Nyac the otter died of leukemia today - at the age of 20. Nyac survived the Exxon Valdez oil spill in 1989 and spent the remainder of her life in the Vancouver zoo.
The things we could learn from animals if we only bothered to understand what it is they have to teach.
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Friday, September 26, 2008
McCain Wins Debate - A Day Early - And Doesn't Mind Telling Wall Street
McCain campaign self-proclaims debate victory in a front page ad on The Wall Street Journal - a day early.
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Witnesses Silent - Sarah Speaks Full Sentences
Funny how that works - there's an accusation of witness tampering in The Troopergate scandal, McCain suspends HIS campaign due to the extremely perilous nature of the economy and here's Sarah at Ground Zero - speaking what passes for a mind at last.
Or maybe her handlers figured it was a good time for her to speak - since no one's interested anymore.
Ah, the fickle public - dropping the lipsticked moose-killer in favor of their foreclosured property.
Or maybe her handlers figured it was a good time for her to speak - since no one's interested anymore.
Ah, the fickle public - dropping the lipsticked moose-killer in favor of their foreclosured property.
FBI Investigating Wall Street
Wouldn't it be interesting to have had access to Cindy McCain's tax returns? You gotta wonder how a woman who owns 8 houses feels about investing in Freddie and Fannie and Countrywide.
How much of a conflict of interest would that be? Especially since her husband, John, keeps all of his assests in her name.
Regardless of what happens - I really hope the FBI investigation hangs everyone and anyone who's had a dirty little finger in the pie.
How much of a conflict of interest would that be? Especially since her husband, John, keeps all of his assests in her name.
Regardless of what happens - I really hope the FBI investigation hangs everyone and anyone who's had a dirty little finger in the pie.
Economic McCainism's - Or How I Learned To Add and Subtract The Truth
Seeing is Believing
A random selection of McCain quotes on the economy over the last several months:
“The issue of economics is something that I’ve really never understood as well as I should.”
Boston Globe, 12/18/07
>“I’ve got Greenspan’s book.”
January, 2008
“The fact is we have some tough times ahead. We will get through this rough patch.”
"The best course of action is to let the Fed handle it.”
January, 2008
“I don’t believe we’re headed into a recession. I believe the fundamentals of this economy are strong, and I believe they will remain strong.”
GOP Debate, Myrtle Beach, FNC, 1/10/08
“Even if the economy is the, quote, No. 1 issue, the real issue will remain America’s security. And if they choose to say, ‘Look, I do not need this guy because he’s not as good on home loan mortgages or whatever it is, I understand about that, I will accept that verdict. I am running because of the transcendental challenge of the 21st century, which is radical Islamic extremism.”
The New York Times, 1/28/08
Since President Bush took office, “I think if you look at the overall record and millions of jobs have been created… you can make an argument that there’s been great progress economically over that period of time.”
Money & Politics,” Bloomberg, 4/17/08
“The fundamentals of our economy are strong.”
September 15, 2008
"I cannot carry on a campaign as though this dangerous situation had not occurred, or as though a solution were at hand, which it clearly is not. With so much on the line, for America and the world, the debate that matters most right now is taking place in the United States Capitol. I intend to join it."
September 24, 2008
McCAIN’S ECONOMIC PROPOSALS PRE SEPTEMBER 16, 2008
McCain’s Economic Plan Helps Corporations, not Working Families. “McCain offered sweeping rhetoric about the economic plight of working-class Americans…even as he spelled out a tax and spending agenda whose benefits are aimed squarely at spurring corporate growth.” (The Washington Post, 4/16/08)
McCain Offers Massive Tax Cuts for Corporations and the Wealthy. McCain’s plan offers two massive tax cuts for corporations, slashing tax rates from 35 percent to 25 percent, with 58 percent of the benefits going to the top 1 percent of taxpayers. This is an even larger tax rate cut for the wealthiest taxpayers than Bush gave them. (Reuters, 3/10/08; “Five Easy Pieces and Two Trillion Dollars,” Center for American Progress Action Fund, 3/21/08)
But He Wants to Tax Our Health Benefits. McCain would make employer-paid health premiums part of taxable income, creating a new tax on working families. He would drive insurance costs up further by promoting high-deductible health savings account plans. (Health08.org Forum, 10/31/07; Kaiser/HRET Employer Health Benefits 2007 Annual Survey; Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 9/20/06, 4/5/06)
McCain’s Tax Cuts Would Cut Social Programs Working Families Need. “McCain cannot pay for his tax cuts without massive reductions in Social Security, Medicare or other key programs that benefit the vast majority of Americans.” (“Five Easy Pieces and Two Trillion Dollars,” Center for American Progress Action Fund, 3/21/08)
McCain Skipped Vote on Economic Stimulus Package Despite Being in Washington. McCain missed a key vote on economic stimulus legislation to provide rebates to taxpayers—even though he was in Washington, D.C., at the time. “McCain returned to Washington but made an eleventh-hour decision to skip the vote, aides to his campaign said.” (H.R. 5140, Vote #8, 2/6/08; Associated Press, 2/6/08)
McCain Says He Wants Tough Lender Standards—But Votes Against Them. McCain has called for strict standards and greater transparency for lenders and for cracking down on predatory lenders. But he voted against a measure to discourage predatory lending practices and failed to vote on a bill that would overhaul the mortgage lending practices of the Federal Housing Administration. (McCain’s Remarks on Economic Woes, 3/25/08; St. Petersburg Times, 1/24/08; S. 256, Vote #22, 3/3/05; S. 2338, Vote #432, 12/14/07)
Quite a bit different tune he's singing today, isn't it?
Consistancy, thy name isMcCain, Palin, GOP, Republican Democrat.
A random selection of McCain quotes on the economy over the last several months:
“The issue of economics is something that I’ve really never understood as well as I should.”
Boston Globe, 12/18/07
>“I’ve got Greenspan’s book.”
January, 2008
“The fact is we have some tough times ahead. We will get through this rough patch.”
"The best course of action is to let the Fed handle it.”
January, 2008
“I don’t believe we’re headed into a recession. I believe the fundamentals of this economy are strong, and I believe they will remain strong.”
GOP Debate, Myrtle Beach, FNC, 1/10/08
“Even if the economy is the, quote, No. 1 issue, the real issue will remain America’s security. And if they choose to say, ‘Look, I do not need this guy because he’s not as good on home loan mortgages or whatever it is, I understand about that, I will accept that verdict. I am running because of the transcendental challenge of the 21st century, which is radical Islamic extremism.”
The New York Times, 1/28/08
Since President Bush took office, “I think if you look at the overall record and millions of jobs have been created… you can make an argument that there’s been great progress economically over that period of time.”
Money & Politics,” Bloomberg, 4/17/08
“The fundamentals of our economy are strong.”
September 15, 2008
"I cannot carry on a campaign as though this dangerous situation had not occurred, or as though a solution were at hand, which it clearly is not. With so much on the line, for America and the world, the debate that matters most right now is taking place in the United States Capitol. I intend to join it."
September 24, 2008
McCAIN’S ECONOMIC PROPOSALS PRE SEPTEMBER 16, 2008
McCain’s Economic Plan Helps Corporations, not Working Families. “McCain offered sweeping rhetoric about the economic plight of working-class Americans…even as he spelled out a tax and spending agenda whose benefits are aimed squarely at spurring corporate growth.” (The Washington Post, 4/16/08)
McCain Offers Massive Tax Cuts for Corporations and the Wealthy. McCain’s plan offers two massive tax cuts for corporations, slashing tax rates from 35 percent to 25 percent, with 58 percent of the benefits going to the top 1 percent of taxpayers. This is an even larger tax rate cut for the wealthiest taxpayers than Bush gave them. (Reuters, 3/10/08; “Five Easy Pieces and Two Trillion Dollars,” Center for American Progress Action Fund, 3/21/08)
But He Wants to Tax Our Health Benefits. McCain would make employer-paid health premiums part of taxable income, creating a new tax on working families. He would drive insurance costs up further by promoting high-deductible health savings account plans. (Health08.org Forum, 10/31/07; Kaiser/HRET Employer Health Benefits 2007 Annual Survey; Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 9/20/06, 4/5/06)
McCain’s Tax Cuts Would Cut Social Programs Working Families Need. “McCain cannot pay for his tax cuts without massive reductions in Social Security, Medicare or other key programs that benefit the vast majority of Americans.” (“Five Easy Pieces and Two Trillion Dollars,” Center for American Progress Action Fund, 3/21/08)
McCain Skipped Vote on Economic Stimulus Package Despite Being in Washington. McCain missed a key vote on economic stimulus legislation to provide rebates to taxpayers—even though he was in Washington, D.C., at the time. “McCain returned to Washington but made an eleventh-hour decision to skip the vote, aides to his campaign said.” (H.R. 5140, Vote #8, 2/6/08; Associated Press, 2/6/08)
McCain Says He Wants Tough Lender Standards—But Votes Against Them. McCain has called for strict standards and greater transparency for lenders and for cracking down on predatory lenders. But he voted against a measure to discourage predatory lending practices and failed to vote on a bill that would overhaul the mortgage lending practices of the Federal Housing Administration. (McCain’s Remarks on Economic Woes, 3/25/08; St. Petersburg Times, 1/24/08; S. 256, Vote #22, 3/3/05; S. 2338, Vote #432, 12/14/07)
Quite a bit different tune he's singing today, isn't it?
Consistancy, thy name is
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
GOP Postponing Palin? How Much Does That Surprise You?
Give me a freakin' break, will ya?
Now the plan is to delay the first presidential debate (because apparently The Republican World needs John McCain to single-handedly show up and settle the economic problems plaguing the nation) and to hold it one week later, on October 2, 2008, thus postponing, indefinitely, the vice-presidential debate.
They really REALLY don't want her to talk, do they?
Now the plan is to delay the first presidential debate (because apparently The Republican World needs John McCain to single-handedly show up and settle the economic problems plaguing the nation) and to hold it one week later, on October 2, 2008, thus postponing, indefinitely, the vice-presidential debate.
They really REALLY don't want her to talk, do they?
Poll of Polls Shows McCain Down To a Single Point Lead in Virginia
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
The New (and Better) Bail-Out Plan According to a Tax-Payer
Instead of giving billions of dollars to bankers, to Wall Street, to Freddie and Fannie, to auto makers, to investment firms who invested unwisely, to all those big businesses with their hands out and their greed still apparent, and doing it all in the name of "saving the economy" with little or no regard to the millions of Americans who make up that economy - instead of that - why not allocate the same billions to us, the people, the ones who are going to foot the bill in the end regardless of who the direct recepient is, the ones who are out of work, who are drowning under mortgages which are eating 50% of their paychecks each month and let them, let us, pay off our mortgages and our outstanding credit cards and our bank loans and our auto loans?
The money would flow from us right back into the business institutions who are begging for government assistance dollars, thus easing their self-made crunch as well as our own. The dollars would circulate - but widely instead of narrowly - and I sincerely doubt that a nation composed of individuals who are mostly (or totally) out of personal debt would object to eventually paying higher taxes to repay the government bail-out loan which came to THEM instead of bypassing them and going directly to the very people who either acted irrationally and irresponsibly with their money and/or outright misrepresented themselves, lied to their customers and ripped them off in the first place.
I've been listening to CNN all morning and I've yet to see how the common man is going to benefit, other than very very indirectly, and, more likely, not at all, from a plan which will surely, certainly, without a doubt, cost them several billions of additional tax dollars in the end.
If we are going to have to bear the cost of a government bail out (and it becomes more and more apparent that we are) shouldn't we, at the very least, be the ones being bailed?
The money would flow from us right back into the business institutions who are begging for government assistance dollars, thus easing their self-made crunch as well as our own. The dollars would circulate - but widely instead of narrowly - and I sincerely doubt that a nation composed of individuals who are mostly (or totally) out of personal debt would object to eventually paying higher taxes to repay the government bail-out loan which came to THEM instead of bypassing them and going directly to the very people who either acted irrationally and irresponsibly with their money and/or outright misrepresented themselves, lied to their customers and ripped them off in the first place.
I've been listening to CNN all morning and I've yet to see how the common man is going to benefit, other than very very indirectly, and, more likely, not at all, from a plan which will surely, certainly, without a doubt, cost them several billions of additional tax dollars in the end.
If we are going to have to bear the cost of a government bail out (and it becomes more and more apparent that we are) shouldn't we, at the very least, be the ones being bailed?
Monday, September 22, 2008
Jinx - No Mo' Foo'Ball Weekends Fer Us
Friday morning we left early and spent the night at Dan's mom's house. It was interesting. Virtually no one was speaking to one another by the time we left on Saturday morning.
After leaving his mom's, we drove about 8 1/2 hours to Ma. - 4 hours of which were spent trying to cross the G.Washington Bridge in New York. It's the first time I've seen New York - I don't wish to repeat the vision. Then we got slightly lost once we got to Mass. No biggie. We did find the hotel and it was nice. The hot tub rocked.
I have a hard time understanding that people drive through New York more than once in a lifetime and that they actually enjoy it.
Sunday morning we left for a 1PM kick-off time before 9AM. Everyone told us it would take that long due to traffic. Everyone lied. We were at the stadium by 10. We walked and walked and walked from the parking lot to the stadium. (Have I ever mentioned that I HATE walking? Or that I don't do it very well due to an old back injury and resulting surgery? Consider yourself told. I don't walk very well.) We had to go thru tunnels and over bridges and, well, you get the idea, I didn't like it. Fortunately there's a mall next to the stadium so we killed some time sitting on benchs in front of stores. They let people into the stadium at 11 so we were some of the first people in their seats - which was cool - until it wasn't. The temperature was in the 80's and it quickly got HOT. So we'd sit awhile, wander back inside awhile, sit awhile until the game started. Spent a small fortune on beers, food, bottled water and a pick Patriot's hat for me while waiting and wandering.
And then they lost. Not just lost, mind you, but LOST.
And so it went for three full quarters....and so did we. And so did everyone else. And we walked and walked and walked back to the parking lot. Which was farther away then it was in the beginning because we came out the wrong doors. It took hours to get out of the parking lot.
I have a hard time understanding that people do this more than once in a lifetime and that they actually enjoy it.
We left Ma. this morning at 9 and made a small detour to a casino in Delaware. I won a few bucks - almost enough to pay for the tire I'm going to have to buy tomorrow seeing as how we blew the left rear one right down to the rim somewhere on I95 in Baltimore.
But we're home - finally. The cats vomited all over the stairway in our absence. To say nothing of the other nasty thing they did in front of the fireplace. (Which they always do is we're gone longer than they think is appropriate...and apparently this time we were gone a whole lot longer then they thought appropriate.)
I have a hard time understanding that people do this more than once in a lifetime and that they actually enjoy it.
Friday, September 19, 2008
No Politics, No Economy, No Palin - It's FOOTBALL WEEKEND
We're out the door in a bit - off for a 4 day weekend (Oh Blessed of All Events) in New England. We have tickets to the Patriots/Miami game on Sunday afternoon. We'll drive drive drive to New Jersey, spend the night with Dan's mom and then drive drive drive to Foxborough where we've reserved a room with a hot tub and we'll giggle and soak and watch television and order room service until Sunday afternoon when we trek off to the game.
Nothing to do but have fun.
Nothing to do but have fun.
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Hillary Backer Backs McCain - You Got My Back, I Got Yours
Lynn Forester de Rothschild, a prominent Hillary Clinton supporter and member of the Democratic National Committee’s Platform Committee, will endorse John McCain for president on Wednesday, her spokesman tells CNN.
and if you wonder why - perhaps this will help explain it:
Forester is the CEO of EL Rothschild, a holding company with businesses around the world. She is married to international banker Sir Evelyn de Rothschild. Forester is a member of the DNC’s Democrats Abroad chapter and splits her time living in London and New York.
and if you wonder why - perhaps this will help explain it:
Forester is the CEO of EL Rothschild, a holding company with businesses around the world. She is married to international banker Sir Evelyn de Rothschild. Forester is a member of the DNC’s Democrats Abroad chapter and splits her time living in London and New York.
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
AlaskaReal - A Native's Eye View of Palin and Politics in Alaska
AlaskaReal
This is one of the most comprehensive Alaska related blogs I've had the fortune to come across.
Anyone with the least bit of interest in Alaskan politics really needs to give it way more than a few second read.
This is one of the most comprehensive Alaska related blogs I've had the fortune to come across.
Anyone with the least bit of interest in Alaskan politics really needs to give it way more than a few second read.
Monday, September 15, 2008
Flooding In Munster, In.
Ike hit home yesterday.
My 85 year old mother is a patient undergoing short term physical therapy following a serious illness in a nursing home in Munster, Indiana. Her twin sister is a long term totally bedridden patient in the same facility.
Yesterday afternoon, following a record rainfall, a levy on The Little Calumet, the river which once ran immediately behind my backyard, broke. The resulting flood closed streets, cut power, and flooded hundreds of home, forcing the evacuation of over 400 families - and the nursing home.
It took nearly 10 frantic hours to locate my mother and aunt who were moved by a private ambulance company and The National Guard in specially built ambulances to several medical facilies in areas unaffected by the flood waters.
They are both safe and sound - but rattled. My aunt has not left her bed in over 5 years but she seems to have taken the move pragmatically. My mother is not coping so well. She is worried about her house which is also close to the banks of the Little Cal in Lansing, Il. No one's been able to get through the streets to check on it's condition and we are unable to contact any neighbors.
My sister, who also lives in nearby Lansing, Il. is under a mandatory evacuation order but so far is choosing to stay. She lost her entire first level to a malfunctioning sump pump just 6 weeks ago. She was, however, unable to leave once she decided to stay due to street closings. My oldest son was stuck in So. Carolina following a long weekend trip waiting to catch a flight home. My youngest son and his girlfriend, who also live in the Munster area, are stiill unaccounted for. His cell phone is not working and she has not returned my calls as of yet. Their area was not hit so hard and they live on the second floor of a large apartment building, so I am presuming they are ok....otherwise I shall go crazy.
My heart goes out to all who have suffered at the hands of such disasterous weather lately. To Texas, and Louisiana, Indiana, Illinois, Idaho, The Carolinas, Florida and every other place which has been affected, prayers and thoughts are with you.
A big "thank you" to The Indiana National Guard and The Munster Volunteer Fire Department as well as to the amazing staff at The Munster Med Inn who braved the waters and left their own flooded homes and families to tend to their patients. Several of the staff at Med Inn traveled with their patients to their temporary homes in order to keep their fears at bay by offering a familiar face and a friendly hand.
These are people who are underpaid and overworked. People who give of themselves and their time, putting their own needs and fears aside in order to aid those with bigger needs and bigger fears. These are the heroes. These are Americans.
The National Guard Evacuates The Munster Med Inn
update: The two unaccounted for children have called and been counted. Both are ok...one is at work and one is enroute to work but with the distinct possibility that he will not be able to make it.
Sunday, September 14, 2008
McCain Throws Hissy-Fit - "My Way or the Lie-Way"
Ok...now we have it. John McCain, when confronted on The View by woman in lipstick about his current spate of lies and half-truths, blamed Barak Obama's refusal to hold joint "Town Hall Meetings" as being responsible for the current tenor of McCain's campaign.
McCain later was pressed on the increasingly derisive tone of the campaign and his new television commercial that carries the widely discredited claim Obama supported comprehensive sex education for kindergartners as an Illinois state senator.
McCain defended the ad's claims as well as those of a Web ad that said Obama's "lipstick on a pig" comments were directed at Palin. He added that the tone of the campaign might have been more amicable if Obama had agreed to his proposals for a series of town-hall meetings.
"If we had done what I asked Sen. Obama to do, I don't think you'd see the same tenor of this campaign," he said. "Why don't you ask Obama the next time he's on this show why won't he be in town meetings with me?"
McCain later was pressed on the increasingly derisive tone of the campaign and his new television commercial that carries the widely discredited claim Obama supported comprehensive sex education for kindergartners as an Illinois state senator.
McCain defended the ad's claims as well as those of a Web ad that said Obama's "lipstick on a pig" comments were directed at Palin. He added that the tone of the campaign might have been more amicable if Obama had agreed to his proposals for a series of town-hall meetings.
"If we had done what I asked Sen. Obama to do, I don't think you'd see the same tenor of this campaign," he said. "Why don't you ask Obama the next time he's on this show why won't he be in town meetings with me?"
Hockey Mama For Obama
Signs seen (pro and con) at a recent Anchorage, Alaska rally protesting Sarah Palin's campaign.
Bush In A Skirt
Palin: She Be Failin'
I Love My Alaska Girl
Jesus Was a Community Organizer
We Luv Our Lady Guv
Palin: Thanks But No Thanks
Smearing Alaska's Good Name One Scandal @ a Time
Candidate To Nowhere
Rape Kits Should Be Free
Voted For Her Once: Never Again!
Community Organizers are the Real Patriots
Barbies for War
I Shall Not Be Pandered To
Give Palin Your Vote AND Your Draft Age Child
Sarah Palin: So Far Right She's Wrong
Sarah Palin Is My Hero
Alaska Is Not Frisco
Gun Rights
Coat Hangers for McCain
Sarah Palin, Undoing 150 Years of American Feminism
Hockey Mama for Obama (on a hockey stick)
Bush In A Skirt
Palin: She Be Failin'
I Love My Alaska Girl
Jesus Was a Community Organizer
We Luv Our Lady Guv
Palin: Thanks But No Thanks
Smearing Alaska's Good Name One Scandal @ a Time
Candidate To Nowhere
Rape Kits Should Be Free
Voted For Her Once: Never Again!
Community Organizers are the Real Patriots
Barbies for War
I Shall Not Be Pandered To
Give Palin Your Vote AND Your Draft Age Child
Sarah Palin: So Far Right She's Wrong
Sarah Palin Is My Hero
Alaska Is Not Frisco
Gun Rights
Coat Hangers for McCain
Sarah Palin, Undoing 150 Years of American Feminism
Hockey Mama for Obama (on a hockey stick)
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Who Paid for the Rape Kit if You Were Raped in Wasilla?
Women, if you've ever been raped, if you've ever known anyone who's been raped, if you even fear being raped and you're a Sarah Palin supporter, and even if you're not worried about the possibility of being forced to carry a resulting pregnancy to term, it might behoove you to know that as recently as 8 years ago the Town of Wasilla, Alaska (and ONLY the town of Wasilla, Alaska,) under the mayorship of Sarah Palin, charged the victim for her own rape exam, rape kit and forensic testing.
After numerous complaints, the State of Alaska stepped in and passed legislation requiring that the city pick up the tab. Charlie Fannon, Police Chief of Wasilla, appointed to his position by Palin after her dismissal of the previous police chief, protested the law, saying that it would cost Wasilla $5,000 to $14,000 a year if the city had to foot the bill for rape exams.
Damn good thing Ms. Palin hadn't yet been made governor at the time, isn't it?
After numerous complaints, the State of Alaska stepped in and passed legislation requiring that the city pick up the tab. Charlie Fannon, Police Chief of Wasilla, appointed to his position by Palin after her dismissal of the previous police chief, protested the law, saying that it would cost Wasilla $5,000 to $14,000 a year if the city had to foot the bill for rape exams.
Damn good thing Ms. Palin hadn't yet been made governor at the time, isn't it?
Rock Fish and Sea Crabs and Grizzlies, McCain!!
If you've heard Sen. John McCain's stump speech you've surely heard him talk about grizzly bears. The federal government, he declares with horror and astonishment, has spent $3 million to study grizzly bear DNA. "I don't know if it was a paternity issue or criminal," he jokes, "but it was a waste of money."
A McCain campaign commercial also tweaks the bear research: "Three million to study the DNA of bears in Montana. Unbelievable."
Ok, so we know how he feels about wasting 3 million dollars of the taxpayer's money on Montana grizzly bears - I wonder how he feels about 4 million dollar Alaskan sea crabs and 2 million dollar Alaskan rock fish - to say nothing of $8 million to "improve" a former Alaskan Navy airfield which handles 8 scheduled flights a month?
To quote Senator McCain - not about the bears or the crabs or the fish - but about the sheer hypocrisy -
Unbelievable!!
A McCain campaign commercial also tweaks the bear research: "Three million to study the DNA of bears in Montana. Unbelievable."
Ok, so we know how he feels about wasting 3 million dollars of the taxpayer's money on Montana grizzly bears - I wonder how he feels about 4 million dollar Alaskan sea crabs and 2 million dollar Alaskan rock fish - to say nothing of $8 million to "improve" a former Alaskan Navy airfield which handles 8 scheduled flights a month?
To quote Senator McCain - not about the bears or the crabs or the fish - but about the sheer hypocrisy -
Unbelievable!!
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
McCain Raising Money for "The Old Washington"
Ya know that maverick, McCain? The one who says he's not part of the old boy's network? The McCain that swears he's different and he's all about "change?" The dude that's not a "party person?"
Well, he's out raising money for The Old Boys all around the nation.
Republican John McCain is asking donors to give far in excess of what they can contribute to him directly, even as he is limited to taking only public funds for the fall campaign.
McCain's fundraising is legal because the money he is asking for does not come straight to him. He is collecting funds for federal and state GOP committees that will aid his White House bid. Donors can give a total of nearly $70,000 to these committees, far in excess of the $2,300 individuals can give directly to a candidate.
The Arizona senator appeared at a $4 million fundraiser Monday night in Chicago where donors gave anywhere from $1,000 to nearly $70,000. Most of the money was split among the RNC and state parties in the battleground states of Michigan, Missouri, Ohio and Pennsylvania, according to Bill Strong, who helped organize the event.
Contributors who gave at least $25,000 attended a private dinner with McCain.
Strong said enthusiasm among donors was high, partly because of vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin. "We got unsolicited telephone calls from female executives in the Chicago area offering to contribute money," he said. "Fundraising has accelerated since the convention."
Bounds said McCain would do more fundraising for the joint committees; he couldn't say how much.
Jan Baran, a top GOP ethics lawyer, said the joint fundraising is not unusual. But he noted "there's an irony there that Sen. McCain is swearing off private money for his own campaign … but actively raising money for party organizations."
Change? No.
Irony? Yes.
Well, he's out raising money for The Old Boys all around the nation.
Republican John McCain is asking donors to give far in excess of what they can contribute to him directly, even as he is limited to taking only public funds for the fall campaign.
McCain's fundraising is legal because the money he is asking for does not come straight to him. He is collecting funds for federal and state GOP committees that will aid his White House bid. Donors can give a total of nearly $70,000 to these committees, far in excess of the $2,300 individuals can give directly to a candidate.
The Arizona senator appeared at a $4 million fundraiser Monday night in Chicago where donors gave anywhere from $1,000 to nearly $70,000. Most of the money was split among the RNC and state parties in the battleground states of Michigan, Missouri, Ohio and Pennsylvania, according to Bill Strong, who helped organize the event.
Contributors who gave at least $25,000 attended a private dinner with McCain.
Strong said enthusiasm among donors was high, partly because of vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin. "We got unsolicited telephone calls from female executives in the Chicago area offering to contribute money," he said. "Fundraising has accelerated since the convention."
Bounds said McCain would do more fundraising for the joint committees; he couldn't say how much.
Jan Baran, a top GOP ethics lawyer, said the joint fundraising is not unusual. But he noted "there's an irony there that Sen. McCain is swearing off private money for his own campaign … but actively raising money for party organizations."
Change? No.
Irony? Yes.
"Lipstick on a Pig" McCain Said It First
In 2007, John McCain criticized Democratic contenders for offering what he called costly universal health care proposals that require too much government regulation. While he said he had not studied Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton's health-care plan, he said it was "eerily reminiscent" of the failed plan she offered as first lady in the early 1990s.
I think they put some lipstick on a pig, but it's still a pig," he said of her proposal.
He's not even the first, other politicians have also used the phrase in recent years, including Vice President Dick Cheney, Sen. Maria Cantwell of Washington state, Sen. James Inhofe of Oklahoma, Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, Rep. John Mica of Florida and Rep. Tom Tancredo of Colorado, among others.
Torie Clarke, a former McCain adviser, even wrote a book called, "Lipstick on a Pig: Winning In the No-Spin Era by Someone Who Knows the Game."
And so - I'm unsure why McCain's camp is demanding an apology from Senator Obama.
Unless, of course, he gave one to Hillary back in 2007.
I think they put some lipstick on a pig, but it's still a pig," he said of her proposal.
He's not even the first, other politicians have also used the phrase in recent years, including Vice President Dick Cheney, Sen. Maria Cantwell of Washington state, Sen. James Inhofe of Oklahoma, Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, Rep. John Mica of Florida and Rep. Tom Tancredo of Colorado, among others.
Torie Clarke, a former McCain adviser, even wrote a book called, "Lipstick on a Pig: Winning In the No-Spin Era by Someone Who Knows the Game."
And so - I'm unsure why McCain's camp is demanding an apology from Senator Obama.
Unless, of course, he gave one to Hillary back in 2007.
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