Who Are You Calling A Pansy, Asshole?

Gov. Mike Easley of North Carolina, endorsing Sen. Hillary Clinton for the Democratic presidential nomination yesterday:

She makes Rocky Balboa look like a pansy.

According to the dictionary there are three definitions of the word "pansy." The first is the "large-flowered garden plant" definition. The other two?

-A timid man or boy considered childish or unassertive
-Offensive term for a homosexual man

For the record, Clinton laughed at the Governor's comment. Yet gays and lesbians continue to back her in droves. So, to my brothers and sisters, let me ask this: In high school, if some bitchy little hoo-ha was running for class president and used your friendship to get a leg up only to throw you under a bus later in the process, and then topped it off by calling you a pansy right before the class election...you mean to tell me you would still vote for her?

I'm all for idolizing icy bitches like Joan Crawford for camp value, but to vote for someone who knocks you down time and time again...well, that's a level of self-loathing I cannot for the life of me understand.

To my fellow progressives, I ask this: For the purposes of this campaign the Clintons have played both the race card and the homophobia card. Why? Because the only path they see to winning their party's nomination is to play to the fears of white lower and middle class voters. They've essentially thrown their entire base to the wolves and opened up the Republican play book, bringing up Jesse Jackson in South Carolina and playing to the Jesse Helms homophobes in North Carolina. And as if to add insult to injury, Clinton is going on "The O'Reilly Factor" tonight!

If this were any other candidate, progressives would be having huge fits. Why she has even minimal support from any true-blooded liberal is beyond me.

Mid-Week Brain Break

I spent many a Saturday morning in front of the TV watching this show. Here is a classic performance from 1979, "Disco Night" by GQ. And watch that lead singer...the man lip-syncs so well one might believe he was actually singing live...

Bush-Rove, Redux

Quote of the Day:

...in a hypothetical contest between McCain and Clinton, the very forces that help keep Clinton ahead among [older white] voters in the primaries would aid McCain against Clinton in the general election. McCain’s a Scots-Irish Vietnam vet with an independent streak. He should beat her easily in this demographic.

If, however, Clinton becomes the nominee by wrestling superdelegates away from Obama at the convention (which, barring a catastrophe, is the only way she can do it), McCain’s advantages grow even more.

The Democrats led by Clinton would haemorrhage desperately needed black votes and young votes. All the new money, new votes and new enthusiasm that Obama has brought into his party would not just disappear; the new voters would be actively enraged, sit out the election or even vote for McCain.

-The Sunday Times' Andrew Sullivan, looking into his rather clear and accurate crystal ball.

Between Bill Clinton (formerly referred to as "the honorary first black president") telling white voters in North Carolina that a black candidate "doesn't care about people like you" and Hillary Clinton hopping into bed with Richard Mellon Scaife, the uber-millionaire who bankrolled the constant right wing attacks against the Clintons during Bill's presidency, the 42nd president and his wife have alienated and insulted huge blocks of voters who backed them passionately during the 90s (and beyond).

Including this voter. Am I disenchanted enough to hold my vote from Hillary should she somehow steal the Democratic nomination? Right now I'd say yes, but that could very well be my emotions talking. But one thing is for sure...even if I cast an extremely unenthusiastic vote Hillary's way in November, this blog would continue to be one of her fiercest critics. Because mark my words, she'll run her White House the same exact way she runs her campaign. And the last thing this country and Hillary's political party need is a Democratic version of Team Bush-Rove.

Holding Pattern

A slight hic-cup in a major aspect of this Seattle project has put things in a holding pattern. I'll still be up here through the middle of the week and then, depending on how fast things are resolved, could return home for a week or so before things start back up again. If, however, things are resloved quicker than anticipated, I will remain here.

With any luck though I'll see Brent before Friday, when he leaves for two weeks of his own work-related projects.

24 Hours

Home from Seattle for about 24 hours. I'm in serious need of some B-man and Chloe time! Some snuggle time with the girl this afternoon and a nice dinner at Town Hall with Brent this evening.

Dorothy was right...there's no place like home.

George McCain Hoover...or Up Shits Creek

I was afraid this was going to happen. Food shortages overseas are beginning to creep into American markets. Here are some key points from a web news story earlier in the week:

-Americans are stocking up on staples such as rice, flour and oil in anticipation of high prices and shortages spreading from overseas.

-Costco and other grocery stores in California reported a run on rice, which has forced them to set limits on how many sacks of rice each customer can buy.

-U.S. wheat stocks are at the lowest levels in 60 years

-The diversion of one-third of the U.S. corn crop into making ethanol for vehicles has increased prices for corn and other staples such as soybeans and cotton as more acreage is set aside for ethanol production.

-Farmers also have raised prices because they have been hard hit by spiraling energy costs, which not only raised the price of diesel fuel to records of over $4 a gallon but drove up the cost of nitrogen fertilizer, which is made from natural gas.

According to Tom Buis, President of the National Farmers Union:

"Something is wrong."

No shit!

I've said it before and I'll say it again, anyone who continues to think that the Republican Party is the party of fiscal responsibility is living in a fool's paradise. There is nothing at all conservative about how this President, his father, Ronald Reagan, Gerald Ford, Richard Nixon, and Herbert Hoover navigated America's finances. Trickle-down economic policies and the run-up of record-setting debt (much of it owed to foreign adversaries) is the ultimate in irresponsibility and, in my humble opinion, absolutely anti-American.

The Republican nominee in this year's presidential contest has admitted to knowing nothing about economic affairs and, while on the campaign trail, embraces the policies of the current administration...the very policies that have put us in our current situation of high prices, a housing market breakdown, and a fast-collapsing economy overall.

Umm....thank you, but no.

If Americans put John McCain in the White House this November then they have what's coming to them. And dare I say, the resulting downturn could be on par with Herbert Hoover's Great Depression.

In the mean time, get out there and hunt down some of that neighborhood squirrel. The way things are going, it will soon be about all you can afford for dinner.

Eye Candy

Portland, Oregon native Kerry Degman is apparently the hottest guy in the modeling world right now.

One word: WOOF!

Terry's Hypocrisy

Quote of the Day:

Carl, take it to the bank. They will not get a credential. The closest they'll get to Boston will be watching it on television. I will not let you break this entire nominating process for one state. The rules are the rules. If you want to call my bluff, Carl, you go ahead and do it.

-Terry McAuliffe, campaign fundraising guy for the presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Clinton, to Sen. Carl Levin of Michigan, trying to enforce the Democratic Party primary rules...

...in 2004, when he was chairman of the Democratic National Committee.

McAulilffe today?

I'm saying they've already voted, let's count the votes. I’m saying that the state parties in those states need to work with the national party and figure out how we count the votes that have already been voted.

Gee, Ter...what's changed?

Clinton By 8

As exepcted Sen. Hillary Clinton was the victor in Pennsylvania's Democratic presidential primary last night. As the coverage on CNN and MSNBC came to a close at midnight ET, the numbers had the former First Lady beating Sen. Barack Obama by 10 percentage points.

But then Delaware County, just south of Philadelphia, reported their numbers.

With a few last minute stragglers still to report, the close to final result brought Clinton's margin into the "dreaded" single-digit territory:

Clinton 54%
Obama 46%

Either way, a win is still a win and the party's contest continues further. Clinton actually gave a half-way decent speech last night. She was gracious and her voice didn't make me want to slit my wrists. Obama, on the other hand, seemed tired and off his game. To me that makes him more human. He's not the robot that the Clintons have become.

Despite this victory, the math still isn't there for Hillary Clinton. She still has to perform impossibly well in each and every one of the remaining states...a rather tall order. She's out of money (although I'm sure her plea for donations last night gave her coffers a boost) and trails in national surveys.

And so we soldier forward. On to North Carolina and Indiana...two states where Obama leads in current polling.

I Missed "Idol"

I was working last night and didn't get a chance to see "Idol," so new review this week. As Simon likes to say..."SAAWW-ree!"

Now More Than Ever: Obama

As Pennsylvanians head to their polling places today to cast ballots for the Democratic Party presidential nomination, I re-post my February endorsement in that contest here.

A change to that argument. In that essay I said:

Hillary Clinton would be a nightmare. Not her, specifically...not her politics...not her governing style...but rather, the result of the election.

I would like to amend that. Since early February Hillary Clinton has turned into the Karl Rove of this election cycle, spewing vile Republican talking points, saying one thing then later denying that she said it, and practially endorsing the Republican nominee should she lose her party's nomination. If that's how she runs her campaign then I shiver to wonder how she would govern this country. People call the possibility of a McCain presidency the unofficial third term of George W. Bush. I dare say, a Hillary Clinton presidency wouldn't be all that different.

Little Miss Chloe

Enjoying a very comfortable Saturday siesta...

In Seattle...VERY Light Blogging through Mid-May

I am in Seattle through August. (Yes...AUGUST!!) The major project I've been preparing for begins in full force tomorrow morning at 6am. It will require 12 to 14-hour days most of the coming week and, more than likely, the following week. As such, blogging will be extremely light at best. Things get back on a more even keel in about three weeks, although they'll be continually busy through mid-August.

End-of-the-Week Levity

Every episode of the BBC's classic sitcom "The Vicar of Dibley" ended with a wickedly funny joke, told by the Vicar (played superbly by Dawn French) to the ever-so-dense Alice (played to perfection by Emma Chambers).

Here is a hodge-podge of those jokes from the first "series" (that's British for "season"). Enjoy...

Betrayal In San Francisco

Well the bitch has started already, throwing vital supporters under a bus in order to get a political foothold with another demographic. Who did she betray this time?

The entire city of San Francisco.

That's it, Hil. Tell the red states they don't matter because Obama wins their primaries, and then go after one of the more progressive cities in America in order to gain favor with the religious zealots of those same red states. You truly have no scruples.

To my fellow Democrats who remain in the Clinton camp: It's time to face the facts. She really is turning into the Karl Rove of this election. And because of it she needs to be soundly defeated.

Two More Supers For Obama

Two old-horse Democratic heavyweights have endorsed Sen. Barack Obama for the party's 2008 presidential nomination. Former Sen. David Boren (OK) and former Sen. Sam Nunn (GA) have thrown their support behind the Illinois Senator, and are now advising the candidate on issues of national security.

Of course Hillary Clinton will probably discount these endorsements since they come from men who represented two of the reddest states in the nation.

For the record...should Obama go all the way, Sam Nunn would be an excellent pick for Defense or national security adviser (or even White House Chief of Staff).

UPDATE: It turns out Boren and Nunn are not super-delegates to the convention. None the less the ensorsement of these two powerhouse Democrats, one from the old confederacy and the other from one of the most Republican states in the southwest, can only help sway undecided supers to Obama.

Quickly, on the Debate

I have a busy day ahead and will comment a little more on last night's Democratic presidential debate later, but three quick things...

1. Charles Gibson and George Stephanopoulos gave journalism a huge black eye last night. The debate questions were tabloid-esque and played to the lowest common denominator of American society. With everything going on in the world - Iraq, terrorism, the economy - ABC asks about FLAG PINS?! To quote Bill Clinton in South Carolina: "Give me a break!"

2. Stephanopoulos used to work for Bill Clinton as both a campaign strategist and as a White House adviser. As such, ABC News shouldn't have let him anywhere near that debate stage last night. To let him moderate a debate in which one of the candidates is his former boss' wife was irresponsible.

To add fuel to the fire, Stephanopoulos then went on to use a right wing talking point (about Obama's very brief and very light affiliation with some 70s radical, who Hillary's husband pardoned) to punch Clinton's opponent. He put himself in the gutter with Hillary Clinton - taking on Karl Rove campaign tactics and asking questions fielded by uber-fascist Sean Hannity. It was lower than low.

3. Most of the debates of this political season were aired live across the entire country, no matter the time zone. I think ABC did the West Coast a disservice last night by airing the debate in the Mountain and Pacific time zones on tape in order to get them into the prime time hours. I wound up watching the debate live on-line, but still...the tape-delay decision just added to already wretched performance of their "moderators."

Good Riddance

Kristy Lee Cook is finally out of "American Idol." She was the least talented of the bunch and should have been voted off weeks ago. But now we have a real contest on our hands and I look forward to seeing how things play out over the next several weeks.

Mid-Week Brain Break

A straight white kid, in dreads, playing a ukelele, singing a song long admired by gay men. Only in an America where a mixed race black man from Hawaii, who grew up in Indonesia, is a leading candidate for president.

Enjoy Jason Castro's eclectic and enjoyable take on "Somewhere Over the Rainbow"...

The Post-"Bitter" Obama Surge

It seems all the drama over Obama's "bitter" pill last week was for naught. A new ABC News/Washington Post poll, taken as the statement was being dissected all over cable news, shows the Illinois Senator solidifying a national preference lead for the Democratic nomination, and beating John McCain comfortably in the fall:

For the Democratic nomination:
Obama 51%
Clinton 41%

Best nominee against McCain:
Obama 62%
Clinton 31%

In the general election:
Obama 49%
McCain 44%

"Little Annie Oakley," however, doesn't fare so well:

General election:
McCain 48%
Clinton 44%

Clinton honest & trustworthy:
Yes 39%
No 58%

Independent voters are abandoning Sen. Clinton in droves. McCain leads among the non-affiliated voters by 10-points against the former First Lady. Obama leads this group by 8-points against McCain.

It seems when Hillary Clinton gets her hackles up voters are reminded of what they don't like about her and are willing to risk four more years of Fascist-Republican rule in order to keep her out of the White House.

I don't think she should be the Democratic nominee based on polls like these. She would lose handily and America can't afford another presidential term in the mold of George W. Bush. That said, it's that third term I think Americans should think about on the off chance that they have to make a decision in a "Clinton vs McCain" contest...

Four years of Grandpa Bush-Bitch, who has cow-towed to every whim of the worst president in U.S. history, or four years of the nails-across-the-blackboard psycho-drama of the 90s? For many it would be a close call, but the answer should be rather obvious.

"Idol" - The Top 7

Ugh! It's "Mariah Carey Week" and I can't stand her. Talk about an over-rated pop diva! For what it's worth, here we go...

David Archuletta
"When You Believe"
Wow! I sound like a broken record, I know, but this boy can SING! This was absolutely stupendous and one of his best performances of the season.

Carly
"Without You"
Technically this isn't a Mariah song (her version was a remake) but...whatever. Following David A, this was a pretty weak performance. It was kinda screechy and out of tune in places. Boring, too.

Syesha
"Vanishing"
'twas alright. Nothing too special and not her best performance. Just ok.

Brooke
"Hero"
She's getting a bit boring, too. I like her style and her vocals never disappoint. But the whole "alone with an intsrument" thing is getting old real fast. Not bad in the least. Just boring.

Kristy Lee
"Forever"
Ok...that little taped exchange between her and Mariah will provide teen boys with masturbatory fantasies for the next several nights. And hopefully that will keep them from picking up the phone and voting for her. People...SHE. CAN'T. SING. She's flat, she's bland, and she's boring as hell.

David Cook
"Always Be My Baby"
He looked pretty damn hot tonight...very sexy. And once again he took a song, reworked it, and molded it into his own. Both Davids are - I think - the best of the season, but Cook is the guy who needs to come in 3rd or so this year...the Chris Daughtry or Elliott Yamin of this season. He deserves a great record contract and I think he'll get one that doesn't compromise his style if he doesn't go all the way in this competition.

Jason
"I Don't Want To Cry"
Like David Cook, Jason can be so very original (last week's version of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow," case in point). And this was very nice. Not the best of the night, but definately in the top three.

In Montana

A new poll in Montana shows Barack Obama nipping at John McCain's heels in a general election match up:

McCain 48%
Obama 43%

Hillary Clinton loses handily:

McCain 54%
Clinton 36%

That 36% is probably Clinton's ceiling. Remember...this is a state where about 60% of voters said they would never, ever vote for Hillary Clinton. And while the state carries only 3 Electoral College votes, in a close election those electors could make the difference (had Al Gore prevailed in just one small 3-vote state in 2000 he'd be finishing his second term right now). But more than that, moving such a state to the Democratic column would be a small step in the direction of a nationwide mandate.

Montana last went Democratic in 1992, voting for Bill Clinton as Ross Perot siphoned a huge percentage of the vote away from the first President Bush. Clinton would lose the state four years later, and it has been one of the more reliable Republican states in presidential elections since then.

They do have a blue streak though, having elected a very popular Democratic governor (Brian Schweitzer) and two U.S. Senators (Max Baucus and Jon Tester). And now it seems Obama has a fighting chance in the Treasure State. A victory there on election night could well spill over into other Mountain West and High Plains states like South Dakota, Nevada, Colorado, and perhaps an electoral vote or two in Nebraska.

For Democrats in the remaining primary and caucus states the task is easy: Do you go with the candidate who has the better chance at picking up some normally Republican states? Or do we shoot ourselves in the foot yet again by nominating a candidate who has little chance of doing so - and could possibly move a couple of Democratic states (Oregon, Washington) into the Republican column?

McBush

With the Democrats still deciding who their nominee will be in this election, Sen. John McCain, who locked the Republican nomination up weeks ago, has spent his time running his general election campaign. To counter that advantage, I was hoping an independent group or two would begin running ads against Grandpa Bush-Bitch. Progressive Media, USA has just put up a brilliant one.

When you hear the right-wing nut-jobs foaming at the mouth that the election of John McCain this fall would not be a "Bush third term," don't believe a word of it...

Hillary Clinton - Republican

With the super-fast release of this new TV ad, it's become increasingly clear that Hillary Clinton would rather see four more years of failed Republican-Fascist rule than help elect a Democrat in November. She has turned into the right-wing slime machine she so abhorred back in 1998, and Democrats around the country should reject her flat out.

Eye Candy

Happy Tax Day!

Bring It On!

Brent and I were in Placer County this past weekend spending some time with his parents before we both get bogged down in work-related travel. As such, I missed the dust-up over Sen. Barack Obama's comments late last week that lower middle class Americans "get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren't like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations."

To borrow a phrase from Bill Clinton: Give me a break!

The fact of the matter is, he's telling the truth. This sort of honesty is a bit brutal, and he probably could have phrased it better, but Obama's comments were spot on...and the Clintons know it. In fact, the former President said in his memoirs:

If [Republicans] could cut funding for Medicare, Medicaid, education, and the environment, middle-class Americans would see fewer benefits from their tax dollars, feel more resentful paying taxes, and become even more receptive to their appeals for tax cuts and their strategy of waging campaigns on divisive social and cultural issues like abortion, gay rights, and guns.

For decades - DECADES! - lower middle class Americans have been ignored economically that they have stopped voting for their financial interests and instead cast their ballots based on the social-issue fear card played by the Republican-Fascists.

Even Jim Webb, the blue-dog conservative Democratic Senator from Virginia sees it:

Working Americans have been repeatedly seduced at the polls by emotional issues such as the predictable mantra of "God, guns, gays, abortion and the flag" while their way of life shifted ineluctably beneath their feet.

All the talk on the blogosphere this weekend that Obama has provided a big opening for the Clinton campaign is a bit over done. As usual, Clinton overplayed her hand by touting her love of guns and her new favorite past time - hunting! Good God...it was all I could do to keep my breakfast down. It was as if Charlton Heston's spirit had taken a brief detour through Hillary Clinton's icy cold soul before heading down to his eternal home at the Beelzebub Retirement Center.

And then...AND THEN...Sen. Obama came out punching yesterday. You can't help but admire a guy who gets back up and immediately goes on the offensive after such a weekend. For the first time in a long, long time the Democrats have a candidate with rock solid cajones:

"Ha !"

Ok...it's plainly obvious to anyone who watches "Hardball" on MSNBC that Chris Matthews has an ego the size of Philadelphia...but who knew he was so damn narcissistic?

Mark Leibovich has quite the revealling essay in Sunday's NY Times Magazine:

At one point, Matthews suddenly became hypnotized by a TV over the bar set to a rebroadcast of “Hardball.” “Hey, there I am — it’s me,” he said, staring at himself on the screen. “It’s me.”

As Matthews says when he hears one of his own lame jokes..."HA !"

Alberto Unemployed

When you trash the Constitution and break the laws you were supposed to protect, it should be no surprise that law firms take a pass when you apply for a job.

End-of-the-Week Levity

From the crazy, wine-drinking folks at "Match Game"...

"Idol" Shocker

Somehow, someway Michael Johns, one of the more talented contestants on the current season of "American Idol," received the least votes this week and was booted off the show. He wasn't the best of the lot, but to be voted off before Kristy Lee Cook proves just how idiotic Americans can be from time to time.

With any luck (and a really good manager), Johns will do well in the industry.

"Raising Cain, I Spit In Your Eye"

Sir Elton John held a fundraising concert at New York's infamous Radio City Music Hall last night, raising $2.5 million for the presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Clinton.

John's show included such classic singles as "Your Song" and "Border Song." Obviously missing from his set? "The Bitch Is Back" (which, you have to admit, would be the ultimate Clinton campaign song should she somehow pull this nomination out of her ass).

During the show, Clinton addressed the audience:

What I want you to know is I'm still standing.

Roll eyes, slap forehead.

Girrrrrl

In international news, it seems Osama bin Shoppin'...

Oh, Bill

Remember that Colombian free trade agreement that forced the resignation of Clinton campaign chief Mark Penn because he supported it and Hillary Clinton didn't? Well, it seems the Senator's husband, former President Bill Clinton, supports the agreement as well.

Yeah, yeah...husbands and wives have had differing political views since the beginning of time. But the Clintons publicly tout themselves as "two for the price of one."

So for all of you anti-free-traders out there (for the record, I am pro)...be very wary of the Clintons on this issue. Like the gays, they'll say they support your position but when it comes time to play the game they'll throw you under a super-heavy bus.

Little Miss Chloe

Dominating her brand new toy...



(Update: Thanks to Beth for giving me the 'heads up' on the picture malfunction. 'tis fixed!)

Beyond Hectic

This is how hectic things are at work this week. My poor Project Lead left the house yesterday without first looking down...

Mid-Week Brain Break

Mexican boys and their footballs...

The War In Iraq

A Crocker/Petraeus Wrap Up from Democracy Arsenal, by way of Kevin Drum:

Ambassador Crocker again refuses to engage in hypotheticals with Senator Biden. Unless we hypothetically talk about leaving Iraq, in which case he is absolutely sure that everything would fall apart and the world would end.

When asked by Senator John Warner whether Iraq was making us safer Petraeus kept hedging and stated that it would ultimately be up to history. Not very comforting.

Obama was able to hit Petraeus and Crocker very hard....He got Petraeus to agree with him that the total elimination of Al Qaeda is an impossible standard for withdrawal. Next he goes after Crocker's points about Iranian influence, pointing out that both Iran and Al Qaeda are in Iraq because we invaded and that we can not expect to eliminate Iranian involvement.

Then came the hammer. Obama pointed out that if the definition of success is put so high - no Al Qaeda, no Iranian influence, a prosperous diverse democracy we will be there forever. He then points out that we still, after 8 hours of testimony, have no definition of success....Crocker's weak response its "hard and complicated."

"Idol" - The Top 8

Michael
"Dream On"
This was an ok performance. The screeching at the end almost made my ears bleed, but overall this was above average.

Syesha
"I Believe"
Jesus...all the jibber-jabber among the judges about camparisons to Fantasia. The truth is this is a really sappy song, but Syesha did a nice job with it. Very strong vocals.

Jason
"Somewhere Over the Rainbow"
A very interesting take on the quintessential movie classic. I actually really liked this. He really showed off his abilities and his connection with the audience with this performance.

Kristy Lee
"Anyway"
She's just so freekin' boring. If she was trying to keep herself out of the bottom three this week, she missed the mark by a mile. She's the worst singer of the eight and it's time for her to go bu-bye. If she is spared it will be because of the choir's vocals, not hers.

David Cook
"Innocent"
This actually started off a bit odd. I don't know if the vocals were meant to be sung that way, but it didn't sound right. The song picked up later on, but over all this wasn't his best performance.

Carly
"The Show Must Go On"
Another average performance from one of the better singers. Her vocals almost seemed timid in comparison to such a big song.

David Archuletta
"Angels"
I was a bit scared when I heard him say he was going to sing this classic Robbie Williams single. But, in true Archuletta form, he blasted this out of the park. Not his best vocal performance but a wonderful song choice and he did it justice.

Brooke
"You've Got A Friend"
Pretty average and boring, actually. I think it'll be Brooke, Carly, and Kristy Lee in those uncomfortable tin chairs tomorrow night.

Song of the Day

From the summer of 2006, former Morcheeba lead singer Skye Edwards' debut single:

"Love Show"

"Truth Decay"

Keith Olbermann once again takes Hillary Clinton to task over misstatements and really poor campaign strategy:



And - also, once again - Markos Moulitsas asserts "This thing is over":

Hillary Clinton has proved during the past few months that she is a fighter, that she is tenacious, and that she is in the race to win. There's just one problem. She's already lost.

...Her campaign has adopted a bizarre "insult-40-states strategy," which has belittled states small, liberal and Red. Apparently, the only states that matter are the ones she coincidentally happens to win.

...I won't call on Clinton to quit the race because it would be stupid to do so. It's her call to make when she's good and ready to make that call. But aside from that, it is time for the super delegates to put this thing to bed. We're all itching to take on McCain, so let's get the main show started.

Obama Closing the PA Gap

What was a 12-point lead three weeks ago is now a 6-point lead for Sen. Hillary Clinton in Pennsylvania. And there are two weeks yet to go! Plenty of time for Obama to close the gap and take the lead.

Will it happen? Somehow, I doubt it. But if the final result shows him losing by just a few percentage points he wins either way.

Worst. President. Ever.

A poll of 109 leading historians and presidential experts found 61% calling George W. Bush the worst American president in our nation's history. 96% place him in the overall bottom tier of presidents. And 98% label his presidency a complete failure.

I knew from day one that he'd fall into this category. For crying out loud, the guy was an incompetent flake before he became President. What on Earth made Americans (and the Supreme Court) think this guy was fit to lead our great nation with the record he had prior to standing for election!?

President Clinton, President McCain, or President Obama are going to have one hell of a mess to clean up come January 20th.

Clinton Strategist Quits

Following news of his work on a free-trade agreement with Colombia that Sen. Hillary Clinton opposes, Mark Penn has stepped down as chief strategist of her presidential campaign.

One has to wonder whether this would helped Clinton's campaign had it happened early on. Penn is the architect of Clinton's miserable and badly run campaign of personal destruction. It's too little too late to save her now, I'm afraid.

On This Day In 1968

Pierre Trudeau was elected Prime Minister of Canada.

5,000 Federal troops were dispatched to Chicago as riots overwhelmed local police in the days following the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr.

The infamous Queen Mary was put in dry dock in Long Beach, California to be refitted as a floating hotel.

The late Otis Redding had the #1 song in America with "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay."

And my sister was born in Detroit, Michigan!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, "MEL." Love, "Win."

Eye Candy

Or as my buddy Ben called it last week, "Eye Popping Candy"...

End of the Week Levity

The extended trailer for the upcoming "Sex and the City" movie:



And an absolutely wonderful take on the series from none other than Bea Arthur ("Maude," "The Golden Girls") and Charlotte Rae ("The Facts of Life"), among others. It seems the girls will still be on the prowl come 2035!!

Balls to the Wall

Heads up:

We are at the starting point of a major project at work, so posting here at SFJ will be lighter than usual over the next 4 to 6 weeks.

Song of the Day

Morcheeba is back! After an extremely lackluster post-Skye Edwards album in 2005, the British pop masters are back with "Dive Deep," a wonderful new set that features rotating lead singers.

The first single is called "Enjoy the Ride," and even at this early date it is most definitely a candidate for best single of 2008. Enjoy...

Hillary and Bill (No, Not that one)

Quote of the Day:

He cannot win, Bill. He cannot win.

-Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) to Gov. Bill Richardson (D-NM), during the phone conversation in which the Governor (and former cabinet member in Bill Clinton's White House) informed the former first lady of his intent to endorse Sen. Barack Obama.

Ahem...uhhh...Senator...only 37% of Americans hold you in good stead. Obama's chances of winning the presidency are not what you should be worrying your little ol' self over.

Mmm k?

Good Riddance

The untalented Ramiele is out. Now if the teenage boys would just stop voting for Kristy Lee, "Idol" would have a true contest on its hands!

The Santorum Candidate

Former Ambassador Alan Keyes, the Maryland resident who ran against Barack Obama in 2004 for the U.S. Senate seat in Illinois (and lost by a whopping 43 points), has dropped out of the Republican presidential race to become the candidate of the uber-fascist Constitution Party.

Let's see...intolerant, check. Homophobic, check. Misogynistic, check. Racist, check. christianist, check.

Yup...seems like a perfectly logical choice to me.

And now the burning question on minds everywhere: Who should be Keyes' running mate? Hmmm...homophobic, intolerant, and Christianist...GOT IT!

Keyes/Santorum, anyone?

Hamilton Endorses Obama

Former Rep. Lee Hamilton (D-IN) - one of the Democratic Party's elder-statesmen on issues of foreign policy, co-chair of the 9/11 Commission, and co-chair of the Baker-Hamilton Iraq Study Group - has endorsed Sen. Barack Obama for his party's presidential nomination.

Hamilton:

I read his national security and foreign policy speeches, and he comes across to me as pragmatic, visionary and tough. He impresses me as a person who wants to use all the tools of presidential power.

Heading into the Indiana primaries, this is a major coup for Obama. Hamilton is a beloved figure back home and this endorsement could well close the polling gap with Sen. Clinton.

Should Obama win the White House in November, Hamilton would be a superb cabinet pick.

"Totally Pro-NAFTA"

MSNBC did their homework and...shocker!...Hillary lied to voters in Texas and Ohio about her role in getting NAFTA passed during Bill's presidency:

Mid-Week Brain Break

This one is dedicated to Princess Maggie, Baby Girl Rodriguez, and their mom and pop...

No Idol Wrap-Up This Week

I stayed home again yesterday, battling this nasty bug I've caught. I was in bed before "Idol" aired and thus there will be no wrap-up this week.

As Simon is so fond of saying this season..."SAW-ree!"

Eye Candy

Thad Mills, the hhhot new carpenter on TLC's "Trading Spaces." Hey Thad...I got some wood for ya, right here!

The Voices of Our Children

Take the time to watch this clip and tell me it doesn't make you hopeful for the future...

Can't Be Done

A recent NBC/Wall Street Journal poll shows how Americans perceive the three presidential candidates:

Barack Obama: 49% positive
John McCain: 45% positive
Hillary Clinton: 37% positive

Clinton's negative rating was 48%. There is no way...NONE...she can win a general election when so many people don't like her. No matter her policies, no matter the lackluster campaign McCain wages. It just can't be done.

Vs. McCain, Continued...

According to a new Gallup poll 59% of Americans believe Barack Obama has the better chance at beating John McCain this November. Only 30% believe Hillary Clinton can beat him.

So much for her long-lame "electability" argument.

Victory At All Costs?

Quote of the Day:

Clinton personifies the worst of the "with us, or against us"-type thinking that has gotten us in trouble with the rest of the world.

So we have a campaign that is losing by every metric imaginable. And now that campaign says that it doesn't care if she's losing by every metric imaginable. Her campaign will carry on regardless.

No one can say that Clinton doesn't play to win. In some circumstances, that is admirable.

The only problem is that she already lost. At this point, this is just pathetic.

-Markos Moulitsas, commenting on Clinton campaign operative Harold Ickes' assertion that the national popular vote numbers shouldn't count when Democratic super-delegates make their decisions.

Are You F*cking Kidding Me?!

CNN and MSNBC seem to be all over this Obama bowling thing. So, the guy can't bowl? In this day and age - when the Iraq War is heating up, the economy is on the skids, and our Constitution in tatters - do you really think Americans will make their decision for president based on how well someone bow...

Awww, shit.

We're fucked.