What You May Be Missing About Sarah Palin

Posted by: Jason | October 3rd, 2008 · 4:39 PM

I’m not sure there has ever been a political candidate who has survived more campaign challenges than Governor Sarah Palin.

Days after her selection to the McCain campaign, she faced the harsh (and unfairly personal) criticism of her role as a mother. How dare someone run for Vice President with the burden of caring for five children? How dare someone so conservative allow their seventeen year old daughter to get pregnant? Nevermind her opponent Joe Biden, who lost his wife to a horrible car accident upon his election to the senate, left his two young sons alone each day as he trekked off to Washington DC. She’s a mother, mother’s can’t work and raise children!

Then we entered the cycle of personal attacks on her faith. Her church, it seems, actually prays for the armed forces, hoping that in some way, what unfolds around the world on a daily basis is part of God’s plan for us. Palin even spoke of God while giving a church discussion on Sunday. The nerve! Nevermind that Abraham Lincoln, Franklin Roosevelt, George Washington, and just about every major leader in American history has prayed for such things (in non-church settings). No… it seems a leaked video of a Sunday appearance at your church disqualifies your belief entirely of the seperation of church and state in Palin’s case.

Finally we entered the “Palin is stupid phase”. It seems candidates with all of five weeks experience on the national stage shouldn’t hesitate for a second in explaining the nuances of the Bush Doctrine, or shouldn’t blink before naming ever major piece of legislation John McCain has ever sponsored on banking reform.

Nevermind that in the past three weeks alone, Joe Biden mistakingly suggested that Franklin Roosevelt was president during the Great Depression (Herbert Hoover was), that Roosevelt spoke to the nation by television at the time (TV wasn’t invented yet), that he asked a crippled man on stage to stand up during a rally, that he suggested we ban coal in the United States, that he talks about Scranton but lives in posh Greenville, DE, and that he suggested he frequently meets with “average folks” at Katy’s Restaurant in last night’s debate, an establishment which closed down in 1990 (I grew up near Katy’s). Such examples are trivial you see… that’s just “Joe being Joe”.

But there’s something more the mainstream media is missing about Sarah Palin, and I suspect it’s something the public at large may be coming to understand now: Sarah Palin has done in five weeks what Barack Obama took more than a year to accomplish; being a credible candidate.

For those of you still undecided about the talents of Governor Palin, I’d ask you to consider this. Barack Obama launched his candidacy over a year ago in Illinois, having the same questions raised about his ability to lead as Palin recently has. Was he ready? Did he understand the issues?

But in recent comparison after the second national debate, we should remember that Barack Obama had something very important that Sarah Palin didn’t, the long and tedious testing ground of the primary election to sculpt his skills.

Is there any doubt that Obama supporters were a little nervous last week before his first national debate against a seasoned veteran in John McCain? Of course they were. But here was a man who had slowly crafted his skill set in the debate halls of the Democratic primary process, talking with candidates Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden, and Bill Richardson, almost on a weekly basis. Here was a man who spent hours upon hours in practice mode, where rather than debating more aggressive Republican opponents at first, was able to mold his talents in easier discussions of mild differences in policy positions with other Democrats, those on stage agreeing with him more than 90% of the time.

Sarah Palin had no such luxury. Barely five weeks onto the national stage, without a single minute of national debate experience under her belt, in front of the largest television audience a debate has seen since 1992 (Neilson numbers are out today), Sarah Palin walked onto the stage with a 35-year senator in Joe Biden, a wildly talented debater with uber foreign policy experience, and not only held her own for 90 minutes, but by many accounts, won the night through her personal style and common touch.

Say what you want about Governor Sarah Palin, about her particular positions you may disagree with, about her folksy style that attempts to speak to regular people and not elitist Washingtonians, her western Alaska mannerisms, this is an extremely talented woman who at 44 years old, has a very bright future within the Republican Party and within American politics as a whole.

Could Barack Obama have debated John McCain “five weeks” into his campaign? Ask yourself that question the next time you hesitate on Governor Sarah Palin’s ability. I know I will.

Add us: Digg | Del.icio.us | Technorati

It’s Official: I Hate This Election

Posted by: Jason | September 24th, 2008 · 9:58 PM

(image: sanfransentinel)

I know it’s unpopular to think fondly of the president these days, but I seem to remember George W. Bush’s rise to power a bit differently in the year 2000. A year out of college, those were my idealistic days where my blood boiled red with political passion.

Issues meant something then. Agree or not today, I was inspired back then by the thought of returning taxes to Americans who were being overcharged by an unnecessary government surplus, by the real potential of some day investing a portion of my own FICA tax into a personal retirement account, when I knew it was a good idea to let faith-based organizations do some of the government’s charity, and by arguing that schools needed accountability.

Something hit me this evening. I hate this election, and once more, I’m growing to hate both of these candidates. Where’s the presidential stature? Where’s the serious debate about real issues? Where’s the relief from this tit-for-tat daily feed of nonsense… where “this guy has more lobbiest friends than me!” or “that guy said a sexist remark!”. Who cares anymore?

However impressive his accidental primary successes may have been, Barack Obama is so undeservedly criminal in his closeness to becoming my president that it unhinges the brain to think this man may soon be occupying the oval office. To borrow a phrase from Bill Clinton himself, this whole thing is a damn fairy tale.

How dare we sink so low as a society, to actually allow a man an access to the presidency who spent his young years working for a leftist voter fraud organization like ACORN, who launched his political career from the home of a man who orchestrated a bombing of the Pentagon, who not only attended the ranks of a racist church for 20 years, but who actually authored a book which carried the title from a sermon delivered by a man who embraces Louis Farrakhan and who once claimed our government created the AIDS virus to kill blacks?

Real positions aside, whatever those positions may be from general election Obama who’s altered every major proposal he had as a primary candidate, a healthy nation would recognize Obama’s background alone makes him not only unqualified to serve as our president, but deserving of our outright shunning him from mainstream political society. Yet, we don’t care. Of course, this is the same nation that admires Uncle Ted Kennedy, the drunken manslaughterer.

What’s worse, my own candidate stands for a message I hardly agree with or even understand half the time. I admire John McCain’s service. When he says country first, he means it, because he’s lived it. I know, I’ve been a recipient of his annoyingly consistent bipartisanship with the Democrats over the years.

But here’s a thought, arguing for a new idea from time to time would be nice. Shy of “lobbying reform”, can we get some conservatism to care about Senator McCain?

Where are the latest versions of those great ideas I used to love campaigns for… the tax proposals, the social security reforms, the education ideas, the faith-based initiatives of the Bush candidacy? Hell… just call up Newt Gingrich if you want Senator, he might loan you a few things.

Rather, I awake each day to the latest story on who got more money from Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. Gee… that’s important.

Just today, we learned that Rick Davis, McCain’s campaign manager, has a firm who specializes in housing which got payments from the two financial giants. Gee… there’s a shocker, a housing lobby having a connection to one of the largest housing loan houses. Of course, I should care about this, since last week I found out that Barack Obama was the 2nd largest recipient of Fannie and Freddie campaign contributions in the history of their giving contributions (and has only been a senator for four years by the way).

Yes… I can honestly say that I’ve officially had it with the 2008 presidential campaign. In all due respect to both candidates, I think I may have passed the 6th grade a long time ago.

To Senator McCain, please, give me some new ideas to get excited about. Cause having the “more stable guy” isn’t so much a refresher in the 2000 race I came to love politics over.

To Senator Obama, enough with the equally lame gimicks, about seven houses and Bush’s third term. Do you even have an issue stance that’s remained consistent since your last debate with Hillary?

Either give us some real ideas to debate about gentlemen, ala 2000, before it’s too late, or let’s get on with the business of electing Barack Obama, and allowing our first black president to brainwash the history books into believing he’s actually a principled and great man. I’ll be over here in fairy tale land with Bill Clinton.

Add us: Digg | Del.icio.us | Technorati

Barack Obama is Andrew Sheppard

Posted by: Jason | September 16th, 2008 · 8:36 PM

There’s been something eerily familiar about Barack Obama’s stump speech lately that I couldn’t put my finger on until this evening.

Picture this for a minute… A presidential candidate, down and out lately, sagging in the polls, the public questioning his grit, he’s unresponsive to cheap negative attacks about his character and patriotism which are being spewed daily from his evil Republican opponent, helpless for now…

Only to rise again in his glorious confrontation of his demons… he speaks up again, fights back… with statements against running character debates and charges that his opponent “just doesn’t get it”.

Thinking of the narrative, it hit me folks. In it’s return back onto the scene, in it’s new “fighting back stage”, Barack Obama’s campaign has officially taken to mimicking the famous speech given by Michael Douglas in the movie American President to a tee.

The style, the themes, the feeling of glorified response… all wrapped up in the Andrew Sheppard classic, have been totally adopted by Barack Obama, and used as an influence for his political comeback.

Observe, first Obama, and then Sheppard. John McCain/Bob Rumson “don’t get it”. John McCain/Bob Rumson “aren’t interested in solving your problems”. John McCain/Bob Rumson want to run a debate on character, not substance:

Add us: Digg | Del.icio.us | Technorati

Five New Polls

Posted by: Jason | September 15th, 2008 · 8:59 PM

(image: daylife.com)

John McCain is now tied or ahead in all five major battleground states according to Rasmussen’s statewide polling data just out.

McCain now leads in the state of Colorado by two points, 48% to Obama’s 46%, a five point swing from last week where Obama lead McCain by three.

Florida has gone from toss-up in the Ras poll, tied last week, to McCain plus five, 49% to Obama’s 44%. Most other Florida polls have McCain leading Obama by 5 points or more.

And for the first time in months, John McCain is now tied in Pennsylvania, 47% to 47%.

Obama has gained ground in two states however. Rasmussen’s Ohio numbers have McCain leading the state by a slim three-point margin, 48% to Obama’s 45%, a gain of a few points for Obama since last week. Likewise, Obama has tied McCain in the state of Virginia, 48% to 48%, where McCain lead by two points last week.

Add us: Digg | Del.icio.us | Technorati

Ras: McCain Breaks 50%, Seen Most Likely To Win

Posted by: Jason | September 14th, 2008 · 3:56 PM

(image: johnmccain.com)

Maintaining a 3-point advantage in the new Rasmussen poll, John McCain has hit the 50% mark for the first time since Barack Obama wrapped up the Democratic nomination earlier this year.

John McCain 50%

Barack Obama 47%

A separate poll from the same source shows that most people believe John McCain will win the election now.

Who is most likely to win this year’s presidential election?

John McCain 35%

Barack Obama 34%

Not Sure 30%

McCain’s likely percentage on this question has raised 18 points over the last two weeks.

Add us: Digg | Del.icio.us | Technorati

Obama’s Female Staff Only Gets 83 Cents To Every Male Dollar

Posted by: Jason | September 13th, 2008 · 11:58 PM

(image: flickr)

Barack Obama doesn’t walk the walk on equal pay for women.

Recently commenting on the Sarah Palin effect, Obama claimed Palin “seems like a very engaging person. But I’ve got to say, she’s opposed — like John McCain is — to equal pay for equal work. That doesn’t make much sense to me.”

I suppose these comments would hold water, until you analyze the Obama staff.

According to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, female staffers who work for Barack Obama receive only $0.83 for every $1.00 their male counterparts make.

Based on these calculations, Obama’s 28 male staffers divided among themselves total payroll expenditures of $1,523,120. Thus, Obama’s average male employee earned $54,397.

Obama’s 30 female employees split $1,354,580 among themselves, or $45,152, on average.

Again, on average, Obama’s female staffers earn just 83 cents for every dollar his male staffers make. This figure certainly exceeds the 77-cent threshold that Obama’s campaign website condemns. However, 83 cents do not equal $1. In spite of this 17-cent gap between Obama’s rhetoric and reality, he chose to chide GOP presidential contender John McCain on this issue.Among Obama’s five best-paid advisors, only one was a woman. Among his top 20, seven were women.

What’s funnier, is that John McCain, the guy who apparently “isn’t serious about equal pay for women”, has a staff which looks just the opposite.

McCain’s 17 male staffers split $916,914, thus averaging $53,936. His 25 female employees divided $1,396,958 and averaged $55,878.On average, according to these data, women in John McCain’s office make $1.04 for every dollar a man makes. In fact, all other things being equal, a typical female staffer could earn 21 cents more per dollar paid to her male counterpart — while adding $10,726 to her annual income — by leaving Barack Obama’s office and going to work for John McCain.

Among [McCain’s] top-five best-compensated staffers, three are women. Of his 20-highest-salaried employees, 13 are women.

McCain: Nearly twice as many high profile female staffers. Pays women more than the men on average. Doesn’t call females “sweetie”.

Obama: Half as many high profile female staffers as McCain. Pays unfair sexist wages. Frequently calls females “sweetie”.

Add us: Digg | Del.icio.us | Technorati

Florida = Bad News for Obama

Posted by: Jason | · 7:30 PM

(image: fiu.edu)

While Florida was certainly expected to lean McCain all along, reading stories like the one below must be… discouraging to say the least for the Obama campaign.

Barack Obama could be on the verge of falling out of contention in Florida.

Despite spending an estimated $8-million on campaign ads in America’s biggest battleground state and putting in place the largest Democratic campaign organization ever in Florida, Obama has lost ground over the summer. Florida has moved from a toss-up state to one that clearly leans toward John McCain, fueling speculation about how much longer the Democratic nominee will continue investing so heavily in the state.

Obama can still win Florida despite the polling gains McCain has made since naming Sarah Palin his running mate, and there is no sign Obama is pulling back in Florida yet. Far from it. Obama allies say he has about 350 paid staffers in the state and about 50 field offices, including in places not known as fertile ground for Democrats, such as Sun City Center, Lake City and Sebring.

But for all the attention to Florida from the Obama campaign, there’s little tangible evidence it’s paying off.

He is farther behind in the state than John Kerry was at this point in 2004, even though McCain began buying Florida TV ads only last week. By this time in 2004, the Bush-Cheney campaign had spent $13-million on Florida TV. In the rolling average of Florida polls compiled by the Web site RealClearPolitics.com, Obama has never taken the lead over McCain in Florida, and the latest average shows him behind by 5 percentage points. They were tied in early August.

Four Florida polls came out this week, with one showing a tied race, the others showing McCain leading by 5 to 8 percentage points.

So, if Florida’s beginning to show good signs for McCain at this point, and Ohio/Missouri look to be solid McCain too as recent polls have suggested, it begs the question:

Despite any advantages Barack Obama may currently hold in former red states such as Iowa and Colorado (states that if won by Obama would force McCain to need both New Mexico and Nevada, unless he’s able to pickup a random Dem state like New Hampshire or Michigan), wouldn’t holding such major markets as Florida, Missouri, and Ohio so early present massive advantages for John McCain to campaign elsewhere?

As the story tells us, with an $8 million Obama ad blitz in Florida over the summer, and McCain just beginning his ads there this past week, it has to be a major disappointment to the Obama campaign that they’re still behind where John Kerry was at this time in 2004, and even then so without having faced a $13 million advertising attack as Bush had already invested by September. Despite all that, a free advertising ride without any competition from McCain, Obama is still polling 5-8 points back in Florida.

McCain camp may be taking notice, as they’ve just announced Sarah Palin will start campaigning alone today in western states like Nevada and Colorado. It seems with such states as Florida, Ohio, Missouri, and Virginia trending red, they’re going after their loose ends.

Story Source

Add us: Digg |