Cost of Democracy v. the Cost of Potato Chips

Conservative pundit George Will points out:

The Center for Responsive Politics calculates that, by Election Day, $2.4 billion will have been spent on presidential campaigns in the two-year election cycle that began in January 2007, and an additional $2.9 billion will have been spent on 435 House and 35 Senate contests. This $5.3 billion is a billion less than Americans will spend this year on potato chips.

A 'Special Comment'

It is worth a few minutes to watch this. -

Almost in the same breath...

John McCain uttered the following less-than-straight talk:

"Now is not the time to affix the blame. It's time to fix the problem. I would hope that all our leaders, all of them, can put aside short-term political goals and do what's in the best interests of the American people."

It was an utter farce of a call for political level-headedness. The very sentence before McCain uttered those words, he lambasted "Senator Obama and his allies in Congress" for infusing "unnecessary partisanship into the process."

Ready to Lead?

Consider:

COURIC: Why isn't it better, Governor Palin, to spend $700 billion helping middle-class families who are struggling with health care, housing, gas and groceries; allow them to spend more and put more money into the economy instead of helping these big financial institutions that played a role in creating this mess?

PALIN: That's why I say I, like every American I'm speaking with, were ill about this position that we have been put in where it is the taxpayers looking to bail out. But ultimately, what the bailout does is help those who are concerned about the health-care reform that is needed to help shore up our economy, helping the—it's got to be all about job creation, too, shoring up our economy and putting it back on the right track. So health-care reform and reducing taxes and reining in spending has got to accompany tax reductions and tax relief for Americans. And trade, we've got to see trade as opportunity, not as a competitive, scary thing. But one in five jobs being created in the trade sector today, we've got to look at that as more opportunity. All those things under the umbrella of job creation. This bailout is a part of that.

Palin Takes in Impromptu Press Question on AIG

Her reply:

"Certainly AIG, though, with the construction bonds that they're holding, and with the insurance that they are holding, very, very impactful to Americans," she said. "So you know, the shot that has been called by the feds, its understandable but very, very disappointing that taxpayers are called upon for another one."

Say what?

From Here to Lansing

Joe Biden, on John McCain's odd notion that the economy is doing well: "Ladies and gentlemen, ladies and gentlemen, I could walk from here to Lansing, and I wouldn't run into a single person who thought our economy was doing well, unless I ran into John McCain."

At Least She Has, uh, Taste...

Seen in my RSS feed:

Sarah Palin-style decor: love it or hate it?.

By Sarah Gaffney, Sunset Idea House program manager

All politics aside, would you cozy up to a couch with a bear as a throw?  When I saw this image of Ms. Palin's office in the NY Times, I was stumped. I guess I'm just a thoroughly urban girl. Now a cashmere throw, that's something I can snuggle up to.

[Home by sunset]

Palin's World View

For some additional insight into the person and what her selection as running mate by McCain tells us, read this.

Sold the Jet on eBay, Eh? Actually, no...

Read what really happened at this link - and then wonder why, oh why, this particular lie? In her first public speech?

McCain Choose the Best Female Republican Governor for the Job, Right? Uh, Not Really...

Very interesting article here listing and outlining the accomplishments and qualifications of some women in his party. With that kind of choice, the selection of Palin seems odd or something else.

But McCain Wouldn't Indulge in Sexist Commentary on His Opponents or Go After Their Family Members... or Would He?

Click the link - it's a good one. ;-)

"Why is Chelsea Clinton so ugly?" McCain joked about the then-President's then-teenage daughter. "Because her father is Janet Reno."

The main interesting part of the story - click the link - has to do with evidence to support Palin's claim that "the Obama/Biden Democrats have been vicious in their attacks toward me, my family, and John McCain." When asked for examples, the McCain campaign could not provide any examples...

Republicans Aghast at Sexist Criticism of Women Candidates... or Maybe Not...

This is one clip that should be played on, oh, every blog in the country...

Elect Republicans for Change?

Of all the intellectual insults in Republican campaign rhetoric this year, one example stands out. We hear that "when you elect a Republican" president, vice-president, administration, congress, etc. that Republicans will do this, that, and the other thing to Make America Great again, or whatever the slogan is.

The problem is they were elected and were in charge of the executive branch, the legislative branch, and some would argue the judicial branch for six years! What is it that they would do this time that they were unable to do with that kind of "mandate" - and during a time when Americans gave them far more leeway than they would have had in more normal times.

Talk about empty promises!

On a related note...

An interesting piece on this issue: http://journalism.nyu.edu/pubzone/weblogs/pressthink/2008/09/03/mccain_strategy.html

Palin... What is the REAL issue?

In my view, a lot of the "cultural war" stuff (the anti-abortion stance, the supposed "earmark fighter" status, the "real people" image, gender, and so forth) is only the side show in the whole Palin thing. The truth about a number of those things will continue to come out but will hardly matter at all to those who have a point of view one way or another on those issues. (With some exceptions, that I may take up later.)

The real issue isn't Sarah Palin at all. The real issue in all of this is John McCain, and the questions this selection raises about his decision-making style, his judgment, and the extent to which his "maverick" reputation is anything more than a tag line. All of these are very important in assessing his qualifications for the highest office, and they also tell us something about how different a McCain administration would (not?) be from the Bush administration. And, of course, these questions are central to this election.

By all reports McCain felt strongly that he wanted a very different vice president candidate on his ticket. Most reports are that he had essentially settled on Joseph Lieberman. That would have been a very interesting choice and while Lieberman carries some baggage, to be sure, he also could reinforce the notion that McCain would not be a continuation of Bush, that he really does want to diminish the destructive partisanship of the last eight years, and that he truly is a "maverick." But apparently the right wing base of the Republican party would hear none of this - it would be a religious right, anti-choice, pro-gun right wing candidate or they would threaten to not give him their total support.

Despite the campaign's claims (and we know better than to take convention statements from either party at face value) it is clear that the Palin choice was a last-minute punt. While other potential running mates - apparently a long list including some highly qualified women and men from across the Republican spectrum - were apparently the subject of intense discussions and research for months, Palin was dismissed from consideration early on and McCain has no significant contact with or knowledge of her or her politics. One almost gets the impression that McCain was so fed up with the adamant and contrary positions of those involved in the selection that he essentially said, "What the hell! Make it Palin then!" without nearly the thought or care that usually leads to such important decisions.

An important context to keep in mind is that McCain's "maverick" reputation comes partly from supposedly being willing to depart from the conventional party line, partly from being willing to reach across the aisle to the other party, and partly from making "from the gut" and quick decisions rather than thinking them through carefully. Each of those points is significant and what happened with this selection causes concerns related to each.

What does it suggest about his willingness to depart from the "party line" and "reach across" to work with folks who might usually be seen as opponents? I think it tells us a lot, and it is not good news. I would think that a "maverick" who has a reputation for "straight talk" would tell the far right folks in his party to take a walk. It is clearer than it has been in decades that the extremist far right agenda is not going to play with Americans in this election. Yet it seems that McCain simply went along, apparently at least partly in an attempt to gain credibility with the extreme right in his party. If anything in this approaches "reaching across the aisle," it is what appears to be a very cynical attempt to link the Palin candidacy with the understandable desire to see a woman president that was a component of the Clinton candidacy for the Democratic nomination. But it is very hard to see how Palin could attract as many of those voters as she will lose for other reasons - and it is even more difficult to understand how McCain would have seen this particular Republican as being the most qualified candidate when there are so many other Republican women who have much more substantial resumes.

To some extent, those could be written off as being mostly relevant to internal Republican party decisions - who runs the party, who gives in to whom, what qualifications matter there and what qualifications do not. But there are elements in all of this that should concern every American, especially in light of the debacle of the past eight years - which notably have included a President who doesn't seem to get all of the facts straight, a President who all too often has made disastrous decisions based on a personal gut instinct, an administration plagued by extremist insiders forcing decisions that match up with their views and those of their backers but not the majority views of the American people, a preference for creating divisive "cultural war" mini-issues rather than dealing with the actual issues (economy, education, Iraq, Iran, etc.), and a tendency to not come clean. I see plenty of evidence that all of this is still alive and well in the current campaign - and compared to any personal details of Sarah Palin's politics and life these are far more important issues in this election.

More Posts... Hey, It's an Election Year!

This site languishes for months sometimes while I continue to post regularly on my other sites, but sometimes a little posting therapy is good for me - especially during an election. So, this site may come back to life a bit between now and the November election...

Obama tells the Best Political Team on Television: You Have a Choice

There is a great piece at PressThink on Obama's speech today about "the race issue" - it describes how Obama was also making another extremely important point about American journalism and, by extension, American politics.

It is about time.

Whose Earmarks?

"President Bush today said that earmarks have tripled in number over the last decade, but he forgot to tell the public that he signed those earmarks into law. President Bush also neglected to mention that the tripling in earmarks occurred under a Republican Congress." — Sen. Robert Byrd, D-W.Va.

Someone Please Take Bill Aside...

I liked Bill Clinton as President. I still think he is a admirable person. Although I haven't made my mind up yet, I lean ever so slightly toward voting for Hilary Clinton in the California primary.

But every time Bill Clinton stands up at a Hilary Clinton campaign event and speaks about "I," "me," and "us" on her behalf he starts to lose me, and I know he is losing a lot of other potential voters for his wife's candidacy. Bill, you aren't running for President. At least you shouldn't be.