Sunday, January 13, 2008

Media Fairy Tales About the Clintons & Racism


Bill and Hillary Clinton are racist? Give me a fucking break! And on it goes, our male-dominated drama-queen corporate media twist and misinterpret whatever they damn well please. And the Obama camp appears to have no qualms about taking full advantage or even "feeding this controversy."

The Clintons are racist, Howard Dean screamed and Al Gore said he invented the internet!

Republicans win!!!!

The same corporate media that gave George Bush a free pass in 2000, and again on the Iraq War, now endorses Obama. Screw 'we the people.'

The Hillary Clinton MLK/LBJ Controversy

Greg Sargent notes that "for the third time" the New York Times has "printed a truncated version of Hillary's controversial quote about Martin Luther King in a piece running in Sunday's paper. . Adding to the absurdity, this time the paper did it in an article that was about whether her words had been distorted. Seriously. The piece is entitled, 'Clinton Accuses Obama Camp of Distorting Her Words.' Presumably an article about this subject would contain Hillary's actual quote, to allow readers to make up their own minds about what she meant."

Josh Marshall points out that this entire story derives from a misleading quote.

The Bill Clinton Fairy Tale Controversy

Rachel Sklar (she's in your race, class, gender oppression text) over at Huffington Post observes that while any and every outrageous claim can be made about the Clintons, we critique Obama at our peril:

Here's the (Bill Clinton) quote, which was part of a larger comment on Obama's representation of his Iraq war position:

"It is wrong that Senator Obama got to go through 15 debates trumpeting his superior judgment and how he had been against the war in every year, numerating the years, and never got asked one time, not once, 'Well, how could you say, that when you said in 2004 you didn't know how you would have voted on the resolution? You said in 2004 there was no difference between you and George Bush on the war and you took that speech you're now running on off your website in 2004 and there's no difference in your voting record and Hillary's ever since?' Give me a break. This whole thing is the biggest fairy tale I've ever seen."

Wow, strong words — but unequivocally pertaining to Obama's Iraq war position. Pretty clear cut, right?

Ha, as if. Here's what it morphed into in the media: BILL CLINTON CALLS OBAMA'S MESSAGE OF HOPE AND INSPIRATION A FAIRYTALE! HE THINKS OBAMA'S DREAM FOR BLACK AMERICA IS A FAIRYTALE!

Bill Clinton is exactly right about Obama's free pass from the media -- or the 'fairy tale.' As Clinton notes, Obama's central campaign theme is that he was 'always, always, always' 100% against the war:

Bill Clinton: That is the central argument for his campaign. 'It doesn't matter that I started running for president less a year after I got to the Senate from the Illinois State Senate. I am a great speaker and a charismatic figure and I'm the only one who had the judgment to oppose this war from the beginning. Always, always, always.' "

Here's Obama on the war in 2008:

Politico: Obama . . said that any suggestion that he hadn’t fully opposed the Iraq war was “flat-out wrong.”

And Obama on the war in 2004:

New York Times, 2004: ''But, I'm not privy to Senate intelligence reports,'' Mr. Obama said. ''What would I have done? I don't know."

Bill Clinton on Obama: Big Fairy Tale (Video)
Obama Proves He Is A Political Fighter; For Obama
Fact Check : Sen. Obama’s Iraq War Record
Bad Oppo Alert! Sen. Obama's Senate Record On Iraq

Posted by egalia at

Saturday, January 12, 2008

Jon Stewart on Hillary's 'Emotional Breakdown' (Video)


Posted by egalia at

Without Writers, Bill Maher is Still a Sexist Pig


Bill Maher returned to HBO last night sans writers, but somehow the lefty comic managed to continue his habit of spewing sexist venom. Maher ‘joked’ that Senator Hillary Clinton went to a strip club with a band of reporters and then our first viable woman presidential candidate proceeded to do a pole dance.

Hahaha.

Maher joked about the male candidates too, but as you can probably guess, the jokes about the men were decidedly more respectful.

Later in the show, Maher stunned Tony Snow (and me) by suggesting that the Republican Party rigged the New Hampshire election in order to enable Hillary’s victory. This time Maher was not joking. In what passes for Bill Maher's mind, Republicans think they can beat the Clintons - the only Democrats to win the White House since 1976 - but Republicans greatly fear Senator-for-two-years Barack Obama. So, the RNC rigged the New Hampshire primary. And Maher makes fun of the 9/11 Truthers!

Snow responded that the idea was "totally wacko!" and "completely wacked." And there you go, when you have a lefty comic who behaves like the Rush Limbaugh of the Left, even Tony Snow gets to have rational moments.

Posted by egalia at

The Flaying of Hillary Clinton


Quote of the Day

"The flaying of Hillary Clinton shows us we can take nothing for granted. We need to break that tough, annealed, glass ceiling with the barbed wire over it. And we need to break it now. If this is the politics of gender, so be it. We need a politics of gender in this country. Obama is a good man who will only get better. Youth is on his side. Perhaps Hillary will appoint him to the Supreme Court where he can counter that embarrassing Clarence Thomas. Perhaps he will be President in 2016 or perhaps, even better, Michelle Obama will be. They have nothing but time.

"Hillary's time has come."
Erica Jong, author of Fear of Flying,
Witches, What Do Women Want, etc.

Posted by egalia at

Freddie Thompson Wins KO's Worst Person Award

And Keith Olbermann's Worst Person in the World Award goes to Freddie Thompson for running for president while being really really stupid. (1/11/)


Posted by egalia at

Friday, January 11, 2008

81 Arrested in Guantanamo Protest at Supreme Court


Today marked the sixth anniversary of the US prison camp at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Protests against unlawful detention and torture were held around the world, and in Washington, 81 protesters were arrested. Below is a brief video clip of the protest at the U.S. Supreme Court.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Eighty-one people were arrested at the Supreme Court Friday in a protest calling for the shutdown of the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. . .


They were charged with violating an ordinance that prohibits demonstrations of any kind on court grounds. Those arrested inside the building also were charged under a provision that makes it a crime to give "a harangue or oration" in the Supreme Court building.

GITMO Protest at the Supreme Court

Posted by egalia at

Tabloid Says Bush is a Battered Spouse


The Globe explains the wounds recently spotted on George W. Bush's face as evidence that Laura Bush is beating up on George. The Tabloid reports that the Bushes are headed for divorce because the First Fool is still boozing it up.

Okay, so it's highly improbable, but we like our comic relief. And as Wonkette notes, most of us feel like hitting George - just imagine if we had to live with the creep!

Posted by egalia at

Women Have a Dream, Too


Quote of the Day

"Was there a press blackout on mentioning that Hillary Clinton made history in New Hampshire? The first woman to win a major presidential primary.

"I like Obama. A lot. I like Martin Luther King's 'I have a dream speech.' A lot. It's nice that Obama can talk about realizing Dr. King's hope of an African American having a genuine shot at the U.S. presidency. I have a dream, too. It's about a woman having a genuine shot at the U.S. presidency. Why is it not politically correct to talk about it?"
--Suzanne O'Malley

via Huffington Post

Posted by egalia at

Sick of Chris Matthews' Misogyny? Tell MSNBC!


If Chris Matthews spewed racism instead of sexism, there can be no doubt that the sexist pig would be out of a job. MSNBC's Chris Matthews' daily sexist rants against Hillary Clinton are beyond the pale and should alarm and enrage all of us, regardless of who we support.

Tell MSNBC to stop the misogyny!

And tell them you're sick and tired of the always male-dominated media -- they need to hire some progressive women pundits!

Media Matters:

Using overtly sexist language, he has referred to Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) as a "she devil" and compared her to a "strip-teaser." He has called her "witchy" and likened her voice to "fingernails on a blackboard." He has referred to men who support her as "castratos in the eunuch chorus." He has suggested Clinton is not "a convincing mom" and said "modern women" like Clinton are unacceptable to "Midwest guys." He has called her "Madame Defarge" and "Nurse Ratched."

Had enough? Contact MSNBC to tell them what you think.

MSNBC
viewerservices@msnbc.com
MSNBC TV
One MSNBC Plaza
Secaucus, N.J. 07094
MSNBC contacts

Chris Matthews
hardball@msnbc.com

Posted by egalia at

Thursday, January 10, 2008

Obama Campaign Questions Hillary's Tears


Yes, people are still going nuts over the moment Hillary teared up. Some call it TearGate. Obama's campaign co-chair, Jesse Jackson Jr. has now made the absurdly laughable claim that Hillary shed tears over "her appearance."

In Jackson's really weird view, Hillary is so shallow and vain that she cries about her appearance, just like a woman, but not about disasters like Iraq and Katrina.

Good freakin' grief. Are we in high school?

Jesse Jackson Jr.: We saw something very clever in the last week of this campaign coming out of Iowa, going into New Hampshire, we saw a sensitivity factor. Something that Mrs. Clinton has not been able to do with voters that she tried in New Hampshire.

Not in response to voters — not in response to Katrina, not in response to other issues that have devastated the American people, the war in Iraq, we saw tears in response to her appearance. So her appearance brought her to tears, but not Hurricane Katrina.

Posted by egalia at

Billy Kristol -- Wrong on the Clintons Again


The 'Fall of the House of Clinton' is every neocon's wet dream and as you can see from the photo, Billy Kristol dreams big. Kristol's magazine -- The Weekly Standard -- was really counting on Hillary's loss in New Hampshire and, just like the media, he and his magazine greatly exaggerated the significance of the loss that never happened.

The embarrassing edition of The Weekly Standard is now at a newstand near you. And this is the kind of sharp reporting that earned Billy Kristol his impressive new gig at the New York Times.

via Wonkette

Posted by egalia at

Bill Clinton on Obama: Big Fairy Tale (Video)

Here's the Bill Clinton video that everyone's talking about. So what do you think? Is Bill Clinton merely offering a valid critique of Obama? Or is Clinton engaging in vicious attack politics -- or even using racially offensive rhetoric, as Donna Brazile suggests?


Posted by egalia at

Wednesday, January 09, 2008

Hillary's Victory -- Women Vote Against Misogyny: The Tweety Effect (Video & Links)


Everyone's searching for reasons for Hillary's victory in New Hampshire. In my view, she is simply the best person for the job, but there can be no doubt that the misogyny oozing from media pundits like Chris Matthews got New Hampshire women good and mad and they showed it with their votes. Women put Hillary over the top - the gender gap was 13 points!

After Hillary's victory last night, Chris Matthews said he would never again underestimate Hillary Clinton. And then first thing this morning, Tweety was back in his usual misogynistic form (video below). I am a longtime MSNBC fan, but I had to switch to CNN last night -- Tweety's revolting sexism was making me vomit. Below are links to commentary on the Tweety Effect.

Pam Spaulding: ...'The Tweety Effect,' where the misogyny of a talking head in the MSM so enrages a demographic that they go out and vote in a manner that will put egg on the face of the talking head.

MyDD: Tweety Effect -noun 1. where the misogyny of a talking head in the MSM so enrages a demographic that they go out and vote in a manner that will put egg on the face of the talking head.

Taylor Marsh: One woman turned a much rumored, written and blathered about double digit Obama Blowout into a victory that left the entire punditocracy sucking their own wind back through the pie hole from which they spewed their sexist, venomous, biased, good old boy baloney day after day, night after night, week after week for it seems an eternity, which only got worse once Mr. Obama had one win -- one -- under his belt.

Jeff Fecke at Shakesville: Clinton won tonight because in the last few days, the level of misogyny directed toward her had reached a fever pitch, and the women of New Hampshire decided that they’d had enough of it.

Misogynist Chris Matthews on Hillary's Career (Jan 9, 2008)


Crooks and Liars: MADDOW: Pat, I will tell you that on the influential-influential, perhaps, on the left-website Talking Points Memo today, you want to know who they’re blaming for women voters breaking for Hillary Clinton over Barack Obama, who they’re blaming for this late showing and a big vote for Hillary Clinton? They’re blaming Chris Matthews. People are citing specifically Chris-not only for his own views but also for…as symbol of what the mainstream media has done to Hillary Clinton.

MATTHEWS: What website is this?

Digby: All the sickening media sexism we saw over the past couple of days didn't work and all liberals of good conscience should be relieved by that.

Christy Hardin Smith: What is wrong with Chris Matthews? With all of these media people? I mean that, in all honesty, what in the hell is wrong with them? Their personal loathing of Hillary Clinton shone through in every sniggering, overwrought report this week. Their building up of Barack Obama is only their prelude and set-up for the frenzied clawing and shredding of him that is to come. . . And Pam Spaulding nails it, calling it 'The Tweety Effect' . . . None of it has anything to do with substance. It's as if a pack of hyenas were crossbred with the characters in Mean Girls and then sent out to play at journalism.

Hillary is 44: The "Iron My Shirt” Big Media brigade, Russert, Matthews and all the funeral planners at Big Media newspapers and other Big Media outlets were beaten - by a woman.

Tom Watson: The Sexist Media Lynching of Hillary Clinton -- What kind of progressive American leader would stand silent, supporting with the cold reserve of ambition the disgracefully sexist, blatantly anti-feminist attack on a well-respected woman of the same party, a political foe perhaps, but a national Democratic leader?

Cliff Schecter: If there's any justice in the world . . . Next time Hillary won't pinch Chris's cheeks, she'll slap them.

And on a related note: Shut Up, Maureen Dowd

Posted by egalia at

Tuesday, January 08, 2008

Hillary Wins! Women Did It!!!


MSNBC and CNN just called it for Hillary!

Women did it!!! Fifty-seven percent of New Hampshire voters were women -- 47% of women went with Hillary, and 34% for Obama.

"When CNN reported that exit polls showed Clinton leading Obama 47 percent to 34 percent among women, the crowd watching the results at Southern New Hampshire College roared in approval."

Single women voted for Hillary Clinton by a margin over Obama of 51-32%.

Vote totals: Hillary -- 39%; Obama -- 36%; Edwards -- 17% -- 63 percent of precincts reporting.

Hillary's best line of the night: "I want especially to thank New Hampshire. Over the last week I listened to you and in the process I found my own voice. Together, let’s give America the kind of comeback New Hampshire has just given me."

Oh, and the stupid media lost. Especially Tweety. I can't believe how stupid our media is. If voters are not listening to the media morons, there's hope for America!

Tweety's mad.

Photo: Boston Globe

Posted by egalia at

New Hampshire Primary -- Go Hillary!


Update: HILLARY WINS!!! Women did it!

With 46 63 percent of the precincts reporting, the night's pattern of a very tight race continues -- with Hillary in the lead and Edwards trailing far behind Obama.

Hillary -- 40% 39%
Obama -- 36% 36%
Edwards -- 17% 17%

So far, Hillary has the votes of women by 13%. And tonight our sick and insane media continues to discuss Hillary's tears. This country deserves better media (and more women and minorities). Oh yeah, McCain won. Heh.

Posted by egalia at

Cowboy Yells at Hillary: 'Iron My Shirt!'


I wrote at the outset of Hillary Clinton's historic bid for the presidency that the rampant sexism that so permeates this cowboy culture would soon become our daily news.

Well, here's more. These cowboys must have come straight from freeperville, but it's also sadly true that some of our liberal colleagues are joining in the fun.

SALEM, New Hampshire - Hillary Rodham Clinton's campaign stop was interrupted Monday when two men stood in the crowd and began screaming, "Iron my shirt!" during one of her final appearances before the New Hampshire primary.

Clinton, a former first lady running to become the nation's first female president, laughed at the seemingly sexist protest that suggested a woman's place is doing the laundry and not running the country.

"Ah, the remnants of sexism — alive and well," Clinton said to applause in a school auditorium.“


Photo via The Caucus

Posted by egalia at

The Conceit of George W. Bush


Quote of the Day

"I can predict that the historians will say that George W. Bush recognized the threats of the 21st century, clearly defined them, and had great faith in the capacity of liberty to transform hopelessness to hope, and laid the foundation for peace by making some awfully difficult decisions. . . When he needed to be tough, he acted strong, and when he needed to have vision he understood the power of freedom to be transformative."
--George W. Bush, Idiot-in-Chief

Delusional Bush expressed his very high opinion of himself to the Israeli media. Dan Froomkin at the Washington Post has more on the Decider's messiah complex, if you can stomach it. Froomkin notes that "a CNN poll in November found that 58 percent of Americans rated Bush either a poor president, a very poor president, or the worst president ever." Duh. Duh. Duh.

Posted by egalia at

Gloria Steinem on Hillary: Women Are Never Front-Runners


Gloria Steinem has a wise and sad piece in today's New York Times. At long last. I'd altogether forgotten that this nation once had something called well-known feminist leaders. They were even featured in the New York Times. Now we have Maureen Dowd.

Here's an excerpt:

So why is the sex barrier not taken as seriously as the racial one? The reasons are as pervasive as the air we breathe: because sexism is still confused with nature as racism once was; because anything that affects males is seen as more serious than anything that affects “only” the female half of the human race; because children are still raised mostly by women (to put it mildly) so men especially tend to feel they are regressing to childhood when dealing with a powerful woman; because racism stereotyped black men as more “masculine” for so long that some white men find their presence to be masculinity-affirming (as long as there aren’t too many of them); and because there is still no “right” way to be a woman in public power without being considered a you-know-what.

[W]hat worries me is that he is seen as unifying by his race while she is seen as divisive by her sex.

What worries me is that she is accused of “playing the gender card” when citing the old boys’ club, while he is seen as unifying by citing civil rights confrontations.

What worries me is that male Iowa voters were seen as gender-free when supporting their own, while female voters were seen as biased if they did and disloyal if they didn’t.

What worries me is that reporters ignore Mr. Obama’s dependence on the old — for instance, the frequent campaign comparisons to John F. Kennedy, though Senator Edward Kennedy is supporting Senator Clinton — while not challenging the slander that her progressive policies are part of the Washington status quo.

What worries me is that some women, perhaps especially younger ones, hope to deny or escape the sexual caste system; thus Iowa women over 50 and 60, who disproportionately supported Senator Clinton, proved once again that women are the one group that grows more radical with age. . .

It’s time to take equal pride in breaking all the barriers. We have to be able to say: “I’m supporting her because she’ll be a great president and because she’s a woman.”

Posted by egalia at

Monday, January 07, 2008

Mob of Ron Paul Supporters Chase Sean Hannity While Shouting: 'Fox News Sucks'


Sean Hannity fleeing from a mob of pissed-off Paulites? Fox News sucks? Be still my fluttering heart. . . suddenly, I love Ron Paul.

"In New Hampshire Sean Hannity flees from Ron Paul supporters after being chased out of a resturant because Congressman Paul was banned from the FOX New Hampshire Debate."


Posted by egalia at

Hillary Tears Up, Edwards Attacks


I've been wondering how Hillary does it. She gets 100 x the amount of hostile and scathing media scrutiny as any of the other candidates (exceptin' media-darling Obama who gets pretty well none). And much of it is the beyond-the-pale talk-radio misogyny that borders or crosses into pornography.

Trailblazing women, or women who are the first to break into a male-dominated field, always get ripped to shreds for their trouble. And very often they get little or no thanks from the women who benefit from their effort.

And then there's the grueling day in and day out campaign. Here's Hillary (watch the video), at a small gathering of undecided voters, answering the question: "My question is very personal, how do you do it? How do you, how do you keep upbeat and so wonderful?"


And John Edwards, who can't open his mouth without attacking Hillary, led with the usual double standard, albeit indirectly, by suggesting that Hillary's moment of vulnerability means she's just not tough enough to be president. We've heard it before John, politics is for men.

When he was asked about Hillary's emotional moment, Edwards responded: "I think what we need in a commander-in-chief is strength and resolve, and presidential campaigns are tough business, but being president of the United States is also tough business."

There you go, when she's tough, she's an ice cold bitch, when she shows vulnerability, she's not tough enough to be president. How many more centuries do we have to put up with this malevolent crap?

It's no surprise that Obama offers a far classier response:

"I didn't see what happened, I know this process is a grind. So that's not something I care to comment on."

via Feministing

UPDATE: Think Progress has some of the expected sick and sexist media coverage, as well as a list of wondrous men who were glorified because of their tears.

Posted by egalia at

Hillary Meets Sexist Pig Chris Matthews (Video)

Senator Hillary Clinton meets MSNBC's resident misogynist Chris Matthews and demonstrates once again that the woman is a class act.



via Taylor Marsh

Posted by egalia at

What Hillary Said to Chris Matthews


Quote of the Day

"I never know what to do with men who are obsessed with me."
--Hillary Clinton


"Maybe it was the nothing-left-to-lose liberation that comes with daunting poll numbers. Two New Hampshire surveys released Sunday (CNN/WMUR and USA Today/Gallup) both showed Obama with a double-digit lead over Clinton in Tuesday's primary. ButClinton seemed more relaxed and playful during the press conference than at almost any other time in the campaign. When a reporter asked obtusely whether there was any religious significance to a cross on her bracelet, she cracked, 'Talk about the secular press.' Then Chris Matthews, the host of MSNBC's 'Hardball,' posed a question on Iraq, which morphed into a plea for her to come on his show. Clinton's laughing response: 'I never know what to do with men who are obsessed with me.'"

via Walter Shapiro at Salon

Chris Matthews Misogynistic RANTs Against Hillary



Posted by egalia at

JFK Was No Obama (Video)

In his platitudes about parting the seas and ending the cultural war, or reaching out to Republicans and uniting the nation, Obama talks a lot about JFK. As you can see from the video below, John F. Kennedy was no Obama. JFK was a fiery partisan -- exactly the kind of Democrat we desperately need in the White House.


"In two days, you can do what the cynics said could not be done ... We will have a chance to come together -- Democrats, Republicans, independents -- and announce that we are one nation and one people. It is time for change in America. This is our moment and our time."

via Taylor Marsh

Posted by egalia at

Sunday, January 06, 2008

But Will they Like Obama the Morning After? (Hillary's Likability Video)


So New Hampshire voters believe that Hillary is the most experienced and the most electable of the Democratic candidates, but they like Obama better. Good thing it's only a popularity contest. (Yeah, the poll appears to include Republicans.)

But will they like seductive Obama the morning after? Or will they like the sweet talkin' man if he actually becomes the Democratic nominee?

Give it time folks -- only give the Republicans time to do their stuff.

Already, Obama's unfavorable ratings have surged to 51% (all voters nationwide) -- that's an unfavorable rating higher than Hillary's. But among only Democrats -- "Clinton is viewed favorably by 80% of Democratic voters, Edwards by 66%, and Obama by 61%."

Hillary and the Likability Contest - the New Hampshire Debate

via eriposte: "When Sen. Clinton graciously said Sen. Obama is very likable, Sen. Obama had a derisive response - 'you're likable enough, Hillary' (watch the video to see what I mean). This of course follows his recent dig about her having tea with ambassadors."

Republicans in the Obama fan club include George F. Will.

More on "the debate moment" later.
Posted by egalia at

Saturday, January 05, 2008

Kucinich Excluded from New Hampshire Debate


Tonight's Democratic New Hampshire debate will feature candidates Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, John Edwards and Bill Richardson. The debate is sponsored by ABC News, WMUR-TV and Facebook.

Democratic Dennis Kucinich -- who is being excluded from the debate -- has filed an emergency complaint with the Federal Communications Commission charging that the ABC television network “is violating its obligation to operate in the public interest.”

The lunatic Republican candidates will also debate in New Hampshire tonight. Participants include Mike Huckabee, John McCain, Rudy Giuliani, Fred Thompson, Mitt Romney and Ron Paul.

The debate begins at 6:00 central time, and the Dark Side candidates will be up first so that George W. Bush can get to bed on time.

Posted by egalia at

Friday, January 04, 2008

Krugman: What We Need in a President


Quote of the Day

"[A]mong at least some of Barack Obama’s supporters there seems to be a belief that if their candidate is elected, the world’s problems will melt away in the face of his multicultural charisma. . . A lot of Americans, when they think about the next president’s foreign-policy qualifications, seem to be looking for a hero — someone who will stand tall against terrorists, or transform the world with his optimism. But what they should be looking for is something more prosaic — a good negotiator, someone who can bargain effectively with some very tough customers and get the deals we need on energy, currency policy and carbon credits."

Posted by egalia at

Only Fools Are 'Dancing on Hillary's Political Grave'



While Tweety and assorted right-wingers celebrate Obama's victory as a reason to "dance on Hillary's political grave," they would be wise to recall that the woman has a very long track record of being a fighter, not a quitter.

It's true that the theatrically talented Obama won a bounce from Iowa, but that red state is known to be especially chilly to women who dare to seek high office. Moreover, the Iowa caucus discourages participation of working class folks. And Senator Clinton gets much of her support from working class and black women.

There are no black women in the exceedingly rural state of Iowa!

Among the many who are disenfranchised in the wildly unrepresentative state of Iowa, are all those who feel intimidated about the prospect of revealing their preferred candidate to their boss, their clients, their spouses, their neighbors.

"Privacy be damned," in Iowa, "you vote with your feet, and everyone knows about it."

The important question now is:

Will Obama's bounce enable him to overcome Hillary's lead in the far more democratic and more women-friendly state of New Hampshire?

Iowa tally -- Obama: 37.58%; Edwards: 29.75%; Hillary: 29.47%.

New Hampshire 5-Poll Average Graphic via Pollster.com

"[A]fter every commercial during "Hardball" I expect Chris Matthews to come back smoking a cigarette, with his shirt undone."


Posted by egalia at

Thursday, January 03, 2008

Obama and Huckabee Win Iowa


Obama won with 37.6 percent! He's speaking MLK-style on CNN as I write and sounding like he just won the presidency! No doubt about it, Obama is a truly inspirational speaker.

Hillary and Edwards are still vying for second place with Edwards at 29.8 percent and Hillary at 29.4 percent.

Hillary gave a terrific speech. With a smiling face, she congratulated Obama and Edwards, and she thanked the other candidates.

I didn't hear John Edwards' speech yet, but according to at least two headlines -- at Andrew Sullivan and Huffington Post -- Edwards did not congratulate Obama. I hope that's not true.

There was a huge turnout.

Chris Dodd is dropping out. Joe Biden is dropping out too.

And on the Dark Side, preacher man Huckabee left Romney in the dust: Huckabee 34 percent; Romney 25 percent. But not to worry, the lunatic conservative Club for Growth is preparing to take Huckabee down cause he's a Christian socialist!

And Thompson and McCain are tied for third place with 13 percent.

Full results.

Posted by egalia at

Wednesday, January 02, 2008

Hillary Provides Baby-Sitters for Caucus Goers - Hear the Right-wingers Whine


Baby-sitters for Iowa's caucus-goers? What radical woman-centered thing will Hillary do next? This is not how politics is supposed to work! Or so whine the hordes of right-wingers such as Michael Saul and Michael McAuliff over at the New York Daily News.

The men charge that baby-sitters are "Hillary Clinton's secret weapon" and "Clinton is going to the extremes."

Their testosty readers respond to Hillary's novel approach of considering the needs of women with comments like:

"This woman is freaking scary!" and "Desperate housewives?"

It should go without saying, but I'll say it anyway: Hillary Clinton's bid for the presidency relies primarily on the support of women. The Iowa caucus is a tradition passed down from nearly two centuries ago when the only folks who mattered in this "democracy" were elite white men who had wives to watch the children. In the year 2008, women continue the tradition of being the primary caretakers of children. In other words, untold numbers of men enjoy the privilege of participating in the Iowa caucus because they have wives to watch their children.

In fact, a political system that was designed around the lives of men and thus puts women at a disadvantage is the "secret weapon" of all male candidates. Like a man in the White House, some traditions seem to go on forever.

Iowa has never elected a woman to either the Senate or the House. Iowa has never elected a woman Governor.

A woman in the White House is a terrifying concept to many precisely because it would imperil many of our longstanding male-centered traditions. Clearly, a Madame President would result in dramatically kicking up the self-esteem or status of the women and girls of this cowboy country.

That alone would forever change this nation.

Since a woman president would owe her victory to women, who knows what long-overdue women- or family-centered policies might emerge? Equal pay? Universal childcare? Social security credits for stay-at-home moms? Paid maternity/paternity leave? The best hope of winning any of the women-friendly or family-supportive policies that so very many European women and families take for granted lies with getting a Madame President into the White House.

Baby-sitters for caucus-goers . . . it's like women are important, well, we are to Hillary.

Posted by egalia at

Obama Slams Gore & Kerry


Obama continues to alienate progressives with the strategy of using Republican frames, a strategy that suggests Obama is "running as David Broder's love child."

So now Obama appears to be blaming Al Gore and John Kerry for the polarized state of the nation. I hear Rush Limbaugh shares that view.

From kos:

Psst, Barack, slamming John Kerry and Al Gore is what Republicans do. Not Democrats.

Making an argument for his electability, Obama said, "I don't want to go into the next election starting off with half the country already not wanting to vote for Democrats -- we've done that in 2004, 2000," according to a person at the event (rush transcript).

Funny, that. Last time I checked, Gore won his election. And really, is Obama going to argue now that the nation was divided because of the Democrats' fault? Is that the latest right-wing talking point he wants to peddle?

And on a related note: Obama-labor relationship tense in Iowa

Posted by egalia at

Tuesday, January 01, 2008

Did Bush Party Too Much on New Years Eve?


The look on poor Georgie's face screams hangover. Is Bushie drinking again?

Did the worst president ever engage in a little too much celebrating on New Year's Eve?

Photo: Tue Jan 1, 2:35 PM: -- U.S. President George W. Bush (R) grimaces while stepping off the Marine One helicopter as he and first lady Laura Bush (2nd R) return from a holiday visit in Texas to the White House in Washington, January 1, 2008. REUTERS /Jonathan Ernst


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Fox News Cuts Ron Paul Instead of Thompson from Debate: Paulites Furious


Given the passionate activism of Ron Paul supporters, Fox News is asking for a really big headache by cutting Paul from this Sunday's New Hampshire debate.

Bill O’Reilly, Shepard Smith, Neil Cavuto and Brit Hume are beginning to feel the cyber wrath of the Paulites.

Ron Paul is beating Tennessee's Fred Thompson in most polls. Ron Paul has twice as much support in New Hampshire as does Fred Thompson.

Since Ron Paul is consistently outpolling Freddie Thompson, it is obvious that Freddie is the one who should be cut.

We think Fox News is exceedingly nervous about Ron Paul's consideration of a third party run. In the view of Josh Marshall, "Paul's out because he's not a Fox News Bush-clone."

ABC News is going to make cuts too, but since they are not the "fair and balanced" station, their debate cuts will be based on the results of Thursday's Iowa caucus. Fortunately for Freddie, he's "not particularly interested in running for president" anyway.

I never thought I'd see the day when Republicans became furious with Fox News. Yep, these are strange times indeed.

Update: Reports of retaliation in the form of "a massive selloff of NewsCorp (NWS) stock." (hat tip to Chris in the comments.)

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Elephants in the Room: Ecospot - Gore Contest Winner Video


Here's the Grand Prize Winner of Ecospot -- a contest held over at Al Gore's Current.com. And does this grand prize winner know how to use a metaphor or what?

There are lots more awesome-plus contest winners/public service announcements on the climate crisis over at Current.com. One of my favorites is 3rd place winner: I did Noth'N. Some of the PSAs are funny in a morbid kind of way, like Lights Out (Cheeto and Vinn star in several of the Ecospots) and The Bags. Okay, I confess. We sat around and watched half a dozen pages or more of Ecospot video clips at my house last night. Addicting!

Warning: You may develop a desire to submit content to Current.com. One more confession, Current has recently become the favorite TV station at my home.

Ecospot: The Sky is Falling (49 secs)

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One More Year of Rule by the Moron (Video)

At last, the regime of the miserable failure is almost over... Happy New Year everyone!


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