838 constitution

2008-12-24T11:22:00.009-05:00

Or should we call for repentance, for how far we've strayed?

Howard Troxler, St. Pete Times, skewers members of the double-dipping, special interest, pay-for-play Florida Legislature:

We could learn a lot from those pioneers (including some of my own ancestors who settled here before 1820). Who could look at our current legislature, follow the strings all the way to the bank, the church and the gun lobby -- and think otherwise?

Continue . . .

Here's the tip — uh, paycheck, senator

Thomas Dawsey, Florida pioneer

Lakeland group vows to keep CSX deal in spotlight

2008-12-24T10:27:00.009-05:00

Ledger photo

In a question-and-answer session with the Ledger, Julie Townsend, executive director of Downtown Lakeland Partnership, reflects on the current state of the CSX controversy:

The fight isn't over: Keeping CSX deal in spotlight

Wherever you reside in Florida and whatever your view of the Florida-CSX deal -- a taxpayer outlay hatched in secret by outgoing governor Jeb Bush and now heavily lobbied by an array of special interests -- this is an interview worth reading.

You may not change your mind, but perhaps you will gain a different perspective as the fight over taxpayer money and the future of transportation and passenger rail in Florida continues.

See also . . .

State budget crunch may push huge CSX deal off track

Lakeland native Kay Hagan wins Senate seat held by Elizabeth Dole

2008-11-05T09:58:00.009-05:00

Photo by Ellen Ozier, Reuters

Democrat Kay Hagan defeated incumbent Republican Elizabeth Dole in North Carolina's bitterly contested Senate race Tuesday, unseating one of the best known figures in the U.S. Senate.

In her victory speech, Hagan called her win "a testament to how hungry people are for a change." (Fredreka Schouten, USA Today)

More . . . .

Lakeland crowd helps snag NC U.S. Senate seat
Democrats make gains in NC amid startling changes
Campaign website: Kay Hagan for U.S. Senate
Wikipedia: Kay Hagan

America the beautiful

2008-11-04T09:21:00.011-05:00

Dreams do come true.Photo by Kuz'n Kirk
Today, November 4, 2008, we celebrate All-America Day -- a day that heralds a seismic shift, from the past to the future, in the country's landscape.

Today we celebrate hope, opportunity, and the vision of a more perfect union. We mark not the end of one man's journey to the presidency, but the beginning of a new journey for every man, woman and child who ever dreamed the American dream.

Tomorrow begins the next chapter in the fulfillment of America's promise. That is the challenge that we must meet and that we will meet. United, our best days are ahead.

Now more than ever, this is one country, America the beautiful.

Florida Newspaper Endorsements

2008-10-23T13:41:00.009-04:00

Interstate 4 Jammer has compiled an excellent summary of current newspaper endorsements in Florida:

Florida Newspaper Endorsements (Updated Oct. 25)

Sample ballot, Polk County, Pct. 217

When the going gets tough . . .

2008-10-17T17:30:00.009-04:00

Republicans occasionally expose the hate that, when things are going their way, they keep hidden behind the sheets:

Top Tampa GOP Figure Circulates Joke About Killing Obama
McCain Campaign compares Obama to Hitler
Marianna teacher "told students what 'CHANGE' stood for"
Altered Obama photo in GOP club newsletter sparks outrage
A rage no one should be stoking

Update, Oct.18:

ORLANDO -- Echoing the angry rhetoric from the party's conservative base, Florida's top Republicans on Saturday warned that Barack Obama's "Marxist" plans would "kill" the economy. [....]

Paul Senft, a national committee member from Polk County, said, "There are those who come to this country to get away from socialism," he said before referring to Obama's tax and health care plans. "It's Marxist. It's communist. But let's just call it socialism."
-
Fla. GOP Assails Obama's Proposals

Today's knee-slapper: McCain's new 'running against Bush' line

2008-10-17T14:16:00.006-04:00

At Wednesday night's debate, John McCain reminded Barack Obama that he is not George Bush.

Since then, the senator's new line of sarcasm, met with laughter and applause at his campaign rallies, has been, "If Barack Obama wanted to run against George Bush, he should have done that four years ago."

A more accurate observation is,

"If John McCain wanted to run against George Bush, he should have done that four years ago."

Not only has McCain supported Bush-Cheney and their most disastrous policies for eight long years -- I seem to recall a whole lotta hugging and kissing going on four years ago.

You can run, John, but you can't hide from your past.

But you're a great standup comedian.

Do the Rights Thing, Florida

2008-10-11T16:44:00.004-04:00

You Tube: Florida Red & Blue

The Bilerico Project

People of faith oppose Florida Amendment 2

2008-10-10T15:19:00.005-04:00

A Statement of Opposition to Amendment 2

As clergy members from a broad spectrum of religious traditions we hold diverse views regarding marriage. However, we are united in our opposition to amending the Florida Constitution to define marriage.

We share a serious concern that proposed Amendment 2, which will appear on the November 4 ballot would infringe on religious liberty. We believe that marriage decisions should be left to couples, their clergy, and their religious beliefs — not the State of Florida.

[ . . . . ]

Amendment 2 would undermine religious liberty. Florida’s religious communities do not support this amendment. As leaders of these communities, we pledge to vote no on Amendment 2 and urge you to join us.

More . . .

Florida Clergy for Fairness
SayNo2.com
Vote No on 2

Lakeland's Politics in the Park announced

2008-10-10T09:38:00.008-04:00

Lake Mirror Promenade, Downtown Lakeland
Thursday, October, 5:30 - 8:00 p.m.
Admission to the Event is FREE

Governor Charlie Crist and Command Sergeant Major Michele Jones to Address Crowd at Event

Lakeland, FL – The Lakeland Area Chamber of Commerce will host the 2008 Politics in the Park on Thursday, October 16th from 5:30 to 8:00 p.m. at the Lake Mirror Promenade in downtown Lakeland.

Politics in the Park is an old-fashioned political rally that gives the community an opportunity to meet with and hear from candidates – across all levels of government – for the 2008 election.

All individuals over 18 years of age will be able to participate in the Straw Poll conducted by the Polk County Supervisor of Elections office, with results announced that evening at the close of the event.

"We hope the Polk County community will get behind this event and come out to support their candidates, enjoy live entertainment and plenty of food and beverage," said Chuck Aiken, 2008 Politics in the Park Committee Chair. "And if voters are undecided, the event will serve as the perfect opportunity to hear from candidates so that they can make an educated decision on November 4th."

Politics in the Park is a family-friendly event with special appearances to be made by AMVETS Post 32, the Lakeland High School Drumline, emcee Jennifer Leigh of News Channel 8, and a Fly-By of a vintage World War II aircraft will kick off the event.

Restaurants participating in the event are: Abuelo's, Ale Gators, Dairy Queen, Fred's Southern Kitchen, Kazbor's Grille, Outback Steakhouse and Rib Crib. In addition, hot dogs will be available.

The following candidates have confirmed attendance:

US Representative District 12: Adam Putnam and Doug Tudor
US Representative District 15: Frank Zilaitis
State Senate District 17: JD Alexander and Scott Thompson
State Representative District 64: Alton Smith, Kelli Stargel and Gordon Watts
State Representative District 65: Bob Hagenmaier and John Wood
State Representative District 79: Ray Worley
County Commission District 3: Nancy Daley, Ed Smith and Ghassan Zebdaoui
County Commission District 5: Jim Brown, Sam Johnson and Jacquelyn Smith
Polk County Sheriff: Grady Judd and Michael Lashman

"Senators McCain and Obama have received our invitation, and the committee is hopeful," said Aiken.

"Lakeland is located in our nation's largest swing state and in the middle of the all-important I-4 corridor, so it would be in their best interests to attend."

---

For more information on the 2008 Politics in the Park, please contact Ashley at the Chamber at 863/688-8551 ext. 241 or alink@lakelandchamber.com.

Say No to Florida's Amendment 2

2008-10-09T15:41:00.007-04:00

Sarah Sensation, the runaway VP candidate

2008-10-07T14:05:00.007-04:00

Not since the runaway bride has the US media focused so much attention on such little substance.

Media diversions: Jennifer Wilbanks and Sarah Palin

Members of the media elite (take the swooning news anchors, for example) have dusted off their vintage editions of Roget's Thesaurus for new adjectives to describe their latest product, the new, improved, bubble-wrapped hockey-mom action figure, Sarah Palin:

Tom Brokaw, NBC: “A very auspicious debut.”
Jeff Greenfield, CBS: “Perfect populist pitch.”
Wolf Blitzer, CNN: “It wasn’t just a home run, it may have been a grand slam.”
Chris Wallace (Fox), Anderson Cooper and Wolf Blitzer (CNN), on cue: “A Star is Born.”

Those superlatives, gushed by aging men in their first reactions to Sarah's "scintillating" teleprompter reading at the Republican National Convention, foreshadowed the media love affair with the high-heeled pit bull.

Reality on the nation's airwaves is in short supply. Hold onto your hats -- or whatever else sparks your imagination. Picture Zena the Warrior Princess at the Daytona 500, Britney at the MTV Video Music Awards, Jennifer Wilbanks on a Greyhound bus to nowhere.

Sarah Barracuda is bigger. She has become the steam-regulating conductor of a political runaway train. Whoo hoo!

We can't avert our eyes because the male-dominated press, the shallow but well-paid hucksters for their corporate bosses, are blinding us with a hailstorm of atmospherics. We are, after all, watching the all too predictable behavior of the same hyperventilating watchdogs of democracy that gave us the "uniter" president, the "WMD" war, the "straight talk express" and, yes, the "runaway bride."

And, if it's within their power to focus the voters' attention away from the issues that actually matter -- things like the recurring national crises that keep us awake at night -- onto the McCain-Palin misdirection of the day, we may wake up November 5 to discover that nothing has changed.

Our only hope is that, for a change, voters see through the media diversions, recognize the straight talk express with a runaway conductor as another train wreck waiting to happen, and put the country first.

Sorry John, you blew it

2008-09-27T10:50:00.016-04:00

What was he thinking? John McCain chose as his running mate a "pit bull with lipstick" over a young lady from South Carolina who could have added more intellectual depth and understanding of world affairs to his ticket.

Big mistake, John.

That's what we've come to expect, though, from the "military expert" who still doesn't know the difference between tactics and strategies, doesn't know Sunni from Shiia, ignored the fact that a so-called safe stroll through a Baghdad market depended on flak jackets and Blackhawks, doesn't know that Spain is a European ally, and -- despite numerous international joyrides with his loyal vassals Lieberman and Graham -- probably doesn't know which country he's in much of the time.

Maybe he's still working on the number of houses he owns.

See also . . .

Tactics v. strategy, style v. substance

The narrative starts to settle in

Videos from YouTube

Deregulation: McCain's solution to everything

2008-09-20T10:37:00.013-04:00

But that was then, this is now

Don't worry, be happy. It's morning in America all over again. The fundamentals of our economy are strong.

Like his hug-buddy W., John McCain supports the privatization of Social Security. Take that, Wall Street.

Like the man he once supported for president -- ex-Senator, current pal, bank lobbyist and economic adviser America-has-become-a-nation-of-whiners Phil Gramm -- McCain struts and crows and flaps his wings about his deregulation Credo.

Until, that is, it all becomes politically inconvenient when his fundamental economic philosophy -- i.e., the greed and mismanagement of Wall Street and Washington -- leads to today's financial meltdown.

But, get this: McCain proposes to do to health care what he and his buddies have done to the financial system.

Opening up the health insurance market to more vigorous nationwide competition, as we have done over the last decade in banking, would provide more choices of innovative products less burdened by the worst excesses of state-based regulation.
- John McCain, Better Care at lower cost for every American

So McCain, who now poses as the scourge of Wall Street, was praising financial deregulation like 10 seconds ago -- and promising that if we marketize health care, it will perform as well as the financial industry!
- Paul Krugman, McCain on banking and health

Cockadoodledoo.

Checking off the feminists' to-do list

2008-09-19T09:52:00.003-04:00

"Sarah Palin may yet be the fulfillment of an old feminist prophecy that Texan Sissy Farenthold once described with her tongue firmly planted in her cheek.

"We will have achieved equality the day mediocre women take their place beside mediocre men.

"Check that one off the to-do list."

Ellen Goodman, The Traveling Pantsuits take a detour

Taking a clear view of the presidential candidates

2008-09-18T10:35:00.032-04:00

Eyeglasses by Kazuo Kawasaki

Let me see if I have this straight . . . .

How racism works

Reform begins right behind you, John McCain

Jeb Bush shags Florida

Here we go again: Disenfranchising Florida voters

2008-09-11T13:46:00.010-04:00

Florida to enforce restrictive 'No-Match No-Vote' law

FLORIDA -- Today voting rights advocates expressed alarm over the Secretary of State’s September 8th decision to enforce the state’s “no-match, no-vote” law, a voter registration law that previously blocked more than 16,000 eligible Florida citizens from registering to vote, through no fault of their own, and could disenfranchise tens of thousands more voters in November.

Secretary of State Browning’s last-minute decision to implement the law in the final month before the registration deadline will pose a significant hurdle to eligible Florida citizens hoping to register and vote in November. It will disenfranchise voters who do not send or bring a photocopy of their driver’s license to county election officials’ offices after voting, even if these voters showed poll workers their driver’s licenses at the polls on Election Day.

“This 11th-hour decision is an ill-advised move to apply a policy the state has never enforced in its current form, at a time when registration activity is at its highest,” said Alvaro Fernandez of the Southwest Voter Registration and Education Project, a plaintiff in the case. “The Secretary’s decision will put thousands of real Florida citizens at risk due to bureaucratic typos that under the ‘no-match, no-vote’ law will prevent them from voting this November,” continued Fernandez.

“Voters who do everything right, who submit forms that are complete, timely, and accurate, will suddenly find themselves unregistered when they go to vote, just because someone somewhere punched the wrong letter on a keyboard,” said Myrna Pérez, counsel at the Brennan Center for Justice.

“The no match, no vote policy is unjust and unnecessary, and Florida voters will pay the price this fall,” stated Jean-Robert Lafortune, president of the Haitian-American Grassroots Coalition, another plaintiff in the lawsuit.

The law at issue bars any Florida citizen from becoming registered to vote and voting with a regular ballot if the state cannot validate the applicant’s driver’s license number or the last four digits of the applicant’s Social Security number, no matter how much identification the voter brings to the polls on Election Day. The process starts with an attempt to “match” voter information to other government databases, an error-prone exercise that often fails. For example, the Social Security Administration reports a 46% failure rate when trying to match voter registration applications. State officials admitted in a recent challenge to the law, Florida NAACP v. Browning, that typographical errors by election workers are responsible for most of the failures.

If the state cannot match the voter registration records, many eligible voters who submit registration applications before the October 6th deadline to register may not be notified of the matching failure until Election Day, when they appear at the polls to vote. There, they will be forced to cast a provisional ballot, and that provisional ballot will only be counted if the voter submits a photocopy of his or her driver’s license or Social Security card within 48 hours after the election, even if they already showed their driver’s license at the polls.

“The most senseless part is that the state creates these errors, and then makes it unnecessarily hard to fix the problem,” said Myrna Pérez of the Brennan Center. “If the state insists on enforcing this misguided matching provision, it should at least make it possible for voters to show their driver’s license at the poll and validate their registration then and there. To have registered, brought your ID to the polls, and still be told you can’t vote – all because of a bureaucratic error – is ridiculous.”

“It is unfortunate that the Secretary of State decided to enforce the statute less than a month before registration deadline. It is really the 11th hour and is certain to derail the applications of eligible voters. At the very least, counties can and should help to avoid needless disenfranchisement of eligible voters by permitting voters to correct the problem at the polls. In addition, we strongly urge groups that conduct voter registration drives to ask applicants to submit their driver’s license number (not Social Security number) on their application, which will reduce the likelihood that their application will be rejected for lack of a ‘match,’” urged Elizabeth Westfall of Advancement Project, one of the attorneys for the plaintiffs.

“In 2006 alone, more than 12,800 citizens submitting complete and timely forms were kept off of the rolls, and the volume of registration in 2006 is nothing like what we anticipate in this presidential year,” said Robert Atkins, a partner at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP, also representing plaintiffs. 2006 was a year of unusually low voter registration rates in Florida because of a separate law that shut down voter registration drives that year. “With the huge number of registration forms pouring in at the end of the registration period, county officials may not be able to fix problems that will cause thousands of eligible voters to be disenfranchised,” Atkins added.

The Secretary of State’s announcement Monday poses the latest obstacle to eligible Florida voters seeking to register before the 2008 elections.

In June, a federal trial court in Gainesville, Florida, refused to stop the “no-match, no-vote” law in Florida NAACP vs. Browning after challenges from several voter advocacy organizations. The case was filed in September 2007 by the Florida branch of the NAACP, the Haitian-American Grassroots Coalition, and the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project. The plaintiffs are represented by The Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law; Advancement Project; Project Vote; Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP; and Greenberg Traurig LLP.

In December 2007, the Gainesville federal court granted a preliminary injunction against the no-match, no-vote law under two federal statutes, ruling that Florida’s law “makes it harder to vote by imposing a matching requirement that is a barrier to voter registration.”

The ruling’s criticism of the no match, no vote law prompted the state legislature to revise portions of the statute – eliminating untenable distinctions between typos made by voters and those made by election officials, and standardizing the notice sent to voters kept off the rolls. Still, voting rights advocates argue that the law’s core burdens remain.

In April, the trial court’s original decision was overturned in a split decision from the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta, following an appeal by the Florida Secretary of State. Plaintiffs in the case returned to the federal trial court to challenge the amended law under the federal constitution, but on remand, the court refused to enjoin the law, citing the changes that the legislature had made to the statute.

For more information about the lawsuit challenging Florida’s voter registration system and how voter database matching laws disproportionately affects Latino voters and other minorities, visit the Brennan Center website here.

More . . . .

States' purges of voter rolls appear illegal

'No match' dropped in Wisconsin after 4 of 6 judges fail

Voter registration by students raises cloud of consequences

Election experts warn of November storm

Today's knee-slapper: The Republican 'mavericks'

2008-09-05T11:15:00.067-04:00

Mavericks?

maverick: "an independent individual who does not go along with a group or party" - Merriam-Webster

Q: Does that definition apply to John McCain and Sarah Palin -- or are they morphing themselves into the "un-Republican ticket" to mislead voters?
A: "And on the transcendent issues, the most important issues of our day, I've been totally in agreement and support of President Bush." - John McCain

Q: How can you can tell when a politician -- one who finally convinced his party's base that he was the presidential candidate most committed to his party's agenda and to continuing the Bush-Cheney legacy -- is lying when he calls himself a "maverick"?
A: He blinks, he winks, and finally he squeezes out a mischievous grin that says, "You ain't seen nothing yet, my friends. There's plenty more where that one came from." Wink.

Q: How can you tell when a "pit bull with lipstick" is just a sideshow poodle with an attitude?
A: She depends on the same old Bush-Rove operatives and Washington lobbyists to concoct a special batch of "maverick" magenta for her national debut.

McCain flunks Katrina test

2008-08-31T10:18:00.006-04:00

Speaking in New Orleans about Hurricane Katrina today, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) tried to contrast himself with President Bush’s delayed response to Katrina, saying, "I would’ve landed my airplane at the nearest Air Force base and come over personally."

But as Newsweek notes, on Aug. 29, 2005, when Katrina had just hit New Orleans, McCain was posing with President Bush for his 69th birthday:

It was Aug. 29, McCain’s 69th birthday, and on the tarmac, Bush presented his old political rival with a cake. The two posed, holding the cake up for cameras, and within seconds, went their separate ways. The cake, melting in the 110-degree Arizona heat, was left behind, uneaten.

“Yet on the issue of New Orleans, it’s still unclear how different McCain and Bush actually are,” Newsweek writes, noting that McCain has visited the Ninth Ward only twice since the storm.

“The senator won’t present his own plans for recovery, at least not today.” - Flashback: As Katrina hit, McCain celebrated 69th birthday with Bush

More . . . .

CSX rails run smoothly through Washington

2008-06-10T10:01:00.008-04:00

In today's business section, The New York Times exposes more questionable links between CSX Corp and Washington politicians who benefit from the rail company's largesse:

CSX has managed to turn a proxy contest for 5 of 12 board seats (it is hardly a takeover, at least not yet) into a debate about national security.

Six senators (members of the Senate Banking Committee) wrote a letter to the Treasury secretary, Henry M. Paulson Jr., last week suggesting, absurdly, that TCI (The Children's Investment Fund, based in London) is “anonymous and invisible to government regulators.”

What about all that support in Washington? The uproar is over the fact that in addition to transporting tens of thousands of other carloads last year, CSX also moved 9,575 military carloads as well as 312 carloads of nuclear material.

But take a look at where some of the senators and congressmen have been getting donations lately — and their pet projects — and the timing may seem a bit suspicious.

Two of the six senators who sent the letter — Mel Martinez of Florida and Tom Carper of Delaware — have been beneficiaries of CSX’s largess, receiving $5,000 each this year.

Representative Corrine Brown, a Democrat from Florida, who is chairwoman of the House subcommittee with jurisdiction over the rail industry, has been particularly vocal in trying to prevent TCI from getting on CSX’s board. She has received $38,750 since 1989, including $5,000 in the 2008 election cycle, from CSX, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. And CSX gave $25,000 to Edward Waters College, in Jacksonville, her alma mater. And then CSX’s chief executive, Michael J. Ward, personally donated another $1 million to Edward Waters College just over a week after Ms. Brown spoke out on behalf of the company. He had never donated money to the college before and has no connection to the school.

CSX grasping at straws to end battle

See also . . . RiskMetrics Group: CSX proxy fight review