Op-Ed Columnist - Blizzard of Lies - Op-Ed - NYTimes.com

Op-Ed Columnist - Blizzard of Lies - Op-Ed - NYTimes.com: "the Obama campaign is wrong to suggest that a McCain-Palin administration would just be a continuation of Bush-Cheney. If the way John McCain and Sarah Palin are campaigning is any indication, it would be much, much worse."

Palin Camp Takes Umbrage at 'Lipstick on a Pig' Comment | The Trail | washingtonpost.com

Palin Camp Takes Umbrage at 'Lipstick on a Pig' Comment | The Trail | washingtonpost.com: "'Enough is enough,' Obama adviser Anita Dunn said in a statement e-mailed to reporters at 9 p.m. 'The Mc Cain campaign's attack tonight is a pathetic attempt to play the gender card about the use of a common analogy -- the same analogy that Senator McCain himself used about Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton's health care plan just last year.'

Dunn said, 'This phony lecture on gender sensitivity is the height of cynicism and lays bare the increasingly dishonorable campaign John McCain has chosen to run.'"

Bill Clinton offers support to Obama | ajc.com

Bill Clinton offers support to Obama | ajc.com

It's a metaphor

Washington Wire - WSJ.com : Obama: 'If They Bring a Knife to the Fight, We Bring a Gun'. The comments to this story reveal the hateful ignorance of some people, and the enlightened acceptance of others. Some folks get it; some don't.

McCain's temper is legendary

Wonkette counts the ways McCain is McNasty.

Hillary's history of unethical behavior

In North Star Writers Group - Dan Calabrese writes:

Jerry Zeifman, a lifelong Democrat, supervised the work of 27-year-old Hillary Rodham on the committee. Hillary got a job working on the investigation at the behest of her former law professor, Burke Marshall, who was also Sen. Ted Kennedy’s chief counsel in the Chappaquiddick affair. When the investigation was over, Zeifman fired Hillary from the committee staff and refused to give her a letter of recommendation – one of only three people who earned that dubious distinction in Zeifman’s 17-year career.

“Because she was a liar,” Zeifman said in an interview last week. “She was an unethical, dishonest lawyer. She conspired to violate the Constitution, the rules of the House, the rules of the committee and the rules of confidentiality.”

Combating anti-liberal bias

It appears that NewsBusters.Org is responsible for hijacking In This Corner as displayed at landolinkin.us. I switched over to Blogspot hosting, but that didn't fix it -- a thorough decoding of the page source was necessary.

Whoever hijacked this blog was able to get at the template, which means my so no matter what new items were posted, the NewsBusters.Org link was always at the top, with nothing new.

NewsBusters vows to "expose and combat liberal media bias." I guess NewsBusters thinks I'm liberal, but I'm independent who happens to support Obama. I'm opposed to right-wing apologists and extremists (liars) like Limbaugh and -- name your own.

I think McCain is the best possible candidate the Republican Party can field. The right running mate is crucial for electability. I still think Obama should select Gen. Wesley Clark, who would be freer to criticize "war hero" McCain and bolster BHO's commander-in-chief creds.

Can you imagine Hillary Commander-in-Chief!? If she gets the nomination, I'll pull an Ann Coulter and work for McCain, as Ann is working for Hillary.

Weekend Captionfest

Weekend Captionfest | NewsBusters.org - Exposing and combating liberal media bias. Caption contest for photo showing Hillary greeting little girl, while allegedly under sniper fire.

Rev. Wright in Full

A Chicago friend sent me this YouTube link to the complete sermons of Rev. Jeremiah Wright: Trinity Chicago's Channel.

Dems on road to ruin?

Bloomberg.com: Worldwide: "Former New York Governor Mario Cuomo said the presidential race between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama could be ``ruinous'' for the Democratic Party if the contest isn't resolved before the August nominating convention."

Power Line: The Great Obama

Article compares BHO to the Great Gatsby: Power Line: The Great Obama

Barack prays to Jesus

Smeared O Has 'CROSS' WORDS: Last week, Barack Obama

"lashed out at political enemies who are spreading false rumors that he's a closet Muslim as he proclaimed, 'I pray to Jesus every night.'

'I am a devout Christian,' he told voters in this key state.

'I pray to Jesus every night and try to go to church as much as I can.'

In some of his strongest comments to date, Obama, in response to a question about his religious beliefs, said he wanted to put an end to 'so much confusion [that has been] deliberately perpetrated.'" - New York Post

Evil sacrifice?

A blog called The Undercurrent Uncle Sam Wants You to Sacrifice has a negative critique of Michelle Obama's statements about eschewing corporate America and choosing the social work. Something a blogger named Ergo picks up on in "The Evil Obama's" (with an apostrophe after the final 'a' indicating possession: "Obama's" Obama's what?

Evil? Willful ignorance is a sin, ergo, "Ergo" is evil for perpetrating ignorance.

Canada backs up Obama on NAFTA

Canada defends Obama over NAFTA flap:

"Canada defended Democratic front-runner Barack Obama Monday over accusations from rival Hillary Clinton that he is secretly at ease with a hemispheric trade accord which he publicly blames for losing U.S. jobs.

Clinton's criticism, on the eve of make-or-break presidential nomination contests for her in Ohio and Texas, stemmed from a report by Canadian television station CTV that an Obama economic adviser told Canadian officials the candidate was not seriously considering disrupting the trade accord.

But the Canadian Embassy in Washington released a statement essentially backing up the Obama camp's version of the meeting between adviser Austan Goolsbee and officials at the Canadian consulate in Chicago." - Forbes.com

Barack's middle name

Referring to right-wing wing-job Bill Cunningham (and others) attempt to smear Barack Obama by repeatedly including his Arabic middle name when referring to him -- at a recent McCain rally in Cleveland -- a Pundit writes in Los Angeles Times : The name game and Obama:

"His name is unusual in the annals of prospective presidents -- Van Buren, Roosevelt and Eisenhower are about as exotic as it gets for White House occupants to date.

So if Obama succeeds in nailing down the Democratic presidential nomination, be prepared for more attempts -- some subtle, some not so -- to tap into simple, blatant prejudices to attempt to derail him. And the test as to whether America has progressed as far as many hope it has also would seem to be fairly simple -- the degree to which these efforts succeed."

The name Hussein - means handsome. And Obama should be proud to be named Hussein. I read it in Salon.

Debunking Kingston's attacks on Obama on HBO

Cameron's Blog: Debunking Congressman Kingston's attacks on Obama: "Friday night, Congressman Jack Kingston appeared on HBO's Real Time with Bill Maher. In the course of his appearance, he made a series of false statements about Obama. Bill Maher and the guests on the show did little to counter Kingston's claims, which was disappointing, particularly since they are easily debunkable, as the videos below demonstrate."

Hillary couldn't anticipate the Obama phenomenon

Adam Nagourney - New York Times:

"Mrs. Clinton has, in truth, been a very strong candidate. She has displayed an unerring command of issues, is focused on the campaign trail, strong at debates, evocative with crowds large and small. “She is better than her campaign,” said Harold Ickes, a long-time friend and a senior official in her campaign.

If Mrs. Clinton ends up losing the race, the real reason may be nothing more than she was not better than an opponent she could never have anticipated."

Prescription for profit

Director of Sicko says insurance industry would love Clinton healthcare plan:

"Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton’s (D-N.Y.) proposal to mandate that all people purchase health insurance would be a boon to the industry, filmmaker Michael Moore said Friday." -- TheHill.com.

McCain disagrees with himself

Newsweek catches McCain in a serious contradiction - Glenn Greenwald - Salon.com:

"Newsweek's Mike Isikoff today obtained (or was given) the transcripts of deposition testimony which McCain himself gave under oath several years ago in litigation over the constitutionality of McCain-Feingold. In that testimony, McCain repeatedly and unequivocally stated the opposite of what he said in this week's NYT denial: namely, that he had unquestionably spoken with Paxson himself over the pending FCC matter."

Grassroots mom examines the candidates records

Daily Kos: I Refuse to Buy into the Obama Hype (now a supporter): "the 'empty rhetoric' v. 'history of accomplishments' arguments have prompted me to check it out on my own, not relying on any candidate's website, book, or worst of all supporters' diaries,"

vp choices

I hear McCain might choose Lieberman or Rice; while Obama could choose Wesley Clark, an enlightened military man (peace, Greener than Thou ;-)). Hillary would be a fool not choose Obama if she pulls off the nomination, but Barocky can do better.

Hillary's defeated

Jay Bookman opines: Hillary's defeated; GOP sets its sights on Obama:

"Thanks to substantial defeats in Wisconsin and Hawaii — giving her a losing streak of 10 in a row — Clinton has now fallen behind Barack Obama by more than 140 pledged delegates. With 981 delegates still to be elected between now and early June, it might at first glance seem possible to overcome that gap.

But it's just not so. To pull ahead of Obama in elected delegates, Clinton would have to win every one of the 16 remaining contests by margins of 15 to 20 percentage points. There is no sign that such a sweep is possible.

Clinton's only other hope for a miracle lies with her party's 800 superdelegates, who have the right to vote for the nomination because they hold elective office or high positions in the party.

However, those superdelegates show no sign of wanting to get into the miracle business, nor should they. They understand the outrage that would result if unelected delegates try to overturn the verdict of Democratic primary voters, particularly when the candidate the voters have chosen is a black man."

And I agree. ;-)

Obama-Clinton: Dream Ticket?

ABC News: Obama-Clinton: Democratic Dream Ticket?:

"'Clinton-Obama is not a dream ticket,' Democratic strategist Donna Brazile said. 'It's a fantasy ticket.'"

Coulter will campaign for Hillary if McCain is the nominee

YouTube - Coulter tells Hannity & Colmes,"I'll campaign for Hillary if McCain is the nominee."

Obama's hope for Hillary

The New York Times reports through MSNBC.com Obama promises to get tough with Clinton :

Asked if Mrs. Clinton had been fully truthful with voters about what she would do as president, Mr. Obama replied, “No.”

“I don’t think people know what her agenda exactly is,” Mr. Obama added, citing Social Security, Iraq and Iran as issues on which she had not been entirely forthcoming.

“Now it’s been very deft politically,” he said. “But one of the things that I firmly believe is that we’ve got to be clear with the American people right now about the important choices that we’re going to need to make in order to get a mandate for change, not to try to obfuscate and avoid being a target in the general election.”

"Asked about Mr. Obama’s remarks, Mrs. Clinton’s spokesman, Howard Wolfson, said, “Senator Obama once promised Americans a politics of hope. But now that his campaign has stalled he is abandoning that strategy and is engaging in the same old-style personal attacks that he once rejected.”"


“I’ve been amused by seeing some of the commentary out of the Clinton camp, where every time we point out a difference between me and her, they say, ‘What happened to the politics of hope?’ which is just silly,” he said, laughing.

Asked why it was silly, he responded: “The notion that somehow changing the tone means simply that we let them say whatever they want to say or that there are no disagreements and that we’re all holding hands and singing ‘Kumbaya’ is obviously not what I had in mind and not how I function. And anybody who thinks I have hasn’t been paying attention.”

southern illinois politicians view of Obama

Republicans note Obama's solid liberal record built over 10 years in Springfield and Washington, D.C.: "What we're talking about here is someone who wants to be the leader of the free world."

Security and Prosperity in North America

SPP Home: "The Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America (SPP) was launched in March of 2005 as a trilateral effort to increase security and enhance prosperity among the United States, Canada and Mexico through greater cooperation and information sharing.

This trilateral initiative is premised on our security and our economic prosperity being mutually reinforcing. The SPP recognizes that our three great nations are bound by a shared belief in freedom, economic opportunity, and strong democratic institutions.

The SPP provides the framework to ensure that North America is the safest and best place to live and do business. It includes ambitious security and prosperity programs to keep our borders closed to terrorism yet open to trade."

Blago says No Debate with Green Candidate

Nicole Sack writes in The Southern Illinoisan Greens say it's a go; Blagojevich says no: "The Green Party gubernatorial hopeful Rich Whitney said he 'can practically guarantee' his place on the November ballot - claiming the Greens have upheld 1,000 more signatures than legally required for ballot access. . . . He said all that is left is for the State Board of Elections to verify the findings on Sept. 1.

Also according to Sack:

Gov. Rod Blagojevich said he is primed and ready to debate Republican challenger Judy Baar Topinka - just so long as there are no Greens on stage. Blagojevich said the upcoming fall debates should be left to the political professionals.

When asked if he would pull out of a debate if a Green was also invited, the governor had only this to say:

"Let me put it to you this way: we've offered a series of 12 to treasurer Topinka. Our offer is to debate her one-on-one." And added, "I'm interested in debating (Topinka) in 12 debates. I sure hope she's not looking for some excuse to get out of these debates."

The Topinka camp said it is not looking for any excuses to get into another debate about debates - nor to make up excuses.

"We're willing to debate anyone," said John McGovern, spokesman for the Topinka campaign. "We believe it is up to the debate sponsors and organizers to determine who's invited and who participates."

Blagojevich and Topinka have both committed to a debate in Marion, sponsored by The Southern Illinoisan, WSIU Public Television and the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute at SIUC. Whitney has not been invited so far.

Looks like it's up to the Public Policy Institute, after some nudging from The Southern Illinoisan's editorial page.

Mr. Right is Wrong

Over at The Southern Illinoisan, Jim Muir is Sick and tired of the 'politically correct' an opinion piece that speaks of "clever and catchy little phrases like 'more tolerant,' 'less offensive' and 'more inclusive,'" which prompted some comments on Muir's intolerance and ignorance.

I would add "insincere rhetoric" to the charges against Muir. If he meant what he said, he would not 'beat a dead horse' about the term he says he's "sick and tired" of.

But since he is a professional journalist, he wants to stir things up and get people to comment with his hateful remarks. Which he did. 42 of them at last count. Mostly against.

Keystone cops?

Snippets heard of some recently-released NORAD tapes this morning on the Alex Jones Show on the GCN Live stream. The article is in this morning's New York Times: New Tapes Disclose Confusion Within the Military on Sept. 11. The last sentence reads: "the tapes show that the military was not even alerted to the hijacking of the United flight until four minutes after it had crashed."

The inside-jobbers will have a ball with that one. Will Rush rush to the defense?

Star Chamber?

The Washington Post today revealed what the boys at Free Talk Live are calling a "Star Chamber" -- a Bush administration proposal for a new kind of court:

White House Proposal Would Expand Authority of Military Courts:

"A draft Bush administration plan for special military courts seeks to expand the reach and authority of such 'commissions' to include trials, for the first time, of people who are not members of al-Qaeda or the Taliban and are not directly involved in acts of international terrorism, according to officials familiar with the proposal.

The plan, which would replace a military trial system ruled illegal by the Supreme Court in June, would also allow the Secretary of Defense to add crimes at will to those under the military court's jurisdiction. The two provisions would be likely to put more individuals than previously expected before military juries, officials and independent experts said.

Under the proposed procedures, defendants would lack rights to confront accusers, exclude hearsay accusations, or bar evidence obtained through rough or coercive interrogations. They would not be guaranteed a public or speedy trial and would lack the right to choose their military counsel, who in turn would not be guaranteed equal access to evidence held by prosecutors.

Detainees would also not be guaranteed the right to be present at their own trials, if their absence is deemed necessary to protect national security or individuals"

The quotes John D. Hutson, the Navy's top uniformed lawyer from 1997 to 2000, who said the rules would evidently allow the government to tell a prisoner: "We know you're guilty. We can't tell you why, but there's a guy, we can't tell you who, who told us something. We can't tell you what, but you're guilty."

The draft proposed legislation is set to be discussed at two Senate hearings starting today.

Truth, Justice and All That Stuff

Bill O'Reilly is hot today about the way the new Superman movie left out the phrase "Truth, Justice and the American Way" from the movie promo and action. The film company behind the movie decided the phrase wouldn't help sell tickets in countries around the world.

Oh, oh, O'Reilly says he understands why the company would do it, but thinks its wrong.

Culture war.

Never been a book like this.... strip it down... backed up with examples and facts of people who do things.

Every clown can do this, he says, i.e. write a blog.

O'Reilly's right sometimes.

But at least one web site thinks O'Reilly sucks.

Reading the photo propaganda (photoganda?) over at Mr. Right's blog, I think I'll put my kickstand down to comment briefly on national affairs -- beginning with a new term: Wing Dinger.

A "Wing Dinger" is a knee-jerk ideologue representing either political party or wing (as opposed to a "New Winger," a purpose-driven pragmatist seeking honest, competent leadership at all levels of civil government. Like the Dingers, New Wingers can also be from the left or right wing of the political spectrum.)

The RCP Blog: "if this country gets hit with a small nuke and 30,000 or 100, 000 Americans die, all of the debating will be over. The ensuing crackdown will be massive, and the loss of REAL civil liberties will become very, very possible."

(Like something out of Alex Jones, Bloggy.)

and this diversionary piece:

Byron York on Bill Clinton & No-Warrant Searches on National Review Online:

"In the end, Congress placed the searches under the FISA court, but the Clinton administration did not back down from its contention that the president had the authority to act when necessary."

and this by the father of all pundits, William F. Buckley Jr. . . . on George W. Bush and Intelligence Interceptions:

One way to vest mystique into the Constitution is to plead its inscrutability, or else suggest that only the high priests of the legal profession are equipped to interpret it. The secretary of state informed Tim Russert no fewer than four times on Meet the Press that she was not a lawyer.

. . . since Condoleezza Rice is a very smart lady, one had to acknowledge that she simply did not want to argue the meaning of Article Two of the Constitution. She didn't want to be the first secretary of state to pass down word that it's okay for a president to bug your phone because that's what the Constitution says!

Mr. Right thinks we know what he thinks: that he supports whatever Mr. Bush is convinced of, without Congressional authorization -- to save us from his Poster Boys for Terrorism..... Poster boys who were created by the actions of Precedent Bush.

Looking at National Review online, I noticed that the 2006 Milton Friedman Prize for Advancing Liberty, with its $500,000 cash award will be presented to the former prime minister of Estonia, Mart Laar on May 18 at the Drake Hotel in Chicago by The Cato Institute. Laar was main architect of his country's remarkable economic transformation into one of the world's freest and most dynamic economies.

Tale of the tape

In case you didn't know, Keyes, Obama offer stark contrasts, reports the Rockford Register Star.

Who next? Rush Limbaugh?

Morning Bloggy: If you're still undecided about the upcoming Presidential election, or beginning to doubt the wisdom of four more years of the current administration, this morning's Doonesbury offers a link to yesterday's Union Leader and New Hampshire Sunday News - Another View:
Why I will vote for John Kerry for President, written by the son of a former Republican President. Not Reagan, Eisenhauer!

G-Rod's Dream

"If Freud were alive, what he would say about this dream," Blagojevich said.

Keyes, Obama agree on charter school benefits

Yesterday, "U.S. Senate candidates Alan Keyes and Barack Obama agreed
that establishing more charter schools was one way to improve the nation’s educational system, but they differed on the overall role that government should play toward that goal." -Chicago (AP)

extremism in the defense of virtue

Poll suggests, extreme Keyes failing at painting Obama as extreme.

Race in Senate race

historic Senate race: "There are two historic dimensions to the Keyes-Obama race: It's the first time you have two African-Americans representing both major parties (in a U.S. Senate race) ... and it's one of the best examples of men who are diametrically opposed in terms of the issues," says Alvin Williams, president and CEO of the Washington-based Black America's Political Action Committee. The organization was founded by Keyes to promote conservative candidates.

Bush and Kerry Follow Debate With Sharp Jabs

heraldtribune.com: Bush and Kerry Follow Debate With Sharp Jabs

Who won the Presidential debate?

70% of those voting on the MSNBC web site think Kerry did, 30% say Bush, but your vote could change that.

Keyes slams 'phony' polls

With only 32% of voters polled supporting him, Keyes would ban 'phony' polls.

Keyes questions Obama's record

At SIUE, Keyes questions Obama's record: continuing a theme "he's used before, that Jesus would not vote for Obama."

Keyes derails Obama from traditional track

Keyes derails Obama from traditional track: "Asked by reporters at his Springfield health-insurance event to address some of Keyes' attacks, the state senator launched into an explanation of his own Christian faith, of his interpretations of the Bible, of his belief that a human life's true beginning can be viewed differently through religious and secular lenses--and that legislators should write abortion law based on a secular 'line of viability.' As Obama waxed on, his chief media aide, Robert Gibbs, appeared to squirm uneasily in the background." --Chicago Tribune.

Keyes interview with Jim Muir

"Speaking with the fervor of an evangelist at a tent revival, Alan Keyes, the Republican candidate for U.S. Senate, made a campaign swing through Southern Illinois last week, marking his first visit to the area, [making] appearances in Marion and Mount Vernon to rally downstate support in his race against Democratic candidate Barack Obama, [taking time] ...to grant a one-on-one interview to the Southern Illinoisan. "

kinky obama?

The Southern Illinoisan quotes Barack saying: "'I don't just want to win. I want to give this guy who is running against me a spanking.' "

Eagle Scout for Keyes

He's not from Illinois, but seems like a good boy . . . Why would he say "Barack Obama is one of the most dangerous men in America."

Same event, two different takes

The Pantagraph reports Candidates move further apart 09/09/04: "Illinois farm leaders will have no difficulty remembering where the state's two U.S. Senate candidates stand on agricultural issues. . . . Republican Alan Keyes and Democrat Barack Obama offered divergent views Wednesday on world trade and repealing the federal estate tax. They spoke separately to agricultural leaders during a forum at Funk Farms Trust near Shirley."

While WHOI concludes Obama, Keyes Have Similar Farm Ideals: "They agreed on just about everything related to agriculture."

Illinois Boy vs. The Maryland Crab

Barack Obama versus Alan Keyes duke it out to be U.S. Senator from Illinois. . . . plus other important Illinois election match-ups.