Obama leads in Florida

46 to 44 percent. It's tight, but compared to where he was just a month ago--he's made up a lot of ground.

All McSame has left is fear and smear. None of his new ads have anything on what McSame will do once in office, (hint--more of the same), so they all smear Obama. We tried 1.3 trillion tax cuts for the wealthy and big oil. We tried spurning all our allies and going it alone on the war on terror. We tried running a war by ourselves--breaking our military and our budget.

We tried the GOP way for the past seven years. How has that worked out for you? There is not an issue that Bush hasn't f***ed up. How much worse can things get?

Don't fear change, because we desperately need it!! Florida, don't let me down...

Outrageous Attack Ad. So much for Honor, Mr. McCain.

John McSame is one desperate somma bitch.

Obama had the most successful visit to the Middle East and Europe, including an electrifying speech that captivated the largest audience ever for an American politician. (It was nice to see Europe waving American flags again.)

So McComplain decided to resort to the Rovian GOP playbook--smear. His latest ad launches a false attack against Barack Obama for "ignoring our troops" to play basketball. Nevermind that it actually includes footage of Barack Obama playing basketball with our troops on his recent trip to Kuwait, in order to make its point. And nevermind that he visited wounded troops in Iraq.

It was the Pentagon that pulled the plug on the hospital visit. They claimed that this was not only "inappropriate", but violated DoD rules. The Pentagon spokesman even quoted Obama advisor Gibbs a DoD regulation about campaign staff visiting a hospital.

Rather than going back and forth on whether his own presence was a campaign event, and subjecting the wounded troops to this mess, he agreed to cancel. Three weeks ago, it was fine.

This was a no win situation for Obama. If he fought the Pentagon, he would be attacked for not listening to DoD leaders and using wounded troops as a campaign prop. If he respected the Pentagon's wishes, --well, you can see the fallout.

John Mccain has no trouble, however, using the troops as a political football. But just keep in mind, it was JOHN MCCAIN that stood with George Bush in opposing our new GI Bill.

Someone else put it better than me:

...a bill that was supported overwhelmingly by Democrats and Republicans alike, and meant to give our returning men and women all the benefits they deserve. John Mccain said it was "too generous".

Barack Obama stood with our troops. John Mccain stood with George Bush.

I love you Barack, but it's time to quit playing nice. McSame has nothing to run on, so he is resorting to smears. All of his new ads are extremely negative, and they get more extreme and more false each cycle. Apparently, you personally are to blame for the high gas prices-- (the administration with the most oil executives ever, however, has nothing to do with it). And apparently, you hate wounded troops.

McCain no longer deserves to have the word "honorable" before his name.

Soft on Obama? CBS never covered for him!

If Obama made half of the ignorant statements that John McCain made on Iraq, he would have been laughed off months ago as being naive. It is John McCain who keeps confusing the Sunni and the Shia, it is John McCain who doesn't know who is in charge in Iraq, it is John McCain that called Al-Qaeda a radical Shitte group, and it is John McCain who doenn't even know when the surge began.

And it is CBS who covered it up. They edited out his complete misstatement and substituted it with an answer to another question:

See for yourself:

Barack in Iraq

Hurry up, November!!!

Whistleblower: Diebold Rigged GA Election

Click here to see the description of Seminole's voting apparatus. Verfied voting lists county by county and state by state what everyone does and if there is a verified paper trail, audits, etc.

Of course, we use the untrustworthy Diebold.

A whistle-blower has come forward with a shocking allegation of election tampering. This isn't some fruitcake. The whistleblower is one of the most prominent cyber-security experts in the country who has appeared on both CNN and ABC News. He is also a prominent Republican who served as a McCain advisor. But at an Ohio press conference last Thursday, he presented fresh evidence against Diebold regarding election fraud.

Freedom of Speech Does Not Apply to McCain/Bush

Unreal.

You are allowed to protest in a public place. Period. The 61-year old librarian was arrested for simply holding a sign that said "McCain=Bush".

(What does it say that the GOP considers that statement an attack on McCain. Hmmm.)

Don't believe me? Watch this:



America will return 1-20-09.

Happy Fourth of July!! Hang in there America!

These dark times will serve as history's reminder to never again allow a manipulated moron to lead our great nation. On January 20, 2009, an era of healing will begin as the Democratic Congress, with President Obama, will finally be able to undo the damage caused by GOP rule.

God Bless America!!

Must Win States for Obama

We did McCain last time. (Scroll down to see the map). McCain is certainly the underdog in this campaign. I focused on 5 battleground states that he would be wise to focus on. The main difference here is that Obama has vast sums of money to spend, whereas McCain is heavily relying on the RNC to make up the slack. McCain can only really afford to spend his money in a few key areas. Obama, on the other hand, has set up shop in all 50 states. He is pouring money to run advertisements in states he has become competitive but will likely lose, such as Georgia. His strategy seems to be the same for McCain as it was for Hillary: bankrupt the opponent by forcing them to play defense in favored but competitive states.

Obama can afford to spend money to build networks and run ads in every battleground state--as he should. If I was a McCainiac, I would tell John to focus hard on the 5 states he needs desperately to win. If I was an Obama-mite, I would say, well, keep doing what you are doing.

Nonetheless, here are the states in order I think Obama should focus on.

1/2 Wisconsin and Minnesota. Several polls have put Obama with massive leads recently, such as a 17-point lead in MN. Wow. I don't even think Pawlenty can help McCain now. Several of the sites I visit don't even have these two states as "toss-ups" anymore. These two are Obama's to lose. Start with 219 Electoral Votes.

2. Pennsylvania. This is the largest Democratic swing state. It didn't go blue the past few times and probably won't change in a Democratic year. McCain is making an effort, but this state has been sailing further into the Democratic column. Obama should dispatch Hillary here (and in Ohio) to really bring this state home. 240 EVs.

3. Michigan (Battleground)! I told McCain that this is one he should fight for. Putting Romney on the ticket would help. But this is one state that clearly is in a full-fledged recession. They are hurting badly and it's just too easy to tie McCain to Bush economic failures--especially since McCain hasn't said he would do much differently in this area. MI has moved from weak to moderate Obama, and Obama would be wise to see that it stays with him. Regardless, sandwiched between Ohio and Wisconsin, I predict this area of the country will be getting a lot of attention from the Obama camp. 257 EVs.

4. Colorado. Although it has been weak Obama, it hasn't budged from supporting him. This is one of the clearest flips from 2004, and the convention will only boost his chances here. 264 EVs.

5. New Hamphire. This is McCain's only real shot at picking up a Kerry state. And it's slipping fast. Right now, it is strong Obama. Again, it's Obama's to lose. 269 EVs.

To put Obama over the top, I recommend focusing on Iowa, another swing state that has consistently been favoring him. That would give Obama the presidency without even winning Ohio, Virginia and Florida. Although I really think he should fight for those in that order. And he will.

I'm Voting Repbulican

This really spells it out...

Must Win States for McCain

I take off my partisan hat every now and again and do my own prognostication...

I have consistently looked at polls from a variety of reputable pollsters and featured on a myriad of conservative, liberal, and neutral websites.

I don't believe in using all those different shades of blue and red--they are confusing and unhelpful. There are VERY few states in this election that are super solid one way or the other. Yes, you could argue that Mississipi is a solid red state, but if 90% of their African-American population votes and votes for Obama--then Obama would only need a little over 25% of the "white" vote. Alaska is another "solid" red that just had a poll from Rasmussen showing Obama a lousy 4 points behind.

On the flip side, deep blue Massachussettes' latest poll shows Obama only 3 points ahead. Texas is less "solid" than Oklahoma because OK has consistently polled for McCain since he won the nomination, whereas TX flirted with Obama back in March--yet now seems to have returned to its red roots.

In other words, some states are more solid than others. NC, Oregon, even Georgia, may be more competitive this year, but in the end barring an unexpected event (and those do happen) they will move to their proper columns.

The true swing states I have below in gray:



(Note Nebraska is purple--I think Obama has a real shot at winning a portion of their split EVs in the district with Omaha)

Right now, factors favor Obama. Not just the popular vote and EVs, but right now, Obama is leading in all of these swing states except for Nevada. The good news for McCain is that Obama is leading in all of these swing states by under 5%. (I didn't say great news.) But McCain doesn't need to win ALL of them, just the right amount to win the magic 270. If I were a McCainiac, these would be the states I would tell him to go after:

Starting with 187 pretty assured EVs:

1. Florida. Florida, like the rest of the nation, has been trending Democratic in the national polls. But this is still a red state with a red governor and overwhelming GOP state legislature. The GOP has built quite an apparatus here--(believe me, I know!). It would make sense for McCain to take advantage of it. But this state is also a must-win for McCain. It is the largest swing state with 27 electoral votes. He would have to win Iowa, Wisconsin, and Minnesota just to make up a defeat here. Out of the big 3 (Ohio, PA, and FL), Florida is his best shot. up to 214

2. Ohio. No modern republican has won without Ohio. Like Florida, Ohio shows a blue lead for Obama. But the good news is that if any GOPer would win Ohio in this Dem year, it would be McCain or no one. He has got to spend a lot of RNC money here and a lot more time to get his lead back. But this is also a must-win. up to 234

3. Virginia. This state hasn't voted GOP since before I was born--Lyndon Johnson was the last one. But this year it is trending Dem. McCain should try to hold on to this state one more time using the typical conservative playbook in the Southwest and the moderate "maverick" playbook in the Northeast. PS--If Obama picks Webb or Kaine as veep, then McCain should spend his resources elsewhere. up to 247

4. Michigan. Out of the mid-west states, this one is the best shot for McCain with the exception of Missouri. Wisconsin has moved solidly to Obama. Iowa has consistently been with Obama over 5%, as has Minnesota (although the convention here may give it a short-lived crimson boost.) Although Michigan is currently trending Obama, it is under 5% and until recently favored McCain. Michigan also has the most electoral-votes as the other states mentioned here--17. He has got to fight here and fight hard. Since Ohio is just below, he should get a lot of mileage with his bus fleet between these two states. up to 264

5. Nevada. The only swing state that currently has McCain leading. McCain is favored to win here, although his lead has been shrinking steadily. But the other swing states have been trending Obama, so his best bet is to focus his attention on retaining this Bush state. up to 269

Where to get the remaining EV? Nebraska. Make sure Obama doesn't split NE, and that's it.

I would much rather be in Obama's shoes, but the task is not insurmountable.

Next week--Obama!

Learn to USE Veep-Hungry Crist

I wrote to the Sentinel after they had a legnthy editorial bashing him for changing positions on oil-drilling the SAME DAY McCain did.

I recommended to the editor there that they simply make a list of everything they are crowing about (red-light cameras, car boot laws, light rail, etc.), and ask McCain to list a few of those next time they interview him. I promise you'll see Governor Sock Puppet swing into action.

YOU ARE WELCOME!

GAMETIME: Try to find McCain at GOP.org

Go on -- try to find him: www.gop.org

He's nowhere.

Of course, Barack Obama is EVERYWHERE. No less than 7 pictures on the front page alone. Every story is on Obama, every headline is Obama, there is countdown clocks on Obama, there is "meet Barack Obama"--my God, it's like someone stumbled on the Democratic site.

Now compare:
www.democrats.org

Notice a difference?

Not really. Everywhere there is Obama! Not nearly as many pictures and articles, but he's there!

Maybe that's because we are genuinely PROUD of our candidate. Maybe because our candidate has something to talk about and share--

Not just Fears and Smears, which seem to be the GOP's ENTIRE platform.


What does McCain stand for? Good luck finding that on GOP.org. There is one small icon on "climate change". Everything is Obama this and Obama that. You won't even be able to see what a John McCain looks like--but maybe that's intentional:

The McCain camp doesn't even feature McCain in their sad promotional videos. My diary yesterday featured the "exclusive tour" of his Straight Talk Express ala "Cribs" -- Click here if you can stomach it. As always, no McSame.

I really feel for the GOP. Really I do. I can't blame them for not featuring McCain. He's just not that popular. You can't feature the president, or the vice president either. (that would be suicide!)

Who can you feature? The only one in politics who is popular I suppose.

Barack Obama!!

Obama's first ad

Well done...

McCain's "edgy" Bus Tour Video--very funny!!

Somehow or another I got on johnmccain's email list. As a regular visitor to this site, it is very interesting to see how they spin their recent string of disasters.

The latest email made me smile--and I thought you would enjoy it. It's called "McCain Cribs: Straight Talk Express". The video is shot similar to how MTV shoots their popular series "Cribs"--and it gives you an inside look at the STE. The email promises you can even get a look inside the refrigerator!! (It's soda-"No booze this time!"). Party animals.

If EVER there was a more pathetic attempt to make McCain hot, fly, and edgy ("Take that Hollywood!"), this is it. I warned you:

Here's the video:

http://www.johnmccain.com/STETour/


It's 4 1/2 minutes long--but at least watch the first few seconds to see that wicked MTV-style intro. It goes downhill from there. I'll give you the brief:

Cool man "Davis White - Director of Advance" pops out of the bus to give you the "exclusive tour". You get to hear all about the engine and baggage area with cool fast-forwarding camera effects.


White is happy to show diversity on the bus--their bus driver is a black man! He is "like family".

White says they like to be "rollin' in style" with

"8 inch tires sittin' on 22 inch rims--TAKE THAT HOLLYWOOD!!"

(gag)

They go overboard about all the technology (see, McCain gets it!!). Damn, someone "left their blackberry here" sitting out on the table--how convenient.

There is a shower on the bus--but no one has used it yet. But it's "ready and willing" (creepy)

We get to see where Senator McCain sits. Davis "don't want to disrepect it" by sitting there. (I could actually envision Mccain flying off the handle)

It ends with Davis throwing you off the bus, ala "Cribs",

You're gonna have to get off--seriously, you're gonna have to go before I call Secret Service!

Cue music.

What the hell were they thinking? THIS is what they are going to use to lure people from the Obama camp? Barack must be quaking. The sad thing is I can see the media consultant who dreamed this up to "reach out" saying "YES--Nailed it!"

Words on Oil to Forward to Every Congressman and Senator

I hate Neil Cavuto. But I hate more that I agree with him. He is responsible for the below tirade:

1. Stop the political grandstanding. And this goes for Democrats and Republicans. You're both to blame. Now, both do something.

2. Democrats, stop this nonsense about not looking for more oil here. We have it here. Let's drill for it here. It hardly means we're going to destroy every tree, spotted owl, and polar bear while we're doing it here.

3. Republicans, stop protecting energy companies with billions in subsidies they don't need and tax credits they don't deserve. It's one thing to say don't tax their profits, but don't tax my patience. They're doing fine on their own.

4. Democrats, quit picking and choosing what energy alternative you want. Pick them all, explore them all — solar, wind, nuclear, and yes oil. Jump ball. Have at it.

5. Republicans, stop resisting conservation. You look clueless and frankly, stupid, opposing simple step solutions to saving energy. Because here's a news flash: we need to save energy.

6. And this is for Democrats and Republicans. We know you each blame each other...one for not exploring for oil, the other for not exploring options to oil. Get over it, get on with it, explore for it, all of it, all here, all now.

Demagoguing the issue won't solve the issue. Working together just might. I want to see you doing so now. There's hell to pay on this show if you do not.

You have been warned.

Being a Democrat means thinking for yourself, and for me that means sometimes taking the best ideas from BOTH parties for a comprehensive solution. We have a real energy crisis. The GOP wants to drill for oil we already have here, and the Democrats want to conserve and seek alternative energy sources.

Why the hell can't we do BOTH?

The outrage here in Florida was drilling MILES off the coast for oil. I don't get this. There hasn't been an oil spill even after drilling stations were damaged with massive hurricanes. We have no trouble allowing huge antiquated tanker ships to come to our ports--which is much more likely to spill. And the drilling will be so far off shore you will not be able to see them without a telescope.

No, we can't dig our way out--but it makes sense for us to be as self-sufficient as possible. And we can allow the oil companies to drill here in return for generous subsidies to our state. It's WIN-WIN.

In addition to drilling here, we should also be putting wind turbines out to sea. We should be leading the nation in solar, wind, and tide energy.

WE should be doing everything we can to solve this energy crisis, which is only going to get worse.

Bill McCollum: "McCain is Out of Touch"

If you a Democrat in Florida, you need to make sure this video gets seen. McCain already had a lot to answer for in last week's visit concerning his opposition to Everglades restoration, but that is nothing compared to his dismal record on helping hurricane victims. He even bragged about disregarding Floridians who needed help after the devastating hurricanes:



Kudos to the Florida Democratic Party for putting this video together.


Not only does McCain oppose the bill for national disaster insurance, he does not understand it. From the Palm Beach Post:

He continues to insist that the bill, which would help to pay insurance claims from catastrophic hurricanes, tornadoes or earthquakes, would cost the government $200 billion. He has said that the Federal Emergency Management Agency could handle the problem.

In fact, states would have to qualify for the program by first setting up their own insurance pools, as Florida has done. If those resources aren't enough, states would go to the national program, which would issue private-market bonds backed by the government. The idea is to avoid the sort of bailout that happened after Hurricane Katrina. Having the plan would allow private insurers to base rates only on bad years, not catastrophic years. That would set limits on prospective claims, and rates would fall.

FEMA can't even find victims in a giant SuperDome or figure out housing for victims years later. It is appalling that our perpetually tanned governor, who is BEGGING for the veep slot, hasn't bothered to explain the plan, which he supports, to his potential new boss. As our right-wing attorney general, Bill McCollum, said, "McCain is out of touch".

If you are a Dem blogger, at the end of it--copy the embed code and put it on your blog or even email it. Floridians need to know how wrong McCain is for Florida.

McCain will OVERTURN Roe; Bad Record for Women

I just read a poll where people still think somehow that McCain is pro-choice. For God's sakes people, read something!!

McCain on Meet the Press:

I have stated time after time after time that Roe v Wade was a bad decision, that I support a woman — the rights of the unborn — that I have fought for human rights and human dignity throughout my entire political career," McCain said. "To me, it's an issue of human rights and human dignity.

His voting record is solid against family planning, teen pregnancy prevention programs, and even against the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act that simply forbade the use of force or threat of force to interfere with clinic access!!

He voted to codify a controversial regualtion that allowed states to make an embryo or fetus (but NOT THE PREGNANT WOMAN) eligible for health-care coverage.

Voted to deny low-income women access to abortion using Medicaid funds in any case.

He will appoint women-hating radicals like Alito, as he told the National Review

Let me just look you in the eye," McCain told me. "I've said a thousand times on this campaign trail, I've said as often as I can, that I want to find clones of Alito and Roberts. I worked as hard as anybody to get them confirmed. I look you in the eye and tell you I've said a thousand times that I wanted Alito and Roberts. I have told anybody who will listen. I flat-out tell you I will have people as close to Roberts and Alito [as possible], and I am proud of my record of working to get them confirmed, and people who worked to get them confirmed will tell you how hard I worked.

If you love pro-life radicals, then vote for McCain. But please don't vote for him and tell me he is really some sort of "moderate" on this issue!

Our Votes DO Count, Why Not Do This From the Beginning??

Big Surprise.

Florida's Votes Count. The little committee that normally gets unnoticed had the spotlight on them yesterday. They allotted proportionally, with the delegates getting a half a vote each.

Essentially, it's the same arrangement that the RNC made -- they took HALF the delegates from the beginning. We will count all but give them a HALF a vote each. In other words, no difference.

Soooooooooooooooo...

WHY THE HELL DIDN'T THEY DO THIS FROM THE BEGINNING?

Why did we have to endure literally MONTHS of Florida and Michigan bashing; and allow months of ads and op-eds that said Democrats don't count votes. The GOP got a free pass on this, and now Obama is having to play catch-up in two crucial swing states because of the antics of the DNC.

I still think we will win despite ourselves, but let's say we quit shooting ourselves in the foot from now on. K?

McClellan was Talking About McCain

McCain's Own Words...




In other news of the "quick and easy" liberation this week, McCain invited Barack to accompany him to Iraq, saying it would show him how great everything is there and would allow him to make "informed judgments" in the future.

Funny. It didn't have that effect on McSame.

McCain STILL doesn't seem to know the difference between the Sunni and the Shia, nor who is currently in charge.

McSame should also not count on Barack being as clueless as he is. I don't think Obama would take an entire company of men off of their posts (plus 3 Blackhawk helicopters and 2 Apache gunships) just for a photo opp. in a marketplace, only then to make a ridiculous statement about how "safe" everything is and that it's like a "normal outdoor market in Indiana in the summertime!"

PS--that same marketplace today? Controlled by Muqtada Al-Sadr:

Teacher Forces 5-Yr Old Disabled Boy to Be TAUNTED!!

WORST TEACHER IN THE WORLD: Wendy Portillo, a teacher in Port St. Lucie, FL, who forced Alex, age 5, to stand in front of his classroom and had EACH CLASSMATE tell him what they didn't like about him.

Alex has been diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome. The kids called him "disgusting", "annoying", and so on.

He lost by a vote of 14 to 2 and was kicked out of the classroom.

This trauma has led the kid to be inconsolable, and he told his mom several times that he "wasn't special".

It gets worse...


The goddamned conservative rethuglicans who have a stranglehold on our state attorney's office said THIS DIDN'T CONSTITUTE EMOTIONAL ABUSE! They will not investigate.

WORST ATTORNEY GENERAL IN THE WORLD: Bill McCollum

Write your local paper and call the TV stations. This type of outrage is unacceptable, even for Florida.

Full story: Here