Positive Obama thread

OK, I guess they're doing the foreign affairs debate first now?  Seems like now would be the time to talk domestic issues.

I thought this post was great.  Shows you what one man-one sign can do! 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/akmuckraker/akspalin-lies-one-mans-pr_b_127914.html

Great idea, Amy. And let's see them do that for the Veep debate, too. I am so freaking sick of talking points being spouted in place of a real answer.

Anne

Everyone seems to think that the economy is going to be brought up in the debate, regardless.  I haven't heard exactly how it's going to be moderated.  I like the freer, direct format but I hope they won't be interrupting and talking over each other.  I'm not expecting a lot of spontaneity in their answers, but you never know.

Yeah, after Bush went on to win after his stumbling "it's hard work" debate performance, the bar couldn't be set any lower.       

Did anyone see Clinton on Letterman last night?  That man certainly knows his economics.  He was explaining the current crisis, and for a few minutes I actually understood what leverage buying is all about.  He made some nice comments about Biden, but barely uttered Obama's name.  I think it's still hard for him, protests to the contrary notwithstanding. 

Wouldn't you like to be a fly on the wall when Palin meets Kissinger today?   

I usually don't like to re-print the blogs I read here, but I can't resist today.  Below are three posts that made my day... (Bold underlined titles are my words, not the articles.  The actual text and links are below) 

1)  Republicans from Alaska are revolting against Palin/McSame's tactics:

http://community.adn.com/adn/node/131724

From Kathleen McCoy at the ADN's Alaska Newsreader --

Mother Jones mojo blog reports that Senate President Lyda Green is pursuing options that might allow the state Senate to convene and deal with Troopergate.

Calling herself a "raging Republican," Green says, she is "absolutely disgusted, embarrassed, and ashamed" by the McCain-Palin campaign's intervention in the Troopergate probe.

Green is alarmed by the McCain squad's use of hardball tactics and "the length to which they're going to impede and delay" the investigation. The local press conferences held by McCain-Palin aides, she adds, "are vile. They're attacking nice people, saying things that are not true. Walt Monegan has been respected in all circles. To see him used as a scapegoat is very disheartening."

Green said she is making calls and exploring whether she could call the Senate back into session to either instruct the attorney general to change his position, or to order those subpoenaed under the Legislative investigation to honor that call. Whether the Republican-controlled House would go along is another question.

2)  The Media has stopped giving McSame a free-pass, so McSame is "firing" the media:

http://thinkprogress.org/2008/09/23/media-palin-un/

Earlier today, the McCain-Palin campaign backed out of its promise to allow print journalists from reporting on Gov. Sarah Palin's (R-AK) U.N. meetings this afternoon. Instead, the campaign wanted to turn it into an elaborate photo op, deciding to allow photographers and a CNN camera crew only. According to Politico, the press have begun to revolt:

But the imbroglio began developing Tuesday morning when Palin's handlers informed the small print press contingent covering her campaign that the print reporter designated to cover the events, Elizabeth Holmes of the Wall Street Journal, would not be allowed to cover the sprays. [...]

The campaign also at first moved to bar CNN, the television network designated for pool duty, from sending its editorial producer - basically a hybrid print/video journalist - though the campaign budged when the network threatened to withhold its cameras as well.

With increasingly negative press coverage over these events, the campaign eventually allowed Holmes into the Karzai event for a whopping 29 seconds, and has now agreed to let her cover the next two "sprays" before Palins' meetings with Colombian President Uribe and former U.N. Secretary of State Kissinger. Earlier in the day, the networks had voted to ban any use of photographs and videos from the event, to protest the lack of editorial presence and deny the McCain-Palin campaign of a free photo op.

Similarly, in Ohio today, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) ignored questions from reporters on the bailout, prompting one journalist to yell, "Has your bus become the No Talk Express?"

3.  The Palin bounce has turned into the Palin albatross on McSame's polling numbers;

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/9/23/131259/495/588/607596

A precipitous drop in Sarah Palin's approval may be helping to fuel Obama's gains. Immediately after the convention 41% of Colorado voters said that her selection made them more likely to vote for John McCain, compared to 38% who said it made them less likely to do so.  Since then there's been a 12 point drop in her net favorability.  Now just  38% say that she makes them more likely to vote for the Republican, with 47% saying  they're less likely to do so.

"Barack Obama has greatly increased his lead with independents since we last polled Colorado," said Dean Debnam, President of Public Policy Polling.  "It seems like the more voters have learned about Sarah Palin the less they've liked her, and that's allowed Obama to open up the largest lead he's shown in a PPP poll of Colorado."

Those who argued giving Palin a pass when she was wildly popular were wrong. While she's rallied the base and solidified states like North Dakota and Alaska for Palin, she is now toxic to independents and Democrats.

I cannot WAIT for the VP debate-- it is going to be so awesome.  A real side-splitter.  "But I can see Russia from my house!"   LOL

I just saw this line [see the bold sentence at the end], from an opinion article in the Des Moines Register that I think I will have to get put on a T-Shirt or Bumper Sticker:

"...

But the sideshow over things like lipstick on pigs was entertaining for about a week - until big financial institutions collapsed and the stock market sagged. It spooked scared Americans even more. By mid-week, the polls had started to shift back in Obama's direction. Suddenly McCain's strong suit - protecting national security - isn't what voters were after.

That's to be expected. Republicans have been in the White House for eight years. Oh, the Democrats carry their share of the blame for the nation's economic troubles, but political history teaches the party out of power often benefits when times are tough. Many voters, especially angry new ones, may figure the Republicans have had their turn and it's time to give someone else a chance.

If this is a repeat of the 1930s, the Democratic gains of 2006 can be recorded as akin to the Democratic gains in the election of 1930. That election presaged Franklin Roosevelt's victory in 1932, which ushered in 20 years of Democratic control of the White House.

Last week, Democrats succeeded at wrapping the nation's economic troubles around McCain, who was trying to reinvent himself. But the born-again, pro-regulation populist didn't help himself by saying the economic fundamentals were sound. That came on top of an earlier statement in which he said the economy isn't his strong suit.

And Sarah Palin's effect may be peaking. She seems uncomfortable in the rare interviews she grants. She doesn't leave you with the impression she'd be any more competent to handle the nation's economic anxieties than its foreign relations. Yes, she may be pro-family and a mom with five kids. That's great but Americans are looking for someone to handle Wall Street and Iraq, not Bristol and Track."

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080921/OPINION01/809210320/1166

First clear lead of the general-election campaign in the new Washington Post-ABC News national poll.

             Obama now leads McCain by 52 percent to 43 percent

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/23/AR2008092303667.html

I cannot believe McCain is suspending his campaign and wants to skip the debate and go to washington instead.

I understand they have a job as senators, but this debate is essential...barack is about to speak right now...

I feel like McCain is doing this b/c he's grasping at getting the public to think he can handle the economy.

I guess the debate is going to be pushed back.

I liked what Barack said as well about the president having to do more then one thing at a time.

if they go to washington, every move they make will be scrutinized, No?  Would their presence take away from the task at hand? Do you think that because the dems want to place all these (appropriate) checks and balances on the governments bail out plan, that McCain's people will try to spin it like Barack's view is to hold up the process, of saving the economy-- or something to that effect? 

And can anyone tell me if I should dump my mutual funds for something FDIC insured???

Forgot to say in my last post, I think this is the day that the campaign turned a historical corner.  I predict that pundits will look back on this for years to come as the pivotal day that McCain lost his bid for presidency.  (Although I think he jumped the shark when he selected Palin.)

"I hear the Pres blame people borrowing when they couldn't afford loans." 

Also, people calculated that they could pay the monthly rates quoted at closing.  But because these were subprime VARIABLE-RATE mortgages, when the rates went up like crazy and the payments jumped, then people who could afford $500 a month couldn't manage $1200.

I just googled "variable-rate mortgage" and found this 2006 New York Times financial column worrying about a looming crisis, but the author was pooh-poohed by all the mortgage firms he called!  http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/15/business/15money.html