Wednesday’s political round-up

January 24, 2007

Today’s installment of campaign-related news items that wouldn’t generate a post of their own, but may be of interest to political observers:

* A few weeks ago, we learned of leaked portions of Rudy Giuliani’s presidential playbook, given to the New York Daily News by a still-unknown GOP rival. Today, the Daily News’ Ben Smith, who originally obtained the document, published all 140 pages of the dossier online.

* In the already-fascinating competition between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, The Hill reports today that Obama is slightly ahead when it comes to website traffic: “Twelve percent of Internet surfers who visit www.senate.gov click to the freshman senator’s homepage, according to rankings on Alexa.com, which tracks website traffic. Obama’s site gets more hits than any other senator’s, and, much like his popularity, those hits have increased over the last month. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.), who made her official presidential announcement last Saturday, pulls 7 percent of Internet surfers to her site from the main Senate page. Her numbers rose to current levels Monday after stagnating at 4 percent for the last month.”

* In what will likely be this year’s most fascinating off-year race, Kentucky’s gubernatorial campaign has a new contestant: former Kentucky Lt. Gov. Steve Henry announced yesterday that he will seek the Democratic nomination for governor.

* Mitt Romney didn’t need any more questions about his fealty to the far-right cause, so it can’t help that Romney was found to have donated to a Democratic congressional candidate in New Hampshire as recently as 1992. Romney’s spokesman responded, “A $250 contribution made almost 15 years ago is, obviously, greatly overshadowed by strong conservative governing and a proud, Republican record of balanced budgets and pro-family advocacy.”

* Speaking of Romney, the news didn’t stop Rep. Peter Hoekstra (R-Mich.), the former chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, from endorsing the former Massachusetts governor yesterday.

* And Barack Obama’s staff have given some reporters a copy of a strategy memo on how the senator is responding to the right-wing “madrassa” controversy, which Obama continues to be asked about. Apparently, Obama’s team hopes the senator may benefit politically by making it an Obama vs Fox News dynamic.

“Apparently, Obama’s team hopes the senator may benefit politically by making it an Obama vs Fox News dynamic.”

Now we’re talking…this is the kind of strategy that I would like to see more dems take. When they try to hit us with garbage like this, let’s make sure that they can’t outrun the stench.

  • “The [Obama stategy] memo takes Steve Doocy and John Gibson to task for repeating the charges and documents how CNN (Fox competitor!) thoroughly debunked the story.”

    Sweet. Obama takes a hammer to the evil empire. Their slide into irrelevance continues.

  • Romney’s spokesman responded, “A $250 contribution made almost 15 years ago is, obviously, greatly overshadowed by strong conservative governing and a proud, Republican record of balanced budgets and pro-family advocacy.”

    Such bulls**t. It doesn’t help that the Democrat was a fellow Mormon.

  • So Romney forsakes his politically-conservative allegiances for a fellow member of his extremist religious minority sect. Is there a possibility that he would do likewise to his country, should the opportunity arise? Inquiring minds want to know….

  • Speaking of Romney, the news didn’t stop Rep. Peter Hoekstra (R-Mich.), the former chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, from endorsing the former Massachusetts governor yesterday.

    Just a note, michigan is a weird state. we’re either the most liberal conservative state or the most conservative liberal state, and despite the crazy talk now mitt prolly could have won in MI if he ran as he did in Mass.

    also, thank you Phizer.
    thank you in the mouth.

  • Re: The Obama Memo –

    To be frank, they fucked up. the bit about him not being a Muslim and never being a Muslim comes across as though being Muslim is on par with being a drug addict. Furthermore, lots of people are committed Christians and they’re damn unpleasant. I couldn’t help but think of certain pastors trying to deny they paid for sex and drugs. “Who, me? Nuh-uh, I’m a devout Christian!” Ugg.

    Obama’s people should have focused on the Obama as brainwashed radical crap the moonies are trying to spread. A strong statement to rebut the idea that Muslim = Terrorist would have been a good thing too.

  • Steve
    Is there a possibility that he would do likewise to his country, should the opportunity arise? Inquiring minds want to know…
    That statement is, forgive me, bigotted. I hope you did not mean the question.

    Bobby Kennedy worked for Joseph McCarthy. The former was a Democrat, while the latter was an extremist Republican. Both were Catholic. Jack Kennedy did not want to vote to censure a slimy creature like McCarthy. Are you going to go Norman Vincent Peale, and claim that their true loyalties were with the Vatican, and not America?

    BTW, I am not a Mormon, a Christian or a Republican.

  • orange says: “the bit about him not being a Muslim and never being a Muslim comes across as though being Muslim is on par with being a drug addict

    I hear what orange is saying, but IMO the people who would take this issue and let it actually affect their vote are not the type to do a lot of deep thinking. A smear aimed at idiots has to be put down in simple terms, so that’s what they did. Probably won’t get too many of their votes, but hopefully it puts it to bed.

  • Ramki,

    IMHO it was sarcasm. pointed sarcasm that tries to illuminate the hypocrisy of the right wingnuts.

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