John McCain RIP

He was a soldier of the United States of America who represented everything that is great about this country. Honor him.

Clean Coal & Dirty Politics

Republicans claim Obama opposes coal-fired plants, and have last-minute robocalls telling folks in coal-producing states that their jobs are in jeopardy. The above San Francisco Chronicle video clip is cited as incontrovertible evidence. The entire interview, according to that newspaper, is over forty-eight minutes long.

In the full interview, Obama also states "this notion of no coal, I think, is an illusion. Because the fact of the matter is, is that right now we are getting a lot of our energy from coal. And China is building a coal-powered plant once a week. So what we have to do then is figure out how can we use coal without emitting greenhouse gases and carbon. And how can we sequester that carbon and capture it. If we can’t, then we’re gonna still be working on alternatives."

Obama appears to support clean coal. How is that different from Congressman Charlies Dent's position? Actually, Obama is among those supporting legislation that would incentivize the conversion of coal into liquid diesel fuel.

This appears to be a last-minute distortion. If I'm wrong, please tell me why.

Fellow Veteran Slams McCain

If you think Rolling Stone's "Make Believe Veteran" was tough on McCain, get a load of what this former vet has to say.
Mea culpa: My thanks to a reader, who points out that I have the wrong title for that Rolling Stone piece. It's "Make Believe Maverick."

Barack Obama: Vote For the White Half!

McCain Support at Stabler Demonized

Earlier today, I told you about the exchanges between McCain supporters and deriders outside Stabler arena. Exchanges of vitriol, delivered with smiles, were very much two-sided.

Mike Morrill, Dear Leader at Keystone Progress, was there, too. He's now circulating an email, with a link to a very misleading video. He includes some of the more goofy statements made by McCain supporters with no mention of the equally ridiculous taunts coming from the other side.

It is an intellectually dishonest portrayal of the exchanges. The obvious reason is to demonize McCain support.

Lehigh's McCain-Palin Rally - The View From Outside

Arriving early at Lehigh's Stabler Arena on Tuesday, I thought I'd have no problem parking and getting in line for the show. I thought wrong.

You see, most of these folks are Republicans. When they're told to be somewhere at 10 AM, they show up at 9 AM. Lots of suits and ties and good-looking women, too. Everyone was lining up along the sidewalk to nowhere, which wound all over the place. Nobody was trying to cut in front of anyone. Nobody even ducked behind a bush to take a whizz.

I was looking for the protesters, so I popped off the yellow brick road and began looking until I found a small group of about 18 "protesters" in a parking lot located just a few yards from where Republicans were queued up.

Lucky for me, this parking lot was the place set aside for VIPs like those MSM broadcast journalists. Every now and then, some really hot-looking babe would saunter by, microphone in hand, looking more like a high class hooker than a reporter. A few gave me bedroom eyes, but I was a blogger on a mission. I was there for the friendly exchanges between McCain supporters and detractors, damn it!

"I want Sarah to wink at me."

Republicans: "You got a really big crowd."

Protesters: "Our friends are all at work cuz' they have to be."

Republicans: "You're takers!"

"Baby killers."

Protesters: [to kids in Catholic school uniforms]: "Why aren't you in school?"

Republicans: "Remember September 11."

Undetermined: "Penn State sucks!" [Everybody laughs].

Republicans: "Why don't you go register some dead people?"

Protesters: "Where do you work, Wall Street?"

Republicans: "USA, USA, USA."

Protesters: "USA, USA, USA."

Cop: "Finally, they agree on something."

Protesters: "Equal pay for women."

Republicans: "Equal rights for Hillary."

"Is Nader running again? Didn't know he was still alive."

Protesters: "Didn't know John McCain was, either."

Republicans: "Bill Ayers for Secretary of Defense."

Protesters: "Read the Book of Luke. Jesus was a commie."

Republicans: "50 million babies have been killed by abortions."

Protesters: "How many babies have died in Iraq?"'

Republicans: "You can do this because my son is protecting us in Afghanistan."

And so on.

Both sides delivered all these taunts and jeers with smiles. Every now and then, one group would shout to the other, "We love you, though." I suspect there are many more similarities than differences in these two groups.

Lehigh's McCain-Palin Rally - The View From Inside

Sure, Lehigh County GOP chair Bill Platt went too far when he stressed, inside Stabler Arena, that our next Prez could be Barack Hussein Obama. The McCain camp itself condemned this "inappropriate rhetoric." But hey, it was a pep rally, not some nuanced policy discussion. Let's face it, the McCain-Palin bus drove right into the frickin' arena, and I think Palin was driving.

Cindy McCain, and not Sarah Palin, played pitbull. "The day that Senator Obama decided to cast a vote to not fund my son when he was serving sent a cold chill through my body."

Blogger's Note: Photo and report from inside provided by Ellen Solarek.

McCain-Pally Rally Very Crowded

7,000.

That was one security attendant's estimate of the number of people present for today's McCain-Palin rally at Lehigh's Stabler Arena. It was 10 AM.

When I left at noon, the estimate was more like 17,000 for a rally in a building that only holds about 7,000.

I positioned myself among the largest group of protesters, about 18 Obama and Nader supporters, who had positioned themselves right across what they called the "sidewalk to nowhere," along with McCain supporters walked on their way into the building.

I'll tell you about those interesting exchanges tomorrow.

McCain Speaks Softly

. . . and carries a big stick. That's the image John McCain conveyed at tonight's "town hall" debate at Belmont University in Tennessee. When he spoke about the dangers of blustering about Pakistan (pronounced Pokistan in two debates by Obama), the Republican Senator clearly made the most sense. But when Obama stressed the importance of speaking to enemies like Iran, he seemed to win the TR competition.

Unlike the first debate, this one was interesting. Lurking in the background is a global economic crisis about which neither candidate, despite claims to the contrary, had a clue until just a few short weeks ago. Neither candidate really addressed the sacrifices we will certainly face in the months to come.

The wrinkly old white guy was the only person who actually had a new idea - he wants the Treasury Department to buy bad mortgages and allow homeowners to renegotiate.

McCain and Obama, who clearly have no love for each other, remained civil. They'll both be blasting each other tomorrow.

Don't ask me who won.

Moderator Tom Brokaw asked great questions, but did a terrible job controlling both candidates. If anyone lost, I'd say it was him.

McCain-Palin to Get Warm Welcome From LV Progressives on Wednesday

When John McCain and Sarah Palin visit Lehigh University's Stabler Arena on Wednesday, they'll certainly be getting a warm welcome from the right. They'll be getting it from the left, too.

Mike Morrill, Dear Leader at Keystone Progress, has been asking "progressives" everywhere to be there. He even has a theme for everyone.

BUSH = McCain, WE CAN'T AFFORD MORE OF THE SAME.

He wants people to make signs and banners using that theme. I sure hope the LV's one man protest machine, Bernie Berg, is there. Usually festooned in Pirates or Steelers gear, this ex-priest has made a career of demonstrating against Dent and Toomey. In fact, about 100 years ago, he ran for Congress himself, pulling down about 23 votes.

His theme? "Berg - the Lesser Evil."

I disagree with Bernie, but people like him make democracy fun.

John McCain and Sarah Palin Will Be at LU on Wednesday

Road to Victory Rally-Bethlehem, PA
Lehigh University
Stabler Hall
124 Goodman Drive
Bethlehem, PA 18015
Doors Open: 10:30am
Wednesday, October 8th

For free tickets, click here.

Are McCain Supporters Racists?

When I was a young man, around the same age as Scott Armstrong's son, I can remember how proud my father was when one of his own, John F. Kennedy, was running for President. In those days, we Catholics were still viewed as something of an underclass in the Lehigh Valley. We weren't quite so bad as those damn Jews or the pork chops (yes, that term was used), but we were still pretty revolting.

I noticed this latent prejudice in high school, when Bethlehem Mayor Payrow invited students from Freedom and Liberty High Schools, Bethlehem's two public schools, to be mayor for a day. The now defunct Bethlehem Globe Times ran a story claiming that Bethlehem's high schools had been represented.

They all forgot about Bethlehem Catholic.

A high school junior, I fired off my very first letter to the editor, nailing both Payrow and the Globe Times for their obvious bigotry. Payrow certainly made sure Becahi was included the very next year.

So I can understand what it must mean for a young person of color to see Barack Obama as a candidate for President. Win or lose, Obama's candidacy alone is a great step forward for a people that, not very long ago, were slaves. I suspect I would be quick to label people who support McCain as racists just as my father called Nixon supporters anti-Catholic.

Scott Armstrong's son is putting up with some of this himself. Here's Scott's story, which also appears in the informative Allentown Commentator.

My twelve year old son informed me today that he was called a "racist" at his school lunch table today by his lunch mates when during a political discussion he volunteered that he preferred McCain to Obama. It made no difference to the accusers when he told them that he had hoped Lynn Swann, an African American would win the governors race two years ago. No, apparently anyone who doesn't support Obama is a racist and that is all there is to it. It was that simple to them.

Where does this sort of thinking come from? How sad is it that it comes from the mouths of twelve year olds? How counter productive is it to the ideals of civil discourse and racial harmony?

I told my son it isn't easy to be a conservative these days. He agreed that it would be much easier to just go along and pretend to believe in the liberal agenda. I was proud he didn't.

Scott Armstrong

Obama Passes Commander in Chief Test in Dull Debate

Tonight's debate between Presidential contenders Barack Obama and John McCain, conducted at Ole' Miss., was supposedly focused on foreign policy. I'd rate it a tie in a game where Obama seems to be ahead.

Moderator Jim Lehrer spent the first forty minutes of the debate focused on the Wall Street meltdown, where Obama clearly has the edge because no one can tie him to our failed economic policies. McCain was much more forceful than I would ever have predicted. Also, I don't see what the hell earmarks have to do with our failed economy.

When the conversation turned to foreign policy, where McCain clearly shines, Obama still passed the Commander in Chief test. McCain constantly accused Obama of not understanding, but he did.

Both candidates, in my view, clearly failed to hit any resonating notes that connect with voters. In that respect, they both failed. McCain came closest, and distinguished himself from George Bush at the same time. Bush has previously claimed to be able to see Vladimir Putin's soul when he looks into his eyes. But McCain claims he only sees three letters - a K, a G and a B.

A CNN snap poll gives the win to Obama.

Is Now a Good Time to Rise Above The Politics?

Sarah Palin has told Katie Couric we may face another Great Depression unless we quickly find a solution to our current economic crisis. Lightweight or not, she may very well be right. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke believes a major reason for those dark days is the Fed's failure to support to support the banking systems, which resulted in public panic, stock market crashes and restrictions on the money supply. Hence, his proposed $700 billion bailout.

I'm certainly no expert on high finance or any finance, if truth be told. But it's very clear that we are in serious trouble. Lehigh County Commissioner Dean Browning, who does understand high finance, calls it a "raging fire."

Now might be a good time to forget about the politics.

I could see that yesterday in Congressman Charlie Dent's hastily arranged telephone press conference. He believes Congress should remain in session to resolve this matter instead of applying a quick fix on Friday. He's running in a Democratic district, but politics was the last thing on his mind.

Presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain have issued a rare joint statement. "Now is a time to come together - Democrats and Republicans - in a spirit of cooperation for the sake of the American people. The plan that has been submitted to Congress by the Bush Administration is flawed, but the effort to protect the American economy must not fail."

McCain has actually suspended his campaign to return to Washington, something Obama is strangely unwilling to do. David Letterman, miffed that McCain exalts governance over an appearance on late-night TV, snarks "You don't suspend your campaign. This doesn't smell right. This isn't the way a tested hero behaves."

Actually, it is.

Obama and McCain have been running for President for two years. We've been inundated with ad after ad from both of them, sitting U.S. Senators who were elected to govern. The nation is in turmoil. Both of them belong in Washington right now. We need them both.

Believe me, we'll survive with a week's less campaigning. But if we go into another Great Depression, people will die.

Is Wall Street Kaput?

According to a news release from LV Congressional candidate Sam Bennett, "failed Republican economic policies" are the root cause of Wall Street's collapse on Monday. Communications Director Gary Ritterstein points to a "lack of oversight by the Republicans in Washington" that have endangered pensions for many hard-working people. "Worse, when it comes time to making it harder for companies to freeze or eliminate those pensions, Dent says NO. He believes in bailing out corporations, but refuses to help folks facing foreclosure. When it comes to funding $15 billion to help families stay in their home, he votes NO to that too.”

Campaign manager Shawn Millan tells me Charlie Dent actually voted in favor of the Pension Protection Act, which helps insure that employers fully fund worker benefits. So I think Gary got that part wrong.

But Gary has an unlikely ally - John McCain - who acknowledges the "casual oversight" on Wall Street. McCain has previously supported market deregulation.

While the left blames the right and the right blames the left, Washington Post op-ed columnist Robert J. Samuelson posits a more basic explanation for the crisis - greed and fear, which transcend ideologies. "Greed and fear, which routinely govern financial markets, have seeded this global crisis. Just when it will end isn't clear."

Ed Rendell: Republicans Lying About Obama's Tax Plan

About a year ago, I attended Northampton County Exec John Stoffa news conference, concerning our voting machines. Unfortunately, my post about that very serious matter was a little irreverent. I was more focused on Stoffa's superman statue and the Channel 69 reporter who kept undressing me with her eyes than I was with the very serious matter of voting machines, which is very serious.

Next thing I know, Northampton County Dem Bossman Joe Long issues a edict ex cathedra, banning me from participating in any more news conferences.

What the hell is this county coming to? You legitimize Bernie O'Hare as press, at a meeting that is important to all citizens of this county. This meeting had to do with the serious issue of voting and you evidently think it is a humorous side show, by inviting a blogger who has no credibility in this county. (Check his record). I have attached a copy of his blog and comments, that had been emailed to me. I ask you to cease and desist from treating O'Hare as legitimate press. Thank you.

Sink me!

Unfortunately, Long forgot to tell the DNC and Governor Ed Rendell. Thanks to both, I was invited to participate in a Rendell telephone press conference late today in Lancaster.

Chairman Joe's going to be so upset his moustache might fall off.

Tomorrow, I will give you the Governor's remarks in his own words. By way of preview, here's a little shocker. Rendell thinks Republicans are a bunch of no good liars who are misleading us about Obama's tax plan. "They need to stop misleading - stop lying - about Senator Obama's tax plan." Basically, Rendell is trying to take the wind out of McCain's sails before Obama's ship glides into Lancaster's port tomorrow.

AP: Why are you responding before he comes?

Rendell: "Well, because I'm tired that virtually every speaker lied about Obama's tax plans for America. They said he would raise taxes, not cut taxes. The truth is, for 95%, he is gonna' cut taxes."

PolitickerPA has an excellent, and brief, summary. I'll have details tomorrow.

Obama in Trouble Over Flags Again?

There was an uproar when Obama stopped wearing that that damn flag pin. Another firestorm ensued over the removal of the American flag from the tail of his campaign plane, even though both candidates make over their campaign planes with all kinds of goofy logos.

After all these claims that he's being unpatriotic, you'd think Obama's campaign would be a little wary about anything that might show disrespect to a US flag.

Think again. Fox News reports 84 trash bags containing 12,000 miniature US flags have been found at the site of Barack Obama's nomination acceptance speech. CBS scoffs at this story, noting the flags were merely being held in storage, and were going to be donated somewhere. Oh yeah, the Republicans are avoiding talking about the issues, too.

Sink me, but do you "store" flags in garbage bags?

If in storage, how the hell did the McCain camp get them?

Update: David Harsanyi, of the Denver Post, broke this story. Here's one of his updates:

"I just spoke with the person at Invesco who found the flags and he thinks both sides are exaggerating a bit. The person claims the majority of the bags with flags in them were near the trash, on a dock, and would have been thrown away. The person thinks it was probably an 'oversight' by the Democrats rather than any nefarious plot against the flag. But the person doesn’t believe anyone was coming to get them: he flags were there for a week and a day and no one came looking for them.'"

Palin Soared, But McCain Bored

Well, Sarah Palin may have soared, but John McCain bored. Watching his convention speech was about as entertaining as a few hours of root canal.

No real emotion. The use of the phrase, "my friends," to people who are not really his friends, at least a gazillion times. Periodically, the audience shouted "USA, USA", trying their best to stay awake.

He's a good man but a horrible speaker. In the picture above, John Kerry is giving McCain a few speech tips.

Obama's Real Problem is Not McCain, It's Us

About a month ago, patriots were outraged when it was discovered there was no American flag emblazoned on the tail of Barack Obama's campaign plane. Gee, that's just like John McCain's campaign plane.

That manufactured scandal has died down, but a new smear is making the rounds. Yesterday, my email box included this picture. I'd let this slide, but this is one of many emails I've seen that attack Obama because he is black person with an unusual name. A lot of them come from Democrats, not McCain or his supporters. It's been so bad that the Obama camp has had to launch a web page to counter the sleaze.

The Wall Street Journal dismisses this "imagined racist America." "Do Democrats really think so little of their fellow Americans?"

The Wall Street Journal should look at my in box.

Paris Hilton For President? "I'm Just Hot!"

See more funny videos at Funny or Die

Earlier this week, the Obama race card ouraged all the Obamaphiles. Both of them tell me I'm a bigot. Well, I'm an equal opportunity racist, damn it! I want to piss off the McCainiacs, too, so I'll post this Paris Hilton video. I hate old farts.

This joke may fail because Republicans tend to have a better sense of humor than Dems. Bush alone is one of their best jokes.