Is He REALLY a Presidential Candidate?

John McCain had a rough Wednesday. Seems he didn’t come across as the most knowledgeable candidate around.

McCain’s Day Marked By False Statements And Gaffes

A series of misstatements and verbal gaffes hampered Sen. John McCain on the day that unofficially marked the beginning of his general election campaign against Barack Obama. Appearing at a press conference in Louisiana on Wednesday, McCain claimed [..]

Clinton Timetable

I’ve been out for the evening, spending time with the new granddaughter! Came home to find Hillary is set to do it…stop her campaign and support Obama.

Breaking: Hillary Clinton To Suspend Campaign, Endorse Obama Friday

MSNBC is reporting that Senator Hillary Clinton will be suspending her campaign and plans to endorse the presumptive Democratic Presidential nominee, Senator Barack Obama, on Friday. More from the New York Times: Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton is moving to suspend her campaign and endorse Senator Barack Obama on Friday after [...]

UPDATE: Okay, it’s Saturday, not Friday. Noted in my morning newspaper and via AMERICAblog:

Thursday Morning Open Thread

Good morning. So, it’s really over. I got the email from the Clinton campaign: “On Saturday, I will extend my congratulations to Senator Obama and my support for his candidacy. This has been a long and hard-fought campaign, but [..]

It’s Getting Expensive

Look what’s happening to airline fares! Who’s going to pay these fares, other than business people who absolutely HAVE to get somewhere? Not yours truly, that’s for sure!

US carriers are doubling and tripling man of the cheapest non-stop fares in US

Any economists want to weigh in on whey we shouldn’t just let some of them go bankrupt? Doubling and tripling fares? And American, which I usually fly, charging $15 for the first bag (and more I believe for the second)? Thanks, since business travelers don’t [..]

Family Affair

Troubles mount for the William Jefferson family. That’s right, his family is in trouble, right along with the democratid congressman.

Feds Announce The Indictment Of William (Cold Cash) Jefferson’s Sister, Brother, And Niece

The U.S. Attorney’s office in New Orleans just announced that a Federal Grand Jury has issued multi-count indictments for Betty Jefferson, Mose Jefferson, and Angela Coleman for a variety of fraud related charges. From the sketchy information available [...]

Good News

We’ll get to that in a moment. The good news. First, a couple of observations, having a bit of down time to take care of some things around the house. T shirts must multiply on their own. I found t shirts in places I don’t recall putting them. With 30 years in TV, I amassed a lot of promotional and event-oriented t shirts. Actually, ” a lot” doesn’t begin to describe it. It’s gonna be one heck of a garage sale in a few weeks! I found shirts going back to my 1970’s college days, including one from the first college radio station where I worked in 1970 and 1971.

Now, onto the good news for Don Siegelman! If you haven’t been following his story, you really need to do so.

Federal prosecutors no longer seeking stiffer prison sentence for Siegelman.

AP reports: Federal prosecutors are no longer seeking stiffer prison sentences for former Alabama governor Don Siegelman and former HealthSouth CEO Richard Scrushy. Prosecutors filed a motion this week with the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals asking that their appeals of the sentences be dropped. Their appeal had called for a longer prison term than Siegelman’s [...]

McCain Speech-ifying

I’m not sure the speech I watched this morning was much better, but last night’s attempt was a disaster. Really. No way around it. What the heck were they thinking! It was hard to watch (nice ugly green background, folks!), and hard to listen to. All in all, it probably scared off more people than it brought in. The Carpetbagger blog has a great roundup of the speech and reaction to it. Sadly, the whole thing was almost comical.

McCain tries to steal Dems’ thunder, but ends up all wet

John McCain, for all of his flaws and troubles, has assembled a professional team of advisors and consultants. Most of them are high-priced lobbyists, which, while raising ethical questions, but this a crew who knows how to play to win. And I can probably imagine their thinking going into last night. Barack Obama was poised to [...]

The Diebold Debacle

This kind of stuff just sends shivers down my spine. Can we ever trust election results again? I’m not sure. Especially not sure after I watch videos like this one.

VIDEO: Manual Override of Diebold’s Central Tabulator in Sarasota FL’s Primary Election

How easy is it to enter any election results you want into the Diebold central tabulator? When you use Diebold’s “Manual Override” option, it’s exactly this easy… The video above was shot on the night of the recent Primary at the election headquarters in Florida’s Sarasota County, home of the [...]

Olbermann’s Attitude

I still enjoy watching Keith Olbermann on MSNBC’s “Countdown”, but he’s beginning tol get on my nerves. Every once in a while. His “Special Comments” are still marvelously written, but he, sometimes, goes over-the-top with his delivery. The points he makes ARE important, but not THAT important. That being said, I have been following the ratings and “Countdown” is performing VERY well for MSNBC. There are nights when he actually has more viewers than Bill O’Reilly. Like this Tuesday. By a wide margin. That’s something unheard of until recently. And, it’s not just nights when O’Reilly is gone. He’s beating him, head to head. It’s a strong indication that American news viewers are sick and tired of being spoon-fed administration talking points.

The Rise Up Of Countdown

Another month, another dismal performance by Fox News who, once again, wins the trophy for “Slowest Growing Cable News Network.” The redundancy of this news compels me to search for some other ratings story so as not to bore myself. Fortunately, I’ve found a couple. For most of the past half dozen years, Fox has enjoyed [...]

So, why is O’reilly’s lead dissolving? Could it be because the man is a liar? Or, to give him the benefit of the doubt, doesn’t research things very thorough or just isn’t all that smart?

Despite available audiotape, O’Reilly asserted, “[T]he Hagee thing isn’t going to take off because there’s no tape on Hagee”

During the May 30 edition of Fox News’ The O’Reilly Factor, host Bill O’Reilly discussed controversial supporters of Sens. John McCain and Barack Obama and claimed that “the [Pastor John] Hagee thing isn’t going to take off because there’s no tape on Hagee.” Hagee withdrew his endorsement of McCain after [...]

Finally, looks like there was a little dustup between Keith and another big NBC guy on the air..

Brokaw vs. Olbermann?

NewsBuster’s Brad Wilmouth notes a semi-terse moment between Tom Brokaw and Keith Olbermann last night during MSNBC’s political coverage…(via Chickaboomer) Shortly before 8:00 p.m., after Brokaw finished describing what he called the “very strong credentials” and “remarkable stories” of Barack Obama and John McCain, Olbermann chimed in: “And a third one trying to shoe-horn her way [...]

Another Economic Casualty

Another day. Another airline bites the dust.

More Cuts as United Grounds Low-Cost Carrier

United will also retire aircraft and cut up to 1,100 more jobs, in an effort to lessen the impact of high fuel prices [...]

Oh, in case you forgot, it’s hitting at the individual level, too. Not just big business:

Economy and Money Top Causes of Stress for Americans

As talk of falling housing prices, rising consumer debt and declining retail sales bring up worries about the nation’s economic health, the American Psychological Association (APA) finds that many Americans are stressed and anxious about their financial future. An APA poll on the causes of stress reports that two-thirds (66 percent) of Americans identify [...]

The McClellan Assault Continues

I don’t know if he’s just rolling this thing out in bits and pieces for promotional value, or if it really is a case of reporters just asking the right questions. Whatever the reason, the information is fascinatingly frightening.

McClellan: Hagee Had Influence In Bush White House, Could ‘Quickly Get Someone On The Phone’

In an interview on NPR’s Fresh Air on Monday, host Terri Gross asked former White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan if controversial pastor John Hagee had “much sway within the Bush administration.” In response, McClellan said Hagee was just “one of a number of evangelical pastors, social conservative” that “had a heavy influence on some [...]

Wednesday Michelle Obama Tape Update

If you’re waiting for that “bombshell” Obama tape, I’d suggest not holding your breath. Nothing by midday on Wednesday. I’m not saying the tape doesn’t exist, I’m just saying that it certainly seems somebody would have coughed one up, since it was supposedly sold through the church’s website.

I’m offering this update, because an incredible number of you are finding this blog by searching for information on the tape. Second to “Space Aliens” and “UFO’s”, this topic is hot!

“Whitey” Tape Looking Pretty Shady

LJ points to a pro-Hillary site called HillBuzz, which now claims: Here’s what’s known so far: The Michelle Obama Rant Tape was filmed between June 26th – July 1st 2004 in Chicago, IL at the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition Conference at Trinity [...]

Thoughts On Hillary

Even if you don’t like Hillary Clinton. Even if you think she’s the last person you want as president. Even if you’re the biggest Obama or McCain supporter in the world. Take a moment and read Jeralyn’s thoughts on Hillary, written after the results of Tuesday’s election were know, written after the speeches were made.

Late Night: Piece of My Heart

In the last six months, more than 18 million voters pushed a lever or touched a screen in the privacy of a voting booth for Hillary Clinton. She’s correct that more voters chose her (pdf) than any other candidate in the history of presidential primaries. Like her opponent, she shattered fundraising records from prior primaries. Unlike her opponent, [...]

AIPAC Speeches

Interesting speeches this morning by Obama and Clinton. Both sounding very much like they admire and, maybe, like each other. Obama’s speech certainly sounded like a primary campaign speech. Clinton seemed to almost acknowledge that Obama is the candidate, saying she knew that he’d stand with Israel. And her attitude seemed to strongly suggest that does want to be a part of an Obama administration. This could be a trial run of what an Obama-Clinton tag-team administration would look and sound like.

Before the speeches, the Wall Street Journal said:

Political Perceptions: The (Non) Mating Dance of Obama and Clinton

Barack Obama clinched the Democratic nomination Tuesday, making him the first African-American presidential candidate of a major party. (Reuters) And so, with the end of the primary season, begins the mating dance?or perhaps the non-mating dance?between Sen.Barack Obama and Sen. Hillary Clinton. Now that Obama has secured the delegates necessary to clinch the nomination, the question [...]

What’s Up?

It’s Wednesday. We, apparently, have a democratic nominee for president. As I write this, he’s talking about Israel. Clinton has NOT conceded. And, we’re still waiting for a promised/threatened “bombshell” about Mrs. Obama. Is that why Clinton is hanging in there? Does she know about a supposedly game-changing videotape of Michelle Obama? Does she think it’s enough to flip the party upside down? Or, is she just stubborn enough to think there’s still something to her “popular vote” argument? It’s either one of the most spectacular displays of stubbornness ever, or we’re in for one heck of a ride between now and the convention.

What Went Wrong for Clinton?

The Wall Street Journal runs a must-read piece on the failures of Sen. Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign. “Conversations over months with dozens of Clinton staffers, advisers and supporters suggest that over her 17-month campaign, the second-term New York senator and former first lady was [...]

The general consensus remains that the Obama/Clinton ticket is not likely to happen, no matter how conciliatory she sounded today (if she really did sound conciliatory).

A Dream Team?

As Hunter has pointed out, the “Dream Ticket” of Obama/Clinton, despite today’s media frenzy, is a non-starter. But as the Clinton campaign contemplates just how to have Senator Clinton exit the race, and as questions abound as to what her political future holds, here’s some speculation to think about: ” The Obama camp, however, remains nervous about Mrs Clinton’s intentions and ambitions, and is preparing a [...]