Buck Naked Politics

McCain & Obama Win Other Rounds

 Here are the results, courtesy of the Associated Press:

                                   Wisconsin

Obama             58%                         McCain         55%   
Clinton             41%                        Huckabee      37%
.

                                      Hawaii

                             Obama          76%
                             Clinton          24%
                

Has Obama Been Sufficiently Vetted to Survive the GOP Machine?

by Damozel | Larry C. Johnson of No Quarter has been arguing for quite some time that Obama is insufficiently vetted to withstand attacks from the right. In a recent piece in The Huffington Post, he discusses the basis of his concerns. And while I don’t agree by any means with all Johnson’s conclusions about Obama’s candidacy or Obama himself, the warnings he has sounded and the red flags he has indicated have most certainly given me pause. In fact, it would be fair to say that Johnson’s writings were some of the first to raise serious doubt in my mind about whether Obama is the best candidate for the times (though I continue to hope he will prove to be the presidential candidate of the future).

Obama a Plagiarist? No, He Just Lacks Originality (Updated)

Posted by D. Cupples (photo from Senate.gov ) |  A few days ago, Sen. Barack Obama gave an inspirational speech that turned out to be heavily borrowed from another politician's speech.  "Plagiarism" seems an extreme term in this case, and Obama did admit that he should have credited Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick, the man from whom Obama had borrowed. (See videos). 

Most politicians borrow phrases from others -- including Hillary Clinton.  So, why is Obama's verbal borrowing worthy of the spotlight's glare?  Context makes it so, and it's largely the media's fault.

Media-Created Intrigue: Obama's "Secret" Meeting with Edwards Follows Clinton's

Posted by D. Cupples |  Via Memeorandum:  Yesterday, Senator Barack Obama paid what some media has called a "secret" visit to John Edwards, which some speculate involved a plea for Edwards' endorsement.  Hillary Clinton had a similar meeting with Edwards last week.

Given that an ABC local affiliate's news helicopter managed to get video of Obama leaving Edwards' North Carolina house, how "secret" was the meeting was supposed to be?  Secrecy was not impossible: the local ABC station noted that Hillary managed to get in and out of her meeting at Edwards house "undetected by news crews."

How the Right Plans to Undermine Obama

by Damozel | In  The Times Online, Sarah Baxter reveals that 'leading Republicans' think they can trounce Obama in the general election "by tarring him as a shady Chicago socialist. They are increasingly confident that his campaign could collapse by the time their attack machine has finished with him."  (Times Online) They feel that he is "open to being defined as a corrupt, left-wing Chicago politician." (Times Online)   

Save Us, Al Gore?

by Damozel | I've never disguised my love for Al Gore.  I loved Al Gore before it was cool.  I always thought he was handsome, brilliant, prophetic, an engaging speaker, etc. etc., and I feel approximately the same way about him that Obama's fan base feels about him.  Though I am glad he is not running in this disappointing circus of a Democratic election, I would be down with this scenario, allegedly now under discussion by 'party insider,' according to this Eleanor Clift article posted by Andrew Romano in the Newsweek blogs:

Al Gore on the second ballot: A scenario that a few weeks ago seemed preposterous is beginning to look plausible to some nervous Democrats looking for a way out of the deadlock between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. It goes like this: 

Media Fashions Bill Clinton's Words into Cork Screw

Posted by D. Cupples |  In an article titled Bill Clinton Avoids Attacks on Obama, the Dallas Morning News reports that Bill Clinton, while stumping for Hillary in Texas yesterday, made efforts to not slam Obama and even to say a few nice things about Hillary's opponent. 

For example, Bill mentioned that he, himself, had campaigned for Obama during Obama's 2004 run for U.S. Senate.  Bill admitted that he's backing Hillary but added "If you disagree, you have another very attractive choice" (meaning Obama). 

Some media outlets failed to report those positive comments and managed to find an "attack" in what Bill had said.  Take ABC News, for example.

Note from a Disenfranchised Floridian to the Rule-Obsessed DNC

by Teh Nutroots | I am almost too pissed off about this to blog about it.  But I WOULD like to point out to all the self-righteous nitwits who are praising Nancy Pelosi for (finally) taking a stand about something, and to insist that the superdelegates 'not overrule voters' that the will of Florida voters is not going to be represented at the Convention at all.  Where is the person who will speak for us?  We had no control over the events that lost us our delegates.   I've lost all respect for the DNC and its rules.

It's like the form-over-substance morons on the Committee and the ones who are preaching about not overriding the will of the majority can't tell the difference between the state and the individual voters like me who couldn't prevent 'the state' from making a decision we didn't approve and couldn't prevent.  I'm a Democratic voter.  What about my will?   Talk about your 'legal fictions':

Barack Obama Loves You. Yes, You

Posted by Damozel |  Heh. For those who wonder what pop culture idol Barack Obama has done to deserve their votes,  Barack Obama is Your New Bicycle (via Obama-skeptic Eric Zorn of The Chicago Tribune), has a long list.   Here's a sample of the some of the things Barack Obama has done for you:

• Barack Obama skated here all the way from the beach just to see you
• Barack Obama rescued you from drowning
• Barack Obama set your voice as his ringtone
   

NY Times Erred: Delegate Not Leaving Clinton for Obama? (updated)

Posted by D. Cupples |  Perhaps it's time for some major holding of horses. The  Atlanta Journal Constitution (via Memeorandum) reports:

"A story in Friday's New York Times that said U.S. Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) was going to back Barack Obama for president is inaccurate, a spokeswoman for the former civil rights leader told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution this morning.  

"Lewis press secretary Brenda Jones did not elaborate and has not yet responded to a request for clarification."

Polls show Clinton Leading in Ohio & Texas: Will Pundits Spotlight this?

Posted by D. Cupples (photo from Senate.gov ) |  Many pundits treat pre-election polls as though the numbers had come from God's lips to their ears -- at least when they like what the numbers say.  Sometimes polls are right (e.g., those  indicating that Hillary would lose the Potomac primaries).  Sometimes they're wrong (e.g, those indicating that Hillary would lose in New Hampshire and California).

That said, I thought I'd share the most recent Rasmussen poll results regarding the Democratic presidential primaries in Ohio and Texas:                        

                         Ohio               Texas

Clinton             51%                  54%

Obama             37%                  38%

Peggy Noonan Offers Hillary Some "Friendly" "Advice"

by Damozel | Peggy Noonan is one of the many successful middle-aged women who are seemingly obsessed with Hillary Clinton, gloat upon her failures, and triumphantly anticipate her downfall.   Why?  I don't know.  As a middle-aged woman myself, I bear Hill no ill will (okay, sorry).   But perhaps this is because Hillary is too far out of my league to be a threat.

If I had climbed to the top of my---or any---tree, would I view her differently, i.e., in the manner of Noonan and, say, Maureen Dowd?  One's own ascendency might seem a little less unique if, looking up, one saw Hillary climbing away out of sight.  And we all know from high school that the worst rivals are the ones we despise.  So it's no surprise to see Noonan taking immense pleasure in Hillary's setbacks. 

Jon Swift on the Candidates

Posted by Damozel |  Ah, the consolation.  Satirist Jon Swift:

On Romney (prior to his withdrawal):

[H]e... spent only $1.6 million per delegate, which is pretty insulting to a typical Republican delegate. Democrat delegates can be bought with donuts and a cup of coffee, but Republican delegates don't come so cheap.  (Jon Swift)

Tweety 'n Hillary

There's lots I didn't know about my beloved Tweety (yes, I know) in today's big write-up in The Washington Post. 

Did you know this?  I didn't know this.  Nothing is ever as it seems, is it?

Among the women with whom Matthews has tangled, Clinton may be the most curious case study. Kathleen Matthews [his wife], now a Marriott executive, has given Hillary Clinton's campaign the maximum allowable donation of $2,300, and one of their three children, Michael, has worked in Africa for Bill Clinton's global initiative.

A Great Fall: McCain Votes Against Bill to Ban Waterboarding

Posted by Damozel |  Here's a development that has genuinely saddened me.  I must not be as cynical as I claim.   Today, John McCain voted against a bill that did exactly what he himself has advocated doing in the past:  adopted the Army Field Manual interrogation standards for the US government. Anti-torture advocates, such as the National Religious Campaign Against Torture, supported this crucial  billl.

In a Republican presidential debate on Nov. 28, McCain said that the Army Field Manual should be the gold standard for interrogations:

A Clinton Supporter Asks: If Obama Wins it All, What Then?

Posted by Damozel |

First the Obama campaign successfully shut down any resistance from the Clintons by succeeding in getting them tagged in the Clinton-loathing media as 'racist' or, at least, 'racist-like'.  (i.e., racist if you ignore the actual meaning of the word 'racist,' plus all known facts about Clinton and ignore common sense and the plain meaning of her remark.)

Once the obstreperous pit bull Bill Clinton was muzzled (as I concede he needed to be), Obama's campaign proceeded to---how shall I put this?---creatively reframe Hillary's health care package, his own relationship to corporate money, and Hillary's stance on various issues.  Not only did Obama not step in to prevent his supporters' use of right-wing style slur tactics against Hillary, but his wife went on Good Morning America to say that she just wasn't all that sure that she'd be able to bring herself to support Hillary if Hillary got the nomination.  Yep, that's what she said.  And that's how the 'Clinton rules' work:  one rule for Bill and Hillary, another for whoever is on the opposite side of the fence.  FOR NOW.

Polls Managed to Peg Potomac Primaries

Posted by D. Cupples | Yesterday, I listed some pre-primary poll results re: yesterday's primaries in Virginia, Maryland, and Washington, DC.  Predicting big wins for John McCain and Barack Obama, the polls I viewed actually got it right this time.  Results are below, from CNN:

Will Polls Be Right About Potomac Primaries? Vote Today and Tune in Later to Find out

Posted by D. Cupples | During this presidential primary season, I've enjoyed watching pollsters' and pundits' predictions fail to come true.  It's not a sadistic pleasure -- it's that I recognize the limits of political-opinion polls (discussed here and here) and am often disgusted by the media's apparent failure to grasp those limits.

I hope that people will vote despite what the pundits and pollsters say.  Interestingly enough, I'm having trouble finding polls about the today's "Potomac Primary" (Virginia, Maryland and DC).  Zogby doesn't have a poll listed on its website re: VA, MD and DC (Zogby was among those pollsters who were slammed because their polls predicted the wrong results for New Hampshire's Democratic primary).  Maybe Zogby and some other big pollsters have learned their lesson. Below are results from a few polls I found re: VA, MD and DC. 

An Illinois Progressive's View of Obama

Posted by D. Cupples | I wouldn't be upset if Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama were to start re-unifying the now-splitting Democratic party -- or if they formed a ticket come November.  I've read about Clinton's baggage for years, so I doubt I'll be surprised by anything her opponent brings up if she wins the nomination.

We might be surprised by Obama if he wins, largely because of the media's worshipful kid-gloving, i.e., their failure to diligently spotlight and analyze allegations that (if Obama wins) his Republican opponent surely will bring up -- and hurl at his heart like a dagger.

In a post titled "He Aint A Saint: a Citizen's Guide to Barack Obama," Illinois progressive Caroline Kay shares a link-filled list of some allegations that Obama will likely face if he makes it to November:

Election Irregularities: Huckabee Wants Washington Recount

Posted by D. Cupples |  Yesterday, Presidential Candidate Mike Huckabee's campaign put out a press release, in part containing the following:

"The Huckabee campaign is deeply disturbed by the obvious irregularities in the Washington State Republican precinct caucuses. It is very unfortunate that the Washington State Party Chairman, Luke Esser, chose to call the race for John McCain after only 87 percent of the vote was counted....