A Month in the Life

Great Close By McCain

noreply@blogger.com (99 Blogger) — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 03:12:00 +0000

You can't beat McCain's life experience. I think McCain won this one.

Obama is Lost

noreply@blogger.com (99 Blogger) — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 02:59:00 +0000

Completely out of his league on foreign policy. Obama doesn't even make sense when answering foreign policy questions. His only mantra is "I didn't support the war". Beyond that, I'm afraid he is very naive and uninformed on foreign affairs.

I'll Be Brief

noreply@blogger.com (99 Blogger) — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 02:51:00 +0000

Obama says "I'll be brief" then goes on and on. Reminds me of the evangelist who says "in closing"....:)

Pakistan

noreply@blogger.com (99 Blogger) — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 02:44:00 +0000

Obama said that no one is advocating invading Pakistan and then he turns around in the next breath and advocates just that (if they are not going to go after bin Laden...which they have not done). Obama plays really loose with the facts. Will he be held accountable? Probably not.

Terrific Questions

noreply@blogger.com (99 Blogger) — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 02:26:00 +0000

Isn't it amazing that every question is deemed a "terrific question" by the candidates. I wish, just for once, that one of them would say, "that was a stupid question".

A New Right

noreply@blogger.com (99 Blogger) — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 02:21:00 +0000

Obama just enumerated a new right for every American citizen: the right to health care. Are you kidding me? This guy is a socialist.

Drinking Game

noreply@blogger.com (99 Blogger) — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 02:07:00 +0000

Okay, I'm taking a swig of Diet Mt. Dew every time Obama says "aaand" or "uh" and every time McCain says "my friends". I think I am on a caffeine high.

A Commission?

noreply@blogger.com (99 Blogger) — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 02:01:00 +0000

I never thought I'd like the idea of a commission to solve the Medicare problem. But, when McCain proposed it, likening it to the base closure commission (which overcame partisanship), I thought, "that's not a bad idea". Ok, maybe I'm drinking the kool-aid. But, have you heard a better idea on Medicare?

Jello and Hoover, Oh My!

noreply@blogger.com (99 Blogger) — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 01:53:00 +0000

Loved McCain's response comparing Obama's tax policies to "nailing jello to the wall" and the comparison to Herbert Hoover. At this point, McCain is taking it to him and Obama is just dull.

This Is McCain's Format

noreply@blogger.com (99 Blogger) — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 01:49:00 +0000

McCain is coming across as more personable in this format. Obama seems distant, aloof. Obama's responses drone on and one with frequent starts and stops. He is much better with prepared text.

JFK

noreply@blogger.com (99 Blogger) — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 01:44:00 +0000

Obama invoked the ghost of JFK when he referenced Kennedy's pledge to go to the moon. At the time, no one knew for sure how we would do it. Good point when comparing to the goal of energy independence.

McCain Comes Out Swinging

noreply@blogger.com (99 Blogger) — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 01:41:00 +0000

McCain is nailing Obama on spending (I loved the $3,000 overhead projector reference). He also called Obama on not bucking his own party, ever.

Fairness Doctrine

noreply@blogger.com (99 Blogger) — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 01:35:00 +0000

If Obama mentions Bush one more time, I think in all fairness, Bush should be allowed to respond.

Obama Describes Trickle Down Economics

noreply@blogger.com (99 Blogger) — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 01:31:00 +0000

In talking about how the credit crisis will affect average Americans, Obama described what Democrats derisively call "trickle down economics". In other words, when businesses, big and small, don't have access to capital, the average American worker suffers. Is the converse not true? When business has more capital to invest (meaning lower taxes), the average American worker benefits. Be consistent, Senator.

Yes, Yes, Yes

noreply@blogger.com (99 Blogger) — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 01:27:00 +0000

McCain finally nails Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac along with the Dems complicity in their downfall. Yes, Yes, Yes!

Questions, comments, concerns? Please feel free to E-mail!

Warren Buffet for Treasury Sec??

noreply@blogger.com (99 Blogger) — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 01:26:00 +0000

What in the world is McCain doing suggesting an Obama supporter (Warren Buffet) as his Sec. of the Treasury? Is there not a credible conservative for the job? Wow, McCain, what a disappointment.

Questions, comments, concerns? Please feel free to E-mail!

Nashville Debate Running Commentary

noreply@blogger.com (99 Blogger) — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 01:22:00 +0000

Obama starts out with a "blame Bush" mantra. I think everyone is so tired of this. Bush is not on the ballot. Neither is Bush the sole cause of the economic crisis. Stop blaming Bush!

Questions, comments, concerns? Please feel free to E-mail!

Debate Time In Nashville

noreply@blogger.com (99 Blogger) — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 12:44:00 +0000

I live in Nashville, TN. This city is abuzz with all the media and political types in town for tonight's presidential debate. The event is being held at Belmont University just a few miles from where I live. I have tried desperately to get a ticket only to be told that it is an exercise in futility.

The Curb Event Center, where the debate is being held, is a 6,000-seat auditorium; yet I am told that there will only be 500 people actually in the hall tonight. The two campaigns are allotted about 150 tickets each for their guests (meaning, I guess, major donors). Belmont has been allotted 50 tickets for students (which are being given out via a lottery). The Gallup Organization has chosen 80 to 120 "undecided voters" from the Nashville area who will be the questioners during this Town Hall style debate. And the remaining tickets are given to national sponsors, local and state dignitaries.

There are many debate-watching parties and events before, during, and after the main event tonight. I am attending one myself where I am assured that the only thing that will rival the riveting debate will be the delightful dishes. Food and politics...you know I'm there!

I hope to give you all some running commentary on the debate tonight between bites of exquisite Mexican cuisine and bottomless mugs of Diet Mt. Dew. This might be McCain's last opportunity to turn the tide on this race. The town hall format is certainly his forte. We'll see how it goes.

Tune in tonight for my take on the proceedings. Another site that I frequent during live political events is The Corner at National Review Online. Here you can see instantaneous reaction from some of the leading conservative media figures as they blog brutally honest reactions to what we are all witnessing. Check it out.

Questions, comments, concerns? Please feel free to E-mail!

Desperately Seeking A Leader

noreply@blogger.com (99 Blogger) — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 02:00:00 +0000

The key question everyone should be asking before going to the polls next month is "who is the real leader in this race?".

The problems we face in this country are huge and the solutions are elusive. The unfolding financial crisis has unsettled the body politic even more than the lingering effects of a long, unpopular war. There is no clear path to a solution out of the mess we're in. Both McCain and Obama voted for the huge bailout bill which passed both houses of Congress last week. Today, the markets seemed not to care that Congress supposedly "fixed" the problem. So no one seems to know what the next move is. President Bush, the lamest of lame ducks, cannot reassure the public enough to stop panic selling. The bottom line is that our country desperately needs a leader right now who can speak with clarity and authority....whose vision is both rational and communicable to the average citizen.

There is no better situation to evaluate a leader's mettle than in the throes of a crisis. Thus, McCain's and Obama's responses to unexpected and troubling events at home and abroad over the past few weeks are illuminating.

When Russia invaded a democratic neighbor, Georgia, on the eve of the Olympics, McCain was unequivocal and strong in his denunciation of the Russian Soviet-style aggression that harked back to the Cold War era. Obama's response was more timid and in fact evolved over a few days until he finally got around to McCain's position. Clearly, McCain won that round on leadership.

On the recent financial crisis, both candidates have been disappointing. While Congress was under intense pressure to pass the unprecedented and unpopular bailout bill, arguably the most significant piece of economic legislation since the New Deal, Obama's initial reaction was to stay on the campaign trail, far away from D.C. His basic response to the biggest financial crisis of a generation was "if you need me, call me"...not inspiring words from one who wants to ascend to the presidency in just three months. See Obama's timid response here:

While Obama initially wanted no part in the bailout negotiations. McCain went whole hog, suspended his campaign, threatened to sit out the first debate, and rushed back to Washington, ostensibly because his leadership was needed in the Republican caucus. Yes, the move smelled like a political stunt, but it probably would have worked to bolster McCain as someone who can forge compromises and actually get something done if in fact McCain actually did something once he got back to DC. The problem was that, from all accounts, McCain's presence at the negotiation table had a negligible effect and, indeed, the initial legislation went down in a blaze of glory. Clearly, McCain was not the leader that he thought he could be on this issue. The result was McCain's image as a leader took a major hit. His actions were labeled a campaign stunt and his campaign has been reeling ever since. In my opinion, McCain missed a golden opportunity in the first debate to rail against the pork-laden, Wall Street bailout and to call out the Democratic leaders for their excessive partisanship as well as their own culpability in the current economic crisis.

So, who is the real leader in this race? Clearly, McCain is a maverick, a war hero, a long-time Washington pol who has bucked his own party on many occasions. But his marks as a leader are mixed at best. Obama clearly is an opportunistic politician with a thin resume. We haven't had an opportunity to fully evaluate his leadership skills because he really hasn't led anything. In the few opportunities that he has had in this campaign to show real leadership qualities, Obama has been a big disappointment.

Questions, comments, concerns? Please feel free to E-mail!

One Month To Go

noreply@blogger.com (99 Blogger) — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 17:33:00 +0000

Americans will choose their next president one month from today. It has been an incredibly long and unpredictable process that has made this one of the most memorable campaigns in modern history. Remember when Hillary Clinton was seen not only as the inevitable Democratic nominee but as the president-in-waiting no less? Remember when Rudy Giuliani was viewed as the best option to stop the Clinton juggernaut? Remember when John Edwards was actually taken seriously (never by me, but others)? Remember when John McCain's campaign was on life support and flat broke? Remember when Joe Biden said that Obama was not ready to be president? Boy, things sure have changed! These politicos have staged a drama much more interesting than those annoying reality TV shows.

McCain has shown himself to be the ultimate Survivor. I thought this guy was finished in 2000 when Bush authoritatively put down a maverick uprising from the McCainiacs. I thought he was surely finished in the Republican party when he forged the infamous Gang of 14 which essentially thwarted Bush's attempt to appoint conservative judges to the federal judiciary. I just knew that McCain would never be the Republican standard bearer when it was widely rumored that John Kerry was contemplating asking McCain to run as his VP in '04. When McCain bucked the conservative faithful on immigration last year, I went ahead and wrote his political obituary. But mainly through a divide and conquer strategy with conservatives and through his own personal story of heroism, McCain has persevered and is one month away from possibly becoming our oldest first term president.

Later this week I'll reveal the candidate for whom I voted in the primary. He/she did not become the nominee. I do believe that my candidate would have been a stronger general election candidate. The nature of politics, however, is you take what you can get and make the best of it.

Questions, comments, concerns? Please feel free to E-mail!

The Punditry

noreply@blogger.com (99 Blogger) — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 03:32:00 +0000

What a surprise! Once again, my initial reaction to a political event is in stark contrast to the opinion spouted by the media punditry. From what I'm seeing, many thought Palin did a very good job tonight. I guess the media's incessant caricature of Palin had lowered expectations so much for the Governor that anything short of incoherent babbling would be seen as a victory.

Questions, comments, concerns? Please feel free to E-mail!

Biden Wins Debate

noreply@blogger.com (99 Blogger) — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 02:31:00 +0000

No major gaffes. Biden comes across as knowledgeable, passionate, dedicated. He was respectful toward Palin and used the strategy of attacking McCain rather than Palin...very smart. Palin was out of her league. She's charming, admirable, and I agree with her on many policies; but she is not quite ready for an examination of this magnitude. I fear the McCain camp is in the beginning stages of a continual downward slide toward election day.

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Say it ain't so, Joe

noreply@blogger.com (99 Blogger) — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 02:12:00 +0000

I'm afraid that Palin is coming across as too flippant...too informal. This is not a mayoral debate in Wasilla. I like Palin; but she is not coming across as a serious candidate tonight I'm afraid.

Questions, comments, concerns? Please feel free to E-mail!

Palin Lite; Biden Heavy

noreply@blogger.com (99 Blogger) — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 01:55:00 +0000

No doubt Biden is way more experienced in policy and Washington than Palin. Palin does seem a bit too much like the student who has crammed all night for a final exam and is just reciting a memorized script. The stature gap is showing between these two.

Questions, comments, concerns? Please feel free to E-mail!

Energy

noreply@blogger.com (99 Blogger) — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 01:33:00 +0000

Palin's strong suit supposedly is energy; but Biden won this round in my opinion.

Questions, comments, concerns? Please feel free to E-mail!