I was driving my brother to the airport and we got to talkin' politics. He's an independent, which is what I was until Utah closed their primaries. I asked him about his views on some things and he got around to Sean Hannity. Said he: "When I first started listening to Sean Hannity, I liked him, but then I saw Thank You for Smoking and it made me not like him anymore."
"Why not?"
"The guy in Thank You for Smoking is really good at spinning the facts around and making the other person look stupid and like they don't know what they're talking about, and whatever he's selling he can make it sound good and reasonable."
"Great movie, by the way."
"And the next time I listened to Hannity, I could hear him using all the same tactics the guy from Thank You for Smoking was using. So I don't know what to believe when I hear him."
A little later he asked if there were any liberal radio talk-shows in Utah.
"Well," said I, "my good friend Jeff Bell has a show on Saturdays from 4-5pm. And that's about it." Talk radio here tends to be one of three things: moderate, conservative, or ultra-right-wing nutty.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Chaffetz wins / Cannon concedes
I wound up operating the computer that projected the results so I didn't enter as much as I intended. Cannon didn't concede until right after the local news broadcasts were over, nevertheless the crowd was ecstatic when Jason finally came in (after 93% of the precincts were in) and said he got the call from Cannon and "it was a sweet call to take." He thanked everyone for their support and said party at his house Saturday night. I went to shake his hand but some lady kept talking to him so I didn't get to say anything beyond "Congratulations." Now that we have him this far, let's hope he keeps remembering us.
Chaffetz/Cannon election results live
With 2 of 621 precincts reporting, Jason Chaffetz leads Chris Cannon 55.1% to 44.9%.
We're meeting at a clubhouse in Springville. Jason came out and gave a warm speech o' gratitude. He and his family are going to their own room to watch results while his supporters are here. The Utah network cameras are here. There are a lot of enthused, excited people hobnobbing right now.
Incumbants win 98-99% of the elections, but if Congressional approval is 20%, shouldn't 80% of them be losing their jobs this year?
We're meeting at a clubhouse in Springville. Jason came out and gave a warm speech o' gratitude. He and his family are going to their own room to watch results while his supporters are here. The Utah network cameras are here. There are a lot of enthused, excited people hobnobbing right now.
Incumbants win 98-99% of the elections, but if Congressional approval is 20%, shouldn't 80% of them be losing their jobs this year?
Monday, June 23, 2008
VP Dog-n-Pony show
Is it not a bit silly to go through this ritual of having every politician and his dog "deny" he is up for the role of vice-president? Tim Pawlenty and Tim Kaine go on a Sunday show together and debate - Pawlenty for McCain and Kaine for Obama - and then they each have to get the question if they're up for the role of VP. They chortle, they deny, they say they're not interested, but we all know it's an audition.
I've directed plays before, and one thing you do in casting is see how certain actors pare up off each other. Pawlenty/Kaine. M-hm. Let's see Joseph Biden and Lindsay Graham on Meet the Press. Thank you. Tom Daschle and Tom Ridge on Fox News Sunday. We'll give you a call. I expect a late July Sunday showing for Mitt Romney and James Webb. Somehow I think if Hillary deems to do a Sunday show this summer, she'll be going on by herself.
I've directed plays before, and one thing you do in casting is see how certain actors pare up off each other. Pawlenty/Kaine. M-hm. Let's see Joseph Biden and Lindsay Graham on Meet the Press. Thank you. Tom Daschle and Tom Ridge on Fox News Sunday. We'll give you a call. I expect a late July Sunday showing for Mitt Romney and James Webb. Somehow I think if Hillary deems to do a Sunday show this summer, she'll be going on by herself.
Dirty politics in Utah's 3rd district
What frustrates me most about this Chaffetz-Cannon election is how Cannon is playing to people's ignorance to get votes. It's one of the main points of his campaign that Chaffetz doesn't live in the district he wants to represent. When I first heard that, my first thought was he lives way far away and that counted against him in my mind.
But if voters knew that Chaffetz lives in Alpine (11,000 feet out of the district), that it was gerrymandered out of the 3rd district in 2002, that it'll be back in the 3rd district when Utah gets a 4th district in 2010, and that the Constitution only requires you live in the state and be age 25, it'd instantly be no big deal. But my guess is that campaign tactics is going to work on hundreds of voters who don't know that Chaffetz lives in Alpine.
But if voters knew that Chaffetz lives in Alpine (11,000 feet out of the district), that it was gerrymandered out of the 3rd district in 2002, that it'll be back in the 3rd district when Utah gets a 4th district in 2010, and that the Constitution only requires you live in the state and be age 25, it'd instantly be no big deal. But my guess is that campaign tactics is going to work on hundreds of voters who don't know that Chaffetz lives in Alpine.
Sunday, June 22, 2008
McCain, Obama go negative
http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2008/06/21/2008-06-21_new_politicians_barack_obama_and_john_mc.html
I thought these two would do a different campaign, but nope, nope, nope, it's the same old mudslingling politics as usual.
And I am disappointed by Obama's opting out of public financing. If he's breaking his word already for the sake of getting more money, how different is he really going to be in Washington?
I thought these two would do a different campaign, but nope, nope, nope, it's the same old mudslingling politics as usual.
And I am disappointed by Obama's opting out of public financing. If he's breaking his word already for the sake of getting more money, how different is he really going to be in Washington?
Friday, June 20, 2008
Chris Cannon on "flip-flopper" Jason Chaffetz
http://www.chriscannon.com/blog/
His latest post is on how he believes Jason flip-flops. They're having a debate Monday night which I intend to watch.
When I was laid off in 2004, Cannon's campaign manager Nathan Rathbun gave me a job, and it really helped me out, and I got to see behind the curtain a little in politics. After Cannon won the primary, they didn't need my services anymore, but a month later my daughter Taleah died, and Cannon sent me a flag that once flew over the Capitol building, which I will always appreciate.
His latest post is on how he believes Jason flip-flops. They're having a debate Monday night which I intend to watch.
When I was laid off in 2004, Cannon's campaign manager Nathan Rathbun gave me a job, and it really helped me out, and I got to see behind the curtain a little in politics. After Cannon won the primary, they didn't need my services anymore, but a month later my daughter Taleah died, and Cannon sent me a flag that once flew over the Capitol building, which I will always appreciate.
Jason Chaffetz "Ask Me Anything" Meeting
I went to the Ask Jason Anything forum at the Hampton Inn last night. There were maybe 20 people there, so those who wanted to ask questions could ask a lot. I’ll try to make sense of my notes here to summarize:
First question was WHAT WOULD YOU DO ABOUT ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION?
Jason: I don't believe in keeping a second class of citizens. It's immoral to allow it because "it's good for business."
Seven-Point Plan
1. Fix legal immigration - We have people trying to get in the right way who have to wait over 20 years.
2. I reject amnesty. If you cut in line, you go to the back of the line.
3. I want to build the border fence, get rid of rewards and incentives for people to be here illegally. Tom Tancredo proposed a bill that would require someone applying for Medicaid to prove they were legal. Cannon voted against it. I would get rid of birthright citizenship.
4. We do not enforce the current law. 600,000 fugitive aliens in US.
5. Give business tools they need to hire legally. E-Verify.
6. Insist on assimilation. Saying Pledge of Allegiance in Spanish "just wrong."
7. What do we do with the ones who are here? Fingerprint them, photograph them, target a date where they must leave the country. 12 months? 18 months? If they don't, we jail them then deport them. Enforce Visas.
Local officers made Immigration agents? I'm in favor of some training but it's a mixed bag.
If you get to Congress, most of the people in DC are the ones doing nothing. How will get your program through? I believe there will be more Congressional turnover. There are no Utah congressmen in Immigration Reform Committee (?). Not one Democrat lost in 2006 federally.
What's Cannon's view on immigration; how do you differ? Dec. 2005 - Cannon did not vote for Duncan Hunter border-fence amendment. Other groups donating money to Cannon that'd be pro-illegal immigration (Landscaping union). Cannon voted for bloated budget that raised deficit to 9.3 trillion.
<>
----
HEALTH CARE
A woman currently going through chemo for breast caner asked about health care. Jason's mother died from cancer at age 52. Joined Gov. Huntsman team after seeing Huntsman Cancer Institute. (Jason teared up in here somewhere and it felt sincere.)
Bush offered $30 billion to Africa to fight AIDS. We only have $6 billion for NIH, with 1500 a day dying from cancer in USA. Our priorities are screwed up. We only pay disabled vets $1400 a month. That's wrong.
We need private health-care solutions. It's very complex. He knows his end-goal but isn’t sure how to get there.
Same with taxes. Tax reform end-goal - tax consumption but not production.
----
GLOBAL WARMING
Jason: I disagree with Gov. Huntman on global warming. I believe it's a farce. I don't buy Al Gore's version. I'm a conservative and I want to conserve our resources, but I want to tap into them. Would never vote for cap-and-trade.
----
ENERGY
Estimated 2 billion barrels of oil shale in Utah & Colorado . The time to act was years ago. Should have revisited NEBA when we had a Republican president, Republican House and Republican Senate. Cannon was head of Western Caucus and nothing got done.
Jason is pro-nuclear.
Spent 20 minutes with Pres. of Shell Oil. He said we have no energy policy.
Built win-win coalition with Legacy Highway . Called up Sierra Club, found out they'd never been invited to Governor's office before. They worked out a deal. (One guy in crowd said Legacy Highway was a failure, that it wound up being nothing like they thought it was going to be.)
----
Q: How will you stick to your principles? You'll have to deal with Democrats. Seems like many Republicans change when they get there.
A: I will represent Utah to Washington, not Washington to Utah .
----
MY FIRST QUESTION. I asked him to address the evolution of his views from when he supported Michael Dukakis in 1988 to being a Republican now.
Dukakis story - Jason's dad's first wife was Kitty who became Kitty Dukakis. Became co-chair of Dukakis for Prez. Went to BYU in 1987 as agnostic Democrat. In 1990, went through spiritual conversion, joined LDS church, realized values were closer to Republican than Democrat. Told story of spending day with Pres. Reagan in 1991. Reagan gave him his autograph, cufflinks, tie clip when done.
MY SECOND QUESTION. You don’t live in the 3rd congressional district. Do you plan to move or gerrymander boundaries later to put your house in 3rd district?
Constitution requires a Rep live in state and be 25. Lives in Alpine, no intention to move. State legislature put us in 2nd district in 2002. Alpine will be in 3rd district in 2010 when Utah gets 4th district.
Somewhere in there I mentioned Chris Cannon’s blog that posted that morning that gave seven issues on which Jason’s “flip-flopped.” He wished I had it up but Hampton doesn’t have free wireless access until you have a room key code. He said he heard there’s a Truth About Jason website out there now that smears that is paid for by Cannon’s campaign.
----
IRAQ
We haven't sacrificed enough. On the other hand, why do we have 10,000s of troops in Germany , South Korea , etc? I challenge the notion we need that many around the world.
----
One questioner said they heard a Cannon supporter say Chaffetz has no heart.
Jason: I've done everything I said I was going to do. I am specific with voters.
Diedre (volunteer campaign manager): I tesify to Jason's heart. He means what he says, and he believes what he’s doing.
----
One old lady, state delegate, said: I've heard nothing new. He's doing things in DC. You're just making promises.
Where do we differ:
- Cannon says he's for balanced budget, but he voted for $2.9 trillion bloated budget that puts the deficit past $9 trillion. The budget has doubled since Cannon’s been in office.
- Go to earmarkpledge.com, he won't ask for earmark until earmark reform happens.
- Cannon voted for Omnibus bill that had 9500 earmarks. One was for golf-course renovation. He got $300,000 to restore Riverton historical building among other things, but that was wrong.
- Refuses to let people know what earmarks he's asking for.
- No Child Left Behind; shouldn't even be for federal Dept. of Education.
(Old lady defended Cannon here, saying NCLB has been twisted around in DC into something unrecognizable; they got into some banter here)
- Cannon was for stimulus package; now says he's against it. Jason said it just increases the deficit.
- Cannon voted for prescription drug bill. It’s another entitlement we can’t afford.
- Voted for Student Adjustment Act. I'm against.
- Natl Defense Authorization Act. Cannon for - Pres can bypass governors in calling up Natl Guard. That’s wrong. (He listed a couple other bills but I didn’t know what they were nor did he explain).
Go to Reagan21.org – “I want to lock arms with them.”
MY THIRD QUESTION
Republicans deserved to lose control in 2006 because they made so many wrong choices, going along with Bush on things when they should not have. Massive increases in spending, therefore increasing deficit, etc. So assuming you win and McCain wins, what are the issues you agree with him on, and what are the issues you disagree with him?
Jason: I support McCain, most importantly for the types of judges he would nominate to the Supreme Court. On the other hand we disagree on whether to drill in ANWR (Jason for, McCain against), Global Warming (McCain acknowledges it; Jason thinks it’s a farce), illegal immigration (Jason would be tougher than McCain.) McCain would better for US than Obama.
----
One Guy: I’m sick & tired we don't have energy independence. They’ve been talking about it for 25 years, and they’ve done nothing.
Jason: Loosen regulations. Shell prez said "I know where oil is; I can't get it. I need to set aside $10s of millions for 'the process'." Republicans in Congress should have acted years ago, especially when they had control in DC. Supports oil shale, coal, nuclear, solar, wind, biofuels, whatever. Thought Congress overreached and overreacted on corn ethanol, which only increased cost of food.
----
Jason’s question to Cannon supporters: What are the 2 most important he's done?
Old Lady: He wants to get oil shale drilling going.
Jason: No, not what he says he’s working on. What has he accomplished?
Old Lady: Moritorium on internet taxes….
Jason: And if that’s your most important issue, good for him.
Points out he would have voted more than half the time the same way Chris voted.
First question was WHAT WOULD YOU DO ABOUT ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION?
Jason: I don't believe in keeping a second class of citizens. It's immoral to allow it because "it's good for business."
Seven-Point Plan
1. Fix legal immigration - We have people trying to get in the right way who have to wait over 20 years.
2. I reject amnesty. If you cut in line, you go to the back of the line.
3. I want to build the border fence, get rid of rewards and incentives for people to be here illegally. Tom Tancredo proposed a bill that would require someone applying for Medicaid to prove they were legal. Cannon voted against it. I would get rid of birthright citizenship.
4. We do not enforce the current law. 600,000 fugitive aliens in US.
5. Give business tools they need to hire legally. E-Verify.
6. Insist on assimilation. Saying Pledge of Allegiance in Spanish "just wrong."
7. What do we do with the ones who are here? Fingerprint them, photograph them, target a date where they must leave the country. 12 months? 18 months? If they don't, we jail them then deport them. Enforce Visas.
Local officers made Immigration agents? I'm in favor of some training but it's a mixed bag.
If you get to Congress, most of the people in DC are the ones doing nothing. How will get your program through? I believe there will be more Congressional turnover. There are no Utah congressmen in Immigration Reform Committee (?). Not one Democrat lost in 2006 federally.
What's Cannon's view on immigration; how do you differ? Dec. 2005 - Cannon did not vote for Duncan Hunter border-fence amendment. Other groups donating money to Cannon that'd be pro-illegal immigration (Landscaping union). Cannon voted for bloated budget that raised deficit to 9.3 trillion.
<
----
HEALTH CARE
A woman currently going through chemo for breast caner asked about health care. Jason's mother died from cancer at age 52. Joined Gov. Huntsman team after seeing Huntsman Cancer Institute. (Jason teared up in here somewhere and it felt sincere.)
Bush offered $30 billion to Africa to fight AIDS. We only have $6 billion for NIH, with 1500 a day dying from cancer in USA. Our priorities are screwed up. We only pay disabled vets $1400 a month. That's wrong.
We need private health-care solutions. It's very complex. He knows his end-goal but isn’t sure how to get there.
Same with taxes. Tax reform end-goal - tax consumption but not production.
----
GLOBAL WARMING
Jason: I disagree with Gov. Huntman on global warming. I believe it's a farce. I don't buy Al Gore's version. I'm a conservative and I want to conserve our resources, but I want to tap into them. Would never vote for cap-and-trade.
----
ENERGY
Estimated 2 billion barrels of oil shale in Utah & Colorado . The time to act was years ago. Should have revisited NEBA when we had a Republican president, Republican House and Republican Senate. Cannon was head of Western Caucus and nothing got done.
Jason is pro-nuclear.
Spent 20 minutes with Pres. of Shell Oil. He said we have no energy policy.
Built win-win coalition with Legacy Highway . Called up Sierra Club, found out they'd never been invited to Governor's office before. They worked out a deal. (One guy in crowd said Legacy Highway was a failure, that it wound up being nothing like they thought it was going to be.)
----
Q: How will you stick to your principles? You'll have to deal with Democrats. Seems like many Republicans change when they get there.
A: I will represent Utah to Washington, not Washington to Utah .
----
MY FIRST QUESTION. I asked him to address the evolution of his views from when he supported Michael Dukakis in 1988 to being a Republican now.
Dukakis story - Jason's dad's first wife was Kitty who became Kitty Dukakis. Became co-chair of Dukakis for Prez. Went to BYU in 1987 as agnostic Democrat. In 1990, went through spiritual conversion, joined LDS church, realized values were closer to Republican than Democrat. Told story of spending day with Pres. Reagan in 1991. Reagan gave him his autograph, cufflinks, tie clip when done.
MY SECOND QUESTION. You don’t live in the 3rd congressional district. Do you plan to move or gerrymander boundaries later to put your house in 3rd district?
Constitution requires a Rep live in state and be 25. Lives in Alpine, no intention to move. State legislature put us in 2nd district in 2002. Alpine will be in 3rd district in 2010 when Utah gets 4th district.
Somewhere in there I mentioned Chris Cannon’s blog that posted that morning that gave seven issues on which Jason’s “flip-flopped.” He wished I had it up but Hampton doesn’t have free wireless access until you have a room key code. He said he heard there’s a Truth About Jason website out there now that smears that is paid for by Cannon’s campaign.
----
IRAQ
We haven't sacrificed enough. On the other hand, why do we have 10,000s of troops in Germany , South Korea , etc? I challenge the notion we need that many around the world.
----
One questioner said they heard a Cannon supporter say Chaffetz has no heart.
Jason: I've done everything I said I was going to do. I am specific with voters.
Diedre (volunteer campaign manager): I tesify to Jason's heart. He means what he says, and he believes what he’s doing.
----
One old lady, state delegate, said: I've heard nothing new. He's doing things in DC. You're just making promises.
Where do we differ:
- Cannon says he's for balanced budget, but he voted for $2.9 trillion bloated budget that puts the deficit past $9 trillion. The budget has doubled since Cannon’s been in office.
- Go to earmarkpledge.com, he won't ask for earmark until earmark reform happens.
- Cannon voted for Omnibus bill that had 9500 earmarks. One was for golf-course renovation. He got $300,000 to restore Riverton historical building among other things, but that was wrong.
- Refuses to let people know what earmarks he's asking for.
- No Child Left Behind; shouldn't even be for federal Dept. of Education.
(Old lady defended Cannon here, saying NCLB has been twisted around in DC into something unrecognizable; they got into some banter here)
- Cannon was for stimulus package; now says he's against it. Jason said it just increases the deficit.
- Cannon voted for prescription drug bill. It’s another entitlement we can’t afford.
- Voted for Student Adjustment Act. I'm against.
- Natl Defense Authorization Act. Cannon for - Pres can bypass governors in calling up Natl Guard. That’s wrong. (He listed a couple other bills but I didn’t know what they were nor did he explain).
Go to Reagan21.org – “I want to lock arms with them.”
MY THIRD QUESTION
Republicans deserved to lose control in 2006 because they made so many wrong choices, going along with Bush on things when they should not have. Massive increases in spending, therefore increasing deficit, etc. So assuming you win and McCain wins, what are the issues you agree with him on, and what are the issues you disagree with him?
Jason: I support McCain, most importantly for the types of judges he would nominate to the Supreme Court. On the other hand we disagree on whether to drill in ANWR (Jason for, McCain against), Global Warming (McCain acknowledges it; Jason thinks it’s a farce), illegal immigration (Jason would be tougher than McCain.) McCain would better for US than Obama.
----
One Guy: I’m sick & tired we don't have energy independence. They’ve been talking about it for 25 years, and they’ve done nothing.
Jason: Loosen regulations. Shell prez said "I know where oil is; I can't get it. I need to set aside $10s of millions for 'the process'." Republicans in Congress should have acted years ago, especially when they had control in DC. Supports oil shale, coal, nuclear, solar, wind, biofuels, whatever. Thought Congress overreached and overreacted on corn ethanol, which only increased cost of food.
----
Jason’s question to Cannon supporters: What are the 2 most important he's done?
Old Lady: He wants to get oil shale drilling going.
Jason: No, not what he says he’s working on. What has he accomplished?
Old Lady: Moritorium on internet taxes….
Jason: And if that’s your most important issue, good for him.
Points out he would have voted more than half the time the same way Chris voted.
Thursday, June 19, 2008
The VP race
Tim Russert was a great guy and my favorite journalist, but the coverage is almost rising to Princess Di levels. I think Tim would appreciate being missed but would get a little embarrassed after a while.
----
Intrade.com has updated their betting to include more candidate options for Vice-President.
DEMOCRAT VP NOMINEE
1. James Webb - 20.1%
2. Kathleen Sebelius - 10.5%
3. Hillary Clinton - 10%
4. Claire McCaskill - 8.5%
5. Tim Kaine - 8.1%
6. Ed Rendell - 7.7%
7. Chuck Hagel - 6%
8. Joseph Biden - 5.2%
9. Al Gore - 5%
10. Wesley Clark - 4.9%
I haven't seen Sebelius or McCaskill speak lately, but Webb and Kaine have made good cases for themselves. I imagine Hillary's going to drop in the weeks ahead. I think it would require some major blackmail to get her on that ticket.
REPUBLICAN VP NOMINEE
1. Mitt Romney - 18%
2. Charlie Crist - 15.6%
3. Tim Pawlenty - 15.1%
4. Mike Huckabee - 11%
5. Sarah Palin - 10.5%
6. Bobby Jindal - 10%
7. Rob Portman - 6.8%
8. Joe Lieberman - 5.5%
9. Eric Cantor - 5%
10. Carly Fiorina - 4.5%
Hm, if he goes with Romney he shores up some of his base but loses some independents. If he goes with Crist, he keeps those independents but loses some of his base. Overall I think Crist would be a decent choice. I saw Pawlenty on one of those Sunday news shows recently and he was fine, but nothing special. I'd be curious to hear more from Palin and Jindal.
----
Intrade.com has updated their betting to include more candidate options for Vice-President.
DEMOCRAT VP NOMINEE
1. James Webb - 20.1%
2. Kathleen Sebelius - 10.5%
3. Hillary Clinton - 10%
4. Claire McCaskill - 8.5%
5. Tim Kaine - 8.1%
6. Ed Rendell - 7.7%
7. Chuck Hagel - 6%
8. Joseph Biden - 5.2%
9. Al Gore - 5%
10. Wesley Clark - 4.9%
I haven't seen Sebelius or McCaskill speak lately, but Webb and Kaine have made good cases for themselves. I imagine Hillary's going to drop in the weeks ahead. I think it would require some major blackmail to get her on that ticket.
REPUBLICAN VP NOMINEE
1. Mitt Romney - 18%
2. Charlie Crist - 15.6%
3. Tim Pawlenty - 15.1%
4. Mike Huckabee - 11%
5. Sarah Palin - 10.5%
6. Bobby Jindal - 10%
7. Rob Portman - 6.8%
8. Joe Lieberman - 5.5%
9. Eric Cantor - 5%
10. Carly Fiorina - 4.5%
Hm, if he goes with Romney he shores up some of his base but loses some independents. If he goes with Crist, he keeps those independents but loses some of his base. Overall I think Crist would be a decent choice. I saw Pawlenty on one of those Sunday news shows recently and he was fine, but nothing special. I'd be curious to hear more from Palin and Jindal.
Monday, June 16, 2008
Who can do Meet the Press?
So who should NBC appoint to host Meet the Press? It'll be a tough job for anyone replacing Tim Russert, who may just have been the best, most respected journalist on TV. Let's look at the candidates, assuming they're looking in-house.
1. TOM BROKAW - This would be a temporary gravitas sub. Do it for six months or a year until the real successor is found. He had respect and credibility. But this is a short-term solution.
2. BRIAN WILLIAMS - He's the nightly news anchor, but if Bob Schieffer could do double-duty, so could he. Williams has come into his own in prime-time, he's done well with the debates he's moderated, and he can ask the follow-up questions.
3. DAVID GREGORY - He's the most logical choice. He has his own afternoon MSNBC show, he's demonstrated to be a tough White House reporter in recent years, and he knows how to wear different coats, having guest-hosted everything from Meet the Press to The Today Show. It would take him a few months to get his groove on a full-time basis.
4. CHUCK TODD - After Russert, he's probably the smartest political mind of NBC's staff. But would he want to take center-stage? He seems to be happy as the guy they bring on as an expert.
5. ANDREA MITCHELL - She's been in the trenches like Gregory, but she doesn't seem to have the same grilling instincts he does.
6. CHRIS MATTHEWS - Matthews wears his heart on his sleeve and seems more comfortable talking about how the issues make him feel, as he often does on Hardball or The Chris Matthews Show, than to swtich to being objective/impartial.
7. A NEWSWEEK PERSON - NBC & Newsweek are married, so maybe a Newsweek guy makes sense. Jon Meacham is the editor and Howard Fineman is the Chief Washignton correspondent. The diamond in this rough, methinks, would be Fareed Zakaria.
8. JOE SCARBOROUGH & KEITH OLBERMANN - These are other names I've seen floated, but they'd kill the Meet the Press brand. Joe Scarborough could probably tone down his partisanship but why would he want to? He's also a former GOP congressman, so it's take him awhile to establish credibility as an objective interrogator. Olbermann enjoys his soapbox and daily John McCain attacks too much on Countdown, and he would never get credibility. Russert loved politics and the political game. After reading good chunks from two of his books, I believe Olbermann loves being mad as hell and not taking it anymore. From anyone on the right.
Before Russert, the show had a moderator, and then questioning reporters. Russert demonstrated quickly he didn't need any help and went from moderator to prosecutor. But he did it in a way that was fair, he did with a smile, and it was a badge of honor to survive his show.
1. TOM BROKAW - This would be a temporary gravitas sub. Do it for six months or a year until the real successor is found. He had respect and credibility. But this is a short-term solution.
2. BRIAN WILLIAMS - He's the nightly news anchor, but if Bob Schieffer could do double-duty, so could he. Williams has come into his own in prime-time, he's done well with the debates he's moderated, and he can ask the follow-up questions.
3. DAVID GREGORY - He's the most logical choice. He has his own afternoon MSNBC show, he's demonstrated to be a tough White House reporter in recent years, and he knows how to wear different coats, having guest-hosted everything from Meet the Press to The Today Show. It would take him a few months to get his groove on a full-time basis.
4. CHUCK TODD - After Russert, he's probably the smartest political mind of NBC's staff. But would he want to take center-stage? He seems to be happy as the guy they bring on as an expert.
5. ANDREA MITCHELL - She's been in the trenches like Gregory, but she doesn't seem to have the same grilling instincts he does.
6. CHRIS MATTHEWS - Matthews wears his heart on his sleeve and seems more comfortable talking about how the issues make him feel, as he often does on Hardball or The Chris Matthews Show, than to swtich to being objective/impartial.
7. A NEWSWEEK PERSON - NBC & Newsweek are married, so maybe a Newsweek guy makes sense. Jon Meacham is the editor and Howard Fineman is the Chief Washignton correspondent. The diamond in this rough, methinks, would be Fareed Zakaria.
8. JOE SCARBOROUGH & KEITH OLBERMANN - These are other names I've seen floated, but they'd kill the Meet the Press brand. Joe Scarborough could probably tone down his partisanship but why would he want to? He's also a former GOP congressman, so it's take him awhile to establish credibility as an objective interrogator. Olbermann enjoys his soapbox and daily John McCain attacks too much on Countdown, and he would never get credibility. Russert loved politics and the political game. After reading good chunks from two of his books, I believe Olbermann loves being mad as hell and not taking it anymore. From anyone on the right.
Before Russert, the show had a moderator, and then questioning reporters. Russert demonstrated quickly he didn't need any help and went from moderator to prosecutor. But he did it in a way that was fair, he did with a smile, and it was a badge of honor to survive his show.
Friday, June 13, 2008
Pros & Cons of Obama & McCain
PRO's & CON's of Pres. Barack Obama
PRO
1. Instant slight improvement in world standing with most countries.
2. A president who can speak, and speak well.
3. Definite change from the past eight years.
4. Middle-class tax breaks.
5. The first White House since Carter with no Bush or Clinton in there.
6. Pres. Hillary Clinton will never happen.
7. Not a baby boomer.
CON
1. Democratic president and Democratic congress. When is the last time it was a good thing to have the White House and Congress be of the same party? 1964?
2. Taxing US oil companies while refusing to let them drill is not going to result in cheaper gas.
3. If he didn't like John Roberts, what kind of judges would he nominate for the Supreme Court?
4. Left his church over political pressure. Can you picture Joe Biden or Mitt Romney doing that? (If you can, you're more cynical than me.)
5. What will MSNBC (aka The Anti-McCain Channel) do with their time?
---
PRO's & CON's of Pres. John McCain
PRO
1. A war hero in the White House.
2. Presidents with wartime experience (George HW Bush, Dwight Eisenhower) are less likely to get us into long, protracted wars.
3. McCain has a real record of willingness to work with Democrats, which really does give him stuff in common with Reagan besides age.
4. McCain's determined to cut spending, whereas Bush got the GOP-led Congress to help him set records on increased spending and an increased deficit.
5. Bush tax-cuts won't expire.
6. Even though he can't raise his arms above his shoulders, Hugo Chavez would not want to be left alone in a room with him.
7. Experience.
CON
1. McCain's bought into Al Gore's global warming scare, which means America won't be emerging from the energy crisis anytime soon.
2. His age essentially makes him a lame duck president from the get-go.
3. He can do town-hall meetings but he can't read a speech to save his life.
4. His campaign-finance reform only gave birth to the 527's and made money even more important to political campaigns.
5. What will Fox News (aka The Anti-Obama Channel) do with their time?
----
PRO's & CON's of Either One
PRO
1. They'll both turn the page on the Bush/Cheney/Rumsfeld/Rove view of the world.
2. No preemptive-strike happy VP being the secret string-puller.
3. Both expressed desire for bipartisan compromise and cooperation.
CON
1. Neither has a good solution for the energy crisis.
2. Neither one has the authority to bring back Celebrity Boxing and make the talking heads of cable news be the contestants. (O'Reilly vs. Olbermann! Greta vs. Gloria! Anderson Cooper vs. Shepard Smith!)
PRO
1. Instant slight improvement in world standing with most countries.
2. A president who can speak, and speak well.
3. Definite change from the past eight years.
4. Middle-class tax breaks.
5. The first White House since Carter with no Bush or Clinton in there.
6. Pres. Hillary Clinton will never happen.
7. Not a baby boomer.
CON
1. Democratic president and Democratic congress. When is the last time it was a good thing to have the White House and Congress be of the same party? 1964?
2. Taxing US oil companies while refusing to let them drill is not going to result in cheaper gas.
3. If he didn't like John Roberts, what kind of judges would he nominate for the Supreme Court?
4. Left his church over political pressure. Can you picture Joe Biden or Mitt Romney doing that? (If you can, you're more cynical than me.)
5. What will MSNBC (aka The Anti-McCain Channel) do with their time?
---
PRO's & CON's of Pres. John McCain
PRO
1. A war hero in the White House.
2. Presidents with wartime experience (George HW Bush, Dwight Eisenhower) are less likely to get us into long, protracted wars.
3. McCain has a real record of willingness to work with Democrats, which really does give him stuff in common with Reagan besides age.
4. McCain's determined to cut spending, whereas Bush got the GOP-led Congress to help him set records on increased spending and an increased deficit.
5. Bush tax-cuts won't expire.
6. Even though he can't raise his arms above his shoulders, Hugo Chavez would not want to be left alone in a room with him.
7. Experience.
CON
1. McCain's bought into Al Gore's global warming scare, which means America won't be emerging from the energy crisis anytime soon.
2. His age essentially makes him a lame duck president from the get-go.
3. He can do town-hall meetings but he can't read a speech to save his life.
4. His campaign-finance reform only gave birth to the 527's and made money even more important to political campaigns.
5. What will Fox News (aka The Anti-Obama Channel) do with their time?
----
PRO's & CON's of Either One
PRO
1. They'll both turn the page on the Bush/Cheney/Rumsfeld/Rove view of the world.
2. No preemptive-strike happy VP being the secret string-puller.
3. Both expressed desire for bipartisan compromise and cooperation.
CON
1. Neither has a good solution for the energy crisis.
2. Neither one has the authority to bring back Celebrity Boxing and make the talking heads of cable news be the contestants. (O'Reilly vs. Olbermann! Greta vs. Gloria! Anderson Cooper vs. Shepard Smith!)
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Political Power - a generation later
Interesting quote from David Gergen in Fareed Zakaria's article:
"With the end of the cold war, we saw a new, destructive kind of partisanship," says David Gergen, who has worked in Republican and Democratic White Houses. "And for much of the past decade, we've kicked the can down the road on our big problems." Some of this is because of the narrowcasting of American politics, a process in which the extreme ends of the spectrum have been magnified and the center gets lost. Part of it, Gergen argues, is generational. "I have a distinct memory that the World War II generation really put country ahead of party. That is simply not the case with the generation in power now."
http://www.newsweek.com/id/140465/page/2
"With the end of the cold war, we saw a new, destructive kind of partisanship," says David Gergen, who has worked in Republican and Democratic White Houses. "And for much of the past decade, we've kicked the can down the road on our big problems." Some of this is because of the narrowcasting of American politics, a process in which the extreme ends of the spectrum have been magnified and the center gets lost. Part of it, Gergen argues, is generational. "I have a distinct memory that the World War II generation really put country ahead of party. That is simply not the case with the generation in power now."
http://www.newsweek.com/id/140465/page/2
Monday, June 9, 2008
Further VP speculations
Looking at Intrade.com, there hasn't been much movement from last week, nor would I expect it, but I ignored the Field category, which actually leads.
GOP
1. The Field - 40.1%
2. Mitt Romney - 20%
3. Tim Pawlenty - 15.8%
4. Mike Huckabee - 13.1%
5. Kay Bailey Hutchison - 4.0%
Other names in there are Condi Rice, Rudy Giuliani, Fred Thompson, Lindsay Graham, but two of the biggest names aren't included: Bobby Jindal (Gov. of Louisiana) and Charlie Crist (Gov. of Florida). I think those two are in the mix as as anyone else.
There's a lot of talk that John McCain needs to shore up his base, and it needs to go beyond the usual right-wi9ng scare tactics thrown against Barack Obama. I don't believe Obama is a Marxist who hates America, no matter how many times Sean Hannity says it. McCain may be leaning toward more moderate VP partners, but he might make a more calculating pick after all and go with someone considered more conservative.
On the Democratic side, the Field leads as well.
1. The Field - 30%
2. Hillary Rodham Clinton - 22.1%
3. Jim Webb - 18.2%
4. Mark Warner - 8.6%
5. Bill Richardson - 8%
Other mentions are Al Gore, John Edwards, Evan Bayh, Chris Dodd, Joe Biden, but it leaves out players like Tim Kaine (Gov. of Virginia). Otherwise I think it represents all the major players for that piece of the ticket. I just hope he doesn't pick Hillary. I fear for his life over the next 2-3 years if he does.
GOP
1. The Field - 40.1%
2. Mitt Romney - 20%
3. Tim Pawlenty - 15.8%
4. Mike Huckabee - 13.1%
5. Kay Bailey Hutchison - 4.0%
Other names in there are Condi Rice, Rudy Giuliani, Fred Thompson, Lindsay Graham, but two of the biggest names aren't included: Bobby Jindal (Gov. of Louisiana) and Charlie Crist (Gov. of Florida). I think those two are in the mix as as anyone else.
There's a lot of talk that John McCain needs to shore up his base, and it needs to go beyond the usual right-wi9ng scare tactics thrown against Barack Obama. I don't believe Obama is a Marxist who hates America, no matter how many times Sean Hannity says it. McCain may be leaning toward more moderate VP partners, but he might make a more calculating pick after all and go with someone considered more conservative.
On the Democratic side, the Field leads as well.
1. The Field - 30%
2. Hillary Rodham Clinton - 22.1%
3. Jim Webb - 18.2%
4. Mark Warner - 8.6%
5. Bill Richardson - 8%
Other mentions are Al Gore, John Edwards, Evan Bayh, Chris Dodd, Joe Biden, but it leaves out players like Tim Kaine (Gov. of Virginia). Otherwise I think it represents all the major players for that piece of the ticket. I just hope he doesn't pick Hillary. I fear for his life over the next 2-3 years if he does.
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
InTrade: Who'll Be VP?
Gamblers at intrade.com are making these picks for VP:
Democratic
1. Hillary Clinton
2. James Webb
3. Bill Richardson
Republican
1. Mitt Romney
2. Tim Pawlenty
3. Mike Huckabee
Personally I think Obama's best choice would be Webb, and McCain's would be Pawlenty. I think the worst pick Obama could make is Hillary, and the worst McCain could pick is Huckabee.
Democratic
1. Hillary Clinton
2. James Webb
3. Bill Richardson
Republican
1. Mitt Romney
2. Tim Pawlenty
3. Mike Huckabee
Personally I think Obama's best choice would be Webb, and McCain's would be Pawlenty. I think the worst pick Obama could make is Hillary, and the worst McCain could pick is Huckabee.
Monday, June 2, 2008
Hillary's End?
I watched her victory speech in Puerto Rico, where she didn't get any more delegates but she added some credence to her "popular vote" argument, which still is only true if you count Michigan, a state where Obama's name wasn't on the ballot. She does not seem prepared to give up on the Presidency. Even if she drops out this week, it wouldn't surprise me at all if she does subtle things to sabotage his campaign so she can run in 2012.
This seemed a little more clear watching Harold Ickes blast the Rules Committee for their ruling on the Michigan and Florida delegates. The convention in Denver is going to have some protests.
This seemed a little more clear watching Harold Ickes blast the Rules Committee for their ruling on the Michigan and Florida delegates. The convention in Denver is going to have some protests.
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