Election Geek Blog 2008 Election News 24/7

Latest Ipsos Poll Shows McCain Tied With Both Democrats

2008-04-10T20:57:26Z

The 10-point advantage for Obama over McCain has vanished leaving Senator McCain virtually tied with him and opponent Senator Clinton in public opinion polling conducted by Ap-Ipsos. The Democratic race remains unchanged since last month with Obama leading Clinton 46% to 43%.

McCain Joins “Boycott Olympics” Chorus

2008-04-10T19:50:53Z

On the heals of Senator Clinton call for President Bush to boycott the Olympics, Senator Obama’s announcement today that President Bush should boycott if China doesn’t change its policies, Senator McCain now says he personally would boycott the ceremonies and says Bush should evaluate.

RLINGTON, VA — U.S. Senator John McCain today issued the following statement on China and the Olympic Games:

“Our relationship with China is important, and we value our ability to cooperate with the Chinese government on a wide variety of strategic, economic, and diplomatic fronts. But the Chinese government needs to understand that in our modern world, how a nation treats its citizens is a legitimate subject of international concern. China has signed numerous international agreements that make China’s treatment of its citizens a subject of legitimate international concern, not just a matter of national sovereignty. To be a responsible stakeholder in the modern world, a government must also be responsible at home, in protecting, not trampling, the rights of its people.

“I deplore the violent crackdown by Chinese authorities and the continuing oppression in Tibet of those merely wishing to practice their faith and preserve their culture and heritage. I have listened carefully to the Dalai Lama and am convinced he is a man of peace who reflects the hopes and aspirations of Tibetans. I urge the government of the People’s Republic of China to address the root causes of unrest in Tibet by opening a genuine dialogue with His Holiness, the Dalai Lama, aimed at granting greater autonomy. I urge the Chinese authorities to ensure peaceful protest is not met with violence, to release monks and others detained for peacefully expressing their views and to allow full outside access to Tibet.

“I understand and respect Prime Minister Brown’s decision not to attend the Olympic opening ceremonies. I believe President Bush should evaluate his participation in the ceremonies surrounding the Olympics and, based on Chinese actions, decide whether it is appropriate to attend. If Chinese policies and practices do not change, I would not attend the opening ceremonies. It does no service to the Chinese government, and certainly no service to the people of China, for the United States and other democracies to pretend that the suppression of rights in China does not concern us. It does, will and must concern us.”

Obama’s Joint Chief Will Not Have to Opposse ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’

2008-04-10T17:52:31Z

ABC News reports in an interview with the gay publication The Advocate Senator Obama reveals he will not make the opposition to the “don’t ask, don’t tell policy” that he opposes a litmus test for anyone to hold the job. Obama saying “there are so many issues that a member of the Joint Chiefs has to deal with and my paramount obligation is to get the best possible people to keep America safe.”

Obama Moves Toward Supporting a Boycott of Olympic Ceremonies

2008-04-10T14:34:36Z

Statement from Senator Obama found via Mark Ambinder:

“If the Chinese do not take steps to help stop the genocide in Darfur and to respect the dignity, security, and human rights of the Tibetan people, then the President should boycott the opening ceremonies. As I have communicated in public and to the President, it is past time for China to respect the human rights of the Tibetan people, to allow foreign journalists and diplomats access to the region, and to engage the Dalai Lama in meaningful talks about the future of Tibet. I am also deeply concerned about China’s failure to support efforts to halt the genocide in Darfur. Regarding the Beijing Olympics this summer, a boycott of the opening ceremonies should be firmly on the table, but this decision should be made closer to the Games.”

This follows a call from Senator Clinton the other day to boycott the ceremonies.

McCain to Speak on the Economy Today

2008-04-10T13:53:05Z

Excerpts found via The Page:

Thank you for joining me here today. It is a real pleasure to be participating in this roundtable with so many accomplished entrepreneurs and small business owners. You represent the engine of economic growth in America. Small business creates the majority of new jobs in America every year – so thank you for your ingenuity, perseverance, and hard work.

For Americans, a good job is the best program for housing, education, clothing, health care and transportation ever devised. A strong, growing economy with good jobs is central to everything we want for America. Today our economy is weakening, and as I travel this country and meet and talk with people, I can see how things are getting tougher for many Americans.

As I see it, individuals and families are feeling real pressure in four major areas. Housing prices are flat or declining and Americans have lost their homes or are in danger of losing them. A credit crunch is making personal loans, student loans, or business loans harder to get. Gas prices and food prices are threatening family budgets. And people are worried about their jobs.

I have a plan of action to get the American economy back on track. My plan is comprised of two parts: First is a tangible, near-term plan to address and relieve some of the serious problems that Americans are facing right now. The second part of the plan is to create the right medium and long-term environment for our economy to rebound and thrive.
…
So what can we do in the near term?
Let’s start with the housing challenges. There is nothing more important than keeping alive the American dream to own your home, and priority number one is to keep well meaning, deserving home owners who are facing foreclosure in their homes.
…
I believe a more robust, timely and targeted effort is my HOME plan. It offers every deserving American family or homeowner the opportunity to trade a burdensome mortgage for a manageable loan that reflects the market value of their home. This plan is focused on people. People decide if they need help, they apply for assistance and if approved the government under my HOME Program supports them in getting a new mortgage that they can afford. There will be qualifications which require the home to be a primary residence and the borrower able to afford a new mortgage. We will combine the power of government and the private sector to find immediate solutions for deserving American homeowners.

My plan follows the sound economic principle that when markets decline dramatically, debts must be restructured. It is built on the reality that homeowners should have an equity capital stake in their home. Homeowners would end up with a 30-year mortgage and an equity stake in their home. The new lender would receive a federal guarantee of the mortgage. And the taxpayer gets a benefit if the sale value ever recovers.

The result is a restructured financial arrangement for the homeowner. Over the long term, financial institutions must follow suit, writing off losses, restructuring their balance sheets, and raising more capital.

I am also calling for an immediate DOJ task force to aggressively investigate potential criminal wrongdoing in the mortgage lending and securitization industry. If there were individuals or firms that defrauded innocent homeowners or forged loan application documents, then the punishments of the market are not enough, and they must answer for their conduct in a court of law.

Now let me turn to gas and food prices. We need to help everyone who relies on gas to commute or pick up the kids or get to doctors appointments. As President, I promise to pursue a national energy strategy that won’t be another grab bag of handouts and a full employment act for lobbyists. It will promote the diversification and conservation of our energy sources, including a robust expansion of nuclear power, that will in sufficient time break the dominance of oil in our transportation sector.

Right now I think we should stop adding to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. The SPR is intended to offset the impact of physical disruption of oil supplies. But with oil at over $100 a barrel and an adequate supply in the SPR, it is time to suspend purchases. This will lessen worldwide demand for oil, and if the classic laws of supply and demand hold, we should see a welcome decrease in the price of oil. And I ask every American to consider how you can sacrifice a bit for the common good and cut back where you can on your energy use.

Job security may well be the most pressing problem of these challenging economic times. Right now, jobs are in jeopardy and the government backstop is not up to the task. For over a year, I have been calling for a comprehensive reform to our unemployment insurance and displaced worker programs.
In our current unemployment insurance system, benefits are the same regardless of whether a job is found quickly or slowly. There is no reward for work, or getting to work quickly. Training programs are duplicative, balkanized and inefficient. The Department of Labor alone has over a half-dozen programs under different organizational umbrellas.

I propose that we build a new system so that as women and men work, their taxes help to build up a buffer account against lost earnings. Then, if they are unfortunate enough to lose a job, they will be able to better meet their obligations. There will also be no need to wait for a bureaucrat or obey a timetable. Every day will count and give incentives to get back to work.

If new skills are needed, displaced workers should find quick assistance at a community college using a flexible training account that permits them to pay for training and use some of the leftover to keep their health insurance. They will be able to get the hands-on skills needed by employers in the area and move to a new job. And my plan contains special, targeted assistance for older workers.
…

These short term measures are designed to help people where they face the most challenges right now. I think they could make a significant difference in the everyday lives of many people.
…

Next week I will outline my longer term vision for American economic growth and power. But let me make it clear that in these challenging times, I am committed to using all the resources of this government and great nation to create opportunity and make sure that every deserving American has a good job and can achieve their American dream.

Sen. Rockefeller Apologizes to McCain

2008-04-09T21:13:33Z

Obama supporter and fellow Senator John Rockefeller made the following statement to the Charleston Gazette:

“McCain was a fighter pilot, who dropped laser-guided missiles from 35,000 feet,” Rockefeller said. “He was long gone when they hit. What happened when they (the missiles) get to the ground? He doesn’t know. You have to care about the lives of people. McCain never gets into those issues.”

He also made the following apology:

Senator John D. (Jay) Rockefeller IV (D-WV) called Senator John McCain today to apologize for his remarks.

“I have deep respect for John McCain’s honorable and noble service to our country. I made an inaccurate and wrong analogy and I have extended my sincere apology to him. While we differ a great deal on policy issues, I profoundly respect and appreciate his dedication to our country, and I regret my very poor choice of words,” Rockefeller said.

Senator Rockefeller’s remarks came during an interview in West Virginia yesterday. He was attempting to make the point that the next president must keep the focus on the needs of every day people. He is concerned that Senator McCain’s policies regarding access to healthcare, education, the economy and retirement security don’t put real people front and center.

Official word from the Obama campaign:

“Sen. Obama has a deep respect for Sen. McCain’s service to this country and he does not agree with what Sen. Rockefeller said,” Obama campaign spokesman Tommy Vietor says in a statement he just sent us.

Obama Hints At Opting Out of Publican Financing

2008-04-09T16:28:56Z

ABC News found via (The Page)

“We have created a parallel public financing system where the American people decide if they want to support a campaign they can get on the Internet and finance it, and they will have as much access and influence over the course and direction of our campaign that has traditionally reserved for the wealthy and the powerful.”

The Mark Penn Problem

2008-04-09T16:00:21Z

All seemed to be moving toward the direction of right for the Clinton campaign earlier this week, the embattled campaign advisor Mark Penn seemed to be out and the campaign was looking to change the conversation by starting a new one about the Olympics. Then, not long after the media began digesting the remove of Penn, he appeared on a conference call to announce his resurrection and maintain his authority. What in the world happened?

Barack Obama began a new line of attack and out of everything he has tried it is probably his most poignant and best argument, basically “if Clinton is doing such a terrible job against me, how will she possibly hold up against McCain?” During the summer, fall and winter that was a question that seemed unthinkable. After the last three months of utterly bizarre and unexpected movements by Sen. Clinton, it seems like a question that has absolutely no good answers for her candidacy.

So how in the world could the Senator let Penn stay in the fold a man who was the brainchild of her much maligned message and a man so divisive that reports from inside say almost everyone in-house aside from the Clinton’s themselves despise him? With his presence leading to unions everywhere declaring outrage, with a campaign that has made one misstep after another, what in the world is the Senator thinking?

Penn is the extreme example of Obama’s new argument. For many Democrats the allure of having a team of experienced, grounded, dignified leaders in the WH, who had solved many of our nations problems in the 90’s and would come back to solve them again, was the best argument for tossing aside change for experience. What has that experience amounted to? A crumbling campaign and Mark Penn, a man who doesn’t seem to represent anything close to grounded or dignified and whose experience has helped sink a candidate.

The fact that the Senator hasn’t really seen the problem, that she believed tossing him to the wolves for a day and then allowing him back into the house with a different title the next is emblematic of her campaign. A campaign that seems to prize loyalty to the Clinton’s above competency for their job. Mark Penn allows voters to openly ask, “Is this the administration we will inherit?” From all angles, it looks like it is.

In short, Clinton has a problem, a massive problem and Mark Penn is a living and breathing example of it.

McCain, Obama & Clinton Will Tape Messages for Idol Gives Back

2008-04-08T15:54:45Z

American Idol will run its charitable “Idol Gives Back” show tonight with a plethora of stars including Brad Pitt and Bono. In addition all three candidates, Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton & John McCain will record special messages urging viewers to participate in the charity.

Polling: Clinton/Obama Now Tied in Pennsylvania

2008-04-07T19:03:26Z

As I always state, I distrust polling this close to a primary but with that said Pennsylvania has been trending toward this in recent weeks and unlike the condensed, couple of days between primaries in the past, we’ve had some time to measure. The American Research Group now has Clinton and Obama dead even. Is this important? In short this is massive.

If Clinton loses Pennsylvania, she is done. Not just done in the sense that she has been done for weeks, but done. Why is there a sudden trend for those on team Obama to say Clinton should stay in the race? Because all signs are beginning to point to the potential for a massive humiliation for her coming up. She could be looking at being crushed in delegates, states, pledged delegates and super delegates in the coming weeks. If Clinton loses Penn, she loses the possibility of winning the popular vote and she loses the argument that she has taken all the big states. It means she will lose every leg to stand on and will come off as the person who clung too long.

If Rev. Wright was going to make an impact with voters, it was going to be in Pennsylvania. Now? Well if it continues, not so much.

Now with that said, we have two weeks and anything could happen. This polling data and all the other data could be junk and we could suddenly see that he has no on the ground support and in fact Clinton will be the clear winner. I am just saying that if she does lose, if these polls are correct, it is massive.

Clinton Calls on Bush to Boycott Olympics

2008-04-07T16:49:34Z

Senator Hillary Clinton is calling on President Bush to boycott the opening ceremonies of the Olympics. This years games being held in China are marred with political, pollution and protest problems and are coming under increased fire by the world community.

Note Drudge had the world exclusive on this, second sign since Friday that the Clinton/Drudge relationship is not dead.

Montana State Legislator & Superdelegate Margaret Campbell Endorses Obama

2008-04-07T14:51:48Z

It is Monday, which means yet another superdelegate for Senator Obama. The campaign has been dolling these out at a perfect pace helping to lead the weekly news-cycle and set the tone for the week.

More on Mark Penn’s Demise

2008-04-07T14:33:23Z

This Monday morning brings more information about the demise of Mark Penn. What started as a conflict of interest story with Penn lobbying the Colombian government on a trade deal Clinton disagrees with, has blossomed into a full window view of the world within team Clinton.

First from ABC News:

Sources said that the Clintons were angry to learn about Penn’s work, especially because they had been told that Penn had recused himself from controversial clients and would restrict his private work.

Though Clinton campaign manager Maggie Williams said, “After the events of the last few days, Mark Penn has asked to give up his role as chief strategist of the Clinton campaign,” sources told ABC News Penn was pushed.

The New York Times reports “Mrs. Clinton was said to be furious when she learned that he was employed by and consulting with the Colombians on the trade treaty.”

Also from the ABC News piece:

The work a Burson Marsteller subsidiary did for controversial war contractor Blackwater, and Penn’s work for the union-busting corporation Cintas were other instances in which the Clinton campaign didn’t appreciate having its name associated with Penn clients.

But it was a bridge too far for Penn when Sen. Hillary Clinton heard the news that Penn had met with the Colombians on the trade deal.

Penn also was regarded by many in the campaign as too self-serving, particularly after a Los Angeles Times profile of the campaign written after her horrible month of February, when Penn was quoted saying that he had “no direct authority in the campaign,” describing himself as merely “an outside message advisor with no campaign staff reporting to me.”

Reactions

Democratic strategist Chris Kofinis, who had been a spokesman in John Edwards’ campaign, said Penn’s departure was needed to help the candidate.

“The worst kept secret in the whole Democratic race was that Penn’s campaign strategy was not working and that the Clinton campaign has unfortunately paid the price,” Kofinis said. “The truth is this the best move the Clinton campaign could have made and something that I imagine most Clinton supporters wished had happened months ago.” (From the Associated Press

Obama campaign manager David Axelrod on MSNBC’s Morning Joe

Former Edwards advisor Joe Trippi: “The only real question was, why did it not happen sooner?”

Teamsters Union President James Hoffa reaction as reported in the NY SUN: “said through an aide tonight that the change is of little significance, since Mr. Penn will continue to advise and poll for Mrs. Clinton’s presidential bid.”

Greenspan Supports McCain While Condi Seeks the VP Slot

2008-04-07T03:48:44Z

Today former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan announced that he was backing McCain stating:

“I’m Republican and I support John McCain, who I know very well and who I respect a lot,” he said.

Meanwhile ABC News reports that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is “actively courting the vice presidential nomination, Republican strategist Dan Senor said.”

Condi Rice has been actively, actually in recent weeks, campaigning for this,” Senor said this morning on “This Week with George Stephanopoulos.”

According to Senor, Rice has been cozying up to the Republican elite.

“There’s this ritual in Washington: The Americans for Tax Reform, which is headed by Grover Norquist, he holds a weekly meeting of conservative leaders — about 100, 150 people, sort of inside, chattering, class types,” Senor said. “They all typically get briefings from political conservative leaders. Ten days ago, they had an interesting visit — Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice — the first time a secretary of state has visited the Wednesday meeting.”

Sunday Surprise: Mark Penn Steps Down From Clinton Campaign

2008-04-07T00:50:39Z

Clinton campaign senior strategist and a much maligned figure Mark Penn announced today he was stepping down. Late in the week it was revealed that Penn met with representatives of the Colombian government to help promote a free trade agreement Clinton opposes on behalf of his company “Mark, and Penn, Schoen and Berland Associates, Inc.” His company will continue to provide polling and advice to Clinton.

More than this one issue Penn has been seen as a dividing figure within the Clinton campaign and a chief architect of Clinton’s inevitability strategy that has left her trailing in delegates, states won and the popular vote.

SNL’s Take on the Clinton Tax Returns

2008-04-06T14:56:47Z

Last Night Saturday Night Live gave their take on the Clinton tax returns.

Clinton Caught in another Lie? Ohio Hospital Contradicts Her Story

2008-04-05T23:11:33Z

From the New York Times.

For weeks now Senator Clinton has been telling a story about Trina Bachtel “an uninsured pregnant woman who lost her baby and died herself after being denied care by an Ohio hospital because she could not come up with a $100 fee.” The Ohio hospital O’Bleness Memorial Hospital in Athens, Ohio claims that Bachtel was actually under the care of an obstetrics practice affiliated with the hospital and was never denied service.

From the article:

“We implore the Clinton campaign to immediately desist from repeating this story,” said Rick Castrop, chief executive officer of the O’Bleness Health System.

Linda M. Weiss, a spokeswoman for the not-for-profit hospital, said the Clinton campaign had never contacted the hospital to check the accuracy of the story, which Mrs. Clinton had first heard from a Meigs County, Ohio, sheriff’s deputy in late February.

A Clinton spokesman, Mo Elleithee, said candidates would frequently retell stories relayed to them, vetting them when possible. “In this case, we did try but were not able to fully vet it,” Mr. Elleithee said. “If the hospital claims it did not happen that way, we respect that.”

The sheriff’s deputy, Bryan Holman, had played host to Mrs. Clinton in his home before the Ohio primary. Deputy Holman said in a telephone interview that a conversation about health care led him to relate the story of Ms. Bachtel. He never mentioned the name of the hospital that supposedly turned her away because he did not know it, he said.

Deputy Holman knew Ms. Bachtel’s story only secondhand, having learned it from close relatives of the woman. Ms. Bachtel’s relatives did not return phone calls Friday.

Obama Advisor Says Keep Troops in Iraq Past 2010

2008-04-05T13:32:27Z

From the NY Sun Obama advisor Colin Kahl writing for the center-left Center for a New American Security in a paper entitle “Stay on Success: A Policy of Conditional Engagement” writes:

“the U.S. should aim to transition to a sustainable over-watch posture (of perhaps 60,000–80,000 forces) by the end of 2010 (although the specific timelines should be the byproduct of negotiations and conditions on the ground).”

The Sun reports Kahl is a “day-to-day” advisor on Obama’s working group on Iraq.

Both Mr. Kahl and a senior Obama campaign adviser reached yesterday said the paper does not represent the campaign’s Iraq position. Nonetheless, the paper could provide clues as to the ultimate size of the residual American force the candidate has said would remain in Iraq after the withdrawal of combat brigades. The campaign has not publicly discussed the size of such a force in the past.

This is not the first time the opinion of an adviser to the Obama campaign has differed with the candidate’s stated Iraq policy. In February, Mr. Obama’s first foreign policy tutor, Samantha Power, told BBC that the senator’s current Iraq plan would likely change based on the advice of military commanders in 2009. She has since resigned her position as a formal adviser.

My take? I have been saying for awhile now to anyone I talk to, don’t expect if any of the three candidates get into office that we will have left Iraq anytime soon. The realities on the ground and the political realities are far too complex to expect every since troop out in a year.

Hillary Clinton: I’m F*cking Obama Parody Video

2008-04-05T13:24:06Z

A wonderful parody of the Sarah Silverman “I’m F*cking Matt Damon” video.

Clintons Tax Return: $109.2 Million in Income Since Leaving Office

2008-04-04T20:58:59Z

Associated Press reports 109.2 Million raised for the Clintons since leaving office.

The Democratic presidential candidate and her husband paid $33.8 million in taxes from 2000 through 2007. They listed $10.25 million in charitable contributions during that period.

Round-up from Drudge:

World Exclusive: 4/4/08 15:43:06 ET
2000-2007 Returns
Feds Taxes Paid: $33.7 million
Charity: $10.2 million
Her Senate Salary: $1,051,606

Her Book Income: $10,457,083
His Book Income: $29,580,525
His Speech Income: $51,855,599
His Presidential Pension: $1,217,250

Official statement from spokesman Jay Carlson:

“Today Senator Hillary Clinton and President Bill Clinton are releasing their tax returns for the years 2000 through 2006, and are providing information regarding their 2007 taxes as well.
The Clintons have now made public thirty years of tax returns, a record matched by few people in public service. None of Hillary Clinton’s presidential opponents have revealed anything close to this amount of personal financial information.

What the Clintons’ tax returns show is that they paid more than $33,000,000 in federal taxes and donated more than $10,000,000 to charities over the past eight years. They paid taxes and made charitable contributions at a higher rate than taxpayers at their income level.”

Statements:
2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007

Followup: McCain Will Meet with Secret Service and Discuss Protection

2008-04-04T19:14:52Z

Senator John McCain has told FOX News Host Chris Wallace that his campaign will be contacting the Secret Service to begin the procedure to receive Secret Service protection. It was admitted to Congress yesterday by Director Mark Sullivan that McCain had not requested any protection.

Clinton Tax Returns Expected Today

2008-04-04T16:51:37Z

After many weeks of pressure from the Obama campaign, Clinton is expected to take advantage of the black hole also known as Friday’s news cycle to release her tax returns today.

Advice for Liberals

2008-04-04T16:48:36Z

Replacing crazy conservative talk radio with just as crazy liberal talk radio is not the way to go forward. You know how every time you read a weird, blatantly shocking statement by a conservative radio host your blood boils and you openly wonder how anyone can support them? Well that is what statements like this do to everyone else in America.

Obviously this woman doesn’t represent every liberal in the party anymore than Dr. Laura represents every conservative. With that said, in this time when Democrats are coming close to regaining the White House and dominating Congress, people like this and Reverend Wright and others are your own worst enemy.

Voters are cozying up to the Democrats, trying to take a second look and see if they can ignore all the wacko’s on the far left in order to advance a better agenda for America. They are trying to move past the days of Al Sharpton, Michael Moore and Noam Chomsky just as many tried to move past Limbaugh and Coulter in 2000 & 2004. Middle American and independent voters get so close to wanting to vote Democratic and then someone like this, or David Shuster, Chris Matthews, Jeremiah Wright, Geraldine Ferraro, Jesse Jackson or others say something so blatantly stupid, outrageous or rude that it just makes you want to throw something at the TV and vote for the opposition.

To be quite frank, nobody except for a select few know who Randi Rhodes is, they probably just assume Ozzy Osbournes former guitarist came back to life. All they know is that a crazy person on the left said something crazy and they move on. People like this just help detour voters, helping them believe the Democrats are in-fighting again and are ready to tear the party apart.

In short, crazy people on the left and right need to calm down through November.

Why An Edwards’ Endorsement Wouldn’t Make Sense Now

2008-04-04T14:39:51Z

After Edwards dropped out most following the campaign trail thought an Obama endorsement was a sure bet, one that has yet to pay out. Last week a report spread on the not-so-delightful meeting between the Edwards’ and Senator Barack Obama that shed light on why. The report suggested Obama’s behavior at the meeting, which was described as aloof, didn’t help his case, meanwhile his unwillingness to budge after a complaint by Elizabeth Edwards that his Universal health care plan was anything but, didn’t help either.

Yesterday Elizabeth Edwards was publicly asked which of the three remaining candidates had the best health care plan. She answered Clinton, noting Obama’s plan was not universal. The statement showed at the very least the gist of the report was right and that there is a schism between the Edwards’ and Obama on health care and potentially other issues

It has been a pretty open secret that Senator Clinton is not Elizabeth Edward’s favorite person. Elizabeth’s willingness to endorse Clinton’s side of the argument over the Illinois Senator may be proof that they truly are torn between the two candidates and are giving the decision their full weight. I have to say it is refreshing to see that an endorsement is being considered on merit and not just what will advance a career or open up the spotlight.

With that said, I can see very little politically, that can be gained from making any endorsement at all. Had Edwards gone for either candidate immediately following his departure, it probably would have had a major impact on the race. Now, with most of the states decided, it is hard to believe Edwards supporters, whether they be financial or activists, haven’t picked a side.

While an Edwards endorsement would surely carry a great deal of media weight, we haven’t seen much evidence that it leads to support at the polling place. Ted Kennedy’s endorsement was much heralded by the media and yes it gave Obama some credibility assistance, it did little to sway Massachusetts or California.

John has announced he wouldn’t accept a VP slot if offered and his time running as second fiddle in 2004 no doubt sullied his vision of the position. additionally, there is little he could personally gain. His unique skills as a successful lawyer, contacts made while a Senator and endeared followers gain on the campaign trail would make him a highly sought after commodity if either candidate is elected. He has little to gain financially or in his career and personally he would be better off waiting until all the states have voted and simply endorsing the candidate who seems likely to win.

Ultimately both of the Edwards are in a tuff bind. With Barack they have a candidate who holds some positions they dislike and in whom John has repeatedly confessed fears about in the sense of his inability to be a grassroots fighter. Obama seeks to bring all parties together, Edwards like Clinton, believes entrenched interests will stay entrenched and a great fight is the only thing that will pull them out.

With Clinton, they have a candidate who shares their spirit, their health care plan and in some ways a sympathetic worldview, but she is a candidate who has embraced many of the people the Edwards despise. She is also a candidate that has been transformed by liberal activists into a vision of everything wrong with the Democratic party. The deep divides afflicting the party are embodied within these two candidates and choosing Clinton would surely raise the ire of those deeply entrenched in the ideology of the party.

It makes little sense for the Edwards’ to go out on a limb now and chose sides. They risk offending all, which I don’t think they care much about. More to the point, they risk backing the wrong horse. Either could walk into office and suddenly bring the causes John & Elizabeth believe in to a screeching halt. Both could be unifiers, both could be dividers. Ultimately, in the game of political chess, the Edwards’ seem to be sympathetic to a much larger endgame.

The Democratic party has made great strides in advancing an agenda, yet the country is teetering back and forth between ideologies, unsure of where to stake a claim. Picking the wrong Democratic president, in a time when the Democrats may rule two branches of government, could devastate the Party in the same way George W. Bush has ravaged his own.

In short, there is little to gain and a lot to lose with an endorsement. I say, keep on the sidelines.

Secret Service Tells Congress They Are Not Protecting John McCain

2008-04-04T14:01:15Z

Not long ago Senator John McCain announced that as president he would consider ditching secret service protection. Now Secret Service Director Mark Sullivan has told a House Appropriations Subcommittee the Senator and soon to be Republican nominee is not currently being covered on the campaign trail because he has not asked for it.

“Statutorily, he is not required to take protection,” Sullivan said when asked about McCain’s security during a hearing on the agency’s budget. “As far as an actual request, we have not gotten one. We have no involvement at this point.”

Clintons’ Worth Estimated at $50 Million

2008-04-03T17:00:53Z

A major issue has sprung up surrounding Hillary Clinton’s tax returns and where the money lent to her campaign fund has come from. We don’t yet know what these documents will reveal but ahead of Clinton’s release ABC News has put out an estimate placing the Clinton’s worth at $50 Million gained from Bill giving various speeches since leaving office.

An independent review by ABC News has found that since leaving the White House seven years ago, the senator and her former president husband have made well over $50 million, much of it from paid speeches made by Bill Clinton.

A review of Sen. Clinton’s annual ethics filings found that her husband has earned $47 million in fees from more than 280 speeches he has made around the world.

Who is paying the major bucks for those speeches?

Clinton’s biggest patrons include New York-based investment firm Goldman Sachs, which paid him $650,000 for four speeches in recent years, and two foreign firms. Gold Services International, a Colombian-based event organizer, brought Clinton to Latin America in 2005 for four days of speeches, earning Clinton $800,000. Another company, Toronto-based Power Within, paid Clinton $650,000 for a series of motivational speeches in Canada in 2005.

A Unique Take on Hillary Clinton by Dick Morris

2008-04-03T16:29:18Z

One time Clinton advisor turned hater Dick Morris has a unique take on why Senator Clinton will not be leaving the Democratic race before the convention.

Hillary Clinton’s campaign currently owes vendors $8 million, exclusive of the $5 million she owes herself. She cannot use general election money to pay for this debt. If she begins to be anything less than certain that she will stay in up to the convention, she won’t raise any money and will be stuck with the debt. She also realizes that it is only by projecting an almost manic air of certainty that she has any chance at all of hanging onto super delegates. The first whiff they get of a withdrawal, they will all run screaming to Obama to get on the late train. Don’t think that Hillary is delusional. She knows she’s lost but she has no choice but to play the rest of the game. To fold now would leave her in an untenable situation.

Morris has always been, how should I put this, a less than reliable source of information and commentary so take it with a grain of salt. With that said, facing a growing and almost certain defeat it is as good of a reason as any why Clinton continues to fight.

Obama Continues Fundraising Lead, $40 Million in March

2008-04-03T15:29:27Z

The Obama Campaign announced $40 million raised with 1.3 Million donors strong during the month of March. Rumors are that Clinton has raised $20 million during the same time.

Jimmy Carter & Jane Fonda Go For Obama

2008-04-03T14:08:39Z

Former President Jimmy Carter is hinting he will support Barack Obama while actress and anti-Vietnam activist Jane Fonda told TMZ (video she will support the Illinois Senator.

Speaking to the media following the Carter Center Awards in Abuja, Nigeria Carter said:

“We are very interested in the primaries,” Carter said. “Don’t forget that Obama won in my state of Georgia. My town which is home to 625 people is for Obama, my children and their spouses are pro- Obama. My grandchildren are also pro- Obama. As a superdelegate, I would not disclose who I am rooting for, but I leave you to make that guess,” he said.

I think that is a pretty darn clear indication.

Clinton Channels Ronald Reagan

2008-04-03T12:25:34Z

Ironically enough, not long ago Senator Clinton made a major issue out of Senator Obama’s failure to credit an aide for words he used in a speech. Clinton also made a major issue out of Senator Obama’s recognition that former President Ronald Reagan had some good ideas. Now Clinton, who used one of Ronald Reagan’s favorite and often repeated jokes, is being chided by the former president’s biographer for failing to cite Reagan as the source for her material.

It reminds me of the story about that little boy, have you ever heard this story where you know, a man walks by the barn and sees this little boy in this room filled with manure,” she reiterates. “And he’s standing there and he’s digging, and he’s digging, and he’s digging. And the man says, ‘Son, what are you doing up to your hips in manure with that little shovel?’ The boys says, ‘Well, with this much manure around there’s got to be a pony — and I’m going to find it.’”

Ironically, the story Clinton recounted was made famous by former Republican President Ronald Reagan. And just a few months ago Clinton criticized her opponent, Senator Barack Obama (D-Illinois), for saying Reagan “changed the trajectory of America in a way that … Bill Clinton did not.”

Reagan biographer Paul Kengor sarcastically states that he “did not know Clinton was such a Reagan fan.”

“Reagan told this story, constantly told this joke, constantly,” says Kengor. “In fact, any time that I did research on Reagan and the economy from 1981 to ‘83, no matter who I was talking to — Ed Meese, Bill Clark, you name it, whichever Reagan staffer — they would say, ‘You know what Reagan said, he would always tell this story at the time about the boy and the pile of manure.’ So for Hillary not to credit Ronald Reagan is itself a bunch of manure.”

According to Kengor, Clinton’s use of the story was the first time he has heard a public figure use the story since Ronald Reagan used it to bolster his optimism that tax cuts would spur economic growth in the midst of a recession. Interestingly, Kengor points out, Clinton applied the story to her mantra “there’s not a problem we can’t solve.”

John McCain Has His Own 3AM Ad

2008-04-03T01:42:45Z

Exact same as Clinton’s only McCain takes on the economy. A sign not only of a great line of attack for the Republicans but also a great message within the message, basically “I don’t have to talk about defense, everyone knows I am better at it then you.”

Well played.

Hillary to Richardson: Obama Can’t Win

2008-04-02T23:55:39Z

ABC News has learned from sources close to negotiations between Gov. Bill Richardson and the Clintons, that the couple has been making direct appeals to superdelegates stating that Barack Obama cannot win a general election campaign.

Sources with direct knowledge of the conversation between Sen. Clinton and Governer Bill Richardson, D-N.M., prior to the Governor’s endorsement of Obama say she told him flatly, “He cannot win, Bill. He cannot win.”

Richardson, who served in President Clinton’s cabinet, disagreed.

At a rally in Oregon, standing next to Obama, Richardson insisted, “My great affection and admiration for Hillary Clinton and President Bill Clinton will never waver,” but he added, “It is time, however, for Democrats to stop fighting among ourselves and to prepare for the tough fight we will face against John McCain in the fall.”

A Sudden Surge for Obama in PA

2008-04-02T17:08:56Z

Politico reports on a series of new polls showing a sudden surge for Senator Obama in Pennsylvania. Yesterday I reported the latest Ramsussen showing a once mighty 10 point lead for Clinton diminishing to five. Today a new poll by Public Policy Polling shows Obama leading Clinton for the first time 45 percent to 43 percent. Obama was down 26% in polling by the same institute just two and a half weeks ago.

bama’s gains are largely due to a narrowing of the gap with white voters—29-percentage points according to PPP—but he continues to trail Clinton 49 to 38 percent among whites. In mid-March, according to PPP, Clinton led 63 percent to 23 percent among whites. That mid-March poll occurred prior to Obama’s race speech, at the height of the controversy over Rev. Jeremiah Wright.

The PPP poll of 1224 likely Democratic primary voters between March 31 and April 1, with a margin of error of 2.8 percent, found that Obama has improved by double digits with both white women and white men. Today, PPP has Clinton leading 56 percent to 31 percent with white women. Obama leads 44 percent to 43 percent with white men.

Obama also improved with black voters, long his base. He now captures the support of three in four African Americans in the state.

Enough With the Oilmen

2008-04-02T17:05:15Z

It seems like every year, big election years especially, the Congress puts on a dog and pony show over oil prices. Everyone in Congress wants to make it seem as though they are doing something to resolve the issue, so with oil leaders sitting before them, we hear talk of “record revenue”, limiting supply and threats of recrimination. Then, nothing happens.

Every year oil prices go up in the spring/summer. They rise and rise, articles written from the year before are republished with only the numbers and lineup of world crises changed and news reports fill the television with speculation prices will reach a never before imagined level. Then, every fall, the prices go down only to spike again around holiday times before slowly moderating. This cycle does little but repeat.

So we all know the game, oil barrens make record profits while everyone pays more at the pump. Congress talks big but does little to nothing to help Americans. It is a display in futility and a massive waste of time and energy that could be better spent solving problems.

I honestly see both sides of the argument. I don’t know that we should put limits on the amount of money industries make, I don’t know that such a nationally vital resource should be manipulated in the way it is. I do know one thing, if Congress isn’t going to act by forcing any new kind of regulation or helping the American public out, they should stop the dog and pony show.

We live in a serious time with serious problems facing us and yet it seems increasingly obvious our elected leaders have little fortitude or fervor to get things done.

Dean Says Dems Want to Seat Florida Delegates

2008-04-02T16:54:11Z

Howard Dean says the Democratic Party is committed to seating Florida delegates as long as both candidates agree to the conditions.

Dean met with Florida lawmakers to discuss ways of allocating delegates among Democratic presidential candidates Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton and prepare for the fall campaign in the battleground state.

The party stripped Florida and Michigan of their delegates to the national convention in Denver because they ignored party rules and moved their primaries to January.

“We are committed to making sure that we do everything in our power to seat a delegation from Florida,” Dean said. “We believe we will seat a delegation from Florida.”

But the party chairman said it was critical that Obama and Clinton were “comfortable with the compromises that have to be worked out.” The two campaigns did not have representatives at the hourlong meeting.

“It’s our hope that the candidates will join us in this effort and without them an agreement is not possible,” said Rep. Alcee Hastings, D-Fla.

Dean said discussions were continuing over Michigan and he was “optimistic” that the state’s delegates would also be seated.