Election Central Morning Roundup
Poll: Plurality Says Obama Most Admired Man Living Today
A new USA Today/Gallup poll shows Barack Obama continuing to have high personal ratings, with 32% naming him the most admired man living today. Trailing way behind were George W. Bush at 5%, John McCain with 3%, and Pope Benedict XVI, Billy Graham and Bill Clinton tied at 2% each.
Hillary The Most Admired Woman, Followed By Palin
The same poll showed Hillary Clinton to be the most admired woman living today, at 20%. Sarah Palin is at 11%, Oprah Winfrey 8%, Condoleezza Rice 7%, and Michelle Obama 3%.
Obama Staying Out Of Public Eye On Hawaii Vacation
Barack Obama has stayed out of the public eye during his family's trip to Hawaii -- or least he has done so as much as possible. During a visit to a golf range on Sunday, Obama told photographers snapping off pictures: "Come on... How many shots do you need?"
Obama Visited Troops On Christmas
Barack Obama visited Marine Corps Base Hawaii yesterday, greeting troops and their families on Christmas. The stop lasted for more than an hour.
Obama Sets New Record For Speaking To Prosecutors
The New York Times points out that because of the Blagojevich scandal, Barack Obama appears to have set a new record for a president giving an interview with prosecutors -- in this case, before he even takes office. "With no known legal exposure himself, of course, that was an easier decision for Mr. Obama," the Times says.
Hillary's Appointment Could Deprive Dems Of Fundraising Machine
The Hill reports that Hillary Clinton's move to the State Department could deprive Democratic candidates of a prolific fundraising machine, due to a combination of legal restrictions and cultural taboos against a Secretary of State raising money for politicians. Indeed, Hillary's fundraising might continued well past her presidential candidacy, bringing in $1.2 million for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee alone.
D.C. Adds More Inauguration Parking For Buses
D.C. officials have decided to allow an estimated 10,000 charter buses to park inside the city during the inauguration, so as to accommodate the rush of tourists and lessen the burden on public transit. This is double the amount of buses they'd previously been willing to let in.
I like the pics of Obama talking to the troops.
December 26, 2008 9:18 AM | Reply | Permalink
I guess I shouldn't be too surprised if I think about it, but still...
Seriously? Sarah Palin gets more admiration than Michelle Obama?! I can't even begin to count how many kinds of wrong that is.
December 26, 2008 9:39 AM | Reply | Permalink
Sarah Palin is an idiot, but she is a likeable idiot.
Good two have the most admired woman and man on the same team leading the world indiplomacy, n'est pas?
December 26, 2008 9:45 AM | Reply | Permalink
I can understand Palin polling ahead, she's the flavor of the year for a particular dumbographic. Condoleezza on the other hand, has an eight year record of abject failure and worse. She clearly is unworthy of admiration.
December 26, 2008 12:39 PM | Reply | Permalink
Palin's getting more than Oprah is what surprises me. And Oprah's just squeaking in ahead of Condi. I thought Oprah would be way up in the double digits, certainly ahead of Hillary.
I agree with you, theone718, that Palin's an idiot, but likeable? Can't see it.
December 26, 2008 10:11 AM | Reply | Permalink
You'd be suprised bro. She hasn't done anything to be unlikeable other than that "real america" stuff. She is likeable because she is a good actor, Ronald Reagen was good at that as well. The genius of the Obama campaign was they ALLOWED people to like Palin (didn't tear her down at all) while coming to their own conclusion that she was not ready for the presidency at all.
December 26, 2008 10:14 AM | Reply | Permalink
I don't know if it qualifies as "genius" but it was politically savvy allowing Palin to hang herself with her own rope.
As much as that folksy crap may be endearing to some people, it is beyond grating to people who are more like how I perceive myself: intelligent, thoughtful and completely unfazed by that nonsense. It took all of a day and a half to realize that that woman doesn't have the intellectual wattage to light a small closet. That she received that much attention doesn't surprise me, it's that anyone with half a thought in their head thinks that she should be VP of the US.
December 26, 2008 11:39 AM | Reply | Permalink
We spent Christmas Eve with good friends, a Republican husband and his Democratic wife. The guy is a 50+ year old electrical engineer, for Pete's sake, yet when my hubbie made a rather mild comment about Sarah Palin realistically not being mentally capable to someday be president, our friend defended her.
Where do these people put their brains when they're choosing their candidates?
December 26, 2008 11:58 AM | Reply | Permalink
The little head when it comes to rambo apparently.
December 26, 2008 12:14 PM | Reply | Permalink
Obivously these people are going on name recognition. Oprah should have beaten all of them by double digits. While the other three are very accomplished, none of them has done more and has had as much influence than Oprah. And I'm not just talking about the free stuff she gives to her audience. She's gotten people interested in reading again, she effectively encourages people to give back and volunteer, her school for girls in Africa, the group of kids in Africa that she personally sponsors, the houses she built for Katrina victims, the experts she has on her show that teach us about our health, finances, love life, and family life. The list goes on and on. The one thing I admire the most about her is that she is willing to show her audience that she is not perfect, and that's OK. That idiot Palin should not be any where on that list. Ever.
December 26, 2008 12:34 PM | Reply | Permalink
If you listen to those that attended her rallies, a reason a lot them admire her is that they think she is "one of them" and was able to rise to power and take on the big boys from DC and the media who graduated from Ivy League schools with their fancy degrees.
December 26, 2008 3:12 PM | Reply | Permalink
Bush is signing a surprise "pact" with Georgia as he leaves office which is guaranteed to start another cold warm armaments build up and Josh Marshall can't get his head out of a virtually meaningless pardon reversal??? The world is blowing up...but did you see that traffic light a 59th st staying yellow for 2min before turning red? Geez Josh...what story?
Palin coming in as 2nd most popular???? How depressing. We've been invaded by Paliens...the result of holding a hundred dollar bill out the window while driving through a trailer court. She lacks character and will never have it no matter how much she is prepared by staff.
Sen. Daschle was complicit in cheerleading torture and rendition as well as illegal spying on Americans. He was aware of and encouraged law breaking by the Bush/Cheney administration.
Claiming it was a confusing time and they were just tying to keep us safe from terrorists in secret as justification is pure nonsense. How they should act is clear...abide by the law. If they disagree with the law then go before the "lawmakers" and ask that the law be changed. They were elected to uphold and enforce the law...period. They knew how to act and what to do and have no excuse for breaking the law in secret. Sen Daschle, Pelosi, Jane and Jay should be brought up on charges...Obama's team just ignored Sen Daschle's involvement meaning they plan to hold no one accountable for these horrendous crimes..
They do not want to change the way Washington does business...they just want to change the end results of such business...which is no change at all.
Saturday Night Live showed the real Palin when Tina Fay exposed her 'aw shucks' phoniness. That she should be so admired comes from a third of the nation that is just like her. She would be better as a weekly sit com star than as a government official. Let her could play one on TV then everyone would be happy (pay her as much as Sienfeld though). People of Palin's stature get TV fantasy mixed with political reality on a regular basis as if sit-coms were reality.
December 26, 2008 6:03 PM | Reply | Permalink