Jack Kevorkian, AKA Dr. Death, is running for the House as an independent in Michigan. Less than a year ago, he was released from prison after serving 8 years for second degree murder in the assisted suicide of one of his “patients”. He is still on parole.
He opposes the Iraq war, and supports legalizing marijuana.
Can you imagine the campaign slogans?
“Kevorkian ‘08- Vote for me, or else”
“Kevorkian ‘08- No new taxes- the only thing that’s certain now is death.”
Yesterday, we reached a terrible milestone in the Iraq war. There have now been over 4,000 U.S. servicemen and women killed in the line of duty. There have been over 29,000 injured, many returning maimed for life. According to the House Budget Committee, the was has cost over 600 billion dollars of taxpayer money and that number will continue to rise by 9.5 billion dollars every month. To quote President Bush “”No one would argue that this war has not come at a high cost in lives and treasure.”
The question on many Americans minds is… Why?
Why are embroiled in a war against a country that never threatened us, nor asked us to liberate them?
Why were we misled into fearing WMD’s that didn’t even exist?
Why have we paid 600 billion dollars for a war that was originally supposed to cost 50 or 60 billion?
Why are we wasting American lives in a war the majority of Americans doesn’t want to be in?
Why isn’t President Bush looking for a way out?
I don’t have all the answers.
What I do know, is that our next president should have those answers. We can’t keep following George W. Bush’s failed policies in Iraq. Instead, its time to start looking for a way out, not settling in for the next hundred years.
We owe our soldiers the same steadfast service and dedication they have given us. After 4,000 have sacrificed their lives for Iraqi freedom, it is time we start looking for a way to bring them home.
This video speaks for itself.
In 2001, John McCain was one of only two Republicans who voted against Bush’s tax cuts saying:
“We had an opportunity to provide much more tax relief to millions of hard-working Americans. . . . I cannot in good conscience support a tax cut in which so many of the benefits go to the most fortunate among us, at the expense of middle-class Americans who most need tax relief.”
-Senate floor statement before vote on May 26, 2001
In 2003, Senator McCain voted against renewing the tax cuts saying:
“…low and middle-income Americans are paying a significantly larger amount of their income in taxes. I’d like to see them get the bulk of the relief.”
- NBC’s “Today” January 7, 2003
Both times, McCain got it right. He chose his principles and what was best for the American people over party loyalty. George Bush’s tax cuts gave the majority of their benefits to the top 1%, who did not need or ask for the benefits. By voting against the tax cuts, John McCain made a statement that earned him the support of many independents and Democrats. This and other independent actions even got his named tossed around as a potential vice presidential nominee for John Kerry in 2004.
Why then did Senator McCain vote in 2006 to extend these tax cuts? Why does he continue his support to make them permanent today? He claims he did so because ending the cuts now would amount to a tax increase, which he opposes. This is not as reasonable as he would make it seem. If McCain is worried about the effect on our economy by raising taxes by repealing the cuts, he would support a plan instead of revamping them. He could close tax loopholes and switch the benefits from the top 1% to the lower and middle classes who truly need it.
Instead, I think John McCain had political motivations with this change in his stance on tax cuts. Since 2006, (when his opinion changed) he has been planning his bid for the Republican nomination. He has spent this time attempting to consolidate his support within the Republican base and change the view of him being a maverick. Thus, it would be critical to have a more party-accepted stance on the tax cuts which have such strong support within the party.
John McCain has flip flopped on taxes in a way that was politically expedient for him. If flip flopping was enough to hurt John Kerry’s presidential bid, will it do the same for McCain?
The 15 dumbest quotes from our President:
15. “Some folks look at me and see a certain swagger, which in Texas is called “walking.”
14. “It’s clearly a budget. It’s got a lot of numbers in it.”
13. “Too many good docs are getting out of the business. Too many OB-GYNs aren’t able to practice their love with women all across this country.”
12.”It is white.” —after being asked by a child in Britain what the White House was like
11. “The really rich people figure out how to dodge taxes anyway.” —explaining why high taxes on the rich are a failed strategy
10. “I just want you to know that, when we talk about war, we’re really talking about peace.”
9. “I’m hopeful. I know there is a lot of ambition in Washington, obviously. But I hope the ambitious realize that they are more likely to succeed with success as opposed to failure.”
8. “I don’t know where bin Laden is. I have no idea and really don’t care. It’s not that important. It’s not our priority.” —Washington, D.C., March 13, 2002
7. “Our enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we. They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we.”
6. “I think anybody who doesn’t think I’m smart enough to handle the job is underestimating.”
5. “My plan reduces the national debt, and fast. So fast, in fact, that economists worry that we’re going to run out of debt to retire.”- Would this be the plan to wage a nearly trillion dollar war in Iraq?
4. “I’m also not very analytical. You know I don’t spend a lot of time thinking about myself, about why I do things.”
3. “My answer is bring them on.” —on Iraqi insurgents attacking U.S. forces
2. “The legislature’s job is to write law. It’s the executive branch’s job to interpret law.” Actually, Mr. President, that’d be the judicial branch.
1. “Major combat operations in Iraq have ended. In the battle of Iraq, the United States and our allies have prevailed.” —speaking underneath a “Mission Accomplished” banner aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, May 1, 2003
According to a recent CNN poll, wine drinkers are more likely to vote for Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton than John McCain in a general election match up. However, beer drinkers are more likely to vote for McCain than a Democrat. Oddly enough, Obama does much better than Hillary when getting the the beer drinker vote.
I’ll leave you to read into the poll what you wish.
Fox News anchors are even starting to protest about the blatant bias in the coverage of the network.
Early Friday morning on “Fox and Friends” co-host Brian Kilmeade was in a discussion with his co-hosts over this comment by Barack Obama while talking about his speech on race on a local radio show:
The point I was making was not that my grandmother harbors any racial animosity, but that she is a typical white person. If she sees somebody on the street that she doesn’t know (pause) there’s a reaction in her that doesn’t go away and it comes out in the wrong way.”
The other hosts were taking offense at the fact that Obama called his grandmother a “typical white person” and clipped the sound bite right there. Brian was trying to provide context to the comment and point out the fact that Obama’s campaign clarified that Obama was referring to the generational issue. When it became clear that the other hosts wouldn’t listen to reason and were just trying to push the controversy, Brian rose from his chair and stormed off the set.
Later on “Fox and Friends”, host of “Fox News Sunday” Chris Wallace came on the show and criticized the hosts for their obvious bias. After two straight hours of Obama bashing, he said the coverage was “excessive” when you consider the context. He pointed out there were other big stories that day, such as the passport files being breached or the Richardson endorsement.
When the news network’s own hosts rise up against the obvious attacks against a single candidate, you know there is a problem. I would hope that this would be a wake up call to Fox News management, but it doubt it will. They don’t have a great track history at accepting dissent.
Brian Kilmeade walks off set:
Chris Wallace on “Obama bashing”:
Casey Knowles, the sleeping girl in Hillary Clinton’s 3AM-Red phone ad, has spoken out against the “politics of fear” used in it. She says she rejects the tactics used that drive us apart. In an ironic turn of events for the Clinton campaign, Casey is actually an active Obama supporter and a was even a precinct captain in Washington’s caucus.
The Clinton campaign used stock footage of Casey (then 8 years old) sleeping at home in bed, then asked: “Which candidate would you want answering the phone at 3am?”. Clearly, it was fear mongering, an attempt to play upon voters deepest fears of an attack and scare up votes.
According to a CBS Poll on 3/20, Barack Obama will weather the Pastor Wright controversy with little damage to his viability as a candidate. CBS conducted a random poll among the same registered voters on 3/15, 3/18, and 3/20:
After his speech on race and his former pastor Tuesday, voters with a favorable opinion of him (43%) still outweigh those with a negative (30%).
A majority of Americans still believe he would unite the country (52%) though that is down from 67% in February.
70% of voters said the events would not effect their decision to vote for the Senator, 14% said it would make them more likely to vote for him, and 14% said it would make them less likely.
His standing with independents did drop slightly, with 13% saying it would make them less likely to vote for him, while only 11% say they would now be more likely to vote for him. And 75% say it will make no difference.
Among voters supporting Obama over McCain in the general election, 23% said they would no be more likely to vote for Obama. Only 6% said they would be less likely, and 69% said it would make no difference.
All in all, it appears that Barack will come out of the controversy relatively unscathed. 70% of Americans say it will make no difference in whether they will vote for him. Nearly 25% of his supporters now support him even more, and his standing with independents was not damaged as badly as some thought.
Good news for Obama supporters, and more proof that he really is a resilient candidate with the ability to win the general election.
Coming from Eschaton here’s a quote from former President Bill Clinton earlier today:
It’d be a great thing if we had an election where you had two people who love this country, who were devoted to the interest of the country and people could actually ask themselves who is right on these issues instead of all this other stuff which always seems to intrude on our politics.
I find it amazing that Clinton is able to condemn all this other “stuff” that intrudes into our politics and calling for debate on the issues, while in the same breath insinuating Barack Obama doesn’t love this country. He has the audacity to complain that the campaign is veering away from the issues, while pushing the Pastor Wright story to superdelegates?
Come on Bill, you are better than this…
