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Born at the Crest of the Empire

Monday, May 19, 2008

Political bits

(TPM) Al Gore is finally dipping his toe in for "unity", hosting a DNC fundraiser including both Clinton and Obama donors.

(Politico) Former Clinton campaign manager Patti Solis Doyle sounds like she's sniffing around the Obama campaign for a job. The Obama campaign's comments sound polite but non-committal. (For god's sake, don't give her budgeting control.)

(Politico) West Virginia icon Sen. Robert Byrd endorses Obama.

(AFP) Warren Buffet endorses Obama.

(Politico) Elizabeth Edwards wants it very clear that she will not endorse Hillary Clinton.

(Gallup) Wow. Take a look at the Gallup daily tracking graph. Obama breaks 50 going up; Clinton breaks 40 going down. (Edwards' endorsement was on the 15th.)

(USAToday) Those 32 resigning GOP Congressmen aren't contributing to the RNCC from their PAC's or election funds. (So far, it's a $10 million difference.)

(ABC) Karl Rove is publicly pushing the idea that Clinton poses a tougher challenge, but note, "....which many pollsters would tell you is a rather unscientific way to look at the data." (It's a ploy folks.)

And, My favorite AP headline in quite awhile, "Obama links McCain to unpopular Bush policies."

(Go ahead and keep that one in the typeface, you just might get to use it again.)

Later: An ugly allegation that a billionaire Clinton backer offered the Young Democrats of America $1 million if their superdelegates went as a bloc to Clinton. (He said/she said at this point.)

4 Comments:

  • Elizabeth Edwards from the Politico article:

    "If you listened to what I said and not to what pundits said ...."

    This sums up the current sad state of American "journalism." There are some bright spots, but essentially even the standard bearers of the traditional media have become little better than a Chris Matthews gossip jag of prognostication, based more on one's belief in their own self-importance than actual reporting.

    By Blogger -epm, at 6:35 AM  

  • You're right, but....

    In the pundits defense, people ate up that "Elizabeth Edwards not there" speculation.

    Yes, they should be more responsible, but to some degree, they just feed us the kind of juice we want.

    There's a reason that there are no serious facts only shows on the cable nets. Nobody watches them.

    By Blogger mikevotes, at 7:08 AM  

  • I get where the pundit speculation comes from. I just lament the absolute dearth of factual, thoughtful and aggressive reporting... Sort of screaming at the tidal wave of idiotic gossip-news that's dumbing down the American public.

    I'm not sure how misinformed a free society can become before it ceases to be a free society. A little dramatic, perhaps, but think about how Bush/Cheney and the Republicans have steamrolled "security" and "freedom" restrictions on the sheep-like electorate.

    Again, I think this is the point of your blog... What America stands for today (and what it means to be American) bears little resemblance to the America we were a generation ago.

    Kind of getting off topic a little, but if truth is the first casualty, then an independent press is our first defense. That bulwark has been breeched.

    By Blogger -epm, at 8:43 AM  

  • I'm not so sure if the America of a generation ago was all too different than today (definitely less shouting). It's never been all that clean.

    My comparison is more towards the ideals I was taught about America, what I was taught in school, how I was indoctrinated.

    My political awakening came reading about the US's actions in Central America under Reagan-Bush. Nowhere in our lauding of the constitution and in our founding myths are death squads and illicit arms shipments.

    By Blogger mikevotes, at 1:37 PM  

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