Saturday, May 31, 2008

Donna Brazile Tells Jim Blanchard You Gotta Play By The Rules At DNC Rules Committee Meeting



CNN Contributor and undeclared Democratic Superdelegate Donna Brazile tells Clinton supporter and former Governor Jim Blanchard that her "mama told her you gotta play by the rules" in response to his speech on seating delegates in a way that favors Senator Clinton.

It was long believed that Brazile favored Hillary Clinton but any movement by Brazile in Clinton's favor was destroyed long ago by the antics of Clinton supporters sending nasty emails to the Dem power-broker regarding an assumed pro-Obama stance. Moreover, Brazile has not been pleased with some of the racially charged campaigning by Clinton and her staff.

Given the mic, Brazile reminded us all that the reason this meeting of the DNC Rules Committee was called is that both Florida and Michigan did not play by the rules set for by the DNC Rules Committee last year.

DNC Rules Committee May 31, 2008 Video By Firedoglake



In this video Walter Shapiro, Joe Sudbay are asked by Jane Hamsher "What are we doing here" as they're at today's DNC Rules Committee (May 31, 2008)

Rep. Robert Wexler at DNC Rules Committee Testifies on Unseated FL Delegates



Rep. Robert Wexler



This video presents the rousing speech gave by Florida Rep. Robert Wexler, an Obama supporter, and regarding the seating of Florida delegates. Wexler's impassioned plea for unity and his expressed support for "The Ausman Petition" has won him new fans around America, some calling for him to be considered for Vice President.

DNC Rules Committee Membership Chairs and Membersi

DNC Rules Committee Membership



This is the DNC Rules Committee for 2008:

Chairs:

Sunita Leeds
Mary Rose Oakar
David Walters

Party Leaders and Elected
Officials:


Carol Alvarado
Joe Carmichael
Michael Coleman, Mayor
Kevin Conlon
Rev. Luis Cortes
Donald Dunn
Irma Esparza
Bishop David Evans
Joe Garcia
Deborah Groene
Cinda Hughes
Kate Hughes
Sandi Jackson, Alderman
Sheila Johnson
Evan Low, Council Member
Claire Lucas
David Mack, State Representative
Bishop Vashti McKenzie
Regina Montoya
Roy Neel
Don Roman
Bren Simon
Art Terrazas
Wilma Webb
Sam Yoon, City Councilor

Bios (From DNC pdf file linked to above):

Governor Dean’s 2008 Convention Standing Committee Nominations
Brief Biographical Information* – Rules Committee

* Biographical sketches are based on information collected from public sources.

CHAIRS

Sunita Leeds
Sunita Leeds has been involved in Democratic politics for years. A software developer by training, she is now deeply involved with progressive non-profit causes particularly focused on education, is on three advisory boards related to education, and Co-
Chairs The Enfranchisement Foundation, which funds charities that act as catalysts in breaking the cycle poverty and ignorance, and charities that specialize in women's issues. As Chair of the DNC Indo-American Leadership Council Advisory Board, Ms. Leeds coordinates a network of Indian-American activists, community leaders, elected officials, and
celebrities to support the fundraising and outreach work of the Council.

Mary Rose Oakar
Mary Rose Oakar is President of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, the largest Arab-American
grassroots civil rights organization in the country. Oakar represented western Cleveland, Ohio in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1977 to 1993. While in Congress, she worked on several pieces of legislation related to peace and justice in the Middle East and for those of Middle East ancestry. During the last 1980s, she served as secretary of the House Democratic Caucus. Her political career began when she served on the Cleveland City Council from 1974 to
1976. After leaving Congress, Representative Oakar was a member of the Ohio House of Representatives. She was named President of the ADC in 2003.

David Walters
David Walters is president of Walters Power International, which specializes in electrical generation equipment. He
served as governor of Oklahoma from 1990 to 1994. As Governor, he made education a top priority and increased
education funding by 30 percent and invested heavily in construction and renovation at state colleges. Gov. Walters’ prior professional experience includes university and medical center administration, commercial real estate
development, power project development. Gov. Walters received an engineering degree from the University of Oklahoma and an MBA from Harvard Business School.

PARTY LEADERS AND
ELECTED OFFICIALS

Carol Alvarado
Carol Alvarado served as a member of the Houston City Council from 2001- 2007. Prior to her election to the
Houston city council, Ms. Alvarado worked as senior executive assistant to Houston Mayor Lee Brown. She has also served as legislative assistant to Cong. Gene Green and as a consultant in economic and community development in Houston. Ms.
Alvarado received a BA in political science from the University of Houston.

Joe Carmichael
Joe Carmichael is an attorney with the Springfield, MO law firm of Carmichael & Neal, P.C. Mr. Carmichael's primary
areas of practice include tax law, business planning and transactions as well as commercial litigation. Mr.
Carmichael served as the Missouri State Democratic Party Chair and as a member of the Democratic National
Committee from 1994 to March 2003. He was elected President of the Association of State Democratic Chairs in February 2001, and served that position until March 2003.

Michael Coleman
Mayor Coleman has served as the Mayor of Columbus, Ohio since January 2000. Mayor Coleman was
the first African American in Ohio history to be elected mayor of the capital city. As mayor, he has worked
to revitalize the downtown district, improve city services, and promote volunteer and mentorship programs in
the city. Prior to becoming mayor, Coleman served as President of the Columbus City Council from 1997 to
1999, and as a Council member from 1992 to 1999. Mayor Coleman graduated from the University of
Cincinnati in 1977 with a degree in Political Science. He earned his law degree from the University of Dayton
Law School in 1980.

Kevin Conlon
Kevin Conlon is the founder and president of Conlon Public Strategies, a public affairs consulting firm. He has been involved in numerous political campaigns, including serving as Illinois State Chairman for Gov. Howard Dean’s 2004 presidential campaign. Mr. Conlon was appointed by President Clinton to serve on the Presidential Advisory Committee on Expanding Training Opportunities. He is a lecturer at the Harris School of Public Policy Studies at the University of Chicago. Mr. Conlon holds degrees from Illinois State University, the University of Illinois and Loyola University of Chicago School of Law.

Luis Cortes
Reverend Luis Cortes is the president and CEO of Esperanza USA, the largest Hispanic faith-based community-development corporation in the country. In January 2005, he was featured as one of Time magazine's "25 Most Influential Evangelicals." Rev.
Cortes has worked to support Hispanic faith-based service organizations, strengthen Hispanic marriages and families, and respond to the needs of troubled youth throughout the country. He has served on the Pennsylvania Minority Business Development Authority and the City's Workforce Investment Board. Rev. Cortes is also the founder and Executive Director of
the Hispanic Clergy of Philadelphia and is one of the founders of United Bank, the first African American owned
commercial bank in Pennsylvania.

Donald Dunn
Mr. Dunn is a former chair of the Utah Democratic Party and held a variety of positions in the Clinton White House

Irma Esparza
Irma Esparza is Chief of Staff to D.C. Council member Kwame Brown. She previously served as political action
representative for AFSCME and has worked on various political campaigns, including Gov. Howard Dean’s primary
campaign in Arizona and Jim McGreevey’s 2001 gubernatorial campaign in New Jersey. Prior to joining AFSCME, Ms. Esparza worked at the U.S. Department of Commerce in the Office of Secretary William Daley. Ms. Esparza has a degree in
political science from Catholic University and an MPA from American University.


David Evans

Bishop David Evans is the pastor of Bethany Baptist Church in Lindenwold, NJ. With more than 27,000 members,
Bethany Baptist Church has implemented ministry outreaches that are impacting the country. Bishop Evans created Generations, Inc., a nonprofit community development corporation that to address the needs of southern New Jersey residents
through economic development and serves as chairman of the board of directors. Bishop Evans was ordained as bishop and presiding officer of the Abundant Harvest Fellowship of Churches, an international fellowship with more than 100 churches in the United States, Africa, and India. Bishop Evans graduated from Lincoln University in with degrees in economics and education.

Joe Garcia
Joe Garcia is president of the National Congress of American Indians, the country’s oldest and largest Native
advocacy organization. He is a former governor of the Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo and, at the end of his third term as governor, was elected chairman of the All Indian Pueblo Council. An electrical engineer by profession, Mr. Garcia retired in 2003 from Los
Alamos National Laboratory after 25 years service. He has also taught numerous courses in computers, electronics, lasers and math at the Northern New Mexico Community College since 1979.

Deborah Groene
Debbie Groene currently serves as Business Manager/Secretary Treasurer of District Council 81 of the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT). District Council 81 represents Iowa, Nebraska, and Western Illinois. Prior to this position,
Ms. Groene served as Business Representative for District Council 81. Ms. Groene obtained B.A. from Simpson College and a J.D. from Drake University School of Law.

Cinda Hughes
Cinda Hughes, a descendant of the Cherokee Nation and member of the Kiowa tribe, was raised in the small
rural community of Anadarko, Oklahoma. Ms. Hughes went on to be appointed by then Governor David
Boren to serve on the Bureau of Indian Affair's Advisory Committee on Exceptional Children. Ms. Hughes
served on the Board of Directors for ACLU-Oklahoma, as well as on the Advisory Board for the Oklahoma Office of Handicapped Concerns. In 2000 and 2004, she served as a delegate to the Democratic National Convention. Ms. Hughes is currently employed as a Legislative Associate at the National Congress of American Indians There, she advocates on behalf of tribes with federal agencies and Congress. Ms. Hughes has traveled throughout country to talk about disability issues and was Ms. Wheelchair America 2004.

Kate Hughes
Kate Hughes serves on the National Finance Board of the DNC and WLF as well as the boards and advisory councils of three universities, a private foundation and an orchestra. She lives in Princeton, New Jersey and New York City.

Sandi Jackson
Sandi Jackson, who was elected Chicago City Alderman in 2007, has been actively involved in Democratic Party politics for more than 18 years. A veteran of five presidential campaigns for the White House, Aldmerman Jackson served as a presidential appointee in the Clinton Administration as vice president of Congressional and external affairs for the Export-Import Bank of the United States. She also served as the director of VIP relations for the Presidential Inaugural Committee. She served as the national outreach coordinator for the Clinton/Gore 96 Campaign, organizing African American activities and serving as a
liaison with the leaders in politics, women’s organizations, veterans groups and U.S. business leaders. Alderman Jackson received her bachelor’s degree from Bowling Green State University, and received her JD from the University of Illinois School of Law.

Sheila Johnson
Sheila Johnson is the Team President, Managing Partner and Gvernor of the WNBA’s Washington Mystics. She is the first African American woman to be an owner or partner in three professional sports franchises, also having a piece of the Washington
Capitals and Washington Wizards. Ms. Johnson is currently president and CEO of Salamander Hospitality and a
partner in Lincoln Holdings, LLC. She is also a member of the Board of Directors of the Sorensen Institute for
Political Leadership at the University of Virginia, Chair of the Board of Governors at Parsons The New School for Design, a violinist, philanthropist and community leader.

Evan Low
At the age of 23, Evan Low was elected to the City Council in Campbell, California. Councilman Low
has worked to be a voice for youth, Asian Americans and GLBT Americans through his community involvement and public service. In addition to his service as City Council member, Councilman Low has served on a commission for senior care,
directed a local volunteer center, and has been involved in education and the arts in his community. He was
awarded the Asian American Hero award by Santa Clara County for community involvement and civic
activism, and has been honored by the mayor of San Francisco for his community leadership. Councilman
Low holds an associate’s degree from De Anza College and a bachelor’s degree in political science from San Jose State University.

Claire Lucas
Claire Lucas is the Chair of the Democratic National Committee’s Gay and Lesbian Leadership Council. Ms.
Lucas is a long time Party activist and donor. In addition, she currently serves on the Board of the National
Stonewall Democrats and is Co-Chair of its Political Action Committee. Previously, she worked at the World
Bank for several years in a variety of roles, and now is an independent investor.

David Mack
David Mack has represented Charleston County in the South Carolina Legislature since 1997 and is
a former chair of the South Carolina Legislative Black Caucus. Representative Mack is a member of the Board of Directors of the S.C. Coalition for Black Voter Participation, co-chair of the Progressive Network and a member of the Charleston
Chapter of Rainbow PUSH. A graduate of Howard University, he is a businessman, health care consultant and radio talk show host.

Vashti McKenzie
Bishop Vashti McKenzie received her first ordination in 1984 when she was made an itinerant deacon and appointed pastor of a small church in Chesapeake City, Maryland. She later served as Pastor of Payne Memorial AME Church in Baltimore. While
serving at Payne Memorial AME, Bishop McKenzie was elected bishop of the AME church, becoming the first woman to serve as bishop in any predominantly African American Methodist denomination in America. In 2005,Bishop McKenzie made history
again by becoming the first female president of the Council of Bishops of the AME Church. Bishop McKenzie received a BA in journalism from the University of Maryland, a master of divinity from Howard University and a doctor of divinity from United
Theological Seminary.

Regina Montoya
Regina Montoya is the chief executive office of New American Alliance where her responsibilities include the development of strategic and tactical plans to fulfill NAA’s mission of promoting the advancement of the Latino community with a focus on
economic and political empowerment. Prior to joining NAA, Ms. Montoya was founder and president of WORKRules,
a Texas-based workforce training and media and community relations company. Ms. Montoya has been honored by Hispanic Business Magazine as one of the 100 most influential Hispanics in the country. She earned her BA from Wellesley College and her JD from Harvard Law School.

Roy Neel
Roy Neel served as Chief of Staff for Vice President Al Gore in the White House and continues to serve in the that capacity today. He was also Deputy Chief of Staff for President Bill Clinton, where he was responsible for coordinating all policy and
communications for the President. In 2004, Mr Neel served as the Campaign Manager for Gov. Dean’s presidential campaign. He also served as president and CEO of the U.S. Telecom Association, a trade group representing the regional Bell companies. He is an adjunct professor of political science at Vanderbilt University, where he teaches courses in Presidential Transitions and
Presidential Leadership. Mr. Neel is a graduate of Vanderbilt and has an MPA from Harvard University.

Don Roman
Don Roman, an attorney, is a Senior Financial Advisor for Met Life in Atlanta. Mr. Roman has been active in Georgia Democratic politics for many years. Mr. Roman is also active in 100 Black Men of Atlanta, Inc., an organization that works to empower
Atlanta’s challenged communities. He is a graduate of Yale and received a JD from Harvard.

Bren Simon
Bren Simon is the owner of Corporate Design Associates, Inc., and president of Gambit Capital Management, MBS Associates, Inc., LLC, Property Management Company, and Bren Marine Inc. Active in business, she also contributes significantly to a wide
variety of organizations and projects. Along with husband, she founded and serves as a director of the Mel and Bren Simon Charitable Trust and the Max Simon Charitable Trust. In Indianapolis, she co-founded the Family Support Centre, serves on the
board of the Coalition from Homelessness Intervention and Prevention, and on the boards of advisors of the Indiana Children’s Wish Fund, the Heartland Film Festival and Dance Kaleidoscope. Through the Charitable Trust, she supports many cultural and civic organizations, including the Indianapolis Zoo.

Art Terraza
Art Terrazas is the Deputy Executive Director for the Anthony-Berino Economic Development Corporation in his hometown of Anthony New Mexico. Mr. Terrazas also serves as the Vice- Chair for the county Democratic Party. He discovered politics during the American Legion’s Boy’s State program and volunteered for various local Democratic races in Doña Ana County Mr. Terrezas was an intern in the office U.S. Senator Jeff Bingaman, and went to join the field staff for John Kerry’s Presidential campaign. He served as the southern New Mexico field coordinator during the primary election and served as the Hispanic
outreach coordinator to help secure the endorsement of the Utah State Democratic Hispanic caucus. After receiving his bachelor’s degree in Political Science from New Mexico State University in 2003, Mr. Terrazas was asked to serve as the Southern New Mexico Regional Field coordinator for the Kerry-Edwards presidential campaign. Mr. Terrazas was named as the local Director for Communities United, a new non-profit, issue advocacy group for Albuquerque’s middle-class families.

Wilma Webb
Wilma Webb was elected to the Colorado State Legislature in 1980 where she sponsored dozens of bills including school reform and equality initiatives. One of her most noteworthy efforts was legislation that adopted Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday as a Colorado state holiday prior to it becoming a national holiday. Ms. Webb has been recognized by several
organizations, including the National Education Association and the Association for Retarded Citizens. Ms. Webb is married to former Denver mayor Wellington Webb.

Sam Yoon
Sam Yoon was sworn in to the Boston City Council in January 2006 as a Councilor-At-Large and serves as chairperson of the Housing and Human Services committees on the City Council. Born in Seoul, Korea, Councilor Yoon was the first Asian American to be elected to any public office in Boston. Prior to his election to the City Council, he worked with
numerous community-based nonprofits, including The Community Builders, the nation’s largest non-profit developer of affordable housing. In addition to his work for non-profits, Councilor Yoon is a founding member and core steering committee member for the New Majority, a coalition of African Americans, Latinos and Asians who work to advance a common
agenda for communities of color in Boston. He received a BA degree in philosophy from Princeton and a
masters in public policy from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government.

The Jon Ausman Petition Re: Florida Delegates - By DNC Member Jon Ausman



The Jon Ausman Petition



In the matter of today's DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee, there was a mention of something called the "Ausman Petition" which was accepted by the Obama campaign and Robert Wexler's saying on MSNBC, also by the Clinton camp. Now that's just the delegate petition, but not the Superdelegate Ausman Petition. Below is the letter by DNC Member John Ausman which presents his petition:

The staff of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) have completed and submitted their review of the two appeals seeking to have 23 superdelegates and 92 pledged delegates award to Florida .

The first appeal notes the DNC Charter states Democratic US Senators, Democratic US House Members, former DNC Chairs and DNC Members “shall” be delegates to the Democratic National Convention. This “bill of rights” given to 23 Floridians cannot be taken away by a subordinate body created by the DNC since that subordinate body does not have the authority to do so.

The second appeal states the penalty for violating the “timing rule” “shall be” a fifty percent (50%) reduction in the pledged delegates and the loss of the three (3) unpledged add-on delegates. This means Florida should have at least 92 pledged delegates.

The remaining 93 pledged delegates and three (3) unpledged add-on delegates I hope to win at a later time if not on this appeal itself.

Review by Co-Chairs, Rules and Presidential Politics

The two Co-Chairs of the DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee (RBC) have been reviewing the staff comments and recommendations since 31 March 2008. While the 2008 Delegate Selection Rules provide a strict timeline in many areas when an appeal is made it is silent on how long the Co-Chairs can review the appeals and the staff review.

For those who suggest the Co-Chairs are stalling, or planning to delay hearings until June, I say lets give them a reasonable amount of time to review the documents. If the staff has two weeks to review and write a report then lets give the Co-Chairs the same two week period of time.

This means the Co-Chairs should make a statement on Monday, 14 April 2008, at the latest.

The Co-Chairs can say one or both appeals are meritorious and grant the sought for remedies, they can deny one or both appeals (which will allow me to appeal such a denial within five days to the DNC RBC, or they can call for a DNC RBC Committee to here argument on the appeals.

I believe we are going before the full DNC RBC and I would like to be there no later than Saturday, 10 May 2008.

Unfortunately, these two appeals involve more than the consideration of what the written rules governing the DNC say. Rather than interpret the rules as written consideration is now being given to what the two Presidential campaigns want (what they want, of course, is what benefits them the most).

I believe one campaign is very interested in allowing the DNC RBC decide the matter while the other is stalling in order to preserve their position.

One would think both parties would see the tremendous advantage of resolving this matter early as it would help improve fundraising for both campaigns in Florida (not to mention DNC and FDP fundraising) as well as allow our attention to focus on getting ready to be Senator McCain, but short-term views are prevailing over the long-term benefits of ending this running sore.

With respect, I am,

Jon M. Ausman, Member
Democratic National Committee
Florida

RBC / DNC Rules Committee Broadcast Online - Part One

Today's the day and the RBC / DNC Rules Committee Broadcast can be seen now, online, as of this writing.

I'm watching the event now, and its frankly pretty raucous and contentious. It's clear to me that Senator Clinton's desire to "win at any cost" is tearing the Democratic Party apart, even as there are those here trying to bring it together.

Rep. Robert Wexler's doing a great job in representing Senator Obama. It seems, the Florida delegates will be seated at 1/2 vote, but there's not yet consensus on the Superdelegates there. According to The Huffington Post, Senator Clinton gains 19 delegates, but only with a half vote. But MSNBC's Chuck Todd is wrong -- Senator Clinton does not pick up the popular vote because that's not part of the negotiation terms. Todd forgets that the Florida matter came up based on a rules violation so the total votes were never considered valid. And even then, you can't hand her the entire vote, you have to split it with Obama -- and in accordance with the delegate vote split of one-half -- who still maintains his lead.

Next now, is the Michigan delegation 128 69 tp 59 percent split Clinton / Obama respectively. This compromise conclusion is being presented by Michigan Democratic Party Chair Mark Brewer as I write this.

Mayhill Fowler Was To Be Banned From "Bittergate" Fund-Raiser

Earlier this May 30th evening I had the pleasure of attending a fund-raiser for the Obama for America campaign featuring the appearance of possible Obama VP running mate Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius at the home of Wendy Holcombe and Carl Kawaja in San Francisco's Pacific Heights. It was by far not my first Obama money-party or event. I've lost count of the number of times I've attended these things.

But this one was such that I did not bring my trusty camcorder and it was out of respect for the campaign and for the feeling that after Huffington Post contributor Mayhill Fowler's "Bittergate" performance where she recorded Senator Obama's advice to volunteers on working in the rural areas of Pennsylvania, the campaign may be a bit paranoid and "under attack" in feeling.

While such was not the case, I did think to ask if I could bring the camcorder before I did it. But the main party Obama host told me that it wasn't necessary to do as it was not wanted. The campaign felt kind of "burned" by Mayhill Fowler and that's not the last we will hear of the matter.

What makes things more interesting is to learn that Mayhill wasn't even supposed to be allowed into the very event where the "Bittergate" comments occured. First, such events are closed to the press, but second, Mayhill had already developed a reputation for being hostile to the campaign, and so wasn't welcome on top of the standard restriction.

I got this news from a campaign official who I will not name and does not want to be identified. The point is that what the campaign would have preferred was a photo of Mayhill posted at the check-in table with the words "Do Not Admit This Person." Such did not exist, so Mayhill kind of "slipped in through the cracks," one could say.

I am way not kidding.

I can't think of a time when one media person has so upset so many people connected with an elected official either during a campaign run or in office. Mayhill's constant attempts at discrediting Obama for America's events and actions in the San Francisco Bay Area were the stuff of office gossip between Northern California Obama staffers and volunteers, more specifically people like me. As I've written before, Mayhill started off by just talking to people and not taking notes, then having to deal with reports that she misquoted someone in the process of trashing some aspect of campaign activity, and that was frequently and never under a consistent tune. And those charges were often considering the number of negative or at least not favorable articles she wrote and about every nit-picky thing one could think of.

Well, it's all over now, and for the future. Mayhill's been officially excluded from attending any Obama for America fundraising function on the scale of a house party and saying she's part of the media and is under the freedom of information act gives few any real comfort. It's not that Mayhill has the information, it's her diabolical media practices seemingly targeted to consistently harm Barack Obama's campaign that bother Obama for America.

SHAME ON CNN FOR FORCING JESSICA YELLIN TO CHANGE HER STORY

DID YOU SEE THIS:

CNN's Jessica Yellin's turnabout statement taking the blame off her former employer, which was thought in this space to be ABC News and Yellin says was MSNBC. At any rate, here's her new statement:

J
essica Yellin
Congressional Correspondent

I find myself in an interesting position. Today the blogs lit up with comments I made last night on AC360° and suddenly I’m being reported on.

It’s not the most comfortable position for a reporter.

So let me clarify what I said and what I experienced.

First, this involved my time on MSNBC where I worked during the lead up to war. I worked as a segment producer, overnight anchor, field reporter, and briefly covered the White House, the Pentagon, and general Washington stories.

Also, let me say: No, senior corporate leadership never asked me to take out a line in a script or re-write an anchor intro. I did not mean to leave the impression that corporate executives were interfering in my daily work; my interaction was with senior producers. What was clear to me is that many people running the broadcasts wanted coverage that was consistent with the patriotic fever in the country at the time. It was clear to me they wanted their coverage to reflect the mood of the country.

And now I’m going back to work covering the Puerto Rico primary from San Juan.


All I can say is SHAME ON CNN for having Yellin make this statement. I seriously doubt she did this on her own. But now the cat's out of the bag and the emperor wears no clothes at all. It's sad to see CNN try to restore it's reputation. Good luck there.

Young Hillary Clinton Video Shows What America Thinks Of Hillary



This is a totally funny video staring starring Jerry O'Connell and Brandon Johnson, and starring Laci Kay as Young Hillary Clinton. It reminds me of Reece Witherspoon's performance as Tracy Flick in the movie "Election" where she was a "do anything to win" high school kid.

Well, Laci Kay portrays a young Hillary Clinton who's totally power-hungry and manuevering. But what's interesting is that this video reflects how people see Senator Clinton and it's not good for her political future at all.

Friday, May 30, 2008

Father Michael Pfleger Is NOT Obama's Pastor or A Trinity Pastor; He's At Saint Sabina Roman Catholic Church!!

What Father Michael Pfleger said about Senator Hillary Clinton is on MSNBC, CNN, and Fox News (of course) but each of these mainstream media cable networks is telling a huge lie:

Father Michael Pfleger is not -- I repeat -- not a pastor of Trinity Church. He's also catholic, whereas Trinity is methodist. Father Michael Flager is the white pastor of predominantly black Saint Sabina Roman Catholic Church on Chicago's South Side.

So now, I guess the media's going to set up camera's over at Saint Sabina Roman Catholic Church? Oh brother!

But the biggest problem is the ever-lowering credibility of CNN, MSNBC, and Fox News. Thank God for Scott McClellan.

Did George Bush "Out" Valerie Wilson?



The question of the day: did Did George Bush "Out" Valerie Wilson ? Kpete certainly thinks so. In Democratic Underground, Kpete observes
During the (Today's Show) interview, Scottie revealed the two things that really pissed him off with the Bush Administration. First, being set up to lie by Karl Rove and Scooter Libby. And second, learning that Bush had--himself--authorized the selective leaking of the NIE.


The "NIE" is a National Intelligence Estimate, and according to Wikipedia,
are United States federal government documents that are the authoritative assessment of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) on intelligence related to a particular national security issue. NIEs are produced by the National Intelligence Council and express the coordinated judgments of the United States Intelligence Community, the group of 16 U.S. intelligence agencies. NIEs are classified documents prepared for policymakers.


This NIE was the document that in this case contained Valerie's identity. Even though Scott McClellan has tried to protect the President and even fingered Vice President Dick Cheney, it seems that the more Scott talks, the more likely the President may be in some trouble. The reason is that while it's not clear that President Bush did do what Kpete asserts, and there's no direct smoking gun, it seems that McClellan may be giving more ammo for people to try and connect disparate dots. Stay tuned.

NYC Crane Collapses And Falls Killing Two - Why?

Ok. We've got to ask what's going on when we hear about yet another crane collapsing in New York City. These things are supposed to be reliable both for crew and the public below. What's going on?

I'm wondering if, overall there's a kind of "crisis of competence" in America, which could be the result of a terrible and poorly funded education system and low wage pay relative to the cost of living. What ever the case, something is clearly wrong. It kind of violates the overall faith we have that "things will work" -- you know?