 |
|
|
|
April 2, 2008 5:30 AM
Non-Random Notes, With Updates And Forum Throughout Day
“The lofty rhetoric,” said Steve Schmidt, McCain’s message man, of Barack Obama’s speeches. “It’s nonsense talk.” McCain’s senior adviser Mark Salter chimed in as well, “His whole brand is, ‘I’m not about that. I’m about something better.’ “ The two advisers were complaining about Obama’s repeated evocation of McCain’s statement last January that he could foresee a U.S. troop presence in Iraq for another 100 years. At the time, McCain was not speaking about continuing the war in Iraq, but rather about a continuing non-combat presence, along the lines of the U.S. military bases in post-war Korea and Germany. But since then, Obama, Hillary Clinton and the Democratic Party have repeatedly evoked the “100 years” comment to suggest that McCain wants to continue the war for another century. Obama has at various times talked of McCain’s intention to have a “100 years of war” and his intention to stay in Iraq for “another 100 years.” “It’s absolutely dishonest,” Schmidt says, “absolutely dishonest. It’s old style Chicago politics. I guess that is how they play politics in Chicago.” “Senator Obama has done the country a great service in this ‘100 year’ comment,” says Schmidt, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s re-election campaign manager, “because now the American people have the information they need to know that he is being dishonest.” McCain has not said that he wants a 100-year war in Iraq. What’s he’s talked about is along the lines of the ongoing American presence in South Korea, which dates back to 1945. But as the Democratic National Committee points out, a Washington Post Fact Checker post shows McCain saying last November that he wasn’t for keeping troops in Iraq for decades.
The Freudenthal endorsement is not a huge surprise since, as I noted at the time of the Wyoming caucuses, the governor’s daughter was waving an Obama sign at their caucus meeting in Cheyenne.
One year ago today, the US Supreme Court determined that greenhouse gas emissions are covered by the Clean Air Act, contrary to the positition of the Bush Administration, and do constitute an environmental threat. The Court ordered the EPA to begin acting accordingly. What this requires in terms of governmental process is a formal “endangerment” finding by the EPA prior to the promulgation of regulations. EPA chief Stephen Johnson, in blocking California’s law cutting tailpipe emissions of greenhouse gases, said it’s the job of the EPA to do that. But everything has been stalled at the agency level, where the staff has prepared the necessary finding but Johnson has refused to issue it. This morning Brown joined Sierra Club chief climate counsel David Bookbinder, International Center for Technology Assessment director Joe Mendelson, and Massachusetts environmental protection chief James Milkey on a conference call to announce the filing of a legal writ of mandamus to force the release of the EPA statement within 60 days. “We recognize the political realities that pertain in present day Washington,” said Brown, who is acting with the approval of Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. “They’re trying to stall the process until they’re out of town,” said the two-time runner-up for the Democratic presidential nomination, referring to the Bush Administration. “It’s all about continual procrastination and Fabian tactics of delay.” Asked by a reporter if he would “confirm” his intention to return to the California governorship in the election of 2010, Brown, the prohibitive Democratic favorite if he runs, said he had made no such decision, declaring his personal plans “totally irrelevant and trivial in the face of the threat that climate change represents.” Brown, incidentally, was 20 minutes late to his conference call. That, Governor, is why you have your cell phone.
The assessment crosses party lines. Among Democrats, 22% have the positive view while 41% have the negative view. There is no gender gap.
In another sign of the Times, the paper had only one reporter, whose name did not ring a bell for me, at last weekend’s California Democratic Party convention. In years past, they would have at least three. Mostly collaborating for lengthy periods of time on relatively brief stories similar to those in the other daily newspapers.
First the non-surprise. The Quinnipiac poll has Clinton’s lead over Obama down to nine points, 50% to 41%. The poll is, however, old, having been taken from March 24-31. Now the surprise. The Public Policy Polling tracking poll, conducted Monday night and last night, has Obama narrowly ahead of Clinton, 45% to 43%.
After some predictable chat, the group gathered around Clinton for photos. While posing, Rachel Binah from the very liberal Mendocino County decided to pointedly mention to Clinton how upset she was over motormouth Clinton advisor James Carville’s attack on Richardson as “Judas” for endorsing Barack Obama. The ex-president went off, says Binah, “red-faced, finger-pointing,” as the ex-Richardson backer described him, going on about how Richardson supposedly “five times to my face, he said that he would never do that.” Clinton then went on with his usual complaints about the media, the unfairness of the Obama campaign, the lack of democracy in caucuses, and so forth. Showing that feelings between the Richardson camp and the Clintons are quite raw, Richardson spokesman Pahl Shipley reiterated that Richardson never promised Clinton he would not endorse Obama. In a Washington Post op-ed yesterday, Richardson basically called Carville a liar for rattling off names of Democratic money people the New Mexico governor had supposedly assured on the matter.
Hamilton, who was on Bill Clinton’s vice presidential short list, is more recently famous for co-chairing the Iraq Study Group with former Secretary of State James Baker, as well as serving as vice chairman of the 9/11 Commission. The ISG was very controversial on the right, but its recommendations are basically being followed — in super slow-mo fashion. Hamilton is also a good endorsement for Obama in socially conservative Indiana, where Hillary Clinton might get a primary win in her ever so slowly winding down campaign.
It’s funny, now, how less self-assured I feel later in life than I did when I lived in the perpetual springtime of youth. Some of my critics allege that age hasn’t entirely cost me my earlier conceits. All I can say to them is they should have known me then. But as the great poet, Yeats, wrote, “All that’s beautiful drifts away, like the waters.” I’ve lost some of the attributes that were the object of a young man’s vanity. But there have been compensations, which I have come to hold dear. If I had ignored some of the less important conventions of the Academy, I was careful not to defame its more compelling traditions: the veneration of courage and resilience; the honor code that simply assumed your fidelity to its principles; the homage paid to Americans who had sacrificed greatly for our country; the expectation that you, too, would prove worthy of your country’s trust. … The Naval Academy was not interested in degrading my dignity. On the contrary, it had a more expansive conception of human dignity than I possessed when I arrived at its gates. The most important lesson I learned here was that to sustain my self-respect for a lifetime it would be necessary for me to have the honor of serving something greater than my self-interest. When I left the Academy, I was not even aware I had learned that lesson. In a later crisis, I would suffer a genuine attack on my dignity, an attack, unlike the affronts I had exaggerated as a boy, that left me desperate and uncertain. It was then I would recall, awakened by the example of men who shared my circumstances, the lesson that the Academy in its venerable and enduring way had labored to impress upon me. It changed my life forever. I had found my cause: citizenship in the greatest nation on earth. … But even as we stand today, at the threshold of an age in which the genius of America will, I am confident, again be proven – the genius that historian Frederick Turner called “that restless, nervous energy; that dominant individualism … that buoyancy and exuberance which comes with freedom” – many Americans are indifferent to or cynical about the virtues that our country claims. In part, it is attributable to the dislocations economic change causes; to the experience of Americans who have, through no fault of their own, been left behind as others profit as they never have before. In part, it is in reaction to government’s mistakes and incompetence, and to the selfishness of some public figures who seek to shine the luster of their public reputations at the expense of the public good. But for others, cynicism about our country, government, social and religious institutions seems not a reaction to occasions when they have been let down by these institutions, but because the ease which wealth and opportunity have given their lives led them to the mistaken conclusion that America, and the liberties its system of government is intended to protect, just aren’t important to the quality of their lives. I’m a conservative, and I believe it is a very healthy thing for Americans to be skeptical about the purposes and practices of public officials. We shouldn’t expect too much from government – nor should it expect too much from us. Self-reliance – not foisting our responsibilities off on others – is the ethic that made America great. But when healthy skepticism sours into corrosive cynicism our expectations of our government become reduced to the delivery of services. And to some people the expectations of liberty are reduced to the right to choose among competing brands of designer coffee. What is lost is, in a word, citizenship. For too many Americans, the idea of good citizenship does not extend beyond walking into a voting booth every two or four years and pulling a lever. And too few Americans demand of themselves even that first obligation of self-government. … Citizenship is defined by countless acts of love, kindness and courage that have no witness or heraldry and are especially commendable because they are unrecorded. Although it exists apart from government, citizenship is the habits and institutions that preserve democracy. It is the ways, small and large, we come together to govern ourselves. Citizenship is the responsible exercise of freedom, and is indispensable to the proper functioning of a democracy. … Love of country, my friends, is another way of saying love of your fellow countrymen—a truth I learned a long time ago in a country very different from ours. That is the good cause that summons every American to service. If you find faults with our country, make it a better one. If you are disappointed with the mistakes of government, join its ranks and work to correct them. I hope more Americans would consider enlisting in our Armed Forces. I hope more would consider running for public office or working in federal, state and local governments. But there are many public causes where your service can make our country a stronger, better one than we inherited. Wherever there is a hungry child, a great cause exists. Where there is an illiterate adult, a great cause exists. Wherever there are people who are denied the basic rights of Man, a great cause exists. Wherever there is suffering, a great cause exists. The good citizen and wise person pursues happiness that is greater than comfort, more sublime than pleasure. The cynical and indifferent know not what they miss. For their mistake is an impediment not only to our progress as a civilization but to their happiness as individuals. As blessed as we are, no nation complacent in its greatness can long sustain it. We, too, must prove, as those who came before us proved, that a people free to act in their own interests, will perceive those interests in an enlightened way, will live as one nation, in a kinship of ideals, and make of our power and wealth a civilization for the ages, a civilization in which all people share in the promise and responsibilities of freedom.
Barack Obama campaigns in Wallingford and West Chester, Pennsylvania. Hillary Clinton campaigns in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and Menlo Park, California. Bill Clinton campaigns in Columbus, Seymour, Bedford, and Bloomington, Indiana. John McCain campaigns in Annapolis, Maryland and Pensacola, Florida.
You probably already know about CNN International, BBC World, and Al Jazeera. Russia Today, which also features culture, entertainment, and sports, is based in Moscow and is owned and operated by the TV Novosti division of Russia’s state news agency, RIA Novosti. While it’s quite foolish to expect to see, say, criticism of Vladimir Putin on Russia Today, the channel is very interesting nonetheless. The NWN live link to RT does not constitute an endorsement of the channel’s views. It’s presented as an otherwise unavailable new media window.
Your posts are welcome in the Forum. Comments (100)Jonas Blane :Jonas Blane :I like McCain's speech. He's not a hack. Capitol Boy :McCain's a pretty funny guy, I give him that. Ann :Funny we like. Hap Hazard :I think it is nearly time to come to terms with the fact that McCain will be the next president of the US. Bill Bradley :We'll see. Bill Bradley :Bill Bradley :Very nice of you. >Capitol Boy : McCain's a pretty funny guy, I give him that. Apr 2, 2008 06:49 AM Bill Bradley :I sense a bumper sticker. >Jonas Blane : I like McCain's speech. He's not a hack. Apr 2, 2008 06:10 AM Bill Bradley :Not an uncommon view. >Jonas Blane : McCain's pretty good. I can live with him. Apr 2, 2008 05:57 AM Capitol Boy :Screw Bill Clinton. He's just a loudmouthed asshole now. Hap Hazard :"now"? Ann :Hap Hazard :Rachel Binah is tough, and runs a great Inn Jack Aubrey :Barack Obama is a dignified person. John McCain is a dignified person. The Clintons are not dignified. They are crass. Jonas Blane :McCain's been known to go off on people. But there is a less self-absorbed, more truthful quality to it. Bill Bradley :Well, she certainly nailed BC. >Hap Hazard : Rachel Binah is tough, and runs a great Inn Apr 2, 2008 08:00 AM Bill Bradley :Let's keep the language cool. >Capitol Boy : Screw Bill Clinton. He's just a loudmouthed asshole now. Apr 2, 2008 07:35 AM Bill Bradley :True. >Jonas Blane : McCain's been known to go off on people. But there is a less self-absorbed, more truthful quality to it. Apr 2, 2008 08:15 AM Jonas Blane :I love the Letterman video. Ann :La Times lives. lol Brasky :"Now the surprise. The Public Policy Polling tracking poll, conducted Monday night and last night, has Obama narrowly ahead of Clinton, 45% to 43%." What's that sound? Is someone dragging a firewall to another state? Len :I'm glad this site is working again. Bill Bradley :It was generally well throughout, with the exception of people losing their bookmarks and chronic problems with the Forum. Bill Bradley :I don't expect Obama to win Pennslvania. But Hillary will again fail to win the sort of huge victory she promised on March 4th. >Brasky : "Now the surprise. The Public Policy Polling tracking poll, conducted Monday night and last night, has Obama narrowly ahead of Clinton, 45% to 43%." What's that sound? Is someone dragging a firewall to another state? Apr 2, 2008 10:19 AM Bill Bradley :Bill Bradley :Besides the bit with the dueling monologues, Letterman did an extended interview with McCain. >Jonas Blane : I love the Letterman video. Apr 2, 2008 08:39 AM Brasky :I liked the Richardson op ed - thanks. He took Carvile to task. Bill Bradley :In the future, with Obama the likely Democratic leader, some folks who have been gurus will be cranks. Brasky :"In the future, with Obama the likely Democratic leader, some folks who have been gurus will be cranks." The difference between gurus and cranks is the size of the check you get for shooting your mouth off... Len :Sounds good to me. Bill Bradley :Incidentally, NWN passed 54,000 comments sometime in the past week. Brasky :"BILL CLINTON’S HISTORICAL REPUTATION HARMED BY HIS 2008 CAMPAIGNING" ...smaller and fewer checks there too... Dana :Hap, I concede that McCain may be the next president of the US. The speech is very inspiring and timely. A campaign where both sides have this sort of elevated tone and thoughtfulness would be most welcome. The country is troubled and whoever is elected has some real challenges, including bringing unity after the divisive Clinton/Bush years. Bill--these ex-gurus/cranks, will they be outside looking in? Bill Bradley :Maybe. He had a fantastic thing going. I was so impressed by much of it that I had to consciously resist writing about the Clinton Foundation because his wife was running and it would make NWN look like a pro-Clinton outlet. Bill Bradley :I was responding to the Brasky post re Bill Clinton. Bill Bradley :Well, we have to get to that campaign. Regarding ultimate insiders turned outsiders ... I'm not sensing the particular need for James Carville, Mark Penn, Howard Wolfson and the like in an Obama-led Democratic Party. >Dana : Dana :Kick me if I'm wrong, but isn't the choice of McCain/Obama a decisive break symbolically (among other reasons) from the Clinton/Bush era? The public is looking ahead and feels the need for something other than past approaches. However unfair a dig, Obama's one-liner that McCain is seeking Bush's third term plays on this because the identification w/Bush isn't good for Mr. McCain (bet that recent photo op in the rose garden is the last we have those two together until after November...) Brasky :"I'm not sensing the particular need for James Carville, Mark Penn, Howard Wolfson and the like in an Obama-led Democratic Party." Plus, those guys ain't making any friends with Pelosi, et al. Bill Bradley :They certainly are not. I believe one of the reasons some folks are hanging on so vociferously is they know that the clock is ticking down. Bill Bradley :That's right. Although there are issue similarities, McCain is a fundamentally different figure than Bush, and the same is true with regard to Obama and Clinton(s). They approach the process differently and conduct themselves differently. >Dana : Chris M :It's striking, when we have a Republican administration closing up shop by bequeathing to the nation a sinking economy and a very messy (and largely unpopular) military situation, that sharp minds who visit this site are ready to concede that we will have another Republican presidency. Brasky :Reason #392 that the California Right Wing is ALL bark an NO bite : just read that Abel Maldonado is running unopposed in the primary. I thought he was traitor #1 among the Fleishman crowd. Ann :The no-comment Flush Report strikes again. marcus :McCain is demonstrably more qualified than the inexperienced Obama and fradulent Clinton. Ann :lol
Dana :Chris M, please read carefully, I said we may have another Republican presidency. Despite the grumbling, the process worked and the Reps have a nominee much better poised to hold the White House than Romney or Guliani or Thompson. But McCain has good and bad points plus there are some major variables (the war, the economy, any last minute Bush blow-up/scandals) that will play a role in how well he runs. The real campaign hasn't even started, and the final outcome is by no means assured. Bill Bradley :Bill Bradley :Indeed. >Ann : lol
Apr 2, 2008 01:33 PM James- The Historian :Chris M- One more point: it seems that regulars on this site tend to think for themselves. Not all share your views. That is part of what makes NWN so valuable. Bill Bradley :Qualifications can be overrated. >marcus : McCain is demonstrably more qualified than the inexperienced Obama and fradulent Clinton. Apr 2, 2008 01:29 PM Bill Bradley :Thanks. >James- The Historian : Chris M- One more point: it seems that regulars on this site tend to think for themselves. Not all share your views. That is part of what makes NWN so valuable. Apr 2, 2008 02:19 PM Bill Bradley :He is indeed. >Brasky : Reason #392 that the California Right Wing is ALL bark an NO bite : just read that Abel Maldonado is running unopposed in the primary. I thought he was traitor #1 among the Fleishman crowd. Apr 2, 2008 01:20 PM Bill Bradley :McCain may win, or not. But had the vicars of the far right gotten their way, they would have all but guaranteed an Obama presidency. >Chris M : It's striking, when we have a Republican administration closing up shop by bequeathing to the nation a sinking economy and a very messy (and largely unpopular) military situation, that sharp minds who visit this site are ready to concede that we will have another Republican presidency. Apr 2, 2008 01:05 PM Brasky :"He is indeed." For less than the cost of those radio ads they ran against Maldo, they could have bought a pony for Ann. It would have been a better investment. Wilbur :>>Bill Bradley : The next president will be John McCain or Barack Obama. I'm not sure which. Hmmm... customary hedging conspicuously absent.... OK, then, let's call it and head for the bar! Jack Aubrey :I think it's McCain. Dana :From this link you can click to read the Pro 98 arguments in the voter's pamphlet if you need a good laugh. Jon Coupal and his associates sound a tad desperate in their collection of mis-leading statements, etc. I think this one will sink. In the end, Mr. Coupal, have you no shame? Sir, have you no shame? Bill Bradley :Did I hear that Coupal is against closing any tax loopholes? That wouldn't be a politically viable position. Bill Bradley :Bill Bradley :My hedging is sometimes impartiality. Besides, if I cut to the chase all the time, what do I have to write about? :) >Wilbur : Bill Bradley :I'd forgotten about those radio ads. >Brasky : marcus :Obama better get his pretty lines straight or the McCain crowd will trip him up bad. Hap Hazard :I bet Coupal did say no to closing tax loopholes, because the democrats' definition of that differs from his. The biggest tax "giveaway" that sometime we will have to deal with seriously is the k-12 public education system in the state, which is probably the worst in the western world. Hap Hazard :I am with you on that, Dana... A campaign where both sides have this sort of elevated tone and thoughtfulness would be most welcome. Capitol Boy :Bill, shouldn't you remind Steve Schmidt that his boss's wife is for Obama? Ann :Which boss? lol Bill Bradley :Well, that would be the thing. Bill Bradley :I deal with so many crosscutting relationships and situations I wouldn't even begin to venture into that sort of thing. >Capitol Boy : Bill Bradley :I think there will be a thoughtful general election. With a lot of side bubbling negativity. >Hap Hazard : Bill Bradley :I believe it was something else, in the area of the usual definition of tax loopholes. >Hap Hazard : Ann :In the usual definition of greed. lol Hap Hazard :Well, it makes no sense not to fix the sales-use tax law to require that vessel or airplane purchases out of state be subject to use tax, but it wouldn't represent much in the way of revenues gained. Bill Bradley :Actually, you know, Schwarz is thinking of actual LOOPHOLES. Bill Bradley :Not that I want to cut to the chase or anything. Since the state has been, you know, dicking around for four fracking yhears on this stuff. Bill Bradley :... And, as it turns out according to SciFi -- hello Gospodin Bierko with his resume in progress -- "frack" is actually spelled "frak." Capitol Boy :Half the California state govt. budget is tax "expenditures." Anybody who doesn't get it doesn't want to get it. Dr. Sam Loomis :I'm looking forward to seeing Bill Clinton endorse Obama when Obama wins the nomination. The corny "ah-shucks who me?" thing Bill does is so funny. carole w :I loved the McCain video:) Brasky :Well, it's not a 100 years of war, but has McCain said WHEN we will leave Iraq? I ain't all that happy about getting another Korea out the bargain. The thousands of troops we have on Korean soil is only one part of our military dedication to that region. Oh, and although we don’t shoot one another anymore, we are technically still at war with North Korea. Dr. Sam Loomis :South Korea is an economic powerhouse. They are now building cars to compete with those built in the US. Several SK industries are outshining their US counterparts. Our army is defending their country while their army of Starcraft online players is second to none. Mr. Bush is a very weak man. Mr. Bush sees his job as occupying the position for 8 years, not as running anything. The bold position would be for Mr. Bush to say enough is enough - SK is an ally - but we're out of SK. North Korea is a basket case on every topic. They are especially lame on logistical support of their million man army - their only threat. Why Are We There? Brasky :Dr Sam: I think a major reason is that if the US were to leave, the South would have to build-up their military WHILE we were still there. That would be a VERY large military build-up in a (technical) war zone. Very problematic. Sigh. Didn't know about the Starcraft thing... Brasky :Oh, and we were in Germany for 50 years to keep the USSR from invading Western Europe. We weren't getting hit with badly aimed mortar shells at Ramstein, but we ran plenty of drills for WW III. I do think that the Dems inaccurate wielding of the “100 year” remark is somewhat unfair (implying 100 years of roadside bombs), but I also want McCain to be honest about what kind of military commitment we can expect under his leadership. Sometimes I get a very LBJ vibe from him, which is ironic on a lot of levels… Bill Bradley :The Sovs were quite serious. Bill Bradley :True. >Brasky : Bill Bradley :Hah! If only that were true ... >Dr. Sam Loomis : Bill Bradley :Considering that the ME is a far more volatile region than the Korean Peninsula, hardly a surprise. >Brasky : Bill Bradley :Bill Bradley :It's a natural. >Dr. Sam Loomis : Hap Hazard :Half the California state govt. budget is tax "expenditures." Anybody who doesn't get it doesn't want to get it. The percentage seems high. The income is about 45% personal income taxes, which are mostly confomring to federal law, so no loophole closing opportunities are readily available there. The sales and use tax gives the state about 35% of its revenues. The boat/airplane out of state purchase loophole is one in this area, but that is about it. Then the corporation taxes bring in about 10% of the money, and these rules mostly follow the federal laws, and if anything, there are taxes corporations must pay here that aren't applicable to the federal law. Then there are motor vehicle fees, which give about 5% of the total revenues incoming. I don't know of any loopholes there that can be closed. So where are the tax expenditures that make up the half of the budget? I want to get it, but I apparently don't get it... I do know that they have been fraking around on this for years, but it is largely because there isn't any more creative things that can be done, because about 3/4ths of the spending goes to Education (a waste), Health and Welfare, transportation and Corrections, and virtually none of it can be cut because of state or federal laws (or court decisions) saying otherwise.
Jonas Blane :What video today? carole w :Bill, Hap, Brasky :Hap - you forgot the third rail of CA politics. Property taxes. There has been debate in Sacramento over the years of exempting commercial property from some of the Prop 13 protections. BTW, I think your views about spending on education, health and transportation are...a little out of the mainstream. Bill Bradley :Ah, the third rail. carole w :What is happening with the state fire assessment? Did San Diego ever figure out how to create their own county fire department? What happened to the politician that was trying to destroy the police/fire pensions? I can't remember his name. Bill Bradley :Bring it on today's thread. It's way too distracting otherwise, especially on such a tangential issue. marcus waldron :The San Diego fire assessment? Bill Bradley :It's a California budget issue. Capitol Boy :The Reeps hate it. Capitol Boy :Let's all post on past threads to confuse Bill! Comments have been archived for this page. |
Pajamas MediaBig Fat Brother Is Watching Your Calorie Count Obamessiah Hits the Holy Land Hurricane Dolly Slows, Deepens, About to Hit Texas Shocked Serbians Celebrate Karadzic’s Capture The Dark Knight — Not Just Another Superhero Movie Colorblind Equality: A Winning Issue for McCain? The Media and Obama: Reporters or Flunkies? John Edwards in a Feydeau Farce at the Beverly Hilton
Support Pajamas Media; Visit Our Advertisers
Support Pajamas Media; Visit Our Advertisers
RSS FeedsADVERTISEMENT
|
digg this
del.icio.us
McCain's pretty good. I can live with him.
Apr 2, 2008 05:57 AM