Dedicated to Any Undecided Voters, Part II

With a posting from a couple of days ago, I provided numerous events in the life of Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) which emphasize his inability to serve as President of the United States due to his lack of character and honesty. There are also multiple incidents highlighting his deficiency in both maturity and temperament. The following examples are some of the most impressive, with the majority being between McCain and members of his own party:

• In an interview with "Rolling Stone", Dan Schnur, McCain's press secretary for his 2000 presidential campaign, stated "If I tried to convince you [McCain] does not have a temper, you should hang up on me and ridicule me in print".
• At least five of his Republican colleagues have officially proclaimed that McCain is temperamentally unsuited for the role of President. According to former Sen. Robert Smith (R-NH), McCain has "very few friends" in Congress due to his frequent "incidents of irrational behavior" with his fellow Senators. Smith added that McCain's "temper would place this country at risk in international affairs and the world perhaps in danger. In my mind, it should disqualify him." Based on McCain's temper, Sen. Peter Domenici (R-NM) decided in 2000 that "I didn't want this guy anywhere near a trigger". Sen. Thad Cochran (R-MS) commented that "The thought of [McCain] being President sends a cold chill down my spine. He is erratic. He is hotheaded. He loses his temper and he worries me." Former Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA) stated that "[McCain] was very rough in the sandbox. Everybody has a McCain story. If you work in the Senate for a while, you have a McCain story. He hasn't built up a lot of goodwill." Describing him as "a vicious person", former Rep. John LeBoutillier (R-NY) stated that "Nearly all the Republican Senators endorsed Bush because they knew McCain from serving with him in the Senate. They so disliked him that they wouldn't support him. They have been on the hard end of his behavior."
• Aside from the quotes above from his congressional colleagues, other individuals with strong ties to McCain have made similar statements. As the Republican state committee chairman in McCain's home district in Arizona, Rob Haney declared "The guy has no core, his only principle is winning the presidency. He likes to call his campaign the 'straight talk express'. Well, down here we call it the 'forked tongue express'." Haney also commented that "McCain is mentally unstable and out of control and vindictive" and worries about "his ability to handle real political problems". Jon Hinz, the former Executive Director of the Arizona Republican Party, stated that "It's the President's job to negotiate and stay calm. I don't see that he has that quality...I've just seen too much. That temper, the intolerance - it worries me." Pat Murphy, the former editor of "The Arizona Republic", proclaimed "Most of us in the media in Arizona thought of [McCain] as a guy who had a terrible temper, occasionally had a foul mouth, a guy who whined and pouted unless he got his way. McCain has a temper that is bombastic, volatile and purple faced. Sometimes he gets out of control."
• Lawrence Wilkerson, a retired U.S. Army Colonel and former chief of staff to Secretary of State Colin Powell, offered these comments on McCain: "No dissent, no opinion to the contrary, however reasonable, will be entertained. Hardheaded is another way to say it. Arrogant is another way to say it. Hubristic is another way to say it. Too proud for his own good is another way to say it. It's a quality about him that disturbs me." James Dobson, the highly conversative founder of the evangelical group called Focus on the Family, stated that McCain "has a legendary temper and often uses foul and obscene language".
• Sensitive about his height and physical appearance, McCain exploded on the night he was elected Senator in 1986 after discovering that the stage for his victory speech was too low. As a result, the television audience witnessed his head bobbing at the bottom of the screen, his chin continuously out of view. An enraged McCain tracked the young Republican volunteer down and proceeded to poke the volunteer in the chest, calling him an "incompetent little s--t".
• At a Republican fundraiser in 1998, McCain delivered an inappropriate joke about President Bill Clinton's daughter. "Do you know why Chelsea Clinton is so ugly?" he asked. The supposed punchline: "Because Janet Reno is her father."
• During his 1992 congressional campaign, McCain's wife, Cindy, rubbed his head and joked about his thinning hair. The response from McCain was quite admirable: "At least I don't plaster on the makeup like a trollop, you c--t." Although the exchange was witnessed by three reporters, the McCains deny its occurrence.
• McCain had a heated argument with Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA) regarding the fate of missing U.S. servicemen in Vietnam. "Are you calling me stupid?" Grassley asked. "You're a f-----g jerk!" shouted McCain. Sen. Bob Kerrey (D-NE) later told reporters that he believed McCain was "going to head butt Grassley and drive the cartilage in his nose into his brain. I'm going to watch a colleague kill a colleague."
• McCain once informed Domenici, the Republican chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, that "Only an a--hole would put together a budget like this".
• Speaking at a luncheon attended by McCain, former Phoenix Mayor Paul Johnson was among a group of local mayors fielding questions from the Arizona congressional delegation concerning local land issues. At one point, Johnson was interrupted by a McCain outburst: "Hold it a minute. Somebody write down everything this guy has to say. You know what, we need to record him. It's best to get a liar on tape." Johnson stood and asked, "Senator, if you have a problem with me, why don't we go out in the hallway and talk about it?" McCain replied: "You're god damn right I have a problem with you. They've been treating you like a princess in Phoenix while they've been burning me over this dam deal and I'm sick of it." Following the verbal altercation, Johnson has stated that "His volatility borders in the area of being unstable. Before I let this guy put his finger on the button, I would have to give considerable pause."
• After barging into a bipartisan meeting on immigration legislation and attempting to seize control of the proceedings, Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) responded to McCain's actions: "Wait a second here. I've been sitting in here for all of these negotiations and you just parachute in here on the last day. You're out of line." McCain roared: "F--k you! I know more about this than anyone in the room."
• During a campaign appearance in April 2007, McCain responded to a question regarding our approach to the Middle East: "That old, that old Beach Boys song, 'Bomb Iran'. Bomb, bomb, bomb, bomb."

Like Shooting Fish in a Barrel, Part II

Douglas Holtz-Eakin, a senior policy advisor for Sen. John McCain's presidential campaign, was initially thrust into the public eye when he falsely claimed last month that McCain was responsible for the creation of the BlackBerry. After those comments, many people felt that the McCain camp would keep Holtz-Eakin away from all cameras and microphones. Well, luckily we were wrong.

Holtz-Eakin discussed the various features of McCain's health care policy today with CNNMoney.com. One of the most important aspects is that, under McCain's plan, all employees would be taxed on the value of their health insurance for the first time in U.S. history. Second, all employees would lose the tax exemption for company sponsored medical benefits but would instead receive a refundable tax credit of $2,500 for individuals or $5,000 for families purchasing qualifying health insurance. So what did Holtz-Eakin have to say? Discussing the likelihood of younger, healthier employees abandoning their company sponsored plans, he stated: "Why would they leave? What they are getting from their employer is way better than what they could get with the credit." He does know who he works for, right?

Like Shooting Fish in a Barrel, Part I

As I mentioned in a recent posting, the geniuses on the right continue to incorrectly label Sen. Barack Obama's economic policies as a form of socialism, communism or Marxism. At the same time, along with Sen. John McCain's socialist comments in the past, those same geniuses also continue to sidestep the fact that Sarah Palin is the governor of a "spread the wealth" state. Luckily for the rational thinkers on the left, Palin has been doing her part and advertising that information.

A few weeks before she was nominated for Vice President, Palin provided this statement to a journalist from "The New Yorker": "We're set up, unlike other states in the union, where it’s collectively Alaskans own the resources. So we share in the wealth when the development of these resources occurs." This quote is the smartest thing to come out of Palin's mouth since she was selected by McCain.

Dedicated to Any Undecided Voters, Part I

Ever since the last balloons fell at the Democratic and Republican National Conventions, the respective campaigns have attempted to emphasize Sen. Barack Obama's lack of executive experience; Sen. Joe Biden's inability to filter his comments and Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's lack of intellect and international knowledge and her overly conservative views. At the same time, it seems as if both the Democrats and media alike have given somewhat of a free pass to Sen. John McCain (assumedly due to his time as a prisoner of war). However, if a little more attention was devoted to his background, everyone would see that McCain lacks the character and integrity to serve as the President of the United States. In fact, Richard Clarke, the former chief counter terrorism advisor for President Bill Clinton and Mr. Bush, had this to say recently about McCain: "I'm sure John McCain loves his country. But loving your country and lying to the American people are apparently not inconsistent in his view." With that being said, the following is a long list of dubious events from McCain's life:

• McCain's self described "four-year course of insubordination and rebellion" at the United States Naval Academy finished with him graduating 894th out of a class of 899 students.
• Prior to him even seeing action in the Vietnam War, McCain crashed three planes, which can be attributed primarily to his self described "daredevil clowning" and poor judgement. The second incident created a blackout throughout a large portion of southern Spain when, during a training mission, he flew his plane too low and sliced through electrical wires. (I am sure the fact that both his father and grandfather were four star admirals in the U.S. Navy had nothing to do with McCain being allowed to continue flying.)
• While sitting in the cockpit of his A-4 Skyhawk aboard the USS Forrestal in the Gulf of Tonkin, a Zuni rocket was unintentionally launched across the flight deck, causing a huge explosion which killed 134 sailors and injuring 161 more. Instead of assisting the rescue workers in recovering bodies and joining the heroic crew in mourning its fallen brothers, McCain traveled to Saigon for some "much welcome R&R".
• Although he is viewed by many as a war hero, McCain has admitted to the fact that, soon after he was imprisoned in Vietnam, he informed his captors: "I'll give you military information if you will take me to the hospital." Only two weeks after his capture, McCain provided the name of his ship, the amount of raids he had flown, his squadron number and the target of his final raid.
• Aside from concealing his readiness to offer confidential information during his capture, McCain has also permitted the length of his torture to be exaggerated. Although former Sen. Fred Thompson (R-TN) stated during the Republican National Convention that "For five-and-a-half years this went on", McCain's torture in Vietnam actually ended after two years.
• After returning from Vietnam, McCain wanted to study at the National War College, a school in the National Defense University, but he was turned down by his military superiors for being underqualified. Therefore, McCain appealed the decision to Sen. John Warner (R-VA), who was the Secretary of the Navy at the time and a friend of McCain's father.
• At the end of 1974, McCain was selected as the commanding officer of the Replacement Air Group, the largest air squadron in the Navy. In a post which now required him to train carrier pilots, McCain openly admitted that he "was not qualified" for the position.
• While McCain was a POW, his first wife Carol was involved in a horrible one-car accident on Christmas Eve in 1969. She would spend six months in the hospital and suffer through twenty-three surgeries, which left her five inches shorter and walking on crutches. Despite Carol's ordeal, McCain proceeded to, according to biographer Robert Timberg, have numerous extramarital affairs, including with some of his subordinates.
• In 1977, McCain was named as the Navy's liaison to the United States Senate. Although McCain was serving as the branch's top lobbyist, he showed his true political colors by securing a $2 billion pork project to replace the USS Midway, which was against the wishes of President Jimmy Carter and the Secretary of the Navy. As Mark Hill, chief lobbyist for the Association of Naval Aviation, remembers, "he did a lot of stuff behind the back of the Secretary of the Navy".
• During the spring of 1979, McCain met Cindy Hensley, leading to a year long romance while McCain was still married to and living with Carol. Although he married Cindy three months after divorcing Carol, McCain was still legally married to Carol when he and Cindy were issued a marriage license from the State of Arizona.
• A self proclaimed "foot soldier in the Reagan revolution" prior to his marriage to Cindy, McCain was never forgiven by Ronald and Nancy Reagan for divorcing Carol. Aside from providing Carol with a job in the White House, Nancy did not endorse McCain for President until he became the presumptive nominee for the Republican Party.
• Receiving advance notice in 1982 that a U.S. House of Representatives seat was opening up in the Phoenix area, Cindy purchased a house for McCain in that particular district within minutes of the Republican incumbent's retirement announcement. In sharp contrast to his current marketing ploys, McCain's campaign advertisements at that time described him as an insider, an individual "who knows how Washington works". And although the Reagans no longer respected him, McCain still featured pictures of himself smiling with both Ronald and Nancy.
• McCain voted against honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. with a national holiday in 1983, subsequently continuing that stance until 1989. He initially voted twice against campaign finance reform and attempted to reduce federal funding for social programs.
• In the year before his United States Senate run, McCain championed legislation to delay new regulations on savings and loan associations. Being extremely grateful for McCain's actions, Charles Keating, the chairman of the Lincoln Savings and Loan Association, donated $54,000 to McCain's campaign. When Keating attempted to fill the federal regulatory bank board with his colleagues, a telephone call from McCain hastened the process. In 1987, McCain also attended two meetings convened by Keating in order to eliminate pressure from the federal regulators. As a member of the Keating Five, McCain was one of five United States Senators accused of corruption in 1989 for improperly intervening on behalf of Keating. At the time, Lincoln Savings and Loan was the target of a regulatory investigation by the Federal Home Loan Bank Board. In total, Keating contributed $1.3 million and provided numerous free vacations to the five Senators in exchange for those individuals assisting him in resisting government regulators. When Lincoln Savings and Loan went bankrupt that same year, the collapse cost the taxpayers $3.4 billion, which was the record for the most expensive bank failure in history until the current mortgage crisis.
• Supposedly in a response to the Keating Five scandal, Cindy became addicted to Vicodin and Percocet. While her drug addiction is certainly concerning, the fact that Cindy directed a doctor employed by her charity (which provides medical treatment to patients in developing countries) to supply the narcotics is the real issue. As Director of Government Affairs for the charity, Tom Gosinksi maintained a detailed journal and, when he was suddenly terminated by Cindy, Gosinksi provided the journal to the Drug Enforcement Administration. To avoid a prison sentence, Cindy agreed to a confidential plea bargain and court imposed rehabilitation. After Gosinski filed a $250,000 wrongful termination suit, the attorney for the McCains demanded that prosecutors investigate Gosinski for extortion, a charge later dismissed as unsubstantiated.
• McCain supported President Reagan on abortion, tax cuts for the wealthy and support for the Nicaraguan Contras. Citing as his biggest legislative victory of that era, McCain also supported a 1989 bill which eliminated catastrophic health insurance for senior citizens.
• McCain voted to confirm conservatives Robert Bork and Clarence Thomas to the United States Supreme Court.
• McCain denounced President Clinton for sending the military to Somalia and actually sponsored an amendment to discontinue funding for the troops.
• In 1993, he was the keynote speaker at a fundraiser for a group sponsoring an anti-gay rights ballot initiative in Oregon.
• During the "Gingrich revolution" in 1994, McCain called for the elimination of the Departments of Education and Energy. (Considering his current platform, this brilliant idea does not surprise me at all.) The following year, he championed a sweeping measure which imposed a moratorium on any increase of government regulation.
• In 1997, McCain was named chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science & Transportation, which regulates the insurance and telecommunications industries. During his tenure as chairman or ranking member of the Senate Commerce Committee, executives and fundraisers associated with these two industries donated $2.6 million to McCain. Employees of BellSouth contributed more than $16,000 to McCain, who returned the favor by asking the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to strongly consider the company's request to become a long distance carrier. Days after legislation benefiting the satellite television carrier EchoStar cleared McCain's committee, the company's founder hosted a major fundraiser for McCain's first presidential bid.
• After donating $20,000 and allowing McCain to use his corporate airplane in order to travel to presidential campaign events, Bud Paxson met with McCain because of the FCC's delay in approving his acquisition of a television station in Pittsburgh. Although considered "highly unusual", McCain sent two letters to the FCC in order to finalize the deal.
• The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Financial Services Modernization Act in 1999 repealed legislation from 1933 and, by doing so, allowed for competition among banks, securities companies and insurance companies. McCain voted for this legislation, which has played an enormous role in the current financial crisis.
• Following his failed presidential bid in 2000, McCain founded a non-profit organization called The Reform Institute. McCain staffed the organization with, among others, Rick Davis, his current campaign manager and a former lobbyist for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Prohibited from explicit political activity due to its 501(c)(3) status, The Reform Institute still managed to receive large amounts of money from the telecommunications industry. EchoStar provided a donation of $100,000 and a charity funded by the CEO of Univision contributed an additional $100,000. As the officials of Cablevision were testifying before the Senate Commerce Committee, the company contributed $200,000 to the Reform Institute in 2003 and 2004. Not surprisingly, McCain encouraged the approval of Cablevision's proposed pricing plan.
• Adding to the lies perpetrated by the Bush administration after the September 11th terrorist attacks and anthrax scares, McCain stated that "There is some indication, and I don't have the conclusions, but some of this anthrax may — and I emphasize may — have come from Iraq". Later that month, McCain did his best Dick Cheney impersonation by falsely claiming that "The Czech government has revealed meetings, contacts between Iraqi intelligence and Mohamed Atta. The evidence is very clear. . .so we will have to act." In December of that year, McCain worked with eight other members of Congress to write a letter to Mr. Bush. This letter insisted "All indications are that, in the interest of our own national security, Saddam Hussein must be removed from power".
• McCain was one of only two Republicans to vote in 2001 against Mr. Bush's $1.35 trillion, 10-year tax cut. Two years later, McCain was just one of three Republicans to vote against additional tax cuts, describing those cuts as "too tilted to the wealthy". Then in May 2006, after years of speaking out against Mr. Bush's tax cuts, McCain voted for an extension. Not unexpectedly, McCain announced his intention less than a year later to run for President.
• In September 2002, McCain attempted to assure Americans by saying "I believe that the United States military capabilities are such that we can win a victory in a relatively short time...I believe that we can win an overwhelming victory in a very short period of time." On the eve of the invasion, McCain was also emphatic in his confidence that the United States would be received as liberators by the citizens of Iraq. However, McCain sang a different tune in August 2006: "It has contributed enormously to the frustration that Americans feel today because they were led to believe that this would be some kind of a day at the beach, which many of us fully understood from the beginning would be a very, very difficult undertaking."
• In a highly public battle with Mr. Bush in 2005, McCain claimed a victory which required all military personnel to comply with the Army Field Manual when interrogating prisoners. Just over a year later, McCain formed an agreement with the Bush administration to allow the indefinite imprisonment of detainees and ignore the Geneva Conventions' restrictions against torture.
• An article from the "Congressional Quarterly" in January 2008 determined that McCain was the most reliable voter for the Bush administration in 2007: "McCain's 95% support score for last year was the highest in the chamber."
• McCain received a grade of D from the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA) for his leadership and voting record during the 2007 and 2008 legislative agendas concerning the most critical issues facing veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan.
• In March 2008, McCain insisted that he is "always for less regulation". However, in September of this year, with the federal government committing $85 billion in order to halt the collapse, McCain claimed that the current financial woes "stem from failed regulation, reckless management and a casino culture on Wall Street". Perhaps this is why, at the end of last year, that McCain described his knowledge in the financial arena: "The issue of economics is not something I've understood as well as I should."
• McCain reversed his decades long opposition to coastal drilling in June 2008, shortly before accepting $28,500 from thirteen donors connected to Hess Oil.
• A few years ago, McCain attempted to prohibit registered lobbyists from working on political campaigns. During McCain's current presidential bid, more than 175 lobbyists have been managing and raising money for his campaign.
• Before he became McCain's chief campaign advisor, Charles Black served as a founding partner of the lobbying firm BKSH & Associates. Black and his partners at the firm acted as registered foreign agents for numerous controversial leaders (including Ibrahim Babangida, Mohamed Siad Barre, Ferdinand Marcos and Mobutu Sese Seko), as well as Freddie Mac and Philip Morris. Prior to his current role as McCain's foreign policy advisor, Randy Scheunemann lobbied for the National Rifle Association and against federal safety inspections of roller coasters. Both Black and Scheunemann have strong ties to Ahmad Chalabi, who provided a major portion of the information on which the U.S. intelligence community based its condemnation of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. The information included reports of weapons of mass destruction and alleged ties to al-Qaeda, which nearly all of it was proved false by the media and the intelligence communities of other countries. As we now know, that bill of goods was still sold to the American public as gospel.

Hypocrisy of the Week

Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) and Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin continue to shove the phrase "William Ayers" down the throats of Republicans, independents and undecided voters. In a previous posting, I denounced Ayers's despicable actions as a domestic terrorist in the late 1960s and early 1970s. However, it is important to note that Ayers has led a respectable life since then. In fact, he is currently a professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago, holding the titles of Distinguished Professor of Education and Senior University Scholar.

While the McCain campaign attempts to highlight the "connection" between Ayers and Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) on an almost daily basis, they have avoided McCain's relationship with right wing nutjob, G. Gordon Liddy. Liddy, of course, served almost five years in prison for his major role in the burglaries of the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee at the Watergate Complex in 1972. Aside from the Watergate events, Liddy had concocted various other plots to embarrass the Democratic competition, including firebombing The Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C.; kidnapping and transporting anti-war protest organizers to Mexico during the Republican National Convention and luring Democratic campaign officials to a house boat and then secretly photographing those officials in compromising positions with prostitutes. In his 1980 autobiography, Liddy admitted that he had once planned to assassinate journalist Jack Anderson. Over the last 15+ years, Liddy has hosted his own nationally syndicated talk radio show and, in the mid-1990s, provided this advice to his listeners:

• "Now if the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms comes to disarm you and they are bearing arms, resist them with arms. Go for a head shot, they're going to be wearing bulletproof vests. They've got a big target on there, ATF. Don't shoot at that because they've got a vest on underneath that. Head shots, head shots...kill the sons of bitches."
• "If the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms insists upon a firefight, give them a firefight. Just remember, they're wearing flak jackets and you're better off shooting for the head."
• "When the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms thugs come to kill your wife and children, to try to disarm you and they open fire on you. When they come at the point of a gun, force and violence, when you're going to defend yourself, use that Gerand. That thing is 30-06 and it'll take them right out."

As far as their relationship is concerned, Liddy hosted a fundraiser at his house in 1998 for McCain's re-election campaign. Liddy has also donated $5,000 to the Senator's various campaigns, including $1,000 in February of this year. During a November 2007 appearance on Liddy's radio show, McCain praised Liddy's "continued success and adherence to the principles and philosophies that keep our nation great". In January 2000, "The Charlotte Observer" quoted a McCain campaign chairman: "[Liddy's] judgment might be in question but I don't think his character is."

Timing Is Everything

During the last few weeks, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) and Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin have been uttering the terms "socialism" and "spread the wealth" over and over when discussing Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) and his economic policies. Those tactics are certainly no surprise considering the fact that the largest tax cuts in McCain's plan would go to the wealthiest of Americans. What is a surprise is the enormous 180-degree turn that McCain has made in this area since 2000. (It's funny what happens when you are the Republican nominee for President of the United States.) McCain actually proved in the past that he once had a backbone by speaking out against Mr. Bush's tax cuts: "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." Want more proof the socialism apple doesn't fall far from the tree (aside from the fact that McCain, like Obama, recently voted for the $700 billion bailout)? The following exchange is from a town hall meeting in October 2000:

Unidentified Female: "Since I've been studying politics, I've had this question that I've never fully understand. Why is it that someone like my father, who goes to school for thirteen years, gets penalized in a huge tax bracket because he's a doctor? Why is that? Why does he have to pay higher taxes than everybody else, just because he makes more money? Why -- how is that fair?"
McCain: "I think it's to some degree because we feel, obviously, that wealthy people can afford more...Here's what I really believe, that when you are -- reach a certain level of comfort, there's nothing wrong with paying somewhat more."

Numerous other quotes exist which show that McCain has completely reversed his stance on taxes. In fact, McCain was one of only two Republicans to vote in 2001 against Mr. Bush's $1.35 trillion, 10-year tax cut. Two years later, McCain was just one of three Republicans to vote against additional tax cuts, describing those cuts as "too tilted to the wealthy". Then in May 2006, after years of speaking out against Mr. Bush's tax cuts, McCain voted for an extension. Not unexpectedly, McCain announced his intention less than a year later to run for President. And let's not forget that Palin is governor of a state which, as a result of the Alaska Permanent Fund, provides a percentage of its oil and gas sales and royalties to any state resident who has not been convicted of a felony and has resided in the state for at least one calendar year. If we adhere to the Republican definition, then that definitely reeks of socialism.

Thanks for Coming By!

Over the last week, Rep. John Murtha (D-PA) has delivered some ridiculous statements regarding Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) and his ability to win Pennsylvania in the upcoming presidential election. After declaring last Wednesday that "There's no question western Pennsylvania is a racist area", Murtha attempted to explain those comments yesterday: "What I said was, was, that indicted everybody, that's not what I meant at all. What I mean is there's still folks that have a problem voting for somebody because they're black...This whole area years ago was, was really redneck."

So, in an attempt to capitalize on Murtha's statements, what does Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) proceed to say today at a campaign rally in Moon Township, PA? "I think you may have noticed that Senator Obama’s supporters have been saying some pretty nasty things about western Pennsylvania lately. And you know, I couldn’t agree with them more. I couldn’t disagree with you. I couldn’t agree with you more than the fact that western Pennsylvania is the most patriotic, most God loving, most, most patriotic part of America and this is a great part of the country." I know your brain may hurt now but you should definitely read that again and soak it all in.

Congratu-f*cking-lations!

Yesterday was the 2,000th day since Mr. Bush prematurely announced "Mission Accomplished" aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln in front of a huge banner with the same erroneous claim. If this 2,000-day period was a child, then this child would be almost 5 1/2 years old by now. (However, I strongly doubt that this child would have killed 4,500 U.S. and Coalition soldiers on its own and cost approximately $565 billion to raise.) Looking at the last statement, I don't know whether to cry or commit hari kari.

Time to Look in the Proverbial Mirror

At a campaign rally last week in Bethlehem, PA, Cindy McCain, the wife of presidential candidate John McCain, spoke about her two sons and Sen. Barack Obama: "I'm proud of my sons, but let me tell you, 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. Let me tell you, I would suggest that Sen. Obama change shoes with me for just one day and see what it means, and see what it means to have a loved one serving in the armed forces and, more importantly, serving in harm's way."

Ms. McCain was referring to a single vote in the United States Senate in 2007. Obama supported a war funding bill which included language calling for withdrawing our troops from Iraq but he later voted against a version of the same bill because the withdrawal language was no longer present. With that being said, Obama had previously voted for more than ten other war funding bills during his 3+ years in office. However, McCain's long history of not supporting our troops and veterans is absolutely pathetic:

• As I pointed out in a recent posting, the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA) provided McCain with a grade of D for his voting record when it came to veterans' issues.
• Earlier this year, McCain was absent for three votes on the widely popular Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act.
• Although he stated at a campaign rally that improving veterans' health care was his top domestic priority, McCain voted against increasing funding for veterans' health care in 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007.
• McCain opposed a 2007 amendment which would have prevented the Department of Veterans Affairs from outsourcing jobs primarily held by blue collar veterans. It is important to note that the outsourcing of federal employee jobs contributed to the horrible conditions uncovered in 2007 at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C.
• Since arriving in the U.S. Senate in 1987, McCain has voted at least twenty-eight times against ensuring important benefits for the country's veterans, including providing adequate health care.
• McCain was one of thirteen Republicans in 2006 to vote against providing an additional $430 million to the Department of Veterans Affairs for outpatient care and treatment for veterans. Aside from opposing an assured funding stream for veterans' health care in that same year, McCain also voted against establishing a $1 billion trust fund to improve military health facilities by refusing to repeal tax cuts for individuals earning more than $1 million a year.
• McCain opposed a 2005 amendment to appropriate $500 million annually from 2006-2010 for counseling, mental health and rehabilitation services for veterans diagnosed with mental illness, post-traumatic stress disorder or substance abuse.
• In 2003, McCain voted against increasing spending on the TRICARE program by $20.3 billion over ten years to order to provide members of the United States National Guard and Reserves and their families with greater access to the health care program. I would imagine that the fact this increase would be offset by a reduction in tax cuts for the wealthy was the primary reason for McCain's opposition to this legislation.
• McCain was one of five Senators in 2001 to vote against the bill and seven to vote against the conference report which provided $51.1 billion in funding for the Department of Veterans Affairs; the federal housing, environmental and emergency management agencies and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
• McCain was one of eight Senators in 2000 to vote against a bill which provided $47 billion for the Department of Veterans Affairs.
• McCain was one of five Senators in 1999 to vote against a bill which provided $44.3 billion in funding for the Department of Veterans Affairs and other federal agencies.
• McCain opposed a 1996 amendment to increase spending on veterans programs by $13 billion.
• In 1991, McCain voted against providing automatic annual cost-of-living adjustments for certain veterans' benefits.

Bastards of the Week

Less than a week after an $85 billion bailout by the federal government, executives at AIG spent more than $440,000 on a week-long "conference" at the exclusive St. Regis Resort in Dana Point, CA. Testifying in front of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Robert Willumstad, the former Chairman and CEO of AIG, stated that "I was totally unaware that there was any plan for any conference. Had I been aware of it I would have prevented it from happening." However, Nicholas Ashooh, a spokesperson for the company, declared that the outing had been scheduled for over a year.

The invoice summary (http://oversight.house.gov/documents/20081007102513.pdf)
obtained by the Congressional committee shows that AIG spent $139,375.30 for more than 60 guest rooms, $147,301.71 for banquets and $3,064.71 for room service and the lobby lounge, as well as $6,939.09 on golf. The company also spent $5,016.32 at the Stonehill Tavern, $23,380 at the Spa Gaucin and $1,488 at the Vogue Salon. The group reserved the resort's 3,100-square foot Presidential Suite for $1,600 a night for five nights. Last but not least, the company also paid $1,075 in no show fees and $2,949 in gratuities. Ashooh attempted to justify the financial abuse by stating that the event was planned as a reward for independent agents who sell the company's life insurance products. According to Ashooh, "This is very standard in the industry to reward the top 5 to 10% of top sellers. In the insurance business, it's as basic as salary as a means to reward performance." Standard?!? Your employer was just rescued by the federal government but the company still has the nerve to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on cocktails, manicures and massages. How in the world is that considered standard? I call it greedy.

Skeletons in the Closet

Conservative pundits nationwide have been busy loading up their guns (no pun intended) for Sen. Barack Obama and his former relationships with William Ayers and Reverend Jeremiah Wright. Now regardless of how close Obama's connections are with these two individuals, I certainly don't condone Ayers's radical history as a domestic terrorist or Wright's controversial comments. With that being said, the right wing media seems to be conveniently turning away from the individuals in Sen. John McCain's life with sordid pasts. The following individuals don't appear to be beyond reproach:

1. The Annenberg Foundation: In the mid-1990s, The Annenberg Foundation provided a $49.2 million grant to the winner of the Chicago Annenberg Challenge; the grant matched local private funds in order to improve public schools. One of the co-authors of the victorious proposal was William Ayers (yes, that William Ayers). On Wednesday, the McCain campaign announced that Leonore Annenberg, currently the President and Chairman of The Annenberg Foundation and widow of former U.S. Ambassador William Annenberg, had endorsed McCain and Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin. The Annenbergs also contributed substantially to the 1980 presidential campaign of Ronald Reagan, and upon Reagan's election in 1981, Leonore Annenberg was named Chief of Protocol of the United States.

2. John Hagee: McCain actually sought and received the endorsement from Hagee, the founder and senior pastor of the 19,000-member Cornerstone Church in San Antonio, TX. Here are some of Hagee's previous statements and actions:

• "Your daughter can get an abortion in public school without telling you but she can't get an aspirin without your approval."
• "America has become a pagan society and we are in a moral, emotional, spiritual free fall. When a school teacher cannot refer to the Ten Commandments on the wall but can command your child to read Harry Potter, which is nothing but a precursor of witchcraft, we're going in the wrong direction here. This is not intelligence. We are embracing the era of darkness. When the Boy Scouts of America are censored and penalized for refusing to accept homosexual scout leaders, we are a pagan nation where we're rebirthing Sodom and Gomorrah."
• Commenting on Hurricane Katrina, Hagee stated that "All hurricanes are acts of God because God controls the heavens. I believe that New Orleans had a level of sin that was offensive to God and they were recipients of the judgment of God for that."
• "I believe that the judgment of God is a very real thing. I know that there are [homosexuals] who demur from that but I believe that the Bible teaches that, when you violate the law of God, that God brings punishment sometimes before the day of judgement."
• "God says in Jeremiah 16: 'Behold I will bring them the Jewish people again unto their land that I gave unto their fathers' -- that would be Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. 'Behold I will send for many fishers and after will I send for many hunters. And they the hunters shall hunt them' -- that will be the Jews -- 'from every mountain and from every hill and from out of the holes of the rocks'. If that doesn't describe what Hitler did in the Holocaust, you can't see that...A fisher is someone who entices you with a bait...A hunter is someone who comes with a gun and he forces you. Hitler was a hunter."
• "The feminist movement today is throwing off authority in rebellion against God's pattern for the family."
• In March 1996, Hagee announced a "slave sale" to raise funds for high school seniors in the church bulletin. The event was introduced with the phrase "Slavery in America is returning to Cornerstone" and ended with "Make plans to come and go home with a slave".

3. The Keating Five were five United States Senators accused of corruption in 1989 for improperly intervening on behalf of Charles Keating, the chairman of the Lincoln Savings and Loan Association. At the time, Lincoln Savings and Loan was the target of a regulatory investigation by the Federal Home Loan Bank Board. Apparently Keating contributed $1.3 million to the five Senators and, in turn, asked for those individuals to assist him in resisting government regulators. The Keating Five were comprised on Alan Cranston (D-CA), Dennis DeConcini (D-AZ), John Glenn (D-OH), Donald Riegle (D-MI) and...wait for it...John McCain (R-AZ).

The Grades Are In!

The Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA), the nation's first and largest group dedicated to the troops and veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the civilian supporters of those individuals, recently released their 2008 Congressional Report Card (http://www.veteranreportcard.org/reportcard.pdf) on every member of the United States Senate and House of Representatives. The report card from this non-partisan organization measures each individual's leadership and voting record during the 2007 and 2008 legislative agendas concerning the most critical issues facing veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan. Here are the grades for the politicians currently in the presidential race:

Sen. John McCain (R-AZ): D

• McCain was absent for votes on legislation to both expand and enhance veterans' benefits and to stop a poorly conceived GI Bill, as well as three votes on the much more popular Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act. Along with his absence, McCain went even further to display his strong dedication towards the veterans of the military by actually refusing to sponsor the educational assistance legislation, which was supported by 300 members of the House of Representatives, 60 members of the Senate and all of the leading Veterans Service Organizations.

Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL): B

• Obama did vote in favor of the Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act that McCain refused to sponsor. However, Obama was absent for votes on increasing funding for veterans' health care, expanding and enhancing veterans' benefits and stopping the second rate GI bill.

Sen. Joe Biden (D-DE): B

• Biden also voted in favor of the Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act. At the same time, he was absent for votes on increasing funding for veterans' health care and expanding veterans' benefits.

What grade did Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin get? She received a gold star and a cookie for coloring in between the lines and reciting her ABCs.

Apparently Cute Little Songs Are Acceptable

During the second presidential debate on Tuesday, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) attempted to criticize Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) and his comments on his approach to Pakistan. After Obama provided his answer, McCain countered by saying "He said he wants to announce that he's going to attack Pakistan. Remarkable. You know, if you are a country and you're trying to gain the support of another country, then you want to do everything you can that they would act in a cooperative fashion."

Obama's actual comments from just seconds before were as follows: "We're going to encourage democracy in Pakistan, expand our non-military aid to Pakistan so that they have more of a stake in working with us but insisting that they go after these militants. And if we have Osama bin Laden in our sights and the Pakistani government is unable or unwilling to take them out, then I think that we have to act and we will take them out." McCain was clearly making a stretch with his statement. However, it is not a stretch by stating that McCain's comments from a town hall meeting don't seem to be very cooperative. In that campaign appearance from all the way back in April 2007, McCain responded to a question about the Middle East: "That old, that old Beach Boys song, 'Bomb Iran'. Bomb, bomb, bomb, bomb." During this week's debate, McCain defended his answer by claiming "I was joking with an old veteran friend, who joked with me about Iran". Really? The question was asked during a town hall meeting and, I'll be honest, the question doesn't really sound like a joke: "How many times do we have to prove that these people are blowing up people now, never mind if they get a nuclear weapon. When do we send them an airmail message to Tehran?"

Stretch of the Week

In her closing statement of this week's vice presidential debate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin delivered the typical right wing scare tactic by saying "We have to fight for our freedoms also, economic and our national security freedoms. It was [President] Ronald Reagan who said that freedom is always just one generation away from extinction. We don't pass it to our children in the bloodstream; we have to fight for it and protect it and then hand it to them so that they shall do the same or we're going to find ourselves spending our sunset years telling our children and our children's children about a time in America, back in the day, when men and women were free."

Stopping just short of uttering the phrase "9/11", Palin (well, let's face it, her speechwriter) certainly attempted to continue aligning herself with the conservative members of the Republican Party. However, for non-lemminglike individuals with the ability to conduct even the smallest amount of research, her paraphrasing of Reagan's words definitely lacks any sort of punch. The reason for that? Reagan uttered his comments on a LP recording in 1961 while he was still performing as an actor. Titled "Ronald Reagan Speaks Out Against Socialized Medicine", the future President details the "dangerous threat" supposedly posed by Medicare and similar programs. Yes, you heard me right. The star of "Bedtime for Bonzo" provided his time for a recording which has absolutely nothing to do with what Palin was talking about it. The LP was supported by the American Medical Association so I guess Reagan's association with lobbying started pretty early.

Let's See the Forest for the Trees

Following Thursday's vice presidential debate between Sen. Joe Biden (D-DE) and Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, we have obviously seen and heard the political pundits from both sides discuss not only the winner and loser but also inaccuracies and supposed mistakes. The following are some of my favorites:

Palin: "[General] McClellan did not say definitively the surge principles would not work in Afghanistan."
Truth: First and foremost, the correct name of the commanding officer of NATO troops in Afghanistan is General David McKiernan. General George McClellan served in the Civil War and died more than 120 years ago. With that being said, McKiernan had this to say on Wednesday: "What I don’t think is needed — the word that I don’t use in Afghanistan is the word 'surge'. There needs to be a sustained commitment of a variety of military and non-military resources, I believe. That’s my advice to winning in Afghanistan. It won’t be a short term solution."

Biden: The Senator from my home state of Delaware was criticized vehemently by various conservatives on FOX News, including the ridiculous Ann Coulter, for supposedly incorrectly describing the individuals living in Bosnia as "Bosniaks".
Truth: Spelled correctly, the term Bosniaks does refer to South Slavic individuals living primarily in Bosnia and Herzegovina. If you think that I am may be spinning this topic, I recommend that you to go http://www.bosniak.org/06/, the web site for the Congress of North American Bosniaks.

Biden: Calvin Woodward of The Associated Press claimed that Biden's complaints about how the "economic policies of the last eight years" have created "excessive deregulation" fall on deaf ears because he actually voted for deregulation in 1999.
Truth: The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Financial Services Modernization Act in 1999 repealed legislation from 1933 and, by doing so, allowed for competition among banks, securities companies and insurance companies. The Congressional vote (http://www.govtrack.us/congress/vote.xpd?vote=s1999-105) shows that Biden voted against the act and (surprise, surprise) Sen. John McCain voted for the legislation.

Biden: "[Sen.] Barack Obama did not vote to raise taxes. The vote [Palin's] referring to, John McCain voted the exact same way. It was a budget procedural vote. John McCain voted the same way."
Truth: Multiple web sites (including FactCheck.org) stated that Biden was incorrect when making this claim. At the same time, according to the web site for the Congressional voting record (http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=110&session=2&vote=00042), the amendment to which Biden was speaking did provide tax relief to, among other groups, middle class families and small businesses. FactCheck.org attempted to connect their false claim to another piece of legislation (http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/110/bills/s_4/). However, this particular bill clearly focused on improving homeland security.

Biden: "John McCain said as recently as a couple of weeks ago he wouldn't even sit down with the government of Spain, a NATO ally that has troops in Afghanistan with us now."
Truth: FactCheck.org and other web sites declared that McCain did not deliver a definitive statement against inviting President Jose Luis Rodríguez Zapatero to the White House if McCain was elected President. Well, view McCain's response for yourself: "Uh, I don’t, you know, honestly I have to look at the relations and the situations and the priorities."

Palin: "John McCain has been the consummate maverick in the Senate over all these years."
Truth: An article from the "Congressional Quarterly" in January 2008 determined that McCain was the most reliable voter for the Bush administration in 2007: "McCain's 95% support score for last year was the highest in the chamber." Maybe it doesn't count if you are running for President of the United States.

With all of this in mind, here is one more Palin quote from the debate that I wanted to point out: "I may not answer the questions the way that either the moderator or [Sen. Biden wants] to hear but I'm going to talk straight to the American people and let them know my track record also." Listen, dingbat, there are two important things that you should know. (1) You are not as cute or as smart as you think you are and (2) the American people do want you to actually answer the questions asked.

Just Say Something!, Part II

When discussing her choices of newspapers and magazines with Katie Couric on the "CBS Evening News", Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin provided these bewildering comments:

Couric: "And when it comes to establishing your world view, I was curious what newspapers and magazines did you regularly read before you were tapped for this to stay informed and to understand the world?"
Palin: "I've read most of them, again with a great appreciation for the press, for the media." Couric: "What specifically?"
Palin: "Um, all of them, any of them that have been in front of me all these years."
Couric: "Can you name a few?"
Palin: "I have a vast variety of sources where we get our news too. Alaska isn't a foreign country, where it's kind of suggested, 'Wow, how could you keep in touch with what the rest of Washington, D.C. may be thinking when you live up there in Alaska?'. Believe me, Alaska is like a microcosm of America."

"Um, all of them, any of them"? You have got to be kidding me! Now although I wish her reading material was along the lines of "Mother Jones" or "The Nation", I would completely understand if her choices were conservative publications such as "National Review" and "The Washington Times". However, based on her responses above, I am worried that she is frequently perusing "Highlights", "Tiger Beat" and "MAD Magazine".

Just Say Something!, Part I

After discussing her opinion on the Roe v. Wade decision with Katie Couric this evening on the "CBS Evening News", Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin was asked the following question: "What other [U.S.] Supreme Court decisions do you disagree with?"

You would probably assume that this little Alaskan Einstein would be able to name at least one other recent Supreme Court decision viewed as controversial by the right wing. For example, Wallace v. Jaffree (prayer in public schools), Grutter v. Bollinger (affirmative action) or Lawrence v. Texas (homosexual rights). You assumed wrong...

Palin: "Well, let's see. There's, of course, in the great history of America, there have been rulings there's never going to be absolute consensus by every American. And there are those issues again, like Roe v. Wade, where I believe are best held on a state level and addressed there. So you know, going through the history of America, there would be others but…"
Couric: "Can you think of any?"
Palin: "Well, I would think of any again that could be best dealt with on a more local level maybe I would take issue with. But, you know, as a mayor and then as a governor and even as a Vice President, if I'm so privileged to serve, wouldn't be in a position of changing those things but in supporting the law of the land as it reads today."

If you think that Palin's response to Couric's question was unbelievable, it gets even better. On June 25, 2008, the Supreme Court reduced the amount of punitive damages (from $2.5 billion to $507.5 million) to Alaska fishermen and other residents as a result of the Exxon Valdez disaster in 1989. In a prepared statement, Palin announced that "I am extremely disappointed with today’s decision by the U.S. Supreme Court". Yes, you read that correctly. Even though Palin provided a dissenting opinion against a Supreme Court decision from less than 100 days ago and involving a case in the state of which she is currently governor, this mental giant could not provide an intelligent response to an extremely straightforward question from Couric.