Hill's Deciept Continues: Obama's Campaign Fires Back, Hitting Hard on Their Words

Hillary's campaign put out a press release that essentially painted Obama's campaign as one in a downward spiral that put the best old barn stormers to shame. Unfortunately, it just really isn't true, so, the Obama campaign felt it necessary to set a few things straight. Here is their annotated version (Notes Bolded), pulled from NPR:

To: Interested Parties
From: Clinton Campaign
Date: Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Re: Keystone Test: Obama Losing Ground [Get ready for a good one.]

The path to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue goes through Pennsylvania so if Barack Obama can't win there, how will he win the general election?

[Answer: I suppose by holding obviously Democratic states like California and New York, and beating McCain in swing states like Colorado, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Virginia and Wisconsin where Clinton lost to Obama by mostly crushing margins. But good question.]

After setbacks in Ohio and Texas, Barack Obama needs to demonstrate that he can win the state of Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania is the last state with more than 15 electoral votes on the primary calendar and Barack Obama has lost six of the seven other largest states so far -- every state except his home state of Illinois.

[If you define "setback" as netting enough delegates out of our 20-plus-point wins in Mississippi and Wyoming to completely erase any delegate advantage the Clinton campaign earned out of March 4th, then yeah, we feel pretty setback.]

Pennsylvania is of particular importance, along with Ohio, Florida and Michigan, because it is dominated by the swing voters who are critical to a Democratic victory in November. No Democrat has won the presidency without winning Pennsylvania since 1948. And no candidate has won the Democratic nomination without winning Pennsylvania since 1972.

[What the Clinton campaign secretly means: PAY NO ATTENTION TO THE FACT THAT WE'VE LOST 14 OF THE LAST 17 CONTESTS AND SAID THAT MICHIGAN AND FLORIDA WOULDN'T COUNT FOR ANYTHING. Also, we're still trying to wrap our minds around the amazing coincidence that the only "important" states in the nominating process are the ones that Clinton won.]

But the Obama campaign has just announced that it is turning its attention away from Pennsylvania.

[Huh?]

This is not a strategy that can beat John McCain in November.

[I don't think Clinton's strategy of losing in state after state after promising more of the same politics is working all that well either.]

In the last two weeks, Barack Obama has lost ground among men, women, Democrats, independents and Republicans -- all of which point to a candidacy past its prime.

["A candidacy past its prime." These guys kill me.]

For example, just a few weeks ago, Barack Obama won 68% of men in Virginia, 67% in Wisconsin and 62% in Maryland. He won 60% of Virginia women and 55% of Maryland women. He won 62% of independents in Maryland, 64% in Wisconsin and 69% in Virginia. Obama won 59% of Democrats in Maryland, 53% in Wisconsin and 62% in Virginia. And among Republicans, Obama won 72% in both Virginia and Wisconsin.

But now Obama's support has dropped among all these groups.

[That's true, if you don't count all the winning we've been up to. As it turns out, it's difficult to maintain 40-point demographic advantages, even over Clinton]

In Mississippi, he won only 25% of Republicans and barely half of independents. In Ohio, he won only 48% of men, 41% of women and 42% of Democrats. In Texas, he won only 49% of independents and 46% of Democrats. And in Rhode Island, Obama won just 33% of women and 37% of Democrats.

[I'm sympathetic to their attempt to parse crushing defeats. And I'm sure Rush Limbaugh's full-throated endorsement of Clinton didn't make any difference. Right]

Why are so many voters turning away from Barack Obama in state after state?

[You mean besides the fact that we're ahead in votes, states won and delegates?]

In the last few weeks, questions have arisen about Obama's readiness to be president. In Virginia, 56% of Democratic primary voters said Obama was most qualified to be commander-in-chief. That number fell to 37% in Ohio, 35% in Rhode Island and 39% in Texas.

[Only the Clinton campaign could cherry pick states like this. But in contrast to their logic, in the most recent contest of Mississippi, voters said that Obama was more qualified to be commander in chief than Clinton by a margin of 55-42.]

So the late deciders -- those making up their minds in the last days before the election -- have been shifting to Hillary Clinton. Among those who made their decision in the last three days, Obama won 55% in Virginia and 53% in Wisconsin, but only 43% in Mississippi, 40% in Ohio, 39% in Texas and 37% in Rhode Island.

[If only there were enough late deciders for the Clinton campaign to actually be ahead, they would really be on to something.]

If Barack Obama cannot reverse his downward spiral with a big win in Pennsylvania, he cannot possibly be competitive against John McCain in November.

[If they are defining downward spiral as a series of events in which the Clinton campaign has lost more votes, lost more contests and lost more delegates to us ... I guess we will have to suffer this horribly painful slide all the way to the nomination and then on to the White House.]

[Thanks for the laughs guys. This was great.]

Jumpin' Pelosi-phat!

In what I would describe as a stunning, yes, STUNNING turn of events, Nancy Pelosi has finally taken it under advisement that she better start listening to her constituency. According to the Wall Street Journal today, Pelosi has asked the DOJ to take up the case of Harriet Miers and Josh Bolten for their activities in covering up for the White House with regard to the termination of several federal prosecutors. Further, Pelosi, aware that the DOJ will not likely be cooperative in this matter, has added a threat for insurance purposes. Read below:

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi asked DOJ: To open a grand jury investigation and pursue misdemeanor charges against Harriet Miers, the former White House counsel, and Joshua Bolten, President Bush’s chief-of-staff for contempt of Congress. Miers refused to testify to Congress regarding the dismissals of federal prosecutors in 2006. As for Bolten, he failed to turn over White House documents related to the dismissals.

She gave him one week to respond and said refusal to take the matter to a grand jury would result in the House’s filing of a civil lawsuit against the Bush administration.

Naturally, the Obstructplicans have cried foul ball. Pelosi reportedly gave them the finger. (By the by, all you Republicans out there looking for retribution for DICK Cheney's hearty "Go fuck yourself" on the Senate floor, THIS WAS SARCASM. Pelosi's got more manners than you do.)

John Boehner, House Republican leader, Put in Two Cents:
“This sort of pandering to the left-wing fever swamps of loony liberal activists does nothing to make America safer.”

Well, I'm sure that'll be a quote that the neocons will eat up. Aside from that though, the fever swamps have a message for you, Mr. Boehner (heh, he said boner):

This sort of pandering to the right-wing cess pools of crazy conservatives has done nothing to make America safer for the past seven years that you've had near complete control of the government. In fact, you've made us less safe. We did learn one thing that has proved useful for us from you though. Go fuck yourselves.

State of the Union

Let the lying begin...

Mike Gravel Demands Impeachment

Mike Gravel's Impeachment Statement

Some excerpts from the text:

As a Candidate for President, and most importantly as an American, I firmly believe that our most important and highest priority, both as individual American citizens and as a whole Nation, is to protect, defend, and nourish the foundation of American Democracy: the US Constitution and Bill of Rights. Every other issue is of secondary importance.

Mike, you don't even come close to expressing the urgency with which these matters must be addressed. Even if we choose to start impeachment proceedings soon, it may well be too late to effect any real change (though unlike Pelosi and her cowardly compatriots (channeling Colbert: "I'm looking at you, Reid."), I don't see this as a reason to stop).

The illegitimate authority of this newly constructed imperial Presidency – this Supreme Commander-in-Chief created by Cheney and Bush – has replaced the Rule-of-Law based on the Constitution and Bill of Rights.

Our system of co-equal branches of government, the unique and revolutionary principle of American Democracy, the great leap of faith that people could actually govern themselves, has been subverted. It is now almost dead.

This sums up the fight we are in better than anything said on the campaign trail by any of the leading candidates in the entirety of their political careers.

Read on. It's worth it.

Kucinich Drops Out of Presidential Race

Dennis Kucinich has dropped out of the presidental race. It's a big loss to the country, but hopefully he will continue the good fight in the Senate.

Keith Olbermann Tells the Administration What to Do With Itself

ANOTHER Republican Sentenced For Child Molestation

Is it just me, or are the Republicans just really picking up the lowest form of scum they can find and electing them without ANY second thoughts as to who these people might be?

(Notice that Fox also waits until the last possible second to mention that this guy's a Republican?)

From Faux News:

PIERRE, S.D. — A former state lawmaker was sentenced Thursday to 44 years in prison for raping two foster daughters in phony medical examinations he said would help them sell their reproductive eggs to infertile couples.

Only Congressman Who Actively Supports Terror is Republican

Well, neocons, congratulations; You've routed out the first congressman who actively supported terrorist organizations, then lied about it. There's only one teeny tiny little issue:

He's a Republican.

From the story:

A former Michigan congressman and delegate to the United Nations was indicted Wednesday on charges of being part of a terrorist fundraising ring that allegedly sent more than $130,000 to a supporter of al-Qaida and the Taliban.

Mark Deli Siljander, a Michigan Republican when he was in the House, was charged with money laundering, conspiracy and obstructing justice for allegedly lying about lobbying senators on behalf of an Islamic charity that authorities said was secretly sending funds to terrorists.

The 42-count indictment, unsealed in U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo., accuses the Islamic American Relief Agency of paying Siljander $50,000 for the lobbying -- money that turned out to be stolen from the U.S. Agency for International Development.

Siljander, from southwestern Michigan, served two terms in the U.S. House of Representatives during the 1980s and was appointed by President Reagan to serve as a U.S. delegate to the United Nations for one year in 1987.

Fred Upton defeated him in the 1986 primary.

Siljander could not immediately be reached for comment Wednesday, and his attorney in Kansas City, J.R. Hobbs, had no immediate comment.

The charges are part of a long-running case against the charity, which had been based in Columbia, Mo. In 2004, the Treasury Department designated the charity as a suspected fundraiser for terrorists.

Wow. You guys just have to have everything, don't you? What next won't you become outstanding hypocrites on?

I Love Being Quoted When Silencing Neocon Fools

As I said, I just LOVE being quoted when it comes to shutting down morons. My username below is ncc74656m.

Orphans from "Annie" to Kucinich: "We love you Mr. Kucinich."

Dennis Kucinich has asked the state of New Hampshire for a full electoral recount. So is it just a 2000 Redux? No. It seems that Mr. Kucinich is concerned with something much larger than himself.

From The News & Observer:

DETROIT - Democratic Presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich, the most outspoken advocate in the Presidential field and in Congress for election integrity, paper-ballot elections, and campaign finance reform, has sent a letter to the New Hampshire Secretary of State asking for a recount of Tuesday's election because of "unexplained disparities between hand-counted ballots and machine-counted ballots."

"I am not making this request in the expectation that a recount will significantly affect the number of votes that were cast on my behalf," Kucinich stressed in a letter to Secretary of State William M. Gardner. But, "Serious and credible reports, allegations, and rumors have surfaced in the past few days...It is imperative that these questions be addressed in the interest of public confidence in the integrity of the election process and the election machinery - not just in New Hampshire, but in every other state that conducts a primary election."

I think that for point of fact alone, Mr. Kucinich may yet win my vote for the primary. Thank you, Dennis, for taking this fight right back to the theives in power, and make them know that we won't take it anymore!