Make Palin a Verb!

Anyone following mainstream media outlets over the past week has seen a lot of articles on Obama’s picks to fill key administration positions. Many of these articles focus on the fact that a number of these picks worked for the Clinton Administration, and question whether these selections undermine Obama’s call for change. (CQ has a nice article on it here). At first I was confused, but have reached the point of being downright ticked off about this cockeyed narrative — which appears to have been manufactured for the sole purpose of creating conflict where there is none (conflict makes for good storytelling).

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The Wall Street Journal did a nice job of deconstructing the ways in which the recent Ziegler/Zogby poll is problematic. I won’t go into it, because I can’t hold a candle to the column itself. Suffice to say that certain members of the Right Wing are more interested in slighting those who voted for Obama than doing any soul-searching about how to revitalize the GOP. To wit, the conservative Ziegler, who bankrolled the poll, said the poll shows that “a group of monkeys” know more about politics than Obama supporters. Nice, huh? I’m taking it somewhat out of context but, really, is there a good way to take it? Now, read the Wall Street Journal piece and educate yourselves — just to prove Ziegler wrong.

-Ship

Now that Ted Stevens has officially lost the Alaska Senate race to Mark Begich, the eyes of political junkies everywhere turn to Minnesota and Georgia. If Dems win the Senate seats up for grabs in those two states, they will have a 60-member caucus that can override stalling tactics in that chamber. Minnesota is engaged in a closely watched recount between former-comedian Al Franken and incumbent GOP Senator Norm Coleman. But Georgia, quite frankly, is where all the action is.

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Today’s column from David Brooks in the NY Times is filled with cautious praise for Obama’s early moves in terms of filling key positions in the upcoming administration. It is surprising, inasmuch as Brooks is a conservative Republican columnist, but not as surprising as one might think. Brooks is definitely part of the intellectual branch of the GOP, and considers events carefully — rather than going into attack mode regardless of the evidence. At any rate, his column is worth reading. He provides lucid insight into the thinking of many GOP insiders — though not necessarily into the thinking of the party rank-and-file. Take this quote from today’s column: “I’m trying not to join in the vast, heaving O-phoria now sweeping the coastal haut-bourgeoisie. But the personnel decisions have been superb.” I doubt we’ll ever hear Rush Limbaugh say anything like that.

My favorite quote from the column? Here you go: “And yet as much as I want to resent these overeducated Achievatrons … I find myself tremendously impressed by the Obama transition.” I’m all for inventing new words (ala “Achievatron”), as needed!

-Ship

This week has seen a flurry of speculation and confirmation on a ton of key Cabinet posts for the incoming Obama administration. Each of these picks could be a political minefield, so let’s take them one by one (and, no, I won’t even get to Clinton here).

Let’s start with the rumors that Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano will be tasked with leading the Department of Homeland Security, which are everywhere. One byproduct of that pick would be that the governorship of Arizona would go to a Republican, Secretary of State Jan Brewer (Arizona has no lieutenant governor).  This could give Brewer a good head start on a run for the Governor’s office in 2010. That’s especially significant because whoever has the governor’s office following the 2010 election will oversee the redrawing of political districts after the 2010 census results are issued. Five of Arizona’s eight House seats are currently Democratic. That number could shift dramatically if the GOP is in charge of redistricting in 2010. BUT WAIT, there’s more. Napolitano had been expected to challenge McCain for his Senate seat in 2010. Polls are split on who would win that race, but it would have been competitive. If Napolitano takes the DHS job, she’s out of the running to oppose McCain — likely giving him a relatively unobstructed path to re-election. Now, on to the next Cabinet pick …

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Every media outlet you can imagine has announced that Eric Holder will be Attorney General under the Barack Obama administration. This is another historic first for the federal government, as Holder will become the first African-American AG. However, it also sets up a number of interesting scenarios for his confirmation hearings. Given the overwhelming Democratic majority in the Senate, and the fact that Obama has almost certainly already tested the waters, I’m sure Holder will be confirmed fairly quickly. That being said, his confirmation hearings should give us a good idea as to how well Republicans and Democrats will work together in the new Congress. Here’s how …

While Holder has an exemplary record of public service (as a federal prosecutor, judge and DOJ official), he made one much-publicized mistake: he gave then-President Bill Clinton his de facto blessing to pardon Marc Rich. He has since stated publicly that it was an error. In other words, he has done something that Senate Republicans can bludgeon him with. If the GOP chooses to do so, it can pillory Holder for a day or two and try to present him as a partisan political hack — undermining his authority and dirtying his image before he has even taken office. This would signal another season of partisan strife in the Senate (the more even-keeled of the two houses of legislature), and would not bode well for behavior in the House. But Holder’s history gives the GOP another option …

In 1994, as the U.S. District Attorney for Washington, D.C., Holder prosecuted then-Democratic House Ways and Means Chairman Dan Rostenkowski (a powerful man at the time). Rostenkowski ultimately pled guilty. This action gives Republicans an out. They can choose to remember Holder as an arbiter of justice, regardless of political affiliation, and use the Rostenkowski prosecution to counterbalance the Rich pardon. Sure, Holden still gets a slap on the wrist, but it would signal that the GOP (at least in the Senate) is not out for blood. If this happens, the signs would certainly be a little better for bipartisan legislative dealmaking.

In other words, pay close attention to these confirmation hearings — they could tell us a lot about how this Congress will comport itself.

-Ship

PS: It appears that Mark Begich has unseated Ted Stevens for the Alaska Senate seat. This keeps the Democratic dream of 60 seats in the Senate alive.

CNN reports that Sarah Palin is offering to help Obama in his new administration. That is awfully generous of her, though I’m at a loss as to what she would help with. Or, for that matter, why Obama would want advice from someone who accused him of palling around with terrorists. Speaking of which, Palin highlighted her generosity of spirit by saying she is still happy to blast Obama because he is acquainted with Bill Ayers (former member of the Weather Underground).

From her interview with Wolf Blitzer: “If anybody still wants to talk about it, I will,” she said. “Because this is an unrepentant domestic terrorist who had campaigned to blow up, to destroy our Pentagon and our U.S. Capitol”That’s an association that still bothers me, and I think it’s fair to still talk about it,” she continued. She then added, in a shocking bit of hypocrisy (given the previous two sentences that had just left her mouth): “However, the campaign is over. That chapter is closed.” Hey, way to foster bipartisanship Sarah!

How could Obama resist an invitation from Palin after rhetoric like that?

Obama is still weeks away from becoming the 44th president, and he may already be facing political hot water. I’m not talking about the economy, relations with Pakistan or global warming. I’m talking about cabinet positions. According to Politico, Hispanic leaders are already putting pressure on Obama to include at least two (and preferably three) Latinos in his Cabinet — to say nothing of lower level political appointments.
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I proudly voted for Obama and, given the opportunity, I will likely do it again in 4 years.  How could I throw in with people whose preferred method of campaigning is to spend all of their time beating down instead of building up?  The constant drumbeat message from the McCain campaign was about what was wrong with Obama - how he and his followers were the evil “Them” out to ruin “Us”.  All I heard from the Obama people were the possibilities we could achieve together as Americans. One organization prepared for elections by buying sticks and using them liberally to beat down dissent. The other group readied by finding ways to hear all of our voices, no matter what they had to say.  In this light, the choice, regardless of how I feel about the actual issues, was obvious. I could choose division or unity, destruction or inspiration. I could look at my neighbor as an adversary or I could see him as my neighbor who was in the same position as I am even if he doesn’t agree with me on what solutions to try.

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The Associate Press is reporting that Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-IL) has agreed to take on the role of White House chief of staff for the Obama administration. This is an interesting pick to fill the chief of staff post, which is part gatekeeper, part arbiter and part counsel on issues large and small in the White House. Emanuel is the consummate Chicago politico: intelligent, manipulative, mercurial and possessed of excellent political instincts. In other words, he should make an excellent “bad cop” to Obama’s even-handed “good cop.” However, it’s likely to ruffle feathers in some circles. During the Clinton administration Emanuel rubbed many Democrats the wrong way by pushing centrist policies such as free trade. He also has a track record of irking Republicans with his “take no prisoners” approach.

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I’m cribbing liberally from Steven Greene’s blog (Fully Myelinated), but thought it worth mentioning that the effect of the economy on the election has been overstated — particularly by Republican pundits. The trend among many GOP talking heads (and others) over the past day or two has been that John McCain lost this election because of the economy and President Bush’s unpopularity. While the economy certainly played a major role, focusing on it as the primary factor in McCain’s loss gives the GOP campaign a free pass on its many strategic errors and does not give the Obama campaign enough credit. A breakdown of the issue can be found at the Monkey Cage blog, which shows that Obama’s numbers took off before the Wall Street meltdown — and did not get a significant boost from the crisis. A good reminder to take all of the post-election analysis with a healthy degree of skepticism (or “cum grano salis” as my old teacher Susy Hatchett would say).

-Ship

“I will listen to you, especially when we disagree”

“So tonight, let us ask ourselves - if our children should live to see the next century; if my daughters should be so lucky to live as long as Ann Nixon Cooper, what change will they see? What progress will we have made?”

These two lines caught my attention more than anything that has been said in the last month. After watching ten years of divisive politics tear us apart by telling us that we should be afraid of what the other half wants for our country, I am elated by a politician who realizes what this country really needs. We do not need policies forced upon us by narrow majorities or pluralities. We need collaborative efforts from thoughtful people who will listen and compromise for the betterment of our nation.

Barack Obama’s words have inspired me more than any political rhetoric I have heard in my generation. His words impressed me more than any political speech I have read since John F. Kennedy or Martin Luther King Jr. I hope that the sentiment expressed tonight not only by Obama, but by other United States politicians and world leaders will bring the sense of cooperation needed to address the enormity of our issues ahead.

Today I am inspired, rejuvenated, overwhelmed and hopeful. Hopeful that Republicans, Democrats, Greens, Libertarians, Independents and everyone else will work to put back on track a nation that respects individual rights, provides opportunities for achievement, supports those who are less fortunate, and lives up to ethical standards lauded by spiritual leaders throughout history.

The CNN and MSNBC maps are below

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I attended the Obama rally today in Raleigh, NC. It was a bit chilly, but sunny. There were a couple of people there.

click image for photo gallery

The Obama campaign finally unleashes our own Sarah on McCain:

Alaska’s largest newspaper made its presidential endorsement yesterday and it is supporting Obama/Biden.

I just wish that the statement:

“Since his early acknowledgement that economic policy is not his strong suit, Sen. McCain has stumbled and fumbled badly in dealing with the accelerating crisis as it emerged.”

was shortened to:

Since his early acknowledgment that economic policy is not his strong suit, Sen. McCain has palined badly in dealing with the accelerating crisis as it emerged.

See how nicely that reads.

The Oval Office is a “bummer free zone”.

It seems that having a palining pitbull (with or without lipstick) on the campaign trail is actually hurting John McCain. If the results of this WSJ/NBC poll are to be believed.

This CNN report states “Sarah Palin is getting getting the rock star treatment, drawing much bigger crowds than her running mate, Sen. John McCain.” whereas, this report in the Miami Herald states “The crowd, which did not fill the 8,500-capacity Security Service Field…” in Colorado Springs yesterday.

In all fairness, it was cloudy, cold and rainy yesterday in Colorado Springs, but if Sarah is drawing more than John and she can’t even get 8500 people to show up at an event how can they complete with this?

Sarah and I agree on one thing, we don’t like robotic telemarketing calls

I’ve been able to get some copies of the calls from around the web. I tried to clean the quality up a little and I am linking to them for you to download, remix, whatever.

Obama Opposes Saving Babies
Obama Worked Closely With A Terrorist
Civil Rights For Terrorists

If you do a remix, post it in the comments.

the original source for these files was tpmtv, however I got them from links elsewhere.

update:
Barack Obama referenced Palin’s comments about the robocalls at a campaign stop in Tampa today.

“It’s getting so bad that even Sen. McCain’s running mate denounced his tactics last night,” Obama said to a crowd at Steinbrenner Field. “And you know, you really have to work hard to violate Governor Palin’s standards on negative campaigning. You gotta work hard.”

ED: a new robocall Tom Ridge