Election 2008
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Change Everything! How will politicians win your vote?
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- ENDS: 01/02/2008 07:00 PM GMT
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The Obama's "Take Back The Power" (3 minutes)
An Artists view of how to empower the players. This began as a desire to help Obama take back his power from Hillary. A drawing, a song, a tantric energy meditation and a trip to the Democratic Caucus, led to a live MUSEic journey video. An ad contest from Move On created the perfect catalyst to to bring it all to creative culmination. An Artists view of how to empower the players. This began as a desire to help Obama take back his power from Hillary. A drawing, a s... more
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Ole Miss the only clear winner in debate
OXFORD, Miss. -- It was the week of McCain and Mississippi.
John McCain, the senator from Arizona, seized the spotlight on Wednesday with his dramatic announcement that he would not attend the first presidential debate of the 2008 general election.
That left the University of Mississippi -- and the state where McCain's family roots run deepest -- in limbo, uncertain if the debate it had spent $5.5 million and countless man-hours to produce would actually happen.
But by Friday afternoon, both McCain and Democratic presidential rival Barack Obama -- and the national press -- had finally arrived in the hill country of North Mississippi.
Somehow, 46 years to the day that Mississippi state troopers blocked African-American student James Meredith from setting foot on the campus, the spotlight was less on Obama, the first black major-party nominee, than on McCain.
As the debate grew closer, faces familiar to national politics began to be seen in the vast media tent. For the Democrats, here came 2004 nominee Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts and 2008 primary candidate Gov. Bill Richardson of New Mexico. For the Republicans, the home state governor, Haley Barbour (not always McCain's best ally), and Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina.
They would be spinning before the debate ever began, following the leads of the campaigns. McCain-Palin had already started running Web ads proclaiming him the winner of the debate. Obama's campaign sent out a heavily annotated memo proclaiming McCain the heavy favorite to win the debate, which was supposed to focus on foreign policy and national security but would now include discussion of the nation's financial crisis.
Chancellor Robert Khayat had indulged in his own spinning earlier in the day, suggesting the heightened drama created by McCain would make an already historic day even more "extraordinary" for Ole Miss students OXFORD, Miss. -- It was the week of McCain and Mississippi. ... more -
US author of anti-Obama book detained in Kenya
NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — The American author of a book critical of Barack Obama is being detained in Kenya while his immigration status is checked, a senior immigration official said Tuesday.
Jerome Corsi, who wrote "The Obama Nation: Leftist Politics and the Cult of Personality," was being held at immigration headquarters in Nairobi after police picked him up from his hotel Tuesday, said Carlos Maluta, a senior immigration official in charge of investigations.
"We still haven't decided what to do with him," Maluta told The Associated Press. He said Corsi did not have a temporary work permit needed to conduct business in Kenya.
Obama is wildly popular in Kenya. His father, whom he barely knew, was a Kenyan economist.
Corsi's book claims the Illinois senator is a dangerous, radical candidate for president and includes innuendoes and false rumors — that he was raised a Muslim, attended a radical, black church and is secretly seething with "black rage."
Obama is a Christian who attended Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago, and his campaign picks apart the book's claims on the Obama campaign's rumor-fighting Web site, FightTheSmears.com.
According to a press release announcing Corsi's visit, he arrived last week at the invitation of Christian missionaries concerned about the rise of Islam. Corsi was planning to file daily dispatches all week, the statement said.
Obama's Kenyan uncle, Said Obama, said he was unaware of Corsi's detention. NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — The American author of a book critical of Barack Obama is being detained in Kenya while his immigration status i... more -
Preparations for Second 2008 Presidential Debate (photos)
Photographs from Belmont University in Nashville, TN.
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30-Second Sarah
All you need to know about Sarah Palin in 30 seconds, from the editing room of Sim Sadler.
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More Bogus Obama Donors Surface
CBS News has learned that two donors to the Obama campaign that gave a total of $7,722 appear to have made their contributions under fake names that look like they were written by a mouse running across a keyboard: Dahsudhu Hdusahfd of Df, Hawaii with the following employer CZXVC/ZXVZXV and Uadhshgu Hduadh listed as living in Dhff, Florida listed their employer as DASADA/SAFASF.
CBS News did not find any records of these last names, towns or employers anywhere else. Newsweek reported two questionable Obama donors over the weekend named “Doodad Pro” and “Good Will”.
Contributions from the two donors Hdusahfd and Hduadh were made on the same day starting on July 16, 2008. Federal Election Commission (FEC) records show the campaign began refunding the donations as early as August 6, 2008.
Despite numerous refunds from the Obama campaign, Hdusahfd still has a record of giving a total of $7500 to Obama which is well over the legal limit for the primary and general election of $4600. Hduadh gave $14,200 but the Obama campaign returned all but $222.00.
The Obama campaign says “out of an abundance of caution” all of these donations are in the process of being returned.
Obama spokesperson Bill Burton sent CBS News the following email statement, “We constantly review our donors for any issues and while no organization is completely protected from internet fraud, we will continue to review our fundraising procedures to ensure that we are taking every available step to root-out improper contributions.” Burton pointed to Harry Sargeant, one of McCain’s donors who is now the subject of a Congressional investigation. McCain returned $50,000 to Sargeant in early August.
The Republican National Committee (RNC) has asked the FEC to look into foreign donations to the Obama campaign. The FEC told CBS News they would not comment on the RNC’s complaint.
Other donors who gave over the legal limit to the Obama campaign contacted by CBS News said their money was refunded promptly by the campaign. Of those who spoke to CBS News, it seems their only mistake was that of enthusiasm.
Felicity Nitz, 60, of Brooklyn says she kept on clicking on Obama’s online fundraising appeals, “I just kept punching it when I got the emails,” she said, “I’m an insane supporter.”
Christian Skeem from Chicago says he got a letter back from the campaign with a check, “I couldn’t give them more than the limit because they kept sending it back, it wasn’t like they weren’t on the ball.” The reason he gave so much? “Cause I’m a fan,” he said. CBS News has learned that two donors to the Obama campaign that gave a total of $7,722 appear to have made their contributions under f... more -
Palin Attacks Obama
Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin continues to question her Barak Obama's relationships with Bill Ayers and former pastor Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr. Her running mate, John McCain has been reluctant to use similar tactics in his campaigning efforts. Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin continues to question her Barak Obama's relationships with Bill Ayers and form... more
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Anger vs. Steadiness in the Crisis
TIME columnist Joe Klein contrasts Obama and McCain during the financial crisis.
"A few hours before the House of Representatives smacked down the financial-bailout package, I watched John McCain — eyes flashing, jaw clenched, oozing sarcasm and disdain — on the attack in Ohio: 'Senator Obama took a very different approach to the crisis our country faced. At first he didn't want to get involved. Then he was "monitoring the situation." That's not leadership; that's watching from the sidelines.' And I thought of Karl Rove. Back in 2003, at the height of Howard Dean mania, Rove was skeptical about Dean's staying power as a candidate: 'When was the last time Americans elected an angry President?'
Much has been written about McCain's mercurial temperament during the past few weeks. An election campaign that was supposed to be all about Barack Obama has turned out to be all about John McCain. In the process, the other side of the equation — Obama's steadiness throughout — has been pretty much overlooked. Just after the House shot down the bailout, Obama took to the stage in Colorado, and the contrast with McCain couldn't have been greater: 'Now is not the time for fear, now is not the time for panic,' he said. 'We may not be able to do everything overnight ... But I want you to understand, I know we can do it ... Things are never smooth in Congress. It will get done.'
We journalists have an extensive vocabulary for cataloging the failures of politicians and a skimpy one for celebrating their successes. It's safer to be skeptical: no one will ever accuse you of being in the tank. And so we've heard lots, in a negative way, about Obama's coolness and intellectuality. And at times in this campaign — during Hillary Clinton's populist transformation, after Sarah Palin's convention speech — Obama's demeanor has seemed problematic. He was too remote, too cerebral and nuanced in his answers, it was said; he had to get warmer, learn to love junk food, practice his bowling. But Obama stubbornly remained himself through the tough times; his preternatural calm has proved reassuring in both the economic crisis and the first debate. 'His performance has been polished and steady,' a prominent Republican told me. 'John's has not been.'
Part of Obama's steadiness is born of necessity: An angry, or flashy, black man isn't going to be elected President. But I've also gotten the sense, in the times I've interviewed and chatted with him, that calm is Obama's natural default position. He is friendly, informal, accessible ... and a mystery, hard to get to know. He doesn't give away much, doesn't — unlike Bill Clinton — have that desperate need to make you like him. His brilliant, at times excessive, oratory is an outlier — the only over-the-top, Technicolor quality he has. There has been no grand cathartic moment for him in this campaign, but rather a steady accretion of trust, a growing public sense that he knows what he's talking about and isn't going to get crazy on us. His demeanor has rendered foolish all the rumors about his alleged radicalism. This guy is the furthest thing imaginable from an extremist; McCain, by his own admission, is the bomb-thrower in this race..."
Continued below... TIME columnist Joe Klein contrasts Obama and McCain during the financial crisis. ... more -
Unleashed, Palin Makes a Pit Bull Look Tame
FORT MYERS, Fla., Oct. 6 John McCain is collapsing in the polls in Florida and other swing states, but Sarah Palin, God bless her, has a solution. FORT MYERS, Fla., Oct. 6 John McCain is collapsing in the polls in Florida and other swing states, but Sarah Palin, God bless her, has... more
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Obama Hits Back
Presidential candidate Barack Obama speaks to supporters in North Carolina and shares his response to the McCain campaigns recent decisions. Presidential candidate Barack Obama speaks to supporters in North Carolina and shares his response to the McCain campaigns recent deci... more
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The Real Obama Thomas Sowell
Critics of Senator Barack Obama make a strategic mistake when they talk about his "past associations." That just gives his many defenders in the media an opportunity to counter-attack against "guilt by association."
We all have associations, whether at the office, in our neighborhood or in various recreational activities. Most of us neither know nor care what our associates believe or say about politics.
Associations are very different from alliances. Allies are not just people who happen to be where you are or who happen to be doing the same things you do. You choose allies deliberately for a reason. The kind of allies you choose says something about you.
Jeremiah Wright, Father Michael Pfleger, William Ayers and Antoin Rezko are not just people who happened to be at the same place at the same time as Barack Obama. They are people with whom he chose to ally himself for years, and with some of whom some serious money changed hands.
Some gave political support, and some gave financial support, to Obama's election campaigns, and Obama in turn contributed either his own money or the taxpayers' money to some of them. That is a familiar political alliance-- but an alliance is not just an "association" from being at the same place at the same time.
Obama could have allied himself with all sorts of other people. But, time and again, he allied himself with people who openly expressed their hatred of America. No amount of flags on his campaign platforms this election year can change that.
Unfortunately, all that most people know about Barack Obama is his own rhetoric and that of his critics. Moreover, some of his more irresponsible critics have made wild accusations-- that he is not an American citizen or that he is a Muslim, for example.
All that such false charges do is discredit Obama's critics in general. Fortunately, there is a documented, factual account of what Barack Obama has actually been doing over the years, as distinguished from what he has been saying during this election campaign, in a new best-selling book.
That book is titled "The Case Against Barack Obama" by David Freddoso. He starts off in the introduction by repudiating those critics of Obama who "have been content merely to slander him-- to claim falsely that he refuses to salute the U.S. flag or was sworn into office on a Koran, or that he was born in a foreign country."
Barack Obama's being the first serious black candidate for President of the United States is what most people consider remarkable but how he got there is at least equally surprising.
The story of Obama's political career is not a pretty story. He won his first political victory by being the only candidate on the ballot-- after hiring someone skilled at disqualifying the signers of opposing candidates' petitions, on whatever technicality he could come up with.
Despite his words today about "change" and "cleaning up the mess in Washington," Obama was not on the side of reformers who were trying to change the status quo of corrupt, machine politics in Chicago and clean up the mess there. Obama came out in favor of the Daley machine and against reform candidates.
Senator Obama is running on an image that is directly the opposite of what he has been doing for two decades. His escapes from his past have been as remarkable as the great escapes of Houdini.
Why much of the public and the media have been so mesmerized by the words and the image of Obama, and so little interested in learning about the factual reality, was perhaps best explained by an official of the Democratic Party: "People don't come to Obama for what he's done, they come because of what they hope he can be."
David Freddoso's book should be read by those people who want to know what the facts are. But neither this book nor anything else is likely to change the minds of Obama's true believers, who have made up their minds and don't want to be confused by the facts. Critics of Senator Barack Obama make a strategic mistake when they talk about his "past associations." That just gives his m... more -
MCCAIN and the Keating 5
Great new 13 minute documentary about McCain's key role in the S&L Keating scandal of the 80's that robbed people of millions.....very relevant today...
What do you think? Great new 13 minute documentary about McCain's key role in the S&L Keating scandal of the 80's that robbed people of mil... more -
How John McCain Went From Maverick to Crank -- New York Magazine
To put it kindly. McCain is a screw up from the floor up.
Can you imagine 4 years of this hoser ? And Palin to boot ? !
What is the republican fascination with dumbasses ? They keep voting them into office !
Enough ! To put it kindly. McCain is a screw up from the floor up. Can you imagine 4 years of this hoser ? And Palin to boot ? ! ... more -
Sarah Palin Wants to Spoof Tina Fey on ‘SNL’ -- New York Magazine
Can this idiot suck any more ? She's now whoring herself trying to steal the ratings that Tina Fey created.
There's just no end to this crap. Can this idiot suck any more ? She's now whoring herself trying to steal the ratings that Tina Fey created. ... more -
Scoop: Move over, Tina! Palin may appear on ‘SNL’
If you’re among those who speculate that the only thing better than Tina Fey doing Sarah Palin on “Saturday Night Live” would be Sarah Palin making a cameo on the show, there might be hope yet.
If the buzz is to be believed, the NBC show is working to get the vice-presidential candidate and Alaska governor on air before the election.
Although “Saturday Night Live,” like many other shows, doesn’t comment specifically on bookings, a rep said, “There are always talks with the candidates' camps.”
There’s also some buzz about Palin making an appearance on “The View.”
Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. John McCain have both made appearances, and “View” executive producer Bill Geddie says, “‘The View’ has established itself as a place to be seen for both the presidential and VP candidates, their wives and/or husbands and they all have an open invitation to appear on the show.’” If you’re among those who speculate that the only thing better than Tina Fey doing Sarah Palin on “Saturday Night Live” would be Sarah... more -
Almost 400,000 Countrywide mortgage holders will get help
Nearly 400,000 homeowners will be able to get more affordable loans after Bank of America (BAC) agreed Monday to modify mortgages that originated with its Countrywide Financial unit. The move could be worth more than $8.6 billion and mark the largest predatory lending settlement in history.
Monday's deal settles claims brought by attorneys general in 11 states that accused Countrywide — acquired in July by BofA — of misrepresenting loan terms, loan payment increases and borrowers' ability to afford loans.
Bank of America says it will restructure loans for Countrywide customers holding subprime mortgages and option adjustable-rate loans that permit borrowers to pay only a small portion of interest and principal owed each month. Some might wind up in new fixed-rate loans; others might not.
But the Bank of America deal represents only a fraction of the future defaults and foreclosures facing homeowners. There were more than 2.2 million foreclosure filings in the USA in 2007. Nearly 400,000 homeowners will be able to get more affordable loans after Bank of America (BAC) agreed Monday to modify mortgages that... more -
Wall St. Crisis Should Be for Neoliberalism What Fall of Berlin Wall Was for Commu...
As the world reels from the financial crisis on Wall Street and the taxpayer-funded $700 billion bailout, we spend the hour with Naomi Klein on the economy, politics and “disaster capitalism.” The Shock Doctrine author recently spoke at the University of Chicago to oppose the creation of an economic research center named after the University’s most famous economist, Milton Friedman. Klein says Friedman’s economic philosophy championed the kind of deregulation that led to the current crisis.
See the full show at the website. As the world reels from the financial crisis on Wall Street and the taxpayer-funded $700 billion bailout, we spend the hour with Naomi... more -
Palin Doodled Mayoral Platform
On a recent reporting trip to Alaska, TNR senior editor Noam Scheiber came across a piece of paper from an old Wasilla city budget, on the back of which Palin doodled and brainstormed her potential mayoral campaign themes ("time for a change," "you would be my boss!") and qualifications ("life-long alaskan," "NRA supporter," "taxpayer!"). Read the fine print on this 1996 document; it's a fascinating glimpse into how she thought she could best present herself to the Wasilla electorate.
Scheiber; " I stumbled across it at the home of Laura Chase, a former colleague of Palin's on the Wasilla city council who later managed her first race for mayor."
"Toward the end of our interview, Chase brought out a box of odds and ends she'd saved from that campaign and emptied it onto her kitchen table. Buried in the pile of material were various pictures, mailings, correspondences, newspaper clippings--and this page of doodling. Chase didn't remember a ton about it, but did tell me it had been written on the back of a budget document, which (she seemed to think) had been distributed at a Wasilla city council meeting." On a recent reporting trip to Alaska, TNR senior editor Noam Scheiber came across a piece of paper from an old Wasilla city budget, on... more -
YouTube - KEATING ECONOMICS: John McCain & The Making of a Financial Crisis
This is a great video! Please watch it if you are 18 or older. It may change your mind.
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Is Palin Plotting Her Revenge on Tina Fey?
After three buzz worthy "SNL" skits that at times turned her own words into the punchline, VP hopeful Sarah Palin could appear on the late-night show in the coming weeks to turn the tables and mock her tormentor in a spoof on Fey's American Express commercials, Sun-Times columnist Bill Zwecker is reporting.
This Saturday's show is a rerun, but on Thursday NBC will air the first of its "Weekend Update" specials in prime time. The next original "SNL'' show will be broadcast Oct. 18. After three buzz worthy "SNL" skits that at times turned her own words into the punchline, VP hopeful Sarah Palin could appe... more
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Election 2008
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Election 2008
