Poll: As Conventions Approach, Dems Trouncing GOP In Image, Party I.D.
All the daily blocking and tackling over things like McCain's number-of-houses gaffe can easily lead you to forget the larger context in which this campaign is playing out. A new Pew poll offers a bracing reminder, laying out in detail just how dramatic the Democrats' generic advantage over the GOP in party identification and image is is right now.
The poll finds that among registered voters, the Democratic Party has a 13-point lead in party affiliation (51%-38%) when independent "leaners" are included. Our handy Election Central calculator tells us that means that more than half of registered voters self-identify with the Democratic Party. That seems striking.
The "image" numbers are also good for the Dems. Fifty-seven percent say they view the Democratic Party favorably, while 37% view it unfavorably. By contrast, only 43% view the GOP favorably, while a plurality of 49% rate it unfavorably. That's another big advantage for Obama.
The rest of the poll is here.
The larger point here is that for the Dems, the goal of the convention is partly to get voters to vote in line with their views of the two parties as expressed in this poll -- their platforms, policies, and performance. The GOP, of course wants the election to be about Obama's allegedly untested character and his all-around otherness, precisely because of numbers like the ones in this poll.
But a successful Dem convention could foil this plan by neutralizing whatever fears and/or suspicions people have about Obama's heritage and whatever doubts about his character have been implanted in their heads by the GOP, allowing the Dems' huge built-in advantage to assert itself on Election Day. That's key to what's really at stake next week.
All it takes is a few minutes watching and listening to him speak on his feet. This time a lot more people will be tuning in.
August 22, 2008 5:05 PM | Reply | Permalink
man is there a lot at stake.
August 22, 2008 5:06 PM | Reply | Permalink
P.S. Greg, I think your clock is a bit off:
August 22, 2008 5:07 PM | Reply | Permalink
thx, fixed
August 22, 2008 5:11 PM | Reply | Permalink
Sssh!
Going ahead in time is how Greg will scoop all the other sites on the Obama VP nomination!
August 22, 2008 9:25 PM | Reply | Permalink
Very interesting. Why is Obama not taking part in this?
August 22, 2008 5:06 PM | Reply | Permalink
i think obama is definitely doing this. I think it takes time and with mccain's housing crisis issue it along with other things should help to do this
Video: McCain “Americans Won’t Pick Lettuce for $50/hr”
August 22, 2008 5:38 PM | Reply | Permalink
Dems Trouncing GOP In Image, Party I.D.
Not for long...I hear John Voight and Robert Duvall will be at a fund raiser for McCain during the Democratic convention. Now that's sure to knock them off the front page!
August 22, 2008 5:09 PM | Reply | Permalink
O be still my heart.
There's a lot at stake, Greg - but have faith, baby. It's going be Ok.
August 22, 2008 5:15 PM | Reply | Permalink
Robert Duvall is a Republican? ...How sad.
August 22, 2008 5:15 PM | Reply | Permalink
Not only that, he's very right wing.
I was very disappointed, too, when I find that out.
August 22, 2008 5:16 PM | Reply | Permalink
I just saw The Apostle. So freakin' good.
I guess you can't win 'em all. And I'm just glad I can disassociate actors' private lives from their talent. It's how I can also stomach Gary Oldman.
August 22, 2008 5:20 PM | Reply | Permalink
You know, I find more and more that I agree with Nabokov about that - I don't think it's necessary or even good to know too much about any artist.
But that's the paradox at the heart of aesthetics - the relationship between the artist and the work.
I just wish I hadn't found out so very much about Tolstoy, for example - whose writing I worship. Personally, Leo was a pretty miserable bastard who didn't understand what he was trying to do with his spirituality and let the perfect destroy the good very thoroughly.
August 22, 2008 5:32 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yeah, precisely. I agree completely.
What I will say, though, is that I find that the more I know about the artist, the more I understand their work, why a certain work was written, etc.
I adore Tennessee Williams, and after reading his memoirs, I had a much, much better understanding of his plays and his characters - why they are who are they, and do what they do. Blanche DuBois especially.
August 22, 2008 6:05 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well, that's the problem innit? I agree with that and hell, I own the two volume Nabokov biography that came out 10 or so years ago, and all his letters - so see?
What does one do? One does what you do - and one never ever subjugates art to politics, in my opinion. In fact, one doesn't subjugate art, period.
August 22, 2008 6:56 PM | Reply | Permalink
I couldn't agree with you more. That's about all I have to say. =)
August 22, 2008 6:59 PM | Reply | Permalink
Jerry Sinfield: Ya Adah Ya dah Yah Dah........., Elitists are exclusionist irregardless of where you draw your line.
August 22, 2008 7:42 PM | Reply | Permalink
Good thing for me I always found Jerry Seinfeld to be absolutely unfunny. The guy has never made me laugh. His show would have been good if he was never on it.
August 22, 2008 7:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well let's exclude Jerry!
August 22, 2008 8:02 PM | Reply | Permalink
He is officially excluded! LOL!
August 22, 2008 8:27 PM | Reply | Permalink
"What does one do? One does what you do - and one never ever subjugates art to politics, in my opinion. In fact, one doesn't subjugate art, period."
Art like politics is in the eye of he beholder. "one" doesn't care to be subjugated to the opinions of others. We may agree on most subjects but my point of reference will be "ones' "own.
August 22, 2008 10:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
Precisely, exactly, absolutely positively.
If I subjugated the artist with his or her work, I would live a very sheltered life. I would never have read the great novels I've read, watched the great films I've watched, seen the great paintings I've seen, or listened to the great music I've listened to.
August 22, 2008 10:28 PM | Reply | Permalink
Simply, yes.
August 22, 2008 10:34 PM | Reply | Permalink
I'm going to be sick.
Duvall's really a Reichwinger?
Now I have to not watch Godfather, Godfather II, Gone in Sixty Seconds...
August 22, 2008 5:29 PM | Reply | Permalink
He never snapped out of it after method acting the Frank Burns role in MASH.
August 22, 2008 5:32 PM | Reply | Permalink
There are no Red Movies or Blue Movies, just American Movies.
August 22, 2008 5:33 PM | Reply | Permalink
Are all you guys serious? ...Ditching movies simply because a certain actor has a specific political party affiliation? That's just...sad. Maybe I just love film too much, but I could never do that. If that was the case I would never watch any Tom Cruise movies. And unfortunately, he's been in a lot of good movies.
August 22, 2008 6:22 PM | Reply | Permalink
I don't believe in supporting anyone whose actions or beliefs I find to be polar opposites to mine. No sense in rewarding bad behavior.
I watched Seinfeld religiously until Michael Richard's n-word tirade. Haven't watched it since.
I won't throw out the movies I have now with Voight, Duvall, etc. But I'll damn sure not buy or attend any others with them in it.
August 22, 2008 8:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
That's so dogmatic an absolutist. How can you prescribe to that kind of ideology when (as I understand and assume it), you're opposed to Republican dogmatic ideology? Whether Robert Duvall is a Republican or not has nothing to do with his acting ability. He's not pushing his ideology on others, and is doing nothing but support his team. I fail to see how you should punish yourself by refusing to watch and/or see movies of his simply because he has different beliefs than you.
It could apply to many others. Writers, film directors, painters, musicians, etc.
August 22, 2008 8:52 PM | Reply | Permalink
Exactly.
August 22, 2008 10:00 PM | Reply | Permalink
Oh, and Michael Richard's n-word tirade is a little different than Robert Duvall's simply being a Republican.
August 22, 2008 8:53 PM | Reply | Permalink
I agree with you. And I don't feel it's dogmatic or absolute. If everyone did this he would have about half the money (clout) he has. I can't in good conscience give money to a person who will buy access to spew a philosophy I disagree with. To me this is akin to Wal-Mart. I don't shop their because of their anti-union efforts and the abusive treatment of their employees. Not just their position, but active efforts. So, I put De Niro's business in the same category. Sure, he'll still make piles of money. But, my conscience is clean and I take comfort in the fact that none of his money came from me.
August 25, 2008 12:14 PM | Reply | Permalink
Ok- gotta say I am little guilty of this. I absolutely will not attend a movie where Tom Cruise is the headliner (though I did see him in Tropic Thunder) because of his views about depression and mental illness. I think he is dangerous and I would not want to give him any of my money. Private (and even public to some extent) political views are different- but I think there is a special place in hell for Tom Cruise for what he said to women suffering from postpartum depression.
August 22, 2008 9:41 PM | Reply | Permalink
He's gonna get paid whether you see his movies or not.
Of course, there are ways of getting around paying to see movies... Hmm.
August 22, 2008 10:10 PM | Reply | Permalink
I hate that feeling when discovering that certain people are republicans. I can never see them with the same eyes.
August 22, 2008 5:32 PM | Reply | Permalink
I agree.
Screw Voight AND Duvall.
Fucking Repub-apologizing scum!
August 22, 2008 5:59 PM | Reply | Permalink
Obama counters with Toby Keith.
August 22, 2008 5:17 PM | Reply | Permalink
So freakin' sweet.
August 22, 2008 5:23 PM | Reply | Permalink
Wow. Toby Keith -- this is a serious name in some circles. I hope he does a new version of that "boot up your ass" song for the Republican Party.
August 22, 2008 5:34 PM | Reply | Permalink
Jon Voight and Robert Duvall?! Dammit, McGovern is fucked!
August 22, 2008 5:17 PM | Reply | Permalink
He'd better dump that Tom Eagleton loser, right quick!
August 22, 2008 5:21 PM | Reply | Permalink
Lonesome Dove supports ornery hawk.
August 22, 2008 5:36 PM | Reply | Permalink
"Ornery Hawk" -- Love it!
August 22, 2008 5:39 PM | Reply | Permalink
While we're on the subject, did anyone read Roseann Barr's post to Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt, for saying they did not know who to support in the election? Freakin funny!
http://www.roseanneworld.com/blog/2008/08/jon_voight.php
Jon voight is a frightened little girl in a pink ballet tutu, who acts like Obama just wandered in from the rain forest with a bone thru his nose and a communist pamphlet in his loincloth. The neocons who own jon voight and make him dance on the chabad telethons are the worst most elitist people on earth. glen beck and jon voight are their bitches... both of them are used tampons who must be flushed down the toilet immediately! jon voight your evil spawn angelina jolie and her vacuous hubby brad pitt make about forty million dollars a year in violent psychopathic movies and give away three of it to starving children trying to look as if they give a crap about humanity as they spit out more dunces that will consume more than their fair share and wreck the earth even more. (just sayin').
Also miss jolie says she likes mccain too and hasn't decided who to endorse....huh? Aren't you supposed to be somewhat enlightened, or do you not know that the african daughter you hold in every picture had parents who suffered and died because of the republican party's worldwide economic assault on africa over the last few decades since reagan? whaaaa...??????!!!! (for that matter, the thai and cambodian sons you are photo'd with weekly too who's pictures you sell to raise money to help the poor? Their families are victims of America's right wing military incursions too. Mccain wants to continue with the idea of war for profit...the americans are over that thinking now! They have drugged our troops and lower classes into supporting their oil business atrocities for long enough. We want to save not lose our souls thank you. Now go back to making your movies about women who love to handle big guns that shoot hundreds of people to death. Ps....it might be good for your asian and african children's self esteem to know you support a brown man for the leader of the free world.)
August 22, 2008 5:43 PM | Reply | Permalink
DNC, and perhaps Obama too, need to run ads spelling out the policy differences and the records of each parties between the two parties. Fluffy ads with vague promises of this and that just won't cut it.
Instead of just promising "better schools for our children," explain that the GOP has a long record of cutting funds for education, including afterschool programs, arts programs, sports etc.
Instead of just saying "we want to protect environment," explain that McCain and the Republicans are in favor of letting big polluters off the hook, and letting mining companies blow the tops of mountains.
Instead of just saying "we'll make America energy-independent," explain that under the Republicans, oil and gas prices have surged 300% while big oil has enjoyed record profits.
Instead, of saying "we're in favor of middle class tax cuts," explain that George Bush's tax cuts gave billions to the richest Americans whie the deficit soared and federal spending increased more than at any time in 40 decades.
Come and out and say it: if John McCain is elected, a woman's right to choose will be lost.
Come out and say it: John McCain voted against honoring Martin Luther Kind Jr., with his own holiday.
Instead of just saying, "we want to give you better health care," explain that the Republicans are in the pockets of big insurance and that they oppose funding programs like SCHIP that provide health insurance to low-income CHILDREN.
We should not be afraid to spell out exactly what the other side stands for.
August 22, 2008 5:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
Absolutely, absolutely, absolutely!!!! And let me say it again, ABSOLUTELY! We have the brand and now, is the time to sell it for the good of the country.
August 22, 2008 5:26 PM | Reply | Permalink
Interesting chart in the PDF.
In the last year, the number of independents who previously self-identified as leaning Dem dropped by about 2% of the electorate. That's matched by an equal increase in the number who call themselves Democrats.
August 22, 2008 5:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
I think part of the problem with the Obama/McCain and Dem/Rethug general ballot gap is that they are their own men. When people think of Barack Obama they don't think Democrat, they think Barack Obama. When people think of John McCain they don't think Republican, they think PO--erruhh John McCain.
McCain doesn't have the negative branding of the GOP on his shoulders and, unfortunately, Obama doesn't have the position branding of the Democrats on his either. He's too fresh, he's not an established party guy. The "He should be ahead by 20 points" pundits can't seem to figure that out.
I think if you had a national poll asking what party affiliation John McCain is, you might get 10-15% who believe he's either Independent or Democrat. Conservatives have spent the past two decades it seems ridiculing him as "not one of us" afterall. I mean they used to really tear into him (not to mention SC 2000).
The convention should help for Obama on the Dem side and in terms of McCain I think the Obama camp should make sure to identify him as "Republican John McCain" in every ad rather than simply "John McCain" from here on out.
It's far from the solution to all Obama's problems but every little bit helps in what will be a very close election.
August 22, 2008 5:23 PM | Reply | Permalink
People think that Republicans are economy-ruining, corrupt, bomb-dropping assholes. Shocker that they're not doing so well in the recruiting department.
August 22, 2008 5:25 PM | Reply | Permalink
Abso-fucking-lutely!
August 22, 2008 5:37 PM | Reply | Permalink
Greg: There is alot at stake here for the country and for what we believe in. I sense that it is our last chance to right the wrongs and bring a sense of fairness and civil rights to the forefront. My god, the last eight years of madness and total craziness must end. We are at such a critical point that unless we make a change, I truly believe our counrtry will be never stand for what is right and just! We have been taken to the edge and the view is there is quite scary and Orwellian. I don't want endless wars, the earth destroyed, class warfare, no hope, FEAR tatics and an end to life, liberty and pursiut of happiness. FUCK the GOP and the warmongers to the nth degree!
August 22, 2008 5:26 PM | Reply | Permalink
As I mentioned in another thread, McCain will be nominated not at the McCain for President Convention but the Republican Party Convention. It will hard to maintain I'm a maverick line after days of elephant images. Their convention will remind them (inc. those Clinton supporters holding out) that to vote for McCain is a vote for a Republican. No ifs ands or buts. Maybe a 1% bounce.
August 22, 2008 5:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
If the major players of the Bush era speak, I predict a bounce of -5.
August 22, 2008 5:40 PM | Reply | Permalink
Cheney will be speaking. He'll fire up the base and have independents watching on tv donating to Obama.
August 22, 2008 5:43 PM | Reply | Permalink
The base do love Dick!
August 22, 2008 5:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
And Lieberman too, wow, what a line-up.
August 22, 2008 6:34 PM | Reply | Permalink
I have to admit that that just cracked my shit up completely - Lieberman too.
O man, when things is good, they is very good. LOL!
August 22, 2008 6:40 PM | Reply | Permalink
Clemens sez it's 100% Biden.
Let's get the Steve Jobs-style VP launch already
:-(
August 22, 2008 5:31 PM | Reply | Permalink
It's just amazing how Chet Edwards remained below the radar. The Obama Camp is very disciplined.
August 22, 2008 5:33 PM | Reply | Permalink
http://www.thewashingtonnote.com/archives/2008/08/joe_biden_gets/
August 22, 2008 5:35 PM | Reply | Permalink
No thanks. I don't think Clemens knows anything more than anyone else. He simply wants to get more readers. Honestly, I won't believe shit until I get my SMS from the Obama Campaign.
August 22, 2008 5:38 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yep.
There's no way that it is going to be telegraphed in advance through any hints or anything else - not the way Obama has decided to play this thing.
August 22, 2008 5:39 PM | Reply | Permalink
Read an earlier entry about Jill Biden.
Read the front page entry on OpenLeft.
I hope its not Biden. From the theatrics point of view, only two choices: Hillary and Bloomberg.
For the rest, I give up.
August 22, 2008 5:45 PM | Reply | Permalink
And the front page of HuffPo.
Personally, I couldn't care less. I'm not gonna say anything til I get that SMS. Because nothing anyone says means anything except for the campaign itself.
August 22, 2008 6:01 PM | Reply | Permalink
isn't it interesting that Obama and McCain have opposite goals with the Convention? As far as Obama has had problems reachign and convincing all those who identify or lean democratic, Obama wants to be branded a Democratic Candidate. He has taken the reigns of the party and made it his in a lot of ways (per the Ezra Klein piece this week). So this week will be about making GenDem and Obama one and the same. If he does this he succeeds. On the other hand McCain has to try and seem Not Republican. The problem is that the party (read Rove + neocnos) in fact has taken over his campaign. And I don't see how he cannot but be branded A Republican with Cheney and Bush there and Giuliani giving the keynote. So if the media covers the Rep Convention properly with all the accolades that will go to Bush and Cheney (I am sure that will happen) then McCain is branded. What we democrats want from that week is for McCain to emerge as the GenRep and anything we and Obama can do to make that happen should be of the highest priority. McCain cannot get much higher in Republican support--he is close to 90%--but he still has a lot of inroads to make with independents. That is the target audience that needs to see McCain=Republican after the first week of September.
August 22, 2008 5:32 PM | Reply | Permalink
It's a good year to be a Democrat - and the Repubs could not have picked a worse year to run a candidate as flawed as McCain.
Slightly OT: I speculated here yesterday that the Obama camapaign was waiting for an 'in' before unloading on Gramps. This WaPo story says that the DNC had McCain's house data for weeks - but because it tested badly as a line of attack, it just sat there until McCain shot his mouth off.
Maybe we should thank the old git for opening the door.
August 22, 2008 5:34 PM | Reply | Permalink
Actually McCain is their only shot at winning. Every other candidate would have been destroyed. McCain could run on his POW status and his Maverick image.
Romney, Thompson, Huckabee and Giuliani would have been murderized.
August 22, 2008 5:39 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well, hopefully not so much, after this week.
If Obama succeeds in stripping the bark off the POW/Maverick media myth, there ain't much there besides just another pretty corrupt, elitist Republican.
August 22, 2008 5:43 PM | Reply | Permalink
we all need to send that pilitico reporter flowers.
August 22, 2008 5:41 PM | Reply | Permalink
Word.
August 22, 2008 5:46 PM | Reply | Permalink
So true!
August 22, 2008 6:36 PM | Reply | Permalink
Word is they can't swing on the tire out at the Sedona Ranch anymore...
August 22, 2008 6:57 PM | Reply | Permalink
LOL!
O that is really good Jonze. LOLOLOL!
August 22, 2008 7:01 PM | Reply | Permalink
It is amazing CNN keeps interviewing the Clinton camp if she is going to be the VP, and how Obama is doing a poor job with the Clinton camp, and Segala and Carville are all at it.
Obama is not talking to the PUMA camp...
Do they really believe that they are so important that they would influence Senator Obama?
What a bunch of jerks,
But again no surprise there...
August 22, 2008 5:37 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yes.
My favorite part of the day today was listening to Candy Crowley on CNN explaining that anyone Obama picks will be compared to Hillary...If he picks Sebelius then obviously he wanted a woman so why not Hillary? If he picks Biden then he obviously wanted someone with foreign policy experience so why not Hillary?....blah, blah, blah.
So, I guess we have all of that to look forward to in the coming days.
August 22, 2008 5:43 PM | Reply | Permalink
How in the world did Hillary Clinton become the Cure To All The World's Ills all of a sudden?
I'll chalk it up to the cable nets wanting controversy so they'd have something to jabber about 24/7 - but this portrayal of Hillary as the Consummate politician is really kinda loopy.
August 22, 2008 5:49 PM | Reply | Permalink
I can't explain CNN's love affair with anything Clinton other than assume many talking heads got their start during the Clinton years, and might have been White House correspondents or something.
Does the "C" in CNN possibly stand for Clinton?
August 22, 2008 5:53 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well, Candy just looks like All the World, but she doesn't really speak for it.
August 22, 2008 5:55 PM | Reply | Permalink
Even leaving physical attributes out of the equation, I find that woman repulsive.
She is the embodiment of the Gullible, Pliant US press corps - she fell in love with Bush after he bestowed her with a nickname.
She should be working in a diner or a textile mill if you ask me.
August 22, 2008 6:00 PM | Reply | Permalink
I may really regret asking this question, but what was her nickname?
August 22, 2008 6:05 PM | Reply | Permalink
I believe he crowned her 'Dolce.'
I've read that he called her 'Butter Queen,' but I doubt that W was that big of a Stones fan - and the innate cruelty of calling her that would have been lost on Crowley.
August 22, 2008 6:08 PM | Reply | Permalink
Fun Candy Crowley Factiod: Her real first name is Magda.
August 22, 2008 6:09 PM | Reply | Permalink
I cannot believe she didn't stick with her real name.
Lord.
August 22, 2008 6:23 PM | Reply | Permalink
If he picks Biden then he obviously wanted someone with foreign policy experience so why not Hillary?
um, cause biden's been in the senate for 20 years longer than hillary? i'm not a big biden fan, but come on.
August 22, 2008 9:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
I think if CNN had their way, Obama wouldn't announce his VP until the convention, just so that they could milk the "Obama could announce any moment" narrative.
I haven't seen CNN this excited since they were reporting the daily color shades of "Terror" we were in.
August 22, 2008 5:50 PM | Reply | Permalink
The Hillary talking head dead-enders made it impossible to even really consider Sen. Clinton. Now it's some huge shot at her that she wasn't even vetted. I think vetting her when you don't plan on choosing her is the bigger insult. I mean nose through her life for show?
I do have to agree that Obama should have probably named his VP sooner so the Hillary supporters could get over their initial rejection. You know they've all been holding out hope that Obama would choose her.
I think the plan was to unveil the VP yesterday, but McCain's foot-in-mouth ruined that plan. Now it's almost too late. Unveiling the pick at the convention is a recipe for disaster.
August 22, 2008 5:51 PM | Reply | Permalink
I'm waiting breathlessly to see how much effect the daring Top Liberal Bloggers Facebook Page had on Obama.
ROFLMAO!!!!
This is without a doubt my all time favorite thing that has ever occurred in any fucking campaign I've followed on line. Yep, love the Top Liberal Bloggers and their dangerous and influential Facebook Page.
They should gone on Craig's List.
LOL - o the horror!
LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
August 22, 2008 6:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
God I'm swooning - all this good news and I just myself some carnitas tacos and they are the best things I've eaten all day! Of course, they are the only thing I've eaten all day, but they really really really are good!
if I do say so myself.
August 22, 2008 5:38 PM | Reply | Permalink
Ummm....carnitas. Flour or corn tortillas?
August 22, 2008 5:45 PM | Reply | Permalink
crunchy corn this time.
August 22, 2008 5:50 PM | Reply | Permalink
I haven't been able to find good carnitas since I moved to Georgia (surprisingly enough/snark). I've gotten desperate enough that I've taken to making them myself. Needless to say, they're not near as good.
Enjoy a taco for me, please!
August 22, 2008 5:58 PM | Reply | Permalink
You know, that swill that passes for Mexican food in Texas is pretty awful once you've had really good Hispanic/Indian food in New Mexico.
;)
August 22, 2008 5:53 PM | Reply | Permalink
No joke. I could never really find good Mexican food in Dallas - although that was 20 years ago so maybe things have gotten better?
I grew up in El Paso which always had a good combo of traditional Mexican/New Mexico influences. Anyway, the food in northern New Mexico, especially this time of year when the green chile harvest is coming in.....fantastic!
August 22, 2008 6:03 PM | Reply | Permalink
They are roasting Hatch chiles outside of Albertson's market on Paseo del Pueblo Sur, as we speak!
God they smelled wonderful.
August 22, 2008 6:24 PM | Reply | Permalink
Tena: I am trying not to eat, stop it !!! :)
August 22, 2008 6:38 PM | Reply | Permalink
One of my favorite smells in the world...
August 22, 2008 6:52 PM | Reply | Permalink
You inspired me, Tena - I'm currently munching on a big-ass burrito I threw together with some leftover chili I made earlier this week. Yum.
August 22, 2008 6:33 PM | Reply | Permalink
I have found that throwing green chiles in any form into any dish not a desert (and a few of those work, too) will improve the dish.
Case in point: Blake's LottaBurger Green Chile Cheeseburger.
I have one in walking distance.
:)
August 22, 2008 6:46 PM | Reply | Permalink
OMG!!! I haven't had a Blake's Lottaburger in YEARS! We used to always stop and get one while driving through that area on our way up to see my grandparents in CO. Do they still have the real old-fashioned signs or have they jazzed it up since then?
August 22, 2008 6:58 PM | Reply | Permalink
Same sign; same little old ladies, for the most part, cooking those Angus burgers to order. Same lines of people waiting patiently.
:)
August 22, 2008 7:05 PM | Reply | Permalink
Does this mean that I have to give up the daily blocking and tackling over things like McCain's number-of-houses gaffe? I was kindof enjoying it.
August 22, 2008 5:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
you can talk about blocking and tackling mcsame for one more week
after that, the real blocking and tackling takes over
BOOMER SOONERS
my two favorite teams are Oklahoma, and whoever nebraska plays next
August 23, 2008 12:06 PM | Reply | Permalink
jbentley4:
I couldn't agree more, and some of Obama's recent ads are headed in the direction you suggest. I think what the Obama campaign wanted to do after the brusing primaries was to paint a very positive picture of Obama and try to help make Americans more comfortable with his "otherness." Hopefully, they are beyond that now and will start pounding McCain as the traditional, in-the-pocket of lobbyists Republican that he is and destroy his "maverick" image. They need to hit him hard, then hit him again and again. Previously, they seemed to be afraid to be too nasty with the P.O.W., but recent events indicated that shield may have worn thin.
As to the polls on the two-person race that show it much closer than the Pew party orientation poll would indicate, I am beginning to think there are two factors at play, which can be a positive for Obama. First, I suspect the national polls reflect that Obama is going to lose the Old South by even bigger numbers than Kerry or Gore. The haters are concentrated there (and in Applachia), but that will have virtually no impact on the electoral vote. It does not make any difference if the Dem loses the Old South 2-1 or 3-1. But the 3-1 margin would skewer the national popular vote polls.
Next, there are still a huge number of undecided voters in all the polls. Few, if any, go over the 90% mark for decided voters, and many are down around 80%. Part of that is that it is still early, but I believe a lot of it is uncertainty about Obama. McCain is a known quantity, whereas for many Obama is not. Thus, I suspect most of the undecideds are intrigued but uncertain by Obama and waiting for some reason to vote for him. If at some point he can overcome that hesitancy, the election could be a blowout, with McCain not breaking the 45%+ mark, and Obama finally going over 50%.
That's my hopeful take for the day.
August 22, 2008 5:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
It would so much fun if it were neither Biden, Clinton, Kaine, Bayh...The media would look more stupid than they already are...
August 22, 2008 5:49 PM | Reply | Permalink
See - that is my dearest wish.
I said it earlier - I wish like anything the veep would be announced and everyone, including us would say: HUH? Who the hell is that?
I would just love it.
August 22, 2008 5:51 PM | Reply | Permalink
Isn't that the reason behind the Suprise?
August 22, 2008 5:52 PM | Reply | Permalink
Kos diary on Bayh stickers being produced
August 22, 2008 5:59 PM | Reply | Permalink
I'm not sure that is the reason behind it. The VP could very well be one of the many names tossed out thus far. However, I think it would quite a story, perhaps even a bigger story if the VP was someone the media has never mentioned.
August 22, 2008 5:59 PM | Reply | Permalink
Bloomberg. That's what my crystal ball sez
August 22, 2008 6:01 PM | Reply | Permalink
Aw Lalo - that's the point of surprises - we don't know the point cause we don't know the surprise. Yet.
August 22, 2008 6:01 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well Chet Edwards has been fully vetted and is on the short list.
August 22, 2008 6:06 PM | Reply | Permalink
Have y'all seen this?
Muhammad Ali to Attend DNC
Apparently he asked to, and will, attend the convention... a very big deal if you ask me. He's a friend of McCain's and he's been neutral up to now, but he indicated that he feels very strongly about being there and supporting Obama this year.
Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee!
August 22, 2008 5:58 PM | Reply | Permalink
GOP Spin - One Muslim Celebrity supporting another Muslim Celebrity...
August 22, 2008 6:20 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yeah...let the GOoPers go after the Greatest Of All Time. That'll win over the indies and moderates. :-)
August 22, 2008 8:39 PM | Reply | Permalink
I don't know what is more suspenseful. Waiting for Obama to announce his VP or waiting for the media to tell us why Obama's VP is a problem.
August 22, 2008 5:58 PM | Reply | Permalink
Caroline Kennedy would be just an amazing surprise!!!
August 22, 2008 6:08 PM | Reply | Permalink
God you people crack me up.
Yeah, Caroline is soooo ready to be president of the free world, since she spent her first 4 years in the White House.
Sheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeit! ROFLMAO!
August 22, 2008 7:14 PM | Reply | Permalink
I don't know how she's any less qualified than any of the other potential VPs are (or McCain for that matter). I think the constant historical analysis of how much 'experience' matters has brought us to that (quite rational) conclusion.
August 22, 2008 7:56 PM | Reply | Permalink
Gore would be a nice surprise.
August 22, 2008 6:14 PM | Reply | Permalink
by all rights it ought to be Brian Schweitzer. You get the initial "huh?" and then it's just
oh good...
oh great...
oh that's awesome.
He's a great outsider, a great post-partisan partisan, a good proxy play for Colorado, and he addresses the "otherness" problem because he oozes teh folksy.
He really ought to be the one. But if it is him, I'll have as much reverence for the tight ship they run over at Obamaville as I do for the pick itself. No one has that on their radar.
I have a feeling it's Biden, because he brings back some of the alienated oldsters, can pack a mean punch, and seems like a safer "big name" pick. Of course he's also a live grenade. I'll just have to get used to holding my breath from fear for a few months.
August 22, 2008 6:16 PM | Reply | Permalink
drudge said it's bayh. got hold of company doing the signs.
August 22, 2008 6:17 PM | Reply | Permalink
Too late to buy Bayh on intrade?!!! man I hope Drudge's wrong... wtf
August 22, 2008 6:20 PM | Reply | Permalink
Uh, the eggman is notoriously wrong more often than not.
Drudge. [rolls eyes]
August 22, 2008 6:26 PM | Reply | Permalink
Obama is asking for it to leak out by not releasing the name already.
August 22, 2008 6:22 PM | Reply | Permalink
And might I add a lot of those who signed up for the "you'll be the first to know" texters will be pissed off.
JUST RELEASE THE FRIGGIN NAME ALREADY.
There is too much hype built up that it's going to be a let down. Give people enough time to get over it.
The media doesn't like getting played and they'll take it out on you with slanted coverage.
August 22, 2008 6:24 PM | Reply | Permalink
My, he's sure playin you like a Boss TR-110. LOL!
August 22, 2008 6:29 PM | Reply | Permalink
Over the last day we predicted the weather over Jonze's head would be sunny and bright, however the dark cloud remains. Remember to take an umbrella if you're going to be in the Jonze area.
August 22, 2008 6:32 PM | Reply | Permalink
Obama is just showing off now - showing how he can keep it from the media.
Arrogant, presumptuous, ambitious jerk.
August 22, 2008 6:41 PM | Reply | Permalink
hahaha
August 22, 2008 6:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
Is that satire?
August 22, 2008 6:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
It didn't even occur to me that it might not be...
August 22, 2008 6:50 PM | Reply | Permalink
I cant tell with Jonze!
August 22, 2008 6:53 PM | Reply | Permalink
Now that you mentioned it, I'm starting to think it wasn't...
Jeez. Jonzey will be lucky to make it to October 1st at this rate.
August 22, 2008 6:55 PM | Reply | Permalink
I'm a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma...
August 22, 2008 6:55 PM | Reply | Permalink
Would it help if I had included "elitist" and "celebrity"...
August 22, 2008 6:54 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yes.
August 22, 2008 6:55 PM | Reply | Permalink
haha, got it.
August 22, 2008 6:57 PM | Reply | Permalink
And thus ends satire-gate.
August 22, 2008 6:59 PM | Reply | Permalink
[POW joke]
August 22, 2008 7:02 PM | Reply | Permalink
Alright....thanks ya'll for that thread....too hilarious.
August 22, 2008 7:07 PM | Reply | Permalink
Al Gore is hot for VP.
August 22, 2008 6:25 PM | Reply | Permalink
No.
He wouldn't do it, I betcha. He has more cred as one of our senior statesmen and the man who was robbed of the presidency.
August 22, 2008 6:27 PM | Reply | Permalink
Hot enough to melt icecaps?
August 22, 2008 6:33 PM | Reply | Permalink
"drudge said it's bayh. got hold of company doing the signs."
Oh come on. Like they kept it a secret except for everyone at ABC sign company.
August 22, 2008 6:33 PM | Reply | Permalink
"Hey Joey! Remember, if the press calls you know nothing."
August 22, 2008 6:37 PM | Reply | Permalink
Haha
August 22, 2008 6:41 PM | Reply | Permalink
Since we're discussing VP, and opinions about Chet Edwards. Don't know much about him myself.
August 22, 2008 6:42 PM | Reply | Permalink
Look at this sh*t, American Issues Project's sole donor!
http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0808/Dallas_Billionaire_McCain_donor_is_antiObama_groups_backer.html?showall
August 22, 2008 6:42 PM | Reply | Permalink
Oh wow, this guy gave to Chet Edwards too.
August 22, 2008 6:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
Obama needs to tie McCain to this guy and that nuclear waste stuff (at least in Nevada). Is it what we can expect from Country Club Economics.
August 22, 2008 6:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
Exactly!
August 22, 2008 6:49 PM | Reply | Permalink
BTW, I am in CA and I don't want the nuclear waste anywhere near here. So I think this issue is bigger than Nevada. But then, I am only an hour or so from Tahoe.
August 22, 2008 6:54 PM | Reply | Permalink
Since McCain is going on and on about nuclear energy, Obama needs to pin him down on what he plans to do with that wastte. I know all the states that will have the waste trucked or trained through them are crazy about the waste either.
August 22, 2008 7:02 PM | Reply | Permalink
http://elections.foxnews.com/2008/08/22/obama-stops-advertising-in-red-battleground-states/
Obama Stops Advertising in Red Battleground States
Of the seven states — including Alaska, Georgia, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota — Florida and Virginia are considered key battlegrounds this year. Obama’s decision to stop advertising in those states is raising eyebrows.
----------------------------------------------------
So much for redrawing the electoral map. Obama is no better than Kerry.
August 22, 2008 6:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
Groan!
August 22, 2008 6:46 PM | Reply | Permalink
Lamest trolls on the intertubes - right here folks!
August 22, 2008 6:59 PM | Reply | Permalink
From Fox News, I think Obama is on his game. I just hope he doesn't send out the VP during rush hour traffic :) Can just see everyone grabbing their cells on the freeway.......
August 22, 2008 6:46 PM | Reply | Permalink
I'm thinking tomorrow morning. Let the evening newscasts cover housegate one more night.
August 22, 2008 6:49 PM | Reply | Permalink
I hope so too. I was fearful of that issue dropping right off due to VP. Did you see where McCain couldn't remember what car he drove? Too funny.
August 22, 2008 6:51 PM | Reply | Permalink
He had to have Joe interject to correct him on Shia Sunni, he had an aid give him the answer on what car he drives.
I would seriously be looking for the funny little square bulge in back of his jacket during the debate.
August 22, 2008 6:58 PM | Reply | Permalink
haha, I missed that one.
But to be fair, black stretch limos do all look alike.
I'm sure he hasn't driven himself anywhere in at least a decade.
August 22, 2008 6:58 PM | Reply | Permalink
Old man with road rage driving in a neighborhood near you, sounds like a plan.
August 22, 2008 7:05 PM | Reply | Permalink
O shit!
August 22, 2008 7:10 PM | Reply | Permalink
Sounds like Robert Novak.
August 22, 2008 8:42 PM | Reply | Permalink
and yet, the dude abides.
August 22, 2008 7:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
Jonze- the media has been giving Obama hell for some time now. It's pretty cool to see how flummoxed and harried they look. Obama always emrges triumphant at the right moment and this is his way of saying that he will set the agenda, the schedule and take his time to decide who he wishes to choose and what he wishes to do. The discipline of the campaign and the way he has handled this is BRILLIANT. It's good to see him having a little fun at the media's expense. anytime the media is thrown off and confused is a good day. I am sorry Jonze that you are so frustrated. But, patience is a pretty good virtue to have. It will come and it hopefully it will not be hillary.
August 22, 2008 6:49 PM | Reply | Permalink
I hope this is not correct, I would be so disappointed.
From Huff Post now:
After weeks of speculation and days of intense rumors, the answer to who Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama would name as his running mate may have come down to a bumper sticker printed in Lenexa.
KMBC's Micheal Mahoney reported that the company, which specializes in political literature, has been printing Obama-Bayh material. That's Bayh as in U.S. Sen. Evan Bayh of Indiana. Word leaked out about the material as it was being printed up by Gill Studios of Lenexa. The Obama campaign had said it would make the announcement by text message on Friday.
August 22, 2008 6:59 PM | Reply | Permalink
Bayh would be the only choice among the popular names that I'd be disappointed by. Well, not disappointed, just not excited by.
August 22, 2008 7:03 PM | Reply | Permalink
But maybe it'll give some gravitas to the name Evan (my name), for which I've never cared too much.
August 22, 2008 7:04 PM | Reply | Permalink
I like that name :)
I just think Bayh is boring........
August 22, 2008 7:14 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well, hi there.... ;)
August 22, 2008 7:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
So you've given it away. You're real name is Evan HyperRevue...
August 22, 2008 8:08 PM | Reply | Permalink
it's French, bitch.
August 22, 2008 8:15 PM | Reply | Permalink
As long as it's not Greek, n'est-ce pas?
August 22, 2008 8:45 PM | Reply | Permalink
Someone pointed out the bumpersticker doesn't have the logo. Just someone's hope on cashing in on the decision before the real ones showed up.
August 22, 2008 7:08 PM | Reply | Permalink
Or hopes on the pick being Bayh and they could get the bumper stickers out instantly and make a quick buck...
I'd have bet on Biden for that strategy though.
August 22, 2008 7:09 PM | Reply | Permalink
Hope you're right. BTW, McCain's car was a Cadillac.
August 22, 2008 7:12 PM | Reply | Permalink
I just think it's way too plane to be an official Obama ticket bumper sticker.
August 22, 2008 7:14 PM | Reply | Permalink
Ah, a Caddy. Perfect. Picture of McCain in his caddy, tag line: It's not country first, it's country club first.
August 22, 2008 7:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
!
August 22, 2008 10:05 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yeah, it's a Mom and Pop effort - they've already invested way too much in branding efforts to shift to something that oldschool for 2.0. Both Halperin and Drudge are running with it nonetheless...
August 22, 2008 7:57 PM | Reply | Permalink
It would be like Obama the Basketballer to plot such a "leak."
August 22, 2008 7:14 PM | Reply | Permalink
You know, I hope not. A feint is one thing - putting actual dollars into it would just be wasteful (and there's no way the thing is legit for a *lot* of reasons).
August 22, 2008 8:05 PM | Reply | Permalink
It's Gore.
That's why the announcement can wait so long. Even the Clintons will have a hard time attacking a Gore candidacy. It will be seen as a unifying gesture, and it will scotch the "experience" attack in it's tracks. It will be a permanent advantage to the ticket that the McCains, Liebermans, Giulianis of the world will be powerless to combat.
And I'm not even much of a Gore fan but think those things are true. It will be a bid for the end of shallow, unthinking government-by-slogan.
I also agree with the theory, which some hold, that this has been the plan for at least a year.
August 22, 2008 7:08 PM | Reply | Permalink
I hope not - I think it takes the spotlight right off of Obama and right onto Gore.
I don't think it is and god I hope it isn't. I'd rather have Hillary, frankly.
August 22, 2008 7:15 PM | Reply | Permalink
Agreed. If anyone would/could overshadow Obama, it'd be Gore.
August 22, 2008 7:17 PM | Reply | Permalink
"Overshadow"?
We're not talking about billing in the Ziegfeld Follies here. We're talking about a turn in the page in government that would leave behind that kind of thinking.
True, Gore would instantly be unrivaled (which he is not now) as the most celebrated VP in history. He could be by Obama's side as together they accomplish Gore's pet goals (which is the answer to "what's in it for Gore?"). Charges of inexperience in the ticket would be obsolete. Worries about a succession would be removed for anybody who had gone along with him as VP or as Presidential nominee.
I see huge advantages, and -- despite the fact that I've already said that I'm not personally a fan -- I think it would be a winning move for Obama. Both for being elected and for governing. Why should Obama worry about the spotlight? He's the most famous man -- aside, perhaps, from the Pope? -- in the world already. We have very, very grave issues that surely overshadow such concerns.
August 22, 2008 7:39 PM | Reply | Permalink
And he'd remind every to get their ass out and vote considering what we got instead eight years ago.
August 22, 2008 7:41 PM | Reply | Permalink
I get it, Dirk, but honey - every single person with an idea about who it is is just as passionate about their choice as you are.
:)
August 22, 2008 7:49 PM | Reply | Permalink
I started out by saying he's NOT my choice.
But I'm betting he's Obama's, and for good reasons.
August 22, 2008 8:25 PM | Reply | Permalink
Tena, same here. As Obama said Friday, maybe he will wait for the nighttime news cycle to run, re: houses, and then make the announcement.
August 22, 2008 7:18 PM | Reply | Permalink
You rather have Hillary???? :|
are you nuts? So if Obama picks Gore, you're going to go full P.U.M.A. on us Tena???
August 22, 2008 8:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
See, perfect! Right now Chris Matthews is talking about the home gaffe and airing Obama's recent ad instead of analyzing the VP choice.
August 22, 2008 7:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yes, great!
August 22, 2008 7:21 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yes, love it!
And thanks for the backup, guys.
:)
August 22, 2008 7:26 PM | Reply | Permalink
They kept mentioning it (3 times I think) in the 10 minutes I listened to NPR today driving to the store. Lol.
August 22, 2008 7:34 PM | Reply | Permalink
Excellent. This really has to be getting under McCain's skin. I pity the poor next reporter that asks him a question about his house.
August 22, 2008 7:28 PM | Reply | Permalink
Oops. I should have said "ask him about his houses." Just habit I suppose to refer to a person's one and singular dwelling.
Man, this gaffe is the gift that just keeps giving.
August 22, 2008 7:34 PM | Reply | Permalink
Too bad David Gregory's show is being pre-empted for Olympic coverage or else he could explain to us why McCain's gaffe is bad news for Obama.
August 22, 2008 7:29 PM | Reply | Permalink
LOL
August 22, 2008 7:32 PM | Reply | Permalink
Have you all seen TPM's front page lately? Pretty funny:
"Obama/Kurtz--OK for America"
August 22, 2008 7:28 PM | Reply | Permalink
I did see it and I like it every time I read it.
August 22, 2008 7:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
Given that one wouldn't expect Obama to release the name this late on a Friday evening how does he expect to fly his VP into Chicago without any reporter figuring it out?
I guess Bayh could drive, but he better have a secret exit out of his house (like the bat cave) because there is a stakeout there.
August 22, 2008 7:37 PM | Reply | Permalink
Another report had a charter flight leaving Illinois and landing in Delaware (and that no other flights were going to or from sorta deal) hinting that it was to pick up Biden.
August 22, 2008 7:39 PM | Reply | Permalink
Who knows, maybe the text message will be coming shortly.
August 22, 2008 7:43 PM | Reply | Permalink
He'll fly all the top contenders to Chicago then have a Bachelor-type rose ceremony on stage.
August 22, 2008 7:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
LMAO!
August 22, 2008 7:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
Finally, politics and reality tv become one. Welcome to America.
August 22, 2008 7:50 PM | Reply | Permalink
Are you buying the cable-news line that it has to be one of the people whom the media have been led to watch like the buzzards they are?
August 22, 2008 7:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
RE: the Obama/Bayh stickers...do they have a union bug?
If they don't, it's bullshit.
But it ain't gonna be Bayh. He's got bloody hands from Iraq. Not to mention, he's a total douche. I just can't see Obama surveying all possibilities and saying to himself, "I think I'll go with the total douche."
August 22, 2008 7:45 PM | Reply | Permalink
Does anyone know what time the rally in Springfield is supposed to happen tomorrow?
August 22, 2008 7:45 PM | Reply | Permalink
Scratch that....just saw it on the right of the screen....
August 22, 2008 7:46 PM | Reply | Permalink
By the way - LottaBurger isn't all the same - a green chile cheeseburger is almost $7 these days.
August 22, 2008 8:00 PM | Reply | Permalink
Holy smokes!
I'd still gladly pay it, though. :-)
August 22, 2008 8:32 PM | Reply | Permalink
I told you people a week ago who the VP pick is gonna be. He white, he's old but still hip unlike Grampa Simpson, he's very liberal yet still beloved by heartlanders and rednecks, no one would ever consider him "elitist" and pretty much all of his skeletons are out in plain view and no one minds them.
Obama/Nelson (Willie) '08!!!!!
August 22, 2008 7:55 PM | Reply | Permalink
O fuck you -
I told you right back that I'm still holding out for LudaNation.
;P
August 22, 2008 8:08 PM | Reply | Permalink
It's the Ludaverse!!
August 22, 2008 8:18 PM | Reply | Permalink
Now that's simply Made of Awesome. :)
August 22, 2008 8:09 PM | Reply | Permalink
Watching the beginning of CNN's election center, I think he's is kind of pissin off the press at this point, for "toying" with them.
August 22, 2008 8:09 PM | Reply | Permalink
Of course, it is beginning of the show and they're talking about it and not something else.
August 22, 2008 8:12 PM | Reply | Permalink
Started between 5:30 and 6:00PM ET - they're all really irritated that they couldn't fill the Evening News with it.
I thought the "Is this indicative of how Secretive an Obama Presidency would be" line being held out was a bit over the top, though, lol.
August 22, 2008 8:14 PM | Reply | Permalink
Shit, in 8 years they've never once remarked about how secretive the Bush admin was. Fuck 'em!
August 22, 2008 8:16 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well said.
August 22, 2008 8:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
Seconded.
August 22, 2008 8:21 PM | Reply | Permalink
Candy brought how they press held up their phones and asked where's the text, and he turned and laughed, in the sense that he finds it a hoot how he has them at his mercy.
August 22, 2008 8:17 PM | Reply | Permalink
Obama-san, you have learned well, Grasshopper.
You have watched these past 8 years and learned that if you do not make the press your bitch, she will eat you. You are prepared to walk the earth as a man, Grasshopper.
August 22, 2008 8:20 PM | Reply | Permalink
He's pissing them off because they don't want to work Saturday.
August 22, 2008 8:16 PM | Reply | Permalink
Bingo.
August 22, 2008 8:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
He's playing them all for fools right now. I don't think it's smart considering they decide what to cover and how.
He should have released it this afternoon.
August 22, 2008 8:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
You must be on the west coast - it's long past afternoon here in the east.
August 22, 2008 8:24 PM | Reply | Permalink
I concur. Due to the fact that the MSM are collectively peeing themselves, they will naturally turn to McCain in their time of need since he is an expert on incontinence.
August 22, 2008 8:24 PM | Reply | Permalink
Have the wounds from getting on the plane and then finding out too late he had stayed behind to meet with Hillary not healed? I think so.
August 22, 2008 8:28 PM | Reply | Permalink
This thread isn't entertaining enough, so I'm going to import some win from a Sadly,No! comment thread:
Commenter 1: I’m really interested to see what they’ll do if Obama wins. The current level of hysteria suggests they’ll blast off to the moon on a flaming column of fear propulsed diarrhea.
Commenter 2: The Rapture®! At last!
Commenter 3: Uh, no MzNicky, actually this describes the Crapture.
August 22, 2008 8:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
Drudge says MSNBC reports that it's not Kaine or Bayh.
Sweet Jesus, please be true about Bayh.
August 22, 2008 8:21 PM | Reply | Permalink
Thinking its (well known) Biden vs. (not so well known) Edwards*.
*that's Chet not John.
August 22, 2008 8:26 PM | Reply | Permalink
Agree.
August 22, 2008 10:04 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well Obama can't expect those he called and told they didn't get it to keep up the charade. I mean they are Senators and Governors with things to do.
If it's not Kaine or Bayh, then it's Biden. Good luck keeping that a secret until tomorrow morning when the texts go out. Unless of course it's not Biden either.
I wonder if Clinton, Sebelius, Schweitzer, Chet Edwards are all being stalked by politico paparazzi.
August 22, 2008 8:35 PM | Reply | Permalink
I think it will be announced for the tonight's news cycle, when the media figures most America are not watching so they will be compelled to treat it as breaking news in the morning and then the lead up to the announcement.
August 22, 2008 8:38 PM | Reply | Permalink
I'll second your comment about Bayh.
August 22, 2008 8:37 PM | Reply | Permalink
The Pew poll shows a consistent upwards trend which usually means that the impact will be somewhat long-lasting. When you get sudden shifts in party ID they usually are not long lasting.
Also, as noted above by one commenter, there was movement from independent-lean-Democratic to Democratic. Such movement usually indicates that those voters will stay Democratic in the future absent a significant negative event. (The same would be true if it was in the Republican direction.) Add to that the massive gap among younger voters, and you get a picture showing the long term decline of the Republican Party to a fringe. There was a democraphic trend in that direction but Bush has managed to accellerate the realignment to a majority Democratic Party--at least nationally. The Republican Party is collapsing in entire regions--I am old enough to remember when New England was Republican. NY only became a Democratic stronghold at the Presidential level during the past 20-25 years. Before that it was a key Republican player. This fall may see the end of the Republican Party in NY--watch the state Senate races--the Dems have strong challengers in 10 to 15 Republican seats--and if it goes Democratic, then this will be the effective end of the Republican Party unless they can elect a Governor in 2010 which I doubt.
To add to what Howard Dean recently said, the Republicans have decided to be the white party and the party of hate, not hope.
I also find it interesting, and quite encouraging, that this poll shows upward Democratic movement in the face of heavy, negative attacks on Obama over the past two months. McCain is not making the sale as exemplified by these results as well as the consistent showing of him stuck at 39-42% in poll after poll. Obama still hasn't completed the sale but this poll indicates that there are buyers wanting to be sold which is way more than half the battle.
"Homes" McCain has now crystalized the difference and the Obama ads have been brilliant--the one that surfaced today (the golf cart ad) may very well join the political ad hall of fame (or infamy).
I think the worm has turned.
August 22, 2008 8:28 PM | Reply | Permalink
Still a long way to go. The worm has begun to stir.
August 22, 2008 8:33 PM | Reply | Permalink
A very astute comment all the way around, but really, you could have just posted that last sentence.
The sea change started in '04, believe it or not.
The entire zeitgeist has turned, not just the worm.
;)
August 22, 2008 8:36 PM | Reply | Permalink
Actually you could see a slight trend in 2000 and 2002 (more noticable in hindsight that at the time) but you are correct that it became clear in 2004. In 2002, when you looked at the underlying economic impacts upon most families, it was only a matter of time before the breakout started. Bush usedthe war and 9/11 to divert attention from the economic dislocation. The current severe economic downturn (which is in danger of becoming a collapse) was essentially predicted by Lester Thurow in Fortune Favers the Bold, published in Fall, 2003, at around p. 170--I revisted that book a couple of months ago to determine if my meory was correct. Paul Krugman also issued warnings.
Sorry to be a bit windy--hazard of being an attorney.
August 22, 2008 8:55 PM | Reply | Permalink
The Dem Convention will be the beginning of the end for the GOP. Talk about a democratic year....
August 22, 2008 8:29 PM | Reply | Permalink
Obama should put out a mass text with the message reading - "How many houses do you have?"
August 22, 2008 8:36 PM | Reply | Permalink
followed immediately by,"Just having fun, the VP is (actual name inserted here)."
August 22, 2008 8:40 PM | Reply | Permalink
That is funny!
August 22, 2008 10:08 PM | Reply | Permalink
I recall the day when Clinton announced his VP choice.
David Letterman at the top of his show said,
"Today Bill Clinton chose Al Gore as his vice-presidential candidate.
"Shouldn't that be the other way round?"
He was voicing the thought I'd had all day. I don't think most people would say that this time.
August 22, 2008 8:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
If he picks Biden some probably will.
August 22, 2008 8:50 PM | Reply | Permalink
It's not as though we didn't have ample chance to pick Biden if we wanted to.
Do you really think Biden would have inspired what Obama has inspired in this country?
August 22, 2008 9:08 PM | Reply | Permalink
I think he never had a chance. He had no money and the media was too busy with Clinton and Obama.
August 22, 2008 9:11 PM | Reply | Permalink
No, he wouldn't have. Ever. But if he's picked he brings something solid to the ticket, something positive. While I'd prefer Sibelius I can deal with Biden a lot better than Bayh or, God help us, Hillary. In other words I won't vomit if it's Biden. And hell, that's usually about the best I can hope for in US politics (Obama being the exception).
August 22, 2008 9:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
I have to say again that the press is getting irked by Obama, because he said he had made the decision and it is just that he choosing not to say. If he had kept the narrative that he hadn't decided, then it might not be so bad.
August 22, 2008 9:04 PM | Reply | Permalink
The thing is, he's keeping the talk on him. He's keeping the focus away from McCain as long as possible. People are hanging on Obama's every word.
August 22, 2008 9:10 PM | Reply | Permalink
I agree, and I seriously doubt that anyone is going to make their decision in November based on how Obama rolled out the VP but CNN Election Center started and ended their show with the story of how he laughed when they the press asked him where the text was. They are so pro-McCain to start with it just concern me.