The Occasional Observer

If Obama wins, what effect will it have on affirmative action?

Unfortunately I think it will further polarize people on the issue. Those for AA will use his election as proof that it works (whether or not it directly affected BHO). Those against it will say, "if a black man can be elected to the highest office in the nation, why do black people need this sort of help?" Furthermore, what will BHO as Prez with a Dem controlled Congress try to do in terms of new AA legislation? It upsets me to think about what they might be capable of.

I think John Avlon is on to something with his article, "McCain should run against Stevens." Running against Stevens and co-opting the Dems "culture of corruption" meme, but tying it to Dems as well, particularly Obama and the Dem Congressional Leadership which may be vulnerable to the charge.

Senator Ted Stevens' seven-count indictment looks like it couldn't have come at a worse time for the Republican Party, which is already in mid-soul search.

But in every crisis there is opportunity - and for John McCain this latest congressional Republican scandal offers an opportunity to revive his reputation as an independent reformer. It has the added advantage of being brand consistent.

John McCain has been a constant critic of the unprecedented levels of pork barrel spending that took hold of the Republican Congress during the Bush Administration. And there is no better symbol of that excess then Senator Ted Stevens' infamous "Bridge to Nowhere," the $398 million dollar boondoggle to an island in Alaska where less than 10,000 people lived.

...It's hard for some professional Republican partisans to understand, but John McCain is competitive in this election because of his independence, not in spite of it.

One of the best ways to create daylight between himself and the Bush administration would be to revive his profile as a fearless reformer with a forceful new condemnation of the culture of corruption in Washington. He should hold out the examples Ted Stevens, Monica Goodling, Tom DeLay and Jack Abramoff as counter examples of the direction in which he wants to lead his party and his nation. He can harness the anger toward Bush-era Republican excesses while pointing the way to a new McCain brand of the Republican Party.

See here. If Obama wants to retort to McCain's proposals on tax policy, energy policy, and foreign policy by saying "I'm black," he can be my guest. I'm not sure that's the most effective reply out there.

GDP in positive territory, an annualized 1.9% growth rate during Q2 '08. Our economy, despite its real problems, is still growing.

July '08 had the lowest casualty total for US soldiers of any month since the Iraq war began in '03.

McCain has nearly drawn even in OH and FL in the Quinnipiac swing state poll, and closed the gap considerably in PA.

check out BarackBook.

Heh.

Just what we needed, a reprise of Mark Foley and Duke Cunningham in the run-up to an election.

If there is a bright side, it's that the GOP primary hasn't happened yet and we can get a new face on the ticket for November. But another black eye for the party that can't be erased.

FWIW, I hope McCain tees-off on Stevens and a number of high profile Dems who have ethics issues right now, including Sen. Reid (land deals), Rep. Rangel, Gov. Blagovech (Rezko), Sens. Conrad and Dodd (friends of Angelo), and maybe even Sen. Obama (connections with Tony Rezko), and make the case that McCain's made a career of trying to reduce the influence of money on politicians. Pre-emptive strike, Sen. McCain.

Following up on yesterday's Coburn article, looks like the good doctor got his way.

Coburn (R-Okla.) prevailed in blocking a massive package of generally non-controversial bills that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid brought to the floor, angering Democrats and some Republicans while raising Coburn's status as a cult hero to fiscal conservatives. The vote was 52-40 on a procedural motion that required 60 votes.

The package of about three dozen bills includes research money for paralysis victims, a civil rights bill named after Emmitt Till and a crackdown on child pornography. Yet the package also has dozens of other measures that would authorize billions in programs for the environment, foreign relations and health care.

Reid says Coburn and his minions are starving the poor and keeping the lame in wheelchairs:

The vote sent Reid into one of his trademark tirades on the Senate floor, as he basically accused Republicans of voting against people with strokes, people in wheelchairs and those suffering from Lou Gehrig's disease.

"You go home and explain to your folks [voters] about stroke legislation," Reid said. "You go home and tell people ... in a wheelchair you voted against moving forward on something that could get them out of their wheelchair."

"You're going to have to go home and explain to the poor, the disabled and the elderly,"

For his part, Sen. Coburn's rationale is simple enough:

"I have insisted on debating and improving many of these bills because this body has a moral obligation to future generations to live within our means."

http://www.zombieharmony.com/

Enjoy!

they are out there.

Just watch Senator Coburn:

Coburn, an obstetrician and gynecologist elected to the Senate in 2004, believes that many lawmakers propose duplicative programs without any way of measuring their effectiveness. His negotiating stance with the other 99 senators is fairly straightforward.

"If we pass a new program, we either ought to get rid of the old program or we ought to make it to where it blends with this other one so it's effective," Coburn said in an interview last week. "Almost everything that they've offered has a duplicate program out there that they're not either eliminating or changing."

Coburn has turned his office into its own accountability unit. Aides must comb every piece of legislation headed to the floor for potential government waste.

His staff estimates that waste and fraud costs taxpayers $300 billion a year. Next month, for example, Coburn will release a report on alleged Justice Department waste, accusing the agency of spending $312 million on conferences this decade.

Coburn said his colleagues have lost appreciation for the broad national interest and instead hope to pass legislation in their names so they can win reelection. "When you take that oath, it doesn't say anything about your state," he said. "The parochialism needs to die."

Bravo, Senator Coburn.

But, you may be wondering, is such strident opposition to new spending effective? WaPo reports, you decide:

Since January 2007, Coburn has used his senatorial "hold" to block more than 80 pieces of legislation, which means Reid knows that Coburn will object to unanimous consent on those bills.

So instead of filing all those motions, Reid leaves it up to the legislation's sponsor to try to negotiate with Coburn. But the normal legislative give-and-take has no appeal to him. Coburn does not accept earmarks, the spending for pet projects that lawmakers insert into bills. And because of a self-imposed two-term limit, Coburn has no aspirations to become a committee chairman or party leader, so he does not need to do any favors for colleagues.

The Majority Leader's take on Sen. Coburn? Mere annoyance. Doesn't Tom understand that pet projects and campaign favors are what this job is all about? Note Reid's use of the term "negotiate with" in place of "buy off":

"For those of you who may not know this," Reid told reporters recently, "you cannot negotiate with Coburn. It's just something that you learn over the years . . . is a waste of time." [my emphasis]

And don't forget about Sen. DeMint.

With just sixty men like these, imagine what we could accomplish...

from Rasmussen:

Mike Huckabee 47%/39% - (+8)
Joe Lieberman 46%/39% - (+7)
Tim Pawlenty 22%/21% - (+1)
Bobby Jindal 22%/21% - (+1)
Mitt Romney 42%/48% - (-6%)
Charlie Crist 23%/29% - (-6)
Sarah Palin 11%/19% - (-8)

It should be noted that amongst Republicans only, Mitt was in first with 69% favorable, and Huck just behind (basically tied) with 68% faovrable.

This will make you smile on this beautiful Saturday morning ...

from Drudge.

Banner year for WaPo, yet again coming through with this piece calling Pelosi to task for refusing to allow a vote on offshore drilling. They really present a nice editorial outlining why she is so wrong on the issue.

That comes on the heels of the recent announcement from USGS that perhaps some 90 BILLION barrels of technically recoverable oil exist in the arctic. That's enough to supply 100% of US demand for a little more than 10 years.

No, this time not in terms of how they slant their coverage. Instead, an interesting story showing how they slant their own personal campaign donations. Apparently donations by the media favor the Dems by a 10:1 and even 100:1 ratio over Republicans. Wow, that's even more egregious than I would have guessed.

Now, tell me with a straight face that their own personal biases revealed by the above story don't leak into the way they do their job. Right...

Yes, we all know that in the desire to be new, progressive, and unshackled by the oppressive bonds of tradition, a lot parents give their kids terrible names. The usually involve substituting "y"s for other vowels, or else some neo-paganism that deifies nature and goes with flora or celestial bodies.

But down in New Zealand, a judge actually had to step in because it was getting plain silly. "Talula Does The Hula From Hawaii" is nine years old, and actually was asking people to call her "K" because she was ashamed of her name. Some other names, real keepers, from the kiwis: Fish and Chips, Yeah Detroit, Keenan Got Lucy, Sex Fruit, Number 16 Bus Shelter, and Violence.

David Brooks - God bless him for continuing to fight the good fight at the NYT - offers another gem today, pointing out that the critical difference between Obama and the other great orators he is compared to (Reagan, JFK), is that those guys were actually willing to make hard decisions and put actions behind words. Obama is all rhetoric, and rhetoric alone never solves anything. For proof of that, look no further than Darfur, Rwanda, or countless other places where liberals too weak-kneed to propose actual action instead simply "hope" for "change", yet never achieve any.

Ed: WARNING--Curse words being sung aloud

If it's been more than a week since you've seen this, it's been too long. NSFW.

Old School: Total eclipse of the heart

The SHK rumor mill, that is.

Looks like our boy might have this one right.

We'll all know soon enough.


ht: Race 4 2008

Obama is also getting close on his V.P. pick. Drudge offers this headline:

Edwards, Nunn on Obama's VP List...

Followed by this headline:

NATIONAL ENQUIRER CORNERS JOHN EDWARDS AT BEVERLY HILTON...

Click on the link, if you dare, and you'll see photos like this one:



With headlines like:

SEN. JOHN EDWARDS CAUGHT WITH MISTRESS AND LOVE CHILD!

So--Obama/Nunn, then. Dang. That's a good pick for the Baummer.

go to Kavon and Jason Bonham at Race 4 '08, as well as another unnamed conservative "super-site", and leak the news that Romney is the pick.

Your guess is as good as mine, but for the record, my guess is that Mitt ain't the pick, but the McCain camp doesn't want to take the starch out of his or his supporters sails, since Mac's probably 6 weeks from naming his pick, and Mitt's still valuable as a surrogate.

Of course, Mitt might already have the job in hand, so who the heck knows?

Article here.

While Mitt Romney's set of paid PR minions are busy pushing out Mitt for Vice President spin, McCain campaign insiders say that while it's true they have polled Romney on the bottom of the ticket, the data confirms that such a move would be a political disaster for the party.

"Mitt tanks the ticket," says a McCain insider. "We lose fiscal conservatives. We lose social conservatives. We lose Catholics. We lose evangelicals. All the groups were spending time and money on bringing into the camp would be lost. He just doesn't help us enough to do something like this, as much as Mitt might think we should. He doesn't even win us Massachusetts."

You can see it on virtually every MSM outlet right now. It is the Obama trip to the Middle East, which, along with al-Maliki backing Obama's timeline, has been an absolute game-changer in our Presidential campaign.

This overseas trip has been a huge boon to Obama. Gallup shows a huge jump in Obama's polling in their daily tracking poll. I don't think it will be a short-term thing. In a few months, we'll look back on this trip as the catalyst that took a narrow 3 point race and expanded it to a 7 to 9 point race.

All the MSM coverage of the Chosen One meeting with foreign leaders gives him a gravitas that he can't get from whooping it up in front of Democrats. At the same time, the al-Maliki statement is a big deal (sorry Kavon), and its ramifications are being reflected in these poll numbers. Let me explain why.

As Dick Morris pointed out about a week ago, McCain had a big issue with Iraq. Not because of the past, but because of the future. When looking at the past, McCain was right and Obama was wrong about the surge. But most Americans think Obama was right and McCain wrong about the authorization to use force in the first place (never mind the merits, the polls bear out that is what most folks think). The argument over whose judgment was better in the past is not fruitful for McCain, b/c it's at best a draw, politically speaking.

But as Morris said, McCain had leverage, big leverage, on the issue of Iraq's future. If Obama stuck to a rigid timeline, McCain would say that Obama was assuring al-Qaeda space to regroup and train. As a result, Obama would increase the likelihood of prolonging the war on terror, and the chance of a future military engagement in Iraq. McCain, on the other hand, was the candidate of finishing the job and obtaining peace, and victory, and soon(er).

On the other hand, if Obama reversed course, it would show that his revered "judgment" is basically a lagging indicator--not exactly what you want in a leader.

Al-Maliki has destroyed that narrative. He has wrested the future out of McCain's hands by saying that Obama's judgment over timing is appropriate, and that an immediate drawdown lasting 16 months won't jeopardize our gains in Iraq.

McCain can yell about being right about the surge until he's blue in the face. He was, after all, right about the surge. But Obama's judgment about the future has been validated, and McCain's fears about an immediate drawdown made to look like Bush-ian, alarmist politics.

It absolutely kills me, but His Hopeness* needs to fall on his face at this point.


*credit to Joshua Lawson at R 4 '08.

NYT continuing to prove they are a whore for the Dem party.

but I couldn't let this one go by the boards.

Al-Maliki just cut McCain off at the knees.

I've seen two responses:

1) Who Cares?

2) Mac just got whacked.

What say you?

but I'll be pulling hard for the Shark tomorrow in the final round of the British Open. I always liked the guy. A class act. A real player. And an almost impossible string of failing to get it done in the majors when he was clearly the 1st or 2nd best golfer in the world (paging Nick Price...).

For him to win a major, become the oldest golfer ever to do so, when he apparently entered the tournament only to prep for some Senior events, well, that would be almost too sweet for words.

It's already been an impressive trick, Greg.

This 20-year-old d-bag drunk drove into a woman, seriously injuring her, then went to a Halloween party a few weeks later dressed as a jailbird while she was still in the hospital. Last laugh's on him though, since someone posted pix of him on Facebook that the prosecutor subsequently found and used as evidence of lack of repentance.

What an ass.

highlighted some Krauthamer quotes from his column. Too good to pass up:

Obama is a three-year senator without a single important legislative achievement to his name, a former Illinois state senator who voted “present” nearly 130 times. As president of the Harvard Law Review, as law professor and as legislator, has he ever produced a single notable piece of scholarship? Written a single memorable article? His most memorable work is a biography of his favorite subject: himself.

It is a subject upon which he can dilate effortlessly. In his victory speech upon winning the nomination, Obama declared it a great turning point in history — “generations from now we will be able to look back and tell our children that this was the moment” — when, among other wonders, “the rise of the oceans began to slow.” As economist Irwin Stelzer noted in his London Daily Telegraph column, “Moses made the waters recede, but he had help.” Obama apparently works alone.

…

After all, in the words of his own slogan, “we are the ones we’ve been waiting for,” which, translating the royal “we,” means: “I am the one we’ve been waiting for.” Amazingly, he had a quasi-presidential seal with its own Latin inscription affixed to his podium, until general ridicule — it was pointed out that he was not yet president — induced him to take it down.

He lectures us that instead of worrying about immigrants learning English, “you need to make sure your child can speak Spanish” — a language Obama does not speak. He further admonishes us on how “embarrassing” it is that Europeans are multilingual but “we go over to Europe, and all we can say is, ‘merci beaucoup.’” Obama speaks no French.

Ouch!

= the snack that keeps on giving.

talls. yeah

Dick Morris and Eileen McGann point to McCain's way forward on the politics of Iraq. From today's NY Post:

[McCain] must ask Obama: "Why won't your troop withdrawal allow al Qaeda and Iran to move into the vacuum, taking over Iraq to use it as a base for terror against us and Israel?"

Obama will hem and haw, but McCain must keep at him - and force his opponent to confront the consequences.

How will Obama answer?

...he'll try to sell the idea that his gradual withdrawal over 16 months and his ongoing troop commitment will hold al Qaeda and Iran at bay.

But who'll believe that? Experience has taught Americans to expect the worst about Iraq. They're inclined to agree that, if we pull out, al Qaeda will move in. It's also self-evident that Iranian influence will grow as ours' declines. (To the extent that we do believe it, Obama will alienate the left and drive voters to Ralph Nader.)

His next dodge will be to talk up diplomacy - that a dialogue with the mullahs can hold Iran at bay. But no negotiations are possible with al Qaeda - and Americans realize that talks with Iran will go nowhere unless we have the leverage of force. His reliance on diplomacy will come off as naive, reinforcing the impression that he's not ready for the job.

Eventually, he'll have to say he's prepared to go back into Iraq if the situation deteriorates. Voters will realize that a nominal troop presence and diplomacy won't do the job.

That's when McCain moves in for the kill: "So, isn't your rigid adherence to withdrawal inviting a third Iraq War?"

He can claim the mantle of the true peace candidate - saying that he'll stay in Iraq, keep control, build up the Iraqi army and keep US casualties down.

at the latest protest in Union Square. This one called for the U.S. to shutdown Guantanamo. They actually had a guy standing there in the orange prison jumpsuit with a black sack over his head. Don't these people have jobs?

The unicorn is classic.

for SHK, who just rejoined the profiteers of America full bore, with a start up company in his uber-technical area of expertise.

I'll leave it to him to sort out the details, if he chooses to do so.

Just remember us when all your stock options are in the money.

Well, there are not one but two great editorials in NYT today. One is from Friedman, which is not surprising, but the other is from Dowd, which is unheard of. I think this is probably the only time I'd ever recommend a Dowd editorial, but she really nails this one pointing out that Obama is quickly becoming too stuffy in trying to eliminate any criticism of him, any jokes about him, etc. If people can make fun of Hillary, McCain and others, why is Obama off limits?

The Friedman piece is a nice reminder of why American unpopularity abroad is irrelevant, it is more important that we still occupy a higher moral ground than the other world powers Russia and China.

And now I know the world really is coming to an end. WaPo has yet another piece attacking Obama, this time for his position of time-based, rather than event-based, withdrawal from Iraq. They really go to town on him, especially in the last two paragraphs. Is it possible WaPo might endorse McCain in the general election???

I'm not sure Budweiser has the right anymore to keep calling themselves "The Great American Lager" in their commercials. At best they could say "The Great Lager for Americans", but I found it completely disingenuous during the All-Star game last night when they still used their original tagline, which is no longer valid. Sorry, but you've given up that right.

The seven dwarfs always left to go work in the mine early each morning. As always, Snow White stayed home doing her domestic chores.

As lunchtime approached, she would prepare their lunch and carry it to the mine. One day as she arrived at the mine with the lunch, she saw that there had been a terrible cave-in. Tearfully, and fearing the worst, Snow White began calling out, hoping against hope that the dwarfs had somehow survived.

'Hello!..Hello!' she shouted. 'Can anyone hear me? Hello!' For a long while, there was no answer. Losing hope, Snow White again shouted, 'Hello! Is anyone down there?' Just as she was about to give up all hope, she he ard a faint voice from deep within the mine, singing ... . ... 'Vote for Barack Obama! - Vote for Barack Obama!'

Snow White fell to her knees, crossed herself and prayed, 'Oh, thank you, God! At least Dopey is still alive...

As L.K. is happy to point out, Bush reversing the Executive Order banning off-shore drilling has led to an immediate reduction in oil prices.

So much for the, "it won't do anything for Americans FOR TEN YEARS" nonsense the Dems have been spouting. The market is--surprise, surprise--forward looking.

Just imagine how far oil might fall if Congress acted to repeal their annual ban on offshore drilling, and companies could start bidding right now.

It's going to be Mitt as McCain's VP. Top 4 most important reasons, in order:

1. Fundraising ability
2. Ability to excite conservative base, while not necessarily turning off Indies
3. Strength on economic issues
4. No skeletons in closet

To point 4, the only "negative" thing that has ever been leveled against him is that he laid off some people while at Bain. I think the charge of flip-flopping is moot, b/c that same charge is being thrown at McCain and Obama themselves every day, so Mitt being a flip-flopper is in the weeds.

The only question is, can McCain - who values loyalty above all else and disliked Mitt - get beyond that and pick the person who is best for the party, rather than his personal preference? CNN seems to think so.

With the demise of A-B, it's time for Occ Obs to provide a PSA for those who still believe in the time honored credo of "Buy American, Drink American!"

The fact that I can offer you a brew that is family owned, with a long tradition, a clean crisp flavor, a reasonable price, and is brewed in the good ole US of A, only adds to the joy of doing my civic duty.

Without any further ado, please find your new (and for some of you, old) American beverage here.

Wait till you see the cover, wait till you see the cover. Very provcative indeed.

For all you proud parents out there.

Say it isn't so, apparently Anheuser-Busch and InBev will create a new joint company, with Anheuser only getting 2 board seats. Not clear whether it will be American or European company, but I'm guessing European.

At least I can still enjoy a nice cold Brooklyn...

Latest two Rasmussen polls indicate McCain is now dead even with Obama.

I know it is unlikely that McCain wins, given that he has not yet inspired the base and there are SO many factors in Obama's favor at the present time. If he pulls it off though, man would I love to be at Dem HQ that night. The party might as well officially disband at that point.

Ah yes. Government stimulus check and pay check hit one day apart.

Back to America's Spirit.

Can't wait for the official release...

Y'all might recall last summer that the Holy Father declared that the traditional tridentine mass was again licit, within certain bounds.

Well, here in the DRVC not much has happened that I'm aware of. No Latin Mass has been added to my parish or any of the surrounding parishes, and the Pastor at one local church I attended for daily mass plainly disclosed they had no intention of offering the traditional rite.

The Holy Father is apparently not done instituting reforms. According to this article, he has charged the Congregation for Divine Worship to "study some modifications" to the Novus Ordo (that is, post-Vatican II, now "standard") liturgy:

In particular, the Pope is said to have the intention to restore Latin for the formula for the Eucharistic consecration within the Mass in the "vernacular language", i.e. the one celebrated in the different national languages. The same could happen to the formulae of Baptism, Confirmation, Confession and of the other sacraments. In addition, the exchange of peace among the faithful during the Mass, which today takes place prior to the distribution of the Eucharist, could be anticipated (as in the Ambrosian rite) to the offertory so as not to disturb the recollection that precedes Communion.

These would be changes which would be added to the changes in the liturgy and regarding sacred vestments which the Pope, together with his Master of Ceremonies, Monsignor Guido Marini, has made in recent months, to recover ancient traditions: the restoration of the crucifix at the center of the altar, the distribution of Communion to the faithful in the mouth while kneeling, the recovery of the pastoral staff of Pius IX (the ferula), the changing of the style of pallium (the strip of white wool with red crosses worn by the Pope), the restoration of the papal throne used in the Consistory and the celebration of Mass with the back to the assembly, as happened in January in the Sistine Chapel. [my emphasis]

Goody, goody gumdrops. I pray that our overtaxed Priests (and our Bishops) will be open to implementing these reforms when the time comes, although undoubtedly it will not be easy.

comes this, ahem, PSA, for the group NozzleRage.

I love it, still growing tension between Obama/Clinton groups. It's great how arrogant the Clintons are: they expect Obama's fundraisers to personally retire her debt. Last I checked, the Clintons were worth $75-100 M, and she had taken on $20 M in debt. I say eat it, that's the choice you made. I don't remember Romney crying to McCain that his fundraisers (whenever they finally show up!) should pay back the money he personally spent on his campaign from his savings.

I feel like I'm the only one not using the TPS cover sheets, did I miss something here? WaPo is strongly defending the new FISA bill, despite venom from groups like ACLU. This is easily the 5th or 6th time in the past few months the WaPo editorial page has been right-leaning. Didn't they used to be liberal MSM trash?

Lots of heel work.

Jazz hands? Jazz hands.

Better late than never. The Fed is proposing new regulations that will prevent another wave of bad loans from wrecking the real estate market and, as a result, the economy in general. Here's a quick synopsis from the internets that I found at Drudge:

It would restrict lenders from penalizing risky borrowers who pay loans off early, require lenders to make sure these borrowers set aside money to pay for taxes and insurance and bar lenders from making loans without proof of a borrower's income. It also would prohibit lenders from engaging in a pattern or practice of lending without considering a borrower's ability to repay a home loan from sources other than the home's value.

A step in the right direction, but it doesn't seem to hit on what I view as the main problem: the disconnect that exists between who is approving the mortgages and who is bearing the risks. If mortgages are going to be securitized, packaged, and sold, the issuing firm should be required to maintain some exposure (say, 25-50%) to the loans they originate.

Y'all probably heard about Obama's plane having to make an unplanned landing in St. Louie yesterday because of mechanical problems. One of the slides deployed, affecting the pilot's ability to control the airplane's pitch.

Turns out the MD-80 was a loaner, and had previously been used by the Hillary! campaign.

One commenter, princetrumpet, left the following gem:

Okay... anybody else picture BHO in the plane looking out the window and seeing Hillary chewing on navigation equipment and every time he says "Look!" she disappears?

Where's Rod Serling when we need him?

As per CNN:

You can officially scratch off Sen. Jim Webb's name from the list of Barack Obama's potential running mates.

The freshmen senator from Virginia and onetime Republican said unequivocally Monday he does not want to be the Illinois senator's No. 2.

"Last week I communicated to Senator Obama and his presidential campaign my firm intention to remain in the United States Senate, where I believe I am best equipped to serve the people of Virginia and this country," Webb said in an issued statement. “Under no circumstances will I be a candidate for Vice President."

Webb would've made a natural fit for many reasons we've already discussed. This leaves Tim Kaine and Mark Warner as possible veeps for the 'Baumer from the Old Dominion. Neither is as compelling as Webb, though Warner would be less risky. If he chooses Warner that also gives Gimore a shot at retaining John Warner's GOP senate seat.

ht: R 4 '08

From Mike Allen at the Politico:

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) plans to promise on Monday that he will balance the federal budget by the end of his first term by curbing wasteful spending and overhauling entitlement programs, including Social Security, his advisers told Politico.

The vow to take on Social Security puts McCain in a political danger zone that thwarted President Bush after he named it the top domestic priority of his second term.

The complete McCain economic plan is here.

McCain is showing that he understands the crux of our fiscal problems by addressing entitlements. He is also showing political courage.

Unfortunately, it is also a possible death warrant for his campaign.

Sometimes you go with what you've got.

For the record, I also like cold pizza, cheese sandwiches, and Oscar Mayer bologna straight out of the package.

This has nothing to do with politics. I've just been, er, saving myself until my, er, 50's, waiting for just the right person...

Well, Obama is no longer a liberal Democrat. Turns out he just has some concerns with legal phrases and technicalities... Guess you can't say and do the same things in Idaho and Pennsylvania that you can in Illinois...

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080703/ap_on_el_pr/obama_abortion;_ylt=Agsg_2bM7yQpSucSWmTaqo.s0NUE

I cannot stand Obama; just a consummate politician pretending to be above politics. He is detestable, but people are sheep.

In honor of the 4th of July, test your knowledge of America's history here with sample questions from the US citizenship test.

Some things I just can't stand. One of them is the need for advertising to occupy each and every square inch of matter. Ads on the outfield wall? Disgusting. Ads on park benches? Annoying. Blimps following you out onto the beach to assault you with their pitch? Makes me nauseous.

Just when you're getting used to the last round of ad-encroachment, some previously normal piece of your life gets swallowed up.

This morning's example:


Remember when a sugar packet simply looked like this:


Can I just have my morning cup of coffee without some ad exec screaming at me in ALL BOLD CAPS ABOUT THE NATURE OF DRINK JUSTICE?

From Drudge:

The American broadcast industry is rocked, realigned and blasted into a new orbit, yet again, by Rush Limbaugh, the DRUDGE REPORT has learned.

In what is being described as an unprecedented radio contract, Limbaugh will keep his syndicated show on-the-air and e-v-e-r-y-w-h-e-r-e through 2016 with CLEAR CHANNEL and PREMIERE RADIO.

Already host of the most lucrative hours since radio's inception, Limbaugh's total package is valued north of $400 million, according to media insiders.

WaPo coming through again. If they keep this up, they may have their MSM card withdrawn. Latest article shows that Obama received very preferential terms on his house loan a few years ago. I guess that's what he meant when saying he'd do things "a different way".

SHK has heard me drunkenly fumble my way through a Trojan Horse/Vast Left-Wing conspiracy theory about Global Warming alarmists .... here is a WSJ editorial column that explains more coherently this idea. They are in our midsts .... shhhh.

This guy is half crazy, but all smarts. He co-founded "The American Conservative" with Pat Buchanan and Scott McConnell a few years back, and now has his own blog going. Check it out if your interested in hearing from a guy who's married to an Austrian Princess, has done lots of coke, slept with lots of women, is a fan of monarchy and aristocracy, loves America, loves Christianity but admits to failing every one of its tenets, is knocking other people's teeth out in his 70's, and prefers laissez-fair non-interventionist government.

Here's how he describes his blog:

"We want to reflect a traditional conservatism that prefers peace with honor to proxy wars, Western civilization to multicultural barbarism, Christendom to the European Union, and Russell Kirk to Leon Trotsky. This will undoubtedly infuriate many in the mainstream ‘conservative’ movement, who have transferred their loyalties elsewhere. It’s time to raise their blood pressure a few points—and help them burn off some of those five-course meals they’ve been eating down on K Street."

Don't know how I missed it, but this was in Roll Call a week ago:

For almost two years former Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge failed to register a nearly half-million-dollar lobbying contract that he had with the government of Albania. Ridge filed a registration statement on behalf of the country earlier this month after being contacted by the Department of Justice.

“It was brought to my attention after the contract expired and my lawyer said under the circumstances I probably should have filed,” said Ridge, who is a national co-chairman of Sen. John McCain’s (R-Ariz.) presidential campaign and has been mentioned as a potential vice presidential running mate. “I didn’t think it was [necessary] to register.”

...and now apparently Obama invented the fist bump.

Is Obama ditching his signature fist bump?

The presumptive Democratic presidential candidate popularized the move last month...

This is the second article I've seen claiming that the fist bump would be nothing if not for him. Yeah, i'm pretty sure that move's about 10 years old.

On a positive note, at least CNN's recent poll agrees that Obama's only ahead by 3-5 points, statistically insignificant they say. Pretty much lays to rest the NONSENSE that was the polls last week giving Obama a 12-15 point lead.

SHK, you'll be happy to hear that my read on the decision as validating the machine gun ban is not the way that it's being read by in-the-know Constitutional Lawyers.

Apparently, what Scalia was doing in the decision is saying that:

1) since this case deals with handguns, I don't have to rule on the scope of what arms are included in your 2nd amendment right, beyond saying that handguns clearly ARE included.

2) as a result, this ruling does not reverse Miller and the ban on machine guns can stand.

3) Unwritten: since there is a grey area between the rights established in Heller and the precedent set by Miller, we (the Supreme Court) have set out a welcome sign for more lawsuits on the topic of the definition of "arms" as well as other ambiguities around 2nd amendment rights.

The NRA has already sued the city of Chicago to overturn their handgun ban. If they win, it will extend the rights laid out in Heller by making them enforceable on states and municipalities (using the theory of "incorporation").

After this hurdle is cleared, I guess they will probably file suit against the assault weapons bans in various states, which will open the door for the Court to consider what types of arms are defined under the 2nd amendment.

Alas, the problem with judicial conservatives is that, in their desire to restrain judicial power, they tend to rule narrowly around the facts of the case. Even then, they might limit themselves to protecting "assault weapons" as defined by the various states, and decline to issue a broad-form "rule" as to what weapons are protected.

What liberals enact with a stroke of the pen, conservatives must slowly chip away at over decades.

Depressing.