Donuts And Politics

Been a busy weekend. I’ll try to consolidate what we’ve learned:

0. Obama is BACK! Check out the Gallup Tracking poll–goin’ up!

1. Obama is not a good bowler. But he is trying to do well in Pennsylvania.

2. Bus trips are fun! Obama on a 6-day trip through PA. Hillary to follow.

3. Clinton doesn’t pay bills on time. Owes $8.7 million. Vendors are warning businesses to demand payment up front. Will this translate to her Presidency too?

4. Clinton thinks going to the convention without having a nominee yet is ok. Obama isn’t trying to force her to drop out before the end of the primaries on June 3.

5. Breaking primary rules and lying about snipers is no big deal.

6. Obama will win more delegates in Texas than Clinton by 5-6.

7. Gore is back and serious. Watch for climate change ads in the near future as a HUGE campaign starts advocating national consensus on policies for combating pollution and global warming.

8. DELEGATE UPDATE: Obama only 399 delegates away from the magic number (Politico.com).

9. IRAQ IS UNSTABLE. “SURGE” NOT HELPING THAT MUCH.

10. MN Senator Amy Klobuchar (and superdelegate) to endorse Obama on Monday. All 7 NC Congressional superdelegates rumored to be endorsing Obama before the state’s primary on May 6. This would give him a net of 7 more delegates. Does Clinton really think she’s going to be able to convince enough remaining superdelegates to give her the nomination? Seriously. Its a slow but steady trickle to Obama. Death by 1000 papercuts rather than the guillotine, apparently.

Clinton on Wright yesterday:

I think given all we have heard and seen, he would not have been my pastor….You don’t choose your family, but you choose what church you want to attend.

For the past week, she has virtually no comment on the whole thing. Ok, fine. That’s respectable at least, even though she could have come out and defended Obama since she has known him for a few years and should know Wright’s statements don’t reflect Obama’s views.  Now she comes out and says that. When asked about why she was bringing it up now (oh, what was that about snipers in Bosnia?), she said she was just asked a question about it SO SHE ANSWERED IT.  Give me a break! Politicians can answer questions in whatever way they choose and that’s how she CHOSE to answer it.

So, now we turn to the GOP nominee, asked a similar question today in Denver, and McCain says this:

I can only say that I am sure, knowing Senator Obama, that he does not share the extreme views that were expressed that I saw on television.

Wow. The Republican candidate just stood up for Obama while the Democrat basically threw him under a bus. Just shows the desperation of the Clinton campaign and how low they will stoop to try and steal this nomination. Frankly, I would have thought the quotes were reversed. You may be surprised that I am being so charitable and nice to the future GOP nominee, but I gotta give props to him when he deserves it.

His policies, on the other hand, I may never say anything nice about. We’ll see. There may be a few good things he has done, but he’s probably changed his positions on those in the last six months to match Bush. Bush, I just don’t have anything nice to say about at this point policy-wise or personally, so I just won’t say anything at all. Right now.

Nice job. So, apparently these big donors are saying that the Democratic Party should not support the will of all the people who voted in the primaries. Interesting position. Here is part of their letter (emphasis mine):

You suggested super-delegates have an obligation to support the candidate who leads in the pledged delegate count as of June 3rd , whether that lead be by 500 delegates or 2. This is an untenable position that runs counter to the party’s intent in establishing super-delegates in 1984….We have been strong supporters of the DCCC. We therefore urge you to clarify your position on super-delegates and reflect in your comments a more open view to the optional independent actions of each of the delegates at the National Convention in August.

Pelosi has not supported either candidate, but remained neutral. All she said was:

If the votes of the superdelegates overturn what happened in the elections, it would be harmful to the Democratic Party.

I mean, can anyone seriously argue that? And they are trying to say its an “untenable position?” Anyway, her reply through her spokesman was basically: Screw You. You tryin’ to threaten me dawg?

Hey I have an idea, let’s threaten Superdelegates and Democratic leaders to get them to support Clinton! That’ll really change their minds and get them on board fast! What a great way to convince people to support Clinton and really love her from the heart. Threats! Who knew?

Clinton’s efforts are backfiring, the Wright blow-up held in check, McCain-not so hot, look at these numbers (MOE +/3.7%):

Favorability Rating: Obama 49% positive - 32% negative; Clinton 35%p - 43%n

Gen Election Matchup: Obama 44% - McCain 42%; Clinton 44% - McCain 46%

Would the candidate be successful at uniting the country:

Obama 60% yes; McCain 58% yes; Clinton 46% yes (can anyone say polarizing?)

On the Wright issue, 32% said Obama addressed it sufficiently while 26% said he needed to say more and 31% didn’t see any of the speech (they were off-planet apparently).

Overall, it looks like the whole thing didn’t hurt Obama too much, he only gained about 4 points in negative ratings since the last poll. Obviously, its only one poll and I don’t put entire faith in one poll–just to be clear, but its more positive than otherwise so its a good step in the right direction. Maybe it’ll get Hillary to cut out the garbage talk and focus on her own campaign rather than trying to disparage Obama all the time.

In an effort to lessen damage done to her struggling presidential campaign by the recent revelation that she lied about details of a trip to Bosnia as First Lady, New York Senator Hillary Clinton will deliver a speech this Friday about the role of bald-faced lying in society.

The speech, described as “historic” and “a landmark event” by advisers close to Clinton, could be a make or break moment for the senator. Excerpts from the prepared text have already leaked:

I can no more stop lying than I can stop talking.  I can no more stop lying than I can stop breathing.  Lying is a part of me, and it is a part of America, this country I love.

 Another:

We have a choice in this country.  We can call attention to every one of my misstatements… we can broadcast videotaped proof that I’ve lied on YouTube and on every cable news network… we can compare my actual record to the things I make up in my speeches.  We can do that.

But if we do that, I could lose this race.  Senator Obama could win.  And everything would change!

Her speech ends on a soft note:

There is a young woman who organized for our campaign in one of the big, blue states I won.  I forget her name.  She joined my campaign because she’s afraid of electing a black man who might be a muslim.

And once, she went around the room asking a group of volunteers why they were there.  They all had different answers.  Some support me because I say I passed the Family Medical Leave Act.  Some because I say I’ve never supported NAFTA.  Some because I say I brokered peace in Northern Ireland.  But when she got to a little old man at the other end of the room, he didn’t say any of that.  He simply said, “I’m here because Hillary will say whatever it takes to win.”

Now that moment alone will not win this election for me.  But it’s where we start.  If enough people accept that it’s not what I say, but why I say it that matters, we can pull this off.  And by we, I mean I.

Clinton will deliver the speech on Friday from the tarmac of a Bosnian airstrip, while ducking heavy sniper fire and running back and forth in front of the podium with her head down. (see original post from daily kos)

There are many people who ask the legitimate question of what has Barack Obama done? What is his experience? Now, many people like Obama for who he is (his transparency, inspirational leadership, integrity, etc..), as I do, but I also like what he has done, tried to get done, future proposals and how he’s approached legislating. So, if you were legitimately wondering what some of his accomplishments have been, here are some answers:

In his first year in the U.S. Senate, Barack Obama authored 152 bills and co-sponsored another 427. These included:

• The Coburn-Obama Government Transparency Act of 2006 (became law)
• The Lugar-Obama Nuclear Non-proliferation and Conventional Weapons Threat Reduction Act (became law)
• The Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act (passed the Senate)
• The 2007 Government Ethics Bill (became law)
• The Protection Against Excessive Executive Compensation Bill (in committee)

Since entering the U.S. Senate, Senator Obama has written 890 bills and co-sponsored another 1096.

He also has listed on his website more details of these bills and other substantial work he has done.

This chart shows his work in the Illinois Senate as well:

Some things to think about. On my agenda are:

1. 2nd Amendment case DC v. Heller–first time in over 70 years the Court heard a case about gun-rights.

2. Obama’s Accomplishments (as requested)

3. Iraq War–future policy and response to some comments

4. McCain’s policies