Thursday’s campaign round-up

June 12, 2008

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:

* More encouraging steps towards unity: “The other day, EMILY’s List president Ellen Malcolm revealed that she’s not over her ‘anger and grief’ at Hillary’s loss, but that hasn’t stopped her from coming out with a full-throated endorsement of Obama.” In a conference call yesterday, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Shultz (D-Fla.), an ardent Clinton backer, said, “In order to advance the progress that women have made in the last decade and in order to improve the lives of women and their children, the last thing in the world that women need to do is vote for John McCain.”

* It didn’t take long for the DNC to turn some of John McCain’s comments on Iraq into a 30-second ad.

* Wesley Clark hit McCain pretty hard in an interview with the Huffington Post: “I know he’s trying to get traction by seeking to play to what he thinks is his strong suit of national security,” Clark said of McCain. “The truth is that, in national security terms, he’s largely untested and untried.”

* There’s been quite a bit of talk about Sen. Jim Webb’s (D-Va.) “affinity for the Confederacy,” but TNR’s Eve Fairbanks believes Webb’s comments have been misconstrued.

* Republicans are anxious to consider Wisconsin a swing state, but a new University of Wisconsin-WisPolitics.com poll, conducted after Hillary Clinton ended her campaign, shows Obama leading McCain by 13 points, 50% to 37%.

* McCain doesn’t seem especially anxious to stop right-wing 527s who’ll be going after Obama.

* One of the most likely states to flip from red to blue is Iowa, where Rasmussen shows Obama leading McCain, 45% to 38%.

* McCain is very anxious to flip Michigan, but Rasmussen shows Obama with a narrow edge, 45% to 42%.

* We might as well take Washington out of the swing-state category. Rasmussen shows Obama leading McCain there by 18 points, 53% to 35%.

* Quinnipiac shows Obama leading McCain in New Jersey by six, 45% to 39%.

* And McCain may be mocking Jimmy Carter now, but he used to hold the former president in much higher regard.

McCorpse can mock Jimmy carter all he wants. It only shows how dated and out-of-touch his entire crappy campaign is. Besides, most Americans have a largely favourable view of Carter anyways, and recognize his charity work and activism. Carter is a class act and a true statesman. McCain…isn’t.

  • John McCain said in 1999 that Jimmy Carter had “the greatest, the noblest and loftiest intentions of any president”.

    So, did he forget about Saint Reagan, or did he think that Reagan had less noble intentions than Carter did? Seems like a good reporter would ask McCain about this if they’re not too busy eating BBQ.

  • While I think Obama would be miles ahead of McCain, and that a McCain presidency would be the end of America, I’m not impressed by Obama’s hard right turn on the Israel-Palestine issue, and his minimizing of Jimmy Carter.

    The Israeli peace movement is really pissed off by Obama:
    No, I can’t!

  • First, I’d like to say that I’ve never liked the phrase “full-throated”. It’ reminds me too much of the infamous 70’s classic, “Deep Throat”, which was one was made by one pornographer that should have been imprisoned — primarily for poor casting. Linda Lovelace was a turn-off.

    Second, I don’t interpret, “the last thing we need to do is vote for John McCain” as, dare I say, “full-throated” endorsement of Obama. It seems more “half-assed” to me.

    Either way, it’s the end result that matters.

  • Republicans are anxious to consider Wisconsin a swing state…

    You just don’t understand Karl Rove’s new math! Or is it that repugs ‘create their own reality’!

    As long as we keep working hard to emphasis what the country would get with a McBush presidency, I expect virtually all demographics to ‘get the picture’. This may well be a complete blowout election with a tremendous amount of downstream value added to democratic candidates. Even if it appears that way shortly prior to the election, let’s keep working hard to get the message across.

  • Having relatives “up the holler” myself, I find great value in Webb’s perspectives. He is not articulating a Confederate viewpoint, he is articulating a very real, authentic cultural malaise my relatives have suffered for a legacy now into the early 21st century. Sen. Webb is spot on in presenting his analysis of our Appalacian brethren. -Kevo

  • Gee, wasn’t that nice of Ellen Malcolm to support Obama now, acknowledging that rush limbaugh and kkkarl rove’s candidate shillary lost the primary.

    Gosh, I would have thunk she would have thrown her support behind mccain – after all, kkkarl is advising him and rush is certainly not going to support her new man Obaman.

    Wouldn’t you have thought folks like her would have backed the white candidate as shillary promoted herself?

  • @4

    I agree. I could do without several buzz words/phrases including but not limited to “full-throated” and “meme”. Both are ugly.

  • One of the cable shows (I don’t remember which) did a short segment last week on the sudden appearance of “full-throated” as an instant cliche favorite among the pundits. They ran a clip of various luminaries using the term, all after Hillary”s resignation address. Pretty funny, it was. I find it as unappetizing as Chris #4, and I think Ms. Joanne yesterday found it equally distasteful. I imagine many others are choking on it as well.

    What will be next? “Full-throttled?” Don’t gag on it, please.

  • And McCain may be mocking Jimmy Carter now, but he used to hold the former president in much higher regard.

    He’d better. McCain’s a septuagenary-a-principle. Carter’s got principles galore.

  • @4: Yes, “full-throated” is the most annoying trendy phrase to come down the pike in a long, long time. Worse than “gag me with a spoon,” even. And yes, while it’s intended differently, it can’t help but conjure the image of having one’s throat, well, full.

    There are plenty of real words to use instead: unequivocal, enthusiastic, ardent, unstinting, forceful, etc.

  • little bear at 7, you’re boxing shadows. You apparently have no idea how ridiculous you sound mocking an argument that someone hasn’t even made.

    Pointing out that a minority of Clinton voters will be stupid and self-destructive enough to vote for McCain is one thing. Blasting others for backing Obama and thus failing to give you a target is pathological. Dude, you’re not at all well.

  • “What will be next? “Full-throttled?” Don’t gag on it, please.”

    Isn’t the phrase supposed tob “full-throttled”? Full-throttled is like “all cylanders on go” or “peddle to the metal”. Full throated doesn’t make any sence.

  • I predict that one of Cindy’s lovers is going to come forward during the campaign. Look at her profile: a younger wife, disabled husband, world traveler, rich, a drugee. There’ll be that one night in Zurich or the week in London with the Chelsea Football Club, or just a few weekends with some horny Texan down the road. Odds are high.

  • little bear AKA joe…same as it ever was. One pony short of a ride. Doing far more damage than good.

    hark, yup. If only the ‘news’ people WOULD choke on it.

  • RE: Webb

    I was raised in the Deep South among a mix of descendants of Scots-Irish stock and their Continental counterparts, the Hugenots. You can reduce their good qualities and their bad qualities into a single word: tribalism.

    If they accept you into their own, there’s nothing they won’t do for you. But if you’re a threatening interloper (e.g., an African American demonstrating for Civil Rights, a Union soldier, a carpetbagger [lower case, natch]), you must be resisted.

    It’s in this light that I interpret his apologetics on behalf of the Confederate soldier. Webb’s a tribalist himself and is just looking out his own. It’s not an admirable quality of his, it just is.

    This interpretation has all kinds of implications into his past reactions to women in the military, his recanting of those reactions, his switching parties and switching back, the possibility of other white Southerners making the same re-switch …

  • #3 Ohioan – I was a bit saddened as well by the “right turn” and his seemingly hardened stance on Jerusalem (which he softened in an interview the next day).

    Few people ever thought that Obama was perfect (but you’d never know it from the number who mock him as the Messiah), and he demonstrated an imperfection that day. But which imperfection was it? Was he pandering, or was he actually taking a hard pro-Israeli stance? I couldn’t tell.

    In either case, he’s still far more likely than McCain to produce a Palestinean state and possibly peace in the Middle East.

  • Dear little bear a.k.a. joe,

    I am pleased with your pro-Obama enthusiasm, but I’ve got to admit, the initially ‘cute’ little names for everybody have worn off big time. My opinion is that we can beat McCain honestly, without resorting to right-wing tactics like name-calling and smearing. Thanks for listening!

    -Franklin

  • According to Intrade

    Obama is now winning in Virginia and New Hampshire and holds a significant lead in Ohio.

    If Obama were to lose all three, he would still win the election with a 269-269 tie.

    This assumes Obama wins New Mexico, Colorado, Michigan, Pennslyvania, Wisconsin and Iowa

  • According to Intrade… -neil wilson

    You really love that site! 🙂

    What was their primary record? I’m hoping it was good, because I’d love to see Obama pull a win in Virginia and New Hampshire.

  • Oh no. Jim Webb is a useful Senator (that is, the 51st Democrat), but he is a truly horrible person. I first met him 25 years ago and he didn’t understand Vietnam then and still doesn’t. He is a sexist; he has an uncontrollable temper. Please don’t put him on the ticket; don’t defend his pro-Confederacy ideas; don’t explain away his past writings; just let him be.

  • 13. On June 12th, 2008 at 1:22 pm, SaintZak said:
    “What will be next? “Full-throttled?” Don’t gag on it, please.”

    Isn’t the phrase supposed tob “full-throttled”? Full-throttled is like “all cylanders on go” or “peddle to the metal”. Full throated doesn’t make any sence.
    DC sez:
    Pity our pornography and still somewhat puritanical feelings about sex and guilt by association, deprives us of a rather lovely descriptive phrase, and its acceptance in “proper” company!

    see:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Search?search=%22full+throated%22&fulltext=Search

    An an additional point: Although, I assure you you I am no connasewer, (sic), of pornography, I was amused by the novel and rather lighthearted tone of the movie, “Deep Throat”. The opening scenes, faithfully exuded the feel of 1950’s to early ’60’s middle-class suburban life, including the bright Kodachrome-like colors of the film itself, the furnishings and their “tasteful”, pastel colors. When the movie did get around to the, “hard-core”, stuff, I was struck by the mood of the sex scenes, presented as a cheerful, somewhat innocent, frolic, along the lines of the far more tame but still delightful, “Life of Tom Jones”.
    I was taken aback a few years later when I viewed a Television interview with “Linda LoveLace”, as she confessed that she had been physically abused, forced into the such a shameful role and generally degraded off-camera. I was pretty sympathetic with her suffering, but wished she could know that in spite of her suffering, she could be assured that the movie and especially her character in the movie raised the definition of Porn far above the usually grimy, smutty, sniggering, portrayals of former years. Linda Lovelace in my opinion, helped to bring the rituals, games and pleasures of guilt-free sex, as portrayed in some later types of Porn and in real-life, from the backyard outhouses into the living-rooms, ‘er the bedrooms of middle-class America.
    David Chisholm

  • Considering the current toxic climate for Republicans… being behind by ‘only’ 13 points is considered a swing state now, because it is ‘oh so close…

    🙂

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